San Juan Unified School District Replacing Fluorescent Lights With LEDs

By Denise Wong

SACRAMENTO (CBS13) — The San Juan Unified School District is getting rid of all of its fluorescent lighting at its nine high schools.

The summer project is costing more than $1 million, but district officials say it will bring brighter lights and cost savings that can be put back into the classroom.

The classrooms at Casa Roble High School are empty now, but next week, they'll be filled with workers swapping fluorescent lights for LEDs.

The district estimates strong energy savings from the new lights.

"About 61 percent—that represents about 300,000 kilowatt hours per high school. all in all about 1.7 million kilowatt hours if you combine all the high schools together," said facilities and planning director Frank Camarda.

This means a smaller electric bill. The district estimates between the nine high schools, it will save about $200,000 a year.

The initial investment isn't cheap. It'll run $1.4 million to change out all the lighting, but it's being paid for by voter approved Measure N funds that have to be used on construction projects. The savings will go back into the general fund.

"That means flexibility," Camarda said. "That is a flexible fund. That means it can go right back into the classrooms."

That means more money for things like books and student programs. And if the project goes well at all of the high schools, the district may switch out the lighting at all of its schools.

It takes about two weeks to change out the lighting at each high school, and work should be done on all of them by this fall.

The LEDs can last up to four times longer than fluorescent lamps, so the district says it probably won't have to spent money on new lights for five to seven years.