Thursday, April 12, 2018   
 
Hundreds Come Out To Be A Part Of The Second Annual Sprint For Super Gabe 5K at MSU
Hundreds of people were at the junction at Mississippi State on Wednesday to run for a cause and a cure. Participants came out to be a part of the 2nd annual "Sprint for Super Gabe 5K." The run is put on in memory of Gabe Valentine. The eight-year-old died last June from a rare genetic tissue disorder known as epidermolysis bullosa, or EB. All of the proceeds raised from the race will go towards the EB Research Partnership to benefit research and development to help find a cure. Super Gabe was a devoted Bulldog fan, and one of his biggest fans was former MSU and current Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott, who donated $10,000 to this year's run.
 
Duck Dynasty stars to speak at Mississippi State
The Mississippi State University and Starkville communities will have a chance to hear from members of the Robertson family, of "Duck Dynasty" fame next week. Mother and daughter Korie Robertson and Sadie Robertson will speak April 16 as part of the 2018 Dorothy Garrett Martin Lectureship in values and ethics organized by the MSU chapter of the Delta Gamma Social Sorority. The free lecture aims to educate students and community members on the importance of ethical conduct. Korie Robertson is the wife of Duck Commander CEO Willie Robertson, and is in charge of licensing of the family's brands. She is also a New York Times bestselling author, and oversees the Duck and Dressing retail store. Sadie Robertson has multiple business ventures to her name.
 
Threat and reality of tariffs not yet a factor in Mississippi
The United States and China are in a standoff on agricultural trade, with the communist nation threatening to impose a 25 percent tariff on U.S. soybeans and other crops. "I think there is some hope that [the sides in] this standoff will back down," said Dr. Keith Coble, head of the agricultural economics department at Mississippi State University. Mississippi's soybean production in 2017 was valued at $1.27 billion, but the state is not alone in facing the possible consequences of a tariff, he said. "The soybean market is so integrated in the United States that what happens to the export market affects every soybean farmer in the United States," Coble said. The United States exports nearly half of its soybeans and half of that goes to China.
 
West Point artist brings 'Fabulous Starkvegas' to life
Wearing a hard hat and paint-splattered denim as construction happens around her, Deborah Mansfield could easily be mistaken for a day-laborer. But this popular West Point muralist is more than a set of capable hands on a job site. Mansfield has been active in the Golden Triangle art scene for years and owns Deborah Mansfield Decorative Painting in West Point, which had helped transform the look of West Point with more than a dozen murals. Now, the artist is helping add color to a new development in a bustling part of Starkville. On the wall of the new Gondolier Italian Restaurant, in an alley facing the new Russell Street development next door to The Mill, Mansfield is putting the finishing touches on a mural that she hopes will capture the essence of Mississippi's College Town. Developer Mark Castleberry expressed his support for public art and what it could mean for that spot adjacent to The Mill, which will soon feature new restaurant space sure to generate foot traffic.
 
Court date moved to May for manslaughter suspect
It will be a few more weeks before a preliminary hearing might be held in the case of a Starkville man accused of manslaughter after a four-vehicle wreck left a Clay County woman dead and others injured. Attorney Marty Haug stood in for his client, 61-year-old Jimmy Andrew Sims, in Starkville Municipal Court on Wednesday, where Sims was originally scheduled to have his preliminary hearing. Municipal Court Judge Rodney Faver granted Haug's request to move the date of Sims' next appearance, with Haug saying the defense would like additional time for investigation. A tentative date of May 17 was set in the event that a preliminary hearing needs to be held. Sims is charged with manslaughter-culpable negligence and aggravated assault after the wreck in March on Starkville's Lampkin Street, on the stretch of road between Russell Street and South Montgomery Street.
 
Neshoba County Fair entertainment lineup announced
Mississippi's Giant House Party is right around the corner, and the entertainment lineup has been officially announced. Sister Hazel will kick off the concerts Tuesday July 31, followed by Corey Smith on Wednesday, Chris Lane on Thursday and Granger Smith on Friday. Neshoba County Fair organizers say they wanted to have a diverse lineup with something different each night for all the fair-goers. "We want everybody to come, but we're always going to bring as much diversification as we can to the Neshoba County Fair patrons, and we feel like we've been able to accomplish this year," Scott Bounds says. The fair goes on from July 27 to Aug. 3, with a week filled with music, politics, food and games.
 
Mayor George Flaggs returns to D.C. to meet with the Corps
Mayor George Flaggs Jr. is in Washington Thursday meeting with U.S. Army Corps of Engineers officials to discuss getting federal funding for several city projects. The visit is Flaggs' fourth since January. "I'm going to talk about money and the funds that were appropriated in the omnibus budget bill, and try to make Vicksburg a priority, because once the money's appropriated, it has to be recommended by the Corps for spending," he said. "That's what I'm trying to do, get in on the worksheet for the Corps and make certain our needs are priorities. We have worked hard over the last couple of years trying to convince Sen. (Thad) Cochran and the other congressional leaders how important these projects are."
 
Cindy Hyde-Smith taps locals for senior Senate roles
Two Madison Countians have been appointed to serve on Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith's staff. Brad White of Madison was kept on as Hyde-Smith's Chief of Staff after serving in the same role under retired Sen. Thad Cochran. Umesh Sanjanwala of Madison was named State Director for Hyde-Smith on Tuesday. Sanjanwala has been a special assistant to Hyde-Smith since 2012 and served as chief information officer for the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce since 1997. Also on Tuesday, the U.S. Senate approved a resolution confirming Hyde-Smith to five different subcommittee assignments on the Appropriations Committee. Hyde-Smith is one of five people currently running in a special November election to fulfill the remainder of Cochran's term following his retirement on April 1. Madison's Andy Taggart announced last Thursday he would not run for the seat.
 
Poll: Majority of Southerners disapprove of Trump's job performance
A majority of Southerners disapprove of the job President Trump is doing in office, according to a new survey. An NBC News/SurveyMonkey poll finds 51 percent of Southerners disapprove of Trump's job performance, compared 48 percent who approve. The poll surveyed voters in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia. The president's strongest support comes from Mississippi, according to the poll, where 57 percent of respondents approve of his job performance. The poll also finds that 69 percent of those in the South think migrants should be given the opportunity to obtain legal status. Another 28 percent disagree, saying they think they should be deported.
 
NBC News/SurveyMonkey poll: Mississippians worried about state economy
Mississippi residents have a significantly more pessimistic view of their state's economic conditions than residents of other Southern states, according to a poll released Thursday by NBC News and SurveyMonkey in collaboration with Mississippi Today. The findings, reflected in some of the most extensive independent polls conducted in the South in years, shows that 49 percent of Mississippians rate the state's economy as "fairly bad" or "very bad," a statistically even split with the 47 percent who rate the economy as "fairly good" or "very good." Worries about the state's economic conditions signal that the general public is not as optimistic about economic conditions as many of the state's top leaders. Another key finding: Despite concerns about the state economy, a strong majority say they would support paying higher taxes for infrastructure improvements and to support public education.
 
Bannon pitches White House on plan to cripple Mueller probe and protect Trump
Stephen K. Bannon, who was ousted as White House chief strategist last summer but has remained in touch with some members of President Trump's circle, is pitching a plan to West Wing aides and congressional allies to cripple the federal probe into Russian interference in the 2016 election, according to four people familiar with the discussions. "The president wasn't fully briefed by his lawyers on the implications" of not invoking executive privilege, Bannon told The Washington Post in an interview Wednesday. "It was a strategic mistake to turn over everything without due process, and executive privilege should be exerted immediately and retroactively." There is no indication that Trump, who forced out Bannon and later said his former adviser had "lost his mind" after leaving the West Wing, would be willing to take Bannon's advice or is aware of the plan.
 
Ryan Poised to Earn Millions Even If He Sheds 'Weekend Dad' Role
Paul Ryan will easily add to his already considerable net worth if he opts to stray from his native Wisconsin to join a corporate board or dabble in Washington power struggles when he retires next year as speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives. "The kind of board that he would go after would probably pay between $250,000 and $300,000 a year and he could probably get three or four of them," said Fred Foulkes, a professor of at Boston University's Questrom School of Business. "There would be dozens that would like to have him, particularly companies that have part of their business in key relationships with certain parts of government." Ryan, 48, who said he was retiring to be more than a "weekend dad," could easily follow the path of previous congressional leaders.
 
Teacher Walkouts Threaten Republican Grip on Conservative States
An intensifying series of red-state battles over education funding and teacher pay threatens to loosen Republicans' grip on some of the country's most conservative states, as educators and parents rebel against a decade of fiscal austerity that has cut deeply into public education. The clashes could elevate public education into a major issue in several midterm races this fall. Republicans are defending dozens of governorships and state legislative chambers across the country, including in several Southern and Western states where all-Republican governments have passed sweeping reductions in taxes and spending.
 
Seas are rising too fast to save much of the Mississippi River Delta, scientists say
The state of Louisiana is proceeding with ambitious plans to redirect the Mississippi River and rebuild some of its rapidly vanishing wetlands --- but even this massive intervention may not be enough to save the most threatened lands from fast rising seas, scientists concluded in a study published Wednesday. The study uses a methodology called "optical dating" to study how the river built an area called the Lafourche subdelta in coastal Louisiana, where the Mississippi dumped loads of sediment as much as 600 years ago, when it changed paths. The technology lets scientists identify the last time that long-buried sand was exposed to sunlight and, therefore, determine the rate at which the river naturally built up land by carrying sediment downstream.
 
Jackson State wins $75,000 in Honda HBCU national academic contest
Jackson State University pocketed $75,000 after students won the top academic prize during the 29th annual Honda Campus All-Star Challenge National Championship Tournament in California. According to a news release, JSU competed with 48 Historically Black Colleges and Universities on the American Honda Motor Co. campus. Students representing JSU were Zaveon Demon Cooper II, a senior majoring in theatre arts from Jackson, Mississippi; Justin Clarke, a junior majoring in accounting from Atlanta, Georgia; Charles Octavius Pennington, a senior majoring in chemical engineering and chemistry from Hollandale, Mississippi, and James Meeks Jr., a senior majoring in finance from Jackson, Mississippi. Team coaches were JSU instructors Dr. Farah Christmas and Joshua J. Cotton, both in the Department of History and Philosophy.
 
East Mississippi Community College student named TVA Scholar
Hard work has paid off for one East Mississippi Community College student, who has been named one of two Tennessee Valley Authority Scholars. EMCC sophomore Gabriel Riveros, won the $2,250 scholarship, and was recognized at the All Mississippi Community College Academic Team Luncheon at Hinds Community College on March 28. Two TVA Scholarships were awarded to Mississippi Phi Theta Kappa members planning to study STEM disciplines. Selections were made based on academic achievement, leadership, campus and community service and faculty assessments. Riveros has maintained a 4.0 GPA, while pursuing some of the most demanding courses offered by EMCC. In August, Riveros will transfer to Mississippi State University to pursue a degree in civil engineering.
 
Groups seek to open 17 charter schools in Mississippi
Groups are expressing interest in opening 17 charter schools in Mississippi. The state's Charter School Authorizer Board on Monday accepted letters of intent from 16 potential school operators. Existing charter school operator RePublic Schools, which is operating two middle schools in Jackson and has an elementary school scheduled to open in the fall, proposes a high school for Jackson. An existing private high school -- Piney Woods Preparatory School -- proposes to open a charter school serving grades 5-8 in Rankin County. Five different schools are proposed for Jackson, while three are proposed for Greenwood and two are proposed for Amite County. In Mississippi's multistep process for approving charter schools, many fewer proposals typically move forward for final consideration.
 
UGA tops nation in awarding black Ph.D.s
The University of Georgia awarded more Ph.D.s to African American students than any other university in the country over the past five years -- 143, according to the National Science Foundation Survey of Earned Doctorates. That put UGA ahead of other flagship or large universities which followed UGA in the rankings, such as Georgia State University, Texas A&M and the University of Florida, UGA Provost Pamela Whitten said Wednesday in a meeting of the UGA Cabinet, comprised of the university's top administrators. According to the UGA Fact Book, 2,439 students received Ph.D.s over the past five years; the 143 African American Ph.D.s were about 6 percent of that total. UGA has ramped up its overall Ph.D. production in recent years, and in the most recent year -- 2017 -- ranked 32nd in the overall number of Ph.D.s produced, up from 36th a year earlier. Nearly a third of UGA's Ph.D.s in 2017 were from the College of Education.
 
Aly Raisman opens up in LSU speech about abuse, gymnastics, leadership
Despite her Olympic gold medals and her relentless advocacy for survivors of sexual abuse, gymnast Aly Raisman told a huge crowd Wednesday at LSU that she still struggles at times to open up about what happened to her and about the people who refused to listen. Raisman, a 23-year-old Massachusetts native, brought home Olympic gold medals in 2012 and 2016 for her gymnastics performances. But she has more recently become nationally known as one of the more than 150 women who said they were molested by former U.S. gymnastics team doctor Larry Nassar. Nassar, who was convicted earlier this year on counts of sexual assault of minors and had previously been convicted on child pornography charges, has been sentenced in multiple courts to effectively spend the rest of his life behind bars. Despite the convictions, Raisman said Wednesday, there still have not been enough changes within gymnastics organizations, college campuses and society to stop sexual assault before it happens.
 
Gun brandished, U. of Arkansas students say; Texas man facing several charges
Police arrested a 21-year-old man in an aggravated-assault case early Wednesday after a report of a man with a gun making threats outside a University of Arkansas, Fayetteville fraternity house, said Capt. Gary Crain with the university police. No one was injured and no shots were fired at the Kappa Sigma fraternity house, Crain said. The man arrested, Ryan Grant Torres, is not a UA student, Crain said. He also was arrested on a driving-while-intoxicated count and on accusations of possession of drug paraphernalia, according to a city police report.
 
U. of Arkansas to confer honorary degrees on Arkansas natives Portis, Fowlers
Acclaimed novelist Charles Portis and philanthropists Wallace and Jama Fowler will receive honorary degrees from the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville. All are Arkansas natives, and the honors will be conferred May 12 at UA's All-University Commencement ceremony in Bud Walton Arena. The guest speaker at the event will be Sherece West-Scantlebury, president and chief executive officer of the Little Rock-based Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation. West-Scantlebury has led the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation for the past 10 years. The foundation works to improve the lives of Arkansans by giving to support economic development, education, and economic, racial and social justice.
 
Texas A&M holds ribbon cutting for new infrastructure research facility
The Texas A&M University System had a ceremonial ribbon cutting Wednesday for its Center for Infrastructure Renewal at the RELLIS Campus, featuring a number of political guests, including Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who was credited multiple times throughout the event for his role in getting the facility's funding passed through the state legislature. Patrick, who closed out the ceremony, praised the work being done by the Texas A&M System and said he looks forward to seeing the work that comes out of the center. Also in attendance was Tommy Williams, senior adviser for fiscal affairs in the Texas governor's office, who was attending as a representative of Gov. Greg Abbott. On behalf of Abbott, Williams presented the A&M System with a proclamation recognizing the milestone.
 
Report: Online programs can contribute to better outcomes, lower costs, more access
The most bullish proponents of online learning have argued for years that the modality can lead to better outcomes for students, lower costs for institutions and more access for underrepresented minority groups. Authors of a study released today say their work supports that view. "Making Digital Learning Work," a wide-ranging new report from the Arizona State University Foundation and the Boston Consulting Group, offers six case studies of prominent online offerings and concludes that strategic digital learning initiatives can pay off for students and institutional planners alike -- if they commit to proper steps such as building infrastructure and engaging faculty members. The six spotlighted institutions range from innovative four-year universities (Arizona State University, Georgia State University, the University of Central Florida) to community colleges.
 
Blackface Leads to Fraternity Suspension at Cal Poly
A fraternity at California Polytechnic State University was sanctioned by its national organization on Tuesday after students dressed as gang members, including one in blackface, during the college's annual multicultural event over the weekend. Photos first surfaced online on Sunday showing white students from Lambda Chi Alpha outside their fraternity house wearing baggy jeans, gold necklaces and bandannas as they flashed fake gang signs. But it was another photo -- of a fraternity brother in blackface -- that drew swift outrage from both students and officials at the university in San Luis Obispo, Calif., leading to an almost immediate suspension of the chapter, protests on campus and a standing room only meeting with students to address racism at the college. Those actions have become part of the latest flash point at the Central California university over racist or insensitive incidents on the campus in recent years.
 
Failed projects after beef plant do not garner as much attention
The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal's Bobby Harrison writes: "If the media wrote and reported every day for months about a failed economic development project that costs the state about $55 million and then gave only a fraction of the attention to multiple failed projects, at least two costing the state about $150 million, some would yell fake news and journalistic biases. But in reality, the discrepancy has less to do with media bias and more to do with the old adage 'the squeaky wheel gets the grease.'"


SPORTS
 
Huge first inning carries Mississippi State past Alabama State
Mississippi State pounded out a season-high 23 hits to defeat Alabama State 15-4 in midweek action Wednesday night at Riverwalk Stadium. "We had a good night offensively," MSU head coach Gary Henderson said. "Putting a crooked number up early always relaxes the team. We had a lot of solid contact tonight. Just as important as getting all of the hits is the fact that we had some really good at-bats." Jake Mangum, Luke Alexander, Hunter Stovall and Dustin Skelton each had three hits to lead the Bulldogs. State will return to Southeastern Conference play with a three-game series at No. 21 Auburn. The action begins with a nationally-televised tilt on Friday at 7:30 p.m. CT on SEC Network.
 
Victoria Vivians awaits tonight's WNBA Draft selection
The 2018 WNBA Draft gets underway in New York City tonight and Mississippi State's Victoria Vivians will be in attendance. Vivians is vying to become the sixth Bulldog selected in the WNBA Draft and first since Chanel Mokango, Armelie Lumanu and Alexis Rack were all picked in 2010. LaToya Thomas was the No. 1 overall pick in 2003 and Tupelo's Tan White was selected second overall in 2005. The first round of the WNBA Draft begins at 6 p.m. on ESPN2 and the final two rounds continue on ESPNU starting at 7 p.m.
 
What to expect for Mississippi State's Victoria Vivians in WNBA Draft
Vic Schaefer turned to his bench after Mississippi State's second possession of the national championship game last month and said, "That's just not what we want." That was his reaction to Victoria Vivians' air ball on a long 3-pointer with 21 seconds still left on the shot clock. Vivians wasn't around to hear Schaefer say that, but she heard plenty from him during a media timeout a few minutes later. What happened next is what usually followed in similar situations throughout Vivians' stellar four-year career: She responded by finishing that first quarter with six points and three steals, plus she drew a charge. Mississippi State players knew the drill well, from Schaefer's demands and hard coaching toward Vivians to Vivians' response of often looking the other way while probably hanging on every word.
 
Dak Prescott announces second annual youth football camp
Former Mississippi State and current Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott has announced the date and location of his second annual youth football camp. The Dak Prescott Football ProCamp will be held on July 14th and 15th from 8:30 a.m. to noon at Mississippi State University. Participants will learn fundamental football skills and have the opportunity to meet and interact with Prescott. The camp is open to boys and girls of all skill levels in grades 1-8.
 
Arkansas coach confirms players suspended from practice as frat house scuffle investigated
The Arkansas Razorbacks completed their 15th and final practice of spring drills on Wednesday minus unnamed players who have been suspended pending the conclusion of an on-campus investigation. Coach Chad Morris did not name the players in his Wednesday evening news conference, but the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville department of athletics confirmed Tuesday that football players were present during a fraternity house scuffle early Sunday morning. The UA Police Department is conducting an investigation into the incident at the Kappa Alpha house on campus in which a complaint of third-degree battery was filed but no arrests have been made, said Capt. Gary Crain.
 
Aggies' Maroon & White Game gets real under coach Jimbo Fisher
Texas A&M's Maroon & White Game -- set for 4 p.m. Saturday at Kyle Field -- will be treated as a real game, a departure from previous spring training finales that basically were glorified scrimmages. The team will be divided equally. First-year head football coach Jimbo Fisher split the seniors into two groups, allowing them to draft the other players Wednesday night. Fisher said he's looking forward to the players going out there to "turn it loose and have fun." Admission is free except for suites, clubs and loge areas. Fisher said after Wednesday's practice he's excited about the buzz surrounding the game. "It's time to perform; it's time to play," Fisher said.
 
Eastern Michigan professors criticize decision to cut four sports
Eastern Michigan University is shutting down four sports programs to close a budget gap, leaving critics infuriated and asking: Why not football? The university is cutting wrestling, men's swimming and diving, softball, and women's tennis. But not football, a sport that generates for Eastern Michigan nowhere near the amount of revenue a top-tier program in the National Collegiate Athletic Association's Power 5 conferences does. The university significantly subsidized the program in 2017, according to budget information obtained by The Ann Arbor News. Of football's $9 million budget, the university funded nearly $6 million. But the university is adamant that it won't cut football, saying that if it did, it would be ineligible to stay in the conference. It would either need to leave the MAC or drop to NCAA Division II. Athletics director Scott Wetherbee bluntly rejected the idea in a recent news conference, saying the university receives about $2 million from its participation in the MAC. "It wasn't even an option to look at that," Wetherbee said.
 
ESPN Tries to Get With a Mobile, App-Driven World
If ESPN were to be started from scratch today, it most likely would not look much like the ESPN everybody knows. The company probably wouldn't include eight separate television channels, especially not ones with incongruent names -- like ESPN News, which shows radio simulcasts and reruns, with little news. There wouldn't be an outdated and obsolete channel like ESPN Classic, which YouTube superseded a decade ago. Instead, it would probably look a lot like ESPN+ and the updated ESPN app, a bundle which is launching Thursday to the millions of people who have previously downloaded the app. ESPN+ is ESPN's most important product launch in years. The company has struggled to stem the continuing loss of subscribers to cord-cutting and needs digital services to succeed in order to maintain the same level of vitality with the next generation of sports fans that it has with the current one.



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