By Kevin Haas
Rock River Current
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ROCKFORD — Rockford Public Schools added an electric vehicle to its drivers education program at three high schools, giving students the chance to learn to drive on both gas-powered cars and EVs.
ComEd granted the district $100,000 to purchase three Kia Niro EVs and Blink Level 2 chargers for Jefferson, East and Auburn high schools. The district hopes to win future grants to buy EVs for Guilford High School and Roosevelt Community Education Center.
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“We have several vehicles that are regular gas-powered vehicles, but this gives us an opportunity for the kids to get another learning chance,” said Jake Burke, a social studies teacher and drivers ed instructor at Jefferson. Electric vehicles are “coming whether we like it or not, so the biggest thing is getting the kids extra opportunity for a different thing to learn.”
Students will learn about an electric vehicle’s components and its charging equipment. They also learn how to operate and charge an EV.
“Some of the kids are excited, so when the kids are excited about education we hang on to every one of those opportunities as much as we can,” Burke said.
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Burke said roughly 1,000 students a year may participate in drivers education at Jefferson.
“It was really smooth. I really like it. It’s a really big difference from gas,” said Amarie Wright, junior at Jefferson on track to get her license in January. “I definitely prefer an EV more than a gas. It’s a big difference and I think it’s really good for the environment.”
Gabriel Mendoza, a senior at Jefferson High School, said he would prefer to own a gas-powered car, but he did see some advantages of learning to drive an EV, too.
“It’s a bit more easily driven,” he said. “At first it was hard to understand because it was so different from a gas one, but then once I got used to it, I feel like it was easier.”
This article is by Kevin Haas. Email him at khaas@rockrivercurrent.com or follow him on X at @KevinMHaas or Instagram @thekevinhaas and Threads @thekevinhaas