Wind Turbine to Go Up at New Haven's Endeavor Middle School Today

If all goes according to plan, a 60-foot wind turbine will be in place behind Endeavor Middle School by the time school lets out this afternoon.

This turbine is part of New Haven Community Schools' new K-12 alternative energy curriculum, which includes the use of biodiesel fuel in its school buses and study of solar panels at the elementary level.

“We have been pursuing a K-12 alternative energy curriculum for about a year, and have been working with group called Energy Works Michigan on both the technical and financial aspects,” said Keith Wunderlich, New Haven superintendent, .

Studying bio-fuels at the high school level and solar energy in elementary, middle school students and teachers have been waiting on their turbine for the opportunity to study wind power firsthand.

Although the Endeavor turbine will be smaller than those used on wind farms across the state, Wunderlich said it will generate electricity and provide significant data for students to analyze.

“The students are going to be able to go online and see the data being produced from our wind turbine and compare it to one of the ones on Lake Michigan perhaps,” Wunderlich said, in an earlier interview with Patch. “They’ll be able to compare weather and wind conditions and placement … we’re very interested in the data it’s going to produce.”

The turbine's concrete pad was poured two weeks ago and the tower will be assembled on school grounds this afternoon.

As for safety concerns regarding the turbine's proximity to the school's playground, Wunderlich wrote in a recent email to parents, "Energy Works Michigan, who is in charge of this project, works exclusively with schools ... They are very knowledgeable about safety precautions for schools and assure us this is very safe."

Wunderlich also assured those living in the area of Endeavor that "noise should not be a problem" as this turbine is a much smaller version of those operating in communities farther north.

Endeavor's turbine will be the 11th installation by Energy Works Michigan on a school site in the past year.