Leadership

SMECO’s Board of Directors is comprised exclusively of SMECO members who live and work in Southern Maryland. Each county we serve is represented on the Board and Directors whose members are elected based on votes cast by SMECO members as part of the Annual Members’ Meeting.

The individuals who serve on SMECO’s Board are invested in the wellbeing and future of Southern Maryland, and they know the cooperative plays a critical role in our local community. The group represents a variety of industries and backgrounds but they all bring with them the knowledge, talent, and experience that helps shape and guide the direction of the cooperative.

Our members are best served by a Board that is properly educated, trained, and informed about current issues and standards for electric providers and cooperatives. Directors may not come into their Board position with a vast understanding of SMECO or the electric industry, but from day one, they invest time and energy into deepening their knowledge of the electric industry, cooperatives, and SMECO. Their tenure on the Board begins with new director orientation, a two-day immersive introductive into the responsibilities of the different departments within SMECO. Directors also attend training sessions provided by the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA), which serves about 900 electric cooperatives nationwide. Through NRECA, electric cooperatives across the country have built a strong network of like-minded organizations that put their members first.

The NRECA provides comprehensive training programs for cooperative Board of Directors with training sessions that cover a range of topics essential for effective board service, including fiduciary responsibilities, strategic planning, financial oversight, regulatory compliance, and industry trends. The programs equip directors with the knowledge and tools needed to make informed decisions, ensure the cooperative’s financial health, and navigate the evolving energy landscape. Through a mix of in-person workshops, online courses, and peer learning opportunities, NRECA aims to strengthen the leadership capabilities of cooperative boards, fostering a collaborative and effective governance structure. Many of SMECO’s seasoned directors have received their Director certification from NRECA’s training programs.

The progressive certification process has three distinct parts.

1. Credentialed Cooperative Director (CCD) is a foundational program covering essential governance knowledge and skills. The five courses include information on director duties and liabilities, understanding the electric business, board roles and relationships, strategic planning, and financial decision-making.
2. The Board Leadership Certificate (BLC) training is available to Directors who have completed their CCD. This training focuses on advanced governance issues and covers risk management, technology, policy development, community engagement, and more.
3. The Director Gold Credential recognizes Directors committed to continuing their education and expanding their knowledge and skills. This credential is maintained through continued education.

In addition to training programs, the NRECA offers a range of support services to help Board members govern effectively and stay informed about industry developments, including access to publications and resources, advocacy and legislative support, peer networking opportunities, consulting services, research and data analysis, crisis management and risk mitigation support, technology and innovation support, legal and regulatory guidance, and member engagement and communication tools. These support services, combined with the comprehensive training programs, ensure that cooperative Board members have the knowledge, tools, and resources they need to lead their organizations effectively and navigate the evolving energy landscape.

SMECO’s Board of Directors meets every month to provide input and guidance to the executive team, hear updates about the operations of the cooperative and ensure accountability in all aspects of cooperative business. Directors can also choose to serve on various Board committees focused on key needs within the cooperative. The Board works hand-in-hand with SMECO’s president and CEO and executive team to ensure the cooperative maintains its standard of excellence at all levels. The Board reviews and confirms annual work programs, financial plans, contracts, internal SMECO employee policies, external communication policies, rates, and tariff changes.

The executive team is comprised of the president and CEO, as well as five senior vice presidents who each oversee an integral facet of the cooperative. The executive team brings with them decades of experience in their chosen fields, including multiple decades at the cooperative.

Members of the executive team use their combined experience to shape the goals and objectives of the teams they lead. In 2023, the cooperative’s leadership kicked off the 2023–2027 Strategic Plan, updating the initiatives that shape the daily work performed at SMECO. Working together with the SMECO Board, the executive team set the strategic vision of the cooperative, ensuring the goals and objectives aligned with SMECO’s ultimate mission of putting the members first by delivering, safe, reliable, affordable, and sustainable electricity and related services that exceed expectations.

The Board and executive team are accountable to the cooperative’s members, who shape how SMECO is governed by participating in the Annual Meeting election process. SMECO’s members elect the community members who serve on the Board and also vote on proposed bylaw changes. Bylaws govern the way an electric cooperative does business, including the process of electing new Directors.

Director Highlights

Learn More

SMECO's Board of Directors

SMECO's Key Staff

As stewards of a community-owned electric utility, SMECO has the unique responsibility to provide reliable and affordable electricity, while also ensuring long-term solvency and growth for the cooperative and this community. By embracing sound financial practices and strategically investing in our infrastructure and resources, we safeguard the cooperative’s long-term stability and resilience.

We also ensure our community flourishes by supporting the sustainable growth and livelihood of Southern Maryland. We understand that supporting local businesses is essential for economic growth and vitality. That is why, whenever possible, we prioritize relationships with local vendors and suppliers for goods and services needed for our operations. We believe that by reinvesting in local businesses, we help strengthen the local economy and contribute to its overall wellbeing. SMECO is also one of the largest employers in the local area, providing careers for close to 500 people who live in this region.

SMECO’s 69-kV lines are one of the oldest sections remaining in SMECO’s system with some poles set as long ago as the 1960s. The H-frame structures crossing forests and wetlands in Charles and southern Prince George’s Counties have aged beyond their useful life, so new steel poles will go in their place. Fewer poles will be required to cross the same terrain due to their height and strength. They are also better able to withstand high winds making this line more resilient and reliable.

Much of the existing rights-of-way and easements are through a protected wetland. Siting originally occurred long before modern environmental regulations that would have prohibited such construction. This creates a constraint for SMECO today because communities rely on this line for power, and moving it to a new location would be immensely challenging for myriad reasons including stifling cost premiums. Instead, SMECO must work in the existing right-of-way with industry best practices for construction while minimizing the impact to the ecosystem. Distribution jobs are much smaller scale and spread across all SMECO counties.

Many of these projects bury overhead lines to protect them from high winds, vegetation, animals, car crashes, and other hazards. Underground distribution lines are vastly more reliable than the aerial equivalent. They are also more expensive to install, which means the federal funding provides even more benefit to our region and the bill-paying members.

The telecommunications component will add connectivity to additional substations into SMECO’s operational technology communications network. This allows operators to monitor and control equipment in the field.

The package of investments awarded for funding represents the most needed upgrades for our grid, and making these investments will give us greater reliability for our members.

SMECO’s local focus and cooperative business model set our application apart from the more than 400 competitors in the program. To demonstrate the community benefits that would also result from the federal funds, SMECO touted numerous priorities detailed in this report, such as high-quality local jobs, environmental stewardship, local governance, diversity, and alignment with the Justice40 initiative. Justice40 is the Biden Administration’s goal to flow 40 percent of the funds of all federal programs, not only the GRIP grants, to disadvantaged communities. SMECO’s funded work will benefit the 5,230 people living in qualified census tract 24017850901 in Charles County.

Years of hard work culminated in a signed agreement between SMECO and the Department of Defense to privatize the electric system at Naval Support Facility (NSF) Indian Head to include main base Indian Head and the Stump Neck Annex. Privatization means that SMECO will own, operate, and maintain NSF Indian Head’s electric infrastructure for
50 years beginning October 2024.

Privatization efforts will include improvements to the existing infrastructure, including installation of 775 meters, substation and distribution improvements, and extensive tree trimming and related vegetation management.

NSF Indian Head marks the fourth privatization opportunity for the cooperative. In 2009, SMECO signed an agreement to privatize the Patuxent River Naval Air Station in Lexington Park, the Webster Field Annex in St. Inigoes, and the Navy Recreation Center in Solomons. Local military facilities are a vital part of Southern Maryland’s local economy and some of the largest local employers, as well. Supporting the electric reliability of our local military facilities provides multiple benefits to the local community.

Financial responsibility, seeking funding opportunities, and investing in the success of local and diverse businesses not only secures the future of the cooperative, it also empowers the communities we serve to flourish in an ever-evolving landscape.