Farmington seventh-grader Marisa Rogers never thought much about how a utility company works to keep the lights on around the clock, but a recent visit to Unitil gave her a behind-the-scenes look and a wide range of career paths to consider down the road.
“It was really cool to come here and see what they all do. Now that I’m here I’m really starting to think about it,” she said as she toured Unitil’s Exeter facility, which is home to the company’s Seacoast electric distribution operations as well as its forestry, engineering and centralized electric dispatch teams.
Marisa was among a group of nearly two dozen students from Rundlett Middle School in Concord and Henry Wilson Memorial School in Farmington who recently stopped by the Exeter location and Unitil’s corporate headquarters in Hampton to learn more about the utility industry and potential job opportunities as they look ahead to high school and beyond.
The visit was a unique experience for the students, who are participating in a program known as Educational Talent Search (ETS), which offers educational opportunities to hundreds of New Hampshire middle and high schoolers by providing academic advising, career planning, financial literacy and other assistance. The program encourages the students to finish secondary school, pursue postsecondary education, and potentially become first-generation college students.
ETS is based at the University of New Hampshire and is part of TRIO, a federally funded program that supports nearly 800,000 students nationwide each year. The students begin their experience in sixth grade and have advisers who continue to offer guidance throughout their high school years and after beginning college.
“This is the second time Unitil has hosted the students from ETS and once again we were impressed by their thoughtful questions and desire to explore the utility industry,” said Unitil External Affairs Director Alec O’Meara. “These are young students who really exemplify intellectual curiosity and we’re excited to be able to provide real-world employment experience that may one day influence their career choices.”
During their visit, the students heard from several Unitil employees who shared their experiences working in the company’s electric and natural gas operations and how they got their start in the utility industry. They learned about the different departments, a variety of jobs, and had a chance to observe a controlled natural gas explosion during an educational demonstration.
Dr. Melissa Goyait, ETS director, stressed the importance of the program and explained how many of the students are the first in their families to consider a college education.
“They work incredibly hard. They actively participate in their own futures, often while overcoming serious personal, academic, or financial challenges. What TRIO provides is not charity, it is opportunity. With the guidance of caring, experienced TRIO professionals, these students learn how to navigate systems, advocate for themselves, and pursue ambitious goals. Their achievements are not handed to them – they are earned, every step of the way,” she said.
Unitil Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Thomas P. Meissner, Jr., who told the students that he’s spent his 40-year career working in New Hampshire, shared his background and some of his experiences leading the company. Every day is different for Meissner, who explained how one day he could be attending a financial conference and the next meeting with students like those from the ETS program.
“Other days I’m going around meeting with employees at all of our different locations. There are just a lot of different things happening. I love being the CEO of Unitil because I think we’re a great company and it really allows me to be in charge of a company that I love,” said Meissner, who took on his current role in 2018 and previously served as the company’s Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, Senior Vice President of Operations, and Director of Engineering.
Kevin Sprague, Unitil’s Senior Vice President of Electric Operations, recalled how he dreamed of becoming a baseball player when he was younger and at one point thought he’d like to be a gym teacher or French teacher. He eventually began tinkering with electrical circuits and his uncle, who was an engineer, encouraged him to explore engineering. He joined Unitil over 25 years ago and has served in various engineering and operations roles.
Sprague emphasized the importance of finding a workplace that’s the right fit.
“You’re with your coworkers more than you’re with your spouse or your kids. Eight or nine hours a day you’re not with your family, you’re with your work family and it’s important that you find a place that suits you, that you like the people that you work with and you have fun with those people. You can laugh and joke, but also work hard and make the company successful,” he told the students.
Sara Sankowich, Unitil’s Director of Sustainability and Shared Services, spoke about how her desire to work outdoors led her to pursue a degree in forest and natural resource management.
“When I was in school I loved to be outside. I wanted to hike around all day. I didn’t want to be in a classroom. I wanted to go to school for something that was outdoors,” said Sankowich, who has worked in the utility industry for two decades and oversees the development and implementation of Unitil’s sustainability initiatives and reporting, the vegetation management program, procurement, and the company’s fleet and facilities.
Concord eighth-grader Dexter Richert said he’d never really thought about a job in the utility industry until he visited Unitil and learned about the different positions. “It was pretty interesting,” he said.
The variety of employment opportunities, including office jobs and those in the field, was appealing to Phoenix Niblett. “I’ve been thinking about the medical field, but hearing about the field workers and everything else, that’s been very interesting to me,” said the eighth-grade student from Concord.
Parker Bryant, a seventh-grader from Farmington, enjoyed learning about the different jobs, salaries and post-secondary education that may be needed, but acknowledged that he’s still got plenty of time to plan his future.
“I’m still looking at careers I could do when I get older. I don’t have a single clue what I want to do,” he said.
