The mission of Mississippi Valley State University's Delta Research and Cultural Institute (DRCI)is to promote enlightened development in the Mississippi Delta region of the United States. DRCI strives to crystallize ways of thinking about the host of social problems that beset the Delta region of Mississippi and the viability of the culture of the region for generating alternative solutions to address these problems. It seeks to fulfill this mission by engaging scholars, students and community leaders in participatory action research and reflection to assess and describe the quality of life and human rights concerns confronting residents in the Delta.

DRCI expects that reliable descriptions of the quality of life in the Delta can be constructed and used to enhance its culture, inform public discourse, and lead to progressive public policy implementation and sustained development throughout the region. This electronic learning, research & development e-forum is one such vehicle that promotes an action research agenda to clarify & improve upon these descriptions.

DRCI current initiatives include:


* Emmett L. Till Social Science Reading Room & Human Rights Data Bank
* Delta Blues Experience: Databank, Civil Rights & Human Wrongs Action Research Project, & Regional Education Tour
* Delta Blues/Cultural Heritage & Dignity Regional Alliance
* DRCI Service Center for Rural Leadership Development & Technical Assistance; and
* Infusing Delta Studies into MVSU's Curriculum