Above: MGCCC’s 2015 Commencement Ceremony was held on May 14 at the Mississippi Gulf Coast Coliseum in Biloxi.

Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College led the state in academic and technical degrees awarded during the 2014-2015 academic year, awarding 16 percent of the associate degrees (1,233) and almost 19 percent of the Associate of Applied Science degrees (811) in the state.

Preliminary numbers released by the Mississippi Community College Board this week show that MGCCC was ahead in the numbers for these two degree types, with the closest of the state’s other community and junior colleges only delivering 11 percent of the associate degrees awarded statewide.

MGCCC was second in the number of certificates and diplomas awarded, contributing almost 27 percent of those to the state total of 5,206. Overall, MGCCC awarded 3,426 degrees and certificates, representing 20 percent of the state total for the year.

“We are exceedingly proud of all our graduates,” said MGCCC president Dr. Mary S. Graham. “Gulf Coast students who receive their associate degrees can seamlessly transfer to all public universities in Mississippi. It is our goal to help students achieve their educational goals by providing them innovative services and opportunities, from partnering with universities like Mississippi State, Southern Miss and the Mississippi University for Women on our campuses, to providing low-cost medical clinics to encourage healthy choices.”

A national leader in degree production and enrollment growth, MGCCC has made Community College Week’s list of Top 100 Associate Degree Producers for the past 12 consecutive years and was listed as a Fastest Growing Community College among the nation’s largest community colleges (over 10,000 enrollment) in 2014.