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“We are grateful to McGregor Fund for this wonderful endorsement of the work being done at Baldwin-Wallace College,” said B-W President Dick Durst. “Over the past few years, we have made substantial, incremental efforts to both understand and to reduce our environmental footprint. As we have worked to further our commitment, through the offering of Ohio’s first undergraduate major in sustainability as well as through other programs, we aim to become regionally and nationally recognized as being a collegiate leader in sustainability.
“Through the generous support of the MGregor Fund, we believe Baldwin-Wallace College can present a model program other schools can draw upon as more institutions begin to look at sustainability as being a requisite component of a liberal arts education.”
Funds to Benefit B-W Students
The grant, which was awarded to B-W in May, will be used to
fund:
•student internships in sustainability with nonprofit and
governmental organizations.
•faculty development for enhanced and new course development
for the Sustainability major and minor.
•the creation of an Institute for Sustainable Business
Practice (offered through the Division of Business
Administration).
B-W secured the grant via a highly competitive process.
According to the McGregor Fund, the grant program aims to support
institutions of higher education by:
•recognizing and encouraging excellence in private liberal
arts education, and
•supporting projects or activities that will have a
significant positive impact on the quality of the liberal arts
education provided by the institution.
B-W Makes Sustainability a Key Area of Interest
Sustainability initiatives at B-W are ongoing and range from the
College having the first geo-thermal heated and cooled residence
hall in the state of Ohio to the formation of a campus-wide
sustainability committee comprised of administrators, faculty and
students who coordinate and implement “green” practices
across campus. Recent efforts have included:
•More than 40% reduction in campus paper consumption.
•Installation of a composter that takes almost all campus
food service-generated food waste out of the waste stream.
•Installation of energy conservation technologies to reduce
electricity consumption.
•Use of biodegradable disposables in the area of food
services.
•Enhanced recycling system that has increased recycling
content by at least 500% in the last two years.
•Commitment to high performance, green building design in all
future college building projects.
•Experimentation with conversion of used kitchen grease for
the production of bio-diesel fuel for campus vehicles.
•Adoption of "green" cleaning products for all campus
buildings.
Most recently, B-W spearheaded sustainability efforts in the area
of higher education by offering Ohio’s first undergraduate
major in sustainability–an interdisciplinary major that
includes study in the natural sciences, humanities and business
administration. This blending of courses provides B-W
students with a distinctive education in which they can become
flexible, literate problem-solvers who can create real change for
the pre-eminent social issue of the 21st century–the
environment.
McGregor Fund Promotes Well-being of Mankind
The McGregor Fund is a private foundation organized "to relieve the
misfortunes and promote the well-being of mankind." It was
established by a $5,000 deed of gift from Tracy W. McGregor in
1925, and later augmented to nearly $10 million through subsequent
gifts from Mr. McGregor and his wife, Katherine Whitney McGregor.
Through their generosity, the fund has provided grants to relieve
misfortune and promote well-being in the following program areas:
human services, education, health care, arts and culture, and
public benefit.
Sustainability is Growing Area of Academic Studies
For more information about B-W’s sustainability major/minor
as well as other campus sustainability initiatives, contact Dr.
Sabina Thomas, associate professor of biology and geology, at (440)
826-2268 or via email at sfthomas@bw.edu or Dr. David Krueger,
professor of business administration, at (440) 826-5923 or via
e-mail at dkrueger@bw.edu. In addition to serving as project
manager for the grant, Dr. Krueger is co-director of B-W’s
sustainability program and is holder of the Charles E. Spahr Chair
in Managerial and Corporate Ethics.
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