Commissioner Andy Gipson Recognizes Partnership Between Mississippi State Fairgrounds and Alcorn State University

Commissioner Andy Gipson Recognizes Partnership Between Mississippi State Fairgrounds and Alcorn State University

During the 162nd Mississippi State Fair, Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce Andy Gipson recognized the partnership between the Mississippi State Fairgrounds and Alcorn State University. Commissioner Gipson was joined by Dr. Felicia Nave, president of Alcorn State University, and other representatives of Alcorn State University. Pictured on front row (L-R): Dr. Ontario Wooten; Sheba Moses; O.D. Howard; President Nave; Commissioner Gipson; Tommy Milton; Leslie Walker; and Manola Erby. Pictured on back row (L-R) Ralph Arrington and Antione Tenner. 

Story courtesy of the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce

During the 162nd Mississippi State Fair, Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce Andy Gipson recognized the partnership between the Mississippi State Fairgrounds and Alcorn State University. Commissioner Gipson was joined by Dr. Felicia Nave, president of Alcorn State University.

“Alcorn State Extension has been a staple here at the fairgrounds, and a partner with the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce (MDAC), for years,” said Commissioner Gipson. “This partnership dates back to 1994, when Alcorn State started with two mules as part of their working exhibit that created hot, fresh cane syrup. Today, the Alcorn State booth includes a similar, but more modern exhibit with a mobile syrup processing unit. The syrup they make goes hand in hand with the buttermilk biscuits provided by MDAC’s famous Biscuit Booth.”

Alcorn State Extension’s display boasts of the only sugar cane harvester of its kind in the United States. The booth is located next to MDAC’s Biscuit Booth along the Midway at the Mississippi State Fairgrounds. A related sugar cane exhibit and mule are next to the Alcorn exhibit inside the State Fair’s Mississippi Frontier Village.

“We are delighted to continue our working relationship with the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce,” said President Nave. “Not only have we recently partnered on an initiative highlighting Mississippi universities, our school has proudly participated in the annual State Fair for over 20 years by offering an educational and delicious exhibit in conjunction with the Biscuit Booth.”

In 2021, a seat on the Mississippi State Fairgrounds Advisory Council was added to represent Alcorn State University. And in recognition of Alcorn’s 150th anniversary and as the nation’s oldest public historically Black land-grant institution, MDAC’s 2021 regulatory inspection stickers used across the state from fuel pumps to scales featured the purple and gold colors of Alcorn State University.

The Mississippi State Fairgrounds, a division of MDAC, is hosting the 162nd Mississippi State Fair through Sunday, October 17. Visit www.msstatefair.com for more information on the Mississippi State Fair.