| Monday, July 26, 2021 |
| Mississippi State-led Northern Gulf Institute receives up to $86 million for Gulf of Mexico research | |
 | The Mississippi State University-led Northern Gulf Institute is receiving up to $86 million to continue its strategic research in the Gulf of Mexico. The funding from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) will support the institute's operations and research for the next five years. A NOAA Cooperative Institute, NGI develops, operates and maintains an increasingly integrated research and transition program, the results of which raise awareness and understanding of the Gulf region. "The Northern Gulf Institute is a great example of the impactful partnerships we have built and continue to build as a university," said MSU Vice President for Research and Economic Development Julie Jordan. "This commitment from NOAA is a testament to the value NGI brings to the Gulf Coast region, and I look forward to seeing the exciting research and outreach programs still to come from Director Robert Moorhead and his team." NGI research focuses on climate change and climate variability effects on regional ecosystems, coastal hazards and ecosystem management, as well as effective and efficient data management systems supporting a data-driven economy. |
| Mississippi State-led Northern Gulf Institute receives $86M from NOAA | |
 | Leaders with Mississippi State University (MSU) announced the MSU-led Northern Gulf Institute (NGI) is receiving up to $86 million to continue its research in the Gulf of Mexico. The funding from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) will support the institute's operations and research for the next five years. A NOAA Cooperative Institute, NGI develops, operates and maintains an increasingly integrated research and transition program, the results of which raise awareness and understanding of the Gulf region. Leaders said NGI research focuses on climate change and climate variability effects on regional ecosystems, coastal hazards and ecosystem management, as well as effective and efficient data management systems supporting a data-driven economy. |
| Mississippi State adds music and culture minor for students | |
 | Mississippi State University's College of Education is establishing a new minor for students interested in music. The Department of Music's minor in music and culture begins this fall at the Starkville campus. The program will focus on non-Western music, especially the music of Africa and the African Diaspora. "This new minor enables students to engage critically with music and diverse cultures of the world and prepares them for graduate study, work abroad or careers in the global market," music professor Robert Damm said in a university news release. "This curriculum is wonderful for all students who enjoy music or want to learn more about it." Damm developed the curriculum and four new courses: Music of Africa, Music of Latin America, African American Music and Native American Music. Students also may choose up to two Western music and culture electives, along with other requirements to complete the required 18 or 19 hours. |
| MSU New Minors and Student Events, New Minors at USM | |
| Mississippi State University's Department of Music recently established a new minor in music and culture, which the university will launch this fall at its Starkville campus. The course focuses on non-Western music, especially the music of Africa and the African Diaspora, and on how human cultural diversity is represented through music. Professor of music Robert Damm, who will serve as advisor for the minor, developed the curriculum and four new courses, which include Music of Africa, Music of Latin America, African American Music and Native American Music. Mississippi State University is hosting its seventh New Maroon Camp, a student-led retreat designed to help incoming freshmen and transfer students in their transition to college life, from Sunday, Aug. 8, through Friday, Aug. 13. Participants will learn about MSU history and traditions while meeting current and other first-year students, a release from MSU says. For more information and a full schedule, visit newmaroon.msstate.edu. Movin' You to MSU, the university's annual move-in day for residence halls, will take place from Saturday, Aug. 14, through Monday, Aug. 16. Campus groups holding early move-in will announce details independently, and students must check their MSU email for more information on the process. |
| Staying safe from mosquitoes | |
 | Mosquitoes are common in our area and they can bring some serious diseases with them. "They feed on blood, so they can transmit multiple diseases, anything from West Nile virus, they transmit diseases between animals, human beings can catch diseases from mosquitoes," said Shani Hay, an MSU extension agent in Lauderdale County. Mosquitoes like standing water, so be sure to get rid of any standing water sources around your yard, including plants that capture waters in their leaves. Also remember to replace pet and livestock drinking water regularly. "Obviously they need water, even small amounts of water, so like pots that have water pans below them, or catch drains," Hay said. Experts recommend wearing repellent when doing outdoor activities. There are other things you can do to keep mosquitoes away. "People can plant things in their yard that actually repel mosquitoes, like citronella is one, rosemary, garlic," Hay said. "So there are some natural plants that are very aromatic that mosquitoes don't like, and they won't hang around if they're there." |
| Sudduth Elementary recognized for partnership with Master Gardeners | |
 | Sudduth Elementary School and Oktibbeha Master Gardeners were recipients of the 2021 Governor's Award from the Mississippi Association of Partners in Excellence (MAPE) for their work together to create excellent, engaging learning experiences for their students in the school garden. MAPE recognized Sudduth Elementary School and the Oktibbeha Master Gardeners as one of Mississippi's top school-community partnerships during the virtual 19th annual Governor's Awards ceremony on March 26. "The award is given by MAPE to recognize schools that connect with areas of need in their communities," said Sudduth principal Morgan Abraham. "We were recognized for our students' exceptional accomplishments in working with the Oktibbeha Master Gardeners Club." According to Abraham, members of the gardening club came weekly to check the students' garden at the school and help keep things weeded. "Some even came every day," she said. |
| Monday Profile: Longtime Kiwanian works to improve children's literacy | |
| Every Saturday morning from May through August, a few dozen vendors get up early to set up at the Starkville Community Farmers Market. At one of the East Lampkin Street entrances, Richard Switzer, 72, unloads tables and boxes filled with books off his truck with the help of Laroy and Nan Rushing. They are all members of the Kiwanis Club of Starkville. The civic organization isn't selling anything at the market. It is giving away books as part of the United We Read program. "We had a very good day, giving away 132 adult books and 134 children's books," Switzer said. "This was our best book giveaway so far." Whenever it's not raining, you may find Switzer and the Rushings, or any other Kiwanis Club member, helping people look through the collection of donated books and helping them bag a selection to carry home. Switzer joined the Kiwanis Club about 35 years ago after a friend from his golf league asked him to attend a meeting. Joining the civic organization that way -- through the invitation of a friend who happens to be a member -- is usually the norm, he said. "I had a friend I used to play golf with and one day he just invited me to come to a Kiwanis meeting," he said. "So, I went and met some other people I knew. And I've been a member ever since." |
| Legislature has extra $1B in discretionary budget than expected | |
 | The Mississippi State Legislature brought in an extra $1 billion dollars than expected in revenue during the fiscal year 2021, according to state Sen. Joey Fillingane. "All the taxes combined that the state takes in in a given month, we're over a billion dollars to the good more than we thought we would have taken in at this point of the year," said Fillingane, R- District 41. According to the senator, the state legislature appropriated about $6 billion dollars for the discretionary budget for FY 21. However, with the $1 billion dollar increase, that budget now sits at about $7 billion dollars. The question is: How did the state collect that much extra revenue? "Have that many more people gone into business? Have that many more people gotten pay increases at their jobs? Some of that for sure has happened," Fillingane said. According to Fillingane, while it would be nice to think it's because Mississippi's economy is booming, that's not the whole reality. "You would love to be able to say the economy is just doing that great right now...," Fillingane said. "I think a lot of it is very largely due to these extra millions of dollars that the federal government has sent down from DC to help tie people over through the pandemic." He says things that can be paid for at one time should be the focus. "More or less things like infrastructure, rural broadband, buildings, those sorts of things," Sen. Fillingane said. |
| Does the continued expansion of eligible entities negatively affect the long-term solvency of PERS? | |
 | You probably know that the Public Employees' Retirement System of Mississippi, or PERS, provides retirement benefits for individuals working in state government, public schools, universities, community colleges, cities and towns, counties, and the Legislature. But you may not realize that PERS also provides retirement plans for select hospitals, libraries, convention and visitors bureaus, tourism commissions, museums, airports, utility authorities, the levee commission, and others. Even in the midst of long term uncertainty on the financial outlook of PERS, they continue to add more entities. Just three months ago, PERS added the Jackson Convention and Visitors Bureau. Executive Director Ray Higgins told Y'all Politics that PERS does not have a particular goal of adding more employers to the system. "Historically, organizations are added to PERS by statute or joinder agreements," Higgins said. "A limited review is conducted on a case-by-case basis to confirm they are an eligible public entity and to determine if they have the financial resources to participate in PERS." In May, the Mississippi Joint Legislative Committee on Performance Evaluation and Expenditure Review, or PEER, noted that demographics, lower than expected wage inflation by contributing members, and lower than expected investment returns are combining to hurt the plan's bottom line. |
| Some Mississippi schools are mask-optional amid COVID rise | |
| Even as COVID-19 cases have increased rapidly in Mississippi in recent days, some school districts are saying masks will be optional for students, teachers and staff. Among the districts taking that approach is the state's largest one, DeSoto County School District. "Right now, there are no state mandates or local mandates requiring masks," Superintendent Cory Uselton told WMC-TV. "Last year, we were under a mask mandate because of the governor's executive order. There's no executive order in place right now, so that will be a parental decision." As part of its guidance for K-12 school settings, the Mississippi State Department of Health recommends masks for anyone not fully vaccinated. It also recommends people 12 and older get vaccinated. Instead of encouraging either of those things, the DeSoto District will give families information from the health department, the CDC and American Academy of Pediatrics, Uselton said. The Mississippi chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics published a letter Thursday saying that it recommends masks indoors for schools for any child 2 or older and for all teachers and staff. |
| Dr. Fauci says U.S. headed in 'wrong direction' as covid-19 cases spike among unvaccinated | |
 | As the number of coronavirus infections continues to rise among unvaccinated Americans, Anthony S. Fauci, the nation's top infectious-disease expert, said Sunday that the United States is in an "unnecessary predicament" at this point in the pandemic. "We're going in the wrong direction," Fauci said on CNN's "State of the Union." The latest surge in infections is driven by the highly virulent delta variant, which continues to spread rapidly around the country. Although official guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has not changed, Fauci hinted that a return to indoor mask mandates for vaccinated people and booster shots may be necessary to once again curb the spread of the virus. Fauci echoed CDC Director Rochelle Walensky, who emphasized that most infections have occurred in the country's unvaccinated population. "It is really a pandemic among the unvaccinated, so this is an issue predominantly among the unvaccinated, which is the reason why we're out there, practically pleading with the unvaccinated people to go out and get vaccinated," said Fauci, describing the disease as still "in retreat" among vaccinated people. |
| Southern states particularly vulnerable to delta variant COVID-19 surge | |
 | Morgan Shaver was shocked to learn she had COVID-19 in July. The virus made her so sick it caused acute hypoxemic respiratory failure, sending her to the hospital for five days. Ultimately, Shaver's fiance also caught the virus. He spent several days in the hospital too. They were not vaccinated, but Shaver, a Tipton County, Tennessee, resident thought she would be safe because she always wore a mask at work. "It was very unexpected," she said. The latest surge of the coronavirus might have caught Shaver by surprise, but medical experts say it was painfully predictable and emblematic of this stage of the pandemic. Low vaccination rates and the rise of the more contagious delta variant of the virus combined to fuel a dramatic uptick in infections and hospitalizations this summer. Unvaccinated people account for the vast majority of infections, hospitalizations and deaths, according to the data and medical experts. In places such as Tipton County, where about one in four residents are vaccinated against COVID-19, the problem is particularly grave. While the vulnerability of Tipton County may be alarming, it is not unique. One quarter or less of residents are fully vaccinated in approximately 120 counties that are home to more than 3.6 million people across nine southern states, according to a USA TODAY Network analysis of federal and state vaccination data. |
| RSV spikes nationwide, especially southern states during unlikely season | |
| Doctors are warning parents to watch their young children, not just for symptoms of COVID-19, but a respiratory disease not normally seen at this time of year. Respiratory Syncytial Virus, more commonly known as RSV is spiking nationwide, but especially in the south, sparking the CDC to issue a health advisory last month. More than 1,500 cases of the respiratory virus were reported nationwide this week, compared to just 11 cases around this time last year. Dr. Karen Landers with the Alabama Department of Public Health said it is not uncommon for infants to get RSV, but to see a spike at this time of year is rare. "It's very disturbing that we're seeing RSV, and again, pediatricians are very familiar disease, we're much more familiar with seeing it in the fall and winter, but we're seeing this emergence now really due to a number of factors," Dr. Landers said. Those factors, she says, correlate with COVID-19 restrictions being lifted. "In the winter, more people were at home. We still had masks in place and we still have mitigation standards in place to reduce respiratory diseases," she said. "Specifically, school-aged children were wearing masks so they weren't necessarily bringing this disease home to their younger siblings." RSV is usually nothing more than a common cold for older children and adults, but for infants and the elderly, it can be much more serious. |
| MDOC pressures prisoners to renounce gangs as parole eligibility is expanded | |
| The Mississippi Department of Corrections is asking people in prison to renounce gang membership as a part of the department's Security Threat Group Management Unit. The one-page form asks for the person's name, the gang's name and their signature in efforts to encourage people in prison to leave their gang. The form also promises a follow-up interview with the person in prison where the person will be evaluated on their willingness to leave the gang. Since Burl Cain took post as MDOC commissioner in June 2020, he's promised to make Mississippi's prisons safer by decreasing gang activity. The Security Threat Group Management Unit is the arm of MDOC that's putting into motion Cain's promises. While signing gang renunciation forms may be seen as one step in decreasing gang violence in prisons, David Pyrooz, a professor of sociology at University of Colorado-Boulder, said it is ultimately ineffective in decreasing gang membership. Pyrooz, who studies gangs in prison, said "debriefing" is when a person simply states they are no longer in a gang, while "disengagement" is a process where a person participates in programming to encourage and support leaving a gang. Cain, the head of MDOC, told Mississippi Today the department offers opportunities for people in prison to join groups to build community rather than allowing gangs to entice new membership. |
| Mississippi asks Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade | |
 | The State of Mississippi filed a brief with the Supreme Court on Thursday defending the state's ban on abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy and asking the court to overturn Roe v. Wade when it hears arguments on the case in the fall, raising the stakes of what was already set to be the term's biggest reproductive rights case. "The national fever on abortion can break only when this Court returns abortion policy to the states," Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch writes in the brief, arguing that the country has changed so much since Roe was decided that the court needs to reopen the issue. In May, the court not only announced it would hear the Mississippi case, but the majority seemed to signal a willingness to revisit the basic framework of Roe v. Wade, writing explicitly that they wanted to hear arguments on whether states should be allowed to ban abortion prior to the point of fetal viability, which occurs around 24 weeks of pregnancy. Still, many courtwatchers are doubtful that a majority of the court will explicitly overrule Roe. Instead, the consensus seems to be that the justices will allow more and more restrictions while stopping short of directly overturning the nearly half-century-old decision. |
| Install Yazoo pumps: Relatively new argument focuses on low-income, minority residents | |
| Installing massive pumps to drain water from the south Mississippi Delta would be a way to fight environmental injustice because the pumps would help low-income and minority residents whose lives are disrupted by flooding, Republican U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi said on Capitol Hill. It's a relatively new argument that Wicker and others are making in support of a federal project that has been lingering, unbuilt, since the 1940s. The proposed pumps would remove water trapped between Mississippi River and Yazoo River levees in an expanse of rural flatlands north of Vicksburg. The Environmental Protection Agency vetoed the project in 2008 under one Republican president, and then rescinded the veto in 2020 under another one. Some environmental groups are suing to try to block it. During a hearing of a Senate Environment and Public Works subcommittee on Thursday, Wicker said that because of flooding in the south Delta, people "lack the certainty they need to build homes and establish businesses." He said that reinforces a cycle of poverty. "The residents of the south Delta face one of the most glaring instances of environmental injustice anywhere in the nation," Wicker said. |
| 'We have to get it right,' Dem vows as Jan. 6 probe begins | |
| The chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, Bennie Thompson, didn't realize the severity of the Jan. 6 insurrection until his wife called him. He was inside the Capitol, sitting in the upper gallery of the House, hoping for what he called a "bird's-eye view of the process" and to be able to tell his grandchildren that he was there when Congress certified Joe Biden's presidential victory. People are breaking into the building, London Thompson told him, and it was on television. "I'm watching people climbing over the wall right now," she said. "It doesn't register," the Mississippi Democrat recalled in an interview with The Associated Press. "I said, 'You can't break in. There's police and barricades and a lot of things out there.'" But it was not long before the House chamber was under siege. Police rushed Thompson and several dozen other members of Congress to another side of the gallery and told them to duck under their seats as supporters of then-President Donald Trump tried to break down the doors to the chamber below. Like Thompson, many who serve and work in the Capitol are trying to make sense of the chaos that unfolded on Jan. 6. And he now has a guiding role in the process, appointed by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., as the chairman of a select committee that will investigate the attack. The panel will hold its first hearing Tuesday with police officers who battled the rioters. |
| Climate Scientists Meet As Floods, Fires, Droughts And Heat Waves Batter Countries | |
 | More than 200 of the world's leading climate scientists will begin meeting today to finalize a landmark report summarizing how Earth's climate has already changed, and what humans can expect for the rest of the century. The report is the sixth edition of an assessment of the latest climate science from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), a United Nations body that coordinates research about global warming. The last edition of this report came out in 2013 -- an eternity in the world of climate science, where the pace of both warming and research are steadily accelerating. The urgency of addressing global warming has never been more clear. The two-week virtual meeting of IPCC scientists coincides with a raft of deadly climate-driven disasters unfolding around the world, from flash floods in Europe, North America and Asia, to intense wildfires in Siberia, to widespread persistent heat waves and droughts that threaten to upend food supplies in the U.S., Middle East and much of Africa. The new report will be the most comprehensive, detailed and accurate picture of the global climate ever released. The computer models that scientists use to predict how the climate will change in the future are a lot more advanced than they were a decade ago, when the last edition was published. And the data that feeds those models is also more robust, thanks to satellites, buoys and information about the historical climate gathered from rock, ice and mud. |
| JSU unveils mural honoring civil rights leaders on COFO building | |
| State Representative Alyce Clarke (D-Miss.), Fannie Lou Hamer, Bob Moses, Rose Elizabeth Howard Robinson, Louise Marshall and Albert Powell can be seen on the Council of Federated Organizations (COFO) building at Jackson State University. The piece is titled "Chainbreakers" which each of the six people shown truly are. Rep. Alyce Clark said when she heard the news that she'd be featured in this mural, she was blown away. "To be among those individuals who've done so much for our state and I heard I was even being considered ... I was blown away," said Rep. Clark. The mural is one of three created by Jackson artist Sabrina Howard. |
| Rick Bragg talks life in the South during speech at Gogue Center | |
| "This, tonight, will be the only time in my life that I will look upon women with an Auburn connection without scorn, anger or bitter disappointment. So, thank you for that opportunity." The crowd of primarily Auburn alumnae erupted in laughter. Rick Bragg, an Alabama native, was on the stage -- tall, assertive and humble after a Pulitzer Prize and nearly a decade reporting for The New York Times. Leah Dubberly, president of the Women's Philanthropy Board of Auburn University, the group that hosted the event at the Gogue Performing Arts Center as part of its Summer Nights program Thursday night, called Bragg "the South's premier storyteller." "I would like him to know that half of me is from the southern part of Italy," Dubberly said. "The other half of me is from some of the places he describes. So, I would like him to tell me a story about the Southern place where my mom grew up." Susan Hubbard, dean of the College of Human Sciences and WPB benefactor, said Bragg's stories "have a way of reminding us what we have in common and help us to celebrate the little things in our lives together." Stories of pinto beans and ham, pit-roasted bologna and tomato sandwiches spilled out from the stage, fittingly decorated with a tire swing, a screen door, rocking chairs and two goats. |
| Vanderbilt University Medical Center mandates COVID-19 vaccines for all staff | |
 | Vanderbilt University Medical Center will now require its entire staff to receive the coronavirus vaccine. Employees were alerted to the mandate via an employee newsletter on July 15, VUMC spokesman John Howser confirmed in an email to The Tennessean. All VUMC leaders are required to get the first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine or provide a medical or religious exemption by Aug. 15. They must be fully vaccinated or have an approved exemption by Sept. 15. "The deadline for requiring all VUMC employees to be vaccinated or have an approved exemption is under consideration and will be communicated at a later date," Howser said. In May, Vanderbilt University announced it would require students to receive the vaccine for the 2021-2022 school year. All faculty, staff and postdoctoral fellows employed by the university are also required to be fully vaccinated for COVID-19 for the upcoming school year. Tennessee recently passed a law barring public employers and schools from requiring the vaccine. A move to prohibit health providers from requiring the shot was unsuccessful. Private employers can require the vaccine, but must consider religious and medical exemptions. |
| Isolation space cut at schools in state; colleges set virus protocols for fall | |
| Residence halls this fall at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville will have far less isolation or quarantine housing compared with last year. Students living on campus should plan to return home or find places to stay off-campus if they test positive for covid-19, according to UA's website. The isolation period should last until 10 days after symptoms began -- as long as there has been no fever for 24 hours -- according to the state Department of Health. "University Housing will not be using a residence hall in response to COVID-19 this year," UA spokesman Christopher Spencer said in an email. Last fall, UA's Holcombe Hall, a 140-bed facility, made up part of about 270 spaces designated by early September as quarantine and isolation housing for on-campus residents. Spencer said UA will start the fall with about 25 to 35 quarantine and isolation spaces available for students living in university housing. UA is the largest university in the state by enrollment. New protocols -- while having some flexibility -- come with UA expecting larger numbers of students on campus and with the state experiencing a surge of covid-19 hospitalizations not seen in months. The general move-in period for UA dorms begins Aug. 12, with a few students moving in earlier. |
| Keeping students committed: UF admissions to focus on retaining admitted students | |
| Anxiously awaiting SAT and ACT scores, painstakingly drafting and editing the perfect essay, finally submitting the completed application -- students spend months working hard on college applications, but they are not the final step in the journey to attend a dream school. Soon after applications are sent off, there are decision days -- a celebratory acceptance or a heartbreaking rejection. Inevitably, some will commit to one school, or even multiple schools, but go back on their decisions, either because they were accepted off a waitlist or changed their minds. In university admissions, this phenomenon is called melt. The University of Florida's melt rate is 2-3%, according to Tammy Aagard, associate vice president for enrollment management -- a number significantly lower than the national average of 10-20%. Aagard also said UF's melt rate has been similarly low in previous years. While UF's melt rate is already low, the admissions team wants to decrease it even more, Aagard said. Melt occurs for many different reasons, ranging from financial aid awards to spots at more prestigious universities. Aagard mentioned UF cannot always offer students additional financial aid. However, she said the admissions staff helps families make the best decision for their budget. |
| U. of Missouri Faculty Council seeks delay in plan to cut tenured faculty salaries | |
 | A resolution requesting Chancellor Mun Choi delay implementation of policies reducing salaries or contract length of tenured faculty for at least a year gained approval of the MU Faculty Council on Thursday. University administrators have established criteria for reductions of up to 25% of salaries for tenured faculty, based on workload and productivity. "In May of 2021, twenty faculty in the School of Medicine and additional faculty from other colleges were informed their salaries would be reduced for failure to meet newly introduced productivity and workload standards," stated a memo from the Faculty Council's Fiscal Affairs Committee. "Affected faculty had not previously been made aware of new metrics for evaluation and many had recently received positive annual reviews. This follows years of stagnant salaries and, in some colleges, furloughs and pay reductions due to the pandemic." The resolution asks that the policies be reviewed during the yearlong delay and shared with faculty before implementation. The Faculty Council suspended its rules to vote on the resolution in the same meeting where it was introduced. |
| The future of the campus tour | |
 | Drew Carter, deputy director of admission at the College of the Holy Cross, remembers campus tours before the pandemic hit. They were offered four times a day. Some of the tours attracted 100 people (counting prospective students' family members). While Holy Cross devoted considerable time and attention to the tours, the college was glad to do so. People who visit a campus are more likely to apply and enroll. Then came the pandemic, and the college had no tours at all until this April. The college restored tours only for students who had been accepted and their family members. One student (and three family members) could attend a tour. The tours themselves were different. They were mostly outdoors, going inside a few buildings. "But we were talking outside and walking inside," Carter said. "We launched tours every 20 minutes," he added. Now the college has shifted again. It has tours every day, but each tour is limited to three potential students and their family members. Twenty people over all can be on a tour. Preregistration is required. Tours leave on the hour, compared to four times a day before the pandemic. Campus tours are back, but most of them differ from how they were before. They are smaller, and officials believe that's making them more personalized. They frequently require preregistration and sometimes a health assessment (by those on the tour, in advance). Colleges are navigating carefully: Carter said the main lesson he's learned is to be nimble and to think about what a college can do to offer safe experiences on campus. |
| Is College Still Worth the Cost? Most Traditional Age Students and Families Say Yes, According to Survey | |
| The overwhelming majority of undergraduates aged 18 to 24 and their families (89%) still believe a college degree opens doors despite the hefty cost, according to the 2021 survey "How America Pays for College" from student loan lender Sallie Mae. Yet the recently released survey also found that fewer families this year finished the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to get help paying for that sought-after degree. Some experts point out, however, that the report's focus on so-called traditional age students does not include two key groups: students over the age of 24 and those who choose not to enroll in college. Without that broader sample, they argue the survey overlooks almost 40% of today's undergraduates, not including those who do not go to college likely because they cannot afford it. "So those for whom college is financially impossible are not included here," said Dr. Robert Kelchen, an associate professor of Higher Education at Seton Hall University and author of Higher Education Accountability. "The survey captures traditional age college students who enrolled, not everyone interested in college. And it misses adult students." |
| New Student-Visa Data Paint an Optimistic Picture for Fall Enrollments | |
 | As U.S. consulates around the world reopen, student-visa issuance is returning to pre-pandemic levels, bringing relief to American colleges that had feared yet another semester with many international students stranded overseas. American consulates approved almost 117,000 F-1 student visas in May and June, or 93 percent of the number of student visas issued in the same two months in 2019, according to a Chronicle analysis of U.S. Department of State data. More than 143,000 F-1 visas were authorized from January to June of this year, 83 percent of the number issued during the same period two years ago. The months leading up to the start of the fall semester -- May, June, and July -- are typically the busiest of the year for student-visa applications. On average, 60 percent of all F-1 visas are granted in those three months alone. This year's numbers reflect the clearing of a backlog, as not only new international students but also those who deferred or who studied remotely over the past year seek visas. July data will not be available until August and could paint a different picture. And the emergence of the more contagious Delta variant of Covid-19 has tempered optimism about any return to normal travel and campus operations. But so far, the pace of visa issuance during the first two critical months should give colleges reason to be hopeful about a rebound in international enrollments. |
| Prosecutors drop cases against scientists accused of hiding military ties | |
| The federal government filed motions to dismiss charges against five Chinese researchers accused of lying on their visa applications about affiliations with the Chinese military last week. The five researchers are part of a group of about a dozen Chinese scholars or students prosecuted for allegedly lying about Chinese affiliations or funding on various federal forms -- grant applications, visa applications and/or tax forms -- under the auspices of the Department of Justice's controversial China Initiative. The initiative was started under the Trump administration with the stated aim of investigating allegations of economic espionage and trade secret theft. Prosecutors have said the initiative is important in focusing attention on the unique size and scope of the Chinese government's role in abetting illicit technology transfer. Critics of this effort have raised concerns about racial bias and pointed out that many of the prosecutions do not involve allegations of intellectual property theft or espionage-related crimes and have centered instead on allegations of fraud. A senior Justice Department official told The Wall Street Journal, which reported on the dismissals of the five cases, that the crimes the various researchers were accused of committing were usually punishable by a few months in prison, and all the defendants had been detained or placed under other restrictions since their arrests about a year ago. Prosecutors concluded their experiences over the past year amounted to sufficient punishment and deterrence. |
| Mississippi does not have to change law to make voting hard. It already is. | |
| Bobby Harrison writes for Mississippi Today: States like Texas, Georgia and Florida that have been in the national news recently for efforts that many say will make it more difficult for their citizens to vote still have a long way to go to catch Mississippi. An objective argument easily can be made that there is no state where it is more difficult to vote than Mississippi. ... The national news has covered extensively the law enacted in Georgia that many say will make it more difficult to vote. National boycotts were announced against Georgia. Many companies with ties to Georgia expressed their displeasure and Major League Baseball, in protest of the new law, moved the All Star game from Atlanta to Denver. In Texas, the national media has covered breathlessly the decision of House Democrats to flee the state to prevent a quorum so that Republicans could not pass a bill that would limit voting opportunities. Yet, Mississippi chugs along with perhaps the most restrictive voting laws in the nation and hardly anyone notices. |
SPORTS
| A promise to Pops: Family keeps late Starkville High coach with them after Mississippi State's historic baseball title | |
| It was already dark by the time Drew Massey pulled the hearse up to the gates of Dudy Noble Field, his father-in-law's body in the back. On New Year's Eve, hours after getting the call that John Howard Patton, 65, had died earlier that day, the Louisville funeral director wanted to do one last favor for the man who meant so much to him. Massey picked up Patton's body at Baptist Memorial Hospital-Golden Triangle in Columbus and began to make the return trip. As he neared the Highway 12 exit in Starkville, Massey remembered a distant conversation with the man he'd called "Pops" ever since they met in 2001; the beloved Starkville High School coach and diehard Mississippi State fan; the grandpa Massey's kids loved. "I want you to ride me through campus one more time," Patton had told Massey, the two of them joking, back before Patton ever went into the hospital for good, back when death was just a faraway worry and not a reality. So Massey took the exit and turned left, driving through the empty streets and pulling up in front of the great dark stadium. He put the vehicle in park, looking up at the front gates, and began to cry. "Pops," Massey said. "I promise you we're going to win a national championship in baseball, or at least something, at Mississippi State. We're going to win something for you. And if you could just help any way at all, if you could give the good Lord a little encouragement to shine down on us just a little bit, that would be great," he added. |
| Scouting the Schedule, Game 7: Mississippi State visits Vanderbilt to start season's second half | |
| Mississippi State held off Vanderbilt last Nov. 7 in Starkville for a much-needed win after four straight losses. And this season, the Bulldogs will likely be hoping for more of the summer after games against LSU, Texas A&M and Alabama. MSU will visit Nashville to take on the Commodores on Oct. 23. Mississippi State has won its last four games against Vanderbilt, but the all-time series isn't quite as lopsided as one might expect. The Bulldogs still lead it with 14 wins in 23 contests, although four of Vanderbilt's seven wins and both ties came before World War II. The two teams have met only twice while the Commodores were ranked, and MSU pulled upsets in both contests -- 1942 and 2008. The second-most-recent game between the two schools resulted in the biggest margin of victory in the history of the head-to-head matchup: 51 points in the Bulldogs' shutout win in November 2014. At 0-9, Vanderbilt had a 2020 season to forget. Texas A&M, LSU and Florida were all top-25 teams when they faced the Commodores, but Vandy lost to six unranked Southeastern Conference schools as well. |
| Texas, Oklahoma leaving Big 12 Conference as college football shake-up begins | |
 | Oklahoma and Texas have informed the Big 12 of their intent to withdraw from the conference, the two schools announced Monday, in a move that paves the way for the powerhouse programs to become the newest members of the SEC. "The University of Oklahoma and the University of Texas at Austin notified the Big 12 Athletic Conference today that they will not be renewing their grants of media rights following expiration in 2025," the two schools said in a joint statement. "Providing notice to the Big 12 at this point is important in advance of the expiration of the conference's current media rights agreement. The universities intend to honor their existing grants of rights agreements. However, both universities will continue to monitor the rapidly evolving collegiate athletics landscape as they consider how to best position their athletics programs to the future." The schools did not specify which conference they intend to join, but all signs point to the Southeastern Conference. The timing and financial fallout of the departure for the SEC remain to be determined. Overall, however, the decision made by Oklahoma and Texas to leave the Big 12 upends the Football Bowl Subdivision and carries the potential to dramatically alter the landscape of college sports. |
| Lubbock representative files bill that would require legislative approval for college conference realignment | |
| Lubbock Representative Dustin Burrows and others in the Texas Legislature have filed a bill responding to reports that the University of Texas and the University of Oklahoma are preparing to leave the Big 12 conference. Ten years after Texas A&M University departed for the Southeastern Conference, rumors began this week claiming UT and OU have been discussing a break from the Big 12 to the SEC. Currently, this move would require the approval of 11 of 14 SEC schools. According to House Calendars Chairman Burrows, Bill 298 was filed on Friday and supported by more than 30 legislators. The bill is joint authored by State Representative Jeff Leach, State Representative Greg Bonnen, and State Representative Charlie Geren. The proposed bill would amend Higher Education Code, in part saying the governing board of each institution may not change membership in a collegiate athletic conference without passage of a concurrent resolution by a majority vote in both legislative chambers. The day before the bill was filed, Texas Tech Chancellor Tedd Mitchell spoke on rumors of the departure, saying he has been “extremely disappointed by the actions and intentions of our friends in Austin and Norman.” |
| Aggie AD Ross Bjork: Texas A&M is ready to compete with anyone who joins SEC | |
 | Texas A&M is ready to compete against any program that might join the Southeastern Conference, Aggie athletics director Ross Bjork said Saturday in light of reports that Texas and Oklahoma are trying to leave the Big 12 Conference to join the SEC. "Whoever joins the SEC, whether that's now, in the future, whatever the NCAA landscape looks like, whatever conference realignment looks like, the 12th Man's ready," Bjork said. "Our coaches are ready. Our staff's ready. Our student-athletes are ready. The university is ready to compete at the highest level." Bjork's comments are a reverse from his reaction when the news of Texas and Oklahoma's intentions first broke earlier this week. He stated then that A&M intended to remain the only Texas school in the SEC and that the university had little knowledge of the workings of the possible expansion. But on Saturday, Bjork said A&M had talked with the conference office on the issue and come to a better understanding of it. "We didn't think anything would happen quite like this," Bjork said. "Obviously, there's conversations. There's processes, procedures. We've made our position known, and we want that to be in an appropriate manner, and I think we've done that." A&M President Katherine Banks issued a statement Saturday, reassuring the Aggies that the school will do what's in its best interest in regards to the possibility of SEC expansion. |
| Auburn football team at about 60 percent roster vaccination for COVID-19 | |
 | Auburn is not among the six SEC teams to reach the 80 percent roster COVID-19 vaccination threshold as of SEC Media Days. Just three days after SEC commissioner Greg Sankey announced that 43 percent of the league's teams -- six of the 14 in the conference -- first-year Auburn coach Bryan Harsin revealed that his team has not yet reached that threshold, adding that he's not sure if the Tigers will reach that mark by the start of the season in September. "We're not there yet," Harsin told local reporters before taking the stage Thursday at SEC Media Days in Hoover. "I think we're just in that 60 percent range is where we are, so I don't know by the time we get to the season where we'll be because a lot of things change as you get everybody back together, you get into camp and you're all just one, focused on the season and the game that's in front of you. We'll see where we go with that." The SEC has launched a campaign advocating for individuals to get vaccinated now that the vaccine is readily available to the public, while Auburn athletics director Allen Greene also advocated for fans to get vaccinated if they hope to have as close of a return to normal this season as possible. |
| High pressure, high pay for UGA football staff. A look at athletics compensation. | |
 | Football is the economic engine for the Georgia athletic department and it shows in how those who work in the Bulldogs program are paid. Thirteen of the top 18 earners in UGA athletics are in football including not only head coach Kirby Smart and his 10 on-field assistant coaches but also its director of strength and conditioning and director of player development. All make more than $400,000 annually. "Football's an extremely important piece in the athletic department," athletic director Josh Brooks said. "Those people all do tremendous jobs. They're some of the best in the country at what they do. It's a competitive market. Sometimes you've got to have competitive salaries to compete against your peers and keep valuable people on your staff." The 46 people listed working for the football program have a median annual income of $88,400 with 34 making $75,000 or more. That includes 10 support staffers at $100,000 or more. The information was obtained via an open records request by The Athens Banner-Herald. The median income in the entire department is $74,900. There are 69 in athletics making $100,000 or more. Twelve of the top 13 earners are men. |
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