2014 Combined

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Helping to base·their decision, according to Stewart, was the ques tion of how did stu dents who transferred from community col leges perform at a four year university. Stewart stated that ECCC has the #1 transfer GPA in the State of Mississippi at 3.22, meaning on aver age most of their stu dent transfers made the Dean's List every semester. The next factor was cost of attendance at the schools, which ECCC ranks #2 in the state. Stewart informed the board, however, that after this year they would not go up on tuition and fees, and that Itawamba Community College, ranked #1 in cost of attendance at this time, would be going up on their tuition next year. "We will be the most inexpensive communi ty college when it comes to tuition and fees," Stewart said. 'We will remain a $990 per semester. We don't gouge people. We believe that we can operate within our budget that we cur rently have, along with the increased state appropriations." Stewart also

Stewart said their board did not think this was right. "So we basically said take 15 hours a semester to be full-time, and four semesters to earn their 60 hours, and they are through with ECCC." Stewart then explained to the board what steps they had taken in their Career Technical Programs. "We have broken every curriculum down in the programs to 30, 45, and 60-liour programs. What this means is if a student comes to us in Electrical Technology, after the first year life happens and they have to stop attending. In the past, they would have left us with a transcript stating they had completed some hours in electrical." "Well, not now. Now they take the pre scribed curriculum their freshmen semes ter, but they will leave with if they stop is a 30-hour certificate, meaning they complet ed some.thing. It will be a the saine with the 45 hour, and if they stay the two years they will have the degree." Other initiatives Stewart mentioned were implementing credential testing into their technical pro grams, elimination of the graduation fee, as

grant. Stewart was happy t inform the board that they did not need the consortium to apply for the grant, and so the school is trying to enter into an agreement with The Montgomery Institute, who is help ing to write the grant for Winston County for $2.6 million. This money will be used to train people for Natron, using some of the people that were affected by the Roseburg plant shut down, and all those people around. Stewart is hoping t.o receive those funds to help the county. He also stated that the school is also part of a statewide consortium looking to bring in grant funds.

"I would like for you to allow that one dorm to fall off the books, and pick it right back up under a new dorm, with hopefully no addi tional increase t.o the millage or any of that. Hopefully we can do it for the same amount we are paying off now, we can do another dorm at East Central without any real increase in millage to the taxpayers of our counties." Stewart thanked the board for their time and then ended his presentation.

informed the board by the hard work of APPEARE Michael T. Evans,

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