Gerry and Nan Snyder ’53 doubled their donation to fund sustainability efforts at Andover last week, making their total gift $50,000. The donation was originally $25,000 dollars in December 2007, but the Snyders were so pleased by the level of involvement from students and faculty that they recently made the decision to double their initial donation. The donation of $50,000 is a part of a much larger trust, which will go towards sustainability upon the death of the Snyders. “[Snyder] and his wife set up this trust three years ago so that after their lifetime it will make a significant donation to the school for environmental programs,” said David Flash, Director of Gift Planning. According to Flash, after establishing the trust, the Snyders decided that they wanted to get involved sooner, and so they gave their first gift of $25,000 and decided to donate double that amount upon visiting campus in November. Gerry Snyder said, “It’s up to the school to decide [how to use the money]. I think that there’s a lot that a little money can do.” The Sustainability Steering Committee has accepted proposals from students and faculty to allocate the funds from the Snyders’ gift. However, Snyder did have some opinions on the way he believed the money could be used. Among his ideas were establishing awards for outstanding work in sustainability and funding speakers and seminars on sustainability. Snyder also suggested that his money could go towards grant programs for students expressing a special interest in the environment or that the money could be used to provide opportunities for sustainability research that might not otherwise be possible. According to Trish Russell, Sustainability Coordinator and Instructor in Biology, there were 27 ideas submitted for the original $25,000 gift, and the committee is currently accepting more ideas for the additional money. Of the 27 ideas, three have been selected to become current Snyder Projects, while others have either already been started or have been filed away for future use. The three ideas that have been accepted as Snyder Projects are a pilot installation of solar panels, changes in the lighting in Tang Theatre and creating an online directory. Michelle Ma ’11, Co-Head of Eco-Action was one of the students who suggested installing solar panels at Andover. “We need more fruitful long-term technologies, like this solar panel idea, and I think it’s great that [the Sustainability Steering Committee] is seriously considering it,” said Ma. “Putting up a small set of solar panels will not actually save much in the way of money for the school and it likely won’t be able to produce too much electricity,” said Russel. “But it will provide a great experiment for us in supplying some amount of our own renewable energy, reduce our carbon footprint even if only slightly,” she said. “The [installation] of solar panels will only really be effective if it is also an educational opportunity for everyone on campus,” she continued. Hana Kim ’11, a member of the Energy Resources Awareness Council and Eco-Action also submitted ideas for Snyder Proposals. These included weather stripping and caulking, motion sensor lights in dorms, compact fluorescent lights and low flow toilets. Of these ideas, three are soon to go into effect. OPP has already planned to replace many of the lightbulbs on campus and to install weather-stripping and caulking around doors and windows in dorms. “Most of my ideas were changes that wouldn’t disturb day-to-day routines but would make a difference on our impact on the environment. I think that any sustainable solutions are worthy of the school’s consideration,” Kim said. Raj Mundra, Assistant Dean of Community and Multicultural Development, proposed that OPP install dishwashers in some of the larger dorms to reduce the use of paper products. “While the costs are higher up front, we believe that we could recover the costs over time. Also, in a ninth grade dorm, it would bring awareness of sustainability issues and help students develop good habits during their first year,” said Mundra. The Office of the Physical Plant is currently looking into the costs of many of the proposals, in order to determine their feasibility.
