The colleges that scored highest in the 2019 Sustainable Campus Index included 15 with full-time-equivalent enrollment of less than 5,000 and nine with full-time-equivalent enrollment of 20,000 or more in 2016-17. The index, published by the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education, recognizes top-performing colleges in 17 distinct aspects of sustainability and over all. A sampling of seven of those subcategories are included in the table below. The association’s report on the index highlights such environmental efforts as Luther College’s program to encourage faculty and staff members to learn about and eat healthful fruits and vegetables, and California State University at Northridge’s sustainably designed Sustainability Center.
Doctoral institutions
| Rank | Institution | Overall score | Curriculum | Research | Campus engagement | Public engagement | Buildings | Energy | Food and dining |
| 1. | Stanford U. | 88.0% | 95.5% | 94.4% | 97.6% | 94.3% | 46.6% | 73.7% | 45.9% |
| 2. | U. of California at Irvine | 86.8% | 94.1% | 100.0% | 91.6% | 90.0% | 63.3% | 44.9% | 37.3% |
| 3. | U. of New Hampshire | 86.0% | 96.5% | 100.0% | 96.4% | 92.9% | 47.9% | 69.7% | 30.9% |
| 4. | Colorado State U. at Fort Collins | 85.6% | 94.4% | 100.0% | 98.8% | 97.6% | 53.0% | 31.2% | 36.6% |
| 5. | U. of Connecticut | 84.4% | 89.2% | 100.0% | 98.8% | 95.6% | 45.5% | 36.4% | 70.6% |
| 6. | U. of California at Merced | 83.8% | 88.8% | 100.0% | 91.7% | 84.8% | 64.6% | 53.4% | 34.3% |
| 7. | Laval U. (Quebec) | 82.5% | 84.3% | 100.0% | 93.7% | 80.3% | 40.6% | 38.2% | 25.0% |
| 8. | Arizona State U. | 82.1% | 83.8% | 99.6% | 98.8% | 94.2% | 43.6% | 62.6% | 34.9% |
| 9. | State U. of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry | 81.7% | 95.0% | 100.0% | 74.8% | 96.2% | 28.8% | 50.8% | 38.9% |
| 10. | U. of Calgary (Alberta) | 80.4% | 89.4% | 100.0% | 97.6% | 91.5% | 50.1% | 32.0% | 31.9% |
| | Average score for 158 participating doctoral institutions | 61.5% | 62.2% | 78.0% | 71.8% | 66.8% | 35.5% | 35.2% | 28.5% |
Master’s institutions
| Rank | Institution | Overall score | Curriculum | Research | Campus engagement | Public engagement | Buildings | Energy | Food and dining |
| 1. | Thompson Rivers U. (British Columbia) | 88.3% | 94.3% | 88.9% | 99.3% | 91.4% | 40.0% | 83.5% | 36.9% |
| 2. | Chatham U. | 81.3% | 92.7% | 87.1% | 95.9% | 79.0% | 62.5% | 51.6% | 48.1% |
| 3. | Santa Clara U. | 76.2% | 88.3% | 94.4% | 92.9% | 85.0% | 30.1% | 55.2% | 37.6% |
| 4. | Seattle U. | 75.6% | 97.2% | 79.6% | 71.0% | 93.8% | 56.3% | 36.7% | 25.0% |
| 5. | California State U. at Northridge | 74.3% | 80.2% | 94.4% | 86.0% | 45.0% | 54.3% | 59.3% | 40.8% |
| 6. | U. of Colorado at Colorado Springs | 74.3% | 80.1% | 88.5% | 66.4% | 84.4% | 56.3% | 66.4% | 29.1% |
| 7. | California State U. at Chico | 73.4% | 90.7% | 71.9% | 77.0% | 72.6% | 34.9% | 31.6% | 50.3% |
| 8. | Bentley U. | 72.6% | 75.8% | 88.6% | 89.7% | 75.9% | 12.5% | 50.3% | 14.3% |
| 9. | California State U. at Sacramento | 72.2% | 79.2% | 88.9% | 100.0% | 68.7% | 59.4% | 21.5% | 16.9% |
| 10. | Florida Gulf Coast U. | 72.1% | 93.2% | 99.3% | 94.0% | 78.4% | 36.0% | 52.2% | 26.4% |
| | Average score for 78 participating master’s institutions | 55.2% | 58.2% | 63.3% | 68.3% | 56.7% | 32.8% | 33.7% | 27.3% |
Baccalaureate institutions
| Rank | Institution | Overall score | Curriculum | Research | Campus engagement | Public engagement | Buildings | Energy | Food and dining |
| 1. | Colby College | 83.2% | 89.9% | 85.2% | 98.8% | 94.3% | 50.5% | 62.2% | 48.1% |
| 2. | Dickinson College | 81.4% | 94.1% | 100.0% | 98.8% | 89.3% | 48.1% | 56.6% | 31.4% |
| 3. | Sterling College | 78.3% | 94.6% | 93.8% | 92.9% | 89.8% | 10.8% | 62.9% | 87.3% |
| 4. | Middlebury College | 77.6% | 74.5% | 93.8% | 75.0% | 84.7% | 35.1% | 41.7% | 29.7% |
| 5. | College of the Atlantic | 73.3% | 95.0% | 88.9% | 78.6% | 67.8% | 33.4% | 65.3% | 52.1% |
| 6. | Oberlin College | 73.1% | 65.9% | 66.9% | 85.0% | 85.0% | 55.4% | 54.5% | 51.9% |
| 7. | U. of Minnesota at Morris | 73.0% | 83.2% | 94.7% | 91.7% | 78.9% | 56.3% | 38.7% | 20.4% |
| 8. | Colgate U. | 72.2% | 75.4% | 77.8% | 80.1% | 83.1% | 42.9% | 46.4% | 52.0% |
| 9. | Luther College | 72.2% | 91.9% | 88.9% | 83.3% | 64.3% | 28.5% | 43.4% | 34.3% |
| 10. | Furman U. | 71.7% | 89.1% | 100.0% | 86.3% | 78.8% | 28.1% | 59.0% | 42.8% |
| | Average score for 78 participating baccalaureate institutions | 57.4% | 60.5% | 71.5% | 68.6% | 64.7% | 26.6% | 40.1% | 31.1% |
Associate institutions
| Rank | Institution | Overall score | Curriculum | Research | Campus engagement | Public engagement | Buildings | Energy | Food and dining |
| 1. | Nova Scotia Community College | 73.2% | 79.3% | 75.0% | 86.6% | 76.2% | 62.3% | 39.5% | 15.6% |
| 2. | Mohawk College (Ontario) | 68.0% | 70.1% | 83.3% | 84.5% | 73.2% | 33.1% | 27.5% | 59.0% |
| 3. | Portland Community College (Ore.) | 62.0% | 56.1% | — | 91.7% | 43.4% | 55.3% | 57.2% | 25.0% |
| 4. | North Seattle College | 60.0% | 61.9% | — | 71.4% | 50.7% | 43.8% | 40.0% | 18.8% |
| 5. | Fleming College (Ontario) | 56.2% | 77.0% | — | 57.1% | 72.2% | 6.3% | 33.7% | 27.3% |
| 6. | Delta College (Mich.) | 54.9% | 37.3% | — | 78.6% | 60.7% | 40.0% | 32.1% | 20.6% |
| 7. | College of Lake County (Ill.) | 52.2% | 69.4% | — | 63.6% | 61.6% | 38.5% | 30.8% | 25.0% |
| 8. | Western Technical College (Wis.) | 52.1% | 49.8% | — | 47.3% | 58.4% | 52.5% | 52.1% | 20.6% |
| 9. | Niagara College Canada (Ontario) | 50.5% | 59.1% | 71.8% | 85.0% | 40.9% | 0.0% | 8.5% | 0.0% |
| 10. | Johnson County Community College (Kan.) | 49.0% | 58.5% | 27.8% | 67.4% | 50.9% | 38.5% | 44.9% | 23.5% |
| | Average score for 25 participating associate institutions | 46.8% | 47.8% | 58.1% | 53.6% | 48.1% | 31.1% | 32.1% | 15.7% |
| | Average scores for 297 U.S. institutions | 57.7% | 59.6% | 71.0% | 68.4% | 62.9% | 32.9% | 36.1% | 27.7% |
Note: Institutions’ performance was measured by the association’s Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System, known as Stars. The 339 colleges and universities considered for the rankings submitted a valid Stars Version 2.1 or 2.0 report between March 2, 2016, and March 1, 2019. Only the most recent reports were considered for institutions that submitted multiple reports during that period. Of the 339 institutions, 297 were in the United States, 35 in Canada, and seven in other countries. The percentages for selected subcategories like curriculum and campus engagement are based on the number of points earned versus the number available in that subcategory. Overall scores were rounded, but institutions were ranked before rounding. Not all 297 U.S. institutions were measured in each subcategory; colleges without dining facilities, for instance, could opt out of “food and dining.” A dash indicates that an institution was not measured in a particular nonapplicable subcategory. Institutions that are no longer in operation are not included on the list. A full report on the rankings can be found here. Questions or comments on the Chronicle List should be sent to Ruth Hammond.
Source: 2019 Sustainable Campus Index, Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education