Maroon MEMO: Employee News (Mississippi State University)

Mississippi State’s newly elected 2026-27 executive council of the MSU Student Association recently visited with university President Mark E. Keenum, front center, during a luncheon last Thursday [Sept. 3]. Along with discussing several upcoming activities and events on campus, Keenum emphasized leadership qualities to the group that have been helpful to him as the 19th president such as integrity, hard work and respect for others. Council members present for the conversation were, first row, from left, Mary Walker Foster, Pascagoula, chief of staff; Abigail Spreen, New Orleans, Louisiana, vice president; Keegan Figueroa, Mooreville, president; Victoria "Torie" Keenum, Starkville, secretary; and Amelia Spreen, New Orleans, Louisiana, marketing director. Second row, Andrew Berry, Goshen, Kentucky, policy director; Penelope "Cape" Merrell, Andalusia, Alabama, treasurer; Grahm Torrey, Flowood, programming director; Jojo Henderson, Pittsburg, Texas, service director; and Amelia Summy, Memphis, Tennessee, deputy chief of staff. PHOTO: Emily Grace McCall | Public Affairs

A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood: MSU, Habitat partner for 18th Maroon Edition house
Starkville native Tyerria Bryant will unlock the door to her new home this spring as the recipient of Mississippi State’s 18th Maroon Edition Habitat for Humanity home. Bryant, a mental health therapist at an elementary school in Macon, said when she found out she would be the Habitat recipient, she simply couldn’t stop crying. Now overwhelmed with gratitude, she is ready to put in the sweat equity to build her future. Once complete, Bryant’s home will mark the sixth Habitat build in Kelly Estates, an 11-acre former dairy farm located on 16th Section Road. Volunteers, including MSU staff and students, will continue to transform the property into a 30-home Habitat community.

DAFVM Spotlight: Karen Brasher
For 30 years, Karen Brasher has made a career out of telling other people’s stories. As director of Agriculture and Natural Resources Marketing, Brasher leads the team that promotes the work of Mississippi State University’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, College of Forest Resources, Forest and Wildlife Research Center and Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station, or MAFES. After 28 years in the role, she still considers it the best job in the world. “I love promoting the excellent work of our MSU scientists,” Brasher said. “Their passion is unmatched, and being able to tell their stories and convey the extraordinary work they are doing is the absolute best job in the world.”

DAFVM Spotlight: Shelby Naron
For Shelby Naron, nutrition education is about more than teaching people what to eat. It’s about helping them understand why those choices matter. As a Nutrition Educator with Mississippi State University Extension, Naron provides hands-on nutrition education programs for Mississippians with limited resources. Her work takes her into classrooms, gyms, libraries, community centers, churches and other community spaces. “I love that our six-week nutrition education programs allow me to follow up with both youth and adult participants,” Naron said. “I get to watch them grow and achieve their goals throughout the program, and I find that very rewarding.” Naron has been with MSU for nearly seven years, previously serving as a Community Wellness Planner before moving into her current role. She will celebrate one year as a Nutrition Educator in October.

MSU AI Community: Join the conversation!
Mississippi State University is taking steps to advance artificial intelligence adoption across campus. Whether you’re a researcher, educator, or staff member, these resources are designed to help you learn, collaborate, and stay informed about AI initiatives at MSU. The AI Innovation Hub is now a website at aihub.msstate.edu. This site is a starting point for AI-related learning opportunities, workshops, user guidance, and updates. You can also connect through the MSU AI Community Teams Site. If you have any questions about AI at MSU, please contact Senior Advisor for AI and Data Governance Julie Jordan at julie.jordan@msstate.edu.

Reminder: University policy addresses employee political activity
With campaigning for elected offices underway this year, Mississippi State's Office of General Counsel offers the following reminder 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 OP 01.14: Political Activities in its entirety and to understand their rights and responsibilities.

Free learning opportunities via LinkedIn Learning available to faculty, staff and students
Sharpen skills. Explore new interests. Increase professional value. These and other results are available via no-cost learning opportunities to Mississippi State faculty, staff and students through MSU’s agreement with LinkedIn Learning. A popular, online education platform, LinkedIn Learning’s 20,000-plus courses are available to campus via a quick login using their MSU NetID email addresses. With self-paced learning, courses are presented in various formats, including bite-sized video, audio only and in-depth content. The platform is directly integrated with Canvas, the university’s learning management system. MSU faculty can use it to supplement course material or even develop and load their own content onto the platform.

Standing committee and council chairs encouraged to review and update info
Mississippi State faculty, staff, and students bring a wealth of talent and expertise to the university in a broad range of subjects. Collectively, the people of our university offer a valuable knowledge resource the university can draw on in making decisions on a wide array of issues and in planning for an increasingly complex future. The structure that allows this reservoir of human potential to be applied to specific problems is the university's system of standing committees and councils. Information about MSU's standing committees and councils is available at https://www.msstate.edu/directory/standing-committees. Committee and council chairs are encouraged to review committee information to ensure accurate details and current membership are posted. Please send updates or corrections to Jim Laird at jim.laird@msstate.edu.

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.

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: MSU’s positive momentum, continued impact due to its world-class faculty, staff
Mississippi State continues to provide a positive impact to the Magnolia State and beyond through its missions of learning, service and research thanks to its world-class faculty and staff, university President Mark E. Keenum said. Keenum shared his excitement about MSU’s work and commitment to bettering the world during last week's Fall General Faculty Meeting at Lee Hall, noting numerous university growth milestones, achievements and campus projects from this summer and the fall semester while looking ahead to future opportunities. “We’re serving our students; we’re serving our state; we’re engaged in meaningful research that’s truly making a difference in our nation and the world,” Keenum said.

Trawick named interim director of Center for Cyber Innovation
Mississippi State cybersecurity leader and educator George Trawick has been named interim director of the university’s Center for Cyber Innovation. A clinical professor of practice in cybersecurity and cyber programs coordinator in MSU’s Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Trawick will lead the center’s efforts supporting cybersecurity research, technology development and national security partnerships. “As MSU continues to strengthen its position as a national leader in cybersecurity education and research, the Center for Cyber Innovation plays a vital role in advancing technologies and solutions that support our nation’s security,” said Scott Willard, interim vice president for research and economic development. “Dr. Trawick brings exceptional operational, technical and academic experience to this leadership role.

Faculty share expertise at Mississippi Council of Teachers of Mathematics conference at The Mill
Mississippi State University College of Education faculty recently shared their expertise with more than 300 attendees at the Mississippi Council of Teachers of Mathematics conference. Held at The Mill at MSU last week, the event drew math teachers, principals, district math supervisors, university faculty and pre-service teachers from across the state, including more than 50 MSU teacher education majors. Rebecca Robichaux-Davis, College of Education associate dean of academics and professor of mathematics education, presented “Bringing JOY to the Mathematics Classroom” as the keynote speaker. During her address, she explained why joy in the classroom matters, what research on emotions says about the emotions that indicate joy, and the obstacles to joy that might be present in a mathematics classroom, notably fear of making a mistake and anxiety.

MSU hosts University of Oxford’s Horobin for Giles Lecture Series Thursday
Mississippi State will host a public lecture by University of Oxford Professor Simon Horobin on Thursday [Sept. 10] as part of the prestigious William L. Giles Distinguished Lecture Series. Horobin’s presentation “Narnia and the North: Norse Mythology in the Works of C.S. Lewis” begins at 6 p.m. in McComas Hall theater. The event is free and open to the public. A professor of English Language and Literature at Oxford, Horobin also serves as chair of the faculty of English and is a leading scholar on the language’s history. Organized this year by MSU William L. Giles Distinguished Professors Christopher Snyder and Wes Schilling, the annual series brings world-class scholars, scientists, artists and leaders to campus to engage directly with the university community.