Foothill-De Anza Community College District 2006 Campus Sustainability Achievement Award Application
Category
Community college or other two-year institutions
Contact
Marisa Spatafore
Director, District Communications
Foothill-De Anza Community College District
Los Altos Hills, CA
(650) 949-6107
spataforemarisa@fhda.edu
Governance & Administration
The publicly elected board of trustees of the Foothill-De Anza Community College District is fullycommitted to sustainability, as evidenced in its official board policy on “Environmental, Health,Safety and Energy Management.” The policy was first adopted in 1999 and revised in 2005, and readsin part:
…[T]he Board of Trustees is committed to efficient energy management. TheDistrict’s operational and planning decisions, to the extent practical given financialconsiderations, will provide for (1) the design, renovation, and construction of allbuildings to meet or exceed state standards in energy efficiency and the prudent use ofnatural gas and electricity; (2) the prevention or minimization of energy-related pollutionand wastes; 3) an emphasis on water conservation; and (4) continuous improvement inthe District’s energy management performance. (Board Policy 3214)
The board’s policy is executed by top administrative staff, including the chancellor, the presidents of Foothill College and De Anza College and the vice chancellor of business services, thereby creating a culture of commitment to sustainability. The executive director of facilities, operations and construction management, with the support of the board and the foregoing administrators, demonstrated extraordinary initiative in achieving the sustainability successes detailed in the response to question number two below. Other key staff positions include the director of environmental health and safety and the unique role played by the executive director of the Kirsch Center for Environmental Studies, detailed in the response to question number 3.
The district’s clear commitment to sustainability is underscored by the concept’s prominent inclusion in the district’s vision, mission and values statement (“The Foothill-De Anza Community College District commits itself to serving our students, our local communities, and the people of the state of California, and considers the following values as cornerstones of our mission:…promotingenvironmental sustainability”), a significant element of the district’s Educational Master Plan 2005-2015.
The district is a member of Sustainable Silicon Valley, a collaboration of business, government andnon-governmental organizations working to identify and address regional environmental issues.Foothill-De Anza also maintains membership on the Environmental and Energy committees of theSilicon Valley Leadership Group (SVLG), a prominent regional organization engaged in cooperativeefforts with local, regional, state, and federal government officials to address major public policyissues affecting the economic health and quality of life in Silicon Valley.
De Anza has established a College Environmental Advisory Group (CEAG), which is currentlyworking to implement an environmental management system (EMS) through InternationalOrganization for Standardization (ISO) 14001, which, insofar as the college has been able todetermine, would represent the first such action among community colleges nationwide.
Operations
The Foothill-De Anza Community College District last year completed the installation of more than780 kilowatts of solar electric and energy-efficient cogeneration projects at both Foothill and DeAnza colleges, including eight 60-kilowatt micro turbines (four at each campus) that produceelectricity plus heat recovery systems that heat each campus pool efficiently, and solar photovoltaic-paneledparking structures (with the panels at De Anza College’s Stelling Parking Structure trackingthe sun). The panels provide shade and together generate 301 kilowatts of electricity.
The projects reduce the district’s operating costs while lowering demand for power from the localutility, translating to avoided local carbon dioxide emissions of more than 14 million poundsannually. Along with prior improvements to lighting, air conditioning and energy managementsystems in 100 buildings, the installations will reduce the district’s electricity purchases by 46percent—more than 11 million kilowatt-hours annually—and save the district about $800,000 a year.
The $5.1 million total cost of the projects was offset by almost $2 million in incentives from the stateof California and public utilities: $240,000 each for cogeneration at Foothill and De Anza, as well as$1,017,000 for De Anza’s photovoltaic parking structure and $492,750 for Foothill’s. The district alsoreceived approximately $30,000 for photovoltaics on the Kirsch Center for Environmental Studiesbuilding and $12,000 for Foothill boiler replacement. The LEED-certified Kirsch Center, ScienceBuilding and Student and Community Services Building, all at De Anza, qualified for Pacific Gas andElectric’s (PG&E) “Savings by Design” program. In addition, the district participated in a demandreduction plan centralizing control of HVAC systems. The California Energy Commission providedmore than $250,000 in funding. Another such program is in progress, garnering $2,000 per day whenin effect.
In 2003—despite the district having added more than 196,000 square feet of new building—electricity usage dropped to the 1993 level. According to PG&E, the district will save more than $2million in energy costs over a 10-year period, as well as almost 1.3 million gallons of cooling towerwater.
The repair, replacement and upgrading of electrical and mechanical systems and the additionalinstallation of solar panels to reduce energy consumption is planned to be achieved with funds fromthe district’s $491 million facilities and construction bond (Measure C) approved by voters in June.
Curriculum & Research
Foothill-De Anza aims to be a model for educational institutions nationwide. The Kirsch Center forEnvironmental Studies (a LEED-certified building, as noted above), which opened at De Anza in2005, teaches about sustainability, including showcasing passive solar design, energy efficiency andrenewable energy technologies as a fundamental objective of educating students and the community.It includes a Statewide Energy Management (SEMP) Program promoting energy efficiency in statefacilities and uses the entire building as a demonstration laboratory, among its unique features. Thebuilding was made possible by a generous $2 million grant by community members Steve andMichele Kirsch through their Kirsch Foundation, the vision for which is “…a healthy world, onewithout disease and without pollution of our air, water and land, and one in which all species have the ability to survive and flourish.”
The Kirsch Center is overseen by Executive Director Pat Cornely, whose unique position involvesteaching about the building’s resources and proper function and helping faculty, staff, students andthe public learn about sustainable practices by leading tours of the Kirsch Center. She communicatesand coordinates extensively with agencies and organizations such as the U.S. Green Building Council(USGBC), California Energy Commission, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Environmental ProtectionAgency (U.S. EPA and Cal EPA), California Native Plant Society (CNPS), Sierra Club and others.Cornely holds a certificate of completing in energy management.
The Morgan Family Foundation, which “focuses its giving on youth, education, the environment andstewardship,” has endowed a chair in Environmental Studies at De Anza College, a position currentlyheld by biological scientist Julie Phillips, whose broad experience includes wildlife management andtropical studies as well as sustainable building and energy efficiency. Her passion for the environment and her understanding of the relationship between energy use and biodiversity has been honored with grants from the California Energy Commission and PG&E.
Phillips, in collaboration with other staff members, De Anza’s then-president and now districtChancellor Martha Kanter and key lawmakers, was instrumental in securing successful legislation toencourage energy efficient buildings within the California Community Colleges system. Thelegislation is contained in Sections 81620-81624 of the California Education Code and includes thefollowing direct reference:
In consultation with the [California Energy] commission, the Board of Governors of theCalifornia Community Colleges shall further develop and refine certain guidelines for a StatewideEnergy Management Program that have been established under an ongoing joint effort of thecommission and DeAnza College [sic; emphasis added]. This statewide effort shall allowcommunity college districts to achieve energy independence through the development of energymanagement plans, the construction of sustainable green buildings, the use of renewable or otherdistributed energy systems, and the expansion of statewide energy education programs andservices. [California Education Code 81622 (b)]
Community Service and Outreach
In order to inform and educate, Foothill-De Anza in summer 2005 sponsored a well-attendedcommunity event showcasing De Anza’s photovoltaic parking structure and the district’s energyefficiency innovations, widely covered by regional media, including television, as well as numerousonline and trade publications.
As noted above, Foothill-De Anza has established numerous partnerships with industry, such asPG&E and Chevron, and government, including the California Energy Commission, as well asestablishing affiliations with Sustainable Silicon Valley and the Silicon Valley Leadership Group.
As part of its mission, the Kirsch Center, “through an interdisciplinary approach, partner[s]withindustry, government, utilities and other academic institutions.” Upcoming public events at the KirschCenter include the Northern California Solar Homes Tour and Build It Green annual event on Oct. 1and the Solar Power 2006 Conference on Oct. 20. At both events, De Anza College EnvironmentalStudies students will lead tours of the Kirsch Center for attendees and the public. Through explainingthe energy efficiency aspects and wise use of materials, students have a much deeper appreciation ofsustainability concepts and are able to enhance their presentation skills.
In 2005, Foothill-De Anza received an honorable mention in the area of energy efficiency from FlexYour Power, a partnership of California’s utilities, residents, businesses, institutions, governmentagencies and nonprofit organizations.
