ALBERTVILLE, Minn. — Typically a field trip means leaving the school building, but for kids at The Goddard School in Albertville, all the action is happening right above them.
"[The kids] come in and say, 'Ms. Alivia, look at the men on the roof today. They're doing the solar panels!'" said Alivia Boddie, the education director. "Lots of oohs and ahhs. They're very excited."
The Goddard School, an early childhood education provider, is converting to solar energy.
"We're investing in a better tomorrow by providing them with renewable energy," Boddie said. "The school is not only doing this to save money but for its environmental and educational value, too."
"We just wanted to tell kids that this is the future," said Vikram Aggarwal, the school's owner. He said the solar panels play a role in the classroom - even preschool students learn what clean energies are.
The Goddard School will be able to receive data from solar panels that will help teachers create different types of curricula.
So far, the stats show that the solar panel system that is being installed on the roof will generate 62,600 kilowatt hours of energy per year. That's equivalent to burning 50,000 pounds of coal or using 4,400 gallons of diesel.
"We cannot stick with the traditional ways of generating electricity because those are not good for our environment," Aggarwal said.
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