This project funded by

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Helman Elementary School

Grade Level:
K-5
Location:
Ashland, OR
PV System Size:
5.00 - kilowatts
Technology Type:
About the School:

Installed in August 2011, the 5.17-kilowatt photovoltaic (PV) system provided by Solar 4R Schools is located on the library roof at Helman Elementary. The project was made possible through contributions by the City of Ashland and members of the greater Helman Elementary School community.

As a Renewable School, Helman is building a dedicated community of renewable energy educators, generating clean energy through their PV system and leveraging the system's performance data as an educational tool to bring energy topics to life in their classrooms. In 2011, educators within the school received a customized renewable energy teacher training, hands-on science kit materials to augment the school's existing curricula, and complete access to the resources available on the Solar4RSchools.org website.

To optimize integration of renewable energy science and technology content, every aspect of the support provided by Solar 4R Schools was customized to fit the unique focus of the school community, including topics covered in the teacher training as well as our recommendations for activities and science kit materials to make integration of this new content as efficient as possible. At the time of the project, a touchscreen kiosk placed within the facility allowed school visitors, parents, students and teachers to interact with the system's live performance data while learning about the science and benefits of renewable energy.