Sustainability Coordinator, AAS

This program is not accepting new students for the 2025-26 academic year.
Please contact 
academic advising for alternative options.

The purpose of this program is to prepare students for careers as sustainability professionals in resource management, corporate social responsibility, environmental protection, recycling, pollution prevention and energy, water or waste reduction analysis. Graduates may work for public agencies, school districts, colleges or universities, non-governmental organizations, nonprofit organizations, private businesses or corporations.

90 credits

Program Contacts

Cost

Estimated Cost: $ 18,210

  • Resident Tuition: $ 13,050
  • Technology Fees: $ 1,260
  • General Student Fees: $ 900
  • Online Course Fee: $ 0
  • Books / Course Materials: $ 3,000 (Some courses use Open Educational Resources (OER), which are free or low-cost materials.)

Costs provided are estimates only, and may differ depending on course type and/or modality. Learn more and view current tuition and fee information.

Program Learning Outcomes

Students who complete this program will be able to:

PLO 1 - Demonstrate holistic understanding of interdisciplinary subjects related to sustainability including physical and biological sciences, social and behavioral sciences, economics, the regulatory environment, and business management

PLO 2 - Develop policies that support the triple bottom line of sustainability: healthy economy, healthy environment, and healthy communities

PLO 3 - Obtain information from public and research libraries, online sources, and regional, national, and international networks

PLO 4 - Demonstrate skills in data collection and analysis, statistical analysis, and basic mathematics

PLO 5 - Perform environmental audits, perform laboratory and field tests, conduct and coordinate research, and prepare written reports for internal and external stakeholders

PLO 6 - Demonstrate understanding of the causes and the ecological, social, and economic costs of challenges to sustainability including pollution, climate change, loss of biodiversity, water quality and supply, and human health

PLO 7 - Apply practical and technical strategies to objectives including pollution prevention, climate change reduction, energy conservation and use of alternative energy, efficient resource use, waste reduction and recycling, LEED and other green building tools, water conservation, stormwater and wastewater management, indoor air quality, transportation, closed loop production and life cycle analysis

PLO 8 - Articulate verbal and written understanding of laws and regulations related to sustainable environment, business and community

PLO 9 - Develop and implement action plans based on best practices; coordinate project management goals and tasks

PLO 10 - Conduct public relations and social marketing efforts; develop educational materials; and create community networks and resources to support sustainability practices in business and community

PLO 11 - Demonstrate the ability to organize events, meetings, workshops, conferences and fundraising

PLO 12 - Utilize collaborative team skills in the design and implementation of sustainable practices

Program Requirements

All courses in a program require default grading (completed with a letter grade of C- or better, or Pass) unless specified otherwise below.

General Education

Course NumberCourse TitleCredits
WR 121Z/WR 121HZComposition 1

4

COMM 265Environmental Communication

4

MTH 098Math Literacy

5

Human Relations - choose one course from list

3-4

COMM 265: See Footnote 1.

MTH: See Footnote 2.

List of accepted Human Relations Courses

Program Core Courses

Course NumberCourse TitleCredits
BI 103Ecosystems

4

BT 120MS WORD for Business

4

BA 169ZData Analysis Using Microsoft Excel

4

CH 170Introduction to Environmental Chemistry

4

COOP 206Co-op Ed: Internship Seminar

2

CST 201Sustainable Building Practices

3

DRF 211Sustainable Building Systems

4

ENSC 182/ENSC 182HAtmospheric Environment and Climate Change

4

HE 255Global Health and Sustainability

4

IDS 280SCo-op Ed: Sustainability Coordinator

3-12

PS 297/PS 297HEnvironmental Politics

4

COOP 206: must complete at least 2 credits

IDS 280S: must complete at least 3 credits

BI 103: See Footnote 3.

CH 170: See Footnote 4.

Environmental Science

Complete one of the following:

Course NumberCourse TitleCredits
ENSC 181Terrestrial Environment

4

GS 106Earth, Sea, Sky

4

SOIL 205Introduction to Soil Science

4

Complete one of the following:

Course NumberCourse TitleCredits
ENSC 183/ENSC 183HAquatic Environment

4

GS 108Oceanography

4

Earth Science and Geography

Complete one of the following:

Course NumberCourse TitleCredits
G 102Earth's Dynamic Surface

4

G 202Earth's Surface Systems

4

GEOG 141Natural Environment

4

Complete one of the following:

Course NumberCourse TitleCredits
GEOG 142Introduction to Human Geography

4

GIS 151Digital Earth

4

GS 101General Science (Nature of the Northwest)

4

Social Change and Economics

Complete one of the following:

Course NumberCourse TitleCredits
ECON 260Introduction to Environmental and Natural Resource Economics

4

GEOG 201World Regional Geography

4

Complete one of the following:

Course NumberCourse TitleCredits
HE 240Holistic Health

3

HE 250Personal Health

3

Complete one of the following:

Course NumberCourse TitleCredits
SOC 205ZSocial Change and Institutions

4

Program Electives

Complete 8-10 credits from the following:

Course NumberCourse TitleCredits
ART 288Introduction to Web Design and Social Media

3

BT 230Digital Office

4

COMM 265Environmental Communication

4

GIS 245GIS 1

4

GIS 246GIS 2

4

GS 201Scientific Skepticism - Someone is Wrong on the Internet

4

HE 275Lifetime Health and Fitness

3

HORT 120Gardening and Sustainable Food Systems

4

MTH 105ZMath in Society

4

MTH 111ZPrecalculus I: Functions

4

STAT 243ZElementary Statistics 1

4

NRG 111Residential/Light Commercial Energy Analysis

3

PH 101Fundamentals of Physics

4

PH 102Fundamentals of Physics

4

PH 103Fundamentals of Physics

4

Any language courses, 100-level or higher

Any course or combo of courses from General Education or Program Core

Note: Any language courses, 100-level or higher, including American Sign Language (ASL), Chinuk Wawa (CW), French (FR), or Spanish (SPAN)

Note: Any course or combination of courses from the General Education or Program Core Course categories not already used to meet other program requirements is accepted

Footnotes

1 – COMM 265 is recommended but COMM 115 or ENG 240 or WR 227Z is also accepted

2 – MTH 095 or higher math/statistics is also accepted

3 – BI 103 - choose from the following sections: Biodiversity and Sustainability (recommended), Global Ecology or Forest Ecology

4 – CH 170 is recommended but CH 104 is also accepted

Notes