21 teachers in counties Wake Electric serves have been awarded the 2026-2027 Bright Ideas grants. The grants will be used for a variety of classroom programs throughout the school year. Grant winners are:
| Carol Jemiolo | Apex Friendship Middle | Wake |
| Terrill Hartenstein | Athens Drive High | Wake |
| Ashley Holloman | Corinth Holders High | Johnston |
| Carrie Jones | Dillard Drive Middle | Wake |
| Kaitlyn Jones | East Wake Academy High | Wake |
| Amanda O’Conner | Edward Best Elementary | Franklin |
| Kimberly Sieracki | Edwards Elementary | Nash |
| Tommy Kemp | Franklinton High | Franklin |
| Carly Rowe | Franklinton High | Franklin |
| Heather Boyette | Glendale-Kenly Elementary | Johnston |
| Loshonda Allen | Lake Myra Elementary | Wake |
| Taryn Higgins | Lake Myra Elementary | Wake |
| Victoria Aranda | Louisburg High | Franklin |
| Edwin Davis | Needham Broughton High | Wake |
| Elizabeth Wright | North Ridge Elementary | Wake |
| Allyson Young | Princeton Elementary | Johnston |
| JD Carter | Smith Elementary | Wake |
| Carter Clever | Smithfield Selma High | Johnston |
| Kelly Davis | Swift Creek Elementary | Johnston |
| Feifei Lyu | Wake Forest Elementary | Wake |
| James Ewing | Walnut Creek Elementary | Wake |
The funds for the Bright Ideas grants come from WEMC members who agree to round up their light bill to the nearest whole dollar through the Operation RoundUp program. For example, if the bill is $190.91 – the bill will be rounded up 9 cents to $191.00. These pennies add up to major dollars. Partial funding also comes from the North Carolina Electric Membership Corporation, located in Raleigh, NC. The NCEMC consists of a family of corporations formed to support the state’s 27 electric cooperatives.
Wake Electric is a non-profit electric utility serving over 60,000 consumers in parts of Durham, Franklin, Granville, Johnston, Nash, Vance, and Wake counties.
