Improving the student employment program is the main goal for the UW-Whitewater’s Sustainability Office in 2019.

“We believe that a strong internship program that allows our students to explore and address particular sustainability problems by pursuing solutions through campus sustainability projects is a valuable opportunity to offer,” said UW-W Sustainability Coordinator Wesley Enterline. “Student employment is a High-Impact Practice for achieving student learning outcomes and will build valuable skills necessary for today’s knowledge-based economy.”

The focus for internships through the Sustainability Office is mainly on operational sustainability, which includes a large array of areas like energy/water, dining, grounds, transportation and waste.

“We have new intern positions dedicated to eat of these areas and my focus will be on supporting their work to meet goal four of the Strategic Plan. This can reduce our environmental footprint and save money for the university,” said Enterline.

This spring semester, current student interns will continue projects including waste/recycling improvements, re-launching the bike share and adding bike infrastructure, a tree inventory and planting program. Student interns will also connect with local K-12 schools on various programs.

“Students are integral to us reaching our goals. Our Assistant Coordinator and I cannot do all of these projects alone, so we need our interns to have this kind of broad impact,” said Enterline.

As UW-W undergoes changes, the Sustainability Office is consistently changing as well. Regardless of change, the Sustainability Office hopes to move from their current pace to focus on the establishment of better support materials for active projects and internships.

“Several of our interns are seniors, so we will most definitely be looking for new people next fall,” said Enterline.

As Sustainability Coordinator, Enterline hopes to make time to dive deeper into his work and get up earlier to support his overall health goals.

“My own professional goal this semester is to block off one day a week where I schedule no meetings and can focus on deeper work. Personally, my goal is to wake up at 5 a.m.. Everyday. I think this will be a keystone habit that will improve several areas of my life,” said Enterline.