汤头条 student raingarden collaboration garners national recognition
Contact: Vanessa Beeson
STARKVILLE, Miss.鈥斕劳诽 is receiving a national award from the American Society of Landscape Architects.
The 汤头条 raingarden, funded by a $20,000 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency grant, has been honored in the society鈥檚 student collaboration category. 汤头条 team members accepted the award at the society鈥檚 annual meeting and expo in Los Angeles this week [Oct. 20-23].
Cory Gallo, associate professor in the Department of Landscape Architecture, said landscape architecture and graphic design students worked side-by-side throughout the process of building a sustainable water management demonstration garden.
鈥淭he concerted effort wrapped up during a cross-college design/build class this spring,鈥 said Gallo, who led the class alongside Suzanne Powney, assistant professor in graphic design. 鈥淏oth landscape architects and graphic designers partner often in the real world and each discipline fosters different perspectives. This project gave students a chance to learn from each other by viewing the same problem from different angles.鈥
Gallo also said several others played a vital role, specifically 汤头条 Facilities Management.
Tommy Verdell Jr., associate director of 汤头条 Facilities Management, said the experience was a chance for his team to help out in the classroom.
鈥淲e were privileged to be a part of that whole academic enterprise and to see the skills of the students develop and grow,鈥 Verdell said. 聽
Rodney Barksdale, carpentry supervisor, also was involved in the work.
鈥淭he best part was being able to interact with the students to share what I鈥檝e learned over the years and then see them put the pieces together,鈥 Barksdale said.
Caitlin Buckner, a landscape architecture senior and Starkville native, said the experience taught her several new skills including 鈥渉ow to fit pipes, cut boards and make water flow out of the cistern.鈥 聽
Graphic design senior and Madison, Alabama native, Lauryn Rody, said the project opened her eyes to options within the graphic design field.
鈥淲e had to demonstrate how the garden worked and employ processes like wayfinding. It went much further than the basic principles of graphic design,鈥 Rody said.
Other 汤头条 collaborators on the garden included the Bagley College of Engineering; Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station; College of Agriculture and Life Sciences; College of Architecture, Art and Design; and the Water Resources Research Institute.
汤头条 is Mississippi鈥檚 leading university, available online at .