Penelec Adds New Line and Substation Workers from Power Systems Institute Training Program

READING, Pa., June 14, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Pennsylvania Electric Company (Penelec), a subsidiary of FirstEnergy Corp. FE, has hired 24 graduates of the company's utility worker training program as part of its ongoing efforts to enhance reliability for customers in its Pennsylvania service area.

The new employees include 19 line workers that represent the first graduating class of the company's Power Systems Institute (PSI) training program established in 2014 at Edinboro University's Porecco College in Erie, Pa.  In addition, five substation electricians have been hired after graduating from the existing PSI program at Pennsylvania Highlands Community College in Johnstown, Pa., which was reinstituted by FirstEnergy in 2014.

"The PSI program is an effective pipeline for adding well-trained, highly skilled employees to our workforce," said Scott Wyman, regional president of Penelec.  "By teaming with our veteran linemen and substation personnel, these new employees will help ensure reliable service for our customers, now and in the future."

The new Penelec lines employees listed by work location, with their hometowns, are:

• Clearfield – Jason Lobdell, Centerville.
• Erie – Kyle Bogle, Erie; Matthew Rosthouser, Waterford; and Erie David Wood, McKeesport.
• Indiana – Jacob Baldensperger, Warren; Nicoles Gardner, Indiana; Andrew Travis, Warren.
• Johnstown – Gregory Sipe, Friedens; and Dalton Miller, Salix.
• Mansfield – Kirah Thompson, Knoxville.
• Montrose – Bradley Grosvenor, Kingsley; Alex Murrelle, Sayre; and Zachary Riegel, Owego, NY.
• Oil City – Jared Lines, Towanda.
• Shippensburg – Andrew Koser, Shippensburg; Jonathan Martin, Newville; Zachary Piper, Shippensburg.
• Towanda – Benjamin Griffith, Wyalusing; Christopher O'Conner, Lopez.

The new Penelec substation employees listed by work location, with their hometowns, are:

• Clearfield – Colton Cunningham, Rouseville; Heath Wirfel, Ebensburg.
• Lewistown – Noah Kolar, South Fork; Zackary Mauk, Northern Cambria.
• Towanda – Wyatt Shuman, Rome.

PSI is an award-winning, two-year educational program originally developed by FirstEnergy in 2000 to help prepare the company's next generation of utility line and substation workers.     

The PSI students split time between classes at Porecco College and Pennsylvania Highlands Community College completing academic course work, and Penelec training facilities in Erie and Richland.  All students focus on safe work practices and procedures in the electrical environment.  The graduates earned an associate of applied science degree in Electric Utility Technology.

Since the program's inception, FirstEnergy has hired nearly 1,500 line and substation personnel who completed PSI programs in Maryland, West Virginia, Ohio, Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

For information about how to enroll in the PSI program, call 1-800-829-6801, or go to www.firstenergycorp.com/psi.

Penelec serves approximately 590,000 customers in 31 Pennsylvania counties.  Follow Penelec on Twitter @Penelec and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/PenelecElectric.

FirstEnergy is dedicated to safety, reliability and operational excellence.  Its 10 electric distribution companies form one of the nation's largest investor-owned electric systems, serving customers in Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, West Virginia, Maryland and New York.  The company's transmission subsidiaries operate more than 24,000 miles of transmission lines that connect the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic regions.  Follow FirstEnergy online at www.firstenergycorp.com.  Follow FirstEnergy on Twitter @FirstEnergyCorp.

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SOURCE FirstEnergy Corp.