CU Boulder is the No. 1 post-secondary institution for plant-based dining and sustainability according to  the Humane Society of the United States’ 2025 College and University Protein Sustainability . CU Boulder stands out as the only university with more than 50% plant-based  offerings, with a bold commitment to ramping up to 75% this year.

“We’re honored to be recognized for our efforts to provide CU Boulder students more climate-friendly, plant-based menu items,” said Eliah Golden, chef and associate director for residential dining and culinary operations. “We’re committed to offering students delicious, nutritious and sustainable food options to help fuel their academic success and create lifelong habits that contribute to healthy bodies and healthy minds.”

The Humane Society’s first biannual scorecard analyzed climate-friendly, plant-based menu items offered by the nation’s largest colleges and universities. The Humane Society focused on schools with the largest undergraduate populations and self-operated dining programs and sent surveys to 39 schools in June 2024, with 26 completing the survey.  

“A shift toward plant-based foods is the most impactful way food service providers can reduce their impact on the planet and reach their sustainability goals. Higher education institutions are positioned to have a tremendous positive influence,” said Kate Watts, director of Food Service Innovation at the Humane Society. 

CU Boulder Dining Services’ 318 full-time team members and 600 students serve 3.5 million meals annually across its catering, retail and residential services. The university’s dining services takes a comprehensive approach to sustainability from waste redirection, community gardens, local sourcing and tracking greenhouse gas emissions.

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Professor Adam Kaufman has been awarded the prestigious Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers. Kaufman is a JILA fellow, NIST physicist and CU Boulder physics professor. 

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Joanne Kim, a CU Boulder computer science student, was recognized by Congressman Joe Neguse with the Mollie H. Beattie Congressional Award for Distinguished Environmental Scholarship on Friday, Dec. 13, for an original short film on food waste. 

Kim, and co-collaborator Kimberly Bernal, took first place at the Estes Valley Land Trust Environmental Film Festival for their film highlighting the environmental and economic impacts of food waste. This award is named for Mollie H. Beattie, an influential and inspiring conservationist, whose work as the first female U.S. Fish and Wildlife Services director focused on environmental preservation and wildlife conservation advocacy.

In addition to being recognized personally by Neguse, Kim’s achievement was celebrated by her father; CU Boulder Chancellor Justin Schwartz; Dean Keith Molenaar, College of Engineering and Applied Sciences; Professor Ken Anderson, department chair, Computer Science; and Senator Janice Marchman, Colorado General Assembly.

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The American Mathematical Society recognition supports mid-career female researchers whose achievements demonstrate potential for further contributions to mathematics.

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QS World University Rankings has named CU Boulder as one of the top universities in the world for environmental and social impact. CU is ranked 11th in the United States and 61st in the world for sustainability in .

The QS methodology is based on university performance across three assessment categories:

• Environmental Impact: Aggregating environmental sustainability, environmental education and environmental research
• Social Impact: Aggregating equality, knowledge exchange, impact of education, employability and opportunities, and health and well being
• Governance: Considering factors related to good governance: ethics, hiring practices, transparency, decision making, etc.

“CU Boulder has been a global leader in sustainability for many years, and I’m excited to see our faculty, staff and students earn recognition for their accomplishments,” Chancellor Justin Schwartz said. “We’re committed to investing more deeply in sustainability research, education and action efforts in the months ahead as we implement solutions on campus and across Colorado, the nation and the world.”

Through innovative research projects, interdisciplinary collaborations and a commitment to sustainable practices, CU Boulder is driving initiatives to address some of the most pressing environmental challenges. Some recent solutions-oriented research and projects include:

• Regional Innovation Engines program
• Next-generation solar cells
• Off-shore wind energy
• Power grid optimization

CU Boulder’s Climate Action Plan calls for a 50% reduction in carbon emissions (from a 2019 baseline) by 2030 and carbon neutrality by no later than 2050.

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Chancellor Justin Schwartz has announced the recipients of the 2024 Employee of the Year awards. 

This award recognizes staff for their outstanding contributions and leadership to CU Boulder. Staff are nominated by their colleagues for their extraordinary service, inspired leadership and going above and beyond their defined job duties to make a meaningful difference. 

This year’s winners reflect incredible dedication to the students, staff and faculty of CU, and all have made a lasting impact. They are: Miki Brooks, Janelle Henderson, Sally Lowell and Jeanne McDonald.

The chancellor will recognize this year’s winners at an awards ceremony and reception in January.

Miki Brooks

Brooks serves as the director of transfer success initiatives for the Office of Undergraduate Education in Academic Affairs. Brooks is a champion for transfer students. In her role she ensures the needs of transfer students are recognized and addressed across all areas of campus. She has successfully unified various transfer initiatives, streamlining efforts to create a more cohesive and impactful support system. 

Brooks' commitment is evident in the extensive range of programs she has developed to enhance institutional support for transfer students. From developing Transfer Advocate 101 and 201 trainings, which help faculty and staff gain a better understanding of transfer student issues, to spearheading the creation of the Transfer Student Community website, which provides prospective and current transfer students a centralized hub to locate important resources, Brooks works to ensure transfer students will find their place at CU and call themselves a Buff.

As one nominator wrote: “I believe that Miki has single-handedly transformed the way CU Boulder thinks about transfer students. She would tell you that it’s a team effort, but it has been her leadership and her steadfast commitment to closing equity gaps that has improved the overall experience of our transfer student population.”

Additionally, as the supervisor of the Pre-Transfer Advising team, Brooks is an important member of the campuswide academic advising community. Recognizing the impact the advising community can have on our students, especially students from minoritized identities, she took it upon herself to create a Culturally Responsive Academic Advising toolkit. Brooks created the toolkit out of a sense of necessity and service.

Brooks has played a key role in many campus initiatives, from Financial Futures to the Buff Undergraduate Success Leadership Implementation Team (BUS-LIT) and has consistently shown her commitment to advocacy and the betterment of the campus. She is both a leader across campus and within the team she directs, providing opportunity for all at CU Boulder.

Janelle Henderson

Henderson serves as the manager of the Arts and Science Honors Program in the College of Arts and Sciences. Janelle’s job duties range from arranging instructors and building the honors course schedule consisting of over 50 courses per year, to supervising and mentoring a program coordinator and student workers, to participating in strategic planning and fiscal management.

Henderson partners with the admissions team to develop impactful materials to help make CU a school of choice for high performing students. Representing the College of Arts and Sciences, she routinely meets with prospective students and their parents and participates in a wide variety of campus events, including Admitted Buffs Days, the CU Diversity and Inclusion Visit Experience (DIVE) event, the A&S Welcome Fair and the Be Involved Fair.

Henderson continually develops solutions to make programs operate more efficiently for students and faculty. She strives for program inclusivity, introduces new technologies and tools and seamlessly adapts to change. In addition to performing her job duties, she serves on A&S honors committees (DEI committee and future planning committee) and actively contributes her time and energy to make CU a better place.

As shared in her nomination: “Simply put, Janelle is exceptional; she performs her job with extreme competence, demonstrates leadership and ingenuity, and possesses a true generosity of spirit. Janelle works tirelessly on behalf of the over 5,000 students, seven faculty and multiple staff in the A&S Honors Program.”

Sally Lowell

Lowell is a nurse practitioner at Wardenburg Health Center. In her role, she champions inclusive and compassionate care for all at CU Boulder. As a leader in the Sexual and Reproductive Health Clinic, Lowell brings together diverse roles, including medical assistants and nurse practitioners, to address operational concerns in patient care rooms. 

Additionally, Lowell serves as co-coordinator of the Trans Care Team. In this role, she leads a multidisciplinary team that plays a key role in advocating for and supporting the health and well-being of transgender and gender-diverse students on campus and ensuring these students get the care they need. She maintains ongoing staff training to provide the skills and resources needed for those caring for these students. Lowell also serves as an advocate for students with disabilities, collaborating with Disability Services to ensure accessibility accommodations are met.

Under Lowell's leadership, CU Boulder Health & Wellness Services scored a 100/100 on the 2024 Human Rights Campaign Healthcare Equality Index (HEI) and will be designated as a “Leader in LGBTQ+ Healthcare Equality.”

Outside of CU Boulder, Lowell volunteers with the Boulder Valley School District, where she evaluates and provides recommendations for new student health curriculum. Through this contribution she helps students receive the most current, accurate and age-appropriate health information.

As one nominator wrote: “Sally has consistently demonstrated exceptional leadership, integrity and a strong commitment to the campus community. Her dedication to advancing diversity, equity and inclusion, as well as her thoughtful and ethical approach to addressing challenges, sets her apart as a true leader.”

Jeanne McDonald

McDonald is the associate director for the Office for Public and Community-Engaged Scholarship (PACES) in the Division of Continuing Education. In her role she coordinates the annual CU Boulder Engaged Scholarship Grants Tiers 3 and 4, oversees the programming team, assists in the management of the campus Community Outreach and Engagement Programs website and coordinates the Community Perspectives program. McDonald supports faculty-led public engagement throughout Colorado and beyond.

Having served the CU Boulder campus as a staff member for 30 years, 18 of those years with PACES, McDonald exemplifies collaboration, advocacy and leadership in all she does. Jeanne has been devoted to creating a more equitable campus community. She was instrumental in the formation of the CU Boulder Outreach and Engagement Professionals Network (OEPN), which is led by a volunteer steering committee made up of university staff. The OEPN has planned and implemented a series of successful events, including program showcases, professional development workshops and networking meetings of university staff. While working tirelessly to increase the quality and impact of CU Boulder engagement work, she has earned the respect of many across campus.

One nominator shared the following: “Through her tireless service of 30 years, Jeanne has been perhaps more influential than any other employee at CU Boulder in making good on our mission to serve the state of Colorado. I am hopeful that acknowledgment of her service will inspire another generation (or more) of staff to follow in her footsteps, to do the difficult but very satisfying work of spanning boundaries between campus and community.”

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Distinguished Professor Kristi Anseth has been awarded the prestigious VinFuture Special Prize for Women Innovators in recognition of her pioneering research in tissue engineering. The winners were selected from nearly 1,500 nominations spanning more than 80 countries and territories worldwide.

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The American Heart Association awarded CU Boulder gold-level recognition in the Well-being Works Better Scorecard, representing a notable commitment to the health of its workforce and community.

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