Maroon MEMO: Employee News (Mississippi State University)

A sunrise on campus last week silhouettes the Drill Field bust of Stephen D. Lee, the university's first president. PHOTO: Megan Bean | Public Affairs

Staff Council's annual jacket sale this week
Staff Council at Mississippi State University will hold its annual jacket sale on campus this week. The jackets are available for all MSU staff to purchase. The gray jacket features a quarter or full zip, front pockets and open hem with shock-cord drawstring and MSU Staff Logo. All jacket sizes are $30 each.

Cybersecurity Awareness Week kicks off Monday
From mobile malware to invasive spyware, cyber threats endanger anyone connected to the Internet. Mississippi State specialists in the field are encouraging widespread public participation in the seventh annual Cybersecurity Awareness Week. "During this week, you will have the opportunity to interact with information security experts to gain valuable information that can be used to protect yourself and increase awareness of information security issues," said Mike Rackley, MSU's chief information officer.

Information security experts speak Thursday
Join the Office of Research and Economic Development for "Who Is Keeping Your Information Secure? And How?" this Thursday from 2-3:30 p.m. in the Bost Extension Center theater. During the session, a panel of Mississippi State information security experts will speak to the most critical issues and practices of information security today. MSU's Tommy Morris, Tom Ritter, Trey Breckenridge and Dave Dampier will lead the discussion.

Thursday awareness fair for diabetes
Mississippi State University's health education and wellness department next week will host a diabetes awareness fair in observance of American Diabetes Month. The Thursday event to take place from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. is designed to increase understanding about the seriousness of diabetes, as well as provide information about risk factors and other resources. Organizers are preparing displays on fitness, nutrition, and diabetes myths among others.

International working group grant program open
The International Institute is requesting proposals from faculty and research and Extension staff interested in creating interdisciplinary, cross-college international working groups at Mississippi State. The main goal of this competitive program is to encourage interdisciplinary international research. A secondary goal of the program is to expand and catalyze established international partnerships.

MSU Foundation's 2015 calendar sale underway
The 2015 Mississippi State hanging wall calendar is now available from the MSU Foundation. This window to MSU features a sleek, modern design, with 13 beautiful campus scenes. Featuring images by the university's own award-winning photographers, it's truly a one-of-a-kind treasure.

Give thanks and volunteer this month
The Maroon Volunteer Center at Mississippi State details a number of volunteer opportunities for the campus community in its newsletter this week. Faculty, staff and students are encouraged to make a difference by volunteering this fall.

University hosting PERS seminar in mid-November
Human Resources Management at Mississippi State is hosting a Public Employees’ Retirement System of Mississippi pre-retirement, full-day seminar on Nov. 19 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., at Bost Extension Center on the Starkville campus. The seminar offers general information on a range of topics, including estate planning, the Mississippi Deferred Compensation Plan and Trust, Social Security benefits, and PERS benefits and options. Pre-registration is required

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.

Federal flight restrictions in place on game day
With the proliferation of low-cost unmanned aircraft, sporting events around the country -- including Division I football games -- are seeing an increase in the number of drones hovering over stadiums and tailgating areas. According to Mississippi State's chief research officer, these operators are flying in restricted airspace and pose a potential risk to everyone on the ground.

This Week in Mississippi State Sports, 11/03/14
Volleyball hosts Ole Miss at 5 p.m. on Wednesday... Men's Tennis competes at the ITA National Indoor Championships in New York City, beginning Thursday, and at the USTA Future in Niceville, Fla., beginning Saturday... Men's Basketball hosts Delta State for an exhibition on Thursday at 6 p.m.... Football hosts UT-Martin at Davis Wade Stadium for homecoming at 3 p.m. on Saturday... Women's Basketball hosts Arkansas-Fort Smith in an exhibition on Sunday at 2 p.m.

The Office of Public Affairs provides Maroon MEMO as a general information
resource for Mississippi State University employees.

Web links are subject to change. Submit news, questions or comments to Jim Laird.

Thompson awarded international visiting fellowship
An aerospace engineering professor received a high-profile fellowship in the United Kingdom. David Thompson earned the Distinguished Visiting Fellowship from the Royal Academy of Engineering. He will spend a month this spring visiting Cardiff University and Swansea University in Wales and the University of Strathclyde in Scotland. “I’m looking forward to visiting the different universities and getting a sense of what they do,” he said.

Scott-Bracey named business educator of the year
Pamela Scott-Bracey, a College of Education assistant professor at Mississippi State University, is the 2014 Mississippi Business Education Association's University Educator of the Year. In her MSU classrooms, Scott-Bracey emphasizes the importance of soft skills, like punctuality and professional dress, as well as hard skills, such as workforce readiness and technology integration. She said her membership in MBEA keeps her informed about the latest changes to certification requirements for her students.

Faculty art selected for MMA exhibition
Six works created by two Mississippi State art department faculty members are part of the Nov. 1-Jan. 25 Mississippi Museum of Art's 2014 Mississippi Invitational exhibition. Adrienne and Neil Callander of Starkville each have three separate works that recently were selected for the exhibition annually administered by the Jackson-based cultural institution. Specifically, the program promotes recent developments -- including work in diverse media -- by contemporary visual artists living and working in Mississippi.

Policy addresses employee political activity
With this year's political campaigns culminating in Tuesday’s general election, Mississippi State's Office of General Counsel reminds employees to be aware of the university's policy on political activities. There are several basic guidelines that employees should keep in mind when engaging in any form of political activity.