Conatct: Sasha Steinberg

STARKVILLE, Miss.— Thirteen students at Mississippi State recently were inducted into the re-established campus chapter of the prestigious Mortar Board National College Senior Honor Society.

In addition to Mississippi, this year’s inductees represent Alabama, Florida, Illinois, Ohio and Tennessee.

Founded in 1918, Columbus, Ohio-based Mortar Board is considered the nation’s premier honor society for college seniors. Students selected for membership must be in the top 35 percent of their junior class and demonstrate a commitment to scholarship, leadership and service. For more, visit http://www.mortarboard.org.

Peter Ryan, MSU associate provost for academic affairs and professor of reproductive physiology, said this year’s Mortar Board inductees “not only are very accomplished individuals academically, but are all engaged in many extracurricular activities both on and off campus with a particular focus in helping others in greater need.”

“MSU is proud of these students who have accepted the invitation to be members of the Mortar Board Honor Society, one of the oldest and most respected of its kind in the country,” Ryan said.

“This recognition will help attract other accomplished students to consider MSU as an institution where they can not only receive an excellent education in their field of interest, but also excel in leadership and extracurricular experiential activities,” Ryan added.

The 2016-17 Mortar Board National College Senior Honor Society class includes (by hometown):

ARCHBOLD, Ohio—Chrysta N. Beck, a senior poultry science major.

BRENTWOOD, Tennessee—Kaitlyn L. Gilbert, a senior finance major.

BYRAM—Sarah A. Phillips, a senior criminology and foreign language/classics double-major.

CHICAGO, Illinois—Kathryn E. Hoppensteadt, a senior biological sciences major.

DARDEN, Tennessee—Callie B. Whitfield, a senior biochemistry/pre-medicine major.

HATTIESBURG—Daeja C. Thomas, a senior mechanical engineering and art/graphic design double-major.

MADISON, Alabama—Alexander C. Monnet, a computer science master’s student.

MADISON—Lauren S. Blalock, a senior animal and dairy science major.

NASHVILLE, Tennessee—Jonas A. Hudnall, a senior wildlife, fisheries and aquaculture major.

NESBIT—Naomi J. Taylor, a senior environmental economics and management major.

PACE, Florida—Dylan W. Densel, a senior finance major.

PASS CHRISTIAN—Emily M. Farrar, a senior civil engineering/environmental engineering major.

RIDGELAND—Amelia I. Andersson, a senior biological sciences major.

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