DAFVM Spotlight Employee: Mary Kelly
Mary Kelly
Mary Kelly’s current career began with a surprising twist.
“I didn’t choose this job,” she said. “More or less, it chose me. I was offered a great position and accepted it. Now it’s been 22 years.”
She attributes her love for her career to her coworkers, faculty, and students in the Department of Forestry.
“Every day is different,” Kelly said, “but it’s challenging and rewarding.”
Kelly cares for the department’s finances, and as the business manager, she supports teaching, research, and Extension. Each day, she manages the department’s budget, which includes state, foundation, private and federal budgets for over 300 specific and individual accounts. She oversees purchasing, invoicing, travel reimbursement, deposits and Pro-card purchases. Kelly also assists and coordinates the development of various budgets for proposal submission.
“Timeliness is crucial in my job,” Kelly said, “because it could mean a loss or renewal of grants, or it could interfere with refunds due to inappropriate distribution of funds. Missing a deadline is unacceptable.”
While the punctuality of her job keeps her on her toes, Kelly loves every aspect of accounting.
“It’s rewarding to balance each monthly account perfectly,” Kelly explained. “No words can describe the feeling of closing a million-dollar grant successfully."
“When Kelly is not organizing finances, she advises young women in her sorority on campus and across five states. She is very active in her church’s ministries, especially working with youth. She enjoys travelling and working in her flower beds, but most importantly, she loves spending time with her family and her daughter, Kimberly.
Editor's note: The Division of Agriculture, Forestry and Veterinary Medicine Spotlight Employee profiles are provided by the Office of Agricultural Communications at Mississippi State. For more information, please click here.
