| Overall Rating | Gold - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 65.64 |
| Liaison | Rob Andrejewski |
| Submission Date | March 1, 2019 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
University of Richmond
PA-1: Sustainability Coordination
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
1.00 / 1.00 |
Rob
Andrejewski Director of Sustainability Office for Sustainability |
Does the institution have at least one sustainability committee?:
The charter or mission statement of the committee(s) or a brief description of each committee's purview and activities:
The University of Richmond Sustainability and Environmental Awareness Committee (SEAC) is an Administrative Committee and is advisory in nature. It addresses issues that pertain to sustainability at the University of Richmond. SEAC is charged with identifying strategic opportunities to integrate sustainability into the core functions of the University, including educational, operational, and co-curricular activities. The committee reports to the Provost (Executive Vice President for Academics) and the Executive Vice President for Business and Finance.
Members of each committee, including affiliations and role (e.g. staff, student, or faculty):
Membership
• Two faculty members from Arts & Science
• One faculty member each from Jepson School of Leadership Studies, Law, Robins School of Business, and School of Professional and Continuing Studies
• Director of Sustainability (ex officio)
• Provost (or his/her designee, ex officio)
• Vice President for Business and Finance (or appointee, ex officio)
• Two student representatives
• Associate Vice President of Facilities (or appointee)
• Associate Vice President for Campus Services (or appointee)
• Manager of Environmental Services (or appointee)
• University Engineer (ex officio)
• Two at-large staff members (appointed by the Provost and the Vice President for Business and Finance)
Current Members
• Sam Abrash: Associate Professor of Chemistry and Environmental Studies
• Rob Andrejewski: Director of Sustainability
• David Donaldson: Operations & Summer Programs Coordinator, Events, Conferences, & Support Services
• Joel Eisen: Professor of Law
• Amy Howard: AVP of Community Initiatives and the Bonner Center for Civic Engagement
• Dee Hardy: AVP for Campus Services
• Jessica Flanigan: Associate Professor of Leadership Studies and Philosophy, Politics, Economics and Law
• Andrew McBride: AVP for Facilities, University Architect
• Miriam McCormick: Associate Professor of Philosophy and Philosophy, Politics, Economics and Law
• Tim Hamilton: Assistant Professor of Economics
• Tom Roberts: AVP of Recreation and Wellness
• Andrew Schoeneman: Assistant Professor and Chair of Nonprofit Studies, School of Professional & Continuing Studies
• Carl Sorensen: AVP for Human Resources
• George Souleret: University Engineer
• Allison Steele: Manager of Custodial and Environmental Services
• Mary Finley-Brook: Associate Professor of Geography and the Environment, Geography Advisor; International Studies Concentration Advisor, Latin America
Justin Mure, student
Robert Ostrum, student
Jess Chiotellis, student
Rena Xiao, student
Does the institution have at least one sustainability office that includes more than 1 full-time equivalent (FTE) employee?:
A brief description of each sustainability office:
Building on a strong foundation of campus sustainability progress, the Office for Sustainability convenes diverse campus and community stakeholders in an effort to integrate the themes of sustainability, adaptation, and resilience into administrative, operational, and academic functions of the University. The Office for Sustainability is responsible for providing leadership and support to the University of Richmond community as it charts a far-reaching course for sustainability and pursues its ambitious climate neutrality goals as part of the Climate Commitment. In collaboration with campus partners, the Office for Sustainability provides leadership and guidance as the University integrates sustainability into short and long-range planning efforts.
The Office for Sustainability has a Director of Sustainability, Communications & Engagement Specialist, and and seven student interns.
Full-time equivalent (FTE) of people employed in the sustainability office(s):
Does the institution have at least one sustainability officer?:
Name and title of each sustainability officer:
Does the institution have a mechanism for broad sustainability coordination for the entire institution (e.g. a campus-wide committee or an officer/office responsible for the entire campus)?:
A brief description of the activities and substantive accomplishments of the institution-wide coordinating body or officer during the previous three years:
- Sustainability Plan: Created the University's first Sustainability Plan, which is aligned with the UR Strategic Plan and was led by members of the Sustainability and Environmental Awareness Committee.
- Grounds: Creation of the Gambles Mill Eco-Corridor on the southern portion of campus, which includes resurfacing Gambles Mill Trail, designing stormwater mechanisms to increase retention of ground water and nutrient reduction, restoring Little Westham Creek, and removing invasive species.
- Waste: Launched the Rethink Waste program to achieve 75% waste diversion by 2025 with new bins, bags, signs, and education in every building on campus in Fall 2017 with rollout completed by the end of 2019.
- Renewable Energy: Contracted for a 20 MW off-site solar facility (Spider Solar) that will match 100% of our grid-purchased electricity with renewable energy.
- Energy Conservation: Awarded a grant to create an Energy Conservation Management program to facilitate green revolving fund project selection and tracking.
- Employee Recognition: Established a new annual employee appreciation award for Sustainability
- International Education Week & Sustainability: Organized the Sus-DANE-ability Challenge and South Africa Sustainability Week programs to engage hundreds of people in sustainability during annual international celebration.
Job title of the sustainability officer position:
Job description for the sustainability officer position:
Job description for the sustainability officer position:
Responsibilities: In collaboration with campus sustainability stakeholders, the Director provides visionary leadership and guidance as the University integrates sustainability into short and long-range planning efforts. Core responsibilities include:
Visionary Leadership:
* Collaborating with campus stakeholders to map the community’s assets and build and implement a cohesive new sustainability vision.
* Serving as a catalyst for sustainability who facilitates the integration of sustainability into the roles and responsibilities of campus stakeholders.
* Supporting meaningful progress toward the University’s strategic sustainability goals, including its ambitious climate neutrality goals as part of the Presidents’ Climate Commitment.
* Researching and maintaining a working knowledge of sustainability best practices, innovations, and lessons learned at peer and aspirant institutions.
Academic and Operational Integration, Cultural Change, and Educational Outreach:
* Providing support to faculty development of curricular initiatives that works to ensure that University of Richmond students are “sustainability literate.”
* Providing support to the University’s Facilities Division and other operational stakeholders in developing and implementing innovative solutions in the areas of procurement; waste management; energy and water management; building design, construction, and maintenance; dining; and transportation among others.
* Developing creative educational behavior change campaigns utilizing strategies such as community-based social marketing to expand sustainability awareness and grow a culture of sustainability.
* Collaborating with the Center for Civic Engagement to build a “living-learning program” that leverages the rich academic assets of the University by engaging faculty and students in research and hands-on learning rooted in issues directly affecting campus and the City of Richmond.
* Potentially instructing or co-instructing sustainability-focused courses and serving as the academic supervisor for sustainability internships.
Initiative Management and Reporting:
* Creating communication strategies to promote broad awareness of sustainability and develop a University-wide process and organizational structure to support sustainability inquiry, change, and assessment.
* Managing the budget and operations of the Office of Sustainability, including its existing programs and student interns.
* Developing or adopting metrics, tracking progress, and evaluating the effectiveness of all campus sustainability initiatives to ensure the University is prepared to meet its goals and shift course where needed.
* Managing the Sustainability Internship Program and implementation of the Sustainability Internship Seminar aimed at providing students a background in sustainability and support for running campus based programs; and exploring opportunities for keeping intern alumni engaged.
* Completing and submitting STARS, greenhouse gas emissions, and climate action plan reports.
* Promoting the University’s sustainability programs to both internal campus constituencies and external audiences.
Qualifications:
• Master’s degree in environmental studies, policy, planning or science; architecture; landscape architecture; engineering; land use planning; or other relevant field or commensurate experience. PhD preferred.
• At least five years of relevant experience. Seven or more years preferred. Experience in higher education sustainability administration preferred.
Job title of the sustainability officer position (2nd position):
Job description for the sustainability officer position (2nd position):
Job description for the sustainability officer position (2nd position):
POSITION SUMMARY: The Sustainability Communications & Engagement Specialist is responsible for managing the Office for Sustainability’s branding, communications, outreach, and engagement efforts. This person creates and disseminates multimedia communications efforts in all formats, including the web, social media, and print, as well as University-wide signage and displays. The Specialist oversees multiple outreach and engagement efforts across campus, including staff, faculty, and student sustainability programs and events, and directs Office for Sustainability event logistics and scheduling.
JOB DUTIES/RESPONSIBILITIES:
Essential Duties and Responsibilities
Manage branding and development of educational materials for University-wide sustainability and operations efforts, including Rethink Waste Program, LEED buildings, strategic planning, and reporting documents 20%
o Develop print and web-based educational materials in support of sustainability-related operations and programs
o Generate Rethink Waste, LEED building, eco-corridor, solar, and other Facilities signage and communications strategies across campus
o Create educational infographics, presentation materials, and documents
Create and manage sustainability content on multiple communication platforms, including the web, print, and social media 15%
o Manage sustainability.richmond.edu as the University of Richmond’s sustainability web portal
o Oversee social media presence, including Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram
o Ensure consistency with University design standards, press relations, and communications materials.
Design and publish the monthly email newsletter and email listserv 10%
o Design, draft and publish monthly newsletter
o Manage announcements and events on the sustainability list-serv
o Interview, write, and edit monthly Sustainability Champion feature
o Communicate key initiatives via University-wide announcements
Design and write content for web and print publications in support of campus-wide initiatives 15%
o Partner with campus stakeholders (Facilities, Events, Dining, International Education, Recreation and Wellness, CCE, SPCS, faculty, etc.) on promotion of sustainability efforts
o Manage sustainability event outreach campaigns
o Write and design reports from STARS, the Climate Action Plan progress reports, and high-level assessments
o Promote University Facilities key programs and initiatives
Manage Office for Sustainability programs, including student program development 30%
o Manage programming and outreach budget
o Run Green Office Program and serve as office point of contact for Green Teams
o Support faculty development programs as needed
Support Sustainability Internship Program
♣ Supervise Communications & UROSE intern programs
♣ Schedule weekly meetings
♣ Work with interns to develop educational materials (quizzes, info sheets, tours, etc.)
♣ Oversee management of the annual sustainability banquet
o Oversee and publicize UR Office Supply Exchange
o Supervise University of Richmond Sustainability Advocates
♣ Support intern leaders with scheduling, meetings, events
♣ Create educational and promotional materials like flyers, stickers, and posters
Administer logistics for events, programs, and meetings 10%
o Manage event logistics, including scheduling, room reservations, and catering
o Oversee outreach and attendee management
o Complete scheduling, purchasing, and reservations for Office for Sustainability events
o Support Sustainability and Environmental Awareness Committee
o Update events reservations and calendar
o Respond to sustainability@richmond.edu emails
Job title of the sustainability officer position (3rd position):
Job description for the sustainability officer position (3rd position):
Job description for the sustainability officer position (3rd position):
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:
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.