Overall Rating Gold - expired
Overall Score 68.23
Liaison Merry Rankin
Submission Date Sept. 1, 2016
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

Iowa State University
AC-1: Academic Courses

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 11.05 / 14.00 Merry Rankin
ISU Director of Sustainability
Facilities Planning & Management
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

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 3,485 1,102
Number of sustainability courses offered 290 5
Number of courses offered that include sustainability 539 31

Percentage of courses that are sustainability course offerings:
18.86

Total number of academic departments (or the equivalent) that offer courses (at any level):
156

Number of academic departments (or the equivalent) that offer at least one sustainability course and/or course that includes sustainability (at any level):
82

Percentage of academic departments with sustainability course offerings:
52.56

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?:
One

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 :

Courses identified as sustainability courses and included in our Sustainability Course Directory fall into two categories, based on the following definitions: sustainability-focused courses - concentrate on the concept of sustainability, including its social, economic, and environmental dimensions, or examine an issue or topic using sustainability as a lens and sustainability-related courses - incorporate sustainability as a distinct course component or module or concentrate on a single sustainability principle or issue.

To develop our initial Sustainability Course Directory, all courses offered at the university were considered individually through reading course descriptions available in ISU’s course catalog and compiling an initial listing noting courses as sustainability focused, sustainability related or having no sustainability connection. This listing was then reviewed by each college and changes made accordingly. After this initial year, the directory is updated through partnership with our Registrar's office. We receive a course listing for all classes each year and compare to the current directory to delete any courses no longer offered and identify new courses to be considered and confirmed for inclusion.

While classes are cross-listed and may appear multiple times in our Sustainability Course Directory, only each unique course is counted within our total courses offered.


How were courses with multiple offerings or sections counted for the figures reported above?:
Each course was counted as a single course regardless of the number of offerings or sections

A brief description of how courses with multiple offerings or sections were counted (if different from the options outlined above):

NA


Are the following course types included in the inventory? :
Yes (included) or No (not included)
Internships No
Practicums No
Independent study No
Special topics Yes
Thesis / dissertation No
Clinical No
Physical education No
Performance arts Yes

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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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.