Ļć½¶Ö±²„

Contact: James Carskadon

STARKVILLE, Miss.ā€”Ļć½¶Ö±²„ is being recognized by the Association of Public and Land Grant Universities for its commitment to making Mississippi a better place to work and live.

Ļć½¶Ö±²„is a national finalist in the 2020 APLU Innovation and Economic Prosperity Universities Awards in the ā€œPlaceā€ category, which recognizes exemplary initiatives resulting in social, cultural or community development. For the award nomination, Ļć½¶Ö±²„submitted case studies detailing the impacts of three initiativesā€”the Fred Carl Jr. Small Town Center, MSU-Starkville Oktibbeha School District Partnership Middle School, and Thad Cochran Research, Technology and Economic Development Park.

ā€œThis award is a reflection of the hard work carried out by hundreds of people across the state on behalf of MSU,ā€ said Ļć½¶Ö±²„Interim Vice President for Research and Economic Development Julie Jordan. ā€œWe make it a priority to work with community stakeholders, economic development officials, as well as industry and government leaders to create new opportunities and improve lives in Mississippi. This outreach makes a tangible impact economically and socially throughout our state, and I am proud that Ļć½¶Ö±²„is among the distinguished universities being recognized by APLU this year.ā€

Ļć½¶Ö±²„achieved Innovation and Economic Prosperity University status from the APLU and its Commission on Innovation, Competitiveness and Economic Prosperity in 2015. The designationā€”attained after a rigorous review processā€”recognizes Ļć½¶Ö±²„for working to advance engagement and economic well-being in the state, region and nation.

ā€œWe applaud this yearā€™s Innovation and Economic Prosperity University Awards finalists for their exceptional contributions to regional economic engagement,ā€ said APLU President Peter McPherson. ā€œAs the country looks to recover from one of the steepest economic downturns on record, universities will have to play a central role in helping drive innovation, spark growth, and foster broadly shared prosperity. The IEP Award finalists are in a strong position to do exactly that.ā€

Ļć½¶Ö±²„is one of two finalists in the ā€œPlaceā€ category. The winner will be announced during the APLUā€™s virtual annual meeting in November. The case studies Ļć½¶Ö±²„submitted for the award nomination can be found on the APLU website. Initiatives highlighted in the nomination include:

• The Thad Cochran Research, Technology and Economic Development Park, a 272-acre park that is home to more than 1,700 employees and tenants that include private businesses, government offices and robust research centers and institutes. The park represents over $100 million in infrastructure investments and $104 million in private capital investment. Research and innovation thrive in the park thanks in large part to MSUā€™s High Performance Computing Collaboratory, the fourth-most powerful computing site in U.S. academia.
• The Fred Carl Jr. Small Town Center, founded in 1979 and housed in MSUā€™s College of Architecture, Art and Design, serves as an advocate of meaningful planning and design services to small communities throughout Mississippi. Comprised of architects, planners and students, the research that is conducted provides solutions to problems faced by communities across the nation. The Small Town Centerā€™s outreach efforts run a wide gamut from community engagement and visioning, grant writing, project feasibility studies, master planning, downtown revitalizations, small town research, design education seminars and workshops, to bike and pedestrian infrastructure planning and development.
• The MSU-SOSD Partnership Middle School officially opened in August, marking the culmination of a years-long collaboration between Ļć½¶Ö±²„and the school district to build a new school on the Ļć½¶Ö±²„campus. The state-of-the-art facility will serve every sixth and seventh grade student in the school district and be utilized as a demonstration site for students in MSUā€™s College of Education as they prepare to become teachers.

For more on the APLUā€™s Innovation and Economic Prosperity awards, visit .

Ļć½¶Ö±²„is Mississippiā€™s leading university, available online at .