Wednesday, May 8, 2019   
 
Experts talk autonomous, connected crashes in 2 new SCRS IDEAS Collide videos
The Society of Collision Repair Specialists recently released video from two more IDEAS Collide talks, offering industry professionals who missed the "TED"-like presentations at SEMA another chance to check them out. The latest round of video includes the 10-minute presentations from Matthew Doude, Mississippi State University Center for Advanced Vehicular Systems associate director, and Dan Langford, innovation director of the Nevada Center for Advanced Mobility of the Governor's Office of Economic Development. Doude and Langford between themselves touched on three of the four major automotive megatrends --- connected, electric, shared, autonomous -- impacting repairers now or in the next two decades. Langford particularly focused upon connected vehicles, while Doude -- whose research center built an autonomous off-road Subaru -- discussed the kind of crashes self-driving cars could produce.
 
Blackjack Road project stalls on right-of-way acquisition
Oktibbeha County is hoping to soon begin work on a road improvement project along Blackjack Road but is waiting for easements from property owners. The county is eyeing legal action to get the easements. County supervisors discussed the roadwork, which has been in the works for years, during Monday's meeting as residents came to voice concerns about the road's condition. The county has plans to rebuild and expand a portion of Blackjack Road from Bardwell Street west to Stone Boulevard. County Administrator Emily Garrard said the project is a collaboration between the county, which has had $4.2 million in bond money ready for about a year, and Mississippi State University, which has $3 million from the Mississippi Development Authority. However, work has not started due to needing right-of-way on four properties to start the project.
 
Starkville High School freshman scores 36 on ACT on first try
Battling a cold, Amy Zhang walked into Starkville High School in July to take the ACT for the first time. Though just a rising ninth grader, Zhang carried with her unusually lofty expectations for a college entrance exam newbie. "I was aiming for at least above a 30, maybe a 33 or 34," she said. "... It was just a way to see where my strengths and weaknesses were." Meeting her goal would have been enough to place her among the top 4 percent of test takers. Even so, she sold herself short, logging a 36 instead -- the highest composite score possible. Zhang's score on the timed, standardized test used to help determine college admittance and scholarships, made her one of the first members of SHS' "30-Plus Club" for 2018-19 (which ultimately ended the school year with 43 members) before she even took a class on campus.
 
Keith Key: Solar power growing, diversifying
Keith Key said most people have an image of a typical solar power customer. "Most of the people I talk to think they live out in the country, eat tofu and are bare-footed," Key said. "They're off the grid, you know, and they're the only people interested in that." That's not the case these days, Key said. Key, with Mississippi Solar, LLC, visited the Starkville Rotary Club to talk about the growth of solar power in Mississippi and across the United States. As solar power has grown in popularity and the technology has improved, Key said, its customer base has diversified from businesses like poultry farms to everyday people and big state entities like Mississippi State University. Its uses are growing to suit more specialized needs, such as carport covers with solar panels to provide power for charging electric vehicles.
 
MUW announces free tuition program for Mississippi National Guard
Mississippi University for Women has announced a free tuition program for Mississippi National Guard soldiers. Maj. Gen. Janson Boyles and MUW President Nora Miller made the announcement on Tuesday. The agreement will ensure free tuition to participants who are enrolled full time at the university. This opportunity also extends to full-time Army members. "Readiness is our force's top priority and The W's tuition program will help to attract personnel who will staff our future state and federal missions," Boyles said.
 
Mississippi program matches medical school students with rural communities
Mississippi needs more doctors. Without them, it restricts access to care for many in the Magnolia State. If you live in a metro area, you may have never thought about what happens when a doctor moves or even retires. It's a different story in rural Mississippi. "There are so many counties that don't have a physician," said Mississippi Rural Physicians Scholarship Program Associate Director Dan Coleman. "And also there's a lot of counties that have physicians that have been practicing for 30 plus years. You don't have anyone that's going to come in and take their place, that means there's going to be a shortage of healthcare to service that area." That's what the Mississippi Rural Physicians Scholarship Program tries to combat. More than 30 doctors who have completed the program are now practicing in small communities statewide. By 2020, that will nearly double.
 
ICC partners with Baptist College of Health Sciences to create transfer pathway
Public Health Technology students at Itawamba Community College now have another college transfer pathway. ICC graduates can now enroll in the new Population Health bachelor's program at the Baptist College of Health Sciences. ICC President Jay Allen and Baptist College President Betty Sue McGarvey signed an agreement on Tuesday. The Baptist College of Health Sciences is a private health science college in Memphis, Tennessee. It is affiliated with Baptist Memorial Health Care, which has several hospitals in north Mississippi.
 
New U. of Alabama System chancellor Finis St. John to earn $730,000 salary plus incentives
The new University Alabama System Chancellor, Finis St. John IV, will make $730,361 in annual base salary, based on a compensation package approved by trustees on Tuesday. The compensation committee for the UA System board of trustees approved compensation packages for St. John, who was appointed in April after serving as the interim chancellor, and incoming University of Alabama in Huntsville President Darren Dawson, who will start in June. "I think we made two hires we can be very proud of," said Committee Chairman, Trustee Kenneth Vandervoort. Dawson's annual base salary will be $498,000 with annual performance incentives of up to $105,000. Dawson will replace UAH President Robert Altenkirch, who is retiring. Ray Hayes, St. John's predecessor, had a base salary of $653,125, with $105,000 in incentives based on goals set by the board of trustees, according to a database of salaries compiled by the Chronicle of Higher Education and the UA System Office. Hayes' predecessor, Robert Witt, had an annual base salary $660,000 during his last year in the office.
 
U. of Kentucky announces tuition increase; faculty and staff getting raises
The University of Kentucky will raise tuition by 2.4 percent for in-state undergraduate students this fall, creating a price tag of $12,360 per year, according to a campus email sent Tuesday by President Eli Capilouto. In-state tuition has gone up 112 percent since 2005 and 46 percent in the past decade, thanks to a combination of state funding cuts and increased costs. The Council on Postsecondary Education, the state's higher education oversight agency, capped tuition increases at 6 percent over two years. Last year, UK raised in-state tuition 2.5 percent. Tuition for out-of-state students will increase 6.2 percent to $30,680 this fall. The UK Board of Trustees will approve the university's entire budget in June. The board already approved housing and dining rates, which will go up 3 percent for most students. UK faculty and staff will share a 2 percent merit raise pool under the proposed budget.
 
Finalist for South Carolina higher ed overseer once was editor of a neo-Confederate magazine
A finalist to lead the state's higher education agency spent a decade as an editor for a neo-Confederate magazine. Oran Smith, a member of Coastal Carolina University's board of trustees who was named a finalist for executive director of the S.C. Commission on Higher Education (CHE), served as an editor of Southern Partisan, from 1989 to 1999, Smith told The State. "I don't see that on his resume. It's all new to me," said Mike LeFever, the interim executive director of the agency. That Smith helped edit the magazine "caught me by surprise," LeFever said. "It would be something...the search committee would have to consider." Search committee chair and CHE commissioner Charles Dalton said in a statement the committee was not aware of Smith's association with Southern Partisan and will "consider all relevant background information on each candidate before making a final selection." After the 2015 Emanuel AME massacre in Charleston, Smith's beliefs took an about-face, he told The State.
 
Panel finds controversial UGA grad student didn't violate code of conduct
University of Georgia philosophy graduate student Irami Osei-Frimpong did not violate the university's student code of conduct, a University judiciary panel has found. Osei-Frimpong on Tuesday distributed an email noting the panel's decision. Student disciplinary hearings and records are usually private, but Osei-Frimpong chose to make his public. The panel -- faculty member Emily Boness, the hearing administrator, and student justices Daniel Bettis and Bailey Driggers -- heard the case against Osei-Frimpong on April 26. They later concluded Osei-Frimpong had not furnished false information to the university and had not omitted "facts which are material" from his UGA admission application. University administrators charged him with failing to list on his application for admission that he had attended the University of Chicago and he had once been arrested, but not charged, in a political demonstration.
 
U. of Florida college to redo canceled graduation
The University of Florida Liberal Arts and Sciences will redo its graduation ceremony next week after inclement weather Sunday cut its ceremony short. UF College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Dean David Richardson sent an email to students Monday night saying the college will hold another full individual recognition ceremony for its students at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center May 18 at 9 a.m. This decision follows a stream of social media outrage from students and parents after the college canceled its graduation on Sunday in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium due to rain and lightning. About 200 to 300 graduates out of 1,500 participating in the ceremony weren't able walk like their peers, said UF spokesman Steve Orlando, but they were able to shake Richardson's hand in the stadium's concourse area and take pictures.
 
Texas A&M's PATHS Certificate Program helps students with disabilities
On Monday, 26 students graduated from Texas A&M's PATHS Certificate Program, which was developed in 2010 through the university's Center on Disability and Development to help students with disabilities gain the skills they need to live independently. "I now just see a future ahead of me, and I'm excited to see what faith has in store for me," said new PATHS graduate Ellie Hefner, who received the program's Director's Award. Hefner was shy and bullied while attending school in Montgomery, she said, but now she plans to become a paraprofessional so she can help other students who may be going through a similar experience. Though she calls her family her rock, she told the parents in the audience that the graduates do not need them to hold their hands. "Instead, let us grow on our own two feet, as we are not the same scared college students that we once were," she said.
 
187 U. of Missouri System faculty members accept buyout
A total of 187 University of Missouri System tenured faculty members have accepted an employee buyout under a voluntary separation program, which is about 41 percent of those eligible, according to a university spokesman. Friday was the last day faculty members could have revoked the decision. On the MU campus, 42 percent of eligible faculty members accepted the payout --- 94 of 226 eligible, according to MU spokesman Christian Basi. The University of Missouri-Kansas City had the highest percentage of eligible faculty members accepting the agreement -- 47 percent -- or 50 of 106. Twenty-four of the 71 eligible faculty members at the University of Missouri-St. Louis accepted the buyout, 34 percent. At Missouri University of Science and Technology, 19 of 55 eligible faculty members accepted, or 35 percent. The program provides payments of 1.5 times the faculty member's benefit-eligible salary, up to $200,000. To be eligible, a faculty member had to be tenured, work full time, be 62 or older and have at least five years of employment at the university.
 
Washington State Moves Toward Free, Reduced College Tuition, With Businesses Footing Bill
Washington State lawmakers have taken a major step toward offering free or reduced college tuition using funds from businesses there, including Amazon and Microsoft, in a move that is being applauded by policy analysts for its innovation and reach. Last week, state lawmakers passed the Workforce Education Investment Act, which would raise almost $1 billion over a four-year period with a surcharge on companies that employ highly skilled workers, such as accounting, engineering, architecture and consulting firms, and the technology behemoths that operate in the state. The bill, which is before Gov. Jay Inslee, a Democrat, would effectively provide free or reduced tuition for lower- and middle-income students attending community colleges and public institutions, new funding for strapped community colleges and eliminate wait lists for financial aid beginning in 2020.
 
Johns Hopkins students escalate sit-in over proposed campus police force
People at the Johns Hopkins University campus can't walk into the main administrative building, because student protesters have chained its doors shut. Security stands outside and posters paper the doors and windows -- one reads "No Justice, No Peace, No Private Police." The main entrance is obscured with fliers detailing opposition to the university's plan to bring its own police force to the elite private institution in Baltimore. The bleak setup conveys the tensions that have escalated between student activists and administrators in the past month. Critics of the police proposal have overtaken Garland Hall, saying that private, armed law enforcement would bring a host of issues. Students have spoken out about the risk of violence and racial profiling, a concern that other colleges and universities have encountered when attempting to beef up their police presences.
 
House that Mayers built gets its deserving name
The Mississippi Business Journal's Ross Reily writes: Dr. Ronnie Mayers had a vision. He wanted to build a world-class competition swimming pool to serve the community, house classrooms for students and be home to one of the best college swim teams in America. No, it wasn't in Oxford or Starkville or Hattiesburg or even in Jackson. It was in Cleveland -- yes, Cleveland. Delta State University has been home to the only collegiate swim team in Mississippi for decades and Mayers helped solidify that by spearheading an initiative to fund the construction of a new pool at DSU, which was completed in 2001. Recently, Delta State honored Mayers by placing his name on the building.
 
As state's second largest single employer, shipyard's future still vital to state's economy
Syndicated columnist Sid Salter writes: Only Walmart/Sam's employs more people in Mississippi than does Ingalls Shipyards at about 12,500 employees. But Ingalls and other shipbuilders pay significantly better than Walmart. Since December of 2018, Ingalls has been awarded the following major shipbuilding contracts from the U.S. Navy: $931 million for construction of two new U.S. Coast Guard national security cutters (NSCs); $1.47 billion for construction of a new San Antonio class amphibious loading platform dock (LPD) ship; and $931 million for a planning yard contract for Littoral combat ships. In addition, VT Halter Marine in Pascagoula in April won a $746 million Navy contract to build three heavy polar icebreaker cutters for the Coast Guard. That contract should drive employment at VT Halter to over 1,300 over the six-year life of that contract. Clearly, those contracts don't find their way to the Mississippi Gulf Coast without some nudges in Congress.


SPORTS
 
Mississippi State hosts Memphis in midweek matchup
No. 5 Mississippi State has piled up plenty of midweek success this season. The Diamond Dogs are a perfect 13-0 in midweek play and look to improve that record as they host Memphis tonight at 6:30. MSU (38-10) has won 20 of the last 25 meetings against the Tigers and own a 51-26 advantage in the all-time series. However, Memphis has won three of the past five games including a 6-1 victory at AutoZone Park last year. The Tigers, coached by former MSU assistants Daron Schoenrock and Russ McNickle, are 24-21 on the year and coming off a home series win against South Florida over the weekend.
 
Program record three Bulldogs tabbed First Team All-SEC
For the first time in Mississippi State softball history, three Bulldogs earned First Team All-SEC honors as sophomore Mia Davidson, junior Fa Leilua and senior Kat Moore were selected as first-team honorees by the league's coaches, the Southeastern Conference announced Tuesday. The announcement marks the first time since 2009 that Mississippi State has boasted multiple All-SEC selections and the first time since 2008 (Chelsea Bramlett, Courtney Bures) that multiple Bulldogs have been tabbed to the All-SEC First Team. Mississippi State tied SEC regular-season champion Alabama for the most first-team selections. Davidson earns her second consecutive All-SEC First Team honor, becoming the first Bulldog since Chelsea Bramlett (2008, 2009, 2010) to earn back-to-back first team selections. Joining the Bulldog trio with postseason accolades was freshman outfielder Anna Kate Segars, who earned a spot on the SEC All-Freshman Team.
 
Texas A&M ready to host SEC softball tournament
The Texas A&M softball team is looking for a little return this week on its investment in the $28.6-million Davis Diamond. The Aggies are playing host this week to the Southeastern Conference tournament, featuring arguably the toughest league in the country with 10 teams ranked in the Top 25. That's more than double any other conference. A&M typically has been one of those ranked teams in its first six years in the league, but this year's Aggies are unranked, and it's not a given they'll be playing in their 18th straight NCAA tournament next weekend. A&M (28-24, 6-18), which finished last in the 13-team SEC, will play 12th-seeded Mississippi State (32-20, 9-15) at 10 a.m. Wednesday in the opener of the single-elimination tournament. The winner advances to play fifth-seeded Ole Miss (36-16, 13-10) at 8 p.m. Wednesday.
 
LSU baseball suffers 1st double digit loss of season vs. La Tech: 'It's kind of embarrassing'
LSU's players gathered in the back of the dugout on Tuesday night, underneath an awning and out of sight. They were losing another midweek game, this time to Louisiana Tech. Another left-handed pitcher had given them problems. Two days earlier, LSU scored 15 runs. Now, it had two hits through four innings, the inconsistency of its offense rearing its head. The players tried to find energy, but the meeting created little change. LSU lost 12-1 at Alex Box Stadium for its first double-digit loss of the season and its fifth loss to an in-state team. It didn't score until the seventh inning. "We came out sluggish," shortstop Josh Smith said. "It's kind of embarrassing, honestly." The Tigers (30-19) dropped to 11-10 since the first game of April. They lost their third straight game. "Nothing went right tonight," coach Paul Mainieri said.
 
With 2 series remaining, Razorbacks strong in RPI, rankings, standings
Arkansas remains in good position for the postseason following its series win at Kentucky. The Razorbacks (37-12, 17-7 SEC) have the nation's No. 4 RPI following a 3-1 week in which they defeated the Wildcats twice on the road and defeated Grambling State in North Little Rock. Arkansas entered last week with the No. 3 RPI, but was leapfrogged over the weekend by Mississippi State. Arkansas swept Mississippi State last month in Fayetteville, but the Bulldogs have had noteworthy series wins against Georgia and Texas A&M in the past two weeks. The Razorbacks still are projected to be a top-eight national seed, which would assure home-field advantage in the NCAA regional and super regional rounds. Top-16 seeds host regional rounds. More pressing, Arkansas maintained a two-game lead over Mississippi State and Ole Miss in the SEC West. The Razorbacks could clinch a share of the division championship with a series sweep of LSU this week, coupled with a 2-1 split in the series between Ole Miss and Mississippi State.
 
Auburn baseball slips to UAB in non-conference play\
Auburn had its chances, but came up empty just too often --- and ultimately took a step back Tuesday in a 6-4 loss to UAB in non-conference play at Plainsman Park. The Tigers' offense went 3-for-17 with runners on base, and 3-for-13 with runners in scoring position, struggling to help its deep-digging bullpen in the mid-week non-conference game tune-up, seemingly resetting the momentum Auburn built with its rivalry series win over Alabama last weekend before its rivalry series with Georgia coming up next. Auburn fell to 29-19 on the season. Middling UAB moved to 23-26. "Too often, too inconsistent.' What else can you say, honestly, knowing that you love your players and you're going to hang with them until the last pitch?" Auburn head coach Butch Thompson said after the loss. "It's a miserable feeling. We just didn't come out and attack. In the first inning UAB was ready and Auburn was not."
 
UF baseball, softball in unfamiliar situation
The best way to characterize Florida's bat and ball sports this spring would be to say it has been different. Both programs have set such a high standard that a season like both are experiencing brings some perspective. Gator fans have come to expect the four-weekend circus of postseason ball in Gainesville. But these have been strange seasons, where the negative results have piled up at a numbing rate. So we won't have the usual number of visitors from different parts of the country, but the postseason still has a chance to be interesting.



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