University of Connecticut
ER-3: Sustainability in New Student Orientation

In the fall, Office of Environmental Policy Director, Rich Miller, teaches a voluntary First Year Education (FYE) module on sustainability for the freshman Honors Program. In the spring, he teaches the same module for other predominantly first-year students. Read one first-year student's thoughts about the class: http://uconnoep.wordpress.com/2012/04/24/a-freshmans-introduction-to-sustainability/ Additionally, in the late Spring, he trains University Orientation personnel on sustainability activities and green campus features for the orientation program, including the walking tour of the campus. As part of the tour, the students and parents stop in front of a sustainability wall mural (near the model dorm room) that gives an overview of campus sustainability initiatives and programs. Additionally, the wall has become a feature on the campus tour, as it is located near McMahon dining hall, which was recently certified LEED-gold. The dining hall’s LEED features are also discussed with incoming students and their parents.

New students can also learn about campus sustainability efforts by visiting the EcoHusky or EcoHouse tables at the Student Activities Fair, which usually occurs during the first month of the fall semester. The EcoHusky homepage and facebook page contain lots of sustainability information and resources for new students. http://www.ecohusky.uconn.edu/ecohusky/resources.html