Colleges and universities are quickly realizing that one of the best ways to attract students is to go green. The Princeton Review recently released its 2009 college rankings, and this year debuted a new category: the Green Rating Honor Roll. Schools were given a score from 60 to 99 based on 3 categories – whether students have a healthy and sustainable quality of life, how well the school is preparing students to work in a clean energy economy, and how environmentally responsible the school's policies are. Administrations are swiftly responding to the growing enthusiasm for green, and a campus’ carbon footprint is now becoming a deciding factor for students. Arizona State University, for one, will be offering degrees in sustainability in the fall. Presidents from over 550 schools such as Cornell and Ithaca are signing the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment, a pledge to make their schools carbon-neutral. Others, like Harvard and Dartmouth, are committing to significantly reduce Greenhouse Gases. But green officials and students worry that institutions are more focused on attracting students than on actually fulfilling their promise to the planet.
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Read this NSNS post about Harvard