MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Mary Beck has been selected as the new head of the Department of Poultry Science at Mississippi State University.

Beck has served as a professor at Clemson University’s College of Agriculture, Forestry and Life Sciences since 2007. While there, she has held various leadership positions including chair of the Department of Animal and Veterinary Sciences. Prior to her position at Clemson, Beck worked as a professor at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

“Dr. Beck’s leadership skills in MSU’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences will be significant as we support the state’s largest agricultural industry through teaching, research and service,” said George Hopper, dean of CALS and director of the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station.

Beck earned her bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Richmond. A native of Maryland, she obtained her master’s and doctoral degrees in poultry physiology from the University of Maryland.

Gary Jackson, MSU Extension Service director, noted Beck’s impact on professional organizations, the poultry industry and the public.

“Throughout her career, Dr. Beck has shown the ability to lead a department in service, including her work with commodity boards and associations,” Jackson said. “She will be instrumental in leading the poultry science department into the future.”

Beck serves as the executive secretary of the Southern Poultry Science Association and is a section editor of the journal Poultry Science. She is a past president of the Poultry Science Association.

The Department of Poultry Science is part of MSU’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. Many of the department’s faculty members hold appointments with MAFES and the MSU Extension Service. MSU is one of just six U.S. universities to offer an undergraduate degree in poultry science. The department has 100 percent job placement for graduates.