Congressman Ron Estes came to Maize inspired by the level of participation displayed by the Solar Initiative.

“What a great project that high school students are doing,” Estes said. “Helping lead as well as participate in it, has turned out to be a great benefit for the school and the school district.”

Estes keeps his district staff busy looking for different opportunities to tour in the state, and they made sure Estes came out to view the solar array when he was on a free week.

“It’s just a great project to be able to participate in and see that is going on in the state of Kansas,” Estes said.

Since the start of the Solar Initiative, it has continued to gain attention from many outside sources.

“It was pretty amazing,” Bergkamp said. “I’ve never known a congressman to come to a school to look at a specific project, so for him to take time out of his day to come down to the high school was quite an honor.”

Bergkamp said he views the increased coverage as a good thing, but doesn’t view it as achieving the final success.

“It’s like we dropped a stone into a body of water,” Bergkamp said. “I want that excitement to radiate out like waves from Maize High School.”