By Theresa-Marie Wilson

A group of students are making currents in the energy sector as part of a career pathway program at Arroyo Grande High School.
The first year of the PG&E Energy Academy is coming to a close and students recently demonstrated some of the projects they created in the hands-on learning environment focusing on STEM (science, technology, engineering and math).  
The Energy Academy, a three-year program through grades 10-12, was launched last fall. It’s open to 30 students half of which are required to be considered at-risk.
“We have had a really huge turnaround from what their freshman grades were,” said Energy Academy teacher Brad Lachemann.
Throughout the last three years of high school, the students advance in science, social studies, math as well as a Career Technical Education courses, such as construction, that focus on energy, including ‘green’ energy technology, environmental engineering, environmental sciences and alternative fuels.
For example, next school year, Energy Academy students will build a green city for which some of the foundations have already been built.
“We built these buildings and math did all the calculations for lumber and load,” Lachemann said. “Science is doing environmental impact on where we are going to set the structures. Social studies covered the history of dwellings through how to set up a city so that it functions. It’s a standard progression of requirements for graduation, but they all tie in to what we are doing.”
The kids will do everything from construct the buildings, wire them to code, install solar panels, as well as other sustainable energy sources including wind and water turbines.
“I’ve learned a ton of stuff,” said Adam Glennan, who worked about half a semester with a few classmates to set up a working solar panel. “Basically, beforehand I didn’t know anything about energy at all. I wasn’t into that kind of thing. I joined the academy because I liked construction. In the end, I ended up learning a lot about nuclear energy, electricity and other such things.”
Although the first class is only about 25 percent female, next fall’s incoming gender ratio is changing and girls will outnumber the boys.
Desiray Alarcon, a student in the inaugural class, worked with fellow students to create a home auditing system that uses water to heat a house.
“The (academy) program is really fun, and it helps us explore a lot of new ways to help with the environment and help stop wasting a lot of the resources that we have,” Alarcon said. “It has also taught us about things that we might not have taken as important and opened our eyes to more possibilities.”
Arroyo Grande High School receives support from PG&E to make this program successful.  Support includes a monetary grant, customized professional development workshops for students and teachers as well as access to education, industry and government experts to assist in curriculum development.  Local PG&E employees are also giving a hand to the program by volunteering in the classroom, speaking to classes and hosting tours of Diablo Canyon Power Plant.
Additionally, students enrolled in the program who are high school juniors have a paid summer internship opportunity at PG&E.
When asked if she was excited about an internship, Alarcon replied, “Oh, yes, very. I want to be able to learn and start experiencing the job hands-on. If I do really want to continue with it, then I will have a little more experience with it.”
PG&E partnered with the California Department of Education and area high schools throughout its service territory to create the PG&E Energy Academies.  PG&E representatives recently presented A.G.H.S. with a $30,000 check to support the academy’s ongoing programs.
“The money from PG&E makes whatever dream you dream up to learn this stuff possible,” Lachemann said. “It’s not that money is not an object, but it is less of an object.”