| Friday, July 18, 2025 |
| Mississippi State celebrates 60th anniversary of Holmes' admission | |
 | On July 19, Mississippi State University (MSU) will honor the anniversary of Dr. Richard E. Holmes becoming the first African American student in school history. This will mark 60 years since Holmes first stepped onto campus on July 19, 1965. His integration would become a massive leap for the civil rights movement of the time, as he was the first African American student to be integrated into MSU and was not met with violence. This was in stark contrast to James Meredith's integration into University of Mississippi just three years prior, which required the National Guard to be deployed to quell violent protests against integrating schools. Holmes would go on to earn two degrees from MSU. He earned a liberal arts degree and master's degree in microbiology before going to medical school at Michigan State University. |
| Magnolia Mornings: Miss. State marks 60th anniversary of Holmes' admission | |
 | Mississippi State is marking a pivotal moment in its history on July 19 -- the 60th anniversary of Dr. Richard E. Holmes becoming the university's first African American student. On July 19, 1965, Holmes stepped onto campus and rather than being met with animosity and hate, his acceptance was relatively peaceful and calm, the school said. Mississippi State said Holmes was admitted to MSU three years after James Meredith's forced entry to the University of Mississippi. Meredith's enrollment was backed by federal troops and triggered deadly rioting in 1962. Holmes' acceptance also came one year after the "long hot summer" of 1964, when three young civil rights workers were murdered in Neshoba County. His enrollment, acceptance and academic journey with MSU marked a historic day for the university and the Magnolia State. |
| Mississippi State launches graduate construction degree program | |
| A new Master of Science in Construction Management degree program will launch next month at Mississippi State University (MSU). The program, which was recently approved by the Mississippi Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning (IHL), will be housed in the Department of Building Construction Science. It will offer the state's only graduate degree in construction management. According to Mississippi State, students can opt for one of two tracks: a research or professional track tailored to the diverse needs of professionals in the architecture, engineering and construction, or AEC, sectors. The new master's degree program is now accepting students for the upcoming fall semester with an August 1 deadline. Courses for the degree can be completed via online learning or through in-person classes in Starkville, and applications can be completed through the MSU Graduate School, found online. |
| Miss. State to offer first-of-its-kind construction management graduate degree | |
| Next month, Mississippi State University will begin offering an advanced degree in the field of construction. The Master of Science in Construction was recently approved by the Board of Trustees for the Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning. The school said it will give graduates the skills they need to take on leadership roles in the field. "Drawing on the strengths of the existing undergraduate program, the new Master of Science in Construction Management creates exciting new opportunities for students interested in this booming sector of the economy," said Dean of the College of Architecture, Art and Design Angi Elsea Bourgeois. Students interested in earning the graduate level degree have until August 1 to enroll in the upcoming fall semester. Two tracks will be offered under the program, one focused on research and another more diverse professional track. The professional track will suit professionals in the sectors of architecture, construction and engineering. The degree path will be housed under the Department of Building Construction Science and will be the state's first and only graduate-level construction management program. |
| Prison horticulture classes develop employable skills | |
 | A few of the people employed in various aspects of the green industry in Mississippi learned their skills while incarcerated at the East Mississippi Correctional Facility in Meridian. The facility, like many in the state, offer the men housed there several educational opportunities that will provide avenues of gainful employment upon their release. In Meridian, Tammie Jennings teaches a horticulture class for inmates and calls upon the Mississippi State University Extension Service on occasion for support. "I began using the curriculum from the National Association of Landscape Professionals, which covers topics such as first aid and safety, irrigation, trees and shrubs, pest management and much more," said Jennings, an instructor with the correctional facility. Shani Hay, MSU Extension agent in Newton County, has helped teach some classes at the facility and provided curriculum support numerous other times. Hay said the horticulture training offered by Jennings opens doors for the inmates. |
| MSU presents two new flavors to the ice cream selection | |
 | It may be hot outside, but Mississippi State University is looking to cool down with two new ice cream flavors. The new flavors, blueberry and sweet potato, are honoring Mississippi's official fruit and vegetable. Shecoya White, an associate professor in the Department of Biochemistry, Nutrition and Health Promotion, and other MSU students have developed and tested 15 to 20 variations of each flavor of ice cream. The flavors were also field-tested in on-campus events and sensory panels. But, before you get too excited, the new flavors won't be hitting shelves in MSU's MAFES Sales Store until 2026. |
| Eupora woman killed in fatal wreck in Oktibbeha County | |
 | A Eupora woman was killed in a two-vehicle accident Wednesday morning in Oktibbeha County. Heather Young, 34, was pronounced dead on scene after colliding with another car at approximately 9:21 a.m. at the intersection of Highway 82 and County Lake Road, Oktibbeha County Coroner Michael Hunt said. Young was hit while attempting to cross over the west-bound lane of traffic onto County Lake Road, a press release by the Mississippi Highway Patrol said. Mississippi Highway Patrol Sgt. Derrick Beckom said the driver of the other vehicle was not injured. Neither vehicle was carrying passengers. MHP is investigating the crash, Beckom said, but no criminal charges are expected. |
| Marcus & Millichap Brokers Sale of 164-Unit Apartment Community Near Mississippi State University | |
| Marcus & Millichap has brokered the sale of The Grove Apartments, a 164-unit community located in Starkville near Mississippi State University. Originally built in 1975, the property is situated on 10 acres and features a mix of one-, two- and three-bedroom floorplans ranging in size from 704 square feet to 1,028 square feet, according to ForRent.com. Amenities include laundry facilities and a dog park, as well as onsite management and maintenance. Josh Jacobs and Lloyd Escue of Marcus & Millichap marketed the property on behalf of the seller, MRKT Capital, and procured the buyer, Emerald City Associates, in the transaction. Mickey Davis was the firm's broker of record in Mississippi. |
| Taste Italian Kitchen opens second Mississippi location in Ridgeland | |
| The Starkville-based restaurant, Taste Italian Kitchen, opened its second Mississippi location in Ridgeland. At its initial location, Taste became known within the Starkville community for its artisanal pasta, hand-tossed pizza, grilled entrees, extensive wine list, and family traditions. "We've enjoyed tremendous growth in Starkville and are excited to bring our flavors to the Jackson metro area. This space in Ridgeland offered the perfect fit -- and timing -- to expand our story," Executive Chef Shannon Lindell said. It also features a bar and lounge, private dining rooms, gluten-free or vegan meal options, and a wine and spirits program. The restaurant serves lunch daily from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Dinner is served Sundays through Thursdays from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. as well as Fridays and Saturdays from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m. |
| Mississippi's first 'food-forward' pickleball venue to open in Flowood | |
| Looking to enjoy a nice meal, a cocktail, and a game of pickleball? A new venue in Flowood will soon infuse all three into one fun-filled occasion. Paddle House, the state's first "food-forward" pickleball venue, will blend culinary excellence with casual games and an aesthetically pleasing ambiance. The city of Flowood announced the launch of Paddle House on Wednesday. The multi-use venue will be located in the old Antonelli College space on Lakeland Drive next to popular local diner Primo's. Paddle House will feature five indoor pickleball courts, four outdoor covered courts, and a lineup of communal games like cornhole, ping pong, and yard games. There will also be a focus on dining with scratch-made food options, craft cocktails, fresh coffee, and a lineup of ice cream flavors. Also featured will be private event spaces perfect for birthdays, corporate events, and special celebrations. An expected opening date has not been announced at this time. |
| Iconic Jackson shopping center Highland Village on market for $52 million | |
 | Multiple sources with knowledge of the listing have confirmed to the Clarion Ledger that the upscale shopping center Highland Village is on the block to be sold. Highland Village, which has been a staple in the Jackson area along Interstate 55 since it first opened in 1960 with a supermarket and five and dime store, was purchased by WS Development in 2012. Prior to WS Development, Highland Village had been owned by three generations of the Fowler family, which expanded the development in 1972. At more than 220,000 square feet, Highland Village is one of the largest shopping developments in Jackson. According to the sources who spoke to the Clarion Ledger, WS Development has Highland Village privately listed for $52 million. Terms of the deal between WS Development and the Fowler family in 2012 were never disclosed. Since taking over in 2012, WS Development has made major changes to the shopping center, including developing the Whole Foods on site as well as adding major national brands, including Lululemon, Kendra Scott, Sur La Table, Free People and Warby Parker. The company also updated the look of the building with a whitewash of the outside as well as updating the flow of walkways and adding and eliminating stairways on property. |
| Biloxi casino finally gets site approval, the first step toward a new resort | |
 | Now two casino projects have site approval in east Biloxi. The Mississippi Gaming Commission on Thursday granted Biloxi Capital's request for a casino site, said Biloxi attorney Michael Cavanaugh, who represented the developers. Before construction can begin, the developers must return to the Gaming Commission with documents to show they have the financial backing to meet the requirements for a casino on the Gulf Coast, and show they have money to complete and open the resorts. The Gaming Commission in December granted site approval to the Tullis Gardens casino in east Biloxi, a few blocks from the Biloxi Capital site, on the condition that legal matters can be settled with the Secretary of State over tidelands issues. Luke Lenzi, the attorney and CEO of the Tullis Gardens casino, said it could take years to get the lawsuit settled. "At this rate, we're at least three years out from clearing the litigation to appeals all the way up to the Supreme Court and millions of dollars in legal expenses," he said. "There can be no real significant development on the Coast in that type of environment. The city and all the parties need to come together and work together for the betterment of One Coast." |
| Mississippi can start using law on social media age verification, court says | |
| A Mississippi law that requires age verification for users of social media sites can take effect, federal judges ruled Thursday. But a tech industry group says a court fight will continue. A three-judge panel of the 5th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals removed a block that a district judge last year put on the "Walker Montgomery Protecting Children Online Act." "Enacted after a sextortion scheme on Instagram led a 16-year-old Mississippian to take his own life, the Act imposes modest duties on the interactive online platforms that are especially attractive to predators," Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch wrote in court papers filed July 2, arguing for the law to take effect. NetChoice, a tech industry group that sued the state, said the law creates risks to privacy, overrides parental authority and unconstitutionally limits speech for Mississippi residents of all ages. Paul Taske, co-director of the NetChoice Litigation Center, said Thursday that the group is "considering all available options" after the appeals court decision. Fitch's office is "pleased with the court's decision, and we look forward to full consideration in this case," spokesperson MaryAsa Lee said. |
| Ross Barnett Reservoir Bridge Will Close for 2 Months After 'Significant Void' Found | |
| Construction trucks and bright orange cones blocked the southbound side of the bridge over the Ross Barnett Reservoir in Goshen Springs, Mississippi, on Wednesday, with cars lining up at a temporary red light on the other side of the road. Soon, the entire bridge will be closed for construction until October. The Mississippi Department of Transportation recently inspected the bridge and found a void, or a large empty hole, under the part of the bridge that connects to the main road on Mississippi Route 43 in Goshen Springs. The two-lane bridge on Mississippi Route 43 that connects Rankin County to Madison County will be closed from July 28 to Oct. 1 for construction, the agency said in a July 15 press release. More than 3,500 vehicles cross the bridge daily, MDOT told the Mississippi Free Press on Thursday morning. Over the past few months, construction crews have had to patch up spots on the bridge over the Ross Barnett Reservoir at least once a week to keep the bridge open for travel, but the minor repairs are not enough, MDOT said. While the bridge is closed, drivers will need to take alternate routes and use detours to Mississippi Route 25 and Interstate 55 as indicated by signs along the road, MDOT said. The bridge is the only connecting bridge over the reservoir from Rankin County to Madison County, which could cause drivers to spend more time traveling to reach their destinations. |
| Need a driver's license? Jackson office moves downtown | |
| The driver's license office in Jackson has moved downtown as the Mississippi Department of Public Safety prepares to shift its headquarters from the capital city to suburban Rankin County. The department last month announced it was closing the license office that had operated for decades next to its headquarters just off Interstate 55 at Woodrow Wilson Avenue, near the VA Medical Center. The new office is at 430 State St., near Jackson's main post office and a few blocks from the Capitol. "This location provides easier access for those who live and work in the area and ensures we can continue offering vital driver services in a more convenient and accessible space within the city of Jackson," said Bailey Martin, spokesperson for the Department of Public Safety. Mississippi has 35 driver's licenses offices. The new Jackson office is in a former car dealership -- an all-white building with floor-to-ceiling windows that fill the space with sunlight. On Wednesday, customers sat on black benches, chatting or scrolling on their phones while waiting to be called up to get or renew a license. The Department of Public Safety headquarters will open in Pearl within the next year, near the state's crime lab, fire academy and emergency management agency. |
| Public safety officials warning Mississippians not to fall for text message scam | |
| Officials are once again warning Mississippians to avoid falling prey to text message scams. Department of Public Safety Commissioner Sean Tindell said that a message has been making the rounds accusing residents of having traffic tickets that had yet to be paid. The message threatens the recipient with certain fines, including suspension of driving privileges, prosecution, and interest tacked onto the cost of the ticket. Also included in the message is a link that takes users to a site that resembles an official government page. Authorities reiterate that the site is fraudulent and that government agencies in Mississippi do not request payments for fines via text. "Please know that in Mississippi, we do not have a DMV, and we don't have toll bridges, so these are scams," Tindell said. "If you've received a text message with a link and it takes you to a page that maybe even looks like a government page, it's probably a fake if they're asking you for money." |
| Jeffrey Epstein's Friends Sent Him Bawdy Letters for a 50th Birthday Album. One Was From Donald Trump. | |
 | It was Jeffrey Epstein's 50th birthday, and Ghislaine Maxwell was preparing a special gift to mark the occasion. She turned to Epstein's family and friends. One of them was Donald Trump. Maxwell collected letters from Trump and dozens of Epstein's other associates for a 2003 birthday album, according to documents reviewed by The Wall Street Journal. Pages from the leather-bound album -- assembled before Epstein was first arrested in 2006 -- are among the documents examined by Justice Department officials who investigated Epstein and Maxwell years ago, according to people who have reviewed the pages. It's unclear if any of the pages are part of the Trump administration's recent review. The president's past relationship with Epstein is at a sensitive moment. The Justice Department documents, the so-called Epstein files, and who or what is in them are at the center of a storm consuming the Trump administration. On Wednesday, after angry comments about how the files are a hoax created by Democrats, President Trump lashed out at his own supporters for refusing to let the matter go. In an interview with the Journal on Tuesday evening, Trump denied writing the letter or drawing the picture. "This is not me. This is a fake thing. It's a fake Wall Street Journal story," he said. He told the Journal he was preparing to file a lawsuit if it published an article. "I'm gonna sue The Wall Street Journal just like I sued everyone else," he said. |
| Trump rails against 'NOTHING' Epstein case after WSJ report | |
 | President Donald Trump continued to rage over the Jeffrey Epstein case Friday after The Wall Street Journal published a bawdy birthday letter he allegedly wrote to the disgraced financier decades ago, prompting the president to threaten suit against the newspaper -- and instruct Attorney General Pam Bondi to unseal grand jury testimony in Epstein's case. The Wall Street Journal report came after a week of turmoil over the Epstein case among MAGA circles, which have fractured over the Trump administration's handling of the investigation into the convicted sex offender while the president has repeatedly sought to downplay the whole ordeal. Trump on Thursday vehemently denied writing the suggestive letter to Epstein, which reportedly included lines of typewritten text and a doodle of a naked woman with Trump's signature below her waist. The president slammed the letter's publication Thursday as a "fake" and vowed to sue the newspaper in an angry Truth Social post. Trump continued to attack the news outlet Friday. Many MAGA figures were quick to jump to the president's defense after the WSJ report -- including several voices who have been critical of his administration's handling of the case, like right-wing activist Laura Loomer and onetime Trump confidante Elon Musk. |
| Trump: 'I absolutely love' that Colbert 'got fired' | |
 | President Trump said Friday morning that he was thrilled by the news that CBS is canceling the decade-running "Late Show with Stephen Colbert." "I absolutely love that Colbert' got fired," the president wrote in a post on Truth Social. "His talent was even less than his ratings." The president also took aim at ABC late-night host Jimmy Kimmel and NBC's "Tonight Show" host Jimmy Fallon, while praising Fox News's Greg Gutfeld, whose talk show "Gutfeld!" airs an hour earlier than the major late-night shows. "I hear Jimmy Kimmel is next. Has even less talent than Colbert!" Trump wrote. "Greg Gutfeld is better than all of them combined, including the Moron on NBC who ruined the once great Tonight Show." The company's decision has raised eyebrows because it came just days after Colbert publicly took CBS parent company Paramount Global to task for settling a $16 million lawsuit with Trump. The comedian has helmed "The Late Show" since 2015, when he took over for longtime host David Letterman. CBS, in its announcement Thursday, called the Colbert cancellation "purely a financial decision." |
| Conservatives Get the PBS and NPR Cuts They've Wanted for Decades | |
 | They tried under Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush. Newt Gingrich gave it a go when he controlled the House, and Bob Dole did, too, when he held power in the Senate. But for five decades, Republicans failed time and again to choke off federal funding for public broadcasting. Some were afraid of being accused of avicide (for "killing Big Bird" of "Sesame Street"), while others appreciated their local public stations (and the airtime they personally received) -- always stopping the party short of turning their threats against PBS and NPR into law. That they have finally been able to do it now, voting on Friday to claw back $1.1 billion in public broadcasting funds, on one level speaks to the power of President Trump. His threat to support primary challenges against any Republicans who might try to block the cuts all but guaranteed they would go through this time. The explosion in media sources is what Capitol Hill Republicans and their allies point to in justifying this year's rescission package. "With cellphones and internet and all that, I think the ability of people almost any part of the country to access all kinds of information sources is, you know, greater than it's ever been," Jeff Miron, a vice president of Cato Institute, a libertarian research group, said this week -- on none other than NPR. Public media supporters say the commercial forces that made television a "vast wasteland" still exist in an era of social media algorithms that reward content that attracts the most likes and shares. |
| Senate, House NDAAs address Confederate military names | |
 | The Trump administration has undone a 2022 congressionally chartered commission's renaming of military bases and ships that had for years celebrated the Confederacy, but as of this week both the House and Senate are poised to consider at least a partial reversal of President Donald Trump's moves. The House fiscal 2026 NDAA contains an amendment by Rep. Marilyn Strickland, D-Wash., that would ensure all the formerly Confederate-linked facilities, assets and streets across the U.S. military are renamed along the lines proposed by the 2022 commission to honor other warriors or certain values. Strickland's amendment was adopted by the narrowest of margins: one vote, thanks to just two Republicans bucking their colleagues to support her provision. The Senate's NDAA, meanwhile, contains language that would achieve the same aim as Strickland's amendment -- but only for Virginia, as of now. As a result, the issue of how to remember racially charged U.S. history is again coming to the fore in the debate over the defense authorization bill. Trump, in his first term, vetoed the fiscal 2021 NDAA, largely because it created the base renaming commission. Bipartisan majorities overrode his veto. This year, Trump's Defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, has wasted no time restoring the old Confederate names, albeit in slightly revised form. |
| Mississippi University for Women launches MAT in elementary education | |
| The Mississippi University for Women (The W) will offer a Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT) in Elementary Education in fall 2025. This is an effort to help address Mississippi's teacher vacancies. "We're proud to offer a program that not only strengthens our state's teacher workforce but also empowers individuals to make meaningful contributions to Mississippi classrooms," said Nora Miller, University President. The State Board of Education voted to approve the degree program. Offered through The W's School of Education, the MAT in Elementary Education is a 33-credit hour, alternate-route initial licensure program. "This program is both rigorous and essential. It fulfills state licensure requirements and opens doors for Mississippians to join the teaching workforce," said Dr. Martin Hatton, dean of the School of Education at The W. "The teacher shortage is not only a national issue but also a pressing concern in Mississippi." |
| W science camp at Plymouth Bluff gets kids outside with nature | |
| Cups of purple water sit before tables of students in a room at Plymouth Bluff Environmental Center. Baking soda is added and mixed by camp leaders to one of the cups of homemade pH indicator at each table, made from cabbage steeped in boiled water, and it shifts from a neutral purple to a bright blue, indicating the pH of a base. Students eventually get in on the action, using straws to blow into each table's fourth cup, mirroring the addition of carbon dioxide that happens in the ocean and causing the water to shift to a more acidic lighter purple. "It was fun," Collin Carter, a 12-year-old student at Columbus Christian Academy, said Thursday. "The main (new thing) that I learned about in the pH experiment was that carbon dioxide is slightly acidic." This lesson was just one of several activities that nearly 30 children participated in this week at Mississippi University for Women's science camp. The camp returned for its third year with a new theme of environmental science, which is one of camp director and biology professor Michael Dodson's areas of focus, he said. |
| UMMC MD-PhD program grows in numbers, but also in potential and staying power | |
| Xavier Person is a budding researcher, a promising medical student and a man with a plan. He's earning a PhD at the same time he's tackling his MD, one of five new students in the UMMC School of Graduate Studies in the Health Sciences' (SGSHS) largest MD-PhD entering class since that dual degree program debuted in 2002 with just two students. "At Mississippi State University, I did research for three years, so I knew what I was getting into from the research aspect," said Person, a Brandon, Mississippi resident who earned his undergraduate degree in biomedical engineering, and whose research interests lie in neuroscience and psychology. "With the MD-PhD, I can apply that to my research, and vice versa to my clinical practice." At 9 current students and 24 graduates, the growing MD-PhD program is a unicorn of sorts at the University of Mississippi Medical Center. Students complete three years (M1-M3) in the School of Medicine (SOM), three years in the SGSHS (G1-G3), then transition back to the SOM for their final year of study that overall spans seven years. They're training to become physician-scientists, their education focused on medical knowledge and the ability to productively investigate issues related to human disease. |
| Hinds Community College offers free AWS training program | |
| Hinds Community College's Jackson campus will be offering a paid, four-week Amazon Web Services training program, geared toward those interested in finding a way onto the ground floor of AWS data center career opportunities. AWS is investing $10 billion in the construction of two data center complexes in two Madison County industrial parks. According to the AWS website, this is projected to create at least 1,000 new jobs. The I2PAAWS Information Infrastructure Pre-Apprenticeship Program will train its participants to enter careers at those new data centers as well as pay them for 30 hours of work for each of the four-week program duration. Supplies, such as protective gear and a laptop computer, are provided in the hands-on training program. In order to qualify for the training program, participants must have a high school diploma or equivalent, the ability to perform basic math functions (addition, subtraction, division, multiplication, fractions, and percentages), as well as basic written and verbal English communication skills. "Since data centers are new to our area, people may not understand the opportunities for high-wage, high-demand jobs the data centers bring with them," said Dr. Ginger Robbins, Vice President of Workforce Development and Government Affairs at Hinds. |
| U. of Tennessee cuts Chinese program under pressure from US House | |
 | The University of Tennessee at Knoxville has cut ties with the China Scholarship Council after the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party urged administrators to assess security concerns. UT Provost John Zomchick sent a letter of termination July 10, ending an agreement the institutions signed in 2024. UT said the agreement wasn't an "enforceable legal document." Three students from China are enrolled at UT through the program, and UT is "assessing the potential impact on these students," UT spokesperson Kerry Gardner told Knox News. She said she couldn't provide other details because of federal student privacy laws. Six other American universities received similar letters about the program. Established in 1996, the China Scholarship Council funds study abroad scholarships for Chinese college students. The Knoxville campus enrolled 1,425 international students in the fall 2024 semester, including 194 students from China. |
| Florida Supreme Court rules COVID-19 shutdown case involving UF can move forward | |
 | The state Supreme Court on July 17 said a potential class-action lawsuit can move forward about whether the University of Florida should be required to refund money to students for services that were not provided during a COVID-19 campus shutdown in 2020. Justices, in a 5-2 decision, overturned a decision by the 1st District Court of Appeal that rejected the lawsuit, which involves fees that students paid for services such as transportation, health care and athletics. A panel of the appeals court in 2022 said an Alachua County circuit judge should have dismissed the lawsuit because of sovereign immunity, which generally protects government agencies from liability. But sovereign immunity does not apply in breach-of-contract lawsuits, and the Supreme Court said the appeals court did not properly consider "permissible implied covenants" in agreements between the university and students. It also said the appeals-court ruling would have imposed a requirement for "extraordinary specificity in government contracts." The UF case was one of numerous similar lawsuits filed in Florida and across the country after campuses shut down and students were forced to take classes remotely in 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic. |
| U. of Missouri halts demolition plans for radium-contaminated Pickard Hall to pursue more testing | |
 | The University of Missouri has put on hold its plans to demolish radium-contaminated Pickard Hall while it conducts more tests to decide whether the 132-year-old building must be torn down. Plans for at least the past five years have been to dismantle the building and remove the radioactive materials inside. Mizzou reluctantly made the decision six years ago after being unable to find a feasible way to eliminate the radioactive contamination. As required by the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the university then submitted a decommissioning plan with details about safely managing the demolition. Last year, it withdrew the plan, and the commission agreed to allow further testing. "The university determined that additional testing is necessary to gain a more thorough understanding of the extent of the contamination," said Christopher Ave, university director of media relations and public affairs. The university is reconsidering the demolition plan in light of the building's history and the cost of removing the building and its contaminants, estimated at $12 million. The historic brick building with its classic Italianate design was built in 1892 and most recently was a classroom building that also housed the Museum of Art and Archaeology. |
| Federal 'Disruption' Aside, NC Leaders Are Bullish on Higher Ed | |
| At the first event in The Assembly's Newsmakers Series, three state leaders in higher education and research emphasized their optimism about the future, despite the bad news dominating headlines. "I don't believe the national narrative about higher education is the North Carolina narrative about higher education," UNC System President Peter Hans told the sold-out, 125-person crowd at Raleigh's Jiddi Courtyard on Wednesday. "When I visit with colleagues from other states and we compare notes, I'm able to tell them enrollment is up, retention is up, graduation is up, public funding is up, private funding is up." Hans boasted that the UNC System hasn't raised in-state tuition in almost a decade -- "No other state in the country can make that claim" -- and noted that fewer than half of its graduates take on student debt. "That's a remarkable success story," he said. Hans and the event's two other guests, North Carolina Central University Chancellor Karrie Dixon and RTI International CEO Tim Gabel, were separately interviewed on stage. All three were bullish, even as they acknowledged the difficulty of navigating federal cuts to key areas like research and Medicaid funding. Both Hans and Gabel called threats to federal support a "disruption." |
| Energy Department delays multiple rules after public pushback | |
| The U.S. Department of Energy delayed implementation of multiple rules that it had quietly set to go into effect this week for colleges and schools that receive funding from the agency. The move comes in response to public pushback to proposed policy changes. The department said it was extending the effective dates for several direct final rules from July 15 to Sept. 12, 2025. The proposals would have undone some student protections related to sex discrimination under Title IX, disability discrimination under Section 504, and racial discrimination under Title VI. One direct final rule, for example, would have no longer required schools to offer girls tryouts for boys' teams in noncontact sports if the school didn't have an equivalent girls' team. Another would have removed protections allowing gender-conscious after-school programs or college initiatives to provide women and girls opportunities they have historically been denied, such as in STEM fields or in technical training. ad the public not responded to the direct final rules with "significant adverse comments," the rules would have undone such protections within a 30-day period -- a much shorter timeline than the typical rulemaking process, which requires federal agencies to consider public feedback and make changes to their policy proposals accordingly. |
| Senate panel raises hopes that NSF will restore killed grants | |
| A Senate spending panel today offered a glimmer of hope to the more than 1600 scientists who had their grants terminated earlier this year by the National Science Foundation (NSF). As part of a larger spending bill covering NSF and several agencies that was approved today by the Senate Committee on Appropriations, Republican leaders agreed to work with Senator Tammy Baldwin (D–WI) to refashion her failed amendment to restore funding for most of those grants. The revised amendment would then be voted on by the full Senate when it took up the entire $79 billion bill. The bill itself would give NSF $9 billion, only $60 million less than its current budget and $5.1 billion more than President Donald Trump has requested for the agency in the 2026 fiscal year that starts on 1 October. Baldwin's amendment would require NSF to restore the terminated grants unless they were canceled because of financial mismanagement or research fraud. But the scope of those exceptions was too narrow for Senator Jerry Moran (R–KS), who chairs the Commerce, Justice, and Science (CJS) subcommittee that has jurisdiction over NSF and other science agencies. Given the panel's Republican majority, Baldwin's amendment was defeated on a party line vote of 14 to 15. However, Moran apologized to Baldwin for failing to find time to work with her to modify the amendment, originally offered last week when the committee's work on the CJS bill was derailed because of a disagreement over the location of a new headquarters for FBI. "I'm not yet ready to accept your amendment," Moran told Baldwin today, "but I promise to work with you to get this into a form that is satisfactory." |
| What the 'One Big Beautiful Bill' will change for students, schools and colleges | |
 | In just six months, the Trump administration and Republican-controlled Congress have brought lasting change -- and enormous unpredictability -- to federal education policy. The U.S. Department of Education, under Secretary Linda McMahon, has cut roughly half its staff. It is also withholding nearly $7 billion in grant funding to school districts -- for before- and after-school programs, teacher training, services for English language learners and more -- while that funding undergoes further review. At the same time, Republicans' "One Big Beautiful Bill," which President Trump signed into law on July 4, imposes a host of new obligations on the scaled-down department. To incentivize colleges to provide a good return on investment, the bill connects schools' access to federal student loans to how much their graduates earn. If an undergraduate program fails the earnings test -- which means their students earn less than someone with a high school diploma -- it could lose access to federal loans. One analysis shows this would have the most impact on two-year associate degree programs, though federal data shows community college students are less reliant on federal student loans. |
SPORTS
| Blake Shapen embracing leadership under center and in the QB room | |
| The fervor around Mississippi State football in Year 1 under Jeff Lebby was mostly a whisper by the fourth quarter of Week 4 in Davis Wade Stadium. A prolific beatdown of FCS program Eastern Kentucky was followed by losses to Arizona State, Toledo and Florida. But something worse than falling to 1-3 had also happened. Starting quarterback Blake Shapen's first year with the Bulldogs was cut short after four games when he suffered a season-ending shoulder injury against the Gators. The Baylor transfer was forced to trade his helmet for a headset, but the experience changed his perspective. "It gave me a different element," Shapen said. "I've never sat on the sidelines and had to watch my own team play games." At Baylor, Shapen was always competing for the QB1 job, but in Starkville, he suddenly had to grapple with an inability to play. One thing that helped was mentoring the true freshman who had to take over the reins. Shapen didn't enjoy watching from the sidelines, but he knew he only had one way to help his team, and that was to do what he could to be there for his teammate. |
| New Bulldog transfers say 'winning' brought them to Starkville | |
| New men's basketball sophomore transfer Amier Ali has noticed that hoops is a little different at Mississippi State. The Montverde, Florida, native, who spent his freshman year at Arizona State as the Sun Devils stumbled to a 13-20 season, said practices in Starkville have been full of energy and intensity created by the entire team. "Everybody's working. Everybody is in the gym; everybody is getting you hype and all that stuff," said Ali, a former four-star recruit. "The (graduate assistants are) working. The coaches are working, talking you through your mistakes. It's very intense in our practices." The 6-foot-8 forward is one of State's five new transfer portal additions who spoke at a press conference on Thursday at the Humphrey Coliseum. Having the opportunity to play with a squad that posted a 21-13 record and reached the NCAA Tournament last year was an opportunity that the 6-foot-8 forward just couldn't pass up. "My main focus is winning," he said. "Obviously you have individual goals, but mainly winning with my guys comes first. Individually, I just want to be able to play harder. The main thing is to get on the floor and all that stuff. But winning comes first for me." |
| How Josh Hubbard can get even better thanks to 6 transfers Mississippi State basketball added | |
| Only two players who averaged more than 10 minutes last season are returning to Mississippi State basketball in 2025-26. That means star guard Josh Hubbard will have an almost completely new supporting cast for the second straight season. The junior withdrew from the NBA draft after consecutive seasons on the All-SEC second team. The Bulldogs and fourth-year coach Chris Jans added six transfers after reaching a third consecutive NCAA tournament. Here's how those transfers can help Hubbard after he scored a career high 18.9 points per game last season. Mississippi State will be a different team in the paint after KeShawn Murphy and Michael Nwoko transferred. They didn't protect the rim the same as Wichita State transfer Quincy Ballard does. Ballard swatted 1.9 blocks per game last season while hauling in 9.2 rebounds. His 62 dunks and 75.1 field-goal percentage were single-season records for Wichita State. The 6-foot-11, 251-pound center also scored a career-high 10.0 points per game. "I like to bring the force on both sides," Ballard said. "Obviously with defense, people already know how I am on defense. I've been working on my offense and everything pretty much all summer. I feel like it's going to be a big factor by the time the season starts." |
| SEC coaches and players defend their dominance amid Big Ten's recent success | |
 | There was not a Big Ten player, coach or fan in sight this week as the College Football Hall of Fame hosted SEC Media Days. Still, the SEC's No. 1 rival found its way into conversations all week long. It's no secret the rivalry has intensified in recent years. Over the last decade, the SEC has won six of the 10 national championships. Two were won by Clemson in that stretch but the last two were won by Big Ten rivals, Michigan last year and Ohio State in January. The recent success has put a dent in the SEC's reputation as the nation's dominant conference. SEC coaches, players and Commissioner Greg Sankey have no question they're still No. 1. "For all those of you who like to speculate about super-conferences, welcome to one," Sankey said to open this week's event. "We have common-sense geography, restored rivalries, record-breaking viewership. If you take the consumed viewership hours on linear TV, almost 40% of that viewership was focused on games involving Southeastern Conference universities and teams. Big Ten was next, right around 30%." The Big Ten and SEC draw outsized attention in college football for other reasons. The two will soon have a bigger say over the format of the College Football Playoff -- they currently differ on that -- and their teams are in the mix for the top recruits every year. |
| New Orleans angling to host SEC Media Days in near future | |
 | As coaches, players and reporters headed home Thursday from the final session of SEC media days, officials in New Orleans were hopeful they will all be headed to the Crescent City in the near future. Sugar Bowl CEO Jeff Hundley said New Orleans made an offer to the SEC to host media days, the annual four-day kickoff to the college football season. "We've long been interested in hosting this event," Hundley said. "We've got a lot on our plate (in New Orleans), but hopefully we will get it in the not-too-distant future." A site for SEC media days in July 2026 has yet to be determined, but Hundley said New Orleans would not be able to host media days until at least 2027 because of prior commitments. Sites being considered for hosting media days in New Orleans include the Caesars Superdome and the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, which was the site of the media center for this year's Super Bowl. New Orleans will also host a College Football Playoff quarterfinal on Jan. 1 in the Allstate Sugar Bowl, but SEC media days would be something quite different. "It's a unique experience," Hundley said, "unlike anything we've had to this point." |
| Greg Sankey pushes back against House v. NCAA settlement complaints, detractors | |
| Just over two weeks after the House v. NCAA settlement took effect, questions are swirling. Many center around the NIL Go clearinghouse which launched as part of the agreement, vetting NIL deals worth more than $600. NIL collectives are also preparing for a legal fight as House attorneys slammed the NCAA and the College Sports Commission's guidance around deals, as On3's Pete Nakos detailed. Attorneys sent a letter to NCAA and power conference officials, according to Yahoo! Sports, asking them to "retract" the guidance. SEC commissioner Greg Sankey heard the frustration and pushed back during an interview on The Paul Finebaum Show on Thursday. He pointed out the importance of the moment while also acknowledging bumps in the road that will come up so soon into the new era. "A moment of important change," Sankey said of where things stand. "And it is both wearying and exhilarating. ... I just left a video conference with our presidents and chancellors. We invited Bryan Seeley. Bryan's the new executive director of what's called the College Sports Commission, overseeing settlement implementation. He's already hired two staff. You can't do any of that until you actually have a settlement. You're not going to leave a job with Major League Baseball like Bryan had and wonder if there'll be actual settlement. So we're in the implementation process. Last week, the CSC sent a letter with really guidance that I think is based on settlement terms. Plaintiffs' attorneys said, 'Not so fast.' They quickly released that letter. We'll go back and forth to figure out if there's a destination upon which we can agree. That will happen repeatedly." |
| President Trump mulls executive order to 'preserve college sports': What a draft calls for | |
| As the future of college sports faces continued legal and legislative friction, President Donald Trump could soon get involved in the form of an executive order that seeks to "preserve college athletics" through antitrust protections and clarity on student-athlete status. A draft of an executive order titled "Saving College Sports" was obtained by The Athletic on Thursday, but it is not believed to be a finalized version. It is unclear if or when such an executive order will be formalized, but Trump has considered taking executive action on college sports for months. CBS News reported this week that the president was set to sign an order related to name, image and likeness (NIL) compensation for college athletes. Yahoo! Sports first reported on the contents of an executive order draft on Thursday. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The seven-page draft directs the Secretary of Labor and the National Labor Relations Board to address the debate over the employment status of college athletes. "Ongoing litigation seeks to transform student-athletes into employees, which would make college sports financially untenable for many, if not most, schools," the draft states. |
| President Trump working on executive order intending to 'preserve' college sports from 'threat' | |
| A draft of the long-discussed presidential executive order intends to "preserve" college athletics from "unprecedented threat" and destruction, it says, by implementing new policies related to athlete compensation, antitrust protection, athlete employment, state law uniformity and Olympic sport participation. The draft, though not believed to be the final version, is expected to align closely with the order that President Donald Trump has long been exploring and offers a window into his thinking. It is unclear when, or even if, Trump will announce an executive order, which for four months has been discussed in the public sphere. The draft was provided to Yahoo Sports by three different congressional sources, all confirming that the document is believed to have originated from the White House. Attempts to reach White House staff were unsuccessful. The draft, seven pages long and titled "SAVING COLLEGE SPORTS," outlines directives from Trump to members of his Cabinet to create policy related to various aspects of college athletics. The draft also requests the assistant to the president for domestic policy work with the U.S. Olympic team to provide "safeguards" for NCAA Olympic sports; and directs the secretary of education and National Labor Relations Board to implement policy "clarifying that status" of athletes, presumably as students and not employees. |
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