Maroon MEMO: Employee News (Mississippi State University)

Assistant history professor Muey Saeteurn discusses the global history of rice during “Sharing Experience: Heritage, Home and History,” a recent workshop for students at Mississippi State. The project was made possible by an interdisciplinary grant from the Office of Research and Economic Development. Read more at http://www.msstate.edu/newsroom/article/2017/05/sharing-experience-helps-promote-diversity-inclusion-msu. PHOTO: Megan Bean | Public Affairs

LEAP program applications due next week
The 2017 Leadership Excellence for Accomplished Professionals (LEAP) program at Mississippi State is now accepting applications. The goal and purpose of LEAP is to empower new supervisors and extremely high performing professional staff with a heightened self-awareness, advanced knowledge, and value-added leadership in a secure, but challenging environment. As a result of the program, participants increase the capacity to lead themselves, other individuals, and a university unit or organization.

Deadline nears for Faculty Leadership Program nominations
The Office of Research and Economic Development and the Office of the Provost and Executive Vice President will again be conducting an Academic Leadership Program for selected faculty at Mississippi State during the upcoming 2017-18 academic year. The program consists of two-hour seminar sessions once per month from August to April. A wide variety of topics will be covered by senior leaders at MSU.

Temporary road closure signals final stages of construction project
A portion of Stone Boulevard near Mississippi State’s Wise Center Drive will close temporarily beginning May 8. The closure is part of the south entrance road project, which begins at Poorhouse Road and stretches about 3.5 miles to connect with Blackjack Road at the Stone Boulevard intersection. The new corridor for traffic to and from campus is projected to open in late August before the start of football season. The temporary closure will include the section of Stone Boulevard from Blackjack Road south to Wise Center Drive, said David Howell, engineer for MSU’s Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station.

Policy addresses employee political activity
With local political campaigning underway this year, 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 university employees should keep in mind when engaging in any form of political activity. MSU employees are encouraged to review the policy in its entirety and to understand their rights and responsibilities.

Burgreen and CAVS team helping design artificial lung device
Children with chronic lung diseases often must wait months or even years for a transplant, while large, immobile hospital equipment that could help them breathe easier actually may worsen their condition by overtaxing already damaged lungs. At Mississippi State, Greg Burgreen is part of a team at the university’s Center for Advanced Vehicular Systems helping address these critical issues. With a grant from the National Institutes of Health, the associate research professor is working with colleagues at the University of Pittsburgh to develop a more portable breathing device.

De la Cruz gives readers an inspirational world view
Early life under Japanese occupation in World War II and a long teaching, research and service career at Mississippi State vividly are conveyed in a new autobiography by a professor emeritus at the university. In “Son of the Orient Seas,” Filipino native Armando A. de la Cruz shares childhood experiences from a time of major upheavals to his struggles to gain an education that concludes with a University of Georgia doctorate. He also describes his life and times in Starkville as a faculty member from 1970-2000 in MSU’s Department of Biological Sciences.

New opportunities with Maroon Volunteer Center
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 mentoring at-risk young people, applied suicide intervention training, Back 2 School Bash, communication partners, reading tutors and Starkville Habitat for Humanity.

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, privacy and more.

This Week in Mississippi State Sports, 05/08/17
Starting Monday, Women's Golf competes in the NCAA Women's Golf Regional in Athens ... Softball sees the start of the SEC Tournament in Knoxville on Wednesday ... Track & Field competes Thursday through Saturday at the SEC Championships in Columbia ... Men's Tennis visits Norman, Okla., on Friday to play SMU in the first round of the NCAA Team Championship ... Women's Tennis plays Northwestern in Atlanta on Saturday in the opening round of the NCAA Team Championship ... Baseball is on the road to Athens with games against Georgia on Friday at 6 p.m., Saturday at 3 p.m. and Sunday at noon.

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.

Travis named dean of College of Arts and Sciences
A longtime Mississippi State faculty member and administrator is the new dean for the university’s largest academic unit. Rick Travis is being named dean of the College of Arts and Sciences after serving as interim in the position for the past year. MSU Provost and Executive Vice President Judy Bonner said Travis’s record of service and leadership have positioned him well to move the college forward. His appointment is pending formal approval by the Board of Trustees, Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning.

College of Business earns national reaccreditation
The Mississippi State University College of Business has been reaccredited by the leading accrediting body for business education, maintaining a distinction held by only five percent of business schools in the world. The university’s business programs have been reaccredited by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business, also known as AACSB International, for another five years. Founded in 1916, AACSB International is the world’s largest business education network and the longest-serving accrediting body for business schools with undergraduate, master’s and doctoral degrees in business and accounting.

DAFVM Spotlight Employee: June Grubbs
For 26 years, June Grubbs has been the first face Simpson County residents see when they come to the Extension office for help. “My primary duties are answering the phone and greeting clients, and if I can help, I do. If I can’t, I send them to one of the agents,” she said of her job as a part-time office associate. From managing travel paperwork to sending out monthly newsletters, she keeps the office on track.

DAFVM Spotlight Employee: Megan Robbins
Lions, tigers, and bears are standard patients for CVM veterinary technician Megan Robbins. From big cats to large horses, she assists veterinary anesthesiologists and surgeons with procedures on animals of all sizes. “With it being a research institution, we have the opportunity to work on an array of animals, whereas most private practices are more limited,” she said. “Since we work with a big cat rescue, I’ve been able to help with a few lions and tigers, which is pretty interesting.”