The Mississippi Excellence in Teaching Program provides a free education for teaching students, but there is a catch: To qualify, the student has to make a commitment to stay and teach in Mississippi for five years.
That didn’t seem like much of a demand for Carrington Davis, a senior elementary education major at Mississippi State from Columbus.
“I truly love Starkville and I truly love Columbus,” Davis said. “So I certainly wouldn’t be opposed to staying close to home, not at all.”
By her own admission, Davis is something of a homebody.
On Saturday evening when Mississippi State hosts Kentucky at Davis Wade Stadium, the homebody will have another title: Homecoming Queen.
“I just get chills thinking about it,” said Davis, who emerged from a field of eight candidates to win the election, which was announced on Oct. 10. “I feel like it’s the culmination of all the amazing experiences I’ve had and the people I’ve met over the past three-and-a-half years. It’s about all the emotions and feelings and love that I have for Mississippi State.”
The 10-day campaign, which revolved primarily around connecting with students as they made their way across the Drill Field, as well as working on a service project (Davis organized a fundraiser to support elementary schools in Starkville at Strange Brew Coffeehouse) was a departure for Davis.
Although she had been active in campus life since arriving at MSU, running for Homecoming Queen was new for her.
She wasn’t a part of the Homecoming court during her years at New Hope High School, but she did become Sophomore Maid at MSU in 2021.
“The maids are selected after interviews with faculty and staff, so this was the first time I’ve ever been in an election,” Davis said. “It was a little out of my comfort zone in putting myself out there. I really enjoyed it. I’m a people person and the best part of the whole process was meeting so many students and getting to know the other candidates. I don’t think any of the candidates had any idea how it would turn out, but I was happy with how it all went because I had so much fun.”
Her parents, Todd and Angela Davis, drove over to hear the results of the election, which was announced on the steps of Lee Hall.
Davis said her mom, who had been a Junior Maid at MSU, was especially thrilled to hear the outcome.
“I think she was probably more excited about it than I was, if that’s possible,” Davis said.
It’s hard to imagine the student body could have selected anyone with a greater affection for MSU than Davis. Both of her parents and two older brothers are MSU Alumni and Davis has served as a Roadrunner, a group of students who help recruit prospective students to MSU since her sophomore year. Last year, Davis served as an Orientation Leader for new students.
“Getting to work with potential students as a Roadrunner, then seeing so many of those students on campus when I was an orientation leader made me feel like I was able to play a small part in bringing some of them to State,” she said.
For as long as she can remember, there were two things Davis seemed to understand: She would go to school at Mississippi State and become a teacher.
“When I was a little girl, two of my favorite things were going to Mississippi State football games and playing school” with my friends,” she said. “I always dreamed of going to school at MSU, and I always dreamed of being a teacher one day. A lot of my friends weren’t sure where they wanted to go to school or what they wanted to study, but I couldn’t even imagine being in that situation. I always knew.”
Davis, 21, will graduate in May, but intends to pursue a Masters in Teaching.
At Mississippi State, of course.
Slim Smith is a columnist and feature writer for The Dispatch. His email address is [email protected].
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