10/3/2019 - Jackson, Miss.
All sectors of Mississippi higher education gathered recently in Bay St. Louis to share concerns, discuss common goals, and celebrate academic success of student athletes at the annual Mississippi Association of Colleges and Universities Conference. Hosted by Pearl River Community College with the theme, "Gathering Pearls of Knowledge," the 86th annual MAC conference included attendees from public, private, two-year and four-year postsecondary institutions in roles including presidents and chancellors, chief academic officers, chief student affairs officers, chief financial officers, admissions officers, institutional effectiveness officers, faculty and administrators.
Pearl River Community College President Adam Breerwood, who served as the 2018-2019 president of the Board of Directors, welcomed participants to the conference, which also included presentations from representatives from the executive offices of the Mississippi Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning, the Mississippi Community College Board, and the Mississippi Association of Independent Colleges and Universities.
Jay Artigues, Director of Athletics for Southeastern Louisiana University, was the guest speaker at the Halbrook Awards Luncheon Program. Presented each year at the MAC Conference, the program recognizes colleges and universities that achieve and maintain high academic standards for student athletes, thus encouraging high graduation rates. The award was endowed by former Mississippi Representative David Halbrook Sr. and his brothers in honor of their parents.
The David M. Halbrook (traveling) Trophy awards are presented to the colleges and universities with the highest percentage of graduating student athletes. This year's recipients include:
List of Certificate Recipients
The John C. and Ernestine McCall Halbrook Improvement Award is a cash award presented to the single college or university that has shown the greatest increase over the previous year in the percentage of athletes graduating. This year's recipient is Itawamba Community College.
The David M. Halbrook Certificate for Academic Achievement Among Athletes recognizes the efforts of individual student athletes who excel in academics, leadership and service. Each college or university selected a male and female student athlete to receive this recognition.
Other events included concurrent workshop sessions covering topics on "Setting Mississippi's Educational Attainment Goal," "Get2College," SACSCOC updates, and legal issues in higher education. Section meetings provided administrators across sectors the opportunity to discuss common challenges, collaboration, and best practices.
The conference concluded with the Halbrook Awards Luncheon and the annual business meeting. Founded in 1921, MAC promotes goodwill among the state's public universities, community and junior colleges, and independent colleges and universities. The conference is open to MAC member institutions.
# # #
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.
John Sewell
Director of Communications
Telephone: 601.432.6333
