Stanislaus State Shines With Gold STARS Rating

Stanislaus State has earned a STARS Gold rating from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) in recognition of its sustainability achievements. STARS, the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System, measures and encourages sustainability in all aspects of higher education.

The rating is a testament to the University's commitment to integrating sustainable development in all disciplines and programs across campus. The STARS report showcases sustainability efforts in various areas, including academic courses and research, as well as operations, facilities, planning and administration. The innovative programs at Stan State set it apart from other institutions, as reflected in the most recent report. In total, there are 68 credit areas where points can be earned, along with bonus credits to highlight innovative programs.

Stan State's rating this year is an improvement from the 2020 report, increasing from Silver to Gold.

"It is challenging to achieve a Gold STARS rating," said Kat Marian, senior director of Capital Planning, Design & Sustainability. "It is extremely important to score well, and while the campus was proud to achieve Silver in the inaugural report in 2020, the increase to a Gold rating is very exciting."

The University has been excelling in sustainability by facilitating interdisciplinary pathways for applied research, interweaving sustainability challenges into academic courses and using the campus as a living lab. The upward trend in the campus' overall score since the first report was submitted reflects the work that has been completed.

Data collection and finalizing information before the in-depth review for this report typically takes anywhere from 12-18 months.

"Our team accomplished this in about seven months," Marian said. "It is extremely hard work. But now that a sustainability specialist is on staff, our efforts do not lie with just one person and the department can focus on its goals."

Jennifer Daniels, the sustainability specialist at Stan State, said she is fortunate to work on a team so dedicated to campus sustainability initiatives and programs.

"Sustainability is interwoven across all facets of our University," she said. "Gathering data for this report was time-consuming and challenging, but it was a pleasure to have the ability to allow our campus to shine. This was truly a group effort and displays the dedication of each department to move toward a more sustainable future."

"While the campus was proud to achieve Silver in the inaugural report in 2020, the increase to a Gold rating is very exciting."

- Kat Marian, Senior Director of Capital Planning, Design & Sustainability

According to Daniels, the campus provides a real-world training ground for environmental initiatives. It captures academic programs and maps sustainability goals of some of the outreach and engagement efforts. Each section and credit is weighted with a different amount of points, and the overall score is based on a percentage of available points.

"We went through the existing report and looked at what it took to get points in certain credit areas. Jennifer wrote a good portion of it; updating it from last time," Marian said.

The Academics section is weighted heavily, and this area saw improvement from the last time. One of the credits that saw the most advancement in this year's report is in Academic Research.

"We improved by more than 60 percent in this credit area, which really helped elevate our overall rating," said Marian. "By utilizing our open access resource Scopus and tying research to the United Nation's Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), we were able to showcase the ongoing work being done in this area."

"We saw improvement in many areas," Daniels said. "We honed in on how to utilize the data to ensure all areas of the report reflected our performance."

According to Daniels, there were more than 60 contributors across campus. "We would not have accomplished this without our dedicated faculty, staff, students and administration."

Stan State defines sustainability as a shared opportunity for improving the quality of life for all -environmentally, socially and economically - now and for future generations. Utilizing the SDGs as a guide, campus sustainability encompasses much more than the built environment and campus operations. Daniels said sustainable development is a global concern, and it is important to include the other two pillars beyond the environment because the social and economic pillars are equally relevant.

Sustainability projects in campus operations support the Gold rating. Continuing to add new solar arrays, upgrading lighting to LED and improving energy efficiency all contribute to the score.

"All new construction and major renovations are designed to a minimum of LEED Silver standards, which means we are continually working toward reducing our impact on the environment and reducing emissions," said Marian.

Water management at Stan State also proves to be a leading example of integrating sustainability into the landscape. At its heart, the sophisticated water reclamation system utilizes rainwater and stormwater runoff to not only irrigate the landscape but it also cools most buildings through the the Central Plant. This system integrates all the lakes and ponds on campus, irrigating the landscape plus nearly 3,000 trees that give the campus a soothing park atmosphere.

As part of the Planning and Administration section, the STARS report asks institutions to include diversity programming, recognizing that sustainability is also a social justice and equity issue. Programs highlighted in these credits include initiatives from the Warrior Cross Cultural Center, the President's Commission on Diversity and Inclusion and the Basic Needs program that provides access to food and clothing for all students.

Extra points were gained again this year in Innovation credits. Programs such as the Warrior Food Pantry and the single-use plastics ban are some of the ways the campus showcases sustainable innovation.

In 2022, the CSU updated the systemwide Sustainability Policy, requiring the STARS platform as one way to measure progress. There has been collaboration between CSU campuses to continually improve and support each other. Daniels has worked with other sustainability officers across the CSU to learn ways to improve reporting.

"Each report serves as a new type of benchmark to be measured from," Daniels said. "We utilize each current report to create a roadmap for improvement. Sometimes that is through small changes and program upgrades. Other recommendations are long-term projects that require innovation and creativity."

Future success requires dedication from the campus community and support from leadership. "We all need to do our part to further improve our rating," Marian said.

To commemorate the achievement and future goals, the University will host a celebration in the fall for the report contributors.

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