The WW-P School Board is looking to expand the use of solar panels — already in place at the two high schools — to seven more district schools.
The panels would be paid for through the issuance of no-interest tax credit bonds from the federal government’s Clean Renewable Energy Bonds program.
The project would require a bond referendum on the ballot in April’s school board elections. Officials are estimating that they will need to ask voters to approve $6.4 million in bonds for the project.
In the summer of 2009, the federal government approved the allocation of $7.6 million in federal tax credit bonds to cover solar panel projects at seven of its schools. The allocation, however, comes with an expiration date of two years, and in order to be able to take advantage of the no-interest bonds, the district will need to take action before this coming summer.
Because solar energy prices have dropped since the time of the award, WW-P estimates it will only need the federal government to issue $6.4 million of the $7.6 million in bonds available to the district.
In order to get the referendum on the ballot, however, school officials will need to seek approval from the state.
District officials say that the amount of money that will be generated from the solar panels will, overall, outweigh the money spent.
School Board member Anthony Fleres, who sits on the district’s finance committee, which has been discussing the issue over its past few meetings, said during the board’s meeting on December 14 that the project “will provide a positive cash flow from the beginning.”
This is because the district will save in energy costs as well as receive extra credit beyond what it saves on electricity by sending extra electricity back to the power company for distribution. By doing that, the district will receive solar renewable energy certificates, which can be sold for income. That money can be used to offset costs in other areas of the general budget.
“You get more money each 12 months than you put out,” said Larry Shanok, the district’s superintendent for finance.
While there will be debt generated from issuing bonds for the project, the district will keep to its promise of keeping the annual debt service levy at or below $11.1 million — the promise it made to voters before going out for the $27.5 million building referendum in 2006 for improvements to the district’s schools.
“An important thing is that we’re not saying we’re going to violate that,” said Shanok. “Our expectation is that the debt service will remain firm to that promise.”
In addition, the district is eligible for 40 percent annually in state debt service aid on all bonds it issues, which will help with that.
The first phase of the solar energy project at WW-P was approved by voters as part of the 2009 budget. Part of that budget statement included $1.85 million to be withdrawn from the capital reserve account for the solar project at the district’s two high schools, where solar panels are now up and running. Shanok said the district will also be receiving $576,500 in solar energy rebates to help offset the cost of the first phase of the project, in which the district only ended up spending $1.2 million.
With solar panels already up and running as part of the first phase, which generates 220 kilowatts of energy between the two high schools, the remainder of the district’s schools will receive solar panels, except for Dutch Neck, where the roof is not appropriate for the panels. The second phase will generate 1,070 watts of energy.
Shanok said that in addition to generating revenue from the sale of energy credits, the district will also be helping the environment and creating jobs associated with the solar project.
Program of Studies. The school board got its first look at the district’s program of studies, and proposed changes, for the upcoming school year during the December 14 meeting. The board reviews the program of studies annually.
The changes to the program of studies are consistent with changes to the state’s high school graduation requirements, which were updated last year to require a total of 120 credits and the infusion of 21st century skills across all content areas. Among those changes was three years of lab science, including biology, a choice between chemistry, physics, or environmental science, and a third inquiry-based lab or technical science; as well as a half year of economics and financial literacy.
Among the changes to the WW-P program to meet those requirements are the addition of a one-semester financial, economic, business, and entrepreneurial literacy course that would be worth 2.5 credits. The details of the course — which could cover topics like income and careers, money management, and personal finance — will be determined in the spring, when officials will convene to figure out how the district should best fulfill the requirements.
According to Russell Lazovick, the assistant superintendent for curriculum and instruction, who presented the first review of the program, said that another change in the state requirements allows students who are native speakers of another world language to test out of up to four years of world language requirements based on their proficiency levels.
When asked about whether there would be a drop-off in students’ interest in taking a world language if they could test out of it, Lazovick told the board that many students still take four years of a language, given the value of knowing multiple languages. If a student does test out of the world language requirement and does not take a different language, he or she will be required to fulfill credits in other subjects.
There is also a change to the athletic and co-curricular eligibility, as students will now need to have fulfilled 30 credits in the prior academic year before playing fall or winter sports (the previous requirement was 27.5).
The district is also adding a conceptual physics course and is expanding its current half-year environmental science course to a full year lab course. The program review will be continued in January.
