Four MSU doctoral candidates, one postdoc selected for SEC’s Emerging Scholars Program

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STARKVILLE, Miss.—Four ��ɫ��Ƶ doctoral candidates and one postdoctoral fellow have been selected to participate in the Southeastern Conference’s Emerging Scholars Program.

Established in 2021 by the SEC’s provosts, the Emerging Scholars Program provides professional development and networking opportunities for current doctoral students and postdoctoral researchers at SEC member universities, with a focus on scholars from historically underrepresented groups.

This year’s MSU cohort includes:

—Destiny Crockett, a geosciences doctoral candidate in the College of Arts and Sciences;

—Christian Zamiela, an industrial engineering doctoral candidate in the Bagley College of Engineering;

—Adrian “Shonna” Tillman, a public administration doctoral candidate in the College of Arts and Sciences;

—Frank Juma Ong’ondo, a wildlife ecology doctoral candidate in the College of Forest Resources;

—Lianqun Sun, a postdoctoral fellow in applied economics and big data in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station.

The MSU scholars will participate in a career preparation workshop at the University of Missouri this September. The workshop is designed to help participants seek out employment and mentorship within SEC universities.

“Consistent with the theme of the SEC Emerging Scholars Program, the deans of the academic colleges have nominated five exceptionally talented young scholars from varying cultural and academic backgrounds to represent MSU at the Second Annual SEC Emerging Scholars Career Preparation Workshop,” said MSU Executive Vice Provost and Dean of the Graduate School Peter Ryan. “It is hoped that these young scholars will find career opportunities at one of the 14 SEC institutions as part of a concerted effort to recruit more underrepresented persons into the academy.”

For more on the SEC’s academic collaborations and programs, visit .

MSU is Mississippi’s leading university, available online at .

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