OSU Begins Removing COVID-19 Stickers, Decals Campus-Wide

Thousands of COVID-19 related stickers and decals are coming down at Oklahoma State University.

The stickers and decals were posted around campus notifying students, faculty and the public where masks were required and also contained COVID-19 related information.

The process began as soon as CDC guidelines, local and campus leaders deemed it was time.

“I’ve been looking forward to the day of removing these stickers,” said Ron Tarbutton, Chief Facilities Management at Oklahoma State University. “It’s been over a year and I’m so happy to see this starting to get a sense of returning to normal.”

OSU has hired students for the job. Along with removing stickers and decals campus-wide, they’ll also be getting furniture back into place that was moved or removed to help with social distancing.

“We estimate we put out in excess of 17,000 stickers and decals,” said Tarbutton. “We started with a list knowing where they are in a spreadsheet and then more and more get added so you start to lose track of that a little bit.”

Several items will become permanent fixtures around campus because of COVID-19 such as the hundreds of new hand sanitizer stations. Several thermal imaging devices to take student and faculty temperatures will also remain post-pandemic.

“They (students) have already gone through 12 buildings in two days,” said Tarbutton. “(They’re) making good progress but we still have lots of desks and furniture to move as well as getting the decals and stickers removed.”

Tarbutton estimates it will take a couple of months to get everything back the way it was pre-COVID-19.

It won’t be a quick process, but It is a light at the end of a very dark tunnel.

“This is a great day. A lot of people have been looking forward to when this might happen and that day finally came,” said Tarbutton.

If you encounter a COVID-19 sticker or decal, campus leaders said free to remove it yourself or contact Facilities Management.