| Wednesday, February 28, 2024 |
| Mississippi State featured in Forbes' list of 'America's Best Large Employers' | |
 | Mississippi State is leading the SEC...in being a large employer. This week, the university announced the off-the-field news that it was the only Southeastern Conference school featured in Forbes' Top 50 list of "America's Best Large Employers." Coming in at No. 41, Mississippi State joined Notre Dame (No. 20) and Purdue (No. 47) as the only universities to crack the initial list. In the expanded Top 100 list, the University of Tennessee landed at No. 79 and the University of Kentucky at No. 97. The annual list is a compilation of surveys sent to American organizations and companies. Respondents were asked to rate their employer and if they would recommend it to job seekers. Mississippi State joined a long list of big-name companies and organizations such as Delta Air Lines, St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital, Progressive, and NASA. "Our faculty and staff's tremendous commitment to excellence in research, teaching, and service makes our campus a rewarding and welcoming environment -- a place to call home," MSU President Mark Keenum said. "We continue each day to look for new ways to grow and nurture relationships here on campus that further enhance our close-knit, vibrant university community." |
| 'We came back losers, but we really came back winners' | |
 | It has been 61 years since Mississippi State's men's basketball team defied an unwritten rule and snuck out of the state to play against a racially integrated Loyola-Chicago team in the 1963 NCAA Tournament, and 11 years since Robbie Coblentz directed and co-wrote a short documentary to commemorate the occasion. But on Monday night at the Starkville Public Library, the so-called Game of Change took center stage as Coblentz and library director Phillip Carter helped bring the historic event to a crowd of at least 50 community members. Following a showing of Coblentz's documentary, "One Night in March," the director helped moderate a panel discussion featuring Jackie Wofford, a member of the 1962-63 Bulldogs; Ann Carr, the athletic department's senior woman administrator and a former women's basketball player at MSU; and Richard Williams, the Bulldogs' men's basketball coach from 1986 through 1998 who led MSU to the 1996 Final Four. "It was an untold story," Coblentz said about making the film. "There weren't very many positive stories about Mississippi at that time. But this is one of those stories that's pretty amazing, and so I just wanted to tell it from the Mississippi standpoint. So many times, that team was portrayed as those poor, ignorant boys who didn't know what they were doing. There was a lot of courage that I don't think had been talked about very much." |
| Education: Emma Schultz selected as fellow of regional fish and wildlife organization | |
| Emma Schultz of Starkville was named a Minorities in Natural Resources Conservation Fellow during the 77th annual Southeastern Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies conference. Schultz is a doctoral student studying forest resources in Mississippi State University's College of Forest Resources. To qualify for the fellowship, applicants must be current undergraduate students, graduates within the past 12 months or enrolled in a post-graduate program in select Southeastern states. Applicants also must have a career interest in conservation and natural resources and minimum 2.5 GPA and be at least 18 years old. The MINRC accepts approximately 25 fellows per year, and the application process is highly competitive. Fellows participate in discussions and gain information on selected topics relevant to seeking employment in natural resources field. Andy Kouba, professor and head of MSU's Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Aquaculture, said the CFR aims to increase diversity in the field of natural resources and promote opportunities including the MINRC fellowship. |
| Education: Jacket teachers receive TVA STEM grant awards to enhance classroom technology projects | |
| Starkville-Oktibbeha Consolidated School District teachers received two TVA STEM Classroom Grants, sponsored by the Tennessee Valley Authority in partnership with Bicentennial Volunteers Incorporated. The grant awards were presented to teachers at Greensboro Center in February in conjunction with the district's community Partner in Excellence, Starkville Utilities. Each grant provides $5,000 to fund STEM learning projects in classrooms and schools in the TVA service area. The two grants received by SOCSD were among 21 given to schools in Mississippi. Tara Agnew and Tina Cockrell, teachers in the Engineering pathway at Millsaps Career and Technology Center at Starkville High School, received a $5,000 grant to fund projects designed to spur girls to become more involved in STEM career pathways through the Technology Student Association at SHS. In addition to the Millsaps grant, Sara Walker, a teacher at Henderson Ward Stewart Elementary received a $5,000 grant to fund the purchase of Virtual Reality goggles and the creation of lesson plans and curriculum to incorporate the state-of-the-art technology into opportunities at the HWS Imagination Station. In collaboration with Mississippi State University staff, she plans to implement the use of the goggles along with lessons designed to spark student interests in careers and provide experiences that give a feel for what it's like in the real world. |
| Gun theft suspect returned to Oktibbeha County | |
 | A man accused of stealing nearly four-dozen guns from a shed last November has been arrested and returned to Oktibbeha County. Officials with the U.S. Marshals Service arrested Daniel Jones in Greenville on Feb. 13. He has since been transported to the Oktibbeha County Jail where his is charged with five counts of grand larceny, trafficking firearms, four counts of burglary of a shed and possession of a firearm by a felon. He is being held in lieu of a $70,000 bond. Jones is accused of taking 45 firearms in November 2023 from a property on the Sturgis-Maben Road in west Oktibbeha County. So far, only three of the firearms have been recovered. Those were found in the possession of others. Multiple local and state law enforcement agencies assisted in the investigation and arrest of Jones. |
| Drought impacts timber farmers in South Mississippi | |
| State Foresters are starting to get a better understanding of how the timber industry will be impacted after months of drought conditions. Mississippi saw drought conditions for over six months last year. Mississippi's third largest commodity took a hit after months of exceptional drought conditions -- specifically in the southern part of the state. "Every time I go home to my farm, it's worse than the week before," said Mike McCormick, a timber farmer and president of Mississippi Farm Bureau. One of the first threats to the industry was pine beetles. "These bugs typically target stressed trees. And so you know, we had a pretty stressful event happened this past fall with the drought. There just wasn't a lot of moisture in the ground. So, therefore, there wasn't a lot for the trees to really take up, and that just put a lot of stress on the trees," Garron Hicks, Assistant Forest Management Chief with the Mississippi Forestry Commission, said. The two other factors were overall arid conditions and wildfires. Despite drought conditions improving, some farmers have lost a significant amount of their investments. "I think you're gonna see a lot of timber farmers that were using timber as a means of a retirement account or a savings account get hit really hard with this drought," McCormick explained. |
| U.S. Army Corps of Engineers public input meeting draws mixed reaction from attendees | |
 | The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers held a public input meeting Tuesday for its Lower Mississippi River Comprehensive Management Study. It is a massive, five-year project with $25 million in federal funds backing it. According to the Corps, the goal is to re-examine and re-envision all aspects of operations and management of the lower Mississippi River. Even though the purpose of the meeting was to get questions from people who are directly impacted by the Mississippi River, many of those in attendance were disappointed that they did not get their questions answered. "This meeting doesn't give me much confidence that the Corps is ready to focus on what are the ways to avoid harming the Mississippi Sound. You can study this to death, but that doesn't mean that you're going to take action," said Gerald Blessey, the manager of the Mississippi Sound Coalition. "The assistant director of the Army Corps of Engineers committed to me several months ago that they would include the Mississippi Sound in this study," said Rep. Mike Ezell, (R) Mississippi. "That's very important. So we're going to hold him to it, and we're going to protect the Mississippi Sound, and we're going to keep fighting the good fight." "We cannot afford to lose our Sound," added Harrison County District Three Supervisor Marlin Ladner. "Economic, cultural, our tourism -- everything is tied into the Mississippi Sound. If we lose that Sound, we lose our quality of life. We have no choice but to get into this fight and try to win it and try to get the corps to understand our position and give us a seat at the table and listen to us and hopefully get a solution to it that is a win-win to everybody." |
| Mississippi's Republican-led House will consider Medicaid expansion for the first time | |
 | Mississippi is one step closer to what would be a landmark shift in health care policy, with the Republican-led House preparing to debate expansion of Medicaid benefits to hundreds of thousands more residents in one of the poorest states in the U.S. The House Medicaid Committee on Tuesday advanced the bill, which would increase eligibility for Medicaid, a health insurance program that covers low-income people. Those making up to 138% of the federal poverty level, or $20,120 annually for a single person, would be eligible under the proposal. The measure could extend benefits to about 250,000 people. "Our health metrics will improve, we'll see greater access to care, and hopefully start to see a healthier Mississippi where our folks are getting treatment earlier rather than later," said Republican Missy McGee, the committee chairwoman. Mississippi has the highest rate of preventable deaths in the U.S. Its top health official has said it ranks at the bottom of virtually every health care indicator and at the top of every disparity. Hospitals are struggling to remain open. The state also has one of the nation's lowest labor force participation rates. Expansion proponents have said the policy could help ameliorate these conditions. Legislative Democrats on the committee have a competing plan that would go further, but they all voted for the Republican-sponsored plan Tuesday. House members have until March 14 to pass the bill. |
| Mississippi House moves forward with Medicaid expansion | |
 | The Mississippi House of Representatives Medicaid Committee has pushed forward a bill to federally expand Medicaid to potentially more than 210,000 Mississippians for the first time. House Bill 1725, which was sponsored by first-year House Speaker Jason White, R-West, took less than 15 minutes to discuss with almost no contention from committee members Tuesday afternoon at the Mississippi State Capitol. "The priority of this committee for this session and the speaker of the house has been to find health care options and insurance for our low work, low income workers in Mississippi," House Medicaid Committee Chair Missy McGee, R-Hattiesburg, said. "We know that we are the No. 1 state in preventable deaths. Mississippi has the shortest life expectancy of any state in our country. We are No. 1 in infant maternal and fetal mortality, and so we know that we've got to do better on giving our Mississippians access to care." If passed by both legislative chambers, the bill would call on the Mississippi Division of Medicaid to enter into negotiations with the federal government to obtain a waiver to expand Medicaid for only working poor who make no more than 138% of the federal poverty line, which is about $28,000 per year for one person. Those who would be eligible are people who work 20 hours per week or are full-time students, to name a few. |
| Mississippi House Prepared to Vote on Medicaid Expansion | |
| Mississippi Speaker Jason White said pointedly in an interview on Tuesday there is a Medicaid coverage gap and an answer must be provided addressing it. "Whether anybody likes it or not, there is a coverage gap of folks who are working and make too much money to qualify for any sort of benefits, but don't make enough money to pay for private insurance or their employers don't provide it," White said in an exclusive interview with Magnolia Tribune prior to his bill, HB 1725, being considered by members. Speaker White provided insight into the legislation to extend Medicaid eligibility to what he calls "Mississippi's working poor. White points out that his bill includes direction to the Division of Medicaid to negotiate with the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to obtain approval for a work requirement that would limit participation to those actively employed or enrolled full-time in an education program. He did not shy away from the fact that even if the work requirement is not approved by CMS, Mediciad would be directed to expand the rolls to the new eligibility group with a deadline of September of this year to obtain the work waiver. Medicaid Director Drew Snyder told Magnolia Tribune he had questions regarding the funding mechanism for the state share and its potential impact on the state's current Medicaid population. He also indicated that waiver requests can be subject to years long negotiations. |
| Mississippi Medicaid expansion bill moves forward in GOP-led House over governor's opposition | |
| The state's Republican-led House is expected to vote on Mississippi Medicaid expansion as soon as Wednesday after a committee unanimously approved it Tuesday. House Bill 1725, authored by Republican House Speaker Jason White and Medicaid Chairwoman Missy McGee, R-Hattiesburg, has bipartisan support in the House, even as the state's Republican governor continues to oppose the policy. The morning after Gov. Tate Reeves didn't mention health care or Medicaid expansion once during his State of the State address, he posted on Twitter "Count me amongst those 'extreme MAGA Republicans' who think Government should not run health care." During Tuesday's meeting, McGee explained to committee members that Mississippi during the first two years of expansion would receive an extra $600 million in federal money for Medicaid. She said that amount would cover the state's share of expansion for four years. After that, under the House plan, hospitals and managed care organizations would pay more taxes to cover the state's 10% match, with federal funds covering 90% of expansion costs. "You could almost look at it like the federal government is giving us a free pilot program, to run for four years," McGee said during the committee meeting. McGee said hospitals and MCOs would start paying the increased tax in the first year and the state could bank that money, perhaps in a health fund. |
| Senate bill to close most of Parchman hits snag over cost, logistics | |
| A proposal to close most of Mississippi's oldest and most infamous prison faced its first hurdle Tuesday afternoon in a state Senate committee where a majority of members decided to hold off voting on the bill until they receive better cost estimates. The Senate Corrections Committee discussed Senate Bill 2353, which proposes a four-year process to phase down the use of the Mississippi State Penitentiary at Parchman by moving incarcerated people, staff and programs to other prisons in the state. Committee chair and bill author Juan Barnett said a phasedown would be a better use of taxpayer money and a chance to reimagine the state's approach to incarceration. "Parchman prison, a name that resonates with both notoriety and despair, has stood for decades as a symbol of systematic failures within our criminal justice system," said Barnett, a Democrat from Heidelberg, before discussion began. "We cannot allow a facility to operate under conditions that are antithetical to the principles of fairness." Ted Booth, executive director of the Legislature's Performance Evaluation and Expenditure Review Committee, said the bill is in line with PEER's recommendation to reduce operations at Parchman, which would help maintain a secure environment. |
| Two top leaders in US House share deep Christian faith. Yet there's vast gap in how they wield it | |
| House Speaker Mike Johnson and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries stood together at the annual National Prayer Breakfast -- an opportunity, in the words of one introductory speaker, to "put our political differences aside." Such differences are vast between Johnson, a staunchly conservative Republican, and Jeffries, a hero to liberal Democrats. But at the prayer breakfast earlier this month, they collegially took turns reading Scripture -- evoking how their shared Christianity confronts evil. It was a fleeting moment of unity for the two Baptist leaders who work side-by-side in the House but are miles apart politically and theologically. Jeffries, whose faith is rooted in the Black social gospel, has not been shy -- just not as outspoken as Johnson regarding the role faith plays in his political duties. Jeffries spoke in depth with The Associated Press about his religious upbringing, which was centered at Cornerstone Baptist Church in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. He declined several invitations to comment on present-day dynamics in the House, including the lingering cross-party tensions brought on by Donald Trump's presidency and his efforts to contest the 2020 election. However, Jeffries' religious commitment while in office has been noticed by his political peers. Johnson, 52, is a Southern Baptist --- one of the white conservative evangelicals who are the majority in America's largest Protestant denomination. While celebrated by many on the Christian right, Johnson's expressions of faith and past legal advocacy have faced extensive scrutiny, including his positions against abortion and LGBTQ+ rights. |
| Biden, leaders optimistic about avoiding shutdown, press Johnson on Ukraine | |
 | Congressional leaders emerged from the White House on Tuesday optimistic about avoiding a partial shutdown of several departments and agencies -- after a meeting with President Joe Biden that also focused on the importance of aid to Ukraine. "The speaker said unequivocally he wants to avoid a government shutdown," Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y., told reporters outside the West Wing, adding he did not believe differences on domestic spending were insurmountable. When he got back to the Capitol, Schumer told reporters that he made clear to Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., that avoiding a shutdown would require another continuing resolution. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., also told reporters at the Capitol that leaders seemed to agree at the White House on the need to avert a shutdown. Leaders also discussed the Senate-passed national security supplemental spending bill that would provide assistance to Ukraine, Israel and Indo-Pacific allies like Taiwan. That measure got bipartisan Senate support but has stalled in the House under Johnson. Schumer said that he, McConnell, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., and Vice President Kamala Harris all pressed Johnson to act. Johnson said that he met separately with the president in the Oval Office after the larger meeting. He emerged similarly optimistic about reaching a path forward on government funding. The speaker said that he focused on border security, both in the larger group and one-on-one. |
| Michigan Wins Carry Warning Signs for Biden and Trump | |
 | Both President Biden and former President Donald Trump drew sizable protest votes as they secured victories in Michigan's primaries Tuesday. Now comes the crucial question in the battleground state: What will those voters do in November? Although Biden faced minimal opposition in the primary, an effort to persuade voters to cast ballots as "uncommitted" garnered tens of thousands of votes as Michiganders went to the polls. The vote marked one of the more high-profile protests to date over the president's handling of the Israel-Hamas war and humanitarian crisis in Gaza. For the Trump team, Michigan offered a chance to see if the former president could improve on his support among voters with a four-year degree, a notable weak spot in early 2024 Republican primary contests. Some of those problems for Trump appeared again on Tuesday night as his opponent, Nikki Haley, captured more than 25% of the vote just days after getting close to 40% in her home state of South Carolina. A coalition of pro-Palestinian groups had set a modest target of 10,000 uncommitted votes -- Trump's margin of victory in Michigan in 2016 -- to send a message that voter frustration over Biden's backing of Israel's military campaign could cost him in November. Biden carried Michigan by 154,000 votes in 2020, but organizers behind the uncommitted effort said Trump's margin demonstrated how even a smaller fraction of votes could make a difference in a close election. "Michigan is going to be a marginal state this fall," said David Axelrod, a former senior adviser to Obama. "Clearly, if the voters who registered their protest today walk away this fall, it could be decisive. But this was a cost-free vote. In the fall, it will be a choice of much greater consequence." |
| About as many abortions are happening in the US monthly as before Roe was overturned, report finds | |
| The number of abortions performed each month is about the same as before the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade and the nationwide right to abortion more than a year and a half ago, a new report finds. The latest edition of the #WeCount report conducted for the Society of Family Planning, a nonprofit organization that promotes research on abortion and contraception, finds that between 81,150 and 88,620 abortions took place each month from July through September of last year, the most recent period for which survey results are available. Those numbers are just slightly lower than the monthly average of about 86,800 from April through June 2022, before Roe and just after was overturned. But abortion data is seasonal, and the same survey found more abortions across the U.S. in the spring months of 2023 than it did in the period the year before leading up to the court's decision. The report also finds that prescriptions of abortion pills by telemedicine have become common, accounting for about one in every six abortions in the most recent three months of survey results. "Even when a state bans abortion, people continue to need and seek abortion care," Alison Norris, a professor at Ohio State University's College of Public Health and one of the co-chairs of the study, said in a statement. "We can't let the overall consistent number of abortions nationally obscure the incredible unmet need and disastrous impact of abortion bans on people who already have the least access." |
| Mississippi senator wants to close 3 state universities by 2028 | |
 | A bill has been introduced into the Mississippi Senate that would call for the closure of three state-funded universities by June 30, 2028. The bill, which was filed by Sen. John Polk, R-Hattiesburg, last week, did not specify which of the state's eight universities to close. The bill designates the Institutions of Higher Learning's Board of Trustees to choose three universities to close in 2028. The board would have to report to its decision to lawmakers by June 30, 2025. The bill would also designate IHL to use factors such as enrollment data, degrees offered, economic impact, services offered, and any research that schools conduct serving the state to determine which schools would close. As of the start of the 2023 fall semester that began August, the were more than 77,000 students enrolled in the state's nine public universities, according to an IHL enrollment report. Of them, the least three attended according to IHL data from the fall are Delta State University with 2,716, the Mississippi University for Women, which has 2,227 students and Mississippi Valley State University, which reported 2,196. IHL Spokesperson John Sewell told the Clarion Ledger the Board of Trustees is aware of the bill and is following it closely, but it does not have an official comment at this time. |
| 3 of Mississippi's 8 public universities could close under Senate bill | |
| Three of Mississippi's eight public universities could close soon under a bill proposed by one state senator who says funding that many institutions is too costly, with what he calls a downward spiral in enrollment. "We do not have enough appropriation right now to support eight universities, and with a cliff, or downward spiral in enrollment, it will even be worse," said Republican John Polk, the author of Senate Bill 2726. The "downward spiral" is fueled by a drop in the state's high school graduation rate, which in turn leads to lower enrollment at the state's public universities. "The enrollment cliff presents challenges, not just in Mississippi, but across the country," said John Sewell, with the Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning. "All of our public universities are focused on recruiting and retaining the best and brightest students from around the state and beyond." Polk's bill says factors to be considered in the decision to close a university include enrollment data, degree conferred and economic impact. "So, this would be a way to ensure that IHL does what it needs to do for Mississippi," said Polk, a graduate of the University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg. |
| Mississippi Bill Would Mandate 3 College Closures | |
 | A new bill in the Mississippi Legislature aims to close three state universities. The legislation -- Senate Bill 2726 -- doesn't specify the three, deferring that decision to the Institutions of Higher Learning, which oversees the state's eight public universities. If the bill passes, IHL will have until June 30, 2025, to select them, with closure mandated by 2028. Factors to be considered in the closure decisions include enrollment and degree attainment data; federal aid, including scholarship and research grants; tuition rates and scholarship endowments; degree offerings; economic impact on the local community, region and state; and the ways in which an institution serves the state, including by providing medical services and research. Three historically Black universities -- Alcorn State, Jackson State, and Mississippi Valley State -- are among the institutions that IHL would consider for closure under the pending legislation. SB 2726, introduced earlier this month, is currently before the Senate's Universities and Colleges committee. If it advances from that committee, it will be considered for passage. The legislation comes at a challenging time in the higher education landscape. Rising operating costs and shrinking enrollments -- which are projected to worsen -- have driven numerous institutions to close. |
| Can Mississippi Continue to Support Eight Public Universities? | |
| A new bill introduced in the Mississippi Senate may force the Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning to pick three institutions under its umbrella for closure should SB 2726 become law. State Senator John Polk (R), now in his fourth term in the Senate, believes Mississippi having eight public universities no longer makes sense. "We have too many universities trying to educate too few people," Senator Polk, the bill's author, told Magnolia Tribune. "So, all of them have a mission but those missions could be moved to the other remaining universities if they close three, if the bill passes." Polk said the cost savings to the state would be significant. "It would also create, if you took at the appropriations of the three least appropriated universities, you would still save over $50 to $80 million a year that you could give to the other five that's left to spread over their needs," Polk added. The Lamar County lawmaker points to an enrollment cliff at some of the universities, while also citing that there are fewer high school students and fewer graduates across the state overall. "That does not continue to make sense to continue to have eight universities," said Senator Polk. "I don't think this needs to be a political situation. They have the data, they know what the mission of the universities are. They know what they plan for the future of our programs, and they just seem to be the best ones to make the decision," Senator Polk explained as to why the bill leaves it up to the IHL Board to decide. |
| HB 994 in consideration to expand financial aid | |
 | Another bill to keep an eye on this legislative session is a bill that would increase financial aid for college students. The legislature is looking at HB 994, which is designed to increase financial aid award amounts to a maximum of $2,000 per year. It expands eligibility to about 37,000 more students under the Mississippi Resident Tuition Assistance Program (MTAG). State Representative Donnie Scoggin is the one trying to get the bill passed and said the House Universities and College Committee already passed the bill. It is now headed to the House Appropriations to see if they have the funds for the MTAG expansion. "They will have to fill out the FAFSA form and once that's filled out, based on whatever the student's income level is or their parent's income level, then they will receive up to $1500 or a lower amount goes down to $1,000 and then $750," said Scoggin. |
| Local officials plead for organized opposition to MSMS bill | |
| Michael Watson may not have a vote in the legislature, but a local official nonetheless took the Mississippi Secretary of State's Tuesday visit to the Rotary Club of Columbus as an opportunity to voice concern over Senate Bill 2715. The bill proposes moving the Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science to Mississippi State University in Starkville by 2026-2027. The residential high school for gifted juniors and seniors was established at Mississippi University for Women in 1988. Before Watson's Tuesday speech at Lion Hills Center encouraged more citizen engagement with the political process, Trip Hairston, a Rotarian and president for the Lowndes County Board of Supervisors, pleaded with club members to contact legislators and oppose relocating MSMS. Hairston joins a growing din of expected local opposition to the bill, which has been referred to the Senate Education and Senate Appropriations Committees. All four members of the Columbus' local legislative delegation -- Reps. Andy Boyd, Kabir Karriem and Dana McLean, as well as Sen. Chuck Younger -- all told The Dispatch they oppose the school's move to MSU. Mayor Keith Gaskin, speaking to a group Monday during a book talk event at City Hall, said he was disappointed and discouraged that District 43 Sen. Dennis DeBar, R-Leakesville, would consider proposing the bill. DeBar chairs the Education Committee. Mayor Keith Gaskin, speaking to a group Monday during a book talk event at City Hall, said he was disappointed and discouraged that District 43 Sen. Dennis DeBar, R-Leakesville, would consider proposing the bill. DeBar chairs the Education Committee. |
| The W holds first ever Culinary Discovery Day | |
 | The W hosted their first Culinary Discovery Day on Tuesday. The event brought more than 100 aspiring chefs from eight high schools from across the state. Students toured the new Culinary Institute. The new facility features multiple commercial-grade kitchens, a full-sized kitchen dedicated solely to baking, a chocolate room, and a demonstration kitchen with filming and streaming capabilities. The W will host another Culinary Discovery Day on March 26. The W's culinary program was founded in 1996 and remains the state's only Bachelor of Science degree program in culinary. |
| A half-century later, students at the U. of Mississippi reckon with the past | |
 | Many a Black history lesson includes the story of James Meredith, the man who integrated the University of Mississippi in 1962. But that wasn't the end of efforts to dismantle entrenched segregation on the college campus most associated with the Old South. Even the school's moniker -- Ole Miss -- derives from the term enslaved people once used for the mistress of the plantation. By 1970, about 200 Black students had enrolled at the state's flagship university. At the time, school pride meant waving a Confederate battle flag. "The climate was like the desert," says Linnie Liggins Willis, who started at Ole Miss in 1967. She describes a sense of isolation for Black students. "We would associate and cling to each other because we didn't have the opportunity to really interact with the other students on campus," Willis says. "We just kind of formed our own little community." Her classmate, Kenneth Mayfield says the message was clear that Black students were considered second-class citizens. He remembers they would be taunted when walking by the athletic dorm. Mayfield's best friend, Donald Cole, remembers sitting alone on his first day of chemistry class because white students refused to take the seats near him. A disheartening experience for students who thought they had a shot at an education here after James Meredith had broken the color barrier eight years before. Yet they encountered only token integration. So they formed a Black Student Union in protest. |
| Ole Miss space law professor calls Russia's nuclear activity 'very concerning' | |
| Russia aims to use nuclear technology in space, but whether that technology is a weapon or a source of energy will determine if the nation violates an international treaty, says Michelle Hanlon, a University of Mississippi law professor. Recent intelligence indicates Russia is interested in putting nuclear weapons in space, a move that would violate an international treaty, White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby announced last week. The Outer Space Treaty of 1967 prohibits putting nuclear weapons in orbit but does not prohibit the use of nuclear energy to power satellites, said Hanlon, executive director of the Center for Air and Space Law in the School of Law and co-founder and CEO of For All Moonkind. "It's very difficult to talk about this because we don't really know anything yet," she said. "We know Russia is developing this capability, but it's unclear whether it's to use nuclear warheads to damage or destroy satellites or for a satellite that is nuclear-powered. This is not the end of the world as we know it, but this is a very, very concerning development in international diplomacy and international relations." Although it is unclear exactly why Russia is developing this technology, the move still merits caution, Hanlon said. Were Russia to use a nuclear weapon to destroy satellites in space, the consequences could be massive. |
| Alabama bill would allow some undocumented students to attend public colleges | |
 | A House bill would allow some undocumented students to attend public higher education institutions in the state. HB 210, sponsored by Rep. Reed Ingram, R-Pike Road, would allow undocumented students who have attended an Alabama high school for at least three years and earned a diploma, GED or other equivalent to attend a public postsecondary institution. The student must also have applied for legal status. Ingram said in a phone interview on Friday that the bill came from a task force focused on workforce development and participation that he chairs. Alabama's workforce participation rate has trailed the nation's since at least 1976. "We have a lot of kids that are trying to do the right thing, coming in here with their parents, and have applied for legal status, going through our schools, we've paid K through 12, as governmental bodies, and now they want to go to college and pay for it themselves," he said, "We're telling them they can't in this state." Ingram said undocumented students who attended high school in Alabama are going out of state for college. "If they've gone through the effort of applying for legal status, and completed high school and they want to better themselves to make them a better citizen, then we want to allow them to do that," he said. |
| UGA announces $7.3 million in campus security enhancements in wake of Laken Riley's death | |
 | The University of Georgia announced Tuesday the addition of $7.3 million in new campus safety measures that come in the wake of the violent slaying of Athens nursing student Laken Riley. The 22-year-old on Thursday was running on a trail at UGA's intramural fields off College Station Road when police said she was attacked and killed by Jose Antonio Ibarra, 26, an undocumented Venezuelan immigrant living in Athens. Ibarra is in jail, charged with the murder Riley, a former UGA student from Woodstock, Georgia, who transferred last year into the nursing program of Augusta University's College of Nursing and matriculated at their Athens campus. UGA President Jere Morehead announced the new measures that came after a meeting with UGA Police Chief Jeff Clark and other campus safety officials. "This morning I met with campus law enforcement officials to learn their recommendations for further enhancements. Every one of their recommendations was approved," Morehead said in a statement released on Tuesday. The measures include a 20% increase in the police department's budget to recruit and retain officers through more competitive pay. More security cameras and additional lighting are included in the package along with license plate readers and the installation of a blue light call system. The RideSmart program, which provides a 50% discount on Lyft rides for UGA students, will be extended to the hours of 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. each day, according to the release. |
| Award-winning sepsis detection algorithm could have massive medical implications | |
| An award-winning sepsis detection algorithm developed by researchers at the University of Tennessee could have a substantial impact on the identification and diagnosis of sepsis. Sepsis is a condition typically caused by an infection, like pneumonia or a UTI. When bacteria from said infection spread into the bloodstream, it causes the body to go into "overdrive." From this overdrive come issues like low blood pressure or a shutdown of vital organs. Sepsis is known for being particularly fast-acting and life-threatening. "It's horrific, and it needs to be detected early so that we can intervene with antibiotics and fluids and mitigate the problem," said Anahita Khojandi, an associate professor in the Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering at UT. Sepsis is traditionally detected through a series of tests, like a complete blood test, which measures white and red blood cell count, as well as hemoglobin. However, due to the volatile and time-sensitive nature of sepsis cases, blood work like this can raise several issues. "Biomarkers from blood work, for instance, white blood cell count, is something you only can get with bloodwork. The fact is that it's intrusive," Khojandi said. "You need to go take blood from the patient, who is potentially critically ill. And they need all the blood they have." What sets the algorithm, called "MLePOMPD,'' apart from traditional methods of sepsis detection, is that it does not require information gathered through intrusive methods of data collection. |
| New RELLIS STEM building to house industry partners | |
 | Industry partners will soon have a more permanent home at a Texas A&M University System building on the RELLIS campus because of a different funding source from a 2021 bill that was sponsored in the Texas House by an Aggie. A&M officials gathered at the RELLIS campus in Bryan on Tuesday morning to break ground on the $43.3 million STEM Education Center. The building is expected to be open for the fall 2025 semester and is being paid for by the state through Capital Construction Assistance Projects (CCAP). "A lot of other buildings, industry can come for a day and visit, or industry can come as part of a research project, but it can't actually be their physical space," said David Staack, interim director of A&M's Semiconductor Institute. "So, that will be unique and allow us to really have more in-depth collaborations with industry." A&M's capital projects are funded by a mix of sources, but this is the first time A&M has used CCAP money to construct a building at RELLIS, which continues to increase industry partners and connections with academia research. Sharp said if Permanent University Fund (PUF) money was used to build the STEM Education Center, it would prevent those industry partners and collaborators from having a permanent on-site presence. The STEM Education Center will be located at the corner of Bryan Road and the Academic Complex parking lot. It will have around 50,000 square feet and house, among other things, a large machine shop and wood shop, a digital and physical makerspace, a 3D printing and prototyping space, and an augmented reality simulation space. The first floor will have project spaces for students and industry partners to work, build and test. |
| Parents are hiring 'concierge moms' to help their kids at college, but is it a bad idea? | |
 | Imagine you live in Los Angeles but you send your child off to college in New York. Two weeks into their first semester, they get sick. Lucky for you, you've got a concierge mom on speed-dial. Wait. A what? Yes. Mindy Horwitz created such a service in 2019 called "mindyKNOWS." Basically Parents pay for someone local to be there for their college student when they can't. Birthdays, health scares, you name it. Families can hire one of these moms for students at Penn State, Northwestern, Washington University in St. Louis and more. "We consider ourselves to be experts in our city, and can help other parents with personal recommendations, advice and tips in our cities," Horwitz, 53, says. "We think of ourselves as their family away from home, and we give parents peace of mind knowing that we're here to help when they need some extra support." But is that really such a good idea? Experts have decried helicopter parents, and without the opportunity for fend themselves, some worry students may never develop critical life skills. "This kind of loving gesture can actually end up being a setback and interfering with a young adult's development," says Emily Edlynn, a clinical psychologist. |
| Lawmakers Side With Universities Against Proposal That Could 'Chill' Research Partnerships | |
| A bipartisan group of federal lawmakers has joined research universities in opposition to a proposed Biden administration framework that would allow the government to seize patents from federally funded inventions if it deems products developed from them too expensive. Proponents of the potential new guidelines have framed it as an avenue for lowering prescription drug prices. But critics say it wouldn't be effective at doing that and it would undermine research partnerships between universities and private companies. "The draft framework would upend these public-private partnerships and chill private-sector investment in university intellectual property," says the opposition letter signed by 28 members of Congress and sent to President Joe Biden on Feb. 21. "The result: many valuable technologies would not move beyond the campus lab." The proposal put forth in December by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), an agency in the Department of Commerce, seeks to change the framework of the Bayh-Dole Act of 1980, which "has allowed American universities -- like the University of Delaware, North Carolina State University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Penn State University, and Arizona State University -- and small businesses to commercialize products and be competitive in an increasingly global market," according to the opposition letter. "Unfortunately, the draft guidance framework that the [NIST] recently issued on the use of march-in rights under the Bayh-Dole Act threatens this system without achieving its stated objective of reducing prescription drug prices." |
| No, a Work Requirement for Medicaid Expansion is Not Going to be Approved by September | |
| The Magnolia Tribune's Russ Latino writes: Despite chatter about a work requirement, the Mississippi House is preparing to vote on full Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act today. HB 1725 creates a new class of individuals eligible for Medicaid. That class is identical to the expansion class created by the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare). It allows able-bodied adults without dependents access to the program and increases the income threshold for all adults to 138 percent of the Federal Poverty Level. That's full expansion, not a trial or a gradual toe dipping. How can I say that when HB 1725 attempts to limit the class of eligible expansion participants with a work requirement? The answer is simple, HB 1725 sets an impossible to achieve work requirement objective, and then says when the impossible thing proves impossible, full expansion will occur. In other words, instead of making expansion contingent upon work requirement approval, the bill says Mississippi will move forward with or without one. HB 1725 directs the Division of Medicaid to negotiate with President Biden's Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to obtain approval for a work requirement by a deadline in September of this year. Only the Biden Administration has not approved a single Medicaid work requirement since the President took office. It withdrew CMS guidance to states on applying for a work requirement and it successfully rescinded work requirement approvals given under the Trump administration to all but one state -- Georgia, which is still in litigation around its provision. |
| Calls to scrap, change or replace the MAEP funding formula have consequences | |
| Columnist Sid Salter writes: The Mississippi Adequate Education Formula had its genesis almost 30 years ago in politics -- the politics of avoiding being forced to equalize public education funding at the tip of the spear of a federal lawsuit. Despite the noble intent of equalizing public school funding often assigned to evolving discussions of the formula, the fact is that it continues to be a highly political plan conceived not to "fully fund" education but to avoid losing in the federal courts. Once again state lawmakers are confronting ongoing debate on the future of MAEP. Some lawmakers want to "fix" it. Others want to "replace" it with a new or different funding formula. Others want to add "school choice" or vouchers to the status quo as an alternative. MAEP was created in 1997 in reaction to lawsuits nationally from education advocacy groups which were successfully suing states on grounds that it was unconstitutional that students living in poorer school districts were being denied the same public education advantages being afforded to students in more affluent districts. Many of these lawsuits were coming out of rural school districts in Texas where predominantly Hispanic students were facing deep disparities in impoverished public school districts. Mississippi lawmakers saw those lawsuits as the ghosts of political Christmas future for Mississippi's impoverished Black majority districts. MAEP was the eventual answer to that threat. |
SPORTS
| Baseball: Patience is a virtue for Mississippi State in run-rule victory over Jackson State | |
| Mississippi State baseball has shown its eagerness to wait for pitches early in counts this season, but that's resulted in a number of wasted at-bats and bad swings later in counts. Tuesday's game against Jackson State might have been the first time this year that the patience of the Bulldogs paid off. "The difference between now and the first week is, we took the walks," head coach Chris Lemonis said. "They're starting to take walks, especially the big boys, [Hunter] Hines, Dakota [Jordan], realizing that people aren't just going to give them cookie ahead in the count. They're becoming more patient, more selective, and I think that's why you're seeing them play better." Trailing 5-0 early, Mississippi State needed a response, and patience at the plate helped in that endeavor, walking five times in a 13-run third inning for the Bulldogs, who took down the Tigers, 19-6, in seven innings. The "big boys" for the Bulldogs (5-4) certainly delivered against Jackson State as Hines and Jordan each recorded three-hit games, driving in nine of the team's 19 runs. A number of players had massive performances, with Amani Larry, Joe Powell and Dylan Cupp each recording two hits, with Powell driving in three after a bases-clearing double in the third. Mississippi State couldn't avoid a slow start on Tuesday, but it rebounded with a strong finish, a good sign going into an early weekend series against Mount St. Mary's that starts on Thursday afternoon at Dudy Noble Field. |
| Mississippi State baseball beats Jackson State in seven innings at Dudy Noble Field | |
| Mississippi State baseball didn't get the start it wanted against Jackson State on Tuesday. The afternoon started with a 25-minute delay because JSU did not have its jerseys at the stadium. Then the Tigers jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the top half of the second inning. From there, though, Mississippi State cruised to a 19-6 victory in seven innings. A 13-run third inning, with eight hits and five walks, fueled MSU (5-4). Five Mississippi State players recorded multiple RBIs during the inning, including catcher Joe Powell, who got two hits in three at-bats. Jackson State's Joseph Eichelberger continued his scorching start, batting .690. He hit his first home run of the season in the first inning, a two-run shot to left-center. He finished 2-for-3. Mississippi State returns to action on Thursday (3 p.m., SEC Network+) when it opens a three-game series against Mount St. Mary's at Dudy Noble Field. Jackson State (6-3) opens a series against Alcorn State on Friday (6 p.m., JSU Sports Network). |
| Josh Hubbard shines for Mississippi State basketball vs. Kentucky | |
| It wasn't easy for Reed Sheppard to get through the tunnel nearest the visiting locker room inside Humphrey Coliseum on Tuesday. For a star freshman guard at Kentucky, that's nothing new -- especially after Sheppard hit a shot in the final second to give the Wildcats a 91-89 win against Mississippi State basketball. However, in the tunnel nearest the home locker room, another group was hovering waiting to get an autograph from Josh Hubbard. UK is used to producing freshmen guards worthy of crowds wanting autographs. That isn't the norm at MSU (19-9, 8-7 SEC). Then again, Hubbard is proving to be a freshman exceeding expectations in Starkville which gives optimism for the future of the program. "I don't think there's a moment he fears," MSU coach Chris Jans said postgame. "He loves to have the ball in his hands. He's very confident." Hubbard scored five points on 1-11 shooting when the teams first met at Rupp Arena in Lexington, Kentucky, last month. In that defeat, though, Jans felt it was more about Hubbard missing shots than it was Kentucky (20-8, 10-5) doing something against him defensively. At Humphrey Coliseum, Hubbard proved his coach right. The in-state product scored a career-high 34 points – surpassing his previous mark of 32 which he set on Saturday at LSU -- on 11-of-24 shooting. |
| Hubbard Chosen As Howell Trophy Finalist | |
| Mississippi State's Josh Hubbard was selected as one of three finalists for the Bailey Howell Trophy announced Tuesday by the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame. The Howell Trophy presented by the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians and Pearl River Resort is awarded annually to the best male college basketball players in the Magnolia State. Hubbard is joined by Matthew Murrell of Ole Miss and Austin Crowley of Southern Miss. Named after Mississippi State legend and Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame inductee Bailey Howell, the Bulldogs have won the Howell Trophy during five of the last six seasons. Quinndary Weatherspoon was a two-time winner during the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons followed by Reggie Perry in 2019-20, Iverson Molinar in 2021-22 and Tolu Smith III in 2022-23. This year's winner will be announced during a luncheon at the Golden Moon Casino at the Pearl River Resort in Choctaw on Monday, March 11. Hubbard, the 2022-23 Mississippi Gatorade Player of the Year, capped his high school career at Madison-Ridgeland Academy under Richard Duease as the state's all-time leading scorer with 4,367 career points. |
| What to watch, keys to victory for Mississippi State at Auburn | |
| Even after losing four consecutive games, including home defeats to Florida and Kentucky teams that are among the bottom four in the Southeastern Conference standings, Mississippi State is still on the right side of the NCAA Tournament bubble. For now. At No. 40 in the NET rankings entering Tuesday, the Bulldogs were a No. 9 seed in the latest bracketology projections from ESPN's Charlie Creme. But MSU's margin for error is much thinner than it was two weeks ago, and a win Thursday night at Auburn would help everyone in maroon breathe a little bit easier. It will not be a simple task against a Tigers team that is 13-3 at home and, like the Bulldogs, has a victory over defending national champion LSU on its resume. Auburn (17-10, 6-8 SEC) started 1-4 in conference play but has been a tough out since then, led by veteran guard Honesty Scott-Grayson. Scott-Grayson is third in the SEC in scoring, averaging 17.8 points per game. The Tigers' offense does not offer much beyond her, but their defense is among the conference's best --- only No. 1 South Carolina and Texas A&M give up fewer points on average than Auburn's 57.5. They held the Aggies to 41 points in a win on Sunday, three days after they nearly completed a season sweep against LSU before falling by five in Baton Rouge. Auburn's offense, on the other hand, is near the bottom of the conference in most categories. |
| Jessika Carter Selected As Finalist For 2024 Gillom Trophy | |
| The Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame announced on Tuesday that Mississippi State women's basketball graduate student center Jessika Carter was named one of three finalists for the 2024 Gillom Trophy. The Gillom Trophy is named after Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame inductee Peggie Gillom-Granderson and is awarded annually to the best female college basketball player in the state. Marquesha Davis of Ole Miss and Domonique Davis of Southern Miss joins Carter as a finalist. This year's recipient will be announced during a luncheon at the Golden Moon Casino at Pearl River Resort in Philadelphia on March 11. A now three-time finalist, Carter looks to join a list of Bulldog greats who have won the award since its inception in 2008. Mississippi State leads all in-state programs with nine winners over the 17 years of the award. Carter is currently posting a double-double this season with career-best averages in points, rebounds and minutes on 15.2 points, 10.4 rebounds and 1.9 blocks in 31.9 minutes per contest. She would be the first Bulldog since former recipient Teaira McCowan in 2018-19 to average a double-double and maintain a 10-plus rebound mark. The Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame exists to promote, preserve and protect Mississippi's rich sports heritage for this and generations to come. The museum serves as a destination for sports legends to live forever through interactive displays and exhibits where visitors can play, live and dream. |
| Mississippi State men beat Tulane, run winning streak to four | |
| Following a two-week break, the Mississippi State men's tennis team survived its final tuneup before Southeastern Conference play, defeating Tulane 4-3 in New Orleans on Sunday. The No. 24 Bulldogs (8-3) dropped the doubles point to the Green Wave (2-7), though their No. 3 pairing of Roberto Ferrer Guimaraes and Nemanja Malesevic won in a tiebreak. MSU won the first four completed singles matches, all in straight sets, to clinch the victory. Benito Sanchez Martinez bested his Tulane opponent 6-1, 6-2 at No. 5, and Petar Jovanovic, the No. 23 ranked singles player in the country, won 6-4, 6-3 at No. 2. Carles Hernandez won at No. 3 without much trouble, and Malesevic needed a tiebreak win in the second set to close out his match at No. 1. The Bulldogs open the SEC portion of their schedule at home against Georgia this coming Sunday. |
| Our prediction for top Mississippi State player in 'College Football 25' | |
| Mississippi State quarterback Mike Wright said aloud what many were thinking when it was announced that the EA Sports "College Football 25" video game is coming out this summer. "The day ratings get released," Wright posted on X, "this app is going up in flames." The full reveal of the game, after an 11-year hiatus, is set to come in May, according to EA's official website. Players can already opt into an NIL deal to be featured in the game. With that comes a compensation of $600 and a free copy of the game. Is there excitement among players about the opportunity to be featured in the game? It appears so, but it'll likely come with some drama. Players won't be assigning their own ratings – which is a good thing, but something sure to spark debate. Games similar to "College Football 25" usually assign ratings on a scale of 1-99. As Wright noted on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, former Oregon quarterback and Heisman trophy winner Marcus Mariota was only a 90 overall. "Yea this might get ugly," Wright posted. Under the assumption that all Mississippi State players agree to be part of the game, who would be the five highest-rated Bulldogs? Here's what we think. |
| Cowboys VP mum on 'details, timing' of Dak Prescott deal | |
| The end result for the Dallas Cowboys is for Dak Prescott to be their quarterback of the present and future. How they get that resolution with Prescott entering the final year of his contract is something executive vice president Stephen Jones does not want to discuss. "I won't expound on any details, timing, any of that," Jones said in a 25-minute sessions Tuesday with Dallas media from the NFL scouting combine. Prescott is set to make $29 million in base salary and has a $5 million roster bonus due on the fifth day of the new league year. Through clauses in his contract, the Cowboys cannot trade Prescott without his OK and cannot use the franchise tag on him in 2025. It sets up a scenario without an extension that this could be Prescott's final year with the Cowboys, although Jones does not even think about Prescott being elsewhere. "Our whole thing with Dak is him being a Cowboy," Jones said. "That's all that's on our mind. Certainly don't get into those type of thoughts." Prescott, 30, is coming off his best season in which he led the NFL in touchdown passes (36), was named a second-team All Pro and threw for 4,516 yards as the Cowboys finished 12-5 and won the NFC East. |
| Why is Chris Beard at Ole Miss? Rebels coach fired at Texas after arrest, assault charge | |
 | Few active coaches in men's college basketball are as accomplished as Chris Beard. Though he had been involved in the sport in some form since 1991, Beard introduced himself to much of the country five years ago, in 2019, when he was named the Associated Press National Coach of the Year and led Texas Tech to its first-ever Final Four. From there, he was hired at Texas, where he became one of the sport's highest-paid coaches and guided the Longhorns to a top-10 national ranking early in his second season at the school. On Wednesday night, though, he'll be in a very different place than many would have imagined only a short time ago. When Alabama visits Ole Miss tonight at the SJB Pavilion, Beard won't be in Austin or Lubbock, but roaming the opposing sideline in his first year as the Rebels' coach. How Beard ended up in Oxford, Mississippi is the result of one of the more rapid and unexpected descents down the college basketball coaching ladder in recent memory, while his hiring at Ole Miss stands as one of the quicker turnarounds for a coach fired after an off-court incident. |
| For Auburn basketball's Bruce Pearl, Alabama's 'reckless' IVF ruling is 'kinda personal' | |
| On the eve of No. 11 Auburn basketball's trip to Knoxville to battle the fourth-ranked Tennessee Volunteers in a game with major SEC implications, Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl wanted to address something "kinda personal, but also a little bit political" before jumping into the Xs and Os of Auburn's matchup with Tennessee. "My son Steven and my daughter-in-law Brittany, courageously in many ways, have decided to make it known publicly that they've been involved with this In vitro fertilization for a couple of years trying to have children, trying to start a family," Pearl said to start his press conference Tuesday. Hours before his press conference, his son and associate head coach, Steven Pearl, appeared on "The Next Round" to open up about he and his wife Brittany's experience through the IVF process. "Brittany and I, for the past year, have been trying to get pregnant," Steven Pearl said. "It's been a struggle to be completely honest with you and we've had to come up to Homewood a ton this past year at Alabama Fertility Clinic and work with Dr. Mann to try and get pregnant." However, after a ruling from the Alabama Supreme Court on Feb. 16 ruled that frozen embryos are "children," Alabama Fertility Clinic joined two other Alabama IVF providers in pausing IVF treatments. This means that despite the fact that Steven and Brittany Pearl are nearing the end of the process and are just "weeks away from implanting a healthy embryo," they, along with many others, are now having to wait. "The government is supposed to help us and our families, not prevent my son and his wife from having their first child or my grandchild." |
| Where Georgia athletics' push for inclusivity stands now with DEI programs facing backlash | |
| There are still visible signs on game days in the form of black shirts with the message "Commit to Change, Unity, Equity, Action." They were worn this past season by football players Oscar Delp, Smael Mondon and Ladd McConkey and last week by basketball player Russel Tchewa. More than three and a half years ago in the summer of 2020, Georgia and many other athletic departments looked inward and pledged to address issues surrounding diversity, equity and inclusion after a national reckoning about racial inequality following the murder of a Black man, George Floyd, by a Minneapolis police officer that prompted social unrest in the country. The football program -- Georgia's most prominent and successful in recent years -- led the charge with its "Dawgs for Pups" program which raised $100,000 for Wi-Fi hotspots for Clarke County students, $103,000 to the Downtown Academy school from spring game proceeds and collected 30,000 pounds of snacks for the Food Bank of Northeast Georgia. That came after conversations about being change agents in the community. Former Georgia and current NFL quarterback Matthew Stafford and wife Kelly, in August of 2020, donated $350,000 while football coach Kirby Smart and wife Mary Beth added $150,000 to support the launch of a program to implement DEI and social justice initiatives. It wasn't just football. There were video messages from other coaches and the athletic department hired a consultant to look at how Georgia athletics was handling diversity issues. So, what's the state of all of this now in a time where DEI has become a political hot button issue? |
| With CFP expanding and bowl games possibly shifting, the future of Army-Navy is murky | |
| For the last 15 years, on the second Saturday in December, just after 3 p.m. ET on CBS, America's Game kicks off. In the renewal of one of the oldest rivalries in American history, the Army Cadets and Navy Midshipmen meet in a usually sold-out stadium in front of a captivated television audience. Plenty of things set apart the Army-Navy Game from all others in college football. After all, what game features the student bodies from each school marching onto the field in uniform before kickoff? What other college football series has attracted 10 sitting U.S. presidents? And what other rivalry regularly includes 18-play drives and fewer than 30 total points scored. But there's something else that makes Army-Navy different than any other: The game holds an unencumbered window on a Saturday in the fall as the only Football Bowl Subdivision game scheduled for that day and the final major college football game before the bowl and postseason arrives. Soon, that could very well change. The expanded College Football Playoff puts at risk the Army-Navy game's future as a standalone event and its relevance in the CFP's selection of the 12-team field -- issues that concern the game's stakeholders enough for one to have penned a letter to CFP leaders earlier this month. "It's tricky. I don't envy the decision-makers," said Mike Buddie, the Army athletic director who on Feb. 16 sent a letter to the CFP Management Committee about the situation. "I'm a realist. I understand there's a lot of money and a lot of games to be played, but I still think Army-Navy transcends the sport of college football and has for decades." |
| What role can institutions now play in NIL following NCAA's preliminary injunction in Tennessee? | |
| If Friday afternoon marked the end of NCAA oversight of NIL, then it also produced more questions regarding the role institutions can play in compensating athletes and overseeing donor-led collectives. With college sports' governing body currently dealing with a preliminary injunction halting its ability to rule when athletes can negotiate NIL deals, universities have been left with a bundle of issues. That was only more evident Monday afternoon in a memo from Charlie Baker to NCAA membership. The former Massachusetts governor outlined the need for the NCAA to convene the Division I Board of Directors and the Board of Governors "to discuss next steps." "If we all do our part, get involved, do the work and play the hand, we can continue to make progress on the large, complicated problems we face," said Baker, who is approaching his first anniversary with the NCAA. "We will be back to you on the ruling shortly." Even the top athletic departments in the country with elite NIL collectives and dozens of boosters ready to dive in are trying to figure out what comes next. Most aren't even worrying about the possible threat of NCAA punishment, though. Institutional staff members, which includes coaches, are still prohibited from making NIL offers and negotiating NIL deals. And everything is now public, opening the potential for liability. |
| The Hail Mary Tactic to Pay Off Student Debt: Sports Betting | |
| Jamie Regan was joking when he first posted on TikTok that he would use sports betting to pay his $50,000 student-loan debt. When the video got one million views, it felt like destiny. "This is supposed to happen," he thought. It didn't work. Regan, a 24-year-old social-media freelancer, wound up losing a little money and ending his TikTok series three months later. For young people, particularly young men, Regan's attempt touched on two prevalent forces in their lives: the spreading legality and popularity of online sports betting and their hefty student loans. With the resumption of student-loan payments, young adults are now turning to sports betting as a Hail Mary pass to tackle their debts. "It's a bigger thing for people, especially our age, who are feeling the effects of a heightened economy and having less money," Regan said. "It seems like we're kind of getting the short end of the stick." The cost of college has increased over the past three decades---and with it the need for student loans or other financial aid. Student-loan debt in the U.S. surged over the past 10 years to more than $1.7 trillion, according to the Federal Reserve. At the same time, sports gambling has exploded, primarily among men ages 18 to 34. About one in three American adults admits to betting on sports games. The number rises to 47% among millennials and 58% among Gen Z, according to a CivicScience survey. Gambling for loan payments will strike many parents, teachers and lenders as a bad idea. Consumer advocates warn gambling can be addictive. "College-age men do a lot of impulsive and reckless things and sports wagering is on the list," said Joshua Grubbs, an associate professor in the psychology department at the University of New Mexico. "It definitely has increased and it's a simple function of access." |
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