Kristy Howell | Master of Arts in Social Responsibility & Sustainable Communities

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Kristy Howell, SRSC 2013
Sustainability Education and Engagement Coordinator, Overland Park, KS

Thanks to my completion of the SRSC MA, I’ve joined the Center for Sustainability at Johnson County Community College in Overland Park, Kansas. As Education and Engagement Coordinator, I work to support two student groups, assist faculty as they develop sustainability-related curriculum, and support national webinars for other community college sustainability leaders.  As an advisor to the Student Sustainability Committee, I support administration of the Sustainability Initiatives Fund and advise a group of 13 students who are active in campus improvements, supporting new technology, and bringing student-designed projects to fruition.  The Student Environmental Alliance is more like a traditional club – with fun campus projects (bike blended smoothies, solar roasted marshmallows) and service opportunities. As a Center, we offer mini-grants to faculty in support of curriculum development, include discussion of our waste diversion and energy management programs in new employee orientations, and also work with students to promote undergraduate research in sustainability.  Our student project—an examination of student understanding of sustainable practices on campus—was selected for inclusion in a sustainability-related exchange program with students in St. Petersburg, Russia in May, 2014.  I’ll be able to travel with our team to present their research and learn more about education for sustainability with our Russian cohort and their faculty. 

Working at JCCC is, quite literally, my dream job; it’s the job I hoped for when I began the SRSC MA in its first cohort.  In part because I’m supporting students and faculty who are working to advance sustainable practices on campus and in the classroom, I find myself discussing work from the program or using information from our coursework at least once or twice a week.  I couldn’t have asked for a better fit for my background, my interests, or my knowledge, as honed by study at WKU.