Overall Rating Gold
Overall Score 73.88
Liaison Audrey McSain
Submission Date March 20, 2023

STARS v2.2

Lehigh University
AC-6: Sustainability Literacy Assessment

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 4.00 / 4.00 Audrey McSain
Sustainability Program Manager
Office of Sustainability
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Does the institution conduct an assessment of the sustainability literacy of its students?:
Yes

Which of the following best describes the literacy assessment? The assessment is administered to::
The entire (or predominate) student body, directly or by representative sample

Which of the following best describes the structure of the assessment? The assessment is administered as a::
Pre- and post-assessment to the same cohort or to representative samples in both a pre- and post-test

A copy of the questions included in the sustainability literacy assessment(s):
A list or sample of the questions included in the sustainability literacy assessment or the website URL where the assessment tool may be found:

1. To the best of your knowledge, which of the following statements illustrates the relationship between the environment and economic development?
2. Imagine that we had to pay for all the costs associated with the goods we use every day. To the best of your knowledge, what would go into calculating the true costs of a product?
3. Many economists argue that electricity prices in the U.S. are too low because…
4. What is the leading driver of deforestation in the world?
5. Which of the following is a leading cause of the depletion of fish stocks in the Atlantic Ocean?
6. Which of the following is the primary reason that gasoline prices have risen over the last several decades in the U.S.?
7. What is the definition of climate change?
8. The global climate change our planet is currently experiencing is:
9. What is meant by the term "carbon footprint?"
10. Which of the following is NOT an effect of climate change?
11. The social equity dimension of sustainability refers to...
12. What is an accurate statement about food security in the U.S.?
13. What is a “food desert?”
14. Which mode of long-distance travel has the smallest greenhouse gas emissions per passenger compared to the other options?
15. Some buildings on Lehigh's campus are LEED certified. What does this mean?


A brief description of how the literacy assessment was developed and/or when it was adopted:

Lehigh's Sustainability Literacy Assessment was developed in collaboration between the Office of Sustainability and the Lehigh Sustainability Council's Education Subcommittee. These two groups developed the questions and the answer choices for the assessment. The assessment was sent via email through Qualtrics to all students in September 2021 and March 2022.


A brief description of how a representative sample was reached (if applicable) and how the assessment(s) were administered :

The assessment was administered through a Qualtrics survey. A link to the survey and information explaining the assessment was sent via email to all students (both undergraduate and graduate) in September 2021 and March 2022. We received 349 responses in September 2021 and 363 responses in March 2022.


A brief summary of results from the literacy assessment(s):

In March 2022, the average score was 9.79/15 (65.3%) and 5 out of 15 questions had a score of 80% or higher. This is compared to October 2020, when the average score was 9.64/15 (64.3%).


Website URL where information about the sustainability literacy assessment is available:
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Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:

The data above was not impacted by COVID-19 and therefore is representative of a normal year.


The data above was not impacted by COVID-19 and therefore is representative of a normal year.

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.