| Tuesday, March 5, 2024 |
| Education: Forbes ranks MSU only SEC school in Top 50 'America's Best Large Employers' list | |
 | Mississippi State University is taking care of what matters -- and that includes its people. MSU is the only Southeastern Conference school to make the 2024 Top 50 list of "America's Best Large Employers" recently published by Forbes. At No. 41, Mississippi State is one of only three universities in the U.S. ranked in the Top 50 -- joining the University of Notre Dame (20) and Purdue University (47). In the expanded Top 100 list, the SEC's University of Tennessee, Knoxville and University of Kentucky are No. 79 and 97, respectively. Mississippi's leading research university also is among many other recognized and prestigious organizations from across the country including Delta Air Lines, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Progressive and NASA, to name a few. "Our faculty and staff's tremendous commitment to excellence in research, teaching and service makes our campus a rewarding and welcoming environment -- a place to call 'home,'" said MSU President Mark E. Keenum. "We continue each day to look for new ways to grow and nurture relationships here on campus that further enhance our close-knit, vibrant university community." |
| Education: MSU students receive prestigious Alabama Feed and Grain Association Scholarships | |
| Seven Mississippi State students are receiving prestigious Alabama Feed and Grain Association Scholarships. These $3,500 awards are given to students majoring in agricultural-related fields who have high grades, are involved in the community and show an interest in agricultural science. Recipients include Jorge Urrutia, a doctoral agricultural science and William Grisham, a junior biological sciences and poultry science, both of Starkville. The AFGA works closely with institutions of higher learning to provide numerous scholarship opportunities for outstanding students. The non-profit trade association represents every segment of the feed and grain industries in Alabama. Scott Willard, MSU College of Agriculture and Life Sciences dean, said partnerships like the one with the AFGA are essential to supporting student success. |
| How age-friendly universities can improve the second half of life | |
 | Mississippi State University's David R. Buys and Arizona State University's Aaron Guest write for The Conversation: By 2030, more than 1.4 billion people across the globe will be at least 60 years old. This number will shoot up to 2.1 billion by 2050. At this point, there will be more people age 60 or older than people between 10 and 24. These dramatic demographic shifts prompted the United Nations and World Health Organization to declare the 2020s the decade of healthy aging. The creation of a more age-friendly world includes basic things like improving health care access. But one critical component is often overlooked: taking college courses in your 50s, 60s or beyond. These opportunities to learn later in life have been associated with a host of positive health outcomes. These include being less socially isolated and staying sharp mentally. Many older adults know as much. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, more than 550,000 U.S. adults 50 and older were enrolled in college undergraduate and graduate programs in 2021. Their reasons for going back to school range from learning new skills to wanting to get ahead in their careers to achieving long-held goals. Institutions of higher education play a unique role in shaping an aging world. In 2012, a group of interdisciplinary scholars met to establish the 10 principles of an age-friendly university. These include things such as career development for older adults pursuing second careers, increased access to health and wellness programs at universities and opportunities to learn alongside younger students. |
| Education: Special permit first step for MSU research into drone pesticide application | |
| Mississippi State researchers are helping pave the way toward safe, effective pesticide application methods using uncrewed aerial vehicles, or UAVs. Darrin Dodds, interim associate director of the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station and head of MSU's Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, explained that the technology exists but lacks research support. "Over the last few years there has been increased interest in pesticide application from a UAV. There are many things we don't yet know because this technology is so new and continually evolving," Dodds said. "Our current aerial regulations for pesticides weren't written to include UAV application." As such, the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce recently added a regulation allowing special use permits to be issued to MSU for this research. Hannah Ferguson, branch director of licensing and certification in MDAC's Bureau of Plant Industry, worked closely with MSU to make this expanded pesticide research possible, and it now has received funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. "Success in pesticide application is ensuring pesticide applicators make informed decisions. At this time, there is limited application information available for using UAVs to deliver pesticides. This MSU research will be a vital tool in developing future regulations," Ferguson said. |
| Starkville Utilities wants county support for wastewater treatment plant | |
| Starkville Utilities is asking Oktibbeha County to consider chipping in financial support for its wastewater treatment facility. What that support will look like and how much it will cost remains to be seen. Appearing before the board at its Monday meeting, Edward Kemp, Starkville Utilities CEO, said the county's growth "is putting a lot of stress on our utility systems, our wastewater treatment plant being one of them." Built in 1979, the plant is the county's sole wastewater treatment facility and serves Starkville, Mississippi State University and much of the county outside of city limits. Last year, Starkville Utilities commissioned a comprehensive study of its water and wastewater facilities, including the wastewater plant. Kemp said it will set a roadmap for keeping the plant viable for the two to four decades. General lessons of the study, Kemp said, show "operational and capacity" issues with the treatment plant. Necessary upgrades include updating the plant's aeration system, which treats sewage, and the plant's electrical system, which he estimates will cost between $7 million and $8 million. Ratepayers fund wastewater treatment plant maintenance, and the city has committed $1.25 million plus a 100% state match in ARPA to the upgrades. Other upgrades, and how the county can help, will become clearer after the study is completed, he said. |
| MDOT Working to Overcome Staffing Shortages, Effects of Inflation | |
| Dwindling staff, inflation, and the need for a more diversified revenue stream are some of the hurdles being faced by the Mississippi Department of Transportation (MDOT) to ensure the agency is able to not only respond to maintenance needs, but plan for the future. Brad White, Executive Director of MDOT, spoke during last week's Stennis Capitol Press Forum where he described the agency's work to overcome those hurdles, including the salary inequity that has led to less maintenance staff and in-house engineers. The salary inequities mean maintenance crews cover more than one county, and engineers working on MDOT projects are not always employed by MDOT. The department has to outsource that work to private engineering firms. "We were able to do that internally because we had appropriate staff. But again, due to the salary inequities, we began losing our engineering staff over the years and with that, our dependency on engineering firms continued to grow," White told the press gathered at the Monday event. "Now, we spend about $70 million a year on engineering firms that I believe if we were able to correct the staff salaries, we would be able to build back our engineering staff and deliver that product to the taxpayers at a better price and be able to get more money back to the projects themselves." To address the salary problem, MDOT is taking advantage of the State Personnel Board's Project SEC2, which created a fair compensation structure capable of recruiting, retaining and building those staffing numbers. It went into effect on January 1, 2022. |
| The fate of the House school funding plan could come down to one question: Who wrote it? | |
| House leaders say they've been working independently of any other group for more than a year to develop their sweeping new public education funding plan, which they say would send additional money to poorer school districts than the current funding formula does. But three advocacy groups that have often butted heads with powerful pro-public education groups also have been working on a new funding formula. It consists of many of the same characteristics found in the House leadership's plan. The origins of the House school funding bill have become central to the combustible debate at the Capitol about whether the plan should be passed into law -- and it could ultimately impact the bill's fate as it faces key deadlines in coming days and weeks. Rep. Jansen Owen, a Republican from Poplarville, said he and his colleague, House Education Vice Chair Kent McCarty, a Republican from Hattiesburg, worked independently of advocacy groups in their effort to rewrite the Mississippi Adequate Education Program, which currently provides the state's share of the basics to operate local school districts. All three of the advocacy groups that worked to develop the 2024 school funding rewrite have been at odds with pro-public education groups in the past. Two of the groups involved in this year's rewrite effort -- Empower Mississippi and the Mississippi Center for Public Policy -- have long advocated for allowing public funds to be spent in private schools. A third group involved in this year's rewrite effort -- Mississippi First -- was an outspoken advocate in developing the state's charter school program. |
| POLL: What Do Republican Voters Think About Medicaid Expansion? | |
| Republicans maintain supermajorities in both chambers of the Legislature, which means that passage of a policy like Medicaid expansion requires Republican lawmakers' support. But do Republican voters like the policy? Previous polls have used generic or favorable framing to test sentiment, but that is rarely how public policy or political debates unfold. Last week, Magnolia Tribune partnered with Mason-Dixon Polling & Strategy to determine how Republican primary voters in Mississippi feel about Medicaid expansion when informed of arguments against the policy. Mason-Dixon produced the most accurate polling results in the state during the 2023 election cycle and has been active in Mississippi for nearly 40 years. Governor Tate Reeves (R) has consistently called the policy "Obamacare's Medicaid expansion," as a reminder of its origin in the Affordable Care Act. When asked if Mississippi should adopt "Obamacare's Medicaid expansion," 81% of respondents said the state should not implement the policy. More broadly on the topic of Obamacare, Republican primary voters believe: GOP lawmakers were correct to oppose Obamacare when it was first passed (81%); that Obamacare has not lived up to the promises made at the time of passage (89%); and that former President Donald Trump is correct in his desire to repeal and replace the law (90%). |
| Mississippi Senate to consider more restrictive ballot initiative bill | |
 | The Mississippi Senate Accountability, Efficiency and Transparency Committee has pushed forward legislation to amend the state's constitution and bring regulatory changes to the state's stonewalled ballot initiative process. On Thursday, AET Chair Sen. David Parker, R-Olive Branch, presented the committee with Senate Bill 2770 and Senate Concurrent Resolution 527, which would establish stricter requirements for those seeking to start ballot initiatives in Mississippi, as well as change the constitution to account for the state's four congressional districts. In the early 2000s, Mississippi's districts went from five to four after a United States Census accounted for a declined state population. Requirements listed out in the bill include a threshold of double the number of qualified voters in the state to sign petitions to put the initiative on the state's next general election, or about 200,000 people. SB 2770 also bans voters from attempting to use the ballot to amend the state constitution, the Public Employment Retirement System of Mississippi, any abortion laws passed by the Legislature and only one subject can go on any one ballot. It would also require a voting majority of 60% or more to be passed into law. The legislation mirrors House Concurrent Resolution 11, which passed through the House by only a handful of votes earlier this year. However, Parker told fellow lawmakers that he took out a provision that would have allowed the Legislature to offer an alternative piece of legislation to any ballot initiative proposed by the voters. |
| Two state Supreme Court justices face contested November elections | |
| Two Mississippi Supreme Court justices will face challengers in their reelection bids this year, and four people are running for an open seat on the Mississippi Court of Appeals. Incumbent Supreme Court Justice Jim Kitchens from the central district faces four opponents: Jackson-based attorney Abby Gale Robinson, former state Court of Appeals Judge Ceola James, Byram-based attorney Byron Carter and Republican state Sen. Jenifer Branning of Philadelphia. Incumbent Supreme Court Justice Dawn Beam from the southern district will compete against Gulfport-based attorney David Sullivan. After initially telling Mississippi Today he would run for reelection, District 5 Court of Appeals Judge Joel Smith decided not to stand for reelection and return to private practice. Four people are now vying for Smiths' judicial seat: Chancery Court Judge Jennifer Schloegel, Assistant District Attorney Ian Baker, Pascagoula-based attorney Amy Lassiter St. Pe and Chancery Court Judge Chad Smith. On the Supreme Court, Justice Bobby Chamberlain and Justice Jimmy Maxwell will run unopposed, as will Judge Latrice Westbrooks and Judge Jack Wilson of the Court of Appeals. Judicial offices are nonpartisan, so candidates do not participate in a party primary. All candidates will appear on the Nov. 5, 2024, general election ballot. |
| Trillions of gallons leak from aging drinking water systems, further stressing shrinking US cities | |
 | Across the U.S., trillions of gallons of drinking water are lost every year, especially from decrepit systems in communities struggling with significant population loss and industrial decline that leave behind poorer residents, vacant neighborhoods and too-large water systems that are difficult to maintain. Jackson, Mississippi, was already losing an estimated 65% of its water -- including millions of gallons that had been gushing from broken pipes for years, turning some areas into wetlands -- when the system almost collapsed in 2022, said Ted Henifin, the water system's federally appointed third-party manager. Many communities -- especially older industrial and rural areas in the eastern half of the country -- are facing a similar economic and public health reckoning after decades of deferred maintenance and disinvestment, experts say. Yet water loss has drawn less public scrutiny than issues like lead service lines and overflowing sewer systems, although it also has significant consequences: Communities buy or treat far more water than they otherwise would, passing costs to customers; water in oversized systems moves more slowly and can become stagnant, requiring lines to be flushed to prevent bacteria buildup, which wastes more water; and loss of pressure from pipe breaks can allow contamination to enter the system. |
| Mississippi elections: Meet the 2 Democrats looking to unseat US Rep. Trent Kelly | |
 | Two Democrats are looking to unseat longtime Republican incumbent Trent Kelly in Mississippi's Congressional District 1. Matthew "Bronco" Williams and Diane Black are vying for their party's nomination in the March 12 Democratic primary. The winner will face Kelly in the Nov. 5 general election. Kelly is unopposed in the Republican primary. Though unseating Kelly is a longshot for the Democrats, both say they bring something to the table that the Republican congressman doesn't: a fresh perspective. Williams is looking to shake up the status quo. The 26-year-old Hernando native said he's tired of regular people getting left behind while those in charge never fix the actual problems the nation is facing. He wants a government that serves people of any economic status. As a teacher, Williams views a broken education system as the root cause of many problems the country faces. Getting teachers better access to resources they need, increasing salaries and a return to not strictly following curricula that only prepare students for standardized testing, instead of the real world, are a few ways he wants to go about that. For small-business owner and Olive Branch resident Diane Black, interest in politics means an interest in a brighter future. Black has owned and operated her Olive Branch business, The Hair Fashions, for more than 40 years, but a stint working for former President Barack Obama's campaign encouraged her to take on a second job and increase her involvement in politics. Black, 68, said the most critical issue facing both District 1 and the country at large is women's rights. |
| Earmark battle emerges as late threat to spending bill | |
 | A package of six bills that needs to pass by Friday to avoid a partial government shutdown is drawing intense fire from conservatives in both chambers who are zeroing in on more than 6,000 earmarks buried in the package. The spending package was initially expected to pass easily but now faces a rocky path in the Senate, where it's become a political football in the ongoing battle between the GOP leadership and Trump-aligned conservatives. If conservatives drag out the process, they could force a short shutdown over the weekend. Senate conservatives are trying to elevate the package in the race to replace outgoing Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) -- putting McConnell's top deputy, Senate GOP Whip John Thune (S.D.), in a tough spot. Thune is locked in a competitive race with Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) to become the next Senate Republican leader. If Thune helps push the bill across the finish line, it could hurt his support among Senate conservatives -- a key swing bloc, GOP aides and strategists warn. Cornyn has made a concerted effort to outflank Thune on the right by courting Senate conservatives, according to GOP senators familiar with his behind-the-scenes maneuvers. In November, the Senate overwhelmingly passed a minibus appropriations package with three of the six pending bills by an 82-15 vote, with Thune and Cornyn both voting for it. The political environment within the Senate GOP conference has changed substantially since then. |
| Pentagon's priority on AI spending could shield it from cuts | |
 | As the Pentagon prepares to release its fiscal 2025 budget proposal, experts in artificial intelligence are hopeful that planned investments in the technology will be safeguarded from concerns that could cut into other defense accounts. The department's spending on AI in fiscal 2024 has been hamstrung by the lack of full-year appropriations so far, leaving money requested for such operations unapproved and inaccessible. Officials at the Pentagon's central hub for AI have had to "cannibalize some things in order to be able to keep other things alive," chief officer Craig Martell told reporters last month. And while the current spending difficulties look to be rectified soon, DOD is set to release its fiscal 2025 budget request on March 11 under Defense financing caps set by the bipartisan debt limit deal, which holds down spending across the department. The reason why AI might escape cuts is twofold: There's a growing prioritization of AI within the department, and lawmakers who are convinced of the technology's potential are championing the Defense Department's expenditures in this area, even as they look to trim spending elsewhere. "Our adversaries understand that it is one area in which they will attack us," Sen. Mike Rounds, R-S.D., a member of the Armed Services Committee and a leading Senate voice on AI issues, said last month in an interview. |
| Super Tuesday is the first test of what next year's House GOP will look like | |
 | A woman who allegedly tried to hit her ex-husband with a car. A 30-year-old who marketed a conspiracy-theory movie. A pastor whose previous campaign was mired in election fraud. These are some of the candidates national Republicans are trying not to nominate this week. The Super Tuesday primaries will serve as the most comprehensive test yet of whether the party can mount a strong campaign to keep control of the House in November -- and whether they will be able to avoid the utter chaos that stymied Congress over the last year. Five states are holding nominating contests for more than 100 House districts, narrowing down fields in key races in states that include North Carolina, Texas and California. Even just a handful of these seats can help determine which party controls Congress in 2025. But many of Tuesday's primaries are in open deep-red districts that will shape the contours of the House GOP conference. And if the majority comes down to a razor-thin margin -- again -- the impact of those new members will ripple far beyond their individual districts. All the contenders are conservative, and many profess deep allegiance to former President Donald Trump. But there are huge differences in style and personality among them. That has some establishment Republicans worried and has spurred intraparty efforts to intervene in the contests. "It's not just who wins it in a partisan sense, but what kind of member are you getting?" said Rep. Tom Cole (R-Okla.) of the importance of primary season. "We've gotten some great members, and we've got some other members that honestly I think didn't come here to get much done." |
| Coast-to-coast Super Tuesday contests poised to move Biden and Trump closer to November rematch | |
| President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump are poised to move much closer to winning their party's nominations during the biggest day of the primary campaign on Tuesday, setting up a historic rematch that many voters would rather not endure. Super Tuesday elections are being held in 16 states and one territory -- from Alaska and California to Vermont and Virginia. Hundreds of delegates are at stake, the biggest haul for either party on any single day. While much of the focus is on the presidential race, there are also important down-ballot contests. California voters will choose candidates who will compete to fill the Senate seat long held by Dianne Feinstein. The governor's race will take shape in North Carolina, a state that both parties are fiercely contesting ahead of November. And in Los Angeles, a progressive prosecutor is attempting to fend off an intense reelection challenge in a race that could serve as a barometer of the politics of crime. But the premier races center on Biden and Trump. And in a dramatic departure from past Super Tuesdays, both the Democratic and Republican contests are effectively sealed this year. The two men have easily repelled challengers in the opening rounds of the campaign and are in full command of their bids -- despite polls making it clear that voters don't want this year's general election to be identical to the 2020 race. A new AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research poll finds a majority of Americans don't think either Biden or Trump has the necessary mental acuity for the job. |
| Courts Pummeled Trump. That Made Some Republicans Love Him More. | |
 | Donald Trump has been impeached, indicted and ordered to pay hundreds of millions of dollars in penalties for committing fraud and defamation. For many Republican voters in this Raleigh exurb, that doesn't disqualify him from returning to the White House. Instead, it makes them more likely to back Trump in this week's Super Tuesday primary because they view the GOP presidential front-runner as unfairly targeted by his political enemies. They say his resilience in the face of obstacles shows why he will fight for them if he wins the presidency in November. Primary races in North Carolina and 14 other states on Tuesday are expected to accelerate Trump's march toward the Republican presidential nomination. Trump's last remaining top-tier opponent, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, has committed to campaigning through Tuesday but has no events scheduled after Monday. Trump is likely to get the delegates needed to become the party's nominee this month. North Carolina, which Trump won narrowly in 2020, is the only battleground Super Tuesday state that will also help decide who wins the general election in November. In the latest Journal poll, Republican respondents said immigration -- which Trump has focused on heavily in his campaign -- was their top issue, followed by the economy. Views of Trump's overall image have improved in recent months, while views of Biden's image and job performance have turned more negative, Journal polling finds. In December 2022, negative views of Trump outweighed positive ones by 24 points. That gap declined to 12 points in the new Journal survey. |
| U.N. report: 'Convincing' information Hamas raped, tortured hostages | |
 | A team of United Nations experts tasked with gathering information on sexual violence linked to Hamas's Oct. 7 attacks on Israel found "reasonable grounds to believe" that some victims were sexually assaulted, including rape and gang rape, according to a U.N. report released Monday. "In most of these incidents, victims first subjected to rape were then killed," a press release announcing the report's findings said. "The mission team also found a pattern of victims, mostly women, found fully or partially naked, bound, and shot across multiple locations." The 23-page report said the team also found "clear and convincing information" that some of the women and children taken back to Gaza that day by Hamas as hostages were subjected to "rape and sexualized torture and sexualized cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment." There were "reasonable grounds to believe," it said, "that this violence may be ongoing." Hamas has denied that its forces sexually abused any of the more than 1,200 Israelis killed or 253 captured on that day. The issue has been among the most volatile of the Israel-Hamas war, sparking extensive media accounts, outrage and suspicion, but little conclusive information. The release of the report, which also discussed allegations of "conflict-related sexual violence by the Israeli security forces and settlers" against Palestinians in the West Bank, came on a day of swirling charges and countercharges. Pramila Patten, the U.N. special representative on sexual violence in conflict, led the report team of technical experts --- including a forensic pathologist and specialists in ethical treatment of survivors of sexual violence. |
| Black women struggle to find their way in a job world where diversity is under attack | |
| Regina Lawless hit a professional high at 40, becoming the first director of diversity and inclusion for Instagram. But after her husband died suddenly in 2021, she pondered whether she had neglected her personal life and what it means for Black woman to succeed in the corporate world. While she felt supported in the role, "there wasn't the willingness for the leaders to take it all the way," Lawless said. "Really, it's the leaders and every employee that creates the culture of inclusion." This inspired her venture, Bossy and Blissful, a collective for Black female executives to commiserate and coach each other on how to deal with misogynoir -- misogyny experienced by Black women -- or being the only person of color in the C-suite. "I'm now determined to help other women, particularly women of color and Black women, to see that we don't have to sacrifice ourselves for success. We can find spaces or create our own spaces where we can be successful and thrive," said Lawless, who is based in Oakland, California. Many women in Lawless' group have no workplace peers, making them the "Onlys" -- the only Black person or woman of color -- which can lead to feelings of loneliness or isolation. With attacks on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives raging, Black women looking to climb the corporate ladder face a more hostile landscape than ever. Aside from having to constantly prove themselves and talk in a manner that can't be labeled as angry or emotional, obtaining top managerial positions doesn't stop the double dilemma of racial and gender pay gaps. All this adds up to disproportionate representation of Black female senior leadership. |
| For Women's History Month, a look at some trailblazers in American horticulture | |
| Women have long been at the forefront of gardening, whether passing agricultural traditions from generation to generation, organizing garden clubs and beautification societies, or making significant contributions to science and landscape design. Some of these plantswomen gained notoriety for their work. Many are not as well known. A civil rights and agricultural activist, Fanny Lou Hamer founded the Freedom Farm Cooperative in the late 1960s to provide land, livestock and vegetable-growing resources to poor Black families and farmers in Sunflower County, Mississippi. The Cooperative facilitated crop-sharing, self-reliance and financial independence. Participating families were also loaned a piglet to raise to maturity, after which they would return it for mating and give the cooperative two piglets from each litter to continue the program. "If you have a pig in your backyard, if you have some vegetables in your garden, you can feed yourself and your family, and nobody can push you around," Hamer said. Her Cooperative became one of the earliest examples of modern community gardening and a precursor of today's food justice movement. |
| Nursing leaders are leaving their jobs amid broader industry shortage | |
| Nursing leaders in hospitals around the country are on the front lines of an ongoing nursing shortage. They're also dealing with retention issues of their own. A new survey by staffing firm AMN Healthcare found that nearly a third of hospital nurse leaders plan to leave their jobs within a year. And some say they plan to leave the profession altogether. When Mila Sprouse first transitioned into management, it was a lot to take on. "You have to learn the finances," she said. "You have to learn aspects of patient experience, patient recovery." Then there's dealing with audits, regulations and retention. Sprouse is now chief nursing officer at Seattle's Virginia Mason Medical Center. When it comes to future leaders, she said the field has enough talent. But it lacks mentors. "You have to invest time and effort and really be authentic that you care about these individuals to grow," Sprouse said. There also aren't enough qualified nurse leaders out there, noted Iman Abuzeid, CEO of nursing hiring platform Incredible Health. Plus, these roles aren't always appealing to ambitious nurses. "You're being asked to take on more responsibility and more work," Abuzeid said. And that's often without enough institutional support to be successful. |
| Community Profile: For Fuller, public education's glory days are now | |
| It's all too easy to fall into doom-and-gloom when talking about education. Bob Fuller is here to tell you to cut that out. "People love to drag public education through the mud," Fuller, a retired public educator who chairs the Mississippi University for Women's Department of Education, told The Dispatch Monday afternoon. "But we're educating 90% of our population, and we're educating them at a higher level than we ever did." The oft-imagined glory days of the 1950s were pretty much the worst, Fuller said. "In the 1950s, one in four white kids and one in 40 Black kids graduated high school," he said. "The dropout rate was something like 90%. We had an uneducated populace, but they could get a factory job." Even when Fuller, a native of Winston County who now lives in Starkville, graduated from high school in the 1980s the graduation rate was still only around 50%. He's quick to point out that now it's about 90%. "People don't want to think that, but these are the best of times as far as pushing our students to achieve," Fuller said. "For example, the math people used to graduate high school with isn't taught past seventh grade. An eighth-grader takes higher level math than people (40 years ago) had when they graduated." |
| Education: The W 'empowering' students with quality enhancement plan | |
| Mississippi University for Women is committed to making sure students are as successful as possible with the introduction of its Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP), titled "Empowering Your Journey." "Our QEP aims to support student success by promoting professional development and career readiness through curricular and co-curricular programming and by helping students develop and demonstrate career-readiness competencies appropriate to their field," said Dr. Erin Kempker, professor of history and interim QEP Director. The utilization of outside-the-classroom opportunities such as internships, mentorship programs and other high-impact learning experiences, in conjunction with professional development and career readiness curriculum, aims to position students to be prime candidates for employment after graduation. "It is clear that this is a timely QEP, as many colleges and universities turn their attention to career readiness and helping students express the many ways they are prepared to engage in professions," Kempker said. "What is equally clear is that employers don't need the same conversation; they already 'get it.' Employers want college-educated employees because they know what that education provides. We just have to help our students articulate the skills, knowledge and abilities their time with us has helped them develop." |
| Pearl River Community College hosts annual 'Legislative Government Officials Breakfast' | |
 | Today's lawmakers meeting tomorrow's potential leaders. Pearl River Community College hosted a meet-and-greet breakfast for state leaders and students. The college hopes that after today, students will be more aware of and involved with their local government. PRCC's annual Legislative Government Officials Breakfast on the Forrest County Campus served as a chance for students to meet their local leaders. "Anytime you have an opportunity to take our elected officials and introduce them to the people that they're helping daily, that means a lot," said PRCC President Dr. Adam Breerwood. State Sen. John Polk explains how important it is to hear the ideas of the younger generation. "Their views are always important and sometimes they're so far ahead of the curve, it helps us," said Pok. "We need young ideas in the legislature in Mississippi and I think maybe if we can convince some people here that that's not a bad thing, it will be a good thing." Miss PRCC Kassidy McMahon agreed. She said students could showcase exactly what legislators are funding. "Show them the importance of these programs, what we're doing, the education that we're getting here, and how important it is for us to have that funding and people behind us and supporting us along," said McMahon. |
| U. of Alabama raises Rising Tide campaign goal to $1.8 billion | |
 | The University of Alabama has increased its fundraising goal to $1.8 billion for the Rising Tide capital campaign. The campaign, designed to increase student scholarships, boost faculty research, improve campus facilities and continue the momentum of success in athletics, has already reached its original goal of raising $1.5 billion before its Sept. 30, 2026 deadline, according to a Monday news release. UA has dubbed the 20% increase in the campaign's goal as the "Rising Tide 2.0." "When we publicly launched the Rising Tide in September 2021, we were optimistic about the $1.5 billion goal and were confident we could achieve it," UA's Vice President for Advancement Bob Pierce said in the release. "None of us thought, at the time, we would reach that mark more than two years ahead of schedule. The fact we are now raising the goal by $300 million is a testament to the generosity of our alumni and donors. All our supporters have responded to the Rising Tide in a tremendous way, and it is allowing us to set our sights even higher," Pierce said. UA said that more than 160,000 supporters have contributed to the Rising Tide campaign so far. The campaign has already been used to fund almost 1,000 new endowed scholarships, 60 new faculty endowments and more than 500,000 square feet of campus facilities, according to UA. |
| Facing possible closure, Birmingham-Southern names familiar faces to lead academic programs | |
 | As Birmingham-Southern College waits on a lifeline from the Alabama Legislature, two new hires are gearing up to lead the school's academic programs. Laura Stultz and Kent Andersen, who both held interim leadership positions in the college's academic affairs department, were recently appointed to permanent roles, officials announced Monday. Stultz will serve as the college's provost and vice president for academic affairs. Anderson is now the associate provost. The appointments come amid uncertainty over the future of the private, liberal arts college. Officials announced the extent of the school's financial woes in 2022, saying it would need at least $30 million from the legislature to keep its doors open. Now lawmakers, for a second time, are working against the clock In June 2023, the Alabama Legislature created the Distressed Institutions of Higher Education Loan Revolving Program, which would allow qualifying colleges to apply for up to $30 million in state funds. But the state treasurer, Young Boozer III, denied Birmingham-Southern's application last fall, claiming it did not meet the qualifications established by the law, including adequate collateral and a financial plan that showed it would be able to repay the debt. Now a revised loan bill, SB31, could give the college another chance. |
| Could Louisiana be the 'Silicon Valley' of green energy? Huge LSU-led grant pushes for it. | |
 | In 1901, the twin oil discoveries of the historic Spindletop well in Beaumont, Texas, and Louisiana's first successful well in a Jennings rice field paved the way for the growth of an energy industry that modernized the Gulf South. More than 120 years later, a consortium of Louisiana colleges, universities, governments and businesses has hopes of being the catalyst for the next leap forward in energy, turning the state into a new "Silicon Valley" for the transition away from fuels and industrial processes believed to contribute to climate change. Known as the Future Use of Energy in Louisiana, or FUEL, the new consortium will be funded primarily, at first, through what could be the largest grant ever offered by the U.S. National Science Foundation -- $160 million over 10 years if the consortium meets its benchmarks and Congress fully funds the program. Andrew Maas, an LSU associate vice president who helped lead the FUEL grant effort, said the creation of this transition could mean billions in new investment and jobs for the state. LSU officials cited projections that Louisiana's 250,000 jobs in the energy-related industries could double by 2050. Since 2018, Louisiana has already seen nearly $60 billion in proposed capital investment tied to renewable or lower carbon-intensity projects, promising nearly 26,600 permanent jobs, according to the state Department of Economic Development. President Joe Biden's Inflation Reduction Act has opened up tax breaks and other incentives to further that development, White House officials said. |
| Acceptance rate drops below 35% as U. of Tennessee prioritizes in-state applicants | |
| The University of Tennessee Office of Undergraduate Admissions released regular admission decisions to the class of 2028 on Thursday, showing an overall acceptance rate of less than 35% for fall 2024 with admittance highly favoring in-state applicants. With 57,270 applications received by the Dec. 15 regular admission deadline -- the most in university history -- the overall acceptance rate is 34.28%. Another 1,881 applications were received after the Dec. 15 deadline, and those applications will be considered as space becomes available. With those in mind, however, the rate is even lower at 33.2% UT's overall acceptance rate is now about half of what it was two years ago, with the most significant drop occurring from 2022-2023. For the fall 2022 admission cycle, the overall acceptance rate was 68.4%. According to materials presented to the university's board of trustees' education, research and service committee on Thursday at UT Southern, last year's acceptance rate was 46%. The acceptance rate for in-state students is 65.7% -- up from last year's 59.4%. While in-state admittance grew, out-of-state students saw a 10% drop from last year to this year as only 23.7% of applicants were admitted for the fall 2024 semester -- a move in line with the university's goal of prioritizing admission for Tennessee residents. In one of several moves to solve infrastructure issues on campus, the board approved a plan on Friday to move forward with the addition of a third new residence hall following two other new residence halls that were approved in October. |
| Goodbye, DEI: UF students react to elimination of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion positions | |
 | The University of Florida announced March 1 that it was eliminating all positions related to diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) following a new Florida Board of Governors regulation that labels expenses related to DEI as prohibited expenditures. The Board of Governors defines DEI as "any program, campus activity, or policy that classifies individuals on the basis of race, color, sex, national origin, gender identity, or sexual orientation and promotes differential or preferential treatment of individuals on the basis of such classification." Amiya Gupta, a fourth-year engineering major, said she wasn't surprised due to the political climate in Florida over the last few years, but is disappointed in the university's decision. "As a student, UF has a lot of things that I'm really continuously impressed by," she said. "I think we have a lot of resources. I've always thought that this has been a great university in terms of the academics, the research and the community. But I think this is symptomatic of a bigger problem in Florida's politics, because I think, historically, universities have always been places of community building and show the importance of bringing in wide and diverse perspectives -- not only diverse in terms of race or any personal characteristics -- but in terms of thought and ideas. And I think that Florida politics is trying really hard to infiltrate that." Gupta said she's seeing professors begin to search for jobs elsewhere, including in the engineering department. |
| After Texas' DEI Bans, Administrators Got 'Creative.' Then They Got in Trouble. | |
 | As director of student belonging at the University of Texas at Tyler, Tarecka Payne was still adjusting to how her job had changed under a new law banning diversity, equity, and inclusion activities when she was ambushed in her office and secretly recorded by an undercover reporter from a right-wing news group. Payne was asked whether the DEI work she'd been assigned to when she was hired in July 2022 was off the table now that Senate Bill 17, which took effect January 1, had passed. "There's really no ways of, like, doing the DEI work?" the reporter asked. "No, you can still do it. You just have to be ... creative," Payne answered, pausing before carefully enunciating the final word. Within days, the university suspended her while it investigates the video. She's not alone. Administrators from several other universities said they're investigating comments their staff members made to someone hired by Accuracy in Media, a conservative news website. A seven-minute video the news group circulated last month claims to show these Texas employees "bragging" that they were still doing DEI work, just calling it something else. Caught in their campaign were student-affairs staff members whose jobs have shifted, sometimes multiple times, as colleges figure out how to comply with a law that bans much, but not all, of the diversity and inclusion work they'd been assigned. |
| Radioisotope terbium-161 produced at U. of Missouri Research Reactor could one day treat cancer | |
 | A radioisotope produced at the University of Missouri Research Reactor holds promise for future cancer treatments. Carolyn Anderson and Heather Hennkens are leading the research project into how terbium-161 can one day treat cancer patients. The research is partially funded by a $450,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Energy. Anderson is director of MU's Molecular Imaging and Theranostics Center, across the street from the research reactor. Hennkens is an assistant professor in the MU chemistry department. "It could be the next major radionuclide," Anderson said of terbium-161. It has benefits that current radiopharmaceuticals on the market don't have to fight cancer, they said. "It has a special kind of decay that can have very potent cancer-killing properties," Anderson said. The radioisotope emits both low and moderate energy, said Hennkens. "There's more cancer cell-killing potential," Hennkens said. Targeting the cancer cells is part of the research in order to properly deliver it, Anderson said. "You want to stop that DNA and that's what absolutely kills the cancer cell," Anderson said. It's not toxic to normal tissue, she said. |
| College Board launches digital SAT | |
 | Students can say goodbye to those No. 2 pencils, portable sharpeners and big pink erasers; they no longer need to worry about having legible handwriting or fully shading the answer bubbles. The SAT is now completely digital. On Monday high schoolers began taking the test exclusively on laptops and tablets via a new app called BlueBook, named after the once-universal booklets in which test takers answered essay questions. The digital exam is about an hour shorter than the traditional SAT and features a host of other changes, big and small. Students do not have the option to take it on paper unless they're granted an accessibility exemption.The College Board, the nonprofit that owns and designs the SAT, announced the change at the start of 2022, after the COVID-19 pandemic scuttled in-person testing and prompted the vast majority of colleges to waive standardized test requirements. Its implementation this week comes at a pivotal moment for admissions, as colleges across the country consider whether to keep their temporary test-optional policies or return to requiring scores. Priscilla Rodriguez, the College Board's vice president for college readiness assessments, told Inside Higher Ed that the organization had been talking about a possible pivot to digital since before the pandemic. When the vast majority of colleges switched to test-optional policies, sending the number of test takers plummeting, College Board leaders knew they had to adapt to a changing world. |
| Udemy reports surge in demand for AI, IT and leadership training | |
| As workers continue to navigate an evolving workplace environment, they're looking for skills and learning opportunities in areas such as AI, IT and leadership, according to a Feb. 22 report from Udemy. While demand has increased for tech categories such as generative AI, there's also interest in soft skills that AI can't replicate, such as active listening. "2023 was a year where trends around generative AI (gen AI), hybrid work, building inclusive global workplaces and macroeconomic uncertainty drove the consistent need to upskill across both technological and leadership capabilities," Greg Brown, president and CEO at Udemy, said in a statement. "Workers today need tech skills as much as they need soft, or power skills," he said. "Our Q4 Workplace Learning Index highlights how professionals are responding to, and meeting these demands, with surging interest in skills like chatbot development, listening, and customer service." Based on activity data from nearly 16,000 Udemy Business customers worldwide, demand for generative AI skills continues to surge, though there appears to be an evolution in how workers are using it. With growth in LangChain (109%) and chatbot development skills (56%), workers are shifting from trying to understand what generative AI is to learning how to apply it at work, Udemy said. Beyond that, workers seemed eager to build on their "human" or "soft" skills as they continue to work with colleagues in hybrid settings. |
| Miami Beach is breaking up with spring break -- or at least trying to | |
| Miami Beach is trying to break up with spring break, but it's not yet clear whether spring break will take the hint. After three consecutive years of spring break violence, Miami Beach officials are implementing monthlong security measures aimed at curbing the chaos, including parking restrictions for non-residents and closing sidewalk cafes on busy weekends. The city has warned visitors to expect curfews, bag searches at the beach, early beach closures, DUI checkpoints, and arrests for drug possession and violence. But business owners in the city's world-famous South Beach neighborhood are now concerned that they'll lose money during one of the busiest times of the year, and civil rights advocates say the restrictions are an overreaction to large Black crowds. "The status quo and what we've seen in the last few years is just not acceptable, not tolerable," Miami Beach Mayor Steven Meiner said. Meiner said crowds have become unmanageable despite a robust police presence. In the Florida Panhandle, the longtime spring break destination of Panama City Beach has experienced a similar escalation in violent crime, but Police Chief Eusebio Talamantez attributes that to people taking advantage of the environment, not actual college students on spring break. "When you think of spring break, you might think of vacation, a collegiate break, maybe some fistfights and some keg stands," Talamantez said. "It has evolved into shootings, mass riots, rape and homicide." |
| Is college worth it? Yes, according to this Fed data | |
| Yes, college is still worth it: The wage gap between recent college and high school grads has been widening for decades, and grew even more last year, per new Federal Reserve data. Even so, Americans are falling out of love with the idea of a four-year degree. Confidence in the value of a college education, a cornerstone of the American dream, is falling, per polling from Gallup and the Wall Street Journal. Economic data show clearly that a college degree gives individuals a lifetime earnings edge -- and other benefits. Despite what you've heard about AI stealing our jobs, the U.S. economy needs educated workers to grow and flourish: how else would that AI get developed? n 2023, recent college grads age 22-27 working full-time earned $24,000 more per year than 22-27 year olds with only a high school degree. Back in 1990 the gap was $15,000, according to the numbers tracked by the NYFed. To put that in perspective, by their early 20s the high-school degree workers likely have many more years of work experience than the new college grads -- yet they're still getting out-earned. That gap is just the beginning. The wage premium goes on to double over a worker's lifetime, according to research economist David Deming published last year. He was able to follow a group of college-educated workers through their working lives. At age 25 these folks had a 27% premium over high school only graduates. By age 55, that premium was 60%. "It's malpractice to tell a young person that a college degree isn't necessary anymore," says, Deming, who is a professor at the Harvard Kennedy School. |
| Protecting free speech on campus from attacks from both sides | |
| Greg Lukianoff has learned the value of defending free speech on college campuses from both sides of the aisle -- sometimes to the anger of his own donors. Lukianoff, the head of the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE), is the son of a Russian refugee and says first-generation immigrants from totalitarian regimes "really take seriously things like freedom of speech, because we came from places that didn't have it." His organization has battled both conservatives and liberals over threats to the freedom of speech on campus, pushing back against both school policies and laws passed at the state level. "The idea was partially to have a group that represented both the right and the left in its staff, so they were excited to hire me as the first legal director as a nice sort of counterbalance to the more conservative-leaning executive director, and so I joined in 2001," Lukianoff said about his first days at FIRE. He said his biggest early case -- and one the organization knew would be "unpopular" -- was defending Kuwaiti-born college professor and political activist Sami Al-Arian, who was targeted by conservative commentator Bill O'Reilly over accusations of links to terrorist groups and the Muslim Brotherhood. Al-Arian was fired by the University of South Florida, indicted on criminal charges and eventually deported, but Lukianoff emphasizes that the case was different "as long as" his termination "wasn't focused on his speech." And he says defending unpopular and controversial figures and speech is just as important today, with FIRE targeting both diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives and policies in Republican states restricting certain topics and discussions on campus. |
| Does the new FAFSA actually hurt farm families? It depends who you ask. | |
 | Cody Johannes is feeling uneasy. The 21-year-old has never taken out a student loan, but now he fears he might need one. The Montana State University junior grew up in Worden, a census-designated place of a few hundred people in the southeastern part of Montana, where his family owns about 300 acres of alfalfa and more than 150 Black Angus cows. During Johannes' freshman and sophomore years, his family's livelihood wasn't a liability. His tuition and fees were largely covered by outside scholarships and government financial aid. MSU helped, too, with state funding. But while filling out this year's new Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, he worried that his farming background might raise the amount he'll have to pay for his senior year. "It's gonna hurt, for sure," said the junior, who is studying animal science and livestock management. Johannes is not alone in his concerns. Republicans in Washington -- and some rural Democrats -- have been sounding the alarm for much of the past year about farm families potentially having to pay more money for college. Last month, more than a dozen senators sent a letter to Education Secretary Miguel Cardona accusing his agency of not adequately weighing the impacts of the new FAFSA on rural students. The form, used by millions of families to detail their capacity to cover college bills, has changed drastically for many families, including Johannes'. |
SPORTS
| Dawgs Head to Pearl to Face Southern Miss | |
| The Mississippi State Bulldogs return to action on Tuesday with a midweek matchup against Southern Miss in the first game of the C Spire College Series hosted by Spectrum Events. The game will be played in Pearl, Miss., at Trustmark Park, with the first pitch set for 6 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+ and carried on the Mississippi State Sports Network powered by Learfield, along with a live audio stream via HailState.com/OnDemand. Over the past weekend, the Diamond Dawgs earned a sweep of Mount St. Mary's. Pitching led the way to the sweep, as they only allowed three earned runs all weekend. The pitching staff tallied 37 strikeouts and limited the Mountaineers to 18 hits in the three-game series. Each starter for the Dawgs went 6+ innings, led by Nate Dohm, who went seven innings. In the series opener, Dohm went seven innings and had eight strikeouts. In the series' final game, Cijntje went 6 2/3 innings, a career-high, and had 10 punchouts, another career-high. Southern Miss enters the midweek contest with an 8-4 record and is coming off a series victory over Indiana State. The Golden Eagles won the series' first two games against Indiana State before dropping the finale. Drawing the start for Southern Miss is senior Cole Boswell. He will make his third appearance of the season and has pitched four innings this season. He holds a 6.75 ERA on the season with five strikeouts. Mississippi State faces off against the Eagles for the 129 time, with the first meeting between these two schools coming in 1947. The Dawgs won the last meeting in 2023, 10-9, at Trustmark Park. |
| Mississippi State Baseball: Notebook: Starting pitching, defense have been early strengths for the Bulldogs | |
| Twelve games into the 2024 season, Mississippi State baseball looks like a much different animal compared to its last two seasons following a 2021 national championship. The 2022 and 2023 campaigns resulted in back-to-back missed trips to the Southeastern Conference tournament in Hoover, let alone missing the NCAA tournament. However, the mood around the clubhouse and amongst the coaching staff feels different as the Bulldogs find themselves sitting at 8-4 following a weekend sweep of Mount St. Mary's. "A sweep is a sweep," outfielder Connor Hujsak said. "It feels great. The goal every weekend is to win the series. If you can sweep, you gotta take advantage of it. ... It's contagious. I think it's going to keep us going, keep us rolling. It's a good feeling all-around." Through 12 games, the Bulldogs have allowed 49 runs over 106 innings, walking 35 and striking out 144. Compared to this point last season, Mississippi State has nearly cut its runs allowed in half and its walks by more than half, from 86 to 49 and from 79 to 35. That starts and ends with what's become one of the most well-rounded weekend rotations that the Bulldogs have thrown out in years. Nate Dohm, Khal Stephen and Jurrangelo Cijntje were dominant against the Mountaineers, each pitching at least six innings while allowing one run or less. |
| Men's Basketball: How Josh Hubbard's hot stretch impacts the rest of the Bulldogs | |
| Freshmen in college basketball frequently get off to hot starts, then hit the proverbial "wall" once defenses figure out how to guard them and struggle to keep producing at a high level. But as Mississippi State guard Josh Hubbard's first season in Starkville hits the stretch run, Hubbard has only continued to improve. He has had off nights here and there, but in his last three games, Hubbard has averaged nearly 30 points a night and shot a combined 19-for-37 from 3-point range. With that scoring prowess comes extra attention from opposing defenses. Auburn was clearly keying on him in the first half on Saturday, when Hubbard was held to three points and was 1-for-6 shooting overall, with just three of those attempts coming from behind the arc. The Bulldogs (19-10, 8-8 Southeastern Conference) found better looks for Hubbard in the second half, when he was 5-for-8 from distance. "They sped him up a little bit, which doesn't happen very often," MSU head coach Chris Jans said. "Josh understands the game and understands that he has to get better and he has to learn from how different people defend him. Because of his (5-foot-10-inch) stature, he has to be careful sometimes when they speed him up and he tries to get all the way to the rim when there's a bunch of size waiting for him." None of the Bulldogs' other guards played particularly well in the loss to the Tigers, but Hubbard's continued ascension can open things up for players like Shakeel Moore and Dashawn Davis. |
| Mississippi State Softball: Bulldogs bury invitational opponents in final test before SEC play | |
| Mississippi State softball is ready for conference play. The Bulldogs hosted the Bulldog Invitational this past weekend in their last test before their Southeastern Conference campaign begins next weekend. They came in with an 11-3 record and left with a 17-3 record, registering five run-rule wins out of six games over the weekend. MSU outscored its opponents 66-7 across all six games, a dominant show of force from a team that continues to pick up steam. "I'm really proud of the team for the outing this weekend," head coach Samantha Ricketts said. "This season is a grind, but we know every game is important, and we try to treat each one that way. We did a really great job at staying locked in, going game-by-game, and playing our game. We were able to keep our focus on what was going on in our dugout and also continued to learn lessons as we got close to setting ourselves up in SEC play." With the five from the weekend, that makes ten wins by run-rule for MSU this season, including two against Top 25 opponents. The Bulldogs continue picking up steam heading into conference play, with an opening series against rivals Ole Miss in Oxford next weekend. |
| Mississippi State football: 3 spring storylines we're watching for coach Jeff Lebby | |
| There are more questions than answers surrounding Mississippi State football as the start of spring practice nears, and that's not a surprise. The Bulldogs are entering their first season with former Oklahoma offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby at the helm. With him comes a new staff and a plethora of changes to a roster that went 5-7 last season. One can point to every position on the field and find a question worth asking. Ideally, spring football will help provide some answers before Aug. 31 arrives and Mississippi State welcomes Eastern Kentucky to kick off a new era inside Davis Wade Stadium. Here's a look at three storylines we're tracking before the spring season ends in Starkville: How do the QBs look in Jeff Lebby's system? Who will emerge as the top RB? What does Coleman Hutzler's defense look like? |
| Lopez Ramirez Leads Darius Rucker Intercollegiate | |
| After the first day of the Darius Rucker Intercollegiate, the Mississippi State women's golf squad tallied together a one-under day to finish the round in a tie for fifth place. The State squad was led by Julia Lopez Ramirez's four-under day. Lopez Ramirez leads the pack after shooting 67 (-4) on the par-71 course. This marked her best round of the spring and the eighth time in her career that she had shot a 67. Lopez Ramirez shot five birdies throughout the day, which led the team and ranked second among the 89-player field. After a string of bogeys to open the day, the Bulldogs were able to string together eight birdies before they made the turn onto the back nine. This moved the Bulldogs from three-over par to two-under at the halfway point. State then put together six birdies as a team to remain at one-under. Avery Weed finished the day at even-par for the Bulldogs. This was Weed's team-high ninth par or better round of the season. Surapa Janthamunee finished her day one-over, while Ana Pina Ortega finished two-over. All three golfers carded three birdies in the opening round of the tournament. State will once again pair up with Texas and Duke for day two of the tournament. As a team, the Bulldogs sit five strokes out of the lead and two strokes out of the top-10 entering the second round. The Bulldogs will begin to tee off on the back nine at 10 a.m. CT on Tuesday. Live scoring will be available at golfstat.com. The later rounds of the event will be broadcast on the Golf Channel beginning at 1:30. |
| Tennis: Mississippi State men open conference play with win over Georgia | |
| Led by a dominant performance in doubles, the Mississippi State men's tennis team defeated Georgia in Sunday's Southeastern Conference opener with a 4-3 victory in Starkville. MSU (9-3, 1-0 SEC) earned a pair of 6-2 victories in doubles to secure the opening point. The No. 2 pairing of senior Carles Hernandez and junior Dusan Milanovic finished first, with the top duo of sophomores Petar Jovanovic and Benito Sanchez Martinez wrapping up not long after. Georgia won the first two completed singles matches, with Milanovic and freshman Radomir Tomic each falling in straight sets, but MSU took the next three to clinch the match. Hernandez earned a 6-3, 6-2 victory at No. 3 singles, and at No. 2, the 24th-ranked Jovanovic won a pair of tight sets to put the hosts in front. Sanchez Martinez finished it off at No. 5 with a 6-2, 6-4 triumph, rendering senior Nemanja Malesevic's three-set loss at No. 1 moot. "In the first set I played pretty decent," Sanchez Martinez said. "I didn't make too many easy mistakes and didn't give (my opponent) any points. I had a little dip at the start of the second set and he made use of it. I didn't play great and he broke me twice. It wasn't easy but I fought through it, stayed on top and eventually broke him back and was on top then." |
| Dak Prescott confident in his future with the Cowboys: 'It'll happen' | |
| Dak Prescott sounded like a player confident in his future with the Dallas Cowboys, the only team he's played with since they selected him in the fourth round of the 2016 NFL Draft. "I'm definitely confident," Prescott said. "Obviously, it helps the team. It's important for the (salary cap) numbers. I've heard Jerry (Jones) say that it is a process, both sides understand that. Everything is great. It'll happen." Prescott spoke to reporters Monday at the Children's Cancer Fund "A Knight to Remember" Gala that benefits children dealing with cancer. The Cowboys' QB has regularly attended the Dallas event. The surety with which Prescott spoke about an extension getting done was different from what the other side of the negotiation table expressed last week in Indianapolis at the NFL Scouting Combine. Cowboys owner and GM Jerry Jones and Cowboys executive vice president Stephen Jones both expressed strong interest in wanting to get an extension with Prescott done -- for the benefit of the salary-cap situation as well as wanting their QB locked up for the long term. Although the desire was clear, the urgency and confidence was more reserved. "We don't need to (get a new contract done), but we can if everybody wants to solve it," Jerry Jones said Friday. "If you can't, what we have in place works." Prescott wasn't alone in expressing confidence that a deal gets done. Cowboys Hall of Fame quarterback Troy Aikman, who spoke at the Gala on Monday, shared a similar sentiment. "He'll be here for a little while longer, and he should be," Aikman said. "He's proven he can play at a high level. I know they've come up short, as a team, the last few years but he's been a great player in this league and his best years are still ahead of him." |
| Dak Prescott 'confident' on contract resolution with Cowboys | |
| Dak Prescott could be entering the final year as the Dallas Cowboys' quarterback if there is no resolution on his contract, but he is taking an optimistic view. "I'm definitely confident," Prescott said after taking part in a Children's Cancer Fund event with Hall of Famer Troy Aikman on Monday. "Obviously it helps the team. It's important for the numbers ... That is a process. Both sides understand that. Everything's great. It'll happen." To date, there have not been substantial discussions between the Cowboys and Prescott's agent, Todd France. The sides did not speak at last week's scouting combine in Indianapolis as the new league year opens on March 13. Speaking from the combine last week, owner and general manager Jerry Jones said, "What we do there or don't do [with Prescott's contract], I couldn't say at this time, but the main thing is he's going to be our quarterback." Jones said he does not worry about this being Prescott's final year. "No, I don't fear that," Jones said. "Well, because I have gotten my mind on being better than we were last year. And that's where the focus would be. Every player you got has some time when his contract is up. You would walk around with the shakes if you feared it. You can't because they all come up. They all can get hurt. They all can lose some talent. So all of that is not fear. I know you're asking for a reaction to that. It is my job to when somebody gets hurt or when their career is at the end or when you don't get things negotiated, it's my job to do something else." Prescott, who became a father for the first time last week with the birth of his daughter, MJ, led the NFL in touchdown passes last season with 36. |
| Dallas Cowboys QB Dak Prescott welcomes first child, a baby girl he calls MJ | |
| Dak Prescott is a father! The Dallas Cowboys quarterback welcomed his first child, a baby girl, on Thursday. She was born on Leap Day, so she will see her actual birthday every four years. "I feel different," Prescott, 30, told reporters on Monday during a Children's Cancer Fund event in Dallas, saying fans can call his daughter MJ. "When you wake up in the morning and you see that baby, you understand responsibilities. And everything that I've always wanted for myself, but you want that for somebody else even more. Yeah, it's special." He said the baby and her mom -- Prescott's girlfriend, Sarah Jane Ramos -- are both "doing great" and all three are back at home. Prescott said he's changed a "handful" of diapers, including the first one and is now trying "to pass that job along." The couple announced they were expecting their first child back in November. The quarterback said he was looking forward to having a daughter in honor of his mother, who died from cancer in 2013. "I do want a girl. I'm blessed, thankful," he said at the time. "Obviously, everyone knows what my mom means to me so just being able to raise a little girl, I'm excited about. I'm excited for all of the challenges." |
| UT board of trustees approves first step for nonprofit foundation for Tennessee athletics | |
| UT Chancellor Donde Plowman is preparing Tennessee athletics for whatever the NCAA may throw at it. On Friday, the UT board of trustees approved a plan by Tennessee-Knoxville to establish a nonprofit foundation. The nonprofit could be used for things regarding athletics, including providing student-athletes with name, image and likeness funds. The fund could be used to pay salaries for athletes or help Tennessee athletics make the cut of wealthiest schools, if the NCAA trends in either of those directions. In the proposal, the university cited the changing world of athletics for the change. "UTK believes that there may be great benefit to creating a designated nonprofit entity that would be available to support its intercollegiate athletics program moving forward," the board proposal read. Plowman and the university will seek the board's proposal before the entity becomes operational. The approval on Friday is just the first step to beginning the foundation. "Most of our peers in the SEC have such a nonprofit that is associated with the athletic department," Plowman said at the meeting, held at UT Southern. "Everything is changing so quickly -- I don't need to say that to anyone here in athletics -- and we need to be prepared for some of those changes" |
| Over 10,000 athletes opt-in to EA Sports College Football 25 video game | |
| Just 10 days after the launch of the NIL opt-in program, EA Sports College Football 25 has seen more than 10,000 athletes sign up to participate in the game, the video game company announced on Monday. The first college football video game produced in more than a decade, athletes will be able to profit off their name, image and likeness being used in the game. As previously reported, all athletes who opt-in will eventually receive $600 plus a copy of the game, typically valued at $70. With the goal of having 85-man rosters for all 134 FBS teams, EA Sports is now at roughly 87% of its goal. EA hit the 10,000 sign-up mark on Friday. "The response to the athlete opt-in opportunity for EA Sports College Football 25 has been phenomenal," EA Sports' senior vice president and group general manager Daryl Holt told On3 in a statement. "In the little over one week, over 10,000 athletes across the FBS have opted-in to the offer with more saying 'yes' every hour. We're excited to welcome more athletes in the weeks ahead and to debut this first class of athletes in the game when it launches this summer." The buy-in to participate in the game is not limited to the minimum $600 NIL agreements. EA is working with the NIL marketplace Opendorse to ink marketing deals with some of the top players in college football. Names like Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe, Georgia quarterback Carson Beck, Colorado wide receiver/defensive back Travis Hunter, Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart and Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers have all inked partnerships and will be in the game. Opendorse previously told On3 that EA was planning to work with 100 of college football's top names. |
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