![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.jcjc.edu\/jcnews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/02\/dr-jesse-smith-speaking-close-up-SMALL.jpg\")
<\/a>\u201cFor every dollar invested in the community college system, the return on the investment is four-dollars and eighty-six cents.\u00a0 That\u2019s a worthwhile investment if you\u2019re just talking about an investment but what about the people?\u201d asked Smith.<\/p>\nLong lists of facts were shared with the crowd, like Mississippi ranks 4th<\/sup> in the nation in the percentage of students who transfer from community colleges to four-year universities, beating the national average by eight-percent. In 2017, Community\/Junior college students earned 20,432 degrees, certificates and awards which is a 42-percent increase over 2011. In regards to economic development, community colleges served 551 companies with workforce training.<\/p>\n \u201cFolks, we have to pay the bill,\u201d said MACJC President and Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College president, Dr. Mary Graham. \u201cIt\u2019s time Mississippi legislators get some help for our community\/junior colleges. People continue to pat community colleges on the back, saying \u2018You\u2019re doing a great job\u2019 but continuous pats on the back without financial support begin to feel like kicks in the teeth.\u201d<\/p>\n Northwest Community College\u2019s Adam Conner has experienced similar disappointment when he had to quit college the first time he took classes at Northwest because of difficulties in chemistry. When he tried to return a year later, he learned he was not eligible for the Pell Grant. Conner didn\u2019t feel financially apt as an 18-year-old to take out a loan so he waited until he turned 24 to be eligible for aid as an independent student.<\/p>\n \u201cA quality education provides an array of benefits but there are many barriers to success. Rising tuition, time, and financial aid restrictions keep countless Mississippians from accessing higher education,\u201d explained the Student Government Association president at Northwest. \u201cEvery Mississippian is entitled to opportunities for educational and professional growth.\u201d<\/p>\n Without more support for community colleges, Dr. Jim Haffey is concerned more people will be dependent on the state. The MACJC Legislative Co-chair and Holmes Community College president shared his mother\u2019s story. She earned her nursing degree at Hinds Community College after 20-years of raising kids and being a housewife. He calculated a 1,600 percent return on the states\u2019 investment into her education from the state taxes she paid over the 26-years she worked at a rural county hospital. Haffey is challenging legislators to provide support to anyone who wants an education can be served.<\/p>\n \u201cThere are hundreds of Mississippians who do not get a chance to enroll at an allied health program every year because we have limitations on our space. We stand poised to help hundreds but we cannot open or expand new programs without a strong commitment from the state. Two years ago, the community colleges were cut 11-percent while the state made other areas a priority. I\u2019m asking the Legislature to restore those cuts immediately and invest in a proven economic development entity, the Mississippi Community Colleges.\u201d<\/p>\n Dr. Andrea Mayfield, the Executive Director of the Mississippi Community College Board added community colleges are the best value for the taxpayers and individuals seeking an education.<\/p>\n \u201cThe community college system does it all while offering affordable college tuition and with every experience, you can find at a university. But, you can also (earn a degree) and begin work without a large debt. The community college\u2019s purpose is to put people to work and it\u2019s the best value to Mississippi\u2019s economy.\u201d<\/p>\n