Workday essentials

ANDY BURNETT

Foreman, The Mill Shop

The Mill Shop produces high-quality woodworking from fine hardwoods (oak, cherry, walnut, maple) and is responsible for many of the historical and modern pieces at Illinois.

An image of a 12-inch carbide saw blade, backed by flames and a Block I, is mounted at the entrance to Andy Burnett’s office, which overlooks the workroom where beds, desks, specimen cabinets — pretty much anything custom the university needs that’s made of wood — are built. His office, more like a sanctuary from the constant sawing, sanding, and nailing, is packed with wooden prototypes and sketches he’s crafted over the years.

Today, Andy still uses the same tools he used as an industrial design major here in the 1970s — colored pencils, highlighters, and rulers. He designs new projects on a small, handmade drafting table the size of a large shoebox, just as the foremen before him did.

Burnett is an artist who values the tactile act of creation over moving pixels on a screen. The computer on his desk is rarely used for design; instead, it serves as a digital vault for historical records. There, he stores blueprints and renderings spanning more than a century, ready to be retrieved whenever the university needs to replicate any of the thousands of historic wood pieces across campus. The drafting table may be smaller now, and the technology far more sophisticated, but when Illinois needs to bring its history back to life, it still turns to Burnett, who knows how to get the job done.

MORRIE (’26) and BRIDGET CALLAGHAN (LAS ’26)

Service Dog and Handler, Illini Service Dogs

Morrie and Bridget Callaghan are part of Illini Service Dogs, a registered nonprofit and student organization founded in 2010. It is a student-led charity that trains and raises mobility service dogs, which are then provided free of charge to individuals with disabilities.

Morrie, a 2½-year-old black Labrador retriever, moves through the Huff Hall hallway with measured focus, his orange vest and dark coat catching the fluorescent light as he stays locked on his teacher, Callaghan, at the other end of the leash. Calm-eyed and eager to please, Illini Service Dog Morrie pads quietly beside her, weaving through the classroom corridor with the practiced attention of a dog learning how to navigate every doorway, obey every command, and retrieve every dropped object.

In the coming weeks, Morrie will begin working with his forever handler, someone living with disabilities who will benefit from the hours he spent “playing” with his toys: A light switch with a mounted backing allows Morrie to refine his dexterity when turning the lights on or off. A tug-of-war toy can serve as a substitute for opening or closing drawers. An empty pill bottle lets him practice gently retrieving an object. All of which taught him how to help in real-life service dog scenarios.  Callaghan has raised Morrie since he was an 8-week-old puppy, but graduation is sending them on separate paths. While Callaghan prepares for life after college, her “cuddly and loyal” companion is ready to begin his journey as a service dog.

ROSALIE METALLO

Assistant Director, ACES Plant Care Facility

The Plant Care Facility comprises greenhouses and service spaces in the Plant Sciences Laboratory greenhouse complex and the Turner Hall greenhouses, primarily serving labs in the Department of Crop Sciences, the Department of Natural Resources & Environmental Sciences within the College of ACES, and the School of Integrative Biology.

Rubber boots line the floor near the entrance to one of the 66 campus greenhouse rooms. Pruners hang from hooks. Hoses snake between rows of corn and flowering plants. Nearby, boxes of gloves and face masks sit ready for messy soil work or chemical spraying.

For Rosalie Metallo, who helps manage daily greenhouse operations and research support, those everyday tools are essential. She has worked in the university greenhouses since 2017, after studying agronomics and later transitioning to plant science. Now, her days revolve around maintaining research plants for dozens of labs across campus. Much of the work is hands on.

Although automated systems exist, many research plants require specialized care that is difficult to automate. Staff and student workers spend hours watering plants by hand, monitoring growth, and maintaining greenhouse conditions.

Metallo pointed out some of the tools used daily: bypass pruners, watering nozzles, soil scoops, and thick rubber boots worn while moving across wet greenhouse floors.

Many of the tools would be familiar to home gardeners. The difference, Metallo said, is the scale. The greenhouse complex contains dozens of growing rooms that support research on corn, soybeans, sorghum, and other plants. Some spaces are dedicated to classroom instruction, while others house highly controlled experiments.

In one room, researchers carefully monitored drought-tolerant “resurrection plants” that can survive long periods without water. In another, corn plants were covered with pollination bags as researchers worked to improve nitrogen-use efficiency in crops. Even in a facility supporting advanced agricultural research, the work often comes back to simple routines: watering plants, checking soil, cleaning tools, and paying close attention. Small things, Metallo said, make a big difference.