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Sheridan receives Sun4Schools Grant
Karen Talley

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October, 2003 

Sheridan Schools newly installed solar panels will provide renewable energy along with opportunities for learning.

The Sheridan High School submitted a grant application which was approved for the Sun4Schools program this year. This Sun4Schools project is a unique opportunity for Montana schools to combine education & cost saving with a photovoltaic system installation and demonstration. The grant provides for a no-cost solar panel system and inverter to five selected Montana schools systems annually. 

The Sheridan High School grant was approved for the Sun4Schools solar sytem in the spring and the solar panels were installed in last month.

The primary objectives of this project are to provide students with a unique educational opportunity to learn about solar energy, to allow schools to generate their own “clean” electricity utilizing renewable energy resources and to provide community demonstrations of PV systems at work. 

The system installed in the Sheridan Schools has 3,000W panels and a 2,800W inverter. Energy from the sun is turned into DC current which is converted to AC thru the inverter and fed into the school electrical system. The inverter has a metering system that displays the KwHrs generated per day along with other data. This system should generate approximately 300 KwHr/month which is equivalent to about 1/2 of what a typical household consumes in one month. The hardware and installation were provided at no cost to the Sheridan School system and should save $400 +/- per year in electrical cost. The panel life is approximately 30 years. 

Not only will the school have a cost saving each year for the next 20 to 30 years but the system will help reduce air emissions. In Montana, for example, a 2-kw PV system installed on a school will eliminate about 3,500 pounds of carbon dioxide and nearly a half-pound of nitrogen oxides annually. 

Photovoltaics ciriculum will be incorporated in Mr. Fett's school program.

:: Sheridan Schools ::

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