Contact: Sammy McDavid
STARKVILLE, Miss.--U.S. Rep. Chip Pickering and James Worth Bagley, namesake of Mississippi State's engineering college, will help the university graduate its 2005 spring class.
Some 2,000 students are scheduled to receive degrees during the two May 7 commencement programs in Humphrey Coliseum.
Pickering, the 3rd District Republican congressman, will address the 9:30 a.m. ceremony. Following his remarks, diplomas will be presented to students in the colleges of Architecture, Art and Design; Arts and Sciences; and Business and Industry and its School of Accountancy.
Bagley, a former Hinds County resident and MSU alumnus who has become national leader in the semiconductor industry, will speak at the 2:30 p.m. program. He also will receive the highest honor the university can bestow, an honorary doctorate.
In addition to the Bagley College of Engineering, Bagley's remarks will precede graduation for the colleges of Agriculture and Life Sciences and its School of Human Sciences; Education; Forest Resources; and Veterinary Medicine (master's and doctor of philosophy degrees only).
Pickering, who also will deliver the commencement address at MSU-Meridian on the afternoon of May 6, first was elected to Congress in 1996 at age 33. He succeeded Meridian native and MSU alumnus G.V. "Sonny" Montgomery.
Today, Pickering serves as vice chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee and assistant majority whip. He is a consistent supporter of MSU's efforts to strengthen its research and development infrastructure.
A Jones County native, seventh-generation Mississippian and son of retired U.S. District Judge Charles Pickering, he completed a bachelor's degree in business from the University of Mississippi and a master's in business administration from Baylor University. Before election to public office, the Laurel public schools graduate worked as a legislative aide, U.S. Department of Agriculture staff member and Southern Baptist missionary to then-communist Hungary.
Bagley, whose honorary doctorate will be in science, is a veteran of more than 35 years in the microelectronics field and has been at the forefront of the world information revolution. He is chairman of the board and chief executive officer of California-based Lam Research Corp., a leading global supplier of wafer fabrication equipment and services.
A 1961 MSU electrical engineering graduate who added a master's degree in 1966, Bagley is a graduate of Jackson's Forest Hills High School, where he met his future wife Jean. For many years, the Bagleys supported MSU engineering scholarships and endowed professorships in electrical and computer engineering, among other major contributions.
In 2002, the couple topped their previous level of philanthropy to the engineering college by announcing a $25 million gift to improve facilities and support faculty recruiting and development, graduate fellowships and special activities. That same year, the state College Board approved naming of the college in James Bagley's honor.