VIDEOS: Wind turbines in the Smokey Hills and turbines going up in Fairfield. (Courtesy of Amanda Brown, electrical engineering student from McLouth) |
It's an opportunity that schools in rural Kansas may not want to let blow by.
The Kansas Wind for Schools program, which works with the Wind Applications Center at Kansas State University, is seeking proposals from elementary and secondary schools in rural parts of the state interested in having a small wind turbine for educational and outreach purposes.
The three-year Kansas Wind for Schools program, now in its second year, aims to train young engineers for jobs in the rapidly growing wind industry and to increase public awareness and understanding of wind power. Schools that receive the turbines are expected to incorporate education about wind energy into their science curricula.
Schools selected for the program receive the turbines at a substantial discount and also receive assistance in installation, as well as in use of the data.
Five sites will be selected this year for the Skystream 1.9 kilowatt wind turbines. They will join five other schools, selected in the first year of the program in 2007, that have received the turbines.
According to Dan Nagengast, coordinator of the Kansas Wind for Schools program, and Ruth Douglas Miller of the Wind Applications Center and associate professor of electrical and computer engineering at K-State, qualities that make a school a good candidate for a turbine include:
* Having a "class 3" wind or better, if possible. Kansas wind maps are available online through the Kansas Energy Office at: http://www.kcc.state.ks.us/energy/wind.htm
* A high and open physical site. Best sites would be at least 200 feet from buildings and other obstacles, but are not more than 1,000 feet from a building that uses electricity year-round. At a minimum, the site should have a 100-foot radius with no obstacles such as trees or buildings taller than 20 feet.
* Community awareness and desire to learn about wind energy. Miller said the best projects have a local champion or two who seek support from the local utility, school board, businesses and banks.
* Administrative support at the school, including superintendents, principals, maintenance personnel and the school's site council.
* A science teacher -- or teachers -- willing and able to incorporate the turbine into school curriculum, with the assistance of the Wind for Schools program.
Proposals should be submitted by Tuesday, April 1, and can be sent to rdmiller@k-state.edu. Electronic proposals are preferred, but paper submissions also will be accepted and can be sent to Ruth Douglas Miller, 280 Rathbone Hall, Kansas State University, Manhattan, Kan., 66506.
A proposal format and more information on the Kansas Wind for Schools program is available at http://www.eece.ksu.edu/psg/wac/
Questions about the program can be directed to Miller at rdmiller@k-state.edu or 785-532-4596, or Nagengast at 785-748-0959, nagengast@earthlink.net or mail to him at the Kansas Rural Center, 304 Pratt, P.O. Box 133, Whiting, Kan., 66552.