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Holmes Community College Practical Nursing Instructor Dr. Lakesia Sutton and Director of Housing Dr. Robert Jason Kelly graduated from the Mississippi Community College Leadership Academy (MCCLA) on Thursday, May 6. Dr. Mark Keenum, president of Mississippi State University, presented Dr. Sutton and Dr. Kelly with a medal and graduation diploma at the Mill Center at Mississippi State University.
The two Holmes employees were among 33 graduates from the community colleges, the Mississippi Community College Board, Mississippi State University, The W and the University of Southern Mississippi. The Mississippi Community College Leadership Academy (MCCLA) was introduced by the Mississippi Community College Foundation (MCCF) in the spring of 2009 to address the projected need for upper-level leaders in the Mississippi community college system. MCCLA provides an opportunity for selected administrative employees to sharpen their supervisory, management, and leadership skills and help prepare participants for future leadership roles.
Dr. Sutton holds a Doctor in Chiropractic degree from Life University, a Doctorate in Christian Counseling from New Foundations Theological Seminary, a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from University of Mississippi Medical Center, a Bachelor of Science in Biology from Jackson State University and an Associate of Arts from Hinds Community College. She first joined the Holmes family in 2013. Professionally, Dr. Sutton is a member of the Mississippi Nurses Association, Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society of Nursing and the Mississippi Chiropractic Association. She is also a member of Word of Life Church- Lakeland Campus.
Dr. Sutton is a care giver for her father, Tommie, and her fur baby, Godzo. In her free time, she enjoys scrapbooking and traveling. She also volunteers with Habitat for Humanity and as a registered nurse in the Mission First medical clinic.
Dr. Kelly holds a Doctor of Philosophy in Community College Leadership from Mississippi State University, an educational specialist degree (in curriculum and instruction) from the University of Mississippi, an M.A. in European history from Mississippi State as well as both a bachelor’s in history and a bachelor’s in English from Mississippi State. He has worked in the field of education for 20 years. For his first 10 years, Dr. Kelly taught and coached at public and private school across the state, before joining the Holmes faculty in 2014. Dr. Kelly was a history instructor on the Goodman Campus for eight years before stepping into his current role as director of housing. He was also an advisor for Phi Theta Kappa honor society for four years.
Dr. Kelly and his wife, Dusti, have three sons: Brayden, Brennan and Brighton. In his free time, he enjoys volunteering as a youth baseball coach, as a volunteer basketball coach at Carroll Academy and as an advisor/speaker for Fellowship of Christian Athletes. Dr. Kelly loves spending time with his family, playing golf, volunteering for youth sports and attending Holmes events to support the students.
The year-long MCCLA program consists of workshops designed to strengthen supervisory and management skills, using participants’ current work situations to apply new skills and tools. It is also an opportunity to network and strengthen system-wide collaborative efforts. For their project, Dr. Sutton and Dr. Kelly obtained approval from Holmes President Dr. Jim Haffey to complete a data analysis of mental health resources available across community and senior colleges.
For more information about MCCLA, visit https://www.mccb.edu/mccla.
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IN THESE PHOTOS:
(top) Dr. Lakesia Sutton accepts her MCCLA medal and graduation diploma from Dr. Mark Keenum, president of Mississippi State University, on May 6.
(bottom) Dr. Jason Kelly accepts her MCCLA medal and graduation diploma from Dr. Mark Keenum, president of Mississippi State University, on May 6.
