For the fourth year in a row, Elon has been named one of the nation's most "environmentally responsible green colleges."
For the fourth year in a row, Elon University has been named one of the nation’s most “environmentally responsible green colleges” by the Princeton Review, in partnership with the U.S. Green Building Council.
“The Princeton Review’s Guide to 322 Green Colleges: 2013 Edition” profiles colleges that demonstrate a notable commitment to sustainability in their academic offerings, campus infrastructure, activities and career preparation.
Released just days prior to the 43rd Anniversary of Earth Day, the guide provides facts, stats, and other information on the schools’ environmentally related policies, practices and academic offerings. The guide can be downloaded at www.princetonreview.com/green-guide.
In its profile of Elon, The Princeton Review notes the university’s green building policy that requires that LEED Silver certification will be pursued for all new buildings, ensuring that campus construction meets high environmental standards.
According to the Elon profile: “The university boasts multiple LEED Gold certified buildings; new projects focus on sustainability features including site stewardship; conservation of water, energy, and other resources; and indoor environmental quality. Other campus-wide initiatives include: over $1 million (including grant funding) committed to the “Bio-Bus” biodiesel transportation program; Building Dashboard, a real-time electricity monitoring system that encourages the campus community to track its own energy use; and a print management system that has reduced paper usage by 70 percent.”
The Princeton Review also notes Elon programs to encourage faculty to incorporate sustainability principles into courses, the support of student “Eco-Rep” peer educators, the annual POWERless and RecycleMania competitions, and sustainable practices in dining halls, including trayless serving lines, composting for food waste and a reusable to-go container program.
Elon is also listed as one of 300 “STARS” institutions. The Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System (STARS) is a transparent, self-reporting framework for colleges and universities to gauge relative progress toward sustainability.
The Princeton Review first created this resource for college-bound students in 2010 in collaboration with USGBC, which is best-known for developing the LEED green building certification program. This past fall, USGBC launched its Center for Green Schools (www.centerforgreenschools.org) to increase its efforts to drive change in how campuses and schools are designed, constructed and operated so that all educational facilities can enhance student learning experiences.
The Princeton Review chose the 322 schools based on a survey it conducted in 2012 of hundreds of colleges across the U.S. and in Canada to tally its annual “Green Rating” scores (scaled from 60 to 99) of colleges for its school profiles in its college guidebooks and website. The survey asks administrators more than 50 questions about their institution’s sustainability-related policies, practices and programs. The Company tallied Green Ratings for 768 institutions in summer 2011. The 322 schools in this guide received scores of 83 or above in that assessment.
Said Robert Franek, Senior VP/Publisher, The Princeton Review, “We are truly pleased to recommend Elon University along with all of the fine schools in this book to the many students seeking colleges that practice and promote environmentally-responsible choices and practices.”
Franek noted his company’s recent survey findings indicating significant interest among college applicants in attending “green” colleges. “Among 9,955 college applicants who participated in our 2013 ‘College Hopes & Worries Survey,’ 62 percent said having information about a school’s commitment to the environment would influence their decision to apply to or attend the school,” he said.