SSC Magazine

West Texas A&M University Led by Grounds Manager Aaron Shehan, the grounds team’s mission is to manage a safe, well-maintained outdoor environment for learning and provide the “Grounds” for growing as a community. Our grounds team has 22 employees, all full-time, broken into mowing – edge- trim (MET ) , horticulture, sports artificial ground (AG ) , and specialty groups. West Texas A&M University sits in the

heart of the Texas Panhandle, spanning over 423 acres of managed APPA 1 and 2 land- scapes. Our grounds team manages over 348 acres on the main campus, including eight synthetic turf fields and a 70 - acre cross - country course. In addition, we manage two WT properties on the north side of Amarillo (30 - minute drive), totaling 8.74 acres, and five additional agriculture properties outside of Canyon, totaling 3873.75 acres. The harsh, imposing climate of the Texas Panhandle makes grounds management a challenge on a day-to-day basis. Highs in the summer rou- tinely exceed 100 degrees with winter lows below 0, all while winds are blowing tumble- weeds at speeds up to 70 mph. The average rainfall is 19” annually, with most of that total falling in the spring.

36

37