Northeastern University
EN-1: Student Educators Program

For ten years, between September-April during the regular academic year, a biweekly Student Sustainability Committee is held. Convened by the Sustainability Office, Student Affairs, and Facilities Management Division, this group is attended by staff, and student group representatives, individual students, and anyone within the Northeastern community that wants to discuss sustainability initiatives, concerns and ideas for the campus. This Committee supports leadership development and education of the students engaged in the group and some of the representatives have gone on to serve in key leadership roles and executive board member positions within Student Government Association, Husky Environmental Action Team, Residential Student Advisory Group, and ReThink the Drink, as examples. Others have gone on to become Resident Assistants who actively promote and educate res hall students in sustainability programming. Additionally, the co-op students who work for the Office of Sustainability have continued on in their peer-to-peer roles as Residential Life staff, staff in the NU-In Program, and working in Student Government as E-board members and collaborating with other student groups and emerging councils - in 2021, for example, the VP of Sustainability in Student Government is collaborating with an emerging environmental justice coalition/council of various student group representatives.

There's no formal structure through which Student Sustainability Committee members are chosen because the committee is open to all interested parties. The Office of Sustainability Co-op students are chosen based on their qualifications, work experience, interest in sustainability, and the individual projects that have to be completed in a given timeframe.

There is no formal training per se. Rather, it's an "organic" educational process, often from September through April for freshmen and sophomores who join the Student Sustainability Committee. Others serve in leadership roles within their respective student group and become Executive Board Members - in HEAT, RSA, SGA, as examples.

Student groups are provided budgets from student activities fees that are paid along with tuition costs. Initiatives that are aligned with institutional goals are sometimes funded through operations (like bicycle repair stations) funds or other. The student groups all have staff and faculty advisors and significant initiatives often percolate to implementation.

Freshmen students living in University housing are part of the First Year Residential Experience at Northeastern. The program has two main goals: create opportunities for social connection, support, and belonging; and the First Year Residential Experience strives to provide first-year students with opportunities for learning and development. The core outcome is to prepare students to become lifelong learners who are holistically formed, experience growth alongside others, and are responsible contributors to local and global communities. The Residential Life team designs intentional experiences, programs, and activities to build a strong community environment that prioritizes both of these goals. Living Learning Communities are a central component of the First Year Residential Experience. When incoming first year students apply for housing, they choose from more than a dozen LLCs to begin their residential experience at Northeastern. These LLCs bring together students with a shared personal or academic interest to learn and grow during their first year at Northeastern. Each LLC is directed by the Residential Life staff, as well as staff and faculty from across the university. This team provides support, facilitates intentional learning opportunities, and strives to foster meaningful connections within the community.

Joining a LLC is an optional choice an incoming freshmen makes. The student educators within any LLC is a volunteer position that one can either formally choose to take, or one that they may grow into as the year develops.

Each LLC is different Some LLCs offer significant leadership opportunities, for example in the Green LLC and the Health LLC, where they can help develop, plan and coordinate local trips, during a non-COVID year, to businesses and organizations focused on sustainability (a food-based enterprise, or one that sells packaging-free soaps and shampoos, as examples). The student educators get mentoring support from the residential staff who enable leadership development and outreach skills training through event organizing within the LLC itself.

https://www.northeastern.edu/housing/living-learning-communities/ Students will not only receive all of the academic and social support from the main LLC, but will also receive specialized support through networks and mentorships made available by the University.

During 2020, Student Government Association (SGA) filled its first Vice President - Sustainability position. Because SGA has approximately 65 attendees at its regular meetings, multiple student groups are represented, and SGA represents the entire undergraduate student body, SGA ultimately reaches thousands of students.

This is a voluntary organization, however the Executive Board is chosen out of the SGA member pool.

SGA members are provided orientation as they begin filling their positions and attending regular SGA meetings. They are liaisons to multiple student groups, and develop/improve leadership skills throughout their SGA tenure.

SGA has an annual budget derived from student activity fees. Student Affairs staff supervised SGA until 2020, when reorganization resulted in SGA now being overseen by the Dean of Cultural and Spiritual Life, Senior Advisor to the President for Diversity and Inclusion. The University provides SGA office space in the Curry Student Center.

Graduate Student Government Association serves 8,598.0 graduate students. Graduate Student Government (GSG) is established as an organization that is a government body representing graduate students at Northeastern University. This is a volunteer-based organization. Executive Board members are elected from within the active members. GSG offers orientation to its members/Senators. Their outreach to other graduate students comes in various ways, including social media, events, workshops and, during Covid-19, virtual, informal meetings an GSG is funded by graduate student activity fees. Additionally, the University provides them office space in the Curry Student Center, and regular meeting room space.

https://www.northeastern.edu/gsg/