In preparation for Homecoming, extra effort is put into making sure every part of campus is clean for the 20,000-plus visitors throughout the week.

This widespread effort includes custodial services, landscaping and everyday housekeeping, said Tammy Wolfe, supervisor for Building Services.

Advance cleaning of campus buildings will begin about a week before Homecoming, Wolfe said.

Building Services attendants will also go into the buildings that will be used for events about two-and-a-half hours before each event to make sure everything is in working order, Wolfe said.

“We make sure all of the spaces on campus are cleaned and ready for Homecoming,” Wolfe said. “These places are the public places — the stadium, ticket booth, restrooms and suites.”

After the game and all of the Homecoming festivities are over, there’s a total cleanup of campus facilities for maintenance purposes, Wolfe said.

Landscape Architect Helen Siewers said grounds crews clean, trim and mow the lawns and flower beds on campus before Homecoming.

Along with regular landscaping duties, the crews will also make sure all trash is picked up, Siewers said.

Other duties include cleaning curbs along College Heights Boulevard and Avenue of Champions, she said.

“Our crews will also pay extra detail to the areas around the fine arts center and Gatton Academy,” Siewers said.

Siewers said plants around campus are specially chosen and planted according to when they bloom.

“We make sure to choose plants that peak during the fall,” she said. “We’ve also replaced the summer-blooming verbena with pansies. These will add color from Homecoming until the end of the year.”

Pooja Patel, a freshman from Mumbai, India, said she sees why so much effort is put into making sure campus is clean for Homecoming.

“Many people come to this event,” Patel said. “It matters so much because we need to attract people.”

Patel said people will be fascinated by the beautiful facilities on campus, like the fountain in front of Van Meter Hall.

But she said others may be turned away by parts of campus such as the parking lots and structures.

Wolfe said that a clean and trim campus for large events, like Homecoming, is important for WKU.

“It’s what gives a representation of WKU and what it’s like to those who are here every day,” Wolfe said. “A lot of outside entities are going to see it — parents, families, and families of future students.”