Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 61.34
Liaison Jennifer Kleindienst
Submission Date Dec. 20, 2019

STARS v2.2

Wesleyan University
EN-6: Assessing Sustainability Culture

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 0.25 / 1.00 Rachael Barlow
Associate Director for Assessment
Institutional Research
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Does the institution conduct an assessment of sustainability culture?:
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:
Several cultural assessment questions are used in the annual survey that student Eco Facilitators send out to students in seven dormitories (where Eco Facilitators are housed).

In May 2019, Wesleyan added a question to the senior survey for all graduating students about sustainability. This was deemed the most viable option for assessing sustainability, as there are no longitudinal surveys of students and increasing the number of surveys would result in poor response rates.

A copy or sample of the questions related to sustainability culture:
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A sample of the questions related to sustainability culture or the website URL where the assessment tool is available:
Eco Facilitators Surveys:
Questions are asked about values and behaviors regarding environmentally-related behaviors and social justice and include the following:
- What can you put in your dorm compost bin?
- Where can you compost in your dorm?
- How much time do you spend in the shower?
- How familiar are you with the term "environmental justice?"
- Which of the following do you do (frequently, occasionally, rarely, never)?: use a reusable water bottle and/or mug, print double-sided, buy second-hand clothing, etc.

Senior Survey:
Likert scale (strongly disagree - disagree - agree - strongly agree)
Sustainability is integrated into classes at Wesleyan
Sustainability is a part of the overall culture at Wesleyan
My lifestyle has become more sustainable since attending Wesleyan
Sustainability is important to my likely career path

A brief description of how representative samples were reached (if applicable) and how the cultural assessment is administered:
Eco Facilitators: The sample is not representative and is administered only to first- and second-year students living in specific dorms where Eco Facilitators (student sustainability peer advisors) are present.

Senior Survey: The survey is distributed to 100% of the senior class electronically.

A brief summary of results from the cultural assessment:
Eco Facilitators: The assessment has changed annually so is not currently comparable from year to year.

Senior Survey: Sustainability is integrated into classes at Wesleyan: 46% agree, 7% strongly agree = 53% agree + strongly agree
Sustainability is a part of the overall culture at Wesleyan: 61% agree, 16% strongly agree = 77% agree + strongly agree
My lifestyle has become more sustainable since attending Wesleyan: 48% agree, 20% strongly agree = 68% agree + strongly agree
Sustainability is important to my likely career path: 36% agree, 14% strongly agree = 50% agree + strongly agree
N = 329. Source: 2019 Senior Survey

Optional Fields 

Website URL where information about the assessment of sustainability culture is available:
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Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
The Sustainability Office is working with Institutional Research to develop focus group questions and structure for 2019-20.

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.