Bill Text: MS HR108 | 2023 | Regular Session | Engrossed
Bill Title: Colleen Hartfield; commend distinguished career, service and contributions to Hinds Community College.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)
Status: (Passed) 2023-03-14 - Enrolled Bill Signed [HR108 Detail]
Download: Mississippi-2023-HR108-Engrossed.html
MISSISSIPPI LEGISLATURE
2023 Regular Session
To: Rules
By: Representative Weathersby
House Resolution 108
(As Adopted by House)
A RESOLUTION COMMENDING THE DISTINGUISHED CAREER, SELFLESS SERVICE AND ENDURING CONTRIBUTIONS OF MRS. COLLEEN HARTFIELD RENDERED TO HINDS COMMUNITY COLLEGE.
WHEREAS, Mrs. Colleen Hartfield, former vice president for Community Relations and Governmental Affairs for Hinds Community College, retired June 30, 2016 with a combined 18 years of service to the institution, and a combined total of 37 years shared between Hinds and Mississippi Gulf Coast Community Colleges; and
WHEREAS, Mrs. Hartfield, who is described as a passionate, persistent, positive and consummate professional, earned both her bachelor's and master's degrees from Southeast Missouri State University, and completed Mississippi State University's Community College Leadership Program and the Education Policy Fellowship Program; and
WHEREAS, now serving as president of Hartfield Creative and Consulting, Mrs. Hartfield spent the first eight years of her career as assistant director of Public Relations for Hinds after her initial hire in 1984 and subsequent promotion to district director of Public Relations in 1985, before departing in 1992 to spend the next 14 years at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, where she rose in the ranks to vice president for Institutional Relations; and
WHEREAS, the ultimate pacesetter, Mrs. Hartfield organized the first statewide Community College Month Celebration, and became one of the youngest individuals to receive Hinds' prestigious 3E Award in acknowledgement of her work with the Mississippi Association of Community and Junior Colleges (MACJC) on its legislative affairs, a capacity in which she functioned to showcase her innate ability to craft communication pieces, organize advocacy efforts for the state's 15 community colleges, helped secure funding and develop policy that advanced all community colleges; and
WHEREAS, Mrs. Hartfield returned to Hinds in 2006, assuming President's Cabinet level responsibilities, and because of her visionary leadership skills, her areas of responsibility grew until she oversaw marketing, public relations, community relations, sports information, student publications, adult education, grants management, economic development and governmental relations; and
WHEREAS, while managing internal and external communications for the college, Mrs. Hartfield's role expanded as the needs of the college and its service district changed, initiating the college's first grants office in 2009 and working to bring millions of dollars in external funding to Hinds as a staunch advocate for adult education and economically disadvantaged students who labored to expand Hinds' efforts to serve high school dropouts and at-risk students through the Gateway to College, Single Stop, MI-BEST and the Minority Male (M2M) Leadership Initiative programs; and
WHEREAS, her integrity, knowledge of the system and her ability to bring all community colleges together with a common voice were the most valuable assets to her approach to service that would benefit not just the student body, but every community touched by the college footprint, as evidenced by her collaboration with Dr. Chad Stocks, vice president for Workforce Development and Career/Technical Education, to help Mississippi land the state's largest economic development package, Continental Tire, which is located a short drive away from the Raymond campus; and
WHEREAS, after retiring in 2016, Mrs. Hartfield returned to Hinds as executive assistant to the president for special projects, and continued to serve as a legislative liaison, in addition to directing the nation's largest Predominantly Black Institution (PBI) federal grant and serving as the Institute for Evidence-Based Change's (IEBC) Caring Campus Liaison for the college; and
WHEREAS, upon her second retirement from Hinds, Mrs. Hartfield established Hartfield Creative and Consulting to work with higher education institutions and other entities dedicated to improving the lives of Mississippians; and
WHEREAS, the 2015 recipient of the Women in Higher Education Mississippi Network's Leadership Award, Mrs. Hartfield currently serves on the board of directors for 2nd Chance Mississippi, which supports adult education students at community colleges, and on the Mississippi Balance of State Continuum of Care Governing Council, which is devoted to homelessness prevention; and
WHEREAS, it is the policy of the House of Representatives to recognize the selfless dedication and passion of remarkable individuals such as Mrs. Hartfield, whose heart for improving the outcomes and empowering entire communities is personified through her service to the State of Mississippi's community college system and beyond, and established as an exemplary benchmark of excellence:
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE STATE OF MISSISSIPPI, That we do hereby commend the distinguished career, selfless service and enduring contributions of Mrs. Colleen Hartfield rendered to Hinds Community College, express grateful appreciation for the strides undertaken to advance the state's community college system, and extend best wishes for continued success in all her future endeavors.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this resolution be furnished to Mrs. Colleen Hartfield and to the members of the Capitol Press Corps.
