Anne Sosky, Principal, Heritage High School

Heritage High School is involving students and teachers, paired with professionals within our community, to transition into an Energy Smart school. Integration of academics with practical, authentic, and meaningful STEM career-path experiences will lead Heritage High School students and staff to embrace and move our school and community toward environmentally responsible and sustainable practices. Student led groups are involved in designing, funding, implementing, and marketing programs that emphasize photovoltaics and wind, biofuels, recycling and composting, and sustainable urban gardening, and biochar.

Community mentors work with teachers to guide student learning within biology, chemistry, and physics courses with the goal of generating relevance by through “Energy Smart” projects. Students throughout the building will develop meaningful and realistic senior project ideas based upon the expansion and implementation of “Energy Smart” principles at HHS. These students and small teams are matched with mentors to develop and follow-through on project ideas. HHS currently partners with MAPS (Mentoring in Advanced Programs for Students) and ESD 112 to recruit mentors from a variety of local industries, including Hewlett Packard, Sharp Industries, UL Laboratories, Southwest Washington Workforce Development Council, US Forest Service, nLight, Clark College, WSU Vancouver, and University of Washington.

Increased student awareness of the need to transition to a green future generates interest in pursing independent projects and experiences both in the classroom and beyond. Infusing these themes into traditional science and CTE classrooms sparks student ideas and interest to move HHS to become a community model of energy efficiency, awareness, and innovation.

The Heritage High School Energy Smart Program is readdressing post-secondary preparedness from a comprehensive perspective that includes emphasis in science and problem-solving.  In conjunction with the nonprofit education organization nConnect, community mentors have been recruited to work with student teams in the areas of biodiesel production and quality control, sustainable community gardening, solar and wind power and applications, recycling and cafeteria composting, biochar production from compost and biodiesel by-products, and energy efficiency assessments.

Originating four years ago in the collaboration of CTE and science (chemistry, biology, and physics), students and teachers pursued biodiesel production from waste vegetable oil generated in district cafeterias.  Over these past years, community expertise and input have expanded to include student interaction with engineering firms, the county fire marshal, district facilities and safety personnel, fuel certification laboratories, and the local public transit organization.  Students have collaborated with a variety of professionals to produce ASTM quality biodiesel while advocating for the installation of a truly original processor.  This unique design allows for student involvement in the production process, while optimizing safety on a public high school campus.  This processor is slated to be ready for production by February 1, 2010.

The success of the biodiesel program prompted the creation of the  Energy Smart Program with the intent to expand upon student empowerment and success in authentic problem-solving.  No contrived classroom scenario or lab can create the genuine challenges that arise in the pursuit of energy and environmental challenges.  Alongside community experts, students are implementing a school-wide comprehensive recycling and organic scraps composting in our cafeteria.  They are working closely with district personnel and Bonneville Environmental Foundation to have a 3-4 kW grid-tied photovoltaic system installed at the school.  Additionally, the solar and wind group is pursuing the design of a stand-alone photovoltaic system that will run the mobile biodiesel processor.  In our greenhouse area, yet another student group is experimenting with compost to create charcoal that provides long term sequestration of carbon while amending garden soil.

Student and teacher interest has driven further pursuit of student efforts in all of our projects and is enhancing science education and awareness throughout Clark County.  Not only do participating students interact with their mentors, they generate broader awareness of their interests and passions through teamed marketing efforts coordinated by our own marketing students.  This involves presentations to the community at conferences, competitions, and a variety of community events.  These efforts serve to motivate and tap into widely varied student talent, supplement and reframe the importance of science education for the community, and connect students and teachers with industry and the community.