Alcorn State University has named Renardo Murray dean of graduate studies.
Murray comes to the post from the College of Arts and Sciences, where he served as acting dean.
He knows the campus. He earned his first degree here, returned as a faculty member and has spent the better part of three decades teaching, building programs and recruiting students to Alcorn State.
“Dr. Renardo Murray’s appointment as Dean of Graduate Studies comes at an exciting time for Alcorn State University as we continue to strengthen our academic enterprise, expand research opportunities, and enhance student success outcomes,” said Dr. Joyce Buckner-Brown, provost and vice president for academic affairs at Alcorn State University. “Dr. Murray’s experience and leadership position him well to guide the growth of our graduate programs and support our commitment to academic excellence, innovation, and impact. I am confident that his contributions will help advance the university’s strategic goals and further distinguish Alcorn as a leader in graduate education.”
He starts his day with the student in mind.
“My goal is to create a more student-centered graduate experience by making our processes more efficient, supportive and transparent,” Murray said.
In the new role, he will provide leadership and operational oversight for the university’s graduate programs.
That work spans recruitment, graduate admissions, academic policy, student success and program quality, along with compliance with accreditation and institutional standards.
Recruitment sits near the top of that list.
Murray draws a sharp line between graduate recruiting and the undergraduate recruitment experience.
“Graduate students are making a strategic investment in their careers,” he said. “They want to know how a degree will help them advance professionally, increase their earning potential, develop specialized expertise or prepare them for leadership roles.”
They also want programs that bend to fit the lives they already have to include flexible delivery, strong faculty mentorship and applied learning that works alongside job and family duties.
Murray earned a Bachelor of Science in music education at Alcorn State University, a Master of Music Education at Jackson State University and a doctorate in music education at the University of Mississippi.
His professional affiliations include the Mississippi Bandmasters Association, the Magnolia Band Directors Association, Kappa Kappa Psi National Band Fraternity Inc. and Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity Inc.
He keeps an active schedule as a research presenter, education consultant, adjudicator and clinician.
Murray and his wife, Alicia, have three sons, Eric, Malcolm and Nicholas.
Murray has seen Alcorn State from all three chairs. He says that is what he brings into the room when he sits down with a prospective graduate student.
“I understand the transformative power of an Alcorn education because I have lived it,” he said. “I am not simply describing what Alcorn has to offer. I am living proof of what is possible.”
