About Dr. Walz

Dr. Walz earned his B.S. degree in science education and Ph.D. in Environmental Chemistry and Technology at the University of Wisconsin. He has taught chemistry, engineering, and renewable energy at Madison Area Technical College since 2003.

From 2005-2016, Dr. Walz was project director and principal investigator for the Consortium for Education in Renewable Energy Technology (CERET). With funding from the National Science Foundation, CERET pioneered some of the first online renewable energy courses available in the United States. In the past decade, CERET has provided professional development for over 300 high school and community college instructors in photovoltaics and biofuel technology. These instructors have used CERET content and pedagogy to deliver their own renewable energy programs in over 42 U.S. States and Territories.

Dr. Walz is an alumnus of the Department of Energy Academies Creating Teacher Scientists (DOE ACTS) Program at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). He is also an adjunct professor with the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Wisconsin and an advisory board member for the Wisconsin K-12 Energy Education Program (KEEP). Dr. Walz has been recognized as Professor of the Year by the Carnegie Foundation and the Council for Advancement and Support of Education, and as the Energy Educator of the Year by the Wisconsin Association for Environmental Education.