Mama Vergie

By Carolanne Roberts

Photos by Russ Houston

Let’s do the math. If Vergie Bash, senior academic advisor, has served in her role at the College of Business for 10 years, advising some 300 students per semester, then she’s probably been the go-to, the course scheduler and the voice of experience for about 6,000 students.

That is an astounding number, but Bash hasn’t done that math herself. For this compassionate helper of students, it’s not about a lump sum. She invests in her work person by person, need by need.

“No two are alike, so the approach I may use for one won’t be the same that I use for another,” she explains. “For instance, some come in, especially freshmen, and have no idea what they want to do. You have to be able to steer those in the right direction. Others come to me and have their four years all mapped out.”

Still others ask Bash, “Who’s the easiest teacher?” That is when she swings into “Mama Mode.”

“I’ll tell them, ‘I don’t know the easiest teacher, but if you go to class and do what you need to do, then you will learn,’” she says.

When she gets rolling, Bash will also advise, “Get to know your professors. If you’re having problems early on, don’t wait until the end of the semester to tell your professor you need a C. That’s what I really try to tell my advisees.”

If it sounds a little like their parents, Bash admits that she cares that much.

“Sometimes it seems I baby my advisees, maybe too much,” she says. “But I feel that it’s my job to help them as much as I can.”

Reflecting on the idea of helping, she adds, “I ran into one of my advisees in the grocery store last week, and he introduced me to his friend as his ‘second mom,’ which made me feel good.”

Then there is her latest advisee, who can hardly call her Mom.

“He’s 64 years old and has decided to come back to school,” she says of her oldest advisee. “Of course, I’m used to younger ‘kids.’ He doesn’t know how to use the new technology yet, so I’ll take more time with him and make him feel that he can do this.”

Everyone has needed a Vergie Bash along the way – that person willing to take the extra time to help. She cannot count the number of times she has asked a student, “What do you really want to do?” before helping to find a path.

“I advise the Business Administration students who basically want to go on to law school, grad school or start their own businesses. We narrow their vision and go from there,” she notes.

But it is not just the students who depend on her wisdom.

“Vergie has always been a lifesaver for me,” recalls College of Business Dean Sharon Oswald. “I remember early in my tenure at MSU, I filled in for Associate Dean Kevin Rogers at a couple of orientation sessions. My one stipulation was I had to have Vergie at my side! I think the parents in the room quickly realized that Vergie had all the answers.”

The students in the College of Business have always known that Bash would be in their corners when they needed her, complete with her trademark smile and confidence-building way. But last year brought an unexpected interruption. After a cancer diagnosis, chemotherapy and radiation, Bash had to take a leave of absence to regain her strength.

“I work with a great group of people,” she says. “Dr. Rogers and Dean Oswald were always asking me not to overdo things. I really appreciate them looking after me. I did try to keep up with my e-mails and respond as quickly as I could while I was out though.”

During this time Bash enjoyed the spotlight as Mississippi State baseball’s honorary coach at one game, posing for photos with then Head Coach John Cohen and taking home a ball signed by the whole team.

Everyone, it seems, has been cheering for Team Vergie – and there’s good news. Tests reveal that her treatment has succeeded.

“It was by the grace of God,” she says. “I try to always have a positive attitude. I believe in God and in His Word. He has helped others, and I prayed He would do it for me too. Praise God!”

Bash returned last April to ready herself for the summer waves of incoming freshman needing her guidance.

As she works with the new students, the skilled advisor recalls her own academic story. Bash began college at Jackson State University, then moved to Mississippi University for Women and on to Mississippi State, where she earned her two degrees: an undergraduate degree in Office System Technology from the College of Education in the fall of 1997; and a master’s degree in Instructional Technology in the fall of 2001. The advanced degree qualifies Bash to teach classes such as web design at the middle and high school levels.

“But I did not teach,” she says. “I already had a job I loved – advising the students.”

“Vergie has always been a lifesaver for me. I remember early in my tenure at MSU, I filled in for Associate Dean Kevin Rogers at a couple of orientation sessions. My one stipulation was I had to have Vergie at my side! I think the parents in the room quickly realized that Vergie had all the answers," says Dean Sharon Oswald.

The mother of a grown son and daughter does have one new role in life.

“Oh yes, my grandson,” she says with joy. “Shumarcus is the joy of our lives. He lives about two streets over from us. He just turned two years old!”

Visitors to Bash’s office will see a photo blanket of her “grand’s” images prominently displayed. It is almost as if he is there with her as she works.

When Bash is not busy working, she is an active member of Austin Church of Christ Holiness Church USA, where she is known for bringing her special pistachio pudding-based dessert to all functions. Her Facebook page is filled with recipes, each more enticing than the next. One of her specialties is her own homemade banana pudding. It is her son’s favorite from his mama’s arsenal.

The Starkville native and graduate of F.O. Alexander High School is married to husband Gene. These days her only real problem, if you can even call it that, is teaching people to pronounce her name – which, for the record, is Ver-GEE, after her grandmother. And the last name is Bash, not Bush, thank you.

But if that is her biggest problem, life is good – especially at Mississippi State.

“It’s been awesome to me,” she says. “State is beautiful, and the people are beautiful inside and out. This has been my home for the past 30 years.

“I’m a true Bulldog.”