| Overall Rating | Gold - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 65.60 |
| Liaison | Dayna Cook |
| Submission Date | May 1, 2014 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
Northern Arizona University
EN-1: Student Educators Program
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
4.00 / 4.00 |
Ellen
Vaughan Manager Office of Sustainability |
Does the institution coordinate one or more ongoing student, peer-to-peer sustainability outreach and education programs that meet the criteria for this credit?:
Number of degree-seeking students enrolled at the institution:
Name of the student educators program (1st program):
Number of students served (i.e. directly targeted) by the program (1st program):
A brief description of the program, including examples of peer-to-peer outreach activities (1st program):
The role of the Eco-Rep is to provide peer to peer education on how to live more sustainabiliy in NAU residential communities. Topics will include energy and water conservation, recycling, and other relevant environmental issues. Eco-Reps will serve as a resource that role models and promotes environmentally conscious behavior within their residential community/area. They will also assist students in becoming aware of their everyday lifestyle choices and understanding the effects an individual can have on the environment, specifically in their residence. The goal is to promote behavior changes that will continue beyond the time they live at NAU. Eco-Reps share information with their peers through monthly tabling events, trifold displays, and other outreach such as bulletin boards and signs in their halls.
Annual hours: 210
A brief description of how the student educators are selected (1st program):
Any student living in a community managed by Housing and Residence may apply. Students are asked to fill out a brief online application that asks for information about their housing assignment and contact information. The application asks them to share why they want to be an Eco-Rep and what they hope to gain from the experience. They are also asked to share any interests or past experiences they believe would be relevant to the Eco-Rep position. Finally, they are asked to discuss an environmental issue or topic that they think is relevant to living on campus and explain why it is important and how they would talk about it with their peers. Currently, program participants are selected based on the quality of their application, however since it is a volunteer position, it is not highly selective. We accept multiple participants per community, and have the goal of having at least one per residential community. Currently the program is intended to serve the 7,100 students who live on campus.
A brief description of the formal training that the student educators receive (1st program):
Shortly after selection, Eco-Reps participate in four hours of training and orientation. Participants receive an overview of the purpose of the role and its responsibilities. The training also provides discussion on what peer educators are and what are effective strategies for peer education and communication. Eco-Reps are provided ongoing training through bi-weekly meetings and a resource manual that they receive for each month’s topic. Each manual chapter has information that covers local, natural, and global aspects of a topic. Topics include recycling and waste minimization, conscious consumerism, food systems, and resource conservation. Bi-weekly meetings include ongoing conversations about programming ideas, effective communication and publicity strategies, and peer educator skills. Guest speakers address both the monthly topic as it relates to the campus as well as developmental topics such as leadership and marketing. The goals of the training and meetings are to assist students in designing and implementing monthly educational campaigns that are fun, engaging, and informative.
A brief description of the financial or other support the institution provides to the program (1st program):
The Housing and Residence Life department employs a full-time staff member whose job focus is sustainability education. The program is funded out of the budget provided for this position.
Students spend 2 – 3 hours a month in meetings, and another 2 – 3 hours a month in outreach and education activities.
Average 10 EcoReps, 5 hours a month, 60 hours a year
The weblink is : www.nau.edu/ecorep
Name of the student educators program (2nd program):
Number of students served (i.e. directly targeted) by the program (2nd program):
A brief description of the program, including examples of peer-to-peer outreach activities (2nd program):
Community-Based Action Research Teams (ARTs) bring first year students together with graduate students, faculty, and community partners to work on issues of sustainability and democratic community organizing. These new engaged learning teams are the creation of a partnership between the Program in Community, Culture & Environment’s Sustainable Environments and Engaged Democracy (SEED) Freshman Learning Community and the Master of Arts in Sustainable Communities (SUS).
The graduate students from the MA Sustainable Communities program act as facilitators or student educators for each Action Research Team.
There are over 10 Action Research Teams, 350 undergraduate and 20 grad students participating both on and off campus in the areas of social, environmental, and economic justice. Visit their website to learn more about the different teams: http://nau.edu/University-College/CRAFTS/Action-Research-Team/Campus-Community/
Action Research Teams:
AGWA
ASSET
ATAM
Foodlink
H.E.A.L.T.H.
Immigration
NENAU
Public Achievement
Queer and Ally (Q&A)
SNAIL
SSLUG
Sustainability Cafe
VeloComposting
WACBAT
Total hours = 750
A brief description of how the student educators are selected (2nd program):
The graduate student facilitators/student educators are selected based upon their backgrounds in subject matter and their community building and educating experience.
A brief description of the formal training that the student educators receive (2nd program):
Each Action Research Team facilitator/student educator will participate in a formal facilitator training week before the beginning of fall semester. This training brings in experts in community building and organizing and intends to expose the graduate student facilitators to a wide array of educational and organizational strategies. This training takes place at the end of August and is a requirement for graduate students who wish to become Action Research Team facilitators.
A brief description of the financial or other support the institution provides to the program (2nd program):
The Action Research Team program has been proven to increase student engagement (inside and outside of the classroom), student participation, and student retention. Due to the tremendous success of the program, NAU Administration has chosen to financially support the program through Presidential innovation funding. The Action Research Teams will grow across campus in the coming year and expand throughout various colleges and departments. Each college or department will bring in additional financial support and staffing support.
Name of the student educators program (3rd program):
Number of students served (i.e. directly targeted) by the program (3rd program):
A brief description of the program, including examples of peer-to-peer outreach activities (3rd program):
Global Engineering Outreach is a student organization at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, AZ. Our goal is to organize the cooperation of students, professors, professionals, and community members to approach a world in which the communities we serve have the capacity to sustainably meet their basic human needs, and the members of our organization have global perspective.
The students work to educate the communities they go to on best practices related to sustainable development projects.
Total hours = 125
A brief description of how the student educators are selected (3rd program):
GEO welcomes all majors and all skill levels. GEO supports diverse enrollment and works to find a place in their organization that suits each individual's skills with the club's needs.
A brief description of the formal training that the student educators receive (3rd program):
Students involved in the program and specifically with project teams and international project teams undergo a variety of training to prepare them for trips and the projects themselves. This training can include medical training, report training, or project specific training to adequately prepare students members.
A brief description of the financial or other support the institution provides to the program (3rd program):
The University allows faculty members that are involved in projects to become advisors to GEO. The group does much of its own fundraising, but partners with NAU's Center for International Education for student scholarships.
Name(s) of the student educator program(s) (all other programs):
Number of students served (i.e. directly targeted) by all other student educator programs:
A brief description of the program(s), including examples of peer-to-peer outreach activities (all other programs):
Green NAU Energy Initiative's (GNEI) - Resident Assistant Program
GNEI is a behavioral change department of NAU's Facility Services. They meet with every residence hall RA to inform them about conservation issues. Those RA's then reach out to the rest of resident hall occupants to inform them about NAU's best conservation practices.
Residential Learning Community
Eco House
SEED: Sustainable Environments and EngagedDemocracy
total hours = 120
A brief description of how the student educators are selected (all other programs):
All Resident Assistants go through the training.
A brief description of the formal training that the student educators receive (all other programs):
Each RA attends an hour meeting at the beginning of the year and receive a shorter "refresher" course at the beginning of the next semester. They are also asked to do a variety of of projects and attend certain educational events throughout the year.
A brief description of the financial or other support the institution provides to the program (all other programs):
GNEI consists of two full time staff members who are funded through Facility Services.
Total number of hours student educators are engaged in peer-to-peer sustainability outreach and education activities annually:
The website URL for the peer-to-peer student outreach and education program(s):
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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.