Contact: Maridith Geuder
Major new support from the Hearin Foundation is enhancing two nationally recognized programs at Mississippi State University.
The Jackson philanthropy is committing a total of $4 million over four years, with $3.6 million going to the College of Engineering and $400,000 to the School of Architecture.
"The Hearin Foundation's continuing support for higher education throughout the state is a significant factor in helping Mississippi become more competitive in the global marketplace," said MSU President Malcolm Portera.
"At Mississippi State, the foundation's support over a number of years has allowed for innovations in our programs in engineering and architecture that have heightened instructional quality, attracted outstanding students and faculty, and helped increase the technological capacity that is vital to the state's future," he added. "We're deeply grateful for the foundation's support and the role it plays in helping us do a better job of serving Mississippi."
The late Robert M. Hearin Sr., a Jackson businessman and former chairman and chief executive officer of Mississippi Valley Gas Co., made provisions in his will to establish the philanthropy. His foundation supports state university and college efforts to both improve education and promote economic development.
The engineering college will apply the Hearin grant to several key areas, said Dean A. Wayne Bennett.
"This important grant will allow Mississippi State to continue its leadership in engineering research, education and outreach and build on earlier Hearin investments in our college," Bennett said. "The foundation's support was instrumental in helping the college increase research expenditures to become ranked 37th among U.S. engineering colleges."
Bennett said the new funding supports research in energy and human systems, as well as communications and information technology. "These areas have direct applications to the automotive and other industries in our state," he explained.
Bennett said the grant also will enable the college to implement an eminent scholars program to help recognize and retain MSU faculty who have national reputations and assist in attracting other nationally recognized scholars to campus. In addition, the college will use the new grant to expand its undergraduate initiatives and K-12 outreach.
"Both of these efforts were launched with the Hearin Foundation's earlier 1997 grant to our college and have received national recognition," he said.
The $400,000 School of Architecture grant supports graduate fellowships, student recruitment, the acquisition of new technologies and instructional materials, and equipment maintenance and replacement, said interim Dean James L. West.
Recognized for its early incorporation of digital technologies into the academic curriculum, the School of Architecture is home to the Digital Research and Imaging Laboratory. The multimedia lab provides an interdisciplinary setting for students from architecture, archaeology, anthropology, education, engineering, and the sciences in collaborating on design work.
"This grant will allow us to continue to attract top students and to provide the most current technologies for their education," West said.
Established in 1973, the architecture school offers the only professional bachelor's degree program in Mississippi. The five-year undergraduate curriculum includes four years of study on the Starkville campus and the final year in Jackson.
The school, which also offers a specialized master's degree in electronic visualization technologies, enrolls students from throughout the state and region that regularly earn top honors in national design competitions.
NEWS EDITORS/DIRECTORS: For more information, telephone Amy Cagle of the MSU Foundation at (662) 325-1006.