| Overall Rating | Silver - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 53.15 |
| Liaison | Sara McIntyre |
| Submission Date | Dec. 20, 2018 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
Sewanee - The University of the South
EN-3: Student Life
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
2.00 / 2.00 |
Lauren
Newman Sustainability Fellows Coordinator Office of Environmental Stewardship and Sustainability |
Does the institution have one or more active student groups focused on sustainability?:
A brief description of active student groups focused on sustainability:
We have several active groups focused on Sustainability. Most of the groups are affiliated with the Office of Environmental Stewardship and Sustainability (OESS) under the umbrella Sustain Sewanee. These organizations include: The Environmental Residents, The Greenhouse, Sewanee Water Campaign, Farm Club, the Socially Conscious Investment Club, EarthKeepers, and the Green Fee Committee. Some organizations not affiliated with OESS include the Healthy Hut and the Community Engagement House.
The website URL where information about the student groups is available (optional):
Does the institution have gardens, farms, community supported agriculture (CSA) or fishery programs, and/or urban agriculture projects where students are able to gain experience in organic agriculture and sustainable food systems?:
A brief description of the gardens, farms, community supported agriculture (CSA) or fishery programs, and/or urban agriculture projects:
We have several opportunities for students to get involved with organic agriculture and sustainable food systems. One of the biggest ways to get involved is through our University Farm. On the farm, students get hands on experience with organic, innovative farming practices. The Farm Club supplements the programming on the farm, hosting events throughout the semester. The Healthy Hut also makes a point to emphasize the importance of sustainable, local food systems in their programming (i.e. through their farm-to-table events).
The website URL where information about the gardens, farms or agriculture projects is available (optional):
Does the institution have student-run enterprises that include sustainability as part of their mission statements or stated purposes (e.g. cafés through which students gain sustainable business skills)?:
A brief description of the student-run enterprises:
The Carey Fellows program, out of the Babson Center for Global Commerce, is working with the University Farm and local vendors to produce and sell sustainably themed honey. This product is aimed at Sewanee Alumni during campus visits.
The website URL where information about the student-run enterprises is available (optional):
Does the institution have sustainable investment funds, green revolving funds or sustainable microfinance initiatives through which students can develop socially, environmentally and fiscally responsible investment and financial skills?:
A brief description of the sustainable investment funds, green revolving funds or sustainable microfinance initiatives:
The Socially Conscious Investment Club works within a framework largely provided by the University in the form of the 2013 Sustainability Master Plan. Our first goal is to establish transparency within the University's endowment. The second and ultimate goal is to set up a socially responsible investment policy for the endowment to ensure that our school will not be financially supporting harmful industries like private prisons, companies that support child labor, or fossil fuels. We work with Green's View Capital managing a 2 million dollar impact investing portfolio that is designed more for social benefit than profit. It was envisioned and kickstarted by a generous contribution from Scott Satterwhite. We will be making our first $200,000 investment the week of November 12, 2018. This is all done in an effort to better reflect institutional and community values in the way we mange our endowment. At the end of the day, money is power, and how we invest our schools money should be an open dialogue and not something done behind closed doors.
The website URL where information about the sustainable investment funds, green revolving funds or sustainable microfinance initiatives is available (optional):
Does the institution have conferences, speaker series, symposia or similar events related to sustainability that have students as the intended audience?:
A brief description of the conferences, speaker series, symposia or similar events related to sustainability:
Last academic year the SIPE program hosted 'the Year of Water' aimed at educating students, faculty, and staff about the importance of water scarcity and access across the globe.
The website URL where information about the conferences, speaker series, symposia or similar events related to sustainability is available (optional):
Does the institution have cultural arts events, installations or performances related to sustainability that have students as the intended audience?:
A brief description of the cultural arts events, installations or performances related to sustainability:
For the past two years Sewanee has put on an Upcycled Fashion Show to help promote the Hospitality Shop, the not for profit second hand store located on our central campus. The first year the show was put on by the Theater Dept and received much praise from the students and greater community. This past year (April 2018), the Environmental Residents co-hosted this event with the Theater Dept and surrounded it with a whole week dedicated to raising awareness around the harmfulness of fast fashion. Some events during this week included: a fast fashion panel discussion involving the co-founders of Lady Farmer (a sustainable fashion line), one of our women and gender studies professors who studies the politics of poverty and inequality, and Kacie Lynn from a local organic fiber farm as well as a film screening of The True Cost.
The website URL where information about the cultural arts events, installations or performances is available (optional):
Does the institution have wilderness or outdoors programs (e.g. that organize hiking, backpacking, kayaking, or other outings for students) that follow Leave No Trace principles?:
A brief description of the wilderness or outdoors programs that follow Leave No Trace principles:
Our Sewanee Outing Program (SOP) offers free or low-fee opportunities for students to engage in outdoor recreation on and off The Domain. Our campus is unique in the fact that there are 13,000 acres for students to participate in climbing, hiking, canoeing, caving and more!
The website URL where information about the wilderness or outdoors programs is available (optional):
Does the institution have sustainability-related themes chosen for themed semesters, years, or first-year experiences (e.g. choosing a sustainability-related book for common reading)?:
A brief description of the sustainability-related themes chosen for themed semesters, years, or first-year experiences:
Sewanee offers a First-Year Program option for incoming freshman. This program (FYP) is a unique course of study, open only to entering students, brings together some of Sewanee’s most renowned faculty members to help you explore all that it has meant and might mean for humans to find their place in the world, both geophysically and otherwise. Through field trips, readings, and plenty of small-group discussions, this course also encourages you to find your place, from the very start of your college career at Sewanee.
The website URL where information about the sustainability-related themes is available (optional):
Does the institution have programs through which students can learn sustainable life skills?:
A brief description of the programs through which students can learn sustainable life skills:
One of the main missions of the Sewanee Environmental Residents Program is to teach sustainable life skills to students living in residence halls. This occurs in the form of residence hall specific educational events, dorm challenges (focusing on reducing energy/water usage), and campus-wide collaborative events (such as Spooky Sustainability and the Move Out Waste Diversion Effort). In the first year of the program we had 11 students who were active ERs and this number has grown to 25 currently in its second year.
The website URL where information about the sustainable life skills programs is available (optional):
Does the institution offer sustainability-focused student employment opportunities?:
A brief description of the sustainability-focused student employment opportunities offered by the institution:
The Office of Environmental Stewardship and Sustainability has an ever-growing work study program with 24 work study positions this academic year. 12 students currently work on the farm, 6 work with Domain Management, 3 work for the Domain Archaeology Lab, and 3 work to support the Sewanee Headwaters Initiative. In addition to the 12 work study positions on the Farm, another dozen students work a range of 2-6 hours and are paid outside of the workstudy program. We also have 2 Sustainability Fellows who receive stipends for their work each semester. Additionally, there are opportunities for students to work with the Office through summer internship opportunities.
The website URL where information about the student employment opportunities is available:
Does the institution have graduation pledges through which students pledge to consider social and environmental responsibility in future job and other decisions?:
A brief description of the graduation pledges:
The website URL where information about the graduation pledges is available (optional):
Does the institution have other co-curricular sustainability programs and initiatives?:
A brief description of the other co-curricular sustainability programs and initiatives:
The Office of Environmental Stewardship and Sustainability supports the Sustainability Fellows Program. Each year we have a handful of students who work on independent projects relating to our Sustainability Master Plan and are supported by the Sustainability Fellows Coordinator and the Sustainability Program Manager to ensure successful completion of their projects. The Sustainability Fellows program is designed to enhance students' perception of sustainability through diverse projects that address critical university and community needs while simultaneously cultivating skill sets that will help them succeed in future careers. Through their hands-on involvement, from start to finish, each project has the opportunity to positively, and continually, impact Sewanee for a more sustainable tomorrow. The Office currently supports 9 Fellows for the 2018-2019 academic year. Many of the Fellows' projects actively engage with the campus community on a regular basis through media and communications and event planning.
The website URL where information about other co-curricular sustainability programs and initiatives is available (optional):
Estimated percentage of students (full-time and part-time) that participate annually in sustainability-focused co-curricular education and outreach programs (0-100):
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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.