Jones College student earns MAMA Scholarship  

ELLISVILLE – Jones College sophomore, Owen Massey was one of only 14 community college and university students statewide who recently received a Mississippi Automotive Manufacturers Association (MAMA) scholarship this year. He will receive $1,500 as a two-year college recipient after meeting eligibility requirements like having a 3.0 GPA or higher, providing a résumé, letters of recommendations and a written essay on his interest in the automotive manufacturing industry. Additionally, 2023 JC graduate Eli Chancellor, of Petal earned a $2,500 MAMA University Scholarship.

“I am beyond proud of Eli Chancellor and Owen Massey for being chosen as recipients of the Mississippi Automotive Manufacturers Association (MAMA) scholarships,” said Mary Boleware who taught both students physics and is the advisor for engineering students at Jones College.  “Eli is a recent transfer to Mississippi State University, and he is majoring in Mechanical Engineering. Owen is currently a sophomore Electrical Engineering Student at Jones who was awarded one of the Community College Scholarships. Both are incredible young men, and I can’t wait to see the great things they will do as engineers in our area. It has been amazing to be part of their academic journey.” 

Seminary resident Owen Massey was the 2022 Presbyterian Christian High School valedictorian. Besides majoring in electrical engineering, he is minoring in English and math at JC. While at PCHS, he earned numerous awards in English, math, Spanish, science and geography and was a member of the Junior & Senior Beta Club. Additionally, Massey was a member of the Spanish Honor Society and Mu Alpha Theta, and he served as a Steven Palazzo Youth Council Member, Mississippi State Agriculture Council Delegate and MAIS State Chess Champion. Currently, Massey is a member of the Jones College Rho Sigma Chapter of Phi Theta Kappa International Honor Society and a member of the Charles Pickering Honors Institute. Massey can also be found volunteering at the Salvation Army, Edwards Street Food Pantry and Thrift Store, Sanford Baptist Church Food Pantry and as an ambassador at Hattiesburg Health and Rehab Nursing Home.  

Chancellor has worked at Cooperative Energy and at Twin Lakes Camp and Conference Center. At Jones College, he served as president of the JC Student Engineering Society, a member of Phi Theta Kappa and Chancellor was inducted into the JC Student Hall of Fame. As a member of the Boy Scouts, Chancellor earned the highest rank of Eagle Scout.

“Eli made quite the lasting impression on me after just a few meetings,” shared Boleware. “For 24 years, I have taught calculus-based physics. With Calculus 1 as a prerequisite, by default I have some of the brightest students that enroll in classes on our campus. Eli is among the top five percent of my students in all these years. Among his peers, his critical thinking, technical writing and verbal expression of engineering related concepts are advanced. I have no doubt that he will be a great asset to an engineering team as a member and as a leader.”

MAMA scholarships support community college and university students interested in pursuing a career in the automotive manufacturing industry. This year’s scholarships were awarded to technical and engineering-related majors as well as non-traditional majors, that can be applied within the automotive industry. MAMA has supported the growth of strong a workforce essential to the health of all industries in the state since its inception in 2006.