Farmingdale State College (FSC) recently added two new EVs to its campus vehicle fleet, bringing to five its total of electric or hybrid vehicles, and moving closer to its goal of going fossil fuel-free by 2035.
The two 2023 Nissan Leaf vehicles are four-door compact-size cars and join a 2013 Nissan Leaf, a 2013 Toyota Prius and a 2013 Chevy Volt, all of which are driven by Campus Vehicles authorized operators. The cars are branded with the FSC logo on the front doors and the “FSC Electric Vehicle” logo on the rear doors, with the motif of a globe blanketed by a leaf. The cars retail for a base price of $36,000.
“With a maximum range of 250 miles, fast charging port and installed spare charger our electric vehicles are more than capable of handling all of our in-state driving for college business,” said Michael Cervini, campus energy manager for FSC. “These cars will be used by staff traveling for recruitment or professional development purposes.”
“We expanded our EV fleet ahead of Gov. (Kathy) Hochul’s executive order for all state agencies to achieve certain sustainability and emissions goals,” said Greg O’Connor, executive vice president and CFO for FSC. “Combined with our campus bike share program, water conservation initiatives and planned upgrades to our HVAC systems and installation of green energy technology in our new science building, the vision is to exceed those benchmarks.”
FSC received an honorable mention as a Bike Friendly University from the League of American Bicyclists in October.
FSC hosted Long Island’s Car Free Day and Sustainable Mobility Showcase in September 2023, which promoted all aspects of sustainable transportation including EVs. In partnership with RESC and Transit Solutions, the Office for Sustainability launched the Sustainable Transit Ambassador Program, a focus group that brings stakeholders from across campus together to discuss improving sustainable mobility at FSC. An annual EV Symposium also seeks to educate the public on the benefits of EVs. In addition, students, faculty and staff have access to FSC’s Solar Carport Charging Station, which includes stations for 20 electric-charged vehicles.
O’Connor noted the green energy program is part of the commitment to environmental issues that students are looking for when choosing a college.
“Students want their school to embrace the values that they do, using less energy, reducing carbon footprints and taking steps that will help to reverse decades of damage to our planet," O'Connor said. "We believe in those values as much as they do and are embarking on these plans to make a long-lasting impact to the environmental health of Long Island.”
