The first eagles for Georgia Southern University’s “Eagle Nation on Parade” have arrived and soon will be completed works of art, dotting the Statesboro and Bulloch County landscape. The eagles will add more artistic vitality to the community, while funding Georgia Southern scholarships and research.

The eagles are fiberglass structures that stand more than six-feet tall and depict the bird about to take flight. Artists will be chosen through an application process to paint or decorate the eagles, which will then be auctioned to raise funds. The artists will work to embellish the eagles during the fall semester, and the eagle auction is tentatively scheduled to take place in February 2012.

“The ‘Eagle Nation on Parade’ project is a perfect example of how Georgia Southern University and the Statesboro/Bulloch County community can work together to advance art and scholarship,” said Michael Smith, dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences. “Our faculty and staff in the Betty Foy Sanders Department of Art have worked hard to make this project a reality. When it is finished, we will have magnificent eagles on display throughout Statesboro and Bulloch County. And, the funds raised from the auction of those eagles will go towards supporting student scholarships and undergraduate student research initiatives.”