GRAND FORKS – Paul Olson hopes a mural on the north side of the North Dakota School for the Blind will raise awareness of the school’s services and brighten the day for those who pass by.
“I’m going to predict that this will pull people in to ask what this is about,” Olson, superintendent of North Dakota Vision Services/School for the Blind, said recently while surveying the progress at Sixth Avenue and Stanford Road. “This will be talked about a little bit – more than a little bit. You can’t not look at it.”
However, the project hit a "snag," Olson said, late last week when he learned that the facility had accidentally overlooked a new city ordinance that regulates murals. He plans to attend the city’s Planning and Zoning Commission meeting July 9, he said, to “plead our case and hope for the best.”
“I understand that there are necessary steps with the city,” Olson said, “and we will do our best to work with them.”
If the mural is not approved, it may have to be sandblasted, he said, "which would really make that wall unattractive."
Artist Trey Everett, of Crookston, started working on the mural Tuesday, June 17, and has been busy creating the vibrant image covering the entire wall.
“It is our hope that when people pass by this busy intersection near UND, it will bring a smile to their faces,” Olson said.
He suspects few really know the breadth of services the school's staff provides to those with vision impairment.
Olson and Everett have already been encouraged by motorists who honk or call out “it’s beautiful” as they drive by, Olson said. “So that’s affirming. The community really likes it.”
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Planning the design
Olson became aware of Everett’s mural work through a program, “Prairie Mosaic,” on Prairie Public Television, he said. “He inspired me. His work is amazing.”
Olson contacted Everett to begin the process of planning for the mural design, and arranged for the artist to meet with him and other staff members to determine their preferences.
The staff members wanted to incorporate the name of the facility, but not in an overpowering way, he said. They also opted for “tools of the trade,” familiar items such as images of Braille and a silhouette of someone walking with a cane.
Some of the traditional “old school” images are likely familiar to the public, Olson said, but represent a bygone era, as they are being replaced by new, advanced technologies that enhance day-to-day life for those with vision impairment. A magnifying glass is part of the design, but “we use an electronic magnifier now,” he said.
Interestingly, the magnifying glass accentuates the word “power” within the circular glass, with “em” and “ing people” to the left and right of it, respectively – to create the phrase “empowering people.” The sun’s rays emanate from the image.
The state flower, the wild prairie rose, and state bird, the western meadowlark, are prominently displayed. The meadowlark image includes the words “independence,” “courage” and “hope.”

Based on staff members’ suggestions, Everett created a few sketches for consideration and, eventually, a final design was chosen for the north wall of the brick building.
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As a first step, Everett painted the wall with a whitish primer that helped the paint adhere to the surface, he said. Then he applied the design with an acrylic house paint – in some areas a few coats, as necessary – and planned to seal it with a polyethylene finish to protect it from the sun’s UV rays.
Because of the protective layer, any graffiti it might sustain could be cleaned off without disturbing the mural, he said.
This is the first mural project he has been asked to create for a state building, said Everett, who has been involved in several other mural projects in this region.
Specialized training
North Dakota Vision Services/School for the Blind provides weeklong, specialized training sessions for students and adults, some of whom have been referred from area ophthalmologists and the facility’s branch offices throughout the state.
“There are all kinds of technologies and optical aids, and some teaching that goes along with those things,” Olson said.
Offered throughout the year, the sessions are designed to increase one’s abilities in terms of daily living skills, orientation and mobility, and the enjoyment of recreation and leisure activities. For example, staff members recently conducted a weeklong summer camp for teens at White Horse Hill National Game Preserve near Devils Lake.
Public awareness
For the first time, North Dakota Vision Services is planning to invest in billboards, “just a couple of them, on the interstate (highways),” over the next couple of years, Olson said.
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“We want people in the state to be aware that we are a resource,” he said, and so the facility is promoting “anything that brings us to mind for the average person (who can) to say to a friend that North Dakota Vision Services may have some tools to help you become independent.”
“Beefing up public awareness” has become an important aspect in achieving the facility’s overall goal, he said. The work he and his staff do is satisfying.
“Some of those who come here are in distress,” Olson said. But with the progress made during the weeklong sessions, “they feel things have opened up to them. They find ways of doing things.”
“We really want to be a resource and be supportive emotionally,” he said, because those with low vision or are blind experience “real problems – they are real issues that affect people’s lives.”