MOUNT VERNON — Knox County Career Center’s (KCCC) Landscape Design & Management program won 3rd place (bronze) at the 8th Annual 2023 Ohio Green Industry Association’s (OGIA) Ohio High School Landscape Olympics (OHLO) at the Ohio State University Agricultural Technical Institute in Wooster, Ohio.
OGIA’s Ohio High School Landscape Olympics tests students’ skills through hands-on, competitive events designed by industry professionals. OHLO broadens the High School education experience and introduces students to the many opportunities offered by a career in the green industry.
KCCC’s Landscape Design & Management program competed in 17 events against 15 other schools, most of them being career tech schools. KCCC had three students, Tristin Hankinson, Nick Jackson, and Oliver Ruprecht, who finished in the Top 10.
OHLO is open to all Ohio High Schools and Career Centers with horticulture programs. Single teams from all participating schools may compete in all events, or just a few. Competitive events test the student’s abilities to interact in a hands-on environment. Events are planned, implemented, and scored by industry sponsors using guidelines generated by ONLA.
Award Winners
COMPACT EXCAVATOR
Tristin Hankinson – 1st Place
HARDSCAPE INSTALLATION
Aaron White & Jesse Rings – 4th Place
IRRIGATION
Oliver Ruprecht & Jesse Rings – 3rd Place
HERBACEOUS PLANT ID
John Manning – 8th Place
LANDSCAPE MAINTENANCE
Tristin Hankinson & Nick Jackson – 6th Place
PLANT INSTALLATION
Kennedy Auker, Nick Jackson, and Oliver Ruprecht – 3rd Place
SKID STEER
Oliver Ruprecht – 6th Place
LIGHTING
Aaron White – 3rd Place
SALES
Kennedy Auker – 7th Place
SOD INSTALLATION
Tristin Hankinson & Nick Jackson – 4th Place
SURVEYING
Tristin Hankinson & Nick Jackson – 5th Place
TRUCK & TRAILER
Oliver Ruprecht & Aaron White – 2nd Place
WOODY PLANT ID
John Manning – 5th Place
TREE CLIMBING
Charley Beheler & Jesse Rings – 6th Place
TURFGRASS
John Manning & Logan Richmond – 3rd Place