KCCI and VyStar Credit Union Unveil New Public Art and Placemaking Projects
KCCI & VyStar Credit Union Unveil New Public Art and Placemaking Projects as 8th Annual Placemaking Week Concludes
Good is everywhere partnership brings students, volunteers and community together to transform school spaces at Cobb and R. Frank Nims Middle Schools
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Sept. 25, 2026 — The Knight Creative Communities Institute (KCCI), VyStar Credit Union and Cobb Middle School today unveiled new murals and campus improvements at Elizabeth Cobb and R. Frank Nims Middle Schools, marking the culmination of KCCI’s 8th Annual Placemaking Week and continuing an effort to bring meaningful public art back to Tallahassee neighborhoods.
“Our employees are proud to work alongside students, educators and KCCI volunteers to create gathering places that build school pride and strengthen the community,” said Miron Richardson, Assistant Vice President of Regional Community Engagement for VyStar Credit Union. “VyStar’s Good is everywhere initiative is about bringing people together to make a positive, lasting difference in the communities we serve while also honoring our members, who make these partnerships possible.”
At Cobb Middle School, improvements include a new school-spirit mural, a succulent garden, a 105-foot fence mural, new improvements by the gym entrance, and landscaping at a popular gathering place on campus. At R. Frank Nims Middle School, the project highlight is a permanent school-spirit mural. Students, VyStar Credit Union employees, community volunteers, KCCI Community Catalysts and Living Canvas Studio helped bring the projects to life.
“These new placemaking projects make campus more vibrant and welcoming while reflecting student pride,” said Logan Crouch, Cobb Middle School Principal. “Having students and community members help transform spaces into welcoming places gives them a personal connection to their school and something they can take pride in every day.”
Research shows that murals at schools exert a profound impact on student behavior, mental health, and community dynamics. For example, disciplinary issues decrease and school pride increases when more color and murals are on campus. These projects mark the third year KCCI and VyStar Credit Union have partnered through VyStar’s fifth annual Good is everywhere initiative and KCCI’s Placemaking Week to create educational and beautification projects at local schools. Previous collaborations have included welcoming placemaking projects at Sabal Palm Elementary and Gilchrist Elementary School.
“It is a full circle moment as we concluded KCCI’s 8th Annual Placemaking Week at Cobb Middle School, where KCCI’s first Crosswalk to Classrooms project began and was piloted during Placemaking Week a few years ago with hundreds of neighborhood volunteers,” said Betsy Couch, KCCI Executive Director. “I love seeing how students, volunteers and community partners came back together to create new and improved community assets.”
The projects are part of KCCI’s 2026 Community Catalyst team’s initiative, WALL+A — Walls for Art, Learning, and Local Activation, which is using public art to transform everyday spaces into vibrant community landmarks. The initiative includes public art projects at local schools as well as The Stacks, KCCI’s large-scale mural installation along South Monroe Street.
The unveiling concludes KCCI’s 8th Annual Placemaking Week, a series of free, hands-on community activities highlighting how residents can help create stronger, more connected places throughout Tallahassee.
This Cobb Middle School project was made possible thanks to the support of VyStar Credit Union and private donors of KCCI’s 2026 Community Catalyst team project WallA+ (pronounced like Voila!). KCCI is made possible thanks to community partners that make the KCCI Community Catalyst teams possible.
KCCI has previously led successful public placemaking mural art projects, such as The Stacks, the Good Things Grow Here mural by Cascades Park, the TLH mural on Market Street, and the Welcome to Midtown mural to name a few. These installations have become community landmarks and catalysts for neighborhood pride as well as economic development. For information about KCCI’s placemaking projects, click here.
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About the Knight Creative Communities Institute (KCCI): Established in 2007, KCCI selects and organizes volunteers known as Community Catalysts to implement placemaking projects. These projects have helped enhance Tallahassee’s sense of place and generated nearly $1 billion in economic development. For 19 years, a new group of volunteer Community Catalysts is selected to plan and implement each annual project. The 2026 KCCI Community Catalysts include: Laura Barrett, Tetra Tech; Karen Brooks, Capital City Bank; Chris Carlberg, Florida State University; Alex Delgado, Blueprint Intergovernmental Agency; Shannon Devine, Academy Travel (Independent Contractor); Lori Elliott, Capital City Bank; Carla Juarez Farley, KPMG; Ryan Kline, Tallahassee Web Design; Tangela Lofton, Florida SBDC at FAMU; Holly McPhail, Windwood Communications; Mary McVicar, McV Tax; Pamela Monroe, Leon County Public Library; Tena Pate of Tena Pate and Associates; Chris Petley, Leon County Schools; Nicole Spina, Architects Lewis + Whitlock; Sam Varn, Retired (Awards4U). KCCI is made possible by partners including: VyStar Credit Union, Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare, Taproot, FAMU School of Business and Industry, Florida State University, NAI TALCOR, Nolia & Bill Brandt, David Powell & Vicki Weber, Marjorie Turnbull, Serena and Jon Moyle, Tharpe Construction, Dentist Dr. Cory Couch, Windwood Communications, Target Print & Mail, and Hartsfield Construction.
About Wall A+ WALL+A — Walls for Art, Learning, and Local Activation — is KCCI’s creative placemaking initiative powered by its 2026 Community Catalyst team, using public art to transform everyday spaces into vibrant community landmarks across Tallahassee. By activating corridors and campuses alike, WALL+A strengthens neighborhoods, celebrates local creativity, and invests in the places where people live, learn, and gather. This year, KCCI led the creation of The Stacks, helping transform South Monroe Street into a dynamic outdoor arts destination. Featuring eight large-scale murals across stacked shipping containers, the installation creates a striking visual gateway for the Southside — driving tourism, fostering pride, and encouraging continued community investment. In addition, complementing this corridor activation, the WALL+A team is returning meaningful, lasting art to eight local school campuses, first focusing on neighborhoods that lost their artistic crosswalks. Building on strong community partnerships, the initiative turns campus walls into creative spaces that inspire students, strengthen neighborhood identity, and deepen connections between schools and their communities. Schools that have already benefited include: Hartsfield Elementary School, Sabal Palm Elementary, DeSoto Trail Elementary and W.T. Moore. Projects upcoming include Cobb Middle School, R. Frank Nims Middle School, Kate Sullivan Elementary, FAMU Foundation/FAMU Founder Accelerator Network Group Business Incubator. Together, these projects reflect the heart of WALL+A — leveraging art as a catalyst for economic vitality, educational enrichment, and long-term community transformation.
About VyStar Credit Union
VyStar Credit Union is the second-largest credit union headquartered in Florida, with 80 full-service branches across Florida and Georgia, more than 1 million members and assets of over $14 billion. VyStar is a major employer in the region with over 2,200 employees across the communities it serves. VyStar membership is open to everyone who lives or works in the 49 contiguous counties of Central to North Florida, 29 Georgia counties, as well as past and present military members and their families all over the world. Members benefit from convenient access to over 55,000 surcharge free ATMs worldwide. VyStar has earned national recognition from Time Magazine, Fortune, USA Today and Forbes for excellence in financial services, innovation and customer service, reflecting its commitment to delivering value and exceptional experiences to members. For more information, visit vystarcu.org, and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, X (Twitter), and LinkedIn.