Last week, the Sustainable Endowment Institute announced Mississippi State University improved a letter grade from an overall score of  C+ to B on its college sustainability report card for 2011.
Susan Paykin, director of communications for the institute, said the institute evaluates more than 300 colleges and universities in the United States and Canada based on their sustainability.
Each university is evaluated in nine categories, including climate change and energy, green building, student involvement, investment priorities, food and recycling and endowment transparency. Paykin said the nine grades are equally weighted when averaged to create an overall score for each university.
MSU improved its grade from C+ to a B from the 2010 to 2011 grading year, partly because of the addition of a full-time director of sustainability. Paykin said by adding a full time staff member to address issues of environmental sustainability, MSU is showing its willingness to embrace long-term programs regarding energy efficiency.
MSU also scored an A in the category of climate change and energy because of a decrease in greenhouse gas emissions on campus and more efficient energy management systems in many buildings.
However, Paykin said there is still room for improvement, especially in the category of green building. MSU did not change in this category from 2010-2011 and received a C both years. She said her department is looking to see if MSU is committed to energy efficiency in building, especially as the university expands.
MSU also scored a grade of C in the student involvement on the most recent report card. Paykin said the institute would like to see a greater inclusion of student body groups in terms of sustainability issues.
Samantha Powell, freshman biological engineering major, said she does not see much recycling on campus.
“We could do a better job of asking students to recycle and reuse. You don’t see many signs about this on campus,” Powell said.
Paul Minor, director of environmental affairs for the MSU Student Association, said he also thinks MSU can improve in its sustainability efforts. He said the environmental affairs branch of the SA is several years old and is growing in its presence and activities on campus.
Minor said one of the top priorities for environmental affairs is to increase student awareness, especially for Earth Week, which takes place in the spring. He said many students currently do not realize the presence of sustainability and recycling opportunities.
“We want to make the student body aware of the presence of recycling on campus,” he said of the collection bins in Colvard Student Union, library and the dumpsters for commingled recyclables all across campus.
Minor said environmental affairs has played a role in the use of Bully Bikes on campus to help cut down on vehicle traffic.
Another issue he said he wants to address is the trash in The Junction after home football games. He said this reflects poorly on MSU, especially when the university may get national attention after a home victory. Minor said alumni have brought this issue to the attention of the Student Association, and he agrees the beloved spot for tailgating and pre-game activities needs to be cared for better. He said he wants to explore different options for post-game cleanup.
Minor said with the popularity of going green today, he believes students can and will become more involved in making MSU a greener university.