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About the FYS:
Inspiration From Other Institutions:
We call upon other higher education institutions that not only have solar arrays on their campus, but also integrate them into their curriculum to help design and structure our FYS course. North Carolina State University (NCSU) is a notable higher education institution that a peer capstone group (Team Lafayette Clean Energy Center) references in their work. Not only does NCSU have a vast solar array located on their campus, but they also have an entire center dedicated to clean energy. The N.C. Clean Energy Technology Center was founded in 1987, initially as the North Carolina Solar Center. As written on their about us page, “the Center provides services to the businesses and citizens of North Carolina and beyond relating to the development and adoption of clean energy technologies. Through its programs and activities, we envision and seek to promote the development and use of clean energy in ways that stimulate a sustainable economy while reducing dependence on foreign sources of energy and mitigating the environmental impacts of fossil fuel use.” By reviewing how the Clean Energy Technology Center and NCSU’s solar array are integrated into their curriculum, we can gain valuable insight into how we envision the structure of our FYS. (North Carolina State University, n.d.)
NCSU offers two majors related to sustainability, Environmental Technology (ET) and Sustainable Materials and Technology (SMT). The structure of these majors aids in the creation of our proposed FYS. Both programs follow similar patterns in their curriculum. They start with courses on the fundamentals of renewable energy technologies, including biomass and biofuels, geothermal systems, solar thermal systems, photovoltaics, wind energy, and hydroelectric. After the fundamentals, higher level courses are offered relating specifically to solar energy that ground these earlier concepts with real-life data and applications to the array on NCSU’s campus and clean energy center. While we design an FYS course rather than structure an entire major, our course syllabus echoes a similar design as the ET and SMT majors offered at NCSU in that it will start with broad concepts related to solar energy and later ground these ideas using the Kirby array. In addition, like NCSU, we hold class in the Lafayette Clean Energy Center (a new center proposed by our peer capstone group) to fully immerse students into the technical aspects of solar energy. (North Carolina State University, n.d.)
Introduction to Solar! An Array of Energy and Education:
Team Solar FYS proposes the creation of an FYS under the Engineering Studies department titled Solar! An Array of Energy and Education. The course starts with the basics on the different types of renewable energy and their relative feasibility, the facts behind climate change, sustainability at Lafayette, and the current progress and path the U.S. is on in terms of their energy production and renewable initiatives through an economic, social, and political lens. After foundational lessons, the course grounds concepts to Lafayette specifically, using statistics and sustainability goals related to Lafayette, as well as calculations with data that comes directly from the Kirby Solar Array. The end of the course consists of collaboration with Easton Public Schools as a way for the FYS students to both demonstrate and reflect on the knowledge they have learned, as well as extend this knowledge to a younger generation of students.
The first-year seminar takes place in the Clean Energy Center, a proposed facility from a peer EGRS capstone group that utilizes the array to facilitate clean energy education to the college and greater Easton community. Part of the proposed Clean Energy Center is the installation of a smart microgrid and renewable technology research laboratory (SMRT). The inspiration for this lab came from Lehigh University. The equipment in Lehigh’s SMRT lab includes a modular multi-level converter and a renewable microgrid and shipboard power system testbed. Team Clean Energy Center states that “students can use similar technologies to those used at the SMRT lab to analyze the energy output of the solar array.” In the FYS, students will extrapolate data using the SMRT lab at the Clean Energy Center throughout the semester. (Lehigh University, 2020) (Team Clean Energy Center, 2021)
Figure 6: “Solar FYS Component Matrix” (As created by Team Solar FYS, 2021)
Course Content:
Weeks 1-10:
The first ten weeks are utilized for sustainability curriculum through the examination of the Kirby Solar Array. The data extrapolated from the SMRT is used for problem-based learning to facilitate the different EGRS lenses. Throughout the semester, students gain exposure to the EGRS curriculum and methodology. First year seminar students gain a surface level understanding of the fundamental EGRS course learning outcomes. The fundamental EGRS courses include Introduction to Engineering and Public Policy (EGRS 251), Engineering Economics and Management (EGRS 261), and Seminar on Engineering and Society (EGRS 451) in addition to the other technical engineering courses that Engineering Studies majors take.
The technical elements of the FYS heavily engage meaningful data extrapolated from the SMRT lab and the use of photovoltaic systems technology in order to facilitate project-based learning. The photovoltaic portion of the FYS takes inspiration from North Carolina State University’s (NCSU) ET 220: Solar Photovoltaics Assessment. As it states in NCSU’s course catalog, “this course introduces specific elements in photovoltaic (PV) systems technologies including efficiency, modules, inverters, charge controllers, batteries, and system installation. Topics include National Electric Code (NEC), electrical specifications, photovoltaic system components, array design and power integration requirements that combine to form a unified structure. Upon completion, students should be able to demonstrate an understanding of various photovoltaic designs and proper installation of NEC compliant solar electric power systems.” While our FYS is not heavy on the technical aspects of PV systems, topics such as photovoltaic system components and array design are certainly areas that are covered in FYS course. (North Carolina State University, n.d.)
Similar to the technical engineering elements of the course, the economic engineering elements also extrapolate information from the SMRT lab as a means to facilitate economic modeling through meaningful data. The economics lessons taught in the class are based on the information taught in EGRS 261. From the Lafayette course catalog, EGRS 261 “addresses the concepts and analytical techniques of engineering economics and management. Topics include present and annual worth analysis, rate of return analysis, benefit/cost analysis, capital budgeting, scheduling, optimization, and decision-making under uncertainty.” Although the lessons taught in our FYS are more surface level than 261, they still provide a base level of engineering economics that are used later in the major. An example of an assignment that is given during this section of the course is using the Kirby Solar Array to calculate present and future worth of the solar array and calculating the payback period of when the array will break even and begin profiting from its initial cost. (Lafayette College, 2021)
The political elements of the course utilize the Kirby Solar Array for students to understand the interactions between technology and politics. Politics and technology are explored in-depth during EGRS 251, Introduction to Engineering and Public Policy, a class that engineering studies majors take in their sophomore or junior year. From the Lafayette course catalog, EGRS 251 “introduces students to the governance of science and engineering. Course topics include the overall context for science and engineering policy, the public policy process and institutions involved in that process, and several current science and engineering public policy issues.” During weeks 1-10, the first-year students are taught lessons that pull from EGRS 251 and give a base level understanding of policy crafting and implementation in engineering projects. An example of an assignment that is taught in this section of the course is reading and synthesizing Lafayette’s climate action plan, so the students are well versed on Lafayette’s sustainability goals. They then produce a two-page report on what they understood in the plan and what can be improved. Students will also explore local Easton policies that influence and affect solar energy. (Lafayette College, 2021)
Social elements of the FYS involve all other elements and introduce students to engineering through an interdisciplinary lens. From the Lafayette course catalog, EGRS 451 “focuses on how engineering impacts society as well as how society impacts the practice of engineering. Students apply the knowledge they have gained from both engineering and non-engineering courses to evaluate these impacts.” A fundamental and continuous discussion in EGRS 451 is how technology is human driven. For this reason, it is important for students to understand how influential society is with technology. In the FYS, this lesson is taught towards the end of the first ten weeks, so that the students can apply this community centered lens to examples of engineering projects that will make them multi-dimensional engineers. An example of a lesson that is taught in this section of the class is reading a case study from Engineering and Sustainable Community Development where engineers do take community needs into account when crafting solutions. The students then write a three-page paper exploring the different social facets that interact with both the Kirby Solar Array and solar energy beyond Lafayette College. (Lafayette College, 2021)
Weeks 11-15:
Preparation for the Easton Public School students happens during week eleven, before their visits to Lafayette College during weeks twelve through fourteen. Leading up to week eleven, FYS students are placed in lesson groups of four to five. Each group is assigned a teacher and class year from the Easton Public School District in addition to the date that the class of school children will visit Lafayette. Because each school class only visits Lafayette once, each group of first year students only need to facilitate their prepared lesson plan once. During week eleven, students work with guest lecturers Delicia Nahman and Professor Novella to utilize the knowledge they have gained throughout the semester to create a single lesson plan to facilitate renewable energy education for the children. See below for a more detailed explanation on the utilization of Delicia Nahman and Professor Novella during week eleven. The students are expected during week eleven to set up a time to meet with the Easton school teacher to practice lesson facilitation and receive feedback, ensuring that the lesson plan is appropriate for the respective grade/age group.
When the Easton students come to visit during weeks twelve through fourteen, the facilitation of the lessons happen in the Lafayette Clean Energy Center. Although seeing the Kirby Solar Array up close is a valuable endeavor, bringing an entire class of school children to the roof is unsafe and distracting, particularly with cars driving by and sports practices. More so, because weeks twelve through fourteen occur late in the semester, there is the potential for ice, snow, wind, or rain. With first year seminars at Lafayette College averaging around twelve students, each lesson group consists of around four first year students per one Easton school class. The classes visit the Clean Energy Center on Thursdays of weeks twelve through fourteen while Tuesdays are reserved for the first-year seminar to prepare for the visits, collect solar array information, and have discussions on supplemental materials.
Week fifteen is the conclusion of the semester. During classes in week fifteen, students reflect and discuss their experiences both learning and facilitating solar array education. Outside of class, students write a five-page reflection on their experiences while also tying in the greater importance of solar energy education on a national level, utilizing a socio-technical lens. The goal of this final assignment is for students to demonstrate their understanding of socio-technical projects and the EGRS methodology, while synthesizing the information learned throughout the course.
See Appendix for a daily breakdown of the course syllabus and structure
Who Will Teach the Course?
In an audit of potential professors to teach the proposed FYS, there are numerous suitable professors. Ideally, the course is taught by an EGRS professor, one who understands the nature of Engineering Studies and can properly expose Lafayette’s newest class of students to its unique curricular goals as well as holistic and perspective lens in which engineering studies students view engineering projects. Also, our FYS professor is one who has a background on solar and renewable energy.
With these goals in mind, Professor Nicodemus of the EGRS department quickly became the top choice to teach our FYS. Professor Nicodemus has taught a number of courses within the Engineering Studies department related to climate change, sustainability, and renewable energy. One course related to these subjects that Professor Nicodemus has recently taught is EGRS 352: Energy Technology and the Modern World. This course delves into how the U.S. currently creates and stores its energy, the impacts these processes have on our climate, and how and why these processes may change in the future. As Professor Nicodemus writes on the course syllabus, “we will examine the social, political, and environmental contexts and consequences of resource extraction, energy generation, and end use. These contexts and consequences include global climate change, environmental pollutants, economic development, inequalities in access to energy and exposure to harm, the energy-water nexus, politics, and current and potential energy and environmental policies.” The goals and lessons instructed in this course are echoed in a lower level EGRS course also taught by Professor Nicodemus, EGRS 152: Power! Energy Technologies in Context. As it states in Lafayette’s course catalog, “in this course, we investigate fossil fuel based, nuclear, and renewable options for producing energy in the transportation, electrical, and buildings energy sectors. We will examine the social, political, and environmental contexts and consequences for our energy use, including global climate change, environmental pollutants, economic development, and inequalities in access to energy and exposure to harm.” EGRS 352 and EGRS 152 share much of the same learning goals and topics. Both examine the social, political, and environmental contexts and consequences of energy use while exploring the potential of renewable energies. Through our FYS centered around the Kirby Solar Array, we hope to educate Lafayette’s freshmen on, not only solar and renewable energy, but also expose them to the methodology in which Engineering Studies students explore and discuss technology. As seen by the syllabi of previous courses, Professor Nicodemus is a highly qualified candidate to teach the proposed FYS. (Lafayette College, 2021)
Due to the limited faculty working within the Engineering Studies department at Lafayette College, scouting an appropriate professor for the FYS is demanding. While a professor from the Environmental Studies division at Lafayette could be recruited, it is unlikely they will be able to translate solar energy through a socio-technical lens. Thus, this option weakens the EGRS introductory nature of the course. More so, while an EGRS professor is ideal, coordinating a professor in the division who is available could be difficult. Thus, it is the hope that the implementation of this FYS through the allocation of an appropriate professor would be an investment for the EGRS division. By allocating someone like Professor Nicodemus for an FYS, the EGRS department would have more real-estate to expose Lafayette students to the major, increasing the opportunity for more students and faculty. In the case that Professor Nicodemus does not teach the FYS, the FYS content and material can be catered to the respective EGRS professor. For instance, because Professor Sanford’s teaching interests include Urban Planning, the FYS could be reframed to incorporate material that focuses on solar arrays in urban environments (Kristen L. Sanford · Engineering Studies · Lafayette College, n.d.). In any case, an appropriate professor will both have a background in sustainability and socio-technical skills.
The course syllabus also mentions guest lectures by Professor Novello and Delicia Nahman. Professor Novello teaches EDUC 150: Fundamentals of Education here at Lafayette. While that course touches on some of the historical, political, and legal aspects of teaching, it also incorporates lessons on the philosophical perspectives and methods to effective instruction. During week eleven’s guest lecture, Professor Novello shares her expertise to help prep the Lafayette students to be as influential as possible when collaborating with Easton students. Delicia Nahman also brings a unique perspective to the FYS course. As the head of the Office of Sustainability at Lafayette, there is arguably no other individual on Lafayette’s campus that has the understanding and knowledge of Lafayette’s current sustainability practices, future goals, and endeavors.
Costs:
Unlike other institutions, Lafayette does not charge students a fee on a class-by-class basis. Thus, the payment for this course is covered by the overall figure of Lafayette’s semester tuition rate. The second economic cost is transportation for the Easton Public School students. The school kids are not charged for transportation. The transportation fee is covered by a donor program. The donor program allows Lafayette alumni, students, trustees, friends, and/or family to provide the necessary transportation funds to get to campus. This donor program makes the field trip to the Lafayette Clean Energy Center as accessible to all Easton students, denying no students for their inability to pay. The final economic cost is the operation and maintenance of the physical array. These costs are also covered by Lafayette. However, there is the potential for Lafayette College to employ senior and junior engineering students to work on the array, performing the maintenance and ensuring smooth operation. This opportunity gives upper-level students a chance to gain hands-on experience with the array.
Collaboration with Easton Public Schools:
A technical goal that is necessary to implement the proposed Engineering Studies first year seminar is a proposal and outline for collaboration milestones with the Easton Public School District. The course syllabus outlines the intended weeks that Easton school children visit the Kirby Solar Array for solar education. However, for this collaboration to successfully happen, Lafayette and Easton public schools must be aligned with common goals. The formal proposal is to be sent to the Superintendent of the Easton Public School District to outline the collaboration opportunity.
The Proposal includes:
- Proposal Overview and Introduction
- The Importance of Solar Array Energy Education
- Overview Lafayette First Year Seminar & Solar! An Array of Energy and Education
- Goals for Collaboration with Easton Public School District
- Outline of Collaboration with Milestones
See Proposal in the Appendix to read the full letter to the Superintendent of the Easton Public School District.
Following the delivery of the letter is a meeting with whomever the Superintendent directs communication. The hope is that the proposal leads to a long-term relationship on the basis of solar energy education with Easton Public School district. The relationship helps facilitate a collaboration that develops the FYS and k-12 solar energy education program. More so, the FYS intends to be the first stepping stone to a more extensive facilitation of solar energy education, inspiring peer institutions to do the same, all while contributing to a more informed general public.