| Monday, July 2, 2018 |
| Lemonade Day aims to teach kids about running a business | |
 | When life hands you lemons, start a business. National Lemonade Day, a program designed to teach kids how to start and operate their own businesses is coming to Starkville in August. Starkville's first Lemonade Day is a collaboration among Castle Properties, Mississippi State's College of Business and the Mississippi State Entrepreneurship Center. Cadence Bank has agreed to provide loans for kids who want to participate. The program uses the familiar Lemonade Stand as a model to teach kids such skills as responsibility, financial literacy, marketing, goal setting and teamwork. "Loosely, we're thinking it will be for ages K-7th grade, but we're not going to limit that if an older kid wants to participate," said Jeffrey Rupp, Director of Outreach for the Mississippi State Entrepreneurship Center. "This is fun." |
| Lemonade Day Preparations | |
 | Director of Outreach at the MSU's College Of Business, Jeffrey Rupp, hopes August 18th will be a "sour day" in Starkville. That's because Rupp hopes to see dozens of lemonade stands across Starkville and Oktibbeha County. Saturday was the official kickoff for Lemonade Day. It is a national program that teaches youth how to start, own, and operate a business. Several dozen kids attended this morning's Lemonade Day informational in downtown Starkville. They left with all the support materials they need to have a successful lemonade stand. |
| Hog heaven: Mississippi State senior off on a 'Find Your Freedom' adventure | |
| In more ways than one, Mississippi State senior communication/broadcasting major Brock St. Clair is on the ride of a lifetime. A Germantown, Tennessee, native and Starkville resident, St. Clair is among eight students who are participating in an eight-week "Find Your Freedom" summer internship experience sponsored by Harley-Davidson. Selected from 7,500 applicants from more than 30 countries, interns also represent Long Beach, California; Wuhan, China; London, England; Miami, Florida; Charlotte, North Carolina; Cape Town, South Africa and Kennan, Wisconsin. To apply for the "Find Your Freedom" internship, St. Clair, a student in MSU's Judy and Bobby Shackouls Honors College, created a video illustrating his thoughts on "freedom." In the video, he reflects on ways his MSU experience has challenged him to get out of his comfort zone and think independently. |
| Camp Jigsaw offers enriching experience for kids with autism | |
| For the past 11 years, Mississippi State Professor Sandy Devlin has raised thousands of dollars to put on a summer camp. But not just any camp -- the only free residential camp in the country for children with autism. "In my experience, the kids in special education typically get the leftovers. There's never enough money to help them," said Devlin, who has taught with MSU's special education program since 1981. "My idea for this camp is it's all beautiful. I want them to have a really nice camp experience, and I don't want lack of money to turn families away." Camp Jigsaw, as the week-long experience is called, began in 2007 with six campers. That first summer, activities took place on MSU's campus during the day, but Devlin had to house campers at her home each night. "We quickly outgrew that," she said. |
| Camp Jigsaw continues for 11th year at Mississippi State | |
 | A group of young men have convened in Starkville for the 11th year to have fun and learn how to better live in a world which may not always understand them. Camp Jigsaw began Sunday at Mississippi State University, and will run until Friday. The camp gives high school aged boys with autism a chance to have fun and hone their social skills, with visits to various sites, classes and discussions with several groups. The program also counts as contact hours and internships for graduate students under MSU special education professor and Camp Jigsaw founder Sandy Devlin. "We don't advertise," Devlin said. "It's entirely by word of mouth. We have close to 50 campers here, and they come from all over the country. "It grows every year. It gets bigger and bigger." She said she would like to see the camp grow even more, but would have to figure out how to raise more money to support it. |
| 'Godmother of Soul' Patti LaBelle headlines 2018-19 Lyceum Series at Mississippi State | |
| Musical treasure Patti LaBelle will fill Lee Hall's Bettersworth Auditorium with her legendary rhythm and blues when she headlines the upcoming season of Mississippi State's Lyceum Series. Known as the "Godmother of Soul" and ranked by Rolling Stone as one of the "Top 100 Singers of All Time," the Grammy Award winner will perform Nov. 15 at 7 p.m. Doors open approximately 30 minutes before the curtain rises on all shows scheduled for the 2018-19 Lyceum Series, the university's long-running performing arts program. Lyceum organizers offers traditional season-ticket packages, which include admission to LaBelle's Nov. 15 concert. A mini-series ticket option also is available and features guaranteed reserved seating at a discounted rate. Mini-series purchases include attendance to three programs, except LaBelle's concert for which a separate ticket is required. |
| 'Godmother of Soul' Patti LaBelle headlines 2018-19 Lyceum Series at Mississippi State | |
 | Musical treasure Patti LaBelle will fill Lee Hall's Bettersworth Auditorium with her legendary rhythm and blues when she headlines the upcoming season of Mississippi State's Lyceum Series. For ongoing Lyceum patrons, July 16-20 are the season ticket renewal dates, while July 23-Aug. 3 are dates for new purchases of complete season packets. Mini-series tickets go on sale Aug. 6- 17; individual tickets, Aug. 18. General public season tickets are $165 per person; $150 for MSU employees and senior citizens. Excluding Patti LaBelle's Nov. 15 performance, general public mini-series tickets are available for $85 and $70 for MSU employees and senior citizens. In addition to six primary performances, the 2018 Lyceum schedule includes a free play presented Sept. 25-26 by students in MSU's Judy and Bobby Shackouls Honors College. |
| Consider physical needs before heatwaves worsen | |
| Mississippians love their air conditioners, but an over-reliance could leave people at greater risks during power outages triggered by heat waves. The hottest days of summer can tax power grids and individual air conditioning units. Backup plans can ease the discomfort and even save lives if brownouts occur or air conditioners break. Brownouts are drop in voltage in an electrical power supply system. They can be intentionally arranged by the power company to reduce the load on the overall power system, or they can be unintentionally caused by overloads or overuse of power. David Buys, health specialist with the Mississippi State University Extension Service, said people should have a plan for staying cool if power goes out for an extended time. |
| First of two hearings on mayoral contest set for today | |
| Monday is a day shy of a year since Lynn Spruill was sworn in as mayor of the city of Starkville, but the challenge over the election results against challenger Johnny Moore has yet to be decided. A hearing is set for 9 a.m. today that requires the voting boxes and Starkville Election Commissioners to be present, according to Oktibbeha County Circuit Court records. A second hearing is set for July 20 at 10 a.m. in the Oktibbeha County Circuit Court Annex Building, which could see a potential ruling from the bench. Special Judge Barry Ford previously said he has a total of 10 ballots in question. |
| Starkville leaders consider water, sewage rate changes | |
| Starkville's water and sewage rates will likely increase as the city undertakes a massive infrastructure replacement project. On Friday, city leaders continued discussions of what those changes might look like at an afternoon work session in City Hall. The city is looking to replace aging water infrastructure. While the entire program will likely see work stretching across many sections of the city, officials are focusing on three areas with the highest volume of repair calls -- Pleasant Acres, Green Oaks and Rolling Hills -- to get started. In order to pay for the work, Starkville is almost certainly going to have to raise water and sewer rates. On Friday, Jason Barrett, an assistant professor with Mississippi State University's Extension Center for Government and Community Development, talked officials through what some changes in rates might generate. |
| Agencies will have to spend $100 million more on pensions | |
 | Public agencies in Mississippi will have to contribute another $100 million toward worker pensions beginning July 1, 2019, after a vote by the state Public Employees Retirement System's board. Citing projected shortfalls, the board voted Tuesday to increase the share of a worker's salary that an employer must give from 15.75 percent to 17.4 percent. Workers will continue contributing 9 percent of their own paychecks. The vote followed months of discussion, triggered by forecasts that the system wouldn't meet a long-term goal of assets equal to at least 80 percent of liabilities by 2042. Kelly Breland, a retirement system board member who works at the Department of Mental Health, said the board's own policies called for more funding. |
| Nearly $100 million jump in state pension costs will be issue for legislators | |
 | It will cost an additional $99.6 million to fund the Mississippi Public Employees Retirement system starting with the fiscal year beginning July 1, 2019. The PERS Board has voted to increase the employer contribution from 15.75 percent of payroll to 17.40 percent of payroll to help ensure the long-term stability of the program that provides retirement benefits for most state and local governmental employees. The employers that will be footing that extra 1.65 percent will be state agencies, universities, community colleges, public schools and local governmental entities. When asked if legislators would provide the additional funds during the 2019 session for state agencies and education entities, House Appropriations Chair John Read, R-Gautier, said, "That issue will come to the Legislature. At this time, we don't know which way it will go." |
| Brad Dye, longtime Mississippi lieutenant governor, dies at 84 | |
| Brad Dye, who was lieutenant governor longer than anyone else in Mississippi history, died Sunday at age 84 from respiratory failure. His son, Dr. Ford Dye, says his father died at a hospice in Ridgeland. As lieutenant governor, he shepherded Gov. William Winter's education reform package, intervening at a key moment with powerful Senate Finance Committee Chairman Ellis Bodron, who was inclined to kill it. Dye also supported the landmark 1987 four-lane highway expansion and was a supporter of the state's universities and the University of Mississippi Medical Center. "He served in politics back in the day when you might have had a completely different political viewpoint with somebody, but they still might be friends," Ford Dye said. |
| New Mississippi laws target dogfighting, left-lane driving | |
| Several new laws are taking effect Sunday in Mississippi. They are listed with bill numbers used during the legislative session. House Bill 80 says that on any road with at least four lanes, a vehicle should not impede traffic in the left lane. Punishment would be a fine of $5 to $50. The new law specifies drivers should only use the left lane for passing, unless the right lane is closed, is in disrepair or is otherwise impassable. House Bill 192 says people may carry unopened containers of alcohol, wine and beer through dry areas on a state or federal highway, without penalty. House Bill 1202 , the "Kaelin Kersh Act," requires emergency vehicles, including law enforcement, to use their lights when going 30 miles over the speed limit. It is named for a Mississippi State University track athlete who was killed soon after she graduated in May 2017 by a state trooper who was speeding without lights flashing. |
| Democrat Sara Richardson Thomas Resigns After 21 Years in Mississippi House | |
| A Democrat from the Mississippi Delta is leaving the state House of Representatives. Rep. Sara Richardson Thomas of Indianola says her resignation takes effect Saturday, the last day of the state budget year. Thomas has served 21 years in the Legislature. Her District 31 includes parts of Bolivar, Humphreys, Sunflower and Washington counties. Gov. Phil Bryant will call a special election, and the winner will serve the rest of the four-year term, which ends in January 2020. |
| Analysis: Howard Sherman backs Democrats after pain of Senate loss | |
| Howard Sherman was already wondering why Mississippi Democrats seemed so unreceptive to his message before his runoff loss Tuesday. "I'm battling 'What's the point?' a lot," Sherman told The Associated Press six days before state House minority leader David Baria beat him soundly for the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate. "There seems to be a very entrenched interest in not changing." Maybe that was a recognition that the brand of change Sherman was pitching wasn't going to carry the day, as Baria's legislative allies and others in the Democratic establishment rallied to support the person they knew. |
| Trade Fight Threatens Farm Belt Businesses | |
 | The U.S. Farm Belt helped deliver Donald Trump to the White House, drawn to his promises to revive rural America and deregulate industry. Now, the president's global trade offensive is threatening the livelihoods of many farmers. Mounting trade disputes, spurred by U.S. threats to withdraw from the North American Free Trade Agreement and tariffs on billions of dollars' worth of goods from key trading partners, have cut U.S. agricultural exports and sent commodity prices tumbling. Many farmers, who depend on shipments overseas for one-fifth of the goods they produce, say they are anxious, especially because they are already expecting bumper harvests or grappling with a dairy glut. The planned tariffs on U.S. soybean exports come as farmers nationwide have boosted plantings of the crop, betting on the oilseeds to deliver stronger returns than corn during a yearslong slump in the farm economy. |
| Goodbye, Columbus: Retiring Jim Borsig helped MUW through identity crisis in his seven years as university president | |
| It was 2 p.m. on a Tuesday and Jim Borsig was out of uniform. In the place of his normal a suit and tie, he wore blue jeans and an causal button-down shirt, a sure sign his days as president at Mississippi University for Women were drawing to a close. Friday was Borsig's last official day at The W. He was basically down to a single suitcase when he boarded a Delta flight headed for his new home in Maine this weekend. Borsig arrived at The W in 2011 from his job as associated commissioner at the Institutions of Higher Learning at a time when the university was going through something of an identity crisis. At the time of Borsig's arrival, MUW faced serious challenges, including a shrinking budget and a steady decline in enrollment. The pressures to reverse that trend led to a breach in relations among the MUW family, most notably among alumnae. |
| Timothy Hopkins announced as new development officer at MUW | |
| A familiar face has joined Mississippi University for Women's Office of Development & Alumni team. Timothy L. Hopkins, who served as the university's senior admissions counselor, was recently announced as The W's new development officer. A W alumnus, Hopkins obtained his Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology with a minor in family studies in 2009. He earned his Master of Science degree in counseling and psychology from the University of West Alabama in 2011. "We are excited that Timothy has joined our team," said Andrea Nester Stevens, executive director of development and alumni. The Brooksville native joined The W in 2013 as an admissions counselor. |
| Senator Thad Cochran donating papers to U. of Mississippi | |
| Retired U.S. Sen. Thad Cochran will donate his papers to the University of Mississippi. Cochran, who holds both undergraduate and law degrees from Ole Miss, was first elected to the U.S. House in 1972 and to the Senate in 1978. The university says Cochran's donation will include 3,500 linear feet of documents and nearly 6 terabytes of digital files. Leigh McWhite, the university's political papers archivist and associate professor, says Cochran's papers focus on subjects including wildlife conservation, the return of veterans from the Gulf Wars and the Mississippi Gulf Coast after Hurricane Katrina. |
| Alice Clark retires from U. of Mississippi after 40 years of service | |
| Alice Clark, vice chancellor for university relations at the University of Mississippi, has retired after nearly four decades of service. Clark is an F.A.P. Barnard Distinguished Professor of Pharmacognosy, and earned both her master's and doctoral degrees in pharmacognosy at Ole Miss. She joined the university as a research associate and faculty member in 1979. She later served as the first director of the university's National Center for Natural Products Research. After 38-plus years of service, Clark said she is looking forward to a slower pace and spending lots of time on her new back porch that is under construction. She also said she expects to burn up the roads to Huntsville, Jackson and Nashville to spend time with her beloved family. |
| East Mississippi Community College to help coordinate problem-solving hackathon | |
| East Mississippi Community College's Information Systems Technology department is assisting with the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians' first hackathon, which runs from Friday, July 13, to Sunday, July 15. "It is their event, but we are helping coordinate it," said EMCC IST Director Brandon Sesser, who sits on the steering committee to grow the hackathon. Participants are being sought for the event titled "Hack the future: Between Earth & Sky Hackathon" in which teams will tackle some of the toughest challenges faced by businesses. High school, college and university students age 16 to 26 are encouraged to apply, as are recent graduates. "People are scared when they hear the word 'hack' but this is all about problem solving," Sesser said. |
| Child races past mobility limits after U. of Alabama students design customized car | |
 | Inverness Elementary School student Bailey Harris could barely wait to climb into his new car. The buildup to the moment he finally climbed into the driver's seat in May had stretched for months as a team of University of Alabama engineering students worked to custom fit the battery-powered Audi toy car to allow the Shelby County student more mobility. Bailey was born without arms or knees and has shortened limbs. "He can walk, but his stamina is not good," said his teacher, Debbie Slawinski. He uses a custom wheelchair in school, but the custom car provides mobility outside. "We took the cover off the car and within seconds, he was trying to get in and drive it," said Michael Outlaw, a recent UA graduate who was on the team that built the car. "It was a treat to see that reaction. He is such a special kid." |
| LSU students to see another fee increase to help with pay raises, other expenses | |
 | Louisiana State University is again raising student fees at its main campus by 5 percent. The price hike approved Friday drew worries the consistent, annual increases could price some students out of school. Campus leaders say the $282 per-semester fee hike for full-time students and the $14 million raised by it is needed for pay raises and other expenses. They say they're trying to keep pace with peer institutions and make up for nearly a decade of state financing cuts. But even as they backed boosted charges on students, some LSU Board of Supervisors members worried the fees are growing too burdensome for lower- and middle-class students and their families. |
| UGA police chief retiring with eye on 2020 Oconee sheriff election | |
 | Though he has served in law enforcement for three decades, Jimmy Williamson will be at the ripe young age of 51 when he officially retires Saturday as chief of the University of Georgia Police Department. That leaves him with plenty of time to continue serving in other capacities in law enforcement. "I'm going to continue working for UGA right up to June 30, but after then I'm going to take some time off and recharge my batteries a bit and find somewhere that I can assist somehow," Williamson said. That might mean taking on short-term positions here or there because Williamson said he really has his sights set on being elected Oconee County's new sheriff in 2020 after longtime Sheriff Scott Berry retires. The UGA police chief position was the capstone in Williamson's 30-year career working for the University System of Georgia. |
| Experts flock to Texas A&M for Air Force conference series | |
 | Hundreds of scientific and other academic minds gathered at Texas A&M on Thursday and Friday as part of the U.S. Air Force Science and Technology 2030 conference series, designed to update the branch's strategy by listening to scientists, business professionals and higher education through a series of events. Texas A&M is the only school in the Southwest selected to host one of these conferences, with about 500 participants contributing their input. On Friday. Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson toured the National Aerothermochemistry and Hypersonics Laboratory at Texas A&M. "Texas A&M does a large amount of research, and there are a lot of close connections between Texas A&M and the Air Force, particularly because of the Corps of Cadets and the officers who are commissioned here," Wilson said during a Q&A session. |
| No. 2 Senate Republican backs college transparency bill | |
 | Senator John Cornyn last week quietly signed on to a bill that would overturn the ban on a federal postsecondary student-level data system. Advocates for the College Transparency Act say the Texas Republican's support doesn't just mean one more co-sponsor for the legislation. The decision by Cornyn, the second-ranking GOP senator, also suggests the kind of bipartisan support that could make stronger federal data inevitable. The legislation was introduced a year ago with backing from a number of public higher education organizations and since then has continued to add Republican and Democratic co-sponsors. And earlier this month, as association of private nonprofit colleges signaled it would soften its opposition to higher ed transparency efforts. The biggest obstacle to student-level data at this point appears to be Representative Virginia Foxx, the North Carolina Republican who authored the ban and chairs the House education committee. |
| Our View: After building stability, Jim Borsig will be missed at The W | |
| The Dispatch editorializes: "Friday was Jim Borsig's last day as president as Mississippi University for Women and to say he will be missed hardly seems worth mentioning. In his seven years as The W's president, Borsig helped this university through an identity crisis that threatened the future of the institution, strengthened the university's relationship within the community and added new programs to ensure the university would be relevant for generations to come. His success is such that the discord served as the backdrop to his arrival in 2002, seems little more than a vague, unpleasant memory. ... The W today is unified, thriving, optimistic. Much of the credit for that should rightly be attributed to Jim Borsig. We thank him and wish him well." |
| Planning important to obtaining goals | |
 | Angela Farmer, an assistant professor of educational leadership at Mississippi State, writes: "There are so many things that students must learn along their journey to adulthood. Perhaps one of the most important is learning how to respond to change. As most know, change can be positive, negative, or just different. Regardless as to the nature of the change, it most often brings stress into the equation. Learning how to embrace the change is paramount for one to mature into an adult, prepared to adjust to the road of life which is most often full of unexpected turns, irregular pavement, and unexpected hills and valleys. In order for students to embark on such a journey, however, it is important that their adult support network help them prepare." |
| Could tariffs, special election cause November surprises? | |
 | Syndicated columnist Bill Crawford of Meridian writes: "No surprises in the run-off elections last week with Michael Guest easily defeating Whit Hughes in the 3rd District Republican Primary run-off and David Baria coming back to defeat upstart Howard Sherman handily in the Senate Democratic Primary run-off. Unless there are some surprises, Guest should cruise to victory and Baria should fall short in majority Republican Mississippi in November. Oh, but could there be surprises? ...Don't bet on it, but surprises could happen if one or more Mississippi relevant issues erupt. One of those issues could be tariffs. ...As tariffs spread to impact jobs and income in Mississippi, voters will likely take heed. The potential for November election surprises is there. We'll have to wait and watch to see if that potential is realized." |
SPORTS
| Mississippi State No. 4 in final D1Baseball.com poll | |
| Mississippi State, which was unranked at the end of the regular season, finished No 4 in the final D1Baseball.com rankings published on Friday. National champion Oregon State, top-ranked in the final regular-season poll, finished No. 1, with runner-up Arkansas No. 2 and Florida No. 3. Ole Miss fell from No. 3 at the end of the regular season to No. 15. Southern Miss fell out of the rankings. The Golden Eagles were No. 13 in the last regular-season poll. |
| Diamond Dawgs collect program's third-best finish in final polls | |
 | The 2018 Mississippi State Baseball team earned the program's third-best finish in the final polls, ranking as high as fourth nationally following Thursday's conclusion of the NCAA College World Series. Three national publications, Collegiate Baseball, D1Baseball.com and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association gave MSU their No. 4 spot. The 2013 CWS runner-up team swept the two spot in 2013, and the 1985 Bulldogs were ranked third by Collegiate Baseball. Baseball America and USA Today each ranked MSU sixth, while the Bulldogs finished seventh in Perfect Game's poll. For the third consecutive season, the Bulldogs finished in the Top 15 of all of the respective polls. |
| Mississippi State paints the year maroon and white | |
| The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal's Logan Lowery writes: "The 2017-18 athletic year at Mississippi State may go down as the most successful in school history. It's certainly the most memorable that I've seen, since I started covering the Bulldogs full time a decade ago. All four of the major sports enjoyed a deep run into the postseason. The football team (9-4) won the TaxSlayer Bowl, the men's basketball team (25-12) reached the final four of the NIT, the women's basketball team (37-2) lost the national championship on a buzzer-beater while the baseball team (39-29) defied the odds to advance to the College World Series semifinals." |
| Kentucky AD Mitch Barnhart gets a raise | |
 | Starting this weekend, Kentucky's athletics director will receive another increase in pay and have a new set of incentives to achieve, per a new contract amendment he signed without any fanfare. The latest amendment to Mitch Barnhart's contract, which takes effect Sunday, pays the UK official $195,000 more in salary this year than last and includes yearly increases with a bonanza of new incentives and retention bonuses. "Now, more than ever, a sense of stability, continuity and absolute trust in leadership is essential in college athletics," university President Eli Capilouto said in a statement to the Herald-Leader when asked about the latest deal that will keep Barnhart as the program's top athletics administrator through at least 2023 with an option for 2024 hinging on outlined goals. Barnhart, who is the longest-tenured conference AD and the new chairman of the league's athletics directors, is the sixth-highest paid among them. |
| SEC competition mostly outperformed Alabama in 2017-18 | |
| Despite having several teams compete for national championships in the 2017-18 school year, Alabama athletics did not perform well against SEC competition, going 72-107-1 in head-to-head, dual competition. The Crimson Tide had a winning record against only one school, Vanderbilt, going a combined 4-3 against the Commodores in both men's and women's sports. As for rivalry matchups, Alabama posted records of 10-15 against Auburn, 6-10 against Tennessee, and 6-7-1 against LSU, with the draw coming in a midseason soccer match. Unsurprisingly, football posted the best record and winning percentage against SEC opponents, going 8-1 for a winning percentage of .888, including the thrilling overtime victory against Georgia in the national championship game. |
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