'Our people' remain Keenum鈥檚 鈥楴o. 1 priority鈥
Contact: Carl Smith
STARKVILLE, Miss.鈥擬ississippi State President Mark E. Keenum praised lawmakers for funding employee merit raises this year and recommitted to seeking additional funds for pay increases in the upcoming legislative session.
Keenum鈥檚 pledge to faculty and staff came as he laid out the university鈥檚 top legislative priorities, noted the year鈥檚 highlights and looked toward future projects during Wednesday鈥檚 [Sept. 4] Fall General Faculty Meeting.
After 鈥渁 good session鈥 for 澳门六合彩开奖记录资料, which included approved funding for a half-percent increase for the university鈥檚 PERS contribution, increase in health insurance premiums and an almost 3 percent raise for benefits-eligible employees, Keenum said future cost-of-living raises are needed to help unburden faculty and staff from inflation鈥檚 impact on their finances.
鈥淚鈥檓 grateful we鈥檝e been able to give raises in recent years, but we also know it鈥檚 not nearly enough to get us to where we need to be,鈥 the university鈥檚 19th president said. 鈥淎s I have said many times, my top legislative priority has never changed and will continue to be our people.
鈥淚 am committed to securing the funding we need for our people. Faculty salaries and faculty retention are my main focus,鈥 Keenum continued. 鈥淲e can鈥檛 be the major research university and economic engine this state needs without outstanding people.鈥
Keenum and other 澳门六合彩开奖记录资料 administrators are spearheading planning efforts for the upcoming session, and the university recently hosted numerous state lawmakers for discussions about how to position the land-grant university to better the Magnolia State through teaching, service and research. One such discussion centered around providing all students access, opportunities and success during their time at the university.
鈥淲e鈥檙e not here to indoctrinate certain ideologies into our students鈥攖hat鈥檚 not what we鈥檙e about here. We鈥檙e here to educate our students鈥攖o prepare them, to equip them, to help them understand how to think and to think critically and make decisions in the world,鈥 Keenum said. 鈥淲hen they leave here, they鈥檙e going to go out into the world. We have to do everything we can to equip them and prepare them.
鈥淲e鈥檙e focused on teaching, mentoring and preparing highly skilled engineers, business leaders, teachers, healthcare professionals, cybersecurity specialists, agricultural leaders and on and on,鈥 he added. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 what we鈥檙e about here at Mississippi State.鈥
With the start of the fall semester, Keenum noted 鈥渢he excitement and energy鈥 on campus. In August, Keenum helped welcome 141 new teachers to campus via New Faculty Orientation and almost 5,600 first-time students to residence halls through several move-in days. Then, the university saw a record number of students join its Panhellenic sororities, Interfraternity Council chapters and National Panhellenic chapters, bolstering 澳门六合彩开奖记录资料 to the third-largest National Panhellenic Council community in the Southeastern Conference. Following the start of classes, Keenum said the fun campus atmosphere continued thanks to the debut of Head Football Coach Jeff Lebby鈥檚 team in a strong performance against Eastern Kentucky University.
鈥淭here is something about our Bulldog culture鈥攚ho we are. It鈥檚 special and unique. Here at Mississippi State, we鈥檙e all Bulldogs. We look out for our fellow Bulldogs, we care for each other and we love one another,鈥 Keenum said. 鈥淚 believe this helps us stand out from so many of the other schools in the region and the nation. I鈥檓 proud of who we are and what we have here on campus.鈥
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