While campus life slows down during the summer months, the work to keep UC Davis looking its best never takes a break.

This season, a coordinated effort led by Facilities Management’s Arboretum and Public Garden and Building Maintenance Services teams is giving building entrances across campus a much-needed refresh. Through a combination of pressure washing and landscape touch-ups, the project is ensuring that shared campus spaces remain clean, inviting, and ready to welcome students, faculty, and staff when fall quarter begins.

But this initiative is more than just a cleaning project—it’s also a hands-on learning opportunity for student landscape assistants in the Arboretum and Public Garden’s Learning by Leading™ program. As part of a summer pilot, these students are working side-by-side with our dedicated Building Maintenance Services and Arboretum and Public Garden Grounds staff to revitalize building entrances from the ground up.

In the process, they’re gaining real-world experience in facilities and grounds operations while making a visible impact on the look and feel of campus. Students appreciate learning directly from the on-the-ground experts, and staff enjoy imparting their wisdom to these enthusiastic young people.

"The students have been excellent so far. They are eager to learn, show up each day with positive energy, and have been a humongous help. I can't say enough," groundskeeper Manny Castillo said.

And, power washing delivers more than surface-level shine: it removes harmful buildup like mold, algae, and mildew that can degrade building materials over time. It also eliminates slippery substances that pose safety risks on walkways. When done properly by trained crews using water-efficient equipment, power washing is a fast, effective, and environmentally responsible alternative to traditional hosing or scrubbing.

Please note that while some pedestrian disruptions may occur, teams are taking every precaution to minimize impacts and keep safety a top priority.

Glow-up schedule: 

Tuesdays

Arboretum and Public Garden Grounds staff and students refresh landscapes around entrances and prepare the buildings entrances for cleaning—blowing off debris, removing cobwebs, clearing walkways, weeding and mulching.

Thursdays

The student team—with assistance from Facilities Management staff—uses pressure washers to clean entrance areas while gaining hands-on experience with equipment and site management.

(Mondays and Wednesdays)

Students work in the Arboretum, continuing their regular landscape stewardship projects.

• ⬇️  Buildings Scheduled for Glow-ups

• Note: The current list of buildings scheduled for service is subject to change based on site staffing and available resources. 

  Academic Surge

  Activities and Recreation Center

  Bainer Hall

  Buehler Alumni Center

  Chemistry Building

  Chemistry Annex

  Earth and Physical Sciences

  Gallagher Hall

  Geidt Hall

  Ghausi Hall

  Hart Hall

  Kemper Hall

  King Hall

  Kleiber Hall

  Mathematical Sciences Building

  Mrak Hall

  North Silo

  Robbins Hall

  Roessler Hall

  Shields Library

  Student Community Center

  UC Davis Conference Center

  University Credit Union Center

  Watershed Science Research Center

  Wickson Hall

Special Thanks

This summer refresh project would not be possible without the collaboration and dedication of many individuals. Special thanks to Danny Garza, paint shop lead, for his on-the-ground guidance and mentorship. Appreciation also goes to the following staff for their leadership and support throughout this effort: Jeff Airehart, Facilities Management (FM) senior superintendent, Dan Calkins, supervisor of FM’s Cabinet, Carpentry, and Paint Shops, Tyson Mantor, Arboretum and Public Garden’s (APG) assistant director for Grounds & Landscape Services, and Markus Morris, Grounds supervisor. And another special thank you to Stacey Parker, APG director of public horticulture and engagement, for helping integrate student learning into meaningful campus stewardship projects.