OSU's 2005-2006 Student Employee of the Year
Student Employee of the Year: Mike Wilson
Employer: OSU Equestrian Team
Position: Facilities and Herd Management
Nominator: Larry Sanchez
Mike Wilson, Student Employee of the Year
Mike is congratulated by OSU President Dr. David J. Schmidly.
Excerpts from Nomination letters:
“It would take many pages to describe all that Mike does for our program, but I will try to share some specific examples. We are a sixty-three member team that has seven employees and fifty-three horses. With these numbers, we maintain three arenas, four pastures, a saddling barn with stalls and various pieces of equipment including a truck, horse trailer, tractor, utility four-wheeler, flat bed trailer, and various implements. Mike maintains all equipment including maintenance and repair, without which our program could not run. He keeps the pastures and saddling barn clean, safe, and functional for both students and horses. Mike has researched numerous pieces of equipment prior to purchase, ensuring that they were both appropriate for our program and cost effective. His knowledge and proficiency in this area enables our staff to focus on the preparation of the team, and keeping it nationally competitive.”
“In addition to facilities, Mike also helps with the feeding of the horses. While a seemingly straightforward task, we entrust much responsibility to the person who does this job. Mike assesses the welfare of each and every of our fifty-three horses at feeding time. There have been many occasions that Mike has treated sick or injured horses, including trips to the vet school at all hours.”
“Ensuring that the herd is properly cared for at all times is a high priority for Mike. On numerous occasions Mike has spent his personal time checking on the herd’s welfare, and holidays are no different. Thanksgiving, Spring Break, and Christmas are all times in which the average student employee not only gets a break from class work, but also from University employment. Mike is always willing to forgo his break for the benefit of the program. He takes pride is his job, and has taken superb care of the herd on numerous holidays. This kind of care and dedication is rare and I never worry when Mike is on the job.”
“I hope this conveys the importance of the role Mike Wilson plays for the Equestrian Team here at OSU. I have employed many student workers in the past, but until now, I have not felt that we have had a worthy candidate for this award. His responsibilities are certainly enough for a full-time position, and Mike does all of this while maintaining a full class load.”
