Sask. students gain hands-on solar energy experience through innovative school project

Saskatchewan students are gaining hands-on experience in renewable energy through the installation of solar panels. Carla Shynkaruk reports.

A new solar energy project is giving students at Tommy Douglas Collegiate and Kihiw Waciston School in Muskeg Lake Cree Nation an opportunity to learn about renewable energy, sustainability, skilled trades and future career opportunities, all while helping reduce their schools’ environmental footprint.

Installation is underway on a 10-panel ground-mounted solar energy system on the front lawn area of Tommy Douglas Collegiate. A second, identical system is also being installed at Kihiw Waciston School as part of the collaborative project.

The initiative was made possible through a $67,000 Teacher Innovation Grant awarded to Tommy Douglas Collegiate teacher Mike Prebble, who partnered with local solar company Rock Paper Sun to bring the project to life.

“The students out there are going to be doing their install, and our students are doing them here, then we’re going to have the two groups meet up and compare different stories,” Prebble told CTV News.

Because the systems are ground-mounted, students can play an active role in the installation process and continue learning long after construction is complete.

“It is a great project because it’s a ground mount system. The students can actually be involved in the implementation of it, and then they can also be involved in tracking the data after this as well,” Prebble said.

Students enrolled in Environmental Science 20 will monitor and analyze solar production data, which will also be shared with other science classes throughout the school.

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For Grade 12 student Sainab Fatima, the project highlights Saskatchewan’s untapped renewable energy potential.

“Our province has a lot of potential for renewable energy. We get a lot of sunshine, especially in the summer and the winter,” she said.

Grade 11 student Savannah Sayies said the project demonstrates how clean energy can help address climate change while providing valuable learning opportunities.

“Instead of using something bad for climate change, you could use something like this. I also can’t wait to track the progress of the solar panels,” Sayies said.

Organizers said the project is about more than just generating electricity. It is also creating meaningful connections between students from two different school communities.

“I feel very excited and proud about it because we’re using natural energy — energy that’s from the sun,” Miley Andrews, who is one of the 12 Saskatoon students involved in the project, said.

While the solar arrays will not generate enough electricity to power the schools entirely, the savings they create will support educational programming while reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

“That would be great for saving the school some money and reducing our carbon footprint as a school as well,” Prebble said.

The project is also exposing students to careers in Saskatchewan’s growing clean energy sector.

“This is something that I would continue with. It’s something that I would put on my resume,” Andrews added.

Prebble hopes the success of the project will inspire similar renewable energy initiatives at schools across the province.

It may have been a cloudy day during installation Friday, but for the students involved, the future of solar energy and the opportunities it creates looks bright.