James Madison University
IN-2: NSSE Sustainability Education Consortium

JMU administered the NSSE Sustainability Education Consortium questions in the Spring 2017 Semester as an addition to the standard NSSE. More than 500 freshmen and 700 seniors responded. Students were given 20 questions: http://nsse.indiana.edu/pdf/consortia/2017_extraq/71_SEC_2017.pdf.

For most questions, the JMU freshman students’ average was either equivalent to the mean of the participating institutions or significantly higher (p < .05) with an effect size less than .3 in magnitude. Examples of items where JMU freshmen scored significantly higher follow:
During the current school year, how much has your coursework emphasized the following mental activities?
-Understanding the complex relationships between economic, social, and ecological systems.
-Evaluating the moral dimensions of social or environmental problems.
And,
To what extent has your experience at this institution contributed to your knowledge, skills, and personal development in the following areas?
-Acquiring the skills to help organizations become more sustainable.
JMU freshmen only scored significantly lower than peers on two items, both with less than a .3 effect size:
To what extent does your institution emphasize each of the following?
-Learning about sustainability.
During the current school year, about how often have you done each of the following?
-Gone on a field trip in your bioregion.

JMU seniors also did well relative to their senior peer group, scoring significantly better than their peers on the following items (all effect sizes were small, i.e., <.3):
In your experience at your institution during the current school year, about how often have you done each of the following?
-Made significant contributions in a group project.
-Integrated knowledge from multiple academic disciplines in working on a project.
And,
To what extent has your experience at this institution contributed to your knowledge, skills, and personal development in the following areas?
-Acquiring skills to lead or facilitate group activities.
-Understanding the consequences of your choices.

Further, JMU seniors scored significantly lower than peers on the following items (all with small effect sizes (<.3)):
During the current school year, how much has your coursework emphasized the following mental activities?
-Comprehending ways in which human activities may exceed the carrying the capacity of systems that support us.
During the current school year, about how often have you done each of the following?
-Gone on a field trip in your bioregion.
To what extent does your institution emphasize each of the following?
-Learning about sustainability.
-Understanding local economies and/or ecosystems.

Cohort participants in 2017 included:
Chatham University (Pittsburgh, PA)
College of Charleston (Charleston, SC)*
Concordia College at Moorhead (Moorhead, MN)
Evergreen State College, The (Olympia, WA)*
Morrisville State College (Morrisville, NY)
Oregon State University (Corvallis, OR)*
Prescott College (Prescott, AZ)
Saint Joseph's College (Standish, ME)*
South Dakota State University (Brookings, SD)*
St. Lawrence University (Canton, NY)
SUNY College at Oneonta (Oneonta, NY)
SUNY College of Technology at Delhi (Delhi, NY)
University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma (Chickasha, OK)*
Widener University (Chester, PA)

Compiled and reviewed by Dr. Chris Orem, Director, Office of Institutional Research