Overall Rating Gold - expired
Overall Score 67.26
Liaison Tom Twist
Submission Date June 16, 2017
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

Bates College
AC-2: Learning Outcomes

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 3.79 / 8.00 Tom Twist
Sustainability Manager
Facilities
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Total number of graduates from degree programs (i.e. majors, minors, concentrations, certificates, and other academic designations):
462

Number of students that graduate from programs that have adopted at least one sustainability learning outcome:
219

Percentage of students who graduate from programs that have adopted at least one sustainability learning outcome:
47.40

Do the figures reported above cover one, two, or three academic years?:
One

Does the institution specify sustainability learning outcomes at the institution level (e.g. covering all students)?:
No

Does the institution specify sustainability learning outcomes at the division level (e.g. covering particular schools or colleges within the institution)?:
No

A list or brief description of the institution level or division level sustainability learning outcomes:
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Does the institution specify sustainability learning outcomes at the program level (i.e. majors, minors, concentrations, degrees, diplomas, certificates, and other academic designations)?:
Yes

A list or brief description of the program level sustainability learning outcomes (or a list of sustainability-focused programs):

Data was obtained through Bates College Office of Institutional Research and Planning, as well as our faculty liaisons within the Committee for Environmental Responsibility. See "Majors for 2016 Graduates" in supporting document (page 10).

Program Learning Outcomes:

Environmental Studies (Interdisciplinary) - 31 student degrees awarded:

1. Students will understand the issues that arise from the interaction of humans with both the natural world and built environments, and how physical environments are inflected in complex ways by socio-cultural and political factors.
2. The coursework will provide a framework for students to examine how humans experience, investigate, and interact with the world around them.
3. Students will explore the social, aesthetic, ethical, scientific, and technical aspects of environmental questions.
4. Students will be equipped with a focused knowledge and methodological tools for assessing environmental impact.
5. Each student will gain hands-on, real-world experience via an internship with an environmentally focused organization or business.

Economics (Social Sciences) - 62 student degrees awarded

1. Students will demonstrate knowledge of the economic basis of environmental problems and examine alternative policies aimed at reducing environmental degradation.
2. Students will have a familiarity with the market system and existing property-rights system that contribute to environmental problems, cases where public intervention offers the potential for improvement, cases amenable to market-based approaches, and the public-policy tools available to promote environmental goals.

Geology, Biology, Physics, Chemistry, Math, & Engineering (Natural Sciences) - 95 student degrees awarded

1. Students will be able to demonstrate knowledge that most environmental change, while manifested in biophysical realities, is linked to historical, economic, political and cultural drivers that shape power relations and unequal control over and access to resources.
2. Students will have an understanding of the interplay of physical, chemical, biological, social, and cultural processes that must be recognized to understand the movement and impact of both materials that support life (such as nutrients, food, and water) and pollutants.

Anthropology (Social Sciences) - 10 student degrees awarded:

1) The students will leave with an understanding of how anthropology contributes to our understanding of contemporary environmental issues such as rapid climate change, shrinking biodiversity, and sustainable use of resources.

Sociology (Social Sciences) - 21 student degrees awarded:

1) Students will address a wide range of social phenomena, from patterns of everyday interaction to social and political revolutions. 2) Students will demonstrate an understanding of inequalities of income, wealth, housing, education, and health as well as related social problems such as racism, substance abuse, crime, poverty, homelessness, and climate change - with a particular focus on how sociologists study the process through which social conditions become defined as problems, the way various stakeholders frame those problems, and their potential solutions, students explore sociology in general and the social construction of social problems in particular.


Do course level sustainability learning outcomes contribute to the figure reported above (i.e. in the absence of program, division, or institution level learning outcomes)?:
No

A list or brief description of the course level sustainability learning outcomes and the programs for which the courses are required:
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The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
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Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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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.