National sustainability organization ranks University of Richmond as top performer, highlighted for diversity and affordability

The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) has recognized the University of Richmond as a top performer.

UR ranked fifth in the area of Diversity and Affordability in the 2016 Sustainable Campus Index, an AASHE publication that highlights top-performing colleges and universities in 17 areas and overall by institution type. The rankings are based on the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment and Rating System (STARS).

UR achieved top performer status for a high score in the Diversity and Affordability subcategory in STARS, a self-reporting framework for universities to measure their sustainability performance. UR’s STARS report is publicly available.

The university earned high marks for providing programs to support low-income and non-traditional students. Such programs include Pathways, where staff and faculty provide intensive advising to first-generation, low-income students, and Richmond in Reach, UR’s need-based aid program that strives to meet 100 percent of demonstrated need.

“The work that the University of Richmond is doing around diversity and affordability is essential to bringing voices to the sustainability conversation that had been absent in the past,” said Rob Andrejewski, director of sustainability.

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