| Friday, June 7, 2024 |
| Homecoming And Family Weekend Set For Oct. 31-Nov. 3 | |
 | Mississippi State University and the Department of Athletics announced that Bulldog Family Weekend will return to a home football game weekend in conjunction with this year's Homecoming game. The collaborative undertaking looks to align efforts between the Department of Athletics, Alumni Association, Parent and Family Services, Student Association, and City of Starkville to create one of the most memorable weekends in the fall. The Bulldogs football team takes on the University of Massachusetts on Saturday, November 2 for the 2024 Homecoming game. The game time will be announced at a later date. "This partnership showcases our commitment to strengthen ties both on campus and in the community," said Deputy AD for Athletics, Tom Greene. "We have a great opportunity to showcase our university and the pageantry of the Junction and Davis Wade Stadium to new families coming to the Best Small Town in the South for the first time in addition to our regular visitors." A full slate of programming is scheduled for the weekend with additional programming to be announced in the coming months. "The MSU Alumni Association is proud to be working with partners across campus and the Greater Starkville Development Partnership to deliver a Homecoming weekend full of events and activities that celebrate our great university," said MSU Executive Director of the Alumni Association, Jeff Davis. "We look forward to welcoming alumni and friends back home to re-experience campus and Starkville, reminisce about their time at State, and create new memories as they reconnect with MSU and other Bulldogs." |
| New database features 250 AI tools that can enhance social science research | |
| Mississippi State University's Megan Stubbs-Richardson, Devon Brenner, Lauren Etheredge, along with Baylor's MacKenzie Paul, write for The Conversation: AI -- or artificial intelligence -- is often used as a way to summarize data and improve writing. But AI tools also represent a powerful and efficient way to analyze large amounts of text to search for patterns. In addition, AI tools can assist with developing research products that can be shared widely. It's with that in mind that we, as researchers in social science, developed a new database of AI tools for the field. In the database, we compiled information about each tool and documented whether it was useful for literature reviews, data collection and analyses, or research dissemination. We also provided information on the costs, logins and plug-in extensions available for each tool. When asked about their perceptions of AI, many social scientists express caution or apprehension. In a sample of faculty and students from over 600 institutions, only 22% of university faculty reported that they regularly used AI tools. From combing through lengthy transcripts or text-based data to writing literature reviews and sharing results, we believe AI can help social science researchers – such as those in psychology, sociology and communication -- as well as others get the most out of their data and present it to a wider audience. |
| Food pantry program promotes healthier living in Mississippi | |
 | Food pantries across Mississippi are becoming healthier thanks to a novel food classification system. Thirty-five participants representing 10 food pantries across the state received training on Supporting Wellness at Pantries (SWAP) guidelines. The Mississippi State University (MSU) Extension Service and the Mississippi Food Network conducted the training in Jackson. Course materials included signs and a notebook of information to help code various foods based on ingredients of concern. SWAP guidelines instruct pantries to label food based on its healthy qualities. Green means 'choose often,' yellow means 'choose sometimes' and red means 'choose rarely.' Jasmine Styles, operator of the Fruits of Love Food Pantry in Leland, described the SWAP guidelines as revolutionary. "We are excited to see the positive impact this will have on our community," Styles said in an MSU Extension Service press release. Keltra Chandler is the program manager for the MSU Extension food and health program AIM for CHangE. She believes the coding system will enable community members to make healthier decisions. "These categories are designed to help food pantry clients understand some foods can be chosen frequently and no foods are off-limits," Chandler said. AIM for CHangE is short for Advancing, Inspiring, Motivating for Community Health through Extension. |
| Two Brothers in Starkville serves up smoky southern soul food | |
 | It all began with four Mississippi State University fans who, against the advice of all their friends, built a restaurant around a young chef. Starkville's Two Brothers Smoked Meats opened in 2014 in the historic Cotton District. The original restaurant could house maybe 75 people at once. Now in a new location on University Drive, the joint can host up to 700 guests. In just a few short years, those MSU fans turned their "bad idea" into a wildly popular restaurant serving up "smoked southern soul food," as co-owner Terry Powell put it, to customers who keep coming back for more. Co-owner, chef, and day-to-day manager Barton Dinkins was just 24 when he and the four other owners -- Powell, Jim Moore, Aubrey Corley and Daniel Alexander -- opened Two Brothers, named in honor of Dinkins' two younger brothers. "We were told by everybody it wouldn't work, but we believed in Barton Dinkins, ... and we believed in Starkville," Powell said. In his early 20s, Dinkins discovered his love for the restaurant business. With that love for the work and his family's barbecuing legacy, he shaped the Two Brothers menu. Smoked meats are the focus, and the key to good smoked meats, Dinkins said, is cooking low and slow. The smokers, custom-built by Dinkins' father, run 24/7. On days when the Cotton District is packed with State fans, the scent can pull people in right off the street, Powell said. |
| Gov. Tate Reeves will speak at Delta Council Annual Meeting Friday | |
| Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves will be the keynote speaker for the Delta Council's 89th Annual Meeting set for Friday, June 7, 2024, at Delta State University's Bologna Performing Arts Center (BPAC) in Cleveland. "We are excited that Governor Reeves has accepted our invitation to address the members and guests of Delta Council," said Delta Council President, C. D. "Bubba" Simmons II, a Washington County producer. "Governor Reeves has been responsive to us on every issue we have ever asked him to get involved in, and we look forward to having him as our special guest." The 2024 Delta Council Day will commence with the 21 st Annual Salute to Delta Honor Graduates event at 9:00 a.m., held outside of the Bologna Performing Arts Center on the lawn. The tradition of a fried catfish luncheon will wrap up Delta Council Day on the grounds of the Quadrangle on the Delta State University campus. Delta Council invites and encourages members and guests to attend and participate in this 89-year-old Delta "red-letter" day. Sponsors for the meeting are BankPlus, Catfish Farmers of Mississippi, Cotton Incorporated, Delta State University, Mississippi Corn Promotion Board, Mississippi Land Bank, Mississippi Rice Promotion Board, Mississippi Soybean Promotion Board, Simplot Grower Solutions and Southern AgCredit. |
| With one month remaining in fiscal year, Mississippi revenues above estimates by $134.8 million | |
| Revenues continue to adjust to new fiscal realities in Mississippi as the state phases in the largest tax cut in Magnolia State history. The Legislative Budget Office released the May state revenue report on Wednesday showing Mississippi tax collections are up $134.8 million for the year with one month remaining in the fiscal year. A new fiscal year begins on July 1st. However, the month of May came in $51 million below the sine die revenue estimate, a number that could without context give onlookers pause. Yet, as Lt. Governor Delbert Hosemann (R) told Magnolia Tribune, it's one month out of a fiscal year. "One month is not necessarily an indication of the entire year," Hosemann said. "We continue to monitor revenues and stay prudent and cognizant of the state's financial obligations." The Legislature passed and Governor Tate Reeves (R) signed into law a $525 million tax cut plan in 2022 which eliminated the 4% income tax bracket and phased down the 5% bracket to 4% over a three-year period. Most of the May decline is a result of reduced individual income tax collections from that tax cut. Sales tax revenue continues to be a bright spot, with collections for the month of May above the prior year by $6.5 million and up year-over-year by more than $78 million. |
| Will a Mississippi billionaire run for governor in the poorest state? | |
| The richest man in the poorest state in America is contemplating a run for Mississippi governor. Advisers to Thomas Duff, 67, who along with his brother Jim has been perennially listed as the richest in the state, said he's very seriously considering a run for the open governor's seat in 2027. They said he will make a decision "sooner rather than later." Business and political leaders have been encouraging the billionaire to run, and he has reportedly considered such a run in the past but demurred. Duff himself declined comment. Duff, of Hattiesburg, has been involved in state politics, but only peripherally or behind the scenes. He recently finished an eight-year stint on the state Institutions of Higher Learning Board, first appointed by former Gov. Phil Bryant. Duff has been a major contributor to many Republican campaigns in Mississippi, including most of the current GOP congressional and statewide officeholders. He and his brother are major supporters of higher education and have donated millions to Mississippi universities. Some political observers figure Duff entering the race could at least partially "clear the field" in a Republican primary. Some potential candidates might balk at facing someone who could easily write his own campaign an eight-figure check, and whom they had hoped might help fund theirs. "If he decides to run for governor, he's absolutely among the top runners if not the top runner," said Austin Barbour, a state and national GOP strategist and lobbyist. "I don't know him well, but I see him as someone who has been involved in state government, in policy matters in his own way as a member of the IHL board for eight years, obviously involved in a lot of things locally as well," Barbour said. "From all accounts, he is a conservative who has an interest in seeing Mississippi continue to become a better place." |
| $10 Billion: Madison County to reap big benefits from AWS investment | |
| The largest economic development project in the history of Mississippi promises not only to create jobs but also to put dollars in the coffers of the Madison County Schools and the Canton Public School District as well as the city of Ridgeland and Madison County Board of Supervisors. Earlier this year, Amazon Web Services (AWS) announced a $10 billion investment in Madison County that includes constructing multiple data center complexes. "The impacts to Madison County Schools, the Canton Public School District and Holmes Community College are going to be phenomenal," said Joey Deason, executive director of the Madison County Economic Development Authority, who worked five years on the deal. "It's trivial to say it's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, but I don't know how to express the magnitude of it," said Marty Wiseman, Ph.D., emeritus professor of political science and emeritus director of Mississippi State University's John C. Stennis Institute of Government and Community Development. No doubt the funding will create opportunity and, along with that, the need for good advice and wise plans for spending. "They can't spend like there's no tomorrow," Wiseman said. "The first thing to do is for everyone to get their wits about them and go slow. The school boards, the city of Ridgeland and Madison County need to be intentional about the plans they make and how they plan to pay for improvements they make. It would be a shame to fritter it away on luxuries, but they can afford some luxuries." |
| Mississippi has the cheapest gas in the nation, and prices are even lower on the Coast | |
 | Mississippi's gas prices, already the least expensive in the nation, continue to fall, with the state's average price per gallon dropping below $3 per gallon on Wednesday. Data from the American Automobile Association shows the Magnolia State's average price per gallon on Thursday as $2.982, down over a dime from the state's average a month ago. This amount is about 50 cents cheaper than what the AAA has posted for the national price per gallon average, which sits a little under $3.50 on Thursday. Mississippi's gas prices usually lead the nation for being most affordable – but on the Coast, it isn't hard to find gas that's even cheaper. Gasbuddy lists seven of the top 10 cheapest gas stations in Mississippi as belonging to the Coast, as of Thursday. Of those ten listed gas stations, over half were in Gulfport. The AAA said in a statement that gas prices will probably continue to slowly fall, based on "tepid demand" for gas and a lower oil price. AAA spokesman Andrew Gross said that hurricane season, one that's forecasted to be very active this year, may interfere with Gulf Coast production, temporarily pushing up the prices nationally. |
| Job growth blows past expectations, boosting Biden but dimming rate-cut hopes | |
 | The U.S. economy added 272,000 jobs in May, defying predictions that the hot labor market was finally cooling off. The job market's surprising resilience will bolster President Joe Biden's economic messaging at a time when most voters hold a dim view of his policies. Average hourly earnings also climbed by an annual rate of 4.1 percent, far surpassing the rate of inflation, the Labor Department said on Friday. And while unemployment climbed to 4 percent for the first time in more than two years, it's still below historic norms. "Once again, payroll growth laughs at your expectations," Martha Gimbel, a former Biden economic adviser who's now executive director at the Yale Budget Lab, posted on X. Still, while the Biden administration will tout the report as a sign that its economic policies are working, the jobs surge will also make it harder for the Federal Reserve to justify cutting interest rates in the coming months, dashing the hopes of stock market investors. Many Fed officials have said the central bank is in no rush to slash borrowing costs as long as the labor market remains strong. Other recent indicators have suggested an economic slowdown, however. The Commerce Department last week lowered its estimates for first-quarter gross domestic product growth to an annual rate of 1.3 percent, less than half the pace of the fourth quarter of last year. Real disposable income growth has tapered off and the PCE index -- the Fed's preferred inflation gauge -- showed that consumer spending eased in April. |
| Against D-Day Backdrop, Biden to Put Democracy at Center of Anti-Trump Pitch | |
 | President Biden will use the spot where U.S. forces helped turn the tide of World War II to drive home what has become the core argument for his re-election effort: He will preserve democratic freedoms, as American troops did here 80 years ago, while Donald Trump will undermine them. Biden is set to deliver his address Friday from Pointe du Hoc, where U.S. troops scaled 100-foot cliffs to take out German artillery that otherwise would have been used on Allied forces landing on Normandy beaches on D-Day. The speech will echo one made by former President Ronald Reagan from the same location on the 40th anniversary of the Allied invasion. At home and abroad, Biden has been leaning into a broad pitch centered on democratic principles. It highlights the need to confront autocrats and preserve institutions such as a fair judicial system, diplomatic alliances, the rule of law and freedoms such as abortion rights. "Democracy is never guaranteed. Every generation must preserve it, defend it and fight for it," Biden said Thursday at the 80th anniversary commemoration of D-Day. Throughout his trip this week to France, Biden invoked the Allies' victory in World War II to call for strengthening democracies when two wars have divided Americans and threatened trans-Atlantic relations. |
| Trump search for a VP candidate narrows, with senators dominating list | |
 | Donald Trump's search for a running mate has reached a more intensive phase, with his campaign requesting documents from at least eight contenders, half of whom are U.S. senators, according to people familiar with the process. The potential candidates who have received requests for paperwork include: Sens. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), J.D. Vance (R-Ohio), Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) and Tim Scott (R-S.C.); North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum; Reps. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) and Byron Donalds (R-Fla.); and former secretary of housing and urban development Ben Carson, according to people familiar with the search, who like others interviewed for this article spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe private conversations. It's unknown what documentation the campaign has specifically requested. In recent weeks, Trump has repeatedly talked about Rubio, Vance and Burgum, according to people familiar with his remarks. Still, even as the process ramps up, he told an ally in the past week that he is in no hurry to make the announcement and could even push it to the week of the convention. The list offers a window into Trump's priorities for a running mate: The potential candidates all have experience in government and have remained loyal to the former president. The focus on several senators and other members of Congress also highlights Trump's reshaping of Capitol Hill, where Republicans have largely lined up behind his candidacy and pushed out an older guard of Trump critics. Trump is known for changing his mind and making decisions that have sometimes surprised even his own advisers, adding a degree of uncertainty to the next phase of the search. |
| Bannon told to report to prison on contempt of Congress charges | |
 | A federal judge on Thursday ordered Steve Bannon to self-surrender to prison by July 1 after an appellate court upheld the former Trump adviser's conviction on contempt of Congress charges. Judge Carl Nichols of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia sentenced Bannon in 2022 but had allowed him to remain out of prison pending an appeal of the case. On Thursday, the Trump-appointed judge cited the appellate court ruling before ordering Bannon to report to start a four-month sentence for guilty verdicts on two charges he refused to comply with a subpoena from the House select committee investigating the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol. Bannon remained defiant in the face of prison time outside the courthouse on Thursday, saying he would go all the way to the Supreme Court if needed. Bannon had argued in his appeal that his attorney advised him to not comply with the panel because executive privilege -- which allows a president to keep secret conversations with close advisers -- would apply to the congressional subpoena. A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit wrote in a unanimous decision that allowing Bannon to discard the conviction because he relied on the advice of his attorney "would undermine the statute's function," which is meant to allow Congress to enforce its investigative powers. |
| MUW president was caught off guard by attempts to shutter The W, but she's bullish on future | |
 | When the Mississippi University for Women president, Nora Miller, an alum of The W herself, heard about a potential state bill that looked to close three universities by 2028, she admitted she was caught off guard. "Oh yeah, it sure did. It got our attention," Miller said with a laugh. "I'm thankful that bill died because it would have put a lot of people into panic mode and I don't think that's necessary." Filed by Sen. John Polk, R-Hattiesburg, back in February, Senate Bill 2726, would have designated the Mississippi Institution of Higher Learning's Board of Trustees to select three universities to close by 2028, though it did not specify which ones. Factors such as enrollment data, degrees offered, economic impact, services offered and any research that schools conduct serving the state would be used to determine which schools would close. The bill ultimately died in committee. There was also a separate bill, Senate Bill 2715, that would've merged The W with nearby Mississippi State University. In March, Miller, along with other W alumni, gathered on the steps of the Mississippi State Capitol Building to voice their opposition to the bill. That bill also ended up dying. "They (the bill) didn't outline which three, but everyone jumped to that conclusion because we're the three smallest," Miller said. Miller, who is finishing up her sixth year as president of The W, said her university, others and the IHL as a whole need to do a better job highlighting their achievements. She claimed students at The W graduate with the least amount of debt and most tend to stay in Mississippi. |
| Lawyer wants to move the trial for the killing of a U. of Mississippi student | |
 | A trial for the killing of a University of Mississippi student should be moved to a part of the state where publicity won't have made it too difficult to find an unbiased jury, the defendant's lawyer says. Attorney Kevin Horan filed court papers Monday requesting that the capital murder trial of Sheldon "Timothy" Herrington Jr. be moved out of Lafayette County, where the university is located and where Jimmy "Jay" Lee disappeared July 8, 2022. Lee, 20, was last seen at an apartment complex in Oxford, and his body has not been found. He was well known in the local LGBTQ community, where his disappearance sparked fear. Police said cellphone history showed conversations between Herrington and Lee that morning. They said Herrington also searched online about international travel and "how long it takes to strangle someone" minutes after Lee said he was on his way to Herrington's apartment. Surveillance video recorded Herrington running from where Lee's car was found, and he was later seen picking up a shovel and wheelbarrow at his parents' house, authorities said. Herrington has maintained his innocence. |
| A Rough Month for Campus Cuts | |
 | As the academic year wound down for many institutions last month, administrators at a handful of colleges outlined big changes, with job cuts and program reviews underway or on the horizon. Cuts announced in May are among the deepest reported so far this year. Layoffs, program reductions and other belt-tightening measures are largely being driven by the usual suspects: declining enrollment and increased operating costs. Financially struggling Delta State University plans to cut 21 of its 61 programs. Majors slated for the chopping block include chemistry, English and history, Mississippi Today reported. Delta State President Daniel Ennis said last month that there are only 238 students enrolled in the 21 targeted programs. As part of the cost-cutting, administrators plan to eliminate Delta State's College of Arts and Sciences and restructure or consolidate various other budget units across campus. The program reductions will also come with job cuts. Delta State has already laid off 17 staffers and will leave 49 vacant positions unfilled; an unknown number of faculty members will also lose their jobs. Ennis, who joined Delta State last June, said at a town hall meeting covered by Mississippi Today that the university had only 24 days in cash reserves on hand when he arrived on campus. |
| Jackson State University hosting STEM Camp for high school students around the metro area | |
| Sixty young minds from the metro are at Jackson State this week to follow their STEM dreams. This weeklong camp offers hands-on activities in science technology, engineering, and mathematics. "It's been a fun experience. We had teachers teaching us. We met new kids," Robert Mays Jr, a Junior at Murrah High School said. "Our students today are participating in a culminating event where they are testing all of the great things that they have done throughout the week," Michael Smith with the ExxonMobil Pipeline Company said. On Thursday, the scholars were building reservoir models that capture carbon dioxide using beans, Play-Doh, pasta, and vegetable oil. The experiment's goal is to capture the CO2 and plant it in the ground to rid the earth of bad gas and radiation in the air. "This is a technology that's well understood by the industry and it's something that we are working towards as a way to get carbon dioxide out of the air and clean up our emissions across the gulf south including here in Mississippi," Smith said. "It's important that we get the young minds early. These are opportunities that Jackson State is providing through its camps that we are fortunate to collaborate with," Smith added. |
| U. of Alabama System campuses to increase in-state tuition | |
 | Students at University of Alabama System campuses could see tuition rates increase by up to 4% for the 2024-25 school year, trustees announced Thursday. The UA System Board of Trustees Finance Committee unanimously approved a resolution Thursday afternoon that would increase in-state, undergraduate tuition rates by 2.5%. Out-of-state tuition would rise by 3% at UA and UAB, and by 4% at UAH. Required fees will not change. The full board of trustees, which oversees the campuses in Tuscaloosa, Birmingham and Huntsville, will vote on the increases at its board meeting on Friday, June 7. "Each year, we carefully and seriously consider our university's tuition rates, and any time there is a proposed change, it is necessary to advance our system wide commitment to academic excellence, ensure financial stability and manage increasing costs," Dana Keith, vice chancellor for communications said at Thursday's committee meeting. Keith said the changes would account for "significant increases" in operating expenses, including insurance and technology costs, as well as staff retirement and benefits. The system also is considering a plan to renovate Coleman Coliseum instead of building a new arena and other building projects. |
| Say goodbye to the Southern drawl, y'all! UGA research suggests South is losing its accent | |
 | Linguists Margaret Renwick and Jon Forrest from the University of Georgia turned heads in 2023 after publishing a study about Georgia's fading Southern accent. The Southern drawl -- extending and stretching out vowel sounds in words like taste (tuh-eest) or back (bahyuck) -- is disappearing, and younger generations in Georgia are less likely to possess that distinctive twang. These findings led to an outpouring of media coverage and social media reactions, ranging from, "That makes a lot of sense," to "Not in my hometown!" According to Renwick and Forrest, both reactions are valid. "We talk about generalizations like this change, but there are always sub-regional differences and other group differences that matter," says Forrest, an assistant professor in the Department of Linguistics. "We're painting a picture of what's happening in the bigger aggregate of Georgia, but we're also providing something concrete for people to grab onto." All the engagement is exciting because it highlights how linguistics impacts individuals on a personal level. For some people, this study explains a phenomenon they hear but can't quite describe. For others, it highlights a direct connection to language and accents. "There's a very human side of linguistics," says Renwick, an associate professor of linguistics and lead author of the study. "We're helping to make sense of the world around us." |
| Elon Musk's xAI supercomputer in Memphis seeks to beat ORNL's Frontier. What will it take? | |
 | Elon Musk has aspirations to unseat Frontier, Oak Ridge National Laboratory's pride and joy, as the world's largest supercomputer with his "gigafactory of compute" in Memphis. He has billions to make it happen. Frontier has taken the No. 1 spot on the Top500 list of the world's fastest supercomputers five times in a row since it broke the exascale barrier -- over one quintillion calculations per second -- in May 2022. The system opened for use by scientists across the world in April 2023. ORNL is not involved in the project for xAI, Musk's artificial intelligence company, which the Greater Memphis Chamber announced June 5. The multibillion-dollar investment is the largest for a new-to-market company in Memphis history, said chamber President and CEO Ted Townsend. Details on the supercomputing project are sparse, including the price tag and how many jobs it will create. The deal between xAI and Memphis leaders was made in less than 90 days. It is still pending approval by several governing bodies, including the Tennessee Valley Authority, which would produce electricity to meet the project's high demand. Musk told investors in May that xAI's supercomputer would be powered by a whopping 100,000 flagship Nvidia AI graphics processing units, or GPUs, reported first by The Information. Frontier contains around 37,000 GPUs made by AMD. Taking the No. 1 spot from Frontier is no small task on that path, even for the man behind Tesla and SpaceX. ORNL scientists describe Frontier as being "like a miracle." Frontier and Summit, the No. 1 and No. 9 fastest supercomputers, both have helped tech companies train AI models. |
| Inside U. of Kentucky's largest classroom building before $75 million renovation begins | |
 | The University of Kentucky is preparing to start renovations on its largest classroom building, White Hall, this summer. Originally opened in 1969 and centrally located on campus, White Hall is home to approximately 50 classrooms, laboratories and the campus post office. The $75 million renovation is scheduled to be completed by the fall 2026 semester, and will turn the building from one that "has a very 1970s look" into a modern, bright learning space, said Mary Vosevich, vice president for facilities management and chief facilities officer of UK. "The saying here at UK is if you went to school here, you had a class in White Hall sometime over the course of your educational career," Vosevich said. "It's our main classroom building." The three-story building is approximately 165,000 square feet, and updates will include new lecture halls that can hold between 100 and 290 students and smaller classrooms that can hold 36 to 48 students, said Angela Walton, the project manager for the renovations. Additionally, a new "micro-market" will be added on the first floor, giving students self-serve food and vending options, Walton said. Renovations also include new "collaboration spaces" with tables and chairs for students to use, something that has become popular in other new and renovated buildings on campus. "You walk into White Hall right now, and it's pretty dark," Vosevich said. "We're doing away with that. We really want to make it a welcoming space that is conducive to the activities that are taking place in that building." |
| Texas A&M announces new Bush School dean | |
 | Texas A&M University announced Thursday that John B. Sherman will leave the U.S. Department of Defense to become the dean of the Bush School of Government and Public Service, according to a press release from the university. Sherman has served as chief information officer for the Department of Defense since 2021 and will begin his new position Aug. 1. According to the university, Sherman has three decades' worth of service holding senior positions in the CIA, the Office of the Director of National Intelligence and the Nation Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. Sherman is also a Class of '92 distinguished military graduate of Texas A&M where he earned his bachelor of arts in history. According to the university, Sherman also has experience in IT modernization, cybersecurity, data collection and analysis, and international affairs. In the press release, Sherman said his experience in defense will help continue the Bush School's efforts. He replaces acting dean Frank B. Ashley. "I'm tremendously honored and humbled to be selected as the next dean of the Bush School. [A&M President Mark] Welsh and Dr. Ashley are leaving behind some pretty big boots to fill," Sherman said. "The spirit of service and focus on preparing students for the future they instilled in the school will be our guiding light as we look to the challenges the next generation of leaders will face. Liz and I are excited to get back home to College Station and beginning this next chapter in our lives." |
| New U. of Missouri vet school dean brings land-grant university experience | |
 | The incoming dean of the University of Missouri College of Veterinary Medicine said his prior work in land-grant institutions will guide his new role. "I have gotten to learn and appreciate the value of how education should be impactful to the community at heart," Srinand Sreevatsan said Thursday. "I would use that to help me navigate education and service activities that would actually benefit the state." Sreevatsan is the associate dean for research and graduate studies in the College of Veterinary Medicine at Michigan State University, according to an MU news release. He previously worked as director of graduate studies for the veterinary medicine program at the University of Minnesota. Sreevatsan has spent all of his 24 years in academics at land-grant institutions, he said. He will begin his new position Aug. 1. His annual salary will be $345,000, according to MU spokesperson Christopher Ave. Sreevatsan succeeds Dean Carolyn Henry, who stepped down in July 2023. Leah Cohn, professor of veterinary medicine at MU, served as interim dean. His appointment, which was announced Thursday, is the third administrative leadership position MU has made public this week. Matthew Martens' appointment as provost was announced Monday, and Marisa Chrysochoou's appointment as dean of the MU College of Engineering came Wednesday. |
| Why has the U. of Memphis seen an enrollment decline? | |
| In recent years, undergraduate enrollment at the University of Memphis has declined. In fall 2019, before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, the institution had 15,728 undergraduate students, according to materials for the U of M Board of Trustees meeting held Wednesday. In fall 2020, that number slid to 15,601, and in fall 2021, it dropped to 14,750. Then, in fall 2022, it decreased to 14,317, and in fall 2023, it dropped to 13,765. In fall 2024, U of M is projecting it will have 13,020 undergraduate students. That's a five-year decline of 2,709 students, and a year-over-year decline of 745 students that is driven, in part, by what the school expects to be a 25% drop in first-time freshmen. The number of graduate students hasn't seen the same level of decrease. U of M is expecting 4,599 graduate students in fall 2024, which is just slightly down from 4,682 it saw in fall 2023, and still well above the 3,960 it had in fall 2019. Dual enrollment numbers, meanwhile, have increased. In fall 2024, U of M is projecting it will have 3,049 dual enrollment students. This is an uptick from the 3,006 it had in fall 2023, and nearly double the 1,650 it had in fall 2019. Still, the decline in undergraduate enrollment is significant. And recently, The Commercial Appeal spoke to Tony Bourne, vice president of enrollment management at U of M, to find out why it's dropped. There isn't one thing you can point to that's led to the drop in enrollment. As Bourne put it: "There's a lot of different things that are all happening at the same time." |
| Stress, Cost of Higher Ed Remain Greatest Threats to Student Persistence | |
| Around one third of students enrolled in a postsecondary program have considered stopping their coursework in the past six months, according to an April 17 report from Gallup and the Lumina Foundation. The primary concern among students is emotional stress (54 percent), followed by personal mental health reasons (43 percent) and cost of higher education (31 percent). The new report re-emphasizes the role student mental health and financial wellness plays into student enrollment, persistence and graduation rates. Survey data also highlights the importance of financial aid in keeping at-risk learners enrolled and a greater need for transparency around the cost of higher education. Recent data from the National Center for Education Statistics found, among adults who were high school freshmen in 2009, 40 percent of those who enrolled in college did not earn a degree or credential within eight years of finishing high school. National Student Clearinghouse Research Center data from 2023 found 40.4 million Americans have completed some college but have not earned a credential. Among those who thought about stopping out, financial aid is critical to their continuation in higher education. While most studies identified mental health and concerns about finances as separate reasons a student might stop out, other research points to a relationship between students' financial need and their emotional stability. |
| The legal system deserves our respect | |
| Mississippi newspaper publisher and columnist Wyatt Emmerich writes: I normally avoid writing about national politics. There's no shortage of such commentary, but the 34-felony-count conviction of former President Donald Trump is just too earthshaking to avoid. Those on the right howl "selective prosecution." Those on the left say "justice served." What's the truth? Although I am a free market conservative, it's hard for me to join the noisy right-wing chorus that shrieks "All those lefties are a bunch of idiots." I have always found it easy to see the other point of view and that goes for both the right and the left. ... This reminds me a bit of the right wing's denial of 60 court cases in the last Presidential election. Trump lost all 60. My conservative friends say, "That's because the courts are corrupt." Let me ask you this: What is the alternative to not abiding by the rulings of the judicial system, as imperfect as it may be? Let me tell you the answer: Chaos, mayhem, fighting in the streets, anarchy, death, destruction and the collapse of the United States. There is no alternative to the rule of law. So when I see our top leaders undermining public confidence in our judicial system, I cringe. The proper thing to say is this: "The judicial system, though not perfect, is the law of the land and we must respect and abide by the will of the jury until the appeals process is exhausted." |
| Reagan at Pointe du Hoc, 40 Years Later | |
| Columnist Peggy Noonan writes in The Wall Street Journal: I was to write on something else this week but an event in California sent me back in time. Friends of Ronald Reagan gathered to mark the 40th anniversary of his speeches at Normandy (June 6, 1984), and the 20th anniversary of his death (June 5, 2004). ... Many of those who worked or got their start in Reagan's White House came -- Haley Barbour, Condoleezza Rice -- and others traveled far to show respect, including Carol Thatcher, daughter of Margaret, and Ben Mulroney, son of Brian. Historians came. ... We at the Reagan Library felt there was a time when politics was sweeter, when big things got said in gentle ways, when geniality was a virtue and not a political faux pas. That time included the summer of '84 and a day in Normandy. To have been able to work on the president's remarks there was a privilege ... The speech was a plain-faced one. It was about what it was about, the valor shown 40 years before by the young men of Operation Overlord who, by taking the Normandy beaches, seized back the Continent of Europe. But there was a speech within the speech, and that had to do with more-current struggles. ... The speech within the speech was about the crisis going on as Reagan spoke. The Western alliance was falling apart. Its political leaders were under severe pressure at home. ... It was one of the tensest moments of the Cold War. |
SPORTS
| Mississippi State baseball players take talents to top summer leagues | |
 | Mississippi State pitchers Cam Schuelke and Luke Dotson and shortstop Dylan Cupp are off to Massachusetts this summer to play in the prestigious Cape Cod Baseball League after helping the Bulldogs reach the NCAA Tournament for the first time in three years. Schuelke will be spending his third summer with the Cotuit Kettleers under manager Mike Roberts, who helped him develop a submarine delivery in addition to overhand and sidearm. He was named the CCBL's most outstanding relief pitcher in 2022 with a 0.81 ERA in 22 1/3 innings, then posted a 3.16 mark in 37 innings with Cotuit last year. Cupp, a freshman this past season, opened the year as MSU's starting shortstop while David Mershon was making his way back from an injury. He will play for the Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox this summer after starting the first 19 games of the college season. Dotson will play for the Chatham Anglers following his freshman year with the Bulldogs, in which he posted an 8.25 ERA in 12 innings of work. Five MSU players will be joining the New England Collegiate Baseball League, also one of the more highly-regarded summer wood bat leagues. |
| Chris Jans on his contract extension at Mississippi State: 'They're going to expect us to win more' | |
| Mississippi State extended Chris Jans as their head men's basketball coach this offseason after two seasons in Starkville. Now, after those pair of years earned him that reward, he knows that it represents an investment toward more for the Bulldogs in the future. Jans discussed his new deal during a media session this week on Wednesday. He said that, with his signature on those papers, the goals have now taken a step up. That's the case even though he remains incredibly grateful for his opportunity with their program. "I think they are going to expect us to win more," said Jans. "In all seriousness, just feels great to have the support, like you mentioned, from Dr. Keenum and the powers to be. Certainly, athletic director Zac Selmon had a lot to do with it. We are very, very appreciative and excited to be here and to continue to build upon what we started." However, with Jans set to remain in place there through at least the next four seasons, there's now another level of security at Mississippi State that should only help them try to meet those expectations. "It definitely helps with recruiting. It helps just for the staff. More than excited that, you know, they get more reassurance and stability," said Jans. "I just think it helps the program overall when things like that happen." |
| Coleman Collects Four CSC Fred Stabley Sr. Writing Awards | |
| Mississippi State's senior writer Joel Coleman earned four awards at the district level of College Sports Communicators' Fred Stabley Sr. Writing Contest. Coleman's recap of the 2022-23 men's basketball season that led to a return to March Madness, "The Path To The Dance," was the district winner for Season Preview or Recap and will advance to the national competition to be judged later this month. Mississippi State competes in District 6 which includes the states of Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Arkansas, Mississippi and Louisiana. All submissions must have been published during the 2023 calendar year and contestants were limited to one entry per category. Nearly 400 entries were submitted in the 2023-24 contest. Each category is first judged on the district level, with the winners then advancing to national consideration. "Maroon, White, Left And Right," highlighting switch-pitcher Jurrangelo Cijntje was a co-runner up in Athlete Profile. Meanwhile, "Yabba Dabba Dawgs," breaking down the women's basketball team's popular slogan this year, and "How The West Was Won," revisiting State's SEC West division-winning 1998 football squad, were runners-up in the General Feature and Historical Feature categories, respectively. Coleman has now won multiple Fred Stabley Sr. awards in each of his three years on staff with the Bulldogs, totaling six district wins and seven district runner-up titles. He has earned district wins in five of the seven available categories in his career. |
| Mark Alexander returns to SA as head boys' basketball coach | |
| Starkville Academy announced the return of Mark Alexander to the athletic department this week. Alexander will resume the role of head coach for the Vols boys' basketball team that he vacated a decade ago. "We are so excited to welcome BACK to the SA family our new head SA boys' basketball coach, coach Mark Alexander," the school said in a post on social media. "Coach Alexander is coming to us with 17 years of coaching experience. He has both head coaching and assistant coaching experience for both boys and girls with over 750 wins and multiple State & Overall Championships at the junior high, JV, and Varsity levels. He was also named Starkville Daily News and Commercial Dispatch Area Coach of the Year in 2013 and was the District Coach of the Year four times." Alexander graduated from Mississippi State in 1991 before starting a career in both coaching and sports journalism. As a coach, Alexander has more than 750 career wins with stops at Madison-Ridgeland Academy, Hartfield Academy, and a previous stint as Starkville Academy head coach from 2012-2014. |
| NCAA realignment could take on dramatic new meaning if House settlement approved | |
 | If a federal judge approves the settlement in the House v. NCAA antitrust case -- and there is no guarantee that will happen -- conference commissioners and athletic department officials still won't sleep soundly because the agreement raises more questions than it answers about the future of college sports. "We don't know the unintended consequences of what this looks like," a small-conference commissioner told me, speaking on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter. "Do all these things like collectives and scholarship limits -- do they all go away because the institution can now pay for these things? At the Power 5 level, they're probably fine with this; the Group of 5 is probably more in the middle; and then you've got the lower-level DIs that get the DI basketball revenue and will have to take a cut. They're the ones who this is going to hurt the most." The focus since the House case was brought forward has centered primarily on the impact it could have among power conferences and, to a lesser degree, within the Group of 5. Seemingly little attention has been paid to the mid-majors or lower-level DI schools, which some administrators and executives believe could be left with three choices when addressing the loss of revenue stemming from the $2.8 billion settlement: 1) find a way to replace the monies; 2) make cuts to programs to offset lost monies; or 3) drop down a division. The latter is already being discussed among some athletic directors who are fearful of what the new world order could bring, according to a small-school AD who has been privy to private conversations. |
| NCAA OK's on-field sponsor logos for regular-season football games | |
| Starting this season, the NCAA will allow commercial sponsor advertisements on football fields for regular-season games in all three divisions, the organization announced Thursday. The NCAA Playing Rules Oversight Panel approved the recommendation from the Football Rules Committee. The rule allows for corporate advertisements to be placed in three spots on the field: A single advertisement centered on the 50-yard line, along with no more than two smaller flanking advertisements elsewhere on the field. It can be done on a game-by-game basis or for the entire season. "I grew up in Syracuse, New York, so I was accustomed to the Carrier Dome, which is now the JMA Wireless Dome," SEC commissioner Greg Sankey said last week at the conference's spring meetings in Destin, Florida. "So this is not new within the college sports enterprise. We've had clear lines, so it hasn't been appearing on the field. I would anticipate there's going to be a continuing push of those limits." The new rule will give schools an additional opportunity for revenue -- which they are seeking more of following a landmark House v. NCAA settlement that will result in more than $2.7 billion of back damages and a new revenue-sharing model with athletes. The rule is also intended to align regular-season games in home stadiums with already-existing advertising allowances for postseason bowl games and neutral site games. |
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