Campus beauty grows from pride, hard work

  Friday, April 22, 2016 2:00 AM
  News

Pittsburg, KS

Emely Flores was walking by the Overman Student Center on a warm, sunny April afternoon, when the temptation for a photo op became too strong to resist.

“The tulips,” she said that day, “are just too beautiful. You can’t walk by them and not take a picture. You just have to get them on Instagram and Snapchat.”

It’s a sentiment held by many students at Pittsburg State, and one that is expressed almost daily in the spring on various social media platforms.

And it’s one that brings a big smile to the face of Jason Manderscheid, the man in charge of making the campus flower beds look bright and beautiful.

“It’s actually really cool to go around campus and see students taking pictures with the flowers or pictures of the flowers,” he said. “It gives you a sense of accomplishment, knowing that the hard work that you and the crew put in is appreciated.”

Manderscheid is in his fourth year at Pittsburg State after spending 14 years working in the golf course industry. He said he enjoys the opportunity to give the campus its annual makeover in the spring and summer.

“This is a beautiful campus, and I appreciate the chance to add to that beauty with various flowers and plants,” he said. “It’s really a testament to the crew we have here and the hard work they all put into making campus look its best.”

Cate Walker, supervisor of the grounds and maintenance crews, said she is proud of the entire crew for their hard work and devotion to PSU.

“They all know how much everyone appreciates the natural beauty we see all over campus each year,” she said. “The entire crew takes great pride in making our campus look as beautiful as it does.”

Nearly 8,000 tulips were planted on campus this year. And while their time has passed, Manderscheid said the campus can expect even more beauty to come soon.

“We’re now getting ready to put in our annual beds of flowers,” he said. “We have a wide variety going in this year, including coleus and celosia. We’ll also be installing our popular banana trees, and this year we’ll have both yellow and red bananas. It should look pretty awesome.”

In other words, he said, students should have their cameras ready.

“I’m really excited for what we have coming up,” Manderscheid said. “I think everyone will really be impressed.”

Pitt State senior Emely Flores takes pictures of the tulips outside the Overman Student Center.