BOONE, N.C. — Appalachian State University students unveiled the university’s largest solar array installed to date at a ribbon-cutting ceremony held near App State's Facilities Operations building on April 14.
The university’s student-led and student-funded Renewable Energy Initiative (REI) spearheaded the $477,880 project near State Farm Road, which will offset 15% to 20% of energy usage at an adjacent building.
App State's State Farm solar array is visible from the Boone Greenway Trail. Photo by Wes Craig and Chase Reynolds
REI projects can be proposed by any student and are carried out with the help of faculty and staff advisers. Since 2005, REI has funded a number of projects, including the wind turbine located at the site of App State’s Innovation District, which, until recently, was the largest wind turbine in North Carolina. The organization receives revenue from a student fee each semester and evaluates proposed funding allocations based on multiple factors, including return on investment and ethical sourcing.
App State seniors and REI members Jackson Lamb, a biology major from Davidson, and Joey Crews, a sustainable technology major from Lincolnton, hosted the State Farm ribbon-cutting event, which was attended by fellow REI students, as well as App State faculty and staff.
Lamb explained that the idea for the solar array started about five years ago but was put on hold during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It became an idea that we thought might not happen, but with hard work we were able to prevail, and the project was fully funded by spring 2022,” he said.
REI staff adviser Jim Dees — App State’s data and assessment specialist in the Office of Sustainability — said, “The determination that it took to stay with this project is pretty remarkable. I am super proud of these guys.”
App State senior Jackson Lamb, of Davidson, a biology major and board member of the student-led Renewable Energy Initiative, left in foreground, gives a speech at the university’s ribbon-cutting for the State Farm solar array on April 14. Photo by Chase Reynolds
Lamb noted that the solar array has the capacity to collect data and provide performance updates.
“This project is so cool for us and gives us so many great opportunities to learn and contribute to App State’s impact on sustainability,” he said.
Crews said the solar array is already showing great results.
“This just goes to show what student funding can do, and what student-led initiatives can do,” he said. “It’s really inspiring, and on a personal note, I think it’s an absolutely beautiful array.”
Plans are currently underway for a plaque with information about the solar array to be installed on Boone’s Greenway Trail — a public facility with clear visibility of the array.
“When you look up this way from the Greenway path, you’ll see this beautiful array shining in the sun all summer long and producing large amounts of energy,” said Lamb.
Lamb said this project, and the many other projects completed by REI, wouldn’t be possible without support from App State’s construction teams, energy teams, faculty members and advisers. Dees said the same sentiment goes for the students.
“REI is a special group of students that is really refreshing to work with,” said Dees. “The projects keep getting bigger, more complex and more impactful, and it’s so exciting that they can contribute this way while they’re at App State.”
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About the Appalachian State University Renewable Energy Initiative
The Appalachian State University Renewable Energy Initiative (REI) is a student-led, student-funded organization that seeks to install renewable energy and energy efficiency projects on campus. Projects can be proposed by any member of Appalachian and are carried out by the REI committee with the help of faculty and staff advisors. Since its inception in 2005, the REI has funded over 20 renewable energy and energy efficiency projects, including the Broyhill Wind Turbine, which, until recently, was the largest wind turbine in North Carolina. The REI works closely with Appalachian’s Office of Sustainability. Learn more at https://rei.appstate.edu.
About Sustainability at Appalachian
Appalachian State University’s leadership in sustainability is known nationally. The university’s holistic, three-branched approach considers sustainability economically, environmentally and equitably in relationship to the planet’s co-inhabitants. The university is an active steward of the state’s interconnected financial, cultural and natural resources and challenges students and others think critically and creatively about sustainability and what it means from the smallest individual action to the most broad-based applications. The university offers both undergraduate and graduate academic degree programs that focus on sustainability. In addition, 100 percent of Appalachian’s academic departments offer at least one sustainability course or course that includes sustainability, and all students graduate from programs that have adopted at least one sustainability learning outcome. Learn more at https://appstate.edu/sustainability.
About Appalachian State University
As the premier public undergraduate institution in the Southeast, Appalachian State University prepares students to lead purposeful lives as global citizens who understand and engage their responsibilities in creating a sustainable future for all. The Appalachian Experience promotes a spirit of inclusion that brings people together in inspiring ways to acquire and create knowledge, to grow holistically, to act with passion and determination, and to embrace diversity and difference. Located in the Blue Ridge Mountains, Appalachian is one of 17 campuses in the University of North Carolina System. Appalachian enrolls nearly 21,000 students, has a low student-to-faculty ratio and offers more than 150 undergraduate and graduate majors.
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