John F. Kennedy University Will Be Green Top to Bottom

“Making intelligent use of sustainable building practices in the design and construction of our new campus will allow us to create a better environment in which to work and study, impact the Bay Area in a significant way by setting the example for environmentally sensitive buildings, and represent a model for whole campus construction projects worldwide,” said Charles Glasser in his President’s Green Message.

John F. Kennedy University is preparing to be the first university in the U.S. to construct an entire campus using green principles, in both its buildings and academic curriculum. Working with architects Lynn Simon and the firm, Hornberger & Worstell, the university intends to meet the requirements for the highest LEED rating at its new 5-acre campus in Concord, California. Green building technologies and materials will be used to site and design the campus, its buildings and furnishings. The campus site is in downtown Concord, next to the city’s rapid transit station. The goal is for construction to begin in early 2002 and for the campus to open early in 2003; a campaign to raise capital is in progress.

President Glasser made the decision after meeting with 30 peers at the President’s Meeting at Oberlin College. Thomas Kean, Drew University president and former governor of New Jersey challenged his peers to address the sustainability challenges facing society. This was the first time since the historic 1990 Talloires Declaration of University Leaders for a Sustainable Future that higher education leaders came together on these issues. The JFKU Board of Regents approved a resolution to integrate the principles of sustainability into the new campus in Concord.
[sorry this link is no longer available]