SEPTEMBER 2015

DIVERSITY It’s national Hispanic

Heritage Month, and we recognize the contributions

made and the important presence of Hispanic and Latino Americans to the

United States and celebrate their heritage and culture.

Hispanics and Latino Americans have had a profound and positive

influence on our country through their strong

commitment to family, faith, hard work, and service. They have enhanced and shaped our national character with centuries-old traditions that reflect the multiethnic and

multicultural customs of their community.

With Halloween coming up

make sure to use a battery-

operated candle or glow-stick

in jack-o-lanterns. If you use a

real candle, use extreme cau-

tion and make sure to place lit

pumpkins well away from any-

thing that can burn and far

enough out of way of trick-or-

treaters, doorsteps, walkways

and yards.

Leadership: Purpose, Passion & Pride

Someone recently asked me what I look for in a leader. I consider leadership a position that each of us occupy to varying degrees in our roles at work and at home, in what we do for a living and in what we do for enjoyment. In a leadership role I look for three P’s. The first P is Purpose – we need to know where we want to go and why we want to get there. Second is Passion, a real drive to succeed in our endeavors. Lastly is

Pride – not the boastful type, but pride in our work, knowing we are doing our best and working in the best interest of our organizations and our customers. So when in your leadership role ask yourself - do I possess the 3 P’s?

Grounds Timothy Jones

Maintenance

Albert Gutierrez

Brad Winfield

Custodial

Carmen Sanchez

Veronica Tirado

Hilda Torres

- Bob Casagrande, VP of Operations

New Maintenance Resident Regional Manager

Congratulations to John Stuart on being

named SSC’s new Resident Regional Man-

ager—Maintenance! He is from central

Missouri and joined the Navy after earning

an electronics degree from a junior college.

John spent 6 years on active duty as an Air

Traffic Controller and received a commis-

sion as an officer. He specializes in expedi-

tionary combat logistics. John is brand new to SSC, but has

worked at Texas A&M for a year and a half. Before working at

A&M, John worked as the Executive Director of Easterwood

Airport. He received his MBA from Texas A&M. John likes to

spend his free time running and competing in triathlons. His fa-

vorite vacation destination is San Diego, California, where he trav-

els with his wife and three kids. The best advice John ever re-

ceived was from his father: “If you tell the truth, you never have

to think about what you said.” John’s favorite part of his job is

helping people achieve their full potential. He also looks for op-

portunities to provide exceptional customer service, both internal

and external to the company.

Led by Project Manager Clint Cooper, EDCS created

a 500’ long limestone base access route on the west

side of Penberthy, connecting the existing passage

between the horse pastures and the new access

road from Penberthy.

PM Steven Gochenour took the lead in renovating the Med Science Library by

demolishing existing carpet squares at designated areas and replacing them

with new carpet planks. The scope included under sink water heaters, re-

placing ceiling tiles in the Graduate Professional Student (GPS) area with

black ceiling tiles, painting the GPS ceiling grid black and painting designated

offices and columns.

EDCS

Projects

Congratulations to Abbey Draught for being an August GEM2 winner! Abbey has

worked for SSC at TAMU for one year, and previously worked for a water garden

nursery in Lawrence, Kansas as their Head Grower. Abbey attended the University of

Kanas for a couple of years, and plans on finishing her degree in Horticulture

through Texas Tech. Abbey has practiced ballroom dancing for the last eight years;

her favorites types are swing and salsa. Abbey’s favorite vacation spot is anywhere

with a beach because after living in a landlocked state for 26 years, she can’t get

enough of the ocean! Her favorite foods are sushi and pie, and her favorite quote is

by Nikola Tesla: “Instinct is something that transcends knowledge. We have, undoubtedly, certain finer fibers

that enable us to perceive truths when logical deduction, or any other willful effort of the brain, is futile.”

Finally, Abbey’s favorite part of her job is “seeing the greenhouses full of blooming annuals, after the lengthy

process of growing them from seed into big beautiful bloomers; nothing is more satisfying than coming in

one morning and seeing thousands of blooms. It is truly therapeutic.”

SEPTEMBER 2015

Sustainability Facility & Project Management Professionals

This month Bob Casagrande, Vice President of Operations, earned is his Sustainability Facility Professional Credential and Jeff Heye, Resident Regional Manager – EDCS earned his Project Management Professional Certification. The SFP program focuses on Strategy and Alignment for Sustainable Facility Management, Operating Sustainable Facilities and Managing Sustainable Facilities. The PMP certification recognizes competence of an individual to lead and direct projects. Congratulations Bob and Jeff!

Safety First!

Pictured left to right: Seth Flowers, Grounds Manager; Rick

Kinsey, Grounds IPM Technician II; Cash Reed, IPM Supervisor

Grounds Management had a safe year in

2015. To celebrate Grounds had drawing

for a 48” TV. The winner was Mr. Rick

Kinsey, Grounds IPM Technician II. Rick has

been with the department for a year and a

half. He is a member of the IPM Team who

are responsible for controlling the weeds,

insect, and fungus on nearly 1,600 acres of

campus turf!

To Bee or Not To Bee?

Declining honey bee populations has been a hot news topic in recent years. Many commercial beekeep-ers have reported losses of 40% or more in their hive populations. Factors contributing to this decline include bees coming in contact with pesticides, increases in natural predators, and diseases (e.g. Colony Collapse Disease). The decline of these valuable pollinators has taken a toll on the agricultural sector, which depends greatly on bees to keep crop yields high. In this and many other ways, the decline in hon-ey bee populations affects all of us. SSC Structural Pest Control routinely receives calls for bees, and has subsequently developed working procedures to protect both people and bees. Some of these calls are for bees that are foraging for food and busy pollinating the many flowers and shrubs on this beautiful campus. In these cases, Structural Pest educates people about bee behavior and asks them to avoid these areas to allow the bees to do their important work. Structural Pest also has cases where they have the opportunity to work with local beekeepers to relocate healthy hives to a safe location where bees may flourish away from society. Unfortunately, there are some instances where avoiding or relocating is not possible or feasible. In these rare instances, bees must be treated appropriately to protect the gen-eral public. However, Structural Pest does their best to save as many bees as they can. SSC Structural Pest Control takes pride in the efforts taken to both protect the students, faculty and staff, and visitors to this fine campus, while also being mindful of responsibilities to protect our environment and these beneficial insects. We hope that you take pride in the fact that Structural Pest is doing so as well and we ask that you support them in their efforts to answer the sometimes difficult question: To Bee or Not To Bee?

Custodial Gears Up for Football Season

The first home game was a test for Custodial to see how prepared they were and, as with any big undertaking, there were a few hiccups. The Custodial Services team, led by Resident Regional Manager Ted Dawson, and Assistant Manager, A.J. Sims, did an outstanding job orchestrating the preparation. By adding additional supervisors and as a result of the employees’ deep commitment, Custodial was able to overcome first game jitters. SSC is extremely proud of its associates for their dedication and performance during the games. Custodial has an outstanding group of associates who take significant pride in their work.

SEPTEMBER 2015