Friday, October 25, 2019   
 
Mississippi State grad unveils video game on Drill Field
Cameron Maddox, a junior at Mississippi State University, was "just chilling one day" in the Center for Entrepreneurship and Outreach when he found a new video game on one of the computers. He soon found himself playing it for two hours with Landon Casey, who graduated from MSU in May. They took the opportunity to play it again Thursday evening on Drill Field, where about 30 other MSU students and graduates gathered to watch and play a new fighting video game, Slayers for Hire, developed by two-time MSU graduate Ryan Gilbrech. Gilbrech earned a bachelor's degree in biomedical engineering in 2012 but returned to MSU for a master's in business administration in 2014, with the intention of utilizing the degree and the entrepreneurship center to start Meta Games, the business behind Slayers for Hire. "I figured I could teach myself the rest, like the programming and the art stuff, or I could build a team, but the business side was something I had no concept of," Gilbrech said. The E-Center, located in the College of Business, supports more than 100 active startups created by MSU students. "They literally walk in the E-Center door and say 'I have an idea,' and our job is to try to create this ecosystem to bring it to life," outreach director Jeffrey Rupp said.
 
Mississippi State and Belhaven Dual Engineering Program
Mississippi State University's Bagley College of Engineering signed an agreement with Belhaven University's School of Science and Arts on Thursday, Oct. 17, to create a dual degree program for undergraduate students. Participants in the program will be able to earn a degree in mathematics, biology, business, chemistry or computer science from Belhaven and an engineering degree from Mississippi State University. Students in the dual degree program can enroll in either university, a release from MSU says. The students will spend the first two to three years at Belhaven working toward a specified degree, including available pre-engineering and engineering courses. After finishing their studies at Belhaven, they will enter MSU's engineering college as a junior to complete the remaining required coursework for their engineering degree. Courses taken at MSU will transfer back for a bachelor's degree from Belhaven.
 
Breast Cancer Awareness Month: 'You meet a lot of people along the way who inspire you'
Carolyn Abadie considered skipping her yearly mammogram 11 years ago. She didn't, and it made a difference. Her main focus was her knee after a botched surgery meant to fix a torn meniscus. She had several more surgeries, including one a week before her mammogram appointment, and getting into a car was difficult for her, she said. She hadn't thought much of the lump that was a few inches above her breast, higher up in her ribcage, but she chose to go to the appointment because she thought the lump had gotten bigger. She was diagnosed with stage 2 breast cancer on Oct. 1, 2008. She had a lumpectomy, chemotherapy and radiation, and her treatment ended in August 2009. "Once you get through all that, you meet a lot of people along the way who inspire you," said Abadie, the manager of the family-owned Book Mart and Cafe in downtown Starkville. One of those people for Abadie is Molly May, a 25-year-old breast cancer survivor. She was crowned Miss Mississippi State University in 2017, the year she graduated, and has competed in other beauty pageants including Miss Mississippi.
 
Columbus man arrested for Cook Out shooting in Starkville
A Columbus man was arrested Wednesday for allegedly participating in gang activity and shooting a male victim on Highway 12 near Cook Out on Sunday morning. Jaylin Nave, 22, was charged with aggravated assault for the shooting and with "instigat(ing) a violent fight alongside other gang members," according to arrest affidavits. Nave shot the victim with a handgun in the left arm and right foot, the document said. The victim was taken to OCH Regional Medical Center and later to the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson with non life-threatening injuries. The affidavit for the gang activity charge against Nave says he is a member of a gang, but the name of the gang was redacted.
 
Southern Drought Shows First Improvement in Weeks
A fast-developing "flash drought" that threatened crops and helped spark wildfires across the South is showing the first real improvement in weeks, according to a new report Thursday. The latest assessment from the National Drought Mitigation Center said more than a quarter of the Southeast was drought-free, an improvement of more than 10 percentage points in a week. As much as 5 inches of rain from Tropical Storm Nestor helped douse the drought. Meanwhile, forecasters said additional heavy rains could inundate the region this weekend. As much as 6 inches of rain is possible by Sunday over a wide part of Mississippi, the weather service said.
 
Restaurants, bowling alley, Capri: Robert St. John bringing $13M project to Fondren
Famed Mississippi restaurateur Robert St. John of Hattiesburg, backed by local developers, is turning his attention to what he calls Mississippi's "coolest neighborhood" with the announcement Thursday of a $13 million development in Fondren in Jackson. The developments, which will span 30,000 square feet on the historic State Street corridor adjoining the Capri Theater, will include a Tiki bar called the Pearl, a bowling alley called Highball Lanes and a restaurant called Ed's Burger Joint. The Capri is going to be renovated. St. John said renovation and construction on all projects could be finished within a year. "This is the coolest neighborhood in the biggest city in the state," he said of Fondren. David Pharr and Jason Watkins, who own the properties, are the developers. Wier Boerner Allin Architecture is the architect for the project and Copeland & Johns, Inc. is the general contractor.
 
Mississippi shouldn't be 'a dumping ground': Why AG wants to sue Army Corps of Engineers
Attorney General Jim Hood plans to sue the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in federal court over the prolonged opening of the Bonnet Carre Spillway and the damage it caused in the Mississippi Sound. Hood has notified the Corps that the state will be filing suit in 60 days, a requirement for filing. He said Coast cities and counties might join the state as plaintiffs. The Corps opened the Bonnet Carre for a record 143 days this year to relieve Mississippi River flooding, sending trillions of gallons of river water into Lake Pontchartrain and the Sound beyond. Oyster beds were decimated. Dolphin and sea turtle deaths soared. Brown shrimp disappeared. "It's crystal clear liability," Hood said. "Mississippi doesn't need to be a dumping ground. ... It's just about put our seafood industry out of business."
 
Mississippi to sue Corps over extended opening of spillway
Mississippi's attorney general said Thursday that he will sue the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for environmental and economic damage the state experienced after the Corps opened a spillway for two extended periods this year to protect New Orleans from flooding. Attorney General Jim Hood is the Democratic nominee for governor, facing Republican Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves and two other candidates in the Nov. 5 election. At a news conference on the vote-rich Mississippi Gulf Coast, Hood announced he's giving the federal government 60 days' notice, as required, of his intention to sue. In September, U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross declared fishing disasters for seven states, including Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana. A statement from the Commerce Department said a regional disaster for those three states because of "extreme flooding events in the Gulf of Mexico."
 
Tate Reeves 'will fight for the MAGA agenda,' Donald Trump Jr. tells Oxford crowd
At a traditionally non-partisan Mississippi politics get-together known for short speeches, Donald Trump Jr. gave a half-hour polemic Thursday night, railing against the national Democratic party and the impeachment inquiry ramping up against his father. And the audience loved it. Hundreds came out to Johnny Morgan's shop in the woods outside Oxford to see politicians -- all Republican except Democratic candidate for transportation commissioner, Joe Grist -- stand on an old wooden bench and give stump speeches. The dress code appeared to be business casual with cowboy boots optional. Organizers estimated this was probably the highest attended Good Ole Boys and Gals barbecue in the event's decades-long history -- thanks to Trump Jr. Trump Jr. repeatedly noted how strange it was that he -- the son of a billionaire from New York City -- could connect so well with working people in Mississippi. "No one understands the irony better than me," he said.
 
'Good ole boys': Trump Jr. attacks Hunter Biden, promotes first family
Donald Trump Jr. spoke at the Good Ole Boys and Gals Barbecue on Thursday where he supported the first family at the campaign event for Tate Reeves and other candidates in the area. Reeves, the Republican gubernatorial candidate, continued his campaign, emphasizing the importance of this year's governor's race. Trump Jr. spoke for around 30 minutes and only mentioned Reeves twice, spending the first half of his speech talking about former Vice President Joe Biden's son, Hunter Biden. Trump Jr. said that the left has repeatedly attempted to "throw (him) in jail" while ignoring Hunter Biden. The majority of Reeves' speech focused on the "other side." The three campaign stances that Reeves discussed were his pro-life, pro-tax cuts and pro-religious freedom beliefs. Reeves said that Trump Jr. was "someone who knows what it's like to be attacked for political reasons."
 
Donald Trump Jr. stumps for Republican in Mississippi governor's race
Donald Trump Jr. came to Mississippi on Thursday as the Republican Party began throwing its weight behind its candidate in the final weeks of the governor's race. Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves, a Republican who will face off against Democratic Attorney General Jim Hood in the Nov. 5 election, will hold a $500-a-plate fundraiser with Mr. Trump and his wife at a hunting lodge near Hattiesburg. The Trumps then will attend the annual Good Ole Boys and Gals BBQ in Oxford, the home of the University of Mississippi, or Ole Miss. Mr. Trump and Mr. Reeves are both expected to speak. The barbecue is a well-known event, an old-fashioned affair where people mill about with cocktails and fried catfish and chicken. Any politician who desires can deliver a 15-minute stump speech. "This is like the small-town version of the Neshoba County Fair," said Marvin King, a political science and African American studies professor at Ole Miss. "As a college town, Oxford might be a little less hospitable to Mr. Trump, but not by much because the county is still Republican."
 
Election misinformation: Letters falsely tell Mississippi voters they aren't registered
Some 80,000 letters from a national Democratic group mailed in recent weeks told Mississippians they weren't registered to vote in the November election. But many of the recipients were already registered, or received the letter after the Oct. 7 deadline, sowing confusion. The Democratic Attorneys General Association sent the letters in late September, part of a voter outreach push backing Democratic AG candidate Jennifer Riley-Collins. It said, "You're receiving this letter because our records show that you are not registered to vote at this address." Mississippi Democratic Party Chairman Bobby Moak said party officials heard from people confused by the letter. "The effort is good, to register people," he said of the DAGA letter, but added it appeared the organization was sending it to "people who vote all the time."
 
Trump impeachment inquiry: Why didn't DOJ look harder at Ukraine call?
At the time, the disclosure was offered almost as a footnote to the explosive contents of a phone call in which President Donald Trump pressed his Ukrainian counterpart to investigate political rival Joe Biden. As a summary of the call was released by the White House last month, senior Justice Department officials, who spoke on the condition that they not be identified, said prosecutors had reviewed whether the president's solicitation of Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky was a potential crime. The review, done at the request of the inspector general of the Intelligence Community, was narrow. "In hindsight, the decision by prosecutors was premature and ill-advised," Richard Ben-Veniste, one of the Watergate prosecutors, said. "The information provided by the whistleblower cried out for further inquiry."
 
DOJ inquiry into 2016 election becomes criminal investigation
An inquiry that Attorney General William Barr ordered into the origins of the probe into possible ties between the 2016 Trump campaign and Russia has now become a criminal investigation, a source familiar with the matter told POLITICO on Thursday. The investigation, being conducted by the U.S. attorney for Connecticut, John Durham, was launched as an effort by Barr to answer unspecified questions he had about why the FBI began the counterintelligence investigation that eventually led to the appointment of special counsel Robert Mueller. However, escalating Barr's inquiry from a management review to a criminal matter means current and former FBI, Justice Department or CIA officials could face the possibility of criminal charges arising from some aspect of their work on the Russia investigation.
 
Pentagon, With an Eye on China, Pushes for Help From American Tech
Pentagon officials have been holding private discussions with tech industry executives to wrestle with a key question: how to ensure future supplies of the advanced computer chips needed to retain America's military edge. The talks, some of which predate the Trump administration, recently took on an increased urgency, according to people who were involved or briefed on the discussions. Pentagon officials encouraged chip executives to consider new production lines for semiconductors in the United States, said the people, who declined to be identified because the talks were confidential. The discussions are being driven by the Pentagon's increased dependence on chips made abroad, especially in Taiwan, as well as recent tensions with China, these people said.
 
White House 'does not seek confrontation with China,' VP Mike Pence says
Vice President Mike Pence on Thursday credited President Donald Trump with altering U.S.-China relations "forever," saying the decades during which "we rebuilt China -- are over." "Past administrations have come and gone; all were aware of these abuses. None were willing to upset the established Washington interests who not only permitted these abuses, but profited from them," Pence said during what his office billed as a major policy speech. "The political establishment was not only silent in the face of China's economic aggression and human rights abuses, but enabled them." Yet, even as Pence warned China on its trade practices and other aggressive acts, like its sometimes tough tactics in the seas around Asia, he said the Trump administration "does not seek confrontation with China" and seeks "practical cooperation."
 
UMMC uses T.E.A.M work to open clinic for LGBTQ community members
According to doctors at the University of Mississippi Medical Center, members of the LGBTQ community feel left out when it comes to healthcare opportunities, meaning they often don't seek out treatment. These same doctors are heading up a new Jackson clinic called "T.E.A.M." "Team stands for trustworthy, evidence-based, affirming, multi-disciplinary," Dr. Scott Rodgers, the Psychiatry and Human Behavior Department Chair at UMMC said. For the very first time in Mississippi, a university-based clinic designed specifically to serve the LGBTQ community has opened in Jackson thanks to UMMC. Dr. Rodgers also explained that this is also an excellent opportunity for students at UMMC to learn more before going into practice.
 
British phone box back on display at USM after years in storage
An iconic piece of British telecommunications history is once again on display at the University of Southern Mississippi after spending years in storage. A fully-restored British phone box can now be seen in the Armstrong-Branch Plaza, next to the International Center. USM got it in 1990 through its British Studies Program. It was displayed for years at the old English Language Institute, but when that building was torn down, the phone box went into storage. It was returned to permanent display a few weeks ago. "We completely restored it, new paint job," said Jessica Bunales, interim assistant director of the Office of Study Abroad at Southern Miss.
 
MI-BEST program gives students a second chance at NEMCC
The MI-BEST program has offered dozens of people a second chance to pursue an education over the past five years, helping them obtain high school equivalency degrees and then job certification training or associate degrees through Northeast Mississippi Community College. The dropout rate for Mississippi high school students reached a "historic low" of 10.1% during the 2017-18 school year, according to the Mississippi Department of Education. That number is down from 13.9% in 2014. That means that each year thousands of students drop out and likely have difficulty finding quality jobs. That's where the MI-BEST initiative comes in. The program helps high school dropouts and second chance students take and pass high school equivalency exams and enroll in certification programs and classes at local community colleges, according to NEMCC's MI-BEST coordinator Taylor Johnson.
 
Oxford-Lafayette School of Applied Technology considering proposal for dual enrollment programs with Northwest Mississippi Community College
The Oxford-Lafayette School of Applied Technology is considering adding programs to its curriculum that would count as dual enrollment credits with Northwest Mississippi Community College. Michael Heindl, president of NWCC, and David Campbell, district dean of career, technical and workforce education presented the OLSAT Board on Monday with a list of several courses that would modify what the Tech is offering to make sure that it would meet college requirements. Of the list of five courses NWCC would offer for dual enrollment, two of them would be available beginning next August for the 2020-21 school year: automotive technology and computer coding and application development. The future of the school has been heavily discussed this year, after the Oxford School District board of trustees announced their intentions to break away from the current consortium agreement with LCSD.
 
NASA's real-world lessons at MCC may lead to other-world careers
Sibilla Blackwell was only 15 when she first had the dream of working for NASA. While working in a group of other future NASA scientists in programming a mini space rover for Mars this week at Meridian Community College, Blackwell took one step closer to reaching her goal. "Just because people say STEM research is just for men per se, don't let that hold you back, " Blackwell said." I never let it hold me back." Blackwell is one of many community college students who participated in the NASA Community College Aerospace Scholars program at MCC. For the last week, students have built robots, held a Mars rover competition, listened to a variety of speakers and learned about internship or job opportunities with NASA. The pilot program was held at six community colleges nationwide, including MCC, to get students interested in NASA through experience.
 
Court rules against former student in Cleveland School District discrimination claim over shared valedictorian title
A federal judge recently ruled that while Cleveland School District may have erred when it awarded valedictorian to both Jasmine Shepard, who is African American and another white student, a federal civil rights violation was not committed. Shepard filed suit against the school district in June 2017, alleging that school officials forced her to share the 2016 valedictorian title with a white student despite Shepard having a higher GPA. Hers was the last class to graduate as Cleveland High School before a federal desegregation order caused Cleveland High, which was historically white and East Side High, which was majority black to consolidate. Olecia James, an African-American graduate of the recently consolidated Cleveland Central, filed suit against the district in May alleging similar facts. James said she was stripped of the salutatorian honor for fear of white flight; a white male was awarded salutatorian instead. Her case is still pending.
 
U. of Alabama names Matthew McLendon chief enrollment officer
The University of Alabama has selected Matthew McLendon as its next chief enrollment officer. The university announced Wednesday that McLendon was hired as the associate vice president and executive director of enrollment management. McLendon will start Nov. 18. He replaces Richard "Rick" Barth, who resigned from the role, according to UA Director of Communications Deidre Stalnaker. "We worked with a national search firm to find the brightest talent in this field, and Matt emerged through this process," said UA executive Vice President and Provost Kevin Whitaker. The 2019 fall enrollment at UA is 38,103 students. The university saw some gains in its incoming freshman class, but the overall enrollment dipped slightly again for the second year. McLendon has worked at the Georgia Institute of Technology since 2009 in several roles including, most recently, as the director of strategy and enrollment planning.
 
Arkansas colleges trend lower for enrollees
The percentage of Arkansas public high school students continuing on to college in the state decreased again, according to data compiled by the state Division of Higher Education. The latest numbers -- factoring in updated data from previous years -- mark the fourth consecutive year of declines, with a college-going rate of 47.1% for 2018, down from the 2017 rate of 48.2%. In fall 2014, the state agency calculated the rate as 51.6%. Officials noted the incompleteness of their data but also a need to reverse a trend that an expert said can hurt the state because employers generally seek an educated workforce. The available data leaves out students who attended private high schools and also those who left the state for college, Sonia Hazelwood, the agency's associate director for research and analytics, said Thursday. But "it's still a problem," Hazelwood said of the declining rate.
 
U. of Florida a cappella group No Southern Accent releases third album
While the 2012 movie "Pitch Perfect" might have introduced some people to the world of a cappella, members of No Southern Accent have been using their voices to create sound since 2001. The University of Florida's first a cappella group will release its third studio album, "Permanent Address," on Nov. 1. As part of winning third place at the SoJam A Cappella Festival in 2017, No Southern Accent got the opportunity to record four master tracks for free. During that festival, the group met their current producing company Viridian Productions. The album's remaining seven songs were recorded in May. Myles Lopez, a third-year student at UF studying psychology and women's studies, is the group's communications director. "Originally it was going to be an EP, it was only going to be four tracks, and then we decided to hold off and release a whole album later," said Lopez.
 
Investigation reveals extensive sexual harassment allegations against former UF professor
A University of Florida professor in the Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences was allowed to resign in May instead of being fired -- but not before he allegedly assaulted or had inappropriate relationships with multiple women, some of whom were his students. UF's Office of Title IX Compliance conducted an investigation that found Andrew Lotto, 51, touched several women in ways that made them uncomfortable since he started teaching at UF in 2016. Students and faculty alleged in the investigation that Lotto was in a romantic relationship with one of his students, was caught in the midst of a sexual act with a student in his office, and pushed an undergraduate against the wall and stuck his finger in her ear, among other incidents. Lotto told The Alligator he didn't fight the allegations because he was planning on retiring soon. He said his concern was primarily for his students who were pulled into the investigation and left without a mentor.
 
Sewer project to cause major traffic headaches on U. of Kentucky campus for two years
A sewer line replacement on Euclid Avenue and Avenue of Champions through the University of Kentucky campus will take two years to complete and will cause major traffic backups and other headaches, Lexington city officials warned this week. "It's the most challenging project we have had to do," said Charlie Martin, the director of water quality for Lexington. "It will be hard." In addition, the expansion of UK means a much larger sewer pipe is needed to serve the campus of more than 30,000 students and the many businesses on South Upper and South Limestone streets and along Euclid Avenue. Martin said there will probably be days crews won't work, such as on UK move-in day and possibly UK graduation day. "We will be communicating and giving people updates weekly," Martin said. "But there will be significant traffic impacts in this area."
 
Texas A&M professor named Physicist of the Year
A Texas A&M professor and Nobel Prize winner was recently named the 2019 Physicist of the Year by the Top 100 Registry. Distinguished professor of physics and astronomy David Lee's colleagues held a two-day symposium in his honor that began Thursday morning and continues all day today. "It is wonderful to be here for David. He's one of our geniuses," A&M System Chancellor John Sharp said of Lee at the outset of the Quantum Materials Science Symposium, which participants referred to as the Lee Fest. Lee was named the top physicist in the United States this year by Top 100 Registry, which is printed quarterly and features accomplished individuals. In 1996, Lee -- then a professor at Cornell University -- shared the Nobel Prize in Physics with two colleagues for their joint 1972 discovery of superfluid helium-3. Lee came to Texas A&M in 2009 after a 50-year career at Cornell.
 
Couple gives $1.7 million, split between engineering and veterinary programs at U. of Missouri
The University of Missouri received a $1.7 million donation from alumni Ken Donohew and Ellen Kippel, Chancellor Alexander Cartwright announced Thursday. The College of Engineering will receive $1.4 million, and the College of Veterinary Medicine will receive $310,000 for the Shelter Medicine Program. The Donohews have given $3 million to the university in total, Cartwright said. The gift to the College of Engineering was given in the name of Ken Donohew's father, Jack, and the gift to the College of Veterinary Medicine was given in the name of his uncle, Paul Zollman. The money at the College of Engineering will be given to the Major Jack N. Donohew Fund of Diversity and Inclusion in Engineering, which the couple established during Mizzou Giving Day 2019.
 
Betsy DeVos held in contempt for violating judge's order on student loans
A federal judge on Thursday held Education Secretary Betsy DeVos in contempt of court and imposed a $100,000 fine for violating an order to stop collecting on the student loans owed by students of a defunct for-profit college. The exceedingly rare judicial rebuke of a Cabinet secretary came after the Trump administration was forced to admit to the court earlier this year that it erroneously collected on the loans of some 16,000 borrowers who attended Corinthian Colleges despite being ordered to stop doing so. U.S. Magistrate Judge Sallie Kim wrote that "the evidence shows only minimal efforts to comply with the preliminary injunction" she issued in May 2018 ordering the Education Department to halt its collection of the loans.
 
State Cuts to Higher Education Funding Shift the Burden to Students
A new report by the Center on Budget and Public Policy Priorities shows state disinvestment in higher education creates higher costs for students and their families, impacting low-income students and students of color. This report "paints a very bleak picture," said the report's lead author Michael Mitchell, senior director for equity and inclusion at the Center on Budget and Public Policy Priorities. "With lowered state funding, higher tuition and increasing burdens on students, it really starts to beg the question of what constitutes public higher education." The report argues that states cut back on support during the Great Recession have yet to fully reverse the cuts over a decade later. This deprives public colleges and universities of a sizable chunk of their funding. The report highlights that 54 percent of the funds used by public institutions for educational purposes came from state and local funding in 2018.
 
For Parents In College, Affordable Child Care Is A Game-Changer
According to a recent government report, about a 1 in 5 college students in the U.S. are raising kids -- that's more than 4 million people. Student parents often have higher GPAs than students without children, but they are also more likely to drop out, according to the Institute for Women's Policy Research. One of the biggest struggles these students face is getting child care, which has been declining on college campuses for many years, IWPR found. A new proposal by U.S. House Democrats would expand the only federal program that helps: Child Care Access Means Parents in School, or CCAMPIS. The proposed expansion would quadruple CCAMPIS funding, upping it to $200 million. It's part of a larger effort to overhaul current federal higher education law, which still has an uphill battle in Congress.
 
U.S. Travel Ban Disrupts The World's Largest Brain Science Meeting
When Sepiedeh Keshavarzi was getting her medical degree in Tehran, she often read research papers by prominent scientists in the U.S. "It was my dream at some point when I was much younger to do research in the States," she says. Not anymore. The U.S. denied Keshavarzi's request for a visa to attend this year's Society for Neuroscience meeting, which drew more than 25,000 brain scientists from around the world to Chicago this week. She was also denied a visa for last year's meeting in San Diego. The reason: Keshavarzi holds an Iranian passport, even though she hasn't lived in that country since 2007. Iran is one of seven countries included in President Trump's travel ban, implemented through an executive order. Visa problems have become common enough that the Society for Neuroscience created a program called Science Knows No Borders for this year's meeting. It's aimed at helping scientists like Keshavarzi present their research even though they can't attend.
 
Penn shuts down former ICE director's speech following protests, petition
The University of Pennsylvania's Perry World House was all set to host the former director of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency Wednesday to discuss detention and deportation policies under the Obama and Trump administrations. But the director, Thomas Homan, never got the chance to speak. Students who'd gathered outside the venue that evening calling for the abolishment of ICE and requesting that Homan "go home" prevented the event from taking place, according to the Daily Pennsylvanian. The noise from the students' chanting eventually led to the abrupt end of the event just 15 minutes after it was supposed to start, the newspaper reported. Organizers of the talk escorted Homan and two experts on immigration law and policy who were to be part of the discussion off stage and announced that the event was being canceled. The protesters allegedly cheered.
 
UConn satisfies no one with punishments of students who used racial slurs
A number of news organizations, including The New York Times and The Washington Post, published articles earlier this week describing a racist incident at the University of Connecticut. Two students have been arrested by campus police and criminally charged for violating a Connecticut hate crime statute. On Oct. 11, the two white male students were recorded walking through the university campus yelling the N-word. Though university officials have publicly condemned the incident and announced a search for a chief diversity officer, Vox reports that black UConn students are demanding more action by the administration against racism. Students and faculty have taken to the pages of the university's student paper, The Daily Campus, to criticize the administration's response as slow and underwhelming. The paper's editorial board reported that Thomas Katsouleas, UConn's president, waited nearly one week to send out a universitywide email condemning the incident.
 
Choose college for the best fit, not prestige
Colin Dunnigan, the director of college counseling at St. Andrew's Episcopal School in Ridgeland, writes for The Northside Sun: The college admission process came under national scrutiny last spring when Hollywood celebrities Felicity Huffman and Lori Loughlin and other wealthy parents were caught in a college admission scandal. The ordinary person has every right to be upset. ... So, what can a hard-working, honest family with a college-bound student but without the cash, the sense of entitlement or the unconscionable desire to game the college admission system take-away from this scandal? Families should beware of developing the same obsession with admission rates and name prestige that spurred these parents to commit crimes. Instead of worrying about admission to a "name" college, focus on the college that's the best fit for the student. The St. Andrew's class of 2019 included 90 graduates who enrolled in 51 different colleges, from large in-state universities like the University of Mississippi and Mississippi State University to Ivy League schools including Harvard and Yale, from international universities to the U.S. Army, Naval, and Air Force Academies.
 
Doing Good by Doing Well: U.S. Gains by Investing in Agricultural R&D
Stephanie Mercier, a senior policy and advocacy adviser for the Farm Journal Foundation, writes: On October 15, the Board on International Food and Agricultural Development (BIFAD) released a report entitled "How the United States Benefits from Agricultural and Food Security Investments in Developing Countries" at a pre-event at the World Food Prize in Des Moines. This report was commissioned by BIFAD in response to a request from USAID Administrator Mark Green a few months after he assumed office in August 2017. was privileged to be a co-author of this report, along with Dr. Joseph Glauber of the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) and Dr. David Kraybill, professor emeritus at Ohio State University. Staff at IFPRI and the Association for Public and Land Grant Universities (APLU) coordinated preparation of the final report. Based on econometric modeling of the U.S. economy, it is estimated that each dollar of agricultural exports generates an additional $1.87 in business activities, and every billion dollars in exports creates 8,619 full-time jobs.


SPORTS
 
'Just keep breathing': How Matt Zajac conquered the odds to walk on the field at Davis Wade Stadium
As a chorus of cowbells enveloped Davis Wade Stadium during last Saturday's game between Mississippi State and LSU, Sergeant Matt Zajac began to clap. Seated in his wheelchair at the foot of a maroon carpet on the 15-yard line, Zajac buried his head in his hands. Reality set in. The 59,482 fans in attendance were cheering for him. With the harmony of Lee Greenwood's "God Bless the USA" coupled with the deafening roar of MSU and LSU fans alike surrounding him, Zajac was set to exit the field. He paused. "I thought one of two things," Zajac told The Dispatch. "I can put my head back down and wheel myself along, or I can stand up, stand tall, keep my head up and walk back off the field. I chose the second option." Adjusting his sleek black prosthetic legs, the New Mexico native grasped the sides of his wheelchair and propelled his torso upward. With a slight misstep, he regained his balance and trotted off the field. The cheers grew louder. A double-amputee and retired army infantryman, Zajac lost his legs in a mine explosion during Operation Iraqi Freedom in 2007. But after roughly two dozen surgeries, years of recovery, and a cross-country move, his few minutes of recognition from a school and state he had no ties to meant far more than he could explain.
 
Mississippi State counting on freshmen in key stretch
Mississippi State has three straight losses and little margin for error in its postseason hopes as it prepares to play back-to-back road games with Texas A&M and Arkansas. The Bulldogs (3-4, 1-3 SEC) also are dealing with injuries that will force them to count on big performances from key freshman defenders as they continue their chase for a bowl bid. With five regular-season games left, Mississippi State needs three victories to reach bowl eligibility. Three of those games will be at home inside Davis Wade Stadium, but that includes a date with top-ranked Alabama in November. Moorhead wants his players to focus on the task at hand and not look too far down the road. "I think the practices have been good and they've been energized," Moorhead said. "With our approach, I don't want them thinking about a bowl game or six wins or whatever. I want them thinking about the next win and to keep focusing on the process and the consistency of our habits and approach."
 
Jimbo Fisher expects to face another physical Mississippi State defense
Texas A&M struggled to get anything going on the ground against Mississippi State in a 28-13 loss in Starkville last season. The Bulldogs limited the Aggies to just 61 yards rushing and sacked quarterback Kellen Mond three times in that contest. However, none of that surprised Jimbo Fisher, who was in his first year at Texas A&M's head coach. Fisher has been battling against the Bulldogs' physical defenses for years while working as an assistant at Auburn and LSU. "Mississippi State has always been that way and that goes back to 1993 when I was at Auburn and all the way through my seven years at LSU," Fisher said. "After that game, we have as many guys in the training room the next day. They always have big, physical players." While MSU lost a lot of talent to the NFL last year, Fisher is still expecting to face another imposing defense when the Bulldogs roll into Kyle Filed to face his Aggies on Saturday.
 
Three matchups to watch as Mississippi State takes on Texas A&M
It's been an eventful few weeks in Starkville. After a dismal loss in Knoxville to lowly Tennessee coupled with an encouraging effort against No. 2 LSU last weekend, Mississippi State has seemingly found some kind of inspiration. And while the on-field product looked markedly improved Saturday against the Tigers, rumors of coach Joe Moorhead's connection to the open head coaching job at Rutgers have left a metaphorical cloud over the program. That said, with five games remaining, the Bulldogs remain three wins shy of bowl eligibility -- needing to go 3-2 over the next six weeks. First up in that quest is a date with Texas A&M Saturday in College Station. One week after suffering a scare against Ole Miss, the Aggies have been streaky at-best this year. Not quite the offensive juggernaut they were expected to be in Jimbo Fisher's second year at the helm, Texas A&M enters the week seeking its third win in four weeks. Here are three matchups to watch in College Station Saturday.
 
Beating both SEC teams from Magnolia State in same season proving tough for Texas A&M
When it joined the Southeastern Conference, Texas A&M had aspirations of competing for football championships against the likes of SEC West-rivals Alabama, Auburn and LSU, but the Aggies learned you also have to take care of Ole Miss and Mississippi State. The Aggies did that at first, winning four straight games against the Magnolia State teams, but the Rebels and Bulldogs have combined to win seven of the last 11. A&M is coming off a 24-17 victory at Ole Miss and will try for its first Mississippi-school sweep since 2013 at 11 a.m. Saturday against Mississippi State (3-4, 1-3) at Kyle Field. A&M knows by now it won't be easy. The Bulldogs have beaten the Aggies (4-3, 2-2) three straight times. Former A&M head coach Jackie Sherrill, who also coached Mississippi State from 1991-2003, says he's never surprised when the Bulldogs are good.
 
Texas A&M athletic director says alcohol sales at football games have been 'successful'
Texas A&M athletic director Ross Bjork says it's too early to characterize alcohol sales at football games as a success. He has three more home games at Kyle Field to assess first, beginning with Saturday's contest against Mississippi State. Still, A&M is far enough along to draw some early impressions. "I would say until we get through the season, it's probably too early to make that final statement," Bjork said in a recent interview. "But based on how it's going, it's been really I think successful, knock on wood we don't have any issues the last three games. I think for the most part it's been handled very well by the consumer and our staff." Through four games, gross revenue according to concessionaire Levy Restaurants is $840,000 -- outside of premium areas, where A&M had already sold alcohol.
 
JaMya Mingo-Young shines in Mississippi State scrimmage
Mississippi State coach Vic Schaefer gave fans a glimpse at his team on Thursday evening during an intrasquad scrimmage. The Bulldogs played five quarters -- two 10-minute quarters against one another and three more against a male practice squad. "We had more fans tonight than we had during our first game in 2012 when we beat Houston," Schaefer said. "I really appreciate all our fans coming out tonight and supporting our girls. It was great to get out there and get some of the jitters tonight. We will go look at the film, and as we always say, the film doesn't lie." During the intrasquad portion of the scrimmage, the White team topped their Maroon counterparts 51-37 thanks to 18 points from JaMya Mingo-Young. The freshman guard shot 7 of 9 from the field and was a perfect 4 of 4 from the free throw line.
 
Mississippi State confident after ending long NCAA drought
After earning its first NCAA Tournament invitation in a decade one year ago, Mississippi State returns a veteran lineup as it chases a second straight bid. The Bulldogs finished 23-11 last season and posted a 10-8 mark in the SEC, good enough for a sixth-place showing in the league and a No. 5 seed in the NCAA Tournament. "I'm really excited about this year," Mississippi State coach Ben Howland said. "I think we have a very good nucleus returning from last year's NCAA Tournament team. Our players had a tremendous summer." Headlining that nucleus is sophomore forward Reggie Perry. The preseason all-SEC selection averaged 9.7 points and a team-best 7.2 rebounds a year ago. Perry originally declared for the NBA draft but opted to return to school for his sophomore season.
 
High school slow-pitch softball discontinued in Mississippi
Mississippi's high school activities association will no longer sanction slow pitch softball as participation dwindles across the state. The discontinuation was effective following the 2019 season's recent completion. The association said in a statement Thursday that its executive committee of school administrators made the decision as participation in the sport decreased to half of what it was six years ago. A majority of schools governed by the agency are still signed up to participate in fastpitch softball in the spring, which remains sanctioned. "Fast-pitch softball has continued to grow and has become one of our largest sports in terms of participation for our schools," MHSAA Executive Director Don Hinton said. Hinton added that slow pitch softball competed with expanding volleyball programs for participation.
 
Florida considers allowing college athletes to earn money
Following California's lead, Florida lawmakers are tackling NCAA rules that prohibit college athletes from reaping financial benefits from their prowess in the arena of big-money sports. With a bounty of marquee college sports programs, Florida could help student athletes flex their muscles as they take on the NCAA, which governs college athletics and has long resisted calls to allow student athletes to profit from their collegiate sports careers. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis gave the effort in Florida a political boost Thursday when he appeared with a bipartisan group of lawmakers and two former star football players from Florida State University. "When I look for good policy ideas, California is usually not the first place I look. But I think California is on the right track," said DeSantis, a Republican.
 
New Jersey may be next to allow college athletes to seek endorsements
College athletes in New Jersey would be allowed to seek endorsements and sponsors under a bill introduced by two New Jersey state senators Thursday. The NCAA currently bars student athletes from receiving compensation for the use of their names, images and likenesses, and the proposal in New Jersey is likely to fuel national debate over whether compensation distracts from education or creates an unfair advantage when it comes to college athletics. California recently became the first state to allow athletes to profit off endorsements, and several other states are considering allowing the same. "A lot of people, including many at the NCAA, earn large amounts of money off of the blood, sweat and tears of talented young New Jerseyans in this state and, frankly, across the country," one of the bill sponsors, Sen. Joe Lagana, D-Bergen, said. Lagana played football for two years at Fordham University in New York, where he studied history.
 
LSU booster gets 33 months in prison for embezzlement
A Louisiana man who pleaded guilty to embezzling more than $500,000 from a hospital foundation and giving some of the stolen money to the parents of two former LSU football players was sentenced to federal prison Thursday. U.S. District Court Judge John W. deGravelles sentenced John Paul Funes, the former president and CEO of Our Lady of the Lake Foundation in Baton Rouge, to 33 months in federal prison. Funes pleaded guilty to felony wire fraud and money laundering on June 4. He faced up to 20 years in prison for each of the two charges against him. Funes also paid $796,000 in restitution. In a previous statement, LSU senior associate athletics director Robert Munson said LSU "was made aware of specific allegations by OLOL officials in late 2018 and made the information immediately available to the NCAA. As this is an ongoing inquiry, LSU will have no further comment."
 
U. of Missouri athletics apologizes for controversial tweet
The Missouri athletics department apologized for a tweet posted Wednesday that received backlash for content some considered racially insensitive. The original post at 4:33 p.m. showed a graphic with four photos under the words "I am," displaying statements of status for a Missouri student-athlete and athletic department official who are black and career aspirations for two white MU student-athletes. The tweet appears to be part of an NCAA inclusion campaign, which kicked off Tuesday, according to MU athletics. "Earlier we made a mistake when we posted a graphic about our student athletes," MU athletics tweeted at 10:45 p.m. Wednesday. "We apologize. Our intent was to provide personal information about our students, but we failed." The university has made diversity and inclusion a significant focus of campus and system actions since protests in 2015 over racial issues on the Columbia campus.
 
South Carolina AD Ray Tanner wants 'more public sharing of info' on SEC officiating
South Carolina athletics director Ray Tanner offered his first extensive public comments on the controversial officiating from this past weekend's game between the Gamecocks and Florida. Speaking during his monthly radio interview on 107.5 FM's The Halftime Show, Tanner said the past week has been "very emotional" for him, adding that it was "very, very frustrating" during the game Saturday, a 38-27 USC loss that featured several questionable non-calls that led to Florida scoring plays. Tanner's comments came within an hour of the Southeastern Conference releasing a statement from commissioner Greg Sankey. In that statement, Sankey did not address the fallout from the USC-UF game or the Tennessee-Alabama contest, both of which drew significant scrutiny for the officiating. Tanner added that he has spoken with commissioner Sankey and head of officiating Steve Shaw multiple times since Saturday, just as coach Muschamp, who criticized the manner in which an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty was assessed to him, said he has.
 
Some Auburn RV tailgaters say gamedays are changing for the worse on the Plains
It's been in with the new at Auburn University over the last few semesters, with facilities such as the Nursing Building and Gogue Performing Arts Center making their mark on the south end of campus. It's also been out with the old as RV tailgaters, some of AU's most devoted fans, witness the erasure of one of their favorite pastimes. Construction on Lem Morrison Drive, South Donahue Drive and the Hayfield area, as well as a policy change regarding when some fans can park their RVs, is causing anger among long-time tailgating families. "For many years, we've been able to come on in Thursdays [before gameday], and now they've pushed us to Fridays," said Joe McElvy, a 1986 Auburn graduate from Lanett, Alabama, and tailgater for over 30 years. "Not only have they pushed us out away from the campus, they've also decreased our time here at Auburn." The change came after the addition of 300 new parking spaces in the Hayfield area and 300 more north of the Gogue Performing Arts Center, according to a statement provided by Parking Services to The Plainsman.
 
Florida's Dan Mullen 'stokes the fires' of Georgia rivalry
Some Georgia fans have been outraged by the gigging and prodding they feel their Bulldogs have received from Florida coach Dan Mullen. And it makes no sense to them, considering the Bulldogs have won the last two games in the storied old rivalry, and the decided majority of them all time (52-43-2). Nevertheless, the Gators' second-year coach has stood behind his curtain down in Gainesville, Fla., pulling levers on all kinds of pesky little trolling acts against Georgia. That's how they see it, at least. Mullen took his first jab at the Bulldogs shortly after he arrived at Florida from Mississippi State in 2018. That was, of course, on the heels of Georgia's 2017 SEC Championship and appearance in the National Championship Game. "Listen, winning one SEC Championship Game doesn't make you a dominant program, you know what I'm saying?" Mullen said while speaking to some Florida donors. "In two of the last three years, we've been to the SEC Championship Game. So even a blind squirrel finds a nut every once in a while."
 
Memphis host College GameDay? Chris Fowler teases trip after SMU win
Following SMU's win over Houston Thursday night, Chris Fowler posted a video on his Instagram story saying it could be "a very significant result for my near future and the travel plans of me, Kirk Herbstreit and Maria Taylor. Could be." At the same time, the text "Ponies @MemphisFootball Next Staturday" appears on the video. The AAC announced earlier this week the SMU game will kick off at either 2:30 p.m. or 6:30 p.m. The time and network will be finalized Saturday after the conclusion of Memphis' game at Tulsa (6 p.m., CBS SN). As for other "College GameDay" candidates, No. 9 Georgia vs. No. 8 Florida in Jacksonville is the only game next weekend currently featuring two opponents ranked in the Top 25. Other games to be considered could be Utah at Washington or Oregon at USC. Yet for all the speculation, both Memphis and SMU have to take care of business this week. Memphis coach Mike Norvell refused to look ahead as has been his approach all season.
 
President Trump to attend World Series Game 5 in Washington, if it's needed
President Donald Trump said Thursday he plans to attend Game 5 of the World Series on Sunday night if the Houston Astros can extend the Major League Baseball finale against the Washington Nationals. But the former United States Football League team owner and noted sports fan expressed doubts about throwing out the first pitch at Nationals Park. "I don't know, they got to dress me up in a lot of heavy armor -- I'll look too heavy," he said, referring to the U.S. Secret Service. "I don't like that." Washington leads the best-of-seven series 2-0. His comments came during a ceremony Thursday to award championship professional motor racing owner Roger Penske the Medal of Freedom.



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