SEF Launches SOLAR SCHOLARS with Six Pennsylvania Colleges : Innovative Solar-Energy Education Initiative is First-of-its-Kind in the U.S.
2006-04-14

    ALLENTOWN, Pa., May 4 /PRNewswire/ -- The Sustainable Energy Fund (SEF)
of Central Eastern Pennsylvania has partnered with six Pennsylvania
colleges and universities to launch Solar Scholars(TM) - an innovative
solar-energy education program for university-level students that aims to
cultivate the "solar energy leaders, policy-makers and entrepreneurs of
tomorrow."
    The first and only program of its kind in the nation, Solar Scholars
offers undergraduate and graduate students a unique opportunity for
in-depth, hands-on study, training and research in the application of
photovoltaic (PV) solar technology, as part of an overall academic
curriculum in renewable and sustainable energy.
    Following a competitive application process, The SEF - a non-profit,
private organization dedicated to renewable energy, clean energy
technologies, energy conservation and education - has selected the
following six schools for the Solar Scholars pilot program:
    - Bucknell University (Lewisburg, Pa. - Union County)
    - Clarion University (Clarion, Pa. - Clarion County)
    - Mercyhurst College (Erie, Pa. - Erie County)
    - Messiah College (Grantham, Pa. - Cumberland County)
    - The Pennsylvania State University (University Park, Pa. - Centre County)
    - Villanova University (Villanova, Pa. - Delaware County)
    Each of the six schools is a member of the Pennsylvania Consortium for
Interdisciplinary Environmental Policy (PCIEP), an alliance of 56
Pennsylvania colleges and universities that works with the Pa. Departments
of Environmental Protection (DEP), and Conservation and Natural Resources
(DCNR) on sustainable development issues.
    The SEF created Solar Scholars to develop solutions for meeting
Pennsylvania's Alternative Energy Portfolio Standard (AEPS), set forth by
Act 213 and signed into law by Governor Edward G. Rendell. 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 offers funding and incentives for students to design,
build, operate and maintain a solar system of significant impact on their
campus, for which they would receive academic credit. Each partner school
receives a state-of-the-art, Internet-based academic curriculum on solar
power and other clean energy methods. Selected students also receive
financial sponsorship to attend an intensive training and certification
workshop on applied photovoltaics - the use of solar cells to directly
convert sunlight into electricity.
    The Solar Scholars program is a way "to begin building critical 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 important 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."
    The Solar Scholars mission is to partner with academia to develop long-
term, practical solutions, as well as innovative applications of PV
technology, for both academic and commercial purposes.
    Donald A. Brown of the PA DEP and Director of the PCIEP, which is
providing support for the Solar Scholars program, adds: "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."
    The Solar Scholars program aims to expand to include all Pennsylvania
colleges and universities. Its goal is to have a PV solar installation on
each of the Commonwealth's 152 campuses by 2008.
    About The SEF:
    Founded in 1999 by the Pennsylvania Utilities Commission, The SEF is a
non-profit organization that promotes, develops and invests in clean energy
initiatives to benefit customers within the PPL energy service territory
and throughout Pennsylvania. SEF is headquartered in Allentown, Pa. To
learn more, visit: http://www.TheSEF.org.