Pulling Back the Curtain: Grisham Master Teacher Kelly Moser unpacks ‘magic’ of teaching at upcoming lecture
STARKVILLE, Miss. (PRESS RELEASE) – According to an MSU Press Release, Mississippi State’s Grisham Lecture Series continues this month with a talk by 2025-26 Grisham Master Teacher Kelly Moser on purposeful practices in teaching.
Scheduled for April 23 at 3 p.m. in Mitchell Memorial Library’s John Grisham Room, the Department of Classical and Modern Languages and Literature associate professor’s lecture “Explaining the Trick: What Looks Like Magic in Teaching and Why It Isn’t” will explore the strategies, preparation and pedagogical insight behind transformative classroom experiences, offering a closer look at the work that drives effective teaching and student learning.
“Great teaching can look like magic from the outside, but that’s often because we don’t see the work behind it,” Moser said. “I want to pull back the curtain and show that what looks like magic is really a set of intentional practices that make learning visible.”
In addition to teaching undergraduate and graduate courses, Moser serves as director of teaching initiatives in the College of Arts and Sciences and mentors students and aspiring educators.
Named for internationally recognized author and MSU alumnus John Grisham, the Grisham Master Teacher recognition is one of the university’s highest honors for excellence in teaching. Established in 1993 through an endowment from the Grisham family, the award recognizes faculty members who demonstrate exceptional dedication to student learning and instructional innovation.
The Grisham Lecture Series highlights MSU’s most distinguished educators and gives the campus community an opportunity to engage with their professional journeys and teaching insight.
Moser and Holli Seitz, associate professor of communication, were named the university’s 2025-26 recipients. Seitz delivered her lecture in the fall.
For more information about MSU’s College of Arts and Sciences and the Department of Classical and Modern Languages and Literatures, visit www.cas.msstate.edu and www.cmll.msstate.edu.
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