| Overall Rating | Gold - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 71.02 |
| Liaison | Nathan King |
| Submission Date | Oct. 15, 2014 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
Virginia Tech
PAE-1: Sustainability Coordination
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
3.00 / 3.00 |
Dennis
Cochrane Director, Office of Sustainability Division of Campus Planning, Infrastructure and Facilities |
Does the institution have a sustainability committee?:
The charter or mission statement of the committee or a brief description of the committee's purview and activities :
Energy and Sustainability Committee Charge: To review and provide advice to the University Administration on broad policy issues relating to the university's energy supply and use, and resource conservation. The Energy and Sustainability Committee is part of our university governance structure. The Committee reports to the Commission on University Support which further reports to the University Council.
The university governance structure is shown at: http://www.governance.vt.edu/governance_instructions/structure.html
Members of the committee, including affiliations:
Mr. Steve Mouras, Chair of the Energy & Sustainability Committee, Director of Transportation Planning & Sustainability
Dr. Sherwood Wilson, Vice President for Administrative Services or designee
Mr. Dwight Shelton, Vice President for Finance and Chief Financial Officer or designee
Mr. Chris Kiwus, Associate Vice President and Chief Facilities Officer
Mr. Jason Soileau, Assistant Vice President, Office of University Planning
Mr. Denny Cochrane, Sustainability Program Mgr, Office of Energy & Sustainability
Ms. Frances Keene, Chief of Operations & Deputy to the Associate VP, Student Affairs
Mr. Ruben Avagyan, Campus Energy Manager, Facilities Services
Mr. Rob Lowe, Environmental Engineer, Environmental Health & Safety Services
Dr. Sean McGinnis, Materials Science and Engineering, Faculty Senate
Dr. John Chermak, Geosciences, Faculty Senate
Dr. Tim Baird, Geography, Faculty Senate
Mr. Bruce Obenhaus, University Libraries, Faculty Senate
Ms. Ashley Folcik, CALS Administration, Staff Senate
Mr. David Mellichamp, VTTI-Smart Road Division, Staff Senate
Dr. Richard Benson, Dean, Engineering
Ms. Devita Mccullough, Industrial and Systems Engineering, Graduate Student Assembly
Ms. Sarah Mazza, Geosciences, Graduate Student Assembly
Ms. Kaylyn Duda, Meteorology, Undergraduate SGA
Mr. Josh Barniak, University Studies, Undergraduate SGA
Constitution and By-laws, specifically By-laws, Section V, paragraph G “Energy and Sustainability Committee” available at: http://www.governance.vt.edu/uc_constitution_and_by-laws.html
http://www.governance.vt.edu/cmt-membership/Energy_and_Sustainability_Committee_Roster.pdf
The website URL where information about the sustainability committee is available:
Does the institution have a sustainability office?:
A brief description of the sustainability office:
The Office of Sustainability was established immediately following the approval of "The Virginia Tech Climate Action Commitment Resolution" by the Board of Visitors on June 1, 2009. The office initially reported directly to the Associate Vice President for and Chief Facilities Officer who, in turn, reports to the Vice President for Administrative Services. The Office of Sustainability has been renamed the Office of Energy and Sustainability (OES) to more accurately reflect the significant role energy has to our overall sustainability mission, and to align the name with the "Energy and Sustainability Committee" of our university governance system. In addition, OES has been realigned with the Facilities Services Department and now reports to the Assistant Vice President, Office of University Planning.
The office has five primary missions:
(1) Coordinate programs for campus sustainability;
(2) Oversee the implementation of the Virginia Tech Climate Action Commitment and Sustainability Plan;
(3) Monitor annual electricity and other energy use and greenhouse gas emissions;
(4) Work with faculty and departments; and
(5) Manage a campus-wide student internship program, and foster an undergraduate research program that utilizes the campus as a learning laboratory.
Number of staff in office (in FTE): 3 - The Office of Energy and Sustainability includes the Director of Transportation Planning and Sustainability, the Sustainability Program Manager, and the Campus Sustainability Planner, and one part-time Graduate Assistant position.
The number of people employed in the sustainability office:
The website URL where information about the sustainability office is available:
Does the institution have a sustainability coordinator?:
Sustainability coordinator's name:
Sustainability coordinator's position title:
A brief description of the sustainability coordinator’s position:
The Sustainability Program Manager is primarily responsible for overseeing the implementation of the Virginia Tech Climate Action Commitment and Sustainability Plan (VTCAC&SP). Develops and maintains the Office of Energy and Sustainability website. Plans and coordinates a myriad of campus sustainability programs, participates in academic instructional opportunities at both the graduate and undergraduate level, and supports student requests for sustainability information and research. Responsible for gathering and submitting data for the “Annual Report on Campus Sustainability at Virginia Tech.” Serves as a member of the Energy and Sustainability Committee. Serves as the university’s primary contact to the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE), and spearheads our university’s submission for AASHE’s Sustainability Tracking and Rating Assessment System (STARS). Promotes and participates in university sustainability outreach programs and serves as the principle sustainability contact to the media and outside organizations.
The website URL where information about the sustainability coordinator is available:
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.