The Smith-Lever Act of 1914 established the Cooperative Extension System, a publicly funded, informal educational system that links the United States Department of Agriculture, the land-grant university system, and individual counties. As the off-campus educational arm of Mississippi State University, Extension provides current research and educational information to individuals in all 82 counties. Mississippi State University Extension Service is also a cooperating partner with Alcorn State University, the 1890 land-grant institution in Mississippi.
Agriculture and natural resources, family and consumer education, enterprise and community resource development and 4-H youth development are Extension's ongoing priorities or "base programs." From these base programs, specific subjects or efforts emerge to receive emphasis for a period of time.