Alumni helping direct transformative campus projects
With 1,400 acres comprising its main campus, Mississippi State University knows the importance the environment can play in shaping a college experience. Spaces need to be inviting, memorable and, above all, functional for the students who use the area every day.
By supporting enhancements to MSU’s shared outdoor spaces, alumni can ensure improvements have broad impacts not only to the functionality of campus but also the lasting impressions they leave on both those who call it home and others just passing through.
Dean and Lauran Wingo, along with Dr. Edward P. Scott and wife Claudia, made such an impact through the beautification of the south face of Hilbun Hall. Through the creation of a fountain and enhancements to the surrounding landscape, they have helped amplify MSU’s welcoming atmosphere.
“They will be part of the heartstrings and memories of tomorrow’s alumni,” said Saunders Ramsey, executive director of Campus Services. “When families participate in the beautification of campus through work that makes campus more useful to students, we have a cycle of success that’s a joy to share.”
The 40-ton rock garden and 5,600-gallon fountain—dubbed Shipley’s Water Bowl for the Wingos’ four-legged friend—lie at the eastern end of one of the university’s key corridors bridging the area from Hilbun, west to Fraternity Row through a series of pedestrian lanes and plazas creating a connection that includes historic Harned and Lee halls, Colvard Student Union, the YMCA building, Chapel of Memories, Junction and amphitheater.
Not long ago, this area—that was once part of Highway 12—was dominated by automobile traffic. Through long-range planning, the MSU Foundation and the campus services department helped make the area more pedestrian-friendly to meet the needs of today’s campus community.
The transformation was intentional and made with longevity, functionality and accessibility in mind, and it was all supported by the philanthropy of students past, for the benefit of current and future students.
“The core of everything we do is for present students,” Ramsey said. “A lot of that is occurring because campus is being made more functional.”
Among the enhancements making campus more functional are numerous projects aimed at enhancing pedestrian access and safety. These improvements include the ongoing transformation of Hardy Road, known to generations of Bulldogs as Engineering Row. Growth toward the south end of campus, along with consistent foot traffic along the thoroughfare, highlighted a need to rethink the area’s function.
The current project will turn the area of Hardy Road from Lee Boulevard to Morrill Road into a green space—a pedestrian corridor enhancing usability and safety.
“Making the campus pedestrian-only is not a grand goal, but progress in that direction reflects a change in priorities, and we do want to be proactive,” Ramsey said. “When it comes to work, we want to always be ahead of the curve.”
By Kevin Tate, Photos by Grace Cockrell & Emily Grace McCall