Meridian Community College graduates will have a pathway to a four-year college after MCC on Thursday signed a memorandum of understanding with Jackson State University.

MCC President Thomas Huebner said the MOU marks the beginning of a partnership between the two colleges that would benefit both Lauderdale County residents and the entire state.

“This partnership will absolutely open doors,” he said. “It will open doors that can be transformational to our community and to our state.”

Under the agreement, MCC students who complete an associate degree will be able to automatically enroll at JSU to continue their education.

JSU President Thomas K. Hudson said the public sometimes has the impression that Mississippi’s community colleges and four-year colleges compete with each other. The MOU, he said, is not a competition, but a collaboration to improve the lives of Mississippi residents.

“Our community college, our four-year colleges, we’re not in competition. We’re in collaboration,” he said. “We’re all in this fight together to make the state of Mississippi the best it can be from an education standpoint.”

Education, Huebner said, can have generational impact on individuals, families  and communities. 

“I think people underestimate the value of education. It really is a difference maker,” he said. “We can show you. I can do it. He (Dr. Hudson) can do it. We can show you data that talk about the absolutely transformational generational impact of an education. That’s what happens when you start here, and when you finish there. That’s what happens when you decide you want to take the next step.”