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“I grew up a Bulldog,” says Starkville educational psychology major Toria Carter. “We bleed maroon.”

Both father Greg and mother Schreese are alumni and former employees of the university. A starting member of the varsity basketball team that shared a Southeastern Conference Championship in 1991, her father later would serve as an assistant under head coaches Richard Williams and Rick Stansbury.

Now in her fifth year on campus, Toria Carter carries on the family legacy by working to help current and future students find their home at the 137-year-old land-grant institution. 

“I’ve always heard people say Mississippi State just has that atmosphere,” she says. “It is one of those places where you can come and feel comfortable.”

As an �㽶ֱ��Roadrunner, she assists the Office of Admissions and Scholarships with student recruiting. Beyond such duties as writing welcoming postcards and helping host various recruiting and related events, she regularly leads campus tours for potential students. That latter activity often becomes a deciding factor for many prospects, she emphasizes.

As if completing her academic major and being a Roadrunner weren’t enough, Carter currently is president of I.D.E.A.L Woman, a leadership organization affiliated with the Holmes Cultural Diversity Center. The organization—whose acronym stands for Intelligent Dignified Elegant Ambitious Leaders—works to promote social, professional and personal growth.

Carter says she hopes her efforts as a peer leader are helping current and future students in some way to appreciate and continue the campus’s close family atmosphere she has enjoyed.

“I have met so many people, people that I would not have normally met if I hadn’t become involved,” she said. “Now I can walk on the Drill Field and have dozens of people to talk to, all because of these organizations.” 

Following graduation, Carter says she plans to pursue a master’s degree in student programming so one day she can work fulltime helping others also find their university or college family.