Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 60.83
Liaison Parker Long
Submission Date March 2, 2018
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

Virginia Commonwealth University
EN-6: Assessing Sustainability Culture

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 0.25 / 1.00 Joseph Costa
Sustainability Projects and Program Coordinator
Sustainability
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Does the institution conduct an assessment of sustainability culture (i.e. the assessment focuses on sustainability values, behaviors and beliefs, and may also address awareness of campus sustainability initiatives)?:
Yes

Which of the following best describes the cultural assessment? The assessment is administered to::
A subset of the campus community or a sample that may not be representative of the entire community

Which of the following best describes the structure of the cultural assessment? The assessment is administered::
Without a follow-up assessment of the same cohort or representative samples of the same population

A brief description of how and when the cultural assessment(s) were developed and/or adopted:

Regular surveys are out out on the students' home page. These surveys are used to gauge students' awareness on sustainability initiatives (recycling program, water conservation initiatives, learning garden). Surveys are also given to provide the Office of Sustainability with data regarding students behavior, and the reasons that certain sustainability initiatives are successful or not successful.


A copy or sample of the questions related to sustainability culture:
---

A sample of the questions related to sustainability culture or the website URL where the assessment tool is available:

Recent questions included in our survey-
What is the leading reason you don't recycle?
-Not important or I don't care
-I don't think VCU recycles
-I don't know how/where to recycle
-I'm too busy

Are you aware that VCU has two on campus gardens?
-Yes
-No

Have you visited the Pollack building's green roof?
-Yes
-No

Have you used the bike loan program?
-Yes
-No

(The surveys are conducted on the students private VCU homepages)
https://my.vcu.edu/group/myvcu


A brief description of how representative samples were reached (if applicable) and how the cultural assessment is administered:

NA


A brief summary of results from the cultural assessment, including a description of any measurable changes over time:

The surveys themselves have value in informing students, and the data from the surveys influences how the Office of Sustainability moves forward with new and existing initiatives. (For example, a recent survey indicated that students saw the biggest hurdle regarding proper recycling was lack of clear signage and lack of education on what single stream means)


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.