DeSoto County student at MSU receives 鈥榝ree鈥 semester of tuition
Contact: Amy Cagle
STARKVILLE, Miss.鈥斞侵奚墒悠碘檚 Alumni Delegates organization is continuing its program to give a university student the opportunity to win a semester of in-state tuition.
Junior Olivia N. Romito of Olive Branch, a kinesiology/clinical exercise physiology major, will attend MSU 鈥渇ree鈥 for the spring 2016 semester. Her name recently was drawn for the amount of $3,751, following the October sale of tickets to parents of eligible students.
鈥淚 had no idea my mom even entered the drawing,鈥 Romito said. 鈥淪he didn鈥檛 really expect me to win, so I am grateful for the opportunity to benefit.鈥
Launched in 2013 by the delegates, in conjunction with the MSU Alumni Association, the drawing is open each fall and spring semester to all fulltime, in-state undergraduates.
Tickets mailed to parents of eligible students generate support for the awards. Proceeds received beyond the cost of one semester鈥檚 tuition go to a general student scholarship endowment.
Jeff Davis, the alumni association鈥檚 executive director, said the drawing 鈥渋s a new tradition to positively influence the student experience and help build a scholarship endowment over time.
鈥淢ore than $14,000 was generated with this particular mailing, and the amount beyond the 鈥榝ree鈥 tuition award goes toward the endowment that will eventually help even more students with tuition expenses,鈥 he added.
Romito is a member of the MSU chapter of Alpha Epsilon Delta national health pre-professional honor society, as well as the kinesiology department鈥檚 Exercise Science Honor Society. Through both organizations, she volunteers for a number of campus and Starkville community service activities, including Service Dawg Days and, most recently, as a site leader for the Maroon Edition Habitat for Humanity construction project.
Founded in 1980, Alumni Delegates are a diverse academic group of 40 students. In addition to serving as liaisons between those currently enrolled and MSU鈥檚 132,400 living graduates, organization members provide support at the association鈥檚 many annual events, and are active in numerous other campus service activities.
For more information about the drawing, contact Libba Andrews, associate director of the MSU Alumni Association, at landrews@alumni.msstate.edu.
MSU is Mississippi鈥檚 leading university, available online at .