| Wednesday, August 27, 2025 |
| Governors, Industry and Education Leaders Announce Tri-State Manufacturing Partnership | |
 | Area governors, power company executives and university presidents recently established the Mississippi-Alabama-Georgia Network for Evolving Transportation, or MAGNET for short -- a regional economic development initiative aimed at leveraging the Southeastern U.S. automotive vehicle and battery industry to stimulate economic development and job growth. This tri-state initiative, which will be headquartered at The University of Alabama, will create a premier research and development hub for research-enabled mobility innovation that drives economic and workforce development. Joining The University of Alabama are the University of Georgia and Mississippi State University, each with critical expertise in all aspects of the automotive industry and emerging technologies. The advanced automotive manufacturing boom is advancing rapidly in the Southeast, presenting the U.S. with a rare economic and national security opportunity to capture global leadership in this critical industry over the next decade. "Mississippi State University is a national leader in mobility systems research and development and widely recognized for our collaborative culture and many successful partnerships," said MSU President Mark E. Keenum. "We are honored to join with the State of Mississippi, Southern Company and our peers in Alabama and Georgia on the MAGNET team." |
| Billionaire businessman boasts 'outsider's view' for growing state | |
 | The key to catching Mississippi up to its southeastern counterparts is expanding industry and high paying job opportunities, Thomas Duff told the Rotary Club of Columbus on Tuesday. The Golden Triangle's collaborative approach to economic development could be the blueprint for that, said the billionaire Duff, one of the state's wealthiest businessmen and someone rumored to be considering a run for governor in 2027. "Of all the places in this state that have seen the economic activity and the success that you have, boy it speaks volumes about what you've got going on here," Duff told Rotarians at Lion Hills Center. "To be able to have counties come together to form a partnership so that everyone participates and gets better, that's what we have to have in our state." From 2015 to 2024, Duff served on the Institutions of Higher Learning Board of Trustees, an experience he credits with inspiring him to bring his business-based, "outsider's view" into the political world. "In that opportunity to serve, I think I found out that perhaps an outsider's view is an interesting way of looking at stuff," Duff said. "I know with our current president, the thing I perhaps admire is that he has an outsider's opinion of everything." |
| Suspect arrested Sunday in South Montgomery shooting | |
| A suspect in custody for a Friday shooting on South Montgomery Street allegedly misidentified his target before pulling the trigger. Marshall Overstreet, 21, has been charged with attempted murder, Starkville Police Chief Mark Ballard said at a Tuesday morning press conference at police headquarters. SPD responded to reports of gunshots at the Block Apartments on South Montgomery Street Friday at about 9:50 p.m. and found a male victim had been shot while walking with his wife and dog in the nearby parking lot of the Social Block Apartments on Locksley Way. Overstreet allegedly shot through the fence that separated the two properties and hit the male victim because he thought he was someone else he intended to shoot, Ballard said. "Our investigation has determined that these were not stray bullets and the victim was not the intended target," Ballard said. "This individual was injured only because the suspect believed he was someone else. This makes the situation all the more tragic, and an innocent person was caught up in the violence that should have never happened in the first place." Following this shooting, SPD will be performing additional patrols around the area where the crime occurred and is working with management at the apartments to increase security procedures including additional camera surveillance. |
| Punishing Droughts Put Fresh Pressure on Meat and Dairy Production | |
 | Investors have an unexpected worry: access to water. Droughts have hit countries around the globe from Spain to Syria this year and parts of the U.S., including farm-heavy North Carolina. Worries about increasingly high temperatures have investors wondering how farming businesses are dealing with water shortages. Meat and dairy farms rely on water to hydrate their animals, grow crops to feed them and even to cool them off in extreme heat. Two-thirds of livestock companies surveyed by an investor group aren't properly managing potential water shortages, "indicating widespread failure to manage water-related risks effectively," according to a report published on Tuesday. The report, by the Farm Animal Investment Risk and Return Initiative, a global investor network representing $80 trillion in assets, analyzed water risk for 60 large global meat, dairy and aquaculture companies. The FAIRR initiative provides investors with research on risk to the animal agriculture industry. "The growing appetite for water-intensive agricultural products is threatening not only ecosystems and communities, but also the long-term stability of agri-food markets and investor returns," the report said. |
| Felony disenfranchisement a factor in judge's ruling on Mississippi Supreme Court districts | |
| The large number of Mississippians with voting rights stripped for life because they committed a disenfranchising felony was a significant factor in a federal judge determining that current state Supreme Court districts dilute Black voting strength. U.S. District Judge Sharion Aycock, who was appointed to the federal bench by George W. Bush, last week ruled that Mississippi's Supreme Court districts violate the federal Voting Rights Act and that the state cannot use the same maps in future elections. Mississippi law establishes three Supreme Court districts, commonly referred to as the northern, central and southern districts. Voters elect three judges from each to the nine-member court. These districts have not been redrawn since 1987. The main district at issue in the case is the central district, which comprises many parts of the majority-Black Delta and the majority-Black Jackson Metro Area. In her ruling, Aycock cited the testimony of William Cooper, the plaintiff's demographic and redistricting expert, who estimated that 56,000 felons were unable to vote statewide based on a review of court records from 1994 to 2017. He estimated 60% of those were determined to be Black Mississippians. Mississippi has one of the harshest disenfranchisement systems in the nation and a convoluted method for restoring voting rights to people. |
| In 3-hour televised Cabinet meeting, Trump soaks up flattery | |
 | In President Donald Trump's longest on-camera appearance of his second term, he soaked up credit from his Cabinet as he moved to assert personal dominance over more and more aspects of American life. The president is saving whale populations on the East Coast, one Cabinet secretary said. University leaders are calling to discuss campus culture thanks to his pressure, said another. Debris from the Los Angeles wildfires was cleared in record time thanks to his executive order, declared a third. And a pregnant reporter's unborn baby is safer thanks to the federal takeover of D.C. policing, she told the president. During a three-hour-and-17-minute televised part of a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday, Trump claimed personal credit for what he portrayed as far-reaching changes in the everyday lives of Americans during his seven months in office, as his subordinates stumbled over one another to sing his praises. The unusual session offered a striking display of unity around a president who has seized sweeping power as few U.S. leaders before him -- and a chance for Trump to signal to his base that he is personally immersed in every detail of his rule. His declarations led one Cabinet secretary after another to praise his leadership. "Thank you for saving college football, by the way," said Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins. "We're all very grateful. The country just feels different." |
| Will Trump's showdown with Fed's Lisa Cook end up at Supreme Court? | |
 | Like President Donald Trump's other efforts to fire federal workers, his attempt to remove Federal Reserve governor Lisa Cook could soon end up at the Supreme Court. Trump is testing the limits of his executive power, including over agencies designed to be insulated from political influence. In May, an ideologically divided court said Trump could fire without cause members of two such agencies that deal with labor issues. But the majority also notably said the Federal Reserve is different from the National Labor Relations Board and the Merit Systems Protection Board. The court called the central bank a "uniquely structured, quasi-private entity," signaling the justices would likely uphold the constitutionality of the bank's for-cause removal protections. Trump, however, says he has sufficient justification. He alleged Cook committed mortgage fraud by signing documents that declared homes in Michigan and Georgia as her primary residence. Cook's lawyer, Abbe Lowell, said the firing "lacks any factual or legal basis." Cook plans to challenge the move in court. Trump's move is unprecedented in the Fed's 111-year history, another reason the high court could weigh in. |
| How Did the World's Most Sophisticated Military Fall So Far Behind With Drone Warfare? | |
 | When the Pentagon announced a "joint interagency task force" in July to bring the U.S. military up to speed on drone warfare, Vice Chief of Staff of the Army Gen. James Mingus compared drones to the threat of improvised explosive devices two decades earlier in Iraq. The drone, said Mingus, "is our IED of today" -- a war-transforming technology that smaller powers could use to put big powers at a disadvantage. Ukraine has demonstrated this brilliantly over the last few years through its innovative use of drones to stymie the invading Russians. And 20-odd years ago, another nation that once saw itself as all-powerful on the battlefield -- the United States -- found itself flummoxed in the streets of Iraq and Afghanistan as insurgents deployed IEDs to kill or maim thousands of young Americans in a new kind of "asymmetric" warfare. Today, some military experts say that, for many of the same bureaucratic reasons, the Pentagon has been far too slow to adapt to the latest evolution in asymmetric warfare: drones. Indeed, much of the catch-up has occurred only in the last month or so. By the accounts of many experts, the U.S. military is not close to developing, much less deploying, the dizzying array of sophisticated drones mastered by the Ukrainians and Russians -- including "kamikaze" drones used to destroy enemy tanks and vehicles; ground drones that can lay mines and deliver ammunition and medicine; larger drones that can ferry smaller ones behind enemy lines, among others. |
| A Dark Money Group Is Secretly Funding High-Profile Democratic Influencers | |
 | In a private group chat in June, dozens of Democratic political influencers discussed whether to take advantage of an enticing opportunity. They were being offered $8,000 per month to take part in a secretive program aimed at bolstering Democratic messaging on the internet. But the contract sent to them from Chorus, the nonprofit arm of a liberal influencer marketing platform, came with some strings. Among other issues, it mandated extensive secrecy about disclosing their payments and had restrictions on what sort of political content the creators could produce. In their group chat, influencers debated the details. The influencers in the chat collectively had at least 13 million followers across social platforms. They represented some of the most well-known voices online posting in support of Democrats, and they're key to wherever the party moves next. But ultimately, the group didn't make much progress. For years, Democrats have struggled to work with influencers. After the Democrats lost in November, they faced a reckoning. It was clear that the party had failed to successfully navigate the new media landscape. While Republicans spent decades building a powerful and robust independent media infrastructure, maximizing controversy to drive attention and maintaining tight relationships with creators despite their small disagreements with Trump, the Democrats have largely relied on outdated strategies and traditional media to get their message out. Now, Democrats hope that the secretive Chorus Creator Incubator Program, funded by a powerful liberal dark money group called The Sixteen Thirty Fund, might tip the scales. |
| Northrop Grumman to open aerospace lab at NEMCC's Corinth campus | |
| Defense technology company Northrop Grumman is expanding its footprint in the Magnolia State by opening an aerospace lab at Northeast Mississippi Community College's Corinth campus. Officials from Northrop Grumman joined Gov. Tate Reeves and NEMCC leaders to cut the ribbon on the site where the facility will be located on Tuesday. The lab, partially funded by a Northrop Grumman Foundation grant, will become a hub for advanced manufacturing training, equipping students with the in-demand skills needed for the state's growing aerospace and defense industry. "This is another fantastic investment in Mississippians and the future of our workforce. This state-of-the-art facility will be another great asset in preparing our residents for the high-paying, high-tech jobs of the next 50 years," Reeves said. "It will serve as a launchpad for the careers of the future, and I'm excited to witness the dividends it will pay. Thank you to Northrop Grumman for investing in Mississippi and her people. It's another great day for Northeast Mississippi Community College and our state." |
| The W Wins Most Creative Marketing Strategy Award for career readiness efforts | |
 | According to an MUW Press Release, Mississippi University for Women's Career Services and Professional Development Center and Student Success Center were recently recognized for their innovative marketing strategy encouraging career readiness for students. The award was presented at the 2025 Pathway Student Success Conference, held July 23-25 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. W representatives Ali Glasgow, internship coordinator, and Dr. Clear Moore, director of the Student Success Center, received the Most Creative Marketing Strategy Award for their launch of Flight Path, an initiative that helps students showcase skills and competencies for potential employers. "Flight Path is a gamified student engagement platform that ties activities to soft skills and competencies students need for their careers," said Glasgow. "Students often have difficulty explaining what they've done-Flight Path keeps a record they can use when it's time to write résumés or prepare for interviews." |
| Southern Miss begins construction on state-of-the-art oyster hatchery in Ocean Springs | |
 | The University of Southern Mississippi has begun construction of a new oyster hatchery that aims to help alleviate the decline in oyster harvests along the Mississippi Gulf Coast. The hatchery will be located at USM's Gulf Coast Research Laboratory Thad Cochran Marine Aquaculture Center Cedar Point campus in Ocean Springs. It will be capable of producing up to one billion eyed larvae for use in restoration and research, with completion expected in late summer or early fall of 2026. Dr. Reginald Blaylock, TCMAC director, expressed his enthusiasm for the project's launch and its potential to contribute to the state's economic development. "We are excited to finally have this project underway. We thank MDEQ and the state for their commitment to this project and for seeing it through the long path it's taken. We are confident that the research done in this new hatchery will expand opportunities in the oyster industry for both public and private stakeholders," Blaylock said. The new hatchery will use a closed, recirculating system that is isolated from environmental variability to support restoration and research. The facility will enable replicated experiments to address challenges related to larviculture, disease, genetics and reproduction that constrain growth in the oyster industry. |
| Memorial service to be held Wednesday for USM's Gifted Studies founder Frances A. Karnes | |
 | A celebration of life will be held Wednesday afternoon at the University of Southern Mississippi for Frances A. Karnes. She was a long-time educator and founder of the Frances A. Karnes Gifted Studies Center. Karnes passed away Aug. 22. She was 87. Karnes joined the USM faculty in 1973 and founded the Center of Gifted Studies in 1979. The center was named for her in 1999. Over the years, thousands of students have participated in the center's programs, including Saturday and summer gifted studies. The center also has helped shape public policy in Mississippi and across the country. "Dr. Karnes was a wonderful advocate for gifted children and students, not only across Mississippi, but the nation," said Heather Houston, current director. The 'Celebration of Life' for Karnes will take place at the Trent Lott Center on the USM campus. |
| Mississippi College among most conservative colleges in US: report | |
 | When leaving for college, many young students will begin to find their identity in terms of their political stance. Whether that stance leans more to the left or right can be influenced by where these students choose to attend school. Niche.com, which annually ranks the top colleges and universities in the country, has released a list of the "Most Conservative Colleges" in the U.S. To find this, current college students and recent graduates across the country reported how they leaned politically, as well as their opinions on how other students at their school leaned. Landing at the top of the list as the "most conservative" college was Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia. Liberty has more than 50,000 undergraduate students who attend the school and a 99% acceptance rate, according to Niche. The university states that it believes in "developing Christ-centered men and women with the values, knowledge, and skills to impact their world." Mississippi College in Clinton was ranked at No. 15 on the list. |
| Tougaloo College hosts daylong conference highlighting the health of Black men | |
 | A few hundred people filled rooms for the Black Men's Health Equity Conference, which was held at Tougaloo College Saturday. Men of all ages and some women were given pamphlets that highlighted significant health challenges often faced by Black men in Mississippi. Dr. Sandra Melvin is the chief executive officer of the Institute for the Advancement of Minority Health, which put on the event. "I think there is an urgency because health outcomes are not often addressed among black men, and often some of the reasons that black men die earlier can be prevented if they knew that they needed to be screened," Melvin said. "We have lots of initiatives for women and children, but we often don't include the black man, who is an important part of the family unit." Black men in Mississippi disproportionately suffer from chronic disease, cancer and stroke. Panels at the conference focused on lung cancer, chronic disease and even Black leadership in medicine. Conference attendees received health insights from medical professionals, researchers, and journalist Roland Martin, the conference's keynote speaker. |
| Apprentice program on Gulf Coast opens doors to careers in health care | |
| Renee Gentry of Pascagoula will turn 58 next month. A few months after that, she'll take her board examination to become a licensed practical nurse. "Everybody's like, 'You're going back to school at your age?'" she said. Gentry spent 14 years working as a flight attendant, and said she's also surprised she was able to make the career change. A vocation in medicine became possible when she enrolled in Singing River Health System's medical apprenticeship program, the first of its kind in Mississippi. Singing River Healthcare Academy in Ocean Springs allows students to earn as they learn, pursuing certifications in a range of health careers at no cost while receiving a salary and full benefits. It combines classroom instruction with hands-on clinical training in hospitals and clinics, and many students accept jobs at Singing River locations after graduating. The apprenticeship program celebrated the opening of a dedicated building around the corner from the system's Ocean Springs hospital this month, which will expand the program's capacity from about 150 to 1,000 students a year, said Jessica Lewis, chief human resources officer for Singing River Health System. Nurse vacancies skyrocketed across Mississippi in 2021 and 2022 as nurses retired, took jobs outside of hospital settings or accepted more lucrative travel nursing positions. |
| Viral reports of cockroaches in off-campus living draw attention to LSU's freshman overflow | |
 | After seven consecutive years of record-breaking freshman enrollment, LSU again started the fall semester with more incoming students than available dorm space on campus. But parents' concerns were stirred up last week by viral social media reports of cockroaches at the LSU-contracted apartments where overflow students were assigned. Freshman student overflow is not uncommon at large universities, said Peter Trentacoste, LSU's director of residential life, in a written comment provided to The Advocate. To meet housing needs, Trentacoste said, LSU leases more than 12% of the rooms at the Ion Baton Rouge apartment building, across Alaska Street from campus and near other dorms, like North Hall. Since move-in started last week, Ion has been the epicenter of reports of pests and unclean conditions. In one TikTok from account @bymichellechristine, which received more than 675,000 views, a mother who brought her daughter to Baton Rouge for the girl's freshman semester said she was "disgusted by LSU move-in day." Both LSU and Scion, the company that manages the Ion building, have said the pest reports were a small and isolated problem that was quickly resolved. |
| A 'college for all' push thrived in New Orleans after Katrina. It wasn't for everyone | |
 | All through middle and high school in New Orleans, Geraldlynn Stewart heard the message every day: College was the key to a successful future. It was there on the banners that coated the doors and hallways, advertising far-flung schools, like Princeton University and Grinnell College. And she could hear it in the chants students recited over and over again. This is the way! We start the day! We get the knowledge to go to college! Yet even after enrolling in 2014 at Dillard University, a private historically black college in the heart of New Orleans, Stewart never felt at ease in that prescribed path. Like most of her classmates, Stewart came from a working class family. She didn't have close relatives who had graduated from college. Even with her tuition covered by a state scholarship, and a small loan, it was an ongoing challenge to pay for books, gas, a lab coat for biology class, food and many other expenses. The then-18-year-old didn't want to be a financial burden on her mother, who had multiple jobs in the French Quarter. So on top of her classes, Stewart had a nearly full time job at Waffle House. But by her second semester at Dillard, the job had eclipsed school, and Stewart decided that she had to choose one or the other. She chose the job -- a decision with financial and career implications that would ripple throughout the next decade. "I gave up on myself," she says now. |
| Former faculty leader leaves U. of Kentucky after bucking president's governance plan | |
| The last chair of the disbanded University Senate has left the University of Kentucky after UK agreed to pay her $375,000 and she agreed to not seek university records under the state's open records law. DeShana Collett, formerly a tenured professor in physician assistant studies, played a prominent role last year in opposing a change to UK's internal governance that she and others warned would strip faculty of decision-making power over academic decisions. UK President Eli Capilouto recommended creating a faculty senate to replace the University Senate. The UK Board of Trustees approved the change over the faculty objections. In the final meeting of the University Senate, Collett presided over a vote of no confidence in Capilouto. Collett and the university entered a separation agreement at the end of June, according to documents obtained by the Kentucky Lantern. Jay Blanton, a spokesperson for UK, told the Lantern "this is a standard settlement agreement with normal terms and conditions." He added that in the meantime, "the University of Kentucky will focus on what's most important to the state -- how we advance Kentucky by making it healthier, wealthier and wiser." |
| U. of Oklahoma announced largest freshman class for fifth year in a row | |
| For the fifth year in a row, the University of Oklahoma welcomed the largest freshman class in the state, according to a press release. Starting the school year with the annual Class Kickoff Sunday, the university welcomed 6,251 incoming students and freshman enrollment has increased more than 30% in three years, the release said. Total enrollment at OU has grown to over 36,500 students. The release added that the university has seen double-digit growth in first-year students over the past two years. OU is on track to reach 40,000 students by 2030, a challenge the university received from Governor Kevin Stitt in 2023. The freshman class has a collective high school GPA of 3.64 with 711 students achieving a 4.0 or better. This class has 330 students who graduated first in their high school class -- a 39% increase from last year -- and saw a 16% increase in Oklahoma State Scholars students. "This historic freshman class marks more than just a record; it's a powerful signal of OU's momentum and the bright future we're building together," said Jeff Blahnik, vice president for Enrollment Management and Chief Enrollment Officer. |
| Texas universities could see fewer international students amid immigration crackdown, reports say | |
| Texas colleges could see one of the steepest drops in international student enrollment in the country this fall. The decline, which comes amid increased scrutiny of international students since President Donald Trump returned to office, would reverse last year's enrollment growth and could significantly reduce the money these students bring into the state, according to a recent report from NAFSA: Association of International Educators. NAFSA combined federal visa data from January through May with economic modeling of student spending. The organization projects the number of international students in Texas could fall by about 15%, from roughly 94,000 to 80,000. NAFSA said the decline will reduce international students' economic contribution from $2.6 billion to $2.2 billion, a difference of about $388 million. That would be the third-largest projected loss among states, behind California and New York. Nationwide, NAFSA projects a 30%-40% decline in international student enrollment and a loss of $7 billion this academic year. "A lot of folks think this is mainly an effect on universities, and it will be," said Bjorn Markeson, an economist with IMPLAN. "But it's also going to have an effect on the service sector in those communities and a broader effect on the region through the supply chain linkages. Our economy is a network, and if you pull out one piece of it, it's like pulling a thread on a sweater. It winds its way through the economy and has broader effects." |
| Where did all the Bird electric scooters go in Columbia? | |
 | As students return to the University of Missouri for the fall semester, electric scooters available for rental through the Bird app have vanished from sidewalks. Jimmy Gilman, Bird's director of partnership and policy, confirmed that the company has paused deployment of e-scooters at the moment. Bird is looking to bring on a new local manager for the system, resulting in the pause. The transportation company has ceased operations in a number of cities around the United States. Bird cited tariffs related to vehicle shipments and allocation such as in Grand Junction, Colorado, last week. A Facebook announcement by the city of Oswego, New York, in May said that Bird scooters were removed from city limits without notice from the company. The city of Columbia and Mizzou have partnered with Bird since 2021 to provide an alternative transportation method for getting around Columbia. Over 500 scooters were distributed throughout the city, according to the initial agreement. Christopher Ave, the director of media relations and public affairs for Mizzou, said that he is unaware of where the scooters have gone. The city has also not heard from Bird about why the scooters are not present. "My understanding is that they are allowed on our campus," Ave said. "There's not a ban currently for those sorts of vehicles." |
| These AI-Skilled 20-Somethings Are Making Hundreds of Thousands a Year | |
| It's a tough time to be a young person looking for a job -- unless you're in artificial intelligence. The job market for entry-level workers is in a continued slump. The unemployment rate for new college graduates was 4.8% in June, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, compared with 4% for all workers. While AI is part of the reason for the doldrums, there is a bright spot when it comes to workers with actual experience in machine learning. They're in their early 20s, they have AI know-how, and a bunch of them are making $1 million a year. "There is a significant salary difference between a machine-learning engineer job and a software-engineer job," says Anil K. Gupta, a professor at the University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business and co-lead of its AI job tracker. Lily Ma, after graduating in December with an AI-concentration computer-science major from Carnegie Mellon University, applied for 30 to 40 jobs. She had interviews with about a dozen. "I did notice that having research experience helps a lot," she says. (She also interned at Tesla.) The 22-year-old landed at Scale AI but turned down some tempting offers, including from a startup that offered a 1% stake in the company. |
| At some colleges, move-in day includes students' dogs and cats | |
 | Crossing paths with dogs, cats and other animals is part of campus life for students at Eckerd College, a liberal arts school in Florida that allows pets to live in dormitories. Sophie Nocera, an Eckerd senior, said she probably knows the names of pets better than her fellow students. "That's the case for a lot of the students," said Nocera, who lives on the campus in St. Petersburg with her Border collie, Zuko. "When I'm walking my dog, I often hear, 'Oh my god, hi, Zuko!' It's like I'm not even there." Some colleges and universities around the country welcome pets in campus residences, from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to Stephens College in Missouri. For students, the companionship can help reduce stress, anxiety and homesickness. The colleges also see benefits for student engagement and helping them build connections with one another. Federal law requires public and private colleges to allow service animals and emotional support animals in student housing. But growing numbers of schools are allowing pets, with various restrictions. |
| Swatting hoaxes on college campuses spark panic and an FBI probe | |
| Federal and local authorities are investigating a string of false reports of active shooters at a dozen U.S. universities this month as students returned to campus. The origin of the calls is unclear -- but the response to what initially seemed like real threats, later found to be "swatting" incidents, has caused chaos and fear on campuses across the country. The FBI is investigating the incidents, according to a spokesperson who declined to specify the nature of the probe. While universities have proved a popular swatting target, the agency "is seeing an increase in swatting events across the country," the FBI spokesperson said. "We take potential hoax threats very seriously because it puts innocent people at risk." Local officials are frustrated by the anonymous calls tying up first responders, straining public safety budgets and needlessly traumatizing college students who grew up in an era in which gun violence has in some way shaped their school experience. Most incoming college freshmen are likely to have started their schooling around 2012 -- the year of the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. "There's no easy solution to this type of problem," said Kevin Steinmetz, a criminology professor at Kansas State University, adding that such hoaxes preyed on "an inherent function of our emergency response system." |
| A Spate of Fake Shooting Calls Disrupts College Campuses | |
 | Less than an hour after saying his final goodbyes to his son at a dorm at Villanova University, Pedro Gutierrez got a disturbing voice mail at the airport. His son, a freshman, was running to hide from an active shooter reported on campus. "To be so close and to have left him 45 minutes earlier, the guilt was horrific," Mr. Gutierrez said. While Mr. Gutierrez was on his way to get a rental car, trying to get back to campus, he learned the threat was a hoax. Three days later, Villanova University was the subject of a second active shooter warning, on Sunday during a Catholic Mass, which the police later deemed to be fake. On Monday, students in at least six colleges started the fall semester with lockdowns and warnings to run and hide, until police departments later said that there was no evidence of gunmen or violence. And on Tuesday, the University of Kentucky, Central Georgia Technical College and the University of Texas at San Antonio also received false reports. In all, over the past week, about a dozen colleges have been the targets of fraudulent reports of active shooters on campus, known as swatting. As campuses open for fall classes, universities targeted over the last several days have sought to calm students, parents and faculty. |
| Active shooter report at U. of Kentucky library deemed a hoax. It's latest in nationwide string | |
 | A report of an active shooter on the University of Kentucky campus has been deemed a hoax, according to the university. The report came in just before 12:15 p.m., Tuesday and police were first on scene in less than two minutes, the university said. Swarms of officers from the UK Police Department and Lexington Police Department responded to the library until it was determined the report was unfounded. Police used the campus camera system to determine the report was a hoax, according to the university. Investigators have not identified who made the report. The university said it did not send out any UK Alerts, and the university did not cancel any classes. The Kentucky Kernel posted a video of officers at the scene while students walked in the area. Making false emergency calls to generate significant law enforcement response is known as swatting, according to the Department of Homeland Security. Swatters often use technology such as voiceover services or spoofed phone numbers to mask their identity. Between January 2023 and June 2024, there were more than 800 swatting incidents at U.S. K-12 schools, according to the K-12 School Shootings Database. Classes at UK began Monday. |
| NIH Publisher Fee Cap Plan 'Not Comprehensive Enough,' Critics Say | |
 | Members of the public have until Sept. 15 to weigh in on the National Institutes of Health's plan to curb how much taxpayer money goes to journals to publish some federally funded research. The agency, which is the nation's largest funder of biomedical research, wants to do that by capping -- or potentially disallowing -- the amount of money it gives to NIH-funded researchers who want to make their work publicly accessible by paying publishers article processing charges. A July 30 request for information memo outlined five potential options, which the NIH says are all aimed at balancing the "feasibility of providing research results with maximizing the use of taxpayer funds to support research." Jay Bhattacharya, director of the NIH, has said the policy could be a mechanism for ending what he sees as the "perverse incentives" driving the $19 billion for-profit academic publishing industry and making it "much harder for a small number of scientific elite to say what's true and false." But open-information advocates and experts who have reviewed the NIH's proposed plans for capping the amount it will pay for article processing charges said it likely won't reform academia's incentive structure or rein in publishers, including some that charge academic researchers as much as $12,690 per article to make their work freely accessible to the public and more likely to get cited. |
| Why the Unlikely Leader of Trump's Antisemitism Task Force May Be the Perfect Man for the Job | |
 | When Los Angeles attorney Leo Terrell, a legal commentator, lifelong Democrat, and fiery fixture on Fox News, announced on the network's "Hannity" show that he was voting for Donald Trump in 2020, the MAGA universe went wild. Oliver North hailed him on his "Real American Heroes" podcast. Fox News signed him on as a paid contributor, at a six-figure salary. In January, Terrell was rewarded for his loyalty when President-elect Trump, praising Terrell as a "highly respected civil rights attorney and political analyst" with an "incredibly successful career," named him senior counsel to the assistant attorney general for civil rights in the Justice Department. Terrell assumed his marquee role a month later: as head of the multi-agency Task Force to Combat Anti-Semitism. As a Black, Christian, former Democrat with little previous engagement with Jewish causes, Terrell, now 70, seemed an improbable pick to lead the effort to "root out anti-Semitic harassment in schools and on college campuses," as the task-force announcement put it. But his zealous conversion and penchant for media bombast made him a perfect bullhorn for the task force's actual mission: to strong-arm colleges into stripping away any vestige of "wokeness" in their hiring, admissions, classes, and research. |
| Agencies Share New Guidance on Foreign Threats at U.S. Colleges | |
| Warning American colleges and universities about increasing foreign threats to research, a group of federal intelligence agencies and the Education Department released new guidance this week outlining how the institutions can better protect themselves. For example, the 40-page "Safeguarding Academia" bulletin in part encourages colleges and researchers to be transparent about who else is involved in a research project, noting that failing to disclose foreign collaborations could lead to sanctions. The agencies urged researchers to do their due diligence on any potential collaborators and outlined other cybersecurity best practices. "Protecting the integrity of U.S. research -- while fostering international collaboration -- is critical to maintaining a robust and secure research ecosystem," the bulletin states. "Striking this balance is essential to preserving academic freedom, safeguarding researchers' lifework, and ensuring that innovation continues to thrive in a secure and principled manner." James Cangialosi, the acting director at the National Counterintelligence and Security Center, added in a statement that while American colleges conduct research key to the country's global competitiveness and national security, "foreign adversaries are increasingly exploiting the open and collaborative environment of U.S. academic institutions for their own gain." |
| Trump Says He Welcomes Chinese Students, as His Administration Blocks Them | |
| The Trump administration has not been very welcoming toward international students, and particularly those from China. So it was striking when President Trump declared that the United States not only wanted but needed Chinese students, and would let 600,000 of them into American universities. "It's very insulting to say students can't come here," he said during a cabinet meeting at the White House on Tuesday. "I like that their students come here. I like that other countries' students come here." He added: "And you know what would happen if they didn't? Our college system would go to hell very quickly." It is a little late to be beckoning international students to enroll. The fall semester is beginning at many schools and the message seemed to contradict steps the administration has taken to make it more difficult for students, including those from China, to enter and study in the United States. But Mr. Trump has recently been sounding a very different note. While meeting with the South Korean president in the Oval Office on Monday, he said it was very important that China and the United States get along. "I hear so many stories about we're not going to allow their students -- we're going to allow their students to come in," he said. "We're going to allow, it's very important, 600,000 students. It's very important." |
| Trump saying 600,000 Chinese students could come to the US draws MAGA backlash | |
| President Donald Trump seemingly caught his loyal conservative base off-guard and sparked backlash by saying he would allow 600,000 Chinese students into American universities. That would be a departure for the Trump administration after it added new vetting for student visas, moved to block foreign enrollment at Harvard and expanded the grounds for terminating international students' ability to study in the United States. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has singled out China, the second highest source of international students in the U.S., saying in May that the State Department would revoke visas for students tied to the Chinese Communist Party and boost vetting of new applicants. Trump's announcement Monday adds to the confusion about the administration's restrictive visa policies and its approach to China as the superpowers tussle over trade and intensifying tech competition. It also marks another divide with figures in Trump's "Make America Great Again" base, who tout an "America First" agenda and had contested the U.S. inserting itself in the recent Israel-Iran war. Some of Trump's most ardent supporters -- from U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene to former adviser Steve Bannon and far-right activist Laura Loomer -- rejected the idea of welcoming more Chinese students. |
| Visa Delays Persist, Causing Some Students to Defer to Spring | |
| This week marked the start of the semester for hundreds of colleges across the U.S. But many international students, plagued by difficulty getting visa appointments and unusually high rates of visa denials, are still unsure if they'll be able to attend college in the U.S. this year. At the University of Maryland Baltimore County, a midsize public university that has a student body composed of about 15 percent international students, international Ph.D. and undergraduate students appear to be largely unaffected by visa issues. But the rate of visa issuance for master's students is only about half what it has been in previous years, according to David Di Maria, UMBC's vice provost for global engagement. Most of UMBC's master's students are from India, the country that now sends the most international students to the U.S. -- but which experts say has had virtually no visa appointments available for the past several months. The backlog in visa appointments dates to the Trump administration's pause on all student visa interviews in late May, after which the government began mandating social media reviews for all F-1 visa applicants. Some experts argue that the mandatory social media reviews have also extended the visa process by adding more responsibilities to the workload of consulate staff. |
| Washington bureaucracy must stand aside and let America build | |
 | Haley Barbour, Phil Bryant, Trent Lott, Chip Pickering and Gregg Harper write: A defining objective of the Trump administration for America is to reclaim our ability to maximize our resources, to grow, and to build. In contrast, the federal bureaucratic state has come to view its mission as to stop, slow, prevent and block projects of significance. In short, we have a clash of two vastly different value systems -- the Trump goal to build America versus the bureaucratic state's opposition and resistance. At stake is whether America will be a dynamic, vibrant country or one of inertia and decline. Caught in this conflict is Jackson, Mississippi's capital, which mirrors other struggling U.S. cities, grappling with the nation's fastest percentage population decline. We have represented the great state of Mississippi in different roles at the federal and state levels stretching back decades. Collectively, we have sought to reverse Jackson's decline by addressing the Pearl River's flooding threat while reconnecting the city to the riverfront to drive economic revitalization. Throughout our different tenures, we advocated for this commonsense flood control project, but were all thwarted by the opposition of a stagnant federal bureaucracy. |
| With Social Security and PERS under review, Baby Boomers are working longer before retiring | |
| Columnist Sid Salter writes: Baby Boomers, the generation born between 1946 to 1964, are in the season of their lives when their retirement needs will increase and become more pervasive and persistent worries. Baby Boomers are the children of television, optimistic and industrious but prone to divorce and a distrust of government marked by the Vietnam War and Watergate. Boomers range in age from 61 to 79, so retirement and the fiscal outlook for Social Security and in Mississippi, the Public Employees Retirement System, are top of mind. The Social Security Program was established 90 years ago as a safety net for the aged, disabled individuals, the blind and children. The program faces a looming shortfall in 2033 in which it may only be able to pay 77% of scheduled retirement benefits. If combined with the trust fund for disability benefits, in 2034 the program could then pay 81% of benefits. Congress and the White House are both aware of the ticking political time bomb that is the projected shortfall, but agreement on a plan to somehow "fix" the program remains elusive and expensive. At the same time, PERS, the largest public pension system in Mississippi, also remains under review by the Mississippi House of Representatives' Select Committee on PERS as they evaluate ways that Mississippi can stabilize a system is more than $25 billion in debt and currently has about 56% of the funds necessary to meet the pension's long-term obligations. |
SPORTS
| College football's 25 most powerful people | |
| Who are the most powerful people in college football? The USA TODAY Sports Network decided to figure it out. Our panel of experts debated and discussed the topic for hours and settled on the top 25 going into the 2025 season, with SEC commissioner Greg Sankey taking the top spot in a vote after the list was determined. Names like Sankey, Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti, Colorado coach Deion Sanders and retired coach Nick Saban will be familiar to college football fans, but others like Jimmy Sexton, Cole Gahagan and Dave Brown hold tremendous sway behind the scenes. And some members of this exclusive club, like President Donald Trump, may surprise you. Here are the top 25 most powerful people in college football as the 2025 season gets underway, including: Mark Keenum, Mississippi State president. Why he is on the list: Keenum is the president of the College Football Playoff's board of managers, an 11-member group comprised of university presidents and chancellors that holds authority over all aspects of playoff operations. Keenum has been the president of Mississippi State since 2009 and has previously served as the president of the SEC and leader of the league's executive committee. |
| What's new at Davis Wade Stadium for Mississippi State football 2025: LED lights, drone show, food and more | |
 | Mississippi State football is hosting four teams at Davis Wade Stadium this season that made the 2024 College Football Playoff and has made significant upgrades to the stadium for the 2025 season. The Bulldogs unveiled $9 million worth of upgrades to Davis Wade Stadium in the last year. Some of the highlights include LED lights, refurbished concourses and bathrooms, new concessions offerings, relocated tailgates and more. It will all debut in MSU's home opener Week 2 against No. 11 Arizona State on Sept. 6 (6:30 p.m., ESPN2). "Mississippi State fans and students are at the heart of everything we do, and we know the importance of taking a customer-focused approach to the gameday experience at Davis Wade Stadium and each of our home venues," MSU athletics director Zac Selmon said in a statement. One of the most noticeable upgrades will be the LED lights. They've become common across college football, and even some high school stadiums. Davis Wade Stadium, the second oldest on-campus FBS stadium, has never had LED lights. The enhanced production will go beyond the lights though. A drone show will debut at halftime against Arizona State. Fourteen new fireworks locations around the stadium have been created. A new sound system on the field has been added, too. |
| Football: 'A Blessing To Be Able To Play Again' | |
| You don't know what you've got until it's gone. It's been almost 40 years since rock band Cinderella first sang that in one of the group's biggest hits, but it's still ringing true in Starkville as it pertains to Mississippi State's Blake Shapen. A shoulder injury cut the Bulldog quarterback's season short after only four games last season. But on Saturday, close to a calendar year since Shapen last played in a game that counts, he'll finally be back on the field leading MSU into action at Southern Miss. He's certainly not taking the opportunity for granted given all he's been through. "It's just a blessing to be able to play again," Shapen said. "It's been a long time since I've been on the field, so being able to get out there with the guys is going to be fun. I'm just excited to play another game." As thrilled as Shapen is to return to action, the Bulldogs are equally as pumped. It might've gotten lost as last season wore on, but before Shapen was hurt, he flashed exactly how good he is at orchestrating head coach Jeff Lebby's offense. |
| Why Mississippi State football is playing at Southern Miss in Week 1 | |
| Mississippi State football is beginning the 2025 season with a rarity for a power conference team. The Bulldogs are playing at Southern Miss in Week 1 on Aug. 30 (11 a.m., ESPN), a power conference team going to a Group of 5 team. It's the second time MSU is doing that since 2018. Oklahoma and Arkansas are the only other SEC teams playing a Group of 5 team on the road this season. "I think as we really start to dive into where the college landscape is going, I think we have to do more of this in order for schools of our size to be able to sustain success at a high level," new Southern Miss coach Charles Huff said. "I appreciate Mississippi State and I appreciate our administration for thinking outside of the box and figuring it out how we can still keep money in the state with competitive games like these." How did this game appear on Mississippi State's and Southern Miss' schedules? This season's game has been years in the making. "Excited about the opportunity," Bulldogs second-year coach Jeff Lebby said. "I think the people inside our state are excited about it as well, being able to see somebody from an opponent's standpoint that's in-state." |
| Many connections between Southern Miss, Mississippi State ahead of opener | |
| When the 2025 college football season kicks off in Hattiesburg this Saturday, a few University of Southern Mississippi players will have more than a vested interest in the game against Mississippi State University. USM linebacker Avery Sledge, running back Jeffery Pittman, defensive lineman Mason Clinton and long snapper Luke Beard are all transfers from Mississippi State. Sledge and Pittman wore the Bulldog uniform the last time the two teams met, which was 2023 in Starkville, where MSU beat USM, 41-20. Pittman scored a 59-yard touchdown in that game, while Sledge recorded one tackle. Another Southern Miss member has a different point of view on Mississippi State. Ole Miss transfer Matt Jones spent the past four years with the Bulldogs as his biggest rival. That disdain hasn't changed since becoming a Golden Eagle. "That in-state rivalry is always huge, and, obviously, coming from Ole Miss, it's a hatred there." Jones said. Southern Miss head coach Charles Huff said he recognizes the rivalry against Mississippi State can create excitement. "A guy like Matt (Jones), who has vested interests, he's played this school before, he knows a lot of these guys, he's ready to kind of take an opportunity and run with it," Huff said. "That vested interest creates some excitement." Huff said. |
| 2025 Kickoff: Lebby and players discuss approach to Southern Miss matchup | |
| Week One of the 2025 college football season is finally here, and with it a new opportunity for Mississippi State to shake the disappointment of a 2-10 campaign in 2024. Head coach Jeff Lebby and players spoke with the media on Monday about a number of topics around fall camp and the upcoming game, and in particular, they addressed the difficulty of scouting their first opponent after circumstances that have become common in the new era of college football. Southern Miss will host MSU on Saturday with a roster that features more than 40 new transfer players. Many talented Thundering Herd players followed head coach Charles Huff from Marshall to Southern Miss, including dual-threat quarterback Braylon Braxton and shutdown corner Josh Moten. The prospect of scouting the Golden Eagles is complicated, but something the Bulldogs have approached by covering all bases. |
| USM partners with Taylor Rental to make tailgating easier and safer | |
| There's a new energy surrounding University of Southern Mississippi football this season, and fans will notice fresh gameday experiences both inside and outside M.M. Roberts Stadium. One major change: A new tailgate partnership with Taylor Rental, aimed at making setup easier. "We partnered with USM to be their main tailgate provider," Taylor Rental owner Myers Marshall said. "What that involves is us going out early, setting up tents, a lot of tents, tables, chairs, tablecloths, TV's, coolers with ice. "Pretty much, if you can imagine it and you want it, we can get it for you." Marshall said fans can rent just about anything they need for a complete gameday setup. One of the biggest perks: Fans who book packages get first dibs on tailgate locations. Marshall said setups can begin as early as Wednesday, giving customers access before the public arrives. "That's one benefit," Marshall said. "If you've got a spot that you tailgate in every year and you don't want to fight the crowds, we can get out there early and set up for you." Beyond convenience, Southern Miss Athletics said the partnership also improves gameday safety. "It gives us an opportunity to know where people are," said Spencer Bridges, USM deputy athletics director/chief revenue officer. |
| With preparation, Greg Sankey became college football's most powerful person | |
| The most powerful man in college football counts two signed copies of books about a legendary basketball coach among his prized possessions. John Wooden, the coach, autographed one of the books for Greg Sankey after they met in attendance at a Final Four many years ago, when Sankey was commissioner of the Southland Conference. The other book, "They Call Me Coach," features Sankey's own signature. He inscribed the Wooden autobiography in the sixth grade after winning the book as the prize for a clean desk of the month contest. That sounds like Sankey. Now in his 11th year as commissioner of the Southeastern Conference, college sports' power broker in chief earns a reputation for seeing around corners, and a young Sankey signed his copy of the book about the coach he so dearly admires, "lest anyone try to steal it." Inside Wooden's autobiography appears a quote that's guided Sankey throughout his rise from intramural sports director at a small college in New York all the way to SEC commissioner. I will get ready and then, perhaps, my chance will come. Sankey, through subsequent research, learned that quote descends from something said by Abraham Lincoln, another leader he's studied and admires. College athletics leaders praise Sankey's intellect, his pragmatism and his experience. |
| NCAA considers rule requiring athletes to disclose NIL deals from high school, junior college | |
| The NCAA is weighing a rule that would require incoming Division I athletes to disclose name, image and likeness (NIL) deals from high school or junior college to the NIL Go clearinghouse established under the $2.8 billion House settlement. Athletes would report all non-institutional deals dating to the first day of their junior year. Junior college transfers would report deals from the date of initial enrollment at a two-year college. All reporting of previous deals would be due to the College Sports Commission upon enrollment. NIL compensation at the high school level has rapidly expanded in recent years. At least 40 states allow high school students to earn money off their celebrity status. Alabama, Michigan and Ohio are among the states that have strict restrictions, including Texas, which prohibits athletes under 17 from pursuing deals. The potential rule aims to prevent pay-for-play deals between prospective athletes and boosters or school-affiliated entities. The exact consequences of failing to comply are still being determined, but lost eligibility is a possibility. "It's unclear what the discipline would be for athletes or third parties that violate these rules, just like it's just not entirely clear what the discipline will be for current college athletes," said Gabe Feldman, director of sports law at Tulane University. |
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