UHDS News

[Corvallis Gazette-Times, Aug. 17, 2012] — Wilson Elementary School students will notice some improvements when they return to school Sept. 5.

That’s because Oregon State University Housing and Dining Services employees spent hours Thursday working on various maintenance projects at the school. For example, four employees spent most of the morning packing up books and clearing shelves in the school’s library.

Jeff Brew, Wilson’s principal, said school officials wanted the library to have a more open and welcoming feel. He said it also is scheduled for painting at a later date.

“I think all of us remember our elementary school days and the fun we had,” OSU Housing and Dining Services employee Kathyrn Magura said as she helped clear shelves in a room adjacent to the library. “So it’s great to be helping a local school.”

In addition to reorganizing the library, the OSU Housing and Dining Services employees were involved in several other projects at the school, including:

• Relocating nine heavy framed mosaic artworks, some of which date to the 1980s, to another location in the building.

• Installing toilets in several bathrooms.

• Hanging three Smartboards in classrooms.

• Removing diseased trees from the front of the school. (New trees will be planted in late September).

• Removal of the school logo in the gym to make way for a new logo.

The Wilson project was the latest community service project performed by OSU Housing and Dining Services employees. Steven Haney, assistant director of OSU Housing and Dining Services, said the group aims to do a community service project about every two months.

Before Thursday’s project, the last OSU Housing and Dining Services community project was removing ivy from trees at Avery Park in late May. The project at Wilson was the first time the group had volunteered at a local school.

“Not only are these projects a way for us to give back to the community,” Haney said. “But it also helps us team-build because we have to communicate and work together to get a lot done.”

Read the full article by reporter Raju Woodward.