Wind Institute

In 2022, Rutgers received a $125,000 grant from the New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA) Wind Institute for the University Initiatives to Advance Offshore Wind Energy program. Peggy Brennan-Tonetta, Josh Kohut, and Wade Trappe serve as co-investigators on the University Initiatives program, which include three projects:

• Educational Initiatives for a Resilient Offshore Wind Energy Economy in New Jersey. Rutgers faculty and staff developed and delivered modular curricula across various technical, business, environmental, engineering and policy topics related to offshore wind energy. The modules were designed to be integrated into a wide range of current Rutgers courses and for presentation as standalone programs.
• Offshore Wind Energy Symposium. The Symposium, which occurred in January 2023, brought together industry, nonprofit, government, and academic leaders to discuss challenges and opportunities, as well as build community engagement in offshore wind energy. A summary report based on the information from the symposium was prepared and outlines recommendations for the development of the offshore wind energy sector.
• Community Events and Shared Learning. There were three in-person community-building events, one at each Rutgers campus: Rutgers-Camden, Rutgers-New Brunswick, and Rutgers-Newark. These in-person events were instrumental in building community surrounding offshore wind energy across New Jersey.

For questions regarding the University Initiatives program, please contact Peggy Brennan-Tonetta, Senior Associate Director of NJAES, at mbrennan@rutgers.edu 

In 2022, Rutgers received a $282,000 grant from the New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA) Wind Institute for the Wind Institute Fellowship Program. In 2023, NJEDA expanded the Wind Institute Fellowship Program for the 2023-2024 and 2024-2025 academic years.

The program aims to support student research in topics that further the growth of offshore wind energy as well as build student and faculty advisor expertise in offshore wind energy research and innovation in the state. Chelsie Riche serves as the principal investigator on the Wind Fellowship program at Rutgers University.

Rutgers is proud to have undergraduate and graduate student Fellows participating in the Wind Institute Fellowship Program:

• The 2022-2023 cohort consisted of 12 Fellows from Rutgers-New Brunswick and Rutgers-Camden. Click here to learn more about the 2022-2023 cohort.
• The 2023-2024 cohort consists of 12 Fellows from Rutgers-New Brunswick, Rutgers-Camden, and Rutgers-Newark. Click here to learn more about the 2023-2024 cohort.

For questions regarding the Fellowship Program, please contact Chelsie Riche, Assistant Director for Student Success and Experiential Education in the Office of the Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs, at ssee.aa@rutgers.edu