RPI Interns Join Berkshire Innovation Center's SolaBlock

PITTSFIELD, Mass — Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute graduates Rachel Soto-Garcia and Abdullah Abid have joined clean-and-construction technology company SolaBlock, a member of the Berkshire Innovaction Center, through Rensselaer's "Invent@Rensselaer Startup Immersion" program.

"This internship gives me an opportunity to understand and appreciate the renewable energy industry in a new light. I want to help places that are still developing and help the world for a better tomorrow," Soto-Garcia said, adding her parents experienced frequent power outages from rain in their home country of Guatemala.

They will create a depository of all blueprints for the company, alongside updating the automation of SolaBlock's Solar Masonry Units (SMUs), which embeds a solar cell into a cement masonry block.

"My parents are originally from Pakistan, and I have often heard and experienced several instances of rolling blackouts due to lack of supply of electricity. SolaBlock represents a clear way to not only switch over to sustainable methods of energy but to greatly add on to any location's energy supply," Abid said.

The internships will offer Soto-Garcia and Abid hands-on experience in their field as they prepare to return to  Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute this upcoming fall to develop their masters' project for their M. Eng. degree in mechanical engineering.

Less than two hours from the Rensselaer campus, SolaBlock's final assembly plant will open this summer in the city.

Professor Asish Ghosh, Director of the Inventor's Studio Courses and Invent@Rensselaer Startup Immersion Program, and a Professor of Practice at Rensselaer's Mechanical, Aerospace, and Nuclear Engineering Department, said that such programs help the entire ecosystem of universities, startups, and state & federal agencies focused on advancing the STEM-based workforce.

Eric Planey, chief executive officer of SolaBlock, noted that partnering with Rensselaer will help SolaBlock expand its operations.

"For SolaBlock, not only do we have access to such premier engineering talent like Abdullah and Rachel, but as we enter the New York State market, having the credibility of a strong relationship with RPI will accelerate that growth. RPI also has an incredible architecture school, and potential collaboration there will also help us get our product into market," Planey said in a statement.

Soto-Garcia and Abid graduated in May with their bachelor's degrees in mechanical engineering.

Professor Diana Borca-Tasciuc, an expert in solar cell design and technology in Rensselaer's Mechanical, Aerospace and Nuclear Engineering Department, said that the collaboration with Solablock would lead to innovating, designing, and manufacturing of building integrated photovoltaics (BIPV), a step in the right direction to achieve net zero buildings.

Professor Antoinette Maniatty, Acting Department Head of Mechanical Aerospace and Nuclear Engineering, also the home to the Invent@Rensselaer Startup Immersion Program for the School of Engineering, noted that these internships would lead to several collaborative projects between Rensselaer, SolaBlock and sources of funding both at the state and federal levels, including the implementation of new manufacturing jobs.

Nonprofit Center of the Berkshires Honors Leaders, Volunteers

By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff
09:07AM / Sunday, May 24, 2026

Liana Toscanini presented the Founder's Choice Award to Smitty Pignatelli for his years of support as state representative. 

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Nonprofit Center of the Berkshires held its ninth annual nonprofit awards last week honoring the contributions of those who have helped the community in their own way.

 

The gathering at the Country Club in Pittsfield on Tuesday included the introduction of new nonprofit Executive Director Samantha Anderson, who steps in for retiring founder and director Liana Toscanini. State Reps. Tricia Farley-Bouvier, John Barrett III and Leigh Davis attended the event.

 

Toscanini, who created NPC in 2016, was honored at the conclusion of the evening to mark her decade leading the organization. 

 

"Founders don't just lead organizations, they are the organization in the deepest sense," said NPC Board President Emily Schiavoni. "Their relationships, their instincts, their fingerprints are on everything, and when someone has poured a decade of herself into building something from the ground up, the act of stepping back is not a simple handoff, it's an act of extraordinary trust and courage that brings me to what Leanna actually built." 

 

NPC became something of a chamber of commerce for nonprofits under Toscanini's guidance, creating a hub of support for leadership and networking for the small and large nonprofits that fuel much of the activity within the Berkshires. 

 

She developed more than two dozen programs, including Get on Board, which helps connect community members with nonprofit boards, and a giving-back guide, volunteer fairs, and a resource directory.

 

Schiavoni described Toscanini as a great mentor who has had a big impact in strengthening local nonprofits.