Contact: Harriet Laird

STARKVILLE, Miss.—Mississippi State Geology Professor Renee Clary is being honored this week as a new Fellow of the Mississippi Academy of Sciences.

Clary, who also is director of the university’s Dunn-Seiler Museum, is set to be inducted during the 86th MAS Annual Meeting March 30-April 1 at the Mississippi Coast Convention Center in Biloxi.

MAS President and Fellow Raja Reddy, an agronomy research professor in the MSU Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, said of Clary’s latest honor, “Carrying the letters FMAS indicates nationwide respect for comprehension of professional issues and accomplishments as a scientist. Renee will not only contribute to the mission of the Fellows, but will help provide recommendations on the future direction of the academy.”

Clary, a past recipient of the MAS award for Outstanding Contributions to Science, holds Fellow status with both the Geological societies of America and London, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. In 2017, the GSA named her recipient of the organization’s Gerald M. and Sue T. Friedman Award.

“When I reflect upon the research and accomplishments of my science and engineering colleagues at MSU and beyond, I am truly humbled to be recognized with this distinction,” said the 16-year university faculty member. “The Mississippi Academy of Sciences Fellow designation documents the support I’ve received within the Department of Geosciences, the College of Arts and Sciences and this university. MSU’s resources and collegiality truly promote productive environments for scientific research and professional service.”

In her research, Clary works to optimize science learning in traditional, online and informal settings. She is co-principal investigator/STEM director for the leaderSTATE STEM program, a series of week-long MSU summer camps of over 300 JROTC high school students immersed in learning about geosciences, leadership and fitness. She also directs the university’s 15 Degree Laboratory and the EarthScholars Research Group, and is co-founder of the GeoViz Laboratory.

Currently, Clary is national president of the History of Earth Sciences Society and a past chair of the Geological Society of American History and Philosophy Division. She has authored more than 100 peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters, and presented over 300 peer-reviewed research presentations on five continents.

MSU Provost and Executive Vice President David Shaw also will be a featured speaker for the Dodgen Lecture during the annual meeting, presenting “The Wicked Nature of Global Food Security and Sustainability Challenges.” For more, visit https://msacad.org/.

For more about MSU’s Department of Geosciences or the university’s College of Arts and Sciences, visit www.geosciences.msstate.edu and www.cas.msstate.edu.

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