Wes Burger, left, the 2016 Ralph E. Powe Research Excellence Award honoree, is congratulated by MSU President Mark E. Keenum. Burger is associate director of the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station, associate director of the Forest and Wildlife Research Center, Dale Arner Distinguished Professor of Wildlife Ecology, and Grisham Master Teacher in the Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Aquaculture at Mississippi State. He has secured more than $19 million in research grants, and authored 229 publications including 89 peer-reviewed journal articles, 47 peer-reviewed proceedings articles, 14 book chapters, and 79 semi-technical bulletins and articles. In his current role, Burger works to define, develop and administer a broadly-based research program of national significance in agriculture and natural resources. The Powe Award is a memorial to the MSU alumnus and longtime research vice president who died in 1996.