College of the Atlantic students are involved in many experiential learning pursuits - in the classroom, on the water, and on the college's two working farms, above. The integration of sustainability into the curriculum is one of the factors that led the Princeton Review to name COA the <a href="https://az589735.vo.msecnd.net/pdf/greenguide2016.pdf" target="_blank">#1 Green College of 2016</a>.College of the Atlantic students are involved in many experiential learning pursuits - in the classroom, on the water, and on the college's two working farms, above. The integration of sustainability into the curriculum is one of the factors that led the Princeton Review to name COA the #1 Green College of 2016.

Among COA’s many green distinctions cited by Princeton Review: The school became the first carbon-neutral college in 2007; COA owns and stewards 300 acres of forest and farmland, which provide research and educational opportunities for students and faculty; and the college’s hands-on curriculum involves students in implementing COA’s commitment to become a fossil fuel-free campus by 2050—already COA classes have participated in energy audits and have researched, sited, and installed solar photovoltaic arrays on campus.

“This ranking reflects COA’s near half-century commitment to the environment and the depth with which we imbed the environment in our curriculum,” said College of the Atlantic president Darron Collins ’92.

The Princeton Review chose the schools for this seventh-annual edition of its “green guide” based on data from the company’s 2015-16 survey of hundreds of four-year colleges concerning the schools’ commitments to the environment and sustainability.

College of the Atlantic students in the “Trees and Shrubs of Mount Desert Island” course exam...College of the Atlantic students in the “Trees and Shrubs of Mount Desert Island” course examine the flora of nearby Acadia National Park.“We strongly recommend College of the Atlantic and the other fine colleges in this guide to the many environmentally-minded students who seek to study and live at green colleges,” said The Princeton Review’s Robert Franek, Senior VP-Publisher.

Franek noted the growing interest the company has seen among college-bound students in green colleges. “Among more than 10,000 teens and parents who participated in our 2016 College Hopes & Worries Survey, 61% told us that having information about a school’s commitment to the environment would influence their decision to apply to or attend the college.”

The profiles in The Princeton Review’s Guide to 361 Green Colleges, of which the Top 50 Green Colleges is included, provide information about each school’s admission requirements, cost and financial aid, and student body stats. They also include “Green Facts” about the schools with details on the availability of transportation alternatives at the schools and the percentage of the school food budgets spent on local/organic food.

The Princeton Review cites COA’s real food efforts, within which at least 30 percent of the food budget is spent on local or organic food, 51 percent waste diversion rate, and sustainability-focused degree as some of the other reasons for the school’s outstanding performance.

“If you want to understand what this ranking means, just look at the waste audit tent we had set up on campus this fall,” president Collins said. “It’s a great example of a student-designed, interdisciplinary, project-based initiative that drives the long term sustainability of the institution while emphasizing student learning. It’s all about getting real and intellectual dirt under your fingernails.”
College of the Atlantic is the most environmentally responsible college in the USA, according to the Princeton Review's <a href="https://az589735.vo.msecnd.net/pdf/greenguide2016.pdf" target="_blank">2016 Top 50 Green Colleges Guide.</a>College of the Atlantic is the most environmentally responsible college in the USA, according to the Princeton Review's 2016 Top 50 Green Colleges Guide.

How Schools Were Chosen for the Guide

The Princeton Review chose the colleges based on “Green Rating” scores (from 60 to 99) that the company tallied in summer 2016 for 640 colleges using data from its 2015-16 survey of school administrators. The Review developed the ranking list using data from its institutional survey for its Green Rating and its surveys of students attending the colleges. Ten data points from the institutional survey were factored into the assessment. Data from the student survey included student ratings of how sustainability issues influenced their education and life on campus; adminis­tration and student support for environmental awareness and conservation efforts; and the visibility and impact of student environmental groups.

About COA

Founded in 1969, College of the Atlantic was the first college in the U.S. to focus on the relationship between humans and the environment. In 2016, the Sierra Club and Princeton Review both named College of the Atlantic the #1 Green College in the United States. The intentionally small school of 350 students and 35 faculty members offers a Bachelor of Arts degree in human ecology – the study of how humans interact with our natural, social and technological environments. Each student develops their own course of study in human ecology, working across multiple disciplines, collaborating, innovating, and thinking far outside the box.

About The Princeton Review

The Princeton Review is a leading test preparation, tutoring, and college admission services company. Every year, it helps millions of college- and graduate school-bound students achieve their education and career goals through online and in person courses delivered by a network of more than 4,000 teachers and tutors and its more than 150 print and digital books published by Penguin Random House.