| Tuesday, June 13, 2023 |
| New program at MSU geared toward helping older students reach goals | |
 | A new program at Mississippi State is helping older students meet their goals and reach for new opportunities. Susan Seal, dean of the newly created College of Professional and Continuing Studies, briefed Starkville business and community leaders on the school's mission. The College of Professional and Continuing Studies is geared toward older learners who may not have completed their degrees at a younger age, those, who are looking to change jobs, or who may be looking to advance in their current careers but need additional skills or certifications. The program focuses on the application of knowledge and skills and has a practice-based approach. To reach non-traditional students, the university is taking a non-traditional approach. "And one of the things with adult learners is it's not so much the competition of other colleges, it's just the competition with life, things that go on in life, and why they didn't finish to begin with. We have to be able to provide opportunities that fit into their lifestyle, that fit into the times they can do it, and give them the support they need," said Seal. |
| Book Talk: Five questions with Alex Bostic | |
 | Martin Luther King Jr. famously ended his "I Have a Dream" speech with the iconic phrase "Free at Last." But what did it really mean -- especially for those who were finally gaining their freedom after slavery was abolished? Answering that question is at the heart of the children's picture book "Free at Last: A Juneteenth Poem" by author Sojourner Kincaid Rolle and illustrator Alex Bostic. Bostic resides in Starkville and has served as an associate professor in the Department of Art at Mississippi State University for over a decade. Bostic will appear at the Juneteenth Tailgate Party in Columbus June 19. It will be held from 4-6 p.m. at the Roger Short Soccer Complex as part of several local events celebrating Juneteenth over the holiday weekend. Bostic received national attention last year when his portrait of Edmonia Lewis, a Black and Native American sculptor who lived during the late 19th century, was revealed as the design of a new postage stamp. He wrote a tribute to Lewis that will appear as an afterword to Lee Ann Timreck's forthcoming book "Pieces of Freedom," which will be published in August by the University Press of Mississippi. Bostic also has gone on to illustrate another children's book about Black history. In "Small Shoes, Great Strides," which will be released on Nov. 7, Bostic collaborated with author Vaunda Micheaux Nelson to depict the story of Leona Tate, Gail Etienne and Tessie Prevost, who integrated a New Orleans public elementary school as first graders in 1960. |
| Attending college is a Dyess family affair at MSU-Meridian | |
 | When Katelyn Dyess dreamed about going to college to be a teacher, she never envisioned her mother and father would be there, too. Last summer all three family members began course work at Mississippi State University-Meridian -- Katelyn in elementary education, and her parents, Jason and Dawn Dyess, in applied science. Diehard Mississippi State fans, the Meridian residents never considered getting a degree from anywhere else. Jason Dyess wanted to earn a bachelor's degree from Mississippi State for as long as he can remember, and next year he can finally check it off his bucket list, thanks to East Mississippi Electric Power Association's tuition reimbursement. He began working for the local electric power association in 2021 as fiber inventory coordinator. He and his wife Dawn thought about returning to school several years earlier, but were discouraged when they discovered their technical credits wouldn't transfer to MSU-Meridian at the time and they would have to start over. However, that changed in 2020 when Dyess learned about MSU's new Bachelor of Applied Science degree while he was working as station manager for WMER, a local Christian radio station. "I landed at the station when CertainTeed Ceilings, where I'd worked for 18 years, closed their doors. I heard rumblings about a new degree at Mississippi State, so I invited Dr. Terry Dale Cruse, head of MSU-Meridian, to come to the station and talk about it on air," he said. "I knew then I finally had a pathway to finish college and earn my degree. Once I began working at EMEPA and learned about the company's tuition reimbursement program, I also knew it was time." |
| MSU culinary arts camp invites 7th-12th graders | |
 | Junior high and high school students are invited to improve their kitchen skills at a culinary arts camp June 26-30 at Mississippi State University. Culinary Arts Kids Camp is focused on teaching young people about local foods, kitchen basics and easy recipes. Participants will be introduced to food science, culinary arts and food preparation. The camp at the end of June is open to students entering seventh through 12th grades. "Research has shown the importance of hands-on experiences with foods and how, especially in children, it improves the consumption of fruits and vegetables," said Courtney Crist, camp organizer and MSU Extension food safety specialist in the Department of Food Science, Nutrition and Health Promotion. Goals of the program include introducing new foods and flavors, seeing the science behind food, gaining culinary skills, following recipes, learning the importance of food safety and making food products. Participants will work with breads, sweets, dairy products and more. |
| Williams raises $14,600 in District 15 Senate race | |
| Fundraising continues to be sluggish in state and district-level races, according to the most recent campaign finance reports. Reports were due Friday. Candidates are required to itemize any donation or expenditure greater than $200. Primary elections are Aug. 8, and the general election is Nov. 7. In the District 15 Senate race, challenger Alan Sibley has raised $1,867, of which $1,500 was itemized. Mississippi Parents for Vaccine Rights PAC donated $1,000, and James Franks of Mantee gave $500. Sibley reported $7,333 in expenditures. Bart Williams reported $14,600 in donations, of which $13,300 were itemized. Clay Firm Advocacy Group gave $1,500; Mississippi Auto Dealers Association gave $2,500; Adams and Reese LLP gave $500; Corporate Relations Management gave $1,000; Pennington and Trim gave $300; JM Hughes Group gave $250; Ten One gave $500; Nucor gave $500; Derrick H Surrette gave $250; Simmons Consulting (Lindsey) gave $250; Briggs Hopson gave $500; Josh Harkins gave $500; Mississippi Truckers gave $500; MMA gave $2,000; Jones Walker LLP (Dennis Miller) gave $500; Ron Aldridge gave $500; Home Builders Association (Pat Nelson) gave $1,000; and Barbour Company LLC gave $250. |
| Oktibbeha County campaign fundraising mostly stagnant | |
| Campaign finance reports show many Oktibbeha County candidates have not received any additional contributions to their campaigns since the last reporting period in May. But funding continues to grow in the sheriff's race. The second round of campaign finance reports for May 1 through May 31 were due Friday. Candidates are required to itemize any donation or expenditure greater than $200. The biggest dollar race is the sheriff's race, with Republican Shank Phelps and Democrat John Rice raising more than $19,000 for their campaigns since the beginning of the year. Phelps reported $12,300 in contributions total, while Rice reported $6,756 in contributions total. Since the last reporting period, Phelps has raised $2,350, with contributions of $1,000 from Wayne Phelps, $300 from Cliff Ivy and $250 from both Greta Bryan and Dolen Bryan, with $550 non-itemized. Rice reported $3,100 in contributions this period, including a $3,000 contribution from Wildlife Dominion, an Oktibbeha County-based manufacturing company, and $100 non-itemized. Primary elections are Aug. 8, and the general election is Nov. 7. |
| Proposed code changes would streamline sidewalk variances | |
| For the eighth time, the city is working to revise the Unified Development Code, this time with 20 revisions, with the biggest adjustments directed at the city's sidewalk process. At a work session on June 2, City Planner Daniel Havelin presented the proposed changes to the code to city aldermen. "We have been discussing the update for the sidewalks for some time now," Havelin told The Dispatch in an email. "We feel now is the best time to fine-tune the sidewalk requirement. The proposed changes are based on the City of Starkville Bicycle and Pedestrian Network Master Plan study that was conducted in 2021. Our goal is to make the requirements for constructing sidewalks more predictable and purposeful." The UDC currently requires sidewalks in all newly platted subdivisions and with any development or redevelopment within the sidewalk development zone, or any construction project greater than $50,000 in that zone. Other proposed changes to the development code include special exceptions for gas stations and convenience stores in certain zoning districts that are mainly residential, changes to restrictions on structures in floodways, requirements for grading, time limits on temporary storage containers and more. Havelin reminded The Dispatch these revisions are currently still a draft and two public hearings must be held before revisions are approved. |
| Commercial developers share strategies in new cycle of retail | |
| "The sky is not falling." Despite several big-box retailers closing in the Golden Triangle and nationally in the last four years, local retail developers remain confident their tenants are financially secure. Castle Properties owner Mark Castleberry told The Dispatch the economic status of the retail industry remains strong, and that large big-box stores coming in and out of the area are simply part of the ebb and flow of the market. "Even in the best of times of retail, there are retail failures," Castleberry said. "There are challenges in retail, ... but I think how the dust settles for Starkville is that we have a robust community, quality of life, job and wealth creation. And there's a significant interest in Starkville for additional retail." On a local level, both Columbus and Starkville have lost multiple large footprint retailers, including Sears, JCPenny, Kmart, Goody's, Stage Stores and Tuesday Morning, but Castleberry's optimism bears out in two recent articles. The Wall Street Journal reports big box stores are showing a net increase in 2023. More broadly, a CoStar report says available retail space fell to the lowest levels on record as of the end of 2022, indicating brick and mortar retailers may be finding strength despite the rise of online shopping. |
| With one month remaining, Mississippi state revenues exceed fiscal year estimate by over $650 million | |
| Mississippi tax revenue collection have been robust over the last few years, exceeding estimates by over half a billion dollars or more. This current fiscal year is no different. The latest report from the Joint Legislative Budget Committee shows that as of the end of May 2023 revenue collections have exceeded estimates by over $650 million with one month remaining in the fiscal year. The new fiscal year begins July 1st. Total revenue collections for the month of May 2023 were $15,655,162, or 2.65% above the sine die revenue estimate for the month. Fiscal year-to-date revenue collections through May 2023 were $652,669,829, or 10.40% above the sine die revenue estimate. Fiscal year-to-date total revenue collections through May 2023 were $315,522,605, or 4.77% above the prior year's collections. The FY 2023 Sine Die Revenue Estimate was $6,987,400,000. May 2023 General Fund collections were down $68,826,468, or -10.20% below May 2022 actual collections. Sales tax collections for the month of May were above the prior year by $2.0 million. |
| Cadence Bank earns 'outstanding' rating from FDIC | |
 | Cadence Bank has earned an 'outstanding' overall ranking in its Community Reinvestment Act performance evaluation conducted by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). Cadence received the coveted ranking in the investment and service categories, and also receive a 'high satisfactory" ranking in lending. Cadence said in a press release that the recognition solidifies its longstanding commitment to supporting and serving its communities. "We are immensely proud of our team's exceptional accomplishments, which led to Cadence securing the highest CRA rating," said Cadence Chairman and CEO Dan Rollins."This recognition from the regulators is a testament to our unwavering dedication to promoting economic growth and advancing financial inclusion, particularly in low- and moderate-income areas within the communities we serve." "The rarity of receiving an outstanding rating from banking regulators is evident from the limited number of banks that achieve this distinction annually," Rollins said. |
| This record store wants to prove that downtown Jackson, Mississippi, is a destination | |
| While national retail sales have remained fairly strong, local economies can vary based on many factors, like population. That's a major concerns for Phillip Rollins, owner of OffBeat, a comic and record store in downtown Jackson, Mississippi. "What we're dealing with now is a lot of shrinkage in the population," he said. "And that's probably playing a big effect in our business." The state capital is the fastest-shrinking city of its size in the country and has dealt with a number of infrastructure issues, including a breakdown last year that left residents without water for weeks. The city recently received $115 million from the Joe Biden administration to fix its water system, but retailers like Rollins are also making a pitch to attract visitors. He recently participated in an event called 601JXN, which aimed to bring people downtown. "We're trying to, like, break conceptions of there's nothing to do here," Rollins said. "There's always something to do here. People just don't know how to find it." |
| CPI Report Shows Inflation Has Been Cut in Half From Last Year's Peak | |
 | Inflation in May was around half of last year's peak but remained far above what Federal Reserve officials would like to see. The consumer-price index rose 4% last month from a year earlier, the Labor Department said Tuesday, well below the recent peak of 9.1% last June and down from April's 4.9% increase. Fed officials are meeting June 13-14 to decide their next steps to cool inflation, which they would like to see at 2%. They could hold interest rates steady at the meeting, while preparing to increase rates again in the summer or the fall if they don't think enough progress has been made on inflation. So-called core consumer prices, which excludes volatile food and energy categories, climbed 5.3% in May from a year earlier, down from 5.5% in April. Economists see core prices as a better predictor of future inflation. Core prices remain elevated in part because an earlier surge in housing-rental prices continues to show up in the inflation figures. Overall consumer prices increased a seasonally adjusted 0.1% in May from the prior month, down from April's 0.4% increase. Core consumer prices rose 0.4% in May from the prior month, the same pace as in April and March. May inflation was driven by rising housing prices along with higher used vehicles and food prices, the Labor Department said. Energy prices declined 3.6% in May from April. |
| Mississippi Legislature approves $5 million for arts grant | |
 | The Mississippi Legislature recently approved new funds totaling a landmark $5 million for the Building Fund for the Arts (BFA) program. According to a press release from the Mississippi Arts Commission (MAC), this support will go to the construction, expansion, renovation, and repair of Mississippi facilities that serve as sites for year-round arts programming in their communities. MAC's executive director David Lewis appreciates how these contributions will impact the Magnolia State. "The BFA program is an important part of enhancing and supporting the creative economy in Mississippi, strengthening organizational capacity, and providing opportunities for citizens to learn from and engage with Mississippi's unique arts and cultural opportunities," Lewis said. Applications for the BFA program open on July 1 and close on July 15, 2023. MAC said to submit a Letter of Intent through their e-grant system. MAC staff reviews these letters and invites eligible organizations to submit a full application. These applications will open by invitation for submission in August 2023. Some of the facilities that received BFA funding for projects over the program's history include: The MSU Riley Center in Meridian to renovate the Newberry Building as part of the Riley Education and Performing Arts Complex (2004). |
| Mississippi is directing $28 million to boosting the healthcare workforce | |
| We've all heard about the strains on healthcare since the pandemic. But the state is looking at ways to fill in some of the ongoing gaps in that workforce. They're the professionals you expect to be there when you or a loved one is most in need -- doctors, nurses, and EMTs. But there's a shortage of all of those in the Magnolia State. "We need more people pursuing health care pathways because they're great careers, but also because our health care industry needs it," explained Garrett McInnis, Accelerate Mississippi's Deputy Director for External Affairs. The legislature recognized the problem and directed $28 million dollars to grant programs designed to boost efforts to fill in those gaps. One program is a nurse navigator program that will work on retaining those students. Another will increase the number of physician residencies and fellowships in the state. And the final piece will help sustain and increase the capacity of nursing and allied health training programs. "One of the things we're asking is for grant applicants to show us how they're going to make an impact as quickly as possible with these funds," added McInnis. "And how this one-time money from the federal government is going to impact their training and educational programs in perpetuity, long after these funds are gone." The Office of Mississippi Physician Workforce has been working to expand the locations where med school grads can do their residencies since 2012. "Mississippi has always been near the bottom on health care, and we want to change that," said Dr. John Mitchell, Director of the Office of Mississippi Physician Workforce. This latest round of funding will help grow that map. |
| Poll: Hosemann leads McDaniel in lieutenant governor primary, but many voters undecided | |
| A new Mississippi Today/Siena College poll shows incumbent Republican Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann with a substantial lead over challenger Chris McDaniel ahead of the Aug. 8 primary, but Hosemann doesn't crack 50% and many remain undecided. The poll of respondents who are likely to vote in the 2023 GOP primary showed Hosemann with 47% support and McDaniel with 32%. But 21% said they don't know who they'll vote for or declined to answer. The poll also surveyed favorable/unfavorable numbers for both candidates. Hosemann was at 58% favorable to 22% unfavorable, and McDaniel was at 46% favorable to 28% unfavorable. With incumbent Gov. Tate Reeves' recent semi-endorsement of McDaniel, the poll showed 41% of likely primary voters said they would rather vote for a candidate with his endorsement down ticket, 24% said they would not and 35% said they don't know. Both candidates appear to have loyal bases among Republican primary voters. Of those polled who voted for Hosemann in 2019, 61% plan to vote for him again. Of those who voted for McDaniel in his unsuccessful runs for U.S. Senate in 2014 or 2018, 63% plan to vote for him again. The poll showed some wide differences in regional voter sentiment. In the northeast congressional district, Hosemann and McDaniel were a dead heat, at 36% each. In the Delta and west Mississippi, Hosemann led 60%-20% and led 50%-26% in east-central. In the southeast district which includes McDaniel's hometown Ellisville, Hosemann polled 45% to McDaniel's 42%. |
| Millions pour into statewide elections during May as races heat up | |
 | Fundraising is picking up as candidates in Mississippi move closer to their August primaries and November general elections, with the state's Republicans outraising their Democratic challengers in every statewide election. In June periodic filing reports, which detail donations to and spending by candidates for the month of May, at least one candidate raised more in that month than in the previous four month filing period of January-April. Primary election day will be Aug. 8, with a potential runoff coming on Aug. 29. General election day will be Nov. 28. Incumbent Republican Gov. Tate Reeves came into the June filing with a large war-chest that he had accumulated over the last four years, and he expanded his financial lead over Democratic Public Service Commissioner Brandon Presley during the month of May. Reeves reported raised nearly $668,000 in May, while spending less than $279,000. Reeves' cash on hand stands at about $7.47 million. Reeves' legacy J. Tate Reeves account also reported holding about $1.97 million, bringing the presumptive Republican nominee's total to about $9.4 million. The legacy account neither raised nor spent any of its funds during the May period. Presley, who recently regained his status as the presumptive Democratic nominee, reported raising more than $355,000 in May, while spending more than $253,000. Presley's cash on hand stands at about $1.71 million. In a news release, the Presley campaign noted that 1,343 contributions were from new donors. |
| Elvis Presley's cousin lifts Democrats' hopes in Mississippi governor's race | |
 | Conservative Mississippi is tough territory for Democrats, but the party sees an unusual opportunity this year to unseat first-term Republican Gov. Tate Reeves. They're pinning hopes in November on a candidate with a legendary last name who has used his own compelling story to highlight the economic plight of working families in a state that has long been one of the poorest in America. Democrat Brandon Presley is a second cousin of Elvis Presley, born a few days before the rock 'n' roll legend died. While campaigning, Brandon Presley talks frequently about government corruption, focusing on a multimillion-dollar welfare scandal that developed when Reeves was lieutenant governor. Presley, an elected member of the Mississippi Public Service Commission, is unopposed for the Democratic nomination for governor. He is pushing for Medicaid expansion to help financially strapped hospitals while telling voters about his own difficult childhood. "I understand what working families in this state go through," Presley told about 75 people at a restaurant in Grenada, a town on the edge of the Mississippi Delta. The 45-year-old said he was just starting third grade when his father was murdered. |
| Supreme Court rules in favor of Black Alabama voters in unexpected defense of Voting Rights Act | |
| The Supreme Court on Thursday issued a surprising 5-4 ruling in favor of Black voters in a congressional redistricting case from Alabama, with two conservative justices joining liberals in rejecting a Republican-led effort to weaken a landmark voting rights law. Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Brett Kavanaugh aligned with the court's liberals in affirming a lower-court ruling that found a likely violation of the Voting Rights Act in an Alabama congressional map with one majority Black seat out of seven districts in a state where more than one in four residents is Black. The state now will have to draw a new map for next year's elections. The decision was keenly anticipated for its potential effect on control of the closely divided U.S. House of Representatives. Because of the ruling, new maps are likely in Alabama and Louisiana that could allow Democratic-leaning Black voters to elect their preferred candidates in two more congressional districts. The outcome was unexpected in that the court had allowed the challenged Alabama map to be used for the 2022 elections, and in arguments last October the justices appeared willing to make it harder to challenge redistricting plans as racially discriminatory under the Voting Rights Act of 1965. |
| Conservatives agree to end standoff that blocked House action | |
 | A disagreement between Speaker Kevin McCarthy and House conservatives that jammed up legislative business last week eased Monday evening, but members of the rebel bloc made clear it may not be the end of trouble for their leadership. Florida Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz said McCarthy agreed to renegotiate the "power-sharing agreement" he worked out in January, when he won the speakership after three days and multiple ballots. Short of an unspecified amount of "progress," Gaetz told reporters, "perhaps we'll be back here next week." "That's the hard part," he said, "to continue to build off this discussion we just had. ... Trust is a series of promises kept." Montana Rep. Matt Rosendale said future shutdowns were possible if they did not see "progress" -- which he also did not define -- in coming days and weeks. But for now, "the floor will be functioning this week," he said. McCarthy emerged from meetings saying "everybody's attitude" was about finding ways to work together. Asked about negotiating a new power-sharing agreement, he said, "I don't know that there's anything in writing here. The only thing we agreed to is we'll sit down and talk more about the process." |
| McConnell, GOP allies steer clear of defending Trump on indictment | |
 | Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) and his deputies are steering clear of defending former President Trump from felony charges brought by the Justice Department, signaling a deep split within the GOP over how to handle the former president's legal problems. While House Republican leaders and the leading Republican candidates for president have rallied behind Trump and attacked the Justice Department for targeting him unfairly, key Republican senators are reluctant to shield the former president from charges that he willfully mishandled top-secret documents and risked national security. GOP senators say the 37-count indictment brought against Trump by special counsel Jack Smith is more serious and more credible than the 34 felony charges Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg (D) brought against Trump in March. "There are very serious allegations in the indictment, and I think the Justice Department -- as they attempt to prove their case -- they've got a high burden of proof to convince people that they're handling this fairly and as they would for any other elected official," Senate Republican Whip John Thune (S.D.) said. |
| Trump heads to Miami for his arraignment. What kind of circus will follow? | |
 | Donald Trump and his aides are eager to have a show of support and force for his first court appearance in Miami on Tuesday on charges related to the retention of classified documents and efforts to obstruct justice. But they're stressing that they don't want it to get out of hand. Before departing for Florida, the former president spent Monday morning at his clubhouse in New Jersey where he spoke with aides and met with a congressional ally. Trump and his team of advisers and attorneys plan to spend Monday night at his golf resort in Miami preparing for his court appearance and trying to bolster his legal team. They were aware of pro-Trump rallies planned around his courthouse appearance and amplified calls for supporters to "protest peacefully." "We need strength at this point. Everyone is afraid to do anything. They're afraid to talk. They have to go out and protest peacefully," Trump told ally and conservative provocateur Roger Stone on his radio show on Sunday. Stone called on Trump's supporters planning protests to "keep it peaceful, civil and legal." After Trump's hearing at the courthouse, Trump and his team will fly back to New Jersey where he will be making remarks to the media at 8:15pm from a stage in front of his Bedminster clubhouse. Waiting inside the club will be dozens of top donors and bundlers, responsible for raising thousands of dollars, who had RSVP'd weeks ago for Trump's first major fundraiser. |
| The Great Grift: How billions in COVID-19 relief aid was stolen or wasted | |
| Much of the theft was brazen, even simple. Fraudsters used the Social Security numbers of dead people and federal prisoners to get unemployment checks. Cheaters collected those benefits in multiple states. And federal loan applicants weren't cross-checked against a Treasury Department database that would have raised red flags about sketchy borrowers. Criminals and gangs grabbed the money. But so did a U.S. soldier in Georgia, the pastors of a defunct church in Texas, a former state lawmaker in Missouri and a roofing contractor in Montana. All of it led to the greatest grift in U.S. history, with thieves plundering billions of dollars in federal COVID-19 relief aid intended to combat the worst pandemic in a century and to stabilize an economy in free fall. An Associated Press analysis found that fraudsters potentially stole more than $280 billion in COVID-19 relief funding; another $123 billion was wasted or misspent. Combined, the loss represents 10% of the $4.2 trillion the U.S. government has so far disbursed in COVID relief aid. That number is certain to grow as investigators dig deeper into thousands of potential schemes. |
| MUW's Kerzel receives Emerita Faculty status | |
| Leadership comes naturally to Dorothy Kerzel. And while her titles have changed throughout the years, Kerzel has remained committed to her guiding principle: to do what is right for the students, her department and the Mississippi University for Women. After 26 years of service at The W, Kerzel earned emerita faculty status as part of the commencement ceremony on May 5. "I am very honored to be granted emeritus status," said Kerzel, who started at The W in August 1997 and is currently a professor of mathematics in the Department of Sciences and Mathematics. "The W has provided me with many opportunities to grow professionally in teaching and leadership. I was fortunate to have a number of strong leaders early in my career at The W who I looked to as role models." Kerzel has been a similar example to countless others at The W as she has moved from assistant to associate professor to professor in 2005 to interim head and then head of what was then called the Division of Science and Mathematics. Kerzel served as interim dean of the College of Arts and Sciences from July 2006-June 2007. She also chaired the Department of Sciences and Mathematics from July 2005 to June 2011. |
| 'This is where it starts': UMMC summit aims to increase number of Black men in health care | |
| Brielan Terrell sat a few rows behind the other boys in the auditorium at the University of Mississippi Medical Center. The 18-year-old leaned forward, listening intently, as Eric Lucas Jr., a fourth-year medical student, demonstrated how to perform an ultrasound. As Lucas slid the probe across a medical manikin's chest, he peppered his audience, about 35 young Black men clad in sports coats and bowties, with questions. "Can anyone tell me what a stable blood pressure is?" he asked. Terrell raised his hand and answered correctly: "120 over 80." Lucas beamed. This was exactly what he imagined three years ago when he came up with the idea for the Black Men in Health Care Empowerment Summit. The one-day summer program saw its third cohort on Saturday, as over 100 middle and high school students from all over the state visited UMMC for tours and clinical simulations. Aimed at encouraging young Black men to pursue health care careers, Lucas pitched his idea during his first year at UMMC. "That's how I was raised," he said. "When you walk through the door, you should help someone to walk in." Lucas, a graduate of Mississippi State University and native of Ocean Springs, always had a career in health care in his sights. He remembers getting a microscope kit for a gift when he was 4. "Science has always kind of been my thing," Lucas admitted. |
| University to tear down old Kincannon Hall to make way for three new residence halls | |
| The University of Mississippi is keeping pace with its record freshman class enrollment by planning three new residence halls to be built on the site occupied by Kincannon Hall. Demolition of Kincannon, which has been vacant since 2015, is scheduled to begin later this summer to minimize disruption during the fall semester. "To be able to meet the increase in our enrollment and provide new, modern housing options for students, we decided that we needed to look at the addition of three new residence halls," said John Yaun, assistant vice chancellor for student affairs and director of student housing. "The Kincannon site is a natural and convenient location for new student housing. "We are planning to provide new, modern housing options that we consider state-of-the art residence halls in terms of housing design, technological features, green spaces and academic spaces." The new halls will offer 990 more beds to complement existing on-campus housing. An additional goal of the project is to provide housing options for upper-class students, as well as freshmen, Yaun said. Previous Kincannon residents, or anyone with fond memories of the building, can own a piece of campus history by supporting student services on campus. In return, the Office of University Development will gift them an original brick with a $63 donation or room number with a $25 donation. |
| Ole Miss receives continued federal funding for marijuana research | |
| The National Institute on Drug Abuse has awarded the University of Mississippi a new five-year contract and $2 million work order for the cultivation of marijuana and related materials for research. The five-year contract denotes the university's eligibility to apply for task orders through NIDA. NIDA crafts task orders to provide materials which meet the expected needs of research investigators. By fulfilling this work order, Ole Miss will help NIDA -- which is part of the National Institutes of Health -- supply quality, contaminant-free cannabis and its extracts and other materials to DEA-licensed researchers. Cannabis production through the NIDA contract will take place in the Coy Waller Lab as part of the Marijuana Project. The long-running program is housed in the pharmacy school's National Center for Natural Products Research. "For more than 50 years, University of Mississippi researchers have been at the forefront of cannabis research by providing standardized, responsibly grown product for scientific purposes," said Noel Wilkin, UM provost. "Through our research, we will continue to advance the scientific knowledge around this complex plant in a way that will inform and benefit our society." |
| USM researchers respond to declining oyster population | |
| Researchers at the University of Southern Mississippi (USM) are working to develop solutions for the declining oyster industry in the Gulf of Mexico. The decline is a result of recent events, man-made and natural. But a viable solution to this also implements both. Oysters can be raised in hatcheries and released into the wild to establish reefs and boost the natural populations. Aquacultures also help to develop a steady supply of oysters for commercial harvesting. According to NOAA, aquaculture provides 50 percent of Americans' seafood. Simply put, wild harvests are not enough to match the rising demand for seafood. A RESTORE Act grant of $7.62 million through the U.S. Department of the Treasury helped USM implement its solution to this problem: the Oyster Hatchery and Research Center. Dr. Reginald Blaylock, Interim Director of the Thad Cochran Marine Aquaculture Center at The University of Southern Mississippi (USM), is ecstatic about how this resource will make a difference to this growing problem. |
| Bus tour brings Gen Z students to Mississippi Delta's civil rights landmarks | |
 | Pre-law students from around the country took part in a bus tour to several civil rights sites across the Mississippi Delta this week. On the day-long bus trip from Jackson to the Delta, the students visited landmarks and museums and learned about figures that played a vital role in the civil rights movement --- both through art and political struggle. As the bus made its way through the flatlands of the Delta, students began to reflect on the region's stark landscape. Kimberly Lopez, a student at Emory University who wants to work in human rights law, said she was shocked by the apparent poverty in a region defined by its agricultural output. "Just how these places are filled with agriculture, but they're only seen as places of agricultural exploitation and they're not actually being developed. It's just very upsetting, to be honest," said Lopez. During the stop at the B.B. King Museum in Indianola, Kailee Choice, who studies political science at Texas Southern University, said it provided her greater context on the role of music in the civil rights movement. "Being from Tulsa, Oklahoma, and with the rich history in Tulsa, especially with the race riots and Black Wall Street, coming here and seeing how in other ways we were so impactful to our community and learning more about my culture is something beautiful to me," Choice said. "Seeing the parallels from Oklahoma in Mississippi is beautiful. It shows young Black Americans that we were prosperous, and we do things through any genre of music or art." |
| U. of Alabama System to freeze in-state tuition for 2023-2024 school year | |
 | University of Alabama System campuses will keep in-state tuition prices the same this upcoming school year, officials announced Friday. This year marks the sixth year in a seven-year period that in-state tuition at The University of Alabama has remained flat, and the fifth year that tuition at University of Alabama at Huntsville and University of Alabama at Birmingham has not increased. Last year, the University of Alabama increased tuition by 3% for in-state students and 4% for out-of-state students. Tuition rates rose this year for Auburn students, by about 3%, and students at the University of South Alabama, by about 4%. Other colleges typically post tuition prices at some point in the summer. Chancellor Finis St. John IV lauded the UA System for maintaining a "remarkable record of fiscal responsibility," which he said allowed officials to keep in-state tuition the same despite rising inflation. "As Alabama's largest employer, and as a university system that provides higher education to more Alabamians than any other, we have a duty to be faithful stewards of every dollar we receive from taxpayers, students and their parents, and donors who care about our universities and our healthcare system," he said at a Board of Trustees meeting Friday. |
| Through the doors: U. of Alabama marks 60 years of desegregation | |
 | The University of Alabama on Sunday commemorated a pivotal moment in civil rights history by observing the 60th anniversary of desegregation at the Tuscaloosa campus. Derek Cunningham, the president of the University of Alabama's Black Alumni Association, said the observance provided an opportunity to demonstrate how much progress has been made in the past six decades and show appreciation for the sacrifices made by the first Black students to enroll at the Capstone. "We understand what our trailblazers went through. They came through those doors so we could," Cunningham said. Alabama was the last state in the country to integrate its education system. A U.S. District judge issued court orders on May 21 and June 5, 1963, ordering then-Alabama Gov. George C. Wallace to allow Vivian Malone of Mobile and James Hood to register for classes on June 11. In what became known as the "Stand in the Schoolhouse Door," Wallace blocked the entrance to Foster Auditorium in an effort to fulfill the "segregation now, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever" promise made in his 1963 inauguration speech. After a tense standoff with federal officials and then-President John F. Kennedy's decision to federalize the Alabama National Guard, Wallace stepped aside and allowed Malone and Hood to register for classes at UA. |
| U. of Arkansas study looks at business coverage | |
| Recent research at the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville shows that fewer local reporters covering publicly traded companies resulted in reduced and poor-quality information about those businesses. In an interview Monday, Caleb Rawson, assistant professor of accounting in the Sam M. Walton College of Business and co-author of the study, said his research showed that employment in newspapers had declined dramatically -- more than 75% since 2000. He said in Northwest Arkansas in 2001, one in every 300 jobs was in the newspaper industry, while 20 years later it declined to one in 1,300 jobs. "That was just mind-boggling to us," Rawson said. He noted that while other research has focused on the impact of fewer reporters on local government, the recent study showed the significant impact fewer local reporters had on the availability of reliable information concerning businesses and public companies. "It's hard to know what is going on with fewer boots on the ground," Rawson said. |
| UF Board of Trustees considers proximity-based pricing system for student parking | |
| The Office of Business Affairs proposed a new student parking pricing model at the University of Florida Board of Trustees meeting Thursday. The proposed plan restructures the student parking system to have three tiers varying in price based on campus proximity. The least expensive tier, Red 3, will only include rooftop parking at Garage 9 on Archer Road. A mid-tier, Red 2, will include Garage 5 on Gale Lemerand Drive and parking at the Lakeside Complex. The most expensive tier, Red 1, will include the remaining Red parking areas on the main campus. Prices for the new system have not been decided. The current student parking permit system, which has been in place for eight years, has a flat annual fee of $160. The proposal was made to meet student demand and address rising operating costs, according to the meeting agenda. UF spokesperson Cynthia Roldan confirmed in a statement the Board of Trustees took no action on the proposal, opting to give staff more time to assess pricing and modify UF Parking Regulations. |
| Texas A&M astronomer uses Webb Telescope to find distant molecules | |
| Texas A&M astronomers utilized NASA's James Webb Space Telescope to change the scope of how galaxies are studied, after recently finding the universe's oldest-known organic molecules. Justin Spilker, assistant professor in the Texas A&M Department of Physics and Astronomy, along with a team of astronomers, has been working since 2017 with the Webb Telescope. As one of the first few users of the telescope since it was placed in Earth's orbit, the group recently found organic molecules in a galaxy more than 12 billion light years away. "We were using the telescope basically to look for these really big complicated molecules. You might think of a molecule and think of something like water, H2O, so that has three atoms in it: two hydrogens and [one] oxygen. So it is pretty simple," Spilker told The Eagle on Friday. "So you can kind of make that Mickey Mouse ear-looking molecule pretty quickly, but we were interested in these much bigger molecules, these organic molecules that have somewhere like 100 or thousands of different atoms in them. There are these really large, almost macroscopic kinds of molecules." Those large molecules are experienced on Earth, Spilker said, as they are "one of the nasty parts of smog, soot and smoke." |
| Support for students formerly in foster care can help them persist and graduate | |
 | Cody Van Felden bounced in and out of California foster homes until she was adopted at age 4. But life in her adoptive home "wasn't the greatest environment," and she experienced emotional abuse. At age 16, just as her peers began taking college entrance exams and submitting applications to universities, state social services officials deemed Van Felden's home unsafe, and she abruptly re-entered the foster care system. She graduated high school just over a year later, and when she turned 18 she aged out of the foster care system and was on her own. "No one had the conversation about college with me," she said. "I didn't know any information; I wasn't doing any of the process." Van Felden had to decide whether to go to work or go to college. She chose college and spent the next three years "couch hopping" at friends' apartments, living in homeless shelters or on the streets of Sacramento while attending a local community college. Today, at age 25, Van Felden has three associate degrees and is set to graduate from Sacramento State University with a bachelor's degree in psychology next spring. She credits a program designed for former foster youth like her at Cosumnes River College, a community college in Sacramento, for helping her earn her degrees and placing her on her current academic path. But not all young people with experience in foster care systems find such support. According to a recent report by the UCLA Center for the Transformation of Schools, holistic wraparound services that provide financial and emotional support, consistent and sufficient counseling, and social programming are key to helping students formerly in foster care succeed. |
| NIH working group calls for fewer -- but better paid -- postdocs | |
| Postdocs in U.S. biomedical research labs should be paid better, even if it means supporting fewer of them. That's the preliminary position of a working group formed by the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) to address growing concerns that postdoctoral appointments are no longer an attractive option for early-career researchers. Meeting online last week to discuss its progress, the group laid out "guiding principles" that include boosting postdoc pay, pushing for benefits, and capping the length of postdocs. "Some of the changes that we're deliberating over may ultimately lead to fewer postdocs," acknowledged Tara Schwetz, acting principal deputy director of NIH and a co-chair of the working group, which expects to issue final recommendations in December. "But hopefully at the end of the day what we will have is a healthier system overall." The 21-member group -- comprised of NIH officials and researchers at different stages of their career -- was convened in November 2022 amid reports that faculty members were struggling to fill open postdoc slots. "There was really a problem brewing and gathering and accelerating," working group co-chair Shelley Berger -- an epigenetics professor at the University of Pennsylvania -- told ScienceInsider in an interview shortly after NIH's Advisory Committee to the Director assembled the group. |
| DEI officers gear up for battle in red states | |
| It is a difficult time to be a DEI professional in higher education -- especially in states where the field has come under intense scrutiny from lawmakers seeking to legislate it out of existence at public institutions. Or in states like Florida, Ohio and Texas, where they already have. Some diversity officers, including Cecil Howard, the former chief diversity officer at the University of South Florida, have left their red-state institutions and vowed not to pursue jobs in states with similar challenges. "I tell people, I live in Florida but I won't work here anymore," Howard told Inside Higher Ed in January. "People who are very talented won't come to Florida -- or a number of other states -- to do this work anymore. I said no to a job in Tennessee recently for the same reasons." But that's not the whole story, according to many diversity officers who spoke both on and off the record. Some DEI practitioners, faculty invested in diversity and equity goals, and student-facing professionals in red states are fighting back against threats to their work, despite the resistance they face from board members, lawmakers and the voting public. "There's this narrative in the South like we're doing nothing, and that's just not true," said Vanessa Sansone, an assistant professor of higher education at the University of Texas at San Antonio. "Plenty of folks are staying and working, and that is a form of resistance." |
| Restricting college tenure could hurt state economies, many warn | |
| Daniel Brinks, who chairs the government department at the University of Texas at Austin, doesn't usually have a tough time recruiting professors. After all, UT is one of the best research universities in the country, located in a high-tech boomtown with a thriving music scene, a warm climate and first-rate enchiladas. But this year, in "a pretty significant change," Brinks said, eight candidates turned down job offers. Several of them cited events transpiring a few blocks south of campus, at the Texas Capitol, where some Republican lawmakers were pushing to eliminate tenure at state colleges and universities. Anti-tenure Republicans in Texas -- and in other states including Florida, Iowa, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio and South Carolina -- have said they want to rein in unaccountable professors who are pushing a liberal agenda in the classroom. Supporters of tenure, which professors typically must earn after years of teaching and publishing original research, argue that it protects academic freedom. Without it, they say, professors might be wary of taking on controversial topics for fear of being fired. "American higher education is the envy of the world because of the current system," Irene Mulvey, president of the American Association of University Professors, told Stateline. "These bills that weaken tenure or limit tenure are bills that will undermine the quality of education in the state." But defenders of tenure -- a practice adopted in its current form in 1940 -- have deployed another argument that goes beyond academic freedom: Attacks on tenure are a threat to state economies. That argument, used by Brinks in Texas and others elsewhere, has figured prominently in debates over tenure in several states. "If you no longer can attract the top researchers, you no longer have people developing cutting-edge technologies, cutting-edge medical innovations," Brinks told Stateline, echoing testimony he delivered to Texas legislators. |
| Data search fails to reveal sustained student progress | |
| Syndicated columnist Bill Crawford writes: Sometimes it's fun to rummage around in published data to see what you can find -- or not find. The recent article in the New York Times expounding progress by Mississippi students prompted my latest rummage. The 3rd grade reading gate promulgated by Gov. Phil Bryant in 2013 was given much credit for marvelous improvements in NAEP scores by Mississippi 4th graders. So how about ACT scores, I wondered? Are those early grade improvements sticking through high school? Also, with graduation rates up, are more Mississippi high school grads going to Mississippi public universities? I delved into Mississippi Department of Education (MDE) data first. NAEP scores for 4th grade reading and math have jumped significantly since 2013. The ACT assessment is given during the junior year. A 2013 4th grader would have been a junior in 2020. So, from 2020 through 2022, how much did ACT scores improve? |
| States more Republican than Mississippi have elected Democratic governors | |
| Mississippi Today's Bobby Harrison writes: This year the political eyes of the nation will be fixed on Mississippi, Kentucky and Louisiana, three reliably Republican states, as they elect their governors and other statewide officials. The three Southern states share the distinction of being the nation's only states to elect their governors in the off year between the federal mid-term elections and the presidential elections. In 2019, Louisiana and Kentucky stunned the nation by electing Democratic governors. In Kentucky, Democratic Attorney General Andy Beshear defeated incumbent Republican Gov. Matthew Bevin, while in Louisiana Democratic incumbent Gov. John Bel Edwards won a second term. In Mississippi, of course, Republican Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves defeated Democratic Attorney General Jim Hood by about 5%, or 45,000 votes. This year, Beshear is considered a favorite to win a second term for the Democrats in Kentucky. Edwards cannot seek reelection because of term limits and the Republicans are favored to regain the governorship in Louisiana. In Mississippi, the Republican incumbent Reeves has to be considered the favorite against his November challenger, Democratic Northern District Public Service Commissioner Brandon Presley. Democrats can only hope that what happened in Kentucky in 2019 occurs in Mississippi in 2023. |
| National Democrats Line Up to Support Presley's Bid for Governor | |
| The Magnolia Tribune's Russ Latino writes: An impressive array of national Democratic politicians and operatives are lining up behind Brandon Presley's bid to unseat Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves. California Governor Gavin Newsom, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards, and Stacey Abrams, the twice-failed nominee for governor in Georgia, have all identified the race as a target. Both Murphy and Edwards have hosted fundraisers for Presley. Newsom has traveled to Mississippi as part of a newly formed PAC that takes aim at leadership in conservative states. Abrams told MSNBC that she was focused on the Mississippi race. While these high profile endorsements may create a boost in certain circles, they also carry challenges for Presley. Combined, Newsom, Murphy, Edwards, and Abrams represent policy positions that include unfettered rights to abortion, restrictions on Second Amendment rights, defunding the police, government control of the economy, and radical gender ideology policies. The company a candidate keeps is not necessarily reflective of what the candidate believes, but it does beg the question as to what the candidate believes. At some point, presumably, he will be forced to say what he stands for and what he stands against. |
| Water czar Henifin is turning around Jackson's water | |
| Mississippi newspaper publisher and columnist Wyatt Emmerich writes: It was packed at Hal & Mal's as a hundred or so Jackson movers and shakers came to enjoy red beans and rice and hear the latest from Jackson's federal water czar Ted Henifin. Henifin was there at the invitation of the Stennis-Capitol Press Forum, a long-running cooperative effort of the John C. Stennis Institute of Government at Mississippi State University and the Capitol press corps to promote greater transparency in government. Henifin did not disappoint. He gave an off-the-cuff 45-minute talk on all the many positive developments with Jackson water. He displayed a refreshing competency that has been sorely lacking in Jackson for a long time. He was well received. ... I asked 10 or so people at the meeting what they thought. They all said Henifin was the real deal. I couldn't agree more. People often complain about the high salaries that top-notch managers get paid. But Henifin's half-million salary is worth its weight in gold. There's a lesson to be learned there. |
SPORTS
| The Queen of Swing: MSU's Julia Lopez Ramirez smashes records, maintains the vibe | |
| It's July 2021, and Julia Lopez Ramirez is giving a speech. Well, it's more of a demonstration, really. The professor calls it a "How-to." All instruction is online this summer, so Lopez Ramirez is outside, speaking into an open laptop while a sea of distant faces stare back at her. Lopez Ramirez, an MSU freshman and soon-to-be star of the Bulldogs women's golf team, is showing her classmates what she keeps in her golf bag. Those classmates, bleary eyed and fatigued from 18 months of pandemic-induced virtual instruction, aren't paying attention. Had they been, they would've learned something about what motivates greatness. There are the clubs – a standard range of woods, irons and a putter -- a water bottle, a notebook, her phone and a towel. There's also a "peseta," a Spanish coin that predates the euro and the country's entry in the European Union. Lopez Ramirez carries the coin in her bag but keeps it in her left pocket when she plays. It's a reminder of who she is and where she comes from. ... For current MSU golf coach Charlie Ewing, the timing of his hiring was fortuitous -- Lopez Ramirez had already signed with MSU and was on her way to Starkville when he took over the program in 2020. "The first thing I noticed about Julia is that she's incredibly competitive but she's also a great athlete," Ewing said in an April 14 HailState Plus Podcast. "She has an incredible understanding of who she is as a golfer and how she plays the game." |
| Chris Hooshyar hired to lead Mississippi State women's tennis | |
| Blue collar. It's a term the Mississippi State family embraces. Bulldogs love being the hardest workers in the room, the most resilient on the field or the toughest on the court. They don't mind getting the Maroon and White garments dirty. In fact, it brings a smile to the face. Well, everyone who loves or is associated with the MSU women's tennis program can start smirking because the new leader of the Bulldogs is ready to build a blue-collar team that showcases State's gritty, gutsy demeanor. Chris Hooshyar was named Mississippi State's head coach on Monday. After a decade at Auburn where he's spent time serving as the right-hand man for both the women's and men's teams, Hooshyar hops across the state line to Starkville prepared and ready to take the Bulldogs to great heights precisely the way MSU fans like it -- by getting after it. It's the only way Hooshyar knows. "I want my teams to be known for being blue collar," Hooshyar said. "I want other teams to know when they play our team, they're in for an absolute fight. We're going to be physical. We're going to fight to the end. And if you beat us, we'll be the first ones to shake your hand because we'll respect and know that if that happens, that you worked to beat us." |
| Bulldogs named top team in ITA Southern Regional | |
| On the heels of a successful 2023 season, Mississippi State men's tennis was named the top team in the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) Southern Regional on Sunday. Mississippi State, which won a regional championship in Starkville in May, finished ahead of Southeastern Conference opponents Ole Miss, LSU, Auburn and Alabama in ITA's final regional rankings. Overall, Mississippi State finished No. 16 in the country with a 21-8 record, including nine wins against ranked teams and a 17-1 record at home. Individually, five players were ranked in the top 15 players in the region, with Nemanja Malesevic and Ewen Lumsden both ranked inside the top six. Malesevic was the highest-ranked Bulldog in the region at No. 4. |
| Davidson-Smith set to begin her second season with Athletes | |
| As the fourth season of Athletes Unlimited softball gets underway, former Mississippi State star Mia Davidson-Smith will begin her second professional season. Davidson-Smith will play in the abbreviated 2023 AUX league, which has 12 games scheduled over three weeks and will crown a champion June 27. The season will end nearly a month before Athletes Unlimited's main softball season begins July 28. Davidson-Smith was a two-time All-American with Mississippi State and the 2019 Southeastern Conference Freshman of the Year. She holds the conference record for career home runs with 92, third all-time in NCAA history. She also holds a dozen different Mississippi State records, including home runs, multi-RBI games, slugging percentage, RBIs, runs scored and more. She currently serves as a graduate student coach for the program. |
| Former Mississippi State football great K.J. Wright helping Olive Branch | |
| Few things are as routine as an NFL Sunday. There's the breakfast before the early slate of games begin. There's the hope of an elite matchup in the mid-afternoon slot. There's the small gap between the afternoon games and the primetime game to grab dinner. Then, there's Sunday Night Football. It's the premier slot in the NFL schedule, and former Mississippi State football linebacker KJ Wright was a familiar face in the peak of the Seattle Seahawks' success. Except, it wasn't only MSU he'd proudly represent on the biggest stage. Instead, when the starting lineups were announced courtesy of the players reading their names, Wright often gave a shoutout to his hometown, Olive Branch High School. "I just love my city so much," K.J. Wright said on Monday. In giving back to his hometown, the 33-year-old Wright is set to host his second annual alumni charity basketball game at his former high school on June 23. The event features a women's and men's game with proceeds going toward the school's athletic programs. Tickets for the event are $15. Throughout his NFL career – which started in 2011 when the Seahawks selected him in the fourth round of the NFL Drafr – supporting his hometown has been a priority. Wright hosted football camps but looked for other creative ways to raise money. |
| Vols end USM's magical season, Berry's remarkable career | |
| Mississippi sports columnist Rick Cleveland writes: Southern Miss fans didn't want it to end, not the Super Regional, not the season, not the final 5-0 defeat to Tennessee, and – most of all – not the coaching career of gentleman and head coach Scott Berry. Joyous Tennessee players were still dog-piling near the pitcher's mound after the final out, when a chant went up from the third base side of Pete Taylor Park. "Berry! Berry! Berry!" they shouted. As that faded, a chant began from the stands on the first base side. "Thank-you, 40! Thank-you, 40! Thank-you, 40!" they boomed in unison. (Berry's jersey number is 40.) Scott Berry, retiring at age 60, stood, his eyes glistening, and soaked it in. Then he turned to the crowd, took off the trademark batting helmet, placed it over his heart and waved to the crowd. A few moments later, when Berry headed to left field for a final meeting with his players, Coach Tony Vitello and his Tennessee players watched and applauded as Berry crossed the infield and into the outfield. They doffed their caps to him. Later, before taking questions from reporters, Vitello would call Berry a "champion." "You ask anybody who has ever played with him, anybody who has ever coached with him or against him. They'll tell you," Vitello said. "The game is losing a great one, but he has left his mark." Berry has been wearing a baseball uniform for 55 of his 60 years, long enough to learn one of the hardball sport's harshest lessons. That is, sometimes, no matter how good you are, how hard you practice, how much you want it, and how well you play, the other team, the other guy, is just better. Monday night, Tennessee, especially its pitching, was just better. |
| Wake Forest, Oral Roberts give new look to College World Series filled with name brands | |
| The College World Series has its usual mix of regulars in the eight-team field, but it's a couple of relative newcomers that could provide the biggest storylines at the annual two-week party at Charles Schwab Field. Wake Forest has been the dominant team in the country since February and is the first No. 1 national seed since 2018 to reach the CWS. The Demon Deacons haven't gone this far since their 1955 team won the national championship. Oral Roberts is the lowest seed to make it to Omaha since Stony Brook in 2012 and is in the field for the first time since its only other appearance in 1978. As for those familiar names, LSU is in for the 19th time, Stanford for the 18th time and third straight and Florida for the 13th. TCU will make its sixth appearance since 2010 and Virginia its sixth since 2009, and Tennessee is back for the second time in three years. Stanford punched its ticket with a 7-6 win over Texas on Monday in a game that ended in odd fashion. With two outs in the bottom of the ninth, Texas outfielders Dylan Campbell and Eric Kennedy lost Drew Bowser's high fly in the twilight sky. The ball dropped about 15 feet in front of Campbell, allowing Alberto Rios to score from second base. Tennessee advanced with a 5-0 win over Southern Mississippi in a game that started four hours late because of rain and lightning in the Hattiesburg area. Drew Beam pitched six innings, and Zane Denton's three-run homer in the fifth broke open a 1-0 game. CWS bracket play begins Friday with TCU (42-22) matched against Oral Roberts (51-12) and No. 2 Florida (50-15) against No. 7 Virginia (50-13). |
| Ole Miss AD 'encouraged' by NIL conversations with legislators | |
| Ole Miss athletics director Keith Carter was one of a handful of SEC representatives who went to Washington D.C. last week with hopes of getting support from legislators on a more uniform handling of name, image and likeness within college athletics. According to ESPN, representatives from the conference met with members of congress at a reception and later "with individual representatives and senators from the 11 states in the conference's footprint." Among the people representing the SEC were Carter, Alabama head coach Nick Saban, commissioner Greg Sankey and South Carolina athletics director Ray Tanner. At present, there is no national oversight for NIL, as each individual state has its own regulations. The crux of the visit, Carter said, was to inform legislators of the current landscape and the need for "more uniform oversight." "We do truly feel that congress is likely, probably, the only entity that can help us get through this and put a national standard on this that we can all abide by and adhere to," Carter told the Daily Journal. "With every state kind of having their own law, that's created some challenges. We need a national standard, and I think Congress is the group that's going to have to do that." |
| IRS Says Donations Made to Nonprofit NIL Collectives Are Not Tax Exempt | |
| In news that could rock the world of name, image and likeness, the Internal Revenue Service suggests that nonprofit NIL collectives offering tax deductions could be breaking the law. According to a memo released from the office of the IRS Chief Counsel, donations made to nonprofit NIL collectives "are not tax exempt" because the benefits they provide college athletes are "not incidental both qualitatively and quantitatively to any exempt purpose." The 12-page memo was posted publicly Friday on the IRS website. The memo, actually written May 23, is filtering through the college athletics world as well as those working in the collective space. The news could have a resounding impact in the collective space, where booster-led groups are pooling donations to distribute to college athletes through NIL deals. More than 200 collectives exist among the 131 FBS schools, dozens of which have been granted 501(c)(3) status and are receiving millions in donations from boosters who are under the impression that their gifts fall under tax deduction. Though the IRS has approved 501(c)(3) nonprofit status, many within the college industry have warned for more than a year now that the government entity would eventually investigate and likely put a stop to tax deductions for NIL-related donations. Jason Belzer, the co-founder of Student Athlete NIL who manages several for-profit collections, has been one of the loudest critics of nonprofit collectives. "I think it's a bad business model," Belzer told Sports Illustrated recently. "I've been long on the record to say the majority of collectives are doing it as a way that is disingenuous. They are using it to get a tax writeoff to pay student athletes." |
| Golf's Titanic Deal Stokes Anger on Capitol Hill | |
 | One of golf's greatest tests will unfold starting on Thursday, when the U.S. Open begins at the Los Angeles Country Club. It might be an easier lift -- it will assuredly be a shorter one -- than the test that is emerging in Washington. The abrupt announcement last week that the PGA Tour will tie itself to Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund and its LIV Golf league is provoking American officials in ways as predictable as they might be persistent in the months ahead. Antitrust experts are insisting that the Justice Department should consider suing to stop the agreement, which calls for the business operations of LIV and the PGA Tour to be brought into one new company, if the deal closes in the coming months. Lawmakers are complaining that the Florida-based PGA Tour is lurching into business with an arm of the Saudi state that it roundly condemned until last week. Political strategists are scrambling to shape perceptions of an agreement that was forged in secret and, upon its release, promptly criticized as a well-heeled exercise in hypocrisy and whitewashing. Whether the commotion will amount to anything beyond a few news cycles of fussing -- a successful assault on the PGA Tour's tax-exempt status comes to mind -- may not be clear for months. But a week into golf's latest maelstrom, a deal that could eventually prove lucrative for players and executives is already promising a booming era for lawyers, lobbyists and political sound bites, too. Although golf had been under pressure inside the Justice Department, where antitrust regulators were looking at the PGA Tour, the announcement last week brought the tumult to Capitol Hill. |
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