Becca Benson Mentors Mississippi College Students

A 2009 Mississippi College graduate, Rebecca Benson is the new associate director of student engagement on the Clinton campus.

Mississippi College graduate Becca Benson is thrilled to return to her alma mater as an advisor and role model to students.

The Laurel native began work January 4 as associate director for student engagement at the Baptist-affiliated university.

Starting 2016 fresh with a new staff position at the 5,152-student Christian university seems to be a perfect fit for the Clinton resident.

“I’m excited about spending lots of time with college students as their mentor,” Benson said. “I love the city of Clinton and the family feel of Mississippi College.”

Becca is diving right in very early in the new year. Among her assignments Benson will oversee the Campus Activities Board. Expect her to be extremely busy for CAB’s Winter Welcome Week for new students January 11-15.

As an undergraduate, Benson relished her marathon of activities with the Nenamoosha Social Tribe. She stayed active in the university’s chapter of Mortar Board, and gravitated toward Baptist Student Union leadership roles. As an MC scout, Becca recruited prospective students.

A graduate of West Jones High School in Laurel, Becca earned her Mississippi College bachelor’s degree in communication with a minor in psychology in 2009. She received her master’s in Christian education at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Fort Worth, Texas in 2012.

Since 2011, the Mississippi native worked closely with middle and high school girls as associate student minister at the Church of Brook Hills in Birmingham, Alabama. She helped lead and empower the girls and encouraged them to pursue life’s dreams.

Working her first week on the Mississippi College staff in an office in the B.C. Rogers Student Center makes her feel right at home.

“It’s a good opportunity,” Benson said. “And it puts me closer to my family.”

Her youngster sister, JJ Benson Campbell, a staff member at Vertical Church in Madison, believes Mississippi College leaders made a terrific hire.

“Becca is a huge asset to the student life team because she’s a people magnet,” said JJ, a 2011 MC graduate. “She loves investing in students.”

Working with two large Southern churches, Becca Benson planned major events “that really made an impact,” says JJ Benson Campbell, a former admissions staffer at Mississippi College.

With Mississippi College celebrating its 190^th anniversary on Founder’s Day in late January, Becca Benson is expected to make a big impact here for years to come.

Vice President for Enrollment Services and Dean of Students Jim Turcotte believes Benson brings considerable strengths to her new assignment. “Becca is a great match for MC with her background in church ministry and her love for college students.”