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Veterinary college earns quality award By Keryn Page MISSISSIPPI STATE -- Mississippi State University's College of Veterinary Medicine has been recognized for its efforts in achieving performance excellence. The veterinary college earned the Quality Commitment Award, one of four awards given by the Mississippi Quality Awards program. MSU-CVM received the Quality Alignment Award last year. "This external evaluation of the organization gives us an opportunity to address the areas we can improve upon," said MSU-CVM dean Dr. John U. Thomson, who will attend the awards ceremony March 26 in Neshoba County. "This award brings us even closer to the quality education, research and service we are striving to provide." The Mississippi Quality Awards program, administered through the Mississippi State Board for Community and Junior Colleges, has four award levels -- The Governor's Award, The Excellence Award, The Quality Commitment Award and The Quality Alignment Award. These levels serve as steps to guide organizations already involved in continuous improvement programs to assess their capabilities and achievements toward achieving ever-increasing levels of performance excellence. Award criteria are based on those of the Baldrige National Quality Awards, named for Malcolm Baldrige, Secretary of Commerce from 1981 until his death in 1987. Baldrige awards recognize achievements in applying the principles of continuous improvement toward performance excellence. The Mississippi Quality Awards also recognize outstanding performance in seven areas: leadership, strategic planning, customer and market focus, information and analysis, human resource focus, process management, and business results. "This award is an important milestone in our efforts to install a system of quality management and continuous process improvement," said Julia Silverman, who serves as the quality initiative coordinator for MSU-CVM. "It also reinforces the vision of the College of Veterinary Medicine to strive for excellence in all that we do." The program was created through the Mississippi Workforce Education Act of 1994 to encourage business and industry to commit to the pursuit of excellence and reach for the competitive edge that will assure major growth. -30- Released: Feb. 12, 2004 Contact: Julia Silverman, (662) 325-1793

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