| Thursday, December 4, 2025 |
| MSU student farm celebrates first harvest, feeds campus community through dining partnership | |
 | According to an MSU press release, Mississippi State University's experiential student farm in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences has celebrated its first harvest, and the bounty collected has made its way to university dining halls thanks to a partnership with Aramark. The university's campus dining partner recently received approximately 50-100 pounds of leafy greens, including bok choy, mustard greens, collards, and green onions. Associate Professor Tongyin Li and Instructor Pawel Orlinski, both in the Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, together with Instructor Casey Johnson in the Department of Landscape Architecture and Environmental Design, oversee the farm's teaching, research, outreach, and student-driven operations. Professor Juan Silva in the Department of Biochemistry, Nutrition and Health Promotion, leads the farm's food safety processes for harvest. Abby Pennington, horticulture master's student from Baldwyn, manages daily operations at the farm, gaining practical training in a small-scale production agricultural environment. |
| Hotel Development Underway on the Campus of Mississippi State University | |
 | Construction formally began on October 23 on the hotel that will anchor development of the new Crossroads District between the Mississippi State University campus and the city's Cotton District. Hotel Madelon will be a 122-room Marriott Tribute Portfolio hotel, which will include a full-service restaurant, rooftop bar and dedicated underground parking. The hotel, located at 910 University Dr., is set to open in the summer of 2027. The district it will anchor, including entertainment, restaurant, housing and additional parking venues, will be developed over several phases. Hotel Madelon, named in honor of the university's original fight song, will be a boutique hotel, celebrating the legacy of MSU and the culture of Starkville. The hotel is being positioned on a prime site that will offer stunning campus views and an overall design that will attract both visitors and locals. |
| MSU Extension hosts hiring event for Jackson-area programs | |
 | Mississippi State University (MSU) Extension Service hosted a job fair on Wednesday for individuals interested in working with young children and families for its locations in the Jackson area. MSU Extension`s Mississippi LIFT Resource and Referral Network sought to hire program associates, office associates, floaters and mobile unit program associates for Jackson-area locations. MS LIFT team members are employees of MSU Extension. |
| Barry White named next executive director of Mississippi Department of Archives and History | |
| Following the recent retirement announcement of Katie Blount, a new executive director of the Mississippi Department of Archives and History has been named. The MDAH Board of Trustees announced Wednesday that it has selected Barry White to move into the role next year. White is a longtime preservation leader and current director of the state agency's Historic Preservation Division. "Katie Blount's leadership has strengthened this agency in profound and lasting ways, and Barry is the right person to lead MDAH into our next chapter," said Spence Flatgard, president of the MDAH Board of Trustees. He was promoted to division director in 2020, and in the role, he has administered programs such as the National Register of Historic Places, the Mississippi Landmark program, the Historical Marker Program, and preservation grant initiatives for rehabilitation of historic courthouses, schools, and cultural landmarks. He's also among the leadership team developing a regional hub for education, research, and workforce development at Historic Jefferson College near Natchez. Mississippi State University, White's alma mater, is MDAH's partner on the project. |
| Barry White is tapped as next leader of Mississippi Archives and History | |
| The Mississippi Department of Archives and History announced Wednesday that Barry White will succeed Katie Blount as the agency's director when Blount retires next year. White has been director of the department's Historic Preservation Division since 2020. In his current role, he administers statewide grant programs, oversees major preservation initiatives and works on building partnerships with local, state and federal agencies. He is also part of the leadership team for the partnership between Archives and History and Mississippi State University to turn Historic Jefferson College near Natchez into a regional hub for education, research and workforce development. White will begin transitioning to his new role early next year. His first day as the director will be July 1, after Blount steps down. White holds bachelor's and master's degrees in applied anthropology with a focus on historic preservation from Mississippi State University. |
| Five months into fiscal year, Mississippi revenues exceed estimates by $90 million | |
| Mississippi revenue collections continue to outpace legislative estimates, with November's collections coming in $20.2 million, or 3.83 percent above the revised revenue estimate. The Legislative Budget Office (LBO) reported Wednesday that the November collection numbers have pushed the state's fiscal year-to-date revenue collections to $90.1 million, or 2.98 percent above the revised revenue estimate five months into the current fiscal year. Last month, the Joint Legislative Budget Committee unanimously revised the Fiscal Year 2026 total state revenue collection downward by $75 million, or about 1 percent, from $7.627 million to $7.552 million with limited discussion. LBO noted that the fiscal year-to-date total revenue collections through November 2025 are $97 million, or 3.22 percent above the prior year's collections for the same period. General Fund collections were $17.9 million, 3.39 percent above the prior year's actual collections for the same month, while sales tax collections for that same period were down $4.0 million. Individual income tax collections for the month of November were above the prior year by $19.4 million, even with the continued phase out of the state income tax. |
| Carroll County added to regional economic development foundation | |
| As Mississippi continues to reel in major economic development projects, officials in one of the state's Delta counties are looking to capitalize on the momentum. On Tuesday, the Carroll County Board of Supervisors entered into a formal agreement with the Greenwood-Leflore Economic Development Foundation. The agreement added Carroll County to the foundation and marked the first partnership between the county and the foundation, despite more than three decades of informal collaboration on major economic development initiatives, including support for projects such as AerCap Materials, Anel Corporation, and Delta's Edge Solar. "Carroll County has been an essential part of our organization's mission for more than 30 years, and today's agreement reflects our shared commitment to strengthening economic vitality across our region," Greenwood-Leflore-Carroll Economic Development Foundation Executive Director Thomas Gregory said. The agreement follows one reached by officials in Lafayette, Tate, Panola, and Yalobusha counties to establish a regional alliance, and after years of the Golden Triangle Development Link securing big-money projects. |
| Layoff announcements top 1.1 million this year, the most since 2020 pandemic, Challenger says | |
| Announced job cuts from U.S. employers moved further ahead of 1 million for the year in November as corporate restructuring, artificial intelligence and tariffs have helped pare job rolls, consulting firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas reported Thursday. The firm said layoff plans totaled 71,321 in November, a step down from the massive cuts announced in October but still enough to bring the 2025 total up to 1.17 million. That total is 54% higher than the same 11-month period a year ago and the highest level since 2020, when the Covid pandemic rocked the global economy. Tech companies, driven by innovations in artificial intelligence, listed 12,377 reductions, pushing the sector's 2025 total up 17% from a year ago. AI itself has been cited for 54,694 layoffs this year. Tariffs were cited as the driver of more than 2,000 cuts in November and nearly 8,000 year to date. The most-cited reason for the month was restructuring, followed by closings and market or economic conditions. The numbers come with concerns rising over the state of the U.S. labor market. ADP reported Wednesday that private employers cut 32,000 jobs in November, the biggest decline in more than 2 1/2 years. |
| People protest Deep South immigration crackdown as Gov. Reeves speaks at Madison restaurant | |
| A small group protested outside a monthly community meeting Wednesday in Madison to raise awareness about an immigration crackdown in Louisiana and Mississippi -- a campaign known both as "Operation Swamp Sweep" and "Catahoula Crunch" -- and to oppose the Mississippi government's collaboration with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. While the group of about 12 protested outside, Gov. Tate Reeves, a vocal supporter of President Donald Trump's immigration policies, spoke inside of the Madison restaurant. The protesters were far enough away from the restaurant to prevent any direct communications with Reeves. Beginning this week, ICE and the Department of Homeland Security are conducting a two-month immigration crackdown in Louisiana and south Mississippi. On Wednesday, protestors in Madison stood across the street at the intersection in front of Mama Hamil's, where Reeves was the keynote speaker at Grip N Grin, a monthly meeting to discuss current events. They waved signs as cars drove by, and some drivers honked as they passed. Kathleein O'Beirne, a Ridgeland native, said this protest was made possible by a coalition of groups, including Mississippi United. |
| Lawmakers will hear from Navy admiral who ordered attack that killed boat strike survivors | |
 | The Navy admiral who reportedly issued orders for the U.S. military to fire upon survivors of an attack on an alleged drug boat is expected Thursday on Capitol Hill to provide a classified briefing to top congressional lawmakers overseeing national security. The information from Adm. Frank "Mitch" Bradley, who is now the commander of U.S. Special Operations Command, comes at a potentially crucial moment in the unfolding congressional investigation into how Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth handled the military operation in international waters near Venezuela. There are mounting questions over whether the strike may have violated the law. Lawmakers are seeking a full accounting of the strikes after The Washington Post reported that Bradley on Sept. 2 ordered an attack on two survivors to comply with Hegseth's directive to "kill everybody." Legal experts say the attack amounts to a crime if the survivors were targeted, and lawmakers on both sides of the aisle are demanding accountability. "The investigation is going to be done by the numbers," said Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi, the chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee. "We'll find out the ground truth." |
| Republicans begin to tighten the screws on Hegseth's Pentagon | |
 | In a classified briefing for lawmakers scrutinizing the Trump administration's killing of suspected drug smugglers around Latin America, top Republicans in the room appeared frustrated. The Pentagon, facing questions about its legal basis for attacking civilian vessels, sent no lawyers to the October meeting -- a move multiple lawmakers in the room considered inexplicable. The Defense Department officials who did attend, those people said, were unable to explain the mission's strategy and scope -- even as President Donald Trump openly mused about expanding the campaign to include land targets inside Venezuela. As exasperation among Republicans over the lack of transparency grows, Adm. Frank M. Bradley is set to meet with lawmakers Thursday to discuss a Sept. 2 missile strike on a boat that killed 11 people, including two survivors who died in a follow-up attack as they clung to the wreckage. Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Mississippi), who chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee, told reporters this week that the allegations stemming from the incident are "very serious." He has sought video and audio recordings along with other materials documenting this and other strikes. To date, lawmakers have said, the Pentagon has not complied with the request. Trump, when asked Wednesday about the video footage, said he supports releasing "whatever they have." |
| GOP frustrations grow over lackluster 'big, beautiful bill' sales pitch | |
 | Republicans are growing increasingly concerned they're behind the eight ball in selling the One Big Beautiful Bill Act as the party's top legislative achievement. Talk about the massive tax package largely evaporated after Labor Day amid high-stakes fights over releasing documents related to Jeffrey Epstein and the 43-day government shutdown. Yet even before those controversies, polls showed the GOP legislation was unpopular. This has frustrated lawmakers who say the party needs to do more to sell its signature accomplishment, especially as Democrats hammer them on the issue of affordability. When asked how much the tax package comes up on the campaign trail with voters, Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.), who is running to become the next governor of Alabama in 2027, replied: "Not much." "Most people don't really understand what's in it," he said. Complicating the picture for the GOP is a sluggish economic backdrop, headlined by inflation that has ticked upward and tariffs that have contributed to higher prices. |
| Economic woes drive precipitous drop in support for Trump | |
 | Weeks after suffering bruising election losses across the country, and facing an unusually tight special congressional race in ruby red Tennessee, President Trump told reporters Tuesday that a "fake" national narrative has taken hold of an economy in trouble. Americans are employed and consuming more than ever, he said. Foreign tariffs and investments are bringing in trillions of dollars. "The word 'affordability,'" Trump added, "is a Democrat scam." It was a message in defiance of stark public opinion polling that shows a clear majority of Americans, across all ages and demographic groups, increasingly concerned with the state of the economy and the president's approach. A Fox News poll released before Thanksgiving found that 76% view the economy negatively. Surveys conducted since the holiday put Trump at the lowest point of his second term, and lower than any of his predecessors at this point in their second term since President Nixon. Gallup found that 36% approve of his job performance, with 60% disapproving, and an Economist/YouGov poll saw only 32% of Americans support Trump's response to the country's affordability crisis. Still, Trump's remaining support suggests he continues to enjoy broad approval among Republican voters for his overall job performance, even if they disagree with some of his economic or foreign policy positions, analysts said. |
| Poll: Trump's own voters begin blaming him for affordability crisis | |
 | New polling shows many Americans have begun to blame President Donald Trump for the high costs they're feeling across virtually every part of their lives -- and it's shifting politics. Almost half -- 46 percent -- say the cost of living in the U.S. is the worst they can ever remember it being, a view held by 37 percent of 2024 Trump voters. Americans also say that the affordability crisis is Trump's responsibility, with 46 percent saying it is his economy now and his administration is responsible for the costs they struggle with. Those are among the new results from The POLITICO Poll that crystallize a growing warning sign for Republicans ahead of next year's midterms: Some of the very groups that powered Trump's victory last year are showing signs of breaking from that coalition, and it's the high cost of living that's driving them away. It's a growing vulnerability that Democrats exploited repeatedly in recent months, with campaigns focused on affordability sweeping key races in last month's elections in New Jersey and Virginia and powering an overperformance in a deep-red House seat in Tennessee on Tuesday. |
| Australian defense official, Mississippi business leaders discuss global security partnership | |
 | An Australian defense official met with Mississippi business leaders on the gulf coast in an effort to encourage companies in the state to get involved in global security projects. Mat Cantagallo with the Australian Embassy in Washington DC spoke to several company leaders about how they can be innovators of technologies that support national security and future military operations. It's all part of AUKUS, a security alliance between Australia, the United States and the UK. Cantagallo said some Mississippi companies are already playing a role. "It's very large so there's a multitude of contracts both with US Department of war that flow here potentially could've resulted in business but also this business for Mississippi companies coming over to Australia and participating with our Australian defense force," Cantagallo said. The event was hosted by Gulf Blue and the University of Southern Mississippi. |
| Alcorn Receives Unrestricted Donation From MacKenzie Scott | |
| Alcorn State University recently received a $42 million unrestricted donation from philanthropist MacKenzie Scott, the largest single gift in the 154-year history of the nation's oldest public historically Black land-grant university. This is Scott's second major gift to the university. Scott previously donated $25 million in 2020, bringing her total contributions to $67 million. "Today marks a historic moment for Alcorn State University as we celebrate the largest single donation in our university's history," said Dr. Tracy M. Cook, President of Alcorn State University. Scott's 2020 gift supported faculty endowments, scholarships, including the Rep. Alyce Clarke Mississippi First Scholarship program, and capital projects aligned with the university's strategic plan. "We are deeply grateful to philanthropist MacKenzie Scott for her commitment and confidence in Alcorn," said Dr. Marcus D. Ward, Senior Vice President for institutional advancement and executive director of the ASU Foundation, Inc. |
| U. of Alabama closes student magazines for women, Black students | |
| The University of Alabama has suspended the publication of two student-run magazines -- one primarily focused on Black students and another on women's issues -- citing recent federal guidance against diversity, equity and inclusion programs on college campuses. The editors of Nineteen Fifty-Six and Alice magazines were informed Monday that the university was stopping the magazines immediately. A university official cited July guidance from Attorney General Pamela Bondi on what the Trump administration considered unlawful discrimination at institutions that receive federal funding, according to one of the editors. The university decision to shutter the magazines appears based on the fact that the publications had primary target audiences, although neither magazine limited who could work on staff. Alex House, a spokesperson for the University of Alabama, said the university remains committed to supporting all students and "in doing so, we must also comply with our legal obligations." |
| One of Higher Ed's Emerging Growth Areas Is One It Struggles to Serve | |
 | On the surface, Louisiana State University at Alexandria might seem like an institution in trouble. It's a public regional campus in a rural swath of the state, located in a city of under 50,000 that hugs the Red River and is "surrounded by forest and farmland," says Adam Lord, a spokesperson for the university. Central Louisiana, according to Lord, is "defined by work-force shortages, growing health-care deserts, and limited access to degree programs." Less than one-third of the city's adults have at least an associate degree, below both the state and national average. But the institution saw its enrollment more than double between 2013 and 2023, largely by focusing on the regional and state population. The heavily rural, 11-parish area in which the campus sits accounts for 94 percent of its student body, and the state's residents make up 70 percent of its online learners. LSU-Alexandria has grown largely by expanding its online enrollment and touting its low cost and high value. The undergraduate-only institution has developed pipelines to the state's graduate professional programs. It's created programs for the rural work force -- including aviation, disaster preparedness, and cybersecurity -- and programs that feed into local companies, like RoyOMartin, a plywood manufacturer, and utilities and hospitals. |
| Statewide panel looks for ways to protect Louisiana's college students from misuse of artificial intelligence | |
| University and state leaders met at the Louisiana Capitol Tuesday with a focus on protecting college students from the misuse of artificial intelligence. Since 2021, the Power-Based Violence review panel has met throughout the year to improve how Title IX and violence are handled on college campuses, and before the legislative session, this group says it wants to crack down on improper use of new technology. Brianna Golden Phillips is the Director of Government Affairs for the Board of Regents and said the task force was created four years ago "to see if there is a way to break away from the campus culture, with respect to sexual assault on campus." The discussion turned to an incident that happened at a middle school in Lafourche Parish, where a middle school student created AI-generated nude images of another student. "You don't even know what's real or fake anymore; everything looks like what it is," Golden Phillips said. For college campuses, it was suggested that universities flag search terms so that when an image is created, universities can track down who is responsible. |
| Texas bathroom bill takes effect. Here's how it impacts transgender college students | |
| Transgender students at Texas public universities will no longer legally be allowed to use multi-stall restrooms matching their gender identity starting Thursday, when Senate Bill 8 -- better known as the "bathroom bill" -- takes effect for public agencies, schools and universities across the state. The law mandates all multi-occupancy restrooms in public buildings be exclusively designated for males or females as defined by an individual's reproductive organs, not their presenting or identifying gender. The new restrictions are another challenge that transgender students must reckon with in Texas higher education. Multiple university systems have recently restricted courses that appear to "advocate" for gender ideology, and the University of Texas and Texas A&M University no longer offer gender-affirming care for students. The Texas Tech University system will no longer teach the existence of more than two genders and is reviewing all courses concerning sexual orientation. |
| U. of Oklahoma instructor on leave after student complaint over Bible-based paper | |
| An instructor at the University of Oklahoma has been placed on leave after a student complained that she received a failing grade on a paper that cited the Bible to assert that the "belief in multiple genders" was "demonic." Samantha Fulnecky, 20, filed a complaint with the administration, the latest flashpoint in the ongoing debate over academic freedom on college campuses amid President Donald Trump's push to end diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, and restrict how campuses discuss issues of race, gender and sexuality. "OU remains firmly committed to fairness, respect and protecting every student's right to express sincerely held religious beliefs," the university wrote in an email on Wednesday. The school added that the failing grade -- which was supposed to account for 3% of Fulnecky's final grade -- would not affect the junior's academic standing. An investigation into Fulnecky's discrimination complaint is still ongoing. |
| Mizzou associate professor receives a $1.8 million grant for asthma research | |
 | In Missouri around 449,253 adults have asthma, nearly 10% of all Missouri adults, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Historically, asthma has been believed to be caused by a constriction of the airways. However Robert Thomen, University of Missouri associate professor of radiology and chemical and biomedical engineering, is reexamining this belief in a new research study. Thomen's study is looking at a potential vascular component to explain why some asthma can be easily treated and some can't. This fall, Thomen received a $1.8 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to use imaging to determine if the same hyperconstriction in airways also happens in the lung's blood vessels, or its vasculature. The vascular hypothesis has not been fully explored because of a lack of proper imaging technology, Thomen said. |
| The Math Legend Who Just Left Academia -- for an AI Startup Run by a 24-Year-Old | |
 | Ken Ono's career as one of the world's most prominent mathematicians has taken him to places that he never could have fathomed. The renowned University of Virginia professor regularly ventures far beyond campus, bringing his formulas everywhere from Hollywood to the Olympics. He's the only number theorist who has ever been the star of a beer commercial. And for his next act, this renaissance man of math is doing something improbable even by his standards. He's leaving his tenured job to work for a 24-year-old. Not long ago, the idea of joining an AI startup in Silicon Valley would have sounded absurd to him. In fact, before it reoriented his career and uprooted his entire life, he considered himself a skeptic of artificial intelligence. Until recently, he began talks by poking fun at the hype around the nascent technology. "My name is Ken Ono, and I am NI," he said. "Naturally intelligent." Now he's the unlikeliest employee of a startup that hopes to revolutionize math with AI. At the age of 57, Ono is taking an extended leave from academia with no plans to return. He's jumping to a company founded by one of his former students, Carina Hong, who has the sort of dazzling résumé that would make AI feel insecure. |
| Federal Aid Conference Delayed, University Employees Lament | |
 | Each year during the first week of December, the Department of Education has historically hosted the Federal Student Aid Training Conference to provide university administrators with updated education on regulations and technical systems. That hasn't happened this year. Now, many financial aid experts are expressing their frustrations on social media, attributing the lapse to the Trump administration's major reductions in force and calling it a shortsighted mistake. "There is no conference. That's what happens when you fire many of the staff who organized and conducted the training," Byron Scott, a retired FSA staff member, wrote on LinkedIn. "Perhaps in 'returning' this Department of Education function to the states -- where [it] never was -- the Department forgot to tell the states about this new responsibility." Department officials have neither announced the event's cancellation nor clarified whether and when it might take place. The conference website, where logistical information is traditionally posted, only says, "Information coming soon." One senior department official who spoke with Inside Higher Ed on the condition of anonymity said the conference is slated to occur in person in March. |
| International students worry about holiday travel amid immigration crackdown | |
| International students are taking a close look at their holiday travel plans amid increased concerns over President Trump's immigration crackdown, which has threatened the status of thousands since he took office. Foreign visitors are eyeing travel with fear after seeing at least one student deported over Thanksgiving break when visiting family and watching other reports of students who have been detained over the past year with no prior notification or criminal activity. Advocates say students and schools are struggling to find the right balance between concern and over caution amid the administration's general hostility and lack of transparency. The president has talked about wanting to limit international enrollment more broadly, added a social media component to the student visa vetting process, pulled thousands of visa registrations before a court ordered them restored and repeatedly targeted for deportation students who were involved in the pro-Palestinian movement on campuses. Trump has also launched broader immigration enforcement efforts across the country, just this week announcing new federal action in New Orleans and the Twin Cities. |
| Trump's attack on DEI may hurt college men, particularly White men | |
| Brown University, one of the most selective institutions in America, attracted nearly 50,000 applicants who vied for just 1,700 freshman seats last year. The university accepted nearly equal numbers of male and female prospects, though, like some other schools, it got nearly twice as many female applicants. That math meant it was easier for male students to get in -- 7 percent of male applicants were admitted, compared with 4.4 percent of female applicants, university data shows. The Trump administration's policies may soon put an end to that advantage enjoyed by men at some colleges, admissions and higher-education experts say. While much of the president's recent scrutiny of college admissions practices has focused on race, these experts say his ban on diversity, equity and inclusion is likely to hit another underrepresented group of applicants: men, and particularly White men -- the largest subset of male college applicants. "This drips with irony," said Ted Mitchell, president of the American Council on Education, or ACE, the nation's largest association of universities and colleges, who said he expects that colleges and universities will end any consideration of gender in admission. "The idea of males, including White males, being at the short end of the stick all of a sudden would be a truly ironic outcome." |
| House GOP Accuses Truman Scholarship of Liberal Bias as Dems Talk College Costs | |
| House Republicans held a hearing Wednesday broadcasting long-standing conservative allegations of a left-wing bias in the small, prestigious Truman Scholarship program. Witnesses called by the GOP said the winners disproportionately espouse causes such as promoting racial justice and fighting climate change -- and wind up working for Democrats and left-leaning organizations -- while few recipients profess interest in conservative aims. But rather than counter the allegations, Democrats and their invited witness largely called the proceedings a distraction from the issue of college unaffordability, which they accused the GOP of exacerbating. The Subcommittee on Higher Education and Workforce Development hearing reflected a trend in conservative criticism of higher ed: allegations of favoritism toward liberals and left-leaning thought within very exclusive programs, including certain Ivy League institutions. The Trump administration's sweeping research funding cuts for particular universities -- and the congressional grillings of university presidents during antisemitism hearings before Trump retook the White House -- have targeted institutions that only a fraction of Americans attend. |
| Trump has 'shaken the hell' out of the 80-year research pact between the government and universities. What now? | |
| For a substantial group of U.S. researchers, 2025 will be remembered as the year their path to a career in science was closed off, their dreams dashed. For others, it will go down as a chaotic game of red-light-green-light that left them constantly unsure of what work would be funded or halted, but that they managed to survive. For nearly everyone, the last 10 months have revealed that the research enterprise that catapulted the country to the technological fore was much more brittle than expected. Sure, the courts have stepped in to restore billions of dollars in terminated grant funding to colleges and universities. Yes, the National Institutes of Health, despite layoffs and seemingly endless hurdles, managed to spend its entire budget for the fiscal year. And Congress, in a rare rebuke to the president, has so far refused steep cuts to the NIH budget in 2026 as well as a White House plan to consolidate its 27 institutes. But in the larger scheme of things, the Trump administration has, with shocking speed, ripped up the longstanding social contract that existed between scientists and the federal government. Arguably the most insidious fallout is that many scientists who work at universities no longer feel they can count on the U.S. government as a reliable partner in the pursuit of research for the public good. |
| How SEC Universities Won the Enrollment Wars | |
| There's a drumbeat of bad news for many colleges in the headlines every day -- stiffer competition for students, faltering enrollments, budget holes, program cuts. Yet each fall for years now, proud pronouncements have rung out from flagship universities across the South: A new record freshman class has topped last year's record incoming class. Even as flagships elsewhere, such as the University of Nebraska at Lincoln and West Virginia University, faced flat or declining enrollments and weighed or enacted academic-program cuts, almost all of the 15 public institutions of the Southeastern Conference have steadily added undergraduate enrollment over the past decade, most by double-digit percentages. How did the South become the center of college-recruiting success? In a way, its success has been under construction for decades, built on its track record of teaching and research as well as a tradition of high-profile Division I athletics and high-spirited campus life. More recently, these institutions have benefited from new channels of media exposure and a strategy of more aggressively recruiting out-of-state students, in part to make up for flagging state support. And, some observers have argued, SEC flagships also might be beneficiaries of a shift in national politics. For some students, the thinking goes, sun, football, and a more conservative climate are potent attractions. |
SPORTS
| Men's Basketball: The Final Horn: State 85, Georgia Tech 73 | |
| Mississippi State jumped back into the win column with an 85-73 victory at Georgia Tech on Wednesday night during the ACC/SEC challenge. The Bulldogs seized momentum in the first half with an 11-3 run over a 4:48 timespan, claiming a 30-18 lead with 5:12 left in the period and holding on to a 37-28 advantage going into halftime. State continued its surge in the second half with an early 7-0 run to push the lead to 16, 44-28, at the 18:34 mark. The Yellow Jackets began to crawl back from their 16-point deficit, cutting the MSU lead down to six before Josh Hubbard nailed back-to-back triples to give State some breathing room before eventually regaining its 16-point lead at 68-52 with 7:20 to go. From there, the Bulldogs were able to consistently sustain their lead and leave Atlanta with the victory. The Dawgs travel to Tupelo, Miss., and face San Francisco on Sunday, Dec. 7 in the T Town Tipoff at Cadence Bank Arena. The game is set for a 3 p.m. start and will be aired on SEC Network. |
| Josh Hubbard scores 25 points to lead Mississippi State's 85-73 victory over Georgia Tech | |
| Josh Hubbard scored 25 points, nine in a key stretch of the second half, and Mississippi State defeated Georgia Tech 85-73 in the ACC/SEC Challenge on Wednesday night. The Bulldogs led 55-49 with 11 minutes remaining in the second half before Hubbard scored their next nine points on two 3-pointers and a three-point trip to the foul line. They led 66-51 with about nine minutes left. The Yellow Jackets did not get within single digits the rest of the way and Mississippi State's lead peaked at 17 points with about two minutes to go. Jayden Epps scored 14 points and Jamarion Davis-Fleming and Brandon Walker added 11 each for the Bulldogs (4-4). There were three ties and a couple of lead changes in the early going before Mississippi State took the lead for good on a dunk by Davis-Fleming, making it 15-13 7 1/2 minutes into the game. The Bulldogs did not allow consecutive baskets the remainder of the half, helping them go ahead by as many as 12 points. Mississippi State led 37-28 at halftime. |
| Mississippi State grabs needed road win at Georgia Tech, 85-73 | |
| Josh Hubbard scored a game-high 25 points and Jayden Epps added 14 to lead Mississippi State to an 85-73 win at Georgia Tech on Wednesday in the SEC/ACC Challenge. After a slow start, Mississippi State led for the majority of the night and improved to 4-4. Georgia Tech dropped to 5-4 on the young season. "I just left a bunch of young men that are just happy and joyous," head coach Chris Jans said afterwards. "It was more just them chatting with each other and I just took it all in. So happy for them and see that winning feeling going through the veins. We talked about this being our first true road opportunity. There's nothing better in this sport than going into someone else's barn and getting a win. We got it done." Hubbard was 8 of 14 from the field and was a perfect 7 of 7 at the line. The All-SEC junior guard had 21 of his 25 points in the second half. "It means a lot," said Hubbard, who also had five assists. "We were so focused on getting a road win and road wins are like gold bars. We wanted this one and just executed hard. My coaches told me to keep shooting and I got in a good rhythm." |
| Jeff Lebby, Bulldogs enjoy solid signing day 2025 | |
| Just a couple of days after Mississippi State sat close to 50th in the national recruiting rankings, the perception of Jeff Lebby's third signing class took a jump over the last few days. Lebby's class settled at 32nd nationally and 12th inside the SEC, jumping up a total of 15 spots in three days. While it's not a place that Lebby and the staff believe is the pinnacle, it showed the progress needed to continue the Bulldogs' climb back up. Most importantly, the staff felt that their evaluations have a chance to make the foundation stronger moving forward. "I think the early evaluation is a huge part of our success today. Being on some of these guys early, we trusted our eyes and we trusted the in-person evaluation. I think that is a huge factor on us having the day we've had," Lebby said. "A ton of credit to the personnel department, our recruiting department. It takes a lot of people to go pull this off. Where we are, the people we battle, and understanding we're fighting like heck to be the aggressor, not being reactionary in anything and still staying incredibly true to ourselves. Proud of the entire building for making it happen today." |
| Gulfport star will play his final high school game where he'll start college career | |
 | Cooper Crosby will get an early taste of his new home this week. Gulfport's workhorse running back put pen to paper Wednesday and signed his letter of intent to play at Mississippi State just days before he's slated to suit up for the 7A state championship game at Davis Wade Stadium. Crosby first received a scholarship offer from the Bulldogs on Oct. 7 and decommitted from Louisiana three days later. He made two official visits in November, the first to MSU and the second to Auburn, before announcing his commitment to MSU on the eve of Early Signing Day. "That's just the cherry on top," Crosby said of beginning his college career in the stadium he'll finish his high school career. "It's definitely special, and I can't wait." The three-star tailback has enjoyed his best season yet while helping guide Gulfport to its first state title appearance since 1982. Crosby will be going head-to-head Saturday with Tupelo running back and fellow MSU commit Jaeden Hill, the reigning state title game MVP and back-to-back 7A Mr. Football winner. |
| 'I love what we've done': Lebby celebrates drama-free early signing day | |
 | As Mississippi State head coach Jeff Lebby took the podium Wednesday, he had plenty to smile about. Early signing day offered some major twists and turns for the Bulldogs a year ago, most notably with Tyler Lockhart's late flip from Ole Miss to MSU. Lebby was able to laugh about it afterward, and again on Wednesday with no late holdouts to worry about flipping elsewhere. One year later, there was no such drama, and the Bulldogs had secured 27 signatures by noon. "We still wanted some balance. Ended up being four junior college guys, and for us, the high school piece of it is really important," Lebby said. "I think we added some great depth to the class. I love what we've done at multiple positions." The Bulldogs landed several reinforcements at skill positions and in the trenches, notably flipping two defensive prospects from other SEC programs in the days leading up to the early signing window. It gives the Bulldogs a clearer picture going forward into the transfer portal in January as they look to reshape the 2026 team around quarterback Kamario Taylor. "I talked about this early in the season," he continued. "I felt like we had opportunities to go finish the way we needed to. We were going to be incredibly aggressive where we needed to add some big-time players, and it's happened the way we wanted to." |
| Women's Basketball: Bulldogs To Host Pitt For ACC/SEC Challenge | |
| The Mississippi State Bulldogs (7-1) will welcome the Pitt Panthers to Humphrey Coliseum for the first time in program history on Thursday for the annual ACC/SEC Challenge. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. on SEC Network. Mississippi State won their third consecutive game when they took down the ULM Warhawks, 66-54 on Sunday. Pitt enters the ACC/SEC Challenge with a 6-4 record. Mikayla Johnson leads Pitt with 11.4 points per game. Georgia transfer Fatima Diakhate averages 11.1 points and 9.3 points per game on 67.1 percent shooting. She is the only Panther to start in all 10 games. Ten different players have earned a start for Pitt this season. Mississippi State owns the series over Pitt, 2-0. Both matchups were on neutral floors. The Bulldogs won the last matchup 88-86 in Cancun, Mexico. |
| Bulldogs host Pitt in primetime SEC/ACC Challenge matchup | |
| Mississippi State women's basketball is back in action at Humphrey Coliseum tonight for a matchup with Pittsburgh in the SEC/ACC Challenge. Head coach Sam Purcell's Bulldogs are 7-1 in his fourth year at the helm and rank 42nd in the NCAA's NET Rankings with their only loss being a Quad 1 road match at Texas Tech. The team has a chance to boost that ranking with a win against the Panthers, and Purcell is taking the opportunity to hype up the home test as much as possible. He challenged the fanbase to show up and sell out the lower bowl of The Hump for the nonconference matchup and promised a team that will fight for every ball in return. "Let's do our part, let's sell out the bottom bowl, and I'll promise you today that I'm doing my part to make sure we improve some things that my team needs to do as we continue to progress through this season," Purcell said. When speaking to members of the local media on Sunday and Tuesday, there was a noticeable shift in Purcell's tone. Normally upbeat, it was clear that the win over UL Monroe last weekend was not to the standard he has set for his group, and he said as much in front of the press. |
| The SEC is dominating the Big Ten in ratings -- despite on-field parity | |
 | On the field, the Big Ten has caught up to the SEC. In fact, it's winning: The past two national champions, the top two teams in the current College Football Playoff rankings, three of the top five. The football people are smiling. But the television partners are frowning. And the SEC and its one television partner are smiling. The SEC is routing the Big Ten in college football ratings. That was the case last year, when at least one SEC team played in four of the top six-rated games of the regular season, and 18 of the top 25. And it's grown this year: An SEC team has played in nine of the top 10, and 22 of the top 25 highest-rated games. The vast majority of those are SEC versus SEC games. The Big Ten, meanwhile, has just three of its conference games on that list, and its only two appearances in the top 10 came in games against SEC teams. There may be no better example of the SEC's (television) superiority than what happened on Oct. 11: The Big Ten had a top-10 game, then-No. 7 Indiana going to then-No. 2 Oregon. It was on CBS at 3:30 p.m., and it was a close game until Indiana pulled away in the final minutes for a 30-20 win. And yet the game still only drew 5.6 million viewers and was outdrawn by three SEC games that day: Texas-Oklahoma (8.7 million), Alabama-Missouri (7 million) and Georgia-Auburn (6.7 million). |
| House cancels vote on college sports NIL bill | |
 | House leaders canceled a vote Wednesday on a bill that would create a national framework for college athletes to receive compensation for their name, image and likeness, known as NIL deals. The measure had been teed up for a floor debate and vote Wednesday afternoon but apparently did not have enough votes to pass after a handful of Freedom Caucus members aired concerns. "The SCORE Act (college sports) is well-intended but falls short and is not ready for prime time," Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, posted Wednesday ahead of the scheduled floor debate. "Why is Congress even involved?" An aide familiar with discussions said opposition is steep enough that leadership likely won't attempt to bring it to the floor later this week, either. With a slim majority, House Republicans can only afford to lose a few GOP votes when Democrats oppose a bill. The bill from Rep. Gus Bilirakis, R-Fla., would codify college athletics rules changes and preempt conflicting state laws on the legal right of athletes to sign NIL deals. It would also give the NCAA and major sports conferences limited immunity from future lawsuits. Democrats largely oppose the bill, arguing that language that would ban college athletes from being employees of the universities they play for boxes athletes out of workforce benefits and unionization opportunities. |
| Congress pulls major college sports bill after bipartisan backlash: 'Not ready for prime time' | |
 | Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives pulled a bill scheduled for a final vote on Wednesday, Dec. 3 that would have allowed the NCAA and its newly-formed College Sports Commission to create and enforce national rules that have been under legal dispute in recent years. The SCORE Act (Student Compensation And Opportunity Through Rights and Endorsements) sought to provide more regulation and calm the chaotic environment created by the introduction of name, image and likeness (NIL) compensation, revenue sharing and the transfer portal to college sports. It passed a procedural vote on Tuesday, 210-209, but the legislation drew bipartisan backlash as a final vote neared. Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) and the Congressional Black Caucus were among the vocal critics, and issues with how the bill infringed on athletes' rights inspired competing legislation from House Democrats earlier this week. The move to pull the SCORE Act by House GOP leaders about two hours before it was originally slated for a final vote was seen as a sign it no longer had enough support to pass. |
| The World Cup Is Coming to America -- and It Has a Plan to Keep Trump Onside | |
| The plans for next summer's World Cup had been brewing for nearly a decade by the time Gianni Infantino, the president of soccer's world governing body, stepped into the Oval Office last month. It was one of his regular check-ins with President Trump ahead of the largest undertaking in the history of professional sports -- a monthlong, 48-team tournament, held across 16 cities in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico, with over 1.2 million fans expected to flood in from abroad. Even for FIFA, which has organized the World Cup since 1930, the logistics are staggering. So Infantino was visibly taken aback when Trump faced a bank of cameras and suggested stripping games from Boston over his displeasure with the city's Democratic mayor. "If somebody is doing a bad job and if I feel there's unsafe conditions," Trump said, "I would call Gianni, the head of FIFA, who's phenomenal, and I would say, 'Let's move it to another location.' And he would do that." FIFA has insisted that no venue changes are in the cards. But the mere suggestion of a White House-ordered switch was a powerful reminder that Trump's influence on the 2026 World Cup will be impossible to ignore. He will be ever present on World Cup matters through next summer, starting from Friday, when the president is expected to join Infantino at the Kennedy Center for the tournament draw. |
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