| Tuesday, April 26, 2022 |
| MSU-Meridian professor receives award | |
 | Mississippi State University announced Dr. Angela Savage, director of the MSU-Meridian social work program and an assistant clinical professor, received the 2022 Mississippi Social Worker of the Year Award for exemplifying "the best of the profession's value and achievements through specific accomplishments." Savage said social work is a profession that "invests in people." Savage currently serves as the Association of Baccalaureate of Social Work Program Educators of Color Committee Chair, is a peer reviewer for the Research on Social Work Practice journal and serves as the faculty advisor to the Phi Alpha Honor Society at MSU-Meridian. The university also announced Dr. Adele Crudden, a professor in MSU's Department of Sociology in Starkville, received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the recent National Association of Social Workers annual conference. The award is presented to people for outstanding contributions throughout their careers. Nominees for the Social Worker of the Year Award must demonstrate 'advocacy for clients and social policy, social work practice, program development, administration or research. Nominees also must exhibit outstanding leadership, contributions to a positive image for the social work profession and an ability to take risks to achieve outstanding results.' |
| Legacy of Ulysses S. Grant complicated 200 years after birth | |
 | The legacy of Ulysses S. Grant isn't getting any less complicated 200 years after his birth. Once widely viewed as a battlefield butcher and a drunk, Grant's life has undergone a reassessment in recent years. Grant is now considered by some to be America's first civil rights president, a troubled leader who did his best to protect freed slaves during Reconstruction after the Civil War. A reassessment of Grant that began more than 20 years ago has gained steam as the nation grapples with statues and monuments erected after the Civil War by Confederate descendants who tried to portray Southern leaders as noble, and the war's cause as something other than slavery. While Grant was widely revered at the time of this death and is pictured on the $50 bill, promoters of the "Lost Cause" version of history reinforced the view that Grant sent troops to slaughter indiscriminately in a war that claimed 620,000 lives, and was a heavy-drinking dullard. Grant's standing has risen as Confederate statues have come down, historian Anne E. Marshall said. "I don't think these monuments coming down causes people to reassess Grant. But it's part of the same process," said Marshall, executive director of the Ulysses S. Grant Association and the Grant presidential library at Mississippi State University. |
| The best ways to fight fire ants in Mississippi | |
 | As the temperature goes up, so does fire ant activity. But getting rid of fire ants takes more than just drowning them in a sea of pesticides. "Put out too little, you can cause resistance in the insects and if you put too much out, you're wasting chemical obviously, and you might be putting more chemical into the environment than is safe," says Gene Merkl, the pesticide safety education coordinator for the state of Mississippi. Merkl works for the Mississippi State University Extension Service along with the Mississippi Department of Agriculture. He's in charge of providing private, commercial and professional service certifications for more advanced chemicals than what is available over the counter. "The label is the most important component of any pesticide," he says. "It tells you the directions for use, it tells you what uses are appropriate, it tells you particular environmental hazards that you need to know. It tells you exactly how much product that you should put out over what area." But the battle against fire ants isn't ending any time soon in Mississippi. "In some cases, it's a live and let live situation for cases you can actually treat and do some reasonable control," Merkl says. "But thus far, based on my understanding and experience, it's very difficult to say that we can ever effectively eradicate them." |
| Starkville suspends paid parking until at least May 3 | |
 | Paid parking in Starkville has been suspended. Aldermen voted in September to contract with third-party parking service ParkMobile, making the majority of parking spots in The Cotton District and Midtown subject to user payment. After pushback from residents, the city is temporarily removing the paid-parking requirement until its next board meeting May 3. Mayor Lynn Spruill said the purpose of the suspension is to get more information to the public about the usage of ParkMobile and see if there are ways to get it better disseminated She said she is working with Starkville Police Department Public Information Officer Brandon Lovelady to create a flier to give out to residents and see if ParkMobile has other signs to put around the city. "We're going to see if there is some larger signage that ParkMobile has and see if we can get those to swap out, at least for the interim," Spruill said. Ward 1 Alderman Ben Carver, who has been vocal about his disapproval of ParkMobile, said he wants to eliminate paid parking altogether and plans to bring a motion forward at the May 3 board meeting to remove it, giving each alderman the opportunity to give their stance on the issue. "I don't think paid parking needs to happen right now," Carver said. "There is a lot of chatter on social media, and it doesn't matter if I win or lose, but Starkville is going to suffer from having this." Some residents on social media have asked if the $25 tickets already issued from not paying to park will be nullified, but Spruill said that matter will be up to the municipal judge. |
| Starkville eliminates insurance surcharge for unvaccinated employees | |
| The city has eliminated its insurance surcharge for unvaccinated employees after instruction from the state. Aldermen approved a policy in September requiring unvaccinated city employees to pay an additional $75 per month on their insurance. This charge did not go into effect until February. Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves signed a bill into effect Friday that bans public institutions from requiring the COVID-19 vaccination and bars agencies from disadvantaging employees' compensation and other benefits, a press release said Friday. Because of this new mandate, Mayor Lynn Spruill notified the board Friday night that Starkville will be eliminating their surcharge for unvaccinated employees that has been a part of the city's COVID-19 policy, keeping in line with the city's eight resolution which says Starkville will follow the state's orders. Spruill said the elimination will be reflected in the city's next pay cycle, and the board will discuss other tangible matters relating to Reeves' order at its May 3 board meeting. |
| 'We are extremely blessed': Southern Pipe unveils $25M expansion | |
 | Local and state officials gathered in Meridian on Monday as Southern Pipe & Supply unveiled a $25 million expansion project in Meridian with the purchase of a 500,000 square foot distribution center. Gov. Tate Reeves, who spoke at the unveiling outside the new distribution center, said the occasion was a great day for Meridian and for the state. "This is a great day for Meridian, a great day for Lauderdale County, a great day for the state of Mississippi," he said. Reeves said investment into the community by Mississippi's home-grown businesses is key to the future growth of the state. The investment by Southern Pipe & Supply's founding family members Marty and Jay Davidson show their commitment to the future of Meridian. "One of the reasons this company is expanding is because they invest in their team members and their employees, and that's really what we're trying to get done all throughout Mississippi," he said. Marty Davidson, Southern Pipe Chairman and grandson of company founder, Louis Davidson, said Southern Pipe & Supply has grown a lot since its beginnings 84 years ago, but Meridian had always treated it well. "We are extremely blessed," he said. |
| First Lady Elee Reeves promotes joy of reading with new book | |
 | Fourth graders at Susie B. West Elementary got a special visitor Monday: Mississippi's Elee Reeves -- and she came bearing gifts. "I created a color activity book called 'Mississippi's Fred the Turtle,'" she said. Each book even comes with a pack of crayons to help Fred complete his journey. "Fred goes on an amazing adventure throughout the state. He starts on the Gulf Coast, goes all the way up to the Delta and comes back down to the Gulf Coast," the author explained. The book is funded by a grant through The Casey Foundation. First Lady Reeves says although the book has a variety of fun activities, it is designed to encourage students to take part in "engaging and thought-provoking conversations" that are "critical to child development and problem-solving skills." "This book talks about how to be courageous," she said, "how to be brave and how to make friends, so we're trying to think about things to make them look inside and think of ways to say, I am a great person and I have this great superpower and I want to share it with others, and how they can take their reading to the next level." The book is initially distributed to elementary schools in five districts, including: Natchez-Adams County, South-Delta, Kemper, Jefferson County and Claiborne County School Districts. The First Lady and her team are currently working to secure additional funding sources so Fred the Turtle can reach more students throughout the state. |
| Suit: Mississippi high court districts dilute Black voting | |
| Mississippi needs to update its state Supreme Court districts to ensure Black voters have a chance to elect a candidate of their choice in a state with a history of racially polarized voting, Black plaintiffs said in a lawsuit filed Monday. Mississippi's three Supreme Court districts are all majority-white, and they were last updated in 1987 over the objection of Black legislators, the lawsuit said. The suit alleges that the districts violate the Voting Rights Act and the U.S. Constitution by diluting Black voting strength. About 38% of Mississippi residents are Black. Eight of the nine current justices are white, and one is Black. Four Black justices have served on the Mississippi Supreme Court -- never more than one at a time. The American Civil Liberties Union, ACLU of Mississippi, Southern Poverty Law Center and the New York-based law firm Simpson Thacher & Bartlett filed the lawsuit in federal court in Greenville on behalf of four Black residents of Mississippi. Mississippi House Speaker Philip Gunn, a Republican, said in response to questions later Monday that he had not read the lawsuit and could not discuss whether legislators will consider updating the boundaries of the Supreme Court districts. |
| House, Senate to open conference on R&D, technology bills | |
 | Discussions between Senate and House members on one of the most significant pieces of legislation on technology, research and development in recent years gets underway this week, with some conferees aiming to get the bill to President Joe Biden's desk by Memorial Day. More than 100 lawmakers from both chambers are likely to get the go-ahead to formally begin negotiations to produce compromise legislation that would bridge the gap between versions of the bill passed by the Senate and the House. The key elements of both bills include funding advanced research in several high-tech areas through the National Science Foundation, providing subsidies to semiconductor manufacturers to restart domestic production of chips and funding research labs operated by the Energy Department. Although the Senate bill passed with bipartisan support in 2021, the House passed its version in February mostly with Democratic votes after merging several other bills related to climate change, immigration, human rights and trade policy. One of the key differences between the two versions of the bills pertains to the direction the NSF should take in the coming years, in light of China's commitment of as much as $150 billion to make advances in 10 critical technology areas in the next decade. While both bills would create a new technology directorate at the NSF to take advances in basic science and turn them into commercial applications, the House bill leans more heavily to supporting research into basic science, calling it a "do no harm" approach, hewing closely to the agency's core, founding mission. The Senate bill backs a more robust Directorate of Technology and Innovation that would get about $29 billion during the next five years out of the $81 billion the bill would authorize for the NSF. |
| FBI chief says espionage threat posed by China 'unprecedented in history' | |
 | FBI Director Christopher Wray said on Sunday that the current scale of espionage and cybersecurity threats from China were "unprecedented in history." "The biggest threat we face as a country from a counterintelligence perspective is from the People's Republic of China and especially the Chinese Communist Party," Wray said during an interview on CBS News's "60 Minutes." "They are targeting our innovation, our trade secrets, our intellectual property, on a scale that's unprecedented in history," he added, noting that China's hacking program is larger "than that of every other major nation combined." "They have stolen more of Americans' personal and corporate data than every nation combined," he also said, adding that China's targets span nearly every sector of the economy. When asked what the FBI was doing to defend against the vast attacks, Wray said investigations were moving at a rapid pace. "We are now moving at a pace where we're opening a new China counterintelligence investigation about every 12 hours," the FBI director said. "There's well north of 2,000 of these investigations. All 56 of our field offices are engaged on it, and I can assure that it's not because our agents don't have enough else to do. It's a measure of how significant the threat is." |
| Austin: U.S. believes Ukraine 'can win' war against Russia | |
 | The United States and the broader international community believe Ukraine "can win" the war against Russia, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Tuesday. The Pentagon chief delivered his assessment at Ramstein Air Base in Germany, where he hosted dozens of his global counterparts for a "Ukraine Defense Consultative Group" focused on the country's security needs. "Ukraine clearly believes that it can win, and so does everyone here," Austin said at the meeting of defense ministers, adding: "Ukraine needs our help to win today. And they will still need our help when the war is over." Austin's remarks came after he and Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the capital of Kyiv on Sunday and announced several new U.S. actions, including an expanded diplomatic presence in the country and more military financing. On Tuesday, Pentagon spokesperson John Kirby -- speaking from Germany -- elaborated on Austin's latest assessment of the conflict, telling CNN that a victory for Ukraine "is certainly in the cards." "I think winning is very clearly defined by a Ukraine whose sovereignty is fully respected, whose territorial integrity is not violated by Russia or any other country for that matter," Kirby said. "And they can win, as the secretary said. And they certainly believe that they can do it." The remarks in Germany from the Pentagon officials are the latest escalation in Washington's wartime rhetoric toward Moscow. |
| 'Putin never imagined' such Ukraine support, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin says | |
 | Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told a gathering of military leaders in Germany that Ukraine's "resistance has brought inspiration to the free world and even greater resolve to NATO" -- and that Russian President Vladimir Putin "never imagined that the world would rally behind Ukraine so swiftly and surely." Austin's remarks, as he opened a U.S.-organized gathering of more than 40 countries to discuss Ukrainian defense needs for the fight against Russia, came as the United States announced more military aid and plans to reopen its embassy in Ukraine's capital, Poland said it would send tanks, and Germany planned to send armored antiaircraft vehicles. In separate remarks to the group, Gen. Mark A. Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, offered a stark picture of the next phase of the war, as Russia attempts to take full control of southeastern and southern Ukraine. "Time is not on Ukraine's side," Milley said in closed-door comments provided to reporters traveling with him. "The outcome of this battle, right here, today, is dependent on the people in this room." World leaders are seeking to pressure Putin to stop the war now grinding into its third month. U.N. Secretary General António Guterres, who is in Moscow to meet with Putin and his foreign minister Sergei Lavrov, called for a cease-fire Tuesday and said everything must be done "to end the war as soon as possible." Lavrov, meanwhile, set off alarm bells when he told state television that the risk of the conflict escalating into nuclear war "is serious, it is real" -- but added that Moscow's position is that nuclear war is unacceptable. Lavrov accused NATO of fighting a proxy war by donating weapons to Kyiv and said weapons flowing from allies into Ukraine will be considered "a legitimate target" for Russia's military. |
| Russia's war heats up cooking oil prices in global squeeze | |
| For months, Istanbul restaurant Tarihi Balikca tried to absorb the surging cost of the sunflower oil its cooks use to fry fish, squid and mussels. But in early April, with oil prices nearly four times higher than they were in 2019, the restaurant finally raised its prices. Now, even some longtime customers look at the menu and walk away. Global cooking oil prices have been rising since the COVID-19 pandemic began for multiple reasons, from poor harvests in South America to virus-related labor shortages and steadily increasing demand from the biofuel industry. The war in Ukraine -- which supplies nearly half of the world's sunflower oil, on top of the 25% from Russia -- has interrupted shipments and sent cooking oil prices spiraling. It is the latest fallout to the global food supply from Russia's war, and another rising cost pinching households and businesses as inflation soars. The conflict has further fueled already high food and energy costs, hitting the poorest people hardest. The food supply is particularly at risk as the war has disrupted crucial grain shipments from Ukraine and Russia and worsened a global fertilizer crunch that will mean costlier, less abundant food. At Jordan's Grab n' Go, a small restaurant in Dyersburg, Tennessee, known for its fried cheeseburgers, owner Christine Coronado also agonized about price increases. But with costs up 20% across the board -- and cooking oil prices nearly tripling since she opened in 2018 -- she finally hiked prices in April. "You hate to raise prices on people, but it's just that costs are so much higher than they were a couple of years ago," she said. |
| USM alum to ascend to College Board presidency | |
 | Tom Duff recently received the initial accoutrement needed in his upcoming role as the head of the state's Institutions of Higher Learning's Board of Trustees. Last week, current College Board President Dr. Walt Starr passed along the ceremonial gavel that brings each monthly meeting to order. Duff, a University of Southern Mississippi officially will assume his new duties May 8. "Mississippi's public university system provides an excellent return on investment to our students and the state," Duff said. "Our universities forge Mississippi's future through outstanding academic programs, pioneering research and service to communities across the state. "I have enjoyed my service on the board and look forward to taking a new role as president." Duff served as vice president of the board during Starr's term. Trustee Alfred E. McNair Jr. will serve as vice president during Duff's term. "The university leaders, faculty, staff, and students have faced tremendous challenges over the past two years due to the global pandemic," Starr said. "I am very proud of the way they have continued to adapt and persevere, while maintaining the quality of the academic programs, research efforts and the service they provide. Despite many hurdles, thousands of students will graduate this spring with the degrees necessary to achieve their career and life goals. "This is a testament to hard work of the students and university faculty and staff." |
| With UMMC out of network, Blue Cross members agonize over losing the doctors they trust | |
| Christy Van of Jayess didn't know what was wrong with her son. It was 2020, and her six-year old, Cooper, was living with stomach issues that put him in near-constant pain and limited his ability to have a normal childhood. They weren't getting any answers from Cooper's pediatrician or a gastroenterologist in Flowood. That changed when her son was referred to Dr. Michael Nowicki, a children's gastroenterology specialist at University of Mississippi Medical Center. After she told Nowicki about Cooper's symptoms, he ordered a sweat test. With that one test, Nowicki was able to diagnose Cooper with cystic fibrosis. The disorder manifested in Cooper as a pancreatic deficiency that prevents him from properly digesting fats. Cooper will have to visit a hospital every three months for the rest of his life. He currently sees Dr. David Josey, a pediatric pulmonologist at UMMC, along with a slew of specialists who help manage different facets of living with cystic fibrosis. But now the future of Cooper's care is uncertain. He is one of tens of thousands of Mississippians who have been impacted by UMMC going out of network with his family's insurer, Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Mississippi. The dispute between the two stems from disagreement over reimbursement rates and Blue Cross' quality care plan, which measures hospital performance and whether services provided to patients are adequate. Cooper can continue receiving care at UMMC through his parents' Blue Cross plan until July 1. Then, they have to make some tough decisions. Paying thousands of dollars per month out-of-pocket each month isn't an option for a single-income household like his. UMMC is the only accredited cystic fibrosis care center in the entire state of Mississippi. |
| Parking Department shifting to use license plates as permits | |
| The fall 2022 semester will bring changes for some parking permit holders on the University of Mississippi's Oxford campus. Besides restructured parking options for commuters, some permit holders no longer will need to keep a hangtag or decal on their car when parking on campus. Commuters, faculty/staff and Pavilion Garage permit holders soon will be able to use only their license plate as their parking permit, instead of maintaining a hangtag or decal. This change is made possible by license place reading, or LPR technology that will scan license plates. "We're hoping these updates will make finding and paying for parking more convenient," said Sam Patterson, director of parking and transportation. "Our goal is always to increase the flexibility and ease of parking on campus." Residential permit holders will continue to use parking hangtags or decals, as will those who fall in the parking categories of reserved, exempt, annual visitor, vendor and Purple Heart. For permitted vehicle owners who prefer to back into or pull through a parking spot, the department is introducing a unique, Ole Miss-branded vanity plate for the front of the vehicle. Those will be available for purchase when permits go on sale this summer. Over the next two years, a modest increase in the prices of all categories of parking permits will be implemented to pay for upkeep and improvements to the parking lots, garages and transportation services. |
| Graduating first-generation undergraduate and graduate students celebrate success at the inaugural Evening of First-Gen Excellence | |
 | On April 25, the UM First-Gen Student Network, Center for Inclusion and Cross Cultural Engagement, Center for Student Success and First-Year Experience, Sally McDonnell Barksdale Honors College and the University of Mississippi Graduate School hosted the inaugural Evening of First-Gen Excellence to celebrate the accomplishments of graduating first-generation students. First-generation undergraduate and graduate students took the stage to receive honors and congratulations from Chancellor Glenn Boyce. "This is our first celebration of first-generation college students graduating and getting to this stage," Ashleen Williams, advisor to the First-Generation Student Network, said. "This is a chance to also celebrate their families and acknowledge the important role that they play." Sha'Cori Ruffin, a senior accounting major and first-generation college student, spoke at the event, sharing her experiences and the challenges she overcame over the course of her college experience. "We left our families behind in hopes of pursuing a better life for ourselves and them, with a deep desire to make them proud and happy," she said. "The pressure was always there. You are left questioning, should I be here? But through this, you have to remember that you are the first. You will make them remember your name and the legacy you create." First-generation college students often face more challenges than students with families that attended college, as their family members are often unable to impart crucial knowledge about the inner workings of college life before they step foot on campus. |
| Mother of missing JSU student pleads for safe return | |
 | The search continues multiple states away for 21-year-old Kamilah Fipps who has been missing since Thursday, April 21. Vicky Peterson was planning to pick up her daughter, Kamilah from campus this week as the semester is set to end but those plans have come to a halt as she is still trying to locate her whereabouts. "My heart is hurting, I just want my child home," said Vicky. Vicky's last conversation with her daughter was Monday, April 18 but it was on a special day of the week they didn't talk that made her grow even more concerned. "Wednesday when I didn't hear from her, I knew something was not right because Wednesday was my birthday, and she never misses calling me on my birthday," said Vicky. Less than 24 hours later, Vicky contacted JSU campus police about not knowing her daughter's whereabouts and a silver alert was issued on Friday, April 22. In a press conference held Monday, April 25, JSU Campus Police Chief Herman Horton said Kamilah left with a small luggage carrier and purchased a Greyhound bus ticket. That ticket is believed to have taken her from Jackson, Mississippi to Richmond, Virginia -- 913.5 miles away. "Based on video surveillance, from a place in Richmond, Virginia she has made a purchase and we have been able to confirm that was in fact her," said Chief Herman Horton. But her mother recalled their last conversation -- Kamilah feeling overwhelmed because she could not graduate Friday, April 30 with her class because of a missing class credit that would only be available next academic year. |
| Jackson area colleges, universities holding graduations | |
 | Jackson-area universities and colleges will honor their graduates with in-person ceremonies with some COVID-19 precautions in place. Jackson State University, Belhaven University, Millsaps College, Tougaloo College, Hinds Community College and Mississippi College plan to host graduation ceremonies. Jackson State's graduation ceremonies will celebrate the class of 2022. Last year, the classes of 2020, 2021 and 1971 were welcomed back to campus. Undergraduate ceremony: April 30, 9 a.m., Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium, 2531 North State St., Jackson. The commencement speakers are Jackson State alum Homer Wilkes, undersecretary of the natural resources and environment with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, for the undergraduate ceremony. Thasunda Brown Duckett, president and CEO of financial services company TIAA, will serve as a speaker for the graduate student ceremony. No tickets are needed to attend the ceremonies. There is also no limit on guests for a graduate, but the venue doors will close when maximum occupancy is reached. The undergraduate, graduate and doctoral hooding ceremonies are expected to be livestreamed on JSU's Facebook page. |
| Heroes and villains: MSMS podcast 'Real Mississippi' gives students opportunity to tell hometown stories | |
| Laughter and conversation filled the room around lunchtime at the Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science as university composition students made their way into "Dr. E's" classroom. Thomas Easterling's students are tasked with a unique approach to the advanced English course. Like a typical composition class, the students perform research, interviews and write a paper. Unlike a regular, run-of-the-mill composition class, students also write a script and produce a podcast, called "Real Mississippi," telling stories from their hometowns. "It started off as us picking heroes and villains of our hometowns, but it turned into so many things other than that," Everett Mason from Lorman said. "Some people's turned into telling legacies that weren't told before, and some people's turned into justice and injustice in Mississippi. Some people's turned into more concepts related to people. ... There's such a wide range of stories being told." MSMS is composed of students from all over the state, and each of their podcasts reflect this. One student, Raegan Calvert from Wiggins, said the prompt of finding a hero or villain helped her hone in on something specific in her hometown that roughly 4,500 people call home. Easterling's classes were not always centered around a podcast project, and students followed the familiar model of analyzing assigned literature. However, when COVID-19 first began, the teacher searched for another way to reach his students. The podcast was the perfect way for his students to experience something relevant to the current world but also to let their voices be heard. |
| Long-awaited University Lakes construction kicks off this summer | |
 | State, local and LSU officials gathered Monday to assure residents of Baton Rouge that the long-awaited University Lakes revitalization project is finally happening. Gov. John Bel Edwards, standing on the shore of University Lake, announced that the first phase of the project is now fully funded after the Louisiana Watershed Initiative contributed $10 million through federal Community Development Block Grant Mitigation Funds. "We are not going to let any more time than necessary get away from us because this is an important project as we restore the health of these six lakes," Edwards said. Edwards, Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome and LSU President William F. Tate IV each spoke of a strong partnership involving the state, the city-parish, the university and other Baton Rouge organizations that will allow the project to move forward this summer. "Collaboration is what is making significant things happen in our city, in our parish and in our community," Broome said. This upcoming phase of rehab work will involve deepening and reshaping five of the six lakes -- City Park, Erie, Crest, Campus and College -- along with constructing new walking and biking paths and lighting. That work will also better protect the area from floods, giving the lakes the ability to hold more water from heavy rain. Construction on this phase will start in the summer, Edwards said. LSU's Real Estate and Facilities Foundation is spearheading the project, which stems from a 2016 conceptual plan commissioned by the Baton Rouge Area Foundation that not only focused on rehabilitating the six lakes but revamping the recreational amenities around them. |
| U. of Tennessee students explore their new 'classroom,' a virtual reality setting that looks like a desert | |
 | The pandemic ushered in the tricky world of virtual education, which is a tale of mixed success. Some professors have gone back into the classroom full-time, but others aren't ready to stop exploring new online possibilities. A professor at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville's Haslam College of Business is taking things to another level all together. He's experimenting with how the world of virtual reality -- not just onscreen class time but full immersion into a shared setting -- might be the future of learning. Students are able to take Mark Collins' marketing capstone course through virtual reality, listening to their lectures at home while "exploring" their auditorium set in the middle of a virtual desert. It looks like something out of a video game. Human-like, customized figures without legs float around the desert-themed auditorium, one of the several surreal meeting spaces available on the virtual reality meeting platform Spatial. It's their lecture hall for the semester. But instead of distracting students, Collins believes the experience is more engaging than sitting in a classroom. "Honestly, it exceeded anything I've ever seen on an online meeting space," Collins told Knox News. "On some days, it was better than face-to-face discussion in class, which I never thought would happen. It was a really surprising outcome." |
| Texas universities continue test-optional policies | |
| When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, nearly all Texas public universities responded by making the submission of an SAT or ACT score optional for college admission. But although COVID infections are down and in-person standardized tests are widely available again, the majority of Texas public universities are keeping the SAT and ACT optional until the spring of 2023 or later. Even before the pandemic, some universities considered themselves test-optional because of a state law that grants automatic admission to Texas students who graduate in the top 10% of their high school classes. But the COVID-19 pandemic pushed many more schools to become test-optional for all applicants. "It was an opportunity that a lot of schools are grateful they've been able to take," said Chris Reed, executive director of admissions at Texas A&M University in College Station. "The pandemic created an opportunity when it was the right thing to do. ... Now we have a living, breathing dataset to evaluate some of those assumptions." So far, Texas A&M has extended the policy through spring 2023. It remains unclear whether the most selective public university in the state -- the University of Texas at Austin -- will continue to remain test-optional for all students past this fall. The university declined to comment about its plans. |
| Settlements approved for three defendants in Mizzou Fiji hazing lawsuit, more in the works | |
 | The parents of Danny Santulli have filed a motion to approve settlement agreements with three of the defendants accused of being involved in an alcohol poisoning incident at the Phi Gamma Delta fraternity at the University of Missouri. Santulli, 19, was left with severe brain injuries and incapacitated by the Oct. 19 incident in which he was expected to consume an entire bottle of vodka, the lawsuit states. There were campus protests when students received word of the incident. Settlements have been reached with defendants Jeffrey Wagoner, Collin Clark and Chris Palermo. There was no formal settlement agreement, which must be approved by a judge. Clark was a secretary on the student executive board of the Phi Gamma Delta fraternity chapter. Palermo and Wagoner were on the board of chapter advisers, The Associated Press reports. It's common to reach agreements with some defendants in hazing cases, said David Bianchi, who represents Santulli. "Settlements in a case like this are not unusual," Bianchi said. "Given the horrific nature of the case, the defendants want to resolve this as quickly as they can." MU has banned the fraternity from operating on campus after the incident, based on a history of violations. There have been no criminal charges filed in the matter so far. |
| Ukrainian college students in the United States face fear and uncertainty | |
| When Solomia Dzhaman thinks of Ukraine, she thinks of her grandparents' farm --- plucking ripe strawberries to eat, pulling apples off trees in the orchard and picking currants off the vine so her grandparents could sell them at the market. "Pastoral, tranquil memories like that," she said. "That's the scene that's been playing in my head when I think about Ukraine." She's trying to hold on to the images of the home she knew, not the images that saturate the news now: men with gunshots to the head lying in the road, people fleeing over bridges, bombs shattering homes. She left the campus of Columbia University, unable to concentrate on her engineering classes in-person while friends are on the front lines and relatives are living in fear. The war has upended life for Ukrainian students in the United States, and spurred university and federal officials to take quick action to help. For some students here on a visa, it opened questions about when and whether they could safely return. For some settled here more permanently, it surfaced painful emotions about home and heart and how best to help in a humanitarian crisis. And for some Ukrainian students, the war kept them from continuing their studies abroad this spring, as they crossed borders to flee the violence -- or turned to help the fight. Within days of the outbreak of the war, U.S. higher education leaders joined to ask federal officials for help supporting the roughly 1,700 Ukrainian students enrolled here. As weeks go by, it’s increasingly clear that it will be difficult for many Ukrainians to return home anytime soon, said Barbara Snyder, president of the Association of American Universities. |
| Mega-graduations celebrate the classes thwarted by COVID-19 | |
 | After enduring the strangest college experience in modern history -- Zoom seminars, dining hall takeout, masked dorm mates, nasal swabs in the student center -- the classes of COVID are finally getting the on-campus graduation ceremonies they were denied. Institutions from Loyola University Chicago to the University of Oregon are gearing up to celebrate the Classes of 2020 and sometimes 2021 -- as well as 2022 --with carefully orchestrated commencement rituals, speeches and activities. Colleges are approaching these mega-graduations in a variety of innovative ways. Some, such as Antelope Valley College and the University of Pittsburgh, are holding separate ceremonies for the different classes on different days; others are lumping graduates of multiple classes together by major or degree. Some, including St. John's College as well as Cape Cod Community College, will share a single commencement speaker, while other institutions, including Tufts University, have invited separate speakers or honorary degree recipients for each ceremony. Holding a single graduation is challenging enough for many institutions; figuring out how to accommodate two or even three classes and their families presents logistical hurdles that few have ever dealt with before, from parking and accommodations to catering and staffing. Like the COVID-19 pandemic itself, it's uncharted territory, but graduates and institutions alike are just thankful to be back. |
| Housing shortage, soaring rents squeeze US college students | |
| College students across the U.S. are looking for housing for the 2022-23 school year and if 2021 was any indication, it won't be easy. Students at colleges from California to Florida were denied on-campus housing last fall and found themselves sitting out the year at home or living in motel rooms or vehicles as surging rents and decades of failing to build sufficient student housing came to a head. For some colleges, the housing crunch was related to increased demand by students who had been stuck at home during the pandemic. For others, including many in California, the shortage reflects a deeper conflict between the colleges and homeowners who don't want new housing built for students who they say increase congestion and noise. Nationally, 43% of students at four-year universities experienced housing insecurity in 2020, up from 35% in 2019, according to an annual survey conducted by The Hope Center for College, Community, and Justice at Temple University. Students reported being unable to pay utilities, rent or mortgage, living in overcrowded units, or moving in with others due to financial difficulties. And for the first time since it began tracking basic needs in 2015, the survey found an equal percentage -- 14% -- of students at both four-year and two-year colleges who had experienced homelessness in the last year, said Mark Huelsman, the center's director of policy and advocacy. Nationally, rents have increased 17% since March 2020, said Chris Salviati, senior economist with Apartment List, but the increase has been higher in some popular college towns. Chapel Hill, North Carolina, saw a 24% jump in rents and Tempe, Arizona, saw a 31% hike. |
| Education Professors React to Divisive-Concept Laws | |
 | New state laws and other actions limiting what teachers can say in the classroom about topics including race, racism, and sexuality typically apply to primary and secondary schools. So professors, while often opposed to the laws, have largely remained unaffected. But at least one group of faculty members has felt a direct impact: those training teachers. Since 2021, more than a dozen states have passed laws -- sometimes referred to as divisive-concept laws -- or used other statewide actions such as executive orders to restrict how teachers discuss certain issues. Many draw language from an executive order signed by President Donald Trump in 2020, which has since been revoked by President Biden. Faculty members at teacher colleges have had a unique perspective as the nation's culture wars have shifted into classrooms, where many of their students work or soon will. Worried that the laws will have a chilling effect on teaching, some recommend their students consider the environment when they decide where to teach. One future teacher contacted for this article declined to be interviewed, saying she did not want to risk jeopardizing her first teaching contract, given the laws in her home state of Georgia. Others were more forthcoming. Markuan Tigney Jr., a master's student at Vanderbilt's Peabody College who plans to teach first grade in Virginia, where Gov. Glenn Youngkin opened a tip line in January for parents to report schools for teaching divisive concepts. Tigney said he and his classmates talk frequently about the divisive-concept laws and try to figure out what they can teach and what they can't. "There's always this level of hesitation about teaching and getting in trouble," Tigney said. "There's always conversations like, 'Do you think it would be OK to read this book?'" |
| Warren urges Biden to cancel student loan debt ahead of midterms | |
| Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren on Sunday renewed her push for President Biden to cancel billions of dollars in student loan debt, saying the measure would wipe out the burden for tens of millions of borrowers while increasing Democrats' chances of holding on to their Senate and House majorities in November's midterm elections. Appearing on "Face the Nation," Warren insisted that the White House has the authority to cancel student debt partly because it has already done so for certain borrowers, including through a forgiveness program for people working in public service. "Look, we know that the president has the authority to cancel student loan debt and the best way we know that is because President Obama did it, President Trump did it, and President Biden has now done it repeatedly. The power is clearly there," she said. Canceling student debt has been one of Warren's main goals in recent years. She has repeatedly pushed the Biden administration to extend the student loan payment pause during the pandemic and released new data this month showing that canceling $50,000 in student loans per person would erase all debt for 36 million borrowers, or 84% of those with loans. Mr. Biden previously said he wanted to cancel $10,000 in student loan debt, though he has appeared hesitant to move forward without congressional action. |
| The future tech worker pipeline might not be through college | |
| There are two long-standing trends in the tech industry that have intensified over the last couple of years: there are more jobs than workers to fill them and there's a need to diversify this workforce. As a result, more and more companies are rolling back degree requirements that were part of many job descriptions. That's given new opportunities to people like Stanley Omotuyole. He left Nigeria a couple years ago to join his dad in Seattle, giving up a degree program in laboratory science. "Moving to the States, I'm thinking, 'Oh, do I have to go through all of that, again?'" he said. "It felt impossible at first." Omotuyole knew he wanted to break into Seattle's tech industry, but he didn't have the time or money to go back to university. So he signed up for a coding bootcamp, which led to an internship at Microsoft, which led to an apprenticeship through an organization called Multiverse, which partners with tech companies to provide alternative career pathways for non-traditional candidates. While many tech companies say they're loosening up on degree requirements, it's easier said than done. A Harvard Business School analysis of IT job postings from 2017 to 2021 found some of the biggest tech firms still demanded degrees for upwards of 70% of jobs. Joseph Fuller, a professor of management and co-author of the report, said it's likely because employers are looking for soft skills that are harder to test or prove on a resume. "Employers used college degrees as a proxy for social skills," he said. But there are a handful of companies that have made progress. One is IBM, where fewer than a third of IT jobs required a degree -- the best rate among all the tech companies. Obed Louissaint, IBM's senior vice president for transformation and culture said it can be more labor intensive to hire this way: "It does cause us to, job by job, say 'What's the success criteria?' Right?" he said. |
| Social media foments modern-day Babel | |
 | Syndicated columnist Bill Crawford writes: We are living in modern-day Babel, "unable to speak the same language or recognize the same truth." So says Jonathan Haidt in his disturbing essay "Why the Past 10 Years of American Life Have Been Uniquely Stupid" published in The Atlantic. His research and findings are a little scary: "The story of Babel is the best metaphor I have found for what happened to America in the 2010s, and for the fractured country we now inhabit. Something went terribly wrong, very suddenly. We are disoriented, unable to speak the same language or recognize the same truth. We are cut off from one another and from the past. Haidt blames the proliferation and uncontrolled transformation of social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter from "harmless" information disseminators to "corrosive" propaganda machines. "By 2013, social media had become a new game, with dynamics unlike those in 2008," he wrote. "The 'like' button, 'retweet' option, and unfiltered comments "encouraged dishonesty and mob dynamics." He said the three major forces that hold together successful democracies are under attack -- "social capital (extensive social networks with high levels of trust), strong institutions, and shared stories." Research shows, he said, "Social media has weakened all three" with its "continual chipping-away of trust." |
SPORTS
| Diamond Dawg Gameday: vs. Ole Miss (Governor's Cup) | |
| Mississippi State and Ole Miss will meet for a fourth straight game to face off for the Governor's Cup at 6 p.m. CT on Tuesday, April 26, at Trustmark Park in Pearl, Mississippi. Tuesday's contest will be streamed on SEC Network+. The game will also be carried on the Mississippi State Sports Network powered by LEARFIELD along with a live audio stream via HailState.com/plus. Mississippi State enters the week with a 24-17 overall record through 41 games, including an 8-10 record in SEC play following last weekend's series win on the road at Ole Miss. State is 18-4 in the last 22 meetings against the Rebels (dating back to 2016), including a 4-0 record in the Governor's Cup over that stretch. Tuesday will mark the first meeting between the two teams in the Governor's Cup since 2019 when State defeated Ole Miss 8-1 in Pearl. The previous three meetings were decided by two runs or less. Ole Miss enters the weekend with a 22-17 overall record and 6-12 mark in SEC play. The Rebels have lost nine of their last 12 games. The Rebels have dropped their last three SEC series after getting swept at home by Alabama, then dropping two of three at South Carolina and versus Mississippi State. |
| Polk Announced As Featured Speaker at Ferriss Trophy Presentation | |
| The Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum along with the Pearl River Resort and the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians is pleased to announce that Hall of Fame Mississippi State Baseball Coach Ron Polk will be the featured speaker at the presentation of the 2022 Ferriss Trophy. The Ferriss Trophy is named in memory of the former Major League star and long-time Delta State baseball coach Dave "Bo" Ferriss and annually goes to the Most Outstanding College player in Mississippi each year. This will be the 18th presentation of the award. The winner will be announced at luncheon held at the Sports Hall of Fame in Jackson on May 23. Polk, the legendary coach who is a member of six Halls of Fame is best known for his two terms as the Head Baseball Coach at Mississippi State. He guided the Bulldogs from 1976 thru 1997 and returned in 2002 thru 2008. Overall, his record stands at 1,373-702-2. His teams won five SEC Championships, five SEC Tournaments, played in 23 NCAA Tournaments and went to the College World Series eight times. Currently, Polk resides in Starkville and serves as a Special Assistant to the Athletic Director at Mississippi State. He was inducted into the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame in 1998 and was the 2017 recipient of the "Rube Award" for his service to sports in the state. Tickets for the luncheon banquet are on sale now at the Hall of Fame office or online at www.msfame.com. Individual tickets are $40 each and tables of 8 are available. The luncheon will begin at 11:30 a.m. and this year's winner will be announced at the close of the event. Finalists for this year's award will be announced May 16. |
| Mississippi State football Mr. Springtime: Antonio Harmon | |
| Antonio Harmon's stat line from last season is short: two games played. He had no catches, receiving yards or touchdowns. In an offense fueled on a strong pass attack keyed by depth at wide receiver, Harmon was not among the guys to make much of an impact for Mississippi State in Mike Leach's second season. After spring practice, he might be among State's go-to guys to help replace Makai Polk at outside receiver. Harmon has battled with Caleb Ducking for first-team snaps in the outside spot. While Ducking's size makes him an appealing piece, his inconsistency provides issues. That could open the door for Harmon to earn some starting reps moving into the regular season. "He's naturally physical," Leach said of Harmon last week. "I think that's a lesson all those receivers can take because right now I think we're kinda soft at receiver. We gotta be tougher." |
| When draft starts Thursday Cross will get an early call | |
| If Charles Cross believes the wait for the NFL Draft has been a long one, he won't have to wait much longer. Cross, after a redshirt sophomore season at Mississippi State, is expected to get an early phone call after the draft begins Thursday night at 7. The first round will be televised by ESPN. Depending on where Cross lands, he could become the Bulldogs' fourth top-five selection and first since linebacker Johnie Cooks went second overall to the Colts in 1982. It's been a different sort of journey for Cross, who became a highly sought prospect out of Laurel but didn't always dazzle in those recruiting rankings. He appeared in three games as a freshman under MSU's Joe Moorhead and eventually redshirted. Since Mike Leach's first game in 2020 Cross has excelled in the system, making his first college start in the season opener at LSU. KJ Costello was the quarterback, and with Cross at left tackle Costello threw for an SEC-record 623 yards and five touchdowns. One of those players wouldn't last, and it wasn't Cross. He was the Bulldogs' top-graded offensive lineman five times that season. Scouts and draft-watchers took notice of Cross' athleticism and footwork and made him a fixture high among most draft projections. Soon that will translate into something more valuable for Cross. The top 10 NFL left tackles all have annual salaries in excess of $7 million. |
| Deion Sanders opened 'tremendous doors' for Jackson State with televised spring game | |
| Jackson State football has the kind of star power that has national media intrigued. There's Travis Hunter, the No. 1 college football recruit in the nation making jaw-dropping plays on both sides of the ball. There's Deion Sanders, the Pro Football Hall of Fame player and now FCS coach of the Year. And, there's quarterback Shedeur Sanders, the first college football player to sign an NIL deal with Gatorade. With names like that, it makes sense why the Tigers were able to host Sunday the first HBCU spring game ever played on national television. "It opens up tremendous doors. It shows you the culture, who we are, you got a chance to see the band, the J-Settes, the cheerleaders, everything that were about," Deion Sanders said. "It was phenomenal, we had interactions with the fans, the announcers, the commentators did a phenomenal job, the kids played their butts off. You got an opportunity to see why the No. 1 kid in the nation is the No. 1 kid in the nation, and we picked up right where we left off." It was a chance for fans from around the country to tune in on ESPNU and see how the defending SWAC champion Tigers. And it gave viewers a glimpse of what the HBCU experience can be. Deion Sanders said that culture is part of the HBCU experience, but there's more to it than that. "It's more than that, it's bigger than that. It's the relationships," Sanders said. |
| JSU freshman to play in Deaflympics | |
| Jackson State forward Alexis Roberts will represent JSU, her family and her hometown of Newton for Team USA in the upcoming Deaflympics. Roberts was the first deaf signee in program history and after playing in 17 games this year she was selected to play for Team USA in the Deaflympics next month in Brazil. The Deaflympics are one of the longest running competitions for deaf athletes dating all the way back to 1924. Roberts is excited to improve her game, compete and represent JSU in her first trip outside of the country. |
| Texas A&M unveils plans for new indoor sports facilities | |
 | Texas A&M officials unveiled plans and renderings Monday for a new indoor football practice facility, indoor track stadium and academic center as well as redevelopments of the Bright Football Complex. "When we recruit student-athletes to Texas A&M, our goal is to develop them academically, athletically and in their personal lives," A&M director of athletics Ross Bjork said in a press release. "We are in the most transformational time in the history of college athletics, but at Texas A&M we are always going to hold ourselves to a standard of excellence. The Centennial Campaign is a commitment to that standard and an investment in our student-athletes." The construction projects are a part of the 12th Man Foundation's Centennial Campaign, which is named in honor of the 100-year anniversary of A&M's 12th Man tradition. A&M officials said the 12th Man Foundation has committed to raise $120 million in donor contributions, which will be the organization's second-largest fundraising effort behind the latest redevelopment of Kyle Field. Football projects include the construction of the 160-yard indoor football facility and the redevelopment of the Bright Football Complex, which will have expanded locker room, team meeting, sport medicine and other areas. Last November, A&M's Board of Regents approved adding $205 million to its capital plan to renovate athletics facilities. |
| Auburn trustees approve construction of Frank Thomas statue | |
| A statue of Auburn baseball legend Frank Thomas is set to come to Plainsman Park, joining the likes of Bo Jackson, Shug Jordan, Pat Dye and Charles Barkley as former Auburn athletes enshrined in statues on Auburn's campus. The Auburn University Board of Trustees unanimously approved a resolution to create the statue at its April 22 meeting at the Hotel at Auburn University and Dixon Conference Center. According to a press release from Auburn Athletics, the statue's dedication will take place during the 2023 baseball season. Detailed information about the statue location and dedication date will be announced in the future, the press release says. "I am extremely humbled and thrilled to be honored with a statue at Auburn University where it all began," Thomas said in a statement. "Thank you to Allen Greene, head coach Butch Thompson, the Athletic Department and the Board of Trustees for placing me among a few Auburn elites. Thank you for selecting me as Auburn's first baseball player to receive this special recognition." Thomas, who played first base at Auburn from 1987-1989, is the only former Auburn athlete to be inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. "At Auburn I became a man. I was blessed to have Coach Pat Dye and his staff who pushed me to new heights and instilled football toughness and a will to win that I never knew existed," Thomas said. "I was also lucky enough to have Coach Hal Baird and his baseball staff to help mold and prepare me for the next level." |
| How new Tennessee law allows colleges to facilitate NIL payments to players | |
| New Tennessee legislation permits universities to have direct and public relationships with the collectives that pay their athletes for their name, image and likeness. Last week, Gov. Bill Lee signed an amendment to the state law that will allow college coaches to attend NIL events, universities to fundraise for NIL collectives and NIL representatives to make presentations on campus to recruits and players. Many Division I universities in the state -- including FBS schools Tennessee, Memphis, Middle Tennessee State and Vanderbilt -- must quickly adjust to capitalize on NIL opportunities to stay ahead of competitors in other states. Alabama repealed its NIL law, so its universities are free to work directly with collectives. Florida, Kentucky and Virginia are among states trying to do the same with an amendment. Tennessee universities can now facilitate NIL deals by working with collectives. The new law tears down most of the barriers that previously separated schools and the third-party groups that pay their players for their NIL rights within NCAA rules. SEC schools like UT and Vanderbilt can be more efficient in getting NIL deals for their athletes by working with a collective. Group of Five schools like Memphis and MTSU can take a leading role in securing NIL deals with businesses if a collective isn't doing so. "(The changes in NIL law) are exciting and, more than anything, benefit the student-athletes," said James Clawson, co-founder/CEO of Spyre Sports Group, the collective that pays many UT athletes for their NIL rights. |
| Is 'Name, Image, Likeness' working? Wisconsin AD Chris McIntosh mostly encouraged by how athletes are benefiting | |
| Chris McIntosh likely won't ever forget July 1, 2021. That was McIntosh's first official day as Wisconsin's athletic director. McIntosh, 44 at the time, had accepted the challenge of replacing Barry Alvarez, his coach at UW and the man who went on to lead UW's athletic department for nearly two decades. That same day, college athletes for the first time were allowed to secure compensation for their Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) without facing any NCAA penalties. Athletic directors from coast to coast were entering into a new, challenging era. Nearly 10 months since that landmark day, McIntosh is comfortable with the manner in which UW athletes have benefited from the introduction of NIL. UW made two moves this month to aid student-athletes interested in capitalizing on NIL opportunities. First, UW reached an agreement to work with Altius Sports Partners, an NIL advisory and education firm. Altius Sports Partners, to provide strategic guidance and a robust offering of educational programming to UW student-athletes, staff and stakeholders. "Altius can help educate our department, our coaches and student-athletes," McIntosh said. "But also our donors and supporters. They have a perspective that is a bit more far-ranging and wider than just Madison. They can help us understand how the landscape is unfolding and the opportunities that we can create at Wisconsin that are different and might benefit us." Second, UW officials launched a dedicated NIL marketplace specifically for UW student-athletes – the YouDub Marketplace. |
| Supreme Court Leans Toward Coach in Case on School Prayer | |
 | The Supreme Court's conservative majority seemed to be searching on Monday for a narrow way to rule in favor of a former high school football coach who lost his job for praying at the 50-yard line after his team's games. The task was complicated by factual disputes over the conduct of the coach, Joseph A. Kennedy, and the varying rationales offered by the school district in Bremerton, Wash., for disciplining him. The case pits the rights of government workers to free speech and the free exercise of their faith against the Constitution's prohibition of government endorsement of religion and Supreme Court precedents that forbid pressuring students to participate in religious activities. Justices across the ideological spectrum peppered the lawyers with hypothetical questions. Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. asked whether Mr. Kennedy could have prayed aloud while standing with his arms outstretched. Justice Amy Coney Barrett went a little further: "Let's say he says the 'Our Father' with arms outstretched and it starts causing a lot of havoc in the stands." Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. asked whether Mr. Kennedy would have been disciplined for protesting the invasion of Ukraine, climate change or racial injustice. Justice Sonia Sotomayor wondered if a public high school could discipline "a coach who decides to put a Nazi swastika on their arm and go to the middle of the field and pray." Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh asked whether a school could "fire the coach for the sign of the cross right before the game." Justice Kavanaugh, himself a basketball coach, said the possibility of coercion posed an authentic problem. "What about the player who thinks, 'If I don't participate in this, I won't start next week?'" he asked, adding that "every player's trying to get on the good side of the coach." |
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