| Overall Rating | Gold - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 66.66 |
| Liaison | Marianella Franklin |
| Submission Date | Sept. 20, 2017 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
University of Texas Rio Grande Valley
AC-1: Academic Courses
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
13.93 / 14.00 |
Marianella
Franklin Director of Sustainability The Office For Sustainability |
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 | 8,161 | 1,280 |
| Number of sustainability courses offered | 127 | 18 |
| Number of courses offered that include sustainability | 2,609 | 289 |
Percentage of courses that are sustainability course offerings:
Total number of academic departments (or the equivalent) that offer courses (at any level):
Number of academic departments (or the equivalent) that offer at least one sustainability course and/or course that includes sustainability (at any level):
Percentage of academic departments with sustainability course offerings:
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?:
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 :
1) A detailed course listing in the form of excel spreadsheets were obtained from the Registrar for Spring, Fall, Summer I and Summer II 2017. It included the number of students in each class, what semester it was taught, and more. However, it did not include course descriptions or learning outcomes.
2) The spreadsheets were combined and sorted by college. Repeat courses were listed even when taught by the same instructor because a new group of students were reached every time.
3) OFS staff looked up each course on the UTRGV Course Information and Faculty Profiles website (https://webapps.utrgv.edu/aa/dm/) to find the syllabus. Some courses did not have syllabi uploaded. Every attempt was made to find a syllabus for that class by that professor; they were contacted and made aware of our search. However, if the staff did not have access to a syllabus to review, the course was removed from the list. Thus, some courses which likely are sustainability related (SR) or sustainability focused (SF) may have been excluded only because they could not be confirmed.
4) The remaining syllabi were reviewed by Office for Sustainability staff who have been trained and are very familiar with sustainability terminology. Staff referred to the UN Goals website (http://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/sustainable-development-goals/) to define sustainability terms and determine whether course content was sustainability related (SR), sustainability focused (SF), or neither; courses not containing sustainability content were eliminated from the list.
5) The remaining courses were sorted and counted.
How were courses with multiple offerings or sections counted for the figures reported above?:
A brief description of how courses with multiple offerings or sections were counted (if different from the options outlined above):
Are the following course types included in the inventory? :
| Yes (included) or No (not included) | |
| Internships | No |
| Practicums | Yes |
| Independent study | No |
| Special topics | Yes |
| Thesis / dissertation | No |
| Clinical | Yes |
| Physical education | Yes |
| Performance arts | No |
The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives 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.