Mississippi community colleges ask legislature for pay increases, $100 million for facilities

Jim Haffey, president of Holmes Community College and chair of the Mississippi Association of Community Colleges, told the Senate Appropriations subcommittee that the state's 15 community colleges are asking legislators for targeted operating and facilities support to sustain enrollment and workforce training programs.

"So we're asking for a 5% salary improvement," Dr. Alsabrooks said in presenting the systemwide priorities, saying the raise would cost about $23,000,000. She described student demographics — roughly 22 years old on average, 62% female, 95% Mississippi residents — and said many are first-generation college students who rely on campus navigators, counselors and advisers to persist.

The presenters framed the salary request as central to retaining and recruiting instructors and staff. They said Mississippi community-college faculty salaries lag Southern Regional Education Board peers by roughly $5,000 and remain below the national community-college median cited in their materials. Presenters also warned that state support for colleges has fallen as a share of revenue: where state aid once comprised about 55.8% of revenue in 2000, FY24 state support was reported at 38.2% of institutional revenue, increasing pressure on tuition.

Beyond personnel, the group itemized other operational pressures: a $14,000,000 ask to cover higher utility and insurance costs and to maintain day-to-day operations, plus continued support for the CTE Advantage program (currently $5,000,000 per year split by formula) that college leaders said has enabled program expansions in nursing, electrical trades and construction technology.

On capital needs, presenters said colleges received $56,000,000 last year through a bond/enrollment allocation formula and repair-and-renovation funds, and they asked the committee to fund $100,000,000 for facilities this year to address deferred maintenance and capacity needs tied to career-technical training.

Committee members praised colleges' pandemic response and the economic impact claims in materials; no formal vote or motion occurred. The presenters provided supporting data (enrollment, awards, and a prior economic impact study) and said an updated impact report will be shared with the committee when available.

The hearing record shows requests and explanatory materials; lawmakers did not adopt or deny funding during the hearing. The colleges left the committee with explicit legislative asks: a 5% salary improvement, $14 million for operations, continued CTE Advantage funding and a $100 million facilities appropriation.