Overall Rating Silver
Overall Score 64.03
Liaison Katie Beitz
Submission Date March 3, 2023

STARS v2.2

Oklahoma State University
AC-10: Support for Sustainability Research

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 4.00 / 4.00 Kristeena Blaser
Sustainability Coordinator
Energy Services
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Student sustainability research incentives 

Does the institution have an ongoing program to encourage students in multiple disciplines or academic programs to conduct sustainability research?:
Yes

A brief description of the student sustainability research program:
Oklahoma State University offers the Green Student Initiative, administered by the Student Government Association Sustainability Committee. The $40,000 grant is on behalf of the Office of the VP of Operations.

The goal of the Green Student Initiative is to help Oklahoma State University become more environmentally friendly by providing funds to implement student-created programs or projects centered on sustainability. In addition to helping OSU become more environmentally conscious, it also provides students an educational experience in how to write proposals and implement a program.

Student Proposals
Students submitting a proposal must have a recognized campus organization or an academic department as a sponsor so that allotted funds can be transferred into the organization’s or department’s account. Students are required to complete an application form to describe their idea, how they would implement it, and how it would benefit Oklahoma State University. Application forms are available on the Student Government Association CampusLink website each spring (https://campuslink.okstate.edu/forms).

Students must be signed into CampusLink to access the form. Finalists will be required to give an in-person presentation to the SGA Sustainability Committee's judging panel. Students with selected proposals will be required to sign a contract agreeing to implement their program with the money received and provide timely progress reports to the SGA Sustainability Chair.

https://fm.okstate.edu/energyservices/sustainability/ogsi.html

Faculty sustainability research incentives 

Does the institution have a program to encourage academic staff from multiple disciplines or academic programs to conduct sustainability research?:
Yes

A brief description of the faculty sustainability research program:
OSU’s National Energy Solutions Institute supports and encourages research projects that may provide solutions to issues of current or future interest to the energy industry. Topics of interest for research and development include renewable energy sources, energy efficiency, conservation and sustainability. Funding of up to $50,000 per project is available each year. Current faculty research supported by NESI includes a Low-Cost Mobile Power Generation Unit from Carbonaceous Feedstocks.

Recognition of interdisciplinary, transdisciplnary and multi-disciplinary research 

Has the institution published written policies and procedures that give positive recognition to interdisciplinary, transdisciplinary, and multidisciplinary research during faculty promotion and/or tenure decisions?:
Yes

A copy of the promotion or tenure guidelines or policies:
The promotion or tenure guidelines or policies:
The evaluation process must be based on a comprehensive assessment of the candidate’s record of research/creative work, teaching, outreach/extension, and service.

Associate Professor. To attain the rank of associate professor, the candidate must establish that he/she is an accomplished teacher, where teaching is assigned responsibility, and that he/she has a significant record of research, artistic and/or creative work, teaching, outreach/extension and service in keeping with the academic unit, college, and university standards and his or her job responsibilities. Clear evidence should be presented that the individual has established a solid academic reputation and shows promise of further development and productivity in his or her academic field.

A recommendation for tenure should be based upon an assessment that the
candidate has made contributions of an appropriate magnitude and quality in
research/creative work, teaching, outreach/extension, and service, and has demonstrated a high likelihood of sustaining contributions to the field and to the academic unit, so that granting tenure is in the long-term best interests of the academic unit and the university.

Library support

Does the institution have ongoing library support for sustainability research and learning?:
Yes

A brief description of the institution’s library support for sustainability research:
The Edmon Low Library & Branch Libraries at Oklahoma State University offer over 231 research guides/subject guides. Some of the subjects relating to sustainability include:
- Agriculture
- Environmental Engineering Seminar
- Entomology and Plant Pathology
- Geography
- Geology
- Natural Resource Ecology & Management
- Plant and Soil Sciences
- Plant Biology, Ecology, and Evolution
- Soil Conservation on the Southern Plains




https://info.library.okstate.edu/library-guides

Optional Fields 

Website URL where information about the institution’s support for sustainability research 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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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.