Warren County Public Schools Energy Program

The Warren County Board of Education has adopted an energy management conservation policy that has the potential to save the school district more than $3 million dollars over the next eight years, dollars that can be redirected to improving instruction for students. The school district’s new energy educator, Jay Wilson, is working with consulting firm Energy Education, Inc. (EEI) to implement a comprehensive energy conservation and management program that involves every building in the school district. Wilson is receiving extensive training from EEI to implement conservation procedures in all buildings. He is conducting energy audits to ensure that all students and teachers are comfortable during class time and scheduled activities, and that energy is used only as necessary. “As energy educator, my job is to eliminate waste, not to take away from the comforts of students and teachers,” Wilson says. “We’re trying to be good stewards of taxpayer dollars.” Wilson is tracking energy consumption – including electricity, water, sewer, natural gas a fuel oil – using energy-accounting software. The software compares current energy use to a baseline period and calculates the amount of energy that would have been used if conservation and management practices had not been implemented. It adjusts for weather, equipment additions or deletions, and changes in building use. By tracking consumption and analyzing energy use, the software helps the energy manager quickly identify and correct areas that need attention. EEI’s innovative energy conservation program allows participating school districts to achieve substantial savings with no capital expenditure. The company develops and implements customized energy conservation programs for public schools, enabling districts to redirect saved dollars for educational opportunities and resources. EEI has worked with more than 575 school districts in 45 states, and has helped school districts save nearly $1 billion in 17 years. The contract with EEI also ensures that there is no risk to Warren County Public Schools. EEI contractually guarantees to save more than the fees and the energy manager’s salary. They guarantee the savings will exceed the cost of the program or they will issue a check for the difference. The school district did not have to budget new money to cover the cost of the program. All expenses will come from the existing energy budget – the reduction in energy costs will more than cover the implementation costs.        

Year 1        $236,600

Year 2        $291,100

Year 3        $341,475

Year 4        $396,719

Year 5        $643,225

Year 6        $711,186

Year 7        $785,995

TOTAL      $3,406,300