Fort Lauderdale, FL – May 15, 2013 – Today marks the One Year Anniversary since Fort Lauderdale officials honored solar PV training school, US Solar Institute (USSI), for becoming the city’s first downtown commercial building to earn the “Net-Positive Energy Building” badge of honor.
“We, as City Commissioners of the City of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, do hereby proclaim May 15, 2012 as “US Solar Institute Day” … and do thank the US Solar Institute for its contribution in making our air a little less polluted.”
It’s been a busy year since then, and we want to thank everyone for their support that has included many great moments for USSolar including:
- Being honored by Broward County Board of Commissioners with its Emerald Award trophy for Climate Change Leadership 2012 as well as recognizing USSI’s Leadership in Recycling and Green Innovation.
- Sponsoring the Inaugural Jamaican Alternative Energy Expo in Kingston Jamaica to help bring affordable solar power to people all over the Caribbean. The next JAEE will be in Montego Bay Sept 27 to 28, 2013.
- Holding “Solar Saturday School” at the USSI campus, a free outreach to the community to help educate local home and business owners on the affordability and economic viability of solar energy.
- Kicking off the first “Real World Solar PV Challenge,” an ongoing head to head testing of some of the solar component manufactures equipment to help give the consumers some real data on how the equipment performs and holds up to the (sometimes brutal) elements here in south Florida and the Caribbean.
- Having the Honor and Privilege to be the first US Veterans Approved Solar Training school to provide VA tuition assistance under the GI Bill to help returning and active duty men and women in uniform secure the training they need in an industry hungry for more qualified PV installers.
- And of course having the opportunity to educate and train hundreds of new student in the booming solar energy industry!
It all started with USSI solar PV training school’s outfitting its main campus with 99 photovoltaic panels, generating as many as 150kWhs of clean energy daily – enough to power the school plus 2 additional homes.
As the only solar PV training school Licensed by the Florida Department of Education, USSI wanted to demonstrate that solar is not simply a theoretical concept. Rather, it is a practical and affordable technology that can reduce utility bills to zero, if not reverse them completely.
USSI currently feeds excess energy back to the utility, producing negative electricity bills for the school and a cleaner city for area residents. The installation has also transformed USSI into the region’s first 100% solar-powered college.
“We wanted to show people how affordable solar actually is,” comments USSI Founder & President, Ray Johnson. “If a school our size can rely exclusively on solar and have electricity to spare, imagine what the technology could do for businesses and homes throughout the city.”
At last year’s ceremony, City Commissioners, on behalf of Mayor Seiler, congratulated USSI for providing a shining example hoping to inspire more business owners and residents to make the transition to cleaner energy sources.
In addition, Commissioner Romney Rogers announced that USSI would receive its own day of recognition, stating,
We, as City Commissioners of the City of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, do hereby proclaim May 15, 2012 as “US Solar Institute Day” … and do thank the US Solar Institute for its contribution in making our air a little less polluted.
To learn more about US Solar institute or to sign up for solar installation training, visit: https://ussolarinstitute.com/
About USSolar Institute
USSolar Institute is a globally diversified solar energy corporation with headquarters in Fort Lauderdale, Florida and offices, dealers, and partners around the world. USSolar remains dedicated to comprehensive solar education and consulting services by providing global construction management, engineering, and financing solutions for virtually any sized project or system need.