The History & Future Of
StraightUp
Solar

OUR SOLAR STORY
Creating Clean Energy & Building Our Community

We care.
We care by building.
We care deeply for people and planet.
For us, people and planet are the same thing.
If we do not care for one, we are not caring for the other.
Solar is not an issue of compromise, it’s a path to provide caring.
We care by providing a choice that does not require a compromise.
Removing compromise and providing choice requires a new paradigm.
A shared community that forges a new paradigm is a caring Community.
We care by building a Solar Community that builds our shared future.
We care by reaching upward and outward, arms open.
The Community moves forward together, arms open.
The Community builds. The Community cares.

by SUS Founder Dane Glueck

DR. DANE GLUECK’S STORY
On
Solar

Dr. Dane Glueck’s passion for solar renewable energy began during his medical residency in Kentucky, where he experienced both the ancient beauty and the ongoing destruction of the Appalachian mountain region in the name of temporary profits for coal mining operations. Energy from coal mining provided the region with vital electricity but also diminishing returns to the financial wealth of local residents, while leaving lasting consequences on the health and vitality of the local community. Dane built StraightUp Solar as one more way to provide care to his community, by actively changing the energy paradigm and providing people with choice in their energy source.

dane glueck straightup solar president owner

OUR COMPANY
Timeline

2005

  • Erin Noble co-founds Renew Missouri, a non-profit contributing to the passage of Net Metering in Missouri, the Prop C Solar Rebate, and many other key energy initiatives

2006

  • StraightUp Solar is founded in St. Louis, MO

2009

  • Dane Glueck becomes Board President of the Missouri Solar Energy Industries Association (MOSEIA)

2011

  • Shannon Fulton is elected Board President of the Illinois Solar Energy Association (ISEA)

2013

  • Donation of 31 kW solar energy system to St. Louis Zoo
  • StraightUp Solar invited to join national Amicus Solar Cooperative

2014

  • St. Louis Green Business Challenge Achievements
  • Donation of home solar energy system to St. Louis resident
  • Solar aid donations to Muleke School, Uganda
  • StraightUP Solar begins WE CARE solar volunteer work to electrify health clinics in Uganda, Eritrea, Nepal, and Tanzania
  • StraightUp Solar opens an office in Bloomington, Illinois

2015

  • St. Louis HQ is re-located from Midland Blvd. to Page Industrial Blvd. to increase growth capacity
  • Wings of Hope donation of capital, solar expertise and labor to bring solar electricity to 20 homes in Nicaragua
  • Awarded B Corp certification

2016

  • Awarded solar Urbana-Champaign, Solar Bloomington-Normal, and Solarize Godfrey group solar programs
  • Selected as Solar EPC by Home Nursery Inc., to build Southern Illinois’ largest horticultural solar PV project to date

2017

  • Awarded Solarize Madison County/Glen Carbon solar group buy program

2018

  • Awarded the Solarize Metro East, Solar Bloomington-Normal 2.0, and Solar Urbana-Champaign 3.0 group solar programs

2019

  • Awarded the Grow Solar Bloomington-Normal, Grow Solar Metro East, and Grow Solar St. Louis group solar programs

2020

  • Moved HQ from Page Industrial Blvd. in Overland to Lilburn Park Rd. in Maryland Heights. Immediately after moving in we installed a 100 kW solar array on the building.
  • Awarded Grow Solar Urbana-Champaign 5.0, Grow Solar Metro East, Grow Solar St. Louis, Solarize Southern Illinois, and RenewSTL, the first commercial group buy program in the US.
  • StraightUp Solar awarded as Top Place to Work for 2020 by the St. Louis Post Dispatch and featured on 2020 Top Solar Contractors list by Solar Power World.

2021

  • Team members  received gain share for all four quarters
  • Built 5 Illinois Solar For All projects, expanding access to solar for churches and non-profits throughout Illinois
  • StraightUp Legacy Fund commits to 1MW of projects.
  • 67 homeowners went solar through 3 group buy programs in St. Louis, Metro East and Southern Illinois.

2022

  • Awarded BBB Torch Award for Ethics
  • Received St. Louis Post Dispatch Top Workplaces Award 3 years running
  • Earned spot on 2022 Top Solar Contractors List
  • Proud to Earn our B Corp Recertification
  • Opened new office in Marion, Illinois to better serve Southern Illinois
  • Team grows beyond 100 employees, more than half with NABCEP certification
  • Installed our Largest rooftop solar project at First Baptist Church of O’Fallon (600kW)
  • Growth of Service department
B Corp Logo White

STRAIGHTUP SOLAR IS A
Certified
B Corp

StraightUp Solar first became Certified as a Benefit Corporation (B Corp) in 2015.

Certified B Corporations are unique in the business world, because they place people and planet above profit, and commit to high standards of social and environmental performance, transparency, and accountability.

MOre Than
16 Years in Solar

StraightUp Solar has installed:

Our Solar Story

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