Hope School District Goes Solar

The Hope School District held a celebration Wednesday at Monte Vista Elementary to commemorate the installation of a combined 234 kilowatts of solar panels on all three of the district’s schools, a feat that was accomplished through the passage of Bond Measure L, which raised $8 million.

As attendees shuffled into Monte Vista’s courtyard, students showed off solar ovens that they had made out of pizza boxes — and miniature solar-powered cars — in order to illustrate how alternative energy has been integrated into the Hope schools’ curriculum as well as their infrastructure. Local dignitaries, including County Supervisor Janet Wolf, Santa Barbara Mayor Helene Schneider, and representatives of the businesses that contributed to retrofitting the schools, were then presented with certificates from Hope students on a small makeshift stage.

“It seemed so obvious that of course we should do this,” said Schneider about going solar. “It made sense it terms of energy efficiency. It made sense in terms of saving money for the district.”