“I realized there are so many types of writing—you can write for a magazine, for essays, for news stories,” said Portia Agyapong, reflecting on her internship in Mississippi State’s College of Arts and Sciences Dean’s Office last summer. “Even though I initially struggled because I was stuck with an academic writing mindset, it was an amazing experience to learn different ways of writing during my internship. I really learned a lot from it.”

Mississippi State University’s Story State 2025—an annual contest aimed at sharing Mississippi stories—is open for entries for new and original stories from all students enrolled at any Mississippi institution of higher learning.

Mississippi State faculty member Joseph Thompson continues to earn widespread recognition for his groundbreaking work on the intersection of music and military history, earning an international award for his acclaimed book “Cold War Country: How Nashville’s Music Row and the Pentagon Created the Sound of American Patriotism.”