On September 18, Sharon Seaton from Dominion Resources presented students in Hathaway Brown's Campus and Community Sustainability class with a check for $3,800 to support the design and construction of a solar-powered charging station for laptops and cellphones. The goal of the grant, secured by HB's Center for a Flourishing Planet (formerly the Center for Sustainability) is to provide the HB community with an accessible way to learn about energy systems and to enliven a campus-wide conversation about the impacts of our energy use and energy sources.

Students in the Campus and Community Sustainability class will go through a design process to understand how a solar-charging station would be used by the HB community and propose a design for the system. They will also determine the best location and size of a solar array to feed the charging station and will get their hands on the actual construction process. The charging station will include a real-time feedback display, showing actual energy production from the solar panels and energy use from the charging ports. In addition, it will be tied into the weather station that is currently housed on top of the link building.

The project is a true partnership between many parts of the school and beyond. This is the first of what we hope will be many collaborations between HB's new Center for Technology & Invention and the Center for a Flourishing Planet. In addition, Bold Alternatives solar installation company (founded and owned by Rob Martens, HB parent) is providing technical support and instruction for the project, in addition to excellent prices for the actual hardware and panels needed for the solar array. Sue Gallagher (Primary School Science teacher), Nicole Trombetta (Middle School Science teacher), Jill Spano (AP Environmental Science teacher), and Mary Kay Patton (Upper School Physics teacher) will all also develop curriculum for their classes around the solar charging station, addressing topics such as energy production, energy efficiency and conservation, and viability of renewable energy technologies.

Pictured in the photo with students above are Sharon Seaton of Dominioin Resources, Kimberly Dyer of Bold Alternatives, Torrey McMillan, director of HB's Center for a Flourishing Planet, Sue Gallagher of HB's Primary School, and Bill Christ, head of school.