| Overall Rating | Silver - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 61.51 |
| Liaison | Karen Eckert, Ph.D. |
| Submission Date | March 5, 2021 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
Principia College
EN-1: Student Educators Program
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
4.00 / 4.00 |
Karen
Eckert, Ph.D. Professor and Director Center for Sustainability |
"---"
indicates that no data was submitted for this field
Number of students enrolled for credit (headcount):
407
Total number of students enrolled for credit that are served (i.e. directly targeted) by a student peer-to-peer sustainability outreach and education program (avoid double-counting to the extent feasible):
407
Percentage of students served by a peer-to-peer educator program:
100
1st Program
Principia College Sustainability Club
Number of students served (i.e. directly targeted) by the program (headcount):
407
A brief description of the program, including examples of peer-to-peer outreach activities:
The Principia College Sustainability Club hosts a variety of outreach events accessible to ALL students. These include a weekly Club meeting featuring documentary showings, guest speakers (e.g., climate change, community development, social entrepreneurism), volunteering (e.g., Mississippi River clean-up, endangered species rehab, local food production, renewable energy installations), community events (e.g., Sustainability Weekend, Pollinator Dinner, Earth Day), and various other programming throughout the year to raise awareness of sustainability issues. The Sustainability Club is made up and run by dedicated, energetic students working to make a positive impact in the world. Club activities are chronicled at https://www.facebook.com/PrincipiaSustainability and a Facebook group page that facilitates scheduling.
A brief description of how the student educators are selected:
Anyone may join the Sustainability Club. Members democratically elect officers (President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, Outreach). Officers host the weekly meetings, guide the development and implementation of sponsored activities, manage the budget, and inspire others to become involved.
A brief description of the formal training that the student educators receive to prepare them to conduct peer outreach:
The officers for the Sustainability Club receive leadership training from Principia College's Leadership Institute, are sponsored by the Center for Sustainability to attend the annual AASHE Student Summit, and receive ongoing mentoring from a Faculty Adviser and from previous club officers.
A brief description of the financial and/or administrative support the institution provides to the program (e.g. annual budget and/or faculty/staff coordination):
The Sustainability Club develops and submits an annual budget request to the Student Senate and receives funding to support core activities. The Club manages the campus book recycling program, which brings in additional funding. For special projects and targets of opportunity, funding requests can also be submitted to the Center for Sustainability. Finally, vehicles, printing, and other programmatic assets are available from the college.
If reporting students served by additional peer-to-peer programs, provide:
2nd Program
Eco Heads
Number of students served (i.e. directly targeted) by the program (2nd program):
407
A brief description of the program, including examples of peer-to-peer outreach activities (2nd program):
Because 100% of our students are full-time resident, dormitory EcoHeads (elected as members of their House Board) reach ALL students. Their mission, as stated in the campus constitution, is to “coordinate and facilitate the ecological efforts of the campus. This includes working with the Facilities Department to promote and maintain the campus recycling program, as well as updating the campus about the recycling program.” 100% of Principia students live in on-campus dorms, so every student is eligible for election, and every student interacts with and learns from their Eco Head. Eco Heads mentor the Freshman houses in issues of recycling and composting, host recycling games during all-campus events (e.g., Sustainability Weekend, Earth Day), offer special waste reduction programming (e.g., PeopleTowels, Battle of the Boot), and encourage participation in campus competitions associated with "Gold and Blue goes Green!" - an annual outreach partnership between the Center for Sustainability and the Athletics Department.
A brief description of how the student educators are selected (2nd program):
Eco Heads are nominated (including self-nominations) and elected (per semester or per year, depending on the dormitory) by their housemates.
A brief description of the formal training that the student educators receive to prepare them to conduct peer outreach (2nd program):
An All-Campus Eco Head in the Student Senate (voted into position by the entire college) keeps Eco Heads informed of sustainability happenings on campus and helps them plan and organize events. In addition, all Eco Heads receive training in what can be recycled, proper methods for recycling, and ways to increase general awareness on campus throughout the year by the College's Center for Sustainability and Facilities Department.
A brief description of the financial and/or administrative support the institution provides to the program (e.g. annual budget and/or faculty/staff coordination) (2nd program):
The Eco Heads receive administrative support and mentoring, as well as financial support, as needed, from the College's Center for Sustainability. Vehicles, printing, and other programmatic assets are available from the college.
If reporting students served by three or more peer-to-peer programs, provide:
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):
---
A brief description of how the student educators are selected (3rd program):
---
A brief description of the formal training that the student educators receive to prepare them to conduct peer outreach (3rd program):
---
A brief description of the financial and/or administrative support the institution provides to the program (e.g. annual budget and/or faculty/staff coordination) (3rd program):
---
Additional Programs
---
Optional Fields
---
The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
We recognize that STARS has concluded that our outreach "exceeds the expected range", but we are a small (<500 students) 100% residential college. Every enrolled student lives on campus full-time, and every dormitory has a trained EcoHead tasked with campus outreach. Every house has student-led single-stream recycling, composting, and sustainability-related event planning (e.g., Earth Day). Sustainability expectations (e.g., water and energy efficiency, recycling, composting) are also embedded in Orientation Week, which reaches 100% of our students.
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.