| Tuesday, August 8, 2023 |
| Mississippi State band camp is back and larger this year | |
 | It's time to crank up the tunes for band students at Mississippi State. Band camp kicked off Monday for the Bulldogs and goes on all week. Just like the Bulldogs Football team, the Famous Maroon Band has to put in time on the practice field before they hit Davis Wade Stadium for the first time on September 2, 2023. Monday kicked off band camp for students and there's a lot of excitement buzzing around the band hall "We actually added another show so we're doing three shows instead of two so I'm excited to see the new dynamic on the new speeds on how we're going to have to learn things. We have 150 freshmen which is more than we've had we're back in the 400s for our membership so I'm excited about that," said drum major Madeline Kelly. "I'm so excited to get up on that stand and hear the full blast of 400 individuals playing straight at me and at a stadium with even more people," said drum major Christopher Jalavette. This year there will be a little more for students to learn and several new faces that have joined the family. "It's a lot of hard work, we're outside most of the time obviously we're inside when we can be it's a lot of marching a lot of getting used to the music, and our music this year is really hard and so trying to teach you to know people who are coming from small high school bands how to play music for a 400 player band is one of the main challenges," said Kelly. |
| MSU gets $4M to study Mississippi Delta climate impacts, resilience | |
 | Mississippi State University is leading a $4 million, five-year National Science Foundation-funded effort to study climate change impacts in the Mississippi Delta and increase resilience among vulnerable populations. The project, led by Professor Shrinidhi Ambinakudige in MSU's Department of Geosciences, is part of a new round of National Science Foundation Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) Track-2 funding announced this week by the agency. The interdisciplinary team of researchers, educators and community partners will develop a climate model, study social vulnerability to environmental hazards and conduct a comprehensive study on climate impacts on health in the Delta region. "The results of this work will provide a road map of communities' risks and vulnerabilities to climate-related extreme events, such as the floods, droughts and tornadoes that commonly affect the Delta," Ambinakudige said. "This project also presents a great opportunity to increase climate literacy and promote workforce development opportunities related to geospatial technology through our partnerships with K-12 schools and community colleges." The MSU-led project is titled "An interdisciplinary program for research, education, and outreach on climate change and adaptive resilience in the Yazoo - Mississippi Delta." Project co-principal investigators include MSU Geosciences faculty members Brian Williams, Christy Hyman and Fikriyah Winata, as well as Dean Hardy, assistant professor in the School of the Earth, Ocean and Environment at the University of South Carolina. |
| Grain Bin Safety Top of Mind at MSU Short Course | |
 | During a grain bin safety demonstration, Benton Moseley pulled a couple of soft drink crates out of a storage compartment and explained why he carried them. "The flow of the grain pulls the body down, so if somebody sees their buddy in a grain bin and decides to jump in, they're going to knock some of that grain down and it could take that victim from partially to completely submerged," said Moseley, a safety specialist with Mississippi Farm Bureau. "When the rescuer gets in there without building a proper bridge on top of the grain, he's adding weight and packing the grain tighter around the victim, so throwing these crates in helps to make a walkway." Moseley's audience at the East Mississippi Community College Communiversity facility on Aug. 2 ranged from first responders to farmers to Mississippi State University faculty. His presentation was on the second day of the 2023 MSU Seed and Agricultural Technology Short Course. The MSU Extension Service and Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station host the annual course for crop consultants, producers and seed and agricultural industry professionals. Daniel Chesser, assistant professor in agricultural and biological engineering at MSU and coordinator of this course, said the short course's design each year is to update industry professionals on seed development, marketing and transport alongside policy. Jessica Drewry, assistant Extension professor at MSU in agricultural and biological engineering, said the grain bin rescue training provided a hands-on learning component to the course. |
| 3 company announcements coming this month | |
 | This year has been "one of reflection" for the Golden Triangle Development LINK, CEO Joe Max Higgins said. June marked the industrial recruiting organization's 20th anniversary, as it started in Lowndes County and expanded its influence to Clay and Oktibbeha counties over time. In Higgins' tenure, the LINK has helped create 10,000 jobs. "The jobs we're creating are vastly different than the jobs that were here," Higgins told Starkville Rotary Club members Monday in Georgia Blue. "I don't want to be hurtful, but we used to make toilet seats. Now we make steel." And engines, tires and "helicopters that fly," he noted. Aluminum will soon be tacked to that list with a $2 billion Aluminum Dynamics plant announcing last year it would locate in Lowndes County. Higgins on Monday hinted at three industrial announcements coming in the next two weeks, deals he said are done but are waiting on final touches. He told The Dispatch after the meeting two of those deals will be in Lowndes and one in Oktibbeha, with one bringing a more than $200 million capital investment and the other two between $10 million and $15 million. "They're good, solid deals," he said. "They're not the rockstar, home run type projects, but they are solid singles." During the meeting, Higgins touched on progress at NorthStar Industrial Park off Highway 389, where $3.4 million in land improvements are underway. He said the LINK is also negotiating to build another spec building on the near-400-acre site, as well as a 200,000-square-foot pad that could accommodate a large tenant. |
| Mississippi gets $86M to boost small businesses and startups | |
| The Mississippi Development Authority, the state's lead community and economic development agency, will receive up to $86 million in federal funds to support small businesses and startups. The money comes from the State Small Business Credit Initiative, which was reauthorized and expanded as part of the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021. The funds are disbursed by the U.S. Treasury Department. The state agency will use its slice of the federal funds to support four programs, including a loan guarantee program, a loan participation program, and two equity and venture capital programs. The Mississippi Venture Capital Program, which received $15 million, will invest in venture capital funds that support startups. The program, administered by Innovate Mississippi, aims to attract and retain high-growth businesses. The Direct Program has a budget of $15 million and will focus on startups in the pre-seed, seed and Series A stages of initial funding. The program will not serve as the lead investor and requires a lead investor's participation in a funding round. Depending on their size, deals can receive program-provided matches of up to $1 million. "The SSBCI will provide critical funding to support Mississippi small businesses and startups, and we are thrilled to see these programs become a reality," said Laura Hipp, deputy executive director of the state development agency. "By investing in these Mississippi companies, we will generate new job opportunities and spur even more economic growth in communities throughout our state." |
| Race to electric: Nissan's U.S. strategy depends on southeast growth | |
 | Franklin-based Nissan North America is prepared to bolster its investment in battery-powered technologies in Tennessee and throughout the southeastern U.S. This decision comes amidst substantial profit growth and intensified global competition for electric vehicles with artificial-intelligence software. In an interview with The Tennessean, senior vice president of Nissan Motor Co. and chairperson of Nissan Americas, Jérémie Papin, said that the company intends to significantly ramp up production to expedite the launch of new electrified models at all price points. Nissan's US. market surged 33.1% in the first quarter after strong growth last year, and the company posted an overall 98% year-over-year spike in operating profits. Meanwhile, the company's position in China is threatened by "severe competition" in new vehicle technology there, and a 24.3% revenue cut in 2022 that grew to 37% in the first quarter, according to company officials. "The growth in the U.S.A. at the moment is something that benefits significantly the global business of Nissan," Papin told The Tennessean recently. "So, the importance of the U.S. business, its positioning within the company, has never been as strong as it is today. Automotive production was new to Tennessee when Nissan began building cars here in 1983. Now, Nissan's production facilities in Smyrna, Decherd and Canton, Miss. are part of a major national hub with General Motors, Volkswagen and Ford. The historic brands are investing billions in upgrades to pave the way for what Papin said will be an all-EV landscape in 12 years. In addition to the all-electric SUV Ariya and an electrified Infiniti, 19 new battery-electric and hybrid Nissan models are promised by 2030. Two of those will be made at Nissan's recently expanded Canton, Miss. facilities in 2025. |
| The Era of Ultracheap Stuff Is Under Threat | |
 | The workplace features floor-to-ceiling windows and a cafe serving matcha tea, as well as free yoga and dance classes. Every month, workers gather at team-building sessions to drink beer, drive go-karts and go bowling. This isn't Google. It's a garment factory in Vietnam. Asia, the world's factory floor and the source of much of the stuff Americans buy, is running into a big problem: Its young people, by and large, don't want to work in factories. That's why the garment factory is trying to make its manufacturing floor more enticing, and why alarm bells are ringing at Western companies that rely on the region's inexpensive labor to churn out affordable consumer goods. The twilight of ultracheap Asian factory labor is emerging as the latest test of the globalized manufacturing model, which over the past three decades has delivered a vast array of inexpensively produced goods to consumers around the world. Americans accustomed to bargain-rate fashion and flat-screen TVs might soon be reckoning with higher prices. "There's nowhere left on the planet that's going to be able to give you what you want," said Paul Norriss, the British co-founder of the Vietnam garment factory, UnAvailable, based in Ho Chi Minh City. "People are going to have to change their consumer habits, and so are brands." In response to the crisis, Asian factories have had to increase wages and adopt sometimes costly strategies to retain workers, from improving cafeteria fare to building kindergartens for workers' children. |
| Williams outraising Sibley 2-to-1 in Senate race | |
| In the runup to Tuesday's Republican primary for District 15 senator, incumbent Bart Williams holds a commanding financial lead, outraising his opponent Alan Sibley nearly 2-to-1 during the course of the campaign. Williams reported raising $68,766 year-to-date, including $21,745 during the most recent period, according to a campaign finance report filed by the Aug. 1 deadline. Candidates in state and local races must file periodic campaign finance reports and itemize contributions or expenditures of $200 or greater. Williams reported $57,946.66 in year-to-date spending, including $37,715.89 last period, and still has a cash balance of $39,032.24, when adding the more than $28,000 he had raised before Jan. 1. By comparison, Sibley raised just $550 last period, including $500 from Benny Rigby and a non-itemized donation, according to his most recent report. However, he spent $30,626.69. Year-to-date, Sibley has raised $37,275 and spent $53,205.71. Since he entered the 2023 with $16,913.63 in the bank, he still has $982.92 on hand. No Democrat is running in District 15, meaning the primary winner will take the seat. |
| National money and rhetoric define final days of GOP primary campaigns | |
| It seems even those outside of the state are closely watching Tuesday's primaries. DC-area money flowing in shows strong interest in Mississippi's Republican primaries from conservative activist groups, donors and GOP institutions nationwide. That includes untraceable third-party spending in the closely watched lieutenant governor race boosting expenditures for right-wing challenger Sen. Chris McDaniel to over 78% of spending for incumbent Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann. Without the dark money, McDaniel's campaign spent less than 65% of what Hosemann's did. In the downticket northern district utility regulator primary, national issues have dominated the campaign messaging of McDaniel ally Rep. Chris Brown from the start. Recent out-of-state investment against Brown has kept opponent Tanner Newman competitive in ad spending, lifting pro-Newman expenditures from under 35% to around 91% of pro-Brown spending. Almost $3.5 million has been spent in the lieutenant governor's race this year by the two major Republican candidates and the main PACs supporting them, based on public reports through July 29. Hosemann and the largest PAC supporting him spent almost $1.95 million, 15.9% of it PAC money. McDaniel and his largest PAC supporter spent over $1.52 million, nearly 29% of it from his PAC. Far more out-of-state PAC money has gone to McDaniel than to Hosemann. Hosemann's funding, generally speaking, has been from Mississippi business interests and established Republican political entities. McDaniel's funding is hard to parse. He has fewer large Mississippi donors but has benefited from multiple mysterious out-of-state donations of $100,000 or more, including over $885,000 from PACs in DC and Ohio. |
| Mississippi candidates for statewide offices square off in party primaries | |
 | A bitter Republican primary for lieutenant governor is one of several races to watch in Mississippi party primaries. Republicans currently hold all eight statewide offices and a majority in the state House and Senate. Polls are open 7 a.m.-7 p.m. Tuesday. Republican incumbent Delbert Hosemann is challenged by state Sen. Chris McDaniel and educator Tiffany Longino. In November, the Republican primary winner will face business consult D. Ryan Grover, who is unopposed for the Democratic nomination. Hosemann is seeking a second term as lieutenant governor after serving three terms as secretary of state. He has touted a teacher pay raise, millions in new funding for public education, and a budget surplus. Hosemann has also called McDaniel a "pathological liar" and accused his campaign of "despicable" behavior. McDaniel, of Ellisville, is a four-term state legislator who has lost two races for U.S. Senate in the past decade, including a 2014 election that he refused to concede. He says Hosemann isn't conservative enough and has appointed too many Democrats to committees chairmanships in the state Senate. Both candidates have tied themselves to former President Donald Trump. |
| Mississippi Secretary of State expects increased turnout at primaries | |
 | Races for statewide office and legislative seats start today. The incumbent Governor and Lt. Governor are both facing primary challengers in their pursuit for re-election, though polls show both incumbents currently have more support. Secretary of State Michael Watson believes that an increase in submitted absentee ballots could indicate a better turnout for this year's primary. "2019 was roughly about 38,000... absentee [ballots]." he said. "And so [this year] we're... just north of 40,000. Total numbers, I believe, in the primary was somewhere around 760,000 total votes [in 2019]. So hopefully we'll surpass that number today." According to the Secretary of State's office, there were nearly 2 million Mississippians registered to vote in July. Watson says Mississippians have options if they are turned away from the polls in error. "They can ask for an affidavit ballot," he said. "If there was some issue with it being uploaded or something on the back end of the computer system that causes an error and the name was not on the voter roll, then that would be a provisional ballot, that ballot would be cast." Voters can find their precinct at the Y'all Vote website, and polls close at 7 p.m. |
| Heated Republican lieutenant governor's race highlights Tuesday primary election ballot | |
| Mississippians will go to the polls Tuesday with an opportunity to vote in races on the county level such as for supervisor, and in races on the state level such as for governor and legislators. The most high profile statewide race on the ballot Tuesday will be for the office of lieutenant governor. Incumbent Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann of Jackson is facing state Sen. Chris McDaniel of Ellisville in a contentious Republican primary. Hosemann and McDaniel for weeks have flooded mailboxes and statewide airwaves with bitter attacks about one another. Polls will be open from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m. People with election questions can call their local circuit clerks. Based on early numbers, the turnout could be high. The number of absentee ballots requested and returned, meaning the person requesting the ballot has voted and the ballot has been returned to the local circuit clerks, already exceeds the numbers for the 2019 primaries. Political observers often equate higher early voting or absentee numbers to overall higher election turnout. Through the weekend, 45,199 absentee ballots have been requested and 40,698 already have been returned to the local circuit clerks. This compared with the final numbers in the 2019 party primaries when 42,096 were requested and 38,237 were returned. Absentee ballots must be postmarked as of Election Day to be counted. An independent analysis of the absentee numbers compiled by the office of Secretary of State Michael Watson indicate high interest in the Republican primary. According to reports, there is high interest in a number of local races as well as the lieutenant governor's contest between Hosemann and McDaniel. |
| Mississippi Governor's Race Expected to Pit GOP Gov. Tate Reeves Against Elvis Relative | |
| Republican Gov. Tate Reeves is looking to ride record low unemployment in this state to a second term. His campaign coffers are flush with cash. He is ahead in the polls. Now he just has to beat two lesser-known GOP challengers -- and a distant cousin of Elvis Presley. Brandon Presley, who is running unopposed in Tuesday's Democratic gubernatorial primary and is related to the King of Rock 'n' Roll, has played down his party affiliation and used recent scandal and corruption to build out his underdog campaign in this ruby red state. On the other side of the primary ledger, Reeves faces two Republican challengers in a GOP primary Tuesday but is poised to win his party's nomination. Reeves and Presley, in their expected general-election matchup in November, would present sharply different views of the state's economy. Reeves argues the state is on the upswing; Presley says Mississippi is in trouble, with a government geared toward helping the powerful and ignoring the middle class and poor. For generations, politicos have considered speaking at the annual Neshoba County Fair in the backwoods as the unofficial start of Mississippi's campaign season. Presley took the stage at the fair recently and lit into Reeves, who was standing nearby. "Everyone can't be born rich and lucky," said Presley, who was raised in poverty. Reeves, who stepped up to the podium after Presley, was cheered by his backers as he fired back, arguing Presley was a frontman for elites who want to remake Mississippi in the image of a liberal-run state like California. |
| Sen. Wicker: Military projects strengthen state's economy, create 'peace through strength' | |
 | Sen. Roger Wicker said Camp Shelby Joint Forces Training Center could get a financial boost if provisions included in the Senate's projected $832 billion defense spending bill survive. The Senate approved in its version of the National Defense Authorization Act approximately $5.5 million for additions to Camp Shelby's training areas and another $2.2 million for a railhead expansion at Shelby. "It's a plus for the economy and it's a plus for workers and builders, but it's also another step toward making sure the men and women who put on the uniform and train at Camp Shelby have the very, very best," Wicker said. Camp Shelby was established as a training center in 1917 to support the United States' involvement in World War I. It encompasses 134,000 acres in Forrest, Perry and Greene counties. The House bill, which does not include support for Camp Shelby, sets a budget of approximately $826 billion in defense spending -- more than $285 million over President Joe Biden's requested amount, according to a report by the House Appropriations Committee. Wicker, a ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said now is not the time to cut defense spending. "Economic development requires a strong defense," the state's senior senator told members of the Area Development Partnership during a luncheon Friday in Hattiesburg. "It's a dangerous world. I believe that peace through strength is good for economic development in Mississippi." Wicker praised the efforts of Hattiesburg and the surrounding area for its continued progress in economic development. He also recognized the University of Southern Mississippi for its productive research programs and the university's $700 million economic impact. |
| Regaining Black farmers' trust is 'challenging,' says advisor to the Secretary of Agriculture | |
| As part of the American Rescue Plan in 2021, the Biden administration allocated $4 billion to address the history of racial injustice in the farming industry. Socially disadvantaged farmers would be able to apply for loan forgiveness payments through the Department of Agriculture. Shortly after, a federal judge blocked the payments following more than a dozen lawsuits from white farmers claiming the payments were racially discriminatory. Even after filing countersuits, Black farmers are starting to lose faith in the Biden administration. In an article for Capital B News, John Boyd Jr., president of the National Black Farmers Association, said he was counting on the payments to wipe the slate clean. "This administration ... just abandoned us, left us out there high and dry. That's why I turned to the courts," Boyd told Capital B. The Department of Agriculture is now accepting applications for the loan repayment program as part of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, but the program is no longer tailored to socially disadvantaged farmers. Dewayne Goldmon is the senior advisor for racial equity to the Secretary of Agriculture. "When you can shift the conversation from complaints and criticisms to solutions, that's when we start to make progress," he said in an interview with Marketplace host Kai Ryssdal. Goldmon spoke with Ryssdal about how the Biden administration can regain the trust of Black farmers across the country. |
| UM law professor named to federal spaceflight safety committee | |
| The Federal Aviation Administration has launched a rulemaking committee to develop regulations for human safety in spaceflight with industry representatives from across the country, including the University of Mississippi's Michelle Hanlon. Hanlon, executive director of the Center for Air and Space Law, is among 25 members on the committee. Their objective is to examine potential regulations needed to govern human safety during spaceflight. The Human Space Flight Occupant Safety Aerospace Rulemaking Committee hopes to submit its proposed regulations to the FAA in the summer of 2024. "It's a testament to the university and the work we've done to now be within the eye of the FAA," Hanlon said. The FAA launched the committee on July 27 in response to the upcoming expiration of a moratorium on spaceflight regulations that the U.S. Congress put into place in 2004. The moratorium, which allowed the space industry to grow unheeded, will expire Oct. 1 if Congress does not extend the deadline, as it did in 2012. "The FAA stood up this working group not because they think the moratorium will be lifted this year, but because we know at some point, the moratorium will be lifted," she said. |
| USM lands $4M grant to establish regional plastics research hub | |
| Labeled "ASPIRE," a new project spearheaded by University of Southern Mississippi polymer professor Dr. Zhe Qiang represents the ideal title for a team of scientists dedicated to changing the world. Qiang and his team secured a $4 million grant from the U.S. National Science Foundation as part of the foundation's Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR) program. On Monday, NSF announced an investment of $56 million in 11 projects initiated by universities across the United States. USM's project is officially titled "Advancing Social and Environmental Equity through Plastics Research: Education, Innovation, and Inclusion (ASPIRE)." The team will study the impact of microplastics on marine and community health, informing their exposure pathways and potential links to diseases, as well as design new materials for addressing plastic waste recycling challenges, which has been historically difficult. The aim is to develop a regional hub of plastic-climate-health research with particular focuses on promoting environmental and social equity and workforce diversity. The grant period is for four years. This EPSCoR investment is a component of NSF's ongoing effort to build research and development capacity and education in states that demonstrate a commitment to research but have not received the levels of investment seen in other parts of the country. |
| Several UF Board of Trustees donate $1.3 million to DeSantis' presidential PAC | |
| Several members of the UF Board of Trustees donated more than $1.3 million to Never Back Down, a super PAC funding Gov. Ron DeSantis' 2024 presidential bid. Board Chair Mori Hosseini donated $1 million to Never Back Down through his companies ICI Homes Residential Holdings LLC, Intervest Construction of Jax Inc., MHK of Volusia County Inc. and CC North Central LLC. Hosseini previously supplied DeSantis with a golf simulator in 2019 and private flights as recently as February. Hosseini is one of at least seven other individual donors to donate more than $1 million to the political action committee. Trustees James Heavener, Richard Cole and Patrick Zalupski donated a combined $360,000 to Never Back Down. DeSantis appointed Cole and Zalupski to the board in 2020 and 2023 respectively. Never Back Down raised more than $130 million since February and spent nearly $34 million as of June 30, FEC filings revealed July 31. PACs are not the only avenue the trustees have used to support DeSantis' presidential run. Trustees Hosseini, David Brandon and Daniel O'Keefe each donated $6,600 to DeSantis' principal presidential campaign. The campaign has raised more than $20 million since its launch in May, according to FEC filings. |
| Texas A&M ag economist explains his optimism for cattle market at Beef Cattle Short Course | |
 | David Anderson is optimistic about the upcoming cattle market for producers. The Texas A&M AgriLife Extension economist explained his reasons for optimism is rooted in increased prices and consumer demand during the general session at Texas A&M's 69th annual Beef Cattle Short Course in Rudder Auditorium on Monday afternoon. "I think on a balance, the positives outweigh the negatives and I think there's plenty of reason for optimism going forward," Anderson told the crowd. Over 1,900 cattle producers are attending this week's conference and over 80 speakers are set to discuss different topics centered on bovine. The Short Course's general session often gives an overview of the current and upcoming cattle market and weather. "I think with both of those topics, there's a lot questions from everybody of: How long is this market going to last? And when we get to weather it is: When's it going to rain?" Three long-term market issues stand out to Anderson, he said. Producers are supplying consumers with a product they want to buy. Higher prices will likely continue with tighter beef supplies over the next couple of years, which will test consumers' resolve and pocketbook. Drought has caused declining cattle numbers and this ongoing climate issue continues to affect feed costs. Finally, Anderson explained how the speed of rebuilding herds takes producers back to a decade ago in wake of the 2011 drought when there were record-high cattle prices, which he said came down quickly. An overarching issue facing the cattle industry is drought. |
| 'Ding Dong, the Witch Is Dead': Change in 'U.S. News' Metrics Prompts a Rethinking of Alumni Giving | |
 | "Ding dong, the witch is dead," one higher-ed consultant wrote on LinkedIn. Which witch? In May, U.S. News & World Report announced that it would no longer consider the proportion of alumni who donate to a college each year in its rankings formula. This year's undergraduate-program lists, to be published in the fall, will be the first in more than 30 years not to consider "alumni participation rates," as the metric is called in the field. "As soon as fund raisers woke up to the announcement that day, my phone started ringing," Brian Gawor, a consultant with the higher-ed advising firm Ruffalo Noel Levitz, told The Chronicle. As Gawor put it during a June webinar about the news: "A lot of people had questions because, in many cases, people's budgets, their resource allotments, and certainly their strategy, was often based around that APR statistic being in the rankings." The U.S. News announcement kicked into high gear a conversation that had already been happening in the field. Many college fund raisers had come to believe that common tactics used to drive people to give -- like tchotchke giveaways and interclass competitions -- were "transactional," didn't tap into the right philanthropic spirit, and didn't encourage alumni to keep donating in the long run. Not to mention persistent stories in the field about colleges manipulating their numbers to try to juice their institution's ranking. Meanwhile, nationally, the number of Americans who donate to their alma maters has been falling for more than two decades. As one artificial reason to focus on alumni giving is falling away, fund raisers are wondering: Will they be able to build a broad giving base for the future? |
| Why Is It So Hard for Scholars to Launch Startups? | |
 | Eunice Yang first tasted entrepreneurship in her twenties, when she helped run her family's carton manufacturing business. Five years later, after the business was acquired, she enrolled in a PhD program at Pennsylvania State University. By 2014 she was a tenured professor in mechanical engineering at University of Pittsburgh–Johnstown. After being approached by a colleague in the nursing school, Yang developed an AI-based solution for preventing falls in older adults (rather than detecting them after the fact). "I said, 'I've got to make this,'" Yang tells me. "If it's a reality in my mind, and if it's working on paper and the computer algorithm is showing that it can, then I can't just stay at University of Pittsburgh and treat this as a research project. I need to commercialize this." For two years, she tried to build the product while also meeting her research and teaching commitments, but the combination was impossible to sustain. Eventually she decided to take a leave of absence, and after 18 months she resigned and formed OK2StandUp, which serves nursing homes and other health care clients. Yang's story illustrates some of the challenges faced by those who develop entrepreneurial interests from within academia---a world that may be ill equipped to accommodate them. "The scholar-entrepreneur is an unknown person. The scholar-entrepreneur is typically viewed by the established academy as suspicious," says Ruth Okediji, a Harvard Law School professor and codirector of Harvard's Berkman Klein Center for Internet and Society. University-based commercialization took off in 1980, when the Bayh-Dole Act allowed US universities to retain ownership of, and profit from, faculty inventions built using federal research funding. The profit is shared with faculty inventors and external partners. Academic technology transfer offices have since become well-oiled machines for patenting and licensing innovations, and also producing spinoffs. While existing support structures work reasonably well for faculty members dabbling in innovation, there is no long-term road map for more involved scholar-entrepreneurs, forcing many early-career scholars to eventually choose between one or the other. |
| Federal appeals court blocks new borrower-defense rules | |
 | A federal appeals court has blocked the latest version of U.S. Education Department rules that allow borrowers to apply for relief from their student debt if their college or university misled them or violated certain state laws. Known as borrower defense to repayment, the regulations -- which took effect July 1 -- made it easier for borrowers who were defrauded or misled by a college to seek relief and potentially see their loans discharged. The Biden administration has already used the new rules to forgive $130 million in student loans for 7,400 borrowers who were enrolled at a for-profit college in Colorado that closed in 2020. Department officials said last month to expect more loan discharges related to borrower defense. A trade association representing for-profit colleges in Texas sued the Biden administration in February, arguing that the new regulations affecting borrower defense to repayment claims and closed-school discharges exceeded the Education Department's authority and were unconstitutional. "The apparent goals of this new framework are to accomplish massive loan forgiveness for borrowers and to reallocate the correspondingly massive financial liability to institutions of higher education," Career Colleges & Schools of Texas (CCST) wrote in its initial complaint. "The final rule will cause financial and reputational harm to schools, educational harm to students, and budgetary harm to the public fisc." A federal judge denied the group's motion for a preliminary injunction but did put the new rules on hold for the association's members while the case was appealed. |
SPORTS
| Mississippi State's Zach Arnett pushing competition as fall camp rolls on | |
| In the eyes of first-year head coach Zach Arnett, the return of pads to Mississippi State fall football practice the past two sessions has shifted the Bulldogs into the next phase of camp. As it continues preparations for Sept. 2's season opener at home against Southeastern Louisiana, Arnett and his staff have been pushing, and preaching, competition at just about every position group on the roster with the goal of weeding out potential starters. "That is the challenge in front of all of us as coaches right now," Arnett told reporters Monday after the team's practice session. "You are four days in and you can't make final decisions about your best 11. But every day you get a little more info and film to make that evaluation." So far for the Bulldogs, starting positions seem to be up for grabs in the linebacker, secondary and pass-catching groups. Next to senior leaders Jett Johnson and Nathaniel Watson, Arnett has been evaluating J.P. Purvis, who gained 15 pounds this offseason, and John Lewis for the SAM linebacker spot. "Those guys come out to work," Arnett said. "They have done a nice job. Replacing Tyrus Wheat (UDFA by the Dallas Cowboys) and all the different hats he wore on our defense the last couple of years is going to be a challenge, but they have come to work. We are throwing everything at them." Arnett said what Purvis and Lewis do the rest of fall camp could influence how the Bulldogs line up defensively for their first game. |
| Which SEC passing records Mississippi State football's Will Rogers could break in 2023 | |
 | As he enters his senior season, Mississippi State football's Will Rogers will be inching toward history with each throw he makes. Rogers, who already holds the SEC's all-time completions and attempts records, has a chance to add accolades to his résumé despite a shift from Mike Leach's Air Raid offense. Kevin Barbay was hired by coach Zach Arnett as MSU's offensive coordinator in January, and he'll bring a more balanced attack to Starkville. However, it shouldn't be too drastic of a shift. Rogers will have a chance to boost his numbers and etch his name into SEC history. Rogers came to Mississippi State in 2020 as a three-star prospect out of Brandon, Mississippi. He became a starter as a freshman and hasn't given up the spot, with 35 games in three years. Most SEC passing records belong to Georgia's Aaron Murray (2010-13). Rogers broke Murray's completions record last season. Rogers has 10,689 passing yards, which ranks eighth on the conference's all-time list. He enters this season 2,477 yards behind Murray for the record. Rogers averages 305.4 yards per game. At that pace, he would surpass Murray in nine games. Even if Rogers' production dips to 250 yards per game, he'd have no trouble breaking the record. Rogers, eighth in SEC history with 82 passing touchdowns, will need a career-best year to surpass Murray's mark of 121. In 2021, Rogers threw 36 touchdowns, which is his single-season high. It's unclear what Barbay's red zone offense will look like, but it'll need to include a heavy passing attack for Rogers to test the record. |
| Mississippi State student catches unofficial record green sunfish | |
 | Natchez resident Mason Wells returns back to Starkville for college soon but he managed to catch an unofficial state record before leaving home first. He landed a 1.54 green sunfish on a fly rod at a pond in Fayette Saturday. Wells is a graduate of Monterey High School but he and his family live in Natchez. His dad Patrick Wells shared the catch on Facebook and wrote in the caption "Beats the Mississippi rod and reel and fly rod Green Ear." The Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks reports the official record for a green sunfish is 1.26 pounds and was caught with Rod and Reel at Waltman's Lake in Canton. The fly rod record in Mississippi is .43 pounds for a green sunfish, also known as a green ear sunfish. The fish caught by Wells would have surpassed both of those records. Fisheries Bureau Assistant Director Ryan Jones said they had not received an application for the record fish caught by Wells as of Monday morning. "Record fish applications must be submitted with a weight from a certified scale," Jones said. "And the fish species must be confirmed by one of our field biologists." Patrick Wells said the fish was released back into the pond to "grow bigger." Possible fishing records need to be weighed on certified scales at a grocery store or meat market, they must be measured and the species must be confirmed by a biologist. A list of fishing records can be found on www.MDWFP.com to see if your catch could set a record. |
| Kiffin: Latest conference realignment movement 'not good for college athletes' | |
| Count Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin among those not convinced the recent seismic shift in conference realignment is for the better. Last week, Pac-12 stalwarts Oregon and Washington were announced as the two newest members of the Big Ten. In the ensuing days, it was announced that fellow Pac-12 members Arizona, Arizona State and Utah were joining the Big 12. Colorado also recently announced that it is leaving the Pac-12 for the Big 12. With last year's announcement of USC and UCLA to the Big Ten, that leaves just four schools left in the Pac-12 come the 2024 season -- Washington State, Oregon State, Stanford and Cal. Realignment has been a major talking point in college sports since Texas and Oklahoma announced their departure from the Big 12 for the SEC back in 2021. The seemingly inevitable dissolution of the Pac-12, which has been around in some capacity since 1915, has put the sports world at-large on notice. Kiffin -- who previously served as an assistant and as the head coach at USC -- was asked Monday following the Rebels' latest practice for his thoughts on the ever-changing landscape of college sports and whether he believes such realignment is good for the sport and the student-athletes. "It is not good for college athletes. I think it's really sad for fans that want to travel to games. And we're just talking about football here, let's talk about all the sports that now, you have to fly around the country, they play on weekdays, they back at 4 in the morning, they have to go to school. Parents aren't going to be able to see near as many games, families," Kiffin said. "You guys know I just call it what it is, it's obviously about money. So, anybody that says these decisions, 'Well, they weren't about money' or 'Money was just a small factor,' no. You don't do that to all your student-athletes. That's not in the betterment of the student-athlete at all." |
| Pac-12's downfall came after it could not adjust to changing media landscape | |
| Larry Scott boasted five years ago that the Pac-12 Conference would be able "to adapt, react and take advantage of this new world media order that's coming in a way others can't." As it turns out, Scott's statement instead ended up reflecting what rival conferences and commissioners did. Scott didn't have a chance to negotiate a second Pac-12 media deal. He stepped down as commissioner in 2021 and his successor, George Kliavkoff, didn't land the deal the conference needed. Last week's Pac-12 collapse, which saw five of the remaining nine members announce they were leaving the "Conference of Champions" for either the Big Ten or the Big 12, drove home in a dramatic way two points: Football drives college athletics, and there are limits to what the media market will pay for content. "I think this was a factor of timing and potential media partners not being willing to provide the right fees that the conference and the institutions wanted," said Tag Garson, senior vice president of properties for Wasserman, a media company that represents broadcasters, coaches and executives and also consults with teams and leagues. "It's also about the changing landscape of intercollegiate athletics, and making sure that schools are set up for the most success possible in the long term." Media rights have far surpassed ticket sales and donor contributions as the main revenue driver for athletic programs. |
| The Pac-12 Was In Trouble When He Took Over. Then It Collapsed on His Watch | |
| Two summers ago, George Kliavkoff took on one of the least desirable and most difficult executive jobs in college sports: resuscitating the rapidly fading Pac-12 Conference. Revenue in the so-called "Conference of Champions" lagged well behind the two giants that now dominate college sports, the Big Ten and Southeastern Conferences. The Pac-12 hadn't produced a football or men's basketball champion since 2004. It was burdened by its once-innovative television network, which never reached its potential. Kliavkoff won the job as Pac-12 commissioner with a résumé full of digital media jobs -- at places like Major League Baseball and NBCUniversal -- that seemed to prepare him for finding a lucrative path into a future that would be dominated by streaming, rather than cable and broadcast deals. But almost immediately after Kliavkoff took over, he realized that he was taking over "not just a dumpster fire, but multiple dumpster fires," according to a person familiar with his thinking. Kliavkoff was stymied by the Pac-12's own member schools, who shut down possible expansion in the summer of 2021. He was stiff-armed by television networks that dragged their feet in negotiations. He miscalculated the market for a new broadcast deal, allowing rivals at other conferences to outflank the Pac-12 in college sports' ruthless race for domination. Kliavkoff now presides over the rubble of a once iconic conference. |
| WSU president Kirk Schulz 'shocked' to hear news of Pac-12's defections | |
| Washington State president Kirk Schulz has spoken. In the aftermath of Washington and Oregon's defection to the Big Ten, all but dismantling the Pac-12, Schulz said he was "shocked" to hear the news in a statement released Monday evening. In the statement, Schulz confirmed that on Aug. 1, Pac-12 Commissioner George Kliavkoff presented the conference's board of directors with a new media rights deal via Apple, which would help keep the conference together as its current deal is set to expire after this season. The directors, Schulz wrote, all seemed to agree on the deal. That's when Oregon and Washington reversed course, which is when Schulz and athletic director Pat Chun started doing what they say they are now: "We talked with multiple conference commissioners, presidents and chancellors, athletic directors, and other leaders in college athletics. These efforts continued through the weekend -- and will continue until we find a suitable home for Washington State athletics. I am in regular contact with the leaders from the remaining Pac‑12 schools and will continue to do so moving forward." Schulz added that he plans to assemble a group of faculty, staff, athletic administrators and student leaders "to provide feedback on conference options for WSU as our pathway forward becomes more clear in the days and weeks ahead." That group, Schulz wrote, will be shared with the public by the end of the week. |
| Sources: ACC to begin discussing Cal, Stanford as additions | |
| ACC leaders are set to begin exploratory discussions on the potential additions of Cal and Stanford to the conference, sources told ESPN on Monday. Sources cautioned that the two scheduled discussions are in the embryonic stages -- one call slated with the ACC athletic directors and a separate call with the league's presidents that will play out on Monday and Tuesday. With the Pac-12 down to just four schools after the defection of five universities on Friday, the four remaining schools -- including Cal and Stanford -- are scrambling to find places to land. Both have elite academic reputations and Stanford consistently has the country's best top-to-bottom athletic department, but the reverberations of realignment have left them at a crossroads. There will be headwinds to a move for Cal and Stanford to the ACC, as sources on Monday cautioned about the complexities involved. "It's complicated," an ACC source said. "There's a significant travel expense. I think it's going to be all over the board with both the ADs and the presidents in what they may want to do. [Cal and Stanford] would likely have to take a reduced share. Eventually, though, they're going to want to become a full share." Finances will be pivotal in the discussions. The ACC is locked into a television deal with ESPN through 2036 that multiple members have publicly griped about being constrictive financially for long-term success. The deal projects to put schools like FSU and Clemson nearly $30 million annually behind schools in the SEC and Big Ten. |
| NCAA President Charlie Baker concerned over 'highly disruptive' conference realignment | |
| The dominoes from the last week of conference realignment have changed the face of college athletics. The Pac-12 is crumbling; just four schools remain in the 108-year-old conference. Meanwhile, the Big Ten has grown to 18 institutions spanning coast to coast. Arizona, Arizona State and Utah have sprinted to the Big 12. TV networks and college football drove the moves. Basketball and softball schedules were not closely examined. In a statement issued to On3 on Monday night, NCAA President Charlie Baker emphasized his concern about what the conference shakeups could mean for the future of college sports. The former Massachusetts governor took over for Mark Emmert on March 1. "I share concerns about the impact that the recent spate of conference realignment activities will have on student-athletes' well-being," Baker said in a statement. "The recent conference moves highlight what I found during my review of the issues facing the NCAA – the growing gap between well-resourced Division I schools and the rest of the division is highly disruptive for all of D-I and college sports overall. I believe D-I university and college presidents, commissioners and the NCAA should work together to explore ways to address the impact this growing gap is having on student-athlete well-being and the competitive equity issues across the division." Charlie Baker's comments are unique. Typically an NCAA president would not comment on a wave of realignment. But since taking the office this spring, he has become a visible leader in college sports. He's spent significant time on Capitol Hill, lobbying Congress to enact federal NIL legislation. The chances of lawmakers returning in September and prioritizing college athletics appear slim now. With an upcoming presidential election paired with a government shutdown crisis, NIL was never going to be the top priority. The latest round of realignment does not help either. |
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