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6810 (P) - Energy Management/Education

ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURE No. 6810

ENERGY MANAGEMENT/EDUCATION

A.  The Energy Conservation Program will be coordinated by the Office of the Business Manager. Procedures will be implemented at all Walla Walla School District buildings. There may be slight variances to procedures at each building because the building's construction and use is different.

B.  The following energy conservation procedures should be observed in buildings possessing air conditioning equipment:

1.   Refrain from turning the air conditioning equipment on until the outside temperature exceeds 78 degrees.

2.     There will be times when the outdoor temperature is such that the energy management system will not allow the cooling or heating equipment to operate. It will be the staff's responsibility to close all windows and doors when the heating or air conditioning system is operating.

3.     When the temperature is such that cooling is needed at the beginning of the school day, the start time for air conditioning equipment at each building should be set as late as possible while still allowing time to cool the building to guideline temperature by the beginning of classes.

4.     Thermostat controls should be set at 75 to 78 degrees when air conditioning is in operation.

5.     Close individual building, classroom, and office doors when the air conditioning equipment is in operation.

6.     Lights should not be turned on unless definitely needed while air conditioning a building.

7.     The air conditioning equipment should be turned off at the approximate time the students leave school.

8.     Under no circumstances will air conditioning be utilized in classrooms during the summer months unless the classrooms are being used for summer school or year-round school. Custodians will be expected to open doors and windows to provide necessary ventilation. Air conditioning may be used in those schools that are involved in a team cleaning concept.

9.     The Energy Manager or Plant Facilities Director, with input from the principal, will be expected to devise a plan for turning the air conditioning units on in phases to prevent overloading the system, which occurs when all units are turned on at the same time.

10.  In all areas which have evaporative coolers, such as shops, kitchens, and gymnasiums, the doors leading to halls should be kept closed as much as possible.

11.  Where appropriate, technology equipment, such as file servers and routers, may need to have additional cooling for proper operation.

C.  The following energy conservation guidelines are to be observed when operating heating equipment in school buildings:

1.     The thermostat controls should be set no higher than 70 degrees.

2.     Individual classroom and office doors will be closed when the heating equipment is in operation.

3.     In those buildings with central controls, the start time for the heating equipment should be set as late as possible while still allowing time to heat the building to guideline temperature by the beginning of classes. In those buildings with individual classroom controls which the custodian can access, the custodian will be responsible for setting the thermostat controls appropriately at the beginning of the day.

4.     In those classrooms with individual thermostat controls, the staff member or teacher will be responsible for setting the thermostat at 55 degrees as he/she leaves the room at the end of each day.

5.     In those buildings with central controls, the principal/designee will be responsible for setting the thermostat at 55 degrees at the end of each day.

6.     If an employee is working in an area during the 55 degree setback time, he/she will be encouraged to use a space heater. Space heaters should be unplugged after use.

7.     The Energy Manager/Director of Facilities Support will be responsible to ensure that the custodial staff performs an end-of-day shutdown checklist on Monday through Thursday and a weekend shutdown checklist on Friday. This will be done to make certain that the building is closed or shut down in an energy conservative manner. 

8.   If, on extremely cold nights, a 55 degree setback will not allow the building to heat to a comfortable level by the time the students arrive, take the following action:

a.   Set the nighttime temperature setting at 60 degrees.

b.   Notify the Energy Manager immediately.

E.   The following procedures should be observed for operating lighting equipment:

1.     Lights in classrooms should not be turned on unless definitely needed. Staff and teachers should make certain that lights are turned off when leaving the classroom and other rooms.

2.     Lights in all gymnasiums should be turned off unless the gym is being utilized.

3.     All outside lights should be turned off during daylight hours.

4.     When in the building during non-school hours, custodians should turn lights on only in the specific area in which they are working.

5.     The exhaust fan in the rest rooms shall be turned off at the end of the day.

6.     Copy machines, laminating equipment, computers (except for any network servers that must be left on), and other office machines should be turned off by the office staff each night.

7.     All classroom computers (except for any network servers that must be left on) should be turned off each day at the end of the last class.

Issued: September 2003

WALLA WALLA PUBLIC SCHOOLS • 364 South Park St. • Walla Walla, WA 99362 • Phone: 509-527-3000 • Fax: 509.529.7713

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