Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College announced that it has received $2,258,270 in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) State Fiscal Stabilization Funds (SFSF) for the 2010-2011 fiscal year. ARRA funds are part of an unprecedented economic stimulus package enacted by Congress to help stabilize state budgets and create jobs. Governor Haley Barbour provided funding to Mississippi's community and junior colleges from discretionary funds included under the State Fiscal Stabilization Act in the amount of $1,107,792. The Mississippi legislature appropriated an additional $1,150,478 in ARRA SFSF funds for the 2010-2011 fiscal year. The anticipation of these funds at MGCCC helped to offset the need to further raise tuition and fees for in-state students in 2010-2011. The funds will be used to assist in meeting the cost of utilities at the college's eight campuses and centers throughout the four-county district.
Dr. Willis H. Lott, president of Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, said: "Due to unprecedented economic challenges, the college was forced to raise tuition from $900 to $1,150 per semester for 2010-2011. It is anticipated that without the ARRA funding, the college would have been forced to raise tuition an additional $100 per full-time student, or an additional 10.5 percent, for the 2010-2011 fiscal year to retain the ability to pay utility costs at the college's facilities. The college is appreciative of the stimulus funding received from the Governor's office and Mississippi legislature through ARRA and is committed to creating transparency and accountability for expenditures of these funds."
The college was also awarded three additional ARRA grants totaling $974,710 during the 2010-2011 fiscal year. Two grants were awarded from the Mississippi Department of Employment Security which includes Welding Opportunities for Women (WOW) in the amount of $170,640 and Energy Technology in the amount of $75,000. The third grant was awarded from the U S Department of Energy in the amount of $729,070.
The ARRA contact persons at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College are Dr. Billy W. Stewart, Vice President for Administration and Finance, or Ms. Debbie Borgman, Comptroller. They can be reached at arrainfo@mgccc.edu or at (601) 928-6210. To find out more about Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College's ARRA grants, please visit http://www.mgccc.edu/The_College/ARRA.php.
