Jones College (Mississippi)

Jones College is a public community college in Ellisville, Mississippi. It is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools and serves its eight-county district consisting of Clarke, Covington, Greene, Jasper, Jones, Perry, Smith, and Wayne Counties.[1]

Jones College
Former names
Jones County Agricultural High School Jones County Junior College
MottoInspiring Greatness
TypePublic community college
EstablishedSeptember 18, 1911
AccreditationSACS
Academic affiliations
Space-grant
PresidentJesse Smith
Location, ,
United States
CampusRural, 360 acres
ColorsCardinal and Gold    
NicknameBobcats
MascotBruiser the Bobcat
Websitewww.jcjc.edu
Jones County Junior College as viewed from U.S. Route 11

History

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In 1922, Mississippi allowed college courses to be included in the curriculum of agricultural high schools. The Jones County Agricultural High School became the Jones County Agricultural High School and Junior College. The Jones County Agricultural High School was founded in 1911. In September 1927, the first 26 students attended the college. The Junior College separated from the Jones County Agricultural High School in 1957.[2]

In 2018, the college was informally rebranded as Jones College, although the school is still legally named Jones County Junior College.[3]

Athletics

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Although a community college, its sports teams have achieved some notability. In 1955, the Jones County Junior College football team became the first all-white team in Mississippi to play a racially integrated team. This occurred when Jones County played in the Junior Rose Bowl, now the Pasadena Bowl, against Compton Community College in Compton, California.[4] Jones has won three NJCAA national championships and 30 regional titles, as of 2023.

The Bobcats captured the 2013–14 NJCAA Division I Men's Basketball Championship with an 87–77 victory over Indian Hills Community College (Iowa) on March 22 at the Hutchinson Sports Arena in Hutchinson, Kansas.[5]

The Bobcats then claimed the 2016 NJCAA Division II Baseball crown in a 7–1 win over GateWay Community College and compiled a final record of 54–9.[6]

In 2018, the Lady Bobcats won the NJCAA Division II Softball National Championship. They swept the national tournament, winning five straight games in four days. Jones beat Potomac St. (West Virginia), 13–0 in five innings; Illinois Central College, 10–2 in six innings; LSU-Eunice, 8–7; Phoenix College, 20–1 in five innings and Phoenix again, 18–2, in the championship game.[7]

Notable alumni

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References

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  1. ^ "Profile". Jones College. Retrieved September 27, 2024.
  2. ^ "Jones County Junior College :: Inspiring Greatness". jcjc.edu. 2016. Archived from the original on December 18, 2011. Retrieved December 4, 2016.
  3. ^ McCreery, Teresa (September 11, 2018). "Informal name change: No more 'junior' for Jones County Junior College". Hattiesburg American. Retrieved June 17, 2023.
  4. ^ "Erle E. Johnston, Jr., Papers". lib.usm.edu. Retrieved June 17, 2023.
  5. ^ "No. 11-seed Jones County goes distance for Men's Basketball crown". NJCAA. March 22, 2014.
  6. ^ "Bobcats capture national championship!". jcbobcats.com. June 4, 2016.
  7. ^ "LADY BOBCATS CLAIM 2018 SOFTBALL NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP!!". jcbobcats.com. May 19, 2018.
  8. ^ Former bobcat Abram selected in first round by Raiders, Jones County Athletics
  9. ^ "How JUCO football changed Javon Kinlaw's life". TheBigSpur. Retrieved April 24, 2020.
  10. ^ "Bobcats in the NFL". Archived from the original on July 22, 2010. Retrieved February 2, 2018.
  11. ^ "The Erin and Ben Napier School of Design and Building Arts". Jones College Alumni and Foundation. Jones College. 2024. Retrieved April 14, 2024.
  12. ^ "Charles W. Pickering, Sr". fjc.gov. Retrieved March 30, 2012.
  13. ^ "D'Iberville's Chase Sherman ready for his first UFC fight in Salt Lake City next month".
  14. ^ "Former Bobcat Damien Wilson wins Super Bowl LIV". Jones College Athletics. Retrieved April 24, 2020.
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31°35′43″N 89°12′03″W / 31.595255°N 89.200919°W / 31.595255; -89.200919