| Overall Rating | Gold |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 70.92 |
| Liaison | Amy Brunvand |
| Submission Date | Sept. 12, 2023 |
University of Utah
EN-1: Student Educators Program
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
2.39 / 4.00 |
Kara
Freedman Engagement & Events Coordinator Sustainability Office |
Number of students enrolled for credit:
Total number of students served by a peer-to-peer sustainability outreach and education program:
Percentage of students served by a peer-to-peer sustainability outreach and education program:
Name of the student educators program (1st program):
A brief description of the student educators program (1st program):
Stewards of the Edible Campus Garden, the University of Utah’s on-campus, hands-on learning gardens, are student educators who host multiple volunteer opportunities each week for their peers at the three garden locations on campus. Through active garden training during the peak growing season and season extension in the garden hoop house, students are able to offer gardening opportunities throughout the year. The program offers the stewards direct experience in gardening, managing events and volunteers, but more importantly, it creates peer-to-peer educational opportunities for them to teach others about sustainable food systems, and healthy eating.
Stewards are selected by an application and interview process, and then trained by the university’s Gardens Program Coordinator on garden maintenance and regenerative farming practices. This includes composting, no-till agriculture, Integrated Pest Management, cover cropping, pollinator promotion, irrigation management, bed preparation, seed blocking, harvesting, seed saving, and both perennial and annual plant cultivation. This information is then passed on to student volunteers in the Edible Campus Gardens, who learn about the program through volunteer sessions, class tours and partnerships, research and project opportunities, events, student food groups, tabling, and the University of Utah’s exceptional service organization, the Bennion Center. The stewards give away the gardens’ bounty to the school’s Feed U Food Pantry and at the University of Utah Farmers Market, where they share information about the program and educate the campus community about sustainable and just food systems, as well as the value of locally grown produce.
A brief description of the student educators program’s target audience (1st program):
On-campus students, both undergraduate and graduate; however, volunteering open to the entire university community and the public. Students enrolled in distance education are not served by the program.
Number of trained student educators (1st program):
Number of weeks the student educators program is active annually (1st program):
Average or expected number of hours worked weekly per trained student educator (1st program):
Total number of hours worked annually by trained student educators (1st program):
Website URL where information about the student educators program is available (1st program):
Name of the student educators program (2nd program):
A brief description of the student educators program (2nd program):
Each fall during the Utes football season, student educators from the student government's sustainability board run a recycling program at the tailgate lots. These students receive training in proper recycling techniques and guidelines by the Sustainability Office and by Facilities Management. They then train groups of volunteers each home game to engage with football fans - students, alumni, parents and community members - to collect recyclable materials and teach them what can and cannot go into the U's recycling bins. Each student educator receives training before every football game to ensure reliability and compliance.
For more information, see this outdated article: https://attheu.utah.edu/facultystaff/recycle-rice-eccles/ as well as a call-out for volunteers for the Fall 2022 season: https://www.instagram.com/p/CkbgKPavTlS/
A brief description of the student educators program’s target audience (2nd program):
The target audience is primarily football fans. All students get free tickets and may join the tailgates, along with hundreds of alumni, parents, and community members.
Number of trained student educators (2nd program):
Number of weeks the student educators program is active annually (2nd program):
Average or expected number of hours worked weekly per trained student educator (2nd program):
Total number of hours worked annually by trained student educators (2nd program):
Website URL where information about the student educators program is available (2nd program):
Name of the student educators program (3rd program):
A brief description of the student educators program (3rd program):
The Sustainability Office employs between 10-15 student interns throughout the year. These students work on internal projects as well as outreach campaigns to other students, faculty and staff. Students answer questions by email and phone about sustainability questions on campus such as recycling, events, and ways to increase professional and personal sustainability. All interns receive abundant training including an orientation at the beginning of the year, weekly meetings with supervisors, and opportunities for professional development like tours of sustainability efforts on campus, attendance at on and off campus events & conferences related to sustainability, and opportunities to conduct research about or put on events they are particularly interested in.
A brief description of the student educators program’s target audience (3rd program):
Most of the target audience is other students, such as participating in new student orientations or tabling to promote Sustainability Office programs. Faculty and staff are targeted through work on a Green Office Program that is mostly run by Sustainability Office interns.
Number of trained student educators (3rd program):
Number of weeks the student educators program is active annually (3rd program):
Average or expected number of hours worked weekly per trained student educator (3rd program):
Total number of hours worked annually by trained student educators (3rd program):
Website URL where information about the student educators program is available (3rd program):
A brief description of all other student peer-to-peer sustainability outreach and education programs:
Number of trained student educators (all other programs):
Number of weeks, on average, the student educators programs are active annually (all other programs):
Average or expected number of hours worked weekly per student educator (all other programs) :
Total number of hours worked annually by trained student educators (all other programs):
Grand total number of hours worked annually by trained student sustainability educators (all programs):
Hours worked annually by trained student sustainability educators per student served by a peer-to-peer program:
Website URL where information about the student sustainability educators programs 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.