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Technology Teacher Clint Monfalcone explains British Thermal Units, or BTUs, and their relationship to solar energy being generated real-time atop Mendive Middle School by its new solar electric installation. |
Students all across Nevada are learning the importance of renewable energy, including in the rural town of Winnemucca, where the GreenPower program celebrated the installation of its sixth structure atop French Ford Middle School.
Each school has its own way of celebrating and incorporating the installation, which includes an array of solar panels and a wind generator that together generate enough power to run a small, efficient home.
Technology teacher Clint Monfalcone, for example, welcomed the addition, aptly named “Solarnator,” to his Technology classroom at Mendive Middle School in Sparks. The envirometer component, which is connected directly to the installation and illustrates real-time power generation as a teaching tool for students, was wired into Monfalcone’s hands-on classroom learning laboratory. At the school’s unveiling on Oct. 27, it was evident the installation melded easily into the students’ curriculum, as the middle schoolers eagerly showed visitors how to use “Fat Spaniel,” a computer program complementing the installation to teach students about renewable energy.
French Ford Middle School unveiled a few surprises of its own on Dec. 7, when the entire student body showed up for an assembly in honor of the new addition to its school. Named the “Solar Wind Express” from the winning combination of two students’ entries, French Ford’s installation marks the first in a rural area.
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Above left: At the French Ford unveiling, students led by Principal Robert Lindsay were encouraged to parade through the assembly to show off their posters about renewable energy.Left: The colorful, hand-painted mural representing the Solar Wind Express is showcased in a prominent hallway of French Ford Middle School. The mural incorporates the “Fat Spaniel” computer software through a computer screen protruding through the wall and sports a hands-on energy demonstration and light bulbs that light up when the wind generator has reached maximum electricity storage levels. (Photos by Heather Emmons) |
French Ford Middle School promotes a unique learning environment with an open floor plan and painted murals in hallways and even the bathrooms. And without missing a beat, the school unveiled a custom mural incorporating the Fat Spaniel computer program on a screen mounted within the wall and a hands-on learning station. Light bulbs mounted overhead indicate when the wind turbine has reached peak levels of power generation.
Although each unveiling has been unique, they all have included poster contests and a naming contest with the winners receiving a $100 savings bond from U.S. Bank in northern Nevada or BankWest of Nevada in southern Nevada. The GreenPower program is a partnership between the Desert Research Institute and the DRI Research Foundation, Sierra Pacific Power Co. and Nevada Power Co. The program is supported by contributions made by customers of the power companies through their monthly utility bills and corporate and foundation gifts. More information about the donation program and joining is available on line at: http://www.sierrapacific.com/comenv/env/greenpower/join/ in northern Nevada and http://nevadapower.com/comenv/env/greenpower/join/ in southern Nevada.
–Heather Emmons
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