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K-State Today

Division of Communications and Marketing
Kansas State University
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1525 Mid-Campus Drive North
Manhattan, KS 66506
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October 20, 2022

Gillespie earns Award of Excellence from ASLA

Submitted by Thom Jackson

Chloe Gillespie, a fifth-year landscape architecture graduate student in the College of Architecture, Planning & Design, earned the Award of Excellence in the Communications Category from the American Society of Landscape Architects, or ALSA, for her project "Landscape Travels."

Gillespie's project began as an opportunity to travel the United States to learn more about the landscape architecture profession and became a journey to bring awareness to its importance through social media.

Advised by faculty, "Landscape Travels" brought viewers along on Gillespie's journey across the country, introducing them to 22 people engaged in the profession and highlighting projects in 10 different cities. Assistant Professor Kirby Barrett, Associate Professor Jon Hunt and Professor Stephanie Rolley were a part of the team of faculty that helped Gillespie with the foundational setup needed to make her project possible.

As of May 27, and four months of social media posting, @landscapetravel_22 had a following of 580 users, with a reach of more than 120,000 through Instagram and TikTok. Gillespie continues to reach new people every day through triweekly posts highlighting unique aspects of landscape architecture. Following a similar story pattern, each video gives viewers a quick glimpse into projects in cities in which they live or visit, ultimately broadening the public's understanding of the breadth of landscape architecture.

"This national recognition not only highlights Chole's significant scholarship but illustrates the deep engagement of our faculty in advancing each of our student's education," said Tim de Noble, professor and dean of the college. "Indeed, this particular project also illustrates our commitment to ensuring our students experience and critique great design firsthand during their time at APDesign."