MSU’s Fred Carl Jr. Small Town Center celebration, exhibit highlight 40 years of meaningful service

�̾��Ƶalumni Richard and Charlotte McNeel stand near the sign outside of the Giles Hall architecture gallery that now bears their name. — Richard and Charlotte McNeel, alumni of Mississippi State’s College of Architecture, Art and Design, and College of Education, respectively, stand near the sign of the architecture gallery at Giles Hall that now bears their name. The couple’s gift to the School of Architecture created an endowment for the new gallery, displaying a “40 Years at the Carl Small Town Center” exhibit through Friday [Oct. 11]. (Photo by Logan Kirkland)

STARKVILLE, Miss.—Mississippi State celebrated the 40th anniversary of its Fred Carl Jr. Small Town Center Monday [Oct. 7] with a Small Town Celebration and Exhibit and opening of a major benefactor gallery.

The daylong event at Giles Hall featured various presentations highlighting the significant impact of the university’s statewide community design outreach program housed in the College of Architecture, Art and Design. The center was endowed in 2004 by major benefactor Fred E. Carl Jr. of Greenwood, who attended �̾��Ƶas an architecture major and was a 2009 selection for an honorary Doctor of Science degree.

Director Leah Kemp said as an advocate of meaningful design for small towns, the center provides planning and design services and conducts research to generate solutions for problems faced by communities across the nation.

“Through 50-plus partnerships and participation from more than 500 students, faculty and staff, we’ve invested over $2 million in service to more than 100 small towns over the past 40 years,” she said. “Projects may start out as an idea, concept or sketch, and then communities can tweak those and make them their own. We’re very appreciative of Fred Carl for his endowment, which will help the center in continuing to make a huge difference.”

The celebration included an opening reception for the School of Architecture’s Charlotte and Richard McNeel Architecture Gallery, displaying a “40 Years at the Carl Small Town Center” exhibit through Friday [Oct. 11]. Admission is free to all.

Community leaders, architects, planners and others in attendance also heard from Wendy Benscoter, executive director for Shreveport Common Inc. During her keynote address, she shared inspiring stories about action-oriented teams of public/private partners working to transform small towns in Louisiana through Creative Placemaking. The evolving field of practice leverages the power of arts, culture and creativity to make communities more vibrant, sustainable and fun.

Wendy Benscoter gives a keynote address while standing at a podium in front of a large screen in Harrison Auditorium at Giles Hall. — Wendy Benscoter, executive director for Shreveport Common Inc., delivered a Monday [Oct. 7] keynote address on the Creative Placemaking process during the Small Town Celebration and Exhibit hosted by Mississippi State’s Fred Carl Jr. Small Town Center. (Photo by Beth Wynn)

“The Creative Placemaking process puts broad and diverse groups of people together to look at multi-layered projects that build on existing assets, respect quality of place, create healthier communities and a healthier climate for creative and cultural expression, and provide economic opportunity and an improved quality of life for all,” Benscoter said.

“It’s a tall order, but when the community’s voice is heard and teams of architects, artists, neighbors, property owners, innovators, planners, mayors, city department heads and community experts bring their accountability to detail together at the same table, imagination and innovation are limitless,” she said.

Also part of the Small Town Celebration was a panel discussion that reconnected �̾��ƵSchool of Architecture alumni with former faculty and administrators. Michael Buono, former professor and project director at the then-Center for Small Town Research and Design (now known as the Fred Carl Jr. Small Town Center), was among the panelists who shared words of praise for the center’s work on projects that “serve communities extremely well.”

Former CAAD Dean Jim West introduces former �̾��Ƶfaculty and administrators for a panel discussion about the Fred Carl Jr. Small Town Center’s 40-year impact. — Former �̾��ƵCollege of Architecture, Art and Design Dean Jim West, standing, introduces a panel of former faculty and administrators of the university’s Fred Carl Jr. Small Town Center. The group discussed memories from projects conducted by the center throughout its 40-year history. Panelists (seated, l-r) include John McRae, �̾��Ƶprofessor emeritus; John Poros, �̾��Ƶprofessor of architecture and former director of the university’s Educational Design Institute and the Carl Small Town Center; Kimberly Brown, former director of the Carl Small Town Center; Shannon Criss, professor of architecture at the University of Kansas and former director of the Small Town Center; Nils Gore, professor of architecture at the University of Kansas who previously taught at �̾��Ƶand was active in the design and construction of the Okolona Corner Park through the Small Town Center; and Michael Buono, former professor and project director at the Center for Small Town Research and Design, now known as the Fred Carl Jr. Small Town Center. (Photo by Megan Bean)

“It’s great to come back to Mississippi State and see former students’ names on major spaces within the building now,” he said. “As educators, we measure our successes by our students, and when our students succeed, we feel successful too.”

School of Architecture Professor and Interim Director Jassen Callender said, “Support really matters and lets us do things that are bigger and better. Much like the Carl Small Town Center has Fred Carl, the gallery needs that kind of support to move forward, and that’s where Charlotte and Richard McNeel come in. They have done so much for the School of Architecture, College of Architecture, Art and Design, and the architecture profession.”

Charlotte McNeel has �̾��Ƶbachelor’s and master’s degrees in education, which she earned in 1975 and 1977, respectively. Richard McNeel is a 1979 �̾��Ƶarchitecture bachelor’s graduate, current chair of the �̾��ƵSchool of Architecture’s Advisory Council and 2019 recipient of the President’s Medal for Distinguished Service, the highest honor awarded by the National Council of Architectural Registration Boards. He brings 40 years of professional experience in planning, design and building to his work as president of the Jackson-based firm JBHM Architecture.

As parents of �̾��Ƶarchitecture alumnae Catherine and Kirke, the McNeels said they are proud to make this gift to the School of Architecture.

“We’re excited because students will get to see architecture work demonstrated in key exhibits that the gallery hosts,” Richard McNeel said.

“We feel very blessed, and we love Mississippi State,” added Charlotte McNeel.

For more information on MSU’s Fred Carl Jr. Small Town Center, visit and on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram @smalltowncenter. Kemp can be contacted at 662-325-8671 or LKemp@caad.msstate.edu.

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