NLCAA - About Us

About Us

National Lighting Contractors Association of America (NLCAA) is a nonprofit educational provider of California’s Title 24 Energy Efficiency requirements. In 2014, NLCAA was approved by the California Energy Commission as a Lighting Controls Acceptance Test Technician Certified Provider; one of only two providers in the entire state of California. We train, certify and oversee Lighting Acceptance Test Technicians (ATTs) and Lighting Controls Acceptance Test Employers (ATEs), We also offer basic to advanced educational courses on the California Energy Code and hands-on lighting controls technologies.

NLCAA is also approved by the California Department of Industrial Relations (DIR) as school number 174 to provide Continuous Education Units (CEUs) for certified electricians. To see a list of our current offerings, click here.

The NLCAA mission is to educate, train and certify participants to meet Title 24 Compliance Testing and Energy Efficiencies requirements.

Our vision is to become the leading national education provider of Energy code compliance expertise and lighting controls technologies.

Educational Classes

NLCAA strives to provide education to everyone. Because of this we offer a variety of different courses. We offer Title 24 overview courses for people who would like a brief understanding of California’s Energy Code requirements, classes that focus on Alterations and Electrical Distribution to offer insight on codes that are relevant to the majority of projects currently in the field and manufacturer supported lab classes for students to understand the full overview of that specific manufacturer.

To see our full list of classes, click here.

The NLCAA Team

Michael Scalzo Executive Director and Board Member

As of the beginning of 2017, Michael Scalzo is the Executive Director of California Electrical Training Inc. (CET) and National Lighting Contractors Association of America (NLCAA).
Michael Scalzo has been involved with California’s statewide implementation of the Title 24, Part 6 Nonresidential Standards. He has been actively providing instruction and training courses for Title 24 Lighting and Electrical Energy Code compliance through CET and NLCAA.
His 25 years of field experience has made him an expert in value engineering solutions.
In addition to being an Acceptance Test Technician and Employer, Michael is extensively involved in the lighting and electrical design and energy compliance documentation for his clients.

Marisol Lopez Program Director and Secretary

Marisol joined the NLCAA team in November of 2020. She received her BA in Communication Studies from California State University, Long Beach.
Marisol started her work experience at an early age. She worked, went to school, and managed a small wedding coordinating business all at once.
The experience she brings has added value to the NLCAA team. Marisol handles all day to day operations. She enjoys her job and uses her creativity to implement new ideas.
Marisol enjoys growing her professional skills everyday by saying yes to any assignments and opportunities to learn.

Frank Sepulveda IT Manager and Software Developer

Frank was part of the original NLCAA team joining Jack Yapp, the founder, in 2014.
Frank has been a key part of the success of both NLCAA and CET. His ability to analyze the operational aspects of a task and develop software to automate operations are a great asset for both organizations.
He created and maintains working websites for NLCAA and CET.
One of Frank’s major accomplishments is the creation of the Acceptance Testing Software used by our ATTs.
Frank continues to enhance the Acceptance Testing software based on code cycle updates and user feedback.
In addition to software development, Frank continues in his role supporting operations and technical support.

Mario Martinez Education Coordinator, Instructor and Board Member

Mario joined the team while he was still enrolled in CET’s Electrical Trainee Program.
He quickly worked his way from the warehouse to the office and customer support.
While completing the ET program, Mario’s recognized technical abilities and mastery of the program were of great help in upgrading CET’s lab classes and curriculum development.
Mario has taken on an even larger role in NLCAA, attending lighting controls classes, assisting in teaching, curriculum development, and building our brand new lab boards.
Mario is a Certified Lighting Controls Professional and is now one of NLCAA’s California Energy Code experts.

Bob Yapp CET Training Consultant and Board Member

Bob has held various senior management positions in engineering, marketing, and operations in the Telecommunications Industry.
Bob was also part of the adjunct faculty of Golden Gate University, teaching Telecommunications in the MBA program.
After leaving the Telecommunications Industry Bob worked as a consultant in support of PG&E’s energy efficiency rebate program and as a consultant to his brother Jack in the early stages of forming NLCAA. Bob has an MSEE from the University of Santa Clara and an MBA from the University of Notre Dame de Namur.
Since Jack’s retirement, Bob has worked closely with Michael to continue to grow California Electrical Training and NLCAA.
Bob has recently taken on the position of the CET Training Consultant and helps operate the financial and marketing sides of both companies.

Bob Peterson Board Member

President of KIBO Energy Services, Inc. He is a licensed California C-10 Electrical Contractor, CEC Title 24 Part 6 ATT and ATE and Colorado Master Electrician.
Mr. Peterson has over 40 years of experience in the Electrical Construction Industry. Projects range from small and simple to extremely large and complex. Contract types include design/build, design assist, negotiated, cost plus and gross maximum price. He has held numerous positions throughout his career. They include President/Owner, VP of Pre-Construction, Operations Manager, Project Manager, Chief Estimator and Electrical Foreman.
The multiple management and field positions provide a well-rounded and realistic approach to construction.
Bob has personally performed over (100) Title 24 Part 6 Lighting Control Certifications as an ATT and member of NLCAA.

Kevin White Board Member

Owner and President of Emmaus Electric, Inc.
Kevin has successfully built Emmaus Electric. Inc. into one of the largest third-party Title 24 Acceptance Testing companies within the State of California.
He oversees a full staff equipped to offer comprehensive Title-24 services including design, consultation, start-up and testing.
His expertise in code-compliance and his ability to find efficient solutions for complex projects has garnered respect in the industry.
With over 25 years in the electrical industry, Kevin holds his C-10 Electrical License, as well as, both his CEC Acceptance Test Employer and Technician Certifications.
He is excited about the future of NLCAA and looks forward to contributing to the success of the organization.

Sam Hin Board Member

Sam joined the NLCAA team in January 2020. He brings 15+ years of experience in the lighting controls and electrical construction industry.
In addition to holding a BS in Electrical Engineering from the University of California San Diego, he is a Certified Lighting Controls Professional (CLCP) and a Certified Lighting Controls Acceptance Test Technician (CLCATT).
Sam is currently employed at Performance Lighting Systems as a lighting controls specialist, consultant and instructor. He is well versed in the Title 24 Part 6 Standards and specializes in sustainable design applications with extensive field experience. He contributes his time at NLCAA instructing courses in lighting controls (applications, hardware and programming) with compliance to Title 24 Standards. Sam looks forward to helping the organization grow and reach operational excellence as a premiere non-profit ATE/ATT Certified Provider.

Gino Celillo Board Member

Vice President of Don Celillo Electric Co., Inc., a B/C-10 licensed electrical contractor located in Visalia, CA since 1976.
He has over 20 years of experience as an electrical contractor. Our projects include design/build, design assist, negotiated, hard bid and public works. He was an early adopter of using the Lutron Vive lighting control system in our design build projects and one of our projects is currently featured as a Case Study on Lutron’s website. He has been a licensed CEC Title 24 Part 6 ATT and ATE since 2015.
Our company has been members of the Associated Builders and Contractor for over 35 years and Gino currently sits on the NorCal Chapters Board of Directors as the Vice Chair. He is looking forward to helping the NLCAA grow and succeed in any way he can.