Two new members joined the office of outreach and communications this year, allowing for the expansion and addition of several components within marketing and outreach efforts for the college.
Media Specialist Livingston Sykes joined the college in May 2024 and has spent her first year building a strong digital presence for the college and showcasing the people, programs, and impact of veterinary medicine at Mississippi State.
Skyes has implemented a strategic social media campaign boosting awareness of the CVM and its academic programs. She has also produced and published daily social media content, capturing everything from clinic patient success stories to impactful research and student life across the program. Her efforts have paid off; the college’s social media accounts are now outperforming many other veterinary schools around the country.
In addition to social media, Sykes has written and published weekly feature articles for the CVM website, spotlighting faculty, staff, students, and patients. These stories have not only highlighted the expertise within the college but also created opportunities to connect with a wider audience, including prospective students, donors and friends of the college, as well as alumni.
“I wanted to create a consistent voice and rhythm for our communication that really reflects the energy and accomplishments of our college,” Sykes said. “The daily posts and weekly stories are an integral part of doing this.”
Wade Leonard joined the college as marketing and communications manager in June 2024 and has spent his first year developing new ways to help promote it.
Leonard has added two much-needed components to CVM communication efforts, creating a twice-monthly podcast and monthly digital newsletter.
Since debuting in September of 2024, the VetMed Cast, which is available anywhere podcasts may be downloaded, includes more than a dozen hours of content and has been downloaded about 2500 times in a dozen different countries.
His monthly digital newsletter assumed the college’s former semi-annual magazine name, Pegasus Press, and is a compilation of timely articles and photos with a message from the dean. It has been viewed by many thousands since publication began in January of 2025.
Leonard has also been charged with overseeing a complete overhaul of the college’s website and is rethinking the web presence from the ground up. Plans include transitioning to four separate sites: a main CVM site, a site for the hospital system (AHC and AERC), a site for the state-wide diagnostic laboratory system, and a site for the veterinary medical technology undergraduate degree program.
“It’s important to understand that the CVM really is a university within a university. It’s challenging to fit all the amazing things we are doing ‘under one roof,’” Leonard says. “By expanding our web properties, we are going to give all areas of the CVM a chance to shine and be seen.”
Additional accomplishments during the last fiscal year were overseen by CVM Director of Outreach Mel Thurlow. These included production of the inaugural issue of Insights in January, which is a new quasi magazine and annual report for the college and now has a distribution timeline of October. Thurlow also oversaw creation of the new MSU CVM seal as well as the social media marketing campaign currently underway. In addition, she developed the comprehensive Video ViewBook now accessible on the CVM website and is responsible for the transformation of the second floor lobby—commonly known as the Bull Ring—into a promotional venue for the college.
CVM Coordinator of Photography Tom Thompson celebrated 30 years with the college this year and continues to provide outstanding photo services for the college and its many departments and programs. Thompson’s beautiful and compelling work is the foundation for a lion’s share of the marketing and communications efforts of the group, offering a visual representation of the many impressive things happening at the college daily. From this publication and the Bull Ring to digital newsletters to social media posts, his photos bring the work being done at CVM to life.
