Dr. Mark E. Keenum

Biographical Sketch

Dr. Mark Everett Keenum became Mississippi State's 19th president Jan. 5, 2009, following a distinguished public service career.

After completing his bachelor's and master's degrees in agricultural economics at Mississippi State, Dr. Keenum joined the university faculty in 1984 as a marketing specialist with the Mississippi Cooperative Extension Service. Two years later, he accepted a position as a research associate with the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station at MSU.

He continued his education at the university, in 1988 receiving a doctorate in agricultural economics, and he joined the faculty of that department as an assistant professor/economist. During his professional tenure at Mississippi State, his primary research and extension work focused on the marketing and economics of aquaculture, specialty crops and forestry. He continued his faculty ties at the university 1997-2006 as an adjunct professor, teaching an annual course on agricultural legislative policy.

Prior to being named president of Mississippi State in November 2008, Dr. Keenum served as Under Secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture for two years, where he provided leadership and oversight for the Farm Service Agency, the Risk Management Agency and the Foreign Agricultural Service. The mission area, comprised of the three agencies, had a total operating budget of $1.7 billion and approximately $40 billion in program authority. The three agencies employed more than 16,500 people at more than 2,300 offices nationwide and 98 locations around the globe.

In 1989, Dr. Keenum joined the Washington, D.C., staff of U.S. Senator Thad Cochran as Legislative Assistant for Agriculture and Natural Resources. As Sen. Cochran's adviser on agricultural affairs, he worked on numerous issues important to U.S. agriculture, including the 1990, 1996, and 2002 Farm Bills. From 1996-2006, he served as Chief of Staff for Sen. Cochran. In this role, Dr. Keenum was the chief adviser to the senator on political, legislative and appropriations issues. He also was responsible for managing all administrative and legislative functions of Sen. Cochran's Washington, D.C., office and three Mississippi offices, including direct oversight of the U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry and the U.S. Senate Committee on Appropriations.

Dr. Keenum and his wife Rhonda have four children.