Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 62.98
Liaison Briar Schoon
Submission Date March 5, 2021

STARS v2.2

Portland Community College
PA-2: Sustainability Planning

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 4.00 / 4.00 Stephania Fregosi
Sustainability Analyst
Academic Affairs
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Part 1. Measurable sustainability objectives 

Academics

Does the institution have a published plan or plans that include measurable sustainability objectives that address sustainability in curriculum and/or research?:
Yes

A list or sample of the measurable sustainability objectives related to academics and the plan(s) in which they are published:
2030 Objective: Increase sustainability throughout academic curricular and co-curricular programming at PCC in collaboration with the PCC Curriculum Office, the Learning Assessment Council (LAC) and other PCC entities
2016 Action Items
• Implement the Sustainability Practices and Academic Resources for Curriculum (SPARC) Council’s “7 Green Outcomes” into current and newly develop- ment courses at PCC;
• Design and implement a search capability through Courseleaf to easily identify courses with green content;
• Continue development of distinguishing “focused” courses and and “related” courses parallel with AASHE STARS reporting;
• Provide continued support to faculty in curriculum development to ensure the creation of new or revised sustainability courses at PCC;
• Award the Sustainability Focus Award to students who have completed coursework with a sustainability focus;
• Support professional development and capacity building related to sustainability curriculum for faculty;
• Build sustainability into student, faculty and staff orientations to support curriculum initiatives at the college;
• Design a sustainability curriculum packet to include in materials for various faculty orientations;
• Collaborate with the LAC in assessment strategies and examples through the addition of the “7 Green Outcomes” to CCOGs; and
• Through PCC’s Core Outcome #2,create collaborations with the Internationalization Committee, the Diversity Council, the Service-Learning program and community partners to address global environmental awareness, environmental justice, social equity, and food security in sustainability curriculum

2030 Objective: Increase focused educational programs and options to meet green workforce needs
2016 Action Items:
• Explore the development of an academic Sustainable Agriculture Program;
• Explore offering LEED certification education and establish partners with businesses working in this field; and
• Explore new opportunities to create focused educational programs in coordination with the State of Oregon 40-40-20 Initiative and the US Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematic (STEM) movement


Published in PCC's 2013 Climate Action Goal

Engagement 

Does the institution have a published plan or plans that include measurable sustainability objectives that address student, employee, or community engagement for sustainability?:
Yes

A list or sample of the measurable sustainability objectives related to engagement and the plan(s) in which they are published:
2030 Objective: Increase awareness of PCC’s sustainability programs and initiatives internally

2016 Action Items:
• Work with other PSC subcommittees to identify specific communication needs, and advise and facilitate the promotion and awareness of their sustainability activities and accomplishments to the PCC community, if staffing and budget permits;
• Provide engaging forums for the PCC community to share ideas, resources and news about sustainability at PCC; and
• Develop a plan to publicize PCC’s sustainability efforts with College Advancement


Published in PCC's 2013 Climate Action Goal

Operations

Does the institution have a published plan or plans that include measurable sustainability objectives that address sustainability in operations?:
Yes

A list or sample of the measurable sustainability objectives related to operations and the plan(s) in which they are published:
2030 Objective: Utilize state of the art control systems district-wide to maximize energy efficiency

2016 Action Items:
• Retro-commission DDC control systems to achieve tighter control parameters, resulting in a decrease in energy use
• Hire an Environmental Management Systems(EMS) Technician to assist with district-wide utility efficiency upgrades
• Upgrade all remaining pneumatic control systems to DDC controls to more tightly control systems, thereby driving down energy use
• Require a minimum of LEED Silver standards for all new (Bond) construction

2030 Objective: Reduce our energy consumption 50% per square feet below 2006 levels

2016 Action Items:
• Reduce electrical use by upgrading lighting to energy efficient types suited for the application
• Install light sensors and motion sensors district-wide.
• Replace failed equipment with energy efficient equipment
• Engage an outside consultant to gauge building energy usage, in real time
• Build increased awareness and outreach of energy use by engaging PCC staff and faculty to decrease energy consumption
2030 Objective: Produce 20% of our own energy onsite using renewable energy technology
2016 Action Items:
• Initiate a district-wide task force to develop a strategic plan around building energy usage with the assistance of outside consultants


Published in PCC's 2013 Climate Action Goal

Administration

Does the institution have a published plan or plans that include measurable sustainability objectives that address diversity, equity, and inclusion; sustainable investment/finance; or wellbeing?:
Yes

A list or sample of the measurable sustainability objectives related to administration and the plan(s) in which they are published:
2030 Objective: Increase sustainability throughout
academic curricular and co-curricular programming at PCC
in collaboration with the PCC Curriculum Office, the Learning
Assessment Council (LAC) and other PCC entities.

2016 Action Items:
• Through PCC’s Core Outcome #2, create collaborations with the Internationalization Committee, the
Diversity Council, the Service-Learning program and
community partners to address global environmental
awareness, environmental justice, social equity, and
food security in sustainability curriculum

Part 2. Sustainability in institution’s highest guiding document

Does the institution have a published strategic plan or equivalent guiding document that includes sustainability at a high level? :
Yes

The institution’s highest guiding document (upload):
Website URL where the institution’s highest guiding document is publicly available:
Which of the following best describes the inclusion of sustainability in the highest guiding document?:
Major theme

Optional Fields

The institution's sustainability plan (upload):
---

Website URL where the institution's sustainability plan is publicly available:
Does the institution have a formal statement in support of sustainability endorsed by its governing body?:
---

The formal statement in support of sustainability:
---

The institution’s definition of sustainability:
---

Is the institution an endorser or signatory of the following?:
Yes or No
The Earth Charter No
The Higher Education Sustainability Initiative (HESI) No
ISCN-GULF Sustainable Campus Charter No
Pan-Canadian Protocol for Sustainability ---
SDG Accord ---
Second Nature’s Carbon Commitment (formerly known as the ACUPCC), Resilience Commitment, and/or integrated Climate Commitment Yes
The Talloires Declaration (TD) No
UN Global Compact No
Other multi-dimensional sustainability commitments (please specify below) Yes

A brief description of the institution’s formal sustainability commitments, including the specific initiatives selected above:
We Are Still In

Website URL where information about the institution’s sustainability planning efforts is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
---

Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
PCC is in the process of updating plans college wide. Among the plans that include sustainability are college's strategic plan, the 2021 Climate Action Plan (which will be finalized this spring) and the Phase II Facilities Management Plan. All of the goals will be updated. The 2021 Climate Action Plan contains a strong focus on climate equity and supports the college's strategic plan's new theme "Belonging," which pertains to diversity equity and inclusion.

The plan will be finalized this spring.

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.