February 2022 | Volume 84 | Issue 2
Opportunities Available For Northland High School Students
Two exciting opportunities are now available for high school students in Platte-Clay Electric Cooperative’s service territory. The Youth Tour leadership conference application is now open to high school juniors and the PCEC Scholarship application is now open to high school seniors and college students.
The Youth Tour program is an essay and video contest that offers high school juniors the opportunity to grow as young leaders during an all-expenses-paid trip to Washington, D.C. during the summer. The topic for this year’s contest is “As high school juniors you could potentially be our next generation of co-op members. If you were managing Platte-Clay Electric, what would you do to reach younger and older members alike?” Entries for Youth Tour are due by the end of Friday, March 4.
PCEC’s Scholarship program awards three $1,000 scholarships every year, with one going to a student in each of the cooperative’s service districts. Applicants are required to fill out a student profile and write a short answer about an attribute or achievement that sets them apart. The deadline for scholarship applications is the same day, March 4, 2022.
PCEC is proud to support youth development across the Northland. The cooperative helps grow the next generation of Northland leaders by supporting teacher education events, extracurricular organizations, student athletics, leadership conferences and scholarships. Platte-Clay also provides free safety demonstrations and career presentations to school and community groups.
Meeting Our Consumer-Members’ Evolving Expectations
Dave Deihl, General Manager
From the General Manager
Since 1938, Platte-Clay Electric Cooperative has provided safe and reliable energy to the Northland region. As you can imagine, how we operate as an organization looks much different today than it did 84 years ago.
Our bucket trucks and tools feature technology that no one could have imagined all those years ago. Our automated meters provide accurate information about energy usage and service availability that for decades required an inspection process to determine. Our accounting systems calculate and archive members’ bills using programming that our first billing department couldn’t have dreamed of as they meticulously calculated every bill by hand.
Two significant steps forward were made more recently: self service tools for members to track their usage and a shift toward online and mail-in voting for co-op elections. Both of these transformations were a result of wanting to meet our consumer-members expectations and empower them with more options for how they interact with their co-op.
Late last year, we launched a new and improved online account experience for our members. The online portal now features extensive self-service tools for monitoring usage and demand. These tools were custom-built for our co-op to integrate data directly from our members’ electric meters into easy-to-understand charts and graphs that show how usage changes over time, how demand is impacted by those patterns and how they relate to weather conditions.
Another important shift in our co-op’s offerings is the move to facilitate online and mail-in voting for co-op elections. This change was first introduced during the height of the pandemic to allow for safe participation in the democratic process. We found that implemented this safe, secure and independently verified system also lowered barriers to participating in the election and as a result the number of voting members has skyrocketed during the past two years.
95% of members voted to make these changes permanent in 2021, and we have been working hard to determine how that will shift the election process going forward. To reflect our members’ desires for a streamlined election, our annual meeting will be simplified starting this year to include only a brief business meeting.
There will be no hot dogs, carnival or vendor fair due to the fact that we expect attendance to be low, with most members likely choosing to vote online or by mail in advance of that day. Instead, keep an eye out for local opportunities to connect with the co-op at community events later this year. This is a shift many organizations have undergone in recent years to make it less burdensome on their members to get involved and have their voice heard.
These developments make the lives of our members a little easier, and we view both of these developments as significant steps forward toward modernizing our cooperative. A lot has changed since 1938, but our dedication to our consumer-members has remained the same. We have always worked to meet our members expectations utilizing the newest and best technology available to us. A focus on innovation benefits our members through the creation of convenient new tools that make it easier than ever to do business with the co-op.
Member Guide For Residential and Commercial Solar Now Available For Download
Every large purchase requires thorough considerations and careful planning. Buying and installing solar panels is no exception. To avoid overspending, it is especially crucial to do accurate calculations and surround yourself with knowledgeable professionals. That’s where we come in.
We’ve supplied steps to help our consumer-members be fully informed and make the right choice when it comes to installing a form of power generation, like solar. First steps, frequently asked questions, and a downloadable Member Guide for Residential and Commercial Solar are now available on our website, www.PCEC.coop.
Interested in Running For the PCEC Board of Directors?
Any PCEC consumer-members interested in running for the Board of Directors must submit their name by email to angiek@pcec.coop by February 21, 2022. If a member misses the initial interest deadline, they may submit their name via petition with 15 PCEC member signatures by March 17 in order to still make it on the ballot.
A list of verified candidates for the Board of Directors will be posted by the cooperative by May 6, 2022.
Platte-Clay Moments
Pictured: a New Heights Tree Service truck completes a tree trimming project in the field. New Heights will work to clear power lines near Holt and Lathrop this year to improve reliability.
Left: Assistant Transportation Director Alvin Alexander celebrates his retirement after 30 years of service to the cooperative. Right: PCEC Lineman Seth Henry puts gloves on in preparation to go up in a bucket truck to complete power line repair work.
Vegetation Management Project Notice
A new vegetation management project is set to begin over the coming months near the Holt and Lathrop areas. Crews will be working to clear brush from around power lines in order to protect public safety and service reliability from hazards. The project is part of PCEC’s Reliability Improvement Plan to decrease service disruptions across its service area.
The Northland Connection is published monthly by Platte-Clay Electric Cooperative, Inc., 1000 W. 92 Highway, Kearney, MO 64060. Postmaster: Please send address changes to: Northland Connection, PO Box 100, Kearney, MO 64060 or mail@pcec.coop.
Platte-Clay is an equal opportunity employer.