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ELLISVILLE – Four Jones College students were selected by their peers for the special recognition to be named Gold Key recipients. Two students, Kadin Johnston of Waynesboro and Aliyah Watts of Sandy Hook swept both the Merit/Honor Gold Key and the Leadership Gold Key awards. Johnston is majoring in physical therapy and has served as the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society President, and he is a member of the Charles Pickering Honors Institute and SGA. Watts is majoring in Psychology and was elected as Homecoming Queen by her peers. She was also selected to the PTK Academic All-MS 1^st Team honors and serves as V. P. of Fellowship and V.P. of the Student Government Association, and she was a member of the Charles Pickering Honors Institute. Both students were selected as Tullos Scholars which is awarded to only five students total from the graduating class.

The female Athletic Gold Key honors went to Lady Bobcat Soccer midfielder and JC’s first-ever NJCAA First Team All-American, Rylie Davis of Lucedale who is studying business. Men’s golf team member and engineering major, Ty Herrington of Heidelberg received the men’s Athletic Gold Key honors.

Jones College sophomores receiving the Academic Gold Key honor because of their 4.0 GPA are, Harleigh Abernathy of Flowood, Dylan Bryant of Raleigh, Jaylynn Conner of Waynesboro, Dawson Kervin of Laurel, Aaron Mason of Raleigh, Nathan Prestage of Morton and Blyne Turner of Laurel.

ELLISVILLE – Seven, new utility linemen, Pacen Odom of Richton, Brady Graham of Waynesboro, DeAnthony Barnes-Jones of Laurel, Baylor Williams of Stateline, Donquerious Feazell of Collins, Gabriel Roberts of Columbia, and Jaden McCree of Laurel, are ready to join the workforce following the Utility Lineman Showcase and graduation ceremony held recently at Jones College’s Wayne County Center in Waynesboro. After 16 weeks of classroom and hands-on training, these students have earned several credentials including, Utility Lineman, Commercial Driving License, OSHA, NCCER-Core, Forklift/heavy equipment and CPR.  Utility Lineman instructor, Mark Patrick explained after students earn their CDL the initial seven weeks, the last nine weeks are spent on classroom instruction with 12 tests they have to pass and then lineman training includes three weeks on the poles. At the Lineman Showcase, these students climbed the poles and demonstrated their technical skills at four different stations in front of friends, family and prospective employers.

“This 16-week program gives them the basics to work on a line crew. Historically, we have had companies like Mississippi Power and other companies hiring them before they finish. This spring, a downturn in the economy has slowed the hiring demand, but our students have several credentials which makes them employable in different areas, in addition to working as a utility lineman,” said Patrick.

The next Workforce Lineman Academy begins in May, and the Academic Utility Lineman Academy program begins in August. Check the website, www.jcjc.edu for more information.

ELLISVILLE – He’s a country singer, musician and songwriter and he’s about to graduate from Jones College with something maybe a little better than his associate’s degree in Music Industry & Recording Arts. As nearly 600 JC students graduate on Friday, May 3, Eli Carter’s first country song, “These White Lines” will hit the airwaves. The 20-year-old Collins native has been singing and songwriting since he was a teenager and he is on the verge of launching a career in songwriting, with the hope of a career performing in Nashville too.

“It’s going to be a pretty wild day!” said Carter. “I felt like I had to have something before I left Jones, so some friends helped me out. Daniel Baldwin played piano and sang harmony, along with Matt Taylor. We knocked it out in two nights and sent it to Matt McGuffie, our instructor and audio engineer in the Free State of Jones Recording studio on campus. He added the lead guitar to the track, fixed and mastered it in three hours and put it in distribution.”

The song, “These White Lines” could be interpreted a couple of ways, according to Carter. However, his intent was that everybody has moments of desperation, and everyone has these times of hopelessness.

“That’s kind of what the song leads with, ‘God if you can hear me now, I’m not begging for a miracle.’ You’re crying out for anything, something to help,” said Carter.

B95 Country radio station’s morning DJ, Grey Manning, loved the opportunity to be the first radio station to debut the song on Tuesday, April 30, at 8 a.m., before its official release on May 3.

“I think this is awesome to have a new artist that is local, that has a new song coming out, that’s one of the coolest things about radio. When you can play a song before anyone has heard it or before anybody else can buy it or play it. It’s pretty cool!” Manning said excitedly. “This song could be interpreted in a few different ways and that’s what makes it an incredible song.”

Carter shared that singer songwriters like Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Tyler Childers, and Jason Isbell have all influenced his, American traditional country style of music. Nonetheless, his favorite is Isbell.

“Jason Isabell’s writing is insane. I like to say I write bad Jason Isbell songs because I’m trying to imitate his writing but it kind of turns into my writing,” said Carter.

While Eli Carter has been performing live locally for the last year, his debut singing and playing the guitar was at the Okatoma Festival last May. He will return to Collins on Saturday, May 4, for another performance on the Okatoma stage at 4:30 p.m. until 5:30 p.m. His first song, “These White Lines” will be available on Spotify, Pandora, iTunes and just about anywhere you can stream music on Friday, May 3, 2024.

ELLISVILLE- Jones College was thrilled to be able to host WDAM-TV’s annual Top of Class 2024 recognition program with a live, “red-carpet” event. WDAM-TV news/weather personalities Elle Davis, Brandy McGill and Ryan Mahan, along with Jones College executive vice presidents, Dr. Tessa Flowers and Dr. Finee’ Ruffin were photographed with the area’s valedictorians and salutatorians to commemorate the special event held at Jones College. The group of nearly 100 high school students were celebrated with a day of recognition including breakfast, entertainment and inspiring comments from WDAM-TV News Director, Emily Forrester, Jones College President, Dr. Jesse Smith and Jones College sophomore, PTK President and 2022 Wayne Academy Salutatorian, Kadin Johnston.

Each student was recognized and received a special, Top of Class Certificate of Achievement, commemorative T-Shirt and participated in the traditional, Hat Toss while the WDAM-TV production crew documented the event to be featured during WDAM-Sunrise at 6:58 a.m., on May 6, through June 14, and on the WDAM-TV webpage.

“We always look forward to hosting Top of the Class with WDAM-TV because we get to see these bright students reach the pinnacle of their high school academic careers. Plus, we get to learn about how they have already impacted their communities and hear their future plans which include continuing to do some great things,” said Jones College President, Dr. Jesse Smith.

Check on the WDAM-TV Top of Class website, https://www.wdam.com/topofclass/ for a schedule of when each high school’s Top of Class video will air on WDAM-TV Sunrise News.

ELLISVILLE – For the third year in a row, the Jones College yearbook, the Lair, has won an exclusive award, the Gallery of Excellence Award from Walsworth yearbooks.  The gallery is an annual collection of Walsworth Yearbooks comprised of the most distinguished yearbooks in the country. Only a small percentage of the 5000 schools’ yearbooks that Walsworth publishes are included in the Gallery of Excellence, which features superior examples of coverage, design, photography, and copy.

Jones College student publications advisor and journalism instructor, Kelly Atwood commended the 13-member, Jones College student staff for continuing the legacy of excellence.

“The 2024 yearbook theme is ‘Picture This’ and it is filled with students, faculty and staff throughout the year with senior editor Jaylynn Conner of Waynesboro, leading the student group. My job is to oversee the entire process and ensure we meet deadlines, but this is a student driven yearbook,” said Atwood. “This is their award.”

This 2023-2024 yearbook staff includes, yearbook design editor Angel Deforge of Wiggins; senior editor Jaylynn Conner of Waynesboro; photography editor Kami Carter of Columbia; copy editor Lauren Runnels of Mize; sports photographer Andie Freeman of Petal; writers: Sophie Hinch of Hattiesburg, Seth Walker of Laurel, Annie Grace Sullivan of Ellisville and Taylor Garretson of Leakesville and photographers: Shelby Powell of Florida, Marlee Brewer of Hattiesburg, Kameron Upchurch of Laurel, and Haley “Kat” Shepherd of Petal.