When you enter the Texas A&M Hotel and Conference Center, it’s hard to miss Sean Artman. His collection of maroon jackets festooned with everything from images of Reveille, the Texas A&M University logo and the Gig ’em thumbs up makes for a heck of a welcoming image.
And then there’s the exuberant “Howdy!” he uses to greet every hotel guest.
“Howdy is what it’s all about,” Artman says. “Howdy is a lifestyle. It’s more than a greeting. It’s a way to lift somebody up first thing in the morning. When you’re feeling bad, howdy is always a good thing to hear.”
Artman’s smile, welcoming attitude and love for all that is Texas A&M draw visitors to the university and hotel guests to him. He exudes the Core Values that Aggies everywhere strive to embody and makes everyone he meets feel instantly at ease and welcome at one of the largest universities in the country.
His love for this university, its traditions and its people is apparent in all that he does. And he’s not even an Aggie.
But his daughter is.
Journey to Aggieland
Artman was first introduced to Texas A&M the same way many parents were — on a trip to the main campus with his wife, Alice, and their daughter and future Aggie, Stephanie ‘05. That visit to campus made a massive impression on the entire family, and Stephanie knew Texas A&M was where she wanted to be.
Artman knew his daughter was in good hands when he was helping her move into her dorm and trying to figure out how to get all her room essentials up three flights of stairs.
“I remember a young man coming up to us and asking if we needed help,” he said. “I told him I needed help getting all her stuff up to the third floor.” The student was a member of the Corps of Cadets, and soon he and his friends were hauling Stephanie’s belongings — everything from her mini-fridge and microwave to her luggage — upstairs and into her new dorm room.
“It was really nice,” Artman said. “We just fell in love with the whole atmosphere in College Station.”
His wife even became a member of the Brazoria County Aggie Moms’ Club. “She’s the longest current running member of 25 years,” he said proudly.
Photos by Abbey Toronjo/Texas A&M University Division of Marketing & Communications
Making a New Home in College Station
Those experiences with Texas A&M led him to decide College Station would be a good place to retire after working for Dow Chemical for 39 years as a union shift operator.
He and his wife moved to College Station in 2020, but retirement brought some unexpected challenges, and Artman decided to find a part-time job. Before landing at the hotel, he tried a few jobs, including making pizza … but quit after three days.
“I woke up in the middle of the night, cramped up from making dough balls,” he said. Artman then tried busing tables, which he loved, but it was nonstop and didn’t work out. His wife encouraged him to apply for the job at the hotel, but he wasn’t convinced someone his age would be a good fit for a hotel located on a college campus.
“They’ve got tons of college kids,” he remembers telling his wife. “They don’t need to pick me at all; they’re going to get an old man.” But he got a call for an interview, and the rest is history.
“I don’t understand how they accepted me here like this, because I never went to A&M. Now, I’ve fallen in love with the Aggie Spirit.”
Photos by Abbey Toronjo/Texas A&M University Division of Marketing & Communications
Since joining the hotel in 2023, he has performed many jobs, pitching in wherever he is needed. And he found inspiration in an unexpected place — from the TV show, “Jack Reacher.”
“His main line is ‘investigation details matter.’ And I picked that up. Details matter to each individual guest,” he said.
Artman’s goal is to make each guest feel special and welcomed, while also trying to accommodate their needs and requests — within reason. He said he can get a guest pretty much anything, except football tickets.
“I want everybody to be taken care of here at the hotel,” he says. “Service is about taking care of one another.”
Everyone Is a VIP
Artman’s dedication to making guests feel special during their visit to Aggieland has paid off, as he is now such a part of the hotel experience that if you look for reviews for the hotel, he is usually mentioned before the accommodations or amenities.
Check the hotel’s social media or TripAdvisor reviews, and you’ll see effusive praise for Artman. It’s easy to see why.
He welcomes new students and their families during the New Student Conferences, athletes, dignitaries, conference attendees, colleagues and everyone who enters the hotel. And all those who pass through the doors of the hotel are treated like VIPs.
“The guest in front of me is my favorite VIP. And that’s how you treat your guests,” Artman said.
