Colby Miller was losing interest in school and his grades reflected it, despite a zeal for all things tech. The same applied to Michael Harris, who yearned to emulate his father鈥檚 skills but just couldn鈥檛 make it happen in the classroom.
Each might have dropped out of school if not for a new program at 黑料官网鈥檚 Vicksburg-Warren Campus that鈥檚 geared to keep students from giving up on their studies.
鈥淚n high school, I鈥檇 be lucky if I made a D in class, with all the students who are loud, talkative and don鈥檛 cooperate with the teacher. So, it鈥檚 hard to concentrate,鈥 Miller said. 鈥淗ere, you鈥檙e in classes with actual college students. They鈥檙e paying for it and they鈥檙e here to learn. And I鈥檓 making As, Bs and Cs.鈥
For Harris, it was test anxiety.
鈥淚鈥檇 understand what the lessons were teaching, but when it came time for tests, I鈥檇 just get nervous,鈥 he said.
The Gateway to College program targets those in the school system who have dropped out or are at risk of doing so because they have fallen behind in high school credits. Once directed toward the program, often by high school guidance counselors, students age 16-20 are placed in small learning communities and take basic skills classes while dually enrolled at Hinds.
Students entering the program must read on an eighth-grade level and pass Hinds鈥 placement test for full participation. Classes in reading, math, college skills and other subjects are then aligned for the level at which they would have been taken in a traditional high school setting.
Hinds began the program at the Rankin Campus in fall 2012 as the first Mississippi community college to become a part of the national Gateway to College network. In June 2014, the second full year, the Rankin program graduated 35 students.
鈥淲e were able to kick off the Vicksburg Gateway to College program this semester through great support from the Vicksburg Warren School District,鈥 said Vicksburg-Warren Campus Dean Marvin Moak. 鈥淭he principals and counselors were instrumental in helping us select the first group of Gateway participants.聽This program gives its students the opportunity to complete their high school education and receive college credit while doing that.鈥
Students who graduated from the Rankin program last year were able to earn an average of 22 college credits.
Moak says that is a big advantage. 鈥淭hese graduates will be able to seamlessly transition from high school to college.聽It is our hope that many of them will take advantage of our recently expanded career-technical programs for our campus,鈥 he said.
Miller and Harris, both 19, are two of 28 students enrolled in the program this year, said Angela Davis, resource specialist for the program at the Vicksburg-Warren Campus.
鈥淪tudents in the program are those where the high school environment just was not cutting it anymore,鈥 Davis said.
Most often recommended are students who have trouble getting started in high school, said Program Director Denetra Taylor.
鈥淲e have the whole gamut,鈥 Taylor said. 鈥淩ight now, we鈥檙e looking at students who are maybe 17 and about to repeat the ninth grade for the third time.鈥
Kaylae Hartley, 18, said her grades have stabilized in the program after a rough start in high school.
鈥淚 made all As and Bs in elementary school, but when I got to junior high, I was slipping,鈥 Hartley said.
She learned of the program through her high school counselor.
Harris and Miller say they already have future plans on what they want to do after they finish the Gateway to College program. Harris, also an expectant father, wants to learn the ins and outs of welding once his basic coursework is completed.
鈥淢y dad used to work at LeTourneau Technologies, so he鈥檚 pretty good at welding,鈥 Harris said. 鈥淟ast year, I took a welding class, but I just got to the grinding and torch-cutting part. It鈥檚 just something I think I could be interested in.鈥
Miller sees video games in his future, and not just playing them. 鈥淚 want to go to a technical college for game development,鈥 he said. 鈥淚 want to create the characters and environments of video games.鈥
Without the Gateway to College program, their plans might just be pipe dreams.
For information about the program, contact Denetra Taylor at 601. 601.619.6881 for the Vicksburg-Warren Campus or Rebecca Tullos at 601.936.5580 for the Rankin Campus program.
As Mississippi鈥檚 largest community college, 黑料官网 is a comprehensive institution offering quality, affordable educational opportunities with more than 170 academic, career and technical programs. With six locations in central Mississippi, Hinds enrolled nearly 12,000 credit students in fall 2014. To learn more, visit or call 1.800.HindsCC.