A jubilant Dr. Jerryl Briggs thanked a joyful crowd at Mississippi Valley State University on Thursday after being named the eighth president of the university.
The Mississippi Board of Trustees of the state Institutions of Higher Learning met on Thursday morning and unanimously voted to give Briggs the job. That decision followed a search committee process with a half-day of listening sessions held at MVSU last week.
Shane Hooper, vice president of the Board of Trustees and chairman of the board search committee for Valley, announced the board’s decision to a lively crowd of students and faculty as well as a large alumni contingent gathered on campus for Homecoming Week and the 35th Annual Alumni Summit.
Hooper said that more than 200 had participated in listening sessions, urging the committee to find a president who would move the university upward, not just forward; someone who knew the campus and had the best interests of Valley at heart; someone who listened to students and who understood the legacy of the university within the Delta; and someone who would work to raise Valley’s visibility within the community.
He said Briggs met all those requirements and more.
“We have carefully considered our options and your input, discussed where Valley is today and the incredible potential for this university going forward,” he said. “After considering all of these factors, it is our pleasure to announce that the board has voted unanimously to select Dr. Jerryl Briggs as the next president of Mississippi Valley State University.”
A standing ovation ensued.
Briggs, whose demeanor is generally reserved, took the podium, grinning broadly.
“I’m not normally a tearful man, but excuse me if I shed a couple of tears today,” he said.
“I say that because when you come from somewhere and you have a vision, you have an idea about where your life needs to be and go, and you come to a point where you actually see that happen, folks, it’s just a tremendous feeling.”
As he has customarily done, Briggs offered the recognition and the honor to his mother, saying she sacrificed and worked two and three jobs to make sure he always had what he needed to succeed.
“This not for me; this is for her,” he said.
Briggs emphasized that he does not intend to rest on the accomplishments of the last four years, when he served Valley as executive vice president and chief operating officer under former president William Bynum.
Those accomplishments include steady increases in enrollment, improvements in retention and graduation, a solid financial footing and a successful capital campaign and construction of improved athletic facilities.
“We’ve been doing some really good things here, but we’re not going to rest on that,” he said. “Valley is in motion, continuing to grow, and we will continue to make it better for our students.”
Briggs brings more than 30 years of experience working in higher education to MVSU. He has a Bachelor of Science degree from Xavier University in chemistry education, a Master of Arts in human relations and supervision from Louisiana Tech University, an Educational Specialist degree in higher education administration and a doctorate in educational policy, planning and leadership from the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia. He also completed Harvard University’s Institute for Educational Management program.
Higher Education Commissioner Glenn Boyce, who attended the announcement at the Business Education building on Valley’s campus, said Briggs was a natural choice.
“When we looked around, we realized Dr. Briggs was sitting right there and had been instrumental to the successes of the last four years at Valley, and there was one other factor,” Boyce said.
“We got a chance to observe him at work. We don’t always get that chance. We knew what he had achieved at Valley, that he had been involved in every aspect of the university, a university with an upward trajectory, and we were able to observe that firsthand.”
Boyce said that Briggs had the experience, stability, demeanor and ability to continue moving Valley forward, as was proven by his previous work.
John H. Johnson, president of the MVSU National Alumni Association, said that most of the alums he knows support Briggs and his efforts.
“We’re just pleased that Valley will continue to get all that it needs, and as alumni we’ll do our best to support those efforts financially,” Johnson said.
“We’re so pleased that it happened on this day because we have alumni on campus for the 35th Alumni Summit, and they are from all over the country. It’s good we’re all here to be a part of this process.”
•Contact Kathryn Eastburn at 581-7235 or keastburn@gwcommonwealth.com.
