Campus Sustainability Graduate Student Intern

JOB TITLE:Campus Sustainability Graduate Student Intern 

LOCATION: St. Paul Campus 

PAYRATE: $20.00 per Hour 

JOB SUMMARY: 

The Office of Sustainability Initiatives seeks a Graduate Student to join our Student  

Sustainability Leadership Program (SSLP) to serve as a student leader throughout the 2024-25 academic year. The position will begin September 2024. SSLP is designed to prepare the next generation of sustainability leaders by providing hands-on experiencewith sustainabilityoutreach and peer education. 

The graduate intern will work to assess, implement and promote sustainability-focused projects, events, and initiatives at the University of St. Thomas. The intern will help to advance the University's "Live and Work Sustainably" strategic priority by conducting educational outreach and fostering active engagement of students, faculty, and staff in sustainability initiatives. The graduate intern will specifically support outreach and peer education to fellow Graduate Students and other programs (e.g. DFC) on the Minneapolis campus. The intern will collaborate with university staff and underGraduate Student leaders to implement and promote sustainability-focused projects,events,and initiativesat the University of St. Thomas. The program will focus on Campus Sustainability in several areas such as waste reduction, energy conservation, carbon neutrality, and multi-modal (walking, biking, busing, etc.) transportation. To prepare student leaders for these tasks, SSLP will provide some training and materials throughout the semester on topics surrounding Campus Sustainability and student leadership. 

The Office of Sustainability Initiatives will identify project priorities for the semester, which may include the following types of activities: sustainability assessments, developing and piloting new initiatives, multi-week competitions/challenges, creating educational materials, outreach campaigns, and hosting one- or two-hour events. Examples of projects from the 2023-24 school year include developing and hosting the Minneapolis Campus Sustainability tour, hosting events for Campus Sustainability Month, conducting education and outreach on waste reduction, etc. 

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS: 

• Organize and facilitate events, projects, and campaigns to promote sustainable behaviors on campus. These projects may address topics including, but not limited to: 
• Food waste education 
• Multi-modal transportation education and promotion
• Waste reduction and sorting 
• Sustainable living in the residence halls 
• Sustainable dining 
• Campus Sustainability Month 

• Sustainability Week 
• Clean energy options 
• Investigate, propose, and implement peer education opportunities to promote Graduate Student engagement in, and awareness of, sustainability initiatives. 
• Support creation of signage, posters, and guides to promote Campus Sustainability and use them to conduct educational outreach. 
• Proactively and regularly communicate and collaborate with diverse groups of students about sustainability events on campus and actions they can take in their own lives.
• Explore and advance collaboration opportunities with student clubs, organizations, and university departments.
• Attend all SSLP training sessions and meetings, approximately twice per week.
• Track and record metrics from events, initiatives, and outreach to quantify the impact of SSLP's efforts.
• Document activities completed, reflections, and lessons learned.
• Complete all work in the SSLP office located in Anderson Student Center on the St. Paul campus during weekly scheduled office hours. Students should plan to fully dedicate their office hours to SSLP work.

Preferred Skills: 

• Skills, knowledge, and behaviors related to sustainability 
• Hands-on experience facilitating projects and/or events 
• Outreach and communication 
• Leadership, teamwork, and project management 
• Data collection and impact assessment 
• Developing relationships and networks with students, faculty, and staff 

Qualifications: 

• Cumulative GPA of 3.0 or higher 
• Availability to commit to an average of 10 work hours per week throughout theacademic year 
• Demonstrated interest in and knowledge of sustainability and environmental topics 
• Strong ability to communicate and engage with students across diverse backgrounds and interests 
• Experience with leadership, teamwork, project management,outreach, and peer education 
• Willingness to take initiative and proactively seek guidance 
• Dependable, self-motivated, excellent attention to detail, and able to start events on time 
• Available to attendteam meetingsat least oncea week 
• Adeptness with digital communication tools such as social media 
• Familiarity with the university's sustainability strategic plan 
• Familiarity with sustainability peer education best practices 
• Familiarity with sustainability resources and programs at St. Thomas 
• Experience or coursework in at least one of the following areas: oral and written communication, engineering, environmental studies, environmental science, entrepreneurship, event planning, leadership, student affairs, marketing, sustainability 

Due to the nature of this job, preference will be given to candidates who can commit to prioritizing this work above other non-academic obligations.This position seeks candidates who can commit to workingfor the entire duration of the academic year. 

Qualified candidates are encouraged to apply by April 19. We will begin reviewing applications on April 19, but the job posting will remain open until all positions are filled. 

The University provides reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities who require and request accommodations in order to perform the essential functions of the job.

The University of St. Thomas is an Equal Opportunity Employer, including disability and protected veteran status.