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Standard Solar Helps Students Power Virginia High School with Solar-Generated Electricity

Posted on: Tuesday, 9 June 2009, 14:00 CDT

Students raise $56,000 to purchase solar panel system at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Alexandria

ALEXANDRIA, Va., June 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Capping years of student fund-raising efforts, Standard Solar today activated a 3.8 kilowatt solar electric system at the Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology.

"We are honored to help these students achieve these goals and congratulate all of the students, faculty members and administrators involved," said Scott Wiater, President, Standard Solar. "We urge all types of academic institutions - colleges as well as primary and secondary schools - to follow in their footsteps for all of the many educational, economic and environmental benefits a solar project will serve."

About 30 students at "TJ," as the high school is known, raised the funds and resolved to help reduce the school's utility-supplied electricity costs, lower its carbon emissions and set an example for other schools to follow. The system will generate about 5,000 kilowatt hours of electricity each year and prevent about 10,000 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions annually.

"The solar panel array at TJ is a huge step forward for our school and county but needs to be the start of a larger movement," said Varun Bansal, Chairman of the Thomas Jefferson Solar Panel Initiative. "More than anything else, I hope this is the spark for a wave of renewable power and environmentally-friendly technology across the nation, from other schools to federal legislation."

The Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology is the second school in Virginia to host a Standard Solar system. Earlier this year, Standard Solar completed a similar array of solar panels for T. C. Williams High School, also in Alexandria.

Among the other educational institutions choosing to 'go solar' in the Washington, DC area are the Thurgood Marshall Academy, a law-themed public charter high school, and the Sousa Middle School. Both are located in southeast Washington, DC.

Students at each of these schools are able to see how much electricity is being generated from their solar systems with Internet-based monitoring technology. More information about the solar electric system at TJ can be found at: http://tjspi.110mb.com/

About Standard Solar

Standard Solar is a full-service designer and installer of solar electric systems for homes, businesses and government agencies with customers throughout Maryland, the District of Columbia, Virginia, Delaware, Pennsylvania and North Carolina. For more information, please visit www.standardsolar.com.

SOURCE Standard Solar

Source: PR Newswire

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