| Overall Rating | Silver - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 56.19 |
| Liaison | Lissette Hernandez |
| Submission Date | May 13, 2016 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
Florida International University
AC-1: Academic Courses
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
6.23 / 14.00 |
Alexandra
Dutton Program Manager Office of University Sustainability |
Figures required to calculate the percentage of courses with sustainability content::
| Undergraduate | Graduate | |
| Total number of courses offered by the institution | 4,832 | 4,620 |
| Number of sustainability courses offered | 24 | 22 |
| Number of courses offered that include sustainability | 182 | 119 |
Number of academic departments (or the equivalent) that offer at least one sustainability course and/or course that includes sustainability (at any level):
Total number of academic departments (or the equivalent) that offer courses (at any level):
Number of years covered by the data:
A copy of the institution’s inventory of its course offerings with sustainability content (and course descriptions):
An inventory of the institution's course offerings with sustainability content (and course descriptions):
See document attached or view online at http://gogreen.fiu.edu/academics/index.html
The website URL where the inventory of course offerings with sustainability content is publicly available:
Date Revised: June 7, 2016
A brief description of the methodology the institution followed to complete the course inventory:
For our first STARS report in 2013 a FIU STARS Curriculum Working Group made up of three faculty members from different departments decided on a working definition of sustainability in the curriculum that was used for reporting on the AASHE STARS report.
Working off the definition for the previous year the Office of University Sustainability staff examined the course catalog to classify courses into three categories; sustainability related, sustainability focused, or neither. The Office uses the Version 1 terms “sustainability related courses” and “sustainability focused courses” to represent the Version 2 terms “sustainability courses” and “courses that include sustainability” respectively in public lists on the Office of University Sustainability’s website to remain consistent to previous year’s lists.
Florida International University follows a general definition that is derived from the widely- cited 1983 Brundtland Commission of the U.N. definitions of sustainable development, which defines sustainability as: “Meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”.
FIU recognizes three dimensions of sustainable systems (e.g. institutions, communities, regions, countries etc.). They must be: environmentally sound, socially just, & economically viable. A consideration of the intersection between these dimensions is fundamental to both assessment and promotion of sustainability.
In accordance with the definition provided above, general criteria will be used to identify sustainability-related and focused courses in the FIU curriculum and additional criteria will be used to distinguish between these two categories.
Sustainability-related Courses meet the general criteria and are consistent with at least one of these approaches:
• Focus significantly on the intersection of at least two dimensions of sustainability;
• Focus principally on one dimension of sustainability but explicitly and regularly relate
this dimension to the other dimensions;
• Focus a significant sub-theme, module, major course assignment, significant project
or service-learning experience on the concept of sustainability. Sustainability-focused Courses meet the general criteria and either:
• Concentrate centrally on the concept of sustainability, including all three dimensions;
• Focus on examining an issue or topic using sustainability as a lens.
The Office of University Sustainability also created a form available on the GoGreen website for faculty to self-report courses.
Date Revised: June 7, 2016
How did the institution count courses with multiple offerings or sections in the inventory?:
A brief description of how courses with multiple offerings or sections were counted (if different from the options outlined above):
Not applicable
Which of the following course types were included in the inventory?:
| Yes or No | |
| Internships | Yes |
| Practicums | Yes |
| Independent study | Yes |
| Special topics | Yes |
| Thesis/dissertation | Yes |
| Clinical | No |
| Physical education | Yes |
| Performance arts | Yes |
Does the institution designate sustainability courses in its catalog of course offerings?:
Does the institution designate sustainability courses on student transcripts?:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
Courses included in this data come from the 2013-2014, 2014-2015, 2015-2016 Academic Year catalogs for both graduate and undergraduate courses. Some courses are only taught once a year or every few years so including three academic years of courses allowed for all courses a student has the option of taking during their study to be counted. Each course is counted a single time regardless if it falls under multiple colleges or departments or if it is offered more than one year in a row. Global Learning courses are denoted with '(GL)' at the end of the course title.
Courses included in this data come from the 2013-2014, 2014-2015, 2015-2016 Academic Year catalogs for both graduate and undergraduate courses. Some courses are only taught once a year or every few years so including three academic years of courses allowed for all courses a student has the option of taking during their study to be counted. Each course is counted a single time regardless if it falls under multiple colleges or departments or if it is offered more than one year in a row. Global Learning courses are denoted with '(GL)' at the end of the course title.
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.