Klein Collins Environmental Science students were privy to a rare treat. Representatives from the Klein ISD Maintenance Department and Klein Collins High School building architect and designer, Salas O’Brien Engineering Firm, hosted a backstage tour for intrigued students on the inner workings of Klein Collins’ central plant, boiler, and electrical rooms.

Environmental Science teacher Ms. Elizabeth Broussard and her class reinforced their unit on renewable and nonrenewable energy, with a special focus on the different processes that transform one form of energy into another. Ms. Broussard felt the best way to enhance the unit was to apply the curriculum to a real-world experience.

For Salas O’Brien’s Ken Noack, sharing his knowledge of engineering with these dedicated students was a rare opportunity he thoroughly enjoyed.

“It was a pleasure getting to visit with such bright students interested in seeing the hidden treasures in the central plant, boiler, and electrical rooms”, Noack said. “I hope it planted a seed for future engineers.”

Students were grateful for the shared knowledge regarding the processes undertaken to plan and design the high school, information regarding how Klein Collins strives to be energy efficient, and a newfound understanding of the many processes and machinery helping the school run every day.

“It was very interesting to learn the distance water travels here at Klein Collins and the process of cooling that water so it can be used into AC,” Junior Sasha Ramos said. “I enjoyed the tour and learning more about what powers our school.”

Following the tour, Ms. Broussard hosted a question and answer session in her classroom for students to ask the experts their questions concerning all things energy and engineering.

“I felt incredibly grateful to have Ken Noack, Leslie Schroeder, Molly Rall, and Kevin Wieghat join my AP Environmental Science class today. What started as a simple question regarding how the school processes energy turned into a memorable experience for myself and my students,” Ms. Broussard said. “It was a unique experience to not only see the massive transformers, boilers, coolers, and energy panels,  but also leave this day with a new comprehension of how they run. As a teacher, I was most excited to see the faces of my students as they walked into the maintenance rooms and heard them ask questions about how they run.”