Contact: Callie Simonton

Emily Cain—director of academic relations for curriculum and advising—and Kasondra Harris—director of academic relations for the Bachelor of Science in Interdisciplinary Studies degree program—began their new appointments earlier this fall.

“Kasondra Harris has skillfully led the growth of the BSIS major, both in terms of new curriculum and in connecting students pursuing interdisciplinary degrees to mentors and peers,” said Associate Dean Melanie Loehwing.

“Emily Cain’s ambitious expansion of the curriculum development and advising resources offered in the College of Arts and Sciences has transformed the capacity of our faculty and staff to serve students well. I am excited to see the new ideas and perspectives they bring to their new roles, and I am confident that they will both continue to expand on their already consistent records of student advocacy and success,” Loehwing added.

Previously a CAS academic coordinator who joined the MSU staff in 2007, Cain said, “Our college has great faculty who are committed to providing students the best experience possible, and that means offering vibrant, robust courses and programs. I also work with our academic advisors as they guide students toward graduation. They play such a vital role and are often the ones students connect with and rely on most.”

Having served as the coordinator for BSIS for four years, Harris said she strives to “meet the modernized needs of students, and work so that career pathways will be created for the major through collaboration with other departments, colleges and businesses.”

She said she hopes to collaborate with businesses to provide experiential learning opportunities, making BSIS majors more marketable within their fields.

“I hope to include programs we see so many of our students working toward. I hope to soon have concentrations in events and hospitality services, health studies and speech pathology. We have so many careers today that require students to take an interdisciplinary approach to learning, and I’m excited to get them to critically think about what that means and how they can combine different areas of study to meet career goals,” said Harris, who joined the MSU staff in 2016.

MSU’s College of Arts and Sciences includes more than 5,000 students, 323 full-time faculty members, nine doctoral programs, 14 master’s programs, and 27 undergraduate academic majors offered in 14 departments. It also is home to the most diverse units for research and scholarly activities, including natural and physical sciences, social and behavioral sciences, and the humanities. 

For more details about MSU’s College of Arts and Sciences, visit www.cas.msstate.edu.

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