DEP Cambria Office with Solar Panels

College students from all over the state will participate in the first-in-the-nation Solar Scholars Program at Bucknell University August 7 to 11, an intense, weeklong program where they will design and build a solar array to generate electricity and energy.

While the debate continues over rising gas prices, global warming and concerns about an impending energy crisis, some dedicated and talented Pennsylvania college students are doing their part towards developing alternatives to fossil fuels. It is sponsored by the Sustainable Energy Fund of Central Eastern Pennsylvania, which created Solar Scholars.

The SEF is a non- profit, private organization dedicated to renewable energy, clean energy technologies, energy conservation and education, based in Allentown, Pa.

Solar Scholars provides university-level students in Pennsylvania in-depth, hands-on study, training and research in photovoltaics - the use of solar cells to convert sunlight into electricity.

It offers funding and incentives for students to design, build, operate and maintain a "solar system of significant impact" on their campus, as part of an overall academic curriculum in renewable and sustainable energy.

Bucknell University is among the six Pennsylvania colleges and universities selected for the Solar Scholars pilot program. The other five selected are: Clarion University (Clarion, Pa. - Clarion County); Mercyhurst College (Erie - Erie County); Messiah College (Grantham - Cumberland County); The Pennsylvania State University (University Park - Centre County); and Villanova University (Villanova - Delaware County).

The training is being led by Solar Energy International, a leading provider of education and training in renewable energy technologies. Equipment is being provided by Mesa Solar, a Pennsylvania-based (Malvern) and woman-owned energy and environmental services company.

The SEF created Solar Scholars to help "jumpstart" Pennsylvania's Alternative Energy Portfolio Standard , set forth by Act 213. Act 213 mandates that a certain percentage of electric energy in Pennsylvania be derived from clean, renewable sources, and sets ambitious goals for solar energy, in particular.

“Solar Scholars is a way "to begin building thought leadership and the foundation for a sustainable market for PV technology right here in Pennsylvania," explains Dr. Rex A. D'Agostino, President & Executive Director of The SEF.

"We're in the midst of a global energy crisis and will all be faced with some very important and perhaps difficult decisions about our energy choices," D'Agostino says. "It's critical that those decisions are informed by science, and business- and technology-based. That's why Solar Scholars is targeting college students - they are in the best position to make an immediate impact and will drive those important energy policy and technology decisions upon entering the workforce."

Each of the six schools is a member of the Pennsylvania Consortium for Interdisciplinary Environmental Policy, an alliance of 56 Pennsylvania colleges and universities that works with the departments of Environmental Protection and Conservation and Natural Resources on sustainable development issues.

PCIEP Director Donald A. Brown says: "Pennsylvania colleges and universities are providing a model for national leadership in developing alternatives to fossil fuels, moving the U.S. towards energy independence, and reducing the environmental impact of current energy practices."

Solar Scholars’ goal is for a PV solar installation on each of the Commonwealth's 152 campuses.

For more information, visit the Solar Scholars Program webpage.

8/4/2006