August 18, 2020

Hinds CC welcomes students back to campus for fall 2020 semester

RAYMOND – It’s a very different semester for Kaitlyn Walker, of Terry, who is taking core academic classes at Hinds Community College as she pursues a career in forensic science.…
BY: Danny Barrett Jr.

RAYMOND – It’s a very different semester for Kaitlyn Walker, of Terry, who is taking core academic classes at Hinds Community College as she pursues a career in forensic science.

 

Kaitlyn Walker,

Kaitlyn Walker, of Terry, gets her photo taken for a new ID badge. Walker plans to study Forensic Science after taking her core academic courses at Hinds. (Hinds Community College/April Garon)

“It’s different coming to campus with masks on after my first semester here was so comfortable,” she said. “The instructors must do things differently now, but I’m adapting fast and everyone here is still helping people.”

Classes at Hinds began Aug. 17 for face-to-face instruction. Online classes begin Aug. 24. Sessions on campus are operating under the college’s Healthy at Hinds plan for safety protocols in light of the coronavirus pandemic. Those involve wearing masks or face coverings, distancing procedures and regular cleaning and sanitizing facilities.

Kendarious Morris

Kendarious Morris, of Pickens, waits to purchase books at the bookstore at Hinds Community College. Morris is a freshman planning to study brick masonry. (Hinds Community College/April Garon)

Kendarious Morris, a commuter student from Pickens, got some help in the bookstore after his hour-long drive to school as he began his pursuit of a career in bricklaying, taught in the college’s Brick, Block and Stonemasonry program.

“I look at it as helping the community,” he said of his career path. “Then, I’ll go into business and make money doing it.”

Mary Thompson and Amber Torrey

Classmates Mary Thompson, left, of Flowood and Amber Torrey, of Clinton, walk to their next classroom on the first day of classes at Hinds Community College Aug. 17, 2020. Both are freshman barbering students. (Hinds Community College/April Garon)

Mary Thompson, of Flowood, and Amber Torrey, of Clinton, see their success in the college’s barbering program as a similar way to help people once they graduate.

“I’m choosing barbering because I like the way people feel so good after I cut their hair,” Thompson said. “It makes me feel good as a result.”