| Friday, July 26, 2024 |
| MSU administrator promoted to brigadier general in Mississippi National Guard | |
 | There are three institutions in Andrew Rendon's life that helped him get where he is today: his family, the Mississippi National Guard and Mississippi State University. The support of each was evident in the full auditorium of the Old Main Academic Center Thursday, as Rendon was promoted from colonel to brigadier general in the Mississippi National Guard. "I can't do this without them," Rendon said of his family after the ceremony. "They're the essence in which I've been able to be successful. ... I talk about standing on the shoulders of giants. Those are the giants – Mississippi State, the Guard and my family." Rendon, a Starkville native and MSU alum, is the commander of the 66th Troop Command of the Mississippi Army National Guard and the executive director for Veterans and Military Affairs at MSU. His military service began nearly three decades ago as an Army aviator. MSU President Mark Keenum delivered remarks Thursday, touching on both the university's history of supporting military-connected students and Rendon's role in providing that support. "We have a great, wonderful partnership with the Mississippi National Guard, and I know that partnership will get even stronger with the promotion of General Rendon," Keenum said during the ceremony. "Every one of you knows he is an outstanding human being, individual (and) leader. ... He sets out to achieve something, it's going to be done in an excellent manner." |
| MSU staff member gets big promotion in Mississippi National Guard | |
 | A Mississippi State University staff member got a big promotion on his other job. The university's Director for Veterans and Military Affairs was promoted from Colonel to Brigadier General in the Mississippi National Guard at a special ceremony at the Old Main Academic Center. Aside from his civilian role at MSU, Rendon also serves as the commander of the 66th Troop Command. Rendon began his nearly 30-year military career in the Army where he served nine years before moving to the Mississippi National Guard. Major General Janson Boyles, Adjutant General of Mississippi, presented Rendon with his Brigadier's star. As Director for Veterans and Military Affairs at MSU, Rendon is proud of and grateful for the administration's support for active duty military and veteran students and staff. "We are one of the most military-friendly universities in the country, and so they support the military-connected student, faculty, and staff. And, I'm just one of those guys that they support. We do that across the board," said Rendon. |
| Mississippi State shark scientist's work featured in National Geographic documentary | |
 | Mississippi State marine biologist Marcus Drymon and his research work has been featured on a National Geographic documentary airing on Disney+. Drymon is stationed at MSU's Coastal Research and Extension Center in Biloxi. In late 2022, the shark scientist's work caught the attention of a production company who tapped him for the documentary. "Sharks are fascinating," Drymon said. "I've been fortunate to work on sharks at a variety of institutions, but nowhere like Mississippi State University. At MSU, I receive tremendous support from leadership which creates an exceptional working environment that cultivates success." Shark Beach with Anthony Mackie, which was released in July, takes place on Lake Pontchartrain where Mackie and Drymon fish for bull sharks. My particular interest in this documentary was shark depredation, a human-wildlife conflict that's on the mind of anglers across the Gulf of Mexico," continued Drymon, detailing the phenomenon when sharks eat all or part of a hooked fish before the angler can reel in their catch. "If there's one thing I'd like to be highlighted from this documentary, it's the fact that depredation is complicated." |
| MSU Tackles Climate Change Threats to Soybean Production Through Collaborative $6M NSF Grant | |
| Mississippi State University scientists are collaborating on a $6 million National Science Foundation research project to ensure sustainable soybean yields despite rising temperatures and increasing drought. Climate change significantly threatens agriculture, with extreme heat and drought potentially reducing soybean yields by up to 40% in the next 25 years. The interdisciplinary Program of Advancing Climate Extreme Resilience in Soybeans, or iPACERS, also includes Clemson University, the University of Alabama at Birmingham and Louisiana State University Agricultural Center and aims to build soybean resilience against these challenges. Funded by an Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research, or EPSCoR, grant from the NSF, the team will explore all aspects of the soybean from the single cell to the whole plant and its surrounding microbial communities and soil. Using artificial intelligence, the team will integrate data to identify novel RNA markers and beneficial microbes, which then will be evaluated for their roles in developing a more resilient soybean variety. Nuwan Wijewardane, assistant professor in MSU's Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, leads the MSU team, focusing on the above-ground aspects of the plant by recording environmental conditions and capturing plant phenotypes via unmanned aerial and ground vehicles. |
| NSF Investing $67M to Establish Center to Mitigate Foreign Threats to US Research | |
| The National Science Foundation is investing a total of $67 million over five years to establish the Safeguarding the Entire Community of the U.S. Research Ecosystem, or SECURE, Center, which will work as an information clearinghouse to enable the identification and mitigation of foreign threats to the U.S. research enterprise. Of the total investment, $50 million will go to University of Washington, which will lead the SECURE Center, and $17 million to Texas A&M University, one of nine other institutions of higher education that will support the effort, the NSF said Wednesday. The SECURE Center will serve as a hub to five regional centers: SECURE Northeast, which will be managed by Northeastern University; SECURE Southeast, which will be managed by Emory University; SECURE Midwest, to be managed by the University of Missouri; SECURE Southwest, to be managed by The University of Texas at San Antonio and Texas A&M University; and SECURE West, to be managed by University of Washington. Meanwhile, Mississippi State University, the University of Michigan and Stanford University's Hoover Institution will provide expertise in several subjects, including sensitive research, threat types and geopolitical analysis. |
| Veterinarian Knuth puts her skills to work at home | |
 | Veterinarians are in short supply throughout Mississippi, with the U.S. Department of Agriculture showing a shortage of veterinary services in all 82 counties. Lauderdale County native Kaitlyn Knuth, however, is working to make sure Meridian's pets don't miss out on needed care. After graduating in May from Mississippi State University's School of Veterinary Medicine, she returned to her hometown to work with animals in the community. "Part of me really wanted to come back and serve the community that helped raise me and provides so much for me, especially when I was in school," she said. "So it feels good to be back home." Knuth joined veterinarian Alison Moore at Meridian Animal Care Center and has gone straight to work seeing patients. The partnership, however, started long before college, Knuth said, when Moore allowed her to job shadow and later hired her to work as a veterinary assistant. "Now that I'm back, it feels like a full circle moment because then I get to help other students coming in wanting to go to vet school and teach them the same way that she taught me," Knuth added. |
| First-timers guide to the Neshoba County Fair | |
| If you're headed to the Neshoba County Fair in Choctaw, Mississippi, for the first time, you should know that it will be an experience you'll never forget. Known as "Mississippi's Giant House Party," the Neshoba County Fair is the nation's only remaining campground fair, and it draws in people from all over the world. For 135 years, this fair has brought thousands to this otherwise humble campground, celebrating the uniqueness of the Magnolia States, from the fair's cabins to the racetrack. Visiting the Neshoba State Fair is like getting a masterclass in hospitality and Mississippi culture. Wear loose clothing that you don't mind getting dirty. A lot of the Neshoba County Fair is on dirt or gravel; when it rains it's muddy and if it doesn't, it's dusty. Be prepared for either! Debit card usage isn't consistent across the Neshoba County Fairgrounds. While some vendors and ticket counters can take them, others can't. Even the card-taking vendors might lose network connectivity from time to time, and the fairgrounds are remote. You're better off carrying enough cash to get your meals, snacks, tickets, and anything you might find, especially for the arts and crafts fair. Crowds will vary throughout the day, but Founders Square is often packed with events during the day. |
| Sipcam Agro to create 26 new jobs in Wayne County with $3.6 million investment | |
| A major agriculture product manufacturer is setting up shop in southeast Mississippi. Sipcam Agro USA has announced plans to update a recently acquired facility in Wayne County with a $3.6 million corporate investment. The project is anticipated to create 26 new jobs. Headquartered in Durham, North Carolina, Sipcam Agro is owned by Italy-based Sipcam Oxon Group. The company specializes in agricultural fungicides, herbicides, and other specialized solutions that help protect American crops. Sipcam Agro's Mississippi facility will be renovated for new technology and processes. In addition to the new jobs that will be created, the project will retain 88 workers employed by the facility's previous ownership. "Mississippi's strong agricultural roots make our state an ideal location for Sipcam Agro's new operations. This investment in Wayne County is not only creating dozens of new jobs, it also is maintaining a valued local industry and the livelihoods of 88 existing workers," Governor Tate Reeves said. The Mississippi Development Authority is providing assistance through the state's flexible tax incentive program. AccelerateMS, Cooperative Energy, and Wayne County are also assisting with the project. |
| $100 million emissions reduction project announced in Yazoo City | |
| A carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) project is moving forward in Yazoo City. That was the word Thursday from CF Industries Holdings, Inc., the world's largest producer of ammonia. The company announced that the project at its Delta facility, its second major decarbonization project, is expected to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2) emitted to the atmosphere from the facility by up to 500,000 metric tons annually. As part of the project, the CF Industrial Holdings signed a definitive commercial agreement with ExxonMobil for the transport and sequestration in permanent geologic storage of the CO2, with sequestration expected to start in 2028. "We are pleased to advance another significant decarbonization project that will keep CF Industries at the forefront of low-carbon ammonia production while also helping us achieve our 2030 emissions intensity reduction goal," said Tony Will, President and CEO of CF Industries Holdings said in a statement. "This decarbonization project also will increase the availability of nitrogen products with a lower-carbon intensity for customers focused on reducing the carbon footprint of their businesses." According to the company, most of the ammonia produced at the Yazoo City Complex is upgraded into nitrogen fertilizers such as urea ammonium nitrate (UAN) solutions and ammonium nitrate (AN), or upgraded into diesel exhaust fluid, which is used to reduce NOx emissions from diesel trucks. |
| Inside South Mississippi's cutthroat, complicated and lucrative medical cannabis industry | |
 | Less than two years after the legalization of medical cannabis, South Mississippi has developed into the state's most competitive market. Medical cannabis business owners from around the Coast say the industry's regional market has more or less reached capacity. Expansion opportunities are limited by conditions unique to the industry and government policies that make owning and operating these types of businesses a headache. Data from the Mississippi Medical Cannabis Program, an offshoot of the state's Department of Health and Department of Revenue, shows the Coast has the state's highest concentration of dispensaries, with 60 stretching up to Hattiesburg. The next closest region in the state, the greater Jackson area, hosts 45 dispensaries. Medical cannabis business owners say the Coast's market is cutthroat, citing partly from an oversaturation of businesses in the region, and a limited number of customers. Of Mississippi's 2.9 million residents, only around 50,000 have a medical cannabis patient card. Only those with a card can legally purchase medical cannabis products. Business owners capable of expansion suggest it's ill-advised at this point, given the market's current state. They say if business isn't booming but hitting a ceiling at this stage, it's probably an early sign of failure. Other less-profitable medical cannabis businesses are being pushed out by how competitive the local market is. Some business owners suspect the next few months will see those just scraping by shutting their doors for good. |
| Insurance Commissioner Chaney talks homeowner insurance rate increases | |
| Many homeowners in Mississippi have seen increases in their insurance rates recently, but the reasons are not as simple as some may assume. Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney (R) said the increases are mostly due to inflation and the rising cost to replace a home if substantial damage occurs. However, this year his office did approve a roughly 16 percent increase for those that operate under his umbrella, which includes admitted companies. Chaney explained that admitted companies are controlled to a limited degree by the Mississippi Insurance Department, while non-admitted and surplus line companies can set any rate they wish. He added that the number of non-admitted companies writing policies for businesses in Mississippi increased after Hurricane Katrina in 2005. What may surprise most Mississippi residents it that the highest rate increases are being seen in areas that are not along the Gulf Coast. "The largest increases are occurring above the lower six counties and most of them are occurring in the areas where you have hail damage by zones," Chaney described. That area includes the areas north of Hattiesburg and across central Mississippi through Jackson and up to Madison over to Meridian, among other areas. |
| Consumers just keep spending, fueling GDP growth | |
| Gross Domestic Product data for the second quarter came out on Thursday. Economists expected a moderate slowdown in growth, given inflation and interest rates. Instead, the reading shows a robust economy. The original forecast was something around 2%, give or take a few tenths of a percent. What we got instead was 2.8%. That's double the GDP growth in the first quarter of the year. The big categories? Vehicles, recreational goods and services and furniture, along with some more essential ones like health care and housing. And yes, GDP is impacted by business investments and trade. But what really drives GDP, especially the acceleration this month, is consumers. Consumers that are, according to the Federal Reserve, struggling to pay off their credit cards. Consumers that are, according to stores like Target and Walmart, focusing more on essentials. And consumers that are, according to both formal surveys and less formal dinner table talk, downright grumpy. Yet, they keep spending. When you look at this GDP report from different distances, you see different things. Take the broad 50,000-foot view and the economic picture -- and how consumers live in it -- looks blurry. |
| U.S. automakers had a punishing week -- with a silver lining for shoppers | |
 | Wall Street seems skeptical that major U.S. automakers are steering in the right direction. The Detroit 3 and Tesla all reported earnings this week. Tesla's profits were down sharply from last year -- again. Stellantis saw profits crater, too. Ford missed expectations. And General Motors? Well, GM had a great quarter -- but investors still dinged the Detroit automaker with a drop in share prices. So what's going on? There are a lot of factors. Some are specific to individual companies: Tesla CEO Elon Musk's polarizing comments, Stellantis' overcrowded dealer lots, GM's struggles in China and Ford's wince-inducing warranty costs. But some trends are industry wide. Car buyers have more leverage than they did a year or two ago, when supply was so tight that people would regularly pay over sticker price just to bring a car home. Now, prices are down from last year and incentives (discounts and deals to entice shoppers) are back. That's good news for car shoppers, but not for corporations. Then there's the question of electric vehicles. After increasing sharply, electric vehicle sales are now rising more gradually. Making the leap from early adopters to the mainstream shopper is always tricky. Buyers also have concerns about charging infrastructure, and EVs have also become increasingly politicized in a polarizing election year. |
| Wood pellets boomed in the US South. Climate activists want Biden to stop boosting industry growth | |
 | This southern Mississippi town's expansive wood pellet plant was so close to Shelia Mae Dobbins' home that she sometimes heard company loudspeakers. She says industrial residues coated her truck and she no longer enjoys spending time in the air outdoors. Dobbins feels her life -- and health -- were better before 2016, when Drax opened a facility able to compress 450,000 tons of wood chips annually in the majority Black town of Gloster, Mississippi. To her, it's no coincidence federal regulators find residents are exposed to unwanted air particles and they experience asthma more than most of the country. Her asthma and diabetes were once under control, but since a 2017 diagnosis of heart and lung disease, Dobbins has frequently lived at the end of a breathing tube connected to an oxygen cannister. "Something is going on. And it's all around the plant," said the 59-year-old widow who raised two children here. "Nobody asked us could they bring that plant there." Wood pellet production skyrocketed across the U.S. South to feed the European Union's push this past decade for renewable energy to replace fossil fuels such as coal. It is an increasingly popular form of biomass -- renewable organic material that stores solar energy. But many residents near plants -- often African Americans in poor, rural swaths -- find the process left their air dustier and people sicker. As producers expand west, environmentalists want the government to stop incentivizing what they call a misguided attempt to curb carbon emissions that pollute communities of color while presently warming the atmosphere. |
| Hyde-Smith for Secretary of Agriculture? | |
| Former President Donald Trump is likely to draw from Republican allies currently serving in Congress to fill Cabinet positions should he win back the White House in November. Mississippi's junior U.S. Senator is said to be among those in consideration. According to sources in attendance at the recent Republican National Convention, Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith's name is being floated as a possible Trump pick for Secretary of Agriculture. She has been a strong supporter of the former President and is said to have a good relationship with Trump. "Given her background, she would make a great Secretary of Agriculture and it would be good to have a Mississippian in that position," a source within the Republican Party told Magnolia Tribune on the condition of anonymity. "President Trump likes her a lot and if Cindy wants it, he would surely entertain the idea." The former President has actively campaigned for and endorsed Hyde-Smith in her past elections. Whether or not Hyde-Smith would take the appointment if asked is unknown. Should Republicans win the majority in the Senate come November, Hyde-Smith would be in line for key committee assignments, adding to her influence in the chamber. But as sources noted, "Trump is hard to turn down." Adding to the political math is the fact the Hyde-Smith is up for re-election in 2026. Hyde-Smith, 65, comes from a fifth-generation farming family that raises beef cattle and are partners in a local stockyard auction market. She served as Mississippi's Agriculture and Commerce Commissioner for nearly two terms before being appointed by former Governor Phil Bryant (R) to fill the U.S. Senate seat held by former Senator Thad Cochran who stepped down in 2018. |
| 'We could possibly turn Mississippi blue': Black women in Mississippi rally around Kamala Harris | |
 | With just over 100 days until the 2024 Presidential Election, Kamala Harris took over President Joe Biden's place as the expected Democratic candidate after the sitting President dropped out of the race Sunday, July 21. If elected, Harris would not only become the first woman to serve as United States President, but also the first Black woman and Southeast Asian woman in the role. Black women throughout Mississippi have rallied around Harris since her Sunday announcement to run. Both political figures and community members feel Harris would much better represent their rights over Republican Candidate and former president Donald Trump. Some Democrats hope Harris is the key in securing Black voters and women voters, two groups that showed dwindling support for Biden's campaign during its final weeks. On Sunday evening, 44,000 Black women throughout the nation joined a Zoom call hosted by the collective "Win With Black Women." Hattiesburg City Council Member Deborah Delgado was one of the women on that Zoom call. Delgado said she supports Harris for one simple reason: she's qualified. "(Harris) has a record of supporting issues that are of concern to me as a Black woman and as an elected official," Delgado said. "A lot of times, government makes decisions or puts policies in place that are not always in the best interest of the people that we're supposed to represent. I see her as somebody different." |
| Carville: Democrats' 'giddy elation' over Harris won't be 'helpful much longer' | |
 | Democratic strategist James Carville warned that Democrats' "giddy election" over Vice President Harris's presidential campaign won't be "helpful much longer" as Republicans seek to regain lost ground after President Biden's withdrawal from the race. "They're coming at us and they're gonna keep coming," Carville said during an interview with MSNBC's Ari Melber of the GOP attacks. "And this kind of giddy election is not going to be very helpful much longer 'cause that's now what we're gonna be faced with." Carville said the Biden-Harris change caught Republicans off guard and warned that the GOP will be on the offensive for the duration of the election cycle. "Get ready, they're coming," he said, highlighted by Mediaite. "I understand that everybody should feel good and liberated and everything else, but if we don't win the election, we haven't done anything." The Harris campaign hit the ground running this week, racking up donations and followers online. ormer President Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama on Friday endorsed Harris in a highly anticipated announcement. "All I'm doing is saying, watch out people. Don't get too far out there," Carville said on MSNBC. "If we don't win this, all this good feeling is gonna evaporate and gonna be all for naught." |
| Trump struggles to find line of attack against Harris: 'They are literally grasping at straws' | |
 | As Republicans rev up their anti-Kamala Harris campaign, they're having a hard time finding a consistent line of attack. In recent days, Republicans have slammed the vice president for everything from her handling of immigration and her past as a prosecutor to her "terrible," "horrible" and "mean" demeanor. On Wednesday, Donald Trump called Harris a "radical, left lunatic," then branded her "nasty" in a Fox News interview the following day -- an echo of insults Trump leveled against Hillary Clinton in 2016. Trump's allies, meanwhile, have argued she is actively engaged in a conspiracy to hide Biden's apparent decline or that she's just another Biden altogether. Some have engaged in explicitly racist and sexist attacks, calling her a "DEI hire" or bashing her for not having biological children. Others say she laughs too much. More criticized her for endorsing consumer policies such as bans on plastic straws and eating red meat. And none of her rivals seem willing to correctly pronounce her name. "They are literally grasping at straws," said Michael Brodkorb, a former deputy chair of the Minnesota Republican Party. "Republicans desperately wanted to run against Joe Biden. ... The introduction of Harris into the race, I think, has upended their attacks and their strategies." The breadth and lack of cohesion in the Republican assault on Harris reflects the newness of her candidacy -- but also the difficulty GOPers are having adjusting to a contender who cuts a different profile than the 81-year-old, white, male incumbent they'd been planning a run against for years. |
| JD Vance Went to Iraq a Believer in Overseas Wars and Came Home a Skeptic | |
 | When then-Vice President Dick Cheney flew to an air base in western Iraq in late 2005, one of the Marines eagerly waiting to see him was Cpl. James D. Hamel, a 21-year-old from Ohio who nearly two decades later is the Republican nominee for Cheney's old job. Hamel would change his name to JD Vance, attend Yale Law School and win a Senate seat from Ohio before joining Republican nominee Donald Trump's ticket. But a defining experience of his life was serving as a Marine in Iraq, he says, leaving him disillusioned about the use of American power abroad -- and about the politicians who launched the bloody war. His path from Iraq to the Republican nomination underscores the shift in parts of the party away from use of the military to fight terror groups and stand up democracies overseas, an approach that Vance says put the burden on ordinary Americans, instead of "elites" who ordered the wars. For Vance, the first post 9/11 veteran -- and the first Marine -- on a major party ticket, the campaign could shape up as a test of whether his combat tour in one of America's most divisive wars still has political resonance. His deployment coincided with the approval of Iraq's new constitution and its first parliamentary elections since the overthrow of Saddam Hussein -- a U.S.-orchestrated display of democracy that Vance says he came to view as a mistake. What followed was some of the worst violence of the postwar period. |
| Major funders bet big on rural America and 'everyday democracy' | |
| Someone may need to tell Carlton Turner that he's working to save democracy. Turner is co-director of the Mississippi Center for Cultural Production in the town of Utica, population 600, where his family has lived for eight generations. The organization, better known as Sipp Culture, is helping breathe life into a region that's seen schools, grocery stores, and factories shutter or leave. A project in the works: transformation of one of Utica's oldest buildings into a cultural center and commercial kitchen. While that may seem like traditional community development, a new philanthropic venture sees Turner as key to grand ambitions to shore up democracy. In June, the Trust for Civic Life named Sipp Culture one of 20 inaugural grantees in its bid to reinvigorate rural, often high-poverty towns, regions, and tribal areas. A collaborative of 15 grantmakers -- most of them high-profile national funders -- the trust sees small, local groups as instruments of change -- modern versions of the organizations that scholars from Alexis de Tocqueville to Robert Putnam have singled out as a distinguishing feature of American democracy. The trust announced $8 million in funding, the first installment of what it says will be investments of $50 million over five years. Grantees exemplify what the trust calls "everyday democracy" as they bring people together to address often-fundamental concerns, whether that's a fading industry, a dilapidated park, or access to quality health care. |
| Chinese and Russian jets fly near Alaska, perturbing senators | |
 | Alaska lawmakers voiced concerns after the U.S. military announced it had intercepted Russian and Chinese fighter jets roughly 200 miles off the coast of Alaska on Wednesday. The activity was "not seen as a threat," North American Aerospace Defense Command (better known as NORAD) said in a statement, promising to "monitor competitor activity near North America and meet presence with presence." However, the news prompted Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska., a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, to call for more military resources in the area. "As I have been warning our Pentagon leaders for years, these kinds of joint Russia and China incursions on the sea and in the air near Alaska will continue," Sullivan said in a statement. "For that reason, the United States needs to continue to build up our military forces and the infrastructure that goes with it in Alaska to protect our nation's vital interests in the Arctic and the INDOPACOM theater," he said, referring to U.S. Indo-Pacific Command. Wednesday's incursion, which took place outside U.S. sovereign airspace, marked the first time Russia and China have teamed up to send a joint bomber task force into the Alaska Air Defense Identification Zone. The ADIZ is just outside sovereign airspace and, according to NORAD, is "a defined stretch of international airspace that requires the ready identification of all aircraft in the interest of national security." |
| Judge denies motion to seal case against man accused of killing Ole Miss student Jay Lee | |
 | A circuit court judge has denied the prosecutors and defense attorneys' motion to seal court documents in the case against Sheldon "Timothy" Herrington Jr., who was indicted on a capital murder charge for the death of Jimmie "Jay" Lee. Lafayette County District Attorney Ben Creekmore and Herrington's defense attorney Kevin Horan filed a joint motion on July 15 for the case to be sealed due to pretrial publicity stating that sealing the case file is the "only measure that would protect the defendant from substantial probably fair trial prejudice." The filing states that the only way Herrington would secure the right to a fair trial would be if a judge agrees to seal pretrial fillings of docket entries, motions, exhibits, subpoenas and notices. On Thursday, Lafayette County Circuit Court Judge Kelly Luther partially disagreed with the attorneys' request. Luther denied the motion to seal the case in its entirety, but stated inside the Lafayette County Circuit Courthouse courtroom that he would make a ruling on "any particular items" attorneys believed would prevent a fair trial. Luther said he will rule on an "item-by-item basis" for any future filings that would "adversely affect" the case. |
| JSU first HBCU and Mississippi school to receive innovation prize | |
| Jackson State University became the first HBCU and the first institution in Mississippi to receive the prestigious Founders Award from the National Academy of Inventors. The Academy announced award recipients on July 17 for multiple categories including the Founders Award, which honors institutions that contribute to NAI's success and impact while demonstrating a commitment to innovation. "This recognition further underscores our dedication to academic excellence, economic development, and societal progress. It is a significant milestone not just for JSU, but for all Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and the state of Mississippi," President Marcus L. Thompson said in a July 22 press release. JSU became a charter member of the National Academy of Inventors in 2011. The academy inducted multiple professors starting in 2012 with Ernest Izevbigie, who invented Veronica "amygdalina," a Nigerian herbal shrub formula. Izevbigie and JSU teamed up to found the company EduBotanics, marketing dietary supplements to mitigate the side effects of chemotherapy and radiation. In 2017, Kamal Ali helped invent the Hardware in Loop Simulator for autopilots, earning Academy membership. And in 2019, Danuta Leszczynska was inducted for inventing a technology to eliminate infection in patients whose artificial implants have started chipping. |
| It Is Now Easier to Pass AP Tests | |
| More students are getting high scores on Advanced Placement tests, long seen as a gateway to elite college admissions as well as a way to earn college credit during high school. Changes by the tests' maker in recent years have shifted scores upward. That has led to hundreds of thousands of additional students getting what's considered a passing score -- 3 or above on the 1-to-5 scale -- on exams in popular courses including AP U.S. History and AP U.S. Government. The nonprofit behind the tests, College Board, says it updated the scoring by replacing its panel of experts with a large-scale data analysis to better reflect the skills students learn in the courses. Some skeptical teachers, test-prep companies and college administrators see the recent changes as another form of grade inflation, and a way to boost the organization's business by making AP courses seem more attractive. "It is hard to argue with the premise of AP, that students who are talented and academically accomplished can get a head start on college," said Jon Boeckenstedt, the vice provost of enrollment at Oregon State University. "But I think it's a business move." The number of students cheering their higher AP scores could rise again next year. The College Board said it is still recalibrating several other subjects, including its most popular course, AP English Language, which attracts more than half a million test takers. |
| Arizona State U. Takes to YouTube to Offer a Low-Risk Taste of College | |
 | Many students who might want to go to college face barriers. They don't know how to apply. They're not sure how much it will cost. They're afraid of taking on debt. Arizona State University hopes its new partnership with YouTube and an edutainment-production company called Complexly will encourage those students to give college a try. They can go on YouTube and try out college courses through Study Hall, a channel that hosts free educational videos produced by ASU and Complexly. A student who pays $25 for a companion ASU course unlocks a Google Classroom with readings, textbooks, peer discussions, and access to ASU instructors. After the final exam, if they're satisfied with their grade, students can pay $400 for transferable college credit. Study Hall's channel has had at least 6.2 million views and has 100,000 subscribers. According to Wayne Anderson, senior director of EdPlus at ASU, the program has nearly 10,000 students who have signed up for a Study Hall course. The extent to which it offers a viable path toward college is in the eye of the beholder, however. |
| Harris Embraces Teachers' Unions. Republicans Sense an Opening. | |
 | In a speech to an ecstatic crowd of union teachers on Thursday in Houston, Vice President Kamala Harris previewed the education issues that she wants to focus on in her abbreviated campaign for the White House: student loan forgiveness, protecting schools from gun violence and resisting Republican attempts to restrict curriculums. "While you teach students about our nation's past, these extremists attack the freedom to learn and acknowledge our nation's true and full history," she said to applause and cheers. "Including book bans. Book bans in this year of our Lord 2024!" But Ms. Harris's speech to members of the American Federation of Teachers also ignored several crucial education issues that could put her on shakier political ground -- and that Republicans are already seeking to tie her to. There was no mention of the long-term negative effects of pandemic-era school closures, which local teachers' unions pushed to extend. She did not address whether families should have greater access to charter schools, private-school vouchers or public funds for home-schooling -- all options that the unions argue reduce funds for traditional public schools. Nor did Ms. Harris mention debates over antisemitism and free speech on college campuses, a topic that consumed Washington this spring, as Republicans brought college presidents and school district leaders from politically liberal regions to testify before Congress about their approach to student unrest related to the Israel-Hamas war. |
| GOP attorneys general allege Education secretary violated Hatch Act | |
| The GOP attorneys general of Montana and Kansas filed a formal complaint on Thursday against Education Secretary Miguel Cardona, accusing him of violating the Hatch Act with anti-Republican statements. Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen and Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach are accusing Cardona of using government resources for political activities and requesting the U.S. Office of Special Counsel (OSC) remove him from his position. The attorneys general say the Hatch Act was violated twice by the Education secretary, first in a letter to student loan borrowers on July 15. "Let me be clear: President Biden and I are determined to lower costs for student loan borrowers, to make repaying student debt affordable and realistic, and to build on our separate efforts that have already provided relief to 4.75 million Americans -- no matter how many times Republican elected officials try to stop us," Cardona wrote. The second time was on July 18 when a Department of Education spokesperson said, "And, we won't stop fighting against Republican elected officials' efforts to raise costs on millions of their own constituents' student loan payments." The two state officials say that statement was used in an attempt to sway the presidential election. |
SPORTS
| Lopez Ramirez ranked No. 1 in the world by WAGR | |
| Mississippi State women's golf star Julia Lopez Ramirez was named the top amateur golfer in the world by World Amateur Golf Rankings, her first stay at the top of the rankings, and the first for any Bulldog. Lopez Ramirez has been a highly regarded golfer for several years now, and ranked inside the top three in the WAGR for much of her junior year, which saw her defeat the previous world no. 1, Ingrid Lindblad from LSU. As a junior, Lopez Ramirez played a key role in seeing the Bulldogs reach a third straight NCAA Championship and win the program's first-ever Southeastern Conference team championship in a title match against Lindblad and LSU. Lopez Ramirez went 2-0-1 in match play and surpassed Ally Ewing for the most par or better rounds at the SEC Championship in program history. Among several individual accolades from her time at MSU, Lopez Ramirez was named 2023 and 2024 SEC Golfer of the Year, a three-time First Team All-SEC team member, earning back-to-back SEC individual championships and back-to-back WGCA All-American First Team accolades. She was also named to the ANNIKA Award watchlist, an honor given annually to the best women's college golfer in America. |
| Ally Ewing secures spot on fourth Solheim Cup team | |
| With her tie for tenth at the Amundi Evian Championship in France two weeks ago, Ally Ewing secured her place on the Team USA roster for September's Solheim Cup. Ewing became the third American to cement their roster spot behind Nelly Korda and Lilia Vu. The 2024 event will be the fourth-straight appearance for Ewing at the event; she played on Team USA in 2019, 2021, 2023. Ewing has posted five-straight top-10 finishes, with three of those events being majors. She hasn't missed a cut this season and has six total top-10s. The qualifying period for this year's Solheim Cup began at the beginning of the 2023 season. Ewing had five top-10s in 2023. Stacy Lewis is the captain for the US team. She was captain in 2023 and selected Ewing to last year's team using a captain's pick. "I'm really excited for Ally, to have her qualified again this year. She is a great leadership voice to have in the team room, and she's just a great personality to have around," Lewis said. "The level of golf she's been playing in the last month or so might be the best among the American players – top-10 finishes in her last five starts, with three of those starts being majors.. She's just been playing great golf all year, making every cut this season. We're definitely excited to have her back on the team and look forward to her having a great Solheim Cup." Ewing, who starred at Mississippi State from 2011-15, was a three-time All-American for the Bulldogs and still holds many of the team's individual records. |
| Scouting every game on Mississippi State football's 2024 schedule | |
| As Mississippi State moves into a new era under head coach Jeff Lebby, the Southeastern Conference schedule makers did not make life easy on the Bulldogs. Coming off a 5-7 season and its first winter without a bowl game since 2009, MSU is breaking in a new offensive system with at least seven transfer portal additions likely to start, including former Baylor quarterback Blake Shapen. The defense lost several talented players to the NFL and is a work in progress at all three levels, and they will have to grow up fast against a schedule that includes four opponents ranked in the top 10, three of them on the road. |
| Jerry Jones expects Dak Prescott to be with Cowboys beyond 2024 season | |
| Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said Thursday that he does not expect this to be the final season for quarterback Dak Prescott. But he might've mangled his response when addressing the topic. "Just to be very specific. I do not think this will be his last year with the Cowboys, at all," Jones told reporters. "Am I being (a) psychotic relative to my mirror? No, no. It's pretty clear, I think. I want to say if it hasn't been clear -- of how much we appreciate what Dak Prescott has meant to this team in a positive way. The players do play better when he's out there. He does make his teammates play at a higher level there's no question about it. So I'm right there in line with his best fan." One reporter speculated that the Cowboys owner meant psychic. Jane Slater, who covers the Cowboys for NFL Network, reported that Jones then said "In my life I've had a lot of things I wanted that I couldn't get because I couldn't afford it." Since Jones is a billionaire, he probably can see into the Cowboys financial future when it comes to re-signing Prescott. Currently, Jones is juggling how to deal with three stars of his team. |
| Get ready for hunting season: Jackson metro to have two outdoor shows this weekend | |
| If you're into the outdoors, you have a big weekend ahead. Not one, but two outdoor shows are scheduled to take place in the metro area this weekend and will feature the latest in hunting, fishing and agriculture equipment. Each has more than 100 vendors and lots of things to choose from to gear up for hunting season. After all, it's almost here. Alligator season is only weeks away followed by dove season, early waterfowl opportunities in September, archery and small game in October and then gun season for deer in November. And no matter what you hunt, the season will probably be here before you know it and this weekend is a great time to get ahead of the game. The Mississippi Wildlife Extravaganza will be held in Pearl and Ashlee Ellis-Smith, CEO of conservation organization Mississippi Wildlife Federation which hosts the event, said it's going to be the best in a decade. "People who have gone in the past I think will be very pleased because this show will harken back to the days of old," Ellis-Smith said. "We have the best vendors we've had in 10 years." The Mississippi Ag and Outdoor Expo is presented by Jack Fisher of the Louisiana-based Great Southern Expos, and Fisher said this year's event will be bigger than in past years. "This year we not only have the Trade Mart full, we have the Coliseum," Fisher said. "With that space we have room for campers, more ATVs than we've had before and more entertainment for adults and kids." As an added feature, Fisher said Tower Loans will be onsite offering interest-free financing for up to two years for those bigger purchases. |
| Texas Spent $2.3 Million on SEC Entry Fest With Pop Star Pitbull | |
| The University of Texas spent $2.3 million on an on-campus party to celebrate its entrance into the SEC, including a performance fee for musical artist Pitbull. Those costs include $889,000 paid directly by the school's athletics department, plus another $339,000 for advertising, according to a budget document obtained by Sportico via an open records request. The other $1.07 million was paid by the Longhorns "via Learfield," the school's multimedia rights partner. The Learfield tranche includes $610,000 paid in talent fees for Pitbull and another artist, according to the document. The Longhorns held their all-day "SEC Celebration" on June 30, on the eve of the school's formal entry into its new league. Starting at 1 p.m. CT, the event included live music, a parade, interactive games, photo opportunities with the Longhorns mascot Bevo and autograph sessions with Longhorns coaches. The SEC Network broadcast the event live for a few hours, and speakers included SEC commissioner Greg Sankey and athletic director Chris Del Conte. Pitbull took the stage around 9 p.m. CT following a fireworks show from the UT tower. It was also a commercial opportunity---the SEC Celebration was the first place Texas fans could buy exclusive UT x SEC merchandise. |
| House v. NCAA settlement to be filed Friday night | |
| Friday will be a historic day in college sports. The House v. NCAA long-form settlement will be filed in the Northern District of California. The broad strokes of the 10-year settlement include athlete revenue sharing, new roster limits for every sport and arbitration to enforce disputes. The expectation is lawyers will pick arbitrators before the final hearing of the suit. It's been two months since plaintiffs' attorneys -- Jeffrey Kessler and Steve Berman -- and defendants -- the NCAA and Power Five conferences -- agreed to the broad strokes of settlement terms. Kessler told On3 on Friday morning the settlement would be filed around 5 p.m. ET. What enforcement the NCAA and conference leaders move forward with remains an unknown entering Friday. The settlement makes clear leagues will create their own new enforcement entity. The expectation is this will happen. Berman confirmed to On3 the settlement is on track to disperse 75% of TV revenue in back damages to football. From there, 15% would be funneled to men's basketball, 5% to women's basketball and the final 5% divided by the remaining athletes. Booster payments remain unknown. A source told On3 that the settlement will require NIL collectives' payments to be a valid business purpose related to the promotion or endorsement of goods or services provided to the general public for profit. |
| Awaiting House, Fontenot v. NCAA Presses On With More Plaintiffs | |
| As attorneys prepare to submit their long-form settlement for preliminary court approval of the House, Carter and Hubbard antitrust lawsuits ("the House settlement"), a fourth case, Fontenot v. NCAA, expanded this week with new named plaintiffs and a blunter warning that a House settlement ought not function as a labor agreement. On Tuesday, Fontenot attorneys filed an amended complaint adding four other names to the case caption: Mya Hollingshed, Sarah Fuller, Deontay Anderson and Tucker Clark. The quartet joins original complainant Alex Fontenot, a former University of Colorado running back. Fuller, a former star soccer player at Vanderbilt, made college football history in 2020, becoming the first female to score in a Power 5 football game by kicking an extra point in a contest against Tennessee. She later gave a video introduction to Vice President Kamala Harris at the 2021 presidential inauguration. Hollingshed, who played college basketball at Colorado, was the No. 8 pick in the 2022 WNBA Draft, and is set to represent Puerto Rico in the Paris Olympics. In 2022, she earned All-Pac-12 honors while leading the Buffalos to their first NCAA Tournament bid in nearly decade. Anderson is a former football player at Ole Miss and Houston -- and current UFL player -- while Clark played golf at both Colorado and Notre Dame. The antitrust case challenges the NCAA's Bylaw 12, which prohibits athletes from receiving direct compensation related to their athletic endeavors. Specifically, Fontenot targets the billions of dollars in television revenue generated in recent years. |
| The Unlikely Battle Over Research at the Olympic Games | |
 | From optimizing the wheelchairs of tennis players to measuring ice consumption at the games, scientists are conducting and implementing wide-ranging research to support the success and development of the Olympic and Paralympic Games this summer. However, whether this research should take place at the games themselves is an issue of contention. While some resist the idea, arguing that the same impact can be had away from the field, others are calling for that to change. One of the latter is Yannis Pitsiladis, a sports scientist at Hong Kong Baptist University. Pitsiladis is a member of the International Olympic Committee's medical and scientific committee, which helps oversee athlete safety at the games. While working as part of this group at the Paris Olympics this summer, Pitsiladis is taking with him a team of scientists to research initiatives including novel ways of measuring ambient temperatures -- with implications for those competing in extreme heat -- and placing sensors on athletes to monitor their vital signs. Doing this sort of research at the games is relatively unusual. "The International Olympic Committee and the International Paralympic Committee don't really endorse research at the games," he said. "And the reason is they don't want to harm the athletes who are preparing and then have a scientist running around them trying to collect measurements. You can understand that causes problems." |
The Office of Public Affairs provides the Daily News Digest as a general information resource for Mississippi State University stakeholders.
Web links are subject to change. Submit news, questions or comments to Jim Laird.
