Grove School District will be awarded an incentive check for $3,201 from the Public Service Company of Oklahoma Model Cities Program for incorporating new, high-efficiency lighting systems in a number of facilities, including a classroom and the gymnasium, cafeteria, and library.

Grove School District will receive the check during the September 15^th board meeting at 7p.m.

Model Cities is offered by PSO to help school districts and city governments reduce operating costs by identifying and implementing energy efficiency improvement projects. The incentive the district earned was determined by the total amount of energy the lights will save as compared to standard-efficiency equipment.

Grove Maintenance Director Duane Brown said, “The incentive from PSO certainly validates our investment in energy efficiency. It’s important that our school district sets a positive example for our students and our community, and reducing our energy use is a critical step.”

The lighting systems installed will conserve more than 42,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity per year, equivalent to the carbon dioxide emissions of about 3,500 gallons of gasoline, according to Environmental Protection Agency calculations.

“The Model Cities Program helped us identify ways we can conserve energy and save money,” said Grove Superintendent Tom Steen. “That money can be reinvested directly into our classrooms, and by conserving energy we are setting a positive example for our students.”
 
“We identified a real need for an energy efficiency program that specifically targets cities and schools, especially as budgets are spread thin,” said Pamela Geiger, customer service representative for PSO. “By partnering with Grove Public Schools to reduce energy costs, their valuable resources can be used for other needed projects.”
 
PSO, a unit of American Electric Power (NYSE: AEP), is an electric utility company serving approximately 527,000 customers in eastern and southwestern Oklahoma.  Based in Tulsa, PSO has 4,405 megawatts of generating capacity, and is the largest provider of wind energy in the state.