Holmes Community College
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Holmes Community College is a community college located in the state of Mississippi and has three campuses in the cities of: Grenada, Ridgeland, and Goodman, which is the location of the main or original campus. Holmes has satellite campuses in Kosciusko and Webster County as well. Holmes Community College traces its origin to 1911 when plans were made to establish Holmes County Agricultural High School in Goodman, Mississippi. The town of Goodman provided 40 acres of land (along with free water from the community's artesian well) on the west side of town, and the Board of Trustees purchased an additional 42 acres adjacent to the original school location.
In 1922 the Mississippi State legislature permitted agricultural high schools scattered throughout the state to add two years of college work. In the 1925-26 school session the first year of college work was added; in 1928-29, the second year. The school was then recognized by the Mississippi State Department of Education as a complete junior college, eligible to award the associate of arts degree.
Support of the college has grown from a single county, Holmes, to include Attala, Carroll, Choctaw, Grenada, Madison, Montgomery, Webster and Yazoo counties. This makes it the second largest community college district in the state. With the district's growth, opportunities for service brought the college to evaluate its ability to provide educational and cultural opportunities within such a diverse sphere. This assessment resulted in 1985 of the opening of the Ridgeland campus, located in Madison County and adjacent to the rapidly growing north Jackson metropolitan area. In addition, the Grenada Center, located in an expanding industrial and recreational area in the northern part of the district opened the same year.
The Grenada associate degree nursing program was established in 1982. It has been state accredited since its inception. The faculty completed a self-study during the 1992-1993 academic year for initial accreditation by the National League of Nursing Accrediting Commission. The program has maintained national accreditation since and was reaccredited in 1998. The ADN program is an institutional member of the National Organization of Associate Degree Nursing and of the Southern Regional Educational Board.
In 1988 Holmes Junior College's Board of Trustees took the first step to change the school's name to Holmes Community College. Considering that the institution had retained its original name for over 60 years it was a momentous decision, while at the same time illustrating an inescapable observation: The district, its students and the overall demographic makeup had changed to the extent that the new name would, to a large degree, more effectively mirror the population Holmes had come to serve throughout the district.
The Ridgeland and Grenada facilities provide a wide array of academic and vocational/technical programs and serve as continuing education and cultural activities centers. The Goodman campus continues to offer post-secondary education opportunities in a traditional residential setting. Attala Educational Center in Kosciusko, dedicated in the fall of 1997, makes it possible for the college to provide a variety of courses, including: nursing, academic and work training for those in and around Attala County.
Although Holmes' history is an integral part of the institution, the college continues to maintain a forward looking stance by participating in a continuous cycle of assessment and planning. Knowledge gained through this effort is ongoing and constantly permits improvements and upgrading of college's services.
With an annual operating budget of over $16 million, Holmes Community College has the resources to deliver educational services utilizing a variety of instructional methods and to provide ancillary services and activities that enhance the college environment. The college faculty, staff and administration constantly strive toward excellence. Well-trained and committed, they exhibit leadership roles on the campus as well as in local, state and national organizations.
Holmes Community College starts the 21st century confident of its mission and dedicated to service. Dynamic leadership coupled with a resolute faculty and staff have established a tradition of excellence. While forward-looking, it is guided by historical precedent. Through careful assessment and planning, the college stands ready and prepared to meet the challenges that lie in its future.
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