Solar Initiatives in Schools – A Local Case Study

By Tim Blackwell, OneWorld Sustainable Energy Corporation

A student’s questions lead to grassroots activism and Georgia’s first Solar School Program Project

Today, approximately 400 schools throughout the country are currently participating in, or are in the process of developing, some sort of solar schools program. These programs generally involve the installation of photovoltaic (PV) solar energy systems that have been equipped for data acquisition to provide teachers and students access to information for educational purposes.

These interactive teaching tools are being used successfully to help encourage interest in a broad range of subjects including physics, environmental science and social studies. Many participating schools are also documenting substantial improvement of student comprehension in math and science as a result of these programs.

Thanks to the coordination efforts of OneWorld Sustainable Energy Corporation, the Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority (GEFA), The Foundation for Environmental Education, the Florida Solar Energy Center and the Atlanta Regional Office of the U.S. Department of Energy, Georgia can now add its name to the growing list of states pursuing this type of learning experience. Oglethorpe County High School, located about fifteen miles east of Athens, has been serving as home of the Georgia Solar Schools Program Pilot Project since November, 2003.

The development of the project began when Oglethorpe County High School environmental science teacher Joe Conti called OneWorld in response to a comment made by one of his students, she suggested that solar energy technology be incorporated into the school’s on-going construction project. At the time, Conti was unaware of the many solar schools programs that were already up and running in other states. However, after learning about what could possibly be developed at his school, Conti agreed that a PV system could provide educational benefits in addition to meeting the energy needs of a rather large county high school.

In order to keep the overall cost at a reasonable level, OneWorld recommended the installation of a moderately sized pole-mounted Kyocera Solar PV system with a 1.5kW direct current (DC) capacity. Cost savings on the system allowed for the purchase a data acquisition system with a broad degree of monitoring capability.

GEFA provided about 90 percent of the funding necessary for the implementation of Georgia’s first solar schools program. Through its State Energy Program, GEFA supports a broad range of activities including energy efficiency and renewable energy outreach as well as the creation of partnerships with companies like OneWorld to promote innovative energy projects throughout the state. “When OneWorld approached me for funding, I was already aware of similar programs in other states,” GEFA’s Julia Miller explains. “As a matter of fact, a few months earlier I discovered that an elementary school in my parents’ hometown of Wheelersburg, Ohio had recently installed a similar system. So, when OneWorld described the project they were trying to develop, I was truly excited about the prospect of having one of these programs on line to help encourage student interest in energy efficiency and renewable energy technology.”

But, he explains, “more importantly, the true selling point for the solar project was the interactive capability of the system. Having students exposed to a wide range of data that has to be evaluated as individual components, then pieced together in order to draw a conclusion, is a prime example of performance-based education that school systems are seeking to incorporate into their curriculum.”

The data acquisition component that gives the school’s solar energy system its interactive capability was provided by Heliotronics, Inc. The Epiphany Series includes equipment designed for monitoring power, energy and sunlight intensity. Heliotronics’ packaged data acquisition systems also include SunViewer software which displays production information using colorful, user-friendly graphics in the form of dials, gauges and charts. Real-time data such as current energy production, module temperature, wind speed and system efficiency is readily available for review. In addition, historical information is stored in a local database and on a central Internet server for easy access. “The educational opportunities are endless and relevant from lower grade level through university level,” says Heliotronics president, Clayton Handleman. “Topics ranging from conservation of natural resources to energy efficiency calculation can all be addressed using these interactive solar energy systems. Furthermore, by having access to historical data available on the Internet, students can see how their system behaves over time in response to changing seasons and weather patterns. Internet access to historical data also gives students the ability to compare characteristics of their system to other interactive systems in other states, or even other countries.”

Two of the most important aspects of solar schools programs are appropriate curriculum development and teacher education. Without adequate materials and preparation, teachers would be left to their own devices. Fortunately, the Florida Solar Energy Center (FSEC), a research institute of the University of Central Florida, provided a very generous sampling of curricula designed specifically for use with solar schools programs. As coordinators of Florida’s PV for Schools program, FSEC recognizes the importance of both curriculum development and teacher education. Over the years, FSEC has created an assortment of lesson plans that cover a wide range of subjects and are applicable to students across many grade levels. In addition, their teacher workshops offer teachers hands-on experience and demonstrate how these interactive solar energy systems can be an excellent catalyst for a variety of lessons in science, math, social studies and economics.

According to Susan Schleith, Education Coordinator for FSEC, adults and students often do not recognize renewable energy options, nor do they appreciate the importance of this technology as a viable component of our energy future. “The power that is generated from these interactive solar energy systems pales in comparison to the value they have as educational tools,” she explains. “The Solar Schools Program” Susan continues, “is an excellent way to educate teachers, students and the surrounding community about renewable energy technology and the overall concept of sustainability.”

Thanks to the assistance of individuals and organizations committed to bringing environmental education to classrooms throughout the country, the Georgia Solar Schools Program has launched a terrific program at Oglethorpe that will hopefully percolate to other school districts. This new, exciting learning experience will help our nation’s young people become equipped as they address the myriad of environmental and social issues our country and world face now and in the future.