Northeast Mississippi Community College is a public, two-year institution located in North Mississippi in a town called Booneville. After being established in 1948, the college recently celebrated 75 years of serving the educational community. The college first began as a very small regional institution in the state of Mississippi, and it quickly developed into an educational institution that was key for affordable education close to home. This college not only serves traditional college students but also non-traditional students such as adult learners and workforce development trainees. Northeast has three major division programs. They are University Transfer, Division of Health Sciences, and Division of Engineering and Business Technology. Northeast plays a major role in providing rural Mississippians access to higher education through multiple satellite locations within our five-county district.

NEMCC’s target audience includes high school students seeking affordable education or transfer opportunities, parents who value safety and strong career paths for their children, and adult learners looking to reskill through flexible programs. The college also connects with local employers for workforce training and supports current students with resources and engagement. Alumni and donors round out the audience, staying involved through giving and community ties.

Student-Centered Learning – Prioritizing student success, support, and personal growth.

Accessibility & Affordability – Offering quality education that’s affordable and close to home.

Academic Excellence – Providing strong programs that prepare students for careers or transfer.

Community Engagement – Serving and partnering with the local community and workforce.

Integrity & Respect – Promoting an inclusive, respectful, and ethical learning environment.

Innovation & Adaptability – Embracing new ideas and technologies to meet changing needs.

Strengths

• Affordable tuition and financial aid options
• Strong local reputation and community support
• Variety of academic, technical, and career programs
• Personalized support and small class sizes

Weaknesses

• Limited national visibility
• Smaller campus may offer fewer extracurricular options
• Dependence on regional enrollment

Opportunities

• Growing demand for workforce and technical training
• Expansion of online and hybrid learning
• Partnerships with local industries and high schools

Threats

• Competition from nearby colleges and online programs
• Declining rural population in some areas
• Economic factors impacting enrollment and funding

The biggest current issue that the college is facing with marketing, communications, and multimedia efforts is the lack of funding to support the marketing efforts. While social media is a great free tool, unpaid advertisements are simply not enough. Purchasing advertisements is essential to reaching beyond our district boundaries. We have to make sure that we are able to reach enough students to reach our goal of having 4,000 students enrolled at the college. We only have about 2,500 students in our entire 5 county district so going beyond is absolutely essential when we physically can not go there. We also run into the issue having to pay a large amount to outsource our media production. A huge part of our budget goes to making one commercial each year.

A cost-friendly solution would be to focus on the free aspects of social media and to buy the correct equipment to produce professional content in-house without having to pay a large amount each year. While this may be costly upfront, it is a positive long-term investment. Another solution would be to use our alumni association to fund the efforts through alumni and stakeholder donations. Using social media to tap into the social media accounts of followers through shares to reach beyond district boundaries could be proven effective.