McCarthy Middle School
SCOPE
Cafeteria, servery entrance wall and servery
LEVEL
Middle school
LOCATION
Chelmsford, MA
INSTALL
April 2025
THEME
Lion Cafe
OVERVIEW
McCarthy wanted a room for middle schoolers that still shows school spirit. So we gave it a cleaner, grown-up look in maroon and gray, with a word wall at the center.
New paint, a word wall across Wall C, and PVC graphics on both panels of the folding divider. The sayings around the room are built on the school’s PRIDE values: Perseverance, Respect, Integrity, Dedication and Empathy. Dr. Parks edited the final wording himself, and the crew installed it in April 2025.
THE BRIEF
We gave McCarthy’s cafeteria a cleaner, grown-up look in maroon and gray, with a word wall as the centerpiece.
Chelmsford wanted to update the McCarthy cafeteria and give it a cleaner look.
A dated room that needed fresh paint, with a folding divider that rarely got used. The school wanted a design for middle schoolers that still showed school spirit and colors.
New paint in maroon and grays, a word wall across Wall C, and PVC graphics on both panels of the folding divider. Positive sayings around the room are built on the school’s PRIDE values: Perseverance, Respect, Integrity, Dedication and Empathy.
Peek Inside
Get More details about this product
The collaborative story
Designed live with
McCarthy
We met five times, February to March 2025, with School Nutrition Director Nancy Antolini and principal Dr. Jeff Parks. Together we picked the words for the wall and the sayings around the room, down to Dr. Parks’s own edit of the final wording.
Nancy signed the final artboard in April, and the crew installed it later that month.
Key Elements
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Lion Word Wall
- Element: Word wall (full PVC)
- Location: Wall C
School words chosen with the team around “Lion Pride,” set as the room’s main feature.
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Lion Cafe Storefront
- Element: Wall graphics
- Location: Wall A
A band above the doors with ROAR, a realistic lion face, the Lion Cafe sign, the PRIDE values and “Heart of a Lion.”
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Divider Graphics
- Element: Printed PVC panels
- Location: Both folding divider panels
The folding divider carries the design across both panels.
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Sayings
- Element: Wall graphics
- Location: Around the room
Lines like “Have a good day or not… the choice is yours!” and “Be you, everyone else is taken,” on red panels by the windows.
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Serving Line
- Element: Soffit and header graphics
- Location: Serving area
“Be the Reason Someone Smiles Today” on the soffit, with Eat Well, Smart Choices, Fresh Flavors and more along the line.
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Lion Cafe Entrance
- Element: Sign and wall graphics
- Location: Vestibule
The Lion Cafe sign over the entry window with paw prints, and the school’s lion shield on the wall.
Gallery
We didn't design a cafeteria.
We designed somewhere they'd actually want to be.
And the kids? They noticed everything.
A lot can happen with a little change
in your space
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