Ohio Wesleyan Featured in Princeton Review’s ‘Guide to 322 Green Colleges’
(Image courtesy of The Princeton Review)
DELAWARE, Ohio – Ohio Wesleyan University is one of the 322 most environmentally responsible colleges in the United States and Canada, according to The Princeton Review’s new “Guide to 322 Green Colleges.”
The Princeton Review chose schools for its fourth annual green guide based on a 50-question survey conducted in 2012 at hundreds of four-year colleges. The company then analyzed the resulting data about the schools’ course offerings, campus infrastructure, activities, and career preparation to measure overall commitment to the environment and to sustainability. The free downloadable guidebook is available at www.princetonreview.com/green-guide or www.centerforgreenschools.org/greenguide.
According to the guide, “OWU is taking its environmental mission seriously.” And it deems “impressive” Ohio Wesleyan’s LEED® Silver Certified Meek Aquatics and Recreation Center, which opened in 2010. The natatorium uses a geothermal heating-and-cooling system that features a “whopping 90 geothermal wells, reaching down to a depth of 240 feet, [which] help to moderate the facility’s temperature.”
Since the survey was completed, Ohio Wesleyan also has received LEED Silver Certification for Stuyvesant Hall, its oldest residential facility. The building underwent a complete renovation in 2011-2012 and now incorporates energy-efficient heating, cooling, and lighting systems as well as environmentally friendly building materials. Before work began, plans for the building were certified by the Ohio Historic Preservation Office and the National Park Service as meeting the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation.
Robert Franek, senior vice president/publisher, The Princeton Review, said, “We are truly pleased to recommend Ohio Wesleyan along with all of the fine schools in this book to the many students seeking colleges that practice and promote environmentally-responsible choices and practices.”
Franek said recent survey findings indicate significant interest among college applicants in attending “green” schools. “Among 9,955 college applicants who participated in our 2013 ‘College Hopes & Worries Survey,’ ” he said, “62 percent said having information about a school’s commitment to the environment would influence their decision to apply to or attend the school.”
The Princeton Review created its “Guide to 322 Green Colleges” in partnership with the Center for Green Schools at the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC), with support from United Technologies Corp., founding sponsor of the Center for Green Schools.
Rachel Gutter, director of the Center for Green Schools at USGBC, said: “Selecting a four-year college is a big choice. When we learned that the majority of prospective college students factor a school’s commitment to sustainability into their selection criteria, we wanted to ensure we were providing the best information. We’re thrilled to team up with The Princeton Review for the fourth year to offer a guide to help make our future college students’ choices a little easier.”
Learn more about the new “Guide to 322 Green Colleges,” including how schools were chosen for inclusion. at www.princetonreview.com/green.aspx. Learn more about Ohio Wesleyan’s commitment to environmental issues.
Founded in 1842, Ohio Wesleyan University is one of the nation’s premier small, private universities. Ohio Wesleyan offers more than 90 undergraduate majors, sequences, and courses of study, and 23 NCAA Division III varsity sports. OWU combines an internationally focused curriculum with off-campus learning and leadership opportunities that connect classroom theory with real-world practice. Located in Delaware, Ohio, OWU’s 1,850 students represent 41 states and 45 countries. The university is featured in the book “Colleges That Change Lives,” listed on the 2013 President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll with Distinction, and included on the “best colleges” lists of U.S. News & World Report and The Princeton Review. Learn more at www.owu.edu.