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PLANNING THE FUTURE Dr. Rick Young, right, president of East Mississippi Community College, paints a picture of the future Aug. 15 during a visit to the college’s Golden Triangle campus by U.S. Rep. Travis Childers, D-Booneville. Childers spent much of the day in the Columbus area, attending a pilot graduation at Columbus Air Force Base and stopping at the Mississippi Coffee House. Childers also visited the Golden Triangle Industrial Park, where he toured Aurora Flight Services. The visit ended with a stop at EMCC’s Golden Triangle campus, where Dr. Young talked about college’s need to expand its healthcare programs: “EMCC is the only community college in the state without an Allied Health building and it limits what we can do. There is no question that the healthcare industry needs more skilled workers, but right now we have to limit the number of licensed practical nursing students we can take because of space constraints – and there’s a wide range of therapy programs that we can’t offer at all.” Looking toward the future, Young said, EMCC is also working to establish an Associate’s Degree Nursing program and facility improvements are key to that expansion.
 Circuit Clerk Robbie Robinson of West Point and U.S. Rep. Travis Childers, D-Booneville
 Lowndes County Tax Collector Greg Andrews, Brenda Lathan of the Columbus Lowndes Development LINK and Glenn Dennis of Navistar/IMG West Point
 Tim Climer of the West Point/Clay County Growth Alliance, center, and Travis Childers
 Travis Childers, Dr. Raj Shaunak of EMCC, Dr. Steve Vacik of EMCC and George Kerekes of PACCAR
 Travis Childers and Raj Shaunak
 EMCC President Dr. Rick Young, Travis Childers, EMCC instructor Mike McCullough and Raj Shaunak
 Rick Young, Travis Childers and Steve Vacik
 EMCC instructor Rickey Collier and Travis Childers
 Travis Childers, and Rick Young and Linda Gates of EMCC
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