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Fall
2007 Points
of Pride
The
past six months have been interesting and exciting for us
in the division and at Mississippi State University. Due
to the excellent appropriations received last spring, we
were able to give raises to essentially all of our employees
on July 1. We continue to appreciate the outcome of
the 2007 legislative session and hope you have thanked your
local legislators for their assistance.
 Another positive point was enrollment this
past fall. The
division’s three colleges experienced increases for
the first time in a number of years. Total enrollment
reached an all time high of more than 17,000 students at
the university level.
In early November, we held
the ribbon cutting ceremony for the new Agricultural and
Biological Engineering Building on campus. This new $10.5 million facility is located
near the center of campus and will house one of the fastest
growing departments in the division.
At the farm level, the income figures for
2007 were impressive. A
farm gate value of almost $6.4 billion was about $700 million
above the 2006 level. Several new records were set
including soybean yields, rice yields, wheat yields and the
total value of commodities produced. Despite the dry
conditions that existed throughout most of the state for
much of the year, it was still a good year.
To top the year off, the football team posted
an 8 and 5 record including a bowl appearance that resulted
in a victory over the University of Central Florida, making
the university’s
first bowl appearance since 2000. This triumph has
been extremely positive for the entire university. Because
of these and many other accomplishments, we continue to make
progress toward becoming one of the most respected Land Grant
Institutions in the region.
Vance
H. Watson
Vice President
Division of Agriculture, Forestry, and Veterinary Medicine
President Robert Foglesong was
recently named to the National 4-H Council board of trustees. Dr.
Foglesong is joining 30 land-grant university representatives,
youth members and corporate executives who guide both national
and state youth programs.
 Glover and Imogene Triplett have
established the first fully endowed faculty position in
the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. The
Dr. Glover B. Triplett Endowed Chair in Agronomy in the
department of plant and soil sciences is designed to provide
leadership in agronomy education and research, as well
as outreach to agronomy-based industries.
Hollis Cheek,
a 1970 landscape architecture and horticulture graduate,
is the 2007 CALS Alumni Fellow. Mr. Cheek
is president of J.C. Cheek Contractors and directs the operations
of Techno-Catch, LLC and Old Trace Coffee Company. His
public service includes city alderman, state senator and
president of the Mississippi Roadbuilder’s Association.
The 2007 Outstanding Worker awards for MAFES and MSUES were Menghe
Li and Jane Parish, respectively. Dr.
Li is a research professor at the Delta Research and Extension
Center whose work centers on improving the viability of
the catfish enterprise. Dr. Parish is an assistant
extension/research professor in the animal and dairy sciences
department whose work centers on the beef cattle enterprise.
Leighton Spann,
extension associate in Agricultural Communications, has
recently become an accredited member of the public relations
profession by successfully completing a comprehensive examination
governed by the Universal Accreditation Board. The
examination measures skill in the practice of public relations,
including communication theory, planning, management science,
and ethics.
 Two faculty
members and a doctoral student in the College of Forest
Resource are top winners in a recent regional research
competition. Bronson Strickland, assistant professor,
and Steve Demarais, professor, received the Best Peer-Reviewed
Publication and Best Technical Publication awards at the
annual meeting of the Wildlife Society, Mississippi Chapter. Heath
M. Hagy, graduate student, was honored for the best student
oral presentation at the meeting.
The USDA
has awarded more than $371,000 to the College of Veterinary
Medicine to study enteric septicemia (ESC). Project
director Attila Karsi, an assistant research professor,
said ESC is a bacterial disease that costs the catfish industry
$50 to $60 million each year.
The USDA’s Economic Research Service presented the
2007 Summit Award for “Outstanding Leadership and Contribution” to Lionel “Bo” Beaulieu,
director of the Southern Rural Development Center at Mississippi
State University. Dr. Beaulieu was recognized for his
accomplishments during the past 10-years in the Research
Innovation and Development Grants in Economics Program.
Tom Knecht,
head of Agricultural Communications, recently received
the highest award given by the Association for Communication
Excellence in Agriculture, Natural Resources, and Life
and Human Sciences. The award was presented
to Dr. Knecht for his excellence and professionalism as an
agricultural communicator.
P.C. “Mac” McLaurin,
Jr., extension professor
and leader in the Center for Governmental Technology, will
serve on a national association’s committee to address
financial issues that face counties. He has been appointed
a member of the Finance and Intergovernmental Affairs Steering
Committee of the National Association of Counties.
 Richard Kaminski,
professor and interim associate dean for the College of
Forest Resources, is a new Fellow of the Wildlife Society. He is being honored for “distinguished
and exceptional service” to the profession.
Lucy Senter,
director of animal research/attending veterinarian of the
College of Veterinary Medicine, has been elected to the
Board of Directors of the American College of Laboratory
Animal Medicine. This demonstrates Dr.
Senter’s status among her colleagues in the ACLAM.
An internationally
recognized Mississippi State fisheries biologist recently
received a major honor for his post-Katrina work from a
national professional society. Donald
Jackson, professor in Wildlife & Fisheries, was presented
with the American Fisheries Society’s 2007 Distinguished
Service Award at the organization’s annual meeting.
Melissa Mixon,
Associate Vice President in the Division of Agriculture,
Forestry, and Veterinary Medicine, was among 20 Food Systems
Leadership Institute Fellows honored at the annual meeting
of the National Association of State Universities and Land
Grant Colleges. The Fellows were recognized
for completing the FSLI leadership development program and
for contributions made to their organization.
Joshua P. Adams,
a doctoral candidate in the College of Forest Resources,
is among 65 graduate students – and
the first from Mississippi State University – named
to the prestigious Science to Achieve Results Fellows program. His
award began with the 2007-08 academic year and extends for
the next three years.
Bruce Leopold,
head of the Wildlife & Fisheries
department, was recently elected as vice president of the
Wildlife Society. In 2009, he moves to the top administrative
office of the 10,000 member international organization.
Keith Gaskin,
senior development officer for the College of Veterinary
Medicine, is the newly elected president of the Association
of Veterinary Advancement Professionals. Keith
assumed his duties during the organization’s summer
meeting held in conjunction with the American Veterinary
Medical Association’s convention.
The College
of Forest Resources student chapter of the Society of American
Foresters (SAF) continues to be the top organization of
its kind in the nation. The 40 member body recently
placed first in the SAF Student Chapter Web Site competition
and second overall in the Outstanding Student Chapter category. The
2006-07 officers include Eric Ezell, James Floyd,
Jean Chervenak, and Emily Courtney. Associate
professor Donald Grebner is chapter advisor.
Ian Munn,
professor in the College of Forest Resources, was recognized
as a Fellow by the Society of American Foresters. His
contributions to the profession in education, research and
public policy are substantial. |
