ASU named one of nation's best and greenest colleges

Arizona State University has made the “Green Honor Roll,” rating as one of the nation's 18 "greenest" universities, and is named among the top 120 Best Western Colleges.

This is the third year in a row that ASU made The Princeton Review’s list of most environmentally friendly institutions – a list that salutes the institutions that received the highest possible score, 99, in this year's rating tallies.

The university was cited for its School of Sustainability, the first of its kind in the U.S.; its transdisciplinary degree programs taught by more than 60 faculty members representing more than 40 disciplines; its student-run bicycle co-op; and its energy-providing solar panels – the largest collection on a single U.S. university campus.

“Arizona State University is honored to be included in this year's Green Honor Roll. We are grateful for this recognition of the efforts of ASU faculty, staff and students to incorporate the principles of sustainability into every facet of campus life,” said R. F. "Rick" Shangraw, Jr., senior vice president for Knowledge Enterprise Development and director of the Global Institute of Sustainability. “Through our research endeavors, the design and operation of our campuses, and a curriculum that carries sustainability into all disciplines, we join our peers in higher education in rising to the challenge of creating a sustainable future.”

The Princeton Review developed the Green Rating in consultation with ecoAmerica, a nonprofit environmental organization. The criteria for the rating cover three broad areas: 1) whether the school’s students have a campus quality of life that is healthy and sustainable; 2) how well the school is preparing its students for employment and citizenship in a world defined by environmental challenges; and 3) the school's overall commitment to environmental issues.

Franek noted the rising interest among students in attending green colleges. Among 12,000 college applicants and parents of applicants The Princeton Review surveyed this year for its annual "College Hopes & Worries Survey," 64 percent of respondents said they would value having information about a college's commitment to the environment.

ASU earlier this year also was named among the 50 Best Value Colleges-Public.

The Princeton Review Green College Honor Roll »

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Sharon Keeler, [email protected]
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Media Relations