Oct. 15, 2025
Springfield Public Schools Energy Specialists TJ Chatman and Ryan Cobb presented the 2025 Spring Setback Awards to Bingham Elementary, Phelps Center for Gifted Education and Reed Middle School for reducing their energy consumption during spring break.
“It’s encouraging to see the district working together to reduce energy consumption and avoid costs associated with utilities,” said Cobb. “We want to do our part to make sure to make the most of our district’s resources so they can be used for the benefit of the students, staff and community.”
As part of the SPS energy program, all SPS schools compete in the setback competition. The competition is based on faculty and staff unplugging unnecessary appliances and electronics before school breaks. As Cobb and Chatman visit the buildings over the break to check the lighting and HVAC systems, they randomly select 25% of the classrooms in the building to see if they have properly unplugged their unused appliances.
“We are looking for people who are making an effort to help cut down on unnecessary energy consumption,” said Chatman. “We understand that there are some things that need to stay plugged in even over longer periods of time when the building is unoccupied. But when mini fridges, microwaves, string lights, lamps and similar appliances are unplugged for even just a few days over a break, it really reduces the energy consumption — especially considering the number of classrooms there are across the entire district.”
The awards are categorized by building size. For the 2025 spring semester, Phelps received the award in the small school building category, Bingham in the medium building category and Reed in the large building category.
SPS energy specialists conduct one setback competition per semester. The next competitions will take place over the fall and winter breaks. Participation over both breaks will be combined to calculate the school’s scores.
