Dr. Kristi Gaines & Dr. Lori Guerrero,
Texas Tech Coalition for Natural Learning
Dr. Kristi Gaines is an Associate Dean of the Graduate School and Associate Professor in the Department of Design. Through research that investigates ways built environments can accommodate diverse populations through design, Gaines has achieved national recognition as a leader in designing learning environments and other spaces for individuals with sensory sensitivities and developmental disorders. She is also co-founder of the Texas Tech University Coalition for Natural Learning and is a member of a state-wide leadership team, created by the Texas Department of State Health Services, to implement an outdoor learning environment health intervention in Texas. Gaines' book, Designing for Autism Spectrum Disorders, was recognized with awards from the four leading organizations for interior and environmental design. With more than two decades of professional interior design and teaching experience, Gaines has served in leadership roles in industry organizations including the Interior Design Educators Council and the International Interior Design Association. She is a member of the Teaching Academy and is an inaugural graduate of the President's Leadership Institute at Texas Tech University.
Dr. Lori Guerrero has been a contributor to OLE! Texas since 2017, and to the Texas Tech Coalition for Natural Learning (CNL) since its foundation in 2020. She is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Design and her areas of focus are designing for vulnerable populations and exploring Gibson's ecological approach to visual perception, particularly its affordances approach. Her research goals center around multi-disciplinary collaborations and community outreach. Her contributions to CNL include serving on the OLE! Texas state-wide leadership team, co-leading the OLE! Lubbock chapter, designing and managing the CNL website, creating administrative documents for the Texas Department of State Health Services contract, and disseminating the importance of outdoor learning environments in communities and professional organizations. Her most recent study explored the outdoor learning environment behavior settings that early childhood educators believe afford solitary, parallel and cooperative play in preschool children.
News & Announcements .... Dr. Kristi Gaines (Department of Design), Dr. Charles Klein (Landscape Architecture), and Department of Design Graduate Students, Lori Guerrero and Sahand Abassi, were awarded the Interior Design Educators Council Media Award for the OLE! Inspector Guide. They will be recognized at the IDEC Annual Conference on March 9th in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Award(s) are given for recognition of the content of an outstanding visual media piece that exhibits excellence in addressing issues of the discipline of interior design including practice, research, theory, and education.
EDUCATION SPONSOR: Landmark Nurseries, Inc.
Landmark Nurseries is dedicated to continually supplying top quality plant material while maintaining superior customer service. These goals and focus allow Landmark to continue to provide a strong foundation for their continued growth and support of the green industry. In addition to its wholesale locations, Landmark operates four growing facilities located throughout Texas in Edgewood, Grand Saline, Kirbyville, and Round Rock. From annuals, perennials, shrubs, ground cover, to trees, each operation specializes in different aspects of Landmark’s goal to service the green industry as a whole. The farms encompass over 900 acres allowing Landmark to grow quality products while being able to maintain fair pricing.
HISTORY -- Landmark Nurseries, Inc. was founded over 20 years ago by Jim Prewitt. Jim began his landscape career doing jobs for friends and neighbors and soon after opened his first wholesale nursery in Garland, Texas. In 1992, Landmark moved from Garland to Coppell, Texas to set up new corporate headquarters and begin a long term goal of expanding facilities to service landscapers across the state. Since then, four other wholesale distribution locations have been added to major markets in Texas.
Address: 1510 Royston Ln, Round Rock, TX 78664
Email: jprewitt@landmarknurseries.com
Contact: Jim Prewitt
Phone: (512) 251-9238 FAX: (512) 251-7117
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College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources.
The College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources was one of the original colleges when Texas Tech opened in 1925. Today, there are 6 departments which offer 14 bachelors, 20 masters and 8 doctoral degrees, and the International Textile Center. For more information, visit Undergraduate Programs and Graduate Programs or go directly to the departments listed below.
CASNR builds leaders in and out of the classroom. The State and Federal Internship Program and many industry internships provide students with hands-on experience in legislative and commercial environments. More than twenty clubs, organizations and judging teams in CASNR offer chances to meet other students who have similar interests, compete in interscholastic contest, and gain leadership experience.
