Send-Offs

Lakshmi Neelima Krishnagiri has left JSRI after 10 months initially working as a graduate research assistant and, after obtaining her Master of Science in business data analytics from Michigan State University College of Business, working as a professional aide. During her tenure at JSRI she worked closely with Dr. Marcelo Siles and Dr. Jean Kayitsinga on different projects, which required large data management. Neelima continually demonstrated her knowledge and high standards of professionalism managing huge data sets. She moved to Connecticut and is searching for a new full-time position related to her expertise. We wish her continued success in her professional career. Thank you, Neelima! We will miss you.

Seeking a Visionary Leader

The Julian Samora Research Institute (JSRI) has launched a national search for its next director.

“This significant step . . . will play a pivotal role in shaping the future of JSRI and initiatives,” wrote Acting Director Kwesi Brookins, vice provost for University Outreach and Engagement at MSU in a letter in this issue (see page 2). [keep or change/add link to "Letter from the Director"?]

JSRI is the premier Latino research institute in Michigan and the Midwest engaged in research with and for Latinx urban and rural communities, farmworkers and their families, farmers, and youth. The institute is a unit in the Office of University Outreach and Engagement (UOE), which emphasizes university-community partnerships that are collaborative, participatory, empowering, systemic, transformative, and anchored in scholarship. JSRI seeks a director who will best support and advance the mission of the institute. The director’s responsibilities include fostering collaborative partnerships with Latinx communities across Michigan; fundraising and development; providing leadership for daily operations; engaging in scholarship that advances the mission of the JSRI; mentoring new and emerging Latinx scholars; and facilitating an ongoing program of community-engaged research on Latinx in Michigan, the Midwest, and the United States.

For more information, please visit https://jsri.msu.edu. Questions? Please contact the search committee chair, Dr. Manny Chavez, at chavezm1@msu.edu.