Oakton College
EN-14: Participation in Public Policy

Oakton College entered and intergovernmental agreement with Village of Skokie to build a community apiary on the Oakton Campus for Skokie residents. This was a sustainabiliity initiatives that became active within the past two years. Oakton college actively puts out press releases inviting Skokie residents to host beehives on our campus. The beekeepers are then vetted and permitted by village of Skokie. This supports local pollinator health in the municipality. The college also sent student advocates to recurring meetings determining the climate action plan for Village of Skokie.

1. Oakon College is a proud member of the Illinois Green Economy  Network - 

The Illinois Green Economy Network (IGEN) was formed in 2008 through an intergovernmental agreement with support from the Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity, the Governor’s Office, and the Illinois Community College Board. Funds are utilized to support the consortium of all 39 Illinois community college districts (35 active members). A Presidents’ Steering Committee governs IGEN.

IGEN’s mission is to provide a platform for collaboration among all Illinois community colleges and their partners to drive the growth of the clean energy economy and green workforce. Our vision is to ensure that the Illinois community college system serves as a global leader in transforming the economy and education for a sustainable future. Our funds help support community colleges in eight focus areas: building sciences, energy, food, manufacturing, natural resources, transportation, waste, and water.

Presently, the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency funds IGEN through a $2.5M grant. These funds were appropriated from the Renewable Energy Resources Trust Fund through Public Act 100-0586. The purpose of these funds is to support education and training for renewable energy and energy efficiency technology, and for the operations/services of the network.

 The college also supported local preservation such as the preservation of Bell Bowl prairie which was a natural area due for demolition and reconstruction.

2. 

In 2013, former president Margaret B. Lee, Ph.D., signed the Illinois Campus Sustainability Compact. The goal of the compact is to encourage universities and colleges within the state to incorporate sustainability into their campus operations, academic and research programs, student activities and community outreach. In 2014, former Gov. Pat Quinn and the Illinois Green Governments Coordinating Council recognized Oakton for reaching the bronze level on the compact. 

Oakton remains committed to being “green” as the college’s 2013-17 strategic plan Connecting What Matters notes, “Green initiatives have made sustainability a priority in a wide range of institutional practices, academic offerings, and in the use of the grounds and internal environment.”

1. Receiving a Native Landscaping and Conservation Award from U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Chicago Wilderness in 2010 for restoring 50 acres of woodland and reconstructing seven acres of grassland and becoming a Certified Wildlife Habitat by the National Wildlife Association in 2014.
2. Oakton’s Des Plaines campus is certified as a Wildlife Habitat through the
   National Wildlife Federation (www.nwf.org) for the commitment to native landscaping and presence of native
   plant species, food, water, and shelter opportunities for wildlife.
3. STANDING ROCK PIPELINE PROTEST: Several students, accompanied by faculty from multiple departments, traveled together to the Standing Rock Indian Reservation in North Dakota during Fall of 2016 to assist in protest efforts against the Dakota Access Pipeline, which is scheduled to run through Treaty land and brings up a number of social and environmental concerns. The group raised funds prior to their trip, donating $2000 in gift cards and $800 in cash to help residents in the Oceti Sakowin Camp of the Sioux Nation prepare for winter. They
   also helped chop and deliver firewood to Elders and set up a medic tent. Students returned and presented what they had learned to the college community.
4. NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE HUMANITIES GRANT: Oakton was the proud recipient of a NationalEndowment for the Humanities grant towards the end of FY2017, one of only four community colleges to receive the honor. $98,957 was awarded over a 30 month period for the proposed “People, Place, and Purpose: Fostering Understanding of a Complex World”, an interdisciplinary collaboration to enhance the college’s new Environmental Studies Concentration.