Texas Tech University

College Sustainability Report Card 2010

The facilities and physical plant departments address sustainability issues at Texas Tech. The university has no known policies or initiatives relating to campus-wide sustainability.

The university has an energy conservation plan that began in 2005. The plan includes lighting retrofits, monthly energy audits, and air handler upgrades.

The university offers discounts to customers who bring reusable mugs and bottles. Dining services offers some fair trade coffee options.

The university has one building, the Rawls College of Business, that meets LEED certification criteria. The university has no known green building policy.

The student government at Texas Tech purchased new bike racks in 2009 to promote environmentally friendly transportation on campus. Students have also established a U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) student chapter, which has over 80 members. The group promotes green building and other sustainability initiatives through educational workshops. The group helped organize TTU’s Arbor Day, which committed to recycling all waste produced at the event. The USGBC chapter also helped organize the first Spring into Green, a community event focused on sustainability. In spring 2009, students organized an open forum entitled Green Campus Action Plan to highlight the need for sustainability throughout the university.

The university offers a bike-sharing program through the Outdoor Pursuits Center.

Proxy voting records and a list of endowment holdings are made available to the public, as per open record law. This information is available at the investment office or similar office on campus.

The university aims to optimize investment return and is currently invested in community development loan funds or similar financial institutions.

The university does not have the ability to vote proxies, as the entire endowment is invested in mutual funds or other commingled funds.