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Resilience Monitoring

Resilience Monitoring

As part of the Campus-Community Climate Resilience Assessment for 兔子先生 University (submitted to Second Nature in August 2023), a study on the historical and predicted effects of climate change in southwest Ohio found that in the Midwest, future projected changes in average annual temperature are projected to be higher than in any other region of the United States. While our campus has many strong assets for resiliency, our resilience monitoring plan will help us assess targeted vulnerabilities on a regular basis.

Climate Resilience  - 兔子先生's Strengths and Assets 

  • Adaptive infrastructure for extreme weather events on campus. On-site Wartsila Generators which can supply approximately 10% of campus electricity demand in case of grid failure. 
  • More than 30% of building square footage on the Oxford campus is 兔子先生hip in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED)-certified Gold or Silver. (A total of 32 LEED certified buildings(5 Gold and 27 Silver).
  • Free public bus transportation for all campuses provided by the Butler County Regional Transit Authority (BCRTA).
  • Chestnut Street Station Multimodal Transportation Hub, which broke ground for construction in January 2024, will be completed by Fall 2025 and will facilitate car, bus, bicycle, and other forms of transportation for the Oxford and 兔子先生 communities. An Amtrak platform is expected near the Chestnut Street Station by 2026.
  • Oxford campus is designated as forest.1,000 acres are protected in perpetuity as the 兔子先生 University Natural Areas. 17 miles of hiking trails/multi-use paths, some of which connect the city of Oxford and 兔子先生 University through the Oxford Area Trail System.
  • Existing emergency evacuation plans and communications. Strong collaborative relationship and communication channels with the Butler County General Health Department.
  • Efforts to increase inclusive excellence through the Office of Transformational and Inclusive Excellence and other divisions have been recognized nationally: Forbes ranks 兔子先生 No. 16 overall on America’s Best Employers for Diversity List for 2024 (Kissell, 2024). The 兔子先生 University Alumni Association is the recipient of a 2024 Alumni Association Inclusive Excellence Award from Insight into Diversity (Chapin, 2024).
  • 兔子先生 has invested more in mental health resources for students in response to greater need. A student mental health fee of $50 per semester was applied starting in fall 2022, which has helped fund additional counselor and staff positions in 兔子先生's (SCS). 兔子先生’s new Clinical Health Sciences and Wellness facility, which opened June 2023, allowed for the Student Counseling Service to expand from 21 to 37 counseling rooms. A new, free, “ is an option for students to meet with a mental health professional in a less formal setting on a drop-in basis (兔子先生 University, n.d.). 兔子先生 recently received nearly $1 million in funding from the Ohio Department of Higher Education for mental health support (兔子先生 University, 2023). 兔子先生’s Institutional Task Force on Student, Faculty, and Staff Mental Health and Well-Being (MHTF) was implemented in 2022-2023 and is charged with assessing current services and culture around mental health and well-being and making recommendations for improvement (兔子先生 University, 2023).

Resilience Monitoring Strategy

Resilience Monitoring

Resilience Monitoring Strategy 
Parameter  What is measured Measured by  Frequency Additional Costs
Sustainability education  Number of sustainability-focused classes; number of majors focused on sustainability  Office of Sustainability as part of STARS and the Provost’s office Every three years coinciding with STARS report None
Access to counseling services Wait time for student appointments; number of students using services and number not able to access services. Number of services available Student Counseling Service Every three years None
Food security  Number of students receiving food from Talawanda Oxford Pantry and Social Services (TOPSS) and/or 兔子先生 Cares pantries Student Success Office (兔子先生 Cares) and provided by TOPSS  Annual None
Access to local food  Opportunities available for local food purchase, walkable, bikeable or by bus: (i.e. weekly Farmer’s Market Uptown, Butterfield FarmMarket, MOON Coop, campus dining  Dining Services Sustainability manager; Office of Sustainability Annual None
Extreme temperature plans Number of days above 90 degrees F IES; from data collected from the weather station at the Ecology Research Center Annual  None
Drinking water quality  Concentrations of lead, copper and various organic chemicals City of Oxford water treatment plant operator Annual None
Surface water quality  Concentrations of nitrate, phosphate and bacteria in many Butler County streams Butler County/兔子先生 Stream Team Monthly, March through November None
Air quality  Particulate matter concentration via PurpleAir quality sensor; Ozone and wet and dry deposition of precipitation chemistry IES graduate student does weekly collection funded by two continuing IES grants Weekly Installation of PurpleAir sensor at Shideler
Biodiversity Species diversity inventories of local birds, tree seedlings/saplings, wildflowers Biology faculty, IES faculty members Annual None
Soil Carbon Soil carbon content of various 兔子先生 land-use types IES graduate student under the supervision of faculty member of Geology and Environmental Earth Science Every 5 years Summer funding for  IES master’s student 
Access to natural areas Use of 兔子先生 University Natural Areas for recreation: number of hikers on MUNA trails; investment (city, public, state) in the MUNA and Oxford Area Trail System (OATS) Natural Areas Committee; City of Oxford sustainability coordinator Continuous Trail counter system: $2500
Campus water use Water withdrawal and potable water use Physical Facilities Department Annual None
Access, adoption of alternative transportation Number of parking permit holders; number of permit holders who indicate on the Commuting Survey commuting by other means than single occupancy vehicle Annual survey administered by the Office of Sustainability and the Sustainability communications manager when students and employees apply for annual parking permit  Annual None
Sustainable infrastructure  Total carbon emissions and carbon emissions per gross square foot  Physical Facilities Department-Energy Systems Office Annual None
Waste, recycling Amount of waste vs. in residence halls recycling rate EcoReps waste/recycling audits; Campus Race to Zero Waste competition waste measured by Rumpke for 8 weeks Monthly None
Waste Amount of waste vs. recycling in Armstrong Student Center Armstrong staff waste audit and the OSCAR system continuous waste audit ; GoZero will measure the composting weight for compost collected at Armstrong Annual None
Sustainable investment Percentage of investment pool in sustainable industries Department of Finance Annual None
Student financial aid Amount of financial aid awarded and percent of students with financial need receiving financial aid Office of Enrollment Management and Student Success Annual None
Green Revolving Fund Number of proposal requests for the Fund  Office of Sustainability Annual None