The mornings are starting to feel a little different. There’s still a chill in the air, but the sun is staying out longer, and you can feel the shift toward spring. After the colder months, that light feels meaningful - a reminder that change, even when gradual, is on the way.

Energy shapes how we experience these seasonal transitions. It keeps our homes comfortable on cold mornings and powers the systems we rely on every day. As the seasons change, so do the demands on our energy system and the challenges many Texans face in affording it.

In this quarter’s newsletter, we’re sharing a look at the work underway across TEPRI, from welcoming new board members and reflecting on our 2025 Year in Review, to launching new community resilience hubs and expanding workforce opportunities through solar programs. You’ll also find updates from across Texas, insights from our research and convenings, and ways to stay engaged in the months ahead.

At TEPRI, we’re continuing to focus on solutions that help ensure all of our neighbors can rely on safe, affordable, and resilient energy - no matter the season.

Margo Weisz, TEPRI Executive Director

We are pleased to welcome three new leaders to the Board of Directors: Tracy Alexander, Jeff Hahn, and Kasi McCormick. Each brings a unique perspective and depth of experience that will help guide TEPRI’s mission to advance innovative strategies to achieve affordable, reliable, and sustainable solutions for all our neighbors.

Tracy Alexander serves as Director of Innovation at NRG, where she leads customer-focused solutions that connect emerging technologies with real-world applications.

Jeff Hahn is the Owner and Principal of Hahn, a strategic communications and public affairs firm, where he works with energy market operators, like ERCOT, to communicate complex issues clearly with stakeholders, policymakers, media, and the public.

In her role as Senior VP of Organizational Effectiveness & Integration at Howard Energy Partners, Kasi McCormick leads corporate strategy, communications, and community engagement. She also has experience advancing large-scale initiatives and policy solutions that improved community outcomes for Bexar County.

Together, these leaders strengthen TEPRI’s multidisciplinary approach at a time when energy challenges are increasingly technical and customer-driven. We look forward to their contributions as TEPRI continues advancing forward-looking solutions for the state of Texas.

TEPRI recently published our 2025 Year in Review. This snapshot report provides a lens into how we advanced our mission to better address the energy challenges facing Texans. Throughout the year, TEPRI strengthened its community and statewide partnerships across the energy sector, piloted innovative projects that leveraged new tools and technologies, and produced research that informed stakeholders and policymakers alike. These efforts have positioned TEPRI for continued growth and influence as we look ahead to 2026 and the opportunities to translate knowledge into lasting solutions.

TEPRI is hiring an Energy Program Manager to help advance innovative energy solutions that expand access for underserved communities across Texas. This role will lead a portfolio of projects spanning areas like solar, storage, and energy efficiency, while collaborating with stakeholders and supporting research, program development, and community engagement. TEPRI is looking for a mission-driven, highly organized professional who thrives in a small-team environment and brings both technical understanding and strong communication skills.

Interested in making an impact at the intersection of energy and equity? Explore the Program Manager role at TEPRI or share it with someone in your Network who might be a great match.

On March 3, TEPRI, alongside Foundation Communities and Google, celebrated the launch of two of the region’s first neighborhood-based Resilience Hubs at two affordable housing communities in Arlington. Located at Shadow Brook and Sleepy Hollow apartment communities, the hubs combine solar, battery storage, and distributed power plant technologies to provide backup power during weather-related outages while supporting the electric grid year-round and generating revenue for resident services like health and childcare programs.

Serving more than 1,000 residents, the hubs provide essential services like warming and cooling and device charging–close to home–during blackouts. The project responds to rising concerns about weather-related outages among low- and moderate-income Texans. It also demonstrates a model for community-level resilience as Texas expands investment in emergency energy infrastructure, including $1.8 billion through the Texas Back-Up Power Package.

TEPRI has recently received a $45,000 joint grant with come dream. come build. from The Jacob and Terese Hershey Foundation’s Texas Coastline Frontline Fund to expand TEPRI and cbcd’s DreamBuild program. The funding will support TEPRI’s monitoring and evaluation of the pilot DreamBuild Solar homes and development of new solar workforce training opportunities, helping equip community members with the skills needed for careers in clean energy while advancing local energy resilience.

Representing TEPRI, Veronique Placke is facilitating and participating in the South Central Texas Climate Resilient Communities Accelerator, a new regional initiative led by the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions (C2ES). This two-year program brings together local governments, businesses, nonprofits, academics, and community leaders to strengthen resilience to climate hazards like extreme heat, flooding, and drought, and to build collaborative strategies that enhance community and economic resilience. The Accelerator held its first convening on March 4th in San Antonio.

TEPRI’s staff met with the leadership of Bandera Electric Cooperative (BEC) to kick off our “Rural Cooperative Innovations” project. This two-year project will feature BEC’s innovative programs to deliver energy savings to members through customer education, efficiency, distributed solar and batteries and virtual power plant technologies. The goal is to provide a pathway for replicating BEC’s model, or pieces of the model, for coops around Texas and the US.

In partnership with HARC and SPEER, and hosted by Austin Energy, TEPRI hosted a Weatherization Convening on February 13th that brought together weatherization implementers from across the service delivery pipeline alongside community organizations that work directly with families. The gathering created space for candid discussion of partnership opportunities, how referrals and coordination work in practice, and the resources needed to better follow up with households once they enter the system. The goal of the convening was to strengthen connections between implementers and trusted community partners to help ensure families not only apply for services but ultimately receive the support they need.

Austin residents are coming together in a grassroots, non-commercial effort to help neighbors take advantage of federal home energy upgrade tax credits before they expire at the end of the year. Whether you own or rent, learn from fellow Austinites about the range of improvements you can make to lower your household’s energy bills and planetary impact.

Here are four easy ways to go deeper:

• Access Resources Online. Rewiring America offers a great step-by-step guide for a range of price points
• Sign Up For Peer Support. Local volunteers can help you figure out an action plan, evaluate bids from contractors, and more HERE.
• Explore Solar Energy. Try the Free Solar Panel ROI Calculator from Texas Solar Energy Society to receive a ballpark estimate of the amount of solar you can fit on your roof, the estimated cost.
• Request a Presentation. We’d love to spread the word about the expiring tax credits at upcoming meetings and events! Please contact Jen Cregar at jcregar@gmail.com if you have suggestions for neighborhood meetings, employer events, etc.

Margo Weisz will speak at CERAWeek, the annual global gathering of energy leaders, policymakers, and innovators held in Houston, TX on March 23-27th. Margo will join industry and policy experts to discuss key issues shaping the future of energy, including the challenges and opportunities facing the Texas power system. CERAWeek brings together executives, government officials, and thought leaders from around the world to explore trends in energy markets, technology, and policy.

TEPRI was invited to present our Community Voices in Energy Survey findings for the March 3rd Energy Efficiency Forum at the Public Utility Commission of Texas on March 3rd. Centering consumers’ experiences, priorities, and needs in energy helps utilities, contractors, and other stakeholders better understand how to administer programs that offer solutions to the problems presented. Thank you to the Energy Efficiency Division of the PUCT for having us.

To ring in the new year, TEPRI kicked off the 2026 Community Voices Speaker Series on Tuesday, January 6th, reviewing findings from ERCOT Electricity Affordability Outlook: Forecasting Residential Electricity Prices and Burdens (2025-2030). Executive Director Margo Weisz was joined by Texas energy experts Becky Klein and Alison Silverstein to discuss the implications of the model’s projected 30% increase in residential electric bills by 2030, how customers’ inability to pay can affect household decisions and the broader electricity ecosystem, and solutions that may help households mitigate costs.

TEPRI’s Kathy Jack visited South Texas in late February to connect with UTRGV’s Center for Community Resilience Research Innovation & Advocacy and participate in their panel Remembering Winter Storm Uri. She also toured DreamBuild Solar Home and solar-powered home production sites in Brownsville and Los Fresnos with cdcb’s Marisa Amaya and solar installer, Eric Valdez, and met with Proyecto Azteco’s Executive Director, Oliverio De La Garza, to explore replication of the affordable Solar Home model in Hidalgo County.

Kathy Jack presented at RE+ Texas in Houston March 11, highlighting TEPRI’s research and on-the-ground projects to advance energy security for low-to-moderate income Texans.

On January 10, TEPRI partnered with SPEER and HARC to deliver energy efficiency education and share information about local weatherization resources with the Windsor Park Neighborhood Association in Austin. Residents also received weatherization kits containing practical materials, such as weatherstripping, LED light bulbs, and caulk, so they could immediately apply what they learned to address energy-efficiency issues in their homes. The U.S. Department of Energy supports this work and funded 13 home repairs to make participating homes eligible for weatherization improvements through Travis County, a local Weatherization Assistance Program implementer.

Margo Weisz was interviewed for this story on ABC 13 Houston.

Claire Hao cited TEPRI’s Affordability Study in her story for the Houston Chronicle.

TEPRI’s Affordability Study was cited in this report by Paul Cobler in the Texas Tribune.