Page 82 - South Mississippi Living - December, 2019

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2ND CHANCE MISSISSIPPI COMMUNITY COALITION
story by Kelsey Sunderman-Foster photos courtesy of 2nd Chance Mississippi Community Coalition
What is the biggest barrier between Mississippi and prosperity and growth? According to 2nd Chance Mississippi Executive Director Zach Scruggs, it’s the lack of an educated, skilled workforce. “We rank second to last in the nation in workforce participation and last in high
Emily Shaffer (center) will get her GED thanks to the Bacot McCarty Foundation and Second Chance Mississippi.
school dropouts,” he says. “This is unacceptable to us. We believe this is the root cause of every other crisis we Mississippians face, whether
it be poverty, racism, childhood education and literacy, dependence on government assistance, obesity, crime, and teen pregnancy.”
for 2nd Chance Mississippi. The foundation’s mission is to enhance lives in the Gulf Coast Region with a focus on youth, education, the arts and other worthy causes, making this a perfect partnership for both groups.
futures for South Mississippians. “Zach Scruggs and I were able to present new Adult Learning Center student, Emily Shaffer, with a laptop computer that she will be able to use while she strives to get her GED,” Trenchard said. “And this is just the beginning.”
That’s where 2nd Chance Mississippi, a Mississippi-based nonprofit that helps adults looking to continue
their education or workforce training overcome any obstacles that could be preventing them from doing so, steps in. “Our mission is to raise funds and awareness for adult education and workforce training, basically to remove the barriers that keep the under- educated and under-skilled adults in Mississippi from learning the skills and completing the education they need to get a good job,” Scruggs said.
Stemming from this partnership is a new community coalition between 2nd Chance Mississippi, Chevron, Susan Santos with Quality Marine, David and Susan McCormick, Bonnie and Jerry Munro and Kathleen Williams with the Adult Learning Center
in Pascagoula. “Together we will
be addressing the educational and workforce development needs of our local citizens,” said Bacot McCarty Executive Director Todd Trenchard.
For more information on the 2nd Chance MS Coalition please call 228.217.5791 or visit www.bacotmccarty.org.
Funding is crucial to this effort, which is why the Bacot McCarty Foundation has created an avenue
to continue raising money
The collaboration has already begun to create new and brighter
601.265.1895 www.2ndchancems.org