Sustainable Cleaning Programs on Campus

Across the country, colleges and universities have instituted green cleaning programs for the health of their campus environments as well as the people who study, work and teach in their facilities. Here is a small sampling of initiatives in place.

Cornell University
Ithaca, NY
Cornell University’s Department of Building Care works to ensure that the facilities on campus are maintained using the safest and most sustainable “Green Seal Certified” cleaning products. The university also makes sure to train all employees on the ideal usage of green cleaning products to ensure their ideal use.

Harper College
Palatine, IL
As part of its commitment to the Climate Leadership Commitments (formerly the American College and University Presidents’ Climate Commitment), Harper College has undertaken steps to clean sustainably using aqueous ozone technology.

The University of Tennessee Knoxville
Knoxville, TN
The University of Tennessee (UT) is dedicated to a clean, safe and accessible study and work environment. In order to achieve these things, UT has a Green Cleaning Program. The program began in 2006 when the university became the first in the nation to be Green Seal Cleaning Certified.

Oberlin College
Oberlin, OH
Oberlin College is a leader in the higher education green cleaning movement, dedicated to reducing the environmental impact made. The Facilities Management Department works closely with vendors to ensure that the products used on Oberlin’s campus are on the cutting edge of sustainability.

Massachusetts Maritime Academy
Buzzards Bay, MA
The Massachusetts Maritime Academy (MMA) indicates that in order to build and maintain a sustainable building, it has adopted the MMA Green Cleaning Practices. This program is being piloted campus-wide. The green cleaning practices include the use of green cleaning chemicals, employing cleaning processes that benefit public health and the environment and purchasing environmentally preferable janitorial products.

This article originally appeared in the issue of .

Featured

  • South Texas K–12 District Debuts Region’s First Electric Bus Fleet

    The Valley View Independent School District in Pharr, Texas, recently announced a partnership with Highland Electric Fleets to launch the district’s—and the region’s—first fleet of all-electric school buses, according to a news release.

  • KI Launches K–12 Classroom Furniture Giveaway

    Contract furniture company KI recently announced the launch of its fourth-annual Classroom Furniture Giveaway, which awards $50,000 each to four K–12 educators across the U.S., according to a news release. The goal is to address decreasing student engagement and increasing teacher burnout numbers by updating learning spaces to accommodate modern needs.

  • University of Kentucky Receives $150M Gift Toward New Arts District

    The University of Kentucky’s Board of Trustees recently received a $150-million gift from The Bill Gatton Foundation, according to a university news release, to build a new arts district on the campus in Lexington, Ky. The new district will feature a new College of Fine Arts building and a multi-hundred-seat theater, among other amenities.

  • UCNJ Launches $30M Modernization of Physical Education Center

    The Union College of Union County (UCNJ) in Cranford, N.J., recently broke ground on a new $30-million modernization project for its Physical Education Center (PECK), according to a news release. The college partnered with DIGroup Architecture for the project’s design, transitioning the existing 42,000-square-foot structure into a campus hub for student athletics and campus life.

Digital Edition