| Overall Rating | Gold |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 73.33 |
| Liaison | Maria Dahmus |
| Submission Date | Nov. 30, 2023 |
University of St. Thomas
EN-10: Community Partnerships
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
3.00 / 3.00 |
Maria
Dahmus Director Office of Sustainability Initiatives |
Name of the institution’s formal community partnership to advance sustainability :
Does the institution provide financial or material support for the partnership? :
Which of the following best describes the partnership timeframe?:
Which of the following best describes the partnership?:
Are underrepresented groups and/or vulnerable populations engaged as equal partners? :
A brief description of the institution’s formal community partnership to advance sustainability:
The Sustainable Communities Partnership (SCP), administered by the Office of Sustainability Initiatives, develops multi-year partnerships with cities, government entities, and non-profits to integrate partner-identified sustainability projects (economic, social, ethical, and ecological dimensions of sustainability) into existing St. Thomas courses across disciplines to engage students in real-world, applied research and problem-solving and to expand partner capacity to address their sustainability goals. Our partnerships seek to catalyze systems-level change towards sustainability in the Twin Cities area while preparing students for the complexities of problem-solving in contemporary society. Through SCP, students across majors may also collaborate with local artists to translate their research findings into artwork, bringing to life community-identified sustainability goals and research findings for people of all ages.
Partners from November 2020 - 2023 include: Metropolitan Council, Metro Transit, City of Woodbury, Keys 4/4 Kids, Melinda Vaughn Pollinator Fund, Walker Art Center, Caponi Art Park, Creation Care Team serving the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, and GreenStep Cities.
Visit the linked website to see all past and current community partners and projects. https://www.stthomas.edu/_media-library/_documents/sustainable-communities-partnership/sustainable-communities-partnership-projects.pdf
Name of the institution’s formal community partnership to advance sustainability (2nd partnership):
Does the institution provide financial or material support for the partnership? (2nd partnership):
Which of the following best describes the partnership timeframe? (2nd partnership):
Which of the following best describes the partnership’s sustainability focus? (2nd partnership):
Are underrepresented groups and/or vulnerable populations engaged as equal partners? (2nd partnership):
A brief description of the institution’s formal community partnership to advance sustainability (2nd partnership):
We have a formal university wide partnership with Catholic Charities of the Twin Cities that addresses poverty, hunger, and housing insecurity. Our students work on advocacy campaigns, internships, volunteering, externships, and service-learning programs.
The university offers orientation and reflection working with Catholic Charities staff, and we develop all programming together in consultation with stakeholders.
Name of the institution’s formal community partnership to advance sustainability (3rd partnership):
Does the institution provide financial or material support for the partnership? (3rd partnership):
Which of the following best describes the partnership timeframe? (3rd partnership):
Which of the following best describes the partnership? (3rd partnership):
Are underrepresented groups and/or vulnerable populations engaged as equal partners? (3rd partnership):
A brief description of the institution’s formal community partnership to advance sustainability (3rd partnership):
The University's Center for the Common Good and Dougherty Family College partner with a local organization to provide food for people in Minneapolis, MN who are food insecure. To support this partnership, the University provides staff, volunteers, and marketing (in kind) services.
A brief description of the institution’s other community partnerships to advance sustainability:
In addition to the three programs listed above, the University supports additional community partnerships to advance sustainability.
Business 200: Business Learning Through Service
BUSN 200 is an experiential course that offers students the opportunity to strengthen their development as effective and principled business leaders. In BUSN 200, students create their own learning objectives and partner with a nonprofit to pursue those objectives, while making meaningful impacts in the community.
During the course, each student volunteers for at least 40 hours at a nonprofit of their choice in the community. BUSN 200 maintains a list of local organizations seeking volunteers to help with causes related to environmental sustainability, food insecurity, housing, among other topics. Students participate in an orientation session, attend four class meetings led by peer facilitators, complete a series of reflective assignments, and present a final creative project. The course is a free, noncredit, pass-fail graduation requirement for all undergraduate business majors and minors.
Website URL where information about the institution’s community partnerships to advance sustainability is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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.