GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — In celebration of Earth Day, Calvin University is completing the installation of a new student-designed solar array that will significantly reduce energy consumption at the campus facilities building.
The 35-kilowatt solar array, which began as a suggestion from an engineering class last fall, was entirely designed and engineered by Calvin students.
"This is a really awesome experience," said Sofie Schumerth, a Calvin University junior. "And then it got approved, and now the day is finally here when we get to put in the panels, and it's really cool seeing the project start to finish."
The $70,000 project was funded through the Calvin Energy Recovery Fund (CERF).
"The CERF fund goes towards projects on campus that work towards making it more energy efficient and also work towards having students gain that experience of working hands-on installing projects," explained Jack Klopp, a Calvin University junior.
According to Brett Hoogewind, Associate Director of Facilities, the installation will make a significant impact on energy usage.
"So overall, we have about 830 to 40,000 kilowatts that we're going to save annually, which would equate to about 67 homes' electricity annually," Hoogewind said.
The university considers this installation a pilot project, with plans to expand solar capacity on campus in the future.
"I think this can be the pilot project that leads to more solar on Calvin's campus, and we can continue to grow the solar farm here and be a model for other universities as well," said Klopp.
For students like Schumerth, the project represents both a valuable learning opportunity and an alignment with university values.
"It's also cool to see Calvin living out its mission statement and wanting to become more sustainable, and this being an actionable step towards that," she said.
The university expects the solar array to be online and powering the facilities building by April 25.
This story was initially reported by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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