| Overall Rating | Silver |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 51.51 |
| Liaison | Kirk Hemphill |
| Submission Date | Feb. 12, 2024 |
Florida Institute of Technology
AC-10: Support for Sustainability Research
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
2.00 / 4.00 |
Ken
Lindeman Professor, Sustainability Studies Ocean Engineering & Marine Sciences |
Does the institution have an ongoing program to encourage students in multiple disciplines or academic programs to conduct sustainability research?:
A brief description of the student sustainability research program:
- Florida Tech is a research university that requires applied student research on an array of sustainability related topics across many disciplines - often in major senior research capstone programs.
- From 2021-23, 34 students have done 24 senior research SUS projects on or off campus, presenting these at the prestigious Northrop Grumman Science and Engineering Showcase at the end of the academic year. Nine of these students were funded to do this applied research.
- Multiple mentorships and internships are offered off campus, some funded, that encourage and incentivize students to pursue non-course and course-based sustainability research projects. Examples include internships by multiple students via partnerships with some of the region's largest green non-profits including the Brevard Zoo and the Marine Resources Council.
- These student research projects have continued in the last three years to create or implement municipality-scale sustainability action plans in Palm Bay, Indialantic and Melbourne Beach. Sustainability Plans for east-central Florida are still precedent-setting, highly positive outcomes for the communities and the region.
Does the institution have a program to encourage academic staff from multiple disciplines or academic programs to conduct sustainability research?:
A brief description of the faculty sustainability research program:
Many faculty conduct sustainability research for many reasons that are not specifically induced by University scale SUS fellowships or financial incentives. See other credits for examples. The university may likely introduce more explicit incentives for faculty sustainability research in the near future.
Has the institution published written policies and procedures that give positive recognition to interdisciplinary, transdisciplinary, and multidisciplinary research during faculty promotion and/or tenure decisions?:
A copy of the promotion or tenure guidelines or policies:
The promotion or tenure guidelines or policies:
Does the institution have ongoing library support for sustainability research and learning?:
A brief description of the institution’s library support for sustainability research:
Faculty librarians at Evans Library have worked with the SUS academic program to update the online sustainability research guide at http://libguides.lib.fit.edu/Sustainability. This guide is one starting point for research related to various sustainability topics at Florida Tech. In the past, this resource has been used by students and staff for research purposes with positive outcomes including preparation of major research posters for the large annual Northrup Grumman Science and Engineering Showcase. Library faculty and staff are very focused on sustainability and also sponsor several research-related events each year on sustainability topics.
Website URL where information about the institution’s support for sustainability research is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
Information from 2023. Faculty librarians Rob Sippel and Nancy Garmer have updated content for this link with the Florida Tech Academic Sustainability Program.
Information from 2023. Faculty librarians Rob Sippel and Nancy Garmer have updated content for this link with the Florida Tech Academic Sustainability Program.
The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.