(May 25, 2012) — This coming school year, seniors at Clark will have solar panels providing shade for their cars in the student parking lot and generating energy throughout the school. This change will come about because of funds from Measure S, which directs taxpayer money towards the improvement of technology in elementary, middle and high schools in the Glendale Unified School District. Measure S, which was approved by voters in April 2011, makes $270 million available to schools for renovation and improvement. The solar project contractor, Solar City, has been spending three to five hours at various Glendale schools, including Clark, measuring electric meters to finalize diagrams for the project. The installations of solar panels aren’t just part of Glendale’s efforts, they are a statewide program for schools to save money in the current tight economic situation. According to Stephanie Hall, coordinator for energy conservation for GUSD, Clark spent approximately $147,694.03 from January 2011 to January 2012 on electricity. According to Principal Doug Dall, the solar panels will generate about 80 percent of Clark’s energy at peak load. In an e-mail interview with Alan Reising, the Director of Facilities and Support Operations for GUSD, he said that the total amount of money saved per year after the solar panels are scheduled to go on-line in November of 2012 to provide power would be $500,000. Dall said that since the school district pays the electricity bills, the money saved by the solar panels will go back to a general fund that supports district programs. Although the planning for this project began at the end of last year, construction started on May 18, with workers drilling a hole underground from the student parking lot, under the field, and up to the front of the teachers’ parking lot, using a method called “boring.” Rather than digging trenches above ground, this method is similar to using an oil well horizontally, while maintaining grass and sidewalks.These underground conduits serve as pathways for the wires to be pulled through and connected to the city power grid from the solar panels. “The panels will be set up in the student parking lot, and will cover enough space for approximately 32 parking spaces,” said Dall in an e-mail interview. In addition to providing energy for the school, Dall said he hopes the solar panels will be an incentive for students to come to school on time.