The City of Somerville’s Office of Sustainability and Environment along with Somerville Public Schools held a “Flip the Switch” event on the concourse of the East Somerville Community School on Thursday, May 12. It was a way to celebrate the installation of 940 solar panels atop the school building, and the positive impact it has in the pursuit of the city’s goal to achieve net-zero carbon-negative status by 2050. It is the largest solar array in the city, and produces more than half of the ESCS’s energy use. This solar array will increase the city’s solar photovoltaic capacity by 700%.

Mayor Katjana Ballantyne offered opening remarks, noting that this project “is an essential piece of our ongoing work to meet our city-wide carbon reduction goals.” Christine Blais, Erin Noel, and Erik Larson from the city’s Office of Sustainability and Environment, joined ESCS Principal Obed Morales for the event. Heather Takle from PowerOptions, which is the largest energy consortium in New England, and Matt Shortsleeve from Solect Energy, which installed the solar panels, were also in attendance, and spoke of the effective partnership they have with the city that brought this project to completion.

Marie Lessard-Brandt, Somerville High School senior and co-founder of the local chapter of the Sunrise Movement, then spoke about the significance of this municipal forward thinking and her appreciation of its placement on a public school building. She said, “making our schools more green raises students’ expectations for government. Starting to teach kids how and why to make our cities greener is the preliminary step to raising climate-conscious and proactive youth.”

The solar panels have been online already for several months, so students and staff in Somerville High School’s Career and Technical Education Carpentry program, with support from other departments, designed and built a giant light switch that the dignitaries turned on in lieu of a typical ribbon-cutting ceremony.

The Somerville Office of Sustainability and Environment, PowerOptions, and Solect are currently working to bring online a project similar in size atop the new Somerville High School building and Centennial Auditorium. To watch a video of the ESCS “Flip the Switch” celebration, please visit https://youtu.be/hinQO0zXmTk.

— Somerville Public Schools