Contact: Sammy McDavid
STARKVILLE, Miss.--Doctoral students from India and Lauderdale County are receiving 2007 Diversity Awards at Mississippi State.
Lokesh Shivakumaraiah, also of Starkville, and Terrance R. West of Meridian were recognized recently during campus ceremonies. Their awards are an annual presentation of university President Robert H. "Doc" Foglesong's Commission on the Status of Minorities.
Shivakumaraiah, an electrical engineering major who holds bachelor's and master's degrees from the university, was cited for considerable work in promoting intercultural exchanges among the general campus population and its varied international student segments.
In addition serving as president of the MSU India Student Association and helping found the MSU Cricket Club, he led in organizing the nation's first-known collegiate cricket tournament, which raised $10,000 for the campus group's continuing programs.
West, a computer engineering major who also holds bachelor's and master's degrees from the university, was recognized for continuing work during his collegiate life in mentoring minority students in several mathematics and science areas.
He holds the academic excellence chair of the National Society of Black Engineers chapter and is active in several related organizations. He also has led his fraternity, Alpha Phi Alpha, in the successful completion of varied community- and student-service projects.
For more information about Mississippi State University, see http://www.msstate.edu/.