The Center for Energy Education will offer another year of summer programs for students in Halifax County from a $7,500 grant from Dominion Energy.
With this grant C4EE will be able to host free virtual summer camps for surrounding middle schools students.
They will attend and participate in daily hands-on activities about renewable energy and STEM careers.
“Our partnership with Dominion Energy is important, and we appreciate the funding offered to enhance learning opportunities for local students,” said Mozine Lowe, the center’s executive director. “We are especially pleased that hosting camps virtually presented an opportunity to incorporate new technologies into the STEM-based curriculum for students.”
Dominion External Affairs Manager Winnie Wiseman said, “As a company, we are committed to investing in and improving our communities, and we see tremendous value in getting young people excited about science, math and engineering.”
The check was presented by Wiseman to Lowe and James Pierce, the center’s vice chairman. The Center for Energy Education is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization and a center for renewable energy research, education, and workforce development for the eastern United States.
The C4EE provides a place to raise awareness of renewable energy and its importance locally, regionally, and globally.
Since 2018, the center has offered summer camps to 762 elementary, middle, and high school students in five states and solar education workshops for 200 school teachers.
Dominion Energy has supported the program for two consecutive years.
Campers will learn about renewable energy, its relationship to the environment, and how energy is generated.
In addition, there will be daily hands-on activities enhancing critical thinking and creative thinking skills as well as exposing students to STEM concepts and new technology.
Projects will be created individually and in teams, learning team-building and collaborative skills using STEM technologies.
This camp experience will provide campers a science and STEM experience and educate them about solar and renewable energy — giving them a perspective about these technologies in their communities.
This summer, middle school students will construct mini solar cars, become urban planners, create a blueprint for their own renewable energy city, and use motors to power windmills. Middle school students also enjoyed s’mores cooked in solar ovens they made from pizza boxes.
For more information about C4EE and its summer programs visit https://center4ee.org or call 252-541-3004.
