2023 December Warrior web

Harriet Laird P ublic R elations S pecialist N amed A lumna of the Y ear

In recognition of her outstanding contri bution to the field of educational public rela tions and her continued dedication to East Central Community College, Harriet Vickers Laird (’84) of Starkville was selected the col lege’s 2023 Alumna of the Year. Laird expressed both shock and excite ment when notified of her selection. “I have such a long and memorable history with East Central and it just was thrilling to get that call from Dr. Gregory,” she said. Laird currently serves the Office of Public Affairs at Mississippi State University as se nior associate director within the Division of

truly a gift. “I had to work and improve over the years, but I think I’ve always had that gift,” she said. “When choosing a career, news writing appealed to me so I majored in journalism at USM (University of Southern Mississippi). Then I discovered public relations was an option and stayed to complete my master’s with that focus.” While completing her degrees, Laird participated in internships with Mississippi Power’s headquarters in Gulfport, The Laurel Leader-Call newspaper, and East Central Community College. She said she was fortu nate to have had great teachers and role-models who enhanced her writing and PR knowledge. She said, “To

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Strategic Commu nications, having previously served as associate direc tor since 2008. In her role at MSU, Laird helps

EC was home to me . I spent my childhood and grew up there . I did everything on campus ...

lead and coordinate projects across the office, providing guidance to the branding, news, social media, graphic de sign and photography units, and monitoring adherence to the university’s visual and verbal identity standards. Sid Salter, Vice President for Strategic Communications and Director of Public Affairs at Mississippi State Universi ty, said, “I can think of no one more deserving of this honor than Harriet Laird. Her family’s investment in ECCC has been phenomenal and her work at Mississippi State reflects the lessons she learned watching her parents serve at East Central. Harriet is the consummate professional and none of the success we have enjoyed in our part of the university administration would have been possible without Harriet’s strong influence. I count on her. She is my good right arm, and she and her husband Jim are an integral part of the MSU administration.” In addition to her MSU duties, Laird has been an active member of the Council for Advancement and Support of Education, serving as a CASE District III board member for many years and as a conference chair and committee mem ber. She also is serving the College Public Relations Associa tion of Mississippi as its 2023-24 vice president. Laird’s longtime relationship with East Central Communi ty College began when her parents, the late Ovid and Carol Vickers, brought her home from the hospital to the Decatur campus where he was an English instructor and Carol was a junior high school teacher. She and her mother become just the second mother and daughter duo to both be named Alumna of the Year, some thing Laird admitted made this award extra special. Having grown up with parents who were both writers, Laird said she felt she was born with an innate ability to write. She said it took many years to realize that writing is “

be a good public relations practitioner, you must be willing to be in the background. Your job is to put others or the institution in the spotlight while you stand back and watch them have success, all the while taking pride in your work as a support system and promoter. There is a satisfaction in being the person who works behind the scenes to make institutions and other people be the best they can be.” She began her career in 1988 as a copywriter at McRae’s Department Stores’ headquarters in Jackson before accept ing a director position at Copiah-Lincoln Community Col lege in Wesson, which would be the catalyst for a longtime career in educational public relations. “Education was familiar to me because I had grown up on campus at East Central and it was just a natural fit. Mother taught in the public school system for years, and I was con stantly around educators and instructors.” Beginning in 1992, following four years at Co-Lin, she served 13 years as public relations director for Hinds Com munity College. She followed that with a move into the corporate sector as communications coordinator for Nissan North America in Canton where she said she “gained im measurable experience in internal communications” before joining MSU in 2008. Laird said, “With educational public relations, I had most ly focused on external communications. My almost three year term with Nissan taught me so much about employee communications and getting accurate information to those in the workplace.” She said she has been blessed with exceptional mentors during her career, surrounded by administrators and co workers who have truly enriched her life. One such advisor, teacher and friend is Jackie Granberry,

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