Like a lot of students, Hannah McCorry ’19, M.S. ’22, started college not knowing what she wanted to major in or what she would pursue for a career. One class and the professor who taught it changed all that.
“Dr. Dave Loomis was extremely influential to my academics as well as my career path,” McCorry said. “When I came to ISU as a transfer student, I did not know what I wanted to do or study. By chance I took his Economics of Energy and Public Policy (ECO 236) class as an elective, and it sparked a fire in me.”
What Loomis, an economics professor at Illinois State University, revealed to McCorry through his teaching was that she had an interest in electricity and renewable energy. From that first class, McCorry signed up for as many of Loomis’ classes as she could during her undergraduate years. She couldn’t get enough of the topic, she said, as her interest turned to a passion. Loomis later sold her on the idea that she had the ability to succeed in pursuing a master’s degree in economics. He then mentored her during grad school and helped with her job search.
“He was the first professor who saw potential in me and helped me succeed in school,” McCorry said. “In my career I routinely reference things that I learned from him. He completely changed my life’s path, and I will be forever grateful.”
McCorry, 25, an Orland Park native, came to Illinois State as a transfer student. She was following in the footsteps of her mother, Jaime ’82. McCorry’s sister Abaigeal ’20, a first-grade teacher, makes for three Redbirds in the family.
Currently McCorry is a graduate fellow at the Illinois Power Agency (IPA) in Chicago. The IPA is a state agency responsible for planning and managing power purchases on behalf of residential and small commercial customers in Illinois. McCorry said she landed the position, in part, because of the classes she took at Illinois State that focused on the state’s energy markets.
“My undergrad degree was a general economics sequence, but I focused my studies on electricity markets, and I was particularly interested in nuclear energy and the future of nuclear energy in the U.S. and in Illinois,” she said. “My second degree is an M.S. in economics, with a sequence in natural gas, electricity, and telecommunication markets.”
Her master’s program was through the Institute for Regulatory Policy Studies (IRPS) at Illinois State. The IRPS is an institution for research and education in regulatory economics and public policy in the state of Illinois, and it has “a reputation for excellence in Midwest regulatory issues,” McCorry said.
For her master’s capstone, she did a cost-benefit analysis on fuel switching by Illinois residents, which she described as a fancy way to say that she did a comparison of what happens if a homeowner in Illinois switched from a natural gas furnace to an electric air-source heat pump, and would they save money on heating costs?
“I found that even though the heat pumps cost more to install than a natural gas furnace, residents would save money in the long-term on energy costs, due to the fact that electric furnaces are more fuel efficient and electricity is cheaper than natural gas,” she said. “Regardless of where a home is located in Illinois (and no matter their service provider) there was cost-savings found.”
In her work, McCorry has learned about the IPA’s involvement with the Illinois Renewable Portfolio Standard (a policy designed to develop renewable energy) and the agency’s support of nuclear plants with its implementation of a Carbon Mitigation Credit and a Zero Emission Standard Plan. In addition, the IPA administers two residential solar programs: Illinois Shines and Illinois Solar for All.
“The Illinois Shines program is a traditional rooftop/community solar program,” McCorry said. “We offer solar developers incentive money to help offset the cost of panels for homeowners. Our Illinois Solar for All program provides greater access to clean energy for low-income communities, nonprofits, and public schools through incentives that help make solar installations more affordable and result in measurable savings for participants.”
Solar for All participants pay no money down, McCorry said, adding that there are plans in development to help those homeowners who need it with home repairs related to prepping their home for solar.
“Our goal is to keep solar affordable for Illinois,” McCorry said.
McCorry said her degrees at Illinois State have created numerous opportunities for a career in energy. She is inspired by alumni of her program who are working all across the industry, adding that she hopes to be like them in five or 10 years. Looking toward her future, McCorry’s career goals include getting involved in the decision-making side of regulatory work.
“I see myself staying in the public sector because I believe that government is an important asset in helping our economy turn green,” she said. “Climate change is an important issue for me, and I want to do my best to help ensure a safe future for my loved ones and a healthy environment for the planet.”
