Contact: Sasha Steinberg
STARKVILLE, Miss. Mississippi State honored eight outreach projects with the university’s fourth annual Community Engagement Award.
Two awards – a winner and an honoree – are presented in four categories. These include research in which the community is involved; teaching and community learning; community service; Participation grant.
The winning projects receive $3,000, and the winning projects receive $750 to promote their activities. The MSU Center for Community Learning, the Office of the Vice President and Executive Vice President, the Office of Research and Economic Development, and the Student Affairs Division selected the recipients.
Honorees include (by category):
Community research
winner— “Marine Wreck Removal,” Submitted by Alisa Rudolvich, Extension Program Associate at MSU Extension’s Coastal Marine Program in Biloxi. Extension specialists and leaders from Mississippi Commercial Fisheries United, in coordination with the US Environmental Protection Agency, developed an incentive program to eliminate neglected lobster fisheries and studied the economic impact of marine debris and its effects on the commercial shrimp industry. The efforts of 44 participating fishermen have removed nearly 3,000 abandoned crab traps from the north central Gulf of Mexico since 2019. More information at http://coastal.msstate.edu/crab-traps.
honorary– “Santa Teresita Water Distribution,” presented by Macy Wallace, Associate Project Manager at MSU Chapter of Engineers Without Borders – USA and Senior Civil Engineering Specialist from Oneonta, Alabama. The Michigan State University branch of the EWB works to improve the water distribution system in the small Ecuadorean village of Santa Teresita. The primary objective is to restore the structural integrity of the system and improve its capacity by replacing a significant portion of the piping network, modernizing reservoirs and expanding the system to include a third spring that provides clean water for consumption, hygiene and farming needs. Santa Teresita community members have been heavily involved in planning and data collection since 2019, and will work alongside members of the MSU EWB to implement the new system throughout 2022.
Teaching and community learning
winner– “Engaging and Educating Young People About Conservation,” a project led by Kayla Feist, a master’s student in conservation education from Meridian, and Abby Flores, a Spring 2021 Wildlife, Fisheries, and Aquaculture graduate from Clover, South Carolina, in collaboration with Starkville Public Library Children’s Services, Librarian Lauren Walker. Members of the Michigan State University Student Branch of the Wildlife Society and faculty advisors Leslie Burger and Chris Ayers also assisted with the project, which addressed the need for youth participation during the COVID-19 pandemic in ways that did not require face-to-face interaction. Members of the MSU Wildlife Society have created “drive-by” and “pick-up” crafts to highlight wildlife science and conservation. Students also recorded book-reading videos about wildlife which quickly reached an average of 1,000 views on the Starkville Public Library website and generated positive feedback from local parents.
honorary— “LivingRoom at Leland School Park,” presented by Cory Gallo, MSU Professor of Landscape Architecture. An MSU collaboration across colleges, the park is completed at Leland School Park using an award-winning design concept called The Living Room: A Freeware Learning Garden that focuses on health, food, and nutrition education. Faculty and students at Michigan State University in the Department of Landscape Architecture in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and College of Architecture, Art and Design in Graphic Design Programs developed the model. Gallo, Michigan State University Professor of Architecture Hans Hermann, and MSU Associate Professor of Graphic Design, Susan Bowney, lead the project, which urged MSU students to improve the concept of Learning Gardens. Collaborators on the first publication of the Simplified LivingRoom Garden for Leland School Park include AIM for CHANGE (Advance, Inspire, and Motivate for Community Health Through Extension), an MSU extension program that funded the project with support from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; and Delta EATS (Edible Agriculture Teaching Students), a non-profit group that is part of the Delta Health Alliance.
Community Service
winnerThe Mississippi Coast Cleanup Program is a nonprofit educational program led by Eric Sparks, Director of MSU Extension’s Coastal Marine Program, and coordinated by Mandy Sartan, Extension Program Associate, both with the MSU Coastal Research and Extension Center in Biloxi. The MSCCP promotes local marine conservation by organizing and implementing clean-up events and educational programs in coastal communities throughout the year. Large-scale events including the annual Mississippi coastal cleanup, star-studded cleanup, and monthly beach cleanups, engage thousands of volunteers in efforts to reduce marine debris and litter in waterways and along beaches. By incorporating the latest research, the MSCCP trains community leaders and fellow supervisors in ways to incorporate garbage management practices into their ongoing programs. Through sponsorship and partnerships with local organizations on a variety of projects, MSCCP strives to empower all members of society – from young people to adults – to make sound decisions that protect the environment.
honorary— “ArcM Rabbitry in Guatemala,” presented by Derris Devost Burnett, Associate Professor in Michigan State University’s Department of Animal and Dairy Sciences. Livestock Education in Guatemala, the first international education course in which Michigan State University participates, has been a huge success that has led to additional activities on campus and abroad. In the past three years, the program has received 57 overseas students and involved community members in animal health, animal husbandry, and productivity training. The goal of the project was for families to use rabbits for consumption and as a source of income to improve their social and economic course. Since the start of the project, these families have gone from eating high-quality animal protein at 1.2 meals per week to more than 4 meals per week, according to the latest follow-up survey. These findings speak to the impact of the program in equipping MSU students and the program’s community network to empower a specific but underserved community in the highlands of Guatemala.
Participation Scholarship
winner— “Mississippi Delta College Access,” presented by Carol Cutler-White, associate professor in the Department of Educational Leadership at Michigan State University. With funding from the Foundation for National and Community Service, Cutler White has been engaged in a participatory action research with the City of Greenville to build an outreach and service model to reach marginalized populations in the Mississippi Delta where less than 25% of the population holds a bachelor’s degree. Degree. Three community members/co-researchers helped Cutler White and Greenville Mayor Eric Simmons form the Greenville College Access Network to support enrolled college students and their families in navigating the college application process, especially paperwork for financial aid. Cutler White submitted the GCAN Action Plan to the Greenville City Council, which adopted the plan through a resolution for support in January 2021. Associate researchers recruited community volunteers, and the Woodward Hines Education Foundation Program trained them to complete financial assistance applications. Cutler White assisted Simmons’ office in requesting an AmeriCorps planning grant to the Mississippi Volunteer Commission, which is responsible for funding AmeriCorps in Mississippi. The commission awarded the planning grant in August 2021, and work is underway to build a sustainable AmeriCorps volunteer support model for the GCAN Initiative to provide ACT test preparation, career counseling, college application assistance and financial aid. Cutler-White’s research now focuses on the role of trust in the process of getting into college.
honorary— “The Art Yard,” presented by Leah Kemp, Director of Fred Carl Jr., Small Town Center at Michigan State University. CSTC has collaborated with Henderson Ward Stewart Elementary School in Starkville to design and implement an outdoor learning environment called “The Art Yard,” which includes art and creative learning opportunities for elementary school children. Developed in response to COVID-19, outdoor classrooms provide a healthier alternative learning environment during the current pandemic and foster opportunities for creative learning in the future. CSTC has collaborated with the community, campus, and other partners to implement outdoor classes using small grants in an eight-month time frame. MSU’s IDEA Store helped design and manufacture colorful outdoor seating units that could be used in the classroom, and helped school district administrators, staff, teachers, and students develop ideas for incorporating art into the learning process and site design. CSTC has also created a free digital toolkit, so that classes can be replicated elsewhere.
For more information about the MSU Awards for Community Engagement or the Center for Community Learning, visit www.ccel.msstate.edu.
Michigan State University is one of the leading universities in Mississippi, available online at www.msstate.edu.