Category: Press Release

ELLISVILLE – Jones College’s High School Equivalency students learned how well they would survive in the “Real World” by experiencing life’s challenges through the Mississippi State Extension service’s “Welcome to the Real World” program. MSU Extension Agent for Jones County, Kim Hancock passed out a random profession and budget worksheet with details about gross salary, taxes, insurance, and family to each of the 40 students. Then, they visited professionals in 10 stations and were given options on how they could spend their salary. Everyone had to budget and make decisions about childcare, clothing, communications, contributions/donations, extra-curricular activities, entertainment, food, housing/utilities, and transportation for themselves and at least a spouse and one child. Additionally, each student drew a “Life Happens” situation which could benefit or harm their budgets. Without an option to quit life, students were left with the choice of being in debt/going broke, getting a second job or successfully budgeting their monthly salary.

“I started with $3,900 for my family with one 12-year-old and a spouse,” explained Kris Lee of Hattiesburg. “After budgeting for a house and everything, I had $455 I put in savings for future expenses because you never know what will happen in life.”

The 28-year-old wanted to earn his Smart Start credential and High School Equivalency (HSE) at Jones College to have more options for employment, after earning an Occupational degree in high school. Today’s exercise in money management helped him reinforce what he has learned in class and in life.

HSE student, Katie Barnett of Laurel also has some real-world experience as a mother of four children, but she realized through today’s “Real World” event there is always something more to learn.

“I realized today how to make some better decisions, so I won’t have to struggle so much to make life better for my family. That is why I am getting my HSE and hopefully a college degree. I want to have more options for my family,” said Barnett.

The MSU extension agency offers this money management training for high school students with the help of volunteer professionals from banking institutions and other professionals in the community. Hancock said the purpose of the program is to plant seeds to help students make wise decisions in the future and help them become better citizens.

ELLISVILLE – At the 96^th Commencement Ceremony at Jones College, in addition to the nearly 600 Jones College graduates celebrating the completion of their Associate in Arts degree, Associate in Applied Science degree, Technical Certificate or Career Certificate, eight Laurel High School students in the second class of the new Middle College Program at Laurel High School earned both their high school diploma and an associate degree from Jones College. These students, Sayuri Majae Barnes, De’Ja Dashawna Baskin, Brianna Evans, Justin Keys, Lamiya Janae Ross, Kena Monique Smith (also JC Hall of Fame) Nia Soul Stephens, and Krishna M Wright, finished their high school requirements simultaneously while attending college courses to complete a two-year degree.

“I’m very excited and honored today to also be recognized in the Jones College Hall of Fame,” said Middle College and Jones College graduate, Kena Smith of Laurel. “I missed a few things in high school, but it has been worth it to earn both degrees simultaneously.”

Graduates, and the thousands of family and friends attending the outdoor ceremony heard an inspiring message from keynote speaker, Stan Buckley that simply challenged graduates to, “spend their lives doing something that matters.”  The Founder and Executive Director of But God Ministries in Jackson shared a story about Christian singer, Amy Grant’s mother encouraging her daughter to sing something that “matters.” Buckley said he realized after hearing that story, that he is not a cat. He only has “one shot” at life and he didn’t want to regret anything.

“My biggest fear is living to be an old man lying on my deathbed and wondering, what if I had gone for it? I plead with you today, do something worthwhile. Make a difference in this world. Make sure your only goal in life is not simply to accumulate things and then die. There’s more to life than that,” said the former attorney and senior pastor.

In 2011, when Buckley established But God Ministries, it was on the heels of a devastating earthquake in Haiti which killed 200,000 people and a million people were left homeless. The ministry established a community on an island where nurse practitioner, Tony West operated the medical clinic and served thousands as Jesus would.

“Mothes, fathers and children were all blessed by Tony’s love, his compassion and his care while hurting or frustrated or completely exhausted. Tony shared God’s love again and again. Tony West was a man who used his education. He wasn’t a preacher. He was a man who used his education, his training, and his skills as an R.N. and later as a nurse practitioner, to do something that matters. Thanks to Tony and many more, just like him, our efforts in Haiti have resulted in countless changed lives,” shared Buckley.

He concluded his speech with a story about a Jones College student athlete, Joshua Brown who should also be celebrating commencement but was wrongly accused of a crime and did not finish his courses on time. The JC football player is free today because Buckley and a team of people realized they needed to do the right thing and get involved.

“What I saw was wrong because what I saw was unfair and unjust. I could no longer see what was happening and do nothing,” Buckley explained. “You see, there comes a time in your life graduates, when you can no longer stand idly by and watch corruption and incompetence and callousness. There comes a time when you have to stand up for what is right. So, graduates go for it. Take a risk. You never know how God might use you in your education here at Jones College to do something extraordinary. The possibilities are endless if you’re willing to exercise a little faith and courage.  Remember as Amy Grant’s mother would say, spend your life doing something that matters.”

Some Jones College graduates thanked the teachers that pushed them toward excellence and out of their comfort zone, like Natalie Graves of Laurel. The art major took on the role of College Project Director for Phi Theta Kappa, which earned the Most Distinguished College Project in Regional competition and a Top 10 award internationally.

“Mr. Brown definitely gave me a big push here at Jones,” said Graves. “At first, I didn’t really want to join PTK Honor Society, but he really pushed me, and it’s opened up a lot of doors for me. I received recognition as an artist and a student as a result.”

Earning Academic Gold Key honors, Jaylynn Conner is one of five graduating sophomores to be selected as a Tullos Scholar, Hall of Fame, and she earned one of three, College Public Relations Association of Mississippi Scholarships. The Waynesboro native finished a stellar two years as a Senior Editor of the yearbook and Editor of the student newspaper and was a Bobcat Broadcast anchor and reporter, as well as a member of the Charles Pickering Honors Institute. She said she is ready to continue her journalism career at the University of Mississippi and will miss being a Bobcat.

“I’m a first-generation graduate and I’m graduating with honors. This means the world to me to be able to have this opportunity,” said Conner. “I didn’t know what to expect but I was met with so much love and attention by my professors, staff and even the president of Jones College. It’s kind of sad to be leaving this great place.”

Also, a first-generation college graduate, Pablo Lopez of Waynesboro is most grateful for all the connections he’s made at Jones College.

“It’s been a wonderful two years of meeting lots of great people,” said Lopez. “I’m very excited to go to MSU because Jones gave me an excellent beginning which is in part because of all my professors and the staff at Jones. They played a huge role in my success, and I want to give them the recognition they deserve.”

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.