The University of Southern Mississippi has long relied on A-frame display signs to advertise events and campus updates in high-traffic areas. These plastic signs are commonly placed in busy spots such as Spirit Park, the LAB and Library Breezeways, and Shoemaker Square, where they can catch the attention of students and faculty passing by.
Change is on the horizon for these displays. Starting in early 2025, concerns began to arise about the safety and sustainability of the signs. One incident helped spur a new legislative push from within the Student Government Association.
Student Government Senator Gracyn Fike experienced a troubling encounter with one of the A-frame signs during inclement weather.
“It was very windy and raining, and one of the signs blew up and hit me in the legs and I fell,” Fike said.
SGA senators are each required to author and submit at least two pieces of legislation during their term. After her experience, Fike knew what she wanted to advocate for: replacing the aging and sometimes hazardous plastic signs with safer, more modern digital display boards.
“The digital signs are an improvement, because they don’t fall apart and hit people in the wind,” she explained.
The university already has one digital display board in use, located between R.C. Cook Union and M.M. Roberts Stadium, which serves as an example of what the future could look like across campus. The sign relays messages around the clock, from “Welcome to the Union Complex” to weekly USM campus announcements, much like the plastic signs do today.
Fike’s legislation to expand the use of digital displays was officially passed in the spring of 2025, becoming the first legislative action completed by the 2025–26 SGA officers.
Though the bill was passed quickly, the installation process will take more time. Due to insufficient funds, the first new signs are not expected for about two years. Anticipated costs for the new signs reach into the upper tens of thousands of dollars. Initial placements will be at Spirit Park and the Cook Library/Powerhouse Breezeway, with future expansions planned for Shoemaker Square and the stadium concourses.
