We are quickly seeing the summer days count down to the start of the fall semester and a new academic year at Mississippi State. It’s a busy and exciting time as we prepare to welcome all of our students back to campus in the coming weeks, as well as new faculty who are joining the university. Please let me take a few minutes of your time for an update from the Division of Academic Affairs.                                       

Center for Academic Excellence Achieves Internationally Recognized Certification for Tutor-Training Efforts

Student success is at the heart of our academic mission, and we’ve made major investments in programs, resources, and people to help our students achieve success and earn their degree. Effective tutoring is an essential component in our student success efforts, and I was very pleased to see the Center for Academic Excellence’s tutor-training program attain certification from the College Reading and Learning Association recently. Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=8173. 

New Academic Options Set to Start

As we anticipate the first day of class on August 20^th, we have several new academic options launching this fall. The Bagley College of Engineering’s Department of Computer Science and Engineering is offering a new Master of Science in Artificial Intelligence. The College of Education’s Department of Industrial Technology, Instructional Design, and Community College Leadership is offering a new Bachelor of Science in Learning and User Experience Design. And the College of Arts and Sciences’ Department of Psychology, Bagley College of Engineering, and Shackouls Honors College are working together to offer students an applied neuroscience minor.

We’re also expanding military education access through an education partnership agreement with Keesler Air Force Base, which will allow the Department of Geosciences to offer service members a streamlined pathway to a four-year degree via a new Bachelor of Applied Science in Weather and Environment program. 

Kudos and Congratulations

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

* Congratulations to Vice President for Agriculture, Forestry and Veterinary Medicine Keith Coble, who recently received the Farm Foundation’s 2025 R.J. Hildreth Public Policy Award. Dr. Coble is most deserving of this prestigious recognition, and I’m honored to call him a colleague and friend. Way to go, Keith! Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=8172. 

* Kudos to Mimmo Parisi, the executive director of the university’s Data Science program and the senior advisor for European Initiatives and Data Science, who has been named chair of the board for SOS Children’s Villages International. Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=8182. 

* Congratulations to Jean Mohammadi-Aragh, an associate professor and associate department head in Electrical and Computer Engineering, who is an inaugural inductee of the Virginia Tech Academy of Distinguished Alumni in Engineering Education. Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=8168. 

* Kudos to Kecia Johnson, an associate professor in the Department of Sociology; Eleanor Green, an instructor in the Shackouls Honors College; and John Green, the director of the Southern Rural Development Center and a professor in the Department of Agricultural Economics, for their leadership of the Delta Scholars Program. In June, the Delta Scholars Program brought undergraduates from six universities to Mississippi State, where they collaborated with community leaders on impactful and actionable projects that are supported through partnerships across the multi-state Delta region.

* Congratulations to Andrew Rendon, the executive director for veteran and military affairs at MSU, who is Mississippi’s 2025 Veteran of the Year. Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=8133. 

* Kudos to Kenneth Anthony, professor and head of the Department of Teacher Education and Leadership, who is the co-author of “Mississippi: Our History, Our Home,” the most recent Mississippi history textbook adopted by the state for middle and high school students. Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=8180. 

* Congratulations to Liza Bondurant, an associate professor in the Department of Teacher Education and Leadership, who has received grant funding from the Mathematical Association of America and the Tensor Foundation for an outreach program. Read more at https://www.memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=8124. 

* Kudos to Holley Muraco, an assistant research professor at the Coastal Research and Extension Center, who discussed her marine mammal research on the Mississippi Outdoors podcast with Matt Wyatt earlier this summer. Give it a listen at https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/mississippis-marine-mammals-with-dr-holley-muraco/id1731405727?i=1000710273191.

* Congratulations to Christine Jackson, senior associate A.D. and executive director of Athletic Academics, and the Athletic Academics team members who recently won top honors from the National Association of Academic and Student-Athlete Development Professionals: Christine was honored with a Distinguished Service Award; Tutorial Coordinator/Learning Specialist Tonya Stewart won a Model Practices Award for the SUMMIT Tutoring Program; Assistant Director Molly Coln won a Professional Excellence Award; and Counselor Erin Trapp won the Kenneth O. Miles Professional Promise Award. Well done to all!

* And a welcome to Jamie Runnells, who is returning to MSU as the new head of the Department of Art. Read more at https://memo.msstate.edu/story.php?id=8145. 

Final Words

Thank you for reading this month’s Academic Matters. As always, I welcome your comments, questions, suggestions, and concerns at david.shaw@msstate.edu. 

Hail State!

David

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