PEARL – After Alaina Broome had a stroke in 2013 while working as a U.S. Army military broadcast journalist in Afghanistan she left the service and returned home.
Gardening became her therapy, she said. Harvesting what she planted also became the 54-year-old Jackson woman’s way of giving back.
On Thursday, May 15, Broome graduated with honors from Hinds Community College, receiving received three degrees – Agribusiness Management Technology, Animal Science Technology (beef production) and Animal Science Technology (poultry production). Broome didn’t get to finish the mission she started in Afghanistan, she said, but God gave her new purpose in Jackson.
Vicksburg River City Early College High School students Charlie Owens, 18, Lindsay Adams, 18, Ciara Carter, 18, Jannah Archer, 18, Hailey Green, 17, and Rae Bantugan,17, received associate degrees from Hinds Community College on May 15 at Clyde Muse Center in Pearl.
Broome shares the organic vegetables and fruits she grows to men and women’s homeless shelters and a local shelter for foster children. Two years ago, she decided to return to school with an eye on expanding her operation to raising chickens to provide organic eggs and meat to the needy.
“I hate to see people in need. I am finishing my mission by feeding them,” Broome said.
Hinds Community College student commencement speaker Charles Murray, left, of Jackson, Hinds President Dr. Stephen Vacik and Jamiya Sharp of Kosciusko, who gave the invocation and benediction, gather before graduation on May 15 at Muse Center in Pearl.
Hinds is awarding over 1,200 degrees and certificates to 900 graduates in four ceremonies from May 14-16, which means many graduates, like Broome, are earning more than one community college credential. Among the graduates, 437 graduated with honors, including 220 cum laude, a 3.2 – 3.59 GPA out of 4.0; 154 magna cum laude, a 3.60 – 3.99 GPA; and 63 summa cum laude, a perfect 4.0 GPA.
The speakers for each ceremony were students receiving degrees who have shown leadership and excellence in their fields of study and were selected by their instructors and peers.
William Green, center, 20, of Brandon celebrates graduation from Hinds Community College with his parents, Byron and Michelle Green, also of Brandon. Green received an associate degree in arts with an emphasis in music and will attend William Carey University in Hattiesburg to study music therapy.
At the 10 a.m. May 15 ceremony, Jamiya Sharp, of Kosciusko, gave the invocation and benediction. She is this year’s SOAR winner, an award given to the college’s highest-achieving student, and will transfer to the University of Mississippi to study dentistry.
The graduation speaker was Charles Murray, 21, of Jackson, who attended the Raymond Campus, where he was involved in multiple organizations, including the choir, Men of Excellence and Phi Theta Kappa. He will attend Jackson State University in the fall.
Na’darrien Cooper, 19, of Jackson, received an associate degree in kinesiology from Hinds Community College on May 15. Cooper, who graduated summa cum laude, will attend Mississippi State University in the fall to pursue a bachelor’s degree.
urray graduated from high school in 2021 in the middle of the pandemic. He said that to find a purpose, he joined he Air Force Reserves. He was let go from a leadership position as Dorm Chief after a week because he was on crutches, then, in tech school, he twice failed his EMT certification exam. He has since passed the exam to become an EMT.
Murray said he was terrified of enrolling in college because he didn’t want to fail.
“But with every class I attended, every connection I made, every challenge I overcame, that fear started to fade. I found my rhythm. I found my people. I found myself,” Murray told fellow graduates. “Standing here today, I realize: every setback, every failure, and every fear was just a comma—not the end of a story, but a necessary pause before a breakthrough.”
Murray encouraged graduates as they step into the next chapter – whether attending a university, beginning a career or taking a well-deserved break – to continue including those “commas” along their journeys.
“Your story isn’t over yet,” Murray said.
Rikel Buck, 19, of Vicksburg graduated from Hinds Community College on May 15 with a credential in welding. She plans to enroll again to learn how to pipe. Buck said her brother, who was a welder, inspired her to take the courses and graduate. He died in a car accident two years ago.
Rikel Buck,19, of Vicksburg decorated her graduation mortar board to reflect the welding credential she received at Hinds Community College on May 15 at Muse Center in Pearl.
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With six campuses in central Mississippi, Hinds Community College is a comprehensive institution offering quality, affordable educational opportunities with academic programs of study leading to seamless university transfer and career and technical programs teaching job-ready skills.
Our Mission: Hinds Community College is committed to moving people and communities forward by helping develop their purpose, passion and profession.
Our Vision: Hinds Community College will be a catalyst to create a competitive economy and a compelling culture for Mississippi.
Our Values: Hinds Community College aspires to the following IDEALS: Integrity, Diversity, Excellence, Accountability, Leadership, Stewardship.
To learn more, visit www.hindscc.edu or call 1.800.HindsCC.