Despite its short life, the bio-diesel experience made a big impression on the landscape services department. McManus says he hopes it also brought added recognition from campus executives related to the department’s efforts to improve productivity and sustainability.
“It’s always a fight for funding, so you’re always trying to be better,” he says, adding the effort also might help set the department apart from its peers. “You don’t see this kind of thing everywhere in Mississippi or everywhere in the Southeast,” he says.
Maybe even more importantly, McManus says the department’s use of bio-diesel fuel fits into a larger effort; namely the role grounds care plays in enhancing the image of an organization and its facilities — in this case, a university campus. Such efforts by the department have paid off in the past. In 2002, the department received the Green Star Award for best maintained university from the Professional Grounds Management Society.
The bio-diesel experience “kind of fits into our charge of making this into a prettier campus,” he says, adding that prospective students often make a decision on which school to attend in the first 15 minutes on campus. “We know we’re a big part of the recruitment process. We see ourselves as recruiters.”
Spotlight: University of MississippiThe Landscape Services Department for the University of Mississippi in Oxford, Miss., provides services to more than 1,000 acres on the central campus. Among the department’s activities:
— University of Mississippi Landscape Services Department |
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