NC GreenPower Announces Ribbon Cutting Ceremony at Queens Creek Elementary School for 5 kW Solar Installation

September 26, 2017

SWANSBORO, NC – NC GreenPower, a nonprofit providing matching grants to North Carolina K-12 schools for the installation of an educational solar photovoltaic (PV) system, is proud to announce the completion of the fourth Solar School installation as part of Pilot Year 2016 and the eighth school since the pilot’s inception in 2015. Queens Creek Elementary School is hosting a ribbon cutting ceremony with NC GreenPower and other supporters to unveil the new 5 kW solar installation.

The ribbon cutting ceremony for the solar array will be held at Queens Creek beginning at 1pm on Monday, October 2, 2017. Queens Creek is located at 159 Queens Creek Road in Swansboro.

The solar PV system is pole mounted in a prominent location at the school for maximum visibility for students, parents and the local community. The major components of the 5 kW pole-mounted system include 12 SunPower solar modules provided by NC GreenPower, interactive inverters, and an internet monitoring system that provides solar irradiation, ambient air temperature, module temperature and other data. The array is estimated to produce about 6,570 kilowatt hours each year with a potential cost savings to the school of $657 annually. The project will feed green power back to the electric grid for their utility Jones-Onslow EMC.

“We are so excited to be bringing this wonderful opportunity to our school, community and students. Not only will we be modeling good stewardship but our students will also use the solar array to enhance their math and science curriculum.” -Elaine Justice, QCE Principal
Queens Creek Elementary School has been given the title of NC Green School of Excellence – the highest honor in the state. The school has created a vision, mission and purpose that reflects their commitment to a rigorous and relevant curriculum through the international green theme.

Funding was also provided in part by State Employees’ Credit Union (SECU) members via the SECU Foundation. The SECU Foundation awarded a $10,000 matching challenge grant to each of four 2015 first year pilot solar schools and five 2016 second year pilot schools. The Foundation’s matching challenge grant helped give each school the ability to increase from a 3 kW to a 5 kW solar array system which, in addition to being an educational tool in the classroom, will also provide a greater energy impact that will likely produce enough renewable energy to power a school’s main office.

About NC GreenPower

With the mission of improving the quality of the environment in North Carolina, the nonprofit NC GreenPower was founded in 2003 as a statewide program. NC GreenPower helps to connect consumers with renewable energy and carbon offset providers to create positive environmental and economic impacts for our state. All projects supported by the program are located in North Carolina. In 2015, NC GreenPower launched a new pilot to support solar PV installations at K-12 schools. Contributions to NC GreenPower are tax-deductible. For more information, visit: www.ncgreenpower.org

About SECU and the SECU Foundation
A not-for-profit financial cooperative owned by its members, SECU has been providing employees of the State of North Carolina and their families with consumer financial services for nearly 80 years. The Credit Union also offers a diversified line of financial advisory services including retirement and education planning, tax preparation, insurance, trust and estate planning services, and investments through its partners and affiliated entities. SECU serves 2.2 million members through 257 branch offices, nearly 1,100 ATMs, 24/7 Member Services via phone and a website, www.ncsecu.org. The SECU Foundation, a 501c (3) charitable organization funded solely by the contributions of SECU members, promotes local community development in North Carolina primarily through high impact projects in the areas of housing, education, healthcare and human services. Since 2005, SECU Foundation has made a collective financial commitment of more than $130 million for initiatives to benefit North Carolinians statewide.