Patrick Regan, former professor of political science and peace studies and associate director of ND-GAIN, the Global Adaptation Initiative at Notre Dame, left the University a year ago to begin “practicing what he had preached.” Regan is the founder and CEO of Crossroads Solar, a “startup solar panel company whose core mission is to provide jobs and life training opportunities for recently released felons.” What Regan doesn’t know about manufacturing solar panels, he is learning. But what he is certain about is what he learned from his time as a volunteer teacher in Westville prison as part of the Moreau College Initiative. “(Incarcerated men) can earn a degree from Holy Cross College but still struggle to find employment upon release. Crossroads Solar is targeted at helping to complete that circle.” This summer, four Notre Dame undergraduate engineers, two of whom are Energy Studies minors, helped set up equipment that was shipped from China. In just three weeks, the project progressed from crates on a semi-truck to an operational factory. This virtual presentation and conversation with Regan and this amazing group of student workers will cover social and environmental justice, taking chances, and “getting the job done.”

Panelists:

Patrick Regan is the author of five books, most recently Peace Continuum (Oxford, 2018). Since earning his Ph.D. from the University of Michigan in 1992, Regan has served on the faculties of Canterbury University in New Zealand, Binghamton University in New York, and the University of Notre Dame in Indiana. He was also a Fulbright research fellow at the Peace Research Institute in Oslo, Norway, a visiting faculty member at Bogacizi University in Istanbul, and a visiting scholar at Sichuan University’s Center on Ecology, Environment, and Sustainability in China.

James Hegarty is a senior mechanical engineer from Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania.
Sylvia Kolda is a senior electrical engineer from Cape Girardeau, Missouri.
Kelly Moran is a senior mechanical engineer from Westport, Connecticut.
Erin Ludwig is a junior environmental engineer from Granger, Indiana.

Downloads:
Crossroads Solar Screen Ad
Crossroads Solar Classroom Slide (JPG)