Monday, May 2, 2022   
 
Book Talk: Five questions with Becky Hagenston
Among a crowded field of nine excellent books by Mississippi writers, Starkville's Becky Hagenston emerged victorious. The Mississippi Institute of Arts and Letters recently announced that her 2021 collection of short stories "The Age of Discovery" won its annual Fiction Award. This is one of many accolades for Hagenston's latest work. In 2020, "The Age of Discovery" won The Journal's Non/Fiction Prize, which led to its publication by Mad Creek Books, an imprint of the Ohio State University Press. Hagenston was also featured at the Eudora Welty Writers' Symposium last year at Mississippi University for Women. Hagenston is Professor of English at Mississippi State University. "The Age of Discovery" is her fourth book. Hagenston specializes in short stories, and in "The Age of Discovery," many of her stories take place in a dystopian near-future. Those who joined the pandemic craze of baking sourdough will wonder if stories like "Rise," with its elements of magical realism imbuing a baker's handmade loaves of bread, were inspired by real life events during the COVID-19 lockdown. But Hagenston notes in her interview with The Dispatch that all of her stories were written well before our new reality set in. This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.
 
Savage earns Social Worker of the Year award
An assistant clinical professor from MSU-Meridian is a top award winner this year. Angela Savage, director of the MSU-Meridian social work program and an assistant clinical professor, has received the 2022 Mississippi Social Worker of the Year Award for exemplifying "the best of the profession's value and achievements through specific accomplishments." Based in Washington, D.C. and founded in 1955, NASW is the largest membership organization of professional social workers in the world, with more than 120,000 members. It promotes, develops and protects the practice of social work and social workers and seeks to enhance the well-being of individuals, families and communities through its advocacy. Savage said receiving the award means she is "doing what God told me to do" and has been recognized and validated for her contributions to her profession. Social work is a profession that "invests in people," she said. "Social work is not just about helping people. We need people to invest in others, invest in strangers and invest in people different than you and who think and live differently than you," Savage said. "When you do this, you will see that at the end of the day, we all want the same thing, and that's why I love this profession and that's why I want to teach others." 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.
 
Annexation causes Starkville to grow by 2.3 miles and 1,600 citizens
The city officially became 2.3 square miles larger and gained roughly 1,600 residents on Thursday. After a two year-long court case, Starkville's annexation was upheld by the Oktibbeha County Chancery Court at the end of 2021. This week the area northeast of Mississippi State University and Highway 82 and south of Highway 182 which includes Clayton Village and University Hills joined Starkville city limits. Mayor Lynn Spruill took to Twitter to share the news. "I am excited to say the City of Starkville ... just grew by about 1,600 people overnight," Spruill tweeted on Thursday. "The annexation of the areas to the east along East Lee (Boulevard) and Highway 182 became final at midnight last night. Now more areas you thought were Starkville truly are." Some residents opposed the annexation citing concerns about finances and low-income residents being unable to adapt to the new code enforcement laws and regulations the city has that Oktibbeha County does not have. However, the voices of dissent withered from 30 to eight in just a year back in 2020 during the case in chancery court. The Starkville Police Department has already extended its coverage area to include the annexed area, already beginning patrols there, according to its social media. Spruill also noted the annexation now brings the total population of Starkville up to approximately 25,960. The population increase helps the city get closer to the goal of 30,000 to 40,000 in order to bring larger businesses that consider population before building in an area. The mayor also noted "major improvements" will be coming to Old Mayhew Road "in the next year or so."
 
Aldermen, supes explore consolidation of road operations
The Oktibbeha County Board of Supervisors and the Starkville Board of Aldermen are finding new ways to create a partnership between the two entities. Any time both the county and city want to coordinate with each other for a project or program, they typically enter an interlocal agreement. At a joint work session Friday, the boards agreed they wanted to find an easier way to conduct business. Board of Aldermen Attorney Chris Latimer said instead of entering interlocal agreements on every project, a process that can take extensive time, the boards can simply create a board order, both deciding to enter into whatever work is at hand. "It's a partnership," Latimer said. "It's each documented on the other entities' minutes. You're each independently governed, but you're working together." Board of Supervisors Attorney Rob Roberson, who also serves as a state representative, said the boards can potentially enter local and private legislation in the future with the approval of the state legislature. He suggested spreading agreements over the minutes of each board is the most appropriate for the time being. Oktibbeha County District 2 Supervisor Orlando Trainer said he believes the most effective way to get projects done would be for the city and county to consolidate their governments, specifically joining road departments. He said with more minds thinking in unison, the merged entities could obtain contractors easily and get more "bang for your buck." "If we want to reach our full potential, we really need to look at that," Trainer said.
 
Monday Profile: Undeterred by naysayers, pandemic, Carlisle realizes dream of opening Poor House Market
This time last year, a tractor and two Volkswagens sat inside an open-sided barn off Old Highway 25 near the corner of Poor House Road. Then it was hard for even the ever-optimistic Tammy Carlisle to visualize what the space has become. Shelves of locally sourced goods have now replaced the Volkswagens, and the tractor went elsewhere to make way for a checkout stand that is now logging a sale roughly every 18 minutes. The enclosed, floored and fully renovated barn that houses the Poor House Market is where Carlisle spends much of her time these days, and it's where, since opening in December, she has made her living. What the fully stocked store of locally sourced goods symbolizes for her, though, goes beyond sales. It's the fulfillment of a 13-year-old dream to take her customers back to a much simpler time. "Have you ever had an idea that is just part of who you are? One that just leads you?" Carlisle asked while sitting in a custom-made wooden chair inside the market last week. "Sometimes when you stop, get out of the fast lane and listen to your instincts, you'd be surprised what wonderful things that are in you that you can share. I've often thought about getting a sign for the front door (of the shop) that says, 'Welcome to the slow lane.'"
 
Cryptocurrencies becoming more popular, but rarely a path to getting rich quick
Cryptocurrency is defined by the Oxford Dictionary as a digital currency in which transactions are verified and records maintained by a decentralized system using cryptography, rather than by a centralized authority. "Decentralized cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin now provide an outlet for personal wealth that is beyond restriction and confiscation," the Oxford Dictionary states. While untraceable financial transactions can raise concerns about use by scammers or people trying to avoid taxation, cryptocurrency has become increasingly prevalent in recent years as a bet on enhancing investments. "There have been some fantastic gains for investors, but most of these gains were due to getting in on the ground floor at a very low cost (often less than a penny per coin) and then having the coin increase rapidly," said Ken B. Cyree, Ph.D., Frank R. Day/Mississippi Bankers Association Chair of Banking, professor of finance and director of the Mississippi School of Banking at the University of Mississippi School of Business Administration. "According to many sources, there have been hundreds who have become millionaires through crypto investing. However, these gains are increasingly rare and investors should temper their expectations about getting rich quickly." Cyree cautions investors to be mindful that crypto is another asset and all the tenets of finance apply. One is that diversification is important in your portfolio. Some legislation was introduced in the Mississippi Legislature earlier this year to regulate cryptocurrencies. Cyree recommends that Mississippi lawmakers let our citizens invest in cryptocurrency as they would any other asset, and the buyer should beware.
 
Fed to fight inflation with fastest rate hikes in decades
The Federal Reserve is poised this week to accelerate its most drastic steps in three decades to attack inflation by making it costlier to borrow -- for a car, a home, a business deal, a credit card purchase -- all of which will compound Americans' financial strains and likely weaken the economy. Yet with inflation having surged to a 40-year high, the Fed has come under extraordinary pressure to act aggressively to slow spending and curb the price spikes that are bedeviling households and companies. After its latest rate-setting meeting ends Wednesday, the Fed will almost certainly announce that it's raising its benchmark short-term interest rate by a half-percentage point -- the sharpest rate hike since 2000. The Fed will likely carry out another half-point rate hike at its next meeting in June and possibly at the next one after that, in July. Economists foresee still further rate hikes in the months to follow. What's more, the Fed is also expected to announce Wednesday that it will begin quickly shrinking its vast stockpile of Treasury and mortgage bonds beginning in June -- a move that will have the effect of further tightening credit. "I liken it to driving in reverse while using the rear-view mirror," said Diane Swonk, chief economist at the consulting firm Grant Thornton. "They just don't know what obstacles they're going to hit."
 
Conservation Tax-Break Deals Keep Flowing Despite IRS Crackdown
More than six years into an Internal Revenue Service clampdown on what the agency says are abuses of land-conservation tax incentives, the deals keep coming. IRS officials had hoped to shut down the most aggressive operations in a mini-industry built around tax breaks. Instead, they are in a protracted wrestling match with deal promoters. Government scrutiny pushed out some deal makers, but that ceded the market to others, who set aside reserves for legal expenses and risks and bet on beating the IRS through litigation. Those deal makers have reasons for optimism. The IRS lost a crucial Alabama case after judges found deficiencies in decades-old regulations. A bipartisan bill limiting the most aggressive transactions hasn't advanced in Congress, blocked from Democratic fiscal legislation by Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D., Ariz.), whose office didn't comment. Other efforts to police promoters and appraisers are moving slowly through courts. So even as the IRS issues warnings, deal makers tout tax breaks with an upbeat environmental touch, telling investors: " 'You can double your money from Uncle Sam and by the way, you're saving the Earth,' " said William Ellis, a Georgia accountant critical of the deals. "There's so much money out there that these people are making." The IRS has focused sustained attention on a subset called "syndicated" conservation easements. Officials say these rely on aggressive land appraisals, letting promoters extract charitable tax deductions for distribution to high-income investors. Investors commonly get $4 or more in deductions for every $1 invested, enough for quick profits at public expense, officials say.
 
Final day of Mississippi fest canceled after fatal shooting
A law enforcement officer shot and killed one of the people suspected of firing shots at a festival in Mississippi, a sheriff said late Saturday. Organizers said Sunday that, in response to the shootings, they canceled the final day of the Mississippi Mudbug Festival at the state fairgrounds in Jackson. Hinds County Sheriff Tyree Jones said several people were taken to local hospitals with unknown injuries after gunfire Saturday night. He said the person killed was a teenager. He said an "officer-involved shooting investigation is underway stemming from this incident," but did not provide additional details. He said the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation was called to assist. Jones said two or three people exchanged gunfire at about 10 p.m. Saturday in and around a vehicle at a fairgrounds parking lot. "During the course of the exchange, at least one of these individuals fired multiple rounds, multiple shots, toward the midway area of the event that was in progress," Jones said. "We do not believe there was anybody else injured along the midway during the course of this gunfire." Grammy-winning blues singer Bobby Rush was the headline performer scheduled for Sunday. The state Department of Agriculture and Commerce hosted the festival, and Agriculture Commissioner Andy Gipson said people who bought advance tickets for Sunday will receive refunds. He said safety is a priority at the fairgrounds. "I appreciate the rapid response from the Hinds County Sheriff's Office and the Jackson Police Department," Gipson said in a statement Sunday. "Their quick action in securing the scene prevented others from potentially being hurt."
 
Gov. Tate Reeves blocks state funding for major Jackson park improvement, planetarium
Gov. Tate Reeves on Thursday vetoed state spending recently passed by lawmakers for major upgrades to a Jackson park, the capital city's planetarium and several other earmarks lawmakers made in a massive capital projects bill. "Jackson is not one suburban golf course and one planetarium away from thriving," Reeves said, adding the city should focus on its crumbling infrastructure and crime. "Until then, these projects would never be viable." Flush with federal pandemic stimulus cash and state surpluses largely generated from trillions in federal spending, the Legislature this year had billions extra to spend beyond its $7 billion general budget. Lawmakers directed money to hundreds of projects statewide. Reeves has signed most of this spending into law, but in recent days has selectively used line-item vetoes to nix an handful of projects, including a $50 million hospital renovation at the University of Mississippi Medical Center with federal pandemic relief funds. During a Thursday news conference, Reeves said his office made a "diligent, thorough" review of legislative spending and he used his veto stamp on items that were "not the most appropriate way to spend your hard-earned dollars." During the Thursday news conference Reeves said he wanted to stress not the vetoed items, but the legislation signed into law that made a difference for the state in terms of primarily infrastructure improvement.
 
Autopsy backlog plagues Mississippi, with worst delays in US
After Truitt Pace admitted to law enforcement that he beat and shot his wife, her family expected a swift conviction. The 34-year-old mother of three's tiny frame was so bruised and traumatized that the funeral home suggested a closed casket. But as months went by, prosecutors told Marsha Harbour's family they were waiting on a key piece of evidence: the medical examiner's autopsy report. National standards recommend most autopsy reports be completed within 60 days. Prosecutors in Harbour's case waited for a year. Across Mississippi, many families wait even longer. An Associated Press analysis based on state data and documents, as well as dozens of interviews with officials and residents, found that Mississippi's system has long operated in violation of national standards for death investigations, accruing a severe backlog of autopsies and reports. Autopsies that should take days take weeks. Autopsy reports that should take months take a year or longer, as in Harbour's case. Too few pathologists are doing too many autopsies. Some cases are transferred hundreds of miles to neighboring states for reports without their family's knowledge.
 
Behind Biden's plan to bump up farm subsidies
As part of a $33 billion funding request for Ukraine, the Biden administration last week proposed sending $500 million to American farmers with a goal of boosting production of wheat, soybeans, rice and other commodities, in order to make up for some of Ukraine's food exports that have dried up since the Russian invasion. But some agricultural economists say they're unsure why the administration would move to boost subsidies for crops that are already fetching high prices. "I don't think that this sort of intervention from the government makes any sense, other than to read it in a pure political sense, that this is something they feel like they need to do," said Joe Glauber, former chief economist at USDA during Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack's previous tenure during the Obama administration. The funding request includes food aid programs that buy U.S. commodities and send them to countries in need, including many in Africa and the Middle East that relied on Ukraine and Russia for staples like wheat and sunflower oil and are now reeling from shortages and price spikes. The Agriculture Department claims the proposal would help stabilize rising U.S. food prices and provide food for foreign countries in need, by helping American farmers grow 50 percent of the wheat normally exported by Ukraine, among other things. That plan, however, would probably also require the U.S. to step up funding for federal aid programs that buy and ship U.S. commodities abroad. Otherwise, wealthier countries like China would likely buy up the extra supply on the open market. Biden's proposal comes despite prior statements by key White House and USDA officials that high commodity prices alone would encourage U.S. farmers to increase their crop production and help meet global demand in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
 
The World Races to Rewire the Wheat Market as Shortfalls Loom
The war in Ukraine was barely a month old when Augusto Bassanini, chief executive of United Grain Corp., received an unusual signal from the global wheat market. The Washington-based grain exporter, owned by Japanese trading company Mitsui & Co., normally routes its products across the Pacific Ocean to Asia. In March, though, an Egyptian importer that hadn't done business with United in two decades booked 60,000 tons of wheat to be shipped from the Port of Vancouver in Washington through the Panama Canal and across the Atlantic Ocean -- thousands of miles farther than Egypt's principal grain suppliers, Ukraine and Russia, and at a far higher cost. It was a small sign of the upheaval in world grain markets sparked by Russia's invasion of Ukraine, threatening food supplies from one of the world's most-productive farming regions to some of its poorest countries. From India to Ireland, governments are moving to fill a void from the Black Sea region that could total tens of millions of tons of grain. They are paying farmers to sow more crops and are enlisting railcars and additional containers to move wheat. In the near term, it will be hard for the rest of the world's farmers to take up the slack, given that Russia and Ukraine combined typically account for more than a quarter of global wheat exports. Since the war began, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has cut its outlook for the world's wheat trade in the current season by more than 6 million tons, or 3%, as expectations for lower Russian and Ukrainian exports outpace anticipated increases elsewhere.
 
Biden seeks to lure Russia's top scientists to the U.S.
President Biden wants Congress to expedite visas for Russian scientists eager to leave their country in the midst of Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, an effort to accelerate a brain drain already underway and further deprive President Vladimir V. Putin of some of Russia's top talent. An administration proposal sent to Capitol Hill as part of a larger package requesting $33 billion in spending on the war would suspend for four years the requirement that scientists applying for visas have a sponsoring employer, eliminating one of the biggest obstacles for many seeking to come to the United States. The measure would apply only to Russian citizens with master's or doctoral degrees in science or engineering fields like artificial intelligence, nuclear engineering or quantum physics. Administration officials argued that such a move would have dual advantages -- costing Russia while benefiting America. The vast majority of such visas for the technology industry go to workers from India. About 1,800 Russians obtained lawful permanent resident status each year before the pandemic based on an immigrant classification reserved primarily for outstanding professors, researchers and advanced degree professionals, if they had employer sponsors. Even with the latest proposal, all applicants would still have to meet other requirements, including a security vetting process.
 
Six months before crucial midterms, Biden faces many challenges
President Biden delivered an impassioned plea last week asking Congress for an additional $33 billion to support Ukraine against Russia's invasion, speaking in soaring language of the need to stop dictators and defend human rights. But shortly after he finished his remarks, the president was peppered with questions from reporters on an array of other thorny issues closer to home -- a controversial immigration policy, a potential economic recession, a fierce battle over covid funding. Biden entered office with a historic set of challenges, punctuated by a deadly pandemic and a shuttered economy. Now, six months before midterm elections that could dramatically alter his governing ability in the final two years of his term, the list of issues has seemingly only grown longer. Gas prices across the country are soaring. Inflation has broken 40-year records. Prospects for Biden's sweeping climate and social spending package appear dim. Crime rates are high. New variants of the coronavirus continue to emerge. Just last week, a report showed the economy unexpectedly contracted in the first quarter, while Vice President Harris's coronavirus case highlighted the stubbornness of the pandemic. Republicans scoff at the notion that the bad news is not Biden's fault. They are eager to drive home a message that Democratic control of Washington has brought incompetence and chaos, which they argue is reflected in higher prices, rising crime, struggling schools and a surge of illegal immigration.
 
Foster children in Mississippi face problems attending college. A new state law could help that.
A new law could make it easier for current or former children in the state's foster care system to attend a college or university. Gov. Tate Reeves on Wednesday signed into law House Bill 1313, which sets aside $1 million in scholarships each year for people who were in foster custody when they were 13 years old or older but who have not turned 25. "We'll continue to do everything we can to support children in foster care, find them loving homes, and give them the opportunity to succeed," Reeves said. "We have a responsibility to ensure those children growing up in foster care have the opportunity to turn their struggles into strengths." The scholarship would cover the cost of attending college, which could include school supplies, housing, and meals. The bill was named after north Mississippi Rep. Bill Kinkade, who grew up in the state's foster system. Kinkade, R-Byhalia, recalled when he attended school as a child in downtown Jackson, he would often see the golden eagle that sits atop the Mississippi Capitol building. "I would think, 'How can I get some help? Does anyone know where I'm at?'" Kinkade said. Now as an adult, the Marshall County lawmaker said he looks at that same eagle and thinks how fortunate he is to come out of the foster system and be a successful, productive citizen. "Today, I feel so lucky, so very humbled and extremely proud," Kinkade said. "Not so much for my journey, but rather for the benefits that House Bill 1313 offers to those underserved youth who can now take advantage of this transformative legislation."
 
U. of Mississippi band gets bigger practice field
The University of Mississippi is committing $3.5 million to build a new practice field for its Pride of the South marching band. Chancellor Glenn Boyce said the university's commitment will pair with various gifts and major donations to the project totaling about $330,000. "We're thrilled to see this moment that we have been working towards for years come to fruition for the Ole Miss band. Our students deserve this investment in them," Boyce said in a statement Wednesday. The new practice field will have drainage structures and lights, a new director's tower, a storage building and proper field access. Construction is scheduled to begin in August and be completed by summer 2023. The project was proposed nearly five years ago. At that time, the board that oversees Mississippi's eight public universities approved a design fee of $65,000 and the design professional was appointed. But the project stalled until the university submitted a new request for a revised budget of $3.5 million, which the board approved in April.
 
Mississippi provides free digital subscriptions to schools
More than $20 million worth of digital subscriptions is going to Mississippi school districts in an effort to enhance digital learning experiences, the Mississippi Department of Education said Friday. The $23.1 million in subscriptions will be paid for with American Rescue Plan and Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief federal funds, the department said in a news release. The State Board of Education approved the plan in December, officials said. The six different subscriptions cover topics like reading fluency, problem-solving skills, virtual Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics activities and more. Through its Mississippi Connects program launched in 2020, the department ensured every student and teacher in the state had access to a laptop computer. The new digital subscriptions will further support its efforts to ensure a high-quality digital learning experience, the department said.
 
Auburn University College of Agriculture to announce partnership with CACC
Auburn University's College of Agriculture and Central Alabama Community College will hold a joint press conference this week to announce a new partnership. Officials from both institutions are scheduled to speak Wednesday at 9:30 a.m. in the Center for Advanced Science, Innovation and Commerce building in Auburn's Research Park. "Our goal at CACC is to provide as many opportunities for our students as possible," said Jeff Lynn, CACC president. "This partnership with Auburn University will provide a direct pathway for students who wish to transfer into the College of Agriculture." Central Alabama Community College operates campuses in Alexander City, Childersburg, Prattville, and Talladega. "Students from CACC and similar schools have found great success in the College of Agriculture and in the careers that followed," said Auburn College of Agriculture Dean Paul Patterson. "We are proud to partner with CACC to create opportunities like these for more students in the years to come." The Auburn University College of Agriculture offers 12 undergraduate degrees and master's and doctoral programs in 14 fields of study.
 
Two LSU professors awarded prestigious Carnegie fellowships, earn $200,000 each for research
A professor helping universities built on former slave plantations understand their history and a professor studying how local news can reduce political polarization are the first LSU professors to be named Andrew Carnegie fellows. The Carnegie Corporation of New York announced this week that Joshua Darr and Andrew Sluyter are among the 28 fellows in the 2022 class. They will receive $200,000 stipends to pursue their research. "It was great to have a place as prestigious as the Carnegie Foundation believe in my work and I'm also, along with the other winner here at LSU, proud to be the first people from LSU to win it," Darr said. Darr is an assistant professor at the Manship School of Mass Communication, while Sluyter is a geography professor in the College of Humanities & Social Sciences. Sluyter, who was notified of the fellowship a few weeks ago, said his first thought upon receiving the confirmation email was to share the news. "I read the whole thing several times and it took me days and days to absorb the news," he said. "But the first thing I did was phone my wife, phoned my assistant dean to share the news and shared it with a few people because you just have to, it's incredible." According to Sluyter, the fellowship will give them the stipend in installments of $100,000 for two years.
 
Sonny Perdue counting on executive experience in new role as university system chancellor
Sonny Perdue isn't your typical University System of Georgia chancellor. His two immediate predecessors -- Steve Wrigley and Hank Huckaby -- spent large portions of their careers in academia. Huckaby was a professor and later administrator at several USG institutions including the University of Georgia, while Wrigley served inside the system's central office as executive vice chancellor of administration. Perdue, a Republican, was Georgia's governor for eight years and U.S. secretary of agriculture in the Trump administration for four more. He thinks that executive experience will stand him in good stead as he takes the helm at Georgia's 26 public colleges and universities. To be fair, Perdue isn't a novice when it comes to higher education. He chaired the state Senate Higher Education Committee during the 1990s, before his election in 2002 as Georgia's first Republican governor since Reconstruction. His tenure with the committee coincided with the launching of the lottery-funded HOPE Scholarships program, which incentivized Georgia's top high school students to attend the university system's top colleges instead of heading out of state. "It was an exciting time as we saw the reputation of the University of Georgia almost skyrocket," Perdue said. But Perdue's role under the Gold Dome in shaping higher education policy wasn't enough to satisfy some students and faculty, who objected to his candidacy during the months-long process that led to his appointment by the university system Board of Regents in early March.
 
Ukrainian classmates inspire U. of Arkansas law students
War was no match for springtime in Kyiv, at least not in the semester's final transnational Rule of Law class taught at the University of Arkansas School of Law. The weekly course included online students from Ukraine who joined their American counterparts for student-driven class discussions. "It's finally getting warm," Iryna Rekrut, 22, said Wednesday. The Russian forces that invaded her country on Feb. 24 had, for the moment, not been attempting a sustained offensive against the country's capital region. She spoke of seeing children play outside and enjoying nature. "It's the best feeling in the world, and I hope soon everybody will be able to feel it," Rekrut said. Hope for better days throughout the war-torn country -- and an appreciation for connections forged between American and Ukrainian students -- were the main themes of Wednesday's final class, though a day later, Thursday, missiles again fell on Kyiv to break that city's relative calm. Throughout the semester, Ukrainian students had also shared more somber perspectives of the war's emerging brutality, always mixed with resolve that their country will emerge as victors.
 
U. of Kentucky receives $5M donation to renovate 'terribly stressed building'
The University of Kentucky has received a donation of more than $5 million to go toward renovating the home of the College of Design, soon to be housed in the Reynolds Building. Gray, Inc., a construction and engineering company owned by the Gray family in Lexington, is donating $5.25 million for renovations of the historic Reynolds Building. The building, more than a century old, will be renamed the Gray Design Building and will become home to the five programs within the College of Design. Other programs, like the landscape architecture and biomedical engineering programs, also will be able to use the space. UK President Eli Capilouto said the new building will be "a stunning entry point to UK," and "a marriage of form and function that will enhance what we do academically, in service to our state and as a symbol of the inextricable links between Lexington and the university." "This gift will give us the opportunity to transform a historic but terribly stressed building into the Gray Design Building -- home of UK's College of Design," Capilouto said. "It sits at a critical nexus between campus and community." UK acquired the building and moved the university's art department there in the 1960s. In need of major renovations, the building was vacated about a decade ago, as UK's School of Art and Visual Studies moved into a nearby renovated building. College of Design Dean Mitzi Vernon said she is excited to see the building come together after years of planning, and is pleased to see a historic building be repurposed in a sustainable way, aligning with UK and the college's sustainability goals.
 
Thousands of engineering students show off work in annual Capstone Design Showcase at Texas A&M
More than 1,000 engineering students flooded the corridors of the Zachry Engineering Building on the Texas A&M campus with their Capstone Design projects that ranged from cameras on Earth to plants on other planets. The students represented 245 different projects, some with industry sponsorships in which they were given a problem and asked to create a solution. Each team created a poster explaining the problem they were given, their process and the solution they developed, along with a prototype. More than 140 industry judges spent much of Friday visiting with the teams to determine the top three in eight different engineering majors and an overall showcase winner. The Reliable Instrument Counter ended the day as the overall Showcase Capstone champion, winning $1,500, while the eight awarded majors won first-place prizes ranging from $250 to $1,000. "We have lots of students, and they are doing some amazing things," said Magda Lagoudas, executive director of industry partnerships in the College of Engineering. The annual showcase gives the students the chance to show off two semesters' worth of work and talk with people outside their programs about their product.
 
$1.8 million donation benefits first-generation, rural U. of Missouri students seeking business degrees
A $1.8 million donation from Sue and Irl Engelhardt ensures the Heartland Scholars Academy they established at the University of Missouri in 2018 will continue long into the future. The donation is intended to provide first-generation, rural students with tools and skills to achieve academic success. The additional gift will establish an endowment for the continuation of the program in the Trulaske College of Business. The Heartland Scholars Academy provides students with scholarships; laptop computers; business attire for professional events; the opportunity to travel to learn about business; a dedicated adviser; a career coach; and business seminars. Irl Engelhardt gives advice to business students at the Robert J. Trulaske Sr. College of Business on Friday at Cornell Hall. Engelhardt and his wife, Sue, gave a $1.8 million donation to the Heartland Scholars Academy at the Robert J. Trulaske Sr. College of Business on Friday at Cornell Hall. The Engelhardts began the Heartland Scholars Academy to provide first-generation rural students with the tools and skills to achieve academic success at the university. "We saw a need in rural communities that was going unfulfilled," Irl Engelhardt said at the presentation, attended by the first graduating class of Heartland Scholars. "You've represented this program very well," he said.
 
3 U. of Oklahoma students killed returning from storm chasing
Three University of Oklahoma meteorology students were killed in a car crash on Friday evening as they returned from storm chasing in Kansas. Nicholas Nair, 20, of Denton, Texas; Gavin Short, 19, of Grayslake, Illinois; and Drake Brooks, 22, of Evansville, Indiana, died in the crash shortly before 11:30 p.m. Friday, according to an Oklahoma Highway Patrol report. The three were in a vehicle being driven by Nair southbound on Interstate 35 when the vehicle hydroplaned and was struck by a tractor-trailer rig in Tonkawa, about 85 miles (137 kilometers) north of Oklahoma City, the report said. A statement released by OU said: "The university is devastated to learn of the tragic passing of three students. Each were valued and loved members of our community." The tornado that damaged more than 1,000 buildings in south-central Kansas generated winds up to 165 mph and carved a path of destruction nearly 13 miles long. The National Weather Service said the tornado that caused extensive damage Friday mostly in the Wichita suburb of Andover and injured several people rated an EF-3 on the Enhanced Fujita scale it uses to assess tornadoes.
 
Will tuition waivers make universities more accessible to Indigenous students?
As an undergraduate at the University of California, Davis, Tori McConnell noticed something about the Native student community. "The atmosphere felt so uncertain," she said. "People always were worried." Worried about money. McConnell, who's a citizen of the Yurok Tribe and a descendent of the Karuk Tribe, said she and many of her Native peers paid for school with a patchwork of financial aid, scholarships, loans and income from part-time jobs that cut into study time. "And then if you don't do well in your studies then you don't get scholarships, and if you don't get scholarships, you can't do your studies," she said. "It's like this snake eating its own tail." The University of California System has taken a step to reduce financial barriers for Indigenous students. Starting this fall, it will waive tuition costs for California residents who are citizens of federally recognized tribes. Citizens of more than 80 tribes in California that are unrecognized or seeking federal recognition will be eligible for similar tuition assistance paid for by the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria. The UC system is the latest in a wave of public land grant universities to offer free or discounted tuition to some Indigenous students, including the University of Minnesota, Nevada and Colorado systems.
 
The Unintended Consequences of 'Ungrading'
Robert Talbert is convinced that traditional grading practices are due for an overhaul. Talbert, a professor of mathematics at Grand Valley State University, is co-writing a book, Grading for Growth, about alternative approaches that focus on providing feedback and allowing several attempts rather than awarding points. "For too long," Talbert and his co-author, David Clark, write in their newsletter, "grades have gotten in the way of learning, and learners have focused on scoring points and playing school instead of on learning and growth." This semester, Talbert has been experimenting with what's probably the most alternative practice of all: "ungrading," in which grades are de-emphasized as far as possible. But, as he wrote in a recent blog post, he has some reservations about the approach. The big one: Could ungrading actually make equity gaps worse? Talbert's question is provocative. Getting rid of grades is a bold step, one proponents see as student-centered. Making things worse for disadvantaged students would be a dire unintended consequence. The question of ungrading's effect is also difficult to answer. Joshua Eyler has been openly critical of the emphasis placed on traditional grades and worries about their impact on student mental health. Eyler, director of faculty development at the University of Mississippi, is working on a book about grades. He'd like to see more instructors experiment with alternative approaches. "When I think about, how do I help people get to the model that works best for them?, it's all about context," he says. "Who you are, what are you teaching, what institution are you teaching in, who are your students, how many students do you have."
 
Poll finds the public doesn't favor affirmative action
Americans do not favor the consideration of race, ethnicity or gender in college admissions decisions. A new Pew Research Center report found that 74 percent think race and ethnicity should not be considered in admissions decisions. For gender, 82 percent think it shouldn't be considered. The results extend to every racial group and to Democrats as well as Republicans. The findings come as the U.S. Supreme Court prepares to hear two cases, probably in October, on the future of affirmative action in admissions. The deadline for Students for Fair Admissions, the group challenging the affirmative action policies of Harvard University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, to file its brief in the cases is today. The Supreme Court doesn't consider the public's opinion on issues (at least not officially). But the data point to a major problem for colleges and universities, given that most colleges have backed the positions of Harvard and UNC. Some may wonder how the questions were phrased, as there is some history of groups that oppose (or favor) affirmative action using language to get those participating in polls to respond accordingly. Pew asked, "Here are some factors colleges and universities may consider when making decisions about student admissions. Do you think each of the following should be a major factor, minor factor, or not a factor in college admissions?" Respondents most supported the use of high school grades, with 61 percent saying they should be a major factor and 32 percent a minor factor. (When Pew last did this survey three years ago, the results were similar, except that 67 percent said grades should be a major factor and 26 percent said they should be a minor factor.)
 
Keep an eye on Title IX
The Education Department is expected to drop its Title IX rule this month after delaying the release of its highly anticipated proposal that's expected to overhaul the Trump-era rule that mandates how schools must respond to sexual misconduct on campus. The Title IX final rule that took effect in August 2020 is one of the key legacies of Trump Education Secretary Betsy DeVos' tenure. She has said the rule officially codifies protections to hold schools accountable by ensuring sexual assault survivors aren't brushed aside and no accused student's guilt is predetermined. While lauded by groups that say the prescriptive rule protects due process for accused students, it was met with lawsuits that largely failed and pushback from victims' advocacy groups that argued it weakened protections for survivors. But the Biden administration's overhaul, led by Education Secretary Miguel Cardona, could include much more in the rule than just sexual misconduct policies, some Title IX experts and groups say. It is also expected to codify protections for LGBTQ students for the first time by adding that Title IX, the federal education law that prohibits sex-based discrimination, also prohibits discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity.
 
White House officials weigh income limits for student loan forgiveness
The White House is considering income caps for eligibility for student loan relief that would exclude higher-earning Americans, as President Biden nears a decision on the matter, according to three people aware of administration discussions. The administration is considering various ways to forgive some student loan debt through executive action. In recent weeks, senior Biden aides have examined limiting the relief to people who earned less than either $125,000 or $150,000 as individual filers the previous year, the people said. That plan would set the threshold at around $250,000 or $300,000 for couples who file their taxes jointly, the people said. No final decisions have been made, and the people familiar with the matter stressed that planning was fluid and subject to change. The White House is also weighing exactly how much student debt to eliminate for each borrower. Biden indicated to reporters this week that the amount would be lower than $50,000 per person. Administration officials have also signaled that the White House will cut at least $10,000 per qualifying borrower, the people said, embracing a position Biden himself appeared to support in a private meeting with the congressional Hispanic Caucus. The administration has also discussed limiting forgiveness to undergraduate loans, excluding those who had taken out loans for professional degrees in fields such as law and medicine, the people said.


SPORTS
 
Mississippi State softball coach Samantha Ricketts isn't afraid to be creative -- and her players are buying in
Mississippi State junior Matalasi Faapito is never sure what she'll see when she gets to Nusz Park. Will the New Mexico State transfer be slated to pitch for the Bulldogs? Will she be in the lineup -- and if so, in what spot? Faapito never knows. "Whenever I get here, I just expect whatever," Faapito said Wednesday. That evening, she hit in the No. 7 spot for the first time in maroon and white in a win over Southern Miss. That's because Mississippi State coach Samantha Ricketts is known for mixing things up. Batting orders, defensive positions and the makeup of the pitching staff are all under Ricketts' control, and she's nothing if not creative in her quest to keep the Bulldogs' program on the cutting edge of college softball. "It's just fun to see the game grow and evolve and how we have to evolve and adapt to keep up with it," Ricketts said. Sometimes her changes are complicated. Sometimes they're confusing. But Mississippi State's players have bought into Ricketts' machinations -- the necessary step in making everything work. "I think Ricketts does a really good job of continuing to try new things," outfielder Chloe Malau'ulu said.
 
Mickelson, Stallworth Lead a Slew of NCAA Qualifiers in Regular Season Finale
On the final day of the 2022 outdoor regular season, records were broken in StarkVegas, and multiple Dawgs saw their performances propel them into the NCAA postseason. Peyton Mickelson broke the school record for the women's pole vault after jumping to a height of 4.11 meters. The performance also secured a first-place finish for the Bulldog. On the other end of the field, Jhordyn Stallworth broke her own school record (15.91m), en route to a first-place finish, in the women's shot put, throwing 0.25m farther than her original mark from two weeks ago at the Tom Jones Invitational (April 16). This marks the second time this outdoor season where Stallworth has extended a record she already has possession of. Including Mickelson and Stallworth, 10 total Bulldogs set new personal bests on Saturday. MSU also recorded 11 total first-place finishes, setting the stage for several student-athletes to represent the Maroon and White come NCAA postseason. The Bulldogs will take a week off before traveling to Oxford for the SEC Outdoor Championships (May 12-14). This will be the second trip up north, the first coming earlier this month for the Joe Walker Invite (April 8-9).
 
Mississippi outdoors legend and former Clarion Ledger writer Bobby Cleveland dies
Longtime outdoors journalist and former Clarion Ledger outdoors writer Bobby Cleveland died Thursday from injuries suffered in an automobile accident. Cleveland, the brother of former Clarion Ledger sportswriter and Hall of Fame sportswriter Rick Cleveland, who is now with Mississippi Today, most recently worked as the Pearl River Valley Water Supply District spokesman for the past 10 years. Cleveland was leaving North Shore Park in Rankin County Thursday morning after having helped set up for a concert series when the accident took place. He was 67 years old. Outdoors was Cleveland's passion. He shared stories with Mississippi for nearly three decades through the Clarion Ledger and later as a TV personality and an online columnist. Sid Salter, who is now the director of public affairs at Mississippi State University, worked just feet away from Cleveland in the Clarion Ledger news room for nearly a decade and said their friendship is special to him. "For someone of his generation, he was very concerned with conservation and maintaining the resource of the places where Mississippians fished and hunted the outdoors," Salter said. "But I don't think anybody who ever met Bobby didn't come back to this. He was smart, funny and he made people feel better just by being around him. He made people happier. He had a knack for making people's day better."
 
Bobby Cleveland lived 67 years on his terms and to the fullest
Mississippi sports columnist Rick Cleveland writes: My late and great friend Willie Morris once confided, "Rickey, you know, we all write best about what we care about most." In that case, what follows should be a doozy. Bobby Cleveland -- Robert Hayes Cleveland, Jr. -- was my younger brother by 21 months. Our daddy, a sports writer before us, often instructed us both: "Make sure you get the news in first." So, I will: Bobby died Thursday of injuries suffered in an automobile accident. He was 67, and he had lived every day of his time on this planet to the absolute fullest -- and then maybe to overflowing. ... Many long-time Clarion Ledger readers will remember Bobby's splendid outdoors writing. My column ran on the front page of the sports sections, Bobby's on the back cover. And I can't tell you how many times people would come up and say they enjoyed reading my columns but they always read Bobby's first. He wrote stories the way he told them, filled with wit and expertise. Often, in his fishing and hunting stories, he was the butt of his own jokes. ... What many readers didn't know was that Bobby for years was the editor and designer of the CL's Sunday sports sections, which were annually judged among the nation's best. During football seasons, Bobby often produced sports sections as hefty as 28 pages that were the equal of sports sections in New York, Chicago or Los Angeles. He had a knack for page design, and he was hands-down the best headline writer I ever worked with.
 
In the Wake of Lia Thomas, What Will the NCAA Do?
Lia Thomas, a University of Pennsylvania swimmer and a transgender woman, won first place last month in the 500-yard freestyle at the NCAA Women's Division I Swimming and Diving Championships. Her victory was celebrated in some quarters; one op-ed writer likened her to the baseball legend Jackie Robinson. Others saw her as undermining women's sports, and many of her own teammates anonymously objected to her participation. Over the course of the season, Thomas became the face of a national debate about how to balance fairness and inclusion in women's sports. That controversy over Thomas's participation may be over, but tough questions about the National Collegiate Athletic Association's rules for transgender athletes still haven't been answered. Arriving at a way forward will require interpreting a growing and contested body of science while navigating a fraught political environment.



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