| Overall Rating | Bronze |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 34.87 |
| Liaison | Courtney Gallaher |
| Submission Date | June 4, 2024 |
Northern Illinois University
EN-10: Community Partnerships
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
3.00 / 3.00 |
Courtney
Gallaher Associate Professor, Sustainability Coordinator Earth, Atmosphere and Environment |
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1st Partnership
Edible Campus
Does the institution provide financial or material support for the partnership? :
Yes
Which of the following best describes the partnership timeframe?:
Multi-year or ongoing
Which of the following best describes the partnership?:
Sustainability-focused
Are underrepresented groups and/or vulnerable populations engaged as equal partners? :
Yes
A brief description of the institution’s formal community partnership to advance sustainability:
https://www.niu.edu/ediblecampus/about/sponsors.shtml
NIU's Edible Campus program is a Community Project Funded grant from Senator Dick Durbin's office to expand community partnerships around sustainable food and entrepreneurship. As you can see on the website, we have a number of external community partners. One example of this partnership is our work with local high school agricultural programs, who are involved in growing the seedlings for the Edible Campus program as part of their curriculum. Another example is our work with Angelic Organics Farmer Training program, where we are co-teaching food entrepreneurship courses that are offered to both NIU students and community members.
NIU's Edible Campus program is a Community Project Funded grant from Senator Dick Durbin's office to expand community partnerships around sustainable food and entrepreneurship. As you can see on the website, we have a number of external community partners. One example of this partnership is our work with local high school agricultural programs, who are involved in growing the seedlings for the Edible Campus program as part of their curriculum. Another example is our work with Angelic Organics Farmer Training program, where we are co-teaching food entrepreneurship courses that are offered to both NIU students and community members.
2nd Partnership
Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) Open Space Lands Acquisition and Development Act Grant Program (FY23); IDNR Planning and Data Support project (FY24).
Does the institution provide financial or material support for the partnership? (2nd partnership):
Yes
Which of the following best describes the partnership timeframe? (2nd partnership):
Multi-year or ongoing
Which of the following best describes the partnership’s sustainability focus? (2nd partnership):
Sustainability-focused
Are underrepresented groups and/or vulnerable populations engaged as equal partners? (2nd partnership):
Yes
A brief description of the institution’s formal community partnership to advance sustainability (2nd partnership):
Our Institue for the Study of teh Environment, Sustainability, and Energy (IESE) has a close collabroative relationship with IDNR emphasizes community impact, use-inspired interdisciplinary research, and student success. Annual grants directly fund 10-15 graduate and undergraduate Research Fellows annually in Environmental Studies and a variety of other degree programs (Anthropology, Economics, Geography, Public Health) with a strong interest in sustainability. Major deliverables include: reviewing local government grants for open space land acquisition and development to award $60M to communities statewide; completing the Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan for 2026-2030; revising the Open Project Selection Process used for all grant program in the state agency; completing the statewide Recreational Facilities Inventory; and developing a first-of-its-kind Open Space Lands Geographic Information System. Students gain significant skills in community engagement, survey research, and GIS development, along with professional written and oral communication skills. The total funding is approximately $500,000 annually, with an impact on decision-making at the state level for over $100M annually.
3rd Partnership
Camp Power
Does the institution provide financial or material support for the partnership? (3rd partnership):
Yes
Which of the following best describes the partnership timeframe? (3rd partnership):
Multi-year or ongoing
Which of the following best describes the partnership? (3rd partnership):
Sustainability-related
Are underrepresented groups and/or vulnerable populations engaged as equal partners? (3rd partnership):
Yes
A brief description of the institution’s formal community partnership to advance sustainability (3rd partnership):
NIU partners with our local YMCA to provide a free summer camp, called Camp Power, to residents of University village, which is a low-income community located near campus. Part of the camp programming includes lessons around food and gardening, and youth participants work in the community gardens in their neighborhoods, which are managed by a local non-profit called DeKalb County Community Gardens. NIU faculty and graduate students from the Health and Human Sciences program developed the camp programming and provide lessons related to nutrition, sustainable food systems, etc.
Optional Fields
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Website URL where information about the institution’s community partnerships to advance sustainability is available:
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Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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