UA Hosts Tucson Teachers in Solar Summer Program
University of Arizona electrical and computer engineering professor Kelly Simmons-Potter has several areas of expertise, including solar and renewable energy. This summer, she’s leading a six-week Research Experience for Teachers through the National Science Foundation, with the goal of teaching a group of ten fourth to twelfth grade Arizona teachers about the fields of photovoltaics and agrivoltaics.
Photovoltaics (PV) are devices which convert light from the sun into electricity. Agrivoltaics (AV) is a technique that combines solar energy production with agriculture. By planting crops that don’t need too much sunlight beneath solar panels, the plants are protected from the brightest of the sun’s rays and the shading provided can help to reduce water evaporation in the soil which reduces the watering demands of the plants. In turn, the plants have a cooling effect on the solar panels, which allows the panels to operate more efficiently.
These technologies have important potential in Arizona, where sunshine is an abundant resource and water is limited. By sharing knowledge with local teachers, the team hopes to generate excitement among children in classrooms, building the next generation of STEM researchers.
“We are building a regional network of teachers and students who will engage together in renewable energy and agriculture and who will gain critical scientific literacy and knowledge about systems, [including energy systems], with significant impact on their lives and communities,” Simmons-Potter said.
The UA teacher cohort will spend about half of their mornings working in Simmons-Potter’s PV Resiliency Lab or the Arizona Research Initiative for Solar Energy/Tucson Electric Power Photovoltaic Test Yard, learning about photovoltaic devices and energy generation. Then, they work with UA co-investigator Greg Barron-Bafford from the School of Geography and Development to study crop production in AV systems. In the afternoons, the teachers work on curriculum development.
“Our teachers are highly motivated to learn about photovoltaic energy and are excited by the convergence of PV and agriculture in AV applications,” Simmons-Potter said. “All of the teachers intend to install AV gardens in their schools and to use the energy generated by the PV to power projects ranging from watering and agricultural monitoring systems to kinetic water and art projects.”
Simmons-Potter and Barron-Gafford are partnering with Christiana Honsberg, professor of electrical, computer and energy engineering at Arizona State University, on this project. The UA is hosting four teachers, all from Tucson school districts, and ASU is hosting six. The team plans to offer the summer program, funded with a total of approximately $600,000 from the National Science Foundation, for three years, serving a total of 30 teachers.