National Energy Foundation

National Survey Question of the Week!

🔋 Quick: what's the largest source of carbon-free electricity in the U.S.?

Most high school seniors guess solar or wind. The answer, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration and reflected in NEF's 2025 National Energy Literacy Survey, is nuclear.

It's not a trick question. It's a signal that students are forming opinions about the energy transition without a clear picture of what the grid actually looks like. That's a problem when these same students will be voting on energy policy in the next few years.

NEF programs give students the facts behind the headlines: how electricity is generated in the U.S., what the tradeoffs are, and how the mix is changing. Real literacy means understanding the system before forming an opinion about it.

Full survey: nef1.org/dashboard-2025

"Our students look forward to the energy presentation every year. They get really excited to take home the Energy Saving devices, the Student Kits and try the experiments with their families."

Teachers say this kind of thing often, and it's the part that doesn't make it onto a balance sheet but quietly drives everything we do. A take-home kit means a conversation at the dinner table. A conversation at the dinner table means a parent learning along with their kid. That's the ripple.

50 years in, we still measure success by what happens after the classroom door closes.

Thank you to Mountain Valley Community Action Program (MVCAP) and Erin Jeffries for highlighting this important discussion from the NEUAC Conference.

NEF's National Energy Literacy Survey continues to spark meaningful conversations about how young people understand energy, affordability and the future of our energy system. Together, we're helping build a more informed and energy literate future.

Learn more about the survey findings: https://nef1.org/survey/

During the National Energy and Utility Affordability Coalition’s (NEUAC) annual conference, MVCAP President and CEO Erin Jeffries moderated a thought-provoking session on energy literacy.

“NEUAC’s conference serves as an important national forum for collaboration, innovation and discussion around policies and programs that help families maintain safe and affordable access to essential utility services,” said Jeffries, who serves on the NEUAC Board.

Jeffries moderated for Gary Swan of the National Energy Foundation and explored findings from the Third National Energy Literacy Survey, conducted of high school seniors, during the fall of 2025. The session asked attendees “When it comes to energy, are you smarter than a high school senior?”

Energy literacy includes understanding how energy is produced and consumed, what it costs, and policies surrounding energy. Understanding how young people perceive these issues can help shape outreach, education and advocacy efforts.

“The session generated strong audience engagement and meaningful discussion around the intersection of education, public awareness, and equitable access to affordable energy resources,” Jeffries said. “It also reinforced the importance of cross-sector partnerships in building a more informed and resilient future.”

Learn more about the Energy Literacy Survey here: https://nef1.org/survey/

Learn more about NEUAC here: www.neuac.org.

The energy industry has a workforce gap. Schools have students looking for careers that feel meaningful and stable. Those two facts should be connecting more often than they are.

NEF programs are one of the most cost-effective ways for utilities and energy organizations to introduce students to energy careers, hands-on, in their own communities. Lineworkers, engineers, technicians, customer service, IT, operations: the breadth of the industry surprises most students.

For partners, this isn't just brand visibility. It's pipeline building, with measurable reach into the classrooms your community depends on.

Curious what a partnership looks like? Let's talk: nef1.org/contact

# NEF

National Survey Question of the Week!

🧾 When students pay their first electric bill, will they know what they're paying for?

In NEF's 2025 National Energy Literacy Survey, many high school seniors couldn't identify the kilowatt-hour (kWh) as the unit on their electricity bill. Some chose watts. Some chose BTUs.

It's a small detail, but it matters. Understanding what a kWh is, and how everyday habits add up to one, is the foundation of every energy-efficiency choice a person makes as an adult. Turning off lights, choosing appliances, charging an EV, all of it comes back to that one unit.

NEF's energy efficiency programs help students connect what's on a power bill to what's happening in their own home. That's the moment energy education becomes personal.

See the full survey: nef1.org/dashboard-2025

The school year is winding down and planning for next fall is already underway.

For utilities, energy organizations, and community partners, summer is the right window to build school-year programming that actually reaches classrooms. NEF works with partners year-round to deliver K-12 energy education that is branded, customizable, and aligned with the communities you serve.

Energy efficiency. Energy safety. EV awareness. Workforce exposure. We can help you deliver any of them, at any scale.

If you're thinking about your community engagement goals for the 2026-27 school year, now is a good time to talk.

Reach out: nef1.org/contact

We were proud to see NEF’s Meagan Seferovich join Electric Vehicle Association's “Action to Impact” panel to discuss public engagement, EV education, and broadening community impact.

Thanks to EVA for hosting this important conversation!

Ashley Lynn Qua is hosting our "Action to Impact" panel with Bryn Grunwald from RMI, Mike Salisbury from the Colorado Energy Office, and Meagan Seferovich from the National Energy Foundation! We're going over what these organizations have learned from their engagement with the public and what EVA and our chapters can do to broaden our impact!

"I want to be a changemaker in the energy transition."
That's not a distant dream, it's the quiet ambition forming in classrooms right now.

Today's students aren't just energy consumers. They're future grid designers, voters, policy shapers, and workforce contributors entering an energy landscape that's evolving faster than most curricula can keep up with.

Electrification. AI-driven grid demand. Career pathways that didn't exist a decade ago.

The gap between what students learn and what the world needs them to know is real...and it's growing. That's where NEF comes in.

Our classroom-ready programs connect the fundamentals, where electricity comes from, how it's transported and measured, how to use it safely to the world students actually live in. Not abstract theory. Real relevance.

The most consequential energy decisions of the next 30 years won't be made in boardrooms or legislatures alone. They'll be shaped by the students sitting in classrooms today. Are we giving them what they need to lead?

☀️ Quick question: what's the original energy source for nearly every living thing on Earth?

When we asked high school seniors in NEF's 2025 National Energy Literacy Survey, many didn't know the answer is the sun.

It powers photosynthesis, drives weather, fuels every meal on the table, and warms the planet that grew the food in the first place. Yet the connection between solar energy and everyday life often goes unspoken in classrooms.

That's part of why NEF exists. Our K-12 programs help students see energy where they already are: in the food they eat, the lights they flip on, the phones they charge and the buses they ride to school. Energy literacy starts with recognizing what's already around us.

The students sitting in classrooms this year will be the workforce, voters, and energy consumers of the next decade. The earlier they make the connection, the better prepared they'll be.

See the full survey: nef1.org/dashboard-2025

General Motors recently became the first U.S. automaker to match 100% of the electricity used across its U.S. facilities with renewable energy, an exciting milestone that reflects how quickly the energy landscape continues to evolve.

The National Energy Foundation is proud to partner with GM to help bring EV education into classrooms, reaching more than 30,000 students through hands-on STEM learning and real-world career exploration experiences.

Helping students understand the future of energy and transportation matters, and we’re excited to help connect classroom learning to the technologies and opportunities shaping tomorrow’s workforce.

https://www.theconsultingreport.com/gm-becomes-first-u-s-automaker-to-reach-renewable-energy-goal/?utm_medium=email&utm_source=rasa_io&utm_campaign=newsletter

GM Becomes First U.S. Automaker to Reach Renewable Energy Goal - The Consulting Report General Motors has become the first U.S. automaker to secure enough renewable energy to match 100% of its domestic electricity use. The milestone follows an expansion of clean-energy utility programs, virtual power purchase agreements, and other renewable energy sources across the company’s U.S. o...