| Overall Rating | Platinum |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 86.83 |
| Liaison | Mark Lichtenstein |
| Submission Date | Feb. 28, 2023 |
State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry
EN-1: Student Educators Program
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
2.55 / 4.00 |
Rochelle
Strassner Sustainability Outreach & Engagement Manager Office of Sustainability |
"---"
indicates that no data was submitted for this field
Part 1. Percentage of students served by a peer-to-peer, sustainability educators program
1,993
Total number of students served by a peer-to-peer sustainability outreach and education program:
549
Percentage of students served by a peer-to-peer sustainability outreach and education program:
27.55
1st program
EcoReps
A brief description of the student educators program (1st program):
EcoReps are students at ESF who work and live in Centennial Hall (ESF's only residence hall). They work to raise sustainability awareness of global and local sustainability issues and they encourage fellow students to adopt more environmentally responsible lifestyles. The EcoReps program is managed through a collaborative partnership between the Office of Sustainability and Centennial Hall staff.
The EcoReps program began in the fall of 2012 as a volunteer-based program, but now the EcoReps are provided semesterly stipends for their efforts. Three experienced EcoReps are appointed as EcoReps Coordinators and they lead their working group and manage collaboration between groups to ensure consistent and cohesive content. The Coordinators facilitate weekly meetings with other EcoReps and ensure that all EcoReps complete their programmatic responsibilities.
The EcoReps are responsible for planning multiple programs/events in the residence hall per semester based on the month’s theme. These themes include zero waste, energy, food, transportation, conservation and water. These events typically involve educational documentaries, food, and/or an activity/workshop.
The EcoReps are also responsible for decorating EcoBoards on their designated floors with information relating to the month’s theme. They create educational materials such as food guides, composting 101 documents, sustainable Halloween practices brochures, and short videos describing what items can/cannot be recycled or composted. This material is made accessible to the entire campus community, via the Office of Sustainability's Instagram.
The program was paused during fall 2020 and spring 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The program was restructured during the summer of 2021 and successfully relaunched during the fall 2021 semester. This restructuring allowed for the EcoReps to be more organized and effective in their efforts. The EcoReps Guide is attached to this credit as a PDF.
The EcoReps program began in the fall of 2012 as a volunteer-based program, but now the EcoReps are provided semesterly stipends for their efforts. Three experienced EcoReps are appointed as EcoReps Coordinators and they lead their working group and manage collaboration between groups to ensure consistent and cohesive content. The Coordinators facilitate weekly meetings with other EcoReps and ensure that all EcoReps complete their programmatic responsibilities.
The EcoReps are responsible for planning multiple programs/events in the residence hall per semester based on the month’s theme. These themes include zero waste, energy, food, transportation, conservation and water. These events typically involve educational documentaries, food, and/or an activity/workshop.
The EcoReps are also responsible for decorating EcoBoards on their designated floors with information relating to the month’s theme. They create educational materials such as food guides, composting 101 documents, sustainable Halloween practices brochures, and short videos describing what items can/cannot be recycled or composted. This material is made accessible to the entire campus community, via the Office of Sustainability's Instagram.
The program was paused during fall 2020 and spring 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The program was restructured during the summer of 2021 and successfully relaunched during the fall 2021 semester. This restructuring allowed for the EcoReps to be more organized and effective in their efforts. The EcoReps Guide is attached to this credit as a PDF.
A brief description of the student educators program’s target audience (1st program):
EcoReps target education and outreach initiatives to their fellow classmates living in Centennial Hall. Education and outreach efforts also have the opportunity to reach the campus-wide community through their social media presence.
Number of trained student educators (1st program):
10
Number of weeks the student educators program is active annually (1st program):
30
Average or expected number of hours worked weekly per trained student educator (1st program):
5
Total number of hours worked annually by trained student educators (1st program):
1,500
Website URL where information about the student educators program is available (1st program):
If reporting students served by additional peer-to-peer programs, provide:
2nd program
Sustainability Engagement Assistants
A brief description of the student educators program (2nd program):
Sustainability Engagement Assistants are student employees that were hired beginning in the Fall 2022 semester. Sustainability Engagement Assistants help serve as student representatives for the Office of Sustainability across campus by engaging the campus community about sustainable practices and initiatives, organizing monthly and semester activities, and collaborating with student groups.
Some of their responsibilities include tabling at campus events and pop-ups on campus, “trash talking” (in-person trash, recycling, and composting sorting education), assisting student clubs as they promote and organize sustainable campus events, and more. Monthly activities may include performing energy and waste audits on campus and planning an interactive tabling activity, like a sustainability-related scavenger hunt or surveying students about what sustainability efforts they would like to see on campus.
During the Fall 2022 semester, Sustainability Engagement Assistants reported interacting with 400 campus individuals, primarily through “trash talking” efforts. As the Sustainability Engagement Assistants get ready for their second semester, they have organized a composting 101 tabling opportunity to campus as well as a zero waste/plastics reduction tabling opportunity to accompany the Plastics Reduction Partnership ESF is actively pursuing.
Some of their responsibilities include tabling at campus events and pop-ups on campus, “trash talking” (in-person trash, recycling, and composting sorting education), assisting student clubs as they promote and organize sustainable campus events, and more. Monthly activities may include performing energy and waste audits on campus and planning an interactive tabling activity, like a sustainability-related scavenger hunt or surveying students about what sustainability efforts they would like to see on campus.
During the Fall 2022 semester, Sustainability Engagement Assistants reported interacting with 400 campus individuals, primarily through “trash talking” efforts. As the Sustainability Engagement Assistants get ready for their second semester, they have organized a composting 101 tabling opportunity to campus as well as a zero waste/plastics reduction tabling opportunity to accompany the Plastics Reduction Partnership ESF is actively pursuing.
A brief description of the student educators program’s target audience (2nd program):
Sustainability Engagement Assistants target education and outreach initiatives is the entirety of the Syracuse ESF campus community.
Number of trained student educators (2nd program):
4
Number of weeks the student educators program is active annually (2nd program):
30
Average or expected number of hours worked weekly per trained student educator (2nd program):
4
Total number of hours worked annually by trained student educators (2nd program):
480
Website URL where information about the student educators program is available (2nd program):
If reporting students served by three or more peer-to-peer programs, provide:
3rd program
Planet Forward Correspondents
A brief description of the student educators program (3rd program):
Planet Forward (PF) is an initiative led by, and housed at the George Washington University School Media Studies. ESF has been an active PF supporter since 2014, and is currently one of only a handful of "pillar" PF partner institutions. PF is a team of student storytellers, innovators, and scientists from across the country. PF produces stories that reveal exciting, solution-based ideas about how the planet can move forward and enjoy a truly sustainable future. PF Correspondents are selected from college students at institutions across the US. They work with the PF editorial team at George Washington University and produce at least three stories during the academic year. They work both with PF and their home institutions to develop and tell their stories, this includes engaging with other members of the student body (peer-to-peer). They also collaborate with PF Correspondents at other institutions, experts, and media leaders around the country, and they gain exposure when PF features the Correspondent's stories on planetforward.org and across the PF social media. ESF historically has members of its student body perform the role of PF Correspondent.
A brief description of the student educators program’s target audience (3rd program):
A broad audience including peers, the home institution (in this case, ESF) and a broad, general audience through PF and ESF communication platforms.
Number of trained student educators (3rd program):
2
Number of weeks the student educators program is active annually (3rd program):
30
Average or expected number of hours worked weekly per trained student educator (3rd program):
5
Total number of hours worked annually by trained student educators (3rd program):
150
Website URL where information about the student educators program is available (3rd program):
Additional programs
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Number of trained student educators (all other programs):
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Number of weeks, on average, the student educators programs are active annually (all other programs):
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Average or expected number of hours worked weekly per student educator (all other programs) :
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Total number of hours worked annually by trained student educators (all other programs):
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Part 2. Educator hours per student served by a peer-to-peer educator program
2,130
Hours worked annually by trained student sustainability educators per student served by a peer-to-peer program:
3.88
Optional Fields
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Additional documentation to support the submission:
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.