Alvernia holds annual Earth Day of Service, ramps up sustainability efforts

Student-run wear share thrift store, electric vehicles and grant award among new developments

by Jon Fassnacht

Reading, PA (04/27/2026) — Additional Photos can be found Here for Service Projects and Here for the Earth Day Celebration.

Alvernia University students, leadership, faculty, and staff participated in the institution's annual Earth Day of Service - one of Alvernia's annual Days of Service - clearing storm drains, trimming trees, and pulling weeds as part of the Reading Great American Cleanup at Reading's 2026 Earth Day celebration on April 18 in City Park. Teams also performed cleanup work at Gring's Mill Recreation Area in Spring Township.

In addition, the university held its annual Earth Day Festival on campus on April 24, drawing over 350 attendees.

"We're really just trying to raise awareness," said Office of Institutional Sustainability Director Alicia Sprow, Ph.D. "It's trying to identify ways to make our day-to-day life more sustainable."

Genevieve Weikel '27 brought Wear Share, her free campus thrift store, to the event. Featuring items donated by students, faculty, staff, and other members of the Alvernia community, the project aims to encourage people to reuse and re-wear clothing rather than throwing it away or donating it to a for-profit company. 504 items were donated at the event and attendees went home with 241 items, which is three times more than last year.

"The overall goal is to share the wealth of clothing we have as college students," said Weikel, who is majoring in environmental science and minoring in environmental and community sustainability.

The Earth Day events highlight the university's push to advance sustainability across campus operations, student engagement and global leadership.

Clean Energy Progress

Since July, solar panels installed on the university's Pottsville CollegeTowne location have generated over 100 megawatt hours of clean energy, helping prevent nearly 175,000 pounds of CO2 emissions, roughly equivalent to avoiding almost 200,000 miles of driving. The university is also installing solar panels to power its Tom and Helen Flynn Complex for Recreation, Wellness and Health Sciences (PLEX) on the Hill Campus.

Electric Vehicles

In February, Alvernia's Facilities Department replaced six maintenance vans with electric vehicles, and is installing EV charging stations at the Hill Campus, Pottsville Collegetowne and Cedar Hill Farm.

Student Leadership and Academic Excellence

Alexander Kabrich '25, the university's Sustainability Operations Coordinator, on April 25 will deliver the keynote speech at the 2026 HECBC Conference, hosted by Alvernia. Also at the conference, Office of Institutional Sustainability (OIS) student employees Nick Hornbuckle and Genny Weikel and OIS intern Lilly DeLoreeta will highlight Student Sustainability Ambassador projects.

Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture Grant Award

Bog Turtle Creek Farm - Alvernia's student-led regenerative agriculture project - will use a $7,500 Agriculture and Youth Grant to transform an underutilized area of the farm into a living laboratory for sustainable agriculture.

Experiential Learning Abroad

In June, OIS Director Alicia Sprow, Ph.D., will lead a 1-week experiential learning study abroad program on Grand Manan Island in New Brunswick, Canada.

Advancing Sustainability Leadership and Global Engagement

Professor Emeritus Spencer S. Stober, Ed.D., was among more than 60 global researchers and institutional leaders invited to the inaugural convening of the Global Alliance for Integral Ecology at Borgo Laudato Si' in March.

Learn more about Alvernia's sustainability efforts.

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