Commonwealth Times

[Click to enlarge]

VCU is failing to sufficiently sustain its endowments and environmental practices, according to the College Sustainability Report Card released last month by the Sustainable Endowments Institute.

VCU and the College of William and Mary both received an overall grade of "D-" and tied for the lowest grade in the state.

"(VCU) has not made public any steps taken to address energy efficiency or conservation possibilities and has not made progress toward the use of renewable energy," the report states.

VCU's grade was among the lowest of the 200 public and private universities in the country studied. Out of eight graded categories, VCU received an "F" in climate change and energy, Investment Priorities and Shareholder Engagement.

Grace Howard, a junior and president of the VCU Environmental Defense, said this report card is an accurate view of the university's environmental policies. VCU should be more earth-friendly, she said.

"They haven't been doing much in the way of retrofitting," Howard said. "They haven't been doing much in the way of installing solar panels or just buying energy credits."

Associate Vice President for Facilities Management Brian Ohlinger stated in an e-mail he disagreed with the accuracy of the report card.

"For whatever reason, the Institute did not update our information that we submitted, which would dramatically improve our overall score," Ohlinger stated.

According to Ohlinger, VCU has spent $7 million during the past five years to update buildings and make them more energy efficient. He also said the school recycles more than the report stated.

The school received a "D" in the category of green

building, which measures the efficiency of sustainable practices. This includes Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification, which is a third-party process that reviews environmentally sound building practices.

"A new environmental outreach building will be LEEDcertified," the report states. "The University has no known green building policy."

The report card understates the amount of sustainable building that occurs at VCU, Ohlinger said.

"A recently completed building at the Rice Center for Environmental Studies is in the final LEED certification process," Ohlinger said. "One building is under construction and five buildings are in design, all of which will be LEED certified."

Even if revisions were ignored by the report, Howard said, VCU can do more to reduce its impact on the environment.

"It's better than nothing, but it could be much better," Howard said.

According to Howard, VCU is not keeping up with the growing demand for environmental responsibility among students.

"People are learning more and more about green living and about environmentalism," Howard said. "They're paying for an institution that received a "D-" on a sustainability report card, and if they're not cool with that, they need to let people know."

--- ---

According to the Sustainable Endowment Insitute's Web site, the non-profit organization aims to encourage sustainability among U.S. universities and was founded in 2005. Harvard and Dartmouth were among those schools that were given an "A" by the organization, and Julliard School, Howard University and Regent University were among those schools given an "F.

Article Tools

[Click to enlarge]

VCU is failing to sufficiently sustain its endowments and environmental practices, according to the College Sustainability Report Card released last month by the Sustainable Endowments Institute.

VCU and the College of William and Mary both received an overall grade of "D-" and tied for the lowest grade in the state.

"(VCU) has not made public any steps taken to address energy efficiency or conservation possibilities and has not made progress toward the use of renewable energy," the report states.

VCU's grade was among the lowest of the 200 public and private universities in the country studied. Out of eight graded categories, VCU received an "F" in climate change and energy, Investment Priorities and Shareholder Engagement.

Grace Howard, a junior and president of the VCU Environmental Defense, said this report card is an accurate view of the university's environmental policies. VCU should be more earth-friendly, she said.

"They haven't been doing much in the way of retrofitting," Howard said. "They haven't been doing much in the way of installing solar panels or just buying energy credits."

Associate Vice President for Facilities Management Brian Ohlinger stated in an e-mail he disagreed with the accuracy of the report card.

"For whatever reason, the Institute did not update our information that we submitted, which would dramatically improve our overall score," Ohlinger stated.

According to Ohlinger, VCU has spent $7 million during the past five years to update buildings and make them more energy efficient. He also said the school recycles more than the report stated.

The school received a "D" in the category of green

building, which measures the efficiency of sustainable practices. This includes Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification, which is a third-party process that reviews environmentally sound building practices.

"A new environmental outreach building will be LEEDcertified," the report states. "The University has no known green building policy."

The report card understates the amount of sustainable building that occurs at VCU, Ohlinger said.

"A recently completed building at the Rice Center for Environmental Studies is in the final LEED certification process," Ohlinger said. "One building is under construction and five buildings are in design, all of which will be LEED certified."

Even if revisions were ignored by the report, Howard said, VCU can do more to reduce its impact on the environment.

"It's better than nothing, but it could be much better," Howard said.

According to Howard, VCU is not keeping up with the growing demand for environmental responsibility among students.

"People are learning more and more about green living and about environmentalism," Howard said. "They're paying for an institution that received a "D-" on a sustainability report card, and if they're not cool with that, they need to let people know."

--- ---

According to the Sustainable Endowment Insitute's Web site, the non-profit organization aims to encourage sustainability among U.S. universities and was founded in 2005. Harvard and Dartmouth were among those schools that were given an "A" by the organization, and Julliard School, Howard University and Regent University were among those schools given an "F.

Article Tools