MC Graduate John Martin Overcomes Disability and Job Loss
In fact, encountering obstacles seemed to make the 54-year-old Jackson native more determined to finish his education at Mississippi College. "I've got plenty of good years left," Martin said after earning his MBA on the Clinton campus in early August.
These days, he's polishing his resume, making plans to attend job fairs and embarking on a journey to become a certified public accountant.
A Hinds Community College alumnus, Martin is a December 2006 graduate of MC's Accelerated Degree Program that targets working adults. A radio ad about MC's ADP Program convinced him to visit program director Bebe Garrison and give it a shot. But he didn't want to end his education with a bachelor's degree in business (the honors graduate finished with a 3.68 average).
Becoming a layoff victim as a sales and finance manager at the Mississippi trucking firm due to the nation's poor economy really turned out to be a blessing, he said. That difficult situation afforded him the time he needed to go to graduate school.
With that door opening up, Martin enrolled at the MC School of Business and stayed with it. In early August, Martin received his master's in business administration with a concentration in accounting.
Mississippi Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann delivered the summer commencement address at the A.E. Wood Coliseum. New grads in the audience like John Martin soaked up the speaker's words of encouragement that day. Many in the crowd of more than 200 graduates vowed to continue their education in an increasingly competitive society. Martin, who never had an easy time of it as a non-traditional student, kept plugging away to get his MBA. He will vigorously pursue a job, like he did his MC studies.
"His strength of character was apparent from the first day I met him," said Mary Baughn, the school's assistant dean and his former instructor. "Frankly, I never thought about his disability because of his personality, drive and determination to succeed."
An automobile accident in Mississippi nearly 16 years ago left Martin a paraplegic. His car smacked into a tree off Mississippi 28 late one evening near Natchez as he tried to avoid hitting deer in the middle of the road. He broke his back in two places. Today, he gets around in a wheelchair.
Martin is the type of person that MC's Accelerated degree Program is trying to reach. They're people who are busy juggling careers with families and only have time for college studies at night. Meeting for classes on Monday and Thursday evenings, the Accelerated Degree Program offers degrees in business administration, accounting, marketing, public relations and sociology. ADP classes are scheduled at the main campus in Clinton and branches in Madison and Brandon.
While Martin stays busy looking for full-time employment this summer, he's getting help from MC's Career Services Office as he works on his resume. Martin brings extensive management skills - working from 1975 through 2008, with some time off years ago when he was recovering from his car accident in 1993. The accident left him paralyzed from the waist down.
But you won't hear Martin complain about his situation. Instead, he's thankful to the MC faculty and staff for helping him learn and grow as a person.
Martin is delighted with the fact that MC is "a Christian university with a reputation for quality. It was perfect for what I wanted to do."
A Northeast Jackson resident, Martin is a Mississippian with a caring spirit for others. He works volunteer assignments at Highland Baptist Church in Jackson, and gets excited when he talks about his six-year-old twin grandchildren. A 1973 graduate of Jackson's Murrah High, Martin also gets excited about his new bride - he recently married a school teacher.
Bebe Garrison, who directs MC's ADP Program, is happy to welcome people like Martin into the program. Simply put, he's a "wonderful person," she says.
Martin says Garrison was a key reason why he enrolled at MC. "Bebe sold me on the program," he said. It was a good move to study business and accounting at Baptist-affiliated MC, because "I'm a numbers person."
MC Accelerated Degree Program classes for this fall will begin Aug. 24. More than 400 MC students are enrolled in the university's ADP classes.
Martin would recommend ADP to a friend or anybody else that comes his way. "Everybody at MC has been more than helpful."
For more information on ADP classes at MC, contact Bebe Garrison at 601.925.7617 or garrison@mc.edu.
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