SU Sustainability Rating (STARS)

The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education's (AASHE) Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System(STARS) is a reporting tool for colleges and universities to assess and measure their overall sustainability performance. Because the framework shares a similar intent and scope as the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, at a very high level an institution’s STARS score or rating can be used to demonstrate progress towards helping deliver the SDGs.

In February 2016, Seattle University submitted its first STARS report and achieved a GOLD rating (with a score of 69.41) from the rigorous benchmarking program. In March 2018, SU's second STARS report resulted in an improved score of 75.64. With the third report in May 2021, SU again obtained a GOLD rating and an increased score of 79.39VIEW SU's STARS REPORT HERE.

For the past three years SeattleU landed in the Top 20 in Sierra's "Cool Schools." The rankings highlight schools that displayed a deep and thorough commitment to protecting the environment, addressing climate issues and encouraging environmental responsibility. The schools were ranked based largely on their existing STARS scores.

Seattle University is also one of 30 colleges and universities out of 416 schools to be named to the Princeton Review’s 2021 Green Honor Roll. This is the second time SU makes it to the top of the list on the Princeton Review's green ratings.

AASHE recognized SU as a top performer in its annual Sustainable Campus Index: In 2020, SU scored #3 in overall performance among Master's institutions, #4 for curriculum, and #8 for public engagement.

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