Riley (he/him) is a senior majoring in Electrical Engineering. His research interests include power grid resilience and power system response in the face of extreme climate events. Outside of research and academics, Riley enjoys reading, hiking in the woods, and playing the guitar.
Starting in the summer of 2022, Riley became an undergraduate research assistant at the UConn Eversource Energy Center, working with Dr. Zongjie Wang on a literature review project analyzing contemporary studies on the subject of power grid resilience with respect to high impact, low probability climate disasters. This project inspired him to explore other research opportunities in the field of electrical engineering, and after taking an introductory power systems analysis course with Dr. Wang in Fall 2022, Riley decided to pursue an independent study project alongside two other UConn students under Dr. Wang’s supervision.
Beginning in January 2023, Riley began work with his group in the Sustainable Power Energy Lab, studying how techniques for shifting and deferring electrical load in a distribution system can impact the resilience characteristics of the broader electrical grid. This research has culminated in a conference paper, which at this time has been preliminarily accepted for presentation at the North American Power Symposium in October 2023.
Riley credits research with reigniting his passion for engineering and believes that all students deserve the opportunity to engage with the incredibly rewarding research opportunities offered at UConn. He is committed to working hard as a PRA to help students discover these opportunities and strive toward their full potential.
Student Research Blog Posts by Riley: