Rep. Summer Lee Celebrates Over $660,000 in Solar for Schools Funding in PA-12
**For Immediate Release**
Rep. Summer Lee Celebrates Over $660,000 in Solar for Schools Funding in PA-12
WASHINGTON, D.C. – MAY 21, 2025 — Today, Congresswoman Summer L. Lee (PA-12) celebrated the investment of more than $660,000 in funds awarded to two schools in PA-12 as part of Pennsylvania’s Solar for Schools Grant Program. The program, administered by the Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) and funded through the Commonwealth Financing Authority (CFA), will help schools reduce long-term energy costs, lower carbon emissions, and invest in clean energy education and workforce development.
The Clairton City School District was awarded $361,990 to support a solar power project that will cut energy costs and expand learning opportunities for students. Additionally, the School District of Pittsburgh will receive $300,000 to support solar panel installation at Carrick High School, promoting sustainability and technical education in one of the city’s key public schools.
“Schools in Western Pennsylvania are already doing so much with limited resources and this funding will provide critical relief to districts that have long been underfunded,” said Rep. Summer Lee. “By helping our schools go solar, we’re reducing utility costs, cutting carbon emissions, creating good-paying union jobs, and giving our students the tools to succeed in the green economy of the future. I’m proud to see Clairton and the school district of Pittsburgh leading the way on clean energy, and I’ll keep fighting to ensure every school in our district has the resources to grow, innovate, and lead. This is about our kids learning skills for the jobs of tomorrow and about workers in our communities building the infrastructure to get us there. I’m grateful to Governor Shapiro for prioritizing clean energy investments like this and for recognizing that climate action and economic justice go hand-in-hand.”
The Solar for Schools initiative builds on Governor Josh Shapiro’s energy strategy to promote clean, affordable, and reliable energy across the Commonwealth. The program supports the purchase and installation of solar energy systems, energy storage, permitting, and utility interconnection — and positions schools as leaders in Pennsylvania’s transition to a clean energy economy.
For more information on the Solar for Schools Program or to view the full list of awarded projects, visit the Commonwealth Financing Authority’s website.
Congresswoman Summer Lee serves on the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform and the Committee on Education and the Workforce. Since taking office in January 2023, she has delivered historic levels of federal investment totaling over $2.4 Billion brought back to Western PA, including over $580 million for infrastructure, over $110 million for affordable transit, over $500 million to keep clean energy manufacturing at home in Pennsylvania, and over $55 million on clean energy efforts in and around schools to help keep our kids and communities safe. These investments will help improve Western Pennsylvania’s infrastructure and transit, ensure cleaner air and drinking water, lower housing costs, fund research institutions, fuel clean manufacturing, fund STEM innovation and entrepreneurship, boost workforce development, and create thousands of good paying union jobs. Lee and her team have also delivered casework and constituent services to over 3,000 constituents with issues ranging from helping our seniors and disabled community access Medicare and social security to helping folks secure housing and helping families with immigration support and passports.