Overall Rating Gold - expired
Overall Score 65.38
Liaison Jeremy King
Submission Date Feb. 28, 2019
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

Denison University
EN-1: Student Educators Program

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 3.08 / 4.00 Jeremy King
Campus Sustainability Coordinator
Office of the President
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Number of students enrolled for credit (headcount):
2,341

Total number of students enrolled for credit that are served (i.e. directly targeted) by a student peer-to-peer sustainability outreach and education program (avoid double-counting to the extent feasible):
1,800

Percentage of students served by a peer-to-peer educator program:
76.89

Name of the student educators program:
Denison Sustainability Fellows

Number of students served (i.e. directly targeted) by the program (headcount):
1,500

A brief description of the program, including examples of peer-to-peer outreach activities:

The Denison Sustainability Fellows Program trains student leaders who model and promote environmentally and socially responsible behaviors in the residence halls and other university facilities by educating their peers and getting engaged in hands-on activities that benefit the whole campus community. This program at Denison represents a unique collaboration between The Office of Residential Education and The Office of Sustainability.

Activities:

• RecycleMania
• Operation Move-Out & Operation Move-In
• Conduct sustainability tours on high visitor days: Parents Weekend, Alumni Weekend, etc
• End of school year paper drive to capture items that students would normally throw away.
• Linking up with outdoors clubs for events like hiking.
• Linking talks/events with departments e.g. speaker about how the politics of climate change with poli sci department or whether or not it is financially beneficial to retrofit a business with the math/econ departments.
• Potluck + talk
• All local meal in dining hall or residence hall once a month
• Sustainability related movie screenings
• Light bulb exchange: students can trade out an incandescent light bulb with a CFL
• “Green Leaves Program”- Students who meet certain requirements get a sign to display on their door. Requirements could be that they have displayed recycling or other environmentally friendly habits. Idea could also be translated to be for a room, rather than just one person, where the whole room is “green certified.”
• Plastic bag recycling
• Residence hall trash & recycling sort
• Ecofair - different events , but in place of tickets, students must donate a recyclable
• Water taste test- students have to guess if the water they are testing is from bottle, tap, or filtered tap.
• Black out: encourage students to turn out lights, and meet outside for s'mores/hot chocolate
• Intrahall clothing swaps/stuff swaps
• Cooking activity- partner with PEAS and/or dining services. This could possibly have a focus on fresh food, like the vegetables that would be found in a CSA box.
• See if fellows could partner with DUFTA and initiate an activity explaining the difference between Fair Trade and conventional products
• Cultural activity with La Fuerza Latina, Asian Culture Club, BSU or other group
• Residence hall sponsored community service event- habitat for humanity, food/soup kitchen- partnering with current service learning projects.
• Exercise programs, group runs or bike rides/ workshops on ways to get in shape. Maybe partner with someone in Mitchell. Inter dorm competitions- kickball, capture the flag, sand volleyball.
• Career Services workshops on graduate school and job opportunities for after graduation.
• Dinners with professors, similar to Gilpatrick’s Chowder Hours.
• In General more interaction between students and professors outside of the classroom.


A brief description of how the student educators are selected:

Students must submit applications to serve as Sustainability Fellows. These applications are reviewed by the Campus Sustainability Coordinator

Sustainability knowledge is preferred but not required for students. The program encourages students from all areas of academic and co-curricular areas to apply.


A brief description of the formal training that the student educators receive to prepare them to conduct peer outreach:

Fellows receive direct training from the Office of Sustainability with topics that include: recycling, composting, waste reduction, energy efficiency, resource guides, and overall campus goals for sustainability.


A brief description of the financial and/or administrative support the institution provides to the program (e.g. annual budget and/or faculty/staff coordination):

The College has one FTE that coordinates the program. In addition, Fellows are paid the hourly student-worker wage. The Fellows program utilizes a donor gift account to fund many of its activities.


Name of the student educators program (2nd program):
Denison Street Team

Number of students served (i.e. directly targeted) by the program (2nd program):
500

A brief description of the program, including examples of peer-to-peer outreach activities (2nd program):

The Street Team was developed by Denison's dining provider, Bon Appetit. This group of 5-6 students does outreach to the whole campus community regarding dining at Denison's student union dining location. Recent and current projects of the Street Team include eliminating plastic straws, utilizing reusable bags, and promoting reusable cups, mugs, and to-go containers.


A brief description of how the student educators are selected (2nd program):

Bon Appetit handles the hiring of these Street Team members.


A brief description of the formal training that the student educators receive to prepare them to conduct peer outreach (2nd program):

Bon Appetit's Campus Manager and their Sustainability Manager oversee the training. On topics directly related to campus sustainability, the Office of Sustainability also works to provide information and resources to these students.


A brief description of the financial and/or administrative support the institution provides to the program (e.g. annual budget and/or faculty/staff coordination) (2nd program):

In addition to the support provided by Bon Appetit (which is built into Denison's dining contract, but not itemized as such) the Denison Office of Sustainability provides financial support to purchase materials for Street Team programming.


Name of the student educators program (3rd program):
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Number of students served (i.e. directly targeted) by the program (3rd program):
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A brief description of the program, including examples of peer-to-peer outreach activities (3rd program):
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A brief description of how the student educators are selected (3rd program):
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A brief description of the formal training that the student educators receive to prepare them to conduct peer outreach (3rd program):
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A brief description of the financial and/or administrative support the institution provides to the program (e.g. annual budget and/or faculty/staff coordination) (3rd program):
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A brief description of all other student peer-to-peer sustainability outreach and education programs, including the number of students served and how student educators are selected, trained, and supported by the institution:
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Total number of hours student educators are engaged in peer-to-peer sustainability outreach and education activities annually (all programs):
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The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:

In reality both of these programs target the entire student body and campus community. However, it is realistic and fair to say that not all students engage or even see this programming which is why we are reporting a lower number. We don't actively take any attendance at events.


In reality both of these programs target the entire student body and campus community. However, it is realistic and fair to say that not all students engage or even see this programming which is why we are reporting a lower number. We don't actively take any attendance at events.

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.