Since 2002 Chico State has been dedicated to keeping the campus sustainable, and the six years of work may pay off with a new rating program it has joined.
The university entered a pilot program Feb. 4 called the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment and Rating System.
The program will rate the sustainability of more than 90 campuses around the nation and Canada.
Chico State was ranked the eighth most sustainable campus out of 15 colleges around the world on grist.org in 2007.
"I think it's great we've been ranked eighth," said Jillian Buckholz, campus sustainability coordinator. "It's nice to be recognized for all our hard work."
And Chico State should also rank pretty high in this new program, said senior Nathan Birdsill.
"We're pretty aware of our resources, recycling and our environment," he said.
Birdsill is impressed with the recycling because it shows the campus cares, he said.
The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education created a program's checklist that looks at all areas of campus, from diversity issues to investment buildings, Buckholz said.
"AASHE created this rating system to help schools identify challenged areas and also success areas in relation to sustainability," she said.
Campuses participate to find out what works and what doesn't in sustainability, Buckholz said.
"One of our strong points is the student programming, like the Chill Out competition and the use of solar energy on campus," she said.
The Chill Out competition recognizes colleges that are running programs to reduce global warming.
Last year Chico State won first prize and a $1,000 grant from the National Wildlife Federation.
Because STARS is a pilot program, no information relating to its results is being released to the public until spring 2009, Buckholz said.
UC Santa Barbara is also participating in the program.
Officials want to compare their campus with others, said Perrin Pellegrin, sustainability manager at UC Santa Barbara.
"STARS is a good way to benchmark with other campuses," she said. "By doing STARS, everyone has the same criteria that allow us to share profiles."
UC Santa Barbara also uses solar energy and has "green" buildings, which are buildings that are designed to promote economic health by using low-wattage fluorescent lighting and toilets that don't use as much water, she said.
And even though Chico State is working to better its sustainable practices, the school still has a way to go before reaching its full potential because of the time it takes to obtain, Buckholz said.
But some students aren't sure how Chico State will compare to other universities.
Senior Josh Ferrari thinks campus sustainability has gone down in the four years he's been here, he said.
"It's just what my eyes are telling me," he said.
Increased violence, vandalism and racist writings on the bathroom walls have caused him to think the campus should be ranked low, Ferrari said.
"There's been a big change in the last four years," he said. "And I just don't know why."
Raelene Willis can be reached at rwillis@theorion.com
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