Work is nearing completion on the College View Connector. Set for an August opening, the nearly one-mile, multi-use pathway will run from College View Drive on campus, near the College View development and the MSU Child Development Center, to the intersection of Old West Point Road and Highway 182. It will connect with a bicycle and pedestrian lane that the City of Starkville is building as part of a major overhaul of the Highway 182 corridor. The $2 million project was funded in large part by a grant from the Mississippi Department of Transportation, along with some funding from the university and the city. Burns Dirt Construction, Inc. is the general contractor.
Ahead of Women’s World Cup: MSU’s Allison champions move to increase media coverage
With the 2023 Women’s World Cup just days away, a Mississippi State University faculty member is leading the charge to increase visibility for women in sports, and her work is specifically helping shift media coverage of soccer.
Sociology Associate Professor Rachel Allison is a co-author of the new study “Gender Equality in the ‘Next Stage’ of ‘New Age?’ Content and Fan Perceptions of English Media Coverage of the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup” published in the Sociology of Sport Journal earlier this month. The research, led by England’s Durham University, indicates media coverage of women’s soccer has substantially increased in the last few years, with equal coverage continuing to grow.
DAFVM Spotlight Employee: Cole Bowman
For seven and a half years, Cole Bowman served in the U.S. Army, which included deployments to Egypt and Syria in 2018 and 2019. For the past two years, he has worked as a desktop support specialist at the Extension Center for Technology Outreach at Mississippi State University. His assignments may look very different than his role as a sergeant in the army, but teamwork remains an important factor. “None of us are experts on what the other does. Everybody has their own talents, and we work together,” said Bowman. “My favorite part of my job is being able to interact with so many great people and to assist them as they work to improve the quality of life for families in our state,” said Bowman.
DAFVM Spotlight Employee: Chris Kyzar
Chris Kyzar may work behind the scenes, but his job is front and center to the health of Mississippi’s largest commodity. As a laboratory technologist at the Mississippi Veterinarian Research and Diagnostic Laboratory in Pearl, Kyzar works primarily in poultry research and diagnostics. The tests help monitor for different potential outbreaks such as avian influenza or Mycoplasma Gallsepticum/Mycoplasma Synovia [respiratory infections in avian species]. Kyzar is also cross-trained to perform testing in mammalian species. “One of my main goals at Mississippi State is to learn as much as I can, so I can serve the state of Mississippi the best I can. I feel like I am making a difference for my state and for the future of the agriculture community here,” said Kyzar.
From berry to bottle: Williams’ research a boon to local ag, winemaking industries
Mississippi State’s Haley Williams, a research associate at the university’s South Mississippi Branch Experiment Station in Poplarville, wants to uncork the Magnolia State's winemaking potential. Under the guidance of Extension/Research Professor Eric Stafne, Williams is working with nine southern cultivars -- plant species selected specifically for their traits -- to help boost future crop yields in the state. These cultivars include the MidSouth grape, originally released by USDA in the late 1930s, with rights to the cultivar later assigned to the university for production. “I’m hoping that my research might one day lead to expanding the winemaking industry in Mississippi,” said Williams, who is also a doctoral student in the Mississippi State Department of Plant and Soil Sciences.
Smoke-free policy enhances healthy environment
Mississippi State University is a smoke-free campus. Official policy prohibits the use of any combustible or vapor products anywhere on campus property including university buildings, university grounds, university vehicles, parking areas and sidewalks. The smoke-free campus policy is part of the university's commitment to creating a healthy environment for all members of the campus community. Use of cigarettes, e-cigarettes, cigars, pipes, hookah or other similar devices are prohibited by this policy. The complete policy is available at www.policies.msstate.edu/policy/91301.
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