YSU gets a ‘D’ in environmental rating

YOUNGSTOWN — Youngstown State University rated only a D on its College Sustainability Report Card, according to a national organization looking at college and university use of natural resources.

Sustainability is the use of resources to meet current needs, yet preserving the ability of future generations to tap those resources to meet their needs as well.

The Sustainable Endowments Institute, a nonprofit group located in Cambridge, Mass., rates colleges and universities with endowments of $150 million or more, putting out a report card on how carefully those institutions of higher learning address the issue of sustainability.

It’s the only independent evaluation in campus operations and endowment investments, said Mark Orlowski, executive director, noting that his group had 290 of 300 schools respond to at least one of the three Report Card surveys.

“Many are taking pride in greener campuses and sustainability-savvy investments,” he said.

An A- was the highest grade achieved, and only 15 schools reached that mark. The average for all schools was a C+.

The only state schools reaching the top mark were the University of Colorado, the University of New Hampshire, the University of Vermont and the University of Washington.

YSU questioned its report card grade.

“We’re not sure what they used to determine the grade,” said spokesman Ron Cole.

For the complete story, see Tuesday’s Vindicator and Vindy.com.