Infusing Sustainability Curricula Into Madison College

Infusing sustainability curricula into Madison College: Baseline inventory and recommendations

Turina R. Bakken

May 8, 2013

UW-Madison

Dr. Mark Johnson

Sustainability and Global Education Project #3 Introduction

A cursory look at the Association for Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) web site of sustainability related courses and academic credentials yielded an impressive array at both two and four-year institutions. Most courses focused on environmental studies, chemistry, engineering, construction and architecture. Associate degrees across the country included renewable energy, agriculture, environmental management and a growing number of sustainable business credentials. The growing list of options was encouraging and would prove to be valuable models for one exploring a new course or credential in this area. Despite growing consensus that sustainability must be a guiding force in education (Johnston, 2013) and the growth of centralized resource sites, a comprehensive and clear portfolio of offerings and activities has remained an elusive goal for many institutions of higher education. Despite many forward thinking activities, courses and initiatives, the comprehensive nature or sustainability education has also eluded Madison College. Enrollment in the UW course in Sustainability and Global Education course proved to be a motivator to assess Madison College’s current offerings and begin to form a set of recommendations on how to move a holistic sustainability education strategy forward. This paper will provide background context on Madison College and its current efforts with sustainability education, report on the results of a faculty/staff survey, and overview recommendations and next steps.

Background on Madison College Madison College, founded in 1912, is a two-year community and technical college in Madison, Wisconsin. The college offers over 140 Associate degrees and numerous additional certificates, post-baccalaureate credentials and a robust array of professional development and customized offerings. Over 40,000 students each year are served at nine campuses across a 12 county district and many more beyond those boundaries via online programming. Instructional areas are consolidated into six academic Schools including Arts & Sciences, Health Education, Business & Applied Arts, Human and Protective Services, Applied Science, Engineering and Technology and Academic Advancement.

Current and Past Sustainability Initiatives Madison College President Bettsey Barhorst was an early signer of the President’s Climate Commitment, which pledges to make “sustainability a part of the educational experience for all students (Johnston, 2013, p. 30). In addition, a grassroots team was formed in 2006 called the Madison College Environmental and Sustainability Alliance (MESA). This team had a broad mission to be the clearinghouse for sustainability initiatives and interests. MESA seemed to affirm Saylan and Blumstein’s (2011) conclusion that “institutions are composed of individuals, and individuals can initiate grassroots efforts with great effectiveness, even from within unwieldy institutions (p. 32).” Saylan and Blumstein (2011) also note that the “best hope for positive feedback in the short-term probably lies with efforts moving from the ground up rather than from the top down (p. 32).” However, for efforts to crystallize and become powerful forces reaching a broader group of students, senior leaders need to become involved to secure

2 funding, create faculty capacity, and advocate for promotional efforts. In MESA’s case, that never materialized and the team essentially disbanded in 2011, though reorganization efforts are in progress. In the team’s lifespan, however, they achieved some meaningful successes including a recycling program, film series, guest speakers and more. The focus was college-wide and largely focused on student initiatives related to facilities and environmental awareness. MESA’s initiatives were not curricular or program related per se and they had no funding authority.

Madison College has demonstrated leadership in sustainability in other ways as well. The college is a founding member of Sustainability Education and Economic Development (SEED) and other national membership organizations dedicated to advancing a sustainability mission.

There exists a wide array of individual course offerings and three certificate credentials (see survey findings below.) However, courses are primarily electives, overseen by individual faculty champions who have interest and expertise in sustainability and are not connected across the College in any meaningful way. Courses are housed primarily in the sciences, manufacturing, construction, energy, hospitality or business.

In fact, over the years, education for sustainability has typically followed one of two patterns: the “infusion” model, in which sustainability is broadly integrated into existing curricula, and the “distinct discipline” model, wherein sustainability or sustainable development is envisioned as a distinctive interdisciplinary filed (Johnston, 2013). Since Madison College has never studied that question or considered those options, it’s no wonder the existing initiatives and offerings, while powerful on their own merit, have never been combined in a holistic way or leveraged strategically.

Overview of research problem and study methodology

Description of problem: Madison College has no clear ownership or “home” for comprehensive sustainability education. There is not even a clear understanding of what is already in place that might be repackaged or harnessed to build a foundation or a flexible credential. From what is in place, there is no cohesive system of offerings, courses are hard to find and are not promoted in a direct way.

Research question: What environmental, green or sustainability courses and credentials exist or are in development at Madison College? How might Madison College support the future of critical sustainability programming?

Methodology: Online survey via Survey Monkey with a mix of closed and open-ended questions (survey attached as Appendix A).

Goal: The goal of this short survey is to collect an inventory of Madison College’s credentials and courses that have a focus on environmental, green or sustainability-related

3 education and topics. The results will be used as input to the design and offering of future programming and initiatives related to sustainability.

Survey methodology: The online survey was sent on April 18, 2013 and closed April 26, 2013. Survey population included Program Directors and Department Chairs (120 full time faculty); Dean’s Strategy Team (15 key School Deans and regional directors); and a selected pool of key faculty, administrators and staff who have been involved in past environmental or green initiatives or projects (14). 149 total surveys were sent directly with an overview of the survey purpose. Program Directors were encouraged to forward the survey to other faculty colleagues. Based on the direct response rate, 78 responses were in within 24 hours for an immediate 52% response rate. At the close of the survey, 96 responses were returned for a response rate of nearly 65%

Findings and results Nearly 40% of respondents indicate their instructional or program area includes specific courses related to sustainability education. 10% indicated their area offers a credential of some kind. Of the existing courses, nearly all were electives. The only required courses were Green Meetings in the Meeting and Event Management program and the required courses for the three credentials (see web links below.)

Only three credentials, all certificates, exist including:

 Introduction to Wind Energy Technology Certificate http://madisoncollege.edu/program-info/introduction-to-wind-energy  Renewable Energy Technology Certificate http://madisoncollege.edu/program-info/renewable-energy-certificate (three new more focused certificates in wind, solar, and bioenergy are in progress)  Sustainable Business certificate http://madisoncollege.edu/program- info/sustainable-business Two are housed in The School of Applied Science, Engineering and Technology and one is housed in The School of Business and Applied Arts. All three are stand-alone certificates and not connected formally to a degree program.

Available courses include:  Environmental Economics  Introduction to Biodiesel  Photovoltaic (solar electric) Installation  Climate and change  Weather and Climate  Environmental Issues  Environmental Science  Ecology and Conservation Biology  Principles of Ecology  Introduction to Renewable Energy  Introduction to Sustainable Business

4  Green Operations and Purchasing  Green Meetings  Hybrid Vehicle Systems  World Issues (Journalism)  Trends and Issues in Interior Design (LEED focus)  Energy and Society  Environmental Economics  Manufacturing Skills Standard Council (MSSC GREEN)

 Global Seminar: topics vary by country and include study abroad: global perspectives on sustainability (N. Ireland, Germany, US); photovoltaic systems/ panels in Costa Rica

Continuing Education/Noncredit courses include: Sustainable Beekeeping for Beginners; Hunting for Sustainability (DNR sponsored course); Create a Rain Garden; Creative Herb Gardening; Growing Food for Family; Preserve/Cook Wild Game; Cooking Garden Harvest Forest; Garden Design; Put Garden to Bed; and Fall Planting/Garden Prep.

Several noted that while no specific course options exist, many instructional areas offer parts of courses that relate to sustainability education in some way including:  Fashion Marketing (Textiles and Management and Store Operations)  Fundamentals of Meeting Management  Public Policy; Argument and Debate (Political Science)  Construction and Remodeling, Building Remodeling and Controls  HVAC apprenticeship  Culinary (slow food movement and urban agriculture)  Architectural technician (LEED, sustainable design and construction)  Marketing and Small Business (green washing, distribution costs of moving food, green printing)  Nursing: how public health degrees are adapting to health challenges posed by climate change; disposal of medical supplies; sustainable health and nutrition, how the environment impacts the human body  Cosmetology: sulfate-free, chemical-free products, include information on botanicals, vegan protein products  Hospitality: ecotourism, sustainability in hospitality. Program director noted that “we don’t focus on sustainability, it’s just the new business practice and strategy of the hospitality industry so almost everything we teach is linked to sustainability in some way.”  Several library research guides exist that house resources for environmental education, green marketing and more.

60% of respondents do not offer any courses, and of those nearly 90% indicated that they have no plans to develop sustainability curriculum. The top two reasons are accreditation or state wide curriculum requirements that restrict the addition of new

5 content (especially in the health care, finance/accounting and protective services areas) or courses and sustainability not related to core instructional areas or job market. Several instructors noted the critical connection to the job market and that there was no demand from employers, thus those programs don’t focus on sustainability topics (specifically information technology and protective services).

Others noted lack of financial resources and other curricular priorities. One instructor noted, “It simply never crossed my mind to infuse sustainability related topics into my area (Visual Communications.)” Several liberal arts instructors noted the concern over transferability of courses. Since there are not many courses at the University level that are clear course transfer paths, that becomes a barrier for further development at the Associate degree level.

Another barrier, not addressed in the survey but important nonetheless, is the Wisconsin Technical College System (WTCS) certification requirements. The WTCS requires certification for all instructors in the areas in which they teach. It varies by instructional area, but is generally tied very narrowly to industry occupations. Since green jobs are harder to define, certification barriers might come in to play for multidisciplinary programming efforts. If a “noncertified” instructor is assigned a credit class, the college gets fined and loses State aid for that class. So, the financial incentives to maintain certification requirements are strong. Normally, WTCS certification does not link across disciplines. For example, in the environmental arena, there are separate certification requirements for energy conservation, electrical, biofuels, thermal, hospitality, business and more. But based on program development across the WTCS colleges, this barrier has been reduced somewhat. In 2012, the WTCS offered a new certification category in Interdisciplinary Sustainability Systems. This includes courses should be broad and cross-disciplinary instruction to a specific topic in sustainable systems. Interdisciplinary topics of sustainability are those deemed to be based on general concepts of systems thinking and sustainable systems as applied to varied disciplines. Their instruction crosses several disciplines, i.e., biological sciences, business management, engineering technology, information technology, renewable energies, etc. (WTCS web site).

When asked what type of credential or courses Madison College should offer, a few faculty noted the idea of sustainability “tracks” that could be build into a number of occupational degrees including “architecture, electronics, construction, skilled trades and even finance and accounting.” Others noted that Madison College should leverage and promote the existing certificates before embarking on creating more. Though, nearly 25% of faculty noted an interest in a stand alone Certificate in Sustainability that would offer students the opportunity to customize their studies around industries or areas of interest. Pulling together the rich combination of existing programming would accomplish this objective with relatively few new dollars. And, the flexibility of certificates was noted as preferred over a new degree since the market seems to be changing so quickly. Several faculty did note a longer-term interest in a multidisciplinary degree in sustainability. The idea was raised to create a required course that could be offered in many instructional areas that would serve as a broad introduction to

6 sustainability. Suggested titles included Responsible Citizenship or Environmental Sustainability. One suggested a public advocacy course “that specifically studies the rhetoric of these debates and fashions new ways to intervene in them.”

On the question of should sustainability be infused broadly into every academic discipline or emerge as a multidisciplinary field and stand on its own, 23% answered on the infusion side and 26% answered on the multidisciplinary side. Interesting that nearly half of respondents indicated both approaches are called for, perhaps suggesting that a holistic strategy to achieve both is necessary. For example, one faculty commented that the infusion approach “would seem to address actual societal changes over the decades as green thinking permeates more decision making at all levels.” She went on to advocate for a stand-alone credential also since “we should have a direct response to marketplace opportunities.” Less than 5% said neither of the above, with the only explanation that local employers do simply not validate it yet. One faculty concluded that, Let’s concentrate on what our original charter was: provide a talented workforce for our district. We need fewer non-productive tangents and strong technical education in order for the local economy to grow stronger. Instead of asking what we’re doing about green or sustainability education, why not ask employers what they want or need along those lines in our graduates.

Over 25% of respondents did not answer this question.

For those that favor the infusion model, a few noted it should be infused into every discipline, while others were more interested in only those programs where sustainability would give a student a competitive edge in their job search. One faculty noted that “the disciplines of environmental studies are a bit like economics; they permeate virtually every corner of human society.” On the flip side, another faculty who earned a conservation degree from UW noted that her experience leads her to believe that, “a multidisciplinary degree is a better approach than trying to force faculty to shove content into unrelated areas.” One unique hybrid idea tied sustainability credentials to service learning. “Such an approach might allow the College to educate students, allow them to earn a credential, and do some meaningful service of some sort in the community.” The comments on this question appear to be a difference, perhaps, in how the respondent defined sustainability.

In addition, all Madison College programming is linked to eight core abilities which, among others, include social engagement, global awareness, individual responsibility and critical thinking. While these core abilities are often connected to sustainable education outcomes, they are not specifically linked to sustainability education or global environmental challenges at Madison College. However, many faculty have obviously interpreted these core abilities with a green lens based on the survey results. Several faculty noted interest in using a core ability approach to infusing sustainable topics across the curriculum in a flexible way. However, since these core abilities are not mandated or measured on a system wide basis, some noted that it may not make a big impact.

7 One theme that emerged in the final open-ended question was that of competitive advantage and marketability of the College. One faculty noted “it is a topic that will attract more students in the future. If sustainability jobs aren’t out there now, they will be.” Another concluded “this could be a market differentiator for us as we have subject matter experts that teach using this in their own subjects and fields. Using sustainability allows us to wrap multidisciplinary programs together in a whole new way for marketing and packaging what we do.”

To further that idea, a recent meeting of the Sustainable Business Network focused on the topic of how to make an organization a magnet for green talent. Rebecca Ryan, the keynote speaker, shared research from over 3,000 organizations considered to be great places to work. She wove sustainability in a broad context into three of the primary six areas of excellence including trust, connection and life-work balance. She mentioned that there are two main market drivers to the growth in sustainability interest. One, customers are asking for it from organizations and two, employees are demanding that employers and future employers are committed to and engaged in sustainability initiatives. In essence, as the workforce of the future continues to shrink with the retirement of Baby Boomers, organizations should be investing in sustainability as a talent attractor. As more and more employers promote sustainability as a strategic value, the need for sustainability education will continue to rise.

In summary, there exists a wide and impressive array of sustainability-related courses and topics that cut across Schools. However, despite organizational attention and commitment to sustainability and environmental responsibility from a facilities point of view and obvious pockets of faculty and staff expertise and interest, no central organizing infrastructure exists at Madison College to oversee, build, deploy and promote sustainability education in a holistic manner. In addition, there is no clear data on the demand for green competencies by employers.

Recommendations Based on this survey, an analysis of existing offerings and the insights gained in this class, the following conclusions and recommendations are offered for Madison College as they move toward fulfilling a key District responsibility and opportunity in the area of sustainable education.

Develop a common definition of sustainability education for Madison College. One instructor noted that, “I think one of the challenges to broader implementation is coming up with a good definition of what sustainability means. It is a term that is used rather loosely.” Related to that, another commented, “Sustainability is overused to an extent. We need to first define it since it is more of a buzz word today. Once we have a workable definition, only then can we incorporate it into all academic disciplines.” Another noted that green is just a “fad” and soon we’ll move on to something else. Creating a common base of understanding of what sustainability means to our College and how to think about it in relation to individual instructional areas would be helpful. Then, individual programs can determine how and where to adapt curriculum.

8 Coordinated, strategic framework for sustainability education. There is, as noted above, a rich array of programming that either touches on or focuses on key sustainable topics. However, there is no coordinating body, no clear “owner” or organizer, and no central location for key employment or industry data. The multidisciplinary nature of sustainability education is difficult to coordinate across independent Schools. One idea offered was to form a Green Team comprised of expert and interested faculty to lead the development of a core credential based on what programming already exists. This team could also advocate for where new programming should be focused based on District employment data, demand and available transfer opportunities. A long term idea proposed was to move toward a Sustainability Center at Madison College, modeled in part after the Office of Sustainability at UW-Madison. In the least, the College needs to build institutional capacity for developing and overseeing multidisciplinary programming including but not limited to sustainability education.

Identify a funding mechanism to ‘green’ the curriculum. In a time of shrinking resource and rising accountability demands, it must be clear on why resources should be invested in sustainability education versus other priorities. Since sustainability is such a broad curricular focus, individual Schools would have to compete for curriculum funding for new development. It may make more sense to centralize the effort in some manner for efficiency in development.

Give marketing and promotion attention. A web search of Madison College course listings reveal an existing array of courses from a variety of Schools. Search words sustainable, green, LEED environmental, conservation were used for the search. Some of the findings correlate with what survey respondents reported, and some did not. In fact, some of the courses mentioned by faculty did not pop up in the course search. If I can’t find these courses on our own web site, imagine the difficulty of a prospective student or employer trying to determine what Madison College offers by way of sustainability. An immediate step should to coordinate the existing courses into our web architecture so they are more easily findable while further curricular development takes place.

Clarify transfer options. Many Associate degree courses for college transfer depend on transfer matches at four year schools. If no options exist there, it becomes less of a priority at a two-year school, especially if existing general education sustainability- related courses are electives for the occupational program requirements.

Collect and analyze data from district employers on green jobs and the need for sustainability competence. Occupational programs and technical skill focused degrees are built around industry needs and District employer demand. Until there is a clear mandate or demand from employers, many occupational programs will see no reason to infuse sustainability concepts into the curriculum. As one respondent noted, “if the market data supports a stand alone credential, then I think this would be an honorable endeavor.” Until we know “how it will enhance student employability and we see tangible demand within our District, then we should focus more on ethics and writing ability.” One faculty simply concluded that the College should only focus on “those credentials required by local employment community not ones thought up by people in

9 academia.” However, at a recent Sustainability Education and Economic Development (SEED) conference, it was offered that while there are very few jobs that can be labeled exclusively green, core skills related to green are on the rise. The growth in sustainability practices and energy management systems is an emerging factor that has created a need for highly skilled technicians who are technically capable and analytically superior. These are the very same employee characteristics that Madison College knows are needed by employers in every technical field. At any rate, graduate competencies must be spelled out more clearly and tied to course and program outcomes, then linked to employability and job opportunities, or any development of new courses will continue the hit or miss pattern.

Next steps Findings from this survey will be added to a broader context of national and State trends in sustainability education. In addition, a recent Advisory Board survey (1200 advisory board members/employers) and a consulting project currently in progress will all be combined and summarized for inclusion in Madison College’s emerging Academic Plan. The purpose of the Academic Plan is to guide the creation and evolution of a sound and innovative academic portfolio as it relates to the marketplace over the next five to ten years. Priority recommendations will then be made on Madison College’s next steps in building, offering and promoting an innovative and comprehensive portfolio of environmental, green and sustainable programming. This survey indicated that there is widespread faculty and administrative expertise in and support for sustainability education, however there are key questions that must be addressed before innovative programming is built or existing programming is pulled together into a credential.

Conclusion In closing, Saylan and Blumstein (2011) note that “effecting changes in behavior that have positive, significant impact on the environment will take much more than just curricula (p. 48).” However, without robust and meaningful curricula, we can be certain that higher education won’t be in a position to change behavior, let alone create a new understanding in students of the environmental problems we face. A base collection of what curricula and credentials exist at Madison College is the first step toward a “fully integrated into a 21st century educational package (Saylan and Blumstein, 2011, p. 174).” As the importance of and strategic need for innovative sustainability programming continues to grow, Madison College is well positioned to meet that need.

10 Resources consulted:

Association for Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) http://www.aashe.org

Johnston, Lucas F., ed. (2013). Higher Education for Sustainability: Cases, Challenges, and Opportunities from Across the Curriculum. New York: Routledge.

Madison Area Technical College, www.madisoncollege.edu.

Saylan, C. & Blumstein, D. (2011). The Failure of Environmental Education and How we Can Fix It. Los Angeles: University of California Press.

Sustain Dane/Business Sustainability Network. Rebecca Ryan speech at 4.24.13 meeting on the topic of Making Your Company a Green Talent Magnet. Madison, Wisconsin.

Wisconsin Technical College System Certification Guidelines, http://www.wtcsystem.edu/employment/certification.htm