(GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — As the school year draws to a close in Virginia, Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS) is tallying up some very significant energy savings to add to a legacy of energy management success. According to John Lord, Energy Education Specialist for LCPS, energy savings for the school year already total over $4.6 million; this represents a 28.9% reduction in utility costs for the district.

The latest figures confirm a successful energy management legacy punctuated by more than two decades of documented cost avoidance in excess of $70 million. Hiring their first energy manager in 1993, the school district teamed up with Energy Education (now Cenergistic) for a 4-year comprehensive energy management program. When the paid term of the contract ended, the district kept up its winning ways.

Currently, the district is a seven-time ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year, a two-time winner of the Virginia Governor’s Environmental Excellence Award, and has also earned the Metropolitan Washington Council of Government’s (MWCOG) First Annual Climate and Energy Leadership Award.

A case study documenting the extraordinary legacy of LCPS is available from EnergyCAP, Inc. The study reveals how LCPS started and continued the legacy, what surprising savings opportunities the district’s utility bills audits uncovered, why internal and external messaging was so important to long-term success, and how what John Lord calls “people power” has made a vital difference.

About EnergyCAP, Inc.

EnergyCAP’s purpose is to publish industry-leading software tools that help clients derive value from utility bills. For more than 30 years, the award-winning EnergyCAP software has helped 10,000 energy managers to track more than $25 billion in energy spending. EnergyCAP utility bill and energy management software helps users get value from their utility bills and meter data. Software features include bill entry (manual, spreadsheet import, and EDI), bill tracking, an optional AP/GL interface, customizable bill approval workflow, audits, rate schedules, interval and production data tracking, cost avoidance (M &V), issue tracking, submeter tracking, virtual meter formulas, re-billing, greenhouse gas tracking, 300+ reports, automated ENERGY STAR building data submittal, building benchmarking, and graphical PowerViews. Discover why EnergyCAP is America’s #1 utility bill management software at http://www.energycap.com.

About the Loudoun County Public Schools

LCPS is the third largest school district in Virginia; with over 76,000 students attending 88 schools. LCPS operates facilities totaling over eleven million square feet. In 22 years, LCPS has saved over $70 million on utility costs. Energy use reductions represent the elimination of over 330,000 metric tons of CO2 emissions; equivalent to removing more than 68,000 cars from the road for a year or over 8.4 million tree seedlings grown for ten years. LCPS is headquartered at 21000 Education Court, Ashburn, VA 20148

Dr. Ronald Holmes is the author of 13 books: Jacob’s Dream! A Story of Bullying in School and Ways to Stop it. Jacob’s Dream! “A Lesson on Numbers and Birds,” “Jacob’s Dream! A Lesson on Alphabets and Continents,” “How to Eradicate Bullying,” “Education Questions to be Answered,” “Current Issues and Answers in Education,” “How to Eradicate Hazing,” “Professional Career Paths,” “Your Answers to Education Questions,” “How to revitalize the National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc.” “Completing the Dissertation: Tips, techniques and real-life experiences from Ph.D. graduates.” “Jacob’s Dream, A Story of Careers for Children” and Jacob’s Dream, A Story of Animals in Africa. He is publisher of “The Holmes Education Post,” an education focused Internet newspaper.  Holmes is a former teacher, school administrator and district superintendent. He can be reached at [email protected]