Johnson County Community College (JCCC) has earned a STARS 2025 Gold Rating in recognition of its sustainability achievements from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE). JCCC currently has the highest score (67.78) of all community colleges in the United States and the fifth highest score among community colleges internationally.
STARS, the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System, measures and encourages sustainability in all aspects of higher education. With more than 1,200 participants in 52 countries, AASHE’s STARS program is the most widely recognized framework in the world for publicly reporting comprehensive information related to a college or university’s sustainability performance. JCCC’s full report is available on the STARS website.
“This achievement reflects the strong culture of sustainability support at JCCC,” said Rachael Rost-Allen, JCCC’s Sustainability Education and Engagement Coordinator. “Staff and faculty from departments across campus are integral to JCCC’s sustainability success. Our students directly benefit from these collaborations, which aim to provide hope and inspire students to integrate sustainability into their future careers.”
A timeline of JCCC’s sustainability commitment
JCCC’s Center for Sustainability has been working toward a STARS Gold Rating for over a decade. JCCC first received a Bronze Rating in 2014 and earned Silver Ratings in 2017 and 2022.
In 2008, JCCC committed to the American College & University Presidents’ Climate Commitment (ACUPCC). The ACUPCC’s mission is to accelerate progress towards climate neutrality and sustainability by empowering the higher education sector to educate students, create solutions, and provide leadership-by-example for the rest of society.
In addition to the STARS Gold Rating, JCCC’s other two original sustainability goals after committing to the ACUPCC were to engage students with sustainability in curricula on- and off-campus and become a zero-waste-to-landfill campus, and a 100% renewable energy campus by 2050.
Under the leadership of Executive Director Dr. Jay Antle, a team of six employees, and numerous student interns, the Center for Sustainability has grown the College’s sustainability programs to meet these sustainability goals.
Score improvements
One of JCCC’s most improved scores to achieve the Gold Rating was in the curriculum category. It was one of JCCC’s highest on the 2025 STARS Report – 35.32/37.00. Today, sustainability is integrated into the curriculum for every academic division at JCCC. As of the 2025 STARS Report, JCCC offers 61 sustainability-focused courses each year and 214 sustainability-inclusive courses each academic year. These course offerings range from construction methods to managerial accounting.
Another score improvement that elevated JCCC from Silver to Gold was the increased amount of renewable energy used on campus. Despite adding more buildings and square footage to campus since the 2008 pledge, JCCC has still had a significant decrease in energy usage. Some of the practices and changes the College made included:
- Shifted overnight cleaning to evenings to reduce electrical loads
- Performed a campus wide study that evaluated and led to new control systems and upgrades to air handling and chilling
- Added occupancy sensors across campus buildings and converted lighting to LED
Alongside these energy reduction initiatives, JCCC has installed 2.5 megawatts of solar panels on rooftops. Currently, 97% of the electricity generated at JCCC comes from renewable energy sources. By reducing the amount of energy used and switching the rest to renewable sources, the College has avoided over $12 million in purchased energy costs since 2008.
“This Gold rating validates the totality of the work we’ve done at JCCC beyond just avoiding over $12 million in energy costs,” said Dr. Jay Antle. “The JCCC campus is now a learning lab for students who can see real-world solutions to sustainability problems everywhere they turn.”
Learn more
Individuals and groups of community members can request campus sustainability tours of JCCC’s Open Petal Farm, the recycling center, the compost center, the five LEED-certified buildings on JCCC’s campus, and sustainable student art on campus. Learn more at jccc.edu/sustainability.
To learn more about the STARS program, visit stars.aashe.org. For more information about AASHE, visit www.aashe.org.
