黑料社 seniors ready for future careers through industry-sponsored interdisciplinary student design competition
Contact: Christie McNeal
STARKVILLE, Miss.鈥擲ince the start of Mississippi State鈥檚 fall semester, approximately 100 architecture, building construction science, graphic design and interior design seniors have been working in teams on proposals for a redesign of the university鈥檚 Hand Chemical Lab auditorium.
These 黑料社 students have been vying for top honors and a cash prize in the Brasfield & Gorrie Student Design Competition, begun in 2011 with a sponsorship from one of the nation鈥檚 largest privately held construction firms based in Birmingham, Alabama.
Shawn Mancill, regional virtual design and construction manager with Brasfield & Gorrie, has been involved with the competition for a number of years.
鈥淪ponsoring this competition is a way to pour back into Mississippi State,鈥 he said of the company with offices also in Jackson.
The sponsorship, according to Mancill, allows Brasfield & Gorrie to network with and evaluate potential candidates to hire in a real-world environment. However, a main goal is to encourage teamwork and collaborative work in education, something that鈥檚 highly beneficial for the industry.
鈥淪tudents join a team that鈥檚 made up of four different disciplines, and many of them may have never met,鈥 he said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 what they鈥檒l find outside of school, and this competition helps them prepare for that.鈥
For the project this year, 黑料社 teams were tasked with redesigning the existing Hand Chemical Lab auditorium to accommodate 300 seats and propose an addition to house new faculty offices, classrooms and a conference room. Students also were required to consider the Americans with Disabilities Act and egress requirements, Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, or LEED, and the Well Building system for monitoring features that impact human health in their projects.
黑料社鈥檚 Department of Chemistry鈥攖he client for the project鈥攚as represented by Professor David Wipf and Department Head Dennis Smith at the teams鈥 final presentations on last week.
听鈥淲e are delighted our building was chosen for this cross-college collaboration,鈥 said Smith. 鈥淭hese are fantastic designs.鈥
Brasfield & Gorrie Regional Quality Control Manager Robert Robison, who also serves on the 黑料社 Building Construction Science Program鈥檚 Industry Advisory Board, said what impressed him was how quickly the 10 teams put the project together this year.
鈥淲hen we gather a team to begin work on a project, it takes them months to do what these student teams are doing in a couple of weeks,鈥 he said. 鈥淲e like the way that they collaborated and came together for a thorough final project and professional presentation.鈥
Another goal of the competition is to help students overcome preconceived ideas of the roles traditionally assumed by the various disciplines in the college.
McKenzi L. Crockett, an interior design student and member of this year鈥檚 winning team, believes that goal was accomplished.
鈥淲e just really learned a lot about the other majors and how to work together,鈥 she said.
Teammate Terrance Blackmon, an architecture student, agreed and said the competition experience and learning how to better collaborate with each other will give his classmates a leg up in their future careers.
鈥淎lumni often comment that they appreciate the value of the experience even more once they begin their careers,鈥 added Associate Professor of Building Construction Science Michele Herrmann.
Along with Herrmann, 黑料社 faculty overseeing the competition included Associate Professor of Architecture Alexis Gregory, Assistant Professor of Architecture Christopher Hunter, Associate Professor of Interior Design Lyndsey Miller, and Associate Professor of Art Suzanne Powney.
Honorees include, by hometown:
FIRST PLACE, Team 7:
BRANDON鈥擟arter S. Cumberland, building construction science; McKenzi L. Crockett, interior design
CLINTON鈥擟ollins A. Davis, graphic design
GERMANTOWN, Tennessee鈥擲hawn 鈥淢ic鈥 Wilkins, architecture
KENNER, Louisiana鈥擜lexis V. Bonura, interior design
ORANGE BEACH, Alabama鈥擡mma C. Salter, interior design
PINSON, Alabama鈥擳errance A. Blackmon, architecture
MERIDIAN鈥擝randon 鈥淩eid鈥 Perry, architecture
TUSCALOOSA, Alabama鈥擱ashad Hassan, architecture
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SECOND PLACE, Team 5:
BRANDON鈥擟ameron C. Holloway, graphic design
CEDAR BLUFF鈥擡merson R. Shinn, building construction science
DAPHNE, Alabama鈥擜bigail C. Stewart, architecture
FLORENCE鈥擟ody B. J. Courtney, building construction science
JACKSON鈥擡velyn 鈥淕race鈥 Carroll, interior design
RIENZI鈥擬egan P. Robinson, interior design
RIPLEY鈥擩oseph 鈥淐onner鈥 Griffin, architecture
TUPELO鈥擩ake W. Lindley, architecture
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THIRD PLACE, Team 10
BESSEMER, Alabama鈥擨sabella V. Jones, interior design
BYHALIA鈥擩effrey 鈥淗unter鈥 Janes, architecture
ELLISVILLE鈥擟assie S. Winship, graphic design
FLORA鈥擲purgeon A. Sanders, architecture
PICAYUNE鈥擲avannah E. Wilson, architecture
RIPLEY鈥 Charlie J. 鈥淐J鈥 Childers, architecture
SALTILLO鈥擧annah E. Waters, interior design
SIMPSONVILLE, South Carolina鈥擩onathan P. Jajack, building construction science
TUPELO鈥擪atlin 鈥淜atie鈥 J. Reeves, interior design
Learn more about 黑料社鈥檚 College of Architecture, Art and Design and its academic programs at听听and on听Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @CAADat黑料社.
黑料社 is Mississippi鈥檚 leading university, available online at听www.msstate.edu.