MISSISSIPPI STATE ALUMNUS Summer 2013
• DIAMOND DAWGS MAKE HISTORY • STADIUM ARCHITECT: JANET MARIE SMITH
• AGENT TO THE STARS: BO MCKINNIS • HOPPER FEATURED IN FILM ‘42’
SUCCESS
DISCOVERY
OUTREACH
GLOBALIZATION
EXPERIENCE
Reporting Success Each day, Mississippi State University’s faculty and students are finding success through opportunities both inside and outside the classroom. Thanks to the financial support from our many alumni and friends, students like Kaitlyn can gain valuable real-world experience while at MSU.
KAITLYN BYRNE CLASS OF 2014 REFLECTOR EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, SCHOLARSHIP RECIPIENT, FOUNDATION AMBASSADOR
FRANCES MCDAVID MSU ALUMNA REFLECTOR ADVISER, JOURNALISM INSTRUCTOR
Summer 2013 | Vol. 90 | No. 1
USPS 354-520 This is Our State. President Mark E. Keenum (’83, ’84, ’88) Vice President for Development and Alumni John P. Rush (’94, ’02) Editorial offices: 102 George Hall, P.O. Box 5325, Mississippi State, MS 39762-5325 Telephone, 662-325-3442 Fax, 662-325-7455 E-mail, snowa@ur.msstate.edu www.msstate.edu
MISSISSIPPI STATE ALUMNUS Summer 2013
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Making History The 2013 sojourn to Omaha by the MSU Bulldogs has raised an already storied baseball history to new and unprecedented heights. For Mississippi State folks, this was a dream season, but it was about more than baseball.
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Hard work, passionate conviction and unwavering courage Despite never having played the game beyond childhood, one of Mississippi State’s most influential figures in professional baseball is architect, planner and experienced Major League Baseball front office executive Janet Marie Smith.
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Bo McKinnis takes care of his guys Bo McKinnis is regarded as one of the most respected sports agents in the business. He is the only agent ever to represent both MLB Cy Young winners from the same season.
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Before Jackie Robinson went pro, he trained under MSU alum Amid the storyline of Jackie Robinson’s struggle and ultimate success to break major league baseball’s color barrier is the lesser known story involving a former outfielder who played for MSU.
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Anything but lazy: Aalums brew up success For two Mississippi State graduates, brewing the state’s first craft beer may be about getting the recipes and processes right, but what sends people in search of their special ale is the experience behind it.
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MSU alumnus drops the bomb Howard T. Richardson, an MSU grad and former Air Force pilot, recalls the night he gained the distinction of being the only pilot ever to drop an H-bomb.
Mississippi State University Alumni Association National Officers Tommy R. Roberson, ’67, national president
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Researcher examines causes of pandemic flu Led by Henry Wan, associate professor at the College of Veterinary Medicine, a research team is trying to unravel the intricacies of pandemic influenza.
Ronald E. Black, ’80, national first vice president
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Advertising: Contact Libba Andrews at 662-325-3479 or landrews@alumni.msstate.edu. Editor Allen Snow (’76) Associate Editor Harriet Laird Designers Eric Abbott (’07) Hal Teasler (’12) Photographers Russ Houston (’85) Megan Bean Beth Wynn
Brad. M. Reeves, ’02, national second vice president Jodi White Turner, ’97, ’99, national treasurer
Campus news Alumni news Foundation news Class news In memoriam
Camille Scales Young, ’94, ’96, immediate former national president
Mississippi State Alumnus is published three times a year by the Office of University Relations and the
Mississippi State University Alumni Association at Mississippi State, Miss. Send address changes to Alumni Director, P.O. Box AA, Mississippi State, MS 39762-5526; telephone 662-325-7000; or e-mail fcarr@advservices.msstate.edu. alumni.msstate.edu // twitter.com/msstatealumni // facebook.com/msstatealumni
M IS S IS S IP P I STAT E A LUMNUS
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B
aseball is a great Mississippi State University tradition and one that matters to us all year long, year after year, decade after decade.
At MSU, the goal is always to win the SEC, always to make it to NCAA regional play, and always to advance to the College World Series. We love Dudy Noble Field and the Left Field Lounge. We love how the place smells, how it sounds, and how being there makes us feel. We love the energy of the record crowds that gather there. The 2013 sojourn to Omaha by Head Coach John Cohen and our MSU Bulldogs has raised an already storied baseball history to new and unprecedented heights. We came closer to a major sport NCAA national championship than MSU has ever been — closer even than the storied 1985 MSU squad led by future major-league All-Stars Will Clark, Rafael Palmeiro, Jeff Brantley and Bobby Thigpen. We came closer to an undisputed NCAA Division 1 major sport national championship than any Mississippi university has been since 1960. For Mississippi State folks, this was a dream baseball season. The Bulldogs got to challenge UCLA for the national championship, and I wasn’t surprised that most Mississippians rooted for them to win the whole thing. The ESPN commentators seemed surprised that the Bulldog Nation traveled in such overwhelming numbers to Omaha. I wasn’t, for I knew what the chance to see the Bulldogs compete meant to our fans. It was about more than baseball. It was about history and Mississippians finishing at the top. More than anything, it was about an MSU baseball team that earned a program-best 3.38 gradepoint average this year while winning 51 games to get to the CWS championship series. I was in the MSU dugout when the final out was called and this magical season ended. I saw some long embraces. I saw some tears. But I also saw thousands of MSU fans rise to their feet after the loss and defiantly chant “Maroon!” and “White!” - and I’ve never been prouder to be a Bulldog.
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JUNE 3
JUNE 10
JUNE 15
JUNE 17
MSU wins its 12th regional
The Bulldogs qualify for the
In the first game of the CWS, the
The Bulldogs create more exciting
title at home, defeating Central
College World Series by beating
Diamond Dawgs clinched the 5-4
drama in a 5-4 victory over
Arkansas 6-1.
Virginia 6-5 in the Charlottesville
win over Oregon State in a nail-
Indiana as Brett Pirtle motions for
Super Regional.
biting bottom of the ninth. Hunter
“safe� from the umpire as he leaps
Renfroe made an incredible catch
over the Indiana catcher. And,
in the warning track, leaving OSU
pitcher Jonathan Holder throws a
with runners on base. Also, first
bouncing ball to first for the final
baseman Wes Rea gets two RBIs to
out in the ninth inning.
help capture the win. 4
SUMMER 2013
JUNE 21
JUNE 24
JUNE 25
JUNE 27
Facing Oregon State again, MSU
The outpouring of fans and the
Holding on to the fact that they had
Amid shirt-soaking humidity,
eliminated the Beavers in a confident
hopes of winning a national
played 13 postseason games in true
hundreds of fans turn out at
4-1 victory, earning the Bulldogs
championship weren’t enough in
Bulldog style, the last two turn out
Dudy Noble Field to honor the
their first-ever berth in the NCAA
game one of the CWS finals as the
to be disappointing when UCLA
2013 College World Series finalists
national championship. Hunter
UCLA Bruins beat the Bulldogs 3-1.
clenches its second win in the finals
and now the most legendary team
Renfroe’s three-run homer was
and defeats MSU 8-0. For the team
in MSU baseball history.
the deciding factor.
and fans, though, it’s time to celebrate the most accomplished season in Mississippi State athletics. M IS S IS S IP P I STATE A LUMNUS
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Camille Scales Young
Dr. Meghan Millea
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SUMMER 2013
Shelby Balius
MSU alumna Janet Marie Smith has made her career as a professional baseball stadium architect and master planner. Currently the Los Angeles Dodgers’ vice president for planning and development, she is overseeing renovations to the 56,000-seat Beth Dodger Clay Stadium, a project estimated at more than $100 million. Submitted photo.
HARD WORK, PASSIONATE CONVICTION UNWAVERING Courage and
By Sid Salter and Leah Barbour
D
espite never having played the game
conviction and unwavering courage are the skills that lead
beyond childhood, one of Mississippi
to success.
State University’s most influential
Smith told the Los Angeles Times in a 1996 interview:
figures in professional baseball is architect, planner and
“Baseball has always been a real passion. But the real reason
experienced Major League Baseball front office executive Janet
I was interested in taking the job with the Orioles, in 1989,
Marie Smith.
had as much to do with the urban revitalization aspect of that
A 1981 Mississippi State alumna and current Los Angeles Dodgers executive, Smith believes hard work, passionate
project as it did the sports aspect of it. What can you do to make cities better?
M IS S IS S IP P I STAT E A LUMNUS
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Before joining the Los Angeles Dodgers, Janet Marie Smith worked for the Baltimore Orioles and with Buck Showalter, also an MSU alumnus who’s entering his fourth year as the team’s manager. Along with the Dodgers and Orioles, Smith has worked for the Boston Red Sox and the Atlanta Braves. Submitted photo
“So when the Orioles announced, in 1988, that they were going to work with the state to build a new ballpark, and they selected a site in downtown Baltimore, I was very struck by that, because Baltimore has long had a reputation of being truly cutting edge about urban redevelopment. And in an era when a lot of cities talk about it, and pay homage to their downtowns through gesture, Baltimore truly rebuilt their downtown,” said Smith. Janet Marie Smith was instrumental in the development of Oriole Park at Camden Yards in the early 1990s. Today, it is considered by many Major League Baseball fans as the “greatest stadium in baseball.” Submitted photo
While a student at MSU from 1976-80, Smith was active in Kappa Delta social sorority, Associated Women’s Studies, the Student Association (SA) Senate, the Interschool Council, and served as secretary of the College of Architecture and director of student activities for the SA. Smith, who was the keynote speaker at MSU’s 2013 spring commencement ceremonies in May, emphasized those ideals in her remarks to MSU graduates. As an internationally recognized baseball stadium architect, Smith knows how a college degree can offer opportunity. She earned her bachelor’s degree in architecture from MSU and her master’s in urban planning from City College of New York. Over the course of her career, Smith has designed stadiums for the Atlanta Braves, the Boston Red Sox and the Baltimore Orioles. She currently works for the Dodgers as senior vice president of planning and development.
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Mississippi State hosted Janet Marie Smith in the spring of 2013 as the university’s graduation speaker. MSU President Mark E. Keenum presented her with a chrome cowbell in appreciation for her motivational address to the graduates. Photo by Russ Houston
In the Feb. 8, 2011 edition of the Baltimore Business Journal,
“I hope that you’ll find inspiration, comfort and maybe some
former Baltimore Orioles executive Larry Lucchino described Smith
solace that you don’t have to conquer the world in order to contribute
as his best hire during the 1989-1990 offseason. “I’ve told her she’s
to humanity,” Smith said. “All you really need to do to give back is to
from another planet where people only sleep three to four hours a
find something that you love to do.”
night,” Lucchino, later CEO of the Boston Red Sox, said of Smith.
She explained in her commencement speech that she wasn’t the
“You always want some people from those planets to work with you.”
best student academically, but her strong work ethic, her desire to
The Los Angeles Dodgers leadership echoed those sentiments
succeed and her unflinching determination to achieve her goals took
when Smith was hired to lead their stadium renovation effort. “Dodger Stadium is one of the most iconic venues in sports and
Smith to the places she wanted to go and gave her the opportunity to do the things she wanted to do.
Janet Marie is one of the few people I would trust with its future,” said
“You don’t just wind up with great successes in life, either
Dodger president Stan Kasten. “She respects baseball’s tradition and
personally or professionally,” Smith said. “You create it for yourself
knows how to retain a ballpark’s distinctive charms while providing
by what you are able to contribute and by your willingness to make
fans with the amenities and comfort they’ve come to expect. Any
everything a learning experience.
fan that has walked through the gates at Oriole Park at Camden
“It is important to keep a sense of humor, for the worst situations
Yards, the renovated Fenway Park or Atlanta’s Turner Field has been
can make the best locker room tales. And it is important to keep
a beneficiary of her understanding of what a ballpark means to its
things in perspective, for nothing is forever. Not the good. Not
community. Every new baseball stadium built since 1992 has been
the bad.”
influenced by what she helped build at Camden Yards.” To take advantage of opportunities, however, Smith told MSU graduates they must be willing to work hard, stick to their principles
Smith, a Jackson native, still has family in Mississippi. She and her husband, Bart Harvey III, are the parents of three children: Bart IV, Nellie Grace and Jack. The family resides in Baltimore, Md.
and remain strong even in the face of adversity.
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takes care of his guys By Steve Ellis
T
wenty years ago, MSU’s Alumnus magazine featured the
After receiving his graduate degree, he turned down an offer to become
story of James F. “Bo” McKinnis, a 1989 MSU graduate
a Wall Street investment banker to pursue fulltime a less secure—and
who was just beginning a career as a sports agent.
possibly less stable—life representing professional athletes.
McKinnis had spent four years as a manager for Coach Ron Polk’s
Bulldog baseball teams before graduating and moving to Nashville
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So, how’d things turn out for the MSU accounting graduate from Waynesboro, Va.? The answer: very, very well, thank you.
to pursue an MBA at Vanderbilt. While in graduate school, he began
Today, Bo McKinnis is regarded as one of the most respected sports
representing professional baseball players as an agent for former
agents in the business. Last season, two of his clients, David Price of
Bulldog pitcher Pete Young.
the Tampa Bay Rays and R.A. Dickey, then of the New York Mets,
S U MMER 2013
Opposite page, Bo McKinnis and his wife Nikki, along with their son Clayton, enjoyed a game this past spring at Dudy Noble Field. Photo by Beth Wynn
Left, McKinnis’ latest client is Hunter Renfroe, the 13th overall pick by the San Diego Padres in the 2013 Major League Baseball draft. Submitted photo
McKinnis, center, represents such MLB players as 2012 Cy Young Award winners David Price, left, and R.A. Dickey. Submitted photo
won Cy Young awards, the most prestigious honors given
relationships in baseball go back to Coach Polk,” McKinnis
annually to pitchers. Dickey, now with the Toronto Blue
said recently. “I give him so much credit for that because he
Jays, took the National League award while Price took the
was such a tremendous role model in terms of networking
American League award.
and building relationships. He showed us that there was
McKinnis is the only agent ever to represent both Cy Young winners from the same season. Both trophies sit in his Cummins Station office in downtown Music City.
value in every person on that team, whether star player or bench warmer. “Pat showed us every day how to care for people, to let
His success is praised not only by the players he
them know how much they meant to us and to not be
represents, but by those who cover the sport. In a January
afraid to let others know that you loved them. Brian Shoop
FOXSports.com article, national MLB writer Jon Paul
was the hitting coach; what a loving man and a great man
Morosi observed that “David Price doesn’t have the biggest
to have as a mentor.”
contract in baseball. But it’s very possible that he has the smartest.”
McKinnis credits the relationships he developed with Bulldog players as a key element that helped launch his
The common thread in the professional fabric of agent
career. Young, an All-American pitcher and third baseman
Bo McKinnis is his skills in building and maintaining
who spent a short time in the big leagues with the Montreal
relationships. In addition to learning accounting in McCool
Expos, sought McKinnis’ guidance and advice because he
Hall, his undergraduate education was enhanced under the
knew he could trust him.
direct and indirect tutelage of head Bulldog baseball coach
Former MSU star, Cincinnati Reds All-Star and current
Ron Polk and assistants Pat McMahon and Brian Shoop.
Reds broadcaster Jeff Brantley is another McKinnis credits
All are proven masters of interpersonal relationships.
for helping him lay the foundation of a philosophy for
“The foundation of my network of friends and my
dealing with clients.
M IS S IS S IP P I STAT E A LUMNUS
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“My clients are my livelihood, but they are also my friends. They know that I have their best interests at heart. They know they can count on me to help them with every aspect of their career off the field, so that they can concentrate on what they do on the field.”
“Jeff told me that the problem with the sports agent business is that agents are relentlessly chasing players, trying to recruit them by any means to be their clients,” McKinnis said. “He said that players should seek out their agents, not the other way around. “He said, ‘Big league players know who the good agents are. They see the guys who treat their teammates right.’ He told me not to chase players, to make my reputation and let them come to me.”
– Bo McKinnis
Brantley’s advice has served well. “Jeff Brantley was right, and to this day I’ve followed his advice,” McKinnis said. “I try not to actively recruit players; instead, every guy comes to me because we have that third person. Usually, it’s one of my current clients but oftentimes it’s a mutual friend or a coach or someone of that nature who has recommended me. It’s allowed me to end up with good people, in addition to great baseball players. “I’ve had 98 players in the Major Leagues now, have had 20 first-round draft picks, and literally you can draw a chain from this guy to this guy to this guy, all the way down. It’s really neat how that’s happened.” Many agents deal primarily with client contract negotiation. The only major contact they have with the athlete is when it’s renegotiation time with team management. McKinnis’ philosophy, on the other hand, is to do much more for his clients. In addition, he offers to handle players’ financial management, endorsements and appearances, and, not insignificantly, the taxes they must pay on those big salaries. He also works hard to keep in close contact. “I try to communicate with my guys at least once a week,” he said. “I get on the road and visit them as often as I can. My clients are my livelihood, but they are also my friends. They know that I have their best interests at heart. They know they can count on me to help them with every aspect of their career off the field, so
Current Atlanta Braves left-hander and former MSU All American Paul Maholm also is a client of McKinnis Photo courtesy of the Atlanta Braves
that they can concentrate on what they do on the field.” Unlike many larger agencies, McKinnis Sports Management normally has an active roster of only 20 to 25 clients. While there are various support staff members, he is his company’s lone agent. “I want to have a personal relationship with every one of my guys,” he insists. “I want to be the one they deal with, not someone else in the company. When they sign with me, they’re going to know that I’m the one they’ll deal with, that I’m their agent.”
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SUMMER 2013
McKinnis also works hard to build his reputation with the
of it. That allows me to just go out and pitch knowing that
general managers of the clubs with which he will be negotiating.
everything else is taken care of for me. We’ve been together
“I once read a quote from Marvin Miller, (former executive
for 11 years now and it’s worked out well.”
director of the Major League Baseball Players Association), that
The special relationship McKinnis has with his clients also
said, ‘If you ever hear the other side say that I’m doing a good
may be appreciated in the fact that he’s now been a member
job, then fire me.’ I get that, I understand that.”
in 18 of their weddings. Not only that, but his wife Nikki first
“At the same time, my way of contract negotiation is to take
was introduced to him by R.A. Dickey and Dickey’s wife Anne.
your money and make you feel good about it. My players have
Nikki McKinnis is a figure competitor and owner of an
to live with the people in these franchises. You know, once the
online fitness company. She and Bo are the proud parents of
contract negotiation is over with, my players have to look them
a three-year-old son, Clayton.
in the face every day. I sit up here in Nashville and I don’t have
“There’s no way I could have built this business as a
to look at them; I don’t have to be around them. So I think it’s
married man because of the amount of time that I’ve spent on
important that they’re not in love with me, because they are my
the road and just living out of my car for so long,” McKinnis
adversaries, so-to-speak, but it’s important to my players that we
admitted. “There were some lean years getting this career off
get along well.”
the ground. I ate peanut butter for years. Now at the level it’s
McKinnis’ relationships he’s developed with management have had some unexpected consequences. “I’ve had two general managers say repeatedly that they want me to be the agent for their sons. One of their sons is approaching draft age and he’s saying it to me very seriously. My first thought was if that gets out, is that a bad thing? But, then my second thought was, no, these dads don’t want their sons to get bad contracts. They want them to be represented well.”
established and the level of success I’ve had, it is special for my family now. If you ask me my greatest accomplishment in life, it’s my marriage to Nikki. Without a doubt, she’s the love of my life. “To think R.A. set us up on a blind date really is funny,” he added, with a broad grin. “Bo is such a trusted friend,” says Dickey. “All good relationships begin with trust and that is where my
Four players on McKinnis’ current client roster are former
relationship begins with him. He cares for me as a person
Bulldogs. Paul Maholm is a former All American pitcher, first-
and that is why I refer to him as my friend and brother first,
round draft pick, current member of the Atlanta Braves, and one
and my agent second. Bo is my most trusted confidante. I
of the top starting pitchers in the game. Chris Stratton, another
lean on him for all matters in my life. In baseball, I appreciate
All American pitcher and first-round selection while at MSU
the respect he has among players and teams. I am proud he
in 2012, is a member of the San Francisco Giants organization.
is my representative.”
Devin Jones, a 2011 draft pick of the Baltimore Orioles, is
One final barometer of how successful James F. “Bo”
currently a member of their AA club in Bowie, Md. The last is
McKinnis has become may be found in interest received
Hunter Renfroe, a member of the MSU Bulldogs 2013 College
from peers in the industry.
World Series team who was drafted in the first round of this summer’s draft by the San Diego Padres. Of McKinnis, Maholm said, “Obviously I’ve been blessed to
“You know, if you were to ask about my greatest accomplishments, my answer would be an evolution of what’s gone on these past few years,” he reflected.
be represented by Bo and to have him take care of my contract
“Just in the last two years, I’ve had three veteran agents,
and my investments and everything else off the field so I don‘t
guys that have been in the business a long time, ask me to buy
have to worry about any of that. He has negotiated a lot of big
them. One offered to hand me his business in exchange for
contracts and done a great job for everybody he’s ever worked
me giving him a salary.
with, so I’m confident in him. I like the fact that I deal directly with Bo. Whatever I need, I make one call and Bo takes care
“I’ve also had three other agencies ask me to merge with them and you know, with each of those six, I took it as a compliment.”
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By Sammy McDavid
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S U MMER 2013
mid the storyline of Jackie Robinson’s epic struggle and ultimately successful effort to break major league baseball’s color line is a smaller storyline involving a former outfielder who played for what now is Mississippi State University. Prior to making his April 15, 1947, national debut with the Brooklyn Dodgers, Robinson played in Canada for the minor league Montreal Royals. His manager there was Mississippian Clay Hopper. Though born in Porterville in Lauderdale County, Robert Clay Hopper spent a good portion of his life on the other side of the state in Leflore County. As a three-year letterman in the mid1920s on Mississippi A&M College’s baseball team, he was coached by the legendary C.R. “Dudy” Noble. A search of the limited MSU athletic records from the period found that Hopper’s first collegiate year was Noble’s 1924 team that won the last of A&M’s six baseball championships in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association. Before eventually becoming a manager, Hopper played a number of years with various minor league teams around the country. He retired from managing in 1956. According to one biographical sketch, he also owned a farm near Greenwood and worked offseason during his baseball years as a cotton broker.
Mississippi A&M’s Clay Hopper MSU archival photo
In the 2013 box office hit, “42: The Jackie Robinson Story,” Hopper is portrayed by veteran actor Brett Cullen. In
“Baseball’s
Pivotal
Era,
1945-1951”
(University of Kentucky Press, 1999), author William Marshall tells how Dodgers’ president Branch Rickey had hired Hopper for the Montreal job because he “respected Hopper for his baseball knowledge, his soft-spoken manner and his ability to work with players.”
M IS S IS S IP P I STAT E A LUMNUS
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In an opinion piece featured recently in Canadian newspapers,
first black in professional baseball since the 1880s,” Lamb wrote.
Indiana University journalism professor and baseball historian Chris
Both Lamb and Marshall relate how Hopper begged Rickey not to put
Lamb specifically addresses what he characterizes as “The redemption
him in charge of an integrated team. In his column, Lamb said Hopper
of Clay Hopper.” Lamb is the author of “Blackout: The Untold Story
implored Rickey: “Please don’t do this to me . . . I’m white and I’ve lived
of Jackie Robinson’s First Spring Training” (University of Nebraska
in Mississippi all my life. If you’re going to do this, you’re going to force
Press, 2004).
me to move my family and home out of Mississippi.”
According to Lamb, Hopper understandably was excited when Rickey
Rickey would not budge, however.
promoted him to lead what then was the Dodgers’ top minor league team.
Lamb continued, “Hopper remained the team’s manager, and,
“He was elated--until Rickey told him the team had Jackie Robinson, the
according to Robinson, put aside his racist attitudes and treated the
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ballplayer fairly well during the season, which ended with the Royals winning their first International League championship. “By overcoming his own sense of bigotry, Hopper became redeemed. But more than that, he represented how countless others--baseball players, managers, spectators, and even those who previously had given little thought to baseball--were transformed by Jackie Robinson.”
Left to right, Brett Cullen as Clay Hopper, Chadwick Boseman as Jackie Robinson and Harrison Ford as Branch Rickey in Warner Bros. Pictures’ and Legendary Pictures’ drama “42,” a Warner Bros. Pictures release. Photo courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
Hopper died in Greenwood in 1976 at age 73. In 2009, he was inducted posthumously into the International League Hall of Fame.
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anything lazy ALUMS BREW UP BUSINESS
By Harriet Laird
M
ost travelers who take Interstate 59 to Exit 4 in Picayune
door,” said Leslie Henderson, who began Lazy Magnolia Brewing
are destined for the well-known Stennis Space Center, a
Company in 2003 with her husband and business partner Mark.
13,800-acre NASA field center.
For these two Mississippi State alumni, brewing the state’s first
But, there’s another facility not far from the edge of the space
craft beer may be about getting the recipes and processes right, but
center’s expansive property that’s drawing more and more
what sends people in search of their specially concocted ale is the
inquisitive visitors each day.
experience behind it.
It sits in an unassuming metal building in an inconspicuous
“We’re engineers and we’re all about making the product
industrial park just down the road from the small town of Kiln, or
perfect, but at the end of the day a lot of people can make a great
as the locals say, “Da Kill.” What’s happening inside is what curious
beer. It’s really about the story. We’re told over and over again that
minds – and palates – are pursuing.
our product is ‘a little vacation’ or that it ‘brings back memories,’ so
“You can see it in people’s faces when they walk through the
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Photos by Beth Wynn
SUMMER 2013
it’s not about the flavor of the beer but the flavor of the experience,”
Opposite page, Lazy Magnolia owners Leslie and Mark Henderson
The right ingredients and proper processes add to the overall Lazy Magnolia
“experience.”
said Leslie, a 1998 Mississippi State chemical engineering graduate and native of Nanih Waiya.
“We started inviting a few people over, and then a few more people would show up. One Friday afternoon, I came home from
While good times and memorable occasions go hand-in-hand
work and the street was blocked off and lined with cars on both sides.
with Lazy Magnolia’s brews, Mark and Leslie can personally
There were people there that I didn’t directly know, but they knew
confirm that their own recollections of starting their business
somebody who knew somebody who knew me,” said Mark. “That’s
definitely play a role in the day-to-day testing and tasting of the
when we thought this might could turn into something more.”
many beer varieties they now produce.
Mark, a 1995 MSU electrical engineering graduate, said
After Leslie purchased a brewing kit for Mark for Christmas
another indication that he and Leslie needed to make a decision
one year, the two suddenly realized they were spending 20
about moving forward with turning their pastime into a profitable
hours on the weekend making 10 gallons of beer for friends and
partnership was when he couldn’t get to his home computer
neighbors.
because of the 500 pounds of grain stacked in front of it.
M IS S IS S IP P I STAT E A LUMNUS
19
The Waynesboro native said, “I was also using the breezeway
From attorneys to judges to the Mississippi Department of
under the house to make coolers and modify air conditioners
Revenue’s Alcohol Beverage Control Board, none seemed to
while Leslie was developing different varieties. I told her that
have been asked previously about the legality of brewing craft
with a little effort we could be brewing 1,000 more gallons of
beer in Mississippi.
beer at one time and possibly turning this into a business.” Deciding to become craft brewers was only one step down
Tax Commission, the answer was an immediate “yes.” The
the road of putting the town of Kiln on the map for more
two, who also hold master’s degrees from MSU, scaled back
reasons than it being the home of Brett Favre, 3-time NFL
their original business plan and turned to approximately 10
most valuable player and future hall of famer. Mark and Leslie
investors – mostly friends and family – who were willing to
knew that to be MVPs in the brewing business, they had to
“dedicate a little money to the cause,” Mark said.
develop a business plan and secure financing.
“Again, it came back to experiences and relationships.
Even with his tenacious entrepreneurial spirit, Mark was
Instead of directly approaching a banker in his office to match
turned down over and over again by bankers who weren’t
the money we had raised, we met one at a party through our
going to loan him a dime to produce what one called “a
social networks. I ended up giving him my pitch while he
bunch of fru-fru beer” in a state that had never manufactured
drank one of our beers,” he said.
craft beer. And, everyone he talked to kept telling him that it was illegal.
20
After finally being put in contact with the Mississippi State
S U MMER 2013
Today, Lazy Magnolia has 30 employees who each year are producing 14,500 barrels of beer in 14 varieties that include
Opposite page, Operating at 110 percent capacity, the brewery is growing and adding a new warehouse. Lazy Magnolia produces 14,500 barrels of craft beer in 14 varieties, with Southern Pecan being the company’s flagship.
Indian Summer, Timber Beast, Southern Gold, Jefferson
“However, in rural or developing craft beer markets,
Stout and the company’s flagship Southern Pecan. These
brewing is in vogue, and that number is almost one in five.
craft brews are currently sold in nine states, with the largest
Our competition is simply a lack of knowledge about what
markets being New Orleans and the Mississippi Gulf Coast.
we do and what’s available,” Mark said. “We want to sell as
While large retailers such as Walmart, Kroger and Publix
much beer as our customers want to buy, we want it to be
have begun to stock the Lazy Magnolia brand, Mark and
good enough to make people happy, and we want to change
Leslie said they rely on the smaller business owners and
enough lives that our business does grow bigger and bigger.”
operators because they share their spirit, passion and love for
Now operating at a 110 percent capacity, Lazy Magnolia is
the company’s flavors. “They have a sincere respect for brewing and what it means,” Leslie said. Also, there’s no David and Goliath syndrome for Mark
unquestionably growing, with construction underway on an additional warehouse to accommodate more fermentation tanks. The progress has also allowed Mark and Leslie to pass along their enthusiasm for the business to their employees.
and Leslie when looking at the larger national scale of beer
“Our job is to make sure our people understand our culture
production in the U.S., where about 95 percent of beer
and what we’re after with our beer. After that, they can run
consumers buy from conglomerates such as Anheuser-Busch
with it,” Leslie said.
Companies or MillerCoors LLC. Only about one out of 20 or 5 percent of consumers buy craft beer.
M IS S IS S IP P I STAT E A LUMNUS
21
MSU ALUMNUS DROPS
THE
BOMB By Sammy McDavid
T
ybee is a beautiful 2.7 square-mile barrier island once
military strategists on both sides clearly understood that masonry
known as Savannah Beach that sits 18 miles from the
fortifications had become defensively irreverent.
historic Georgia city and, geographically, is the state’s
easternmost point. In addition to its friendly, laid-back atmosphere, Tybee is known to many visitors for its distinctive black-and-white 18th century lighthouse and nearby Fort Pulaski built in the 1840s on adjoining Cockspur Island to protect the city and valuable harbor from naval attacks. In a planned 1862 Civil War exercise against the five-sided fort, Union Army forces on Tybee made the first significant use of
22
In 1958, more than a century later, Tybee also gained notoriety as the location of another historic-of-sort military clash—this one in the Cold War and cold winter skies high above, and definitely unplanned. Not long after midnight Wednesday, Feb. 5, a U.S. Air Force F-86 Sabre jet on a defensive training mission had a mid-air collision at more than 30,000 feet with a massive, six-engine B-47 Stratojet bomber from Florida on the homeward leg of its offensive training flight.
rifled cannons, both to test their high-speed power against brick-
Happily, the collision—in which no lives were lost—was less a
and-mortar fortifications and, if successful, to cause the occupying
full-frame impact and more of a glancing blow that, nevertheless,
Confederates to surrender. After portions of the walls shattered from
sheared the fighter’s wing and severely damaged the bomber’s far-
a two-day artillery onslaught and the occupants had surrendered,
right engine.
S U MMER 2013
“The memories haven’t disappeared. I’m serious; I still have a vivid memory of what went on” that night.
– Col. Howard Richardson
Submitted photo
Unhappily, the F-86 Sabre from Charleston Air Force Base in
To help make the training mission as realistic as possible, their
neighboring South Carolina quickly lost its other wing and, as
long-range Boeing aircraft was loaded with a nearly 12-foot-long,
an impromptu missile, began hurtling toward earth. The pilot,
7,600-pound thermonuclear bomb; specifically, a Mark 15 model 0,
Lt. Clarence Stewart, ejected and, after his parachute employed,
serial number 47782, property of the Atomic Energy Commission.
found he and the fuselage heading to different spots in what
Richardson still has a framed copy of the AEC receipt for the
turned out to be a South Carolina swamp. He would be rescued several hours later.
bomb that he had signed. He also has more. “The memories sure haven’t disappeared,” the now 91-year-
At the controls of the B-47 bomber was Maj. Howard T.
old Winston County native and longtime Brandon resident said
Richardson, a Mississippi State University and Sigma Chi alumnus
recently. “I’m serious; I still have a vivid memory of what went on”
then stationed at Homestead Air Force Base near Miami. A seasoned
that night.
veteran of World War II bombing flights over France and Germany,
Richardson said the impact crushed the bomber wing “quite a
he had gone on to log extensive time in the jet-powered models of
lot,” adding, “We saw the engine hanging down but we couldn’t see
the post-WWII Strategic Air Command. On board with him were a
the rest of the damage. It just wasn’t visible to us from our positions
co-pilot and a radar navigator.
in the aircraft.”
M IS S IS S IP P I STAT E A LUMNUS
23
The B-47 crew was on its way back from mission simulating an
Richardson estimated it took about an hour between the time of the
intercontinental flight over the Soviet Union in time of war. The SAC
mid-air collision and the tense landing at Hunter. To slow the plane
flight plan had the plane first traveling north, then west toward New
even more on the runway, he had deployed a special rear parachute
Orleans, north toward the Canadian border, then back south toward
that helped achieve a full stop. After killing the engine, he and the crew
Virginia and, finally, along the Atlantic seaboard to the South Florida
quickly exited the damaged craft. With the crisis now concluded—the required official investigation
home base. In all, the three-man crew had been in the air “about 10 hours” when
later pointed to inadequate radar capabilities of the F-86 fighter as the accident’s cause—the Air Force and other authorities began considering
the accident occurred, Richardson said. Though heavily damaged, the bomber’s wounded engine still was operating. Richardson’s first action was to cut its power, reduce the
the dangerous government property left behind southeast of Savannah in Wassaw Sound.
plane’s overall speed and descend to 20,000 feet in an effort to achieve
Despite an extensive two-month-long search, the thermonuclear
more stable flight. The next goal was to reach the nearest runway that
bomb as long as two queen-size beds and weighing more than a
could handle a swept-wing B-47, in this case, Hunter Air Force Base
Chevrolet Suburban couldn’t be located—and hasn’t been to this day. Thus began the mystery of the Tybee Island bomb.
near Savannah.
Even a second, privately sponsored recovery effort in 2004
“When we reached 20,000, I contacted the controller on
came up empty. What was thought to be a specific area
the ground (at Savannah AFB) and our communications
of higher-than-normal radiation was found to be “You know, caused by natural conditions and not harmful. said. “I then put the landing gear and flaps that weight hitting For those who find it scary that a down to see if I could maintain control.” the water would kind of be military weapon of mass destruction Finding “we had enough control like (hitting) concrete, causing the is “missing” near a heavily to begin retracting the wheels,” 400 pounds of TNT to explode. It’s populated area, Richardson offers a Richardson then realized he would a possibility, and the rest of it calming observation. need even more stability to safely land could be buried.” While the bomb was the real deal, it did and get everyone out alive from a flying were transferred to SAC headquarters,” Richardson
monster that boasted a 107-foot-long fuselage and
– Richardson
not contain a device necessary to achieve fullforce detonation, he said. Nevertheless, it still was very
wingspan of 116 feet. “I finally decided that, if I could get rid of the weight of the bomb, I could have much better control,” he said of that
the 400 pounds of conventional explosives required to achieve a
fateful moment in time. “So, we took her out over the water and
thermonuclear-level blast.
asked permission to release the weapon over water.”
Richardson said, “For one thing, we’re not sure (the conventional
Finding SAC headquarters slow in responding to his crisis and “because I still had the authority to do it, I dropped the weapon offshore of Tybee Island,” he added. SAC approval of the action soon followed. Recent runway repair work at Hunter was a major reason Richardson needed to have the bomber as light and stable as possible. The repairs had left the runway’s end exposed “and we didn’t know if that would be a hang-up or not,” he said. “I knew what the (normal) throttle speed was but I purposely flew faster just for insurance,” he recalled. “The aircraft did skip when we first touched the ground and went back up in the air, but not far. When it came back down, I had control.”
24
dangerous, due to the possibility of escaping uranium and
S U MMER 2013
ordinance) didn’t explode. We were in a turn at the time of reaching the water, so we couldn’t have seen it. “You know, that weight hitting the water would kind of be like (hitting) concrete, causing the 400 pounds of TNT to explode,” he continued. “It’s a possibility, and the rest of it could be buried.” Still, Richardson joins others in wondering how, if it had remained intact, so large an object couldn’t be found using conventional detection technologies. “It could be in that silt; it could have just shifted down in the silt,” he said. “But, I’ve always thought it exploded.” As Richardson relates details of his nightmare experience, a listener
can immediately wonder how Air Force
and, later, an MBA from Catholic University
superiors reacted to the loss of two planes—the
in Washington, D.C., while serving in the
B-47 eventually had to be scrapped—and that
Pentagon.
hide-and-seek Mark 15 property of the AEC.
In time, Richardson would retire from
“After we landed and before we went to
his business to enjoy a well-earned life of
bed, I told the crew to write down all the notes
leisure with wife Vivian, their children and
they could,” he said. “I had been exposed to
grandchildren. (On Sept. 2, 2014, the couple
aircraft accident investigations when I was in
will celebrate their 70th wedding anniversary.)
(the) personnel (branch) at the Pentagon and
For its part, Tybee Island has remained
I knew that, in fact, we were considered guilty
largely out of the American military history
and had to prove ourselves innocent. That’s
spotlight since then. For Hunter Air Force
the truth!”
Base near Savannah, that wasn’t the case.
It wasn’t long before the B-47 crew was
On March 11, 1958—just 34 days after
awakened and informed that SAC personnel
Richardson had brought in his crippled
had arrived at Hunter. The SAC team was
Stratojet—another B-47 stationed at Hunter
led by four-star Gen. Thomas S. Power, the
departed for to England to deliver a model
organization’s commander in chief.
Mark 4 thermonuclear bomb that weighed
“He wanted to interview us all,” Richardson
more than 10,000 pounds and contained the
said. “So, I got a map and we went through
usual conventional explosives. Shortly after
everything.” After the crew’s briefings and despite
takeoff, a problem in the plane’s bomb bay
their “guilty-‘til-proven-innocent” worries, this
caused the weapon to be released accidentally
near-tragic story has a happy ending
over rural Florence County, S.C.
“By the time we got through (with the
According to news accounts, the Hunter
interviews), General Power said, ‘Get your
bomb’s TNT exploded on impact with the
stuff together and come on with me back
ground. In addition to injuring one person, it
to Homestead.’” Pausing to affect a bit of
seriously damaged a residence and, less so, a
sarcastic military humor, Richardson added,
church. The detonation also created a 70-by-
“So, there went my court martial!”
50-foot crater and caused walls within a five-
Not only was Richardson not court-
mile-radius to crack.
martialed, but later he would receive the
This second incident—among some 60
Distinguished Flying Cross for his quick-
military aircraft accidents recorded during
thinking actions that fateful night, and would
1958, according to one source—would seem
go on to command the Air Force’s nuclear
to validate Richardson’s quick command
weapons training program. His crew received
decision to dispose of his bomb over Wassaw
other awards for their part in the mid-air triage.
Sound. It also appears to support his later
Retiring as a full colonel after a 31-year
personal opinion of what became of his Mark
service career, the 1947 MSU business
Missing since 1958: One Mark 15 model 0 thermonuclear bomb, as long as two queen-size beds and weighing more than a Chevrolet Suburban. Submitted photo
15 when it hit the hard surface of the water.
administration graduate returned to his home
Perhaps someday, a piece—maybe even
state and began a civilian career in real estate.
one bearing AEC serial number 47782—will
He had used his G.I. Bill benefits to complete
wash ashore and help solve the mystery of the
both his undergraduate degree in Starkville
Tybee Island bomb.
M IS S IS S IP P I STAT E A LUMNUS
25
RESEARCHER EXAMINES CAUSES OF PANDEMIC FLU
T
he topic of pandemics permeates pop culture today, as evidenced by the number of books, movies and television shows about the (sometimes
fanciful) scenarios that could play out if a pandemic illness struck. While those situations are just for entertainment purposes, scientists around the world try to figure out the many real-life intricacies of pandemics, including a group of researchers studying the possible causes for the multiple peaks seen in pandemic flu. Led by Henry Wan, associate professor at MSU’s College of Veterinary Medicine, the research group included scientists from the Georgia Institute of Technology, Marshall University and the Universidad Miguel Hernandez in Spain.
By Margaret Kovar and Karen Templeton Photos by Tom Thompson
A normal U.S. flu season starts with a low number of infections, climbs to a maximum and then decreases to a low level that continues until the next flu season. But pandemic flus, as shown by the country’s past four outbreaks, do not follow this pattern. Instead, pandemics may go through this process multiple times, resulting in several peaks of infection. “With the H1N1 pandemic in 2009, we experienced multiple waves of infection,” Wan said. “The first wave began in March 2009 and peaked in late June and early July. Then there were fewer cases in August and then a second, larger wave hit in late October and early November. But China only experienced a single wave of infection. So we created infection models and analyzed the outcomes.” Using five mathematical models, the researchers looked at transmission rates, interactions between populations, virus mutation, and waning immunity as mechanisms producing two waves of infection. “In 2009, China instituted strict border controls at the onset of the outbreak,” said first author Anna Mummert, assistant professor of mathematics at Marshall University. “We developed models explaining the occurrence of the multiple peaks and tested border control strategies to determine if a strict border control in the United States could reduce the total number of infections.” The models showed that while stricter border control could have resulted in a single wave of infections, it did not decrease the total number of infections. “What was really remarkable was that all of the models
Henry Wan, associate professor in the university’s College of Veterinary Medicine, is a leading researcher of influenza viruses.
showed that strong border control would not have decreased the total number of infections,” said Howie Weiss, professor in Georgia Tech’s College of Sciences.
26
SUMMER 2013
Jason Banish, seated, and Nicole Marotta, studied with Wan as students in the Summer Research Program at MSU’s College of Veterinary Medicine.
The study also found that the actual H1N1 vaccination schedule
to identify this H5N1, Wan uncovered the first molecular evidence
played only a small role in curtailing the outbreak, but that an earlier
linking live poultry markets in China to human H5N1 avian influenza.
vaccination schedule could have eliminated the second wave of
Through collaboration with scientists in the World Health Organization
infections.
Collaborative Centers for Influenza in China and St. Jude Children’s
This research builds upon Wan’s focus on blending biology with
Research Hospital, an evolutionary study was performed on this virus
computer science for a better understanding and tracking of influenza
to identify the links between the human and avian strains of the virus at
viruses. The scientist has developed computer programs to track how
the molecular level.
a novel influenza virus has emerged. His program identifies potential
Wan also studies what environmental factors affect viruses’ spread.
precursor viruses for an emerging influenza virus from a large
Currently, he is working with researchers at The Ohio State University
influenza database, which has more than 50,000 viruses. The program
to study bird migration routes in the U.S. His focus is studying how
displays each virus’ gene segments and provides a map showing the
influenza A viruses move along with Mississippi Bird Migratory Flyways
distances between the segments. The information is used to determine
through bird migration from Northern America down to the Mississippi
how the segments relate to each other and group together to form
Delta region, and how these viruses will affect the animal industry and
different influenza viruses.
public health of the Mississippi Delta.
Another of Wan’s projects is the extensive study of the highly
Wan’s ultimate goal is to use findings from his various branches of
pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza virus, which was first identified in
research on influenza viruses to aid in the development and production
1996 and has been epidemic across Asia, Europe and Africa. The virus
of vaccines while ultimately making the process more efficient. The work
has caused more than 600 confirmed human cases and also led to the
done in his lab also helps provide the foundations for policymaking to
culling of millions of birds both domestic and wild. The first scientist
protect public health.
M IS S IS S IP P I STAT E A LUMNUS
27
Campus
NEWS
13 Summer
ALUMNUS
Photo illustration by Hal Teasler
Global food security threat
remains growing focus of research
A
new report from The Chicago Council
of Agriculture prior to assuming the leadership of
on Global Affairs seeks U.S. government
MSU in 2009, is a member of the Chicago Council’s
urgency in focusing the nation’s global food
Global Agriculture Development Initiative (GADI), a
security strategies on prioritizing scientific research
bipartisan group of agriculture, development and U.S.
initiatives like those already under way at Mississippi
foreign policy experts who collaborated to produce a
State University.
report entitled “Advancing Global Food Security: The
President Mark E. Keenum, who holds an MSU doctoral degree in agricultural economics and who served as Under Secretary of the U.S. Department
28
S U MMER 2013
Power of Science, Trade and Business.” “The problem of food security is one that will be solved by research universities like Mississippi State,”
said Keenum. “This report reflects
but also because it is important to
entirely achievable goal, although
the scope of the problem and
our national security.”
not an easy one.
the challenges that exist in truly
Keenum explained that
Along with U.S. Sen. Thad
addressing the threat of global
Mississippi State has expertise
Cochran, Keenum led MSU in
food security. I believe this report
pertinent to every aspect of
hosting an international global
provides a bright line example
the food chain, including
food safety and security conference
of why maintaining adequate,
crop production, post-harvest
last year. Organized by the MSU
competitive public and private
processing, livestock, aquaculture,
International Institute and titled
research funding is so imperative.”
food policy, water resources,
“Technology Implementation at
geospatial technologies and
the Local Level: Food Security
for the U.S. government to improve
biofuels. That expertise includes
for the Future,” the conference
global food security by “prioritizing
the contributions of both MSU
explored new opportunities for
science, increasing trade flows
faculty and the university’s students
Mississippi agriculture, building
for agriculture and food, and
involved in research as well.
capacity through technology and
The GADI group report called
incentivizing greater business
Along with research, Keenum
investment, global challenges and
activity in low-income countries.” The report was released this week as part of the Chicago Council’s annual Global Food Security Symposium in Washington, D.C. U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack and U.S. Agency for International Development Administrator Rajiv Shah took part
“If food production does not increase significantly, the number of people living in poverty will increase greatly.”
in the symposium during which the report was unveiled. Keenum has made global food
MSU President Mark E. Keenum
security a university research priority during his tenure at MSU.
said the university has formed
university engagement, and other
In speeches to diverse groups,
strategic partnerships, including
issues related to the world’s growing
Keenum reminds audiences that
a memorandum of understanding
food needs.
by the year 2050, the world’s
for research with the United
population will increase from 7
Nations Food and Agricultural
the Rome headquarters of the U.N.
billion to 9 billion.
Organization (UNFAO), as well as
Food and Agriculture Organization
a formal agreement with Nigeria to
to outline MSU’s capabilities in
increase significantly, the number
educate poultry science students,
addressing food security and
of people living in poverty will
among other alliances.
hunger. While there, he also visited
“If food production does not
increase greatly,” he said. “We
Keenum said the United
In 2010, Keenum traveled to
with the executive director of the
are compelled to help feed the
States and the nation’s land-grant
World Food Program and the
world and alleviate suffering, first,
universities have the resources to
ambassador to the U.N. Agencies
because it’s the right thing to do,
help make feeding the world an
for Food and Agriculture.
M IS S IS S IP P I STAT E A LUMNUS
29
Campus
NEWS
13 Summer
ALUMNUS
Library welcomes
Grant Presidential Library donation
T
he Ulysses S. Grant
dismantle the collection following
Distinguished Professor Emeritus
Presidential Library at the
her husband’s death in July 2012,
and nationally recognized Civil War
MSU Libraries accepted a
but her cousin disagreed. The
historian and author, said the Lynn
formal donation of materials in June
relative suggested, instead, that she
Collection significantly enhances the
that scholars say will significantly
contact retired MSU professor John
existing Grant Presidential Library.
add to visitors’ experiences in
F. Marszalek, who now serves as
visualizing Grant’s place in history.
executive director of the Ulysses S.
framed Harper’s Weekly pages,
Grant Association and the Grant
and all the other material that Mrs.
Presidential Library.
Lynn has donated allows the average
Over 20 years, Jorja Lynn and her late husband Mike E. Lynn III gathered numerous items Jorja Lynn, second from left, donated a collection of Ulysses S. Grant memorabilia to the Grant Presidential Library at Mississippi State University. From left are Executive Director of the Grant Presidential Library John Marszalek, Lynn, MSU President Mark E. Keenum, and MSU Dean of Libraries Frances Coleman. Photo by Jim Tomlinson
Despite her family’s traditional
“This bust, the lithographs, the
visitor the chance to return to an
related to Grant as they renovated
support for the University of
earlier era,” he said. “We are, after
Walter Place, a Holly Springs
Mississippi, Lynn said MSU would
all, a teaching institution, and these
home where Grant, his wife and
be the most appropriate place
kinds of remembrances of Ulysses
children lived. The Union Army
to house the materials. Not only
S. Grant teach all of us and all those
commander prepared the Vicksburg
will scholars and visitors have an
who visit what life had been like in
campaign, which effectively split the
opportunity to view the donated
America more than 100 years ago.”
Confederacy and gave the U.S. total
items, but the collection will be in
control of the vital Mississippi River.
place for future generations of Lynn’s
said he and other leaders of the
family to see.
land-grant institution take the
Jorja Lynn told those in attendance that she planned to
Marszalek, also an MSU Giles
MSU President Mark E. Keenum
responsibility of maintaining the presidential library very seriously, especially its mission to share Grant artifacts and other memorabilia with visitors, scholars and students. The Grant Presidential Library is located on Mitchell Memorial’s first floor. To provide maximum exposure resources of the historical archives, Keenum recently announced plans to add another floor for the extensive — and growing — Grant collection, among other major holdings.
30
S U MMER 2013
Governor speaks at Manufacturing Summit
M
ississippi Gov. Phil Bryant delivered the keynote address at the third annual Mississippi State University Manufacturing Summit.
Held at the Franklin Furniture Center in the spring, Bryant explained
his vision for state manufacturing and furniture industries, which employ 12 percent of Mississippi’s non-farm workforce. Hosted by MSU’s Franklin Furniture Institute and the American Home Furnishings Alliance, the summit addressed many of the challenges and opportunities facing Magnolia State manufacturers. MSU faculty experts joined leaders from state manufacturing furniture industries and representatives of the U.S. Department of Commerce, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Appalachian Regional Commission and Delta Regional Authority. Summit sponsors included CertiPUR-US, the Mississippi Manufacturers Association, the MSU Forest and Wildlife Research Center and the MSU Extension Service. Along with opening remarks from MSU President Mark E. Keenum and a welcome by Franklin Furniture Institute Director Bill Martin, the program included a number of presentations, panel discussions and
Gov. Phil Bryant made keynote remarks during MSU’s Manufacturing Summit at the Franklin Furniture Institute. The governor emphasized the importance of education and workforce development to the state's manufacturing industries before an audience of more than 100 state and federal stakeholders. Photo by Russ Houston
question-and-answer sessions by other summit participants.
University is center of excellence for cyber operations
T
“Key skills will be the ability to conduct
he National Security Agency and U.S.
research. Mississippi State is the only institution
Cyber Command have designated
of higher education in the state to attain the
penetration tests of computer networks, as
Mississippi State as a Center of
three designations.
well as reverse engineering software, including
Academic Excellence in cyber operations. The certification comes after a rigorous,
As a CAE for cyber operations, the university may now issue certificates to
viruses, Trojan horses and other forms of malware,” he said. In addition to Dampier, the MSU team
two-year application process by faculty in
graduates in the computer science master’s
the departments of computer science and
degree program who have completed
which worked to attain the designation were,
engineering and electrical and computer
the necessary cyber operations courses,
from CSE, Cindy Bethel, Yogi Dandass, Wesley
engineering.
Dampier explained.
McGrew, Mahalingam Ramkumar, Ed Swan
David A. Dampier, a professor of computer
“This certification further enables us to teach
and Byron Williams; and from ECE, Sherif
science and engineering at the land-grant
skills that are used by federal agencies engaged
Abdelwahed, Bryan Jones, Pan Li, Tommy
institution, led the effort.
in cyber war — giving Mississippi State students
Morris and Robert Reese.
“MSU is among a relatively elite group of schools helping the nation meet its need for highly-skilled cyber warriors,” he said.
an added edge when competing for these jobs,” Dampier said. According to Dampier, students who include
The university’s cyber security capabilities include three dedicated research centers: the Center for Computer Security Research, the
the cyber ops option in their coursework will
National Forensics Training Center and the
CAE designations in information assurance
be exposed to a diverse range of cyber security
Critical Infrastructure Protection Center.
education and in information assurance
skills and in-depth study.
Of note, the university also holds national
M IS S IS S IP P I STAT E A LUMNUS
31
Campus
NEWS
13 Summer
ALUMNUS
From left are American Legion legionnaire Eddie Merriman, Boys State delegates Malik Pridgeon and Chauncey Mullins, Boys State Chairman Don Cabrol and Mississippi Past Department Commander Joseph D. Kersh. Mississippi State University hosted the 2013 Boys State. Photo by Russ Houston
University hosts Boys State participants seniors from across the
S
diverse group of political and
state recently gathered at
government leaders in historic Lee
Mississippi State to learn about
Hall’s Bettersworth Auditorium.
Boys State officials believe the
state and local government and the
Speakers included Starkville Mayor
partnership with MSU will help
electoral process.
Parker Wiseman, U.S. Rep. Gregg
take the program to a higher level.
Harper, State Rep. George Flaggs
Boys State has a history of training
was selected as the 2013-15 host
of Vicksburg, Commissioner of
excellence dating back to 1939,
campus for Mississippi’s American
Agriculture Cindy Hyde-Smith,
he said.
Legion Boys State, the nation’s
State Treasurer Lynn Fitch, Gov.
premier program for teaching how
Phil Bryant, U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker,
government works, developing
U.S. Rep. Alan Nunnelee, Attorney
leadership skills and nurturing
General Jim Hood, Secretary of State
students from around the state,
an appreciation for the rights and
Delbert Hosemann, State Rep. Toby
MSU President Mark E. Keenum
responsibilities of citizenship.
Barker of Hattiesburg, and Lt. John
said having the week-long
Poulos of the Mississippi Highway
program is a tremendous honor
Patrol.
for the institution.
ome 350 rising high school
Earlier this year, the university
The May 26-June 1 program provided more than $100,000 in scholarships from the American Legion, MSU and other universities. 32
S U MMER 2013
Participants heard from a
In addition to government and electoral issues, participants had
opportunities to compete in sports and a talent show. State director Neal Boone said
“Boys State reaches our next generation of leaders,” Boone said. In welcoming high school
MAROON EDITION PICK
GUIDE FOR ‘FUTURE PRESIDENTS’ A book praised as “a marvelously readable
class, and many of you, will read the book before the
and level-headed explanation of basic
semester begins,” Keenum said.
science and how it relates to the issues” is
Mississippi State’s selection for its fifth-annual common
“We also encourage participation in the many
related activities planned during the school year,
including a campus visit
reading experience.
by Professor Muller during
In an April campuswide announcement,
the first semester,” he
university President
added. To those for whom the
Mark E. Keenum said “Physics for Future
word “physics” might bring
Presidents” by Richard
pause, Keenum stressed—
A. Muller will be the
as have scores of readers
focus for the Maroon
and reviewers—that the
Edition program during
book provides a “highly
the 2013-14 academic
readable, non-technical
year.
discussion of the science behind several major
First published in 2008 by W.W. Norton &
issues that will confront
Co., the 384-page book
future U.S. presidents,
is the work of a physics
business leaders and,
professor and Lawrence
certainly, future graduates
Livermore National
of Mississippi State.” Keenum said books
Laboratory senior
are being provided to all
scientist honored in 1982 with a prestigious MacArthur Foundation
Illustration by Eric Abbott
incoming freshmen who took part in spring and
Fellowship, popularly known as the “genius grant.”
summer orientation programs. Copies also may be
“Should be required reading for all informed
obtained at the Barnes & Noble at Mississippi State
citizens” was Publisher’s Weekly’s opinion of the book
bookstore, as well as from other brick-and-mortar and
based on Muller’s highly popular course for non-
online outlets.
science majors at the University of California, Berkeley. “The Science Behind the Headlines” is the subtitle. “We hope that all of next fall’s incoming freshman
The Maroon Edition website, http://maroonedition. msstate.edu, provides updated information about related events and activities. M IS S IS S IP P I STAT E A LUMNUS
33
Campus
NEWS
13 Summer
ALUMNUS
Zacharias Awards honor distinguished staff members MSU Zacharias Distinguished Staff Award winners for 2013 include front, left to right, Sharon K. Womack, Anna Dill, Charlotte Tabereaux, Dorothy Cannon, Lisa Noffsinger, Effie Anne Hopkins, Gail Bishop. Standing, left to right, presenter Jerry Gilbert, Angela Waller, Phillip Allen, Ronnie White, Gail Maddox, Dan Coleman, and presenter Tommie Zacharias.
T
welve Mississippi State staff members are
life department; Dan Coleman, former director of
selections for the university’s 2013 Donald
student recruitment in the Office of Admissions
W. Zacharias Distinguished Staff Awards.
and Scholarships; Anna Dill, director of The
The honors are a memorial to the university’s
Learning Center in the College of Education; Effie
15th president, in whose 1985-97 administration
Ann Hopkins, Campus Transit bus operator; Gail
Staff Appreciation Day and the accompanying
Maddox, business coordinator in the plant and soil
awards program were established. Taking place at the
sciences department; Lisa Noffsinger, administrative
conclusion of each spring semester, the day of fun
assistant to the vice president for agriculture, forestry
activities and the awards program are organized by
and veterinary medicine; Charlotte Tabereaux,
the Professional and Support Staff Advisory Council.
education director for the MSU Riley Center for
This year, Tommie Zacharias of Starkville, President Zacharias’ widow, and Jerry Gilbert, MSU
Waller, assistant director for business operations
provost and executive vice president, presented each
with the physical plant administration; Ronnie
honoree with a plaque and check for $1,000.
White, associate director of the G. V. “Sonny”
The 2013 winners include Phillip W. “Phil”
SUMMER 2013
Montgomery Center for America’s Veterans; and
Allen, journey lineman with the physical plant
Sharon K. Womack, research technician in the
administration; Gail Bishop, administrative
poultry science department.
assistant with the College of Veterinary Medicine’s
34
Education and Performing Arts in Meridian; Angela
For more information on the campus staff
clinical science department; Dorothy T. Cannon,
council, its awards program and other activities, visit
senior custodian with the housing and residence
www.staffcouncil.msstate.edu/zachawards/.
MSU’s 2013 faculty award winners include, from left, Kimberly Walters, Daniel “Tim” Fancher, Randall Little, Gary Ervin, Josh Winter, Joel Collier, and Mark Novotny. Jerry Gilbert, fourth from right, provost and executive vice president, is pictured extending congratulations to the recent honorees during the university’s annual Faculty Awards and Recognition Program.
MSU honors outstanding faculty with annual awards
F
Associate Professor Joel E. Collier
Prof. Randall D. Little
and Sciences, Business, and Agriculture and Life Sciences,
of the marketing, quantitative
department with the Irvin Atly
as well as a member of the campus ad-
analysis and business law
Jefcoat Excellence in Advising
vising center staff, are 2013 selections
department with the Alumni
Faculty Award.
for Mississippi State’s annual faculty
Association Graduate Teaching
awards.
Excellence Award.
Instructor Kimberly W. Walters
head of the physics and astronomy
Prof. Gary N. Ervin
of the mathematics and statistics
department, was announced as the
of the biological sciences
department with the John
newest William L. Giles Distinguished
department with the Alumni
Grisham Master Teacher Award.
Professor, the university’s highest
Association Outstanding
academic rank.
Graduate Student Mentor Award.
Instructor Joshua B. Winter
Sponsored by the Office of the Provost
Academic Coordinator Daniel T. Fancher
of the physics and astronomy
and MSU Alumni Association, the annual spring university-wide awards
of the University Academic
Association Early Career
program also recognized:
Advising Center with the Irvin
Undergraduate Teaching
Atly Jefcoat Excellence in
Excellence Award.
aculty in the colleges of Arts
Mark A. Novotny,
of the agricultural economics
department with the Alumni
Advising Staff Award. M IS S IS S IP P I STAT E A LUMNUS
35
Campus
NEWS
13 Summer
ALUMNUS
Syracuse’s Messac is new Bagley College of Engineering dean
A
Polytechnic Institute and was a
tion administrator and
faculty member at Northeastern
engineering is the oldest academic
faculty member is Missis-
University in Massachusetts.
curriculum at the 135-year-old
“We are fortunate to have
land-grant institution. From its
sippi State’s new engineering dean.
attracted a person of the caliber of
first freshman class of about a
to lead the university’s James Worth
Dr. Messac,” said Jerry Gilbert, MSU
dozen, the Bagley College—one
Bagley College of Engineering. He
provost and executive vice president,
of approximately 40 named
also holds the Earnest W. and Mary
in making the announcement.
engineering colleges in the nation—
Achille Messac has been selected
Messac
Along with agriculture,
New York higher educa-
“He has an outstanding record
Ann Deavenport Chair and is MSU’s first African American dean.
and is well prepared to take the
At Syracuse University,
Bagley College to a new level of
Messac has been serving as chair
excellence,” Gilbert added.
has grown to a current enrollment of more than 2,000. Nationally, the college is ranked 34th among all engineering colleges
and distinguished professor of
Messac, a naturalized U.S.
in research and development
the mechanical and aerospace
citizen born in Haiti and fluent in
expenditures, according to the
engineering department. A
French, also holds MIT bachelor’s
National Science Foundation. It also
Massachusetts Institute of
and master’s degrees in aeronautical
is among the top 25 in graduating
Technology doctoral graduate in
and astronautical engineering. He
African Americans.
aeronautical and astronautical
began his professional career in 1981
engineering, he previously held
with the internationally recognized
who left earlier this year to
administrative and faculty positions
Charles Stark Draper Laboratory in
accept a similar position at Iowa
at the Troy, N.Y.-based Rensselaer
Cambridge, Mass.
State University.
Messac succeeds Sarah Rajala,
Giles Distinguished Professor is new graduate dean
L
ori Mann Bruce is the new associate vice
“an outstanding record of research and experience in
president for academic affairs and graduate
graduate education, with 13 years of experience at MSU.”
school dean at Mississippi State.
Bruce is a University of Alabama in Huntsville
Bruce, associate dean of the university’s Bagley College doctoral graduate in electrical and computer engineering.
Bruce
of Engineering since 2008, succeeds the retiring Louis
She also holds a UAH bachelor’s degree in electrical and
D’Abramo. Like D’Abramo, she is a William L. Giles
computer engineering, as well as a master’s in electrical
Distinguished Professor, MSU’s highest faculty rank.
engineering from the Georgia Institute of Technology.
“We are delighted that Dr. Bruce has agreed to be our next associate vice president and dean of the Graduate
interview, Bruce said her vision for the Graduate School
School,” said Jerry Gilbert, provost and executive vice
was based on a belief “that graduate programs should
president.
encompass diverse areas of study, provide a foundation
“As dean, she will build on the great progress made under Dr. D’Abramo,” Gilbert added, noting that she has 36
S U MMER 2013
In a candidate statement submitted as part of her
for the continuing evolution of new knowledge and foster leadership.”
Veteran teacher, administrator named A&S dean
A
longtime Mississippi
curriculum issues, student advising
the state’s only criminology degree
State sociology professor
and awards, and scholarships.
program.
and former sociology
As dean, the Baltimore, Md.,
In addition to master’s and
department head is the university’s
native will oversee all academic
doctoral degrees in sociology
new dean of the College of Arts and
programs and fiscal affairs of the
from the University of Cincinnati,
Sciences.
college and report directly to Provost
Dunaway holds a bachelor’s degree in
and Executive Vice President Jerry
the same field from Loyola University
Gilbert.
Maryland in Baltimore.
In 2011, Greg Dunaway became associate dean of the college and,
“Dr. Dunaway is a man of great
Last year, he was honored with the
integrity and vision. I am delighted
Dean of Students Award of Excellence
that he will be providing leadership
in recognition of contributions to
responsible for academic affairs and
for our College of Arts and Sciences,”
student well-being at the 135-year-
student services in MSU’s largest
Gilbert said. Dunaway was the
old land grant university. He is the
academic unit. He also coordinated
college’s Thomas Bailey Professor
second to receive the MSU Division
all aspects of the undergraduate
of Sociology from 2008-11 and, as
of Student Affairs honor since its
instruction programs, including
department head, led in developing
inception in 2007.
since last year, has served as its interim dean. As associate dean, he was
M IS S IS S IP P I STAT E A LUMNUS
Dunaway
37
Campus
NEWS
13 Summer
ALUMNUS
University bestows two honorary degrees
D
commencement
two-term president of
ceremonies
the state chapter of the
in May, the university
American Institute of
bestowed honorary
Architects and former
doctoral degrees on,
member of the national
respectively, former
AIA board. A partner for
governor William F.
more than three decades in
Winter and Madison
the Jackson architectural
architect Robert V.M.
firm of JH&H, he was
Harrison. Winter’s
instrumental in helping
degree is in public service; Harrison’s, in science.
Additionally, he served on the architecture school
nationally recognized for leadership in helping bring
faculty for 13 years, and continues two decades of
about the state’s education reform act that created the
service on the school’s advisory council. An intern development program for architecture
other school improvements. A former state legislator
graduates that Harrison proposed in his University
who later was elected state tax collector, treasurer and
of Florida master’s degree thesis was adopted, after
lieutenant governor, he has been honored with a Profile
being pilot tested, by Mississippi as the model in 1978.
in Courage Award by the John F. Kennedy Presidential
It now is mandatory for architectural registration in
Library and Museum and the 2009 Mississippi Medal
all 50 states.
of Service by his home state. A graduate of the University of Mississippi and its
He helped found the state chapter of the Construction Specifications Institute and served as its
law school, the Grenada native also holds a Mississippi
president. He remains among only a few professionals
Bar Association Lifetime Achievement Award and
to hold the distinguished rank as a Fellow of both the
is a Fellow of the Mississippi Bar Foundation. He
AIA and CSI.
currently is special counsel for the Jones Walker firm’s Government Relations Practice Group in Jackson. Winter is a World War II veteran who continually
S U MMER 2013
establish MSU’s architecture academic program.
Winter, Mississippi’s chief executive 1980-84, is
Magnolia State’s first public kindergartens, among
38
Harrison is a former
uring spring
Harrison’s continuing support of the MSU architecture program includes endowment of a lecture series, gifts for scholarships and facilities in both
has been praised for a lifetime of work involving efforts
architecture and landscape architecture, and fund-raising
to expand opportunities for others. He is the namesake
assistance. The popular campus auditorium in Giles Hall,
of Ole Miss’ racial reconciliation institute and the state’s
home of the College of Architecture, Art and Design, is
teacher scholar loan program.
named for him and his wife Freda.
Mississippi State signs UAS agreement
M
ississippi State is opening a new chapter in its research of unmanned aerial systems. Officials from the land-grant institution
were at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville, Ala., in July for a memorandum of understanding signing with the U.S. Army’s Project Manager for Unmanned Aircraft Systems (PM UAS). The agreement will foster collaboration between PM UAS and MSU that complements one of the university’s key research focus areas, according to a senior administrator. “Our state is well positioned to continue to play a significant role in unmanned aerial systems research and development, as well as manufacturing, and it is one of the priorities for research that we have established at MSU,” said David Shaw, vice president for
test aircraft to examine how to safely and ethically
research and economic development.
integrate unmanned aircraft into U.S. airspace,” said
According to Shaw, the use of unmanned air systems
Maj. Gen. James Poss, USAF (Ret.), the director of
in non-conflict situations is growing with applications
strategic initiatives for MSU’s High Performance
well suited for natural disaster response, humanitarian
Computing Collaboratory.
relief efforts, environmental impact assessment and precision agriculture, among others. “This MOU will allow Mississippi State to boost its research capabilities and retool curricula, allowing students and faculty to research and study UAS use
“MSU is uniquely suited to provide research in cutting-edge unmanned aircraft systems. We want to lead the way to find peaceful applications for this technology,” he said. Part of the university’s Bagley College of
in the national airspace,” said Lt. Col. Robb Walker,
Engineering, Raspet Flight Research Laboratory was
director of external programs for PM UAS.
established in 1948. Since that time it has grown and
“There are an endless number of things you could
expanded to include two state-of-the-art facilities
use UAS for. It is amazing to see what these students
and research endeavors with government and private
think of and how they conquer problems,” he added.
industry including the U.S. Army, U.S. Navy, Lockheed
As part of the MOU, the Army Aviation and Missile Research, Development and Engineering Center has
Aircraft Corp., Honda Research and Development, and NASA.
provided the Raspet Flight Research Laboratory at MSU
Recently, Raspet has served as a start-up facility for
with a Raven unmanned aircraft system, which consists
various aerospace companies in Mississippi, providing
of three airframes and ground control equipment.
workspace, technical training, and assistance with
“Our researchers will be able to use this advanced
Col. Tim Baxter, left, project manager for Unmanned Aircraft Systems, and David Shaw, MSU vice president for research and economic development, signed a memorandum of understanding to facilitate collaborative research opportunities between the Army and MSU.
product development and research. M IS S IS S IP P I STAT E A LUMNUS
39
Campus
NEWS
13 Summer
ALUMNUS
MSU writing-to-learn QEP begins
I
nstead of encouraging students to learn about writing, a diverse
Addressing his campus colleagues at the first session in early June,
team of Mississippi State faculty members is beginning a process
Rich Raymond expressed excitement about the plan. Head of MSU’s
to encourage their undergraduate majors to write to learn.
English department, he is the institute’s moderator and facilitator.
Launching a writing-focused culture at the university is the primary
focus of the “Maroon & Write” quality enhancement plan--QEP, for
“It’s an excellent, excellent sign that the campus chose this QEP,” Raymond said. “We’ve found ourselves using the words ‘culture change’ as we figure out how to get both
short.
students and faculty to think
Ten selected faculty
differently about writing.
representatives of the colleges of
“It’s not just about correctness,”
Agriculture and Life Sciences, Arts and Sciences, Business,
he added. “It’s about thinking;
Education, and Forest Resources
creative thinking, critical thinking
make up the founding Maroon
and reaching audiences for
Institute for Writing Excellence, a month-long intensive workshop. A plan to improve freshman through senior learning, the QEP
purposes that actually matter.” Each of the 10 educators--including Raymond--read and kept a
is critical to reaffirming MSU’s accreditation with the Southern
journal about writing-to-learn selections from some of the more well-
Association of Colleges and Schools. Participating faculty learned how
respected theorists in the field.
to better employ writing-to-learn strategies as a vehicle to help students process and retain the information presented to them.
“This is not about just improving writing,” Raymond emphasized. “Some people mean bad grammar when they say that, but we’re about
‘YOURTOWN’ workshop teaches collaboration Mississippi State’s John C. Stennis Institute for Government and Community Development continues to educate the state’s
Nearly 40 people from some two dozen Magnolia State communities attended. “The biggest thing that I’ve learned is that
accept opportunities--especially economic development or tourism expansion--as they arise, she emphasized.
small-town community and civic leaders about
citizens need to take pride and ownership in
This fall, community leaders will gather
the latest methods for spurring economic
their town,” said Keisha Bogan of Okolona.
for a local design charrette. That meeting will
development and quality-of-life improvements.
“We have to look for the opportunities for us to
involve a presentation of branding design ideas
take care of it ourselves.”
to link community organizations and tourist
Staff members of the university institute recently held another in its popular “YourTown,
Bogan is affiliated with Okolona’s North
opportunities, using a logo unique to Union County.
Miss.” interactive workshop series for elected
Mississippi AmeriCorps VISTA Project
officials, tourism representatives, business
that works to increase parental involvement
owners, community volunteers, Main
and empowerment locally. The workshop
YourTown activities. From a wide range of
Street Association members and economic
demonstrated how citizens invested in
guest speakers and collaborative exercises,
development representatives.
their communities are better prepared to
participants learn how to address a variety of
40
S U MMER 2013
Brand design creation is among several
improving writing as a way of improving learning. There’s an underlying premise here: It’s that you can learn anything, not just literature; math, science, anything, if you write about it.” After completing the training, team members revised their individual class syllabi to include the techniques acquired during the experience. Two English department members, instructor LaToya Bogard and associate professor Matthew Little, along with forestry professor Stephen Grado, said they plan to incorporate writing-tolearn strategies in their courses this fall. The other participants will introduce theirs Support systems for educators using writing-
either in the 2014 spring or fall terms. They include Michael Brown, music department head;
to-learn strategies will be in place, said Connie
Jamie Larson, animal and dairy science assistant
M. Forde, QEP topic selection task force and
professor; Deborah Lee, library professor; Robert
development co-chair. In addition to Raymond
Moore, marketing professor; Rick Noffsinger,
and the QEP committee, writing coordinators
part-time human sciences instructor and senior
also will be available in each college to offer input
extension associate; Donald Shaffer, English and
and advice.
African American studies assistant professor; and
MSU just launched its first Maroon Institute for Writing Excellence, a faculty training initiative designed to enhance student learning through writing. Among the participants are, left to right, Robert Moore of marketing, Jamie Larson of animal and dairy science, Donald Shaffer of English and African-American studies, and Rich Raymond, also of English and the institute’s moderator and facilitator. Photo by Russ Houston
Raymond.
common issues, including struggling downtown commercial areas,
invested in outcomes. “’Communities can be shaped by
newly built highway bypasses and
choice or they can be shaped by chance.
identification of the best guidance for
You can keep on accepting the kinds of
future development.
communities that you get, or you can
Joe Fratesi, the institute’s project
start creating the kind of communities
director, expressed appreciation to
you want,’” he said. “That’s what we
participants for their hard work, as
hope you’ve learned here.”
well as those making presentations. He
For additional information about
quoted Richard Moe, former director
“YourTown, Miss.” and other Stennis
of the National Trust for Historic
Institute community development
Preservation, to remind the audience
programs, telephone 662-325-6703 or
how community improvements
visit www.sig.msstate.edu/programs.
can only happen when residents are
php.
Phil Nanney of New Albany and Keisha Bogan of Okolona, second and third from left, explain their community development plans during a recent MSU-sponsored “YourTown, Miss.” workshop. The interactive session teaches participants about how community development enhances economic opportunity. M IS S IS S IP P I STAT E A LUMNUS
41
Alumni
NEWS
13 SUMMER
ALUMNUS
National alumni officers assume roles
N
ew members of the Mississippi State University Alumni Association’s national board of directors
are beginning two one-year terms after being appointed in February. The team, which officially took office July 1, includes President Tommy R.
Beginning terms as national officers for the MSU Alumni Association are, from left, Bradley M. “Brad” Reeves, second vice president; Jodi White Turner, treasurer; Thomas R. “Tommy” Roberson, president; Camille Scales Young, immediate former president; and Ronald E. “Ron” Black, first vice president.
Roberson of Memphis, Tenn., Ronald E. Young, a 1994 communication
Black of Meridian, first vice president;
served as South 1 region director on the
Jackson resident Bradley M. Reeves, second
national board of directors, and has served
management graduate who also earned a
vice president; and Jodi White Turner of
on the executive committee for three years.
master’s degree in agriculture and extension
Montgomery, Ala., will continue her role as
He is active in the Lauderdale County
education in 1996, is vice president of
treasurer. Camille Scales Young, of Madison,
Alumni Chapter.
Cornerstone Government Affairs in Jackson.
continues on the board as immediate former
The newest officer elected, Reeves, is
She was a member of the Central Mississippi
a 2002 management and construction of
Chapter board of directors, and has served
Roberson, a 1967 political science and
land development alumnus. After MSU, he
on various committees including the Evening
history graduate, is retired from Kraft Foods
received a law degree from the University of
in Maroon, Young Alumni and Central
after 34 years of service. He has served
Mississippi, and now is a practicing attorney
Mississippi Tennis Tournament.
the Memphis Maroon Club as the former
with Balch and Bingham LLP. Reeves is
president, vice president and membership
active with the Central Mississippi Alumni
June 17, 1885, by the first three graduating
officer, and has served on the executive
Chapter, where he served as president,
classes of what then was Mississippi
committee of the board of directors for three
among other roles.
Agricultural and Mechanical College. A
national president.
years, most recently in the role of national
Turner received a bachelor’s degree in
The Alumni Association was founded
full-service organization, it now includes
accounting in 1997 and a master’s degree in
95 chapters and has more than 125,000
business administration in 1999, both from
alumni worldwide. For more, visit
director of human resources for Southern
Mississippi State. She serves as chief financial
alumni.msstate.edu.
Pipe and Supply Company Inc. Ron has
officer for PrimeSouth Bank in Tallassee.
first vice president. Black, a 1980 marketing graduate, is
42
SUMMER 2013
MSU ALUMNI ASSOCIATION
2013-14 National Board of Directors
NORTH 1 REGION DIRECTOR
TEXAS DIRECTOR
David Randall “Randy” Allen, ‘87
Daniel E. “Danny” Hossley, ‘65
NORTH 2 REGION DIRECTOR
AT-LARGE DIRECTORS
Cheryl W. Thurmond, ‘81
David T. Cozart, ‘86 Jonathan J. Lee, ‘00, ‘02
NORTH 3 REGION DIRECTOR Trina M. Dendy, ‘93, ‘00 CENTRAL 2 REGION DIRECTOR
ATLANTA, GA. CHAPTER DIRECTOR Susan B. Yeosock, ‘89
Andrew C. Frank, ‘91
LAUDERDALE COUNTY CHAPTER DIRECTOR
WARREN COUNTY CHAPTER DIRECTOR
William T. “Will” Carpenter III, ‘00, ‘02
Thomas P. “Tom” Kendall, ‘89
LEE COUNTY CHAPTER DIRECTOR
WASHINGTON COUNTY CHAPTER DIRECTOR
Kimberly C. “Kim” Fandel, ‘87, ‘94
Charles “Parker” England, ‘01, ‘02
LEFLORE-CARROLL CHAPTER DIRECTOR
FORMER NATIONAL ALUMNI ASSOCIATION PRESIDENT
Paige H. Hunt, ‘00, ‘06
George T. “Tommy” Everett III, ‘50 PRESIDENT, STUDENT ASSOCIATION
CENTRAL 3 REGION DIRECTOR
CENTRAL MISSISSIPPI CHAPTER DIRECTORS
H. Riley Nelson, ‘99, ‘01
Thomas R. “Tommy” Byrd, ‘81
LOWNDES COUNTY CHAPTER DIRECTOR
Steven A. “Steve” Corbitt, ‘76
William T. “Will” Cooper, ‘90
Michael A. Hogan
MEMPHIS, TENN. CHAPTER DIRECTORS
PRESIDENT, HOLLAND FACULTY SENATE
Paul R. Hopkins, ‘91
Gerald A. “Jerry” Emison
YOUNG DIRECTOR CENTRAL REGION
John K. Pitts, ‘04
John Paul “J.P.” Walker, ‘05
DESOTO COUNTY CHAPTER DIRECTOR
SOUTH 2 REGION DIRECTOR
Hillary Phillips Jordan, ‘03
Stephen R. Woo, ‘94, ‘95 CHAIR, STAFF COUNCIL
Christie D. Walters, ‘98 NASHVILLE, TENN. CHAPTER DIRECTOR
Natalie L. Ray, ‘01, ‘07
SOUTH 3 REGION DIRECTOR
HARRISON-STONE CHAPTER DIRECTOR
Christine E. Cuicchi, ‘94, ‘99
Janice R. Nichols, ‘88
Sarah McDonnell Stephens, ‘03
PRESIDENT, MSU FOUNDATION
YOUNG DIRECTOR SOUTHERN REGION
HOUSTON, TEXAS CHAPTER DIRECTOR
OKTIBBEHA COUNTY CHAPTER DIRECTORS
Bobby S. Shackouls, ‘72, ‘10
Jeffery M. “Jeff ” Ellis, ‘06
Jon D. Sanders, ‘93, ‘94
Donna B. Rupp, ‘93
PRESIDENT, BULLDOG CLUB
Daniel J. “Jason” Ryder, ‘00
Beth C. Clay, ‘67
OUT-OF-STATE DIRECTORS Courtney A. Jones, ‘02, ‘06
HUNTSVILLE-DECATUR, ALA. CHAPTER DIRECTOR
Edward A. Sanders, ‘06
Brian M. Sabourin, ‘83
SOUTHEAST MISSISSIPPI CHAPTER DIRECTOR Lori B. Perkins, ‘93
JACKSON COUNTY CHAPTER DIRECTOR John “Carl” Weihing, ‘70 M IS S IS S IP P I STAT E A LUMNUS
43
Alumni
13 SUMMER
NEWS
ALUMNUS
A LETTER FROM
Camille Scales Young 2012-13 National President | MSU Alumni Association Board of Directors Dear Bulldog Family, than 125,000 alumni worldwide. Our
friendships we made, and the life lessons
graduates have received recognitions
learned as students. Our continued
in their respective disciplines from the
support of this great institution is what
boardrooms of corporate America to
ensures those positive experiences for the
of my life to serve you as president of
the playing fields of innumerable sports.
students who have followed us and will
the Mississippi State University Alumni
From the halls of Congress to research
come in the future.
Association. Your commitment to our
laboratories around the globe, Mississippi
university is amazing and commendable!
State alumni command credibility, respect
Throughout the years, MSU has been
and honor.
In the heart of Mississippi, made by none but God’s own hands. It has been one of the greatest honors
privileged to have an alumni base that supports and lifts the university to greater heights in learning, service and research. Stately in her natural splendor our alma mater proudly stands. With each passing year, the MSU
Life shall bear thy spirit ever; loyal friends we’ll always be. Thank you for the privilege of serving
Mississippi State, we love you;
our Alumni Association. I will cherish
fondest memories cling to thee.
every moment and fondly remember
Mississippi State enjoys a diverse
each opportunity. You are the foundation
student body and alumni base and that
on which our association will grow and
makes us strong. We hail from every
prosper.
county in this state, every state in this
Alumni Association increases our fold
country, and many countries around the
and brings new graduates into our ranks.
world. Our loyalty to our alma mater
The class of 2013 now joins the more
stems from the education we gained, the
Forever Maroon and White
Camille Scales Young, ’94, ’96
JOIN THE ALUMNI ONLINE COMMUNITY 44
S U MMER 2013
alumni.msstate.edu
Alumni Association names new student delegates
T
wenty-two Mississippi State students have joined the Alumni Association’s student liaison group.
The Alumni Delegates serve as liaisons
between the 135-year-old land-grant institution and its more than 125,000 living graduates. Founded in 1980, one of the group’s main missions is helping improve the student body’s understanding of the association’s role and purpose. Over the years, this group of students has become invaluable in assisting with alumnisponsored programs and activities, including football tailgate gatherings, class reunions and numerous other events, both on and off campus. Delegate officers for 2013 include President Vijay Kannuthurai of Hazlehurst; Casey McGee of Starkville, vice president for public relations; Mary Lowry Nemeth of Starkville, secretary; and Samuel Bragg of Rienzi, vice president for education. Members are selected through a highly
The MSU Alumni Association student delegates include Donny Banerjee, Mari Micci Bramuchi, Natalie Ethridge, Alex Ezelle, Yance Falkner, Hannah Farris, Amanda Fones, Morgan
competitive interview process. This year’s group
Ford, Rob Hairston, Josh Hancock, Tyrus Hill, Emerson Holliman, Leslie Howard, Amari Jenkins,
was chosen from more than 300 applicants and
Anne Caroline Lovitt, Khanh Nguyen, Hayden Nix, Victoria Poole, Neil Rosenbaum, Russ Singleton,
joins 23 returning delegates.
Rachelle Thomason, and KeAirra Williams.
Did you know the MSU Alumni Association offers a free online community? As a member of the Bull Ring, alumni have access to class information, an online alumni directory, networking opportunities, photo albums, a free email forwarding address, and much more! Membership is exclusive and free to all graduates. If you are not already registered with the Bull Ring, now is the time! Registration is easy, and
allows access to information regarding campus and community activities, athletic events and important MSU announcements. Alumni can also keep contact information up-todate online. By providing a correct email address, phone number and mailing address, alumni can be sure not to miss any MSU news or events. For information on how to update your profile, please visit alumni.msstate.edu/login. M IS S IS S IP P I STAT E A LUMNUS
45
Alumni
NEWS
13 SUMMER
ALUMNUS
Alumni Association awards meritorious faculty
T
he Mississippi State University Alumni Association honored three esteemed faculty members with a special recognition in April. From the College of
Business, Joel Collier, a marketing professor, was presented the Graduate Teaching Excellence Award. The Early Career Undergraduate Teaching Excellence Award went to physics instructor, Josh Winters, and Gary Ervin was named Outstanding Graduate Student Mentor Award. Winters and Ervin are both from the College of Arts and Sciences. Collier, who came to MSU in 2006 from the University of Memphis, was recognized for his inspirational exercises and experiences in the business graduate program. He has helped students gain real world experience through innovative projects in the MBA program. One of his projects garnered a national award for philanthropy and supporting local charities. A familiar face to football fans, Winters was recognized for his fun and approachable methods of teaching physics. He participates in activities promoting science education with high school students and secondary teachers in Mississippi, and educates fans in Davis Wade Stadium each football Saturday with his popular “Physics of Football� videos. Winters is a two-time MSU graduate, and is currently pursuing a doctoral degree. A professor in the department of biological sciences, Ervin is described as a passionate and flexible mentor, who tailors his work with graduate students to their specific strengths and needs. His love for science is infectious and motivates his students to tackle challenges with an astute and intellectual attitude. Ervin has been a faculty member at MSU since 2001. The Alumni Association is proud to partner with university faculty to recognize meritorious teachers and researchers for the impact they make on students each day.
46
S U MMER 2013
Winners, from left to right, are Gary Ervin, Outstanding Graduate Student Mentor Award; Joel Collier, Graduate Teaching Excellence Award; and Josh Winters, Early Career Undergraduate Teaching Excellence Award.
Information, videos housed online for new graduates
R
ecent graduates of Mississippi State University
officially licensed jewelry, and M-State license plates in
have access to helpful information and
Mississippi, Tennessee and Texas. For information on
services through the Alumni Association
all of these items, please visit the alumni website and click on “marketplace.”
website. Housed at alumni.msstate.edu/newgrads, new
“Our goal is to provide as much support as possible
alumni will find useful links and videos containing information to help with their transition from college
to our new graduates in order to ease the transition
life to the workplace, as well as important alumni and
from college life to the workplace,” said John P. Rush,
university links.
vice president for development and alumni. “MSU’s growing alumni base is vitally important to the future
In addition, through several corporate partnerships, all MSU alumni and their families are
success of our university, and our desire is to keep
eligible to purchase short-term or long-term health
graduates informed and engaged as they enter a new
insurance, as well as home and auto coverage. For
chapter in their lives.” We congratulate the new graduates of Mississippi
a list of participating companies and links to policy
State University. To find out more information, please
information, visit alumni.msstate.edu/insurance.
visit alumni.msstate.edu/newgrads.
Other items available exclusively to MSU graduates and friends include a Bank of America credit card,
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M IS S IS S IP P I STAT E A LUMNUS
47
Foundation
NEWS
13 summer
ALUMNUS
MSU delivers promise
to married student couple Tyson and Anna Laura Davis will graduate from the university in December, having earned their degrees with the assistance of MSU Promise. As Promise graduates, the couple will begin their post-college lives with a manageable financial slate because they were beneficiaries of these special awards funded by alumni and friends. and Brookhaven native Tyson
Tyson is working toward a Bachelor
help capable students, like Tyson and
attended Copiah-Lincoln Community
of Science in mechanical engineering.
Anna Laura, “bridge the gap” between
College. Tyson initially enrolled at
Following graduation, they hope to
the cost of tuition and required fees
Mississippi State prior to Anna Laura,
stay in their home state and raise their
not covered by financial aid. Recently,
but encouraged her to continue her
six-year-old daughter Isabel.
Contributors for Promise Awards
“MSU Promise has allowed me
California couple Dr. Niles R. Moseley and his wife Mary Lyn created an endowment for the awards and its accompanying student support program. Moseley is a Mississippi native who understands programs like Promise are crucial to the education of students from low-income families in his home state. Since the program’s 2006 inception, nearly 200 Promise
“It was a great relief to both of us to receive Promise so we can focus on our studies.” -Anna Laura Davis
are following their path. Recipients
I’ve maintained a 3.9 grade point average of which I am very proud.” Tyson chose MSU because of the stellar reputation of the James Worth Bagley College of Engineering and, in particular, its top-notch mechanical engineering program. “I am confident the mechanical
education after they married. “My husband’s heart was at MSU,
at MSU, along with cooperative education experience, will help me
so I followed him here,” Anna Laura
find a great job to support my family,”
incoming freshmen or community
said. “It was a great relief to both of us
Tyson said.
college students transferring to MSU
to receive Promise so we can focus on
as Anna Laura and Tyson chose to do.
our studies.”
attended Hinds Community College,
SUMMER 2013
Laura said. “During this time,
must be Mississippi residents who are
Flowood native Anna Laura
48
time to motherhood,” Anna
engineering education I receive
recipients have graduated, and many more from Mississippi families
to utilize work study and devote
While at MSU, Tyson has participated in the engineering
Anna Laura is completing a
college’s Fred and Sara Jean Burke
Bachelor of Arts in English, while
Study Abroad program, spending
time in Germany, and for five semesters has been a co-op student. His co-op experiences include work with Northrop Grumman Corp., Huntington Ingalls Industries and International Paper. In coming to MSU, the Davis’ had a goal to graduate and better position their family for the future. They have been successful because their grades have qualified them for Promise each semester. “With MSU Promise, we have been given the means to graduate sooner and together,” Anna Laura said. “It has been a relief to have the cushion that Promise provided us and we look forward to a debt-free start.” She continued, “As parents, we
The Moseley Promise Student
wonderful for students like Tyson
already dream of a college education
Support Program makes every
and Anna Laura who deserve the
for our daughter. However, we realize
effort to ensure recipients retention
chance to have a quality education,
that Mississippi cannot progress
and success in academics and
and the complementing Moseley
unless it helps citizens earn a quality
college life. The program provides
Promise Student Support Program
education through programs like
academic counseling, course-
provides intervention strategies to
Promise.”
progress monitoring and networking
keep recipients focused on their
Tyson agrees, saying, “We
opportunities to assist these Promise
studies,” Dill said. “We are proud
have learned that by investing
recipients with their transition to the
to say some of our recipients have
in education you can bring that
university. Participants must be full-
appeared on campus honor rolls
investment full circle, as in our case,
time students who maintain a college
because of the success of the services
because we will become responsible
grade point average of at least 2.5
we offer combined with their desire
working citizens in our state as
as they make satisfactory progress
to achieve.”
products of Promise.”
toward a degree.
Through the university’s Learning
Anna Dill, Learning Center
Gifts of any amount are welcome in support of MSU
Center in the College of Education,
director, is proud of the efforts
Promise. Alumni and friends
Tyson and Anna were eligible for
Mississippi State makes to ensure the
may learn more about Promise by
a helping hand in their studies
success of Promise students through
visiting www.sfa.msstate.edu or
with the Moseley Promise Student
financial and academic assistance.
give in support of the program at
Support Program.
“The MSU Promise Awards are
From left, Anna Laura, Tyson and Isabel Davis. Photo by Russ Houston
www.msufoundation.com.
M IS S IS S IP P I STAT E A LUMNUS
49
Foundation
NEWS
13 summer
ALUMNUS
Mississippi farmers invest in
soybean education, research A Mississippi Soybean Promotion Board
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and director of
investment in the Edgar E. and Winifred
the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment
B. Hartwig Endowed Chair in Soybean
Station. “An endowed chair will sustain research,
Agronomy will enhance soybean research, teaching and
teaching and service focused on improving soybean
service at Mississippi State University for years to come.
cropping systems.” Hopper added that the future of soybean research
Named after the late Edgar E. Hartwig, a renowned
Hartwig
soybean breeder, the investment will help fund an
and education will include development of new
endowed chair in MSU’s Department of Plant and Soil
soybean varities, integrating tillage systems, crop
Sciences.
rotations, soil and water conservation, cover crops, pest
“We are excited to partner with Mississippi State
management and sufficient plant nutrition. A 2007 contribution from Hartwig’s wife, Winifred,
University, the Hartwigs and our industry partners to establish this chair focused on soybean production,”
established the endowed chair and provided support
said Jimmy Sneed, soybean farmer from Hernando and
for graduate student research at Mississippi State. The
former chairman of the Mississippi Soybean Promotion
investments form the state’s Soybean Promotion Board
Board. “This investment will benefit all soybean farmers and its industry partners will be added to the original with applied research to improve soybean production.”
fund. “The investment from the soybean promotion
“An endowed chair is valuable to MSU and Syngenta because a commitment to research and development
board, the Hartwigs and industry supporters will also
leads to new advancements and innovative practices
be used to recruit outstanding graduate students who
in soybean production,” said Rex Wichert, head of
will become future leaders in agriculture,” Hopper said.
Syngenta’s soybean portfolio. “Through university-
An endowed chair is a significant faculty position
driven research, producers and industry will have
filled by a prominent researcher and professor. MSU
access to technologies and training that enhance
will conduct a national search for the chair holder in
soybean productivity.”
the coming months. The selected chair will have a joint
Hartwig spent 47 years with the U.S. Department
appointment in the College of Agriculture and Life
of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service in
Sciences and the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry
Stoneville. He developed many of the soybean varieties
Experiment Station. The Mississippi Soybean Promotion Board is made
grown in the Southern United States and regions around the world with similar climates. Soybean production in Mississippi set a record in
farmers. Checkoff funds are invested in the areas
value of production at more than $1 billion.
of animal utilization, human utilization, industrial
and environment,” said George Hopper, dean of the S U MMER 2013
the soy checkoff on behalf of all Mississippi soybean
2012, with average yields of 45 bushels per acre and “Soybean production improves our state’s economy
50
up of farmer-directors who oversee the investments of
utilization, industry relations, market access and supply.
MEMORIAL TREES : A CELEBRATION OF LIFE
A
lumni and friends can honor and remember a friend or loved one with a creative and enduring “living gift”- a new tree on one of
integrated into the overall landscape. An 8” x 10” plaque will display the name of the honoree and the donor name, along with the common
the most beautiful college campuses in the Southeast.
name and scientific name for the tree. Trees planted
With support for the university’s Campus Beautifica-
with best results at Mississippi State include Bald
tion Endowment, special memorial trees will grow and
Cypress, Magnolia, varieties of Ginkgo, Red Maple, and
prosper as part of a unique and diverse collection of
varieties of oak trees such as Nuttall Oak, Water Oak
trees and help to beautify our campus.
and Willow Oak.
“Memorial trees are a fertile partnership between a
MSU offers other naming opportunities through
donor and the university,” said Jack McCarty, executive
support of the Campus Beautification Endowment, such
director of development. “A gift for a tree in memory
as outdoor plantings and structures. Persons wishing
of a teacher, student, classmate or relative is a generous
to invest in the beauty of MSU, and those who are
and thoughtful way to recognize a person’s life and
specifically interested in a particular opportunity such as
accomplishments with a living tribute.”
memorial trees, may contact McCarty at 662.325.7000
Gifts for the Campus Beautification Endowment
or email jmccarty@foundation.msstate.edu.
enhance the general appearance of Mississippi State’s historic 135-year-old campus, including landscaping. Use of endowment funds also extend to the interior and exterior renovation of certain historic buildings in existence. In particular, memorial trees can improve the MSU community, bringing Bulldogs together through tradition while benefitting the environment. Memorial trees can be named with a minimum $5,750 gift to the Campus Beautification Endowment, which includes the cost of the project. Gifts for memorial trees will cover the cost of the tree, a plaque and care during the tree’s first year of growth. The gift also provides for replanting and replacement of the tree over time. The Office of Annual Giving within the MSU Foundation accepts gifts for memorial trees, and the university’s campus landscape department will assist the donor with tree selection and location. Dedication ceremonies are held upon request. Other items in proximity of the tree, such as a bench, may be added for an additional project cost if these items can be
Southern Gamedays offers you a wide variety of tailgating services for the tightest of budgets to the most luxurious requests. Your full service tailgating package includes:
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Visit us online at www.sgtailgating.com David Easley 662.769.3325 david@sgtailgating.com
M IS S IS S IP P I STAT E A LUMNUS
51
Foundation
NEWS
13 summer
ALUMNUS
Faculty bequests signify PASSION for MSU
L
ong after three professors retire from Mississippi State, they will continue
to contribute to the university and have an impact on education in a special way. College of Business colleagues Rodney and Allison Pearson and Tim Barnett have included MSU in their estate plans. “As colleagues, we share a passion to support our university. Although we cannot give as generously as some alumni and friends, we want to do our part in ensuring exceptional education at Mississippi State continues with these bequests,” said Rodney. The Pearsons are a longtime Starkville couple who met as MSU faculty members. Rodney, a native of Clarksdale, is a professor of business information systems, the Robert Keil Innovative Teaching Fellow, and former head of the Department
Left to right, MSU professors Tim Barnett and Allison and Rodney Pearson. Photo by Russ Houston
of Management and Information Systems. Monroeville, Ala., native
management and information
them. Allison explained, “Rodney
Allison is the Jim and Julia Rouse
systems department head, as well
and I are at the midpoint of our lives
Professor of Management. They
as the Bobby and Barbara Martin
and wanted a plan for the future.
joined the faculty in 1987 and 1993,
Fellow. He is also president of the
Although we had been contributors
respectively.
Southern Management Association
in the past, upon learning of Tim’s
and a Mississippi Manufacturers
generosity, we wanted to utilize our
Association Scholar.
estate because MSU has been very
Lexington, Ala., native Barnett worked earlier in his career for Kraft Foods and Humana Hospital
52
SUMMER 2013
The Pearsons initiated a deferred
good to both of us.”
Corp., and later for Louisiana
gift, in part, because Barnett had
She continued, “Our loyalty
Tech University. He is now
earlier shared his intentions with
to MSU is about more than just
working for the university -- it is about being a part of a great institution that changes peoples’ lives, and playing a very small part in that important process.” The Drs. Rodney and Allison Pearson Endowed Scholarship
“Enrolling here as a doctoral student changed my life and broadened my horizons, making possible a great life and rewarding career which has enabled me to make this bequest.”
Fund within the department of
Tim Barnett
management and information systems will be established with the couple’s bequest. It will create a perpetual scholarship fund to assist
“These bequests are our
attracting and retaining outstanding
students majoring in management
opportunity to step forward and
faculty and administrators in the
or business information systems.
show our faith in the future of this
department.
“Many of our students inspired us to create this bequest. Individuals like Molly Lomenick Daerr, a
university,” said Barnett, an MSU doctoral graduate. The bequest from Barnett will
“I know firsthand how doctoral students have limitations in earning another degree particularly because
business information systems
establish two endowments for
of income, and I wanted to help
graduate, who began a scholarship
the college. The Dr. Timothy R.
better position them to achieve their
in honor of her father, and many
Barnett Endowed Ph.D. Fund in
goals and also ensure the college
others who have honored us with
Management will support doctoral-
continues to have superb faculty
contributions in our own names,”
level education, dissertation
who will carry out its mission,”
said Rodney.
research, professional travel
Barnett explained.
Allison concurred, saying,
and areas associated with the
Barnett and the Pearsons plan to
“Not only were we inspired by
enhancement of Ph.D. candidates
continue their service to Mississippi
our students, but also by alumni
within the department.
State and impact their students
and friends who give their time,
“The experience of earning a
in the most positive way possible
their leadership, and their gifts
degree from MSU causes you to
through their teaching, learning and
— particularly to the College of
have a real affinity for the university.
service endeavors.
Business — people like Jim and Julia
Enrolling here as a doctoral student
Rouse, the Seal family, the Taylor
changed my life and broadened my
engaging with the bright, motivated,
family, Richard Adkerson, and
horizons, making possible a great
imaginative students we see in our
Bruce and Donna Franklin — to
life and rewarding career which has
classrooms every day. If our gift
name only a few.”
enabled me to make this bequest,”
can somehow, in some very small
Barnett said.
way, increase opportunities for
By including Mississippi State in their estate plans, the colleagues
A second endowment from his
“The three of us simply love
learning for those students, we feel
hope to encourage others to
bequest creates the Dr. Timothy R.
very grateful and honored to be able
consider leaving similar legacies at
Barnett Endowed Faculty Fellowship
to contribute to that effort,” said
MSU.
in Management to assist in
Allison. M IS S IS S IP P I STAT E A LUMNUS
53
Foundation
NEWS
13 summer
ALUMNUS
Cooley leads university’s annual giving effort
A
responsible for securing annual
University are among
the most faithful in the Southeast-
gifts for the university and its
ern Conference. These Bulldogs
academic colleges through direct
loyally support the colleges, schools
marketing efforts. Annual giving
and areas of their choice at MSU
is designed to provide an avenue
with continuous annual gifts. Re-
through which donors can support
cently appointed to lead the MSU
any area of MSU on a continual
Foundation’s effort to secure these
basis. Gifts may be specifically
contributions is professional staff
designated for a college or school,
Cooley began her duties
Cooley
academic department, scholarship fund, or any other area. Since 2011, Cooley has served
directing the university’s annual
social media consultant for the HH
giving program, which traditionally
Agency in Tuscaloosa. Her previous
as assistant director of annual
focuses on gifts up to $10,000, in
experience also includes a two-year
giving and coordinated the
June. She also works with the MSU
stint with the New York Times
MSU Foundation’s telefunding
Alumni Association, where an
Regional Media Group.
program. As annual giving director,
“Asya brings substantial
Cooley will continue to oversee
experience to her new role and
the university’s Bulldog Calling
will be a great asset. Having
Center that employs some 50
Cooley holds a Bachelor of Arts in
already been a part of the MSU
MSU students to make telephone
communication from Alcorn State
Foundation operation, it was a
solicitations of alumni and friends.
University and a Master of Mass
natural progression for Asya to
Callers also update database
Communication from Louisiana
assume leadership of the annual
records for the institution’s alumni
State University. Before joining
giving program and further utilize
and friends. Mississippi State
MSU, she was a research associate
her skills in direct marketing and
currently has over 125,000 living
at the University of Alabama in
telefunding,” said Jack McCarty,
alumni.
Tuscaloosa and co-owner and a
executive director of development
annual gift automatically activates a graduate’s membership. A native of Southwestern Russia,
S U MMER 2013
In her new role, Cooley will be
of Mississippi State
member Asya Besova Cooley.
54
for the MSU Foundation.
lumni and friends
Regions gift salutes alumnus Deavenport
A
$100,000 gift from Regions Financial Corp.
extremely honored to have this contribution benefit my
honors alumnus Earnest W. Deavenport Jr.
parent’s scholarship.”
for his service, and increases a scholarship
A Kiawah Island, S.C., resident, Deavenport earned
he previously established in Mississippi State Univer-
a chemical engineering degree from MSU in 1960 and
sity’s James Worth Bagley College of Engineering.
later earned a master’s degree from the Massachusetts
Mississippi native Deavenport retired from the Re-
Institute of Technology. In 2011, he was honored by Mis-
gions board as chairman in May. He served as a director
sissippi State with an honorary Doctor of Science degree.
since 1989 and assumed the position of non-executive
Over the years, Deavenport has devoted his time
chairman in 2010, playing a critical role in guiding the
and financial resources to MSU. He serves on the dean’s
company. Regions Financial Corp. is one of the nation’s
advisory board for the James Worth Bagley College of
largest full-service providers of consumer and commer-
Engineering and serves as vice president of the MSU
cial banking, wealth management, mortgage, and insur-
Foundation board of directors. In the 1990s, Deavenport
ance products and services, and through its subsidiary,
and his wife, Mary Ann, established the scholarship at
Regions Bank, operates approximately 1,700 banking
MSU for his parents, growing the endowment with ad-
offices.
ditional gifts over time.
In the role of Regions board chairman, Deavenport
Scholarship Fund assists engineering students and
of the board of Kingsport, Tenn.-based Eastman Chemi-
memorializes Deavenport’s parents. Earnest William
cal Co., as well as his service as director of a number of
Deavenport Sr. died in 1982, and Laura Mae Deavenport
public and private companies. He retired from Eastman
died in 2004. Both were residents of Noxubee County,
in 2001.
Miss., who made their home in Macon. They farmed
company, and I’m personally grateful for the astute counsel and guidance he has given me since assuming
cotton, raised cattle, and operated a Western Auto store and garage. Besides the scholarship, the Deavenports have gener-
leadership of Regions,” said Grayson Hall, Regions’ cur-
ously supported MSU in many ways. Among them, the
rent chairman.
creation of the Earnest W. and Mary Ann Deavenport Jr.
Hall continued, “He has helped guide Regions
Chair, an endowed position held by the dean of engi-
through a tremendously difficult environment, and his
neering. A second endowed position, the Earnest W.
vision has been integral to revitalizing our company for
Deavenport Jr. Chair, whose holder directs the Dave C.
the benefit of our shareholders, our associates and the
Swalm School of Chemical Engineering, is also linked
communities we serve.”
to Deavenport. Established by the Eastman Chemical
Deavenport gratefully acknowledged the Regions
Deavenport
The Earnest W. and Laura Mae Deavenport Endowed
utilized his experience gained as the chairman and CEO
“Earnie has provided remarkable leadership to our
Caption
Corp. and increased with additional support from Earnie
contribution to his alma mater, saying “I am proud to
and Mary Ann Deavenport, the chair acknowledges
have been a part of Regions’ remarkable recovery from
Deavenport’s lifelong contributions to education and the
the financial crisis over the last three years, and I am
chemical industry.
M IS S IS S IP P I STAT E A LUMNUS
55
Foundation
NEWS
13 summer
ALUMNUS
Mississippi State raises
+ 80 MILLION
$
for third consecutive year
F
or three consecutive years, Mississippi State
as we move toward announcing another long-
University has raised more than $80 mil-
term fundraising endeavor this fall to advance
lion in outright gifts and pledges of future
Mississippi State and its long-range strategic plan and
support from individuals, corporations, foundations,
priorities," said John P. Rush, MSU vice president for
trusts and estates, with the just-ended 2013 fiscal year
development and alumni who serves as Foundation
exceeding $81.3 million.
CEO.
Previous record years included FY 2012, in which Mississippi State experienced its largest single giving
the year also rose slightly to 18.3 percent, ranking
year total in school history with more than $86.4
MSU above several major peer institutions in that
million. More than $80.3 million was raised in FY
measure of support among former students. This
2011.
number has continued an upward trend at MSU in
"We deeply appreciate the generosity of alumni
11.2 percent national average indicated by the 2012
to help Mississippi State University carry out its
Voluntary Support of Education annual report, which
invaluable mission of teaching, research and service,"
publishes fundraising statistics of higher education
said MSU President Mark E. Keenum.
institutions. At Mississippi State, total giving for a fiscal year
evidence that individuals and corporate supporters
is the sum of outright gifts, pledges of new gifts, and
have confidence in our efforts to impact the lives of
commitments of deferred gifts, Rush said. The total
individuals across our state and nation and extend our
does not include payment of pledges from previous
reach across the globe."
years or receipts of deferred gifts committed in
Of this year's $81.3 million, $67.07 million was in outright gifts and pledges marking the second
previous years. Most fundraising for Mississippi State is conducted
largest year recorded in these areas by the institution's
by the MSU Foundation, established in 1962 to help
fundraising arm. This figure is just under the highest
the university attract support from private sources.
year recorded for outright gifts and pledges at $67,882,860 in FY 2002. "Another successful year of private support is an important milestone for the university, particularly S U MMER 2013
recent years, placing the university well above the
and friends who are investing their personal resources
Keenum said, "This level of support is clear
56
The proportion of alumni who contributed during
For more information about MSU fundraising efforts, contact Rush at 662-325-9306 or john.rush@ msstate.edu.
Class
NEWS
13 summer
ALUMNUS
1967 DIANE RAY PAGE,
1982 ROBERT GREEN,
1985 ROBERT W. ANDERSON,
(Ph.D. ’94) of Tupelo has published
(M.S. ’84), undergraduate coordinator
a U.S. Department of Agriculture
three children’s books, Bobbs and the
for the Bagley College of Engineering
engineer, has been selected Engineer
Little Boy, Roy and Roo Take a Trip
at MSU, has been elected international
of the Year in USDA and one of the
to the Zoo, and Bobbs the Friendly
president of the National Society of
top 10 engineers for 2013 in the entire
Creature, all available online at
Professional Engineers.
U.S. government.
Amazon and Barnes & Noble and at
1985 JOHN HESTER JR.,
http://www.bobbsandcompany.com.
1972 WATTS C. UELTSCHEY,
of Clinton, a division director for the Mississippi State Department
an attorney with Brunini law firm,
of Health, has earned the Certified
has been recognized as a Chambers
Public Manager designation from the
USA Top Lawyer in the publication’s
State of Mississippi.
2013 edition.
1985 JAN RISHER of Lafayette, La., a
1973 CHRISTOPHER A. SHAPLEY, an attorney with Brunini law firm, has been recognized as a Chambers USA Top Lawyer in the publication’s 2013 edition.
1977 GRANVILLE TATE, JR.,
1982 RANDY CLEVELAND, formerly of Union, has been named president of XTO Energy Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Exxon Mobil Corporation.
newspaper columnist, has published a business book, Team Renaissance: The Art, Science & Politics of Great Teams.
1986 WILLIAM CARROLL,
an attorney with Brunini law firm,
1983 TIMOTHY N. BURCHAM (M.S. ’85)
Armstrong Relocation and
has been recognized as a Chambers
has been named dean of the College
Companies—Birmingham and
USA Top Lawyer in the publication’s
of Agriculture and Technology at
Montgomery agencies.
2013 edition.
Arkansas State University. Previously,
1979 LAURIE ROSENBAUM WILLIAMS,
he was a professor at the University of
1986 ROBERT COFFEY,
Tennessee at Martin and an associate
has been named president of
professor at Mississippi State.
of Panama City, Fla., a federal civil
has been selected president of the
1983 SHARI T. VEAZEY,
servant and project engineer for the
Madison Chamber of Commerce for
of Jackson, has been appointed
for providing real-time, mine
2013.
executive director of the Mississippi
countermeasure technical support to
Municipal League. She previously
the USS Dextrous.
of Madison, an attorney with Copeland, Cook, Taylor and Bush,
Naval Surface Warfare Center, has received a U.S. Navy Fleet accolade
served as deputy director. M IS S IS S IP P I STAT E A LUMNUS
57
Class
NEWS
13 summer
ALUMNUS
1986 BARTLEY DURST,
1990 2000 CAROLINE BUFFINGTON PUGH, BRAD GARRETT,
(’02), a researcher with the U.S. Army
of Tupelo, has published her first
of Kansas City, Mo., has been named
Engineer Research and Development
novel, Something Bigger. The thriller/
director of development for Alpha
Center, has been named one of the
romance is available online from
Gamma Rho Fraternity.
top 20 inventors for the Army for
major book retailers and for Kindle.
2009-2011.
1996 TONEY CUMMINS,
2000 BRAD KELLY,
1987 MICHAEL WATSON,
a researcher for the U.S. Army
Copeland, Cook, Taylor and Bush,
of Shelbyville, Tenn., has been named
Engineer Research and Development
spoke to 25 Madison students, the
president and chief executive officer
Center, has been named one of the
Madison Junior Ambassadors, when
of Duck River Electric Membership
top 20 inventors for the Army for
they toured the firm’s offices to learn
Corp. He previously was the
2009-2011.
about careers in law.
organization’s vice president.
1996 JASON WATSON
2000 RICHARD D. RUSSO, II
has joined ArborGen, the world
has been named head football
of Flowood has completed his term
leader in reforestation, as a Piedmont
coach at Independence High School
as president of the Mississippi Society
regional sales coordinator. He
and was selected as the defensive
of certified Public Accountants. He
previously was a sales manager for
coordinator for the first North
is vice president of internal audit
International Forest Company.
Mississippi All-Star Football Classic.
for Ergon, Inc., a petroleum energy
1998 BILL WAGNON
2000 JASON A. STRAIN,
of Livingston, Ala., has been named
of Memphis, Tenn., an attorney, has
dean of enrollment management at
been elected a shareholder at Baker
the University of West Alabama. He
Donelson.
previously was UWA’s director of
2001 JOSH BETHEA,
1990 W.R. LEE ADAMS,
company.
marketing and public relations for online programs.
1990 JOHN ARLEDGE,
College School of Law, recently
affairs for Entergy Mississippi, has
received the school’s Sue Riggan
joined the board of directors for
Millette Scholarship.
company. SUMMER 2013
of Clinton, a student at Mississippi
of Brandon, vice president of public
Community Bancshares Inc.’s holding
58
1998 BRYAN C. WARDLAW
of Madison, and attorney with
of Nashville, Tenn., has joined Civil Site Design Group as a project manager.
2002 KIMBERLY NEAL of Baltimore,
2004 KRISTY IRONS RILEY,
2008 ASHLEY GUNKEL,
Md., an associate with Niles, Barton
of Bay Springs has been promoted
of Ocean Springs is the 2013 winner
& Wilmer LLP, has been named by
to general manager of M’Prints
of the Top Design Competition
The Daily Record to its 2013 VIP
Promotional Products and National
sponsored by Fashion Week New
list—Very Important Professionals
Scrubwear in Meridian.
Orleans. She competed against 11
of age or younger who have been
2005 JEREMY JACK,
other finalists from across the South.
successful in Maryland.
of Belzoni, a crop farmer and
2010 GARRETT M. STEEDE,
2003 JESSICA DUPONT,
sustainability advocate, has been
(M.S. ’12) has been selected livestock
named Bayer CropScience’s 2013
judging coach at Fort Hays State
Young Sustainable Farmer.
University in Hays, Kan.
an associate with the law firm of Burrow, has been named a Top 10
2006 MEGAN COPLEY,
2011 JESSICA TEMPLE,
Business Leader Under 40 by The
of Mathiston, a student at Mississippi
a doctoral student at Georgia State
Sun Herald and The Journal of South
College School of Law, has received
University, has published a collection
Mississippi Business.
the school’s M. Judith Barnett Single
of poems, Seamless and Other
2004 C. ALLEN NICHOLS,
Parent Award.
Legends. It is available online at
is the new executive director of the
2006 ANGIE K. DOSS,
finishinglinepress.com.
Akron (Ohio) Bar Association.
of Hattiesburg has been named
2011 ANNA GRACE WARD,
aesthetic practice director at Georgia
of Meridian has been named
Plastic Surgery Consultants in
communications manager for
Atlanta, Ga.
Mitchell Companies.
Successful by 40. The award recognizes professionals 40 years
Heidelberg, Steinberger, Colmer &
BIRTH ANNOUNCEMENTS ANDREW “ELIAS” ABIDE III,
THOMAS WALKER SANDERSON,
Jan. 4, 2013, to Andrew Abide (’02) and wife
Jan. 17, 2013, to Marie Thomas Sanderson (’01) and
Marion of Jackson.
husband Brian of Ocean Springs.
EMILY TYLER EDWARDS,
ELEANOR RUTH SMITH,
Feb. 19, 2013, to Mindy Lewellen Edwards (’00) and
Dec. 16, 2012, to Mary Stratton Karatossos (’03)
Kevin C. Edwards (’02) of Olive Branch.
and Ray Kelly Smith IV (’03) of Ridgeland.
NORA LYNN GUERIERI,
EVELYN TAYLOR ULMER,
Oct. 4, 2012, to Mary Martin Guerieri (’07) and
Jan. 22, 2013, to Joe G. Ulmer III (’05) and wife
husband Trey of Madison.
Sarah of Jackson. M IS S IS S IP P I STAT E A LUMNUS
59
In
MEMORIAM
13 summer
ALUMNUS
Perry Brooks Dennis, Jr.
William E. Byrd (’49)—Hixson,
Lois Taylor Kilgore (’54, M.S.
(’38)—96, Hattiesburg; longtime
Texas; retired Mississippi Chemical
’63)—92, Starkville; professor
band director, former president of
Corp. sales and marketing
emerita of the Department of
the Mississippi Music Educators
employee, Dec. 28, 2012.
Home Economics and first female
Association and World War II veteran, June 15, 2013.
department head at Mississippi
Charles Goodson (’50)—
State, Feb. 28, 2013.
Birmingham, Ala.; retired electrical
Claude D. Barton (’39)—
engineer, April 5, 2013.
Boonville, Mo.; retired U.S. Army colonel, Dec. 24, 2012.
James Edward Hester (’55)—81, Benoit; lifelong farmer and Korean
Clarence M. Gordy (’50)—86,
War veteran, Feb. 28, 2013.
Ocala, Fla.; retired U.S. Department
James B. Lewis (’42)—92, Long
of Agriculture executive, April 5,
Aaron B. Rives (’58, M.S.
Beach; retired United Gas employee
2013.
’59)—Omaha, Neb.; retired plant
and World War II veteran, June 26, 2013.
sanitarian for the W.K. Kellogg Co.,
Ben Puckett (’51)—83, Jackson;
April 28, 2013.
owner and chairman of Puckett
Scarvia Bateman Anderson
Machinery Co. and founding
Jerry Clay Stone (’62, M.Ed. ’67,
Helmick (’45)—Hilton Head
member of Jackson Preparatory
Ph.D. ’75)—75, Iuka; retired school
Island, S.C.; retired Educational
School.
superintendent and teacher, Oct. 19, 2012.
Testing Service exeutive and adjunct professor, March 20, 2013.
Clifford B. Daniels (’52)—79, Memphis, Tenn.; retired accounting
John C. Williams, Jr. (’79)—79,
D.P. “Pat” McGowan, Jr. (’47)—
manager for Kraft Foods Inc. and
Canton; retired coach, teacher
90, Yazoo City; retired president
U.S. Army veteran, Nov. 11, 2010.
and Madison County school superintendent, June 3, 2013.
and board chairman of the Bank of Yazoo City and World War II
Willis Joe Robertson (’52,
veteran, March 16, 2013.
M.S. ’54)—82, Madison; retired
William Burton Stuart
CEO and trustee of the Jackson
(professor)—72, Starkville;
Metropolitan YMCA, Feb. 10, 2013.
professor of forestry at Mississippi State, March 5, 2013.
60
S U MMER 2013
Caption
The Union at Sunset Photo by Russ Houston Colvard Student Union originally opened in 1964. It underwent a major renovation and expansion in the mid 2000s. A state-of-the art facility, it serves as the center of university community life. The building includes many student dining options, Fowlkes Auditorium, meeting space, and the offices of the Union administration, Campus Activities Board and Center for Student Involvement. M IS S IS S IP P I STAT E A LUMNUS
61
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