Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 51.85
Liaison Karen Eckert, Ph.D.
Submission Date Nov. 30, 2015
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.0

Principia College
PA-1: Sustainability Coordination

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 1.00 / 1.00 Karen Eckert, Ph.D.
Professor and Director
Center for Sustainability
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Does the institution have at least one sustainability committee, office, and/or officer that focuses on sustainability broadly and covers the entire institution?:
Yes

A brief description of the activities and substantive accomplishments of the committee(s), office(s), and/or officer(s) during the previous three years:

Principia hired its first full-time Sustainability Director three years ago (August 2012), and our early accomplishments to date are many; e.g., Bronze recognition under the Illinois Governor's Campus Sustainability Compact, electricity provided by 100% renewable energy, 100% composting (Dining Services), single stream recycling campus-wide (ca. 50% landfill diversion), Sustainability minor (17 of 24 campus departments participate), Sustainability Club started, 670-tree native Food Forest planted, student-led Beekeeping and Aquaponics projects, Earth Day Fair, e-vehicles purchased for use by Flex Crew, Level 1 charging stations installed and available to the public, Green Cleaning Purchasing Standard researched and adopted, national conference on Sustainability hosted (2014), Sustainability-focused study abroad approved for Spring 2016, students actively involved in sustainability-related summer internships, sales reduction (50%) in single-use water bottles, 2 water filling stations (one in the student center, one in a student residential dorm), ... and now completion of STARS!


Does the institution have at least one sustainability committee?:
Yes

The charter or mission statement of the committee(s) or a brief description of each committee's purview and activities:

The Sustainability Council meets a minimum of once each academic semester "to invite greater co-ordination, collaboration, and dialogue on sustainability plans, implementation actions, and assessments." The group is self-governing with representation from all sectors of the Principia community. The Council takes the lead in formulating a vision for a sustainable Principia, monitoring progress toward sustainability goals, encouraging and helping to coordinate campus greening efforts, and overseeing the development of a Sustainability reports.


Members of each committee, including affiliations and role (e.g. staff, student, or faculty):

According to the Principia Center for Sustainability Charter, representation on the Sustainability Council may include but not be limited to:
Principia Center for Sustainability
Student government and appropriate student groups/clubs
Department of Facilities
Dining Services
Contracts/Purchasing
Mail and Copy
Information Technology Office
Office of Student Life
Faculty-at-Large
Lands Stewardship Office
Advancement Office


The website URL where information about the sustainability committee(s) is available:
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Does the institution have at least one sustainability office that includes more than 1 full-time equivalent (FTE) employee?:
No

A brief description of each sustainability office:
---

Full-time equivalent (FTE) of people employed in the sustainability office(s):
1

The website URL where information about the sustainability office(s) is available:
Does the institution have at least one sustainability officer?:
Yes

Name and title of each sustainability officer:
Director, Center for Sustainability

A brief description of each sustainability officer position:

A full-time Director of the Principia Center for Sustainability (PCS) is tasked with:
• Authorize and steward PCS funds
• Organize, manage, plan, account for, and effectively apply Principia College resources toward responsible and active sustainability academics
• Support and promote the College Academic Strategic Plan
• Develop, coordinate, and assess sustainability degree programs
• Raise campus awareness on sustainability issues, including organizing education and outreach programs on sustainability
• Guide the design, implementation, and evaluation of student-led sustainability research and action plans
• Participate in the Principia Sustainability Council, working closely with key staff (e.g., Director of Facilities, Director of Dining Services) on campus sustainability issues, including efforts to incorporate sustainability into planning and implementation processes
• Participate in college-level assessments of sustainability performance
• Be an expert resource for faculty, students, and staff on sustainability issues
• Teach sustainability courses
• Represent Principia College academics to external constituencies in the field of sustainability in higher education


The website URL where information about the sustainability officer(s) is available:
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.