TRANSCRIPT

Adam Hildebrandt: Oklahoma State facilities management is among the best in the country when it comes to caring for a campus, and now they have the hardware to prove it. Welcome to the award-winning Oklahoma State University campus.

John Lee, Director of Landscape Services: We have about 72 to 77 folks full-time that, uh, maintain over 700 acres of Stillwater campus.

Nick Ouellette, Landscape Design Manager: We've got seasonal displays, seasonal topiaries, gardens, educational opportunity in gardens, manicured turf grass lawns. It takes a lot of effort, um, in planting with the right type of plant material, um, and we use a lot of seasonal-type things to where we'll change them out and have like a winter display and a summer display.

Adam Ventris, Maintenance Services Supervisor: You know, we don't only do mowing, flowers, everything. We go from taking care of fountains to painting handrails. I mean, we, we do everything we can possibly do to, to make the campus, you know, wonderful for the students.

John Lee: OSU topiaries are one of our staples. We're known for our topiaries, and we, we have quite a few.

Nick Ouellette: Yes, a topiary here at OSU is basically a framework that is able to support soil and then the plant material that is created to create the design. Everything is done here at OSU, so we use a bioengineering. We use Facilities Management teams. We use other departments on campus to help take these ideas that we came up with, find, uh, ways to fabricate those here in-house.

John Lee: We always finish what we start, so that's a big part of this role that I'm in and my entire team is in, that if we start something and we, we aim toward a goal, we're going to get there.

Adam Hildebrandt: This year, the goal was to apply for and win a major award. Well, John and his team got it done.

John Lee: The Green Star Award. It's, it's awarded through the PGMS, uh, association. That society is Professional Grounds Management Society, and this is a nationally, uh, recognized award for the most beautifully maintained, manicured campus.

Kyle Ooley, Landscape Services Supervisor: Kind of goes back to pride for my crew's work, uh, it shows them that it is being noticed. It is being appreciated. It is a national award that they have won.

Adam Ventris: It means pretty much everything. OSU is, you know, it's a way of life from the Shrums down to the housekeepers. To win this award, it'll, you know, be a satisfaction for not only me, but I think it'll make the students and everybody in the industry feel, feel great, you know, around Oklahoma and around OSU.

Nick Ouellette: So I think this, this award is very special because I like to think of our Cowboy Code. Um, it's not in the clothes we wear; it's the character. I believe that, uh, the hard work that we've put in to receive that national recognition just really shows what we've done here at OSU has been well received, not just by the alumni here at OSU and the faculty and staff — they get to see it and enjoy it every day — but to be nationally recognized from all the other universities, it's very special.

John Lee: Personally, uh, we, we hit the finish line. We hit our goal, and I'm extremely proud of our team. We dream big, and you'll see that on campus when you come to visit us here at Oklahoma State.