2/21/2014 - Jackson, Miss.

Students from all eight public universities in Mississippi discuss the important role education plays in their own lives, the lives of the fellow students and the future of the state in a video recently posted.

The students discuss both their reasons for pursuing a college degree and how they feel they have grown since enrolling as freshmen.

"I think it's a necessary investment for most people of my generation," said Michael Hogan, a student at Mississippi State University. "You walk away with a degree that means a lot, but with a newfound self."

Representing a wide variety of majors and interests, the students also discuss what they plan to do with their degrees and how education is important to the future of Mississippi.

"I'm rooted here," said Constance Barnes, a student at the University of Mississippi Medical Center. "Mississippi is where I was born. Mississippi is the place where I would like to give back. I want to see Mississippi grow as a state."

"If Mississippi invests in the students, the students are going to invest in Mississippi," said Jacie Meyers, a student at Mississippi University for Women. "We are going to stay here and help improve the state."

The students also address the responsibilities that they and their fellow students have to make a difference in the state.

"I think you have to look at it like a business," said Gabriel Babineaux, a student at Jackson State University. "What do people do in businesses? They reinvest. So when the state gives money to its public universities, it's reinvesting in it. When those students get their degrees, they can make the state a better place to live."

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The Mississippi Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning governs the public universities in Mississippi, including Alcorn State University; Delta State University; Jackson State University; Mississippi State University including the Mississippi State University Division of Agriculture, Forestry and Veterinary Medicine; Mississippi University for Women; Mississippi Valley State University; the University of Mississippi including the University of Mississippi Medical Center; and the University of Southern Mississippi.

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