Thursday, March 25, 2021   
 
MSU moves Thursday afternoon classes to remote instruction, cancels campus activities due to weather
Mississippi State University's Starkville campus will move to remote operations Thursday [March 25] at 11 a.m. with all classes moving to a remote instruction format due to an abundance of caution over predicted regional severe weather. Other campus activities are canceled for the afternoon and evening at the Starkville campus. The National Weather Service is predicting potentially dangerous weather which could produce extreme conditions such as tornadoes or large hail in Northeast Mississippi. "Employees should work remotely if possible, but all faculty should continue to teach their classes in a remote learning format," said Provost and Executive Vice President David Shaw. The university encourages all students and employees to review instructions for coping with severe weather at emergency.msstate.edu. Those on campus should follow the building or Residence Hall safety instructions specific to their location. Starkville campus residence halls remain open. Faculty, staff and students are urged to use caution to ensure personal safety.
 
Be prepared for possible hail, high winds, tornadoes in Mississippi
Severe thunderstorms with the potential to produce winds up to 80 mph and strong tornadoes are expected to move into the central Mississippi region beginning late Thursday morning. According to the latest forecast from the National Weather Service's Jackson office, a line of thunderstorms is expected to move into the state around 11 a.m. and sweep eastward. Residents in the Jackson and Pine Belt areas may start to see rain and high winds beginning at noon. People living around and north of Interstate 20 have the greatest risk of seeing strong tornadoes that could stay on the ground for longer periods of time and cause widespread damage. Hail larger than golf ball-size is also possible, according to the weather service. Some parts of northeastern Mississippi have a higher risk of severe weather Thursday as a storm system moves eastward through the state. Areas around Eupora, Philadelphia and Columbus could potentially see strong, violent tornadoes, extreme winds greater than 80 mph and hail the size of baseballs, according to a graphic on the National Weather Service in Jackson's website.
 
Mississippi law will require computer science in schools
A new law will require the Mississippi Department of Education to set a computer science curriculum for K-12 schools by the 2024-25 academic year. Republican Gov. Tate Reeves signed House Bill 633 on Wednesday, and it will become law July 1. The Mississippi-based telecommunications and technology company C Spire asked Mississippi legislators to make computer science classes available in all elementary schools, middle schools and high schools by 2024-25. A C Spire news release said 48% of Mississippi high schools currently teach computer science. The release said that Mississippi employers have unfilled jobs because of a shortage of trained, qualified information technology and computing workers. C Spire Foundation, a charity connected to the company, announced in January that it was committing $1 million to help Mississippi school districts start computer science classes.
 
Computer science instruction bill signed by Gov. Tate Reeves
Legislation backed by C Spire and designed to implement computer science curriculum in the classrooms for all the state's 884 K-12 public and charter schools was enacted into law with the signature of Gov. Tate Reeves Wednesday. House Bill 633, known as "The Mississippi Computer Science and Cyber Education Equality Act" authored by Representative Kevin Felsher (R-Biloxi) received overwhelming approval by both chambers of the Mississippi Legislature. A similar bill was introduced in the Senate by Senator Scott DeLano (R-Biloxi). C Spire has worked closely with lawmakers to refine the legislation that would help make computer science available in all schools by the 2025 academic year. Many districts and schools have made progress and will not need to make changes while others will need to boost teacher training and update courses to the latest curriculum. Workers with a background in computer science are in high demand and short supply in Mississippi. Employers currently have over 1,475 unfilled jobs due to the serious shortage of trained, qualified IT and computing workers. The average starting salary is almost double the statewide average.
 
Mississippi Lottery Corp. president set to retire June 30
The first president of the Mississippi Lottery Corporation said Wednesday that he will retire June 30, just over two years after he was hired and a year and a half after the corporation started selling tickets for the games of chance. Mississippi legislators voted in 2018 to join the majority of other states that have lotteries. A board of directors hired Tom Shaheen in May 2019, and he began work the following month. Shaheen had worked for lotteries in several states and is a former president of the Multi-State Lottery Association, which runs Powerball. "After spending more than 32 years in the lottery industry, it is time for me to take a step back and spend time with family," Shaheen said in a news release Wednesday. He will turn 68 in May. "When he informed us in January he was contemplating retirement, we knew he would leave massive shoes to fill," board chairman Mike McGrevey said in the news release. "Tom's leadership has been instrumental to the smooth and successful start-up of the lottery, and we are immensely grateful for his time with us."
 
Mississippi to increase lowest welfare payments in the US
Mississippi will increase the lowest monthly welfare payments in the nation under a bill signed into law Wednesday by the state's Republican governor. Mississippi has long been one of the poorest states in the U.S., and the measure made law by Gov. Tate Reeves marks the first time in 21 years that the state will expand payments through the program, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families. The payments in Mississippi have been $146 for a family of two, $170 for a family of three and $194 for a family of four. The new law authorizes an increase of $90 a month to each category, based on a recommendation from the head of the Mississippi Department of Human Services. State senators said the increase would cost about $2.8 million a year and be paid with federal funding. Brandon Jones, a Democratic former Mississippi House member and current policy director for the Southern Poverty Law Center Action Fund in Mississippi, called the increase long overdue. He thanked the Republican-controlled Legislature and Reeves for approving it.
 
Policy experts explore Jackson water solutions, highlight void in federal aid
The fragility of Jackson's water system, plagued by decades of outmigration, deferred maintenance and declining federal support, was on full national display in February after a historic freeze left at least 40,000 without running water for weeks. City officials are asking for state and federal support to help raise the $1 billion they say is needed to fix the system, which failed to produce safe drinking water for more than a month after the storm. Mississippi Today spoke with several national policy experts about how other American cities have navigated large-scale water funding shortages and how Jackson could move forward. The experts offered several solutions, chronicled in the article below, but ultimately agreed that the absence of a more involved federal government leaves few answers for Jackson. "A lot of these systems that are on the brink of falling apart, they're just one extreme event away from a crisis," said Dr. Newsha Ajami, director of the Urban Water Policy program at Stanford University. "That's what happened in Jackson. It's a cumulative effect of not investing in our infrastructure for so many years. Aging infrastructure, all of these extreme events that we're experiencing, it's all coming together."
 
Legislative leaders kill key proposal to address Jackson water crisis
A bill to allow Jackson to raise its citywide sales tax by 1 cent for water and sewer system repairs is dead in the final days of the 2021 legislative session. The Jackson City Council attempted to take matters into its own hands, passing a proposal in early March to raise the city's sales tax by 1 cent. That new revenue -- an estimated $14 million per year -- would be used to back large bonds for repairing and replacing the city's water and sewer system. But state law requires approval from lawmakers before the local sales tax increase could be placed on a citywide ballot. State Rep. Chris Bell, D-Jackson, filed a bill on behalf of the city to acquire legislative sign-off on the 1-cent proposal. That bill will die without committee consideration, House Local and Private Chairman Manly Barton, R-Moss Point, told Mississippi Today -- a blow to the capital city's main legislative ask as it struggles to afford water system repairs. Earlier this month in private meetings with both House Speaker Philip Gunn and Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann, Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba asked for support of Bell's bill. Even had the bill passed the House, it faced a difficult road in the Senate. Hosemann, the Senate's presiding officer, met privately on March 12 with four of the five state senators representing the city of Jackson. None of those senators --- Democratic Sens. Sollie Norwood, Hillman Frazier, John Horhn and David Blount --- told the lieutenant governor they supported the sales tax increase, according to several of the meeting's attendees.
 
Senate approves Lee County sales tax request after not considering similar Jackson proposal
The Mississippi Senate, which has resisted an effort to provide a 1-cent sales tax for the city of Jackson to pay for improvements to its water system, voted Thursday by a 23-15 vote to allow Lee County to impose a 3/4-cent sales tax increase. Senate Local and Private Chair Chad McMahan, R-Guntown, whose district consists of a large portion of Lee County, said before the sales tax could be imposed, it would have to be approved by voters during the next general election in 2023. In addition, Lee County supervisors, whom he said supported the bill allowing the sales tax increase, also would have to place on the ballot the projects that would be financed with the sales tax increase. While the bill passed Wednesday does not list any specific projects to be funded through the sales tax increase, Lee County supervisors have recently proposed a sales tax increase within the county to finance a new county jail. But House Local and Private Chair Manly Barton, R-Moss Point, said he does not plan to take up any requests for local-option sales taxes, including the Lee County proposal and the city of Jackson's 1-cent increase, and that has been a consistent House position in recent years. Barton said that the Lee County bill will die on the House side, as the Lee County delegation is not united in support for the tax increase.
 
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack says only 0.1 percent of Trump administration's covid farm relief went to Black farmers
A tiny fraction of the Trump administration's coronavirus relief for American farmers -- just 0.1 percent of the overall package -- went to Black farmers, according to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, who was confirmed in February with strong bipartisan support for a second stint in the role. In an interview with The Washington Post, Vilsack for the first time noted the extent to which the Trump administration's response to the coronavirus pandemic exacerbated existing disparities across the American economy. The distribution of coronavirus relief increased those gaps, he said. Black farmers received only $20.8 million of nearly $26 billion in two rounds of payments under the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program announced by the Trump administration last April, he said. "We saw 99 percent of the money going to White farmers and 1 percent going to socially disadvantaged farmers and if you break that down to how much went to Black farmers, it's 0.1 percent," he said. "Look at it another way: The top 10 percent of farmers in the country received 60 percent of the value of the covid payments. And the bottom 10 percent received 0.26 percent." Vilsack said the Biden administration would be focused on closing those inequalities. The USDA will battle three systemic problems concurrently, he said: a broken farm system, food insecurity and a health-care crisis.
 
Joe Biden discovers there is no way to script the presidency
When the White House announced that Joe Biden would hold his first news conference, the president had just embarked on a victory tour across the U.S. touting a legislative package he hoped would help control the pandemic and revive the economy. Nine days later, as Biden prepares to take questions from journalists at the White House, his administration is facing criticism from even some supporters over a surge of immigrants at the southern border, his failure to release a plan to curb gun violence and the lack of sufficient Asian-American representation in the Cabinet. Biden will undoubtedly be asked about a barrage of issues Thursday other than the topic he wants to talk about: the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan designed to lift millions of Americans out of poverty. Ari Fleischer, White House press secretary for George W. Bush, said Biden's team made a "rookie mistake" by revealing that the president would hold a new conference nine days in advance. "When you announce it far in advance you put yourself at risk of getting hijacked with whatever is hot and breaking as opposed to whatever you want to talk about," he said.
 
Vice President Kamala Harris will lead response to migrant issue as numbers rise at border
President Biden tapped Vice President Kamala Harris on Wednesday to lead diplomatic efforts to stem the growing influx of migrants crossing the border with Mexico, handing her one of the administration's thorniest problems. While Harris has been active in Biden's efforts to tame the COVID-19 pandemic and revive the economy, she had yet to carve out a particular niche of her own. Her newest job, to enlist Mexico and Central American countries to help address what the administration calls the root causes of migration, is a solo mission for which she will be judged directly. The assignment speaks to the seriousness with which Biden, who took on a similar task when he was vice president, is approaching the problem -- choosing his second in command to represent him in the region. The job comes with political risk for Harris, who has been a highly visible presence in Biden's early days but without a distinct portfolio. The administration, eager to reverse former President Trump's hard-line immigration policies, has appeared flatfooted as the numbers of people crossing the border has swelled, and images of children in overcrowded detention centers reveal the humanitarian toll.
 
Research suggests we're misperceiving the inequality around us
How well do you know your class? Would you consider yourself lower-, middle- or upper- class? What about your neighbors,' your co-workers' or your friends' class status? Recent research suggests people's perceptions of their own economic status, as well as the status of people in their social or work circles, aren't as accurate as they might think. "The goal of this was to see how, where we think we stand relative to others, shapes our views on fairness and what ultimately should be done about inequality," said Harvard economics professor Stefanie Stantcheva, who co-authored the study. Stantcheva, along with co-authors Kristoffer Hvidberg and Claus Kreiner, collected tax and income data from thousands of residents in Denmark and asked them to rank themselves among various groups of people in their city, in their workplace, with similar levels of education and more. "People who are actually ranked toward the bottom of the income distribution tend to think they're ranked higher than they truly are," Stantcheva told "Marketplace Morning Report" host David Brancaccio in an interview. "And those who are ranked toward the top believe they're ranked lower than they actually are."
 
Leap in Gas Prices Puts $3 a Gallon in Sight
The prospect of summer drivers crowding U.S. highways is powering steep gains in the price of gasoline, a sign of economic recovery and a boon for the pandemic-ravaged energy industry. Lifted by oil's recovery and growing consumer demand, gasoline prices at pumps in the U.S. hit an average of $2.88 a gallon over the past week, according to the AAA. That is up about one-third over this time last year, when the pandemic's lockdowns slammed fuel usage. Rising prices are an early season gift for fuel makers including Valero Energy Corp. and Phillips 66 after a bruising year, helping to make energy shares the top-performing sector this year in the S&P 500. A proxy for profit margins at refiners, calculated from the gap between gasoline and crude-oil futures, recently neared its highest level in three years at more than $24 a barrel. Drivers are already paying a lot more than $3 a gallon in some states. In California, the most expensive market, average prices stand at $3.88, according to AAA. Motorists in Mississippi, Texas and Ohio, on the other hand, are paying closer to $2.60. Gas prices vary widely due to factors including tax policies and proximity to pipelines.
 
US jobless claims fall to 684,000, fewest since pandemic
The number of people seeking unemployment benefits fell sharply last week to 684,000, the fewest since the pandemic erupted a year ago and a sign that the economy is improving. Thursday's report from the Labor Department showed that jobless claims fell from 781,000 the week before. It is the first time that weekly applications for jobless aid have fallen below 700,000 since mid-March of last year. Before the pandemic tore through the economy, applications had never topped that level. The number of people seeking benefits under a federal program for self-employed and contract workers also dropped, to 241,000, from 284,000 a week earlier. All told, the number of applicants fell below 1 million for the first time since the pandemic. Economists are growing more optimistic that the pace of layoffs, which has been chronically high for a full year, is finally easing. "While the level of claims remains elevated," said Nancy Vanden Houten, an economist at Oxford Economics, "we expect they will continue to recede as the recovery gains momentum."
 
UMMC med student highlights 'American Idol' experience
Conner Ball said getting a golden ticket to Hollywood from all three "American Idol" celebrity judges -- Katy Perry, Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan -- was a surreal experience. Ball, a second-year medical student at the University of Mississippi Medical Center, grew up in Madison and has been into music since he was just 10 years old. Over the years he played guitar, participated in the Jackson Prep Show Choir, and played in multiple cover bands when he attended Ole Miss from 2014 to 2018. Ball has also studied biology, chemistry and Spanish at the University of Mississippi, and is a former medical assistant at the Eli Manning Children's Clinic at Children's of Mississippi. Last September, Ball said he decided to audition for "American Idol" while they were doing Zoom auditions due to the pandemic. He said his father and mother-in-law sent him the link and thought he should give it a shot. When asked why he wanted to be the next "American Idol" by the judges, Ball said he told them he wanted to be a physician and a musician and do both of those things together. He recalled walking past Richie after being eliminated and Richie told him to keep his chin up and to keep doing what he was doing. "Even though I was eliminated, it was still a really fun experience, and I plan to keep pursuing my music and studying medicine," he said.
 
Auburn University President Jay Gogue responds to anti-Asian hate incidents, Atlanta shootings
Auburn University President Jay Gogue responded to the rise in anti-Asian hate incidents since the onset of the pandemic and last week's Atlanta shootings in an email Wednesday morning. "Please remember that silence is not acceptable," Gogue wrote to faculty, staff and students. "When we see something wrong, we must speak up." The statement comes a week after the murder of eight people, including six Asian women, in Atlanta. Gogue's email cited the nearly 3,800 reports of hate incidents against the Asian American community since last March by Stop AAPI Hate, saying Asians, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders "have been unfairly condemned for COVID-19." "Hatred, intolerance and violence against the Asian community is unacceptable," Gogue wrote. "As a land grant institution, Auburn University draws its strength from a wide range of individuals with varying backgrounds, perspectives, viewpoints and experiences." Gogue recommended filing a Bias Incident Report Form through the university's Bias Education and Response Team (BERT) for those who find themselves a target of bias, intimidation or a hostile incident or witness an incident. Reports can be filed anonymously.
 
Tiger Dining to usher in new dining hall, meal plans
Tiger Dining will offer Auburn University students several new options to grab a bite to eat on campus in 2021, including The Edge at Central Dining, a new dining hall located just south of the Harold D. Melton Student Center. Glenn Loughridge, director of campus dining, spoke with The Plainsman about what students can expect throughout the year. The Edge will be the largest dining hall yet on Auburn's campus and will open in the fall. Loughridge said The Edge will include eight different stations. "The Market," a deli option, will feature sandwiches and salads. "Twirl" will feature pasta made in-house. "Street Works" will feature tortillas made in-house, and "Pizza on the Plains" will feature pizza with dough made in-house. "True Balance" will be an allergen-friendly station with a rotating menu. "Traditions" will feature homestyle cooking. "Urban Kitchen" will offer a rotating selection cooked on a round grill and "Ignite" will offer customizable grill items. Loughridge said the allergen station will aim to be an accessible option, eliminating eight major allergens, including "eggs, dairy, finfish, shellfish, soy, wheat, peanut, tree nut [and] gluten." Its food will be made "really clean, with not a lot of ingredients," he said.
 
After LSU sexual harassment fallout, higher education officials want tougher policies
Amid controversy at LSU, officials of the Louisiana Board of Regents said Wednesday changes are needed to strengthen sexual harassment policies at colleges and universities statewide, including how complaints are handled. Uniform agreements between campuses and local law enforcement, steps aimed at preventing students accused of sexual misconduct from simply transferring to other schools and closer oversight of campus operations were among the suggested changes aired during a special, hour-long session. Without citing LSU, Commissioner of Higher Education Kim Hunter Reed said that, when there are breakdowns on individual campuses, "we all fail." "All of higher education is diminished because of that," Reed told the board. Gov. John Bel Edwards also said Wednesday he will be proposing bills for the 2021 legislative session to make sure students and parents can count on a safe campus environment. LSU officials on Wednesday announced they plan to hire a full-time employee to investigate Title IX complaints, as well as an assistant to president of the school's newly formed Office of Civil Rights and Title IX.
 
Kirby Smith Hall, one of LSU's biggest and least-loved dorms, to close, eventually be imploded
After years on the chopping block, one of LSU's oldest and least loved dorms, Kirby Smith Hall, is set to close for good when the current semester ends in May and eventually be torn down. "That building is definitely heading to demolition," said Pete Trentacoste, executive director of Residential Life. "It's not whether it will be demolished, it's a matter of when." The university won't need the 56-year-old residence hall after this school year if current enrollment projections hold true, though an unanticipated enrollment spike could lead the university to keep the place open a little longer, Trentacoste said. To allow for the "retirement" of Kirby Smith, LSU is finishing up construction of two new residence halls, Camellia Hall and Azalea Hall, and both are scheduled to be ready for students by this fall. Both have about 400 beds apiece. Those 800 beds are more than enough to offset the 550 that Kirby Smith offers, about 350 of which are currently in use, Trentacoste said. Named after a Confederate general, the 46-year-old structure has long been considered an eyesore and its austere exterior does not mesh well architecturally with the buildings around it. Nevertheless, it occupies a small place in Louisiana history as the transition headquarters for not one, but two, Louisiana governors. The first one was incoming Gov. Bobby Jindal in 2007, and the second was current Gov. John Bel Edwards.
 
UGA outlines plan to vaccinate faculty, staff and students for COVID-19
The University of Georgia will begin offering faculty, staff and students the COVID-19 vaccine based on an order of eligibility. The University Health Center at UGA will issue invitations to receive the vaccine following Gov. Brian Kemp's announcement that everyone over the age of 16 will be able to receive the COVID-19 vaccine starting Thursday. The first invitations for vaccination will be for those over 16 who have medical conditions that put them at greater risk from COVID-19. The second group vaccinated will be those ages 35 to 55 who do not suffer from a condition placing them at greater COVID risk, and the last group will be everyone over 16. UHC is only vaccinating university students, faculty and staff, due to its Georgia Department of Public Health designation. So far, 3,168 people on campus have received their first dose and 1,769 have received both doses.
 
Georgia Tech professor faces multiple federal fraud charges
A Georgia Tech professor has been accused of using his position to fraudulently sponsor visas for Chinese nationals to work in the United States, officials announced Wednesday. Gee-Kung Chang, 73, of Smyrna, has been charged with conspiracy to commit visa fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud and wire fraud, according to Northern District of Georgia Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt Erskine. Chang and another man, 53-year-old Jianjun Yu, were both indicted by a federal grand jury on March 18. According to Erskine's announcement, Chang and Yu are accused of a scheme that involved sponsoring visas for Chinese nationals through Georgia Tech, only to have those visa recipients work at a telecommunications company in New Jersey. Yu was formerly a research director at ZTE USA, a subsidiary of a partially state-owned Chinese technology company. Thanks to Chang's position at Georgia Tech, he was able to help arrange for Chinese nationals to apply for J-1 visas, a work-study program, the U.S. Attorney's Office said. "The program is not intended for general employment of foreign workers in the United States," the announcement said.
 
Florida lawmakers scrap effort to limit Bright Futures for specific college degrees
Florida legislators reversed course on a plan that would have limited the state's popular Bright Futures college scholarships after a public outcry and concerns by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis. The proposal, from Sen. Dennis Baxley, R-Ocala, would have limited scholarships to students in fields considered lucrative, although lawmakers were careful never to specify which college degrees they considered less valuable. The scholarship program currently funds either 100% or 75% of tuition and fees for high-achieving, in-state students. A new version of Baxley's bill, passed by an education appropriations subcommittee this week, would require students to view a dashboard after their first year of college that shows the career prospects for their major. The effort to limit state-funded scholarships was consistent with Republican efforts to control spending and steer more students into career and technical education programs after high school to limit student debt. DeSantis, a Harvard-educated lawyer, said that could avoid what he once described as a path to "go $100,000 into debt, get a degree in zombie studies and then end up in a job you could have had out of high school, anyway." But the latest effort in the Capitol collided with concerns among Florida students and their families -- many reeling from the economic fallout of the pandemic -- about how to pay for college without scholarships.
 
U. of Missouri faculty and staff expected back on campus by May 17
University of Missouri faculty and staff who haven't returned to work on campus should do so by May 17, two top officials with the school said Wednesday. Mun Choi, MU chancellor and UM System president, and MU Provost Latha Ramchand made the announcement in a joint campus message, calling the return "another step toward resuming our pre-pandemic lives." The message states that faculty on nine-month appointments without duties over the summer should plan to return in August. "As more faculty and staff return, we remain committed to sustaining a safe community," the message states. "Social distancing and face covering requirements will continue until public health guidance changes. Supervisors will need to ensure work settings meet office safety expectations and consult with campus facilities if work spaces need modification." The message acknowledges social distancing is not always possible. Supervisors may decide flexible work arrangements make the most sense. All faculty and staff will be eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine Monday.
 
Senate bill wants to require Oklahoma's Promise scholars who don't graduate to pay back the state
There is a bill going through the Oklahoma legislature that would require students receiving the Oklahoma Promise Scholarship who don't finish their degree to pay back the money the State spent on them. The bill is raising eyebrows, but the bill's author says the program's degree completion rates are 4th lowest in the country and that this could push students to change that. Opponents say it's a deterrent to try for the scholarship at all. "Honestly there was no way I was going to be able to send him to college so Oklahoma's Promise was perfect. It was exactly what we needed," said Jodie Fox. The working, single mother says her son earned help from the state in the form of the scholarship set up for lower income families. Gavin went to OU to study computer science but dropped out after two years and joined the Air Force. Now 10 years out of high school, he is a contractor working for the military making a very good living. "He would not be where he is today had he not had those two years," said Fox. But under the new Senate bill, Jodie's son would be required to pay back the state his scholarship money because he didn't finish his degree.
 
Fall college enrollment declined more among graduates of low-income high schools than wealthy high schools
College-going rates among high school graduates declined across the board this fall, but far fewer graduates of low-income and high-poverty high schools, and of high schools with many Black and Hispanic students, enrolled in college during the pandemic, new data show. Immediate college enrollment fell by an unprecedented 6.8 percent this fall, compared with a 1.5 percent year-over-year decline in fall 2019, according to a new special analysis of the High School Benchmarks report from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center. While a 6.8 percent decline is far better than an earlier estimate of 21.7 percent, it is still 4.5 times larger than the 2019, pre-pandemic rate. The National Student Clearinghouse Research Center puts together annual reports on high school graduates' postsecondary enrollment, persistence and completion outcomes. It has also released several analyses of college enrollment amid the pandemic. The latest analysis updates preliminary results posed in December. It also corrects a process error that resulted in an overestimate of the rate of decline in college enrollment counts throughout the December report.
 
Graduation in a Baseball Stadium? College Commencements Pair Pomp With Prevention
In a typical year, the University of South Florida holds about eight graduation ceremonies in its 10,000-seat basketball arena, where groups of 700 graduates can invite as many guests as they like. But this May, commencement ceremonies will take place at Tropicana Field, home to the Tampa Bay Rays Major League Baseball team. The graduates, who will be recognized in groups as large as 2,000, will only be allowed two guests apiece, spread out among the stadium's 43,000 seats -- a paltry crowd more reminiscent of a late-season ballgame by a last-place team. USF is among a growing number of colleges announcing in-person graduations this spring, a sign that many are inching toward normalcy after the Covid-19 pandemic largely canceled traditional commencement ceremonies last year. Smaller gatherings, socially distanced seating, and even drive-through ceremonies are among the ways that colleges are modifying the events to meet students' desire for a traditional celebration while managing the public-health risks. Some colleges are even inviting the spring-2020 graduates back to campus to join in the ceremonies. And for colleges that have operated mostly remotely, or in hybrid mode, graduation is a chance to test their capacity for larger gatherings in anticipation of a return to in-person courses this summer or fall.
 
Should colleges be thinking about high school learning loss?
For high school students, this year has been anything but normal. Many have taken their classes remotely or in hybrid configurations -- modalities that are new to many in K-12 education. Potential learning loss from this past year has been at the center of debates around school reopening across the country. But for higher education, the question is more narrow: Will students enter college less academically prepared than previous semesters? And if so, what can institutions do to help? Learning loss is usually studied mostly at the K-8 grade level and measured with annual standardized tests. Before the pandemic, researchers mostly focused on learning loss over summer vacations. When young students would return in the fall, some wouldn't be able to demonstrate skills they had mastered in the spring. With the pandemic, some in education have taken a more expansive view of the phenomenon, choosing to look at missed opportunities, rather than only "lost knowledge." Data on high school students' learning, both before and during the pandemic, are more scant, so it's difficult to tell the true impact of the pandemic disruption. But some education experts suspect that -- even if students aren't "losing" information in the ways we typically think about learning loss -- they may still be missing out on educational opportunities that could prepare them for college.
 
A Campaign to Get Needles in Arms
The Facebook friend request confused Patti Wukovits. "Do I know you?" she asked. "No," Alicia Stillman replied, "but I think we have something in common." They did. Their children -- one a Kalamazoo College sophomore, the other headed to college -- had died from a horrific disease that is of special concern on college campuses, where young adults are packed together in close quarters. It elicits dread among campus health officials. And the two women's daughters had contracted it just as a vaccine was being developed. The vaccine had not yet hit the U.S. market -- but even once the shots were available, most college students weren't getting them. Not Covid-19. Meningitis B. A growing but still very small number of colleges require incoming students to get the meningitis B vaccines. But many factors, including weak federal guidance, cost, and concerns about the length of immunity, have left most students unprotected from meningitis B, one of the five major types of meningococcal bacteria and the one most prevalent on college campuses. Some campus leaders also worry that a mandate might pose a barrier to entry for students and parents reluctant about vaccines. The debate over whether to require the vaccine also touches on a sensitive question: How does a college balance the risk of a campus outbreak -- a catastrophe -- with the expenses associated with protecting their students against a disease that affects only a few colleges per year?
 
Dr. Anthony Fauci: US may 'turn the corner' on virus, but spring break poses big risks
White House officials expressed optimism Wednesday about the pace of COVID-19 vaccinations while also voicing worries that partying on spring break at sunny tourist destinations could fuel outbreaks. "I'm often asked, 'Are we turning the corner?' My response is really more like, 'We are at the corner Whether or not we turn the corner remains to be seen," White House senior medical adviser Anthony Fauci said at a press briefing. "We do have a lot of challenges in front of us with regard to the high level of daily infections." The level of daily new infections hovers around 55,000, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, far below the winter surge but still too high to resume regular life. CDC Director Rochelle Walensky said the agency is monitoring the potential impact of spring break trips and stressed "hanging in there" for a few more weeks. "I am indeed enthusiastic about the pace of vaccination that is happening, about the early data we're seeing, about the changes in infection rates, the changes in emergency department rates," Walensky said. "What concerns me is the footage of what is happening with spring breakers and people who are not continuing to implement prevention strategies while we get fully scaled up." Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson, a Republican, said Tuesday that he was worried about people returning from Florida to the state. "Our emphasis on the spring breakers coming back is to get tested, take precautions," Hutchinson said. But Hutchinson doubled down on a promise to lift the state's mask mandate by March 31.


SPORTS
 
Mississippi State baseball routs North Alabama with Arkansas looming
Mississippi State outclassed North Alabama in every way Wednesday. The No. 3 Bulldogs beat the Lions 18-1 at Dudy Noble Field. MSU (17-4) scored at least three runs in each of the first five innings and shut out UNA (1-17) through the first seven. Freshman Mikey Tepper pitched two innings in his first career start. He only needed 17 pitches, 15 of which were strikes. He struck out three of the seven batters he faced. Tepper and six other Mississippi State pitchers combined for 15 strikeouts. The 10 Bulldogs who toed the rubber allowed a total of six hits and four walks. North Alabama had more errors (five) than hits (four) through seven innings. Senior right fielder Tanner Allen went 3 for 3 with three RBIs and two runs scored. Junior catcher Luke Hancock matched Allen with three runs driven in. Sophomore third baseman Kamren James was 2 for 2 with two runs scored and two RBIs. Mississippi State totaled 14 hits. Mississippi State hosts No. 2 Arkansas (16-3) in a three-game series starting Friday at 6:30 p.m.
 
No. 3 Mississippi State throttles North Alabama, sets up weekend showdown with No. 2 Arkansas
One by one, Mississippi State's pinstriped roster circled the bases. This was no meme or GIF, however comical the optics. Rather, it was a product of a team that combined for 14 hits and 18 runs in Wednesday's 18-1 shellacking of North Alabama (1-17). "We wanted to, like you said, get some guys some (at-bats) and we also wanted to get a lot of arms out there," Bulldogs head coach Chris Lemonis said, "and we were able to do both and get a little tune-up for the weekend," Throughout the 2021 campaign, MSU (17-4, 2-1 SEC) has struggled to find rhythm early in games. The third-ranked Bulldogs had combined for just 20 runs in the first two innings all year. Wednesday, though, MSU promptly turned North Alabama starter Will Haberstock's outing into an office softball game in the first two frames. Batter after batter, pitch after pitch, MSU tagged Haberstock for eight runs -- all earned -- on seven hits. "We were seeing it great tonight, obviously we scored 18 runs," fourth-year junior Tanner Allen, who notched three RBIs on the night, said. "We were just being aggressive early and just getting back to kind of what we do." North Alabama, conversely, had more errors (five) than hits (four) through seven innings of play.
 
Mississippi State blasts North Alabama, 18-1
The Mississippi State baseball team got one final tune up on Wednesday night. No. 3-ranked Mississippi State beat North Alabama, 18-1, at Dudy Noble Field. The Bulldogs (17-4, 2-1 SEC) host No. 2 Arkansas (16-3, 2-1) for a three-game SEC series starting on Friday night. In the 18-1 win over North Alabama, Mississippi State sent 17 different batters to the plate and used 10 total pitchers on the mound. "It was good," Lemonis said of the game. "We wanted to get some guys some at-bats and we wanted to get a lot of arms out there and we were able to do both. It was a little tune up for the weekend." On the mound, freshman Mikey Tepper started and pitched two innings and allowed no runs and only one hit. Houston Harding, who has started the last three midweek games, pitched one inning of relief and struck out two batters. Lemonis is wanting to save Harding for this weekend against Arkansas to match up with Arkansas' left-handed batters. Spencer Price, Cam Tullar, Stone Simmons, K.C. Hunt and Drew Talley also all threw one inning each.
 
What Kylin Hill, Erroll Thompson said about Mississippi State football's NFL Pro Day
A reunion of sorts took place inside the Leo Seal Jr. Football Complex and the Palmeiro Center on Mississippi State's campus Wednesday. Media and fans were not allowed to attend Mississippi State's NFL Pro Day, but that was of no consequence to the players participating. They had all that they needed. They had each other and a chance to prove to pro scouts why they belong on the field at the next level. It was a surreal day for linebacker Erroll Thompson and defensive lineman Marquiss Spencer, working out one more time at the facilities they have called home since 2016. "It definitely is very bittersweet," Thompson said. "When we first got in (Tuesday), just going over things we'd be doing (Wednesday), just chopping it up with the guys and how practices used to go, memories of games. It's definitely been very bittersweet seeing those guys out there cheering on former teammates. It's been very bittersweet, and I'm going to miss those guys. I love those guys a lot." It was a special experience for running back Kylin Hill, who returned to Mississippi State and was welcomed with open arms after opting out of the 2020 season less than halfway into it. Hill said there was nothing but mutual love from his side and from his former teammates.
 
Columbus native Kylin Hill returns to Mississippi State for Pro Day
For the first time in months, Columbus native Kylin Hill returned to Mississippi State. Having left the team in November in order to prepare for the NFL draft, Hill was one of a slew of former Bulldogs to partake in Wednesday's pro day. While numbers from his afternoon weren't readily available and the session was closed to reporters, the former Columbus High School standout was high on his performance. "It's been a real grind," Hill said of prepping the past few months. "Especially competing against real good athletes on the same level as me or even better. Basically just seeing where I'm at in the process and the best is just coming out of everything, got to display the hard work and everything went smooth." One of the more intriguing backs in the 2021 draft, Hill's versatility and numbers speak for themselves. In Joe Moorhead's spread scheme during the 2019 season, he came just 41 yards shy of breaking Anthony "Boobie" Dixon's single-season rushing record and concluded his MSU career with over 2,500 yards and 16 touchdowns to his name. "Just seeing him, man, he looks great," linebacker Erroll Thompson, who also participated in Pro Day, said of Hill.
 
How Dallas Cowboys legend Michael Irvin inspired Jerry Jones' confidence in Dak Prescott's rehab
Jerry Jones says he wasn't waiting for a specific X-ray. And he wasn't waiting for Dak Prescott to run at a certain speed, jump at a certain height or throw a spiral with a certain stability. So what made the Dallas Cowboys owner confident enough in his quarterback's rehabilitation process to shell out a four-year, $160 million contract? "We compared his rehab with a guy that I thought was legendary as far as how he handled his rehab when he was first injured, and that was Michael Irvin," Jones told USA TODAY Sports over Zoom. "Michael Irvin had the most conscientious work-hard at that time that most that were around his rehab said, 'I've never seen anyone rehab to that degree, work that hard, be that conscientious.' We compared how Dak works on his rehab with how Michael had done it. "(Dak's) history in dealing with injuries is very good. Very, very good. That has as much to do with anything as to how he rehabs and how conscientious he is in rehab." "I'm healthy," Prescott said March 10 at a press conference to discuss his new contract. "I thought about jogging out here and jumping up on stage, but I don't know if y'all are ready for that. I'll be ready when it matters."
 
Vaught-Hemingway Stadium to accept Flex Dollars next year
Vaught-Hemingway Stadium will be adding a Flex Dollar portal to concession stands for the football season next fall. Robert Hughes, a sophomore public policy leadership major and Associated Student Body vice chair of the athletics committee, said that he first brought up the idea when he was a freshman, expressing his disappointment in not being able to use his Flex Dollars at a concession stand during a football game. "We were attempting to get this accomplished (last year), however the administration had not yet picked a new athletic director, so it was virtually impossible to meet with the athletics department regarding Flex in the stadium," Hughes said. After Hughes became the vice chair of the athletics committee, he organized a meeting with Keith Carter, the athletics director, to begin the project. He said that Carter was very enthusiastic about the idea, but at first, he was worried that university food provider Aramark may resist the idea. Hughes said that after meetings with Carter, the idea was passed on to the contract office, where Larry Sparks, the vice chancellor for finance and administration, approved of it before retiring in December 2020. According to an email from Kathy Tidwell, the director of contractual services and licensing, there are some equipment parts that the university will need to purchase and install, but expect to have it before football season starts.
 
Assistant coach Jay Graham cites 'mental health issues' for sudden resignation at Alabama
Alabama tight ends coach Jay Graham said Wednesday that "mental health issues" and a need to seek professional help led to his sudden resignation from the football staff. "I am taking time away from football to seek professional help immediately, gain a better understanding of mental health and spend time with loved ones," Graham wrote on Twitter. "I hope to rebalance my life so that I am able to return to my passion of coaching and helping student-athletes achieve their dreams. "While mental health issues are not new, they are often difficult to discuss, especially for coaches/athletes. I hope my voice inspires others that may be struggling to seek help. I would like to thank everyone for their support, grace and words of encouragement." Earlier Wednesday, UA in a school release said "Jay Graham has resigned his position effective immediately." There was no elaboration until Graham's tweet. UA hired the 45-year-old Graham as special teams coordinator and tight ends coach on Feb. 1. A Concord, North Carolina, native, Graham played running back at Tennessee from 1993-96, rushing for 2,609 yards during his career.
 
Few Black women coaches lead Power Five basketball programs
Dawn Staley and Joni Taylor embraced before and after the Southeastern Conference Tournament championship, savoring an historic moment in women's basketball. It took 41 years for two Black women head coaches to meet for the first time in a tournament championship of a Power Five conference. For it to happen quicker was statistically improbable with the few Black women coaching at the highest level of the college game. And it remains a longshot to happen again in a Power Five league other than the Southeastern Conference. In the last five years, there have been a total of 16 Black women head coaches at Power Five schools and this past season there were just 13 -- with four hired last year. Of those 13, seven resided in the SEC. "You can't dream what you can't see," said Taylor, whose Georgia squad came up short against Staley and South Carolina on March 7. "So (the SEC title game) was a chance for people to dream something that they haven't seen before." Staley said her phone was swamped by text messages from other Black coaches around the country congratulating and thanking her and Taylor after the SEC game "for giving them hope that one day they can be in this position, assistant coaches as well." A recent NCAA survey of athletes found that minority women's basketball players reported having a far more challenging overall experience compared to athletes in other sports.
 
Pressure mounts on NCAA as House Democrats demand answers over tournament disparities
Controversy over gender disparities at college basketball's marquee tournaments reached Capitol Hill on Wednesday, as a group of 36 House Democrats demanded answers of NCAA President Mark Emmert and soccer star Megan Rapinoe called out NCAA officials in a congressional hearing. In a letter to Emmert, the lawmakers asked for a review of the NCAA's other championships and raised questions about the organization's role in fueling inequity in college sports, a sign that scrutiny of the NCAA is likely to expand beyond this month's men's and women's basketball tournaments. Rapinoe, the outspoken star of the U.S. women's national team, also signaled out Emmert by name, testifying about equal-pay issues before the House Committee on Oversight and Reform. "For Mark Emmert and the executives at the NCAA, you just simply have to do better," Rapinoe said at the hearing. Along with other inequities, the refusal to allow female athletes to use the March Madness brand, the letter says, "reflect NCAA's lack of commitment to the spirit of Title IX." "Despite having corrected at least some of these infractions, the NCAA's clear disregard for women cannot be tolerated," the letter says.
 
Cubs and MLB's 'Fine Print' Appeal Nixed in Injured Fan's Lawsuit
In a ruling that raises questions about how teams can use paper game tickets to preempt personal injury litigation, an Illinois appellate court rejected an appeal by Major League Baseball and the Chicago Cubs over the use of a binding arbitration clause. The case involves Laiah Zuniga, a woman in her late 20s who received ticket from her dad to the Cubs-New York Mets game at Wrigley Field on Aug. 27, 2018. While Zuniga was seated in the club box outfield section, a foul ball hit her in the face. The impact fractured bones and caused orthopedic, nerve and dental injuries. Zuniga required four days of hospitalization, followed by a couple of weeks of home care. During that time, she couldn't engage in reading or other eye-straining activities. Through her attorney, Tracy Brammeier of the Clifford Law Group, Zuniga sued MLB and the Cubs for negligence. MLB and the Cubs moved to dismiss the lawsuit on grounds that Zuniga had assented to a binding arbitration clause. Zuniga insisted this arrangement is unconscionable. Appellate Judge James Fitzgerald Smith agreed with Zuniga. He emphasized that arbitration clauses are generally enforceable, even in instances when consumers are denied a chance to negotiate (a take-it-or-leave-it scenario, sometimes called a contract of adhesion) and even when clauses rely on legalese that might perplex an ordinary person. Yet Judge Smith reasoned that the Cubs' approach was "procedurally unconscionable."
 
The Pandemic Pushed People Outside And Now, Some Companies Hope They Stay There
Something weird happened on the primitive mountain bike trails outside of Kansas City last spring. Coleen Voeks says she went from seeing a person or two stretched out along miles of trail there, to seeing a mass of humanity. "As soon as the pandemic hit everybody went outside," says Voeks, a trail running coach. "So the trails became so crowded with people, new people, families, you know, people who'd never been to the trails before." This awakening of sorts is worldwide, according to Nick Hage, general manager of Cannondale and GT Bicycles for North America and Japan. "This global pandemic caused people to globally to change their behaviors, which ultimately has led to a global bike boom," Hage says. And that's not just bikes, sales of golf equipment climbed 10%, in January camper sales were up almost 40% compared to January 2020, and boats are doing even better. A society shift toward outdoor recreation presents sweeping opportunity for a company like Garmin International, in Olathe, Kan. It specializes in navigation and fitness devises. "Everything that our company is about is getting outside and being active. And that's what everyone was trying to do last year, amid the pandemic," says Audra Ratliff, product marketing manager for Garmin's outdoor recreation segment.



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