Officials gathered in Starkville on Wednesday to cut a celebratory ribbon for the dedication of the Jim and Thomas Duff Center at Mississippi State University.
One of the school’s largest academic buildings, the Duff Center is the new home of the university’s Department of Kinesiology and key programs of its Mississippi Institute on Disabilities, including the Autism and Developmental Disabilities Clinic and ACCESS Program, along with specialized college services.
The three-story, 100,000-square-foot facility on Bully Boulevard is named in honor of brothers Jim and Tommy Duff, whose $15 million cornerstone gift made the center a reality. Wednesday’s ceremony celebrated the center as a major hub of Mississippi State’s human physiological research and treatment, including laboratories, classrooms, treatment rooms, and offices that enable increased hands-on training and services.
“The Jim and Thomas Duff Center—and the work that goes on here — will change many lives and help make our great state even better,” Mississippi State University President Mark E. Keenum said. “The Duff Center will help ensure the success of our mission of teaching, research, and service for decades to come.”
The Department of Kinesiology’s space features a 150-seat lecture hall, a 3,000-square-foot movement studio, and 15 laboratories focused on research ranging from sports administration to exercise science. Offering six distinctive concentration programs for undergraduate kinesiology majors, as well as specialized master’s and doctoral-level graduate training, the department supports the activities of a wide range of academic and research studies.
Housed within the university’s Mississippi Institute on Disabilities, or MIoD, the Autism and Developmental Disabilities Clinic gives children and families access to comprehensive behavioral health services. Its new space and enhanced capabilities are launching Mississippi State into the top five behavioral health clinics nationwide with training, research, and clinical services.
As the sibling flagship clinic of the School Psychology and Applied Behavior Analysis Services centers, the ADDC will now be able to serve 300-400 clients each week with its expanded space, helping fill the growing need for clinical services in North Mississippi. The ADDC includes the Pediatric Feeding Disorders Clinic, serving another need for the area.
MIoD also houses Mississippi State’s ACCESS Program and specialized college services, which support students with intellectual, developmental, and neurodiverse needs. The space is equipped with an apartment, kitchen, laundry facility, and classroom to advance independence, functional life skills, academics, and employment opportunities for college-age persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
Jim and Tommy Duff are the co-owners of Duff Capital Investors, a privately owned company headquartered in Columbia. Comprised of more than 20 businesses from trucking, tires, and automotive to construction, energy, and insurance, it is the largest collective enterprise in the state.
The brothers give to a wide variety of organizations and charities and are especially committed supporters of communities in which their Southern Tire Mart stores operate, and to the higher education system across Mississippi. Both brothers, recognizing the work Mississippi State has done to advance research, want to be a part of what the university is doing in Starkville.
As someone who experiences dyslexia, Jim Duff understands first-hand the difficulties of a learning disability and hopes this new center will be an essential source of support for students in need of assistance.
“I didn’t do well in school, and I’ve competed my whole adult life with people who are very educated,” Jim Duff said. “So, to me, education is very important. It brings me great satisfaction to be able to help this program and to invest in our state’s wonderful universities that are changing people’s lives every day.”
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Tommy Duff saw the negative effect his brother’s experience had on his time as a student. As a result, he wants their investments to help others see and experience education as an opportunity rather than an obstacle.
“Education should bring out the best in everyone,” Tommy Duff said. “We hope this gift will enable a center where students can grow their skills and self-confidence. There are a lot of bright kids in our state and at MSU, and we want them to have the ability to realize their potential to compete and succeed regardless of their means.”
Built on the former site of the McCarthy Gymnasium, the Duff Center is anchored by the McCarthy Quadrangle, or “The Quad.” Designed with functionality and aesthetics in mind, the green space is adjacent to Mississippi State’s drill field and features multiple pedestrian pathways radiating from a central flagpole, enhancing connectivity across campus and creating another hub for campus life.
