I hope summer is going well for all of you. While many students, faculty, and staff are away from campus, I still wanted to take a few minutes of your time to provide an update from the Division of Academic Affairs.

Green to Serve as Bagley College of Engineering Interim Dean

As I mentioned in last month’s message, we are beginning the search process for a new dean of the Bagley College of Engineering as Dean Jason Keith prepares to leave for Iowa State to serve as its new provost. I announced last week that Assistant Dean Robert Green will serve as interim dean beginning in August. I’m confident Dr. Green will maintain Bagley’s strong momentum and be an effective leader during this transition period. I’ve asked College of Business Dean Scott Grawe to chair the search committee as we conduct a national search for a new dean. I appreciate their willingness to take on these very important roles. Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=7624.

Student Evaluation of Courses Task Force Completes Final Report

As many of you will recall, we have spent a lot of time developing a new survey for students to provide feedback at the conclusion of a course. The survey instrument we have in place now is much improved from previous versions, and I appreciate everyone who contributed to making it better. However, student participation hasn’t been what we want or need it to be. To that end, the Student Evaluation of Courses Task Force has been working to develop a plan to increase response rates to our student course surveys. Chair Stacy Haynes and the task force members recently completed their final report, and I appreciate their willingness to tackle this issue. I encourage you to review their findings and recommendations. Their report is available at https://www.provost.msstate.edu/initiatives/task-forces.

Dialogue Matters Event with Director of Athletics Coming Up June 27

At the invitation of the university’s transformation management team, I had an opportunity to discuss the Transforming MSU strategic plan and answer questions about where we are in the transformation process during an informal, online forum in February. President Keenum participated in a similar event last fall during an in-person conversation at the Dawg House that was livestreamed by the MSU TV Center. On June 27 at 11 a.m., Director of Athletics Zac Selmon will discuss the growing momentum in Athletics, the relationship between athletics and academics, and new ventures during our next Dialogue Matters special event. These conversations provide great insight into Transforming MSU’s impact throughout the university, and I’m looking forward to hearing from Zac about these issues and more. I hope you’ll tune in too at https://www.msstate.edu/transformation.

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:

* Congratulations to Les Potts, the university’s new vice president for finance and administration. I look forward to continuing to work with him and his team to help make Mississippi State the best it can be. Read more https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=7578.

* Kudos to Joshua Granger, an assistant professor in the College of Forest Resources, who was selected for the Phi Kappa Phi Ray Sylvester Distinguished Service Award for 2024-2026. Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=7603.

* And speaking of Phi Kappa Phi, congratulations to mechanical engineering major James Chalmers, biological sciences major Muneebah Umar, and political science and economics major Joshua Philips, who are recipients of 2024 Phi Kappa Phi Study Abroad Grants. Read more at https://www.msstate.edu/newsroom/article/2024/06/bulldogs-earn-competitive-phi-kappa-phi-study-abroad-grants.

* Kudos to David Buys and Harold Jones for stepping into new roles in our growing health sciences initiatives. Dr. Buys is our new associate vice provost for Health Sciences, and Dr. Jones is serving as interim dean of the School of Health Professions at MSU-Meridian’s Riley Campus. Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=7620.

* Congratulations to Qiana Cutts Givens, an associate professor in the Department of Counseling, Higher Education Leadership, Educational Psychology and Foundations, who is the 2024 recipient of the Lillian E. Smith Writer-In-Service Award. Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=7615.

* Kudos to Gang Li, an assistant professor in the Department of Mechanical Engineering, who has been honored with the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Technology Transitions’ Faculty Explorer Award. Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=7610.

* Congratulations to Eric McConnell, an assistant professor in the College of Forest Resources, who has been recognized as the Forest Resources Association National Technical Writing Award winner. Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=7608.  

* Kudos to College of Arts and Sciences faculty recently recognized with awards: Cheryl Chambers, Distinguished Service Award; Mohsen Razzaghi and Mary Celeste Reese, Robert E. Wolverton Legacy Awards; Scott DiGiulio, Hilary DeShong, and Shrinidhi Ambinakudige, Research Awards; and Tonya Hays, Kristen Campbell, and Sean Stokes, Teaching Awards. Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=7606.

* Congratulations to the MSU EcoCAR team for securing a sixth-place finish at this year’s EcoCAR Mobility Challenge’s Year 2 Competition. Additionally, John Ball, an associate professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering and Robert D. Guyton Chair, received the 2023-2024 Faculty Advisor Award. Dr. Ball is also serving on the Faculty Advisory Board for Year 3 of the EV Challenge. Read more at https://www.msstate.edu/newsroom/article/2024/05/msu-ecocar-team-places-sixth-mobility-challenge.

* Kudos to Elva Kay Lance, the university’s director of bands, who has been elected vice president of the National Band Association, and to Craig Aarhus, an associate director of bands, who has been re-elected to the organization’s board of directors. Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=7623.

* Congratulations to Lee Weiskopf, who has been named chief of staff in the Office of the President. My office looks forward to continuing to work with Lee in this new role and as he continues to lead government relations. Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=7607.

* And a very special congratulations to Special Assistant to the President Kyle Steward on the occasion of his well-deserved retirement from MSU at the end of the month. Throughout his remarkable career in public service and higher education, he has been a trusted colleague and dear friend to so many. Thank you, Kyle!

Final Words

I also thank all of you for reading this month’s letter. As always, your thoughts, suggestions, questions, and concerns are welcome at david.shaw@msstate.edu.

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.