Regions Bank supporting DAFVM faculty awards
From left, Alan Sims, Regions senior vice president for agribusiness; George Jarman, Regions Greenwood/Delta city president; Gregory A. Bohach, MSU DAFVM vice president; Samuel Slaughter, Regions Starkville city president; Walt Stephens, Regions community bank and agriculture relations manager; and Bill Herndon, MSU DAFVM associate vice president, celebrate a $50,000 contribution to support major faculty awards in MSU's Division of Agriculture, Forestry and Veterinary Medicine.
Regions Bank announced Feb. 7 a multi-year $50,000 contribution to support major faculty awards in Mississippi State's Division of Agriculture, Forestry and Veterinary Medicine.
Over five years, Regions will provide $10,000 annually for The Regions Bank-DAFVM Superior Faculty Awards, a new program to recognize high-caliber faculty. The awards program was initiated by Gregory A. Bohach, the university's vice president for agriculture, forestry and veterinary medicine.
"Regions is proud to partner with Mississippi State University and the Division of Agriculture, Forestry and Veterinary Medicine," said Samuel W. Slaughter III.
"Our financial gift will assist DAFVM with rewarding its faculty, as they continue their commitment to agriculture throughout the state of Mississippi and the Southeastern United States," the president of Starkville's Regions Bank added, in making the presentation.
Joining Slaughter at the presentation ceremony were other Regions leaders, including George Jarman, Greenwood/Delta city president; Alan Sims, senior vice president for agribusiness; and Walt Stephens, community bank and agriculture relations manager.
In response, Bohach said, "These awards address the most immediate need for our DAFVM units, which is to ensure our premier faculty are recognized for their dedication to teaching, research, extension, outreach, scholarly service and international activities by providing programs geared toward fulfilling Mississippi State's land-grant mission."
"Since our programs are funded jointly by private sources, along with various federal and state sources, we are extremely grateful for the support extended by Regions Bank," Bohach added.
The awards will recognize meritorious efforts in five critical areas: teaching, research, scholarly service, extension and outreach and international programs. Each $2,000 award will be based both on the faculty member's contributions to the specific area and to Mississippi State's overall state and national missions.
Bohach said faculty members in the division annually train more than 1,800 undergraduate and 900 graduate and professional students. A number of the division's academic programs are among the fastest growing in Mississippi, he said.
One of five major MSU administrative units, DAFVM includes the colleges of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Forest Resources and Veterinary Medicine, as well as the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station, Forest and Wildlife Research Center and MSU Extension Service.
Division research and extension programs support the many agriculture and forestry industries in the two largest sectors of Mississippi's economy. The sectors combined employ nearly 30 percent of the state's population and generate annual revenues of more than $7 billion.
Statewide division programs focus primarily on 4-H, agriculture and natural resources, youth and family resources, and economic and community development.
In his remarks, Slaughter also pointed to Regions Bank's continuing history of support for Mississippi State.
"Regions is a top 10 agricultural lender in the United States, and this partnership furthers our efforts to grow in participation with this important segment of our economy," Slaughter said. "We look forward to working with MSU, and the success of this partnership."
With $122 billion in assets, Regions Financial Corp. is a member of the S&P 500 Index and among the nation's largest full-service providers of consumer and commercial banking, wealth management, mortgage and insurance products and services. Its stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol RF.
Regions serves customers in 16 states across the South, Midwest and Texas, and, through its Regions Bank subsidiary, operates approximately 1,700 banking offices and 2,100 ATMs.
Amy Cagle | MSU Foundation
