Contact: Danielle Bessey
Christian H. Preus
A senior Mississippi State landscape architecture major is among a select number of students working this summer with an international firm that designed Atlanta's Centennial Olympic Park and other major projects.
Christian H. Preus of Webb joins nearly two dozen university students chosen to work in Colorado with the Student Summer Program of San Francisco-based EDAW, an international consulting firm specializing in landscape, community design and the environment. EDAW traditionally involves students each summer in its current projects.
In addition to MSU, students from other universities in the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom, People's Republic of China, and Indonesia are part of an urban redevelopment project at Stapleton International Airport. They are collaborating with city officials and design professionals to plan for future urban and environmental needs at the international travel crossroads located 20 miles from downtown Denver.
"We are working to find design solutions that minimize the use of automobiles and provide walkways for pedestrians," Preus said. The project also will develop ways to create and maintain wildlife habitats in the area, he added.
A graduate of Lee Academy in Clarksdale, Preus is the son of Otto Preus of Clarksdale and Anne Hart Preus of Cleveland. At MSU, he is a member of Mortar Board, Golden Key and Alpha Theta Chi honor societies.
Since being established in 1980, the EDAW summer program has brought together teams of students from 15 countries and 55 universities to work in locations throughout the U. S., Asia and the Middle East.
"I credit my major professors for helping me compete successfully," Preus said of his selection. "They've taught me how to use my imagination in reacting to a changing world."
Following a two-week concentrated workshop in Denver, he completes the eight-week paid internship in EDAW's Atlanta office, where he will continue work on the Stapleton project.