Upcoming Experiences
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Previous Experiences
Conscious Marketing in Tanzania
In Dr. Myles Landers’ Conscious Marketing course, students explore the purpose-driven side of business—how organizations balance profit with people, planet, and purpose. Through guest lectures from marketing professionals, students examine how firms engage stakeholders, lead with integrity, and integrate conscious principles into their strategies.
The experience goes far beyond the classroom. The course culminates in a three-week NOLS (National Outdoor Leadership School) leadership expedition in Tanzania, where students trek roughly 90 km through the wilderness alongside instructors James KG Kagambi, Patrick Thuita, and Clara. Over 20 days of backpacking, cooking, and camping—with no modern comforts—the students participate in leadership rotations, reflective discussions, and cultural exchanges with Maasai communities.
Through this immersive experience, students gain lessons in resilience, adaptability, and authentic leadership—understanding that guiding a team means listening to diverse perspectives, asking for help when needed, and leading with empathy.
“This course was the most challenging yet rewarding thing I’ve ever done. It pushed me to think differently about leadership, teamwork, and communication. I couldn’t have asked for a more impactful class.”
International Transportation
When students in Dr. Chris Boone’s International Transportation course tackle the Blue Star Case Study, they don’t just analyze fictional logistics scenarios—they dive into real-time industry data. Thanks to a partnership with McLeod Software and MSU alumnus Ken Ezelle (‘85), Vice President and owner of Universal Logistics Services, the class now uses McLeod’s trucking management system (TMS), one of the industry’s leading logistics platforms.
What began as a student project built on static data has evolved into an immersive, hands-on experience. Students now work with authentic shipping rates, freight costs, and performance metrics—culminating in a board-style presentation to industry professionals.
The partnership extends beyond the classroom. McLeod invites MSU students and faculty to its annual user conference, offering networking, career insight, and professional exposure. For McLeod, it’s a chance to connect with the next generation of supply chain leaders; for students, it’s preparation for the fast-changing logistics industry.
“It’s been a win-win,” says Ezelle. “Students get hands-on experience with one of the leading systems in transportation—and that makes them industry-ready before graduation.”
Live Case: Terra Delyssa & CHO America
Bringing marketing strategy to life through experiential learning
Spring '25 semester's corporate partner, CHO America—producer of the award-winning Terra Delyssa olive oil—invited our students to explore the intersection of brand strategy, sustainability, and international business. Over the course of the semester, students dedicated more than 200 hours of research and analysis to develop data-driven strategies for two new product launches targeting both B2B and B2C markets.
Key Achievements
- Conducted and analyzed a national survey of 600 olive oil consumers
- Performed retail audits across 40 grocery retailers and 25 e-commerce platforms
- Synthesized insights from 350+ secondary sources
- Completed 21 in-home ethnographic interviews and a social media analysis of 127 influencers
- Produced a 105-page research report supporting their strategic recommendations
- Delivered an hour-long presentation to CHO America executives
During spring break, students traveled to Tunisia, Africa, to visit Terra Delyssa’s facilities, meet with marketing executives, and experience the brand firsthand. From olive groves to packaging lines, they observed the company’s vertically integrated production, sustainable practices, and commitment to full traceability. Beyond the business insight, students engaged in meaningful cultural exchange—learning how global perspective and community values shape effective leadership.
“To improve your understanding of business, nothing compares to real-world experience. This course challenged our students to think critically, collaborate deeply, and grow both professionally and personally.”
— Dr. Myles Landers
Supply Chain Logistics Live Case
Hands-on learning. Global impact. Real results.
Fall of 2025, students have hit the ground running:
- Kicked off the semester with a joint team-building session alongside the Marketing Live Case class at Old Mountain Outdoor Adventures, strengthening collaboration and problem-solving skills.
- Completed an immersive site visit to Taylor Machine Works, Inc., touring facilities, observing manufacturing processes, and meeting with the Taylor team to better understand the semester’s logistics challenge.
- Represented the College of Business at the Intermodal Association of North America (IANA) Expo in Long Beach, California—an invaluable professional experience that also included a behind-the-scenes tour of the Port of Long Beach, one of the busiest logistics hubs in the world.
As the semester progressed, students transformed these experiences into actionable insights, delivering a final presentation that analyzed complex international freight challenges for Taylor Machine Works.
“The data is real, the challenges are real—and so are the results,” said course co-instructor Dr. Robert Moore. “Our students are learning how to apply logistics theory to real supply chain problems that make a measurable impact.”
The class also traveled to Savannah, Georgia, for a multi-stop experiential learning trip that included visits to:
- The Georgia Ports Authority, where students toured port operations and learned about intermodal expansion and global trade flow;
- TCW, for insights into drayage and intermodal trucking operations, hosted by Ben Banks and Thomas Morrison;
- Project Freight LLC, where Dennis Guenzerodt and Benjamin Whaley discussed specialized freight planning and heavy cargo logistics.
Throughout the experience, students connected with alumni, industry leaders, and corporate partners—building professional networks while gaining hands-on understanding of the global supply chain.
Conscious Marketing in Alaska
In the Conscious Marketing course, led by Dr. Myles Landers, this experiential learning course challenges students to understand how companies balance their people, profit, and the planet. The class begins on campus, where students explore concepts of conscious capitalism, stakeholder engagement, and environmental ethics through lectures and guest speakers.
The course then moves into the field with a partnership between MSU and the National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS). For these two weeks, the wilderness became the classroom as students embarked on a sea kayaking and camping expedition through Prince William Sound, Alaska. Guided by NOLS instructors, students developed outdoor and leadership skills—cooking in the wilderness, navigating by map, and leading their peers through the challenges of unpredictable weather and terrain.
“This course was the most challenging yet rewarding thing I’ve ever done,” said Maggie Clifton, a senior from Starkville, MS. “We learned how to make conscious decisions as marketers and as people—balancing social, economic, and environmental factors. My favorite memory was being woken up at 2 a.m. to see a pod of forty orcas rubbing their bellies on the beach right in front of us. Our instructors said it was something they had only ever read about.”
This inaugural course offered a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to apply marketing theory to real-world leadership and sustainability challenges, proving that at Mississippi State, learning doesn’t stop at the classroom door—it extends to the farthest corners of the world.
