Management & Board

Jeffery Wolfe, Co-Founder, CEO, Chairman of Board of Directors  
Jeff is co-founder, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board of Directors of groSolar.  He is a recognized leader in the solar energy industry and a leading voice on solar energy policy throughout the U.S.  Jeff is in charge of strategy, M&A, and PV procurement for the Company.  Under his direction, groSolar has become a leader in system installation in the eastern United States, a top five national distributor of solar equipment and systems, and a national commercial systems provider.  Prior to forming groSolar, Jeff was a Partner in Bard, Rao + Athanas Consulting Engineers, where he started and ran branch offices in Hanover, NH and Chicago, IL.  Jeff is the elected chair of the PV Division of the Solar Electric Industry Association (SEIA), the country's leading PV trade organization.  He also serves on the Union of Concerned Scientists National Advisory Board and is one of only 1,000 people in the U.S. trained in presenting Al Gore's climate change presentation.  Jeff has a BSME degree from Cornell University.

Dorothy Wolfe, Co-Founder, President
Dori is co-founder and Financial Manager and has managed nearly all aspects of the Company at different times since its inception.  Under her direction, groSolar has implemented new accounting methods, controls and programs, and has helped to steer  the largest renewable energy fair in New England, to a stronger position in education and outreach.  Dori also plays the lead role for the Company in its social responsibility outreach with organizations like Habitat for Humanity.  Prior to forming groSolar, Dori was a Senior Engineer at Bard, Rao + Athanas Consulting Engineers.  Dori has been Engineer-in-Charge of over 750,000 square feet of building design projects.  Dori has a BSME degree from Cornell University.

James Resor, Chief Financial Officer, Member of Board of Directors
Jamie joined groSolar in 2007 and led the Company's $10 million equity fundraising efforts which closed in December 2007.  Jamie is also actively involved in the Company's expansion plans, acquisition opportunities and strategic partnerships.  Prior to joining groSolar, Jamie was the COO/CFO of a software company from its inception in 1999 until sale in 2004.  More recently he helped start a real-time energy management company, and has advised several growth companies in the U.S. and China.  During much of the 1990s, Jamie was with the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), the world's largest private environmental organization.  At WWF, Jamie developed and executed 'debt-for-nature' swaps and other financing mechanisms in more than ten countries and advised the U.S. Government on debt restructuring programs in Latin American, Asia and Africa.  He has an undergraduate degree from Dartmouth College and an MBA from Stanford University Graduate School of Business. 

Jim Merriam, Chief Operating Officer
Jim joined groSolar in March 2007.  He has assumed responsibilities for purchasing, inventory, systems installation, engineering, and the Company's general infrastructure to handle rapid growth.  Prior to joining groSolar, Jim was Vice President of Operations at Northern Power Systems and brings considerable experience and expertise in PV construction, international project management, inventory control, and management through rapid growth.  Jim managed the growth of the operations group at Northern over a three-year period and hundreds of installations on all seven continents.  Jim graduated from the University of Vermont with a BS in Electrical Engineering and received an MBA from Drexel University.

Paul Coughlin, Senior VP of Sales & Marketing
Paul built groSolar's Distribution and Dealer business since joining the company. He has been instrumental in building groSolar's dominant distribution position in the Northeast and laying the foundation for groSolar's national distribution capabilities in a short time. Paul was deeply involved in the early growth of the solar energy industry in California.  He came to groSolar in 2004 from Alternative Solar Products, where he was Manager of Distribution and Dealer Services. For Astropower, he was the leading sales consultant in the founding of Home Depot's Solar PV retail sales program, the first of its kind in the country. Prior to his role at Astropower, Paul operated the west coast office of another large PV distributor, and led their entry into the San Diego residential market.

Frank Griffin, VP of Construction
Frank is groSolar's VP of Construction with responsibility for large commercial projects.  Prior to joining groSolar, Frank was Vice President and Regional Development Manager for Lane Northeast, LLC, a multifamily real estate developer affiliated with Lane Company in Atlanta.  At Lane Northeast, he was responsible for a 900 unit, $170 million residential redevelopment in Towson, MD among other projects.  From 2000 to 2004 he was Senior Manager at Mesirow Financial Real Estate, Inc.  During his tenure at Mesirow Financial he was dedicated to the University of Illinois at Chicago, South Campus Development, a $1.2 billion mixed-use redevelopment which includes retail, student housing, adaptive reuse, public parks and greenways, infrastructure and 900 units of for-sale housing.  Frank attended Lehigh University where he received a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering and the Pennsylvania State University, where he received a Master of Business Administration. 

Richard Deutschman, VP of Policy & Market Development
Richard is a Professional Mechanical Engineer with nearly 25 years of experience in renewable energy and institutional facilities engineering. Richard co-founded and served as the Chief Executive Officer for Chesapeake Solar, until the company joined the groSolar family in 2008. Now the Vice President of the mid-Atlantic region, Richard is responsible for directing groSolar’s policy initiatives. Richard has been active in environmental and clean energy advocacy for many years and is a regular testifier in clean energy cases before state and local legislatures. His participation and leadership in local government and industry organizations is driven by his strong commitment to a clean energy future and socially responsible business. In his previous professional life, Richard was a project engineer at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center. He holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Arizona. In his precious spare time, he prefers to be hiking, kayaking, or otherwise enjoying the tremendous bounty of the planet with his wife, Vanessa, and two teenaged boys.

Rod Viens, VP of Operations
Rod is responsible for the distribution and installation operations for groSolar. Rod brings to groSolar a proven track record of maximizing resources, streamlining operations, and instilling excellent customer service. Prior to joining groSolar, Rod was Vice President of Operations and Business Development with Yankee Barn Homes, a nationally distributed post and beam home manufacturer, where he established and oversaw the installation construction division, and was charged with improving the overall company process, with the goal of exceeding client needs and expectations. Prior to his role at Yankee Barn Homes, Rod was the proprietor of a retail chain operation. Rod graduated from Keene State College with a BS in Management.
 

David Kirkpatrick, Member of Board of Directors
David is a Managing Director and co-founder of SJF Ventures, a $45 million venture capital firm with offices in Durham, NC and New York City.  He joined groSolar's board of directors at the time of the Series A equity financing in September 2006.  SJF Ventures was the lead investor for that financing.  David has broad experience as an entrepreneur and venture capitalist in the clean energy arena.  In the 1980's, David co-founded and directed SunShares, an early solar energy and recycling company in North Carolina.  He was named National Recycler of the Year by the National Recycling Coalition in 1996 and Practitioner of the Year in 2005 by the Community Development Venture Capital Alliance.  David earned a BA in Physics and History from Duke University in 1982 and an MBA from UNC Business School in 1991.  He also serves on the Boards of B.B. Hobbs, Inc., Ed Map Inc., the NC Sustainable Energy Association, and the Duke-Durham Neighborhood Partnership. 

Chris Sorrells, Member of Board of Directors
Chris is a Managing Director with NGP Energy Technology Partners, L.P ("NGP ETP"), a Washington, D.C. based $148 million fund investing growth equity capital in companies providing technology-related products and services to the oil and gas, power, and alternative energy sectors.  NGP ETP is an affiliate of NGP Energy Capital Management, a leading investment firm with over $9.3 billion of cumulative capital under management.  Chris serves on the Board of Directors of Lehigh Technologies and is a Board Observer at Renewable Energy Group.  He held a prior Board seat at Xunlight Corporation, a manufacturer of a-Si thin-film solar modules.  Prior to joining NGP Energy Technology Partners, Chris worked at Clarity Partners, an $800 million private equity firm.  From 1998 to 2002, Chris worked at Banc of America Securities in both the natural resources and technology groups.  He founded and headed Banc of America's Energy Technology Investment Banking Group from 2000 to 2002 and served as the lead banker on a broad range of transactions, including deals for Evergreen Solar, Caminus, Artesyn Technologies, Millennium Cell, Encorp, and SoftSwitching Technologies.  Chris holds a BA from Washington and Lee University, a Master of Accounting degree from the University of Southern California, and an MBA from the College of William and Mary.