At James Clemens High School, a Construction Academy student installs a solar panel on the ‘tiny house.’ This project will benefit from The Boeing Company’s $15,000 donation to Alabama Center for Sustainable Energy. (CONTRIBUTED)

MADISON – The Boeing Company has contributed $15,000 to the Alabama Center for Sustainable Energy, which will benefit work on a ‘tiny house’ at James Clemens High School.

Boeing’s donation was earmarked to enhance hands-on study in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) projects for Madison County students. At James Clemens, students in the Construction Academy are building the tiny house.

Usually 200-400 square feet, a tiny house is a functional dwelling that focuses on ‘getting back to the basics’ and spending money, time and effort on important factors, Daniel Tait said. Tait is CEO of Alabama Center for Sustainable Energy.

This program, named “Energy Sustainability for Tomorrow,” is a “kit-based, collaborative learning project aligned with College and Career Ready Standards that provides real-world investigation of sustainable energy-related concepts for students of all ages,” Tait said.

The energy center is working with James Clemens to build “a net-zero energy ‘tiny home’ to teach high performance construction and sustainable energy,” Tait said. Students ‘own’ every piece of the project.

About 50 of Mike Burkett’s Construction Academy students are involved with the project. Greg Ennis’ engineering students developed blueprints. Sherri Shamwell’s interior design students decorated the structure.

“Boeing is focused on ensuring that all students have the 21st-century skills, STEM knowledge and experiences to be successful in life,” Tina Watts said. “That’s why Boeing is excited to be a part of (the center’s) environmental program.” Watts works as Community Investor for Boeing Global Corporate Citizenship.

“Boeing has identified that sustainable energy is growing and we need to make sure our students are ready,” Tait said.

In addition, the energy center sponsors the Switch Blade Competition for students to apply engineering knowledge to design a wind turbine.

Alabama Center for Sustainable Energy promotes feasible projects for high-impact clean energy projects across the state. The organization works with policy makers, public agencies, local governments, schools, utility companies, along with business professionals, civic leaders and individuals to transform Alabama’s energy marketplace.

For more information, call 256-303-7773, email dtait@alcse.org or visit alcse.org.