Engagement Mission
Mississippi State University (MSU) identified engagement as a critical element of the university in 2009. It is not unit (department/college), but a comprehensive, university wide strategy that connects individuals, communities, organizations, and businesses to our faculty, staff and students to enhance the quality of life through collaborative learning, research, and service opportunities. MSU’s engagement scholarship and service is an extension of the university’s knowledge, offerings, and service to external adult and youth learners, groups, communities, and businesses for the betterment of people. MSU’s overall engagement mission is to improve life in Mississippi and beyond through discovery, creatively, innovation and connection.
MSU’s primary role in this area primarily focuses on providing community engagement programs to undergraduate and graduate students, continuing education students, and external community and business partners. MSU helps apply the findings in the real world, and provides service that will ultimately lead to positive social, economic, and environmental outcomes. To do this effectively and efficiently, MSU understands the importance of forming partnerships with the public and private sectors, engaging individuals, groups, communities, and businesses. Engaging our citizens to address critical societal issues externally to the classrooms and laboratories of the campus will strengthen democratic values and civic responsibility and contribute to the public good.
MSU’s mission is to be recognized by our peer institutions as a leading community-engaged institution by:
Developing strong and trusted partnerships that foster a culture of communication, collaboration and engaged scholarship.
- providing a conducive learning environment of trust, respect, transparency, and inclusiveness.
- recognizing and respecting our student and partner’s values, needs, and challenges.
Providing collaborative research (discovery) projects; teaching, providing knowledge through instruction (integrating and sharing knowledge); and helping our partners apply the knowledge (becoming practitioners).
Providing our students with community-engaged learning experiences.
Sharing resources for mutual benefit and collective impact.
Being accountable in performance-based outcomes and impacts.
Recognizing and rewarding engaged scholarship provided by our faculty, staff, students, and partners.