Michael Neary / The Meridian StarLeah Port, admissions technical specialist for Meridian Community College, helps Meridian High School seniors DuJuan Brown, left, and Reggie Moore fill out college applications.

As Reggie Moore contemplates college, he’s looking to cultivate a fondness for working with animals — an activity he’s enjoyed for a long, long time.

“I’m a cowboy,” said Moore. “I’ve got a couple of horses and cows, and I’d like to learn a little bit more of how to doctor them myself … I already know how to get the calf out, but I want to learn more.”

Moore, along with other seniors at Meridian High School, was participating in an Application Day conducted by the high school in partnership with Meridian Community College. MCC staff members are collaborating with high schools throughout the area on a series of days designed to jumpstart the process of applying for college and financial aid.

“It kind of gets them in the mind frame of postsecondary education,” said Shirley Silliaman, a counselor at Meridian High School who’s working with the seniors. Silliaman noted, too, that post-high-school possibilities go beyond traditional schooling.

From Meridian High School’s graduating class of 2017, last spring, 70 percent of the students elected to attend community colleges and 18 percent opted for four-year universities, Silliaman said. The class contained 305 students.

Angela Payne, director of admissions at Meridian Community College, emphasized the importance of working early in the school year on applications for both college admissions and financial aid.

“They need to start as early as possible,” said Payne, whose Ph.D. focuses on higher education.

Working on the applications early, Payne said, is crucial for seniors.

“Seniors are generally more concerned with their final year of high school, and so they have a tendency to defer college admissions,” she said. “So we wanted to intervene positively to understand the significance of (doing applications) early.”

Payne also encouraged seniors to decide upon their college choices as soon as they can.

“The sooner they’re aware of their college destinations, the more they can apply themselves toward the high school activities that make them more prepared for the college experience,” she said.

During Payne’s presentation to the students, she referred to the importance of a “dream college,” a “reality college” and a “safety-net college.” She identified MCC as a kind of safety net for students who may have plans to go to other places.

“We present MCC as an option that’s always available to them,” Payne said.

The Application Days are part of an initiative called “College Countdown MS” — comprised of several organizations, including the Mississippi Department of Education. Application Days are scheduled throughout the Lauderdale County School District in October, as well as in Meridian, and FAFSA Days — named for the Free Application for Federal Student Aid — are also slated for October.

The next FAFSA Day in the area is scheduled for Thursday, at Meridian High School. Students are encouraged to bring a parent, if that’s possible.

“We’re letting all students know that every student must complete a FAFSA,” Silliaman said, noting the importance of scholarship applications, as well. Oct. 1 was the first day on which students could file the FAFSA.

If applications tend to unearth pragmatic concerns about such things as deadlines and financial materials, they also sparked some students to dream of the future.

“I am planning on going to Mississippi State and majoring in architecture,” said DuJuan Brown, a Meridian High School senior. “I’ve been drawing since I was little, and I like looking at design plans and seeing how things get built.”

Brown recalled his father showing him the “plans and designs” of a house — something that fueled his interest.

And for Reggie Moore, the senior planning to become a veterinarian, his future hopes trace back to early memories, as well.

“I’ve been working with animals for 15 years, since I was two years old,” said Moore, who’s also looking into Mississippi State University. “I got it from my grandpa. That’s my biggest fan, right there.”

On the Net:

http://collegecountdownms.com/

https://fafsa.ed.gov/

https://www.fastweb.com/