American Electric Power (AEP) Foundation provided a $100,000 grant to the Power and Energy Center (PEC) at The Bradley Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Virginia Tech.

Through the generous gift, AEP becomes a founding member of the PEC. PEC consists of faculty and graduate and undergraduate students in the engineering field of electric power systems.

The power industry in the U.S. is going through an unprecedented transformation to integrate Distributed Energy Resources, including renewable energy and microgrid, and advanced technologies for information, communication, control, measurement, and computing to achieve a reliable, resilient, and secure infrastructure to serve the people and economy.

This generous gift from AEP will support research and educational activities at Virginia Tech to realize PECs vision of the future Cyber Grid, said AEP Professor Chen-Ching Liu, Director of the PEC. Over the last year, we have launched the PEC industry affiliate program to partner with key members of the power industry. The strong support from the AEP Foundation will be critical for Virginia Tech to play a leadership role in creating advanced technology for the future power grid and develop the new generations of power engineers for the future workforce, added Dr. Liu.

This new grant is a continuation of Appalachian Power and the AEP Foundations strong support for Virginia Tech. The endowment of American Electric Power Professor made in 1982 has been instrumental for development of power engineering programs at Virginia Tech. Prior to Dr. Liu, the AEP Professors were Arun Phadke and Dushan Boroyevich, both distinguished scholars nationally and globally.

The AEP Foundation is funded by American Electric Power (NYSE: AEP) and its utility operating units, including Appalachian Power. The Foundation provides a permanent, ongoing resource for charitable initiatives involving higher dollar values and multi-year commitments in the communities served by AEP and initiatives outside of AEPs 11-state service area. The Foundation focuses on improving lives through education from early childhood through higher education in the areas of science, technology, engineering, math and the environment, and by meeting basic needs for emergency shelter, affordable housing and the elimination of hunger. Other Foundation support may be offered to protect the environment, support healthcare and safety, and enrich life through art, music and cultural heritage.