| Monday, February 7, 2022 |
| School news: MSU celebrates Black History Month with February events | |
 | Mississippi State is hosting a variety of programs on the Starkville campus to commemorate Black History Month, including a series of interdisciplinary conversations on race, racism and class, and a lecture by a former president of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, or NAACP. The 2014-2017 president of the NAACP, Cornell William Brooks, is a special guest for The Orators Lecture Series at 4 p.m. Feb. 21 in Colvard Student Union's Fowlkes Auditorium. Brooks is the professor of Practice of Public Leadership and Social Justice at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government. The series, begun by MSU's Shackoul's Honors College, invites speakers that represent various campus disciplines and topics to engage the university community in research, course work, and public forums. The AAS program also is hosting an MLK Oratory Contest in collaboration with the MSU Speech and Debate team, with applications due Feb. 16. Preliminary competitions are held Feb. 23 in the Colvard Student Union, and finals are Feb. 25 in Dorman Hall. To apply, contact Cheryl Chambers at cchambers@comm.msstate.edu. Black Alumni Weekend is Feb. 17-20, with a Black Alumni Career Mixer from 1-4 p.m. Feb. 17 in the Union, and the Gospel Brunch from 9-10:30 a.m. Feb. 20 at the Mill at MSU. To register, visit bit.ly/34wJp1V. |
| MSU's Marshall named executive director of Ulysses S. Grant Association, Presidential Library | |
| A Mississippi State University Civil War historian, researcher and author is the new leader of a national association and university presidential library. Anne Marshall, associate professor in the MSU Department of History, was named executive director of the Ulysses S. Grant Association and the U.S. Grant Presidential Library. Both are housed in the university's Mitchell Memorial Library and curate the 18th president's papers, while preserving a vast array of artifacts and memorabilia. Marshall takes the helm of an organization that has published 32 volumes of Grant's writings; collected many original letters written by Grant, his associates and family; and has more than 200,000 photocopies of every known letter written by Grant and other documents. In 2017, the USGA and Presidential Library staff edited "The Personal Memoirs of Ulysses S. Grant: The Complete Annotated Edition" (Harvard University Press, 2017). Employed by MSU in 2006 as an assistant history professor, Marshall follows the USGA leadership of John Marszalek, who has served as executive director and managing editor since 2006. Marszalek, an MSU William L. Giles Distinguished Professor Emeritus, continues with the association as contributing editor, working to complete the annotated memoirs of Civil War General William T. Sherman. He also remains on the group's board of directors. |
| Sculpture exhibit opens at MSU's Cullis Wade Depot Art Gallery | |
| A sculpture exhibit by Mississippi artist Earl Dismuke will be featured in MSU's Cullis Wade Depot Art Gallery through March 11. "Piecing it Together" showcases a series of pieces from two of Dismuke's most recent bodies of work. The collections feature both abstract and objective narratives, with one collection focusing on fabricating a story through found objects, and the other centering on form and negative space. A sculpture artist for more than a decade, Dismuke co-founded the Yokna Sculpture Trail, a biannual, rotating outdoor exhibition that features a variety of sculptures from artists across the nation. His work has been exhibited in both national and international venues, from Louisiana and Mississippi to Switzerland and Peru. The showing, located on the second floor of the Cullis Wade Depot, is available for viewing during the building's normal hours of operation, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. The show also includes a discussion of Dismuke's work and a walk-through of the exhibit at 1 p.m. Feb. 17, with a public reception on the same day from 5 to 6 p.m. The Starkville Area Arts Council and Starkville Visitors and Convention Bureau are sponsors. |
| A Starkville church hosts MSU singers during Sunday worship service | |
 | A Starkville church is kicking off Black History Month services with a celebration of songs. Second Baptist Church hosted the Mississippi State University Singers during its worship service Sunday morning. The choir, comprised of about 53 members, performs full length concerts both on and off campus. The MSU Singers has also performed at state and regional conferences and the White House. This morning, the group presented a mix of spirituals, classical pieces, and traditional gospel. During service, Second Baptist honored the group's conductor, Dr. Gary Packwood, for his outstanding career as a musician and teacher. The group will be in concert at First Baptist Church on February 15th. |
| Report shows Oktibbeha dam improvements could cost $15 million | |
| A preliminary report of Oktibbeha County Lake Dam improvements shows a potential cost estimate of over $15 million, despite there being no erosion in the dam's core. That's almost twice the $8 million for full dam repairs Prichard Engineering estimated in January 2020 after it was suspected the dam was in imminent danger of breaching. The Oktibbeha County Board of Supervisors contracted with Flowood-based Pickering Engineering Firm, a company included in larger engineering firm Mississippi Engineering Group, in July 2021 to conduct an investigation on the status of the dam. MEG subcontracted with Starkville-based Burns Cooley Dennis Waggoner Engineering to conduct a geotechnical analysis of the dam, and Waggoner Engineering, also a part of MEG, is conducting the cost estimate for the dam. The board met in shifts on Thursday with Pickering Firm Director of Special Projects Jeff Ballweber, Waggoner Engineering Chief Technical Officer Bill McDonald and Burns Cooley Dennis Geotechnical Engineer Eddie Templeton Thursday to discuss MEG's preliminary report of its findings. MEG will present the final report and cost estimates at the board's regular meeting Feb. 21. |
| Evidence Builds That U.S. Omicron Wave Is Waning as Cases Fall | |
 | Evidence mounted that the Covid-19 wave driven by the Omicron variant is waning in the U.S. as a downturn in cases and hospitalizations continued over the weekend and deaths of people diagnosed with the disease appear to have stopped climbing. Recorded infections have shown a sharp fall, with the seven-day average of new cases on Sunday dropping below 300,000 daily for the first time this year, data from Johns Hopkins University show. A week earlier, the seven-day daily case average was over 500,000. The seven-day average of people in the hospital with confirmed or suspected Covid-19 fell below 120,000 on Sunday, the lowest figure since Jan. 6, according to data from the Department of Health and Human Services. The figure peaked at more than 159,000 on Jan. 20. Meanwhile, a recent study by researchers at the National Institutes of Health examining an Omicron-specific booster in monkeys has provided an early clue that tweaked vaccines may be unnecessary. The study, which was published on Friday, found that there was no significant difference in the immune responses of monkeys that had been boosted with the existing Moderna Inc. vaccine and those that received a version tailored to target the Omicron variant. |
| Mississippi revenue up above estimates into the start of the 2022 calendar year | |
 | Mississippi state revenues continue to soar above the fiscal year legislative budget estimates. Total revenue collections for the month of January FY 2022 are $121,788,680 or 27.83% above the sine die revenue estimate. Fiscal YTD revenue collections through January 2022 are $667,046,328 or 20.45% above the sine die estimate. Fiscal YTD total revenue collections through January 2022 are $363,021,885 or 10.18% above the prior year's collections. The FY 2022 Sine Die Revenue Estimate is $5,927,000,000. January FY 2022 General Fund collections were $37,848,687 or 7.26% over January FY 2021 actual collections. Sales tax collections for the month of January were above the prior year by $23.2M. Individual income tax collections for the month of January were above the prior year by $31.2M. Corporate income tax collections for the month of January were below the prior year by $34.4M. |
| Analysis: Mississippi considers college aid for foster youth | |
 | Most states already offer scholarships or tuition waivers for young people who have spent time in the foster care system. Mississippi could join that list this year. The state House last week passed House Bill 1313, to create the Fostering Access and Inspiring True Hope (FAITH) Scholarship Program. It would provide tuition waivers at community colleges or universities for people who have spent all or part of their teenage years in foster care. The program would be for ages 14 to 26, for people pursuing job certification or undergraduate degrees. It would be open to people in the foster system at the time they apply, and to those who spent part of their teen years in foster care but were adopted or reunited with their birth families. The program would include services to guide students as they apply for college. The bill -- which moves to the Senate for more work -- says the program initially would cover costs for up to 150 people and eventually would be expanded to cover up to 900. Sean Milner is executive director of The Baptist Children's Village, which has seven residential campuses in Mississippi for children, teenagers and young adults up to age 20. Milner also spent 18 years growing up in custody of the organization. He said young people in foster care are constantly thinking about their own future, but college is often not calculated as a possibility because they know they can't afford it. The proposed tuition waiver and mentoring services could change that outlook, Milner said. "Really and truly, what this does is create a bright future for kids who are in a really tough place right now," Milner said. |
| Pending proposal would waive college tuition for current and former foster youth in Mississippi | |
 | There's a pending proposal at the Capitol that foster youth in the state say could be life-changing. House Bill 1313 passed the Mississippi House unanimously Thursday. "We all have different stories and we've overcome and I believe with this piece of legislation that it's going to give them a chance," said Rep. Richard Bennett during the floor presentation of the bill. Tuition waivers for foster students is something the Child Protection Services Commissioner sees as a step in helping extend support to young people who otherwise may age out of the system and be cut off from services and supports. "I think the most amazing part of it is to give that message to children who feel like they belong to nobody," said MDCPS Commissioner Andrea Sanders. "The fact is, they belong to Mississippi, they are our kids." Maranda Turner was in custody till 2019. She's now one test away from getting her GED. And she candidly thought that would be the end of her formal schooling. "Being a cosmetologist is more achievable than what my actual dream is, which is to be able to be a foster advocate, but you have to have a social work degree, and things like that I never thought I could actually do because it is so expensive," explained Maranda Turner. "And so with this bill passing, it's it changed my whole outlook on things." And she's excited about what that could mean for not just her future but the system's. |
| TVA asking feds if it is legal to supply power to medical marijuana facilities | |
 | Days after Mississippi legalized marijuana for medicinal use, the Tennessee Valley Authority -- one of the main suppliers of wholesale electricity to north Mississippi -- is uncertain if it can provide its resources to medical cannabis facilities. In a document obtained by the Daily Journal, TVA announced that since it's a federally owned utility company, it must adhere to federal drug laws. Though marijuana use is legal in several states, the product is still federally illegal. "Given this important point, TVA will not direct any federal resources or funds to the cultivation and/or distribution of marijuana," the statement reads. The document's authenticity was confirmed by TVA. The document also said that if any TVA employee learns that a customer served by a local power company violates federal law regarding marijuana, the employee must report it to the company's management. Several municipal-owned utility companies in Northeast Mississippi, such as Tupelo Water and Light, receive their power from TVA. But the organization's statement is unclear if municipal companies that receive TVA power can serve electricity to a legal cannabis facility. The Mississippi State Department of Health is statutorily required to begin reviewing applications for some cannabis facilities and patient cards in June. The Mississippi Department of Revenue is required to start reviewing licenses for marijuana dispensaries in July. |
| The market, not climate concerns, is driving Mississippi's slow push for renewable energy | |
| Mississippi, a state where natural gas dominates the energy supply, may soon be turning a corner in its transition to clean and renewable energy. But amid a global effort to reduce the future impacts of climate change, the state is letting the market, not emissions, dictate that shift. The U.S. as a whole generates about 20% of its power from renewables, which includes wind, hydropower, solar and biomass, such as wood or plants. Renewable energy sources replenish themselves more quickly than traditional energy sources like oil, gas and coal, and significantly reduce emissions that are harmful to the environment. But in Mississippi, renewable energy generates little, if any, political excitement: A little over 2% of the net electricity utilities generate comes from renewable sources, according to the latest federal data from 2021. State lawmakers have largely ignored the climate debate, even while other state legislatures tackle the issue directly. But all that is slowly changing in this deeply conservative state. Northern District Public Service Commissioner Brandon Presley, the longest-serving of the three elected PSC leaders, explained that the economy, not environmental impacts, will always steer the conversation in Mississippi. "You have a better chance of getting these projects done because of the economic development side of it than trying to argue the merits of emissions," Presley said. |
| Mississippi House passes bill making kratom illegal | |
| One day after marijuana became legal in Mississippi for medicinal use, the state House on Thursday passed legislation that would make the herbal product known as kratom illegal. "This is a drug that has no medicinal value," House Drug Policy Chairman Lee Yancey said from the House flood, Thursday. Yancey, R-Brandon, said that law enforcement agencies, district attorney's offices and other groups asked him to introduce legislation banning the product because they view it as addictive. The bill passed the house 82-28. Most Northeast Mississippi representatives voted in favor of the bill. The Northeast Mississippi legislators who opposed the measure are Reps. Chris Brown of Nettleton, Sam Creekmore of New Albany, Rob Roberson of Starkville, and Cheikh Taylor of Starkville. Kratom is derived from the leaves of a Southeast Asian tree and is currently legal under federal law and Mississippi state law. The product is available in whole leaves, powder and capsules. Mississippians can order the product online or they can purchase kratom, or at least what's advertised at kratom, from gas stations and convenience stores. Supporters of the product say it provides safe, non-addictive pain relief. Some kratom users also say it manages the withdrawal symptoms of potent opiate drugs. Law enforcement agencies, however, have described kratom as addictive and dangerous. |
| Report: AG investigating Coleman for possible fraud | |
| The Mississippi Attorney General's Office is investigating whether John Coleman, the president of Express Grain Terminals LLC, committed fraud by allegedly submitting falsified financial documents to state regulators, a Jackson newspaper is reporting. The Clarion Ledger said in its Saturday print edition that Attorney General Lynn Fitch's office confirmed the investigation but did not comment further. Agriculture Commissioner Andy Gipson has accused Express Grain, when it applied in 2021 to the state Department of Agriculture and Commerce for renewal of its warehouse licenses, of submitting a doctored copy of an annual audit performed by an independent accounting firm. Gipson held a hearing Thursday on whether to suspend or revoke those licenses. Although no decision was immediately rendered, Gipson told the Clarion Ledger that wrongdoing by the Greenwood-based company now in bankruptcy had been confirmed. "There was uncontested evidence that fraud occurred," Gipson is quoted as saying. When contacted Saturday, Coleman declined to comment. Although Coleman retains the title of president of Express Grain, the day-to-day operations are now managed by Dennis Gerrard, whose firm was hired to try to turn around the money-losing company or prepare it for potential sale. Late last month, the federal judge overseeing the separate bankruptcy filings of Express Grain and Coleman signed off on a plan from Gerrard to find a buyer over the next two months. |
| China competitiveness bill will test whether Democrats and Republicans can strike substantive deal in election year | |
 | The House's passage Friday of a bill aimed at making the United States more economically competitive with China sets up potentially tricky negotiations with Senate Republicans as the Biden administration hopes to quickly strike a bipartisan deal over spending to boost the nation's manufacturing and research capabilities. The 222-to-210 House vote on the $250 billion America Competes Act fell mostly along party lines. Republicans argued that the legislation was not tough enough on China, while Democrats hailed it as a major step toward improving U.S. industrial policy as tensions with Beijing grow in the economic and national security spheres. "The America Competes Act will ensure that America's preeminence in manufacturing, innovation and economic strength ... can outcompete any nation," House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said before the vote. "Hundreds of members of Congress have been involved in putting this legislation together, overwhelmingly bipartisan in its development, regardless of how the Republicans choose politically to vote today." Attention now turns to negotiations with the Senate, where a similar bipartisan bill passed last year with the support of 18 Republicans. Biden administration officials and Democratic lawmakers have expressed optimism that a deal can be struck, sending the legislation to President Biden for his signature this spring. The Senate Republicans who supported the bill have been more cautious in their comments about the upcoming negotiations, saying several changes will need to be made to the House bill. Hanging over the upcoming negotiations is the question of whether Senate Republicans will be swayed by their House counterparts' stiff resistance to finding common ground with Democrats and Biden. |
| Republicans back Pence rebuke of Trump on overturning 2020 election | |
 | A number of GOP figures on Sunday said they backed former Vice President Mike Pence in his rebuke of former President Trump's claim that he had the authority to overturn the 2020 election results. Pence made headlines on Friday when he broke from Trump in the clearest terms yet, saying the former president was "wrong" in believing he had the right to overturn the election when he oversaw the official count of electoral votes on Jan. 6, 2021. The former vice president called Trump's suggestion "un-American." "I had no right to overturn the election. The presidency belongs to the American people, and the American people alone," Pence said at a Federalist Society event on Friday. His comments came days after Trump issued a statement saying he believed Pence had the authority to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election in Trump's favor. Pence refused to give in to Trump's pressure and block the certification of the Electoral College results in January 2021. Pence has indicated that he did not know if he and Trump would "ever see eye to eye on that day." Several Republicans on Sunday came to Pence's defense, saying they agreed he had no authority to single-handedly give Trump a second term. Former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) said "the actions the vice president took on Jan. 6 spoke loudly," adding that he was "glad" Pence "finally put words to it." "I don't know why it took him so long, but I'm glad that he did," Christie said. |
| The Murky Finances of Black Lives Matter | |
| There are, broadly speaking, two branches of activism. There are on-the-ground, grassroots organizers like Johnson, who work locally, passionately, with little money, often risking their lives and livelihood through their protests. And then there are the larger, more professionalized national groups with corporate donations and fund-raising power, whose high-profile leaders can garner lucrative speaking gigs and book deals. Tensions between the two paths have existed at least since the American civil-rights movement of the 1950s and '60s. But social justice and modern civil rights have become increasingly fashionable in the ten years since Trayvon Martin's death, and more money than ever has flowed to the most visible groups. They have reaped tens of millions of dollars, while some local organizers stretched themselves to the brink of homelessness. Even as national groups have made overtures to work more closely with community organizers, activists in the latter camp have become concerned that their work is being co-opted by profiteers. This decades-old divide now exists in extreme form within Black Lives Matter. It is simultaneously a decentralized coalition of local organizers who eke out progress city by city, dollar by dollar, and an opaque nonprofit entity, well capitalized and friendly with corporations, founded by three mediagenic figures -- Patrisse Cullors and her co-founders Alicia Garza and Opal (now Ayo) Tometi. Some local activists contend that little of the money raised at the national level makes its way to their organizations or to the families of Black people killed by police. |
| Kroger makes five-year pledge to reduce food insecurity at UM | |
| A strategic partnership with Kroger helped Grove Grocery provide 9,291 free meals to those in the University of Mississippi community with food insecurity issues during the 2020-21 academic year. To ensure this crucial resource continues, Kroger has committed to maintain its support for the next five years. Since the pandemic began, "the utilization of our services has gone way up," said Kate Forster, director of advocacy at UMatter: Student Support and Advocacy. She's staff adviser to Grove Grocery, the campus food pantry. "The pandemic really shined a light on our work. More students became aware of the pantry, and more students accessed the resource, including a high number of graduate and international students who have been especially impacted by the pandemic." Grove Grocery provides food, hygiene and cleaning items to students, faculty and staff at no charge. There is no application process; everyone is eligible. "We want it to be as low-barrier as possible, to reduce stigma and to encourage any university community member facing food insecurity to reach out, come visit and use our services," Forster said. Kroger's partnership with Ole Miss began in 2019. The grocery store provided gift cards to Grove Grocery enabling the student volunteers to keep the shelves stocked. The students use the cards to purchase food throughout the year. They submit orders, and Kroger employees fill them. Kroger manager Jeff Neal oversees the order processing and ensures that the best-priced items are chosen. |
| Ridgeland Mayor's Plan to Ban 'Homosexual Materials' from Library Inspires UM Religion Talk | |
| University of Mississippi student Sara Giray doesn't remember reading about any gay couples in books growing up, but she remembers years of school-required readings that centered around heterosexual couples---in everything from Marie Lu's "Legend," to Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet." Her college hosted a brown bag "Religion for Lunch" conversation on Feb. 1, 2022, to discuss Ridgeland (Miss.) Mayor Gene McGee's decision to refuse the Madison County Library System its funding unless the staff agrees to purge LGBTQ+ books from their shelves, a story the Mississippi Free Press originally reported. "It's unethical to just provide that portion," Giray said at the event, explaining that it is only fair to show both same-sex and opposite-sex couples. "How are you supposed to identify yourself if you don't ever see yourself?" "If you don't centralize other viewpoints -- outside of heteronormative, societally acceptable sort-of viewpoints -- you're putting a lot of youth at risk of things like depression, suicide and so forth," Giray said. The lunch group discussed the theoretical: Would the situation be the same if the LGBTQ+ books were required readings in schools, the same way books with heterosexual characters are assigned now? |
| Health coverage for thousands of Mississippians in question as UMMC and Blue Cross negotiate contract | |
| Thousands of patients of Mississippi's largest hospital and its clinics could be on the hook for higher out-of-pocket costs if the University of Mississippi Medical Center and Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Mississippi do not agree on a new contract by March 31. The contract dispute dates back to 2018 but was temporarily resolved when an agreement was reached then between the two entities. UMMC, the state's largest health care provider, wants Blue Cross, the state's largest insurer, to pay higher reimbursement rates for medical services provided. BCBS has balked at that request. The contracts negotiated between insurers and providers include massive discounts for the providers in their networks. If an agreement cannot be reached before March 31 and UMMC is forced out of the BCBS network, thousands of patients with BCBS insurance plans would have to pay the hospital's inflated "chargemaster" prices or find health care elsewhere. This week, UMMC officials sent a letter to each of its patients with commercial BCBS plans, alerting them to how their coverage could be affected by the outcome of the ongoing negotiations. "Our negotiations with Blue Cross continue and we are hopeful that a new contract can be agreed upon before the current agreement ends," Dr. LouAnn Woodward, UMMC vice chancellor for health affairs, said in a statement to Mississippi Today on Friday. "It's a top priority that all Mississippians have uninterrupted access to the physicians and other services provided by the state's only academic medical center and no patients experience disruption to their trusted UMMC care." Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Mississippi officials did not respond to a request for comment on Friday. |
| 47th USM Forum Series to start Tuesday | |
 | The 47th annual USM Forum will kick off Tuesday, Feb. 8. "We have one in March and then two in April. We take the summers off, and we'll start again in the fall with one in September," said Andrew Haley, the Director of USM Forum. The first event will be virtual, while the other events are currently scheduled for in person, but are subject to change, due to the pandemic. "This spring's university forum really focuses on issues of social justice and southern identity through the arts," said Haley. "We have an art historian to begin with, a celebrated author, somebody who looks at memorialization and statues and then a composer. We're really focusing on how the arts help us to understand our world." This forum is free and open to the public. |
| Belhaven University President Authors Book Defining a Fresh Model of Leadership | |
| Declared "one of the most radical and thought-provoking books I've read in a long time," Jordan Raynor, Executive Chairman of Threshold 360, along with a host of significant Christian leaders, are praising a new book released by Belhaven University President Dr. Roger Parrott. "Opportunity Leadership: Stop Planning and Start Getting Results" was released this week by Moody Publishers through nationwide booksellers in paperback, Kindle, or Audible formats. The book is also being released in Korean. Dr. Parrott challenges leaders to develop an "Opportunity Leadership" mindset, in which they see God-directed results like never before. In plain language, he guides readers in developing traits to focus their leadership outlook on untapped opportunities. Further, he provides a step-by-step plan for ministry organizations and churches to create organization-wide tendencies that enable them to respond to opportunities with expediency, adeptness, and energy. Crediting the Belhaven University trustees, faculty, and staff, Dr. Parrott said, "The insights shared in 'Opportunity Leadership' are due to the gifts of a marvelous university that has learned to abandon traditional planning to capture God's best future." |
| 'It's just rocket science': UASPACE set to launch U. of Alabama's first satellite | |
 | When Abby Feeder was 10 years old, her parents took her to the Kennedy Space Center for her birthday. She got to see construction on the International Space Station and meet an astronaut. On Saturday, Feeder was in Florida again with several other University of Alabama students, this time to watch a small satellite they helped design and build go into orbit. Fingers were crossed as range problems delayed the countdown for the rocket that carried the University of Alabama's first object to be launched into orbit. Unfortunately, Saturday's launch was scrubbed because of a problem on the launch range and was rescheduled for noon Monday. The Bama-1 CubeSat, a small satellite about the size of a loaf of bread, has been under development for more than three years by members of UASPACE, a club within the aerospace engineering program. It will test an idea students devised to help future satellites de-orbit quickly and safely when they cease to function. "We are doing a technology demonstration mission of something called a drag sail, which acts like a parachute on the satellite in orbit to bring it out of orbit much faster instead of remaining as space debris just going around the earth until it burns up," said Feeder, the current project manager who is from Denver, Colorado. |
| New Auburn president, engineering dean Chris Roberts, named | |
 | Auburn University named its current dean of engineering, Chris Roberts, as its 20th president Friday. His term begins May 16. The decision -- unlike who will continue to lead the school's football program -- was uncontroversial. Roberts has been the open favorite to become the university's new president for the past month. "This is my third presidential search, and I have to say this one is the smoothest and most well-run search," trustee Sarah Newton said at a board meeting. "His success in research and fundraising are impressive, but the most impressive thing is that he loves Auburn, and it makes him a natural choice for presidential consideration.... I feel very confident that he is ready to lead Auburn University to new heights." The Board of Trustees screened more than 60 candidates for the job, The Plainsman reported last month, but, when a pool of finalists were chosen, some refused to visit the campus and have their names publicized unless they were already guaranteed the job. That left Roberts. He has been dean of the Samuel Ginn College of Engineering since 2012, according to the university. Prominent engineering alumni include four astronauts and Apple CEO Tim Cook. In 2018, Auburn also achieved Carnegie R1 designation, noting increased research and funding in STEM and non-STEM fields. |
| 'A Mandate for Musical Chairs': Florida Bill Would Require Colleges to Change Accreditors | |
 | A bill being considered by the Florida Legislature would require all of the state's public colleges and universities to change accreditors within the next decade. In theory, that's possible, thanks to new rules approved under then-Education Secretary Betsy DeVos that make it easier for some colleges to seek a new accrediting agency. In practice, though, requiring colleges to change accreditors would create an enormous bureaucratic burden for the colleges, take up to two years of staff time, and cost more than $10,000 per institution. At the end of the process, an accreditor could simply say no to the application, leaving the institution with its existing accreditor. Accreditation by a federally recognized group is required for colleges to receive federal student-loan and Pell Grant monies from students. "They can't just automatically go to another accreditor. It's not like just going from Kroger's to Publix when you can't find something you want," said Belle S. Wheelan, president of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools' Commission on Colleges. More than 100 campuses in Florida are accredited by the Southern Association, including the 12 public universities and 28 state colleges, along with dozens of private colleges. But the association and Wheelan herself have come under scrutiny from some state lawmakers and members of the Florida Board of Governors because of the association's recent inquiries about political interference and conflicts of interest at the state's two best-known universities. |
| UAMS rises in national ranking of research spending while U. of Arkanasas falls | |
| A 14% increase in research spending boosted the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences seven spots to 130th nationally in an annual National Science Foundation survey of research expenditures by institution. UAMS saw a rise in its ranking for the second consecutive year, while UA-Fayetteville's ranking slid six spots to 133rd nationally. The latest Higher Education Research and Development survey shows spending in fiscal year 2020. At UA-Fayetteville, total research spending fell by 8% to $165.9 million, and the school's ranking slid for the second-straight year. The university's rank has fallen to its lowest level since fiscal year 2014, when UA-Fayetteville ranked 136th nationally. John English, UA-Fayetteville's top research officer since November 2020, said there's "some lag effect" in the survey data. "I know the [grant] awards are going to come on strong," English said, noting recent federally-funded projects at UA-Fayetteville. Among other projects, English referred to a five-year, $10.8 million National Institutes of Health grant announced last year for researchers led by Kyle Quinn, a UA-Fayetteville associate professor of biomedical engineering, to study cell and tissue metabolism. English said UA-Fayetteville continues to be guided by three signature research areas tied to health, sustainability and data analysis. |
| U. of Tennessee prof puts her research into action selling organic food online | |
 | The omicron variant and winter storms continue to hurt supply chains and labor shortages across the nation, and grocery stores in East Tennessee are feeling the effects. The empty aisles and produce displays mean East Tennesseans have less access to nutritious food. But Jen Russomanno, an assistant professor of public health at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, is trying to mitigate the problem. Russomanno and her partner Kim Bryant, the owners of Two Chicks and a Farm, have produced organic food at fair prices since 2012. Now, with the help of Market Wagon, an online farmers market, Russomanno and Bryant can distribute their products to more people across the region. "I think the pandemic has shed a light on issues with food systems in general," Russomanno said. "We saw early on the shortages with paper goods, toilet paper, you know, that kind of stuff. But in my opinion, now is when we're really seeing the effects of the shortages of the pandemic when it comes to food." Russomanno had never farmed before, but that didn't stop her and Bryant, an East Tennessee native whose father owned a farm, from taking a stab at it. Before they knew it, their hobby had turned into a full-time career. |
| Leaders at Black colleges alert, undeterred by bomb threats | |
| From her office in Birmingham, Alabama, DeJuana Thompson looks across the street and sees a daily reminder of terror. Her window overlooks the 16th Street Baptist Church, where a bomb in 1963 killed four young Black girls. "Living in the era of bomb threats is not new to people of color," said Thompson, president and CEO of the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute. Nearly six decades after that bombing by the Ku Klux Klan, the FBI is now investigating last week's bomb threats against at least 17 historically Black colleges and universities across the U.S. Thompson said the threats underscore the need to teach new generations the history of violence targeting people of color so the lessons of the past can be applied to the present. The FBI said the hate crimes probe involves more than 20 field offices and "is of the highest priority." Investigators have identified at least five "persons of interest," a law enforcement official told The Associated Press. The official could not discuss details of the investigation publicly and spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity. Universities in Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, and other states targeted last week have resumed operations since the lockdowns. But many still worry about future threats and efforts to prosecute those responsible. |
| Biden's top science adviser bullied and demeaned subordinates, according to White House investigation | |
 | President Joe Biden's top science adviser, Eric Lander, bullied and demeaned his subordinates and violated the White House's workplace policy, an internal White House investigation recently concluded, according to interviews and an audio recording obtained by POLITICO. The two-month investigation found "credible evidence" that Lander -- a Cabinet member and director of the Office of Science and Technology Policy who the White House touts as a key player in the pandemic response -- was "bullying" toward his then-general counsel, Rachel Wallace, according to a recorded January briefing on the investigation's findings. Christian Peele, the White House's deputy director of management and administration for personnel, said that the investigation also concluded that there was "credible evidence of disrespectful interactions with staff by Dr. Lander and OSTP leadership," according to the roughly 20-minute briefing, which included a representative of the White House Counsel's office. In an office of roughly 140 people, 14 current and former OSTP staffers who worked under Lander this past year shared similar descriptions of a toxic work environment where they say Lander frequently bullied, cut off and dismissed subordinates. Nine of those current and former OSTP staffers said Lander yelled and sometimes made people feel humiliated in front of their peers. Most were granted anonymity because they feared retaliation from Lander. The behavior is at odds with Biden's Day-1 warning to his political appointees that anyone who disrespected their colleagues would be fired "On the spot. No ifs, ands or buts." |
| Education Department revamps College Scorecard | |
| Education Secretary Miguel Cardona on Monday announced updates to the College Scorecard, a tool to help students weigh costs, future earnings and other factors when choosing institutions of higher education. The revamp is part of the Department of Education's focus on making college more accessible to a broader range of students. "For so many students and families, the college search process can be overwhelming. But easily accessible, high-quality information about higher education institutions can help students determine which college or university is the best fit for them," said Cardona in a statement. The College Scorecard will make more information available to school counselors and other stakeholders in education, while expanding and restoring some tools for students and their families. One major change is to restore institution-to-institution comparisons, allowing prospective students to compare colleges directly in terms of costs, graduation rates and post-college earnings. That tool had been removed during the Trump administration, as part of two much-touted changes to the Scorecard made under then-Secretary Betsy DeVos. Under DeVos, additions were made to the Scorecard to increase transparency on issues like graduate earnings, but information on graduate performance by institution was removed, hurting prospective students' ability to gauge low-performing institutions. Cardona's reforms to the tool will restore that information for the first time since 2018. |
| House passes College Transparency Act | |
 | The U.S. House of Representatives on Friday approved an amendment to add the College Transparency Act to another bill, which the House then passed. Under the College Transparency Act, colleges would be required to collect and submit data to the Department of Education regarding student enrollment, persistence, transfer and completion measures for all programs and degree levels. The data would also be disaggregated by demographics, including race and ethnicity, gender, and age. The bill would permit the Department of Education to periodically share limited data with other federal agencies, like the Internal Revenue Service and the Social Security Administration, to calculate postgraduate outcomes, such as income and career prospects. The result would be much more information about how colleges perform at educating students. Despite all the information that will be provided about students' performance, sponsors of the bill insist there are no real dangers to people's privacy, as the information will be provided in aggregate form. The transparency act has broad support from higher education organizations and has been endorsed by more than 150 such organizations and other groups. "This has been a long time coming," said Craig Lindwarm, vice president for governmental affairs at the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities. Lindwarm stressed that there was "still a long way to go," but he said he was confident that the bill would gain final approval from Congress and be signed by President Biden. |
| Free Community College Is Off the Table, Jill Biden Says | |
 | During his first address to Congress last spring, President Biden said that Jill Biden, the first lady, would lead an effort to fulfill his administration's promise to provide two years of free community college to all eligible students. That provision, tucked inside a massive social spending package that has struggled to win the support of all the senators who caucus with the Democrats, was the first lady's signature legislative initiative. But on Monday, Dr. Biden addressed a summit of community college leaders and confirmed what her husband has recently suggested: The plan has no future in a bill that Democrats are trying to whittle down in order to salvage. "One year ago, I told this group that Joe, my husband Joe, was going to fight for community colleges," she said at the Community College National Legislative Summit in Washington. "But Joe has also had to make compromises. Congress hasn't passed the Build Back Better legislation -- yet. And free community college is no longer a part of that package." The writing had been on the wall. Democrats had moved away from the provision, and Dr. Biden has previously said that the current political climate meant that it might not be the "right time" for free community college to pass as part of a social spending bill. But her remarks on Monday were her starkest acknowledgment yet that a measure she had championed is dead. "We knew this wouldn't be easy," Dr. Biden said. "Still, like you, I was disappointed. Because, like you, these aren't just bills or budgets to me, to you, right? We know what they mean for real people, for our students." And then she added an aside that was not in her scripted remarks: "It was a real lesson in human nature that some people just don't get that." |
| More students arriving to college unprepared. What has changed with high school curricula? | |
| Daily Journal Executive Editor Sam R. Hall writes: A recent column warning schools not to sacrifice advanced courses in the pursuit of dual credit offerings generated quite a lot of feedback and discussion. One educator from Virginia reached out over concerns that the growing emphasis on dual credit courses is leading to a growing number of students who enter college unprepared. She shared that College Board -- the organization behind the SAT and Advanced Placement courses -- released a study saying that "almost 50% of the students who are arriving at their doorsteps are not prepared for college-level courses." "These students are taking remedial coursework before ever beginning their core college classes. These same students who attend college were A and B high school students who should have been highly qualified to continue their education at the college level," she wrote. Her question: Is there any data that suggest that the unprepared students tend to have taken the dual credit route? "Until we have data that supports this, we have no data other than students aren't taking AP exams." It's an interesting question. I maintain that the data we do have suggest not that schools are pushing students away from Advanced Placement and toward dual credit but are instead sacrificing the benefits of AP courses by unsuccessfully combining them with dual credit. |
| Why is Sen. Roger Wicker so picky about SCOTUS picks all of a sudden? | |
| Bobby Harrison writes for Mississippi Today: Roger Wicker, Mississippi's senior U.S. senator, made national headlines last week when he criticized President Joe Biden's promise to nominate an African American woman to replace retiring Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer. During a recent interview on Mississippi's statewide conservative radio network, Wicker said the nominee would be "the beneficiary" of a "quota." Wicker offered nary a single word of criticism in 2020 after the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg when then-President Donald Trump promised to nominate a woman to the nation's highest court. Wicker's comments beg the question: Why is he OK if a president promises to nominate a woman, but he's not OK when a president promises to nominate a Black woman? Is the problem, from his perspective, one of race and not of gender? |
SPORTS
| Mississippi State softball aims to come back 'stronger than ever' after late-season run | |
| Senior outfielder Chloe Malau'ulu still can't figure out what spurred the Mississippi State softball team's late-season turnaround in 2021. "Was it just the start of a new month?" Malau'ulu said. "Was it something that one of the coaches said? I don't know." Whatever the reason, the Bulldogs woke up May 1 in Columbia, South Carolina, determined to change the trajectory of a season slipping away. They set out to forget it all: their 1-15 Southeastern Conference record; the 13 straight losses to start league play. Mississippi State won that day, beating South Carolina 6-2. The Bulldogs won their next seven games, including an SEC tournament matchup with rival Ole Miss. They powered their way into a No. 2 seed in the NCAA tournament and made it all the way to the regional final, the weight of losing lifted off their shoulders. Now, with the 2022 season set to begin, the Bulldogs will have to recapture whatever magic helped them right the ship last spring. And they have loftier aspirations this time around. "I feel like our goal for this year is to do the same thing and to go to Supers," junior pitcher Aspen Wesley said. The Bulldogs play four games in Southern California from Friday through Sunday: two against Loyola Marymount, one against No. 3 UCLA and one against No. 1 Oklahoma. |
| MSU Golf Family to Participate in Scottie's Birdies Campaign for Spring Season | |
| Mississippi State men's and women's golf programs will come together to support "Scottie's Birdies," a charitable campaign meant to raise awareness and funds for the fight against pediatric cancer. This past fall, head men's golf coach Dusty Smith's middle daughter, Scottie, was diagnosed with neuroblastoma, a form of cancer that most commonly is found in young children. This spring season, as Scottie continues her fight, the golf programs are asking fans to join them in supporting the Smith family. Scottie's Birdies is a campaign designed to raise funds as the men's and women's golf teams at Mississippi State make birdies in tournament play. The programs are encouraging fans who are interested to pledge an amount to give for each birdie that the two teams make in the spring season and throughout the postseason. Donations will benefit MD Anderson Cancer Center, where Scottie has been receiving treatment. Fans interested in joining the campaign, should visit scottiesbirdies.wixsite.com/give to learn more, participate and donate. Fans can also make a direct contribution to MD Anderson Cancer Center through the same site. Throughout the semester, the two programs will provide updates on their birdie count. At the end of the season, a representative will reach out to donors to let them know what their pledge amount has totaled. |
| Statehouses latest front in college athlete recruiting wars | |
| With millions of dollars pouring into endorsements for college athletes, the latest battleground in the recruiting wars is the statehouse: A handful of states are already considering changing barely-dried rules to help their flagship schools land -- or keep -- top prospects. Over the past three years, at least 25 states put laws or executive orders in place addressing name, image and likeness compensation for college athletes. All the measures make it clear that the NCAA can no longer limit this kind of revenue but some did set some ground rules. It's those restrictions, which vary from state to state, that are now getting a second look as competition to land the nation's top high school athletes heats up. Alabama and Florida lawmakers are already considering repealing or making major changes to laws governing college athlete compensation less than a year after enacting them. Ohio State officials last week made it easier for their school to link athletes to big-dollar contracts. The moves could be the start of a neverending effort to redefine the landscape for college recruiting where states try to constantly outdo each other, said Gabe Feldman, director of Tulane's sports law program. Feldman cautioned that if a lot of states follow Alabama's effort to repeal rather than tweak their NIL laws, it would give the NCAA the chance to move in and create a new set of regulations. |
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