by Shane Henson — May 31, 2013—Facilities managers at higher education institutions that are committed to sustainability as well as to providing a first-rate education can see if their campuses have been recognized as one of 322 environmentally responsible colleges within The Princeton Review’s Guide to 322 Green Colleges: 2013 Edition, and compare what other institutions are accomplishing as well.
Available as a free .pdf file, the 215-page guide profiles 320 schools in the United States and two in Canada that demonstrate notable commitments to sustainability in their academic offerings, campus infrastructure, activities and career preparation.
The guide also offers a glossary of more than 40 green terms and acronyms; lists of schools in the guide with LEED-certified (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) buildings, and of those that are signatories of the American College & University Presidents’ Climate Commitment (ACUPCC); and advice for living green on campus.
The Princeton Review says it chose the schools based on a survey it conducted of hundreds of colleges across the United States and in Canada in 2012 to tally the “Green Ratings” (scores from 60 to 99) the company reports in school profiles in its annual college guidebooks and Web site. The survey asked administrators more than 50 questions about their institutions’ sustainability-related policies, practices and programs. The Princeton Review reported Green Ratings for 806 institutions in summer 2012, and the 322 schools in this guide received scores of 83 or above in that assessment.
The Princeton Review, one of the nation’s best known education services companies, first published this one-of-a-kind resource in 2010 in collaboration with the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). That year, USGBC, widely known for developing the LEED green building rating system, launched the Center for Green Schools at USGBC to increase efforts to drive change in how campuses and schools are designed, constructed, maintained and operated so that all educational facilities can enhance student learning experiences.
The guide was developed with generous support from United Technologies Corp. , founding sponsor of the Center for Green Schools, notes the Center.
