MSU Division of Student Affairs leaders recognized for military support

Contact: James Carskadon

STARKVILLE, Miss.—Mississippi State Division of Student Affairs leaders are being recognized with the Patriotic Employer award by the U.S. Department of Defense’s Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve program.

Vice President for Student Affairs Regina Hyatt and Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs Jeremy Baham both were presented with the honor on Thursday [July 12]. They were nominated by Andrew Rendon, director of MSU's Office of Planning and Assessment and Mississippi Army National Guard lieutenant colonel. Rendon recently was appointed to study at the U.S. Army War College, where he will spend the next year pursuing a master’s in strategic studies.

The Patriotic Employer awards were presented by Jimmy Vaughan, a volunteer with Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve. He said the awards recognize employers that have shown strong support for soldiers in the Guard or Reserves, who often have to temporarily leave their jobs for training or deployment. Vaughan spent 20 years working full time with the Mississippi National Guard and later was an employer that regularly employed guardsmen, giving him a unique perspective on the challenges faced by both guardsmen and employers.

“Having a supportive employer takes a weight off soldiers,” Vaughan said. “If they know they don’t have a problem coming back to a job, they can concentrate more on what they’re supposed to be doing on their deployment.”

MSU’s G.V. “Sonny” Montgomery Center for America’s Veterans is part of the Division of Student Affairs. Hyatt said supporting military-connected students and staff is a key part of the division and the university’s mission.

“We are grateful for Andrew’s service and for his contributions that he makes to the Division of Student Affairs,” Hyatt said. “It’s very special that he thought to nominate us at this time when he is taking on the opportunity to attend the Army War College. We miss him always when he’s not here because he contributes so much to our team, but we want him to be able to do these things with the Mississippi National Guard because they are important to our state, to our nation and to Mississippi State.”

Before leaving for the War College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, Rendon said last month that the university has been supportive of military members throughout his 12 years working at MSU.

“There are a lot more people at the university who have deployed several times during the global War on Terror and it’s always been continuous support from the university and from their respective supervisors,” Rendon said. “I have to give a lot of credit to the Division of Student Affairs for supporting everything I’ve done in the military at every step along the way. It means a lot to me and my family.”

For more on the Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve program, visit www.esgr.mil.

MSU is nationally recognized for its support of U.S. Armed Forces veterans and their dependents. For more, see www.veterans.msstate.edu.

MSU is Mississippi’s leading university, available online at www.msstate.edu.