| Tuesday, June 3, 2025 |
| Pilgrim's gift will help Mississippi State build poultry feed mill | |
 | Pilgrim's Pride, a global leader in poultry production, has donated a major gift toward constructing a new poultry feed mill facility at Mississippi State University (MSU). The company's $100,000 gift marks another chapter in demonstrating its longstanding relationship with the university's poultry science department. The university's existing feed mill has served the department since 1979. Plans for the new mill, located on its current site at the Mississippi Agricultural & Forestry Experiment Station's H.H. Leveck Animal Research Center, or South Farm, includes an updated exterior, increased facility footprint and addition of a pelleting line. The project is slated to begin next year. "Feed and feed manufacturing accounts for roughly 60-70% of total operational costs for poultry producers. Proper nutrition is critical to overall health, growth and production," said Kelley Wamsley, associate professor of poultry science. "The pellet mill will enhance our research capacity while also providing hands-on experience for our students and complementing our other commercially relevant facilities, allowing students to truly learn about the industry from farm to fork." |
| MSU choir members take the stage in London for collaborative performance | |
 | Sixteen members of Mississippi State's choral program are traveling to London this month for a collaborative performance and cultural learning opportunities. The choir members take the stage at Cadogan Hall June 8 to perform "Missa Deus Nobiscum," by British composer Philip Stopford, in collaboration with London's Surbiton High School. Featuring combined choirs, a soprano soloist and an orchestra, the concert is conducted by Phillip Stockton, assistant teaching professor and associate director of MSU's choral activities. The participants are music and non-music majors representing MSU's four choirs of Cantaré, OPUS, Schola Cantorum and State Singers. The choral activities are housed in MSU's state-of-the-art Music Building, a $21 million facility equipped with sound-proof practice rooms, a high-tech recording studio, an acoustically advanced lecture-recital hall, more $3.5 million worth of Steinway pianos and more. Their upcoming performance is part of Vox Anima London, an organization that provides concert opportunities to choirs around the world. |
| Starkville High School inducts 81 into ACT 25/30+ Club | |
 | Last week, Starkville-Oktibbeha Consolidated School District administrative staff hosted the annual Starkville High School ACT 25/30+ Club Luncheon, celebrating students who earned a composite score of 25 or better on the ACT college entrance exam during the 2024-2025 school year. Fifty-two students were honored for scoring at least 25 this year. Twenty-nine students were inducted for earning a score of 30 or better, placing them in the 93rd percentile of students taking the exam nationally each year. "We are excited to welcome you to today's luncheon for the SHS 25+ and 30+ Club," Watress Harris, Starkville High principal, said in opening the event. "This accomplishment is something you all should be very proud of, and it puts you among the top of your peers as you prepare for college. We are pleased to honor you today." On average, more than 60% of Starkville High graduates go on to attend community college or a four-year university after high school, and the district provides a robust collection of advanced academic offerings to jumpstart a student's college coursework. A variety of Advanced Placement course offerings provide students with an additional way to earn college credit while in high school based on passage of the national AP exams. In addition, partnerships with Mississippi State University like the Early Honors Academy and BasePair research program give students the opportunity to interact with professors and experience college courses and research projects. |
| Wicker gives updates on KC-46, defense spending at Air and Space Force Association | |
 | Meridian's history as the birthplace of aerial refueling should count in its favor as it looks to host the next generation of tanker aircraft used by the Mississippi Air National Guard 186th Air Refueling Wing, Sen. Roger Wicker said Thursday. Addressing the G.V. Sonny Montgomery chapter of the Air and Space Force Association, Wicker said he, along with Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith, Rep. Michael Guest and Rep. Trent Kelly, are continuing to push for the 186th ARW as a host site for the new aircraft. Currently, the 186th ARW uses KC-135 tankers to refuel military aircraft around the globe. The planes, while reliable, are ready to be retired with the newest of the fleet at roughly 60 years old. Millions of both state and federal funding has been directed to the 186th ARW at Key Field for upgrades and modifications to improve the installation's readiness to accept the new aircraft. That includes $6.7 million for the design and planning of a corrosion controlled hangar, $1.9 million to plan and design and supply warehouse, $5.6 to plan and design a maintenance hangar, funding for a new fire station and more. "I will tell you, I don't know whether we're going to get the KC-46s in Meridian or not, but it will not be for the lack of trying on our part," he said. |
| Allen Media Group looks to sell television stations, including WTVA | |
| Seeking to reduce its debt load, Allen Media Group is looking to sell its broadcast TV stations, including WTVA. In a press release Monday, Allen Media Group said it had retained investment bank Moelis and Company to help it explore financial and strategic alternatives, including a potential sale of its broadcast stations. "We have received numerous inquiries and written offers for most of our television stations and now is the time to explore getting a return on this phenomenal investment," Allen said in the statement. "We are going to use this opportunity to take a serious look at the offers, and the sale proceeds will be used to significantly reduce our debt." Company founder, chairman and CEO Byron Allen has poured in more than $1 billion over the past six years in acquiring television stations, and now has 28 ABC, NBC, CBS and FOX affiliate stations in 21 markets. It acquired WTVA in 2019 as part of an 11-station, $210 million deal from Heartland Media, which had purchased WTVA five years earlier for an undisclosed sum. |
| Profile: Milk has done Austin Bailey's career good | |
| If you've drunk any milk in the past eight years, there's a good chance Austin Bailey brought it to you, or, at least, supplied it for you. Bailey, a driver for Prairie Farms Dairy, brings regular milk deliveries to more than 40 grocery stores, convenience stores and schools in Clay, Lowndes and Oktibbeha counties. An Amory native, Bailey grew up in Columbus before moving to Caledonia and, eventually, Starkville, where he now lives with his wife of 15 years, Jessica, and their son, Cruz, 7. Throughout his adult life, Bailey has been one of those millions of Americans whose job goes unnoticed but whose work never does. Troops can't fight without logistical support, forests don't flourish without upkeep, and schools can't provide nutritious meals without milk. And while his work happens behind the scenes, in stock rooms, loading docks and refrigerated cases, you've likely seen Bailey on his route. And if you've ever been behind him, you've definitely noticed. His truck, a 20-foot refrigerated unit, sports a larger-than-life picture of a cow on its rear doors. Milk delivery has a unique place in American memory. From Norman Rockwell paintings, to Broadway musicals ("The Fiddler on the Roof") and Hollywood films ("The Milkman,") the classic image of a man in white coveralls bringing metal jugs or individual glass bottles of milk to suburban homes is indelible. |
| Hunter Gardner new executive director of the Hinds County Economic Development Authority | |
| The Hinds County Economic Development Authority (HCEDA) has announced the appointment of Hunter Gardner as its new Executive Director, effective immediately. A Mississippi native with extensive experience in economic development, Gardner brings a proven track record of securing investment and building strategic partnerships to drive growth in Hinds County. Hunter Gardner's global expertise and Mississippi roots make him an ideal leader for HCEDA," said Beau Cole, Board President of the Hinds County Economic Development Authority. Gardner most recently served as an Economic Development Specialist at the Mississippi Development Authority, where he successfully closed over 12 major projects between 2022 and 2024. A native of Greenville, Mississippi, Gardner began his professional journey as the lead anchor for Good Morning Mississippi, where he covered major developments throughout the Delta region. Gardner resides in Jackson and holds a Bachelor of Business Administration from Mississippi State University. |
| Orthopedic practices across the state unifying under Mississippi Sports Medicine label | |
| Three of the state's most-utilized orthopedic practices have announced they are unifying under one brand. Jackson-based Mississippi Sports Medicine and Orthopaedic Center (MSMOC) announced in a Tuesday press release that Oxford Ortho & Sports Medicine and the Orthopaedic Institute of North Mississippi in Tupelo are joining its brand beginning Aug. 4. The three orthopedic providers will unite under one name: Mississippi Sports Medicine. According to the release, the merger will create the largest and most comprehensive network of orthopedic specialists in the state and one of the strongest in the Southeast. According to the release, not much changes for patients. They will continue seeing the same physicians at the same locations. The only difference is their doctors may be working with team members in other offices to provide the best services. "Those physicians now benefit from deeper collaboration with a statewide team of subspecialty colleagues, helping ensure every patient receives care aligned with the most advances standards in orthopedics," the release stated. The expanded network also guarantees patients can visit locations in other cities with ease, if needed. |
| US growth likely to slow to 1.6% this year, hobbled by Trump's trade wars, OECD says | |
 | U.S. economic growth will slow to 1.6% this year from 2.8% last year as President Donald Trump's erratic trade wars disrupt global commerce, drive up costs and leave businesses and consumers paralyzed by uncertainty. The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development forecast Tuesday that the U.S. economy -- the world's largest -- will slow further to just 1.5% in 2026. Trump's policies have raised average U.S. tariff rates from around 2.5% when he returned to the White House to 15.4%, highest since 1938, according to the OECD. Tariffs raise costs for consumers and American manufacturers that rely on imported raw materials and components. World economic growth will slow to just 2.9% this year and stay there in 2026, according to the OECD's forecast. It marks a substantial deceleration from growth of 3.3% global growth last year and 3.4% in 2023. Adding to the uncertainty over Trump's trade wars: A federal court in New York last week blocked most of Trump's tariffs, ruling that he'd overstepped his authority in imposing them. Then an appeals court allowed the Trump administration to continue collecting the taxes while appeals worked their way through the U.S. courts. |
| Speaker White removes Rep. Hobgood-Wilkes as committee chair over her advocacy for PBM reform | |
| House Speaker Jason White removed Stacey Hobgood-Wilkes, a Republican from Picayune, as chairwoman of the House Drug Policy Committee last week, a rare move from a speaker two years into his first term as leader of the House. Hobgood-Wilkes said in a statement to Mississippi Today that she was removed as chairwoman over her advocacy for reforming pharmacy benefit manager practices in the state, a topic hotly debated by lawmakers earlier this year during their regular session. The Pearl River County lawmaker said the speaker's decision to remove her as leader of the committee was "deeply hurtful," because it wasn't because of her objective performance as a legislator, but rather because she continued to speak up for her beliefs. "I fought to lower drug costs for Mississippians and to support our independent pharmacists against the powerful PBMs working to drive them out of business," Hobgood-Wilkes said. "I didn't run for office to build my ego or pad my pocketbook. I ran because I love Pearl River County, and I love Mississippi." White, a Republican from West, did not respond to a request for comment. He replaced Hobgood-Wilkes as leader of the committee with Rep. Beth Luther Waldo, a freshman Republican from Pontotoc. |
| A mayor's race drew Tim Scott, Stacey Abrams to this Mississippi Coast city | |
 | Gulfport will choose a new mayor on Tuesday, and the tense race has gained national attention in the days before voters head to the polls to elect a new leader for the largest city on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Attorney Hugh Keating, a Republican, is facing off against Democrat Sonya Williams-Barnes, a former Mississippi House Representative and funeral home director who currently works for the Southern Poverty Law Center. The candidates are seeking to replace three-term Republican Billy Hewes, who did not seek reelection. The race has not come without controversy and is likely to be the most closely watched on the Mississippi Coast this election cycle, with Republican U.S. Sen. Tim Scott and political heavyweight Stacey Abrams both making stops in Gulfport in the last few days to stump for the candidates. Despite the candidates promising a clean race, a number of contentious moments have marked the Keating v. Williams-Barnes matchup. Turnout to the polls on Tuesday is expected to be high, a city spokesperson said, and absentee ballots and primary votes also show voters are engaged with the race. If Williams-Barnes were to prevail on Tuesday, she'd be the first Democrat mayor in Gulfport in more than three decades, according to city records. She'd also be the first Black woman to serve in the position. |
| Democrat challenges Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst days after 'We're all going to die' remark | |
 | Three days after Sen. Joni Ernst responded to a constituent's concerns about potential Medicaid cuts by saying, "We're all going to die," the Iowa Republican drew a high-profile Democratic opponent. State Rep. J.D. Scholten, a two-time congressional candidate, announced his campaign Monday, saying Ernst's comments prompted him to jump into the race sooner than he had anticipated. "I wasn't planning on doing this right now, but I just can't sit on the sidelines after Joni's recent town hall justifying gutting Medicaid because 'we're all gonna die,'" he says in his launch video. Ernst, an Iraq War veteran serving her second term, drew quick condemnation from Democrats for her town hall remarks Friday about the impact of Medicaid cuts. After an attendee interrupted her by shouting that people were going to die, Ernst responded, "Well, we're all going to die." Over the weekend, she posted a video that appeared to be recorded in a cemetery and made light of the matter. Scholten joins military veteran Nathan Sage in the Democratic primary to face Ernst, with several others said to be weighing bids. Democrats have not won a Senate election in Iowa since 2008, when Sen. Tom Harkin won a fifth term. In recent cycles, Iowa has transformed from a swing state to a reliably Republican one. Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales rates the Senate race in Iowa as Solid Republican. |
| 'The president is obsessed': Trump fixates on Xi call amid faltering trade talks | |
 | President Donald Trump thinks a call with China's leader Xi Jinping will help reset souring trade talks. But even if that conversation happens this week, as the White House said is "likely," it's doubtful to be the breakthrough Trump is hoping for. "The president is obsessed with having a call with Xi," said one person familiar with the trade talks, convinced he can personally hash out deep-seated divisions between the world's two largest economies mano a mano with Xi. That conviction belies the difficult position the U.S. is in as it tries to pressure China to fundamentally reorder their nearly $600 billion trade relationship, without doing lasting political damage at home. And it renews questions about what Trump's endgame is in a trade war with China that is increasingly turning into a game of chicken. The person familiar with the trade talks, who was granted anonymity to speak candidly about their private conversations, said the administration is under "a lot of pressure" because of China's block on critical minerals, crucial components for everything from auto and electronics manufacturing to munitions production. "I don't think Xi is too interested in exporting any more rare earths or magnets to the United States, he's made his position clear," the person added, though they predicted there's a "good likelihood" Xi would take the call to at least hear Trump out. |
| China's New Trade Negotiator Is Ready to Play Hardball | |
 | In its deepening face-off with the Trump administration, Beijing's trade negotiator has given a preview of Xi Jinping's chief objective for this trade war: It won't be like last time. In Geneva in mid-May, Vice Premier He Lifeng extracted a 90-day trade truce from a Trump team that had until then declined to pause a tariff blitz on China the way it had for other countries. The deal calmed the nerves of investors and markets around the world. Now, after both sides have complained that the other wasn't upholding the terms of the deal, that trade truce is teetering, once again jolting global investors and businesses. At the center of the storm is He, Xi's economic gatekeeper, who has made clear China's strategy in this trade war is nothing like the approach it had in Trump's first term. During the Geneva talks, He had removed a final sticking point by agreeing to U.S. demands that China resume rare-earth exports. Yet since then He has dug in his heels, slow-walking approvals of licenses to export the minerals critical in the manufacturing of modern cars and other products. Last month's Geneva deal, which China saw as a win, showed Xi the value of sticking to his guns, according to people who consult with senior Chinese officials. |
| Trump posts online at a ferocious pace, expanding his reach and stirring outrage | |
 | President Donald Trump is posting on the internet with a velocity and ferocity far beyond that of his first term, surprising aides with predawn messages fired off at a blistering pace. As of Sunday, Trump had posted 2,262 times to his company's social network Truth Social in the 132 days since his inauguration, a Washington Post analysis has found -- more than three times the number of tweets he sent during the same period of his first presidency, according to data from the Trump Twitter Archive. The data portrays an influencer-in-chief whose reach has grown vastly larger than during his first term. The heightened volume is not just the handiwork of Trump's thumbs; he now has a team of aides who help him post throughout the day. And many of his posts leap to other platforms with help from an active base of administration leaders, right-wing influencers and MAGA media figures who amplify them far and wide. His prolific posts also allow him to communicate directly to his fans, without any filtering from media outlets. The 78-year-old president has made social media into a daily habit more than a decade long, shaping policy, stirring outrage and capturing global attention largely from his phone. But his posting now overshadows even the most explosive Twitter days of his first presidency. |
| Ken Cyree, Ole Miss Business Dean: Long-serving faculty member will retire at the end of the year | |
| After 21 years as a faculty member at the UM School of Business Administration, and 17 of those years serving at the helm as Dean, Ken Cyree will retire in December 2025. Cyree, who came to Ole Miss from Texas Tech in 2004 as an associate professor of finance, is the school's 11th Dean and the second-longest serving Dean in the school's history, except for James Warsaw Bell, the school's founding Dean in 1917. He is also the longest serving current Dean of a business school in the Southeastern Conference. "I have enjoyed a relatively long career at Ole Miss, and especially as Dean," said Cyree when asked about his decision to retire. "I am proud of what we have been able to accomplish together. "My intent from the beginning was always to go out on top and leave the school poised to continue and expand on the successes we have enjoyed. I believe we have been able to achieve the goal of making the Ole Miss School of Business even better during the last 17 plus years, and I am excited for the future of the school." Under Cyree's leadership, the business school now boasts 74 full-time faculty, 31 adjunct instructors and 44 members of the school's staff. Since 2008, the year he became Dean, the school has developed a dedicated career center, a student-start up business incubator, improved the quality of the faculty and raised the focus of experiential learning. |
| The 'State of the People Power Tour' comes to the Jackson area | |
 | Hundreds of people gathered in Tougaloo College's Kroger Gymnasium Saturday as part of the State of the People Power Tour. Between May 30 and 31, organizers of the event held a food drive for local families, conducted a bus tour of the area and held a town hall to discuss issues relevant to Mississippi's Black community. Community activist Angela Rye says Mississippi was chosen in order to amplify the issues that impact the Black community -- a group that makes up a significant portion of the Southern region's population. Elizabeth Booker Houston, a lawyer and podcast host from Memphis, asked second district Congressman Bennie Thompson about the role of the Democratic Party in the south. "Since we're here in Jackson, Mississippi, and a as a black Southerner myself, I want to talk about the fact that a lot of black folks in the South feel like the Democratic Party has left behind the South, feel like the South is not a place to even try to fight for, because this is just MAGA country," she said. Thompson acknowledged that his party had issues. "We need some work. We need a lot of work," he said. "It's part of what happens in the South, is they count our numbers, but they don't count our intellect." |
| Universities face 'witch hunt' over DEI changes, expert says | |
 | A former leader of the Education Department's Office for Civil Rights said she's "frustrated" with schools that are changing DEI policies in an effort to keep federal funding. Catherine Lhamon, who led the federal office during the Biden administration, said universities should stop responding to President Donald Trump's request to end DEI programming unless he can put the force of Congress behind his words. "We've put ourselves as a nation in the position where there's a witch hunt about a set of activities that are perfectly lawful, that are actually public goods, that are actually consistent with our highest national aspirations," Lhamon said on a panel in St. Louis at the Education Writers Association conference. Ted Mitchell, president of the American College of Education, agreed with Lhamon's critiques. He cited Alabama as a test case for Trump's effort -- and a warning of potential effects. In 2024, Alabama passed a law that stopped universities from teaching "divisive concepts" or funding programs that support one race or group above another. Alabama colleges closed DEI offices and ended support for some student programs. This summer, schools cited federal pressure as they continued to make changes. |
| Texas poised to become latest GOP state to exert control over university curriculum | |
| The gubernatorially appointed boards that oversee Texas universities soon could have new powers to control the curriculum required of students and eliminate degree programs. The legislation sent Monday to Texas Gov. Greg Abbott marks the latest effort among Republican-led states to reshape higher education institutions that they assert have been promoting liberal ideology. It follows similar moves in Florida and Ohio. The state actions come as President Donald Trump's administration also has injected itself into higher education, leveraging federal funding and its student visa authority to clamp down on campus activism and stamp out diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. Some professors contend the moves violate the principles of academic freedom that many universities have followed for decades. Under the Texas legislation, governing boards at higher education institutions will be tasked with reviewing -- and potentially overturning -- general education curriculum requirements to ensure courses are necessary to prepare students for civic and professional life, equip them for the workforce and are worth the cost to students. Governing boards also will gain greater power over faculty councils, the employment of academic administrators and decisions to eliminate minor degree or certificate programs that have low enrollment. The bill also creates a state ombudsman's office to investigate complaints against institutions, including alleged violations of restrictions against diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. |
| Red states tell colleges: Race and gender classes are out, civics in | |
| Lawmakers in conservative states are taking more control over what is taught and required at public colleges and universities, an effort that some faculty say threatens the foundation of higher education and academic freedom. New laws in Ohio, Utah and Florida are reshaping general education, the core classes college students take to meet graduation requirements. The laws mandate that students take civics courses focused on Western civilization and bar classes centered on race or gender from counting toward core requirements. Lawmakers say it's time to refocus unwieldy college course offerings on essential texts, not content steeped in identity politics. Faculty members argue that these laws promote a dangerously narrow perspective of what students should learn and undermine academics' control over curriculums. State lawmakers have the authority to regulate curriculums and set requirements for graduation, but higher education experts say that until recently, they have let public colleges and universities lead the way. That began to change in 2020 after the first Trump administration issued an executive order to stamp out "divisive concepts" about race and gender in the federal government, according to the American Association of University Professors and American Federation of Teachers. |
| Florida Board of Governors to vote June 3 on UF's selection of Dr. Santa Ono for president | |
 | The Florida Board of Governors is scheduled to vote June 3 on the confirmation of Dr. Santa Ono as the University of Florida's 14th president. The 17-member board, which serves as the governing body for the state's 12 public universities, will meet from 1 to 3 p.m. at UCF's Downtown Campus in Orlando. Ono's confirmation is the only action item listed on the agenda. The meeting comes a week after UF's Board of Trustees unanimously approved Ono for president, and a month after he was announced as the sole finalist by UF's Presidential Search Committee, which included Board of Governors member Charles Lydecker. Mori Hosseini, chair of UF's Board of Trustees, will share with the board the search committee's process, how it arrived at its decision to name Ono as the sole finalist, and provide some of Ono's academic and professional accomplishments. "In Dr. Ono, we have found someone whose record overwhelmingly meets and exceeds UF's demanding qualifications for president," Hosseini wrote in a letter to BOG Chair Brian Lamb. The details of Ono's five-year contract that could pay him as much at $15 million over that time also will be presented. |
| U. of Tennessee opening Cumberland Foodhall dining on the Strip | |
 | Knoxville residents, not just students, soon will have a new dining option on Cumberland Avenue through a partnership between the University of Tennessee at Knoxville and Core Spaces, the student apartment developer opening two of four Hub Knoxville buildings for the fall semester. But the new Cumberland Foodhall concept, which will feature counter service and food lockers from multiple vendors, won't be ready until the spring 2026 semester. Through university food vendor Aramark Educational Services, UT is leasing the space inside Hub Knoxville at 1925 Cumberland Ave. for Vol Dining. The food hall will serve lunch and dinner, with space for 350 people to sit. While vendors will accept credit and debit cards, students can also pay using Dining Dollars, their VolCard or the Flex Plan. Core Spaces will build out the space as a food hall for $586,480. UT will pay more than $2.85 million during a five-year lease period, followed by the option to extend the lease another five years. The new food hall is another step in UT's mission to widen the campus footprint while investing in off-campus spaces. |
| Indiana U: Most Complaints Under New Law Were 'Form of Protest' | |
 | Indiana University says that, out of 46 complaints it received in 2024 under a state law that threatens the jobs of faculty who don't foster "intellectual diversity," 37 were "frivolous complaints that were anonymously submitted as a form of protest." "An example of a typical complaint: 'Professor xxxx studies the black female experience and is an award-winning teacher and prolific publisher,'" the university explained in its required report to the state Commission for Higher Education under Senate Enrolled Act 202. The annually required report contains just three paragraphs summarizing the complaints received between when the new law took effect July 1 and Dec. 31. It says that -- aside from the protest complaints -- IU received nine complaints about eight separate situations across four IU campuses. "Eight [complaints] were about political speech in classroom settings and one was about a failure to consider alternate viewpoints on a non-political matter," the report says. It doesn't contain further details, such as whom the complaints were against, which campuses were involved, what the allegations were, what the outcomes of the complaints were or whether these cases have been closed. An IU spokesperson didn't provide an interview or answer written questions Monday. |
| Education Department declares June 'Title IX Month' | |
 | The Education Department announced Monday that June, typically known as Pride Month, would be honored as "Title IX Month" as it works to undo Biden-era transgender protections. The department said the move is "in honor of the fifty-third anniversary of Title IX of the Educational Amendments (1972) being signed into law." "June will now be dedicated to commemorating women and celebrating their struggle for, and achievement of, equal educational opportunity," its press release states. The Education Department will also highlight steps it has taken to "reverse the Biden Administration's legacy of undermining Title IX" and says it will step up measures to "protect women in line with the true purpose of Title IX," it added. The move comes after the Trump administration has aimed to undo protections for transgender athletes, arguing it is unfair for transgender women and girls to play on teams that match their gender identity. The Department of Education has also launched numerous investigations against K-12 districts and higher education institutions for allowing transgender individuals on women's sports teams. |
| New Details of Trump's Budget Cuts Alarm Researchers | |
| Academics are alarmed by newly released details that show how exactly the Trump administration plans to cut billions from scientific research. Among other things, the administration's proposed cuts would drastically reduce funding earmarked for building a robust STEM workforce pipeline and redefine the government's priorities for which types of research it will fund with the money that's left. In early May, President Donald Trump outlined some of the cuts in his "skinny budget" proposal for fiscal year 2026, which included slashing nearly $18 billion from the National Institutes of Health and $5 billion from the National Science Foundation, two of the largest sources of federal funding for university research. At the time, the research community said that if enacted, Trump's budget plan for the NIH and NSF would decimate innovation, productivity and national security in the United States. And after the administration released further details Friday, research advocates doubled down on their condemnations. The budget details released Friday call to continue capping indirect research cost rates at 15 percent into 2026 to ensure "that the United States taxpayer is funding only necessary project costs, not extraneous salaries or flashy new buildings at wealthy universities." |
| U.S. Scientists Warn That Trump's Cuts Will Set Off a Brain Drain | |
 | Ardem Patapoutian's story is not just the American dream, it is the dream of American science. He arrived in Los Angeles in 1986 at age 18 after fleeing war-torn Lebanon. He spent a year writing for an Armenian newspaper and delivering Domino's at night to become eligible for the University of California, where he earned his undergraduate degree and a postdoctoral fellowship in neuroscience. He started a lab at Scripps Research in San Diego with a grant from the National Institutes of Health, discovered the way humans sense touch, and in 2021 won the Nobel Prize. But with the Trump administration slashing spending on science, Dr. Patapoutian's federal grant to develop new approaches to treating pain has been frozen. In late February, he posted on Bluesky that such cuts would damage biomedical research and prompt an exodus of talent from the United States. Within hours, he had an email from China, offering to move his lab to "any city, any university I want," he said, with a guarantee of funding for the next 20 years. Dr. Patapoutian declined, because he loves his adopted country. Many scientists just setting out on their careers, however, fear there is no other option but to leave. Scientific leaders say that's risking the way American science has been done for years, and the pre-eminence of the United States in their fields. |
| Why Trump's push for 'gold-standard science' has researchers alarmed | |
| A new term keeps popping up in messages from Trump administration scientific agencies -- a pledge to restore "gold-standard science." Many scientists say the opposite is happening. The administration's "MAHA Report," intended to diagnose the root cause of poor health in American children, was written by Cabinet officials and political appointees, most of whom lack scientific and medical expertise. It included numerous errors, such as garbled references and invented studies. Thousands of grants that went through expert peer review have been terminated because they conflict with political priorities. The administration is proposing to reclassify government officials involved in grantmaking to "increase career employee accountability," which critics see as a way to inject politics into science. And in a "Gold Standard Science" executive order last week, President Donald Trump outlined a new level of oversight over what counts as quality evidence and what does not, putting "a senior appointee designated by the agency head" in charge of overseeing "alleged violations." Hundreds of scientists are now pushing back, saying that the administration could damage science even as it co-opts the language of a movement aimed at improving it. During the last Trump administration, there were efforts to limit the kind of evidence that could be used to inform environmental policy, and these researchers fear that "gold-standard science" is a wolf in sheep's clothing. |
SPORTS
| New MSU baseball coach brings championship experience | |
| Mississippi State announced the hiring of American Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Famer Brian O'Connor this weekend, who joins the Bulldogs after 22 seasons as head coach at Virginia. He led the Cavaliers to seven College World Series appearances, including back-to-back appearances in 2023 and 2024, and won a national championship in 2015. MSU's winningest coach, Ron Polk, now special assistant to the AD, expressed his excitement over the appointment, as well as an eagerness to work with the former Cavalier. Polk's admiration for the hire and O'Connor's coaching record was echoed by several former Bulldogs, who see the move as a statement of intent by the administration to get the baseball program competing again at the highest level. "Brian is going to have a celebration at Dudy Noble Field on Thursday, and he's going to meet with the team and individual players, which he needs to do," Polk said. "In this day, with the portal and NIL, a lot of fluid things can happen, but I know Brian fairly well. I've been with him a couple of times and he seems like a great guy and a great coach." O'Connor will look to hit the ground running in Starkville. Things are already in motion with assistants Kevin McMullan and Joe Savino following him to Starkville. Additionally, the summer transfer portal opened on Monday, but NIL and the transfer portal aren't new to O'Connor, who continued taking the Cavaliers to Omaha in the new era of college athletics. That experience is a big part of what has MSU alumni and former players excited for the future. |
| Brian O'Connor, who led Virginia to 7 CWS and 2015 national title, takes over at Mississippi State | |
| Brian O'Connor, who led Virginia to seven College World Series appearances and a national championship, is leaving the Cavaliers to take over at Mississippi State. MSU announced O'Connor's hiring after the Bulldogs' season-ending 5-2 loss to Florida State on Sunday in the NCAA Tournament. The 54-year-old O'Connor won 917 games over 22 seasons at Virginia and was national coach of the year three times and Atlantic Coast Conference coach of the five times. Under O'Connor, the Cavaliers played in 18 NCAA regionals and nine super regionals, and his 2015 team won the national championship. He had 102 players selected in the Major League Baseball amateur draft, including 31 who reached the big leagues. "Mississippi State represents everything I love about college baseball -- tradition, passion and a relentless pursuit of excellence," O'Connor said. "I've coached against this program and followed it closely for years. The atmosphere at Dudy Noble Field is nationally recognized as the best in the sport. I'm incredibly honored and grateful for the opportunity to lead a program with this kind of legacy and fan base." |
| Bulk of Brian O'Connor's Virginia baseball staff will follow him to Mississippi State | |
| The bulk of Brian O'Connor's Virginia staff is following the skipper to Mississippi State. Associate head coach Kevin McMullan, who was with O'Connor in Charlottesville for all of O'Connor 22 seasons at the helm of the Hoos, as well as assistant Matt Kirby are expected to fill their same roles in Starkville with the Bulldogs, sources confirmed to The Daily Progress on Monday. McMullan posted a photo of Dudy Noble Field -- Mississippi State's baseball home -- early Monday morning and D1Baseball first reported Kirby's move to continue on with O'Connor to Mississippi State. The Daily Progress also learned through sources that Travis Reifsnider, the Cavaliers' director of player development and scouting, as well as Joe Savino, the Hoos' pitching coordinator, will be part of the Bulldogs' staff under O'Connor. So will Cavaliers associate athletic director of baseball administration Justin Armistead, sources said. The most notable of the five is McMullan, an original hire to O'Connor's UVa staff when O'Connor arrived on Grounds in 2004. McMullan never left his post with the Hoos and probably could've made that choice for a head-coaching job if he had ever wanted to leave over the last two-plus decades. Baseball America has recognized McMullan as the top assistant coach in college baseball on three occasions (2012, 2017 and 2020), and last year the American Baseball Coaches Association named him its National Assistant Coach of the Year. |
| Brian O'Connor Era Ends at UVA | |
| After 22 successful seasons at the University of Virginia, Brian O'Connor is headed elsewhere to continue his college baseball coaching career. The 54-year-old was hired Sunday for the same position at Mississippi State University, ending a two-decade run of dominance in Charlottesville highlighted by seven appearances in the College World Series and the 2015 national championship. "We are extremely grateful to Coach Brian O'Connor for his 22 years of outstanding leadership and service, not only to our baseball program, but to the University and Charlottesville communities," UVA Director of Athletics Carla Williams said in a statement. "He established Virginia Baseball as the model for everything important to this community, including his incredible development of young men on and off the field and his commitment to integrity, hard work and academics." UVA President Jim Ryan said he's "deeply grateful to Coach O'Connor for his decades of service to student-athletes at UVA." "He has built a thriving baseball program that has brought crowds to Disharoon Park and delighted its many fans," Ryan said. "He's a coach that cares about winning the right way, and I wish him the best as he continues his legendary career." |
| Zimmerman elevates Garbar to associate head coach | |
| New Mississippi State head soccer coach Nick Zimmerman has elevated Jonathan Garbar to associate head coach. Garbar, who was named the Conference USA Coach of the Year in 2024, came to Starkville in January after serving as the head coach at FIU for three years. At FIU, he led one of the most impressive program turnarounds in recent memory, taking over a team that finished 2-15 when he arrived to a 13-5-2 record and C-USA Regular Season and Tournament Championships in 2024. In addition, he has served as an assistant coach with the Puerto Rican Women's National Team and earned national coach of the year honors at the junior college level after guiding Monroe College to the 2014 NJCAA National Championship. "Coach Jon has made an immediate impact since arriving (in) Starkville," Zimmerman said. "His passion for the game, his relationships with the players and staff and his knowledge recruiting globally has already been felt. I am excited and proud to promote him to associate head coach." |
| Golden Eagles' rally falls one run short in heartbreaking loss to Miami | |
 | The gas tank emptied on Southern Miss' weekend rally. The Golden Eagles struggled to keep pace with Miami in the Hattiesburg Regional finale Monday, falling 5-4 after winning three straight games in two days to force the winner-take-all match. Carson Paetow hit a two-run home run with one out left in USM's season, but it would be the Vancleave product's final at bat as a Golden Eagle. The Hurricanes scored two runs in both the fifth and sixth innings to turn what had been a tie game into a 5-1 lead that proved insurmountable for the Golden Eagles. "This game was a tough game," USM coach Christian Ostrander said after the game. "They had some really good arms on the mound. We couldn't get much going." Southern Miss ends the year extending its streak of regional final appearances to five, but did miss an opportunity to host its third Super Regional in four years. Miami will meet Louisville this weekend in the Super Regional round. |
| Ole Miss errors, less-than-elite pitching lead to season-ending loss to Murray State | |
 | Ole Miss baseball was outplayed just a few times this season. Despite an incredible rally, its final game was one of them. The Rebels (43-21) lost 12-11 to Murray State at Swayze Field in an Oxford Regional elimination game on June 2. The Racers (42-14) advance to face Duke (40-19) in a super regional. The fans who had watched Ole Miss bludgeon Murray State 19-8 less than 24 hours before the decisive rematch were stunned as the game unfolded. There was not one key moment. The Rebels' season died a death of 19 cuts of the bat. Murray State racked up 19 hits -- none of them home runs -- to keep base runners and runs a constant presence. Ole Miss had 10 hits. The offense was Ole Miss' life preserver throughout the regional. The Rebels entered the game averaging 11 runs in four games. It masked less-than-elite pitching from most of the rotation, excluding Hunter Elliott, and subpar fielding. The Rebels weren't good enough to win when both teams put up big numbers. Ole Miss committed two errors and had double that amount of missed makeable plays and late throws home from outfielders that allowed other runners an extra base. |
| Coastal Carolina coach rips Florida's O'Sullivan for expletive-filled tirade and calls him a 'bully' | |
| First-year Coastal Carolina baseball coach Kevin Schnall called Florida coach Kevin O'Sullivan a bully and disrespectful for his expletive-filled rant directed at site administrators before an elimination game at the NCAA Conway Regional. O'Sullivan was upset about the start time of his team's Sunday elimination game against East Carolina being pushed back an hour. East Carolina had played a game Saturday that ended at midnight. O'Sullivan declined to comment on the confrontation after his team's 11-4 loss to the Pirates. Asked if he wanted to publicly apologize, he said, "I handled it properly, you know, at the end of the game, yes." O'Sullivan reversed course Monday following a meeting with athletic director Scott Stricklin. "Prior to yesterday's NCAA Tournament game against East Carolina, I let my emotions get the best of me and channeled that energy in a way I should not have," O'Sullivan said in a statement. "I want to sincerely apologize for my actions and behavior to the entire NCAA Regional field of Coastal Carolina, East Carolina and Fairfield, the NCAA -- including site representatives Rick French and Mark Scalf -- as well as all of Gator Nation." Schnall, whose team eliminated the Pirates with a 1-0 win Sunday night, said he felt compelled to "stand up for what's right" and comment on O'Sullivan. "This is a national champion coach who thinks he can come in here and try to bully people around," Schnall said. |
| SEC Secession From NCAA Would Be Risky Proposition | |
| Last week, Southeastern Conference commissioner Greg Sankey raised eyebrows by saying he's been asked, "Why are we still in the NCAA?" The comment was made during SEC spring meetings and in the context of Sankey referencing high-level conference discussions. The four power conferences---the SEC, Big Ten, Big 12 and ACC---seek to obtain 68% voting power in D-I governance matters. Their ongoing relationship with the NCAA, and the degree of discretion they enjoy, are at stake. To be clear, Sankey didn't say the SEC plans to leave the NCAA. He also clarified that the SEC prefers to stay in the NCAA. But he acknowledged the SEC cutting ties with the NCAA is an actual topic. The commissioner of one of the four power conferences publicly tossing out such a provocative idea is worthy of further examination. As a starting point, any conference or school could extinguish its relationship with the NCAA. For all its power and influence, the NCAA is only a private, member-organization. At first glance, it might sound like SEC secession is makes sense. A closer look reveals a more complicated decision matrix and five reasons why secession is not such a hot idea. |
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