Overall Rating Gold
Overall Score 67.68
Liaison Mei May
Submission Date Nov. 22, 2023

STARS v2.2

University of Texas at San Antonio
PA-1: Sustainability Coordination

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 1.00 / 1.00 Mei L May
Director Office of Sustainability
Sustainability
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

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:

UTSA Sustainability Council:

The Council will consist of faculty, staff and students from the three campuses and include representatives from the offices of the President and each of the Vice Presidents. The Council will function as a university standing committee and its chair and members will be appointed by the President and/or his/her designee.

The Council will advise the President, Provost and other senior administrators regarding strategies for enhancing the university's sustainability performance. The Council will make recommendations on sustainability programs, initiatives, and practices, and on the allocation of resources; will help monitor the development and progress of the campus sustainability efforts; and will provide guidance and assistance in fostering alliances with community partners.

The Council will be responsible for developing a five-year sustainability plan. The Council will review and update the plan on an annual basis, and present it to Campus Management and Operations (CMO) for approval, support and provision of resources. The Council will have the responsibility of preparing an annual report on the progress of the university-wide sustainability plan. In addition, the Council will be responsible for preparing the annual UTSA Campus Sustainability report for The University of Texas System (UT System).


Members of each committee, including affiliations and role:

LIST OF CURRENT SUSTAINABILITY COUNCIL,

Lani May, Chair Office of Sustainability
Moses Hernandez, Vice Chair Student Appointee
Eliot Howard Leadership and Volunteer Services
Noelani Cubillos-Sanchez Center for Civic Engagement
Jake Erney Staff Senate
Mary Dixson Faculty Senate
Jasmin Paquet Durand Ford SGA President
Shaun Speck SGA Director of Sustainability
Tejas Narayanan Student Appointee
Madeline Morales Student Appointee


Does the institution have at least one sustainability office that includes more than 1 full-time equivalent employee?:
Yes

A brief description of each sustainability office:

Function: To serve as the central contact for coordination and monitoring of campus sustainability issues, recommended actions to the President of the University and is the key liaison between the university and the City of San Antonio, South Central Texas Community.

Scope: To take a leadership role in addressing our campus’ and region’s sustainability challenges and work to integrate the best sustainability ideas, knowledge and practices into the life of our campus and community.

Responsibilities:

1. Proactively advance sustainability initiatives for the university using creative and resourceful strategies acquired from experience associated with resource management, including policy implementation, energy and water conservation, greenhouse gas emissions, waste management, food systems, healthy living programs and related topics.

2. Chair and facilitate meetings of the UTSA Sustainability Council and provides operational leadership to promote academic and operational initiatives for sustainability. Directly supports academic and operations subcommittees. Represents the University on system‐wide sustainability efforts. In addition, shall serve on and support the “UTSA Green Fund Committee”.

3. Develop communication strategies and programs to increase awareness among both internal and external constituents regarding advancement of sustainable programs, to include working with University departments, alumni, and current University community members. Work with faculty involved with sustainability research as appropriate. Develop and implement joint student/faculty/staff projects as part of course curriculum to support and further awareness of sustainability within the University. Build effective partnerships and relationships to propel the university to the forefront of recognized leadership in sustainability. Included herein is an expanding collaboration with student groups.

4. Direct and lead studies and research related to sustainability on campus, such as the Climate Risk Assessment. Responsible for responding to sustainability surveys from external entities. Examples of surveys include a year‐plus effort in leading the University self‐assessment and successful submission to the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) that earned the University a Sustainability Tracking, Assessment and Rating System (STARS) rating of Silver.

5. Pursue local, regional, state and national grant opportunities to support UTSA sustainability strategies. Implementation and management of the resultant grant fund is considered part of this responsibility.


Full-time equivalent of people employed in the sustainability office(s):
2

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

Name and title of each sustainability officer:
Mei Lani May, Director of the Office of Sustainability

Does the institution have a mechanism for broad sustainability coordination for the entire institution?:
Yes

A brief description of the activities and substantive accomplishments of the institution-wide coordinating body or officer during the previous three years:

Grants awarded to the UTSA Office of Sustainability:
TXDOT SIT! (2022,2023): $70,000
Congestion Mitigation and Air Quality 1 (2020, 2021, 2022): $407,000
TPWD HCP (2022-2024): $724,000
City of SA TREE- Tree Mitigation and Planting at UTSA (2019): $50,000
COSA Edwards Aquifer Protection Plan (EAPP) 1 (2017): $1,057,401
COSA Edwards Aquifer Protection Plan (EAPP) 2 (2018): $2,671,236


Job title of the sustainability officer position:
Director of Sustainability

Job description for the sustainability officer position:
Job description for the sustainability officer position:

Function: To serve as the central contact for coordination and monitoring of campus sustainability issues, recommended actions to the President of the University and is the key liaison between the university and the City of San Antonio, South Central Texas Community.

Scope: To take a leadership role in addressing our campus’ and region’s sustainability challenges and work to integrate the best sustainability ideas, knowledge and practices into the life of our campus and community.

Responsibilities:

1. Proactively advance sustainability initiatives for the university using creative and resourceful strategies acquired from experience associated with resource management, including policy implementation, energy and water conservation, greenhouse gas emissions, waste management, food systems, healthy living programs and related topics.

2. Chair and facilitate meetings of the UTSA Sustainability Council and provides operational leadership to promote academic and operational initiatives for sustainability. Directly supports academic and operations subcommittees. Represents the University on system‐wide sustainability efforts. In addition, shall serve on and support the “UTSA Green Fund Committee”.

3. Develop communication strategies and programs to increase awareness among both internal and external constituents regarding advancement of sustainable programs, to include working with University departments, alumni, and current University community members. Work with faculty involved with sustainability research as appropriate. Develop and implement joint student/faculty/staff projects as part of course curriculum to support and further awareness of sustainability within the University. Build effective partnerships and relationships to propel the university to the forefront of recognized leadership in sustainability. Included herein is an expanding collaboration with student groups.

4. Direct and lead studies and research related to sustainability on campus, such as the Climate Risk Assessment. Responsible for responding to sustainability surveys from external entities. Examples of surveys include a year‐plus effort in leading the University self‐assessment and successful submission to the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) that earned the University a Sustainability Tracking, Assessment and Rating System (STARS) rating of Silver.

5. Pursue local, regional, state and national grant opportunities to support UTSA sustainability strategies. Implementation and management of the resultant grant fund is considered part of this responsibility.


Job title of the sustainability officer position (2nd position):
Project Coordinator

Job description for the sustainability officer position (2nd position):
---

Job description for the sustainability officer position (2nd position):

Function: To coordinate the operation of programs or projects, exercising independent judgment and authority as required.

Scope: Responsible for assigned phases of programs, which may include budget decisions, program selection, staff supervision, future planning, and innovation.

Responsibilities
1. Proposes, evaluates, and coordinates the implementation of programs. Researches new program ideas; proposes program design, which may include grant development and submission.
2. Plans, schedules and coordinates activities in assigned programs and projects.
3. Ensures program needs are met through resources planning, tracking and management. Resources include talent, supplies, and facilities.
4. Produces and distributes program materials. Coordinates marketing and communication activities for the program.
5. Evaluates program activities and makes recommendations for changes and enhancements. Makes recommendations to ensure the program evolves as necessary to continue to serve its mission.
6. Maintains tracking and reporting systems to monitor program/ participant progress and results. Provides data and progress/status reporting as necessary for program sponsors and other university personnel. create reports to reflect student progress and program levels; assists in the creation and maintenance of internal controls to protect student confidentiality and program reporting.
7. Interacts with university departments, special groups and external agencies to coordinate resources and communicate/market programs.
8. Performs other duties as assigned.


Job title of the sustainability officer position (3rd position):
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Job description for the sustainability officer position (3rd position):
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Job description for the sustainability officer position (3rd position):
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Website URL where information about the institution’s sustainability coordination 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.