| Friday, January 24, 2025 |
| Mississippi Senate committee hears bleak forecast from state's farming industry | |
 | Agriculture is Mississippi's largest industry and those farmers are raising a red flag to say they're struggling to make a profit. Tripp Hayes is a corn, cotton, and soybean farmer and currently serving as President of the Delta Council. "The forecast for 2025 continues to be as bleak as 2024," told the Senate Agriculture Committee. It's not the amount of what's being produced. One expert from Mississippi State University explains it's instead what farmers are, or aren't, getting in return. "We're in a situation also where the crops that we grow in Mississippi have all dropped at the same time," described Dr. Keith Coble, Vice President of the Division of Agriculture, Forestry, and Veterinary Medicine at Mississippi State University. "So, there is not that one crop that's kind of the saving grace out there. Corn, soybeans, rice, and cotton have all declined and are really a challenge right now for our producers." |
| Agricultural workers say Mississippi's future looks bleak if changes are not made | |
| Workers in agriculture are saying Mississippi's future looks bleak based on financial challenges surrounding farming. Thursday morning, they went before the Mississippi Senate Agriculture Committee to air out their grievances. Some of their main struggles were inflation and a lack of intergenerational farmers and economic planning. "How are we going to market our products? Where is our cotton going? How are our blends going to do? There are a number of different steps as we look at over the next five generations. Where is Mississippi farming going to be? Trees are going to be helpful to us, and our poultry industry is doing well, but our agriculture is not," Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann said. They say the price to produce crops costs more than the profit they expect to make back and that there are not enough resources for young farmers to succeed. "We want to see a young person from Mississippi State to be able to get into this industry and succeed," said Keith Coble, MSU Vice President for Agriculture, Forestry and Veterinary Medicine. Coble said the average farmer is 60 years old. |
| MSU-Meridian seats fifth Master of Physician Assistant Studies cohort in Mississippi's only public program | |
 | Mississippi State University-Meridian's Master of Physician Assistant Studies program seated its fifth cohort this month with students selected from the most competitive applicant pool to date. The 32 students join 58 contemporaries currently enrolled in Mississippi's sole public PA program, based at the MSU-Meridian Riley Campus in downtown Meridian. Program Director and Associate Clinical Professor Shey Washburn said the cohort -- with students who hail from California to Florida -- boasts an average GPA of 3.7, the highest average since the program began in 2021. Students were selected from an applicant pool of 320. Washburn said in the selection process educators interviewed 110 applicants to ultimately fill the 32 seats. Of those, 13 were chosen from Mississippi. Washburn said public awareness of the program has encouraged more Mississippi students to apply. Associate Vice Provost of Health Sciences and Interim Head of Campus David Buys said such provider roles are vital in filling healthcare gaps in Mississippi's rural areas. Currently 80 of the state's 82 counties are designated as such by the Health Resources and Services Administration, the federal agency tasked with improving access to healthcare services for people who are uninsured, isolated or medically vulnerable. |
| IHL elects new Board VP, approves new degree paths | |
| Members of the Board of Trustees for the Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning unanimously elected a new Vice President / President-elect along with creating two new academic degrees during last week's meeting. The Board also approved the creation of a new center at Mississippi State and approved contracts for services to be provided to the University of Mississippi Medical Center. The IHL Board nominated and unanimously approved Gee Ogletree to fill the Board's vacant Vice President / President-elect seat. In addition, the IHL Board approved the appointment of Board member Teresa Hubbard as chair of the Academic Affairs Committee. In regular business, the IHL Board approved establishing a new academic unit, two new degree paths, and a new center. The new academic unit will be offered at Mississippi State University. Called the College of Integrative Studies, it will be housed under the College of Academic Affairs and will act as an incubator for new disciplinary degree paths, said Dr. Casey Prestwood, Associate Commissioner for Academic and Student Affairs for the IHL. One of the two new degree programs approved by the IHL Board will be the Master of Applied Science in Organizational Leadership to be housed under Mississippi State University's College of Professional and Continuing Studies. "This 30-hour degree program is designed to fill a gap in advanced applied education for working adults," Prestwood told the Board. |
| 40th annual Frostbite races to freeze downtown traffic | |
 | Starkville's 40th annual Frostbite races will take place Saturday, closing parts of Main Street for the start and finish lines. Road closures will start at 5:30 a.m. and run through 1:30 p.m. according to a press release from Starkville Main Street. They will affect East Main Street from South Washington Street to South Jackson Street, and North Lafayette Street from East Main Street to East Lampkin Street. Those roads will be closed to serve as the beginning and end points of all three Frostbite races, including a half marathon, 10k and 5k. The half marathon will begin at 9 a.m., with the other two races starting in five minute intervals after that. The actual route of the race is a loop around downtown, with the longer races adding distance by directing the runners down Hail State Boulevard. Starkville Main Street will be holding its Shop Local Warehouse Sale at the old Western Auto Building Friday and Saturday to coincide with the event. |
| 63 trees being planted along Lynn Lane | |
| City streets are getting a bit greener thanks to a Tennessee Valley Authority grant to line sections of Lynn Lane and Spring Street with trees. The city announced the $50,000 grant from energy wholesaler Tennessee Valley Authority in a Thursday press release, saying that work had already begun planting the 63 trees along Lynn Lane between Louisville and South Montgomery. More trees will go in at the intersection of Spring Street and Locksley Way, and City Engineer Cody Burnett said his department is eyeing further locations with surplus funds. "We anticipate that the work won't use all of our funding, so we will see another project come out of this same source," he said. "We'll either extend what we've done east or west, or we (will put them) at Cornerstone Park. We've got about a quarter of the budget left, and we've reserved that option for whatever's best for the city." The city applied for the TVA grant in 2023, eventually getting 100% funding with no requirement the city match any of the contribution. Burnett said that was unusual, with most infrastructure grants from the state requiring at least a 20% match. Lynn Lane and Spring Street were chosen due to their multimodal path, Burnett said. City planners had noted its use by cross country running teams, bikers and pedestrians, making it a perfect place for more trees to not just provide shade and beautify the area, but in slowing car traffic by giving drivers roadside markers to help judge speed, he said. |
| March of the Mayors food drive returns to stock local food pantries | |
| North Mississippi mayors are once again facing off in a "friendly competition" to see which city can collect more canned food for the fifth annual March of the Mayors food drive. Throughout the next month, citizens of Columbus, Starkville, West Point, Caledonia, Baldwyn, Tupelo and Oxford are asked to donate specific food items that will be used to stock local pantries. Last year, the region collected enough food to distribute a thousand boxes of food after the drive, which is organized by Hattiesburg-based nonprofit Extra Table. Starkville will collect canned green beans with drop off locations set for City Hall, Fire Station 1, the Starkville Police Department, the Greater Starkville Development Partnership and the Starkville-Oktibbeha County Public Library. Starkville Mayor Lynn Spruill said she will be encouraging participation in the drive as it continues through February. "We are going to put the information out on both city social media as well as highlight it on our website," she wrote in a text to The Dispatch. Her hope is that the friendly competition brings more attention to the broader issue of food insecurity. |
| WTVA parent company reverses decision; Severe Weather Authority to remain | |
 | You may have seen information recently regarding WTVA's parent company Allen Media handing down a directive that all weather coverage for its stations no longer be produced locally. And that would mean our local weather team would go away. The company's plan was to have meteorologists from The Weather Channel supply local weather coverage from Atlanta. While the details of this decision were slow to be released, the news spread across north Mississippi instantly, as people from across our area were devastated by this announcement...as we were. Wednesday afternoon, we received word from our parent company that they heard you loud and clear. The communication we received was that their decision has mostly been reversed. So what does that mean for us? The WTVA Severe Weather Authority -- the meteorologists you've come to know and trust -- will remain here. |
| House passes pharmacy benefit manager transparency bill | |
| A bill that aims to increase pharmacy benefit managers' transparency by requiring them to report data to the agency that oversees pharmacy practice in Mississippi passed in the House of Representatives Thursday. But the Board of Pharmacy and some pharmacists say the legislation doesn't do enough to help pharmacies and patients. House Speaker Jason White, who authored the bill, called it "a good first step." It will give the Board of Pharmacy -- and the public -- insight into the companies' business practices to ensure they are compliant with the law, he told Mississippi Today. It will next go to the Senate for consideration. But some advocates say the bill does not do enough to protect independent pharmacists, or retail pharmacies not owned by a publicly traded company or affiliated with a large chain, and the customers they serve. Many Mississippi independent pharmacists fear they may be forced to close as a result of low payments from pharmacy benefit managers, which small businesses do not have the leverage to negotiate. |
| Council member not convinced a casino would benefit Jackson | |
| A casino would not be the economic salvation for the city of Jackson that some people believe it might be. That's the opinion of Ashby Foote, who represents Ward 1 on the Jackson City Council. "I'm not a big casino fan," Foote said. "We need lots of help and there is lots of work to be done to restore Jackson to where it needs to be, but I'm not sure a casino is the way to do that. It focuses on human weaknesses instead of human strengths." A group called Capital City Forward Together, which includes former Governor Haley Barbour, proposed the idea of a casino in Jackson during a meeting of the House Select Committee on Capital and Metro Revitalization last December. Rep. Shanda Yates, an Independent who represents District 64 (Hinds and Madison counties), and Clay Mansell, a Republican who represents District 56 (Hinds and Madison counties), serve as co-chairs of the committee. David Blount, a Democrat who represents District 29 (Hinds County), said on Jan. 15 that no Senate bill on the subject had been introduced for consideration. |
| USDA secretary nominee says politics shouldn't influence California wildfire response | |
 | Efforts by the U.S. Forest Service to fight wildfires in California shouldn't be influenced by politics, President Donald Trump's nominee to head the U.S. Department of Agriculture said Thursday at her Senate confirmation hearing. Responding to questions from a Senate panel, nominee Brooke Rollins also acknowledged that Trump's plans for mass deportations and tariffs could create hardships for the agriculture industry, but she said his election demonstrated that the public supports such actions. Trump nominated Rollins, who also served in his first administration, to lead a sprawling agency that oversees farming, forestry, ranching, food quality and nutrition. If confirmed as agriculture secretary, Rollins would take charge of the agency at a time when many farmers have seen their profits plunge and when the Forest Service is joining efforts to fight a wave of wildfires in Southern California. Given that Trump has threatened to withhold federal disaster aid from Los Angeles unless California officials change how the state manages its water resources, California Sen. Adam Schiff asked Rollins if she would commit to equal treatment from the Forest Service. Are you committed to employing the same emergency resources to fight wildfires in blue states as would be deployed to fight wildfires in red states?" Schiff asked. Rollins responded that she would not support discrimination against any state. "Obviously, but it bears saying since you asked, 100% yes," Rollins said. "To watch the devastation in your beautiful state has been heartbreaking for all of us, no matter if we're from red states or blue states." |
| USDA pick Rollins to 'follow and listen' to farmers on deportations | |
 | Brooke L. Rollins appears on course for confirmation as Agriculture secretary despite being pressed Thursday by Democrats about farm labor shortages that could result from President Donald Trump's immigration policies. Rollins told the Senate Agriculture Committee that her first 100 days "will be a fast and furious effort" to deploy the $10 billion in economic aid to farmers appropriated in the continuing resolution that funded the government until March 14. She also indicated she would use her Section 5 authority over the Commodity Credit Corporation to compensate farmers for lost exports in the event that trading partners raise tariffs. The House had included a suspension of that authority in its farm bill last year, but the measure wasn't enacted. Sen. Richard J. Durbin, D-Ill., asked Rollins what Trump's pledge of mass deportations would have on the agriculture sector, which relies heavily on immigrant labor. "So can we expect this administration to be raiding farms, going after the immigrant farm workers?" he asked. "Listen, the president's vision of a secure border and a mass deportation at a scale that matters is something I support," Rollins said. "I want to be extremely transparent, and I think that you deserve that," she said. "My commitment is to help President Trump deploy his agenda in an effective way, while at the same time defending, as a confirmed secretary of Agriculture, our farmers and ranchers across this country." |
| Trade takes center stage at Rollins confirmation hearing | |
 | Senators had a bipartisan ask of Agriculture secretary nominee Brooke Rollins at her confirmation hearing Thursday morning: get us "back in the trade business," in the words of Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.). Added Democratic Sen. Michael Bennet (Colo.), "We're counting on you to be that advocate," for the agriculture industry, which relies heavily on foreign export markets, but has been hampered by a strong U.S. dollar, competition from Brazil and other economic challenges. Republicans also blame former President Biden's refusal to negotiate new trade deals to open up more export markets for farm products. But farmers also faced stiff headwinds on trade during the first Trump administration, when his trade policies triggered in-kind foreign tariffs on U.S. agriculture. The Agriculture Department spent tens of billions to bail out U.S. farmers then, and they would be under pressure to do something similar if Trump triggers another trade war, as he has threatened to do. Rollins sought to reassure lawmakers. "I sincerely believe that if I do my job," USDA will be able to help "bring in new trade partners, to expand access for new trade products and for all, whether it's specialty crops or the row crops or the livestock industry." |
| Brooke Rollins says she'll shield farmers from impacts of Trump's tariffs in ag secretary nomination hearing | |
| Brooke Rollins, President Donald Trump's pick for Agriculture Secretary, stood behind the president's proposals for mass deportations and tariffs even as she acknowledged they could make life harder for farmers. But she told senators at her nomination hearing Thursday that she will find ways to cushion the blows. Trump believes tariffs are "a very important tool in his toolkit to continue to bring America back to the forefront of the world, and to ensure that we have a thriving economy," Rollins said. "But just as he did and we did in the first administration, he also understands the potential devastating impact to our farmers and our ranchers. So I fully understand and we are prepared to do something similar -- to ensure that we can close those holes moving forward under any sort of tariff execution." Trump has threatened to levy 25% tariffs on China, Mexico and Canada. Mexico is Texas' biggest trading partner and one of the state's biggest agricultural export markets, along with Canada. Democrats on the committee noted that several farmers said during the last Trump administration that they would prefer "trade, not aid" and to open up overseas markets. Rollins said she would work with the U.S. Trade Representative and others in the administration to make sure farmers are protected amid tariffs. |
| Trump's Agriculture Pick Addresses Tariff and Immigration Impact on Farmers | |
 | Brooke Rollins, President Trump's nominee to lead the Agriculture Department, vowed on Thursday to provide relief to food producers and to be an advocate for farmers and ranchers, regardless of the administration's agenda on trade and immigration. In a largely amicable hearing before the Senate Agriculture Committee, Ms. Rollins, a former White House official, pledged to support food producers who could be caught up in a trade war should Mr. Trump impose tariffs. The president "understands the potential devastating impact to our farmers and our ranchers," Ms. Rollins said, adding that the needs of rural communities would be a priority. The department will work "to ensure that we can close those holes for our farmers and ranchers moving forward under any sort of tariff execution in the next coming days, in the next few years," she said. Over more than three hours, Ms. Rollins also fielded questions about food assistance and disaster relief programs and the bird flu outbreak that has led to the deaths of more than 141 million birds and infected more than 900 dairy herds across the country. Asked about proposals to expand existing work requirements to SNAP, Ms. Rollins said she was not familiar with the details but that she did "believe in work requirements, and I do think they're important." |
| Two Republican Senators Oppose Hegseth for Defense Secretary | |
 | Two centrist Republican senators said they opposed the nomination of President Trump's defense-secretary pick, Pete Hegseth, injecting new drama into what was expected to be a nail-biter of a vote Friday. In a statement Thursday, Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska said Hegseth's "nomination to the role poses significant concerns that I cannot overlook," pointing to worries about his character and his lack of experience running large organizations, as well as his past opposition to women serving in combat roles in the military. "I cannot in good conscience support his nomination," she said. Sen. Susan Collins (R., Maine) followed with her own statement. "While I appreciate his courageous military service and his ongoing commitment to our servicemembers and their families, I am concerned that he does not have the experience and perspective necessary to succeed in the job," Collins said. Republicans control the Senate, 53-47. If Democrats unite against Hegseth, he can't afford more than three "no" votes from Republicans. In a procedural vote Thursday, the Senate voted 51 to 49 to advance the pick, with Collins and Murkowski joining Democrats in opposition. Some Republicans who voted to advance the confirmation Thursday haven't committed to supporting Hegseth on final passage Friday. |
| Trump order ending federal DEI programs leaves agencies and stakeholders on uncertain ground | |
| From federal agencies to stakeholders who get federal dollars for special training, many are trying to process how President Donald Trump's sweeping executive order putting a stop to diversity, equity and inclusion programs across the U.S. government will upend their work. DEI laws and programs have been under attack for years by Republicans who contend that the measures threaten merit-based hiring, promotion and educational opportunities of white people, specifically white men. Criticism comes from other sectors, as well: Some Asian Americans argue it unfairly limits opportunities for high-achieving students and workers, and some in the Black community believe it undermines years of progress. However, DEI supporters say the programs are necessary to ensure that institutions meet the needs of increasingly diverse populations and the impact of the loss of these measures goes beyond people of color. On Wednesday, Trump put the federal government's weight behind the push to end such programs by signing an executive order that would effectively dismantle them from all aspects of the federal government. Agency, department and commission heads have 60 days to terminate to the maximum extent allowed by law all DEI, DEIA and "environmental justice" offices and positions, action plans, equity-related grants or contracts as well as end all DEI or DEIA performance requirements. |
| Bipartisan funding negotiations begin in Congress ahead of March shutdown cliff | |
| Republican funding leaders have made an opening offer to Democrats as the two parties launch negotiations toward a deal to fund the government before the mid-March shutdown deadline. Congress' top appropriators gathered privately Thursday evening in the Capitol for an hour-long "four corners" meeting -- the first concrete step toward a bipartisan funding agreement as Republican leaders begin to embrace the idea of a cross-party accord that funds the government and raises the debt limit, while also potentially boosting disaster aid and border security funding. The beginning of negotiations follows months of inaction on a bipartisan government funding plan, after lawmakers first punted beyond the October start of the fiscal year and then again resorted to a stopgap measure in December, pushing the spending cliff into the first months of the new Trump administration. Leaving the meeting, the House's top Democratic appropriator, Rep. Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut, said the four lawmakers hope to strike a "topline" agreement by month's end --- just over a week away --- to set overall totals for the military and non-defense programs, as well as rules for policy add-ons. That expedited timeline comes as government funding runs out on March 14 and it usually takes at least a month for lawmakers to close out negotiations on the dozen appropriations bills once an overarching agreement is struck. "Everybody wants to get the job done," DeLauro said in an interview leaving the meeting, describing the bipartisan talks as "honestly, very positive." |
| Beshear at Davos: Selling Kentucky, analyzing Trump with Sarah Huckabee Sanders | |
 | Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear spoke at the World Economic Forum on Thursday alongside Republican Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders on a panel of American governors. Beshear opined on the political success of newly-inaugurated President Donald Trump, touched on several hot topics in American politics and touted the state of Kentucky to an international group of leaders at the conference in Davos, Switzerland. The timing for the appearance is notable, as Beshear's name has been floated as one of many being considered by party leaders as a potential 2028 presidential candidate. He's also taken several steps that observers say indicate an interest in vying for that role. Unsurprisingly, the Republican and Democrat governors had different takes on Trump. Beshear expressed a leeriness about Trump's "America First" attitude on the international stage, particularly when it comes to keeping up the country's alliances. Sanders was all on board with "America First," and insisted that "America winning" doesn't necessarily mean other countries are losing. One specific item that came up on this front: tariffs. Trump said this week he plans to put 25% tariffs on goods imported from Mexico and Canada by Feb. 1. Sanders framed the tariffs as a key part of Trump's "deal-making" leadership style. "At the end of the day, he is the ultimate deal-maker, and I think that it is something that he will use as he's going about trying to make sure America comes out on top," she said. |
| Experts warn about the 'crumbling infrastructure' of federal government data | |
 | The stability of the federal government's system for producing statistics, which the U.S. relies on to understand its population and economy, is under threat because of budget concerns, officials and data users warn. And that's before any follow-through on the new Trump administration and Republican lawmakers' pledges to slash government spending, which could further affect data production. In recent months, budget shortfalls and the restrictions of short-term funding have led to the end of some datasets by the Bureau of Economic Analysis, known for its tracking of the gross domestic product, and to proposals by the Bureau of Labor Statistics to reduce the number of participants surveyed to produce the monthly jobs report. A "lack of multiyear funding" has also hurt efforts to modernize the software and other technology the BLS needs to put out its data properly, concluded a report by an expert panel tasked with examining multiple botched data releases last year. Like roads and bridges, the federal statistical system is indispensable but usually overlooked, its supporters say. |
| Southern Miss, Mississippi Valley presidents receive contract renewals with pay raises | |
| Presidents at two of Mississippi's public universities received contract extensions and pay raises from the Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning that went into effect at the start of the year. According to minutes from the IHL meeting held in November, the contracts for University of Southern Mississippi President Joe Paul and Mississippi Valley State University President Jerryl Briggs were renewed with increased pay. The contract renewals were approved after executive session and discussion was held about each president's performance. The contract renewals reflect a $50,000 increase in state salary for Dr. Paul at Southern Miss and a $10,000 increase in state salary for Dr. Briggs at Mississippi Valley State. Dr. Paul's contract includes a state salary of $500,000 annually combined with a supplement totaling $200,000 annually which comes from the Southern Mississippi Foundation, Inc. The contract renewal for Dr. Briggs at Mississippi Valley State includes an annual state salary of $310,000 and a supplement from the MVSU J.H. White Foundation, Inc., totaling $5,000 annually. "University presidents across the state and throughout the country are facing substantive challenges in an increasingly competitive environment, and it is important that good work in that environment is recognized and rewarded," Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning Director of Communications John Sewell said. |
| USM president's tenure extended thru 2028 | |
 | The board of trustees that oversees Mississippi's institutions of higher learning has liked what its seen from the University of Southern Mississippi's leader. The College Board approved a new, four-year contract for USM President Dr. Joe Paul, one that will extend his tenure through Dec. 31, 2028. "I am deeply honored and immensely grateful to have the opportunity to serve my alma mater and our beloved Southern Miss as president," said Paul. "This extension allows us to build upon the progress we have made together, and I look forward to continuing the good work of this institution with energy and urgency to positively impact our region, state and beyond." Paul, who has spent more than 40 years in various capacities at his alma mater, was named USM's 11th president in October 2022, a hiring that removed an interim tag worn for nearly three months after the departure of his predecessor, Rodney Bennett. "The IHL Board of Trustees is pleased to approve a new contract for Dr. Paul based upon his exemplary work as USM president during the past two years," Institutions of Higher Learning board vice-president Powell "Gee" Ogletree said. "Dr. Paul is leading the university well as it pursues its mission of engaging students in the creation and exploration of knowledge and preparing students for success in their careers and as responsible citizens." |
| IHL extends contract for USM President Dr. Joe Paul | |
 | The Mississippi Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning (IHL) approved a new four-year contract for University of Southern Mississippi President (USM) Dr. Joe Paul. The IHL extended Paul's service through December 31, 2028. Paul was named 11th president of the university in October 2022 after serving as interim for nearly three months and following a more-than-40-year career at the institution. During his first two years as president, Paul's priorities have been to enhance student recruitment and grow enrollment; further support teaching and research; revitalize the student life experience; reach and exceed the university's capital campaign goal; engage the Southern Miss alumni base; and provide support to Southern Miss Athletics through its transition to the Sun Belt Conference. Paul retired from the university in 2015 after more than four decades as an administrator in student affairs. Prior to being named vice president of student affairs in 1993, he held a variety of positions including assistant vice president, dean of student development and assistant director of student activities. He also held faculty rank in the College of Education and Psychology. |
| A 'Pay Penalty' Is Keeping Men Out of Classrooms | |
| At John Wister Elementary School in Philadelphia, just three of roughly 40 teachers are men. Principal Erica Smith says she'd love to hire more male teachers and has asked her team for candidates. But she struggles to find qualified applicants. "We don't get a lot of men who have teaching credentials," she said. A generation of boys is growing up with few male role models in the classroom. Boys today are more likely than girls to have discipline problems in school and fall behind in reading. They are less likely to complete high school or enroll in college. Some research suggests that they would benefit from more male teachers, who can be less likely to see them as disruptive and may create a better learning environment for them. In the 1970s and '80s, nearly one in three public school teachers were men, according to estimates from the U.S. Department of Education. Now, not even one in four teachers are male, according to the latest federal data. One reason for men's limited interest in teaching is pay, teachers say. The "teacher pay penalty," as some researchers call it, is more severe for men than women. The typical college-educated man made $95,000 in 2023, compared with $65,000 for male teachers---a $30,000 pay gap, according to a Wall Street Journal analysis of census data stored at the University of Minnesota. The comparable gap for women was $12,000. |
| LSU to reopen its Baton Rouge campus on Friday after snow days | |
 | LSU announced it is reopening its Baton Rouge campus on Friday after taking three snow days this week. The announcement allows Louisiana's flagship university to return to normal operations after days of virtual classes. Soon after, Southern University in Baton Rouge announced it is staying closed Friday, with remote classes continuing. It plans to reopen Monday. More Louisiana colleges and universities are expected to announce their Friday plans soon. The snow and freezing weather forced colleges and universities across the state to work remotely this week, but prospects for reopening have grown as the temperatures begin to rise. |
| U. of Florida engineers develop new protocol to purify DNA | |
 | When you think about scientific research, you probably envision a sterile room that houses gleaming beakers, rows of pipettes and centrifuges. But what if you could house a lab on a chip? Call it the science of small, but a trio of University of Florida chemical engineers have developed a lab-on-a-chip process that could make a big difference for DNA research and, ultimately, patients. Microfluidic technology miniaturizes complex laboratory processes -- such as mixing, reactions, separations, etc. -- into devices the size of a microscope slide. The UF team has developed a microfluidic device for DNA purification that could speed up analysis of laboratory samples and match or exceed the purity of existing methods. In their paper "Microfluidic Purification of Genomic DNA," UF professors Jason Butler and Tony Ladd, along with their fourth-year Ph.D. candidate and research assistant, Jiayi Wang, detailed their new device, which extracts genomic DNA without centrifuges, magnetic beads or gels. The paper was published recently in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The groundwork for this new device began in 2006. |
| A&M President Welsh: University to pause undergraduate growth for 5-7 years | |
 | Texas A&M University will pause undergraduate growth on its main campus for the next five to seven years, A&M President Mark A. Welsh III announced in a message to the campus community Thursday. Welsh said A&M will keep its total number of new undergraduates to 15,000 per year so the university can expand its infrastructure and capacity for the future. Welsh said university leaders will develop a 10-year enrollment forecast plan and are expected to discuss plans for future enrollment with the A&M System's Board of Regents in the near future. The announcement comes five months after a committee that studied A&M's capacity recommended the university pause its undergraduate growth on the main campus over the next five years since enrollment grew 33% over the past decade. This figure is more than double the average of all other public universities in Texas, Welsh said. "This massive growth is due in large part to the outstanding student education and experience that our amazing faculty and staff provide to our exceptional students. Collectively, we absorbed much of the impact of this growth over the last 10 years, but as I've said before, we cannot continue to do that," Welsh wrote in his message. "We must right-size our university in the near-term to ensure we maintain an incredible education and experience for our students over the long-term." |
| Confusion Follows Trump Order on Sex and Gender | |
 | While running for president, Donald Trump pledged to fight the Biden administration's efforts to expand protections for transgender students. On day one of his second term in office, he got to work fulfilling that promise. In an executive order, which is part of a broader effort to restrict the rights of transgender people, Trump declared that there are only two sexes and banned the federal funding of "gender ideology." His supporters hailed the move as a return to common sense, while LGBTQ+ advocates saw it as an attack seeking to erase the existence of trans people. For colleges and universities, the order raises more questions than it answers, and its immediate implications are unclear. As with other executive orders, it includes many provisions that require the Education Department to take action and issue guidance about how colleges should comply. But depending on how the department responds, the order could complicate institutions' efforts to accommodate transgender students and eventually change how the federal government enforces Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972. |
| Here's How Science Funding Could Change Under Trump | |
 | President Trump once again oversees billions of dollars of funding for research into pandemics, HIV, cancer, and other fundamental areas of health and science. And once again, his administration seems determined to shake up how that money is doled out. Federal science agencies, from the Department of Energy to the National Science Foundation, fund research across the country. So far, the agency that the Trump administration has most clearly signaled as a target for changes is the National Institutes of Health, which funnels some $40 billion to 300,000 scientists at 2,500 universities and other research institutions. Trump has nominated the former presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, the NIH's parent agency, and Jay Bhattacharya, a professor of medicine and health policy at Stanford University, to run the NIH. Public remarks and news reports about their possible plans, as well as other ideas being pushed by influential conservatives, indicate that their leadership would mark a departure from mainstream medical thinking and from the way the agencies have traditionally operated. |
| Trump administration halts NIH grant-making process | |
 | Scientific researchers are concerned after the National Institutes of Health (NIH) abruptly canceled numerous meetings essential to the fellowship and grant approval process earlier this week. "At the present time, all Federal advisory committee meetings are canceled," reads an internal email from the NIH shared with The Hill. "We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause and appreciate your understanding. ... We will get back in touch with you when we have further information. Thank you for your service to NIH." Some of the canceled meetings include study sections, which review the applications for NIH fellowships and grants, and advisory council meetings, which determines if an application should receive a recommendation for funding from an NIH institute or center. The meeting cancellations place the future of scientific research proposals up in the air, with some researchers fearing that some applications will miss their window of opportunity to ever receive NIH funding. "I don't know that there's a precedent to this, certainly not on the scale," said Esther Choo, a professor of emergency medicine at Oregon Health and Science University, whose NIH study section was canceled. The meeting cancellations come shortly after the Trump administration froze many federal health agency communications. It is unclear whether the freeze and cancellations are connected. |
| Scientists Worried After Trump Halts NIH Grant Reviews | |
| Orders to freeze travel, meetings, communications and hiring at the National Institutes of Health -- and all other agencies within the Department of Health and Human Services -- has some federally funded researchers on edge just days into President Donald Trump's second term. Scholars say they've received emails canceling key meetings that determine which research projects to fund and they're worried about how those and other disruptions could stall the billions of dollars in NIH-funded projects universities oversee. "I suspect that folks outside the sciences don't understand just how disruptive even a short delay in funding decisions can be," Adam Forte, an associate professor of geology at Louisiana State University who runs his own lab, posted on BlueSky Thursday alongside numerous other concerned scholars. "This is how we lose huge amounts of scientific capacity, scientific capacity we as a collective have already invested huge amounts of time and money in, just lighting it on fire to watch the flames." Some research policy experts say a pause is typical for the initial days of a new administration and that it's too soon to tell whether this week's order is a cause for concern. Others, however, are interpreting it as part of a larger message from Trump. |
SPORTS
| Women's Basketball: Hot Shooting Dawgs Take Down Auburn | |
| A dominating offensive performance put the Mississippi State women's basketball team back in the win column, as they took down the visiting Auburn Tigers, 96-56. The Bulldogs shot 62.3 percent in the victory, which was the first time State has shot above 60 percent in a single game in the Purcell era. Individually, eight of the ten Bulldogs in the contest shot over 50 percent from the floor. "I want to thank the fans for their support tonight," head coach Sam Purcell said. "Our last game was a heartbreaker, but the fans have been here all year to support these women, and it has been awesome. We talk about it all the time, when we fall down as seven, we get back up as eight and what a night it was to get back up. After a tight first quarter saw the Bulldogs lead by two, State would dominate the remainder of the way. The Dawgs outscored Auburn 33-4 in the second quarter, including a 24-0 run, their best run of the season. The 33 points in the second quarter marked the most points State had scored in a quarter against an SEC opponent this season. That mark only lasted 10 minutes, as the Bulldogs would follow that up with 35 points in the third. A multitude of Bulldogs contributed to the offensive production. Jerkaila Jordan and Eniya Russell both finished with 15 points. Jordan finished the game on 6-11 shooting from the field, the 17th time she scored double-figures this season. Russell knocked down a pair of threes in the contest and has scored 10 or more in seven of the last eight contests. The Bulldogs will be back in action on Monday against the Missouri Tigers. The game is set to begin at 7 p.m. CT on the SEC Network. |
| Women's Basketball: Mississippi State runs away in second quarter in rout of Auburn | |
| A home date with Auburn was just what the doctor ordered for Mississippi State. The Bulldogs overcame a slow start Thursday night and reeled off 24 straight points in the second quarter, giving up just four points in that period en route to a 96-56 blowout of the Tigers. It was by far their most lopsided win against a Southeastern Conference opponent in three years under head coach Sam Purcell. "We really have a gritty type of persona about us," said grad transfer Chandler Prater, who tied a season high with 14 points and was 5-for-6 from the floor, including 2-for-2 from 3-point range. "Right now, I feel like we'd all like to see ourselves bring that every day, regardless of the opponent." MSU (16-5, 3-4 SEC) still had its issues with turnovers, committing nine in the first quarter alone including three on consecutive possessions. Despite shooting 60% over the opening 10 minutes, the Bulldogs led by just two points. But in that second quarter, MSU turned the ball over just once, allowing the Bulldogs to get set defensively and force tough shots from Auburn (10-10, 1-6). The Tigers missed 12 straight field goals and finished the quarter 2-for-17. The Bulldogs have now earned impressive wins twice following back-to-back losses, having grabbed their first conference victory two weeks ago against an Oklahoma team that was ranked in the top 10 at the time. MSU can get back to .500 in SEC play by winning at last-place Missouri, which is winless in the conference, on Monday night. |
| State puts together largest SEC win in Purcell era with 96-56 blowout of Auburn | |
| Following consecutive losses where Mississippi State hindered itself with turnovers, the Bulldogs showed on Thursday night what they can be when protecting the basketball. State put together, quite possibly, the best quarter of basketball in SEC play in the Sam Purcell era outscoring Auburn 33-4 in the second and dominated the Auburn Tigers, 96-56. It was the largest win in SEC play in Purcell's three seasons in Starkville. "I think they were just really focused in," Purcell said. "It's scary how good we can be. We have a wow factor when we're dialed in." Though the Bulldogs still turned the ball over 19 times in the game, protecting the ball in the second quarter allowed for the difference. MSU turned the ball over nine times in the first quarter and held a 15-13 lead. In the second frame, MSU had just one turnover. During that quarter the Bulldogs had a 24-0 run over the course of 6:30 to push a two-point lead all the way out to over 30. By halftime, that 33-4 spark had the Bulldogs up 48-17. "It's been an emphasis all week. We've obviously seen how turnovers have affected us the last few games," point guard Denim Deshields said. |
| Mississippi State shows teamwork in get-right game | |
 | After a grueling SEC opening slate, Mississippi State's women needed a get-right opportunity. The Bulldogs got one on Thursday and took full advantage. Mississippi State used a dominant second quarter and multiple double-digit scorers to top Auburn 96-56 at the Humphrey Coliseum. "Shout out to my team," Bulldogs coach Sam Purcell said. "We talk about it all the time. Fall down seven, get back up eight, so what a night to get back up." MSU (16-5, 3-4) has lost four of its first six SEC games. Four of those games have been against top 15 teams, and the last loss came to Ole Miss on Sunday at home. That start has the Bulldogs sitting 11th in the conference standings. Thursday's contest did not come without its lumps. Turnovers were once again an issue for State (their 16.5 turnovers per game are the fifth most in the SEC), as the team had 10 of them in the first quarter. That combined with eight points from Auburn's Deyona Gaston had the Tigers (10-10, 1-6) trailing by just two after one quarter. Once the second quarter started, however, Mississippi State kicked it into high gear. "I think they were just really focused in and we got shot attempts," Purcell said of the team's second quarter. "Like I've always told them, it's scary how good this team could be." |
| Mississippi State looking for faster starts in tough road environments | |
| Playing top-10 teams on the road is never easy, but in its last two games away from Humphrey Coliseum, Mississippi State has made life harder on itself with its play in the first few minutes. On Jan. 14 at No. 1 Auburn, the Bulldogs were down by 10 points after two minutes and 15 seconds in front of a packed house at Neville Arena, forcing head coach Chris Jans to take a timeout. With 21,678 fans in attendance Tuesday night in Knoxville, MSU fell behind No. 6 Tennessee by eight points in the first three minutes, and Jans again used an early timeout. "As a staff, we've talked about it since the Tennessee game. We need to fix it from the top down. We've started well at home most of the time in these SEC games," Jans said. "When you let the crowds get into the game, as much as you'd like to think it's not a distraction and your team is mentally tough and can handle those types of things, in reality it's why the home teams win more than the road teams." The No. 14 Bulldogs (15-4, 3-3 Southeastern Conference) missed eight of their first 10 shots against the Tigers and 12 of their first 13 against the Volunteers. In both of those games, they turned the ball over eight times in the first half. |
| Head coach Chris Jans talks South Carolina, Josh Hubbard and slow starts on the road | |
| Mississippi State (15-4 overall, 3-3 in SEC) faces another SEC road challenge on Saturday as the 14th-ranked Bulldogs face a familiar foe in South Carolina (10-9 overall, 0-6 in the SEC). Back on January 4th, Mississippi State opened the SEC slate with a dominating, 85-50 win over the Gamecocks at Humphrey Coliseum. On Thursday, Mississippi State head coach Chris Jans held his weekly press conference and discussed South Carolina among other topics: Q: How tough is it to get your team's attention against a team you dominated a few weeks ago? Jans: You hit the nail on the head. That is what we're going to have to fight is the approach and the psyche, individually and certainly collectively of this team having to go through that. We are happy we won weeks ago when we did open SEC play but this game, which we all know and have been around long enough to understand each game is its own little chapter in your season. What happened in that game really is fairly irrelevant weeks later. |
| Former MSU mascot Bully XXI, 'Jak,' dies | |
 | Mississippi State University's former live bulldog mascot Bully XXI, commonly known as "Jak," died Thursday at the age of 10. He was a native of Copiah County and was once featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated and saw the Mississippi State Bulldogs reach new athletic successes. Lisa Pritchard, who served as Jak's handler at Mississippi State, announced the news Thursday. Jak served as the mascot at MSU from April 2015 to April 2023. He retired in April 2023 and was succeeded by Bully XXII "Dak." Jak was raised in Hazlehurst by Tammy Nelson for the first months of his life before being sent to Mississippi State. Jak was born to Nelson's bulldog Pippa and Champ, Bully XX in 2014. The English Bulldog has been the live mascot of MSU since 1935, when "Ptolemy" or "Tol" first captured the hearts of State fans after Head Football Coach Major Ralph Sasse acquired "Tol" from a Memphis family. |
| Jackson State stadium replacement proposed in new bill. Will it pass? | |
 | Another bill aiming to build a new athletic stadium for Jackson State University was filed by Mississippi House Rep. Robert Johnson, D-94, who has filed a version of the bill for the past two years. The past few years have seen talks of changing JSU football's current home, the 60,000-plus seat Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium, to another area of the city to provide more property for the University of Mississippi Medical Center. The stadium is located just across North State Street from UMMC. But time and time again, those talks have stalled. Johnson, who spoke with the Clarion Ledger in a phone interview on Tuesday, said he wasn't "extremely confident" his bill would pass this session, but said building a new stadium is an "inevitability because UMMC has to expand, and it doesn't have anywhere else to go." Johnson, who currently serves as the Mississippi House of Representatives minority leader, has filed a bill to build a new stadium for at least the past two years. His most recent attempt is House Bill 137, which appropriates $40 million to build a new stadium, though it doesn't say where it would be located nor what would happen to the existing Veterans Memorial Stadium. Additionally, Johnson, whose son played football at JSU, said now would be a great time for the Mississippi Legislature to make some moves on a new stadium due to the state having a surplus of funds. |
| Wildlife commission extends Mississippi deer season | |
 | The Commission on Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks voted to extend deer season through 30 minutes after sunset on Sunday, Feb. 2. The extension, issued Thursday, only applies to private lands in the Delta, Hills, and North Central Deer Management Units. The Southeast DMU is not included or affected by this season extension and will still end on Saturday, Feb. 15, 2025. When the open season on deer ends on a Friday, the commission has the authority to extend the season until 30 minutes after sunset on the following Sunday. The season extension only applies to season dates and does not increase or otherwise affect the annual bag limit. The department encourages hunters to exercise their bag limit, particularly antlerless deer, and submit any deer taken during these additional days to be tested for chronic wasting disease. |
| Bass Pro Shops to open first location along Mississippi Gulf Coast | |
| South Mississippi will soon get its first Bass Pro Shops, according to a press release from the sporting goods giant. One day after Bass Pro Shops was named America's most trusted retailer for outdoor gear by Newsweek, the retailer announced it was expanding with a new location in Jackson County. The store will be located along the I-10 corridor -- just miles away from the Mississippi Sound, the state's only option for saltwater fishing. The Bass Pro Shops in Jackson County will be Mississippi's second, the only other being outside of Jackson in Pearl. The newest will be a centerpiece at the Lemoyne Landing development in D'Iberville. "Mississippi is proud to welcome Bass Pro Shops to Lemoyne Landing development, a project that exemplifies the best of what our state has to offer -- strong partnerships, a thriving economy, and a deep appreciation for the outdoors," Gov. Tate Reeves said. "Bass Pro Shops' decision to invest in Jackson County speaks volumes about the region's potential as a hub for economic opportunity and tourism. "This is a win for Mississippi families, sportsmen, and communities across the Gulf Coast." |
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