| Overall Rating | Gold - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 69.28 |
| Liaison | Katie Koscielak |
| Submission Date | April 21, 2017 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
Cal Poly Humboldt
AC-1: Academic Courses
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
9.77 / 14.00 |
Katie
Koscielak Sustainability Analyst Facilities Mgmt |
Figures required to calculate the percentage of courses offered by the institution that are sustainability course offerings:
| Undergraduate | Graduate | |
| Total number of courses offered by the institution | 1,886 | 361 |
| Number of sustainability courses offered | 106 | 16 |
| Number of courses offered that include sustainability | 130 | 27 |
Percentage of courses that are sustainability course offerings:
Total number of academic departments (or the equivalent) that offer courses (at any level):
Number of academic departments (or the equivalent) that offer at least one sustainability course and/or course that includes sustainability (at any level):
Percentage of academic departments with sustainability course offerings:
A copy of the institution’s inventory of its sustainability course offerings and descriptions:
Do the figures reported above cover one, two, or three academic years?:
A brief description of the methodology used to determine the total number of courses offered and to identify sustainability course offerings, including the definitions used and the process for reviewing and/or validating the course inventory :
In 2013, a committee called the Sustainability Steering Committee was convened to determine which courses should receive sustainability course designations. This committee consisted of primarily faculty and staff and determined that sustainability-focused courses must concentrate on all three concepts of sustainability, including social, economic, and environmental dimensions; sustainability-related courses would integrate social or economic issues with environmental dimensions of sustainability. The group then did a keyword search of course descriptions in the HSU catalog, using 42 search terms, chosen to relate to the three dimensions of sustainability: environmental, economic, and social (search terms included: forest*, ecosystem*, energ*, econom*, financ*, justic*, socio*, politic*, communit*, etc.) An initial list of courses whose titles or descriptions contained search terms from at least two dimensions was refined with a course-by-course examination of catalog descriptions. The committee then published a draft list to department chairs, asking for confirmation, additions, and/or subtractions from the lists. After reconciling the revisions, all courses that had received a sustainability designation were marked in the course catalog and made public to students in the Fall of 2013.
During 2016, the Office of Sustainability simply did a count of courses that had received sustainability designations previously and that were offered during the 2015-2016 academic year. In order to determine whether any new courses that should be given a sustainability focused or related course designation, the Office of Sustainability then determined which courses were new since the first 2013 designation process, and repeated the keyword search on these courses. Courses with keywords in the course title or description were then vetted by the Office of Sustainability and a small committee of faculty. A list of confirmed courses will be sent to department chairs for final approval. It is anticipated that new designations will be added to the course catalog published for academic year 2018-2019 because the timeliness of this process did not meet catalog deadlines for updating the 2017-2018 catalog, and accordingly, have not been shown in the data represented here.
How were courses with multiple offerings or sections counted for the figures reported above?:
A brief description of how courses with multiple offerings or sections were counted (if different from the options outlined above):
Are the following course types included in the inventory? :
| Yes (included) or No (not included) | |
| Internships | Yes |
| Practicums | Yes |
| Independent study | Yes |
| Special topics | Yes |
| Thesis / dissertation | Yes |
| Clinical | No |
| Physical education | Yes |
| Performance arts | Yes |
The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
Total number of courses was taken from a catalog query provided by the Registrar's office that included all courses listed in Fall 2015 and Spring 2016. Duplicates (courses listed in both semesters) were removed to get the total number of courses figure listed above (i.e. courses listed in both semesters were counted only one time).
Sustainability focused and related courses were also counted over Fall 2015 and Spring 2016, with a course offered in both semesters counted once.
Total number of courses was taken from a catalog query provided by the Registrar's office that included all courses listed in Fall 2015 and Spring 2016. Duplicates (courses listed in both semesters) were removed to get the total number of courses figure listed above (i.e. courses listed in both semesters were counted only one time).
Sustainability focused and related courses were also counted over Fall 2015 and Spring 2016, with a course offered in both semesters counted once.
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.