Our Staff

Ronald J. Schenk, CUSP

President

Ron Schenk’s career in the Utility Industry spans 27 years and includes 14 years on staff with a large powerline contractor, serving as Director of Training for 1,800 lineworkers. Through ISPC, Ron has helped dozens of contractors and smaller utilities develop and implement internal lineworker apprenticeship programs, helping many to also Certify their programs through the U.S. Department of Labor. Ron’s expertise includes supervisory development training for field supervisors and safety training for powerline crews. In addition to a bachelor’s degree in business, Ron is a Certified Utility Safety Professional (CUSP) and he is an Executive Board Member of USOLN, the founding organization for the CUSP Credential. In 2004 Ron created and is President of the Institute for Safety in Powerline Construction (ISPC), based in Alexandria, LA. ISPC is an Electric Utility Industry Association focusing on safety and training for lineworkers throughout North America and the Caribbean.

 

Wanda Schenk
Secretary/Treasurer

Wanda Schenk has been involved in the Lineworker Training field since 2004.  It was then that she shared the vision with husband, Ron Schenk, to address the ongoing issue of providing quality lineworker training materials.  She is a founding partner of T & D PowerSkills and serves as Secretary/Treasurer for T & D PowerSkills, as well as Institute for Safety in Powerline Construction.  Now as a Director and Treasurer for Safety Management International, she sees the early vision of T & D PowerSkills and Institute for Safety in Powerline Construction becoming highly regarded and recognized in their mission of providing best practices in safety and training for lineworkers throughout the United States and Caribbean. 

 

Mack Turner, CUSP

Executive Director

Mack Turner’s career spans over 25 years in the Electric, Gas and Communications Utility Industry. Mack has specialized in the Safety, Risk and Leadership disciplines and is focused on positive culture change. Mack’s experience includes corporate safety management, field safety management, fleet management, electrical utility craft training, leadership development and soft skills, behavioral-based safety training and consulting. Mack has worked with large utility contractors, large electric and gas utilities, and small co-op’s. Mack is also the President/Board Chairman and founding member for the Utility Safety Operations Leadership Network (USOLN). Mack is a Certified Utility Safety Professional (CUSP), Certified Utility Safety Administrator (CUSA), and holds Advanced Safety Certificate’s from the National Safety Council as well as various Safety Certificates from Red Rocks Community College. Mack currently resides in Nacogdoches, Texas.

 

Mark Forster, CUSP
Director of Operations 

Mark Forster is a Certified Utility Safety Professional with over 30 years in the electric industry, including over 17 years working for PPL Electric Utilities, where Mark led the effort to rebuild the company's energy control process training, as well as secure an old substation facility which would be turned into a substation training facility. In June of 2022, Mark began to do consulting work for ISPC, specifically in the Substation discipline. In November of 2023, he transitioned from PPL Electric Utilities to ISPC as the Director of Operations, where he will further his ability to influence the utility industry. Mark truly enjoys sharing knowledge and teaching others, and has a very practical approach to his training delivery.

 

 

Jim Vaughn, CUSP
Senior Consultant

As Senior Consultant for ISPC Jim serves utilities as a safety specialist in utility industry related OSHA and consensus standards. Jim provides both consult and program development for utilities in OSHA compliant policies and procedures as well as consult on incident investigation and incident related litigation. Jim also develops and delivers ISPC training as well as dedicated client specific training programs.

 

 

Dan Taylor, CUSP
Senior Consultant

Dan Taylor began his career in his hometown of  Loa, Utah working for Garkane Energy. With 38 years of professional experience, he has been a journeyman Lineman for Garkane Energy since January 18, 1986. Dan has been involved with Garkane's safety program for 20 years.  He is a Certified Utility Safety Professional (CUSP) and also a Certified Loss Control Professional (CLCP). Utilizing his background in transmission, distribution, overhead, underground work, Dan has the knowledge of vital working skills. Dan has been an instructor at  the Mesa Hot Line School, Rualite Hot Line School and IPSA Hot Line School. He has taught rubber gloving, distribution and transmission hot sticking.

 

Jamie Yaeger
Director of Member Services

Responsible for a broad range of services provided to ISPC Members, Jamie monitors and responds to customer satisfaction issues for ISPC as well as its sister company, T&D PowerSkills. She also assists with various marketing duties including trade shows, websites, and social media for both companies.

 

 

David V. Johnson, CUSP
Affiliated Consultant - Low Voltage Specialist

Born and raised in the Salt Lake Valley in Utah, Dave served four years in the Military as an officer and a helicopter pilot, including a tour in Viet Nam. After the war, he spent four years in an electrical apprenticeship program and ultimately became a master electrician. With field experience and office experience as part owner of an electrical construction company, his position as Chief Operations Officer of that company allowed him to hone leadership and training skills. Dave is the owner of Electric Asset Company which is a training company focusing on OSHA safety with specific emphasis on electrical safety including National Electrical Code topics as well as NFPA 70E safety related work practices. Dave has done Apprenticeship training, Safety training and adult education for Salt Lake Community College, The Rocky Mountain Center for Occupational and Environmental Health with the University of Utah and a host of private companies across the Western United States. For approximately the last 10 years Dave has specialized in NEC update training and OSHA safety training with the Mountain West OTIEC.

 

Randy Price, CUSP
Affiliated Consultant - Overhead and Underground Specialist

Randy Price’s career spans over 35 years in the Electric & Gas Utility Industry. Randy has specialized in Transmission & Distribution duties as a Lineman, and Electric training for Lineman & Lineman Apprentices, was the leader in the writing of MidAmerican Energy apprenticeships. Randy’s experiences include training all MidAmerican Energy Lineman & Apprentices in transformer connections, annual refresher classes, teaching the National Joint Apprenticeship Training Committee (NJATC) 4 Year apprenticeship, and working as a Journeyman Lineman for over 30 years.

 

Rick Tobey, CUSP
Affiliated Consultant - Transmission Specialist

Rick Tobey entered the utility business with Florida Power and Light Co. in 1965 as a helper. He held the positions of Lineman, foreman, troubleman, Switching coordinator, crew supervisor, superintendent and Supervisor of safety power delivery Florida Power and Light Co. He retired from FPL in 2002 and worked for several contractors as Apprentice trainer and safety manager. He then formed his own business in 2006. Rick has extensive training in distribution, transmission, underground and substation. At FPL, he was on the Gloving committee as an instructor and advisor. He also was on the Serious Injury analysis team and have investigated 15 fatalities as well as many serious injuries. He has trained most of the Green Mountain Power linemen in gloving. He trained many of Chain electrical contractors, T& D Solutions and Jamaica Power system linemen in transmission hot stick techniques as well as having been on a transmission hot stick crew for over two years sticking daily. He has trained bare hand techniques first learned at FPL and then re-certified by Chance-Hubbell. Rick now teaches hot stick and bare hand for Southeast Linemen Training Center in Trenton Georgia. He subcontracts to ISPC, WSSI SLTC and holds a C.U.S.P rating from USOLN. He has also been safety manager for Wilbros Inc. in Maine for a 345kv project, performed safety oversight for VELCO, 3 Phase electrical contractors (NY, Mass).

 

Andrew Menu, CUSP, CRSP
Affiliated Consultant - Canadian Practices Specialist

Andrew Menu is a Canadian Registered Safety Professional, a Certified Utility Safety Professional and a Provincial Instructor Diploma program graduate.  He currently shares his working time between working as the owner and Director of Practical Safety Management, providing industry safety and compliance training as well as Health, Safety and Environment (HSE) consulting and instructing at the College of New Caledonia in central BC.  With over a decade of experience working as a senior safety professional in the power utility environment, working for both utility owners and line contractors, combined with of 20 years’ experience working in the various industries of BC and Alberta, Andrew has a very practical and effective perspective to offer.

  

Danny Raines

Danny L. Raines, CUSP
Affiliated Consultant - Transmission Specialist

Danny Raines is a Certified Utility Safety Professional who has over 53 years’ experience in electrical utility high and low voltage safety work practices. Forty of those years were with Georgia Power, where he was a lineman and supervisor performing utility construction and corporate safety training.  In 2007, he retired from Georgia Power and founded Raines Utility Safety Solutions, LLC, where he has provided services for many companies in the form of OSHA construction and general industry related to 1926 and 1910.269, site hazard and risk assessments, and training. He is an affiliate instructor with Georgia Tech Research Institute, where he provides training on electrical safe work rules, NFPA 70E, and arc flash employee safety training. Danny is also a member of the Incident Prevention (Utilities Business Media) development team for the Certified Utility Safety Professional credential.  Danny has articles published in every edition of Incident Prevention Magazine and also presents podcasts on all articles written for the magazine.

 

Britt Holley
Affiliated Consultant - Technical Metering Specialist

Britt Holley began his over 40-year career with Oncor Electric Delivery by achieving an Associate in Applied Electronics degree through a cooperative program for Texas Power & Light Company, a predecessor company of Oncor. He also successfully completed a technical metering progression program, resulting in the achievement of Senior Meter Technician certification. Britt subsequently assumed Lead Meter Technician and then Meter Technician Supervisory responsibilities. In 2012, Oncor established a commitment and focus to train and develop technical metering personnel. As such, Britt took on the role of Senior Technical Training Rep. In this role, he led the development and administration of the Meter Technician Training Program. In this program, employees learned technical metering skills for all classes of metering, from residential through commercial and industrial applications. Additional achievements that Britt is proud of include being awarded Oncor’s first Customer Service Star Award, given to only one employee annually for customer service excellence. He also taught classes at the Southwest Electrical Metering Association Meter School and led the school task force for two years, being honored by induction into SWEMA’s Circle of Honor in 2019.

 

Jim Tattersall

Affiliated Consultant - Substations Specialist

Jim Tattersall worked for Idaho Power for 22 years, retiring in 2020. While there, he held various positions from structural technician to control wiring technician to apparatus technician. For his final three years at Idaho Power, he took over the substation training program, where he updated the training materials used in the classroom. Jim was then instrumental in the addition of a functional, operating substation for the hands-on and safety training of employees. Finally, he built out a hands-on training program for the company. Jim considers training a passion of his. He has turned his hobby of drag racing into a business he runs with his wife in Eden, Idaho.