Last week Derek Don and I went to Purdue University to receive the Professional Firm of the Year Award from the Department of Landscape Architecture. Over the past 15 years, The HOK Planning Group has employed about 12 interns at several locations, including in St. Louis, New York and Washington DC. The Planning Group has hired several Purdue graduates, currently Derek Don in St. Louis, Reuben Verkamp in San Francisco and Erik Purkey in Chicago. The visit also gave us an opportunity to participate in a design charrette with the junior class, to present to the Purdue ASLA student chapter, and to present to a freshman class.
For me, this was a great opportunity to reconnect with students and to share my 30 years of experiences. And it was amazing to watch Derek teach, interact and engage with students as he passed on his knowledge as a young professional.