Page 58 - South Mississippi Living - March, 2017

SPORTS & OUTDOOR award winning story by Lynn Lofton
STUDENT- ATHLETES
Winning on and off the playing field
photos courtesy of Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College
Academics and athletics
go hand in hand at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, and the school has the awards to prove it. Forty-two students were named Academic Winners by the state association of community colleges, including 13 who earned the Distinguished distinction for having grade point averages of 3.80 or better. No other school had as many students make both lists. Thirty-five students won awards from the national association for the 2015-16 season, including three who had perfect 4.0 grade point averages.
The school was also awarded the David M. Halbrook Award — for the fourth time since 2010 — for achieving the highest graduation rate among state two-year colleges. MGCCC had a 98 percent graduation rate for its athletes in the 2015-16 academic year.
To continue this record of success, a new Athletic Academic Advisor was added last month.
“They are student-athletes, not the other way around. We focus on their learning, whether it’s attendance, note-taking, math skills, or English skills,” Dean of Teaching and Learning at the Perkinston Campus Dr. Bobby Ghosal said. “Our number one tool is
our Learning Lab.” Student-Athletes, like all MGCCC
students, have access to the
Learning Lab, which is open until
9 p.m. “There are always instructors available in math, science, English and computers, and some nights there are reading, accounting and nursing instructors available,” Ghosal added.
Athletic Director Robin Jeffries said, “We work closely with our dean of instruction and learning and make sure when the kids aren’t here because of competition, he is aware. When teachers feel that students aren’t being the best they can be in the classroom, they come to us and we mend those two things together to make them successful in academics and athletics.”
58 SOUTH MISSISSIPPI Living • March 2017
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Jeffries, who has worked at four-year schools as a coach and administrator, added, “It’s a little more hands on here, and I think that’s because of the smaller numbers.”
Softball Coach Kenneth Long, who’s in his 16th season at MGCCC, feels the emphasis on academics helps in recruiting. “Almost every parent
who comes here with a potential player comments on how well we do in academics. That makes a big difference.”
TOP: Dr. Ann Halbrook Peden presents the David M. Halbrook trophy (shown above) to Robin Jeffries, MGCCC athletic director.