100 signatures reached
To: Proctor Academy
DivestPA
We, the undersigned, support Proctor Academy’s continued commitment to environmental stewardship. We also support Proctor’s continued commitment to Socially Responsible Investing, which we consider to make long-term ethical, ecological, and financial sense. Additionally, we encourage the Board of Trustees to continue to grow the percentage of SRIs in the school’s endowment and to explore opportunities to further divest Proctor’s endowment from indirect investments (i.e. mutual funds) in fossil fuels.
Why is this important?
To provide an impact on our future in regards to the power of fossil fuel giants and the state of our environment as a whole.
Proctor Academy has a long-standing institutional commitment to environmental sustainability. We are a school that is proud of and committed to our Environmental Mission Statement. In the last decade we have made significant investments in clean energy: 60% of our heat is generated in our biomass plant, we are producing over 320,000 kWh of solar electricity on our campus, and we have two geothermal buildings (one in progress). We have made an extensive commitment to single stream recycling, and yearly the school participates in a campus-wide Green Dorm Challenge. Our commitment to environmental causes extends into our school clubs, extracurricular activities, and the classroom as well with courses such as AP Environmental Studies, Forestry, Climate Science, and Environmental Literature. The school also has one-of-a-kind environmentally-focused programs such Mountain Classroom, Eco Dorm, and the new Interdisciplinary Concentration in Environmental Studies.
Recently, Proctor’s Board of Trustees has explored the issue of Socially Responsible Investing. The Board has made it clear that Proctor Academy does not hold direct investments in any fossil fuel companies. Furthermore, the Board is committed to not directly investing in any fossil fuel companies in the foreseeable future. In order to better align Proctor’s investments with the school’s values, the Board of Trustees has also placed 10% of the school’s endowment into Socially Responsible Investments (SRIs).
We acknowledge that SRIs and fossil fuel divestment are not simple issues, and that in order to become 100% free from fossil fuels and 100% invested in companies who make strong commitments to environmental, social, and good-governance practices may take time. But like our long-term goal of carbon neutrality, SRIs and fossil fuel divestment provide exactly the types of forward-thinking challenges and commitments that Proctor Academy should enthusiastically embrace.