| Wednesday, September 25, 2019 |
| State auditor promotes civic engagement at Mississippi State voter registration drive | |
 | Driving up to Marshall County on weekends to conduct voter registration drives were some of State Auditor Shad White's best memories from his undergraduate years at the University of Mississippi, he said. Two years after he graduated, he was back in Marshall County working as policy and research director for the late U.S. Rep. Alan Nunnelee's 2010 campaign in the 1st District. "A thought occurred to me that some of these people could have been people that we registered to vote," White said to a group of about 20 Mississippi State University students at the Colvard Student Union on Tuesday. MSU holds a voter registration drive every year during the last week of September, and the fourth Tuesday in September is National Voter Registration Day. The MSU Student Association sponsors the weeklong drive and set up tables throughout campus, as many as four at a time. MSU has amped up its voter registration efforts over the past few years, and student participation has nearly doubled, Assistant Dean of Students Jackie Mullen said. |
| At MSU, State Auditor addresses importance of voting on National Voter Registration Day | |
 | State Auditor Shad White was in Starkville Tuesday speaking to students. The Mississippi State University Student Association sponsored an event featuring the State Auditor for a campus wide voter registration Drive. Tuesday was National Voter Registration Day. White emphasized to students the importance their vote is in state elections and says now is the time for them to get involved. "It's important for young folks voice to be heard. In the past election, only about 46% of 18-27 year olds actually voted in the election. We just need more engagement. These are the future leaders of our state, our country. We need to send the message the time to get engaged in policy, how they want their world to look and work starts right now," said White. |
| Bachelor of Applied Science degree program introduced | |
 | Mississippi State University is unveiling a Bachelor of Applied Science program that will help more Mississippians earn a college degree and compete for the jobs of the future. "To compete globally, nationally and here in Mississippi for the next generation of high-quality jobs, Mississippi needs an educated workforce with a myriad of technical skills that complement and enhance the intrinsic value of a four-year college degree," said MSU President Mark E. Keenum. MSU's program will significantly expand the university's acceptance of technical credit from community colleges and military training. The MSU Office of the Provost will oversee the new program, while academic advising coordinators on the MSU-Meridian campus and at the Center for Distance Education will advise enrolled students. "We are excited about the potential this presents to expand our Partnership Pathways initiative with community colleges and the military," said Terry Dale Cruse, associate vice president and MSU-Meridian head of campus. |
| MSU research & technology non-profit out to elevate innovation in Starkville's downtown | |
 | The move of tech data company Babel Street Inc. onto the third floor of Starkville's Cadence Bank building marks the official start of a Mississippi State University non-profit corporation's efforts to energize downtown technological innovation. Cadence, a regional bank formerly headquartered in Starkville, will remain in the first two floors of the 33,000 square-foot downtown landmark at 301 W. Main Street for another couple years. The Atlanta-based Cadence is constructing a new building on Russell Street behind Comfort Suites, said Dr. Julie Jordan, interim vice president for research and economic development at MSU. "We're not rushing them out," Jordan said. "They're still our best tenant." Plans are under way for revamping the space after Cadence vacates. The space could go to new creative enterprises or to current tenants of the 272-acre Thad Cochran Research, Technology and Economic Development Park just north of campus. |
| Babel Street doubles size and moves to MSU RTC building in downtown Starkville | |
| Nearly 50 years after Coca-Cola sought to teach the world to sing in perfect harmony, Starkville data tech company Babel Street Inc. is out to fulfill an equally ambitious goal. Babel Street wants to help the world make sense of the 2.5 quintillion bytes of data it produces each day and will employ all of the world's major languages to do it. Chief Technology Officer Shon Myatt said no one else can do that, at least in employing the dozens of major languages to analyze data mined from the world's approximately 200 languages. Babel Street has been a Starkville fixture the past few years, but this is its first time as a downtown resident, the company having cut the ribbon on 8,750 square feet space of space on the third floor of the Cadence Bank building at 301 E. Main St. "The Babel Street innovation center is an ideal tenant for our new building," said David R. Shaw, provost and executive vice president at MSU, in a press statement. Shaw said Babel is at the forefront of cross-lingual search and text analytics technology and data analysis. It's "literally leveraging that technology to make the world a better place," he said. |
| An inside look at the job of a veterinary college diversity director | |
 | Veterinary colleges are continuing efforts to build a more diverse profession by creating and filling staff positions that focus specifically on diversity and inclusion on their campuses. The Multicultural VMA hosted the session, "Directors of Multicultural Affairs and Community Outreach Share Their Endeavors at Colleges of VetMed" at AVMA Convention 2019. Three speakers relayed tips for creating and holding a diversity and inclusion position and explained why these positions are vital for the veterinary profession. Although the tasks of a diversity officer can be daunting, it is important to remember that change takes time, said Dr. Brittany Moore-Henderson, faculty and community outreach veterinarian at Mississippi State University College of Veterinary Medicine. "Change is hard, and it takes a long time for things to change in academia," she said. "How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time." |
| GEICO donates car to Mississippi State through Recycled Rides program | |
| Two businesses partnered up to give Mississippi State University a nearly new vehicle for training in the school's extension service. GEICO donated the truck through its "Recycled Rides" program. Bob's Paint and Body in Columbus volunteered time and labor to refurbish it to "like-new" condition. Representatives from the MSU Foundation accepted the gift Tuesday morning. Geico reps said this is just an extension of the good working relationship they have with the university. Mississippi State will use the truck to assist rural farmers with training and development for the future of their locally owned and operated farms. |
| USDA expects 'significant delays' in economic research reports | |
 | Mass attrition at the Economic Research Service as a result of USDA's decision to move the agency out of Washington will lead to "significant delays" in vital research reports, according to an internal document provided to POLITICO. The memo, which was drafted by department management for planning purposes, outlines how widely the agency's work will be paralyzed as a result of the relocation. ERS conducts research into areas such as climate change, nutrition, export data and the farm economy. Farmers also heavily rely on its outlook reports to make planting decisions. Crop markets can swing on the results of the numbers. "Due to decreased staffing levels, ERS will for considerable time be unable to provide the same level of breadth and depth in its economic research and outlook analysis as it did in the past," the memo states. |
| Jim Hood Says Reeves Blocked Vaping Bills After E-Cig Donations; Lt. Gov. Denies | |
| Several weeks ago, Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood's teenage daughter went to the doctor for chest pains. He called his daughter as soon as he found out. "Have you been vaping?" he asked her. Hood used that story last week, while not sharing her answer, to show that e-cigarettes and vaping have been on his mind lately as a father, as an attorney general and as the Democratic candidate for governor. Even as cigarette and tobacco use among teens has fallen to historic lows, vaping use has surged in recent years. Hood claims his opponent, Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves, has blocked bills to regulate vaping after receiving campaign donations from vaping companies; Reeves denies it. The Reeves campaign did not respond to a request for comment, but Reeves spokesman Parker Briden did tell The Clarion-Ledger last Thursday that there is "a whole Legislature at work and Tate didn't kill the bill." Briden accused Hood of "conspiracy theories and partisan blame games." |
| Full 5th Circuit to reconsider Mississippi 'gerrymandering' case | |
| Early in the 2020 legislative session, the full U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals will consider whether a lower court erred in ordering the redrawing of Mississippi Senate District 22 to correct racial gerrymandering. By the time the appeals court hears the oral arguments during the week of Jan. 20, a new senator will have been elected on Nov. 5 and would have been sworn in for the 2020 session, which starts Jan. 7. The 5th Circuit announced Monday it would meet en banc (the entire court) to decide whether U.S. Judge Carlton Reeves of the Southern District of Mississippi ruled correctly in ordering the redrawing of the district. Previously, Reeves' decision was upheld earlier this summer by a three judge panel of the 5th Circuit by a 2-1 decision. The entire 5th Circuit voted "on its own motion" to take up the case. Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann and Gov. Phil Bryant, who appealed Reeves' decision, asked for more time to file a request asking for the full 5th Circuit to take up the case. |
| 'It could backfire': Trent Lott, reminiscing on 1999 Clinton impeachment, blisters House Dems over Trump impeachment inquiry | |
| Former U.S. Sen. Trent Lott, who was intimately affiliated with two of the nation's three presidential impeachment proceedings, lamented House Democrats' impeachment inquiry of President Donald Trump in an extensive Tuesday evening interview. In 1974, Lott served on the House Judiciary Committee during his first full year in Congress as the committee mulled impeachment articles for President Richard Nixon. Then in 1999, Lott served as Senate majority leader and presided over the impeachment trial of President Bill Clinton. In an extensive phone interview on Tuesday evening with Mississippi Today, Lott blasted Democrats for rushing the impeachment proceedings. "This is not good for the country," Lott said. "At least wait and see what the evidence is. What did Trump say? Was it something out of order or not? Let's wait to see before we jump the gun here, which I think Nancy Pelosi and the Democrats have clearly done. It could backfire on them. I don't know that it will, but having been through two of these proceedings, I would urge caution." |
| Trump legal team steps into a battle like none before | |
| President Donald Trump just got the impeachment battle he says he's been itching for. Now he'll need some new lawyers, a new legal strategy and new safeguards around him to survive a fight that could evolve in unpredictable ways. Democrats' leap into a formal impeachment inquiry on Tuesday will trigger a fresh wave of hearings in which Trump's lawyers can expect to question witnesses and present their own defense. The president's attorneys also may need to go back to the drawing board if they're going to defeat lawmakers' newly emboldened demands --- some already sitting before federal judges -- seeking critical documents and testimony in a wide range of investigations launched over the past nine months. The bottom line: The very real threat looms that all manner of Trump's dirty laundry is about to be aired for the American public as Congress tests its constitutional powers. "His primary defense is political, and I assume he'll be blustering he needs no defense and that he's done nothing wrong, which is just categorically false," said Michael Gerhardt, a University of North Carolina law professor and author of a frequently cited book on impeachment. |
| Senate GOP vows to quash impeachment articles | |
 | Senate Republicans are vowing to quickly quash any articles of impeachment that pass the House and warn that Democrats will feel a political backlash if they go forward and impeach President Trump. Republican senators say there are no grounds to impeach Trump and are daring Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) to embark on what they dismiss as a fool's errand that will turn off swing voters. "My response to them is go hard or go home," said Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.), a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, which has jurisdiction over impeachment. "If you want to impeach him, stop talking. Do it. Do it. Go to Amazon, buy a spine and do it. And let's get after it." Some moderate Democrats are also skeptical about moving ahead with such a divisive process. Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.) said articles of impeachment aren't going anywhere in the Senate and said the smarter strategy is to push Republicans to conduct oversight of the Trump administration, such as by pressing them to ask for the intelligence community inspector general's report on the whistleblower complaint. |
| Trump administration releases transcript of call with Ukraine's president | |
 | President Donald Trump repeatedly pressed the president of Ukraine to re-open an investigation into a Ukrainian energy company to focus on any involvement by Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden and his son, Hunter, according to the transcript of a July telephone call between the two leaders. In the 30-minute call, reduced to a five-page transcript released by the administration Wednesday, Trump also told President Volodymyr Zelensky that he was directing his personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, and Attorney General William Barr, to assist in the inquiry "to get to the bottom of it." "There's a lot of talk about Biden's son -- that Biden stopped the prosecution and a lot of people want to find out about that so whatever you can do with the attorney general would be great," Trump said. The transcript was released the day after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced an impeachment inquiry. |
| Trump To UN General Assembly: 'Future Does Not Belong To Globalists' | |
 | At the U.N. General Assembly in New York on Tuesday, President Trump told world leaders to reject "globalism" and to look out for the interests of their own countries first. "The future does not belong to globalists; it belongs to patriots," Trump said. Tuesday marked Trump's third address to the General Assembly as president. As he has done in the past, Trump used his remarks to the international organization to make the case for his "America first" style of diplomacy that puts nationalism ahead of multilateral efforts. Since entering the White House, Trump has pulled the U.S. out of several international agreements, including the Paris climate accords and the Iran nuclear deal. He's also called out allies in NATO over military spending, a point he made again at the United Nations. Trump's remarks also included sharp warnings for China and Iran. |
| New U.N. climate report: Massive change already here for world's oceans and frozen regions | |
 | Climate change is already having staggering effects on oceans and ice-filled regions that encompass 80 percent of the Earth, and future damage from rising seas and melting glaciers is now all but certain, according to a sobering new report from the United Nations. The warming climate is already killing coral reefs, supercharging monster storms, and fueling deadly marine heat waves and record losses of sea ice. And Wednesday's report on the world's oceans, glaciers, polar regions and ice sheets finds that such effects foreshadow a more catastrophic future as long as greenhouse gas emissions remain unchecked. Given current emissions levels, a number of serious effects are essentially unavoidable, says the report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. More than 100 scientists from around the world contributed to the latest report by the IPCC, which found that profound and potentially devastating consequences lie ahead for marine life, Arctic ecosystems and entire human societies if climate change continues unabated. |
| Hardin Foundation donates $400,000 to early learning program at Ole Miss | |
| The Phil Hardin Foundation's recent $400,000 gift to the University of Mississippi's School of Education enables the UM Graduate Center for the Study of Early Learning to continue its successful Hardin Scholars Program. The foundation's gift establishes a fund that will support the program while also helping it grow to include early childhood instructors from community colleges. The fund also will cover scholars' and educators' travel expenses to national conferences and help bring renowned speakers to Mississippi. "The Hardin Foundation invests in education at all levels, but we view early learning as the most critical component in improving educational outcomes in Mississippi," said Lloyd Gray, executive director of the foundation. |
| Late Senator Thad Cochran's legacy expanded at U. of Mississippi | |
| The University of Mississippi, as well as the state and nation, lost one of its strongest voices of support with the passing of U.S. Senator Thad Cochran on May 30. Thanks to alumni and friends dedicated to expanding his legacy, an endowment has been established for scholarships, educational opportunities and preserving his congressional archives. The UM School of Law hosted a tribute event recently to honor the service of the 10th longest-serving senator in American history and build resources in several areas. The Cochran Endowment provides law scholarships, an international law fellowship, a military promise program, preservation of his collection in the University Libraries' Modern Political Archives and resources to the law dean's strategic initiatives. "We are so grateful to all individuals and organizations who contributed to these endowments," said Susan Duncan, UM law dean. |
| USM food pantry to host open house during Parent, Family Weekend | |
 | Organizers of the annual Parent and Family Weekend at The University Mississippi are hoping you'll take time to make a donation to USM's Eagle's Nest Food Pantry. As part of the event, an open house will be held at the pantry on Friday from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. and on game day Saturday from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. The pantry, which serves USM students and staff, opened three years ago. "This is our first year adding a service component to Parent and Family Weekend, so we hope that parents and families will give their support to our Southern Miss students," said Ashley Jones, coordinator of parent and family programs in the Office of New Student and Retention Programs at USM. "The pantry is a very active place, so there's a lot to see and a lot to learn about as far as campus hunger," said Tamara Hurst, faculty mentor for Eagle's Nest Food Pantry. Organizers hope donors will also check out a list of the eight most needed items at the food pantry, called the Eagle Eight. |
| Health-related occupations continue to grow and stay in high demand | |
| A national look at the fastest-growing occupations nationally reveals many of them are health-related. As the population ages, the need for care rises. "Nursing is poised for tremendous growth over upcoming years," explained Mississippi College Dean of School of Nursing Kimberly Sharp. "We've seen an upsurge of interest within the nursing profession." But once they're in the working world, going back to school to further their degrees isn't always easy. Mississippi College School of Nursing has worked with the IHL to create the state's first Clinical Nurse Leader track. "Clinical nurse leaders are unique and they have been really valued part of the VA program in nursing," noted Sharp. "The clinical nurse leader actually works with the patients in the bedside. So, it's not requiring nurses to change their area of practice. But what we're trying to do is promote nurses at the bedside who can improve patient outcomes and also improve the cost efficiencies in the work environment." The Master of Science Nursing, CNL track is online, creating more flexibility for nurses wanting new professional opportunities and eventually higher pay upon completion. |
| Co-Lin rock band fun tool for recruiting | |
 | It's a recruitment tool for Copiah-Lincoln Community College. It's an opportunity. It is also, according to its members, a whole lot of fun. The Sojourners is Co-Lin's resident rock band. It's been around in one form or another for decades, evolving with the times. Every year, auditions are held and band members are offered a half-tuition scholarship. "One cool thing I've discovered about this group is the wide range of what they've done musically," Assistant Band Director Chad Austin said. "You have a wide range of musical talents." Austin said the band tries to include a variety of musical genres so there is something for everyone. Being accessible to a variety of audiences is an important part of the band's role as a recruitment tool for the school. That role is something the student members are very aware of. |
| Bike-sharing program now available at U. of Alabama | |
 | University of Alabama students, visitors, faculty and staff can now navigate campus through a new bike-share program. As of Monday, 150 e-bikes, bicycles with electronic motors that assist pedaling, are available to rent from the national ride-share company Gotcha throughout the UA campus. Gotcha, allows people to use their app to borrow transportation, like bikes, for use around cities and campuses. Users pay for the bikes when they're done using them. Gotcha bikes are limited to use on the UA campus. There is a pay-as-you-go option for $2 to unlock a bike and ride for 10 cents per minute. Users can also sign up for a monthly pass that costs $6.99 per month. "The program serves as a means of transportation, and it promotes an active lifestyle," Chris D'Esposito, director of transportation services for The University of Alabama, said in the release. "We are extremely pleased that Gotcha brings a new, cost-effective mobility option to our campus community." |
| College budget outlook in Louisiana best in a decade, top state official says | |
 | The financial outlook for Louisiana's colleges and universities is the best it has been in the past decade, Commissioner of Administration Jay Dardenne said Tuesday. "It went from being cut every year to not being cut in our first two years and being plussed up in our third year," Dardenne said. "So it is clearly better than it has been for the past decade," he said. "It is not where we want it to be, but we are making progress." Dardenne made his comments after addressing the Louisiana Board of Regents, which began budget hearings for spending proposals that will be reviewed by the 2020 Legislature. State aid for colleges and universities rose by $47.3 million for the financial year that began July 1. The current higher education budget includes a $15 million boost for the Taylor Opportunity Program for Students. |
| Lawsuit contends U. of Florida overcharged students for Preview | |
 | The mother of a University of Florida student has filed a lawsuit that contends she, her daughter and other families were overcharged for freshman orientation, which resulted in the university making millions of dollars. Lisa G. Browning, who initiated the class-action case against the school, says that for more than a decade, the university has been charging more than state law allows for the school's new student orientation, called Preview. Students and families were not offered a less-expensive option, the lawsuit contends. The case has been assigned to Circuit Judge Monica Brasington. If the case is allowed to proceed, it could affect thousands of current and former students who paid Preview fees in excess of the $35 fee that state law allows. Steve Orlando, UF spokesman, said the school would not comment on an open lawsuit. State statutes have capped the fee at $35 dating back to at least 2000. |
| UGA researcher developing vaccine for childhood illness | |
 | The 4-month-old had a bit of a cough and wasn't sleeping well. But little James Gee wasn't congested and didn't have a fever. The doctor thought it was an ear infection. Give him some antibiotics, and he should bounce right back. He didn't. Instead, he threw up all of the medication along with buckets of phlegm. His mom, Anna Claire Gee, had a bad feeling. A few days later, James was admitted to Piedmont Athens Regional Medical Center, where doctors immediately gave him oxygen, threaded a feeding tube through his nose because he couldn't nurse and breathe properly at the same time, and inserted an IV through his forehead because his tiny veins couldn't accommodate the tubing. They hadn't diagnosed it yet, but James had respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV. James was in for a fight. For more than 60 years, scientists have been working on a safe and effective RSV vaccine. So far, nothing's worked. "It mostly worked for many pathogens, but now we're way past that," says Tripp, Georgia Research Alliance Eminent Scholar and GRA Chair of Animal Health Vaccine Development. |
| Jury sides with former Boston College student accused of sexual assault | |
 | A former Boston College student has won more than $100,000 from his alma mater after a federal jury found the private nonprofit institution mishandled sexual assault allegations against him. The case is significant in that it is the first sex assault lawsuit against a university to reach a jury trial since 2011, when the Obama administration rewrote the rules for how college officials should investigate and arbitrate sexual violence on campuses. Some activists who believe the Obama rules lacked due process for accused students have seized on the Boston College ruling as validation that these campus proceedings are unfair and potentially ruinous of the college and professional careers of those accused. "The jury's clear verdict here suggests that, as with so many situations involving both free speech and due process, universities are unable to defend in public what they try to do in private," said Samantha Harris, vice president of policy research at the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education. |
| Report: Underrepresented High School Students Engage More With Institutions Through Social Media | |
| Social media is transforming the college admissions and recruitment process, especially for underrepresented students. According to a new EAB report, nearly 30 percent of students have used a school's social media site as a gateway to that school's website and more than 85 percent believe that every institution should have a social media presence. The report, "Recruiting the Digital Native," focused on the social media usage of potential students and their engagement with colleges and universities across the nation. "We know from our conversations with partner institutions that everyone is looking for the latest insight into how to best communicate with prospective students," said Dr. Pam Kiecker Royall, head of research and enrollment services at EAB. "And knowing with the new media in particular, over the last decade plus, that this was a moving target and we've tried keeping our finger on the pulse." One of the biggest findings from the survey was that social media has become an important tool for colleges to engage with underrepresented students. |
| Federal inquiry into a Middle East studies program raises academic freedom concerns | |
| An inquiry by the U.S. Department of Education into the curricular programming of a Middle East studies center supported by federal funds has raised alarm bells in academe. Henry Reichman, the chair of the American Association of University Professors' Committee A on Academic Freedom and Tenure, described the department's inquiry into the Duke-UNC Consortium for Middle East Studies' use of federal Title VI funds as "a chillingly inappropriate political intrusion into curricular decisions best made by faculty." The Education Department wrote to the center jointly run by Duke University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill on Aug. 29. The letter, published in the Federal Register last week, singled out various programs as allegedly having "little or no relevance to Title VI," a federal grant program that funds international studies and foreign language programs at U.S. universities. While the department's letter may be unprecedented, allegations of bias in Middle East studies centers are not new -- particularly as they relate to programming about Israel. |
| Walmart Announces Health Degrees for $1 a Day | |
| Walmart is introducing additional programs for its employees to earn a bachelor's degree or career diploma for $1 a day. The retail giant offers seven bachelor's and two career diplomas in health and wellness-related fields through its Live Better U program. Walmart officials hope that Live Better U will provide employees with a route to higher-paying jobs and more opportunities in a growing field. The expansion of the existing program offers students credentials in health-related fields from Penn Foster Career School, Purdue Global, Southern New Hampshire University, Bellevue University and Wilmington University. Career diplomas will be offered for opticians and pharmacy technicians through Penn Foster. Walmart (and its affiliate Sam's Club) employs 1.5 million associates who could be eligible for program. About 13,500 employees are currently enrolled in Live Better U, according to Walmart. The company's goal is for enrollment in the program to top 50,000 in five years. |
| New UCLA institute will study kindness, mindfulness | |
 | A friendly smile. A food pantry donation. Or, a remarkable act of Los Angeles benevolence -- allowing a driver to cut in front of you. Such acts of kindness have a self-serving upside, too, as science has conclusively shown they also make you healthier. Now UCLA is poised to advance that science with the Wednesday launch of the world's first interdisciplinary research institute on kindness, which will explore, for instance, how and why being nice to others reduces depression and the risk of cancer and cardiovascular disease. Research by UCLA scientists already has shown that mindfulness and kindness actually alter the behavior of genes, turning down those that promote inflammation, which can lead to heart disease or certain cancers, and turning up the activity of genes that protect against infections. But the ultimate goal of the UCLA Bedari Kindness Institute is to spread kindness and promote a more humane world. A $20 million gift will provide seed funding for the institute. |
| Clemson program gives rural students 'a way to rise above' | |
| Cutting a swath through eastern South Carolina, hugging the contours of Interstate 95, is a string of neglected towns known as "The Corridor of Shame." Three hours northwest along the Georgia state line, in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, Clemson University reigns as the state's original land-grant research institution. With 24,000 students, Clemson is known for its charming campus, its rabid and generous alumni, and its powerhouse football team. It has a lot of numbers to be proud of, including its rise in college rankings, and one not to be: Although the state of South Carolina is more than 27 percent African-American, less than 7 percent of the Clemson student body is black. Clemson has been working to improve that number by reaching out to the small towns in this deeply rural state. And one of its initiatives specifically targets students in the I-95 corridor. |
| Analysis: Reeves touts rainy day fund, but not first time state's reserves have been strong | |
| Bobby Harrison writes for Mississippi Today: Republican Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves recently touted at a meeting of legislative leaders that the state's rainy day fund would be filled to its capacity of $554 million when the books are closed on the 2019 fiscal year, which ended June 30. Soon after that on social media, Reeves, who is locked in a contentious gubernatorial campaign with Democratic Attorney General Jim Hood, said "huge news. Our rainy day fund is expected to be full for the first time. That is how we weather crises -- recession, storms, or any disaster." A little context might be appropriate. If the Working Cash Stabilization Fund (commonly called the rainy day fund) is filled to capacity in the coming weeks, it would not be the first time. |
| Governor election may have echoes from 1999 | |
 | Syndicated columnist Sid Salter writes: With just over six weeks to go before the 2019 general election in Mississippi, there are few Mississippians on either side of the partisan divide who don't concede that the gubernatorial campaign is closer than any over the last 20 years. Democrat Jim Hood and Republican Tate Reeves, the marquee candidates, will face Constitution Party candidate Bob Hickingbottom and independent candidate David R. Singletary in the Nov. 5 general election. Reeves and Hood have each won statewide primary and general election majorities in every Mississippi general election since 2003. If you're counting, that's four straight general elections. The fact that prognosticators see a 2019 gubernatorial race that's tight isn't exactly earth-shattering. Likewise, the reality that the Republican nominee has won each of the past four gubernatorial general election contests accounts for the fact that Reeves is considered the favorite in that tight contest. |
SPORTS
| 'Just as nervous': 3 questions Mississippi State must answer against Auburn | |
 | Mississippi State head coach Joe Moorhead grabbed Kylin Hill by the helmet and screamed motivational words through the running back's face mask last Saturday during MSU's win over Kentucky. It wasn't the first time Moorhead has done that exact act. He does it when he knows the stakes are heightened. Moorhead did it last year with quarterback Nick Fitzgerald during the Texas A&M game. He was also extra emotional when his team took on Auburn. He knew the stakes each time, most notably against Auburn. The Bulldogs had just lost consecutive games to Kentucky and Florida when No. 8 Auburn came to Starkville. A loss would have dropped MSU to 3-3 overall and 0-3 in SEC play. Badly needing an upset win, the Dogs got it, dominating both lines of scrimmage in a 23-9 victory. This year's game against the Tigers does not feel like a must-win like last year's because of what transpired at Davis Wade Stadium last week. However, an upset win would change the complexion of the season. That'll likely have Moorhead in fired-up form. |
| The latest on Mississippi State QBs Tommy Stevens, Garrett Shrader | |
| Mississippi State quarterback Garrett Shrader was getting treatment inside the Leo Seal Jr. Football Complex on Monday when his quarterbacks coach approached him. "Congratulations," Andrew Breiner said when he shook Shrader's hand. "On what?" Shrader asked. "You won SEC Freshman of the Week," Breiner responded. "Oh sweet, thanks," Shrader said. That was it. Shrader became the first Bulldog in program history to win the award, but he said his parents probably care more about the accolade than he does. Shrader just likes playing football, as senior quarterback Tommy Stevens said last week. "Garrett really doesn't care about the outside world," Stevens said. "He's really focused on all the important things. There's no distractions. It's really something to admire. No social media. He really doesn't care about anything. He just loves football." |
| Auburn not looking ahead to potential top-10 matchup with old rival Florida | |
 | A potential top-10 matchup against a longtime SEC rival is looming on the horizon, but Gus Malzahn doesn't want to hear anything about it. Auburn's seventh-year head coach doesn't even want to think about the potentially big-time game next weekend in The Swamp, where No. 7 Auburn and No. 9 Florida are set to meet for the first time since 2011 --- and the first time in Gainesville, Fla., since 2007. No, Malzahn is focused solely on the task at hand: Saturday's 6 p.m. home game against Mississippi State. The typically reserved and even-keel coach made that crystal clear on Tuesday during a weekly press conference that was far more animated and impassioned than usual: "Yeah, we're happy. We beat a good team on the road. That was a big win, but that's behind us. And really, after our team meeting on Sunday, you could tell it was behind us. They've already flipped the page. (Mississippi State has) got our attention, and they should. So, no, we're not even thinking about (Florida)." |
| Auburn isn't overlooking Mississippi State after 'embarrassment' last year | |
 | Nothing needs to be said in that Auburn locker room. Derrick Brown is sure of that. Quietly inside, they all remember the sinking feeling from walking off that field last year at Mississippi State. "There's nothing to speak about," said Brown, Auburn's standout defensive tackle, speaking grimly this week. "You know what happened last year. "It's just time to go to work." Auburn hosts Mississippi State at 6 p.m. Saturday in Jordan-Hare Stadium for the teams' first meeting after Mississippi State's 23-9 win over Auburn last fall in Starkville, Miss. Cowbells rang into the night that evening, as the Tigers hung their heads. "They embarrassed us," Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn said. And it's stuck with Auburn. This week, there's no reminiscing on the Plains over a big road win last Saturday at Texas A&M, and there's no looking ahead toward a potential top-10 showdown with Florida coming up, or any congratulations going around about the team's jump up to No. 7 in the major polls. Instead, Auburn just wants to beat Mississippi State. |
| Bulldogs look like state's best team | |
| Mississippi sports columnist Rick Cleveland writes: We are a month into the college football season -- one third of the way through. Time to grade Mississippi's major-college teams ... Seems little doubt, even this early, that Mississippi State (3-1) has the Magnolia State's best team. The Bulldogs have beaten Louisiana, Southern Miss and Kentucky and dropped a win-able home game to Kansas State. They get a solid B. They are exactly where I thought they would be at this point, but I didn't know they would be achieving much of it while playing a true freshman quarterback, Garrett Schrader, a poised and tough guy who gives State much hope for the future. It helps Schrader -- and would help any QB -- to have an elite running back such as Kylin Hill who commands so much attention from opposing defenses. |
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