Contact: Sammy McDavid
Students from Leflore, Oktibbeha and Rankin counties are new political science scholars at Mississippi State University.
Entering freshmen Rachel D. Cox of Starkville and Mary Annette Morgan of Morgan City are receiving John C. Stennis Scholarships, while junior Tonya E. Thornton of Florence is the latest selection for a Haley Barbour Scholarship.
Named in honor of the MSU alumnus who was Mississippi's longtime United States senator, the Stennis award is designated for Mississippi residents with a proven interest in governmental affairs and public service. The scholarship provides freshmen $2,000 annually for a maximum of four years, plus a travel stipend of $1,600.
The $1,500 Barbour Scholarship is presented annually to a student at the sophomore or junior levels with a demonstrated record of political involvement. The award was created during the mid 1990s by friends and family of Barbour, the Yazoo City native and former national chairman of the Republican National Committee who worked for years as a Washington, D.C., consultant and lobbyist until his recent decision to seek the Mississippi governorship.
Cox, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Robert Cox, is a recent graduate of Starkville High School, where she was a senior class representative and president of the Young Democrats chapter. In addition to being active in the Mississippi Model Security Council program and a National Organization for Women chapter, she served as a legislative page for Lt. Gov. Amy Tuck. Cox plans a career in the diplomatic service or law.
Morgan, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. James Morgan, is a graduate of Pillow Academy, where she was a Student Council representative and president of her sophomore and junior classes. In addition to multiple-year participation in the Mississippi Model Security Council program, she worked on the political campaign of a county judge and has been continually involved in community activities. Morgan plans to enter law school following graduation from MSU and eventually seek a career in public service.
Thornton, a Brandon High School graduate, attended Belhaven College for a year before enrolling at MSU in 2001. The daughter of Debra Thornton of Florence and David Thornton of Belzoni, she has been very active in the Mississippi Model Security Council program since coming to the Starkville campus, including completion of the National Model U.N. Practicum in New York City. An MSU Dean's Scholar, she also is a member of the University Honors Program and College Republicans chapter. After graduation, she plans to attend graduate or law school and work eventually in campaign politics.
The three students will be introduced formally during a special departmental program held on campus during the fall semester.
The Model Security Council program in which the scholars have participated is an international educational experience that brings together high school and college students for a detailed simulation of the United Nations' representative assembly. For the past quarter century, the state's program has been sponsored and organized by Mississippi State's political science department.