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Keith Aldridge
Chief Executive Officer
Keith Aldridge is the CEO of Building Performance Association. His role is to lead the association through the current period of transition and consolidation. With over 40 years of experience in the residential energy efficiency industry, Keith is known for bringing diverse people and organizations together to produce innovative, high-impact programs and initiatives. As Team Leader of the Applied Building Science Team at Advanced Energy he oversaw the development of the NC “duct school”, one of the nation’s earliest whole-house diagnostic training programs, helped lead a multi-organizational team that developed and ran Environments for Living, a national industry-based high performance new home program, co-led the team that developed the Standardized Work Specifications for the Low Income Weatherization program (responsible for the group processes at six-week-long standards development events, involving over 100 contractors and other experts) and has conducted dozens of facilitated meetings and board retreats for groups including local non-profits, Affordable Comfort, EEBA,the Association, and Efficiency First. Keith served two stints on the board of Affordable Comfort, and as board chair helped lead the merger with the National Home Performance Council to form Building Performance Association, as well as the transformation into Building Performance Association. Keith has an undergraduate degree from the University of Mississippi and a graduate degree from the University of North Carolina.
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Nate Natale
Vice President of Education and Events
Nate Natale is the Vice President of Education and Events at Building Performance Association. In this role, he oversees all aspects of the association’s conference and education work- including site selection, program development, logistics, fundraising, and communications. Nate also convenes, manages, and facilitates stakeholder groups and represents the association through participation in a variety of external industry groups. He worked in education, both in the classroom and behind the scenes, for a number of years before transitioning to association management. Prior to joining Building Performance Association in 2010, Nate spent four years managing many aspects of the conference and continuing education programs of The Minerals, Metals and Materials Society. He earned a B.S. in Education from Indiana University of Pennsylvania and a Master of Professional Writing degree from Chatham University.
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Jean Nagy
Chief Financial Offier
Jean is the CFO for Building Performance Association. She is responsible for long term forecasting and risk management. She has over 30 years in the field of finance in many industries. Jean received her BS in Accounting from the Pennsylvania State University.
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Kara Saul-Rinaldi
Vice President of Government Affairs & Policy
Kara Saul-Rinaldi is the Vice President of Government Affairs and Policy at Building Performance Association. She leads the organization’s public policy and government affairs initiatives and represents the association's mission to policymakers and stakeholders through her firm, the AnnDyl Policy Group. With over 20 years of experience in policy and communications strategy and legislative and regulatory experience, Kara has worked for members of Congress, testified before congressional committees and appeared in a variety of media outlets as a leading energy and climate policy expert. Kara has a master’s degree from the London School of Economics and a bachelor’s degree from the University of California, San Diego. Kara continues to author articles on energy policy for trade publications and provide keynote and panel presentations on energy and climate policy.
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Julie Caracino
Director of Policy & Programs
Julie Caracino is the Director of Policy and Programs for Building Performance Association. In this position, Julie directs and implements the organization's research initiatives, including the advancement of data standardization in the home performance industry. Julie has been instrumental in establishing the open data standard, HPXML, as the common software language for the industry’s transactions. She also works closely with the real estate and appraisal industries to create a capital market for energy efficiency through the valuation of homes. Prior to joining the association, Julie was a project manager on the home performance team at NYSERDA, where she led several new initiatives under the state’s new energy policy, Reforming the Energy Vision.
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Joe Cullen
Director of Policy & State Outreach
Joe Cullen is the Director of Policy and State Outreach for Building Performance Association, engaging state governments and public utility commissions to reform regulatory models and modernize state and local economic development programs to create jobs through energy efficiency initiatives. Cullen is currently leading the association's efforts on the National Efficiency Screening Project which is developing a National Standard Practice Manual to provide comprehensive guidance on cost effectiveness screening tests for state and local energy efficiency programs. Cullen previously served as a policy and budget director at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy in the Clinton administration and as the Governor’s Policy Director in Pennsylvania under Governor Robert P. Casey. Cullen is a Yale University (Cum Laude 1980) and Georgetown University Law Center (1986) graduate and served in the Jesuit Volunteer Corp. in Piura, Peru from 1980-1982. On April 18, 2016, Cullen completed the 120th Boston Marathon in 3 hours and 53 minutes.
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Bethany Dittmar Sowinski
Director of Conference Education
Bethany Dittmar Sowinski is the Director of Conference Education at Building Performance Association, where she has worked since 2011. She is responsible for the coordination and development of conference agendas, presenter communication, continuing education accreditation, and on-site volunteer activities. Prior to joining Building Performance Association, Bethany worked in real estate, land conservation, sustainability research, and event planning. She has a B.A. in German from Bowdoin College and received a post-graduate Fulbright grant to teach English in northern Germany. She later earned her MBA in Sustainability from Duquesne University where she became passionate about reducing company and building energy uses and improving energy efficiency.
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Chris Docchio
Director of Partner Relations
Chris Docchio is the Director of Partner Relations at Building Performance Association. He builds strategic alliances and corporate partnerships that increase visibility, enhance businesses and foster new collaborations. He develops, administers and directs the largest trade show in the home performance industry and elevates the conference experience with additional promotional and advertising opportunities. With almost two decades of sales experience and a B.S. in Marketing from Robert Morris University, Chris understands how to provide warm customer service and build corporate partnerships that last.
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Katie Aronoff
Director of Marketing and Communications
Katie Aronoff is the Director of Marketing and Communications for the Building Performance Association. She joined the team in March 2018 and has over ten years of experience working in marketing. As the Director of Marketing & Communications, Katie's role is to increase awareness of the organization's goal to support and advocate for key stakeholders including home performance contractors, weatherization agencies, program sponsors and implementers, manufacturers, and suppliers. Previously, Katie worked for for a large mechanical contractor, directing marketing efforts for both the residential and commercial sales divisions. Katie earned a B.S. in Business Administration and Marketing from West Liberty University.
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Gypsy Matlak
Accounting Manager
Gypsy Matlak is the Accounting Manager at Building Performance Association. She handles accounts receivable, accounts payable, payroll and HR responsibilities. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration with a concentration in Management. Previously, Gypsy managed companies in the window, door and sunroom industries. She was also the Business Manager for the Baierl Family YMCA, where she gained her non-profit experience.
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Robyn Hall
Customer Service Manager
Robyn Hall is the Customer Service Manager at Building Performance Association. She manages conference registrations, continuing education credits, and scholarships, and additionally serves as a support to conference education. Robyn previously worked in marketing, public relations, and media advertising sales. She graduated from West Virginia University with a degree in Journalism with a specialty in Advertising. Robyn joined the team in 2010 and has held several roles within the organization.
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Jim Gunshinan
Senior Editor, Home Energy Magazine
Jim Gunshinan is Senior Editor at Home Energy Magazine. Jim became Managing Editor of Home Energy Magazine in 2000. In 2015 he was named Senior Editor. Jim’s primary responsibility is for the quality and appropriateness of the editorial content of the magazine. He recruits and works closely with authors, supervises the production schedule, and writes articles and blog posts, among other duties. Between February 2007 and August 2012 Jim was a blogger for the QUEST science program at the San Francisco Bay Area’s public broadcasting station KQED. He is the editor of the book, No Regrets Remodeling, Second Edition. In 2015, Jim was elected to the Building Performance Institute’s Building Performance Hall of Fame for lifetime achievement in the Home Performance industry. Jim holds BS and MDiv degrees from the University of Notre Dame, and an MS degree from Penn State University.
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Maggie Forti
Director of Advertising, Home Energy Magazine
Maggie Forti is the Director of Advertising for Home Energy Magazine. She welcomes companies involved in residential conservation whose products and services have proven efficiency performance to join a select group and advertise in Home Energy Magazine. With over 18 years experience in print and online publications and networking throughout the country, Maggie has fostered relationships with scores of home performance industry professionals and advertisers. With every collaboration, she promotes each product’s optimum visibility while facilitating each client’s unique advertising goals. Maggie has a passion for people, organizations, and innovations that advance residential energy efficiency and comfort, ensuring a more sustainable future. She has a B.A. in Professional Music from Berklee College of Music and is an accomplished vocalist, songwriter, performing musician, teacher, and recording artist.
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Leslie Jackson
Associate Editor and Office Manager, Home Energy Magazine
Leslie Jackson is the Associate Editor and Office Manager for Home Energy Magazine. With over 20 years' experience in writing, editing, and book design, Leslie is passionate about publishing, and has just added a podcast producing to her skill set. Having cut her teeth at Whole Earth Review magazine in the mid-1990s Leslie has worked with the founders of WIRED magazine, and currently helps authors publish their work.
In 2005, she co-authored and self-published the popular manual for building an efficient wood burning stove with its inventor, Ianto Evans. Now in its Third Edition, Rocket Mass Heaters has been translated into six foreign languages and Leslie travels around the world teaching workshops. Leslie has a love for Natural Building, and has covered such topics as the relief efforts after the 2007 earthquake in Haiti, and rebuilding efforts post-Katrina in Home Energy magazine and her personal blog.
Leslie performed the first half of her undergraduate studies in Rhetoric at UC Berkeley. She graduated with a BA from New College of California, as Valedictorian, in 2004.
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Lois Miller
Meeting Planner
Lois is the meeting planner for Building Performance Association. She has been working on their conferences for almost 10 years. Lois works on site selection, planning and onsite management for the regional and national conferences. Lois is a certified association executive with over 30 years of experience managing trade shows and conferences for non-profits.