What’s Right With Our Schools: Ivy Academy Solar Powered Backpacks

SODDY DAISY, TN (WDEF) –  Local students are proving that innovation and compassion can go hand in hand. At Ivy Academy, a group of teens has designed a solar-powered backpack, and it’s earning national recognition. Their project is making an impact here and halfway around the world.

Jerry Webb is a teacher at Ivy Academy.

He explains, “Seeing these, I love seeing them, especially because they didn’t know it was coming. You know, they didn’t think they could do, so it just keeps growing. They keep for looking different ways to modify to help different groups.”

At Ivy Academy, innovation is more than a lesson, it’s a mission. And this year, that mission earned students the Charter Champion Award for Community Impact Project of the Year. The students created a solar-powered backpack. It’s designed and built by students to meet a real-world need. Each pack features lightweight solar panels and internal battery storage, able to charge phones, tablets, and small electronic devices.

We talked to a student who said, “I enjoy all the help we are going to provide of the things we are able to bring to the table.”

Another chipped in, “We have a lot of opportunities that have come out of this, but my favorite is definitely, you know, seeing everybody enjoy it. It’s not just a Power source.  No, it’s going to help people. “

Teacher Jerry Webb says he’s proud of their growth and excited for the opportunities that lie ahead, “The kids have so much growth they receive from this, the exposure they get, the awards that they’re winning. They’re going to remember that forever.  So, it’s very beneficial to the kids. It brings lots of other opportunities. This project opened the door to many others. The kids have a racing team, and it brought in sponsors for that racing team this year and helped him find that so it’s opening a lot of other doors as well.”