Jim Thorpe Area School District’s board of education members knew that they were bound to save some cash through the energy efficiency upgrades conducted throughout the past year, but they were surprised to find just how much they were getting back from PPL at Monday night’s meeting.

PPL contractor Auralic Lunquist and key account manager Heather Bash, accompanied by Honeywell account executive Patrick Salmon, came to the board meeting bearing great news, along with a hefty check for the district.Honeywell, which handled the energy efficiency project and the installation of the LED lights, helped broker the deal with PPL.“PPL incentivizes energy efficiency programs, and one of them is LED lighting,” Bash said.The total rebate amounted to more than $34,000. Salmon had informed the board previously that they could expect some great savings and rebates with the energy efficiency project, but the outcome far exceeded expectations.“We were told it was probably going to be somewhere near $20,000. and we went to $34,000, which I’m ecstatic about,” board President Michael Principe said.Bash explained that the rebates are calculated based on the kWh savings.“For a lighting program, we look at what the pre-existing fixtures were, so in this case it was fluorescent to LED. Comparing the quantities, the wattages, to the new LED light bulb quantities and wattages allows us to calculate the savings,” she saidThe 682,528 kWh that the district saved by switching equates to an approximate $47,800 reduction in energy bills annually.With the overall savings benefits of LED lighting alongside rebate offers, the district is exploring additional projects with Honeywell.“This is a great program. We’re looking at doing additional LED lighting projects for the district now, so this could just be the start for them,” Salmon said.The rebate and cost-saving measure have come at just the right time for the district, which had to dip into its reserve fund in order to make up for a $4 million deficit for next year’s budget. Nonetheless, Principe was quick to point out that while the savings are great, there are some benefits that are even more important.“It’s cost-efficient, but it’s better citizenship as well,” Principe said. “We always do what we can to save money, but it’s also environmentally conscious. I think it’s great.”