I hope you all enjoyed a brief break the past few days. This Tuesday [April 11] at 10 a.m., I invite you to join us for a very special Reimagining MSU event. President Keenum and I, along with several members of our campus community, will share details about the future of our university and how we are going to get there. It takes place in Bettersworth Auditorium, and if you can’t attend in person, it will be livestreamed at https://www.msstate.edu/transformation.

First Destination Survey: MSU Boasts 94% Success Rate in Employment After Graduation

I hope you saw the great news about our career success rate for 2021-2022 graduates from Executive Director Bethany Mills and her team at the MSU Career Center. Ninety-four percent of these graduates were employed or working on advanced degrees after graduation, according to our First Destination Survey. That rate is well above the overall national percentage of 84.1% for bachelor’s degree graduates in the most recent 2021 report administered by the National Association of Colleges and Employers. These findings are further confirmation that a Mississippi State University education is an incredibly valuable investment for our students, their families, and our state. All of us have a role to play when it comes to student success, and I thank all of you for your contributions to the success of our graduates! Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=7020.

IHL Approves First Doctoral Program at MSU-Meridian

March saw us make history at the monthly IHL Board of Trustees meeting when trustees approved our request to create a new Doctor of Psychology (PsyD) degree program at MSU-Meridian. It is Meridian’s first-ever doctoral program, and we are very excited about this opportunity. I applaud Associate Vice President and Head of Campus Terry Dale Cruse and his team for their hard work to develop this needed program. In addition to the PsyD program, trustees also approved a new Bachelor of Science in Healthcare Administration degree program at Meridian. Both of these programs are excellent examples of how our university is taking care of what matters in the communities we serve by addressing critical needs. Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=7032.

Forum on ChatGPT Coming Up April 21 for Department Heads

As I shared in a recent email to deans, directors, and department heads, the emergence of generative AI tools like ChatGPT has created a variety of responses that range from uncertainty and concern to excitement and optimism for the future of higher education. I’ve asked the University Data Science Committee (UDSC) to begin the process of gathering feedback from faculty and staff so that all perspectives may be included in the development of potential guidelines.

On April 21, the UDSC will host an open forum for department heads in order to hear how academic units are responding to this technology in their own fields. To make this conversation as productive as possible, I would encourage all of our department heads to submit your comments and ideas beforehand, by this Friday [April 14]. Please take this opportunity to consult with your faculty and staff and represent the perspectives of your unit in this important conversation. Please email your comments to Melanie Loehwing at mloehwing@deanas.msstate.edu and Mimmo Parisi at parisi@datascience.msstate.edu.

Du Named MSU’s 2023 SEC Faculty Achievement Award Winner

As part of its robust academic initiative, the Southeastern Conference sponsors an annual program recognizing outstanding faculty among the 14 members of the SEC. This program was established in 2012 by the SEC’s presidents and chancellors to celebrate success in teaching, research, and service. We’re very proud that Jenny Du is MSU’s 2023 Southeastern Conference Faculty Achievement Award winner. Dr. Du, a professor in the Bagley College of Engineering’s Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, excels in research, where she is a leader in the field of remote sensing, and is also committed to teaching excellence. She exemplifies the extraordinary faculty we have here on our campus as well as throughout the Southeastern Conference. Well done! Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=7028.

Kudos and Congratulations

Every month, I look forward to sharing faculty and staff success stories with you, and here are a few that have crossed my desk recently:

* Kudos to my home department colleagues in Plant and Soil Sciences Raja Reddy, Raju Bheemanahalli Rangappa, and Hunter Bowman, who are part of a major initiative to enhance rice farming sustainability and profitability. These MAFES agronomists have been awarded $970,000 as part of a four-year, $10 million grant from the USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture. Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=7041.

* Congratulations to Ed Swan, a professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, whose paper – “Perceptual Issues in Augmented Reality Revisited” – was awarded the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers’ 2022 Impact Paper Award during the International Symposium on Mixed and Augmented Reality. Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=7022.

* Kudos to the winners of spring faculty awards in the College of Arts and Sciences: 2023 Robert E. Wolverton Legacy Award – Adele Crudden, John Forde, and Kimberly Walters; research honorees – Melody Fisher, Braden Leap, and Johna Rudzin; and outstanding teaching honorees – Carly Bahler, Barrett Gutter, and Ben Tkach. Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=7030.

* Congratulations to Josh Foreman, an instructor in the Department of Communication, whose new book, “Hidden History of the Mississippi Delta,” has been published by The History Press, an imprint of Arcadia Publishing. Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=7036.

* Kudos to Beth Baker, an associate Extension professor, who has been nominated to join the National Climate Change Working Group. Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=7049.

* And a welcome to Christy Bratcher, our new head of the Department of Animal and Dairy Sciences. Dr. Bratcher will be joining us from Texas Tech University and will begin her new leadership role in our College of Agriculture and Life Sciences on July 1. Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=7048.

* I am also very pleased that Robert West is our new permanent head of the Department of Classical and Modern Languages and Literatures after his service as CMLL’s interim leader. Dr. West has been part of our campus community since 2002, and I appreciate his leadership and many contributions to MSU. Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=7037.

Final Words

Thank you for taking time to read this month’s letter. I welcome your thoughts, questions, concerns, and ideas about these topics or anything else on your mind. I hope to see many of you at our Reimagining MSU event on Tuesday [April 11] at 10 a.m. in Bettersworth Auditorium.

Hail State!

David

Dr. David R. Shaw is Provost and Executive Vice President at Mississippi State University. His email address is david.shaw@msstate.edu.