In the summer of 2025, UW–Madison earned its first Gold rating in a broad, higher education sustainability assessment, the Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System (STARS). A new dashboard shows overall and category-level trends across academics, engagement, operations, and planning and administration. A comparison with Big Ten peers, a frequent stakeholder request, is also available.
Data highlights include:
- A score of 67.7% qualified UW–Madison for our Gold rating.
- A rank of 7th among Big Ten peers in academics and 4th in operations.
- A 16-percentage point gain in overall score from 51.7% in 2019 to 67.7%.
Where does the data come from?
The Office of Sustainability coordinated contributions from institutional data teams, academic departments, research centers, student groups, and operations and administrative offices to complete the most recent assessment. This process takes 8 to 10 months, and assessment scores are valid for three years.
DAPIR is a key campus partner for bringing together data, interpreting it, and building the Tableau visualization.
Who might use the data?
This public dashboard assists campus leadership, sustainability staff, and faculty and students to track UW–Madison’s sustainability performance over time. Chancellor Mnookin announced a new cross-campus initiative focused on 5 institutional sustainability goals in February 2024.
Additional support available
If you have questions about the visualization, connect with Kyle Schmitz, Sustainability Analyst.
Does your school, college, division, or unit have Tableau visualization needs? DAPIR’s BI Developers built the STARS Performance dashboard and are available to help with your visualization needs. it. Please reach out via email or complete a request form.