St. Francis High School Dedicates New Solar Installation
Let the Sun Shine! On May 3, students at St. Francis High School will don flip flops and sunglasses as the school celebrates the completion of the installation of a 309.3 KW Photovoltaic (PV) System on the East Sacramento campus.
On May 3, at 11:00 AM, the school community will celebrate this historic accomplishment with a dedication ceremony in Serra Court. Faculty, staff, the St. Francis school board, members of the St. Francis Solar Project Planning Committee, SMUD representatives, and community supporters will join the student body for this festive occasion. The dedication program will include Kelly Brothers, president of the Catholic Foundation of the Diocese of Sacramento and longtime supporter of Catholic education, St. Francis High School President Marion L. Bishop, Brad Price of Valley Solar, Paul Lau of SMUD, and senior student Kate Ely.
Generation of solar power from the 1,316 panels on the rooftops of seven campus buildings is projected to produce 30.6% of the school’s current electricity requirements and save the school $1 million over the next 25 years. The installation, the second largest school installation in SMUD’s service territory, is being funded through a US Treasury Grant, SMUD rebates, and reductions in electric utility bills.
The St. Francis Catholic High School solar project will generate the 426,595 KWH of electricity annually. A comparable amount of electricity generated by a coal fired plant would dispel 294 metric tons of CO2 into the atmosphere. When compared to the more commonplace quantities, these kilowatt hours are equivalent to 32,978 gallons of gasoline or to the energy use of 42 homes for one year.
The solar installation serves not only to cut energy costs and reduce carbon emissions, it also brings the new direction of the Catholic Church to the Sacramento community, sets an example for others to follow, and demonstrates the importance of living in cooperation with nature. The Catholic Church takes a strong stance on the issues of environmental awareness and
conservation. Beginning in the 1960s, the Church adopted a firm stance in favor of addressing and resolving the environmental issues of the day. Under Pope Benedict XVI, the
Church has risen to the forefront on issues such as renewable energy and carbon emissions.
St. Francis High School’s PV installation also offers educational benefits. A DECK internet-compatible data acquisition system provides integration into class curricula with correlation to national science content standards. Students are able to learn how solar works, monitor local atmospheric conditions, track solar energy generation, and analyze energy savings in terms of gas, dollars, trees, CO2 saved, and many more equivalencies.
