[Congressional Record Volume 159, Number 152 (Tuesday, October 29, 2013)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1590]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          MISSISSIPPI COLLEGE

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. ALAN NUNNELEE

                             of mississippi

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, October 29, 2013

  Mr. NUNNELEE. Mr. Speaker, Mississippi College, the oldest 
institution of higher learning in the state of Mississippi and the 
second oldest Baptist university in the United States, recently 
celebrated the opening of its 187th school year. Mississippi College 
has since pre-Civil War days provided students from across the state 
and around the world an education informed by Christian values, and was 
the first co-educational institution in the nation to grant a degree to 
a woman.
   The university has a long and distinguished history of educating 
future public servants, counting current leaders in federal and state 
government among her alumna, including current Third Congressional 
District Rep. Gregg Harper, and current Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant. 
As a member of the Board of Trustees I am also proud to recognize the 
leadership of Order of the Golden Arrow recipient Gayle Wicker has 
provided to the university's presidents through the years. Mississippi 
College, located in Clinton, is a proud constituent of the Second 
Congressional District represented by Rep. Bennie Thompson.
   For 64 years, students have received exemplary training in areas of 
speech, media, public relations, theater and related practices in the 
Mississippi College Communication Department. Founded in 1949 by Drs. 
Hollis and Julia Todd as the Department of Speech, the current 
Communication Department presented diplomas to hundreds of students who 
have subsequently experienced personal and career success in their 
chosen fields. Among its alumni, the department prides itself by seeing 
former graduates become leaders in fields as diverse as business and 
ministry, education and journalism.
   The faculty of the Mississippi College Communication Department 
embodies dedicated and sustained service to the university and its 
mission. In fact, only three men have chaired the department over the 
span of its 64 years: Dr. Hollis Todd, Dr. Billy Lytal, for whom the 
annual student scholarship fund is named, and current chair Dr. Cliff 
Fortenberry. With a teaching philosophy built around the practical 
application of theory and curriculum, departmental faculty are teachers 
first, individuals who view their service at Mississippi College as an 
investment in their students' lives and in their community.
   The Mississippi College Communication Department currently enrolls 
undergraduates in interpersonal and public communication, journalism, 
mass media, public relations, and theater concentrations, and offers 
graduate degrees in journalism, health services communication, 
professional communication in sports, and public relations and 
corporate communication. Leading in innovative online classroom 
offerings, the communication department partners with other academic 
departments to offer unique degree programs to meet student and market 
demands.
   With a current enrollment of over 5,000 students and future leaders, 
Mississippi College seeks to be known as a university recognized for 
academic excellence and commitment to the cause of Christ. The faculty, 
staff, students and alumni of the Mississippi College Communication 
Department are proud to fulfill this vision as the department enters 
its 65th year of service.

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