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Students at El Dorado Elementary School get a lesson in how solar panels will convert energy from the sun to power their school.   Photo by Janie Buelow for LAUSD

By Samantha Koos and Naomi Zimmermann

The best ambassadors for more sustainable practices may not be old enough to drive that new hybrid car, but they certainly know the value of sunshine.  Students at El Dorado Avenue Elementary School in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD), when asked why their school was having a solar power system installed, explained just how elementary it is: Because it is good for our future.

LAUSD Board Member Julie Korenstein, who has led the charge for more sustainable practices at the District, joined these students on May 21 to celebrate a milestone in renewable energy for schools nationwide. El Dorado Avenue Elementary School will be among the very first schools converted to “grid neutral,” producing as much energy as it consumes in a year.

“The installation of a solar-powered system at El Dorado Elementary School is extremely important in helping to conserve energy and to reduce the carbon footprint,” Korenstein said. “We all need to work together to assure that there will be a healthier environment for our children.”
California State Architect David Thorman, who is at the forefront of discussions to make grid neutral schools a reality, was also on hand to express what this grid neutral school signifies statewide. "El Dorado Elementary is demonstrating that grid neutral is obtainable in both new and existing schools.  Decades after first opening its doors, it is exciting to see El Dorado Elementary will soon be a model for what 21st century schools should be,” he said.  “El Dorado serves as an example of how California schools can help meet the challenge the Governor has given us to reduce greenhouse gases statewide.  Everyone involved in this project should be very proud."
With a goal of 50 MW (megawatts) installed and online by the close of the 2012 fiscal year, LAUSD has one of the most ambitious solar energy policies and programs of any major public agency in the United States. 

LAUSD’s Facilities Services Division (FSD) is on track to install and start generating nearly five MW of solar power by the end of 2009.  One MW of power has already been installed on the roof of the District’s Pico Rivera warehouse and is generating electricity.  In February, the LAUSD Board of Education gave its approval for FSD to move forward with eight additional solar projects at seven school sites and one local district office that will generate 3.7 MW of power. Two of the schools in this first group of projects, Ann Elementary School and El Dorado Elementary School, will be grid-neutral. 

In a time of perpetually shrinking budgets, particularly in education, solar energy is emerging as one of the few silver linings. The savings in electrical costs to LAUSD for the Pico Rivera warehouse alone are approximately $65,000 a year.  In total, the cost savings generated by the nine sites will total more than $1 million per year.  These are dollars that would otherwise be spent out of LAUSD’s general fund and can now be used in more direct support of classroom instruction.

The District is in the process of surveying more than 200 sites within LAUSD for possible solar panel installation. Of these, 122 sites have already been identified as viable for solar panel installation.  More projects will be brought to the Board of Education for approval by the close of the 2008-09 school year.  Funding for these projects stems from several different sources, including Los Angeles Department of Water and Power settlement funds, utility incentives, and Measure Q bond funds.

Installing solar panels is one part of the District’s plan to achieve its goal of reducing the District’s annual energy consumption by 10 percent by 2012.  This means reducing the District’s energy use by more than 50 million kilowatt hours (KWh) by 2012.  Other aspects of energy reduction plans include initiating a District-wide conservation awareness program, installing energy management systems in 120 high schools, retrofitting the lighting fixtures and systems and retrofitting heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems, where appropriate. 

By harnessing the power of the sun, the District is not only saving natural resources, but is seeking to better serve its students, teachers and staff by employing more environmentally friendly operations.   Or, more simply, as the students of El Dorado Avenue Elementary School will tell you, it is good for our future.

 For more information, please visit the LAUSD’s new sustainability website at www.laschools.org.

Samantha Koos is communications deputy for the LAUSD Facilities Services Division.  Naomi Zimmerman is an Administrative Analyst with LAUSD’s Sustainability Initiatives Division.

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