JACKSON, Miss. – Community college faculty will have the opportunity to thank legislators for last year’s commitment for mid-level funding and to request they continue that commitment this year.

Members of the Mississippi Faculty Association for Community and Junior Colleges - along with students, alumni, trustees and two-year college presidents - will meet with legislators Thursday, Feb. 28 at the Capitol.

They’ll make that request to lawmakers publicly at a 10:30 a.m. news conference in the rotunda and meet with them individually afterward.

“We want our legislators to know how grateful we were for last year’s appropriation,” said Northwest Mississippi Community College President Dr. Gary Lee Spears, who is president of the third largest community college in the state system. “We also want to remind them of the vital role that community colleges play in the lives of the citizens of their districts.”

Last year lawmakers committed to mid-level funding through Senate Bill 2364, a historic measure endorsing per-student funding for community colleges that is midway between per-student funding for K-12 students and regional public university students. Passed without a dissenting vote in either house, the bill was signed into law by Gov. Haley Barbour.

Julie Correro, director of the Division of Education on the Senatobia campus, emphasized the importance of the role of community colleges. “Mississippi's community colleges are a crucial point of entry into higher education for many students. They are important for students who do not follow the traditional route directly from high school to college and they provide the traditional student an affordable and proven framework to reach their educational goals,” she said.

“Mississippi community colleges are the largest source of transfer students for students majoring in education at four-year institutions. It is vital that we partner to help students transition from community college to four-year institutions to meet the growing need in Mississippi for outstanding teachers and administrators,” said Correro.

Based on last year’s mid-level appropriation, per-student funding increased from $2,930 to $3,877 this year, the first year of a three-year plan to implement mid-level funding.

Nearly 70 percent of all college freshmen at public and private institutions of higher learning are enrolled at the state’s 15 community colleges. Half of all Mississippi undergraduates attend community colleges.

The 15 community colleges are asking for a $60 million increase in the second year of a three-year plan to position the community colleges at per-student funding that is mid-level between K-12 and regional public universities.

Northwest serves citizens in an 11-county district. This year enrollment reached an all- time high, with fall figures showing 6,825 students on three campuses. The college offers career and technical programs of study and academic programs for academic transfer. Other college services include continuing education classes and Workforce training. For more information, visit www.northwestms.edu or call (662) 562-3200.