Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College’s West Harrison County Center in Long Beach is offering training in Heavy Equipment Maintenance Technology (HEMT) at no cost to qualified individuals. The college has received a grant for student scholarships in this program through Accelerate Mississippi and the Mississippi Office of Workforce Development.

“This is an incredible opportunity for individuals interested in a high-demand career with excellent salary potential,” said Millie Bordelon, dean of the West Harrison County Center.  “MGCCC’s program uses the highest industry standards in preparing students, with training consisting of classwork, computer and simulator exercises, and hands-on labs.  The grant adds to that the potential for students to complete their college degree with no student debt.”

The HEMT program is an instructional program that provides students with competencies required to maintain and repair a variety of industrial diesel equipment, including agricultural tractors, commercial trucks, and construction equipment. The program includes instruction in inspection, repair, and maintenance of engines, power trains, hydraulic systems, and other components.

The curriculum utilizes both Automotive Service Excellence (ASE) standards and Standards for Construction Equipment Technology (AED). This provides graduates with national standards for certification of medium/heavy truck and construction equipment technician programs.

Day and evening options are available for the program, with students able to complete a certificate in two semesters, a diploma in three semesters or an Associate of Applied Science degree in four semesters.  Classes begin October 18.

For more information on this program, contact (228) 563-2236 or gcwr@mgccc.edu.

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Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College’s West Harrison County Center in Long Beach has been named an official training provider by the U.S. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA), a division of the U.S. Department of Transportation. Beginning in February 2022, entry-level driver training through an approved provider will be required for all those who take the commercial driver’s license (CDL) skills or knowledge tests.

As an official training provider, MGCCC will be listed on the FMCSA Training Provider Registry.  Once operational, the FMCSA Training Provider Registry will retain a record of which applicants for a CDL have completed the new training and certification process outlined in the Entry-Level Driver Training (ELDT) regulations.  It will also provide a web system that will help CDL applicants connect with qualified training providers to get the training they need to safely operate commercial motor vehicles.

“We are excited about the opportunity to be an FMCSA official training provider,” said Millie Bordelon, dean of the West Harrison County Center.  “MGCCC has always maintained high standards in its CDL training program to improve safety on our roads for our graduates as well as other drivers. Our listing as an official training provider further validates the outstanding job our instructors do in preparing our students for successful driving careers.”

Commercial truck drivers are in demand, especially since the COVID-19 pandemic began last year.  The Bureau of Labor Statistics said there has been a shortage of drivers for the past year, with the U.S. was already short 60,000 drivers in 2019. That number is anticipated to swell to 100,000 by 2023.  Additionally, data showed that in the depths of the COVID-19 pandemic the truck transportation industry lost 6 percent of its pre-pandemic labor force of 1.52 million workers. While the industry has recovered some of those lost jobs, it is still short of pre-pandemic levels.

“A career in commercial truck driving has never been a better choice, with higher salaries and sign-on bonuses with many companies,” Bordelon said.  “MGCCC’s program uses a combination of lectures, demonstrations, computer-based and simulator learning programs, and hours of on-the-road training with our qualified instructors.  The program, offered in either morning and afternoon classes, prepares students for their CDL exams and to be successful commercial motor vehicle operators.”

For more information about MGCCC’s Commercial Truck Driving program, email gcwr@mgccc.edu or call (228) 563-2220.

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This year’s initiative highlights the growing importance of cybersecurity and encouraging individuals and organizations to take necessary measures to stay safe and secure in an increasingly connected world.

Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College announced its commitment to Cybersecurity Awareness Month, held annually in October, by signing up as a 2021 Champion and joining a growing global effort to promote the awareness of online safety and privacy. The Cybersecurity Awareness Month Champions Program is a collaborative effort among businesses, government agencies, colleges and universities, associations, nonprofit organizations, and individuals committed to the Cybersecurity Awareness Month theme of ‘Do Your Part. #BeCyberSmart.’

“MGCCC is proud to be selected as a 2021 Cybersecurity Champion, committed to providing our employees and students the information they need to safely navigate the internet, email, and other platforms available at both work and home,” said Dr. Mary S. Graham, MGCCC president.

More than ever before, technology plays a part in almost everything we do. Connected devices have been woven into society as an integral part of how people communicate and access services essential to their well-being. Despite these great advances in technology and the conveniences this provides, recent events have shown us how quickly our lives and businesses can be disrupted when cyber criminals and adversaries use technology to do harm. Cybersecurity Awareness Month aims to shed light on these security vulnerabilities, while offering actionable guidance surrounding behaviors anyone can take to protect themselves and their organizations. Everyone has a responsibility to do their part in securing our interconnected world.

This year, the Cybersecurity Awareness Month’s main weekly focus areas will revolve around the following:

• Understanding and implementing basic cyber hygiene, including the importance of strong passphrases, using multi-factor authentication, performing software updates, and backing up data.
• Recognizing and reporting phishing attempts, whether it’s through email, text messages, or chat boxes.
• Empowering individuals to not only practice safe online behavior but consider joining the mission of securing our online world by considering a career in cybersecurity.
• Making cybersecurity a priority in business by making products and processes “secure by design” and considering cybersecurity when purchasing new internet-connected devices.

If everyone does their part – implementing stronger security practices, raising community awareness, educating vulnerable audiences, or training employees – our interconnected world will be safer and more resilient for everyone.

Now in its 18th year, Cybersecurity Awareness Month continues to build momentum and impact with the goal of providing everyone with the information they need to stay safer and more secure online. MGCCC is proud to support this far-reaching online safety awareness and education initiative which is co-led by the National Cyber Security Alliance and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency (CISA) of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

About Cybersecurity Awareness Month
Cybersecurity Awareness Month is designed to engage and educate public- and private-sector partners through events and initiatives with the goal of raising awareness about cybersecurity to increase the resiliency of the nation in the event of a cyber incident. Since the Presidential proclamation establishing Cybersecurity Awareness Month in 2004, the initiative has been formally recognized by Congress, federal, state, and local governments and leaders from industry and academia. This united effort is necessary to maintain a cyberspace that is safer and more resilient and remains a source of tremendous opportunity and growth for years to come. For more information, visit staysafeonline.org/cybersecurity-awareness-month/.

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Affection for animals of every variety has been a source of inspiration in the lives and artwork of many Coast artists, as seen in the group exhibit “Menagerie,” on display at MGCCC Harrison County Campus’s Fine Art Gallery through October 28, 2021.

Baba Scaturro is well-known for her whimsical animal pieces such as “Felis,” a ceramic sculpture with underglazing. It commemorates the life of her cat Felis, whom she had for 17 years.  “Animals have always been a part of my life. I feel totally disconnected and incomplete without them,” she said. “It’s no wonder they continually show up in my sculptures.

LucyEllen Landry Cummings began to create digital pet portraits during the pandemic lockdown.  “I had several friends lose pets, so I started doing them as memorials, then birthday gifts, and a few commissions,” she said. “I love being able to capture these beloved animals for people. The sad reality is we can’t love our pets into longer lives, but I hope that my art can give us a little piece of forever with our babies.”

Tessa Rose’s cat Blackie has been frequently featured in her art since he adopted her six years ago.  “He used to be a feral cat. Now he lives in kitty-cat luxury,” she said of her painting “The King.” “This painting really captures the transformation of the life he used to have versus the life he lives now.”

Katie McCann makes artwork about animals because she has always felt a special connection to them. “I was inspired to volunteer at the Jackson County Animal Shelter in 2014 and started fostering bottle babies,” she said.  “One of my favorite quotes regarding rescue is: ‘I asked God to send help to save the homeless, sick, and abandoned animals.’ God replied, ‘I have sent help. I sent you.’” McCann said.

Other participating artists include Tracy Williams, Herb Willey, Jaszy Smith, Anthony Badon, and Rhonda Herring.

The exhibit is free and open to the public. Gallery hours are Monday–Thursday, 9 a.m.–3 p.m. and Friday, 9 a.m.–1 p.m.

The Harrison County Campus is located at 2226 Switzer Rd, Gulfport. The art gallery is located in the fine arts building, Building D.

For more information, contact gallery director Cecily Cummings at cecily.cummings@mgccc.edu or 228.897.3909.

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Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College will host Fall Festivals at the Jackson County Campus in Gautier and the Harrison County Campus in Gulfport on Tuesday, October 26. Each festival will feature a trunk-or-treat, which will be open from 5-8 p.m. on the Jackson County Campus and 5-7 p.m. on the Harrison County Campus. Other activities at the Harrison County Campus will continue from 5-8 p.m.

Fun and free activities at the Jackson County Campus include children’s games and activities, face painting, cupcake walk, dance party, and more.  Concessions will be on sale (cash only).

The Harrison County Campus will also host a Haunted Trail with a $5 admission.  Face coverings are required on the Haunted Trail. Free activities include an outdoor movie, outdoor inflatable games, pumpkin painting, face painting, cupcake walk, and more.  Concessions will be on sale (cash only).

“We are excited about hosting our ninth annual festival at the Jackson County Campus,” said Brandi Martino, coordinator of Student Life at the Jackson County Campus.  “We look forward to having more than 3,000 visitors as we have in the past.”

Paige Cannon, Student Activities coordinator at the Harrison County Campus, agreed.  “This is our seventh annual festival, and we are looking forward to many, many visitors this year.  It is thrilling for us to be able to offer the festival to residents because it provides a safe, secure, central location for parents to bring their children for a little holiday fun.  Additionally, our students enjoy participating.”

The Jackson County Campus festival entrance is at the gymnasium on campus.  Entrance to the Harrison County Campus festival should be made from Debuys Road on the east side of campus.

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Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College will host the exhibit “The Art and Heart of a Sculptor: Portraits in Bronze and Fired Clay” featuring the artwork of Michelle Drane Smith at the Jackson County Campus Fine Arts Gallery. The show will open to the public at noon on October 21 and will run until December 17.

Smith began her experience in sculpture at the age of 15 when she began learning taxidermy.  “It never occurred to me that building the artificial bodies to go into the skins was sculpture. That lay dormant for over 40 years. In the meantime, I got a degree in nursing and a Master’s Degree in Pediatric Nursing and had four children.”

At age 38, she began painting.  “I enjoyed that enormously, balancing that with 4 children and working in the O.R. in later years.”  In 1993, she began her venture into sculpture, making seven portrait busts in one summer.  “When I got my hands on that clay, I had come home. As far back as I can remember I have enjoyed creative activity of one sort or another, but sculpture continues to be the most exciting, most satisfying thing I’ve ever done.”

Gallery hours are Monday – Friday, 9 a.m. – 3 p.m.  There will be an Artist Talk/Q&A in the gallery for the opening on October 21. A reception will be held on October 23 from 2-4 p.m. in the gallery.

For more information on the exhibit, visit mgccc.edu/michelle-drane-smith or contact Marc Poole, Gallery director at marc.poole@mgccc.edu.

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Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College’s School of Visual and Performing Arts at the Perkinston Campus is hosting Taco’bout Art Fall Student Showcase on November 16 at Malone Hall on the Perkinston Campus.  The event includes performances by the MGCCC Jazz Band, Perkettes, Jazz Dance Class Students, and Mississippi Sound, and an exhibit of the works by MGCCC visual art students.  The event, which begins at 5:30 p.m., is free and open to the public.

In a celebration of Latin culture, audience members will have the opportunity to indulge in food from south of the border as they enjoy student performances and artwork.  A formal gallery talk will provide more information about the artwork. At 6:30 p.m., the MGCCC Jazz Band, Perkettes, and Mississippi Sound members will present a fun concert that will reflect and celebrate art derived from Hispanic cultures.

Previously known as the Tri-Art-A-Thon, the annual Student Arts Showcase is a collaborative event that allows students to display their artistic talents.  For many of these students, art has played an important role and been a therapeutic tool throughout the trialing time of Covid-19. This event provides audience members an artistic escape from the harshness of our current reality, allowing them the opportunity to experience the creativity and light these students have discovered during the pandemic.

For more information, contact Sandra Cassibry at sandra.cassibry@mgccc.edu.

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Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, in partnership with Memorial Hospital at Gulfport, is offering a Public Health Technology/Navigator program through the School of Nursing and Health Professions.  With employment opportunities and salaries growing across the nation in health care-related professions, there is a need for trained patient navigators to assist a growing population in managing an ever-changing health care environment.

The program is a stackable credentialed two-year program of study that prepares the graduate to work in jobs such as public health specialist, patient navigator, health insurance navigator, health care advocate, and public health educator.  As a certificate, diploma, and/or academic degree program, the Public Health Technology/Navigator program is designed to be compatible with a wide range of health systems, state regulations, and health services delivery models that recognize the value these services provide to enhance the public health of patients and communities.

The goals of the partnership between MGCCC and Memorial Hospital at Gulfport are to establish and expand workforce training, internships, apprenticeships, and externships for students in the program, to expand academic pathways to strengthen and broaden current agreements, to recruit and retain talented students and graduates and fill employee vacancies for Memorial Hospital, and to provide scholarships and grant opportunities for navigator students.

The Public Health Technology/Navigator program will begin each spring semester. The application deadline for the spring 2022 semester is January 12, 2022. Openings are filled based on selective admission. Visit https://mgccc.edu/navigator for more information about specific admission requirements.

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Gulf Coast Impressions, an exhibit featuring the works of husband-and-wife team John and Tricia McDonald, will be on display at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College’s Harrison County Campus Fine Arts Gallery November 8- December 9. A closing reception will be held on December 9, noon -1 p.m.

The McDonalds are the proprietors of Coastal Impressions Studio in their hometown of Pass Christian. The exhibit features a variety of paintings -local scenes in mediums including watercolor and pastel- from their studio.

John began his artistic training in 1963 when he started work as an illustrator for the U. S. Air Force Air Ground Operations School in Fort Walton Beach, Florida.  His training continued through the 1970s at Woodstock, New York, studying with John Pike and Edgar Whitney. The contrasting styles of his two teachers helped him develop a balance between freedom of expression and a more controlled approach in his painting.

He began teaching watercolor workshops in the late 1970s and found pleasure in assisting others to express themselves.  John’s desire is to preserve in his art the history and beauty of the coastal communities where he spent his youth.

Tricia has been drawing and painting her entire life. As a teen, her artistic aunt encouraged her to pursue the arts. She credits her teacher, Warren Dennis, for making the study of art history vibrant and inspiring.

Tricia has been an art teacher for all ages, both in the school systems and privately. She continues to expand her skills, taking classes and workshops frequently.

The couple married in 1993 and have enjoyed many years of working together.

They have a great deal of admiration for one another’s creativity and talent, though they admit it took several years to figure out how two married people in the same profession could function in a “sane manner” while both were working in the same household.

They have learned to give one another space, especially when one has a paintbrush in hand.

“We talk art a lot. When traveling, we are constantly observing the landscape for interesting shapes, colors, darks, and lights,” John said.

“While I used to object or take offense before John could even finish talking,” Tricia said of John’s art critiques, “I have long since found that I usually agree with what he’s saying. We both appreciate good values and good design.”

As they move forward with making art, Tricia said what’s important to them both is “finding homes for our art with people who really enjoy and appreciate it.”

The Harrison County Campus exhibit is free and open to the public. The campus is located at 2226 Switzer Rd, Gulfport. The art gallery is in the Fine Arts building, building D.

Gallery hours are Monday–Thursday, 9 a.m.–3 p.m., and Friday, 9 a.m.–1 p.m.

For more information, contact gallery director Cecily Cummings at cecily.cummings@mgccc.edu or 228.897.3909.

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Students from George County High School and Stone County High School, along with members of the community, enjoyed the MGCCC-MSU Agricultural Science Day at the Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College George County Center in Lucedale on November 18. The event included Mississippi State University (MSU) College of Agricultural and Life Sciences professors and students and local agricultural science professionals. An information fair provided materials on the Agricultural Science Pathway offered through MGCCC and MSU at the George County Center. The students enjoyed sessions by MSU and MGCCC staff and administration as well as a panel of professionals in the field of ag science.

“We were thrilled to offer an introduction to our new Ag Science pathway to these high school students as well as members of our local community while also providing excellent information about the future of agriculture in our state and nation,” said Dr. Lisa Rhodes, administrative dean of the George County Center.

The agricultural science program began earlier this year as a partnership between MGCCC and MSU.  Through the program, students will receive an Associate of Arts degree at MGCCC and then continue working toward a Bachelor of Science degree at MSU.

After completing 30 credit hours at MGCCC, students can be dually admitted at both institutions. An MSU advisor will make routine visits to MGCCC to guide students in their academic progress toward the Bachelor of Agricultural Science degree. MGCCC will facilitate a trip to MSU every semester for students in the pathway program to see the MSU campus and learn more about the educational opportunities offered in the field.

Once enrolled at MSU, students can choose from several focus areas for their studies through the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. These include agribusiness; agricultural education, leadership and communications; agricultural pest management; animal production; floral management; floriculture and ornamental horticulture; food sciences; integrated crop management; precision agriculture; and soil and environmental sciences.

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Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College will hold the inaugural Gulf Coast Honor Band Clinic February 18-20, 2022, at the Perkinston Campus.  The clinic is open to all high school band students.

“We are excited to offer this outstanding opportunity to high school students in our area,” said Dr. James Standland, Director of Bands.  “We have two incredible clinicians who will conduct the Honor Bands and help these students become better musicians.  This is definitely a clinic instrumental music students should consider attending.”

Dr. Mohamad Schuman and Travis Coakley will conduct the clinic.  Schuman is the retired Director of Bands for Ocean Springs School District and former Associate Director of Bands at The University of Southern Mississippi. Coakley is Director of Bands and Director of Fine Arts for the Biloxi Public School District.

To register and for more information, visit mgccc.edu/honor-band. Students selected will pay $65 (meal and Honor Band T-shirt included).

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Fall 2021 President’s List

Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College released the President’s List for the fall 2021 semester. Students who earn 12 or more semester hours with a 4.0 grade point average receive this honor.

Fall 2021 Vice Presidents’ List

Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College released the Vice Presidents’ Lists for the fall 2021 semester. Students who earn 12 or more semester hours with a 3.30 to 3.99 grade point average receive this honor.