| Monday, April 12, 2021 |
| U.S. Department of Energy Awards $5 Million to the Next Generation of Nuclear Scientists and Engineers | |
 | The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Friday announced more than $5 million in scholarships and fellowships for students across the country pursuing degrees in nuclear energy and engineering. These awards through the Office of Nuclear Energy's Integrated University Program will invest in the next generation of nuclear energy leaders, so that they can develop innovative solutions to today's challenges and help America meet the Biden Administration's ambitious goals of 100% clean electricity by 2035, and net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. The awards announced include 50 undergraduate scholarships and 31 graduate fellowships, for students at 35 colleges and universities in 23 states. Each undergraduate scholarship provides $7,500 to help cover education costs for the upcoming year, while the three-year graduate fellowship provides $52,000 each year to help pay for graduate studies and research. "Mississippi State University is a national leader in nuclear energy innovation, and I am pleased that Federal investments to support students in nuclear energy degree programs will be provided to our state," said U.S. Representative Michael Guest. |
| Oktibbeha Master Gardeners to host plant sale | |
 | As the popularity of home gardening soars, members of the Oktibbeha County Master Gardeners are making plans for a number of activities to provide technical assistance and encouragement to area residents. That includes seasoned gardeners and those who may not know where to begin. "Not only were many furloughed Americans confined to work from their homes," said Hampton Fowler, president of the local Master Gardeners organization. "The sudden lack of social and sporting opportunities -- coupled with business and school closings -- had folks scrambling to find outdoor activities while confined to their homes," he added. Packed garden shops across the state are further testimony to the popularity of all things "gardening", added Tom Seitz who is heading up the upcoming plant sale conducted by the Master Gardeners. It is held to fund scholarships for students pursuing degrees in horticulture at Mississippi State. He and some 50 members of the local organization have been working since February, planting and tending a variety of plants including edibles and colorful plants and flowers for the sale. |
| Two-step method manages fire ants in lawns, gardens | |
| Fire ants are the most common pests of home lawns, but homeowners can manage them with the right approach, and spring is the perfect time to begin the process. "The easiest, cheapest and most effective thing you can do to control fire ants is to use baits and mound treatments consistently," said Blake Layton, Mississippi State University Extension Service entomologist. "Learn to use baits properly and preventively, and you will see 80-90 percent fewer fire ant mounds in the lawn." The method is a two-step process. First, apply granular fire ant baits to the entire yard three times per year -- around Easter, Independence Day and Labor Day. Second, apply baits to individual mounds throughout the year as soon as they appear. "Early spring is one of the best times to apply broadcast fire ant baits because fire ants are actively foraging for food at this time," Layton said. "If you are going to treat only one time per year, do it in the spring after pecan trees begin to leaf out." |
| Three state agencies moving to temporary locations after fire at Pearl River County office building | |
 | After a fire left three state agencies displaced, Pearl River County officials got busy finding temporary space for them. The Thursday morning fire destroyed or heavily damaged the Pearl River County administrative office building, but the agencies and the county have worked together in order to find new homes. The agencies were busy moving into temporary quarters on Friday. The Mississippi State University Extension office is in the old courthouse, affectionately known as the old gray building, behind the new courthouse. "Really the only thing we have to worry about right now is getting the office operational again so clients can actually come and visit with us and we can do programs in our office," said Eddie Smith with the MSU Extension office. With cooperation among the state and county teams, the work of the agencies will carry on. Thankfully, no one was injured in that fire, which was caused by a lightning strike. |
| Local artist creates piece to glorify Civil Rights movement | |
 | A city in the Golden Triangle will have a new art piece going up with the intentions of bringing unity to the city. Dylan Karges is a local artist who has worked in the world of art for over 20 years. His newest piece will be in Unity Park. Karges said his inspiration for the artwork is to emphasize the history of Civil Rights and those that participated in it. The piece will be made up of 75 cast iron figurines ranging anywhere from eight to sixteen inches. Along with the different sizes, Karges will make each sculpture unique while also coming together as one cohesive piece. "We strive for unity despite our differences and so our differences are really important in that factor," he said. This project will cost around $8,600. It's funded by the Oktibbeha County Board of Supervisors and Mississippi State University grants, but Karges hopes to add more in the future. |
| BancorpSouth, Cadence to merge in $6 billion deal | |
 | BancorpSouth Bank and Cadence Bancorporation are combining under an all-stock swap valued at $6 billion. With a combined assets of some $44 billion, the merger creates the fifth largest bank headquartered in the combined nine-state footprint. While BancorpSouth will be the surviving entity, its brand and logo will disappear, and the combined company will operate as Cadence Bank, with dual headquarters in Tupelo and Houston, Texas. Operations centers will be maintained in Tupelo and Birmingham, as well as special sites in Starkville; Macon, Georgia and Houston, Texas. With only a few overlaps in the markets, there are no layoffs expected, bank officials said. BancorpSouth Chairman and CEO Dan Rollins will be the combined company's chairman and CEO, and Cadence CEO Paul Murphy will be executive vice chairman. "I am thrilled to partner with BancorpSouth," Murphy said. "I have great respect for the franchise they have built over the last 145 years, beginning in my home state of Mississippi. The BancorpSouth community banking franchise is top tier and complements Cadence's expertise in middle-market commercial banking seamlessly." |
| East Mississippi Connect receives $38.6M to expand broadband internet | |
 | A local broadband provider is in line for a $38.6 million grant to expand its internet service to many East Mississippi residents. East Mississippi Connect, a subsidiary of East Mississippi Electric Power Association, was awarded the grant from the Federal Communications Commission to expand broadband access in EMEPA's service area. Brent Bailey, Central District Commissioner of the Mississippi Public Service Commission, told The Meridian Star that the funding will benefit residents of East Central Mississippi. "What it means is certainly a better, more reliable, affordable high-speed internet connection opportunity," he said. Bailey said that during situations like pandemic lockdowns, broadband will allow residents to stay connected to the outside world. On Friday, the Mississippi Public Service Commission granted East Mississippi Connect Eligible Telecommunications Carrier status, which means the company has met certain FCC requirements. East Mississippi Connect had to be granted the status to receive the $38.6 million grant from the FCC. Julie Boles, director of marketing/communications for EMEPA, said East Mississippi Connect plans to bring broadband to 37,000 homes and businesses. The company will ensure that everyone has broadband in EMEPA's service territory, which includes parts of Lauderdale, Clarke, Kemper and Winston counties. |
| Mississippi small businesses slower to recover than most of nation, new report shows | |
| Economic damage from the pandemic remains keenly felt in Mississippi, with small businesses in the state still suffering lost sales at a higher rate than the national average. As of Feb. 2021, 61% of Mississippi's small businesses were still reporting lower sales due to COVID-19 -- 10 points higher than the national average, according to a Global State of Small Business Report released by Facebook on Thursday. The report includes U.S. state-level data recapping the economic impacts of the pandemic, including insights on how businesses in Mississippi adjusted to uncertain conditions. Scott Waller, president and CEO of the Mississippi Economic Council, said that while there are a lot of factors to consider with small business sales, some have struggled and others have not as they grew more comfortable with operating during the pandemic. Businesses with a reduced workforce won't be able to operate at maximum capacity, even as COVID-related restrictions are lifted, Waller said. For example, restaurants with fewer employees to wait tables will naturally have fewer sales. Speaking to small business owners over the past few weeks, Waller said they've told him that they can't keep up with staffing needs to be able to operate at maximum capacity. |
| Mississippi lawmakers wanted to fix state parks, but couldn't agree on a strategy | |
| Mississippi lawmakers set out this year to fix the state's rundown parks system and ensure future funding for conservation projects, but they came up mostly empty handed as the legislative session closed last week. Lawmakers disagreed on whether to privatize some of the state's 25 parks, or find a public funding source. They didn't pass a bill for more advertising, even as surrounding states turn their parks into big tourism draws. And they couldn't hammer out a deal on establishing a $20 million conservation trust fund that could bring in extra federal money. "We're nowhere," said Rep. Becky Currie, R-Brookhaven, who serves on the House parks committee and leads its tourism committee. "I think we once again have done what we've done every year -- and we've ended up doing nothing. As tourism chair, I can tell you that it's detrimental to us, not to fix our state parks." Legislators did reverse budget cuts made last year to the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks. They also carved out funds for a few specific projects, and pledged to keep pushing toward a larger parks overhaul next year. But fundamental questions remain unanswered. |
| Analysis: Mississippi unlikely to ease its election laws | |
 | Mississippi legislators imposed no new limits on the election process during their recently ended session, but this state already had some of the strictest voting laws in the U.S. Widespread early voting? Not in Mississippi. This state has a limited number of reasons for people to cast absentee ballots. Some states have drop boxes where early voters can leave their ballots. Mississippi does not have drop boxes, which means people mailing back absentee ballots have to deal with the uncertainties of the U.S. Postal Service. Mississippi requires absentee ballot applications to be notarized. Critics say this is burdensome for college students and others who will be out of town on Election Day, because they have to find a notary. Republican Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann, who spent three terms as secretary of state, said in interview at the end of the legislative session that he would oppose any effort to remove the notary requirement for absentee ballot applications. Some states emphasize voting by mail, automatically sending ballots to people who put themselves on a list of permanent absentee voters. Mississippi does not, and Republicans who control the Legislature are unlikely to change that. |
| Secretary of State Michael Watson faces criticism for saying 'woke, uninformed' college students shouldn't vote | |
| Mississippi Secretary of State Michael Watson has drawn criticism and national attention this week for comments made on WLOX-TV that the automatic voter registration provision of the federal For The People Act would lead to "woke" and "uninformed" college students voting. "Think about all these woke college university students now who would automatically be registered to vote, whether they wanted to or not," Watson said during an appearance on News This Week on the Coast television station. "Again, if they didn't know to opt out, they would be automatically registered to vote. And then they receive this mail-in ballot that they didn't even know was coming because they didn't know they registered to vote. You have an uninformed citizen who may not be prepared and ready to vote, automatically it's forced on them. Hey, go and make a choice and our country's going to pay for those choices." The bill Watson decried during the interview was passed by the House mostly along party lines last month and now faces unified Republican opposition in the Senate. If passed, the bill would represent the largest expansion of federal election rules in decades. |
| Mississippi Supreme Court to hear arguments on legality of state's marijuana program | |
| The Mississippi Supreme Court will hear arguments Wednesday in a case to decide the fate of Initiative 65, the state's voter-approved medical marijuana program. The city of Madison and its mayor, Mary Hawkins Butler, filed a lawsuit opposing the medical marijuana constitutional amendment just days before voters overwhelmingly endorsed it in November. Butler opposes legalization and says the way the marijuana question reached the ballot was improper. Attorneys for the state have called her suit "woefully untimely" and argued in court filings her technical interpretation of constitutional language that regulates ballot initiatives is off-base. Even as Initiative 65 faces legal jeopardy, the Mississippi State Department of Health is working to meet an August deadline to set up the program's production, regulatory and licensing systems. A marijuana advisory committee made of a dozen Mississippi officials and experts met this week to hear the Health Department's progress and weigh in on issues such as the benefits of indoor, outdoor and greenhouse pot growing, and which types the state should allow for licensed cultivators. |
| Senate Republican targets infrastructure package's effect on small business job creators | |
 | Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.) said Sunday that a proposal to increase taxes on small businesses under President Biden's infrastructure plan would be a bad idea. Wicker called Biden's proposal "a massive social welfare spending program combined with a massive tax increase on small business job creators." "I can't think of a worse thing to do that Senator -- [Energy] Secretary [Jennifer] Granholm was talking about bringing us out of this recession caused by COVID. I can't think of a worse tax to put on the American people than -- than to raise taxes on small business job creators which is what this bill would do," Wicker said on ABC's "This Week." The Mississippi Republican still left open the idea that Republicans would negotiate on a package, albeit on that is much smaller in cost. "Well, listen, we're willing to negotiate a much smaller package," Wicker said. "Americans voted for a pragmatic moderate that they thought Joe Biden was. Where is that centrist candidate they thought they were voting for back in November of last year?" Wicker said that he will meet with Biden Monday to discuss the optics of the infrastructure plan. |
| Recent Rise in U.S. Covid-19 Cases Driven by Younger People | |
 | Younger people who haven't been vaccinated are helping drive a rise in new Covid-19 cases, health officials are finding. Five states -- Michigan, New York, Florida, Pennsylvania and New Jersey -- account for some 42% of newly reported cases. In Michigan, adults aged 20 to 39 have the highest daily case rates, new data show. Case rates for children aged 19 and under are at a record, more than quadruple from a month ago. There were 301 reported school outbreaks as of early last week, up from 248 the week prior, according to state data. Epidemiologists and public-health authorities have pointed to school sports as a major source of Covid-19 transmission. Since January, K-12 sports transmission in Michigan has been highest in basketball, with 376 cases and 100 clusters; in hockey, with 256 cases and 52 clusters; and in wrestling, with 190 cases and 55 clusters. Overall, cases and clusters have occurred in over 15 sport settings, data from the state shows. Driving the overall uptick among younger people in Michigan, and more broadly, is a confluence of fatigue from the pandemic, which is leading some people to engage in more close contact, and the spread of the more transmissible U.K. variant, known as B.1.1.7. |
| W spring 2021 Commencement to be held virtually, degree conferral in-person | |
| Mississippi University for Women will hold a virtual commencement ceremony and in-person degree conferral ceremonies for spring 2021 graduates. The W's spring 2021 commencement exercises will be held April 23-24. The exercises will begin with a virtual convocation to celebrate the achievements of students, faculty and The W community. Degrees will be conferred at one of six departmental degree conferral ceremonies to be held in Rent Auditorium in Whitfield Hall on the university's campus. Graduates may stream the convocation ceremony any time after noon Friday, April 23. Due to public health measures, there will be no on-campus facilities for livestream broadcast. The ceremony will broadcast from a link on the university's homepage, www.muw.edu. In order to keep graduates and their guests safe, each graduate will receive three tickets for their conferral ceremony. A graduate's three tickets will be seated together in consecutive seats as a group with physical distancing between groups. There will not be any general admission seating. |
| An Eye on Equity: Clinic for Uninsured Offering Johnson & Johnson Vaccine on Saturdays in April | |
| Jackson Free Clinic is offering a COVID-19 vaccination to anyone interested for the three remaining Saturdays in April---10th, 17th, and 24th. The clinic, which offers free medical and dental care to the uninsured, is collaborating with the University of Mississippi Medical Center to provide the Johnson & Johnson vaccine, the Director of Research and Education Jojo Dodd informed the Jackson Free Press. "It is the one-time shot, and it also has some better kind of handling requirements for us as far as the cold storage (requirement) and at the same time, it provides protection to our patients against severe disease, hospitalization, and death," Dodd, a third-year medical student, explained in a phone interview Thursday. UMMC medical students run the clinic. They launched a fundraiser last year to erect and equip a separate building for the dental offering. Dodd said it was successful. Dodd said there is a possibility of extending the vaccination days beyond April depending on the demand, adding that effort will help bridge the demographic divide for vaccination in Mississippi. "We're hoping to vaccinate several hundred through this effort; this is an effort to bring some equity to the vaccination program," he said. "(In) a state that is 38% African American, I think the last numbers I saw was (that) 30% of those vaccinated were African Americans." |
| Professor Larry Lee retiring from teaching at MC law school | |
| Professor Larry Lee is retiring after teaching tax law for more than four decades. The tax expert will be missed at the Mississippi College School of Law. Preparing professionals to handle tax law matters, such as helping with unfiled returns, halting wage garnishment, undoing property liens, and producing compromises with the IRS, are part of a complex field. Professor Lee shaped the careers of future tax attorneys as a teacher on the Jackson campus. As an attorney in the capital city (a partner with the firm of Dossett, Magruder and Montgomery), Lee first served as an adjunct instructor under Dean Mary Libby Payne. The Northsider joined the law faculty under Dean "Beby" Turnage. Lee stepped up as the MC Law interim dean for two years until Jim Rosenblatt, now the school's dean emeritus, succeeded him. Lee guided MC Law School through challenging times as interim dean. "MC Law and I benefited from his wise counsel and strategic vision throughout my years as the dean," Rosenblatt added. His service chairing faculty committees and enthusiastic support of law school activities stand out. |
| Itawamba Community College to hold four in-person graduation ceremonies | |
| Itawamba Community College (ICC) will hold four in-person graduation ceremonies in mid-May. The ceremonies will take place on May 13-14 at the Davis Event Center on the Fulton campus. Approximately, 650 graduates will receive their diplomas. 2020 graduates, who were not able to attend their graduations due to the pandemic, have been invited to participate in the upcoming ceremonies. Each student will receive a maximum of 10 tickets and masks will be required. The college will also livestream the ceremonies. |
| U. of Alabama, Shelton State Community College to keep mask requirements in place | |
 | Despite Gov. Kay Ivey allowing the statewide mask mandate to expire on Friday, Tuscaloosa universities are holding firm. Both the University of Alabama and Shelton State Community College have said they will continue to require mask usage for students, faculty, staff and visitors for the foreseeable future. "The UA System Health and Safety Task Force has not made any changes to campus face covering requirements, which will remain in effect until further notice," said Lynn Cole, the University of Alabama System's director of system communications. "The task force will continue to monitor the state of COVID-19, evaluate guidance and requirements, and communicate changes to our campus communities. "The safety of students, faculty and staff across the UA System is the top priority." This also means that for next week's A-Day Game, scheduled to kick off at noon April 17 at Bryant-Denny Stadium, attendees will be required to wear a mask. |
| Auburn University to host 'Solve Climate 2030: Global Power for Dialogue and Solutions for Alabama' | |
 | Discussing solutions-based climate change, Auburn University will host the state's 'Solve Climate by 2030: Global Power for Dialogue and Solutions for Alabama' webinar on Wednesday, April 7 at 6 p.m. The hour-long webinar is one of 125 similar events held worldwide in early April as part of Solve Climate by 2030, a global project sponsored by Bard College in New York. The webinar will begin with a review of the national climate situation followed by a panel of Alabama experts focusing specifically on our state issues and opportunities. The moderated discussion by Mike Kensler, director of the Auburn University Office of Sustainability, will include three panelists: Daniel Tait, Chief Operating Officer of Energy Alabama; Alan Booker, Founder and Executive Director of the Institute of Integrated Regenerative Design; and Nina Morgan, Climate & Environmental Justice Organizer of the Greater-Birmingham Alliance to Stop Pollution (GASP). |
| Replacing LSU's leadership: Here's the latest on president search, Title IX office restructuring | |
 | The LSU community will be able to weigh in on the finalists for a new president during the first week of May, chair elect Remy Voisin Starns told the LSU Board of Supervisors at an unusual Saturday meeting. Starns said the committee set an April 19 deadline for applications to replace F. King Alexander, who last year left for a job at Oregon State University from which he resigned under pressure in March because of his involvement in the LSU's mishandling of sexual misconduct allegations. The committee would choose which candidates to interview by April 21, conduct interviews by April 26 and select finalists by April 30, Starns said. LSU alumni, faculty, students, and others in the university community, including outside interests in Baton Rouge and other cities, would have a chance to weigh in during the first week in May, after which the Board would choose, he said. LSU leadership has been dogged with criticism about moving too slow to take action to correct the lack of clear policies concerning sexual harassment claims. Only two current employees have been held responsible and were given only short suspensions. The Board used much of the meeting to hear an update on 18 recommendations and 47 action items aimed at bringing the university into compliance with federal Title IX laws. |
| Family and friends of missing LSU student Kori Gauthier hear words of hope, prayer at vigil | |
| Close to 200 people gathered in downtown Baton Rouge Sunday night to hear prayers and words of hope that the LSU freshman missing since Wednesday will be found safe and sound. Kori Gauthier, an education major from Opelousas, was reported missing after she didn't show up for class, work or a doctor's appointment on Wednesday. Her family discovered that earlier that morning, someone had crashed into Gauthier's car that was sitting empty on the Interstate 10 Mississippi River bridge. Relatives tracked Gauthier's cell phone to a Baton Rouge salvage yard, where they found her totaled car. One of Gauthier's family members, Pamela Ravare-Jones, who is also the assistant chief administrative officer to Baton Rouge Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome, guided the prayer vigil that was held on Galvez Plaza downtown, a solemn yet hopeful gathering under blue skies and a mild breeze off the river. "We are humbled at this representation of family, friends and community, who have come to stand with us in faith and hope and trust that our beloved Kori will be reunited with her family," Ravare-Jones said. |
| Students Are Ready to Enroll Regardless of Covid-19 Precautions, Survey Finds | |
 | As colleges grapple with the uncertainty of fall 2021, new survey data suggest that many incoming students are ready to enroll regardless of the Covid-19 precautions their institutions put in place. The survey results aren't representative: They come from consulting firms' research on their higher-ed clients' students, and aren't weighted to account for students who don't opt in to answer questions, or who are outside of the firms' client bases. But the numbers do suggest some sentiments that may be common among undergraduates -- notably, that a majority of prospective students would go to a college that required them to get a Covid-19 vaccine. That finding comes from Maguire Associates, an enrollment-consulting firm that got more than 21,000 prospective transfer and first-year college students and their parents to answer a long email survey. Maguire researchers found that under every scenario they asked about, comfortable majorities of respondents said they would enroll in the four-year colleges they were considering. If the college required masks on campus? Eighty-eight percent of responding transfer students, and 95 percent of responding first-year students, said they would go. If vaccines were required? Seventy-four percent of transfer students and 85 percent of first-years would enroll. |
| Survey finds most prospective students are open to vaccine requirements | |
 | Some Republican governors have been busy blocking colleges from requiring students to be vaccinated against COVID-19. In Texas, Governor Greg Abbott signed an executive order barring the requirements at any college that receives state funds (as many private colleges do). In Florida, Governor Ron DeSantis signed an executive order making it illegal for businesses to impose such requirements; it is unclear if colleges are covered by the law. In Utah, Governor Spencer Cox has signed legislation barring public colleges and universities from requiring proof of vaccination. These requirements are complicating the decisions of colleges on whether to require the new coronavirus vaccines. Two of the dozen colleges that have imposed vaccine mandates are in states with the new measures. St. Edward's University created a special exemption to cover the Texas governor's order, giving students the right to opt out. And Nova Southeastern University is reviewing the Florida governor's order. Meanwhile, other universities are joining the movement. Boston University president Robert A. Brown announced a requirement on Friday, writing to students that "our goal is to move to a 'new normal' in the fall that includes only minimal social distancing, where all our facilities are open, students can move freely between residences, and guests are welcome. The key to achieving this state will be vaccination of nearly everyone in our community, especially our students." |
| More Colleges Say They'll Require Students To Have COVID Vaccines For Fall | |
 | Duke University in North Carolina has announced that it will require students to have a COVID-19 vaccine when they return this fall. And the list of campuses with such policies is growing. Rutgers University in New Jersey was the first, and since then more than a dozen residential colleges have followed. The University of Notre Dame; two Ivy League universities, Brown and Cornell; and Northeastern University in Massachusetts are among those requiring the vaccine for the fall. Cleveland State University will do so for all students living on campus. As vaccines become more widely available, it's likely that many more colleges will add their own mandates. Thirty-seven states are now vaccinating all people ages 16 and up, and by April 19, all states in the U.S. will join them. "Most universities have the power to require vaccines," explains Dorit Reiss, a law professor at the UC Hastings College of the Law in San Francisco. "But it does depend on what the college can do generally on vaccines and what they've done in the past." That's because it's not just federal law that colleges need to navigate -- there are also state laws and the regulatory power that certain colleges possess to make requirements more generally. This can be easier for private colleges than for public ones, though some university systems, including the University of California, have power dictated by the state constitution. |
| After Anti-Asian Incidents, Colleges Seek to Reassure Fearful International Students | |
| International enrollment has faced enormous headwinds in the past year. The pandemic prevented most first-year international students from coming to America last fall -- the number of new foreign students in the United States fell by 72 percent in 2020, according to data from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Covid-19 grounded overseas-recruitment travel, and continued visa backlogs and consular closures have led to uncertainty about getting international students to campus for the new academic year. Now the surge in anti-Asian racism -- building throughout the pandemic and culminating in the recent mass shootings in Atlanta, which killed six women of Asian descent -- could compound international-enrollment challenges. Colleges are concerned that the rise in anti-Asian discrimination and violence could make international students, 70 percent of whom are from Asian countries, think twice about coming to the United States. At the same time, they are wrestling with how to support current international students -- for whom studying here may have been a hard introduction to racism. |
| President Biden's proposed budget increases funding for Pell, HBCUs, research | |
| On Friday, President Biden released his request to the Senate for fiscal year 2022 discretionary funding, also known as the "skinny budget," because details will follow. The document requests several funding increases for higher education. The plan requires congressional approval, and congressional Republicans will likely object to some of the president's chosen investments. Higher education experts applauded the planned investments, while also highlighting areas the White House could fund further. While the growth of the Pell program was seen as a great step by many, it stands in the shadow of the proposals to double the maximum Pell award, which is closer to what many organizations believe is needed. President Biden did say his funding increase would be a step toward doubling the award in the future. The Association of Public and Land-grant Universities highlighted, in addition to Pell funding, the budget's increases to research and development. "The request's proposed historic increases in federal research agencies such as the National Science Foundation, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the Department of Energy, the National Institutes of Health, and the United States Department of Agriculture would turbocharge discovery and innovation," the association said in a statement. "Federal research investment is the lifeblood of American innovation and the administration's proposal would ensure the U.S. is positioned to lead in critical areas such as health, climate, and manufacturing." |
| President Biden's first budget request goes big on science | |
| President Joe Biden Friday proposed huge increases for many federal research agencies as part of a $118 billion boost in domestic spending. The increases over the current year are part of a 58-page list of priorities Biden released today in advance of a detailed budget request to Congress for fiscal year 2022, which begins on 1 October. Civilian agencies would receive an overall 16% boost, to $769 billion, whereas defense spending would rise by less than 2%, to $753 billion. The National Science Foundation would get a 20%, $1.7 billion boost, to $10.2 billion. Within that total, an unspecified amount would go to a new directorate to foster emerging technologies needed to help the country outinnovate the rest of the world. The $2 trillion infrastructure plan that Biden unveiled last week includes up to $50 billion in additional funding for both the agency and the new directorate, which is described in bipartisan proposals pending in both chambers of Congress. The budget of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration would grow by $1.4 billion, to $6.9 billion. The increase includes "$800 million to expand investments in climate research, support regional and local decision-making with climate data and tools, and improve community resilience to climate change." The U.S. Department of Agriculture's spending on research, education, and outreach would jump by $647 million, to $4 billion. |
| Exclusive: Science Coalition report shows how basic research leads to future job growth | |
| A new report out later today concludes that basic scientific research plays an essential role in creating companies that later produce thousands of jobs and billions in economic value. The report uses the pandemic -- and especially the rapid development of new mRNA vaccines -- to show how basic research funding from the government lays the necessary groundwork for economically valuable companies down the road. The Science Coalition -- a nonprofit group that represents 50 of the nation's top private and public research universities -- identified 53 companies that have spun off from federally funded university research. Those companies -- which range from pharmaceutical startups to agriculture firms -- have contributed more than $1.3 billion to U.S. GDP between 2015 and 2019, while supporting the creation of more than 100,000 jobs. "The COVID-19 pandemic has shown that the need for the federal government to continue investing in fundamental research is far from theoretical," says John Latini, president of the Science Coalition. "Consistent, sustained, robust federal funding is how science evolves." |
| Prepare for finals week with these tips for students | |
| Angela Farmer, an assistant clinical professor in the Shackouls Honors College at Mississippi State University, writes: As the end of the school year is fast approaching, students across the nation brace for the anxiety that so often accompanies comprehensive examinations. In addition to the need to prepare academically with effective and consistent study habits, students preparing to be assessed also need to ensure that they are mentally prepared to conquer those challenging exams. Mental fitness includes ensuring that the students maintain an adequate level of sleep and consistent sleep patterns. While finals week will never be the time for lengthy naps and supplemental sleep, it is a critical time for them to get enough sleep to function effectively. Ideally, students need to set aside a regular bedtime and wake time. Even if this is amended from eight hours to six hours per night, the body will respond more productively than trying to skip one or more entire night's sleep in an effort to cram the content into one's memory. Furthermore, an absence of adequate sleep often propels students to consume additional caffeine-laden drinks in an attempt to stay awake. Often times this strategy results in even more difficulty functioning as the student will find himself or herself in a state of heightened anxiety brought on by these beverages. |
| State indifference leads to 'hungriest county' | |
| Syndicated columnist Bill Crawford writes: With unemployment decreasing, jobs growing, and state tax revenues up, rosy days lie ahead for Mississippi's economy. "The outlook for our economy is pretty optimistic for the state and for the nation," state economist Corey Miller told Mississippi Today. But not for all parts of the state. Consider Jefferson County in southwest Mississippi. No boom looming there. This rural county, population 6,990, looks to continue suffering persistently high unemployment. The unemployment rate for 2021 averages 16.3%, higher than last year; the highest average since 2014. The state averages 6.2%. ... The Clarion-Ledger revealed another dismal factoid last week. An October report by Feeding America identified Jefferson County as "the hungriest county in the U.S." Data showed the county as the only one in America with a 30% food insecurity rating. (Ratings based on poverty, unemployment, home ownership, disability prevalence, and cost of food index.) Ding. Another new low rings up for Mississippi. |
| Mississippi lawmakers get big budget assist from feds | |
| Bobby Harrison writes for Mississippi Today: Former Gov. Ronnie Musgrove used to say the most important item addressed each legislative session is the budget because it establishes the priorities of the state. For decades, that priority in terms of where the most state funds are spent has been public education. While arguments can be made that Mississippi could be spending a modest amount more of existing funds on education than say on public safety or other entities, the real issue is not the share of state revenue spent on public education, but that Mississippi's limited tax base does not cover all the needs of the state. During the 2021 session, legislators found themselves in an enviable and somewhat unusual situation in that by Mississippi standards the state coffers were flush -- well, relatively flush. Based on that situation, legislators passed a state-support or general fund budget that totaled $6.56 billion or $249.6 (almost 4%) above the amount budgeted the previous year. ... Despite all that, when the dust clears, Mississippi still will be near the bottom in funding of teacher, state employee, university faculty pay and in many other areas. |
SPORTS
| Mississippi State baseball gets second SEC series in a row at Auburn | |
| Sunday was a walk in the park for Mississippi State. The No. 5 Bulldogs beat Auburn 19-5, and they didn't waste any time getting the blowout started. Mississippi State (24-7, 8-4 SEC) scored 10 runs in the first inning to jump on Auburn (12-16, 1-11) early and cruise to its second straight SEC series sweep. Mississippi State piled up five run-scoring hits in the first, highlighted by senior right fielder Tanner Allen's bases-clearing triple. Allen drove in three runs in all three games in the series. Junior designated hitter Luke Hancock also had three RBI Sunday. Sophomore catcher Logan Tanner led the team in that department with five, three of which came on his blistered home run over the 30-foot tall left field fence. Freshman pitcher Jackson Fristoe didn't have his best start of the season. He allowed four runs in three innings. Three of Mississippi State's relievers allowed at least one run too, but it didn't matter with the way MSU was swinging the bat. The Bulldogs had 17 hits. Mississippi State returns home to host Arkansas State on Tuesday at 6:30 before its big Super Bulldog Weekend matchup against Ole Miss. The three-game series against the Rebels starts Friday at 6 p.m. |
| 10-run first inning lifts Mississippi State to sweep of Auburn | |
| Before Auburn even took its first at-bat, No. 1 Mississippi State was well on its way to a sweep of Auburn Sunday afternoon. The opening frame of Sunday's finale lasted nearly 40 minutes after the Bulldogs pulverized Auburn (12-16, 1-11 SEC) starter Joseph Gonzalez and plated 10 runs en route to a dominating 19-10 win Sunday to complete the road series sweep. The 10-run explosion was the Bulldogs' highest-scoring innings in 10 years since they scored 13 runs in an early season victory against Lamar in 2011. With the victory, MSU has swept back-to-back SEC opponents for the first time since 2017 and has won seven straight contests. "We have some very talented players, some very experienced players, but more importantly, we have a tough group of players," MSU coach Chris Lemonis said in a news release. "Arkansas was a tough weekend, but the guys put it behind them and went to work. Each of the past six or eight games we have played, I feel like we are a little better in each one. We are starting to get going offensively." |
| Big first inning leads No. 5 Bulldogs over Auburn | |
| Mississippi State took a commanding lead in the first inning and cruised to its second consecutive weekend sweep on Sunday afternoon. Mississippi State scored 10 runs in the first inning and beat Auburn, 19-10, at Plainsman Park. The Bulldogs, ranked No. 5 by D1baseball, have won six consecutive SEC games and are 24-7 with a 8-4 SEC record. The Bulldogs had their best hitting weekend of the season. Mississippi State scored 32 runs and recorded 36 hits, including 17 hits on Sunday afternoon. Mississippi State sent 14 batters to the plate in the top of the first inning. Eight Bulldogs recorded hits and three were walked or hit-by-pitch. After back-to-back one-out singles, Logan Tanner started the scoring with a two-run single to left field. Two RBI singles, a hit-by-pitch and a run-scoring error later, Tanner Allen belted a bases-clearing triple off the wall in center field to put Mississippi State up 8-0. Hancock capped the scoring in the first inning with a two-run single to right field to put MSU up, 10-0. Hancock and Kamren James each reached base twice while Allen recorded two hits in the inning. The inning was the program's highest scoring first inning since the Bulldogs scored 13 runs against Lamar in 2011. |
| NCAA expected to end 15-month-long recruiting dead period on June 1 in council meetings this week | |
| The NCAA Council this week is expected to set an end date of June 1 for the long-standing recruiting dead period multiple sources told CBS Sports. The dead period was imposed in March 2020 after COVID-19 shut down college sports. It was extended eight times over the past year as the global pandemic raged, the last time in February. With widespread distribution of the coronavirus vaccine, it has become easier to envision more in-person contact, including football camps and official visits, beginning in June. For more than a year, college football coaches have been able to do little more in recruiting than hold Zoom calls with prospects. "Everything I'm hearing, we're headed toward June 1," a source close to the NCAA Council said. Schools like Florida already have official visits scheduled each weekend in June with the expectation that dead period will end. "As soon as it expires, there will be pandemonium," Florida coach Dan Mullen said. "It will be waves upon waves upon waves upon waves of kids coming to visit." |
| 'It's a sad season': How athletes, coaches are coping with collegiate programs being cut | |
 | More than 171 collegiate sports programs have been eliminated since March 2020 because of what most schools have described as financial fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic. A few, such as Bowling Green State University's baseball team, have saved their teams through fundraising, and others, such as the University of Iowa's women's swim and dive team, used the courts to bring back their programs. But thousands of athletes are still sidelined, forced to choose between the school they've made their home and the sport they love. Olympic sports have been hardest hit by the cuts, including at Stanford, which produced 16 medalists, three of whom are among the cuts, in the 2016 Rio Games. The NCAA is the primary development ground for U.S. Olympians, with college-trained athletes winning nearly 85% percent of Team USA's medals in 2016. A year into the pandemic, these athletes are still struggling. Some have given up their sport altogether, and others have left their school. Coaches are out of work, Olympic dreams are derailed and international students feel displaced. Sports journalism students from Northwestern's Medill School of Journalism talked to students and coaches impacted by the cuts. These are their stories. |
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.
