Contact: Carl Smith

STARKVILLE, Miss.—The Mississippi State University Fred Carl Jr. Small Town Center is seeking volunteers to help paint street murals and crosswalks Friday [July 22] along University Drive.

A large mural featuring ringing cowbells will be painted near the intersection of University Drive and Camp Street, and similar motifs are planned for smaller murals at the road’s intersections with Fellowship and North Nash streets. Cowbell-themed designs also will be added to nine crosswalks along the road connecting Starkville and MSU to promote safety by enhancing their visibility.

Funding for the University Drive Corridor Connections project—a $25,000 award—was provided by the Bloomberg Philanthropies’ Asphalt Art Initiative in 2021 and secured by the MSU center on behalf of the City of Starkville.

Work on the project will be broken into two parts this Friday. From 8 a.m. to noon, volunteers will work in the North Nash and Fellowship streets area, and then volunteers will transition to the Camp Street intersection from 3-7 p.m. to work on the large mural and area crosswalks.

Five time slots are available for volunteers, with painters needed 8-10 a.m., 10 a.m.-noon, 3-5 p.m. and 5-7 p.m. Volunteers also are needed for cleanup efforts starting at 7 p.m.

Additionally, a community party is scheduled from 3-7 p.m. at the Camp Street intersection area and will feature live music and games for children. Attendees are encouraged to bring lawn chairs and enjoy the festivities.

Visit www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0949aca92ba46-cowbells to volunteer for the project. 

A research center housed in the College of Architecture, Art and Design, the Fred Carl Jr. Small Town Center provides solutions to problems faced by communities across the nation through planning and design services.

Read more about the center at www.smalltowncenter.msstate.edu and on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @smalltowncenter.

MSU is Mississippi’s leading university, available online at www.msstate.edu.