b'classes were added in the 1926-27 session, and the first class of one student finished on May 10, 1927.On July 15, 1942, George County added its support to the institution, which then took the official name of Perkinston Junior College. The institution served the needs of its community endeavoring to fulfill its purpose: "To develop the cultural, intellectual and character resources of the people of this area, point the way to an economic livelihood based on natural resources, and promote responsible citizenship." In May 1962, 50 years after its organization, the Agricultural High School division was discontinued, and local high schools provided for the youth of the community. On May 10, 1962, the governor of the state of Mississippi signed into law House Bill 597, which created the Mississippi Gulf Coast Junior College District. This bill wiped out county lines as far as the college was concerned. The District became a single unit in which each taxpayer shared equally to support junior college education for the area. The District was founded to bring higher education to the people so they could train and/or retrain to meet the needs of business and industry; to enable young people to live at home, hold jobs and go to school; and to bring cultural as well as academic enrichment to people of all ages. In September 1965, Mississippi Gulf Coast Junior College became a tri-campus institution when two new campuses were opened on the Gulf CoastJefferson Davis Campus in Handsboro (renamed Harrison County Campus in 2020) and Jackson County Campus in Gautier. In 1965, the Seabee Base Manpower Training Center (founded the previous year) became a branch of the new Jefferson Davis Campus. After its removal to the Industrial Seaway in 1968, this branch took the name Harrison County Occupational Training Center.In 1972, the George County Occupational Training Center (renamed George County Center in 2001) opened in Lucedale as a branch of Perkinston Campus. In 1973, the Keesler Center opened at Keesler Air Force Base as a branch of the Jefferson Davis Campus. In 1985, the West Harrison County Occupational Training Center (renamed West Harrison County Center in 2001) opened in Long Beach as a branch of the Jefferson Davis Campus. To clearly reflect the comprehensive nature of the college, the name was changed on October 1, 1987, to Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College. In spring 1991, the college relocated the Harrison County Occupational Training Center to Intraplex 10 with the opening of the Mississippi Gulf Coast Applied Technology and Development Center. In spring 2007, the center\'s name was changed to the Mississippi Gulf Coast Advanced Manufacturing and Technology Center.Established as a partnership among Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, Mississippi Power Company and the Harrison County Development Commission, the center was founded to serve as a training facility in support of economic development activities on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. In 1996, a campus "without walls" concept was introduced, resulting in a fourth campus called Community Campus. In August 2000, the Naval Construction Battalion Center at the Seabee Base in Gulfport was established as part of Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College. Classes began in January 2001, providing even more services to meet the diverse needs of Gulf Coast residents, both military and civilian. The Gulf Coast office at the base is in the Moreell Building, which is just inside the Broad Avenue entrance in Gulfport. Two other centers have been added to the college since that time.The Haley Reeves Barbour Maritime Training Academy in Pascagoula opened in 2013 and the Nursing and Simulation Center at the Bryant Center at Tradition, located in Biloxi, in 2018.Those two centers bring the college total to 10 campuses and centers throughout its four-county district.For-profit facilities are also located at the three main campuses, including the Estuarine Education Center at the Jackson County Campus (2007), the Hospitality Resort Management Center at the Jefferson Davis Campus (2012) and the King Center at the Perkinston Campus (2016). In late 2018 and early 2019, groundbreaking ceremonies were held for expansions on each of the three main campuses, with construction on all to be completed by 2020.The new facilities include a 54,000-square-foot Immersive Media Performing Arts Center (iMPAC) at the Jefferson Davis Campus; a 57,331-square-foot residence hall and 24,717-square-foot Student Union on the Perkinston Campus; and the renovation and additions of a 91,150-square-foot Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) Building at the Jackson County Campus.6'