Mississippi State University

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{{Infobox_University |name=Mississippi State University |image=Image:Miss state univ seal.jpg |motto=Learning, Service, Research |established=1878 |type=Public |president=General Robert H. "Doc" Foglesong |city=Starkville |state=Mississippi |country=USA |undergrad=12,555 |postgrad=3,546 |staff=1,220 |campus=Rural |mascot=Bulldogs |colors=maroon and white |website=http://www.msstate.edu }} Mississippi State University is a land-grant university located in north east-central Mississippi in the town of Starkville and is situated 125 miles northeast of Jackson and 23 miles west of Columbus. It is the largest public university in the state.

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History

The University began as The Agricultural and Mechanical College of the State of Mississippi (or Mississippi A&M), one of the national land-grant colleges established after Congress passed the Morrill Act in 1862. It was created by the Mississippi Legislature on February 28, 1878, to fulfill the mission of offering training in "agriculture, horticulture and the mechanical arts . . . without excluding other scientific and classical studies, including military tactics." The university received its first students in the fall of 1880 in the presidency of General Stephen D. Lee. In 1887 Congress passed the Hatch Act, which provided for the establishment of the Agricultural Experiment Station in 1888. The university has since had its mission expanded and redefined by the Legislature.

By 1932, when the Legislature renamed the university as Mississippi State College, it consisted of:

  • the Agricultural Experiment Station (1887)
  • the College of Engineering (1902)
  • the College of Agriculture (1903)
  • the School of Industrial Pedagogy (1909)
  • the School of General Science (1911)
  • the College of Business and Industry (1915)
  • the Mississippi Agricultural Extension Service (1915)
  • and the Division of Continuing Education, (1919).

Further, in 1926 the university had received its first accreditation by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.

By 1958, when the Legislature again renamed the university as Mississippi State University, the Graduate School had been organized (1936), doctoral degree programs had begun (1951), the School of Forest Resources had been established (1954), and the College of Arts and Sciences had replaced the General Science School (1956).

The School of Architecture admitted its first students in 1973, the College of Veterinary Medicine admitted its first class in 1977. The MSU Vet school (commonly referred to as the CVM) is the largest veterinary school in the nation under one roof.

The School of Accountancy was established in 1979.

The University Honors Program was founded in 1968 in order to provide more rigorous course curricula for academically talented students, as well as to facilitate guest lecture series, forums, and distinguished external scholarships. The program has been vastly expanded to form its own college after Bobby Shackouls, a MSU alum and retired CEO, donated $10 million to found the Judy and Bobby Shackouls Honors College in April, 2006.

See Also List of Presidents of Mississippi State University

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The school

Image:MSU drill field.jpg Mississippi State University is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award baccalaureate, master's, specialist, and doctoral degrees. Today, the university has the following colleges: Agriculture and Life Sciences, Architecture Art and Design, Arts and Sciences, Business and Industry, Education, Engineering, Forest Resources, and Veterinary Medicine.

As of Fall 2005, the current total enrollment of Mississippi State is 16,101. The university contains 160 buildings, and the grounds of the university comprise about 4,200 acres (17 km²), including farms, pastures, and woodlands of the Experiment Station. The university also owns an additional 80,000 acres across the state.

Mississippi State University also operates an off-campus, degree-granting center in Meridian where both undergraduate and graduate programs are offered. In cooperation with the U.S. Army Engineer Waterways Experiment Station, the College of Engineering offers the Master of Science degree to students in Vicksburg.

Mississippi State's campus is centered on the main quadrangle, called the Drill Field (pictured) due to its heavy use by the ROTC. The Drill Field is defined at its north and south ends by the mirror-image buildings, Lee Hall (the original University building, now the administration building) and Swalm Hall (the Chemical Engineering department). Old Main was the original dormitory, west of Lee Hall; it burned in a tragic fire, and was replaced by the Student Center. The largest building fronting the Drill Field is the Memorial Library.

From the Drill Field, the campus radiates in all directions. The College of Engineering can be found mostly to the east side of the Drill Field; to the north are the Arts and Sciences, including Computer Science, and Architecture. Humanities are found to the south, while Agriculture dominates the west section. To the west and northwest are also found the athletic facilities, including Scott Field and the Humphrey Coliseum, or Hump.

Beyond the main campus (and the series of commuting parking lots ringing the main campus) are the North and South Farms. While still used for their original purpose of agricultural research, the Farms are also host to newer facilities, such as the astronomical observatory and Veterinary College (South Farm) and the Engineering Research Center (North Farm). At the far west of campus, one finds first the fraternity and sorority houses, and beyond them the Cotton District and downtown Starkville, Mississippi.

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Athletics

The university's athletic teams participate in NCAA's Division I in the competitive 12-member Southeastern Conference (West Division) under the mascot Bulldog, and its colors are maroon and white. Mississippi State competes in the NCAA in football, basketball (men's and women's), baseball, softball, tennis, golf, soccer, volleyball, track and field, and cross country running.

Head football coach Sylvester Croom is the first African-American named to such a position in the history of the SEC. Coach Croom stated "I want to make sure everybody understands, I am the first African-American coach in the SEC, but there isn't but one color that matters here - and that color is Maroon."

The football stadium is Davis Wade Stadium, a.k.a. Scott Field, in the northwest part of campus; nearby is the basketball arena, the enclosed Humphrey Coliseum, aka The Hump. Adjacent to the Humphrey Coliseum is the baseball stadium, Dudy Noble Field, Polk-DeMent Stadium, known for having the largest on-campus attendance record in NCAA baseball (14,991) and is noted for the Left Field Lounge, an outfield area where many fans gather and enjoy the games in a tailgate-like atmosphere.

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Traditions

The school colors are maroon and white. The current mascot is the Bulldog. Past mascots have been the Aggies and the Maroons.

The school's fight song is Hail State.

Hail dear ole State! Fight for that victory today! Hit that line and tote that ball. Cross the goal before you fall! And then we'll yell, yell, yell, yell, For dear ole State, we'll yell like H-E-L-L! Fight for Mis-sis-sip-pi State. Win that game today! Go State!

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Notable alumni

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Public Service and Activism

11 Members of the Mississippi State Senate

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Academia

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Literary

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Business

  • George Bryan, Sara Lee Corporation Vice - President and Organizer for the 54th U.S. Women's Open Golf Championship
  • Fred Carl, Jr., Founder and CEO of Viking Range
  • Toxey Haas, Founder and CEO, Mossy Oak Outdoors
  • Ronnie Parker, Founder of Pizza Inn
  • Hartley Peavey, Founder of Peavey Electronics
  • James L. Flanagan, (1948), technical pioneer in speech transmission and acoustics
  • Joe Frank Sanderson, co-founder of Sanderson Farms
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Sports

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Other

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External links

Template:Southeastern Conference

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