Melvin Ray named acting vice president for research

Ray

A social scientist and university administrator has been named acting vice president for research at Mississippi State.

Melvin C. Ray, associate vice president for research since 1994, will hold the position until a permanent vice president has been selected. He assumed the new duties following the Nov. 28 death of Ralph E. Powe, the university's vice president for research since 1986.

A nationwide search will be conducted this year to fill the position on a permanent basis, said President Donald W. Zacharias.

Ray becomes the first African-American to serve as a vice president at Mississippi State. A native of Dumas, Ark., he joined the university faculty in 1987. He holds a bachelor's degree from the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff and master's and doctoral degrees from Iowa State University.

As associate research vice president, Ray has helped develop Mississippi State's research policies, has managed research programs, and has developed new competitive research areas at the university. He serves as director of University-Level Research Centers and Institutes at Mississippi State.

In 1995, he was named a co-project director for the Mississippi/National Science Foundation Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR), a program established by NSF to enhance the state's research infrastructure.

In 1992, Ray received a U.S. Department of Justice Certificate of Appreciation for Contributions and Dedicated Service to the National Criminal Justice Community. He was named outstanding faculty adviser by the National Black Graduate Student Association in 1990, and Outstanding Young Man of America in 1984.

The National Science Foundation ranks Mississippi State among the top 100 universities nationwide in total research and development expenditures. Last year the university attracted more than $56 million in contracts and grants from government agencies and private corporations.