Maroon MEMO: Employee News (Mississippi State University)

Mississippi State University Extension Service Director Gary Jackson, right, presents Forrest County Agricultural High School Superintendent Jerry Morgan with a cowbell earlier this month to mark the beginning of a partnership between the school and university. The Extension Service loaned the school an interactive video system that allows students, faculty and staff to attend Extension educational programs. PHOTO: Kat Lawrence | MSU Ag Communications

Theatre MSU to honor Dursts following 'Pirates'
Two longtime Mississippi State communication department faculty members will be honored this week following the first performance of the final production of Theatre MSU's 50th season. Professor Emeritus Wayne Durst will be honored with a portrait unveiling Thursday in the McComas Hall lobby. His wife Betty "Jo" Durst, a university instructor who is concluding 34 years of service, also will be honored with a retirement reception at the same location.

MSU staff help create special rooms for kids
When she's not working on campus, a Mississippi State accountant from Columbus provides an array of volunteer services for a Golden Triangle nonprofit organization renovating bedrooms for special-needs children. Mindy Matherne, who works with the university's Center for Distance Education, said her administrative role with Rebecca's Rooms is fulfilling because all children deserve a special, safe place at home to enjoy themselves.

Mississippi State again among top 100
Mississippi State continues to rank among the nation's top research universities, according to a new survey by the National Science Foundation. The recently released NSF Higher Education Research and Development Survey for Fiscal Year 2012 places the university at 92nd overall among public and private institutions, based on $233.2 million in total research and development expenditures. David Shaw, vice president for research and economic development, said the total is "a testament to every one of our researchers."

SSRC hosting Big Data Week
Students, faculty and staff are invited to join the Social Science Research Center at Mississippi State University for Big Data Week, which may be followed on Twitter via the hashtag, #BigDataWeek. Speakers include David Levinson of the University of Minnesota and Yu Liu of Peking University, as well as MSU's Somya Mohanty. Presentations begin Monday afternoon.

Reeves to address manufacturing summit
Furniture-industry experts, as well as government officials, will examine "The Road Ahead" at Mississippi State University's 2014 Manufacturing Summit. The fourth annual summit on Wednesday will feature Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves for the 11:15 a.m. keynote address. All activities will be held at MSU's Hassell H. Franklin Furniture Institute. MSU President Mark E. Keenum and institute Director Bill Martin will also speak during the morning sessions.

'Investing in Innovation' conference Friday
Mississippi State University's economic impact on the advancement of innovation will be on display this week. "Our theme of 'Accelerating Progress' is in full swing, and we've introduced more industry partners to the Thad Cochran Research, Technology, and Economic Development Park including C-Spire and Bomgar in the last few months," said Office of Entrepreneurship and Technology Transfer director Joshua Jeanson.

MVC: Crawfish boil, Habitat shifts this weekend
The Maroon Volunteer Center at Mississippi State details a number of volunteer opportunities for the campus community in its current newsletter, including Emerson monthly playground cleanup, King Cotton Crawfish Boil, Habitat for Humanity weekend shifts, state test proctoring and more.

Faculty leadership program seeks nominations
In the upcoming 2014-2015 academic year, the Office of Research and Economic Development and the Office of the Provost and Executive Vice President at Mississippi State will again be conducting an Academic Leadership Orientation Program for selected faculty. This program has been very successful in the past, and many of its participants serve in key leadership positions on campus. Nominations for the program are now being accepted.

Policy reminders from University Health Services
University Health Services at Mississippi State reminds the campus community of several important policies for its patients to keep in mind when seeking treatment, parking, refilling a prescription online, and privacy.

This Week in Mississippi State Sports, 04/21/14
Baseball visits Trustmark Park in Pearl on Tuesday for a 6:35 p.m. ballgame against Ole Miss, and then hosts Texas A&M for an SEC series with games on Thursday, 6:30 p.m., Friday, 6:30 p.m. and Saturday, 2:15 p.m.... Track & Field begins competition at the Penn Relays in Philadelphia on Thursday and competes Saturday at the Southern Miss Invite in Hattiesburg... Men's Golf opens play in the SEC Championships at St. Simons Island, Ga., on Friday... Softball hosts Arkansas in an SEC weekend series with games on Friday, 5 p.m., Saturday, noon and Sunday, noon.

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Personnel awarded for outstanding research, service
The Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station recently honored several members of the Mississippi State University faculty, staff and student body for outstanding research, service and facility maintenance. MAFES presents outstanding research awards annually. Many of the faculty members have joint appointments with the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and the MSU Extension Service. MAFES also draws special attention to its facilities and the people who work to maintain them.

MBJ 'Top 40' includes Nathan Moore
The director of development for Mississippi State's College of Architecture, Art and Design is among the Mississippi Business Journal's 2014 "Top 40 Under 40." Since July 2008, Nathan A. Moore has overseen all major-gift fundraising for the state's only college of architecture and design. A Starkville native and Starkville High School graduate, he holds both a bachelor's degree in political science and master's in public policy and administration from the land-grant university.

Commission honors outstanding women
Five members of the Starkville campus community and a Lauderdale County resident are this year's selections for top recognitions given annually by Mississippi State's President's Commission on the Status of Women. Those honored during a recent reception were Felecia Brown, Mitzy Johnson, Kimberly Kelly, Brittany S. Perez, Nandita S. Gupta and Anja C. Scheib.

Green named to volleyball staff
Peter Green has been tabbed as an assistant coach on the Mississippi State volleyball staff, head coach Jenny Hazelwood announced last week. Green, who was most recently a volunteer assistant at Virginia, brings a wealth of volleyball experience to Starkville, having been a coach in the high school and collegiate ranks since 2000.