In April both The University of Memphis and Rhodes College were listed in The Princeton Review’s Guide to 268 Green Colleges. As a U of M student who not only studies in Memphis, but also works and lives part time in the city, I am proud to be part of the movement that these two important pieces of Memphis culture have taken to become recognized in the ever-growing and ever-present Green movement.

The importance of being green is now becoming a factor in students choosing which college they would like to attend. Senior Vice President and Publisher of The Princeton Review, Robert Franek, told Rhodes College in an interview that sustainability and enviornmental responsibility has become important in college recruiting.

“Our research has shown that students and their parents are becoming more and more interested in learning about and attending universities and colleges that practice, teach and support environmental responsibility,” said Franek. “We created this guide to help them evaluate how institutions focus on environmental responsibility so they can make informed decisions as they move through the college assessment and application process.

Both schools have taken great steps towards a greener future for their campuses and the Memphis area.

Rhodes accomplishments have included: creating an Environmental Planning Cooperative to create and maintain a collaboration of environmental stewardship on campus, participating in the Green Power Switch Program, Tennessee Pollution Prevention Partnership, and American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment. In addition, students have conducted environmental audits and research projects on sustainability, and they run a campus bike program and participate each year in the nationwide Recyclemania.

Initiatives at the U of M include:  an increase in the amount and types of materials recycled and addition of a new collection truck; creation of an urban community garden on campus that produces organically grown fruits, vegetables, and herbs; purchase of its first hybrid police patrol vehicle; development and design by Department of Architecture students of a sustainable demonstration house in Memphis’ Uptown neighborhood; construction of a new student residence complex opening in the fall that will be the first and most sustainable public building in Tennessee, meeting LEED Silver standards in sustainability and green design;  installation of a new Physical Plant computer-driven pumping system that is expected to save the University more than $400,000 a year; installation of upgraded lighting; and the placement of more than 1,200 plants in the Administration Building to improve air quality.

Most recently The University of Memphis took another step in its path to “greendom” with a very special thanks to the Fogleman family.  The Foglemans recently gave the U of M $2 million to make the school a world leader in sustainable real estate. The money will be used to fill the Martha and Robert Fogleman Family Chair of Excellence in Sustainable Real Estate and will fund an annual forum that will bring together “thought leaders” on real estate practices friendly to the enviornment.

The green accomplishments of both schools makes me so proud to live in this area and to show the rest of America that we go blue, we go gray,  but most importantly we are going green.

Read the review for yourself or to see the list of schools  here.

Education, Green Memphis