Overall Rating Gold - expired
Overall Score 68.35
Liaison Alexis Reyes
Submission Date Oct. 29, 2015
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.0

Pomona College
EN-1: Student Educators Program

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 4.00 / 4.00 Ric Townes
Dean of Campus Life
Office of Campus LIfe
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Does the institution coordinate one or more ongoing student, peer-to-peer sustainability outreach and education programs that meet the criteria for this credit?:
Yes

Number of degree-seeking students enrolled at the institution:
1,587

Name of the student educators program (1st program):
Sponsors / Resident Advisors

Number of students served (i.e. directly targeted) by the program (1st program):
1,488

A brief description of the program, including examples of peer-to-peer outreach activities (1st program):

Residential advisors receive training and materials on living sustainably on campus and are required to create an activity or an event for their residence halls themed on sustainability. An example of this is a sustainability scavenger hunt with efficiency and sustainable living tips interspersed along the way and prize packs complete with shower timers and other sustainability goodies as the reward. Another RA put together a competition to reduce clothes dryer use, coordinating with the Sustainability Integration Office to check drying racks out to his dorm and monitoring dryer usage through usage reports of i.d. card scanners on the dryers.


A brief description of how the student educators are selected (1st program):

Sponsors are typically sophomores, chosen to mentor the following year's first-year students in the residence halls. Students are chosen on the basis of their responsibility, enthusiasm, and potential to be a successful mentor. Resident Advisors provide support in residence halls and are chosen on the basis of their leadership, responsibility, reliability, and enthusiasm for residential life at the college.


A brief description of the formal training that the student educators receive (1st program):

Sustainability is one of the three key pillars of residential life at Pomona, and sponsors and resident advisors are expected to engage in sustainability education and programming with students in their residence halls. Resident Advisors receive training in sustainability basics, programming, and outreach from both the Sustainability Integration Office and the Office of Campus Life. This training includes the distribution of materials to use in their residence halls (e.g. light switch stickers, the campus' green living guide, posters to post in trash areas) and a requirement that they pursue sustainability events and programming throughout the year. These students also receive priority for the distribution of compost buckets, drying racks, and other resources with the expectation that they will share these resources and information about them with other students.


A brief description of the financial or other support the institution provides to the program (1st program):

Sponsors and resident advisors receive administrative and financial support for sustainability education from the Office of Campus Life and the Sustainability Integration Office. Financial support is guaranteed from the Office of Campus Life and available by proposal/request from the Sustainability Integration Office.


Name of the student educators program (2nd program):
EcoReps

Number of students served (i.e. directly targeted) by the program (2nd program):
1,587

A brief description of the program, including examples of peer-to-peer outreach activities (2nd program):

The EcoReps program consists of eight students, one in each undergraduate residence hall and two in upperclassman halls. They act as resources for students on environmental topics such as energy usage, waste reduction, composting, and recycling. EcoReps promote monthly themes related to sustainable living, and work with other organizations such as Pomona for Environmental Action and Responsibility to hold events and campaigns. In the residence halls, EcoReps personally maximize energy savings by turning off lights and keeping an eye on residence hall temperatures. The primary goal of the program, however, is to encourage sustainable habits in college residents.


A brief description of how the student educators are selected (2nd program):

EcoReps in first and second year residence halls are selected from the pool of Sponsors. Sponsors are typically sophomores, chosen by the Office of Campus Life to mentor the following year's first-year students in the residence halls. Students are chosen on the basis of their responsibility, enthusiasm, and potential to be a successful mentor. All sponsors are extended the invitation to apply to be an EcoRep and are selected by the Sustainability Integration Office based on their experience, interest, and enthusiasm for the environment.


A brief description of the formal training that the student educators receive (2nd program):

EcoReps are trained by the Sustainability Integration Office on various topics related to living green on Pomona's campus: waste minimization and diversion, low impact living, electricity and water reduction, etc. Training occurs in weekly meetings and is heaviest at the beginning of the school year.


A brief description of the financial or other support the institution provides to the program (2nd program):

The EcoReps program is funded by the Sustainability Integration Office.


Name of the student educators program (3rd program):
Sustainability Integration Program

Number of students served (i.e. directly targeted) by the program (3rd program):
1,587

A brief description of the program, including examples of peer-to-peer outreach activities (3rd program):

The Sustainability Integration Office (SIO) is staffed by six student workers who organize a number of SIO programs including Greenware, Green Office and more. These students write the Claremont Colleges Sustainability Newsletter which includes a monthly educational article. They also plan and coordinate educational outreach events throughout the year. These include a vampire energy info table at Halloween, a blind bottled water taste test at Smith Campus Center, tabling for the dorm energy challenge Power Down, and organizing events like the Power Down Campout on Walker Beach.


A brief description of how the student educators are selected (3rd program):

The Sustainability Integration Office solicits student applications through the student email digest Chirps. Students interested in working for the SIO fill out an application, interview, and are selected based on their demonstration of working well on a team, interest and enthusiasm for the environment, writing and speaking ability.


A brief description of the formal training that the student educators receive (3rd program):

SIO staff are trained and mentored on the job by the Director of the Sustainability Integration Office. Monthly staff meetings draw the team together in a joint effort.


A brief description of the financial or other support the institution provides to the program (3rd program):

The SIO staff are funded by the Sustainability Integration Office operating budget.


Name(s) of the student educator program(s) (all other programs):
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Number of students served (i.e. directly targeted) by all other student educator programs:
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A brief description of the program(s), including examples of peer-to-peer outreach activities (all other programs):
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A brief description of how the student educators are selected (all other programs):
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A brief description of the formal training that the student educators receive (all other programs):
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A brief description of the financial or other support the institution provides to the program (all other programs):
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Total number of hours student educators are engaged in peer-to-peer sustainability outreach and education activities annually:
620

The website URL for the peer-to-peer student outreach and education program(s):
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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