Skip to main content

United Way Campaign at Mississippi College Earns Trophy


President Lee Royce is joined by United Way leaders of the capital city area with the trophy. MC's United Way campaign starting in Fall in 2012 finished No. 1 in higher education in metro Jackson.

Mississippi College’s United Way campaign recently raised more than $27,000 to finish No. 1 in the higher education division in metro Jackson.

It marked the sixth year in a row that MC faculty and staff giving has led the field.

President Lee Royce accepted the trophy from United Way leaders, who visited the Clinton campus Friday. They were here to thank the Christian university’s strong efforts to donate to non-profits and agencies serving the community’s needs.

Dr. Royce has been a United Way campaign leader for nearly two decades.

United Way of the Capital Area supports more than 50 human service programs in Hinds, Rankin and Madison counties. Overall, giving to United Way organizations in the Jackson area topped $3.1 million this past year.

MC’s campaign during the Fall of 2012 collected $27,397. It rose from the $22,004 the previous year and $19,150 two years ago for United Way agencies.

“That’s amazing,” says Shari Barnes, coordinator of the United Way campaign at Mississippi College. Contributions keep rising at the university despite the USA’s troubled economy with high unemployment rates hovering around 7.9 percent. Barnes serves as director of MC’s Community Service Center.

New reports show the overall percentage of MC faculty and staff giving was 38 percent. The breakdown was 35 percent for the staff and 43 percent for the faculty.

The Mississippi College School of Law in downtown Jackson finished on top this year with its 60 percent donation rate. Faculty and staff at the School of Law gave $2,931. Mississippi College has more than 500 employees.

United Way CEO and President Carol Burger saluted MC’s superb effort again. “We are thrilled with the leadership of Dr. Royce,” she said on the Clinton campus. “It means a lot to people in need in the tri-county area.”

Other schools boosting United Way campaigns in the metro area this past year include Jackson State University, Tougaloo College, Millsaps College and Hinds Community College.

Next fall, Royce will chair a United Way committee to get area colleges more involved in giving to the agency, Burger announced during her MC visit. Donations help the Magnolia Speech School, the Shelter for Battered Women and Children, Goodwill Industries, and the 4C’s organization in Clinton, among others.

For more information, contact Shari Barnes at 601.925.3267 or sbarnes@mc.edu.