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<\/a>said Dr. Mary Graham, chair of the Mississippi Association of Community and Junior Colleges (MACJC) and President of Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College. \u201cThe state\u2019s investment in your community college has an immediate and short-term payback for all the citizens of Mississippi. Imagine if we invest in Mississippi\u2019s community colleges to the fullest extent? What a difference we can make for all of the citizens of Mississippi.\u201d<\/p>\nWith more than 52 thousand unfilled jobs in Mississippi, community college leaders believe they are the answer to preparing students to fill those highly skilled, high paying jobs. \u00a0In fact, Governor Tate Reeves announced his plan to invest 75 million dollars into community colleges, of the 100 million he has allocated in his plan to equip Mississippians with the necessary skills for a modern workforce and to make Mississippi a \u201cready to work\u201d state.<\/p>\n
\u201cEvery class offered at our community colleges is in and of itself, workforce development and workforce training. Jobs or university degrees-it is all That is continued good news to community college leaders with graduation rates at community colleges at an all-time high and 75% of its graduates stay \u201chome\u201d in Mississippi. The Community College Economic Impact Report also revealed the value of an Associate of Applied Science degree within a few years of graduation, is very appealing to residents said MACJC Legislative Co-Chair and President of ÌÇÐÄÖ±²¥, Dr. Jesse Smith.<\/p>\n \u201cThe average salary for graduates with an A.A.S. degree is above $40,000 Some of the benefits the Report revealed didn\u2019t tie directly to the state economy or an individual\u2019s financial success. Dr. Andrea Mayfield, Executive Director of the Mississippi Community College Board explained employers greatly benefit from workforce training at community colleges.<\/p>\n Despite the data or empirical evidence discussing the return on the investment of community colleges on the state economically, the President of the Mississippi Faculty and Staff Association and East Mississippi Community College English instructor, Marilyn Ford said the data represents far more to her. She sees her students, their dreams, aspirations and hope for a better future.<\/p>\n<\/a>opportunity in workforce development,\u201d said Governor Reeves. \u201cI\u2019m committed to helping our community colleges and more importantly, the institutions and the students they serve, to achieve even more together to better our workforce training, and create good-paying jobs for every Mississippian so they can thrive at home.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/a>which is equivalent to most university grads with a bachelor\u2019s degree,\u201d said Smith. \u201cFor every person who went through workforce training, after one year, they saw their income increase by $2,300. We (community colleges) trained 100,000 people last year. Think of that economic impact in and of itself.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/a>\u201cThere are also some benefits that you don\u2019t hear very often, like lower reliance on public assistance, higher employee retention for companies through workforce training, higher workforce productivity, lower likelihood of being injured on the job due to safety training through workforce services and more. There is a financial impact and a return to the state. All of these things add up and have value. Community College\u2019s truly are the economic powerhouse for the state,\u201d said Mayfield.<\/p>\n