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Gordon Completes Mississippi Community College Policy Fellowship Program

Senatobia, MS (06/19/2025) — Patti Gordon, Executive Director of Institutional Advancement at Northwest Mississippi Community College, has recently completed the prestigious Mississippi Community College Policy Fellowship Program (MCCPFP). Gordon, a respected higher education administrator and fundraiser, was nominated by Northwest President Dr. Michael J. Heindl to represent the college in the year-long program. As Executive Director, she leads efforts to engage alumni, expand donor support, and advance institutional priorities through scholarships, fundraising, and major initiatives. Most notably, she was responsible for completing Northwest's first-ever capital campaign-an institutional milestone that has significantly expanded resources for students, faculty, and facilities.

The MCCPFP is sponsored by the Mississippi Community College Board in partnership with Washington, D.C.-based AdvocacyBuild. Since its inception in 2012, the program has produced more than 120 alumni and is designed to strengthen leadership, policy understanding, and advocacy skills within Mississippi's community college system. Each year, two participants from each of the state's 15 public community colleges are nominated by their presidents. The fellowship is designed to help community college leaders better understand the communities they serve and become stronger advocates for the programs their institutions promote across their districts. Local, state, and national policymaking agencies are central to the learning process, helping participants learn how best to support and advance community colleges through effective policy engagement. Gordon said of her experience, "I really enjoyed my time in the Policy Fellowship Program. It was a great learning experience about advocating for issues that are important to our Mississippi community colleges."

The program culminated with a capstone visit to Washington, D.C., where Gordon and her cohort met with members of Mississippi's Congressional delegation and representatives from the Association of Community College Trustees to advocate for key higher education priorities. Dr. Andrew Dale, Northwest's Associate Vice President for Community Relations and a 2016 graduate of the program, praised Gordon's participation: "I am thankful that Tyson Elbert of AdvocacyBuild continues to invest in the community college leaders of Mississippi, and I believe that Northwest employees like Patti Gordon become stronger leaders through this year-long fellowship. Their work can only make Mississippi better."

Originally from Cleveland, Mississippi, Gordon is a 1988 graduate of Delta State University, where she earned a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics and served as secretary of Kappa Delta Sorority. She completed her Master of Business Administration in 2018, also from Delta State. Before joining Northwest, she had a successful early career in sales and marketing with State Farm Insurance. Gordon joined Northwest in 2015 as Scholarship Coordinator in the Foundation Office. She later became Alumni Director and, in 2019, was named Executive Director of Institutional Advancement, overseeing the Foundation and Alumni Association. She is a graduate of the Mississippi Community College Leadership Academy and currently serves as vice president of the Senatobia Rotary Club. Gordon is a member of Looxahoma Church of Christ and has lived in Senatobia for 36 years. She is the proud mother of two daughters-Lacey, who is married to Ryan, and Abbey.

Media Attachments

L to R: Dr. Ed Davis, Co-Director of the Fellowship Program, Kell Smith, Executive Director of the Mississippi Community College Board, Patti Gordon, and Tyson Elbert, Co-Director of the Fellowship Program and Executive Director of AdvocacyBuild pose for a photo recognizing Gordon for her achievement.

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