First Bank and Trust Gift Creates New Space for Sustainability Students
Formerly the location of an earth science library and student lounge in USD’s Akeley-Lawrence Science Center, the Sustainability Solutions Space will allow undergraduate and graduate sustainability students to come together to do homework, work on class projects, gather for student organization meetings and meet to work on implementing sustainability projects.
According to Meghann Jarchow, Ph.D., associate professor and chair of the Department of Sustainability & Environment, sustainability majors participate in an average of 10 experiential learning activities related to sustainability before they graduate. These activities include internships, undergraduate research and community-based learning projects. Sustainability students also compete in national and international social innovation contests such as the EPA’s People, Prosperity and the Planet Student Design Competition and the international Hult Prize, which challenges teams to solve a pressing social problem with a for-profit start-up business.
“One of the strengths of the sustainability students is that they are highly engaged on campus, in the community and beyond,” Jarchow said. “Having well-designed and inviting physical spaces for people to meet—formally and informally—is important for building their capacity to engage. Thank you to First Bank & Trust for helping us to develop the Sustainability Solutions Space.”
First Bank & Trust’s Tom Schaack praised the program’s forward-looking approach to problem solving. “First Bank & Trust believes that this is a unique opportunity to participate in a university program that will be so vital to our future,” he said. “We are so proud that USD has the vision to bring, develop and grow sustainability here in South Dakota.”
