Lowered Utility Costs

• By producing their own solar energy, schools have the ability to decrease their utility costs significantly. The Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) has announced plans to install a solar panel system on the roof of Canoga Park High, and they intend to expand their solar network significantly by 2014. While large districts such as LAUSD cannot achieve full energy independence with plans such as this one, that goal may be reachable in the future, especially for small districts.
  
  

Future Profits

• Once a school district becomes energy independent through the use of solar panels, the next step is to sell excess power back to the community. At this point, not only can a school district reroute money normally spent on utilities to other important areas that currently lack funding, it can actually begin to make extra money. Include the fact that many schools receive grants for their solar panel projects, and the financial impact of energy independence grows even further.
  
  

Environmental Impact

• Schools with solar panels not only save money, they also reduce their carbon footprint. Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Alexandria, Virginia, for example, installed a series of solar panels on the roof in 2009. The school estimates that the panels will save five tons of carbon dioxide from entering the atmosphere each year.
  
  

Educational Impact

• Perhaps even more important than the simple economic or environmental gains acquired by installing solar panels on a school is the impact on the outlook of the children in the school. By teaching kids about solar power, energy independence and the economic impact of green technology, these schools are developing future generations with both a passion for the environment and the technical skills necessary to expand alternative energy initiatives well into the future.