We have a busy and exciting week underway on campus as we wrap up final exams and prepare to celebrate the achievements of our spring graduates with their families and friends during several special events and commencement ceremonies beginning Wednesday. As we near the end of the semester, I’d like to take a few minutes to give you an update from the Division of Academic Affairs.

Moving Forward with Additions to Faculty Ranks

I want to begin by thanking the faculty members who have been participating in our process to consider adding additional ranks and titles to the Faculty Charter. We have been developing the proposed ranks over the past few years in order to enhance opportunities for instructional faculty. This process has involved many on campus, and I appreciate their efforts. I especially want to thank the leadership of the Robert Holland Faculty Senate and Senate President Rebecca Robichaux-Davis for their efforts. The vote to affirm the addition of these ranks by members of the General Faculty was overwhelmingly supportive, with 87 percent of those voting in favor. I also appreciate the positive vote from Faculty Senate on the Faculty Handbook update that will accommodate the changes in the promotion process as a result of the new faculty ranks and titles. As I’ve said, this change benefits current tenure-track and non-tenure-track faculty and enhances our efforts to recruit and retain faculty moving forward. I look forward to working with the Faculty Senate to begin implementation in the coming year.

Tuition Remission for Graduate Assistantships

I was very pleased to share the news on behalf of President Keenum a few days ago that we will now cover 100 percent of the tuition for students receiving a graduate teaching assistantship or a graduate service assistantship. I appreciate his support for making this investment in our graduate programs possible. I also appreciate the recent work of the Graduate School Task Force members and chair Kevin Armstrong for their thorough look at our graduate programs. They identified tuition remission as the top priority for enhancing graduate education based on feedback from students, faculty, and administrators. I am thankful that we now have the resources available to do so and are able to implement their recommendation. Read more at https://www.msstate.edu/newsroom/article/2022/05/all-msu-graduate-teaching-service-assistantships-cover-full-tuition-costs

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 Todd Mlsna, a professor in the Department of Chemistry, who has been named 2022 Chemist of the Year for the state of Mississippi, an honor awarded by the American Chemical Society. Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=6587

* Congratulations to the university’s newest John Grisham Master Teacher Award recipients: Mike Breazeale, Marketing, Quantitative Analysis and Business Law; Deb Mlsna, Chemistry; and Jacob Tschume, Mathematics and Statistics. Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=6619

* Kudos to Kristine Evans, an assistant professor in the Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Aquaculture, who is one of three avian conservationists recognized in the Western Hemisphere with the prestigious Partners in Flight leadership award. Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=6623

* Congratulations to our faculty and staff who were recently recognized for excellence in teaching and advising: Braden Leap, Sociology, and Jake Shivley, CVM Clinical Sciences, Alumni Association Graduate and Professional Teaching Excellence Award; John Ramirez-Avila, Rula School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Alumni Association Outstanding Graduate Student Mentor Award; Scott DiGiulio, Classical and Modern Languages and Literatures, Ryan Green, Electrical and Computer Engineering, Jeff Leffler, MSU-Meridian Division of Education, and Carley Morrison, School of Human Sciences, Donald Zacharias Early Career Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching Excellence Award; Christa Haney, Geosciences, Center for Distance Education Online Teaching Excellence Award; Kali Dunlap, Center for Distance Education, Irvin Atly Jefcoat Excellence in Advising Award, Staff Recipient; Lori Elmore-Staton, School of Human Sciences, Irvin Atly Jefcoat Excellence in Advising Award, Faculty Recipient; Haylee Crouch, Communication, Wesley Ammon Outstanding New Staff Advisor Award; and Kristine Evans, Wildlife, Fisheries and Aquaculture, Foil-Wyatt Outstanding New Faculty Advisor Award. Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=6613

* Kudos to Mehmet Kurum, an assistant professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, who has been awarded a $500,000 CAREER Award from the National Science Foundation to continue his research of microwave remote sensing methods in the agriculture industry. He joins an impressive list of recent Bagley College of Engineering faculty members who have earned the CAREER Award, including Bo Tang, Jean Mohammadi-Aragh, Ali Gurbuz, Wenmeng “Meg” Tian, Neeraj Rai and Maxwell Young. Read more https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=6607

* Congratulations to Adele Crudden, a professor in the Department of Sociology, who is the recipient of a Lifetime Achievement Award, and to Angela Savage, director of the MSU-Meridian social work program and an assistant clinical professor, who has received the 2022 Mississippi Social Worker of the Year Award, from the Mississippi chapter of the National Association of Social Workers. Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=6608

* Kudos to College and Forest Resources and Forest and Wildlife Research Center staff members Shawna Johnson and Cade Booth, who have been recognized with a CFR/FWRC Doris Lee Memorial Staff Award, and to LaDonna Bullman and Troy Lindsey, who have been recognized with a CFR/FWRC Beverly Smith Support Staff Award. Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=6609

* Congratulations to Charles Freeman, an associate professor in the School of Human Sciences, who has been elected vice president of planning for the International Textiles and Apparel Association. He will serve in this leadership role during 2023-2025 for ITAA, which is the leading academic organization in the apparel and textiles field.

* Kudos to Jesse Goliath, an assistant professor in the Department of Anthropology and Middle Eastern Cultures, who has been appointed the American Anthropological Association’s liaison to the Register of Professional Archaeologists. Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=6610

Final Words

In closing, I want to offer congratulations to all of our graduates, and I also want to thank all of you who have helped them reach this milestone. I appreciate your many contributions to Mississippi State during this past academic year, and I hope all of you have a great summer whatever your plans may be. I welcome your questions, suggestions, comments, and concerns 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.