World Class Solar Leadership - in Oakland
E.C. Reems Academy of Technology and Art, Oakland, California - Solar Celebration
In 2006, E.C. Reems Academy was selected as one of a select group of 30 solar schools of the PG&E Solar Schools Program, and was our first school in Oakland. The campus is in a very dense urban environment, and unfortunately there was no suitable location for the standard PV on a Stick…the buildings are very close to each other, play area needed to be preserved, and there are tall Eucalyptus trees on the perimeter of the campus.
While there wasn’t a physical fit for the system, we knew we had a great fit with the creative minds at E.C. Reems…and we know that there are many opportunities to surge the sun…we just had to find the right mix of technology and art to match our school. Since we couldn’t find a suitable spot for photovoltaics on the school campus, we decided to bring the sun into the classroom and literally illuminate the many solar possibilities…including the hallways of thought… Ms. Blair opened her school and team to ours, and, together, we zeroed in on another immediate solar opportunity.
We decided to try a relatively new, but proven form of solar lighting… Solatubes capture and reflect light energy from the sun, and direct it into building spaces…a simple concept with powerful results. This technology is most effective for inner rooms that don’t have windows and would typically have their lights on all day. Solatubes intensify natural light, and save energy as they require no electricity to operate…we employ the power of the sun to light halls and classrooms instead of traditional light bulbs…and while doing so, we tap additional benefits of natural light. Solatubes are a form of what is called “daylighting“…which is a form of passive solar energy. PG&E actually sponsored a study in 1999 to measure the affects of daylighting on human performance (kids and classrooms!), and the results were astounding- “Controlling for all other influences, we found that students with the most daylighting in their classrooms progressed 20% faster on math tests and 26% on reading tests in one year than those with the least.” The picture above is the hallway “before”…and the picture below is a view from the opposite side of the hall “after” three solatubes were installed…see if you can spot the difference! Do you see any difference among the colors?
In Ms. Hollis’ class, we installed one dimmable solatube…dimmable means that she can “close” the solatube like a window shade (with electricity) in case she wants to have the room dark for a presentation.
We had many questions from the students of E.C. Reems, and we suspect there are more than a few future scientists and inventors in the room…just what will they come up with? World class leaders have world class questions…we had questions ranging from…do solar flares affect the technology (she learned about solar flares from Ms. Hollis- a scientist in the making)…are solatubes installed from the top down or the bottom up (good question for someone that will use inductive and deductive thinking throughout her life…perhaps the next macroeconomist?) …to we’re talking about solar energy, and I want what you’ve done with lunar energy (this student, one day, is going to harness the power of the ocean tides, I just know it!)…and many others. Solar energy comes in many forms…and we look forward to seeing what forms in the minds and spirits of our friends at E.C. Reems Academy. After the assembly/talk, we all shared some solar cookies…and left a Sun Oven with Ms. Blair. We’ll be checking in on what’s cooking at EC Reems…and where they will take us in the future.
