| Thursday, January 10, 2019 |
| Golden Triangle Regional Airport set to host free Drone Seminar | |
 | Unmanned aircraft, or drones as they are more commonly called, have become increasingly popular holiday gift items, with more hobbyists taking to the skies than ever and more business utilizing the technology to benefit the bottom line -- especially in a place like the Golden Triangle, where new technologies for drones are researched and implemented every day. Those are just a couple of the reasons why the Golden Triangle Regional Airport will host its third annual Drone Seminar on Tuesday, Jan. 15, with a special focus places on home use, safety and business. A free public seminar, the event will start at 6 p.m. in the airport terminal at GTRA, and will feature experts from both Mississippi State University and Columbus Air Force Base. Also available at the seminar will be representatives from the Alliance for System Safety of UAS through Research Excellence, which is part of the National Center of Excellence for Unmanned Aircraft Systems at Mississippi State. Starkville is also home to the Mississippi State University Raspet Flight Research Laboratory, which has been in continuous operation since 1948. The facility currently works with industrial and other government agency partners to use laboratory aircraft and facilities to further aeronautical research. |
| Safety a high priority at area universities | |
 | Universities are like small cities, and just like cities, they have to prepare for any emergency that may threaten the safety of students and staff members. Officers from both Mississippi State University and Mississippi University for Women assure that university campuses all around the country are some of the safest places you can be. Mississippi State University, Police Chief Vance Rice says communication is vital to ensuring the safety of students and staff members in a crisis situation. One way of getting this information out is through text alert systems like MSU's Maroon Alert. "It's important for our students and our university community to make sure they are registered for emergency notifications. If something is sent out, it's important for everyone to try to remain calm and to think clearly and to just take steps to protect themselves first," said MSU's Emergency Manager Brent Crocker. |
| City nets nearly $600K for Spring Street path project | |
| The city of Starkville was recently informed it would be on the received end of almost $600,000 in federals funds after Mississippi Transportation Commission recently announced $13 million in federal Transportation Alternatives projects. The $588,000 awarded to the city of Starkville will be put toward the Spring Street multiuse path. Starkville Mayor Lynn Spruill has been outspoken about the need for increased connectivity in the city and how it relates to the MSU campus, which will be promoted that much more through the new project. "I'm really pleased to have the opportunity to continue a project that benefits not only the city, but the county and MSU as well," Starkville Mayor Lynn Spruill said of the funding. "This is a quality of life project that matters in our efforts to attract and keep people in our community." |
| Students Try To Get Back Into The Swing Of Things As New Semester Starts | |
| School is back in session at Mississippi State University. For some students, they've been anxiously awaiting the start of the new semester. "Honestly, I was kind of ready to come back because after being on break for so long I was getting kind of bored," said Cade Campbell, a freshman at MSU. However, some students feel the complete opposite. Trying to get back into the swing of things is actually presenting a few challenges for some students on campus. "When I come back it's just like your brain is moving at 100% again, it's hard adjusting to the change of pace," said Ryan Hopson, a sophomore at MSU. Research shows that having a set bedtime and sticking to it, and having an organized planner of all these things you need to do, are two critical components to help students get back in the swing of things as the new semester begins. |
| Jim Henson exhibit at Max, show at Riley Center make a family friendly weekend | |
 | The Jim Henson Exhibition: Imagination Unlimited goes on display to the general public Saturday at the Mississippi Arts + Entertainment Experience. The exhibition is a dynamic new visitor experience exploring puppeteer Jim Henson's groundbreaking work for film and television, featuring more than 20 original puppets, character sketches and more. From 2-4 p.m. Saturday, at the MSU Riley Center, a panel of Jim Henson experts, including his daughter, Cheryl Henson, will discuss Henson's vision and the impact of the Muppets and Sesame Street on American culture. The Max will host celebrity kid chef and Starkville native Mark Coblentz for a cooking demonstration from 3-5 p.m. Sunday. Coblentz will be making Swedish meatballs. And bring the family to the MSU Riley Center Friday from 6-8 p.m. for the children's event "Diary of a Worm," based on the wildly popular children's books, "Diary of a Worm," "Diary of a Fly" and "Diary of a Spider." |
| ACM SIGAda announces 2018 award recipients, including MSU's Drew Hamilton | |
 | ACM's Special Interest Group on Ada (SIGAda) today announced that it presented two prestigious awards to members of the Ada community. Brad Moore, a Software Engineer at General Dynamics Missions Systems Canada, received the Robert Dewar Award for Outstanding Ada Community Contributions. John A. "Drew" Hamilton, Jr., a Professor at Mississippi State University, received the ACM SIGAda Distinguished Service Award. Hamilton, a member of SIGAda since 1988, has been an active and influential organizer of SIGAda initiatives for decades. A former Lieutenant Colonel in the United States Army, Hamilton served as the Chair of the Ada Software Engineering Education Team. ASEET provided education and training in Ada at all US service academies and military training centers. His service with ASEET also included chairing several conferences. As the last Director of the Ada Joint Program Office, Hamilton facilitated the transfer of Ada technology from the government to the private sector. |
| Quintana Energy Services Announces the Addition of Bobby S. Shackouls to Its Board of Directors | |
 | Quintana Energy Services Inc. (NYSE: QES) ("QES" or the "Company") announced today that Mr. Bobby S. Shackouls has been appointed as an independent director of the Company and a member of the Company's Audit Committee effective immediately. Bobby S. Shackouls currently serves as a Director of Oasis Petroleum, The Kroger Co. and Plains GP Holdings, LLC, the ultimate general partner of Plains All American Pipeline, L.P. Mr. Shackouls serves on the Boards of the Sam Houston Area Council and National Board of the Boy Scouts of America, and the Mississippi State University Foundation. He is a past Chairman of the National Petroleum Council. Mr. Shackouls graduated from Mississippi State University in 1972 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemical Engineering. |
| Keeping Noxubee Refuge clean: Volunteers, visitors pitch in to keep trash from piling up during shutdown | |
 | Lana Taylor visits the Sam D. Hamilton Noxubee Wildlife Refuge about once a week. Taylor enjoys wildlife photography, but she took a picture of a different scene when she visited the refuge on Sunday morning. She saw a group of young adults, in two kayaks, picking up litter in the early morning hours. She briefly talked to the volunteers before snapping their picture. "It was freezing that day," Taylor said. "They were there right after daylight and it was about 37 degrees. They were picking up litter in their kayaks. That was the only way to really get to it. They had two garbage bags that were pretty full." As a partial federal government shutdown stretches to its 20th day -- threatening soon to become the longest in the United States' history -- garbage is piling up in national parks across the country. Yet at the Noxubee Wildlife Refuge, which remains open but virtually unstaffed, conditions remain as pristine as usual. That's thanks, in part, to volunteers like the ones Taylor saw Sunday morning taking the initiative to pick up litter from around the park. |
| CBS show to look into Labor Day Murders | |
 | Saturday's episode of the CBS show "48 hours" will be on a Starkville case that was solved last fall using modern DNA technology. The Jan. 12 episode of the true crime series will take a deep look into the 1990 attack of Betty Jones and Kathryn Crigler. The two women were attacked on Labor Day in Crigler's home on Highway 182. Smith died that day. Crigler died a few months later. The case, which became known as The Labor Day Murders, went unsolved for nearly 30 years. Advances in DNA testing led to the Oct. 2018 arrest of Michael Wayne DeVaughn, 51, who was charged with the capital murder of Jones and the sexual assault of Crigler. |
| Wood pellet maker plans $200M investment in Mississippi | |
| A company that makes wood pellets burned for fuel in overseas power plants is moving ahead with plans for a $140 million pellet mill and a $60 million ship-loading terminal on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Enviva LP spokeswoman Maria Moreno said Wednesday that the Maryland company signed agreements Monday with leaders in George and Jackson counties. The company won't finalize its investment until environmental permits are approved for facilities in Lucedale and Pascagoula, she said. Enviva expects to hire about 90 workers in Lucedale. As many as 300 loggers and truckers could also find work supplying logs to Enviva. Company executives told investors in November that growing demand in Europe and Japan was pushing it toward the new facilities in Mississippi, plus a plant the company is building in North Carolina. |
| Winter furniture market ready to get underway | |
| The Winter Tupelo Furniture Market officially gets started Thursday, but exhibitors have been readying their showrooms and floor spaces days in advance. And that's a good thing, as some buyers were already looking to place orders Tuesday, even as most exhibitors weren't officially open. "You're always going to have buyers who want to come early no matter what date you set, and we're going to accommodate them the best we can," said TFM owner and chairman V.M. Cleveland. This week's market takes place roughly two weeks ahead of the Las Vegas Market, which in Cleveland's estimation allows retailers to get ahead of the game in terms of ordering and getting product before the crucial tax season. |
| US Senator Roger Wicker gets top spot on Commerce | |
 | Mississippi's senior Senator Roger Wicker took on a powerful new position as chairman of the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. This role will enable Wicker to tout Mississippi businesses and technology interests at a national level. "I thank my colleagues for their support in electing me chairman of the Commerce Committee," said Wicker. "I would also like to thank Sen. John Thune, the committee's former chairman, for his exemplary leadership these past four years. The chairmanship is a great responsibility given the committee's broad jurisdiction across diverse sectors of our economy. I look forward to serving alongside our new ranking member, Sen. Maria Cantwell, and my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to build on the committee's successes and continue moving our economy forward." As chairman Wicker will have foresight over a number of initiatives and proposals, including advancing science, technology, and engineering research in our state's universities and at NASA and NOAA. |
| Cindy Hyde-Smith to lead Senate Legislative Branch spending panel | |
 | Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith will take the gavel of the Legislative Branch Appropriations Subcommittee for the new Congress. The Mississippi Republican is a relative newcomer to the panel, which she joined in April of last year, taking the slot left open by her predecessor Thad Cochran's resignation. The subcommittee's previous chairman, Montana's Steve Daines, received a waiver to join the Senate Finance Committee, becoming among the first senators to serve on Appropriations and Finance since 1944. (Oklahoma's James Lankford was given a similar waiver.) Hyde-Smith won a hard-fought runoff election in November, but this new gig will have her thinking more about Capitol Hill than Mississippi. The Legislative Branch panel oversees federal spending on the Hill, including lawmaker's office accounts, the Library of Congress, Capitol Police and the Architect of the Capitol. It's the smallest of the 12 annual spending bills, but has an outsize impact on the Capitol Hill community, including funding investments in campus security and allowing sledding on Capitol grounds. |
| End of 2018 Revenue Report is out and the numbers are up | |
 | The December 2018 revenue report is out and collections are up for the end of the year.Total revenue collections for the month of December FY 2019 are $40,980,914 or 8.50% above the sine die revenue estimate. Fiscal YTD revenue collections through December are $90,445,500 or 3.52% above the sine die estimate. Fiscal YTD total revenue collections through December 2018 are $85,510,649 or 3.32% above the prior year's collections. Numbers for the Use Tax, Corporate Tax, and Oil & Gas Severance tax are all up by at least 14%. The Insurance Premium tax is down over 11%. The state unemployment rate is at 4.7% with the national average at 3.7%. |
| Delbert Hosemann announces lt. gov. intentions | |
| Mississippi's Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann announced Wednesday that he'll seek the office of lieutenant governor this year. Launching a statewide tour to pitch his candidacy, Hosemann, a Republican, stopped in Tupelo at Hawkeye Industries to discuss his policy priorities. In his remarks, the third-term secretary of state especially pledged to focus on jobs, education, infrastructure and healthcare access. He placed particular emphasis on education. "If public education doesn't prosper, we won't prosper as a state," he said. Democrat state Rep. Jay Hughes, of Oxford, announced last year that he'll run for lieutenant governor. Hughes and Hosemann are the only candidates to announce for that office thus far. |
| Delbert Hosemann announces bid for lieutenant governor -- 'where I can make the most difference' | |
| Republican Delbert Hosemann, who rode a comical ad of an elderly woman mispronouncing his first name to election as secretary of state in 2007, announced Wednesday he is running for lieutenant governor. Hosemann said this past spring he would not be a candidate for re-election in 2019, but did not reveal which office he would pursue. Most believed, though, it would be lieutenant governor so Wednesday's announcement was no surprise. Hosemann, thanks in part to the original campaign ad where the woman called him everything from Dilbert to Gilbert, but never Delbert, has some of the highest name identification in the state, according to various polls of politicians. Hosemann, age 71, made his initial announcement Wednesday morning at the driving academy for KLLM trucking company where Chief Executive Officer James Richards praised his accomplishments. Hosemann said his campaign would focus on the importance of Mississippi developing "an educated work force." |
| Delbert Hosemann to run for Lt. Governor | |
 | Mississippi Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann this week announced where he would like to be come next January; serving as the state's Lt. Governor. Hosemann, a Republican who has been Secretary of State for three terms, Tuesday announced in Rankin County his candidacy and embarked on a 10-stop statewide tour. One of the stops Wednesday afternoon was to Michael Hatcher and Associates, a landscaping firm that has grown to more than 100 employees since a move from Tennessee into DeSoto County, along Center Hill Road. Hosemann, speaking with the DeSoto Times-Tribune after the Wednesday announcement, said he looked to his grandchildren as inspiration for his candidacy. "We have seven grandchildren, including one just four days ago," Hosemann said. "I know that Mississippi needs to concentrate on an educated workforce. infrastructure and jobs, including for my own grandchildren. It was an easy selection for me." |
| Delbert Hosemann Running for Lt. Gov: 'I'm Here to Apply for the Job' | |
| Mississippi Secretary of State Delbert Hosemann is running for lieutenant governor, he announced Wednesday morning. "Hi, it's Delbert, ma'am," Hosemann said, looking directly at the camera in a campaign video published to Facebook shortly after 9 a.m. "When you hired me, I promised you I'd make it easier to run and start a business in Mississippi." On the Gallo Show on SuperTalk radio, Hosemann said he was proud of his work on business law, his acquisition last year of 18,000 acres in the Delta for public use, an insurance reform bill that required insurers to cover autism treatment, and for working to implement a "fair and constitutional voter ID" law. Hosemann, who has been secretary of state since 2008, announced that he would not run for secretary of state again at the Neshoba County Fair last August. Gallo asked why he chose to run for lieutenant governor instead of governor. As lieutenant governor, Hosemann said he would have more leverage to move forward an agenda to make Mississippi more business-friendly with a more educated workforce. |
| Mike Tagert to not seek re-election | |
| There will be a new person next year representing the Northern District, including DeSoto County, on the Mississippi Transportation Commission, after current Commissioner Mike Tagert Tuesday announced he would not be seeking re-election. When looking at Tagert's time on the Transportation Commission, the I-269 interstate project completed last fall will be the most impactful accomplishment to travel in DeSoto County and North Mississippi. The new interstate connects Tennessee's State Route 385 near Collierville, Tenn. with I-55/I-69 north of Hernando. The project cost approximately $612 million, below its $664 million budgeted amount. As Tagert said he would not be running for re-election to another term after his current time on the commission ends in January 2020, he quickly added he would continue working for transportation in North Mississippi, in particular. |
| Department of Public Safety wants to make it easier to fire officers | |
 | They were high on-duty, behaved dangerously on the shooting range or tested positive for opiates. One threatened to kill his wife and her attorney. The Department of Public Safety has tried to fire these officers, said Commissioner Marshall Fisher, but the officers got reinstated. Fisher blamed the State Personnel Board, which gives some state employees protections against firing. The board has too much discretion, he told lawmakers Wednesday. Fisher said he wants that changed -- not for fiscal reasons, but disciplinary ones. Speaking to the Senate Appropriations Committee, Fisher said the personnel board can be a "kangaroo court." He said officers who come back on the force then appear to be "bulletproof" from future discipline. "They're a supervisor's nightmare," Fisher said. |
| Could reopening Walnut Grove Correctional Facility save Mississippi millions? | |
| As the Mississippi Department of Corrections asks the Legislature for millions to repair Unit 29 at Parchman, a prison less than 150 miles down the road sits empty. Twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, two guards are on duty at Walnut Grove Correctional Facility in Leake County. Electricity runs throughout the 376,000 square-foot space. Medical equipment sits, abandoned. A basketball lies on the floor in the expansive gymnasium. While the inmates have been gone since the state closed the facility in 2016, Mississippi taxpayers are still paying $97.4 million the state owes on the facility and related services, according to Clovis Reed, president of Growth Strategies and a consultant for Walnut Grove. In legislative budget hearings in September, Mississippi Department of Corrections Commissioner Pelicia Hall said she needed $22 million to renovate Unit 29 at Parchman. The agency is also requesting raises for guards to help with chronic understaffing, escapes and other problems. But the people who are most familiar with Walnut Grove argue the state could save millions by re-opening the closed prison. |
| Jeff Tate qualifies for Lauderdale, Tyler McCaughn qualifies for Newton in state senate races | |
| Following two retirement announcements in the state senate, candidates have emerged to represent east Mississippi districts just as the legislative session begins for 2019. In Southern Lauderdale County and Clarke County, Lauderdale Election Commissioner Jeff Tate has qualified to follow the steps of Videt Carmichael while Tyler McCaughn will run to succeed Terry Burton in Northwest Lauderdale County, Newton County and Scott County. On the first day of the 2019 session, longtime District 33 Senator Videt Carmichael, R-Meridian, announced he wouldn't seek re-election. Carmichael, 68, has served since 2000. Though early in the campaign, Tate said his experience as a business owner would shape his experience in the legislature. Born and raised in Scott County, McCaughn has practiced law in Newton County for 11 years, working for clients in all three counties. McCaughn, a cattle farmer and bee keeper, said he would focus on three key areas: infrastructure, education and agriculture. |
| Election 2019: Melanie Sojourner seeks re-election to District 37 senate seat | |
 | Former Dist. 37 State Sen. Melanie Sojourner announced Wednesday her intention to run for the Mississippi Senate District 37 seat being vacated at the end of the year by Sen. Bob Dearing, D-Natchez. Dearing, who last week announced his intention not to seek another term, has held the position every term since 1980, with the exception of one term when Sojourner beat him in 2011. Dearing then defeated Sojourner in the 2015 election. Milt Burris is the only other candidate to have filed with the Mississippi Republican Party for the District 37 Senate seat as of Jan. 4, the latest date for which the Mississippi Republican Party has updated the party's qualifying candidates list. Dist. 37 Mississippi State Rep. Sam C. Mims V, R-McComb, is the only other area state office candidate to file his candidacy with the Mississippi Republican Party so far. Mims is seeking to reclaim his House seat. |
| Nicole Akins Boyd announces candidacy for state senate in District 9 | |
| Nicole Akins Boyd's candidacy for State Senator will feature a few familiar sights. Boyd began her career in the State Attorney General's office, where she prosecuted and advocated for children's and family issues, but her father, Noal Akins, was also the state representative for Lafayette County. These memories and experiences are what Boyd is calling on as she runs for the District 9 State Senator seat on the Republican ticket. Boyd, who grew up in Oxford, said her time working in the State Attorney General's office gave her a bipartisan attitude, which taught her how to work across both sides of the political aisle. Incumbent senator Gray Tollison announced he would not be running for re-election in 2019, which leaves Boyd and District 1 County Supervisor Kevin Frye as the two qualified and running candidates for state senate. |
| Legislative Democrats present 2019 agenda priorities | |
 | Party politics usually play out with polar opposite agendas for Republicans and Democrats each session. But Democrats say they're seeing new traction from the GOP on issues they've championed. "Whatever it is, I'll accept it," said Representative David Baria. "As long as they're willing to work together on issues that will improve Mississippians lives, then they're going to find a willing partner in me and legislative Democrats." They will have six priorities this year: public education, health care, infrastructure, economic justice, criminal justice reforms and election reforms. In the way of health care, they'll again file bills related to Medicaid expansion. While there are early bipartisan issues, the caucus says much will depend on the details. For example, they don't just want a teacher pay raise but want the salary raised to the Southeastern average. |
| President Trump storms out of meeting as shutdown careens toward fourth week | |
 | President Trump abruptly left a White House negotiating session with congressional Democrats about 20 minutes into the meeting, dismissing it as a "total waste of time" as the partial government shutdown careened toward a fourth week. The acrimonious collapse of the talks left no clear solution for ending the impasse, which has consumed Washington and raised concerns about pain for hundreds of thousands of federal workers across the country. Top Democrats said they once again urged Trump to reopen shuttered government agencies during the abbreviated meeting. Trump refused and instead asked Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) if she would approve border wall funding within 30 days if he opened the government. When she said "no," the president got up and left, according to officials in the room. "Again, we saw a temper tantrum because he couldn't get his way and he just walked out of the meeting," Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) told reporters on the West Wing driveway. |
| Doug Jones Seeks Inquiry Into Misinformation Efforts in Alabama Senate Race | |
 | Senator Doug Jones, the Democrat who was an unwitting beneficiary of misinformation tactics during a special election in Alabama in 2017, asked the Federal Election Commission on Wednesday to investigate the episodes. Mr. Jones made his formal request for an inquiry more than three weeks after The New York Times detailed one of the clandestine efforts in which Democrats employed Russian-style digital deception while Alabama was locked in one of its most competitive campaigns in memory. "Such deceptive tactics have no place in American politics and must be repudiated by those involved in our political system," Mr. Jones wrote in a letter to Ellen L. Weintraub, a Democratic member of the commission. Neither Mr. Jones nor his campaign is believed to have known about, much less approved of, any of the deception. Mr. Jones had quickly pledged to seek an inquiry, but his notarized letter on Wednesday, which also cited reporting by The Washington Post, represented his first formal step in support of an investigation by the commission. |
| Iowa 'ag gag' law ruled unconstitutional, struck down by federal judge | |
| A federal judge has ruled that Iowa's "ag gag" law is unconstitutional, saying the industry-backed statute violates the First Amendment's free-speech protections. Senior Judge James Gritzner granted summary judgment Wednesday to a group that sued over the law. "Today's decision is an important victory for free speech in Iowa," said Rita Bettis Austen, ACLU of Iowa legal director. "It has effectively silenced advocates and ensured that animal cruelty, unsafe food safety practices, environmental hazards, and inhumane working conditions go unreported for years." Attorney General Tom Miller's office, a defendant representing the state, said the office is considering whether to appeal. "It was never the intent of farmers to infringe on others' constitutional rights," the Iowa Pork Producers Association said in a statement. "We were relying on the courts to help us protect our rights to lawfully conduct our businesses and care for our animals." |
| Meridian Regional Airport donates aircraft to Hinds Community College | |
 | The Meridian Regional Airport is turning an accident into good fortune for a college after an aircraft was damaged on the runway. In October 2016, a 1978 Cessna 152 airplane was severely damaged. A helicopter flew over it, flipping it upside down. The airport managed to save radios and a few other parts, but had no idea how they could salvage the plane. That's when Airport President Tom Williams thought of an innovative idea. "After we settled with the insurance company, there was very little value left. But we realized the opportunity to donate it to the Airframe and Powerplant Mechanic School at Hinds Community College," said Williams. The airplane will be used as a training opportunity for Hinds' Aircraft Maintenance Technology Program. Mechanics broke down the plane as they prepared to transport the parts to the Raymond campus. |
| Government shutdown causes delay in federal aid for Tennessee students | |
 | Tennessee college and university students are facing delays in the release of federal aid money due to the federal government shutdown. One University of Tennessee student said she was dropped from her classes Monday as a result, but learned she was added back on Wednesday after the News Sentinel reached out to her. "Nobody at UT has been dropped from their classes because of the shutdown," said Katherine Saxon, coordinator for student communications at UT. Saxon said there are "a handful of students who filled out their FAFSA during the shutdown," but they were not dropped from their classes in the process. Student Jenna Santero, however, said she was specifically told by UT's financial aid office that she was dropped from all her classes because she hadn't received the FAFSA funds and had missed the payment due date. |
| Free tampons on campus? Bill would require Kentucky colleges to give them away | |
 | Last year, a group of women students at the University of Louisville approached state Rep. Attica Scott, D-Louisville, about an issue they thought should get more attention: the need for free sanitary products on campuses around Kentucky. Thanks to U of L's Tampon Task Force, the school now provides free tampons and pads at 26 locations on three campuses. "The feedback has been amazing," said Hannah DePriest, president of the student chapter of the American Association of University Women. "People will come to our events just to thank us." So Scott decided to sponsor a bill that would require all of Kentucky's public colleges and universities to provide free sanitary products to students in dorms and classroom buildings. "We know it's an issue for women on campuses across Kentucky," Scott said. Scott said the bill also has support from Sen. Julie Raque Adams, R-Louisville, who recently became a member of Senate leadership. |
| U. of South Carolina releases new logos, won't affect athletics | |
 | The University of South Carolina is getting a new look. USC announced it will be releasing four new logos in a Wednesday afternoon tweet. Earlier in the day, the university teased the release by changing its profile picture to one of the new logos captioned with: "New year. Fresh look. More soon. #UofSC #NewProfilePic." The new branding leans heavily on the school's push to rebrand its abbreviated name as "UofSC." Though the "Athletics" logo of the letter C and the gamecock is listed beside the updated logos, the university said that brand will stay the same. "We've refreshed a couple of the marks," USC spokesman Jeff Stensland said in a text message. "We've also updated the 'trees and gates' to make it look a little more modern and balanced. (This) doesn't impact existing athletic marks." |
| GAO report reviews studies on student hunger | |
 | A long-awaited report examining the extent of hunger on college campuses recommends increasing students' awareness of federal food assistance benefits so that higher ed institutions can better combat the problem. The U.S. Government Accountability Office report, which was released Wednesday, examined 31 studies on food insecurity among students. It also determined through further analysis that about two million at-risk students who were potentially eligible for food aid through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, did not report receiving the benefits in 2016. The report was the result of a 2017 request by Senate Democrats that the GAO assess hunger among college students after several surveys found that students were experiencing food insecurity. Despite broad agreement that the problem is extensive, finding consensus on a clear or accurate estimate of the number of hungry college students has not been easy. |
| Think the Federal-Aid Process Is Crazy? Here's Some 'Bureaucratic Sanity' | |
 | The U.S. Department of Education on Wednesday made many people happy. No, really. Financial-aid officers, college-access advocates, and education wonks all cheered the news that a vexing part of the federal-aid process had just gotten simpler. Here's what happened. The Education Department released new guidance on recent changes in 2018-19 and 2019-20 verification requirements. Traditionally, those requirements have hindered many students who file the Free Application for Federal Student Aid. Why? They had to round up all the required documents in a world of red tape. The guidance, effective immediately, essentially acknowledges that challenge, giving colleges more flexibility when verifying students' financial information. Colleges may now accept signed tax returns instead of tax transcripts, which often aren't easy to get. |
| Historians and language professors discuss advising at recent conferences | |
| Eight-four-two-one. That's the "mental PowerPoint slide" Leonard Cassuto asked those at a cross-over panel on graduate advising to imagine last week, during the annual meetings of the American Historical Association and Modern Language Association in Chicago. Both conferences happened to take place in the same city this year, and both featured a number of well-attended sessions on rethinking graduate education -- perhaps a sign of growing awareness of a thorny but urgent topic. For every eight students who begin a humanities Ph.D. program, said Cassuto, a professor of English at Fordham University and author of The Graduate School Mess: What Caused It and How We Can Fix It, about four will not finish. Based on national data, two will leave early on in the program and two later -- the latter departures being what he called "ethical failures" on the part of institutions. Of the four students who do finish, he continued, two will eventually get full-time teaching jobs. Less than one will get a full-time job teaching at a research university. And yet graduate schools still largely train students based on the premise that they'll be research university faculty members, he said. |
SPORTS
| Battle of the Bulldogs tonight in Starkville | |
| No. 7 Mississippi State is seeking its 29th-consecutive home win tonight, hosting Georgia at 8 p.m. on the SEC Network. Vic Schaefer's Bulldogs (14-1) are off to a 2-0 start to SEC play. MSU has won its last two games against Georgia, including an 86-62 victory in Athens last season behind 26 points and 13 rebounds from Teaira McCowan. McCowan continues to pace State, averaging 16.4 points and 13 rebounds, and leads the SEC with 2.7 blocked shots per game. Georgia (11-4, 2-0 SEC) is just 1-3 on the road this season but is coming off a 71-64 win at Vanderbilt on Sunday. The game will feature the reigning Co-SEC Players of the Week in Jordan Danberry of Mississippi State and Gabby Connally of Georgia. |
| Mississippi State's forwards are key against Georgia, moving forward | |
| Mississippi State head coach Vic Schaefer said this week that to win basketball games in the Southeastern Conference, a team needs to have good play from its guards. He said that will be true when his No. 6 Bulldogs (14-1, 2-0 SEC) host Georgia (11-4, 2-0 SEC) on Thursday night at 8 p.m. at Humphrey Coliseum, and it will be true beyond then too. "Your guards have got to be good every day," Schaefer said. "It doesn't matter what size you've got. You've got no chance (without good guard play)." His theory held true in the SEC opener against Arkansas when senior guard Jordan Danberry had the game of her life with 29 points and nine rebounds. Senior point guard Jazzmun Holmes had 14 points and five assists. The same duo, which Schaefer deems as one of the best backcourts in the country, combined for 25 points and 10 assists in Sunday's win over No. 14 Kentucky. Two performances from the MSU forwards in those two games show what can happen when guards are complemented by standout frontcourt players. |
| Georgia on mind: Battle of Bulldogs time has Mississippi State recalling past meetings | |
| Vic Schaefer still recalls the game against Georgia back during his first season at Mississippi State in 2013. It was one of the first signature wins that Schaefer would garner in Starkville and the game epitomized his team's effort. The homestanding Bulldogs of MSU beat No. 11 Georgia 50-38 in a game where they allowed two field goals in the second half. That team won 13 games overall and five conference games, but it set the stage for a winning season in 2013-14 and a postseason berth. Schaefer recounts MSU's trip to Athens last year as his program's best in the series, though. State hadn't won on the road at Georgia in the last eight tries, a period that dates back all the way to 2002. Schaefer lost in 2014 77-48 and had one of his team's more forgettable performances in 2016 in a 47-43 defeat. That's what made a convincing 88-62 victory over the other Bulldogs as sweet as any that he's had over Southeastern Conference teams in recent years. MSU led from start to finish and the game was never really in doubt. |
| Lady Dogs ready for challenge of Mississippi State's Teaira McCowan | |
 | Taja Cole tries to get her teammates ready to win the next game, regardless of the opponent's prestige. So the Georgia point guard decided to text Jenna Staiti with a factoid. Teaira McCowan, the 6-foot-7 senior forward from Mississippi State who the Lady Bulldogs will try to tame Thursday night, has 40 blocks on the season. Staiti, the highest-ranking Georgia player, sits in third place with 32 blocks in 8.8 less minutes per game. As Georgia (11-4, 2-0 SEC) travels to Starkville, Mississippi, it finally has someone who can match up with McCowan in height. Staiti, who is an inch shorter at 6-foot-6 (yes, there's an SEC player taller than the redshirt sophomore), is excited for this post matchup. "That's cool. I've seen her play, and being at Maryland, I never thought I'd get to play against her," said Staiti, who became eligible for Georgia this season after transferring in from Maryland and sitting out a year. "I think it's something we can embrace. I've never played against someone that tall." McCowan is Mississippi State's leading scorer at 16.4 points per game, but she's one of many assets for the nation's seventh-ranked team. |
| Mississippi State men's tennis team No. 3 in preseason rankings | |
| Mississippi State men's tennis has matched the highest ranking in program history, coming in at No. 3 in the Oracle ITA listings released on Wednesday. "We're very excited," fifth-year head coach Matt Roberts said. "We still have a lot of work to do. A ranking is just a number, but it feels good to know that we're viewed as a top team." The Bulldogs went 23-3 last season, losing 4-3 to Ohio State in the NCAA quarterfinals. They were last ranked No. 3 in 1999. Defending national champion Wake Forest is the preseason No. 1, followed by Ohio State. Seven SEC teams are in the preseason Top 25, including Florida (No. 4) and Texas A&M (No 9). The Bulldogs will open their home slate on Jan. 26 against Wichita State. |
| Mississippi State unveils challenging 2019 softball slate | |
 | Matchups against 13 teams that competed in the 2018 NCAA Tournament, including two programs that reached the 2018 Women's College World Series, highlight the 2019 Mississippi State softball schedule. The 53-game campaign, announced Wednesday by head softball coach Vann Stuedeman, features 29 games within the friendly confines of Nusz Park. The 2019 schedule also boats six neutral-site contests as well as 18 true road tests. Of the 53 regular-season contests, 29 are against teams that participated in the 2018 NCAA Tournament. "We are jacked to get this season started," Stuedeman said. "We compete in the best the conference in the country, and our schedule brings tough competition to Nusz Park. We have a lot of newcomers that are eager to make an impact. Every game is important. We need the Maroon and White faithful to make Nusz the toughest venue in the nation." The Bulldogs open the season at Nusz Park on Friday, Feb. 8 with a doubleheader versus Valparaiso (3 p.m. CT) and Stephen F. Austin (5:30 p.m. CT) as part of the Bulldog Kickoff Classic. |
| Dak Prescott's knee injury doesn't change Dallas Cowboys' game plan vs. LA Rams | |
 | Dak Prescott zigzagged right then left, right again then left again. He cut each direction one more time on third-and-14 with 2:33 to play in the Cowboys wild-card win over the Seahawks. Then he somersaulted into the end zone, his elbow officially down just short of the goal line. A play later, Prescott walked in a 1-yard score, the first quarterback in Cowboys history to both pass and rush for a touchdown in a playoff game. Defensive DeMarcus Lawrence breathed a sigh of relief. "I'm just glad he made it out safe," Lawrence said Saturday night after the Cowboys' 24-22 win of what he called a "very tough" drive to execute. "He's an acrobat, cutting cartwheels and stuff." Prescott also cut his thigh on Seahawks safety Tedric Thompson's helmet. The result: the always-available Cowboys quarterback popped up on the practice report with a knee injury this week as Dallas prepared for a divisional round trip to visit the Los Angeles Rams. He practiced full each day with what Cowboys coach Jason Garrett described as a knee sprain, with Prescott clarifying as a thigh cut. He wore a sleeve on his knee for extra protection. Dallas doesn't plan to call plays with reservation to protect Prescott's knee. |
| Targeting penalty should change, college coaches say, but how? AFCA director details options | |
 | Head coaches at college football's highest level are saying it's time for the targeting penalty to change. On the final day of the annual American Football Coaches Association convention, a large group of head coaches from the Football Bowl Subdivision met Wednesday morning at the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center, and they agreed that the targeting penalty should move toward a model that is less harsh on players who commit the penalty without malicious intent. AFCA executive director Todd Berry said the consensus in the room was that the targeting penalty should split into two categories: Targeting 1: A less severe penalty for a non-malicious, incidental violation of the targeting rule, which could include a 15-yard penalty. Targeting 2: A more severe penalty for a malicious violation of the targeting rule, which could include one-game suspensions and even multiple-game suspensions for repeat offenders. |
| U. of Tennessee cheer coach remains on paid leave 6 months after probe into 'racially insensitive remarks' | |
| A longtime University of Tennessee, Knoxville, cheer coach who was placed on paid administrative leave last year for "racially and ethnically insensitive remarks" remains on leave over six months later. Joy Postell-Gee was placed on paid leave on June 29 for the second time. Her expected return date was Dec. 31, according to personnel files given to the News Sentinel after a public records request, although she remained on paid leave as of Jan. 7, according to an email from Tom Satkowiak, assistant athletics director for communications. Postell-Gee had also been placed on leave earlier in 2018 and returned to her duties on June 8, according to her personnel files. Satkowiak directed further questions to Tyra Haag, director of media relations for UT, Knoxville. "Ms. Postell-Gee is still on paid administrative leave as this matter is still under investigation," Haag said in an email. |
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