Allegheny College Featured in “The Princeton Review’s Guide to 353 Green Colleges: 2015 Edition”

April 22, 2015 – Allegheny College is one of the 353 most environmentally responsible colleges in the nation according to the Princeton Review. The education services company features Allegheny once again in the annual edition of its free downloadable book, “The Princeton Review Guide to 353 Green Colleges.” The profiles in the guide provide information about each school’s admission requirements, cost and financial aid, and student body, as well as “Green Facts.”

The Princeton Review chose the schools for this sixth annual edition of its “green guide” based on data from the company’s 2014 survey of hundreds of four-year colleges concerning the schools’ commitments to the environment and sustainability.

“We strive daily to assess our progress, set new goals and take tangible steps to improve our sustainability in ways that integrate environmental sustainability into our institutional operations, policies, curriculum and campus culture,” said Kelly Boulton, the college’s sustainability coordinator. “We’re pleased the Princeton Review has recognized this commitment in each of its six editions of the Guide to Green Colleges.”

The guide recognizes Allegheny’s long-term leadership in campus sustainability: “As a charter signatory of ACUPCC [the American College & University Presidents’ Climate Commitment] with a climate neutrality goal of 2020 and a participant in the White House’s Better Buildings Challenge to increase building efficiencies by at least 20 percent across campus, Allegheny College is determined not just to participate in the green movement, but to lead.”

Despite ambitious goals, Allegheny College has already achieved a 71 percent reduction in annual greenhouse gas emissions and an 11 percent average increase in building efficiency.

The guide goes on to note that “Allegheny also wants to ensure that its students’ dedication to the environment and sustainability issues doesn’t end after graduation; each year the college invites recruiters from green companies and organizations and alums working in sustainability to hold informational presentations for recruiting purposes.”

The free 218-page guide can be downloaded at www.princetonreview.com/green-guide.

Allegheny’s inclusion in the Green Colleges guide follows on the heels of another ranking. In March the college’s Department of Environmental Science/Studies was ranked No. 2 in the country, according to EnvironmentalScience.org, a website dedicated to environmental science education and careers.

Factors considered in the ranking were location, environmental practices, faculty, study abroad opportunities, teaching methods, program breadth, degree levels offered and research.