Parish will lead North Mississippi research, extension center
Jane Parish
Jane Parish will take the reins at the North Mississippi Research and Extension Center on Feb. 1.
Gary Jackson, director of the Mississippi State University Extension Service, and George Hopper, director of the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station, jointly announced her promotion from the Prairie Research Unit. Parish served as research and Extension professor at that unit since 2014.
“Dr. Parish came to MSU in 2003 and worked extensively with the state’s beef cattle producers,” Jackson said. “She quickly gained the respect and support of the beef industry and stakeholder groups like the Mississippi Cattlemen’s Association by providing them with excellent educational information. Her programs have made a significant environmental and economic impact for our producers, cattle and land resources.”
Parish oversaw the Mississippi Beef Cattle Improvement Association and directed educational programming. She published extensively in academic journals, popular press and online outlets.
Parish earned her doctorate in animal and dairy science from the University of Georgia in 2001, her master’s from Texas Tech University in 1998 and her bachelor’s from Texas A&M University in 1997. Additionally, she recently received her master of business administration from MSU. She has received numerous professional and academic honors and awards, and has served on many university and professional committees.
“Dr. Jane Parish has done a tremendous job leading the Prairie Research Unit. The work that she has done in beef cattle research and her ability to communicate that information has helped Mississippi producers increase profits while decreasing costs,” Hopper said. “I am pleased that she will bring this level of service and leadership to the Research and Extension Center in Verona.”
The North Mississippi Research and Extension Center serves agriculture in northeastern Mississippi. Researchers and Extension educators conduct programs in agronomy, horticulture, animal science and family life.
The center has four research locations: the North Mississippi Branch Experiment Station in Holly Springs, the Northeast Mississippi Branch Experiment Station in Verona, the Pontotoc Ridge-Flatwoods Branch Experiment Station and the Prairie Research Unit in Prairie.
North Mississippi counties served by the regional center are Alcorn, Benton, Calhoun, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Clay, Itawamba, Lafayette, Lee, Lowndes, Noxubee, Marshall, Monroe, Oktibbeha, Pontotoc, Prentiss, Tippah, Tishomingo, Union, Webster, Winston and Yalobusha.
MSU is Mississippi's leading university, available online at www.msstate.edu.
Linda M. Breazeale | MSU Extension Service
