South Seattle College
EN-3: Student Life

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1) The South Seattle College Arboretum was established by the College and the SSC Foundation in 1978, in part as the result of a petition by the Landscape Horticulture Program students for an arboretum to serve as their living laboratory. The 5-acre site is located at the north end of campus on a bluff over looking the downtown Seattle, Elliott Bay and the West Duwamish Greenbelt. The Seattle Chinese Garden borders the Arboretum. The Arboretum is an important part of the SSC Landscape Horticulture Program. As part of their studies, students designed and built the Arboretum. It is used as a laboratory for courses in plant identification, arboriculture, pruning, irrigation, garden renovation, plant problem diagnostics, landscape management and landscape construction courses. The Arboretum is also used as an outdoor classroom by professional horticulturists, hobby gardeners and other college programs. Most of the plants on the Washington Certified Professional Horticulturist exam can be found in the SSC Arboretum. 2) Community Orchard of West Seattle, (COWS) is a non profit organization and partners with Nature Stewards. COWS provides a home-scale model and venue that demonstrates how much food can be grown on a city-sized lot. Produce goes to volunteers and local security programs. COWS broke ground in the winter of 2011 and in its first year converted a narrow strip of unused land on the north east end of South Seattle College. Today you will find a working community garden and growing food forest orchard. COWS uses permaculture and organic growing principles. All efforts are made in demonstrating low-maintenance sustainable food production strategies.

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South Seattle celebrates Earth Week annually. Each year is slightly different, but in spring 2017 events included a documentary film showing, litter and trash pick up, waste disposal training, reusable water bottle decorate and give away, and a sustainability fair.

The South Seattle Art Gallery offers various sustainability related installations and events throughout the school year. In fall 2008, "Envisioning a Future," artists used sustainable methods or recycled materials to create works which offered both realistic and imaginative solutions to environmental problems. In summer 2015, "Sightseeing Through the Eyes of Northwest Landscape Artists" artworks explored the ways in which each artist uses their unique perspectives and experiences to demonstrate what it means to exist in the living landscape that surrounds us. In fall 2017, work done by the South Seattle Landscape Horticulture students will be highlighted through an exhibition featuring botanically themed artworks.The show aims to not only engage students around the LHO program, but also inspire passion and care for our natural world.

The campus recreation department offers outdoor programs such as guided hiking. They stress principles of pack in pack out, not disturbing wild life and plant life, and leave no trace. For instance, a group of faculty and staff at South Seattle are partk of the West Duwamish Greenbelt Trail. They offer Friday afternoon hikes/walks in the Greenbelt, which runs along the eastern border of campus. The goal of the hikes/walks is to make the college community more aware of the greenbelt trails and to promote the health and well-being of the community and forest.

1) There is a paid sustainability coordinator on the United Student Association (i.e. student leadership) 2) The District Sustainability office offers work study positions and internships on an as needed basis

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