Jennifer Brogdon: Valley Innovation Ambassador
October 18, 2023

With 31 years of industry experience, Jennifer Brogdon’s transition to general manager of Upper Cumberland Electric Membership Corporation in 2021 was an opportunity to ensure her system was prepared for the future with new technology.

“In March 2023, we launched our Outage Management System (OMS), giving our members and staff real-time information, visibility, and quicker response time during outages. We also just completed our 150-mile fiber ring to connect UCEMC’s corporate and district offices and substations, and we are eager for this all to come together with smarter downstream devices. Recently, we deployed past-due member texting and automated IVR calls. Our collections are down 50% so far! This technology promises to save our members unnecessary collection fees and prevents staff from multiple trips and conversations, saving money for both UCEMC and our members.”

Jennifer knows her LPC is responsible for the present and future of her community’s needs, so she strategically plans UCEMC’s technological roadmap with a long-term vision.

“We are monitoring how battery storage may help manage our peak and help our members’ reliability. We’re also looking into advanced distribution automation to provide intelligence to our OMS and SCADA systems to shorten outage restoration time. Our rugged terrain presents some challenges in deployment, but we think there will be opportunities. We are extremely excited to have a 4.75 MW solar project that will begin construction in 2024 as well.”

Jennifer knows that Seven States is a helpful resource as her community’s needs continue to evolve and diversify.

“Seven States helped us explore potential revenue streams for leasing dark fiber on our 150-mile fiber ring. This is not an area we have experience with, so we’re thankful we have Seven States to lean on. We also turned to Seven States to learn from their expertise in solar energy options, and we have two EV chargers in our territory that Seven States supports.”

With so much technological advancement in the Valley, Jennifer encourages fellow leaders to start with their own LPC teams to inspire actual community change.

“My advice to any manager wanting to bring innovation to their community would be to start ‘at home’ first. Before you can bring innovation to the community, ensure you’ve appropriately considered igniting and inspiring innovation within your cooperative or municipality. Do you have metrics in place that inspire innovation or discourage it? Take the time to get staff ideas, buy-in, and feedback, and you’ll have the best ambassadors in the community to promote and share innovation.”

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Valley Update: Tennessee Valley Corridor & USDA

By Jessica Bradshaw • April 7, 2026
Seven States Power Corporation President and CEO, Betsey Kirk McCall, attended the Tennessee Valley Corridor (TVC) Board of Directors meeting in Washington, DC on March 4, 2026, joining regional leaders to discuss economic development, infrastructure investment, and the TVC’s upcoming National Summit. The TVC brings together stakeholders from government, industry, and academia to strengthen the region’s competitiveness and support long-term growth. McCall’s participation reinforced Seven States’ commitment to collaborating with regional partners to ensure the Valley’s energy systems continue to support economic expansion and community prosperity. During this visit, McCall also met with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Rural Utilities Service staff to discuss additional federal financing opportunities that could support energy development across the Tennessee Valley. The conversation focused on Seven States’ request for nearly $6 billion in funding to acquire natural gas generation resources across the Valley. An additional $320 million could support distribution-scale Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS), helping utilities strengthen grid reliability and modernization of the region’s power infrastructure. By strengthening relationships with federal leaders and advocating for policies that support growing energy demands in the Valley, McCall reinforced Seven States’ commitment to reliable, affordable and abundant power supply. McCall plans to attend the TVC's National Summit on May 28-29, 2026 in Chattanooga, TN to highlight the region's growth for economic prosperity.

State Update: Advocacy at the Tennessee State Capitol

By Jessica Bradshaw • April 7, 2026
Seven States President & CEO, Betsey Kirk McCall, spent time at the Tennessee State Capitol on February 4, 2026, meeting with legislators including members of the Senate Energy, Agriculture and Natural Resources Committee, and the House Commerce Committee. A central focus of the meetings was providing an update on Seven States’ Energy Express project, an initiative designed to support growth in the Tennessee Valley with 220MW of battery storage. This project will be funded with a $439 million award by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Utilities Service (USDA RUS) New ERA program. McCall shared how Seven States will leverage federal financing opportunities, such as their USDA award of $439 million along with access to additional federal funds, to build or acquire generation and capacity to meet energy demand across the region, particularly as TVA navigates its debt constraints. She updated the legislators on how funding available to Seven States complements and amplifies TVA’s efforts to maintain a reliable energy system. By pairing federal financing with regional expertise in project deployment, Seven States can help utilities of all sizes move energy projects forward. The Seven States team also successfully engaged in state-level advocacy efforts to help stop proposed legislation that would have imposed an additional tax on electric vehicle (EV) charging. Working alongside partners and stakeholders, Seven States communicated to lawmakers how the proposed tax could create unnecessary barriers to EV infrastructure development and slow innovation within Tennessee’s evolving energy and transportation sectors. These advocacy efforts serve to refine and advance initiatives that impact a rapidly changing energy landscape. Together with partner LPCs, Seven States is building and energizing the grid of the future.

Federal Update: APPA Legislative Rally

By Jessica Bradshaw • April 7, 2026
Seven States Power Leadership traveled to Washington, D.C., February 23–25 to meet with members of the Tennessee Valley congressional delegation while attending the American Public Power Association (APPA) Legislative Rally with the nation’s public power electric utilities. Seven States Board Chair, Jeff Dykes, (CEO, BrightRidge) and President & CEO, Betsey Kirk McCall engaged with federal leaders to advocate for more power supply, educate on the flexible financing available to Seven States as a generation and transmission cooperative, and build relationships with federal representatives on key energy issues. A central focus of the meetings was providing an update on Seven States’ Energy Express project, an initiative designed to support growth in the Tennessee Valley with 220MW of additional capacity. This project will be funded with a $439 million award by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Rural Utilities Service. McCall and Dykes also led discussions highlighting how Seven States serves as an in-Valley solution to the Tennessee Valley Authority’s current debt constraint challenges. Through its financing capabilities, Seven States can own utility-scale power plants and double the impact of TVA’s capital investments, thereby expanding production and modernizing grid infrastructure. McCall and Dykes worked to educate policymakers about how aligning objectives and encouraging the use of Seven States as a mechanism for short- and mid-term financing solutions can unleash American energy faster. McCall plans to attend the NRECA Legislative Conference April 26 – 28 in Washington D.C. to continue these efforts with the nation’s electric cooperatives.
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