HATTIESBURG, Miss. (AP) - More than a year after he took the reins at the University of Southern Mississippi, President Rodney Bennett was officially inaugurated Friday.
“I can’t tell you how much joy I have in my heart,” Bennett told the audience. “Thank you so much for this moment.”
The 10th president of the 15,000-student university has already faced a major challenge, leading the recovery of the Hattiesburg campus from a tornado that struck Feb. 10. That was days after he was chosen by the College Board, but before he even officially started the job on April 1, 2013.
Bennett was previously the vice president of student affairs at the University of Georgia. The former president of the University of Georgia, Michael Adams, was the guest speaker at the inauguration. He hailed Bennett’s selection as the first black person to lead a historically white university in Mississippi, reported the Hattiesburg American (https://hatne.ws/1i6bZpz).
“Such an act would have been unthinkable in many parts of the South even a few years ago,” Adams said. “The state of Mississippi and its leaders have come a long way, and it’s time for the nation to acknowledge such.”
Adams also praised Bennett’s personality.
“He is a person with a cheerful heart,” Adams said of Bennett. “He is affable, concerned and caring about people almost to a fault.”
Commissioner of Higher Education Hank Bounds officially invested Bennett with his office along with Aubrey Patterson, president of the College Board. “Through the experience he (Bennett) has gained throughout his career, he is prepared for this moment,” Bounds said.
Bennett also announced the creation of a scholarship in the College of Education and Psychology in honor of his parents Robert and Joanne Bennett, both in attendance.
“I’m grateful to each and every person who has touched my life,” Bennett told the audience during the ceremony. “And I’m excited to call the University of Southern Mississippi and city of Hattiesburg my home.”
Another inauguration was held Thursday at USM’s Gulf Coast campus in Long Beach.
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Information from: The Hattiesburg American, https://www.hattiesburgamerican.com
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