Dallas College
AC-3: Undergraduate Program

The Dallas College Construction Program is the oldest and largest accredited two-year program in the United States and one of 11 programs accredited by the American Council for Construction Education. The degree takes approximately four semesters to complete with option track for Residential Construction or Commercial Construction. All courses in the program include at least one sustainability assignment.

The final semester course includes a team capstone project where students propose a USGBC-LEED building upgrade to a judges panel comprised of college leadership, industry professionals, and the college sustainability department. The program includes a specific course green building (CNBT 2317).

Upon graduation, students are certified to work in construction or can transfer to a four-year degree program such as Construction Sciences or Engineering Technology. In 2018-19, 63 students earned the AAS in Construction. Between 2015 and 2020, 303 students earned the AAS in Construction.

The Dallas College courses in Urban Agriculture and Renewable Resources are interdisciplinary courses focused on sustainability. Project-based curriculum in these courses will prepare students for green careers in a variety of sectors, including food production, environmental services, agricultural business, natural resources, community development and plant and animal sciences.

The Logistics, Supply Chain Management, and Manufacturing Technology program was made possible through a three-year Science Foundation Advanced Technical Education grant of $199,991. Licensed by the nationally recognized Manufacturing Skills Standards Council (MSSC), it is designed to develop marketable skills for operations, warehousing, production, inventory control, distribution and transportation through industry-standard MSSC certifications that are valid for five years. There are two tracks that students can choose. The specialization in Supply Chain Management requires LMGT 1370: Sustainable Logistics. The specialization in Manufacturing and Quality Management requires IBUS 1341: Global Supply Chain Management. To conduct business in Europe and Asia, logistics and supply chain businesses must comply with laws and regulations on zero waste and carbon reduction.

Dallas College and University of North Texas at Dallas AS to BAAS with Sustainable Livestock and Poultry Management Certificate, https://www.dallascollege.edu/resources/transfer-students/pathways-2020-2021/pages/20-21-as-to-baas-sustainable-livestock-and-poultry-mgmt-cert-untd.aspx

In the reporting time frame of this STARS Report, there were two campuses with active sustainability concentration programs from 2012-2020 that led nationally recognized sustainability-across-the-curriculum emphasis programs, the North Lake SAGE Scholars Program and the Cedar Valley Green Cord Program.

SAGE Scholars (Sustainable Awareness and Global Education) was recognized by AASHE as an emphasis degree option for all majors in 2016 and was also awarded Innovation of the Year by the National Institute for Staff and Organizational Development (NISOD). https://www.nisod.org/exc_awards/2016EAbookletWEB.pdf

Green Cord Program was recognized by AASHE in 2016 for Campus Sustainability Achievement Award for integrating sustainability across curricular and co-curricular programs. https://hub.aashe.org/browse/casestudy/15157/Cedar-Valley-College-a-Center-of-Excellence-of-Sustainability-in-South-Dallas-TX

As part of the State of Texas’ ongoing focus on marketable skills, Dallas College assesses Communication, Critical Thinking, Written Communication, Oral Communication, Empirical and Quantitative Skills, Teamwork, Social Responsibility and Personal Responsibility across the majority of the core curriculum. Initial discussions have begun with key faculty leaders aligning our thematic core objective assessment work along the United Nation’s 17 Sustainable Goals. Faculty meetings are scheduled during return week in August 2021 to discuss this implementation by Spring 2022. This may lead to establishing new credential award programs across all Schools of Dallas College, building toward a Sustainability Scholars Program.

The three associate degree programs include some sustainability-specific courses and are included in AC-1.

The total program coursework completed to earn the associate degrees in these three areas, Construction, Logistics and Supply Chain Management, and Urban Agriculture, meet the AASHE definition of having a focus on the interdependence of ecological and social-economic systems at the program.

Graduates of the Construction program must be able to manage natural resources in the form of construction materials, and understand the social and economic priorities of clients seeking construction services.

Graduates of the Logistics and Supply Chain program must understand the pollution and resource intensity of global and local transportation of goods, and must understand the social and economic priorities of transporting, storing and distributing goods.

Graduates of the Urban Agriculture program must understand the environmental and economic conditions of growing food at large scale to meet the social and market needs of food.