Overall Rating Gold - expired
Overall Score 72.89
Liaison Miriam Keep
Submission Date Feb. 27, 2019
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign
EN-1: Student Educators Program

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 1.40 / 4.00 Micah Kenfield
Sustainability Coordinator
Institute for Sustainability, Energy, and Environment
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Number of students enrolled for credit (headcount):
48,216

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):
16,873

Percentage of students served by a peer-to-peer educator program:
34.99

1st Program 

Name of the student educators program:
Sustainability LLC and Eco-mmunity

Number of students served (i.e. directly targeted) by the program (headcount):
8,550

A brief description of the program, including examples of peer-to-peer outreach activities:
University Housing offers two Environmental Outreach Programs on campus. In the Sustainability Living Learning Community (LLC), students live and learn about diverse aspects of sustainability in a variety of ways: academically, organically, and experientially. Students from a range of different backgrounds come together to explore their interest in and commitment to sustainable living. As part of the Eco-munnity program, volunteer student peer educators reach out to their fellow on-campus residents through formal events and informal connections to promote a greener lifestyle in on-campus housing.

A brief description of how the student educators are selected:
Sustainability LLC eco-reps are hired through University Housing in the same way Resident Assistants are selected. Eco-mmunity outreach students are on a volunteer basis, coordinated as an organization within University Housing.

A brief description of the formal training that the student educators receive to prepare them to conduct peer outreach:
Multi-day training alongside Resident Assistants and in breakout activities as well as direct guidance from full-time member of staff tasked with supporting sustainability and social justice initiatives.

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):
Supported through University Housing

If reporting students served by additional peer-to-peer programs, provide:

2nd Program

Name of the student educators program (2nd program):
Certified Green Chapter Program

Number of students served (i.e. directly targeted) by the program (2nd program):
7,624

A brief description of the program, including examples of peer-to-peer outreach activities (2nd program):
The Certified Green Chapter Program provides every fraternity and sorority an opportunity to receive campuswide recognition for their sustainable behaviors. Peer educators from the Greek community handle the direct outreach to every student in their community, with our sustainability staff providing overhead and support.

A brief description of how the student educators are selected (2nd program):
Nomination from their chapter + volunteer basis for at-large students.

A brief description of the formal training that the student educators receive to prepare them to conduct peer outreach (2nd program):
A retreat is held every semester to educate students, and a comprehensive handbook with how-to guides for almost two dozen different sustainable behavior credits are provided to every representative.

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 Institute for Sustainability, Energy, and Environment provides the financial support and staffing overhead to implement the program.

If reporting students served by three or more peer-to-peer programs, provide:

3rd Program 

Name of the student educators program (3rd program):
Illini Lights Out

Number of students served (i.e. directly targeted) by the program (3rd program):
699

A brief description of the program, including examples of peer-to-peer outreach activities (3rd program):
Student educators inform peers of the opportunities they have to reduce their carbon footprint through sustainable behaviors as simple as turning off lights in empty classrooms and related activities, and lead teams throughout campus to implement green initiatives.

A brief description of how the student educators are selected (3rd program):
Educators are selected by iSEE staff and brought on board as part of the ENVS491 Internship

A brief description of the formal training that the student educators receive to prepare them to conduct peer outreach (3rd program):
One-on-one mentoring with a member of full-time staff

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):
Supervision of program through Sustainability Programs Coordinator as well as financial support for refreshments during programs

Additional Programs 

A brief description of all other student peer-to-peer sustainability outreach and education programs, including the number of students served and how student educators are selected, trained, and supported by the institution:
The Green Labs Program, Styrecycle, and aspects of the Certified Green Office Program reach thousands of other student employees and student lab workers. Projects funded by our green fund also have a mandatory peer education program.

Optional Fields 

Total number of hours student educators are engaged in peer-to-peer sustainability outreach and education activities annually (all programs):
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The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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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.