Author: Mary Margaret Busby

Larry Webster, the Holmes Community College director of career and technical education-professional studies, recently earned his Ph.D. in human capital development from The University of Southern Mississippi. Webster’s dissertation was titled “Enabler and Barriers Influencing African American Administrators’ Career Advancement at Predominantly White Institutions of Higher Learning.”

Sandra G. Townes, RN, a nursing instructor on the Holmes Community College Grenada Campus, recently earned a Doctor of Philosophy in Nursing Education and Administration from William Carey University. Her dissertation was titled “The Perceived Effectiveness of a Learning and Life Skills Course for first-semester Associate Degree Nursing Students on Academic Skills, Nursing Knowledge, Preparation for the Nursing Curriculum and Retention.”

The Ridgeland Campus of Holmes Community College held a ceremony to celebrate the graduating Emergency Medical Sciences Class on Aug. 1 in the McGowan Workforce Training Building. Sixteen students graduated from the program.

The Mississippi Board of Nursing Office of Nursing Workforce presented scholarships to nursing schools in Mississippi during their regular business meeting on July 26. Holmes Community College received $12,000 in funding which will help nursing students in the Associate Degree Nursing (ADN) and Practical Nursing (PN) programs. Holmes ADN Chair Dr. Alice Austin accepted the monies on behalf of the college.

A new scholarship program through Mississippi Works is now available to Career-Technical Education students at Holmes Community College. The Mississippi Works Career Tech Scholarship Program provides tuition assistance to those who enroll in approved Career and Technical Education Certificate and Associate of Applied Science degree programs identified through sector analysis to meet the workforce demands of the state.

Antoine Gates, an instructor, Phi Theta Kappa adviser and Faculty Association advisor at Holmes Community College, recently completed his PhD in science and math education from the University of Southern Mississippi after defending his dissertation, “Faculty Interactions with Black Male Students at HBCUs and Community Colleges as Predictors of Academic Achievement in STEM.”

Christi Blair received her Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) in December 2018 from the University of Mississippi Medical Center. Blair is the Practical Nursing Department Chair and also serves on the Instructional Affairs Committee.

Sometimes you can judge a book by its cover. In this case, Holmes Community College’s Horizons yearbook placed first in the cover category in the 2018-19 Mississippi Community and Junior College Press Association yearbook competition.

The Holmes Community College Ridgeland Campus held a Pinning Ceremony for the Surgical Technology Class of 2019 on June 27 at Madison United Methodist Church. Nine students were honored, making this the largest graduating Surgical Technology class since the program’s inception on the Ridgeland Campus.

The Ridgeland Campus of Holmes Community College held a Pinning Ceremony for the graduating Practical Nursing Class of 2019 on June 20 at Broadmoor Baptist Church of Madison. Nineteen students were honored during the ceremony.