Maroon MEMO: Employee News (Mississippi State University)

Mississippi State will be closed Dec. 22-Jan. 1 for winter break. Maroon MEMO returns the week of Jan. 4, 2016.

MSU Extension radio show wins national award
Two employees with the Mississippi State University Extension Service received a national award from the National Association of County Agricultural Agents. Amy Taylor Myers, an Extension associate in the Office of Agricultural Communications, and Gary Bachman, associate Extension and research professor at the Coastal Research and Extension Center, received an achievement award for their Southern Gardening radio segments in the “Communications: Audio Recording” category.

Rupak's research featured in Nature
A research letter co-authored by a faculty member in Mississippi State’s Department of Physics and Astronomy and High Performance Computing Collaboratory’s Center for Computational Sciences has been selected for inclusion in Nature, the world’s most highly cited interdisciplinary science journal. “Ab initio alpha -- alpha scattering” by associate professor Gautam Rupak and colleagues is featured in the December 2015 issue.

DAFVM Spotlight Employee: Cathy McMullen
As someone passionate about community service, working as an office associate in the MSU Extension Service office in Benton County couldn’t be a better fit for Cathy McMullen. “I have the most wonderful job a person could want,” she said. “It suits my lifestyle. No two days are ever alike. We work with 4-H youth, and we help people -- whether it’s with their livestock, forestry land, farms or gardens.”

DAFVM Spotlight Employee: Ashley Patterson
Some things run in the family, and for Ashley Patterson, it’s a head for business. Ashley recently changed jobs within the MSU Extension Service. After serving for a little more than a year as a Community Resource Development Agent in Lincoln County, she became a business manager for the Southwest Region.

Celebration marks 50 years for RCU
The Research and Curriculum Unit at Mississippi State celebrated a half-century of service to the state with a reception last Thursday. The event included remarks from current RCU Director Julie Jordan, MSU Assistant Vice President for Research Teresa Gammill and a representative from the Mississippi Department of Education. Among guests were current and former RCU directors and employees, as well as officials from the MDE and MSU.

NSPARC delivers data for economic dev presentation
Mississippi economic development teams learned about data that can help local regions attract and recruit new industries last week. The data workshop, sponsored by the Mississippi Economic Development Council, was presented at The Mill at MSU by faculty and researchers with the university's National Strategic Planning and Analysis Research Center, an interdisciplinary research center that uses smart data, analytical techniques and advanced technology to develop innovative solutions.

'Tis the season: Volunteer today
The Maroon Volunteer Center at Mississippi State details a number of volunteer opportunities for the campus community on its website and in its newsletter this week, including local food pantries, the Giving Tree, Operation Christmas Child, Holmes Cultural Diversity Center toy drive, and more. Faculty, staff and students are encouraged to make a difference by volunteering during this special time of the year.

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, 12/14/15
Women's Basketball hosts Southern Miss on Wednesday at 7 p.m., and then opens play in the Puerto Rico Classic on Saturday at 10 a.m. against Florida Gulf Coast... Men's Basketball visits Tallahassee on Wednesday for an 8 p.m. tipoff against Florida State, and then hosts Tulane at 3 p.m. on Saturday.

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.

Keenum elected chairman of SACSCOC board
Mississippi State University President Mark E. Keenum has been elected chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC), the top accreditation body for regional institutions of higher learning. He will lead the organization as it determines policy and reviews and makes decisions regarding the accreditation of member institutions.

Faculty, staff appreciation days at Barnes & Noble
The Barnes & Noble Bookstore on the Starkville campus will have two special appreciation days for Mississippi State University faculty and staff on Monday and Tuesday. MSU faculty and staff will be able to double their existing 10 percent discount to 20 percent on MSU clothing and gifts, general reading books, and gifts for readers during the event.

Scott Field wins national turf award
Mississippi State’s achievements on the football field have once again risen to a top national ranking -- with the latest honor recognizing the grounds crew that has bolstered the quality of Scott Field at Davis Wade Stadium to perennial national prominence. “It is an honor to be recognized nationally by this organization, and it is a credit to those who work diligently to keep Scott Field in such impeccable quality,” said Vice President for Campus Services Amy Tuck. “Their work and attention to detail means so much to the entire university family and everyone who enjoys seeing the Bulldogs play.”

Walters, Dennis named associate directors
Two recognized leaders in engineering, research, service and education -- Keith Walters and Glenn Dennis -- are filling the associate director positions for the Center for Advanced Vehicle Systems located at Mississippi State and for CAVS-Extension in Canton. CAVS is an interdisciplinary center comprised of research, engineering design and development, and technology transfer teams for industry and government partners. CAVS-E works to develop capabilities based on needs of the manufacturing enterprise, as well as assist Mississippi industries.