Commit-to-Change Program

Educating Tomorrow’s Leaders

Educating students to meet future challenges imposed by climate change and to imagine sustainable solutions will require new approaches to education that include:

1. Attracting students who will serve as peer role models through scholarships, and recruiting a diverse pool of excellent students who need financial assistance;
2. Endowing students with strong skills in applied research, interdisciplinary collaboration, systems thinking, and a global perspective on environmental issues;
3. Engaging students in real-world professional experience through a thriving internship program that includes opportunities to make a real contribution to sustainable development; and
4. Rewarding students who contribute significantly to improving the state of the world.

To model excellence in sustainability in higher education with a commitment to change, we propose to launch the following:

Commit-to-Change Scholarship Program
Each year, to attract incoming students from diverse backgrounds with a passion for social and environmental change, we will offer one-time $5,000 tuition offsets to five high school students who already have a demonstrated commitment to civic engagement in these areas. Students would be required to live in the Sustainably Conscious Living Community their first year ($75,000)

Commit-to-Change Internship and Research Fund
To engage students in applied projects on campus and in the community, we will establish a fund for research supplies and materials, student and faculty stipends, and travel to conferences to deliver presentations on successful projects. On campus, these funds will be targeted for projects related to climate neutrality (exploring alternative transportation, renewable energy, energy efficiency, sustainable campus operations, and reforestation), forest protection, ecological conservation, and sustainable enterprises. In the community, these funds will target work with our established partners (including EcoVillage at Ithaca, Institute for Sustainable Agriculture, New Roots Charter School, Tompkins County Solid Waste, the City of Ithaca, Tompkins County Planning, Sustainable Tompkins, Tompkins Renewable Energy Education Alliance, Cayuga Nature Center, the History Center, Finger Lakes Permaculture Institute, the Ithaca Nature Awareness School, and others). ($75,000)

Commit-to-Change Fellowship Program
To recognize and reward students engaged in exemplary environmental or sustainability projects while in college, we will offer 5-7 small annual awards ($500) and one larger tuition-offset award ($3,000) per year. ($20,000)

Commit-to-Change Global Perspectives Program
To enhance the global awareness of our students, we will increase access to meaningful international experiences. The primary goal of this program will be to support the International Environmental Policy course. This course assembles a team of 20 students and two faculty/staff members to participate in the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, by producing and delivering an exhibit on Ithaca College’s Climate Neutrality Program, and a special educational session on the progress of colleges and universities as microcosms of society addressing climate change. (Ithaca College was the only institution of higher learning from around the world to have such a display at the 2007 UNFCCC in Bali, Indonesia.) Additional goals of this program include supporting travel scholarships to increase access to international experiences for students of diverse backgrounds, and the expansion of the Office of International Programs Global Footprint Project. ($85,000)

Commit-to-Change Scholar-In-Residence Program
To provide students and faculty with diverse perspectives and ongoing inspiration to act on behalf of the environment, we propose to bring in a series of exceptional speakers for 2-day to 2-week visits. While a distinguished speaker series is often very effective, our intent is to extend the opportunity for the college community and the Scholar in Residence to work together. We envision bringing in Goldman Prize winners and other high-profile, supremely accomplished agents of change to share their expertise and insights with not only our campus community, but the regional sustainable development community, including Cornell University, and the interested public. ($75,000)

Ecosystem Awareness, Health, and Productivity Program
To enhance our development of innovative courses and exemplary land stewardship practices as part of institutional commitment to change, we will develop a program that uses Ithaca College Natural Lands (500 acres) as the focal resource for education, research and experimentation. This effort will enable students to gain intimate knowledge of the ecosystems in which we live, identify signs of ecosystem stress and approaches to rejuvenation, and how to sustainably maximize ecosystem services for human use without degradation of the ecosystem itself. Program includes outreach to local K-12 schools through our existing Partnership in Teaching Program, summer internships for students, with support for faculty supervision and land management expertise. ($55,000)

New Sustainability Major and Minor
To meet the changing needs of our students as we further develop a broad curriculum that unites the environmental, economic, social, and health aspects of sustainability through advanced systems thinking and interdisciplinary training, we propose creating a new major and minor in Sustainability. According to the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE), only two institutions currently offer an undergraduate major degree in Sustainability (Arizona State University and Maharishi University of Management) and seven colleges to offer minors. However, as yet, no private liberal arts or comprehensive college provides this complete curriculum. With our past focus on infusing sustainability in the curricula across schools and majors, this is a natural next step for Ithaca College. Implementation of the new program will require development of 2-4 new courses and initial administrative input. ($20,000)