Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 46.40
Liaison David Heithaus
Submission Date Jan. 20, 2021

STARS v2.2

Kenyon College
EN-3: Student Life

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 2.00 / 2.00
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Student groups 

Does the institution have an active student group focused on sustainability?:
Yes

Name and a brief description of the active student groups focused on sustainability:
ECO is a student organization that is focused on sustainability issues on campus. The group often brings in speakers, hosts movie screenings, organizes events and has an active role on campus. One recent campaign by ECO was the Sustain-A-Mugs program, which prompted donation of reusable mugs to the college's dining hall to reduce paper cup usage. ECO also runs free store, which is a donation-based thrift sale where everything is free, to promote the exchange of goods that would otherwise be thrown away.

Gardens and farms 

Does the institution have a garden, farm, community supported agriculture (CSA) or fishery program, or an urban agriculture project where students are able to gain experience in organic agriculture and sustainable food systems?:
Yes

A brief description of the gardens, farms, community supported agriculture (CSA) or fishery programs, and/or urban agriculture projects:
The Kenyon Farm is an 10 acre farm managed by student farmers and volunteers. The workers on the farm tend to livestock (goats, chickens, ducks) and grow crops for Peirce dining hall and for sale on Middle path once a week. The produce from the Kenyon Farm goes to both the college and to community members.

All apartment on campus have the opportunity to compost, and the dining hall composts all waste produced on-site.

Students use compost made at our class II compost site to grow herbs that will be used in the kitchen for daily meals.

Student-run enterprises 

Does the institution have a student-run enterprise that includes sustainability as part of its mission statement or stated purpose?:
No

A brief description of the student-run enterprises:
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Sustainable investment and finance 

Does the institution have a sustainable investment fund, green revolving fund, or sustainable microfinance initiative through which students can develop socially, environmentally and fiscally responsible investment and financial skills?:
Yes

A brief description of the sustainable investment funds, green revolving funds or sustainable microfinance initiatives:
The college has a green revolving fund that focuses on renewable energy and building efficiency projects that optimize emission reductions. Money saved through emissions-reducing projects is returned to the GRF to fund larger projects as it grows.

The GRF model was researched and proposed through a group project conducted in 2017. Students are still provided with opportunities to propose specific GRF-funded projects.

Events 

Has the institution hosted a conference, speaker series, symposium, or similar event focused on sustainability during the previous three years that had students as the intended audience?:
Yes

A brief description of the conferences, speaker series, symposia, or similar events focused on sustainability:
GLCA (Great Lakes Colleges Association) events are held each year. In spring 2019 we hosted the Community for Climate conference here on campus, with 160 students and faculty coming from over 5 different schools. This year's event is focused on environmental justice. We were going to host the event again in 2020 but the conference was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Edgerton Lectureship Fund is an endowed budget line dedicated to bringing experts to campus to speak to issues of Energy and the Environment.

Cultural arts 

Has the institution hosted a cultural arts event, installation, or performance focused on sustainability with the previous three years that had students as the intended audience?:
Yes

A brief description of the cultural arts events, installations, or performances focused on sustainability:
The Gund Gallery recently hosted a semester worth of exhibitions and programs around the theme of 'trees'. Many sustainability-related topics wove in and out of this programming.

Wilderness and outdoors programs 

Does the institution have a wilderness or outdoors program that follow Leave No Trace principles?:
Yes

A brief description of the wilderness or outdoors programs that follow Leave No Trace principles:
The Brown Family Environmental Center (BFEC) offers programs throughout the year that are free and open to the public. In 2008, 3,000 people attended 88 BFEC programs and events. Programs include explorations of the many habitats found within our 400 acre preserve, including our Wildlife Garden, prairie, forests, streams, and wetlands. Seasonal topics may include migrating birds or bald eagle watches, frog habitats and the sounds of spring, wildflower hikes, star gazing and creek walks. Both the BFEC and the college offer Leave No Trace training, Wilderness first aid training and an optional backpacking pre-orientation program that adheres to LNT guidelines.

The Kenyon College Outdoor club also provides students with the opportunity to rock climb, hike, backpack, and kayak every other week, and they follow LNT guidelines as well.

Sustainability-focused themes 

Has the institution had a sustainability-focused theme chosen for a themed semester, year, or first-year experience during the previous three years?:
No

A brief description of the sustainability-focused themes chosen for themed semesters, years, or first-year experiences:
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Sustainable life skills 

Does the institution have a program through which students can learn sustainable life skills?:
Yes

A brief description of the programs through which students can learn sustainable life skills:
The Green Lifestyles Program is a list of sustainable objectives which students can work to achieve here at Kenyon and learn practices for after college life.

Student employment opportunities 

Does the institution offer sustainability-focused student employment opportunities?:
Yes

A brief description of the sustainability-focused student employment opportunities offered by the institution:
The Office of Green Initiatives currently employs 8 student interns who work on a variety of sustainability-related projects including recycling, carbon neutrality, student outreach, and faculty collaboration among others.

Graduation pledge

Does the institution have a graduation pledge through which students pledge to consider social and environmental responsibility in future job and other decisions?:
No

A brief description of the graduation pledge(s):
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Optional Fields

A brief description of other co-curricular sustainability programs and initiatives that do not fall into one of the above categories:
---

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.