Buffalo Grove, Wheeling schools receive grants for solar energy education

The Cook County Department of Environment and Sustainability has awarded grants to 23 suburban public schools to support the construction of small photovoltaic systems used to educate students on how sunlight is converted into electricity.

The county's program provides supplemental funding to grantees of the Illinois Clean Energy Community Foundation's (ICECF) K-12 Solar Schools Program, which assists with the installation of 1kW PV systems at elementary, middle and high schools across the state. Each school is reimbursed a maximum of $5,000 by the county upon installation of the system.

Among the grant recipients are Cooper Middle School in Buffalo Grove, Holmes Middle School in Wheeling and London Middle School in Wheeling.

Grantees commit to incorporating solar and renewable energy into their STEM curriculum, and to host "Solarbrations" that celebrate the PV system within their school community.

For more information about the County's Solar Schools Grant program, visit: www.cookcountyil.gov/solarschools.