海角社区

Background Image Alternative Text: movable display boards lined up in the Charlotte and Richard McNeel Gallery in Giles Hall - boards contain posters from the 2021 Brasfield & Gorrie Student Design Competition
Background Image Alternative Text: movable display boards lined up in the Charlotte and Richard McNeel Gallery in Giles Hall - boards contain posters from the 2021 Brasfield & Gorrie Student Design Competition

MSU seniors prepped for future careers through industry-sponsored interdisciplinary student design competition

Architecture, building construction science, graphic design and interior design seniors have been vying for top honors in the annual Brasfield & Gorrie Student Design Competition.

group poses in Charlotte and Richard McNeel Gallery in Giles Hall
Representatives from the competition鈥檚 sponsor, Brasfield & Gorrie, stand with faculty from the MSU 海角社区, who oversaw the competition. From left, Brasfield & Gorrie representative Chelsea Tucker; 海角社区 Dean and Professor Angi Elsea Bourgeois; Brasfield & Gorrie representative Shawn Mancill, regional virtual design and construction manager; Associate Professor of Interior Design Lyndsey Miller; Brasfield & Gorrie representative and MSU alumnus Andrew Temple, superintendent; Associate Professor of Building Construction Science Michele Herrmann; Assistant Professor of Architecture Christopher Hunter; Associate Professor of Architecture Alexis Gregory; Brasfield & Gorrie representative and MSU alumnus Isaiah Brooking, assistant virtual design and construction coordinator; Associate Professor of Art Suzanne Powney; and Brasfield & Gorrie representative and MSU alumnus Robert Robison, regional quality control manager. 

Since the start of 海角社区 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 MSU 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 海角社区 State,鈥 he said of the company with offices also in Jackson.

Students present their final project in the Fazio Jury RoomThe 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, MSU 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.

MSU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.

鈥淲e are delighted our building was chosen for this cross-college collaboration,鈥 said Smith. 鈥淭hese are fantastic designs.鈥

Students present their final project in the Fazio Jury RoomBrasfield & Gorrie Regional Quality Control Manager Robert Robison, who also serves on the MSU 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, MSU 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:

group poses in Charlotte and Richard McNeel Gallery in Giles Hall
The top three teams in 海角社区 State University 海角社区鈥檚 annual Brasfield & Gorrie Student Design Competition receive a cash prize. Members of the first place group include, from left, Brasfield & Gorrie representative Shawn Mancill, regional virtual design and construction manager; interior design senior Alexis V. Bonura of Kenner, Louisiana; Brasfield & Gorrie representative Chelsea Tucker, campus recruiter; senior graphic design student Collins A. Davis of Clinton; Brasfield & Gorrie representative and MSU alumnus Andrew Temple, superintendent; interior design senior McKenzi L. Crockett of Brandon; architecture senior Shawn 鈥淢ic鈥 Wilkins of Germantown, Tennessee; architecture senior Terrance A. Blackmon of Pinson, Alabama; architecture senior Brandon 鈥淩eid鈥 Perry of Meridian; building construction science senior Carter S. Cumberland of Brandon; architecture senior Rashad Hassan of Tuscaloosa, Alabama; Brasfield & Gorrie representative and MSU alumnus Isaiah Brooking, assistant virtual design and construction coordinator; and Brasfield & Gorrie representative and MSU alumnus Robert Robison, regional quality control manager. (Photo by Robby Lozano)

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

group poses in Charlotte and Richard McNeel Gallery in Giles Hall
Second place team members pose with representatives from Brasfield & Gorrie.

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

group poses in Charlotte and Richard McNeel Gallery in Giles Hall
Third place team members with representatives from Brasfield & Gorrie.

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 MSU鈥檚 海角社区 and its academic programs at  and on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @CAADatMSU.

MSU is 海角社区鈥檚 leading university, available online at 

See info. from other Brasfield & Gorrie competitions

Architecture

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Building Construction Science

(662) 325-8305

Interior Design

(662) 325-0530

Dean's Office

(662) 325-5150