13 November ICC's Guntharp represents all 15 community colleges during significant C Spire MissiON announcement November 13, 2020 By Thomas, Donna S. General 0 Itawamba Community College Systems Engineer Jason Guntharp of Fulton represented all 15 Mississippi public two-year institutions during a press briefing Thursday to announce their addition to a statewide science, engineering and technology research and development consortium called the Mississippi Optical Network (MissiON). Guntharp served as chair of the subcommittee, which assisted with the addition of Mississippi’s community colleges to the C Spire initiative. Additional speakers for the virtual press conference included Hu Meena, president and CEO of C Spire; Dr. Andrea Mayfield, executive director of the Mississippi Community College Board; David Sliman, CIO of the University of Southern Mississippi; and Jim Richmond, vice president of marketing for C Spire. They discussed the addition of community colleges to the network, the boost for distance learning, efforts to train and equip students for future jobs in Mississippi employers and benefits for the state’s economy through the MissiON network. “As Mississippi’s leading broadband communications provider, C Spire is proud to provide innovative, leading-edge technology and the latest fiber optic infrastructure to help expand the size of the MissiON network and enable researchers to pursue comprehensive solutions to 21st century challenges, Meena said. Guntharp said that no matter the delivery system, quality instruction and outcome are the ultimate plumb line when gauging the effectiveness of a school technology program. “Colleges equip themselves with distance learning management systems, popular browsers for research, telephony, laptops, tablets, desktops and a countless line of business applications.” Although, like vehicles, they are different, but what they all have in common is the need for highways. Guntharp cited the commitment of community colleges to major investments in “building the highways. Equipment demands are great, both wired and wireless, as infrastructure is put in place, paving the roads that this plethora of devices and applications will traverse.” The largest intersection, he said, is the area where all other roads converge, the internet connection. “It is here we find yet another investment in travel – a highway to our neighbors, partners, students and the rest of the world – a highway that until recently was much more difficult to acquire. “Without this internet highway, all travel stops,” Guntharp said. “Our vehicles depend on it, and we depend on our vehicles. Due to the nature of our business, it cannot be unavailable for any prolonged length of time. Our student expectations demand it.” This month, each of Mississippi’s 15 community colleges moved to missiON, the Mississippi Optical Network hosted by C Spire, for connectivity. The network was created to connect universities, research facilities and partners across the state at unprecedented speeds with exceptional reliability and redundancy. The missiON network is also used for commodity internet access at very competitive prices due to the state’s latest telecommunications contract with C Spire. Guntharp noted that missiON allows a future pathway to Internet2. Mayfield said the transition to the MissiON network will help with expanded distance learning needs for more than 200,000 students in the community college system. “We’re excited about joining a robust network that meets our needs now and well into the future.” Mayfield said the state’s community colleges have been considering joining the consortium for some time, weighing the costs, level of effort and potential benefits, but decided earlier this year after the public health emergency to move forward with plans to partner with C Spire on the project. “Our students, teachers and staff needed a fast, reliable solution.” “The community college network is entering a new era,” Guntharp said. “In our move to missiON, we inherit the benefits of the Mississippi Optical Network. Each college receives a multi-gigabit connection to each of its peers…It is flexible, manageable and controlled by each college independently based on need. “This is such a huge win for community colleges in the state,” Guntharp said. “The community colleges in the state, regarding connectivity, are in a much better position to take on whatever the future may bring, whether we continue to battle our way through a pandemic, take on additional challenges with distance and hybrid learning, or simply desire to meet the new expectations of our students. The future is promising for our connectivity, technology programs and effectiveness in challenging times. May we move forward without hesitation. We are now on missiON.” In 2000, Guntharp earned the associate’s degree with honors at ICC, where he was selected to the Hall of Fame and received Honors Day awards in his field for two years. He has held numerous technology certifications throughout his career. He has served as Coordinator of Technology for the Lee County Schools and later taught courses in ICC’s Information Systems Technology program. He joined the ICC Telecommunications and Information Systems department in 2011 and served as Network Administrator until 2017.He is a 2010 Lamplighter recipient, graduate of the 2014-15 Leadership Development Institute and 2016-17 Mississippi Community College Leadership Academy. He and his wife, Shea, have four daughters. Related Articles ICC's Guntharp named Mississippi Community College Connectivity Consortium chairman Jason Guntharp of Fulton, system engineer/project manager at Itawamba Community College, has been recently named chairman of the Mississippi Community College Connectivity Consortium (MC4). MC4 is the evolution of the state’s Computer Center Director’s Association, now known as MJCCCDA, which was formed on Dec. 10, 1986. Its purpose is to collaborate and share solutions to problems that affected all colleges as well as the catalyst for a computer network to connect all of the two-year colleges. The Strategic Planning Council, which was the first IT technical group, evolved into MC4. Today, the organization represents community colleges from across the state and confronts the technology challenges that affect every community college, Guntharp said. “It is an honor to lead and be part of a group with such a rich history in the state. We are in a synergistic position whose projects will help all community colleges across the state.” MC4 has quarterly meetings with input from vendors on various technologies that could benefit the state’s community colleges, Guntharp noted. “We have a group with ... Itawamba Community College receives $100,000 and joins 41 other schools across the US as All Within My Hands' Metallica Scholars Initiative expands in year five Metallica’s foundation, All Within My Hands, continues its multimillion-dollar investment in critical workforce programs at community colleges nationwide. Among the schools, Itawamba Community College was selected from a competitive pool of applicants to receive $100,000 to transform the futures of students in the community. “It is a tremendous honor for Itawamba Community College to be selected as one of the recipients of the prestigious All Within My Hands grant, which will significantly impact our career education programs, providing funding for students to pursue a pathway and their best start,” said ICC President Dr. Jay Allen. “It is another indication of the success of the College and reinforcement of the mission that students and their success are our top priority.” The Metallica Scholars Initiative (MSI) was launched in 2019 by Metallica’s foundation, All Within My Hands (AWMH), in partnership with the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC). The workforce initiative marks its fifth year with an ambitious expansion into new curricula. MSI now directly supports 42 community colleges across 33 states, and by the end of this year, it will have helped ... ICC named one of nation's top 150 community colleges Today, the Aspen Institute named Itawamba Community College one of the 150 institutions eligible to compete for the $1 million Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence, the nation’s signature recognition of high achievement and performance among America’s community colleges. Those selected for this honor stand out among more than 1,000 community colleges nationwide as having high and improving levels of student success as well as equitable outcomes for Black and Hispanic students and those from lower-income backgrounds. The 150 eligible colleges have been invited to submit data and narratives as the next steps in an intensive data and practice review process, culminating in the announcement of the Prize winner in spring 2023. “It is a tremendous honor for Itawamba Community College to be selected as one of the top 150 community colleges in the nation and to be afforded the opportunity to compete for the significant Aspen Prize,” said ICC President Dr. Jay Allen. “It is another indication of the success of the College, its continuing status as a premier community college and a testament to our exceptional faculty ... ICC's Baldwin appointed as community college representative for Commission on Teacher and Administrator Education, Certification and Licensure and Development Itawamba Community College Dean of Career Education Dylan Baldwin of Pontotoc has been appointed as Community College representative for the Commission on Teacher and Administrator Education, Certification and Licensure and Development. He will serve an unexpired term as a Licensure Commission Member representing Mississippi’s First Congressional District. Baldwin earned the associate’s degree from ICC, the bachelor’s degree from the University of Mississippi and the master’s degree from Mississippi State University. He joined the ICC faculty in 2013 as Collision Repair Technology instructor. His honors include 2023 Mississippi Community College Leadership Academy, 2017 Mississippi Community College Board Leadership Academy and multiple ASE and ICAR certifications. From 2012-13, he was an instructor at the Tupelo Career and Technical Center. Baldwin and his wife, Monica, are the parents of an eight-year-old daughter, Mia. The Licensure Commission is charged with making recommendations to the State Board of Education regarding standards for the preparation of educators, certification and licensure and continuing professional development of those who teach or perform tasks of an educational nature in the public schools of Mississippi, according to Dr. Cory Murphy, associate state superintendent, ... Aspen Institute names ICC as one of nation's top 150 and eligible to compete for the $1 million Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence Today, the Aspen Institute named Itawamba Community College as one of the 150 institutions eligible to compete for the $1 million Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence, the nation’s signature recognition of high achievement and performance among two-year colleges. The institutions selected for this honor stand out among more than 1,000 community colleges nationwide as having high improving levels of student success as well as equitable outcomes for Black and Hispanic students and those from lower-income backgrounds. “It is a tremendous honor for Itawamba Community College to be selected as one of the top 150 community colleges in the nation and to afforded the opportunity to compete for the significant Aspen Prize,” said ICC President Dr. Jay Allen. “It is another indication of the success of the College, its continuing status as a premier community college and a testament to our exceptional faculty and staff, without whom it would not be possible.” ICC was selected as a top community college in 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2021 and as a semifinalist in 2023. The Aspen Prize spotlights exemplary community ... ICC's Dr. Melissa Haab completes Community College Policy Fellows Program Itawamba Community College Dean of Enrollment Services Dr. Melissa Haab of Louisville was among 14 Alabama and 13 Mississippi community college administrators who recently completed the Community College Policy Fellows Program. The 10-month professional development program sponsored by the Alabama Community College System and the Mississippi Community College Board culminated in a trip to Washington, D.C. to advocate on behalf of college students in both states. “It was an honor to be selected and to participate in the program and to represent Itawamba Community College,” Haab said. “This experience allowed me to learn more about the community college systems in Mississippi and Alabama and gave me the opportunity to collaborate with colleagues across both states. I was able to broaden my professional skillset and will hopefully will be able to use those skills to benefit ICC and our students.” Directed by Tyson Elbert of Advocacy Build, LLC, the curriculum focused on four national program pillars: policy, leadership, networking and advocacy. It also highlighted comparative elements of both state systems. ... Comments are closed.