Courtesy of NACDA
The National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA) and USG Corporation (NYSE: USG) have announced The Ohio State University (OSU) as the winner of the sixth annual USG NACDA Sustainability Award. Ohio State received the award for its work on The Schumaker Complex.
Pending fall competition schedules, the Sustainability Award will be presented to Ohio State at an on-campus event later this year.
“We’re honored to receive this award, as it is a great testament to the hard work of many in our department,” said Gene Smith, Senior Vice President and Wolfe Foundation Endowed Athletics Director at Ohio State. “The process of creating and maintaining sustainability processes for The Schumaker Complex, Covelli Center and Jennings Wrestling Facility were truly a team effort. We also know that moving forward, continuing to find ways to keep the facilities on the forefront of sustainability will be critically important.”
As the winner, Ohio State will receive $40,000 in USG product. The Sustainability Award was designed to recognize NACDA member institutions across all divisions, honoring athletics directors and their universities for incorporating sustainable practices and materials into their athletics facilities. A six-person committee consisting of athletics directors across the country and representatives from USG and NACDA aided in selecting Ohio State as this year’s award winner.
“We are extremely excited to award the sixth annual USG NACDA Sustainability Award to The Ohio State University. The Schumaker Complex, Covelli Center and Jennings Wrestling Facility are a representation of the cutting edge sustainability practices being adopted across the entire OSU campus,” said USG Senior Manager, Corporate Accounts Joshua Powell. “USG is immensely proud to support the sustainability efforts of colleges and universities around the country and we look forward to continuing our engagement in supporting their sustainable practices and goals.”
“Ohio State has produced some of the most impressive facilities in college athletics, and for The Schumaker Complex to have as positive an impact from a sustainability standpoint as a student-athlete experience standpoint is an accomplishment worth recognizing,” said NACDA Chief Executive Officer Bob Vecchione. “NACDA is proud to continue its partnership with USG to highlight the new standard of sustainability in our industry.”
In 2015, Ohio State President Michael Drake approved the Ohio State Sustainability Goals. The integration of sustainability into the performative goals and leadership structure of Ohio State athletics can be seen in the development of the new Athletics District. As a part of Phase 1 of the Athletics District, the facilities completed were The Schumaker Complex, a 125,00-square-foot wellness facility; The Covelli Center, a 3,700 seat arena; and the Jennings Wrestling Facility, a 20,000-square-foot practice facility for Ohio State wrestling. The Schumaker Complex has achieved LEED Gold and the combined Covelli Center and Jennings Wrestling Facility will soon be confirmed LEED Silver.
Initially, the Covelli Center and the Jennings Wrestling Facility were going to be separate buildings, but after considering the cost savings, resource savings and maintenance efficiency that a combined building would provide, the structures were combined. The low flow fixtures in place at the Covelli Center are estimated to save 130,000 gallons of water annually. The Schumaker Complex’s use of natural lighting and energy conservation measures are reducing estimated annual energy consumption by over 23 percent. Both facilities include smart energy metering devices that will allow Ohio State to track the event and building total energy consumption as Ohio State strives to be carbon neutral by 2050. The Athletics District includes bicycle parking, electric vehicle charging stations (at The Schumaker Complex), City of Columbus and Ohio State bus stops, and walking access from central campus.
In addition, at Ohio State, the buildings are only a piece of the whole story. The emphasis at OSU is “The People, The Tradition, The Excellence”, and the athletics staff and student-athletes are living this motto every day. More than 800 student-athletes use spaces such as the shared dining, study and social spaces in The Schumaker Complex. Student-athletes from fencing, rowing, cross-country, men’s and women’s gymnastics, cheer, and others are working to initiate and expand sustainability initiatives of their teams and events. Men’s and women’s gymnastics student-athletes hosted their second annual Zero Waste Meets at the Covelli Center this year, where the aim was to divert 90 percent of waste from those competitions away from the landfill.
Athletics maintenance and the OSU Golf Course staff are maintaining native plants and incorporating electric landscaping tools into their operations. Building staff at The Schumaker Complex and Covelli Center and Jennings Wrestling Facility are utilizing Green Seal certified cleaning chemicals (85 percent of products are certified), expanding waste diversion opportunities, and utilizing the energy conservation measures as they were designed with the buildings.
The Athletics District has allowed the Ohio State department of athletics to continue the legacy of excellence by providing a centralized and more socially and environmentally responsible infrastructure for student-athletes to meet their full potential and to inspire Buckeye fans, along with all campus visitors, to live more sustainable lives.
About USG: USG Corporation is an industry-leading manufacturer of building products and innovative solutions. Headquartered in Chicago, USG serves construction markets around the world through its United States Gypsum Company and USG Interiors, LLCsubsidiaries and its international subsidiaries, including its USG Boral Building Products joint venture. Its wall, ceiling, flooring, sheathing and roofing products provide the solutions that enable customers to build the outstanding spaces where people live, work and play. Its USG Boral Building Products joint venture is a leading plasterboard and ceilings producer across Asia, Australasia and the Middle East. For additional information, visit www.usg.com.
About NACDA: NACDA, now in its 55th year, is the professional and educational Association for more than 15,700 college athletics administrators at more than 1,700 institutions throughout the United States, Canada and Mexico. More than 6,500 athletics administrators annually attend NACDA & Affiliates Convention Week. Additionally, NACDA manages 17 professional associations and three foundations. For more information on NACDA, visit www.nacda.com