Overall Rating Gold - expired
Overall Score 68.19
Liaison Ian Johnson
Submission Date July 14, 2017
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

Colorado College
PA-1: Sustainability Coordination

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 1.00 / 1.00 Ian Johnson
Sustainability Director
Office of Sustainability
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Does the institution have at least one sustainability committee?:
Yes

The charter or mission statement of the committee(s) or a brief description of each committee's purview and activities:

The mission of the Campus Sustainability Council is to make Colorado College a model for campus and community sustainability. The CSC works to design, promote, and implement initiatives that are ecologically viable, economically sound, and socially just, now and for future generations.The CSC plays a key role in raising campus awareness and keeping sustainability issues at the forefront, reminding us all to live up to Colorado College’s core value of nurturing a sense of place and an ethic of environmental sustainability.


Members of each committee, including affiliations and role (e.g. staff, student, or faculty):

Co-Chairs
Karen To, Communications
Hannah Ryder, Office of Sustainability Intern
Mark Smith, Professor of Economics
Howard Drossman, Education

Office of Sustainability
Ian Johnson, Sustainability Director
Katy Dupree, Office of Sustainability Paraprofessional
Kelsey Maxwell, Communications Intern
Bryna Coyle, State of Sustainability Intern
Annabelle O’Neill, Buildings and Grounds Intern
Sarah Kang, Community Engagement Intern
Robbie Gardner, Greenhouse Gas Inventory Intern
Hannah Ryder, Curriculum Development Intern
Danny Rodriguez, Residence Life Intern
Niyanta Khatri, Website Maintenance and Development Intern
Zoe Holland, Waste Diversion Intern
Wayan Buschman, Swap Space Manager


Faculty
Mark Wilson, Biology

Staff
Lyrae Williams, President’s Office
George Eckhardt, Campus Planner
Tom Allen, Sodexo
Leah Fugere, Assistant Director, Admissions
Sara Gallagher, Project Management Analyst, Advancement
Laura Rosendo, Major Gift Officer, Development
Darren Ceckanowicz, Technical Director, Environmental Program
Mark Ferguson, Campus Operations and Plant Manager
Cecelia Gonzalez, Horticulturist
Ryan Hammes, Outdoor Education
Derek Hanson, Bon Appetit
Randy Kruse, Bon Appetit
John Lauer, Associate Vice President for Student Life
Mark Lee, Associate Director of Web Communications and New Media
Leslie Weddell, Director of News and Media Relations
Leonard Ortman, Controls Specialist
Tess Powers, Director of Faculty Research Support/Research Compliance Officer
Mike Siddoway, Associate Dean of the Faculty
Michael Brubaker, Mechanical Services Engineer
Dave Harker, Director, Collaborative for Community Engagement
Justin Weis, Associate Director, Residential Life and Housing
Dez Stone Menendez, Executive Director, Innovation at CC
Denise Sheridan, Environmental Health & Safety Coordinator
Liz Scherkenbach, Systems Programmer/Analyst
Enid Ruiz-Mattei, Senior Budget Analyst
Laura Snyder, Career Coach
Scott Palguta, Men’s Soccer Coach
Jonah Seifer, State of the Rockies Program Coordinator


Local Community Members
Frank Kinder, Colorado Springs Utilities (fkinder@csu.org)
Alicia Archibald, Bestway (Alicia@bestwaydisposal.com)
Jane Ard-Smith, Colorado Springs Sierra Club (janeardsmith@comcast.net)
Ryan Trujillo, Colorado Springs Contract Compliance and Sustainability Manager (rtrujillo@springsgov.com)

Students
Sabrina Heitmann, EnAct Co-chair
Beau Burns, CCSGA


Does the institution have at least one sustainability office that includes more than 1 full-time equivalent (FTE) employee?:
Yes

A brief description of each sustainability office:

The Office of Sustainability fosters communication, collaboration and coordination between sustainability stakeholders in the CC community. The Office serves to develop and support campus initiatives, working closely with the Campus Sustainability Council and the student environmental action group, EnAct, to make the Colorado College a model for campus and community sustainability.


Full-time equivalent (FTE) of people employed in the sustainability office(s):
2

Does the institution have at least one sustainability officer?:
Yes

Name and title of each sustainability officer:
Ian Johnson

Does the institution have a mechanism for broad sustainability coordination for the entire institution (e.g. a campus-wide committee or an officer/office responsible for the entire campus)?:
Yes

A brief description of the activities and substantive accomplishments of the institution-wide coordinating body or officer during the previous three years:

During the last several years, the Campus Sustainability Council (CSC) has been instrumental in driving sustainability initiatives on campus. By increasing its membership to include a diverse group of faculty, staff and students, the Council has been able to successfully influence the wider campus community. The Council was responsible for adding the various sustainability components to the College's Strategic Plan. Last year, the Council pushed the administration to prioritize sustainability in its professional staffing, leading to the creation of the sustainability paraprofessional position. Furthermore, in the last few years, the Council has lobbied for and successfully increased the College's dedicated budget for sustainability projects. The money has helped support the construction of a campus greenhouse, an online energy monitoring system, and campus signage for sustainability features. The council has also lobbied for increased support for the Office of Sustainability staff and funding for carbon offsets. The Council presented a plan and strategy for reaching the College's carbon neutrality goal by 2020.

The previous Sustainability Coordinator operated as a subset of Facilities and was instrumental in implementing the dashboard system, implementing composting programs for both dining services and off-campus housing, supporting the expansion of non-potable irrigation across campus, developing the student garden, and implementing a green-cleaning policy (amongst many others). The new Office of Sustainabiliy continues to focus on those items, but is placed in the Office of the Dean of the College, giving the Sustainability Manager access and influence on a higher level of administration and curriculum development as it relates to sustainability principles.

In 2015, the Campus Sustainability Council has been integral in advocating for a carbon neutral library drafting a petition and unanimously voting to support a carbon neutral library. The CSC has created a Sustainability Action Plan to be signed by the President of the college. This plan outlines specific sustainability projects with clear goals, responsible parties, and deadlines. The CSC has reconfigured its subcommittees to include: Investments, Conservation Campaigns, Green Sciences, Academics, Operations, and Communications/Community Outreach. These subcommittees have created individual action plans for the year of 2015.


Job title of the sustainability officer position:
Sustainability Director

Job description for the sustainability officer position:
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Job description for the sustainability officer position:

Sustainability Director collaborates with faculty, students, staff, and community to develop and direct programs and projects that support the sustainability goals outlined in the college's strategic plan through a liberal arts learning approach. Responsibilities include: directing the Office of Sustainability, promoting education and research focused on campus sustainability, and fostering a collaborative and innovative sustainability community at Colorado College. Required qualifications include: master's degree in a related field plus a minimum of three years of related experience (working in a sustainability and resource conservation management position); proficient with computer software programs such as word processing, spreadsheets, data visualization, presentation and web site development tools; excellent oral and written communication skills; ability to think critically and solve problems; good judgement and ability to handle confidential/sensitive information with discretion; excellent organizational and analytical skills; self-motivated; ability to multi-task in a fast paced environment (establishing and meeting deadlines, often in the midst of changing priorities); tact and sensitivity to work with divergent views on sustainability; ability to operate standard office equipment. Travel and/or attendance at meetings or other functions outside normal business hours may be required. Preferred qualifications include: PhD in a related field; familiarity with Colorado College or another private liberal arts residential college; experience with greenhouse gas inventories, carbon emissions, and offsets.


Job title of the sustainability officer position (2nd position):
Office of Sustainability (Oos) Paraprofessional

Job description for the sustainability officer position (2nd position):
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Job description for the sustainability officer position (2nd position):

The OoS Paraprofessional manages the OoS Intern teams (currently consisting of nine paid interns, fifteen dedicated volunteers, seven Eco RA's and a Swap Space Manager), provides mentorship to sustainability-based student groups (EnACT and the Sense of Place Living/Learning Community) and supports the Campus Sustainability Council and the Sustainability Director in achieving the sustainability goals outlined in the college's strategic plan through a liberal arts learning approach. Responsibilities include: serve as the primary contact for the OoS student teams, serve as primary point of contact to the campus community and to the public regarding matters related to sustainability and to the overall office operations, attend a broad variety of meetings and events on and off campus to represent the OoS as appropriate, assist with overall logistical support for the OoS, plan and oversee Sense of Place trips, serve as an advisor to EnACT and the Sense of Place LLC, coordinate the assembly and submission of reports and/or data to meet reporting deadlines, manage the Eco Fund, oversee marketing and advertisement for the Office of Sustainability, assist with programmatic development and delivery for campus events, serve as office receptionist, perform word processing, filing, proofreading, photocopying, and scanning, support and contribute to the goal of achieving greater diversity at Colorado College, promote a culture of safety and environmental protection by working in a safe manner, and act in a socially responsible manner and model environmental sustainability by exercising financial prudence, using college resources wisely, and supporting ecological initiatives and innovation. Required qualifications include: bachelor's degree from Colorado College; significant experience with campus sustainability efforts, projects, and data collection; ability to take initiative (self-starter, able to make decisions independently within the limits of designated authority); ability to coordinate a large and diverse staff of student interns, volunteers, Eco RAs, Living Learning Communities, and others involved in the sustainability effort at CC; ability to represent the OoS in a professional manner at meetings and events on and off campus with a variety of stakeholders including community partners, faculty and staff, students, and parents; ability to perform research and analysis, and write compelling reports; basic computer skills. Preferred qualifications include: expert knowledge of OoS organization and operations; valid driver's license and van certification; personal interest and commitment to sustainability.


Job title of the sustainability officer position (3rd position):
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Job description for the sustainability officer position (3rd position):
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Job description for the sustainability officer position (3rd position):
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The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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