University of Louisville
IN-2: Innovation 2

Kentucky Energy Efficiency Program for Schools (KEEPS) As part of the J.B. Speed School of Engineering at the University of Louisville, the Kentucky Pollution Prevention Center (KPPC) helps Kentucky’s businesses, industries and other organizations stay sustainable and competitive. KPPC’s Kentucky Energy Efficiency Program for Schools (KEEPS) was an innovative and highly successful statewide program designed to serve all 174 Kentucky public school districts to help them reduce energy consumption and lower operating expenses. The program ended this fiscal year when American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funding elapsed on April 30, 2012. KEEPS provided a team of regional coordinators, engineers and energy managers who developed program materials, directed program initiatives and provided energy management training and technical assistance to school districts. A series of self-guided, online KEEPS Energy Management Toolkits were developed to provide guidance to district teams. A total of 229 free and downloadable Toolkit resources remain available on the KEEPS website. All of Kentucky’s 174 school districts were enrolled in the program and established board approved energy management policies. The following achievements were also accomplished: 138 school districts established energy management teams; 134 districts became partners in the ENERGY STAR program, the highest state percentage in the nation (77%); and 187 school facilities achieved ENERGY STAR ratings. Additional key outcomes include the following energy and emission reductions as reported by participating school districts: 667,000 MMBtu avoided; $7.5 million energy costs avoided; and 127,600 MTCO2e/yr associated greenhouse gas emissions reduction potential. KEEPS three-level awards program (based upon execution of the ENERGY STAR Seven-Step Energy Management Process) recognized school districts for their accomplishments as they advanced through progressively higher levels of program implementation. The more a district invests in the process, the more likely its energy management program will realize year-over-year energy and cost savings. In the KEEPS experience, 100 percent of Leadership Award winners and 65 percent of Champion and Stewardship Award winners reduced their energy consumption over the past two fiscal years. Forty-seven successful school district energy management programs were recognized at the KEEPS Awards Banquet at the KFC YUM! Center in Louisville, Kentucky, on February 3, 2012. The event drew nearly 300 guests and featured Dr. Neville Pinto, Dean of the UofL College of Engineering, as a keynote speaker and awards presenter. KEEPS was a collaborative partnership of the National Energy Education Development Project – Kentucky Chapter, Kentucky Green & Healthy Schools, Kentucky School Boards Association, Kentucky School Plant Management Association, and Kentucky Department for Energy Development and Independence. UofL’s KPPC served as the administrator of the program.