For his contribution to the field of electrical engineering and the advancement of renewable energy research and adoption, Richard “Dick” DeBlasio ’72 received the School of Engineering’s highest honor, the Distinguished Engineering Alumni Award, recognizing alumni whose accomplishments in their professions, communities, and University service have set them apart.

DeBlasio is a Research Fellow Emeritus at the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). With a career at NREL spanning more than 35 years, he has been instrumental in furthering renewable energy research and adoption both nationally and internationally. His work has contributed immeasurably to the efficiency, reliability, affordability, and adoption of renewable energy systems. Industry and government standards that enable the use of renewables in conjunction with central power systems were achieved through his leadership and foundational research, and he led the effort that has become the standard for Smart Grid modernization.

Scores of scholarly publications attest to DeBlasio’s influence in his field, as do numerous industry awards—ANSI Finnegan Standards Medal for extraordinary leadership in the actual development and application of consensus standards, IEEE Charles Proteus Steinmetz Medal for contributions to the standardization and global impact of distributed electric power system technology, IEEE Lifetime Achievement Award, and recognition by Fierce Energy Magazine as one of 13 nationally influential experts on energy, to name just a few.