WCC to offer energy camp for high schoolers July 13-17
By Staff Reports
Published in News on July 5, 2009 9:11 AM
Summer camps are typically designed to get campers to expend energy. Wayne Community College will offer one this summer that is all about conserving it.
"Camp Kill-A-Watt," a week-long day camp for middle and high school students, will explore green energy options. It is set for July 13-17 at WCC. Open to rising ninth through 12th graders from public, private and home schools, it will run Monday through Thursday from 8:30 a.m. until 4 p.m., and from 8:30 a.m. until noon on Friday.
Cost is $50 and includes lunch each day and a camp T-shirt. It is sponsored by Progress Energy, Piedmont Natural Gas and Ralph Wall Electrical Contractors.
Instructors from the college's Applied Technology Division, with assistance from current students in program areas such as Industrial Systems, Electronics, Automotive, Forestry and Agriculture will lead the camp.
Among the activities planned will be hands-on experiments in solar, wind, fuel cell and biomass technologies, said Angela Wall, WCC instructor.
"Campers will build solar boats and fuel cell cars and race them on campus," she said. "Winners will be able to choose from prizes such as T-shirts, solar phone chargers, and other cool science gadgets."
Participants also will build working wind mills that pump water and solar ovens in which they will cook some food items.
The new camp is based on some of the hottest current topics, Mrs. Wall said.
"Government mandates and stimulus money are being directed toward energy conservation, pollution reduction and energy generation through alternative methods," she said "A recent Pew report puts North Carolina in the top dozen states for growing 'clean energy economy jobs.' Green jobs have grown by over 15 percent in the last decade, whereas other jobs have only grown by 6 percent."
Registration is required for the camp, and space is limited to 30. For more information, contact Mrs. Wall at 738-8446 or awall@waynecc.edu.