Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College Jackson County Campus students Emma Blair and Sofia Sewell earned five awards at the 2026 Mississippi Community College Art Instructors Association (MCCAIA) Annual Art Competition and Exhibition. The state-wide competition, open to students from all 15 Mississippi community colleges, showcases the best works selected by instructors from a variety of art disciplines.

Emma Blair received 1st Place in 2D Design for her cut paper collage “Self-Portrait” and 3rd Place in 3D Design for her hand-formed wire sculpture “Wire Dress.” Sofia Sewell earned 2nd Place in Computer Art for her Adobe Illustrator project “Papa,” 3rd Place in Computer Art for her Adobe Photoshop project “Centaur,” and 3rd Place in Ceramics for her clay and glaze piece “Bigfoot Vase.”

The exhibition and competition, held at the Margie B. Aust Fine Arts Building at East Mississippi Community College’s Scooba Campus, runs from March 16 through April 10, 2026. Each participating community college selects top works created by full-time students throughout the academic year, making the competition highly competitive with hundreds of submissions from across the state.

“I am always proud when our students succeed at the state competition,” said Marc Poole, MGCCC Visual Arts Instructor and Gallery Director at the Jackson County Campus. “It is evidence of their talent and effort demonstrated through the projects created through the challenges they received in the visual art classes taught by Curtis Houston and me here at the JC Campus.”

The awards highlight the dedication, creativity, and excellence of MGCCC students, reinforcing the college’s commitment to fostering artistic talent and providing opportunities for students to excel on a state and national stage.