| Overall Rating | Gold - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 70.12 |
| Liaison | Maria Dahmus |
| Submission Date | March 5, 2021 |
University of St. Thomas
EN-10: Community Partnerships
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
3.00 / 3.00 |
Theresa
Ricke-Kiely Executive Director Center for the Common Good |
Name of the institution’s formal community partnership to advance sustainability :
Does the institution provide financial or material support for the partnership? :
Which of the following best describes the partnership timeframe?:
Which of the following best describes the partnership?:
Are underrepresented groups and/or vulnerable populations engaged as equal partners? :
A brief description of the institution’s formal community partnership to advance sustainability:
The Sustainable Communities Partnership (SCP), administered by the Office of Sustainability Initiatives, develops multi-year partnerships with cities, government entities, and their collaborators to integrate partner-identified sustainability projects (economic, social, ethical, and ecological dimensions of sustainability) into existing St. Thomas courses across disciplines and to engage students in real-world, applied research and innovative problem-solving. Our partnerships seek to catalyze systems-level change towards sustainability in the Twin Cities area while preparing students for the complexities of problem-solving in contemporary society.
Partners for Spring 2018-Fall 2020 include:
2018 – 2019, City of Big Lake
2018 – 2019, PLACE
2018 – 2020, Metropolitan Council
2018 – 2020, Metro Transit
2019 – 2020, Pillsbury United Waite House Urban Farm
2019 – 2020, City of Cottage Grove
2020, Caponi Art Park
2020, NūLoop Partners and Mpls Downtown Council
2020, City of Woodbury
The website is www.stthomas.edu/osi/scp. We have also included a list of the SCP projects with courses as a separate spreadsheet.
Responsible party: Maria Dahmus, Sustainable Communities Partnership Director
Name of the institution’s formal community partnership to advance sustainability (2nd partnership):
Does the institution provide financial or material support for the partnership? (2nd partnership):
Which of the following best describes the partnership timeframe? (2nd partnership):
Which of the following best describes the partnership’s sustainability focus? (2nd partnership):
Are underrepresented groups and/or vulnerable populations engaged as equal partners? (2nd partnership):
A brief description of the institution’s formal community partnership to advance sustainability (2nd partnership):
The University of St. Thomas has a formal university-wide partnership with Catholic Charities of the Twin Cities that addresses poverty, hunger, and housing insecurity. Our students work on advocacy campaigns, internships, volunteering, externships, and service-learning programs.
The university supports scholarships for Catholic Charities employees, provides transportation for students, and often provides marketing and supplies. The partnership includes orientation and reflection. Working with Catholic Charities staff, we develop all programming together in consultation with stakeholders.
Additional information about the partnership is available at: https://news.stthomas.edu/st-thomas-catholic-charities-sign-partnership-for-the-common-good/
Name of the institution’s formal community partnership to advance sustainability (3rd partnership):
Does the institution provide financial or material support for the partnership? (3rd partnership):
Which of the following best describes the partnership timeframe? (3rd partnership):
Which of the following best describes the partnership? (3rd partnership):
Are underrepresented groups and/or vulnerable populations engaged as equal partners? (3rd partnership):
A brief description of the institution’s formal community partnership to advance sustainability (3rd partnership):
The University's Center for the Common Good and Dougherty Family College partner with a local organization to provide food for people in Minneapolis, MN who are food insecure. To support this partnership, the University provides staff, volunteers, and marketing (in kind) services.
A brief description of the institution’s other community partnerships to advance sustainability:
In addition to the three programs listed above, the University supports additional community partnerships to advance sustainability.
Business 200: Business Learning Through Service
BUSN 200 is an experiential course that offers students the opportunity to strengthen their development as effective and principled business leaders. In BUSN 200, students create their own learning objectives and partner with a nonprofit to pursue those objectives, while making meaningful impact in the community.
During the course, each student volunteers for at least 40 hours at a nonprofit of their choice in the community. BUSN 200 maintains a list of local organizations seeking volunteers to help with causes related to environmental sustainability, food insecurity, housing, among other topics. Students participate in an orientation session, attend four class meetings led by peer facilitators, complete a series of reflective assignments, and present a final creative project. The course is a free, noncredit, pass-fail graduation requirement for all undergraduate business majors and minors.
St. Paul Bike Classic
The University of St. Thomas has an ongoing, multi-year partnership with the Bicycle Alliance of Minnesota to support the St. Paul Bike Classic. Throughout its 20+ year history, the Saint Paul Bike Classic has started and ended on the St. Thomas campus in St. Paul. The event draws nearly 6,000 bicyclists, more than any other bike ride in Minnesota. All proceeds go to support the mission-driven work of the Bicycle Alliance of Minnesota. The event accommodates riders of different abilities with routes ranging in length from 15 to 45 miles, most of which are closed to motorized vehicles. The tour winds through historic neighborhoods, beautiful parks and parkways, and along the revitalized downtown riverfront. Through its partnership with Eureka Recycling, the tour is a “zero waste” event. The rest stops along the tour provide local produce, baked goods, and live music performed by local artists.
The University of St. Thomas supports this partnership in multiple ways. In addition to hosting the event on campus, the university provides its parking facility to the event for the entire day. University staff members from the departments of public safety and neighborhood relations play significant roles in ensuring the event is hospitable and safe. The university also promotes the event in communications with neighbors and students, through social media channels and distribution of registration packets to bike stores in the area. As a benefit of this collaboration, students also receive a reduced rider fee ($20). More information about the St. Paul Bike Classic is available at the website: http://www.bikeclassic.org/
Website URL where information about the institution’s community partnerships to advance sustainability 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.