Two recognition programs now under way at Mississippi State are memorializing the alumnus who died Sept. 11 in the terrorist attack on the Pentagon.

A flagpole memorial honoring the late Lt. Col. Jerry Dickerson Jr. is the goal of alumni and friends of the university's Army Reserve Officers Training Corps. Organizers have launched a $50,000 fund-raising effort.

A 1983 economics and ROTC graduate, Dickerson was a Durant native who first served in the Mississippi Army National Guard while completing his bachelor's degree.

In addition to the ROTC-based challenge, MSU President Malcolm Portera recently announced the creation of a scholarship endowment bearing Dickerson's name. The $20,000 funded endowment will support an annual scholastic award designated for a community college transfer student majoring in a College of Arts and Sciences discipline.

Dickerson enrolled in the college's economics degree program after graduating from Holmes Community College in his home county.

Richard Armstrong, executive director of development at MSU, said the flag monument will be a major exterior feature of the new $8.5 million alumni association and development office complex now under construction at the western entrance of campus. The 41,000-square-foot facility is being named for alumnus Hunter Henry Jr., a Canton native and retired Dow Chemical USA president.

"The flag monument is one of the naming opportunities available at the Hunter Henry Center," Armstrong said. "Our Army ROTC program leadership and numerous Army ROTC alumni and friends thought it would make a fitting tribute to Lt. Col. Dickerson.

"When constructed, the monument will be both a memorial to a fallen active duty alumnus and a lasting tribute to all MSU graduates who have served in the United States Army since the ROTC program's inception in 1916," Armstrong added.

Proceeds received for the flag monument beyond the $50,000 goal will be applied to the Dickerson Scholarship, Armstrong said.

"Jerry's death is a great loss to MSU and our ROTC program," said Lt. Col. W. Logan Hickman Jr., the university's professor of military science and Army ROTC commander. "His life epitomized the selfless service of all MSU graduates."

For more information or to make a contribution to the Dickerson Flag Memorial, telephone the Army ROTC office at 325-3503.

For more information about the Dickerson Scholarship Endowment, telephone Amy Cagle at 325-1006.