| Wednesday, November 13, 2024 |
| A revamped Butler Hall provides labs and study areas for computer science students | |
 | Mississippi State University had a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 2 p.m. on Oct. 29 to celebrate the new renovations and lab spaces in Butler Hall. MSU President Mark Keenum was present to cut the ribbon and was given a tour of the building to see the renovations inside the home of the Computer Science and Engineering Department. Shahram Rahimi, head of the Computer Science and Engineering Department, said the main issue with the old building was the lack of space. "We got the chance to meet with Dr. Keenum and invite him here and made a plan for him to see the stuff that we wanted him to see," Rahimi said, "and then he spent a couple of hours here when he was leaving, he promised us to help us financially to do these things." The building underwent a complete renovation over a two-year period, costing approximately $5 million, with $4 million funded from the university and $1 million from the department. The renovations were completed during the COVID-19 pandemic, and additional structures like the tutoring center and research labs were built later. "We are so thankful for the space we have," Rahimi said. "Our students are happy. The faculty are happy. When you have a better space, you can recruit better faculty, and you can recruit better students that are added to our numbers. It's not just the numbers, and how many, but also the quality of students and faculty and courses that they can offer." |
| AgGateway Welcomes 10 Students to Conference | |
| AgGateway's 2024 Gateway to Ag Careers Program is pleased to welcome ten college students to the Annual Conference this week in Austin, TX. Supported by AgCIO Roundtable, the Premier Sponsor, with additional support from Syngenta, the Gateway to Ag Careers program offers students the opportunity to attend learning sessions and network with attendees at the AgGateway Annual Conference while making valuable contacts with agriculture industry leaders. This year's program drew a record number of applications for the award. The ten recipients represent five different academic institutions from across the country, including Seth Givens and Elijah Gregory from Mississippi State University. At the conference this week the students made individual presentations at a special session to share their work, ambitions, and interests in the agriculture industry. |
| MSU, Habitat for Humanity dedicate 15th Maroon Edition home | |
 | It's been more than a year since the groundbreaking of Twana Hubbard's Habitat home -- still, she can hardly believe it's happening. "This is so overwhelming. I get choked up every time I walk up to this house," she said. "I'm so thankful; I'm just thankful they chose me." Mississippi State representatives and Starkville Habitat for Humanity officials gathered off 16th Section Road Wednesday to dedicate the nearly completed home. Hubbard, a Starkville High School cafeteria worker who is a caretaker for her brother, Rico Coleman, will have the keys to their new home by Christmas. Once complete, Hubbard's home will be the third Habitat house constructed in Kelly Estates, a former 11-acre dairy farm. In the coming years, area volunteers -- including many MSU staff and students -- will transform the site into a 30-home Habitat community. Hubbard was moved to tears throughout the dedication and said she and Coleman are ready for the day they receive their keys. "It feels good, and I thank the Lord. I can't wait to move in," she said. "I thank Mississippi State so much. I thank everybody so much: Habitat, all the volunteers -- just everyone." |
| Three ways to help local food pantries thrive | |
 | As the holidays approach, consider three ways to share the joys of the season by supporting local food pantries. Keltra Chandler, program manager for the Mississippi State University Extension Service program AIM for CHangE, said the state's food pantries have seen increased traffic since the COVID-19 pandemic. "With the rising price of groceries and ongoing employment challenges, many Mississippians rely on local food pantries to feed their families," Chandler said. "As the holidays approach and fresh fruits and vegetables become less available, food pantries need donations more than ever." AIM for CHangE is short for "Advancing, Inspiring, Motivating for Community Health through Extension." For the past six years, working with food pantry operators has been a cornerstone of their work in counties with high rates of obesity. Chandler offered these three suggestions for supporting local food pantries: give money, food or time. |
| Latest SCT show won't ghost audiences looking for laughs | |
| Starkville Community Theatre's upcoming production of a classic Noel Coward comedy promises to leave audiences in hauntingly good spirits. "Blithe Spirit," a farce written by Coward in 1941, will begin its run at SCT's Playhouse on Main this week. Performances are set for 7 p.m. Thursday through Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday and 7 p.m. Nov. 19-22. Paula Mabry is a retired Starkville High dramatic arts teacher, a current theater instructor at Mississippi State University, and is the show's director. Mabry said she has loved "Blithe Spirit" since her college days at the Mississippi University for Women. After seeing a Mississippi State production directed by the late Dominic Cunetto, "I knew this was a play I wanted to direct one day," Mabry said. "Many of my students have performed scenes and monologues from this play, so I kept the dream alive," Mabry added. Considered a classic comedy, "Blithe Spirit" was written by Coward during the German blitz of London during World War II. The playwright wanted to "bring some light-heartedness to war- torn England," Mabry said. Members of the "Blithe Spirit" cast said the show's humor will connect with audiences. "This show is for anyone who needs to disconnect for a bit and just have a good laugh," said Louie Gallo, who plays Charles Condomine. |
| Local businesses struggle to find reliable workers | |
 | Employers across the country, including in our area, continue to face a worker shortage. Most agree it happened post-pandemic. According to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Mississippi has 49 available workers for every 100 open jobs. LeeAnn Johnson is the staffing coordinator for the CPI Group in Columbus. She and her colleagues help employers find the right workers to fill their open positions. "Companies reach out to us to help find the best employees. We do a series of questions to get their skill set of what they're looking for and the positions they're hiring for," said Johnson. Johnson said it can be difficult to find workers who are reliable and responsible. "Some of the challenges that we have in day to day is having the applicant actually show up on time for the interview. We also have challenges of them being on time and passing drug screens," said Johnson. Johnson said when she is trying to match a worker with a business, she has specific attributes in mind. "Reliability, confidence, and of course, their skill sets for the position that they are applying for," said Johnson. |
| Students learn about Mississippi's art history at The MAX | |
 | The Mississippi Arts and Entertainment Experience is well known for drawing attention to Mississippi artists and culture. Approximately 60 schools have brought roughly 2500 students to see the museum during the Walter Anderson exhibit. Students from Pearl Junior High School came to the MAX Tuesday to see the Walter Anderson art exhibit. Kacee Hobson, one of the teachers on the trip, said this local museum offered a chance to show her students some of Mississippi's rich history and art. Penny Kemp with the MAX said it's always good to have students coming in to see what the museum has, and that there's a lot more coming up as the holiday season approaches. "So we have two more weeks, if you have not been in to see the Walter Anderson exhibit, you've got two more weeks to see that. The next two Saturdays, we'll have special events. There's going to be an earth color workshop on this Saturday, and on the closing Saturday, November 23rd, Allen Chen is going to do a pottery demo, so that will be a fun event," said Kemp. |
| Abe's Grill: 50 years and counting for a Corinth staple | |
 | There is no denying that the biscuits at Abe's Grill are among the finest anywhere. Light and fluffy, they pair perfectly with a piece of tenderloin, or covered in sawmill gravy. The biscuits are "The Mid-South's Favorite Homemade Biscuits," in fact -- at least according to signs posted at the iconic spot off Highway 72 East in Corinth. But don't take the restaurant's word for it; just ask the customers. Zeb Taylor eats at Abe's four days a week, and among his favorites are the "nice hot tenderloin and biscuit." "I eat here every day they're open, sometimes breakfast and lunch," said Preston Knight. "My favorite things are their biscuits." The biscuits -- made with Martha White flour during the 50 years the restaurant has been open -- are baked by co-owner Terri Whitfield, who opened Abe's in 1974 with her husband after whom the restaurant is named. "She gets up here at 1:00 every morning to make these biscuits; they're not frozen out of a bag or anything like that," Knight said. "They're homemade, and they do everything like that." "We open the window and start serving at 3 a.m. and open the dining room at 5," Abe said. And it's Abe who sits on a stool by the front window for customers who have a takeout order. He also answers the phone and serves as cashier and door greeter. Where he sits allows him to spin around in his chair to get the finished orders to give to customers. |
| 2024 Mississippi oyster season starts at sunrise Wednesday | |
 | Wednesday's sunrise is the go sign for fishermen ready to harvest oysters within the 10-day period. It's the first oyster season in five years after the opening of the Bonnet Carré Spillway in 2019. Department of Marine Resources Executive Director Joe Spraggins says, "We'll be able to open up the areas on the western side of the Gulf and be able to do some oystering and hopefully we'll be able to get some out to the community and everybody will be able to have some oysters." Commercial oyster tonging and dredging vessels are set at 10 sacks per day. Recreational harvest is set at three sacks per a seven-day period. Spraggins says, "You'll have to have a commercial resident license or a commercial non-resident license to be able to harvest." Local restaurants are looking forward to an influx of oysters, just in time for the holiday season. Desporte's Seafood owner Sean Desporte says, "Every Thanksgiving, everybody wants oyster dressing or raw oysters. For Christmas, everyone does Christmas presents and they give out sacks of oysters, oyster knives and I think that's a good thing, so we're looking forward to it." |
| Multimillion-dollar development to bring restaurants, hotel, retail, apartments to Brandon | |
| Brandon leaders kicked off the start of a multimillion-dollar development project that includes a hotel, apartments and places to shop and eat. The Heights at Brandon got its name because it sits high on the hill next to Brandon City Hall. The initial plan was just to bring a boutique hotel to the city, but developers decided to expand the plans with a price tag approaching $50 million. The city donated the land and tax breaks along with Rankin County and the state. "It got bigger as we put it together," said developer Ike Thrash. A groundbreaking ceremony was held Tuesday at the location across the street from Sonny's BBQ. "It's definitely a boom for the community," said Colton Miller, Sonny's BBQ general manager. Thrash Developers said they realized more could be done in Brandon. The project will feature 95 loft apartments, 85 hotel rooms, retail and restaurant space. "The demographics, the growth, the mayor has done a tremendous job with the amphitheater. There is a tennis facility next to here. It just made it a welcoming place to come," Thrash said. The growth of the Brandon Amphitheater is admittedly part of the draw, bringing thousands to the city for concerts and events. |
| Mississippi revenues are at $2.48 billion, but October figures fell short | |
 | Mississippi revenue growth continued to exceed fiscal-year-to-date predictions for the current fiscal year by the end of October, bringing the state to more than $2.48 billion in total revenue. However, state revenues fell $27.5 million from what was expected to come out of October, according to a Legislative Budget Office report issued on Nov. 5. Fiscal year 2025 began in July and will end in June 2025. In October, the state received $645,928,748 in revenues from taxes and other revenue-generating sources, such as state investments and interest. Despite being lower than what was expected, the state still exceeded revenue collections when compared to October 2023 ($638,038,964). Fiscal-year-to-date collections are also $18.5 million higher than what was expected by this time. So far, the state has collected 20,174,356 more than it did in FY 2024, which ran from July 2023 to June 30, 2024. State personal income taxes, as reported by the Legislative Budget Office, amounted to $788,842,428 for the fiscal year so far, which is 1.57%, or $12,179,506 more than by the end of October 2023. State sales tax collections have so far totaled $944,875,395, rising 0.03% from the $944,606,611 that was collected by October 2023. This September marked the third month sales tax revenues have risen above last year's. |
| Flowood Mayor Gary Rhoads retiring after more than three decades in leadership | |
| Flowood Mayor Gary Rhoads has announced that he will not be seeking re-election after nearly 36 years of leadership in the city. Rhoads was first elected mayor in 1989. He served as the city's police chief from 1981-89. During his time in office, Rhoads has seen the city of Flowood blossom into one of the most vibrant suburbs of Mississippi's capital city. Under the mayor's leadership, the Dogwood Festival, Lakeland Commons, the Sheraton Hotel and Conference Center, the Refuge Golf Course, and a multitude of outdoor projects and innovative healthcare facilities came to fruition in the city. "I've been fortunate to serve such wonderful citizens," Rhoads said in a press release. In addition to his role as mayor, Rhoads has also been actively involved with various state and local boards, including the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks, Merit Health River Oaks Board of Trustees, East Metro Access Parkway, Hinds Rankin Flood Control, and West Rankin Utility Authority. |
| Trump makes a victor's return to Washington to meet with Biden and GOP lawmakers | |
| President-elect Donald Trump is making a victor's return to Washington. President Joe Biden will welcome him to the White House on Wednesday for an Oval Office visit that is a traditional part of the peaceful handoff of power -- a ritual that Trump himself declined to participate in four years ago. Trump also planned to meet with Republicans from Congress as they focus on his Day 1 priorities and prepare for a potentially unified government with a GOP sweep of power in the nation's capital. His arrival amid Republican congressional leadership elections could put his imprint on the outcome. Accompanying Trump on the trip is billionaire Elon Musk, a Trump aide said. The Tesla and SpaceX CEO, who was named by Trump on Tuesday to a government efficiency advisory role, is not currently expected to attend the White House sit-down, but will join Trump's meeting with House Republicans before that. It's a stunning return to the U.S. seat of government for the former president, who departed nearly four years ago a diminished, politically defeated leader after the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the Capitol but is preparing to come back to power with what he and his GOP allies see as a mandate for governance. Ahead of the visit, House Speaker Mike Johnson said that Republicans are "ready to deliver" on Trump's "America First" agenda. |
| Trump taps Musk, Ramaswamy to oversee 'drastic' changes to U.S. government | |
 | President-elect Donald Trump announced Tuesday that he is appointing business executives Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy to lead a new commission on cutting government spending and regulation, handing an enormous portfolio to the tech billionaire who gave political and financial support to his presidential bid. In a statement, Trump said that his billionaire ally and his former Republican primary rival will lead the Department of Government Efficiency, an idea championed by Musk. Trump said the department would operate outside of government to drive "drastic change," while partnering with the White House and its budget office to provide recommendations to slash regulations, cut staff and overhaul federal operations. Musk has adopted the nickname "DOGE" for the commission, a reference to a meme-based cryptocurrency he also touted. It is not clear how the effort will be funded or whether its recommendations will be approved, because federal spending is controlled by Congress and the White House. Still, Republicans are poised to control the House, Senate and White House, giving the GOP the opportunity to implement at least some of the commission's proposals -- potentially triggering major repercussions for the U.S. government and millions of federal workers. Still, some analysts are doubtful much will materialize from the effort. |
| Trump Names Fox News Host Pete Hegseth to Head Pentagon, John Ratcliffe for CIA | |
 | President-elect Donald Trump has named Pete Hegseth, an Army veteran and Fox News host, as his choice for secretary of defense and John Ratcliffe, a hawkish former House lawmaker, to lead the Central Intelligence Agency, placing loyalists in two key national security positions. The selection of defense secretary continues Trump's practice of turning away from civilians with high-level national security experience to run the Pentagon or to retired officers, which he tried early in his first term when he chose retired Marine Gen. Jim Mattis to run the department. Like Trump's other national security choices, the Fox & Friends Weekend co-host has aligned himself with the president-elect's views in recent years, playing down the effects of Covid-19 and asserting that the military values diversity and "wokeness" over lethality and readiness. In choosing Ratcliffe for the CIA, Trump has similarly tapped someone who has backed his views. Trump credited him with "exposing fake Russian collusion," a reflection of the president-elect's continuing anger at the intelligence community for its assessment that a large Russian disinformation campaign was aimed at least in part at helping Trump's candidacy. Current and former senior intelligence officials have warned that Trump, during a second term, might seek to retaliate against his perceived enemies and harness America's powerful spy agencies for his own political purposes. The antipathy runs the other way, too, making for a potentially toxic relationship between Trump and the intelligence agencies when the U.S. faces global challenges from China, Russia and others. |
| Trump Draft Executive Order Would Create Board to Purge Generals | |
| The Trump transition team is considering a draft executive order that establishes a "warrior board" of retired senior military personnel with the power to review three- and four-star officers and to recommend removals of any deemed unfit for leadership. If Donald Trump approves the order, it could fast-track the removal of generals and admirals found to be "lacking in requisite leadership qualities," according to a draft of the order reviewed by The Wall Street Journal. But it could also create a chilling effect on top military officers, given the president-elect's past vow to fire "woke generals," referring to officers seen as promoting diversity in the ranks at the expense of military readiness. As commander in chief, Trump can fire any officer at will, but an outside board whose members he appoints would bypass the Pentagon's regular promotion system, signaling across the military that he intends to purge a number of generals and admirals. The establishment of the board would be in line with Trump's calls for purging what he views as failed generals, including those involved in the chaotic 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan, according to people familiar with the policy discussions. Trump has said he would ask all generals involved in the withdrawal to resign by "noon on Inauguration Day." |
| Got raw milk? How Massie could reshape policy as Agriculture Secretary under Trump | |
 | If Thomas Massie is tapped by President-elect Donald Trump to be Secretary of Agriculture, at the top of his list of priorities could be a push to end the federal ban on the interstate sale of raw milk. He's championed legislation for more than a decade that would allow smaller farmers to take their unpasteurized milk directly to market between states and said it's personally "done wonders for my health and it's delicious." "A cup of raw milk everyday is one of the best medicines," Massie posted in June. Massie's legislation hasn't even received a hearing in this Congress, but a Cabinet role would elevate his libertarian vision on an array of issues in which he'd like to see less government regulation and intervention. While Massie has said he's open to an appointment in the Trump administration, it's unclear where his potential candidacy stands. As of last Wednesday, Massie told the Herald-Leader he had not received "commitments or offers from President Trump's team," despite social media rumors to the contrary. The president-elect has named a flurry of appointments since his sweeping victory a week ago, but agriculture secretary isn't considered as urgent as are his selections to run the State, Defense and Treasury Departments. Libertarians across the country are attempting to boost Massie's candidacy. |
| Dems torn over transgender issue: Centrists worry that party is 'reading the public wrong' | |
 | Some Democrats, reeling from Republican attacks tying their party to transgender rights issues, are privately furious at their leaders and explicitly warning they need a better strategy going into 2026. Campaign ads focusing on transgender issues were some of the most-aired attacks against Democrats, including one prolific spot from Donald Trump with the tagline: "Kamala's For They/Them. President Trump is for you." The culture war push also made its way down-ballot, targeting Democratic candidates in competitive House and Senate races. Some Democrats responded directly, while others opted to ignore it. It's the latest instance of Democratic infighting after Trump swept every swing state in the election last week. The party is struggling to identify the best way to move forward, with many moderates arguing that identity politics and culture war issues need to take a backseat to prioritizing the country's economic concerns and worries from working class voters, according to interviews with a dozen House Democrats. Rep. Seth Moulton (D-Mass.), who sparked a firestorm of criticism recently when he said transgender girl athletes have no place in women's sports, insisted Democrats need to allow an open debate about how to defend against attacks from Republicans on transgender rights. Meanwhile, progressives are stewing at what they see as the willingness of centrists to blame their political woes on a minority group. |
| With Trump coming into power, the NIH is in the crosshairs | |
 | As the next Trump administration overhauls the federal government, the National Institutes of Health could be among the top targets for restructuring. "I do think you probably will see changes in NIH, as well as other public health agencies like CDC and maybe even FDA," says Dr. Joel Zinberg, a senior fellow at the Competitive Enterprise Institute and director of the Public Health and American Wellbeing Initiative at the Paragon Health Institute, both conservative think tanks. "And that's primarily I think because there was a real erosion in trust in those agencies during the pandemic," he says. While the NIH -- which gets $48 billion annually for biomedical research -- has historically enjoyed bipartisan support, Trump proposed cutting its budget during his first term. And the pandemic didn't leave positive feelings towards the agency in some quarters. "I think changes are warranted. It's important to restore trust in public health agencies, of which NIH is one," Zinberg says. Some major changes at the NIH would require congressional approval. Trump has the authority to pick the NIH director right away, though the new director would have to be confirmed by the Senate. The current director, Monica M. Bertagnolli, was appointed by President Biden in November. And shaking up the NIH has fans. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a vocal critic of mainstream medicine, has President-elect Donald Trump's ear. Over the weekend, Kennedy said he'd like to immediately replace 600 NIH employees. |
| UM Celebrates Jim And Thomas Duff Center's Grand Opening | |
 | Three months after opening its doors to students, the University of Mississippi officially celebrated the Jim and Thomas Duff Center for Science and Technology on Nov. 7 at 6:30 p.m. with a ribbon-cutting ceremony. In 2020, Jim and Thomas Duff, prominent Mississippi businessmen, contributed to the building's $175 million budget with the largest donation of $25 million. "I am so appreciative of the tens of thousands of students that will go down these corridors that will learn and become the people that they need to be for the future," Thomas Duff said in a speech before the ceremony commenced. Construction on the 202,000 square-foot state of the art building began in fall 2021. Chad Hunter, the university architect, has been working on this building for 12 of his 18 years of employment. "This ribbon-cutting ceremony is the achievement of achievements in such a significant project for the university but also for the state of Mississippi," Hunter said. "The classes offered in this building will affect not only the state of Mississippi but the country." |
| Between the hedges and between the genomes: UGA maps genetic lineage of Sanford Stadium hedges | |
 | The iconic stretch of greenery that spans across Sanford Stadium just got a major ancestry test. And after a careful whole genome analysis -- forged by a love for the hedges and UGA history -- a Franklin College of Arts and Sciences faculty member and his students found that the same family of hedges have stood tall for nearly 100 years. Plant biology professor and hedges researcher James Leebens-Mack decided to sequence the genome of the Sanford Stadium hedges. His goal was to combine service-learning with his own areas of research, comparative genome biology and the Chinese privet. It just so happens the Sanford hedge species is a member of the olive family, which contains the privet. So Leebens-Mack, bioinformatics course co-teacher and Georgia Research Alliance Eminent Scholar Arthur Edison, and their students assessed the genome of the Sanford Stadium hedges. The genes and chromosomal structure of the Chinese privet has changed relative to its ancestors over millions of years, so how has UGA's botanical mascot shifted over the past century? In addition to comparing the hedges with the types of environments they grow in, Leebens-Mack tested whether the hedges in Sanford Stadium today were genetic clones or cousins of the hedges first planted in 1929. |
| Is banning DEI in college courses the next step for Texas? | |
| Texas lawmakers are eyeing how DEI is woven into college courses and how much influence faculty senates have on campuses. A group of senators met on Monday to debate two issues that are some of Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick's legislative priorities for next year's session. Patrick wants legislators to review the role of faculty senates and enforce Texas' ban on diversity, equity and inclusion programs at state colleges and universities. The DEI ban, which passed last year, has exceptions for research and course instruction. However, during Monday's hearing lawmakers suggested that instruction might be targeted next. "While DEI-related curriculum and course content does not explicitly violate the letter of the law, it indeed contradicts its spirit," said Sen. Brandon Creighton, R-Conroe, who authored the DEI ban and oversees the Senate higher education subcommittee. Sen. Royce West, D-Dallas, who opposes the DEI ban, said as colleges have reviewed programs, they have "revealed no so-called smoking gun proving that DEI is racist or exclusionary as some of my colleagues continue to suggest." West emphasized that while many associate DEI with race, DEI programs eliminated to comply with the new law included those for veterans and various faculty support groups. |
| Many Faculty Say Academic Freedom Is Deteriorating. They're Self-Censoring. | |
 | Nearly 60 percent of the roughly 1,100 respondents to an Inside Higher Ed/Hanover Research survey -- conducted in the lead-up to last week's election -- strongly agreed that academic freedom in higher education is under threat. Throw in those who say they somewhat agree it's under threat, and the share grows to 91 percent. More than 40 percent said their sense of academic freedom in teaching declined over the last year, and more than 20 percent said the same about academic freedom in research. But their perception of liberty outside classrooms and scholarship -- in the realm of so-called extramural speech, such as on social media -- was worse still. Half of all respondents noted a decrease in their sense of academic freedom regarding extramural speech. The feeling that it has become riskier to speak freely has led many faculty to censor themselves. Nearly half of respondents somewhat or strongly agreed that they were refraining from extramural speech due to the situation on their own campus and/or the broader political environment. More than a third said they weren't communicating with students in or out of class about things they previously might have. And 15 percent said they're not researching or publishing on topics they otherwise would have. |
| How Professors Handled Classes After the Election | |
 | When Erin Cole went to bed on election night, she didn't expect the outcome of the presidential race to affect her introductory sociology class the next day. Cole, who teaches at Bucks County Community College, in Pennsylvania, and Mercer County Community College, in New Jersey, had cautioned her students that it would probably take at least several days to learn who had won. So when Wednesday morning brought news of a quickly determined victory for President-elect Donald J. Trump, Cole changed gears. She used Poll Everywhere, a software program, to assess how her racially and ethnically diverse students were feeling about the election -- and whether they wanted to talk about it. How students felt about the election and whether they wanted to talk about it varied from campus to campus, from classroom to classroom. So, too, did whether or not their instructors brought up the topic. Some, like Cole, thought it was important to give students a chance to discuss the election in class. Others gave it a brief mention, or none at all. The idea that it's important to at least mention major events stretches back decades. Josh Eyler, director of the Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning at the University of Mississippi, points to a touchstone article in the field of faculty development, "In the Eye of the Storm: Students' Perceptions of Helpful Faculty Actions Following a Collective Tragedy," which examines how professors handled the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, in class and what students made of it. The upshot: Students appreciated it when professors acknowledged what had occurred, briefly mentioned actions students might take, or adjusted short-term deadlines and workload. |
| Colleges Wonder if They Will Be 'the Enemy' Under Trump | |
 | For many years, Republicans portrayed colleges as bastions of leftism, awash in bias against conservatives and impervious to change. With Donald J. Trump's victory to a second presidential term and a Congress potentially under unified G.O.P. control, Republicans are now poised to escalate their efforts to root out what they see as progressive ideology in higher education. The return to power of Mr. Trump comes at a vulnerable moment for higher education. Universities have been under increasing pressure from lawmakers, while public confidence in colleges has fallen. Last year, two Ivy League presidents resigned following their widely panned performances before Congressional panels that grilled them about how they handled pro-Palestinian activists on their campuses. Other top university leaders have resigned amid criticism over protest responses. "This is a moment of enormity for American higher education," said Lynn Pasquerella, president of the American Association of Colleges and Universities. "Many of President Trump's top advisers are the architects of Project 2025, which seeks to dismantle higher education, not reform it, and to replace what they perceive as woke Marxist ideology with their own conservative ideology." |
| Trump pledged to roll back protections for transgender students. They're flooding crisis hotlines | |
| Transgender youth in the United States have been flooding crisis hotlines since the election of Donald Trump, who made anti-transgender themes central to his campaign. Many teens worry about how their lives could change once he takes office. During his presidential bid, Trump pledged to impose wide-ranging restrictions and roll back civil rights protections for transgender students. And his administration can swiftly start work on one major change: It can exclude transgender students from Title IX protections, which affect school policies on students' use of pronouns, bathrooms and locker rooms. One ad that aired over 15,000 times crystallized Trump's stance on rights for transgender and nonbinary Americans: "Kamala is for they/them. President Trump is for you." The messaging may have resonated with many Americans. More than half of voters overall -- and the vast majority of Trump supporters -- said support for transgender rights in government and society has gone too far, according to AP VoteCast, a survey of more than 120,000 voters nationwide. "Title IX will be a top priority. It is emblematic of all the culture war issues that have been created over the past few years surrounding gender identity versus sex," said Candice Jackson, a lawyer who led the Education Department's Office for Civil Rights in the first Trump administration. |
| Who Could Lead the Department Trump Plans to Abolish? | |
| As President-elect Donald Trump begins to announce the individuals who will -- and will not -- work in his new administration, few details have emerged about the prospects of an education secretary. But that's not stopping rampant speculation in D.C. policy circles. Will Trump pick someone with a background in K-12 or higher ed? Will he pick someone with experience in education at any level? Or will he opt for someone who has a track record of waging culture wars? Last time around, Trump appointed Betsy DeVos, a billionaire philanthropist known for her support of school choice, voucher programs and charter schools. She was a controversial candidate whose confirmation required then-vice president Mike Pence to cast a tie-breaking vote in her favor. Numerous policy experts and lobbyists aren't sure which direction Trump will take. But some expect a secretary with expertise in higher education, given that colleges and universities are losing the public's confidence and high-profile issues from campus protests to a student debt crisis have put a greater focus on higher education. Again, while those interviewed don't know who will be nominated, they expect higher education issues like accreditation, campus free speech, accountability for student outcomes and student loans to rank higher on the priority list compared to Trump's first term. Trump has also said he wants to eliminate the Education Department altogether. |
| As did Stennis, Sen. Wicker is poised to exert tremendous influence on the U.S. military | |
| Columnist Sid Salter writes: The 2024 election saw a historic shift of power in which Republicans will soon control the White House, the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives. That outcome will change the federal bureaucracy, the federal courts, and hundreds of patronage jobs in Mississippi. There will be new federal agency heads, new U.S. attorneys and new U.S. marshals. But without question, the most impactful development on Nov. 5 for Mississippi was winning GOP control of the Senate that will position Mississippi senior U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker as chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee. Mississippi's military infrastructure means jobs for the people of the state. In Pascagoula, the sprawling shipyard called Ingalls Shipbuilding, now a division of Huntington Ingalls Industries, employs some 11,000 workers. Wicker will step into the role last held by a Mississippian when the late Sen. John C. Stennis, the Democrat from DeKalb, chaired Armed Services from 1969 to 1980 and earned the title "the father of the modern Navy." One of the nation's nuclear-powered aircraft carriers bears his name in testament to his influence on the nation's defense -- the USS John C. Stennis, CVN-74. |
SPORTS
| Women's Basketball: Mississippi State Hosts Alabama State Wednesday For Education Day | |
| Mississippi State women's basketball hosts its second-annual Education Day inside Humphrey Coliseum when it tips off with Alabama State on Wednesday, Nov. 13 at 11 a.m. CT. Fans who are not in attendance can follow action on SEC Network+ with talent Bart Gregory (play-by-play) and Brittany Lange (analyst) or through their affiliate radio station with Jason Crowder. In attendance for the second-annual Education Day will be over 5,800 students from 35 in-state schools. The themed game has experienced a substantial increase from the 2,300 students that were on hand for the inaugural installment in 2023-24. Mississippi State defeated New Orleans, 87-26, for Education Day last season on Nov. 15, 2023. Alabama State enters the weekend with a 2-0 record after it defeated Stillman College, 55-50, on Wednesday, Nov. 6. The Hornets are paced by graduate student forward Cordasia Harris, who has averaged a double-double of 20.5 points and 14.0 rebounds through the first two games. |
| State welcomes unique opportunity with Education Day on Wednesday | |
| No matter the opponent, Wednesday will provide a different kind of experience for Mississippi State players. If an 11 a.m. tipoff wasn't enough, coach Sam Purcell is expecting nearly 6,000 students to pile off of buses and into their seats at Humphrey Coliseum for State's 2nd Annual Education Day. It's a game that takes place around the country in women's basketball and one that Purcell has begun to make a routine practice for his program. "Having three kids and seeing the joy and excitement when they come to games is just a joy. There's just an energy like no other," Purcell said. "When the mascot comes out, those kids go crazy and when we get a bucket they'll cheer for us but they'll probably also cheer for Alabama State. They just don't know better. A young kid that might not have an opportunity to come to the game because they have a hard-working parent, they sit there and watch Eniya Russell and they might say, 'I want to grow up and be her.' This game is bigger than getting them out of school, you can make an impact on these young kids' lives." Russell is one of several players that the kids will have a chance to get a good eye on Wednesday when State hosts Alabama State. Purcell has already played nine players an average of 10 minutes or more in the first two ball games as State has dominated Memphis and Alcorn State. |
| Eniya Russell fitting right in as a starter at Mississippi State | |
| Eniya Russell had spent four years in the Southeastern Conference almost exclusively coming off the bench. But Mississippi State head coach Sam Purcell was familiar with Russell long before she scored a combined 29 points in two games against the Bulldogs with Kentucky last year. Russell grew into a five-star recruit and a top-50 national prospect in the class of 2020 at St. Vincent Pallotti High School in Maryland, and Purcell, then an assistant coach at Louisville, tried to recruit her to the Cardinals. Instead, Russell chose to play for Dawn Staley at South Carolina, where she won a national championship in 2022 but played roughly seven minutes per game. She broke out as Kentucky's sixth woman last season, averaging 10.1 points per game, but with the Wildcats making a coaching change, Russell transferred again, and this time Purcell landed her for her final year of eligibility. "He stayed consistent throughout this whole process," Russell said. "When we played against him when I was at Kentucky, I witnessed the fan base here. It was amazing. And when I came on my visit, it felt like home. Even when I got here and committed, he stayed consistent. It was like a real, true friendship. He wasn't just a coach, he was helping me on and off the court." |
| Josh Hubbard scores 23 points, Mississippi State beats SE Louisiana 80-59 | |
| Josh Hubbard hit four 3-pointers and scored 23 points on 8-of-14 shooting Tuesday night to help Mississippi State beat Southeastern Louisiana 80-59. Kanye Clary added 12 points and KeShawn Murphy scored 10 for Mississippi State (3-0). Cameron Matthews had 13 rebounds to go with seven points, four assists and three steals. Shawn Jones Jr. threw down a dunk that gave that made it 16-14 with 12:01 left in the first half and the Bulldogs led the rest of the way. Hubbard hit a 3-pointer that stretched the lead into double figures with 5:34 to go but the Lions made four 3-pointers -- including three by Kam Burton -- from there to trim their deficit to 40-37 at the break. Southeastern Louisiana made just one of its first 12 second-half shots and a 12-0 run gave the Bulldogs a 15-point lead with 13:20 to go. Southeastern Louisiana, which went scoreless after Burton made a layup with 4:18 to go, shot just 29.6% (8 of 27) from the field and was outscored 40-22 in the second half. |
| Men's Basketball: Second-half surge powers Bulldogs over Southeastern Louisiana | |
| Mississippi State faced its first real adversity of the season Tuesday night sooner than Chris Jans was hoping his team would. But the Bulldogs settled down after a tough stretch to close the first half and pulled away for an 80-59 victory over Southeastern Louisiana. "Certainly disappointed with the end of the half," Jans said. "We just didn't take advantage of our personnel, and we blew a possession and then I was mad and we didn't defend and then they scored again. ... We had the game where we wanted it there at the end of the first half, we just didn't finish it very well. At halftime, we talked about reestablishing ourselves." Josh Hubbard led all scorers with 23 points, and he did so without taking a shot for more than eight minutes to start the game. He then heated up as so few other players can, with 14 points in the last 12 minutes of the first half. Hubbard was 4-for-8 from behind the arc, with the rest of the Bulldogs finishing a collective 3-for-20. He also led MSU with five assists. The Bulldogs will not play at Humphrey Coliseum again until Dec. 4 against Pittsburgh. They face their first high-major opponent of the year Sunday, battling Utah at the Landers Center in Southaven. |
| Bulldog golfers Lopez Ramirez and Weed named to ANNIKA Award Watchlist | |
| Mississippi State golfers Julia Lopez Ramirez and Avery Reed were both named to the Fall ANNIKA Award Watchlist on Tuesday, marking the second time in program history that two Bulldogs were recognized. The ANNIKA Award, named in honor of Annika Sorenstam, is presented to the top female golfer in Division I as voted on by players, coaches and members of the media. This is the second year in a row Lopez Ramirez has been recognized by the Haskins Foundation on the award watchlist. She was a finalist for the award in 2023 and has continued to build on a remarkable career with the Bulldogs. This season, Lopez Ramirez has a pair of top three finishes at the Blessings Collegiate Invitational and the Carmel Cup. She finished last year at the top of the World Amateur Golf Rankings and is currently in the top five, with last year's ANNIKA Award winner, LSU's Ingrid Lindblad, at No. 1. Weed is already a two-time Southeastern Conference Co-Golfer of the Week in her sophomore year after making the All-SEC Freshman Team last season. Her resume is boosted by a pair of individual wins at the Mason Rudolph Championship and The Ally this year. |
| Oklahoma's president, AD back coach Brent Venables amid rough season | |
| Oklahoma's president and athletic director gave coach Brent Venables a vote of confidence on Tuesday after the school's Board of Regents meeting. The Sooners are 5-5 overall and 1-5 in league play during their first season in the Southeastern Conference. Venables, in his third season, has a 21-15 overall record. "We all get emotional over during the course of a season," Oklahoma president Joseph Harroz Jr. said. "What's unwavering is the commitment to him. This is a new era for us, but it's also a new era for college athletics, and there's going to be a lot of adjustment, and there's going to be a lot that takes place. As far as my commitment to coach Venables, it's 100 percent." Venables took over after Lincoln Riley left for Southern California following the 2021 season. The Sooners went 6-7 in Venables' first year, losing the Cheez-It Bowl to Florida State. "Obviously the season thus far has not gone as we'd hoped or planned," athletic director Joe Castiglione said. "We're mindful that we haven't met the Oklahoma standard for 2024. That said, we truly believe in coach Venables and our team and are completely focused on both supporting them and looking at all of the ways to address the needed improvements now as soon as possible as well as in preparation for next year." |
| Louisiana governor defends decision to have live tiger at LSU's loss to Alabama: 'Was the only tiger who showed up' | |
| Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry defended his controversial decision to bring a live tiger back on LSU's sidelines for the first time since 2016, and jabbed the Tigers for their poor performance in a 42-13 loss on Saturday that essentially eliminated LSU from College Football Playoff contention. "Our tiger, our live tiger, unfortunately, disappointingly, was the only tiger who showed up Saturday. I'm sorry," Landry said at an event Monday night in Metairie, La., outside of New Orleans. After Mike VI died in 2016, LSU announced the end of the tradition of having a tiger on the sidelines during games. He often sat in a cage outside the visitor locker room, so opposing teams would have to walk past him onto the field. Sometimes, Mike would refuse to leave his on-campus enclosure so he attended just 33 of 58 games from 2007-15. The tradition of a tiger named Mike living on LSU's campus persisted for almost a century since Mike's debut in 1936. LSU declined to make Mike available to resume the tradition of being on the sidelines, so Landry leased a tiger named Omar Bradley through Mitchel Kalmanson, a Florida man who operates an "exotic animal talent agency." Kalmanson has been a frequent target of criticism from PETA and twice (2003 and 2004), tigers under his care escaped. During one of those escapes, the tiger attacked an elephant. NOLA.com reported Monday that Landry's office said no state money or money from LSU paid "for any aspect of the tiger." |
| LSU's Last-Tear Poa breaking new ground with lawsuit over NIL earning restrictions | |
 | LSU women's basketball guard Last-Tear Poa did not file her lawsuit against US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) with the intention of setting some sort of legal precedent, one of her lawyers said. But the senior is believed to be the first collegiate athlete to throw a legal challenge at the federal agency over the name, image and likeness (NIL) employment opportunities it deters international students from pursuing. Ksenia Maiorova, an Orlando, Florida-based immigration attorney representing Poa, told The Advocate that USCIS denied the LSU point guard a petition for a visa that would ease those restrictions. That ruling led Poa to file a suit that she hopes will not only challenge that decision, but also raise awareness of the barriers that wall off international student-athletes from NIL deals. "The purpose here is just to get a fair adjudication of her petition," Maiorova said. "This is a case that is seeking a review by an impartial body of a denial that we feel is unjust." Poa, a senior who grew up in Australia, is attending LSU on an F-1 student visa. According to USCIS policy, those students can accept employment opportunities off campus, but only if the job is related to their major and if they first have special permission. International collegiate athletes can remove those restrictions if they obtain a P-1A athlete visa, a classification typically reserved for professional athletes who move to the US solely to compete in their respective sports or amateur athletes who play at an "internationally recognized level of performance." |
| Vanderbilt QB Diego Pavia's request for extra year of NCAA eligibility denied for now | |
 | A federal judge on Tuesday denied Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia's request for an extra year of NCAA eligibility for now, but the case isn't over yet. The judge will rule again after a court hearing is held and the NCAA is given a chance to respond. Pavia, whose eligibility is set to expire after this Vanderbilt season, sued the NCAA on Friday hoping to get another year of college playing time, arguing that two previous seasons in junior college should not count against his eligibility, since he had no reasonable opportunity to profit from NIL at that time. Part of his request was for a temporary restraining order granting him immediate relief. Given that Pavia has probably known about the NCAA rule limiting his eligibility "for quite some time," U.S. District Judge William Campbell wasn't convinced. Pavia is "disappointed" but "not surprised" the judge wanted to give the NCAA a chance to be heard, one of his attorneys Ryan Downton said. Downton said he is trying to get the hearing scheduled in the week before or after Thanksgiving, which would be before the transfer portal opens on Dec. 9. |
| Athletic Director Pete Bevacqua shares challenges of the role | |
| On Monday, Notre Dame Athletic Director Pete Bevacqua '93 spoke to law students about his unique career journey and goals as athletic director. Students had the opportunity to ask questions about how the University will respond to the evolving world of college athletics. Bevacqua, who took over for longtime athletic director Jack Swarbrick in March, said his first year leading Fighting Irish athletics has been smooth. His tenure begins at a critical juncture for college sports. "I think we are in the midst of [big changes] now with NIL, the House settlement and with college athletics drifting more and more to a professional model, particularly in football and men's and women's basketball," Bevacqua said. Bevacqua referenced the upcoming settlement that allows universities to directly compensate student-athletes up to a cap amount, anticipated to be around $20 million. He noted that while most of that figure will go to football, all 26 of Notre Dame's sports programs will see benefits. "Ninety-five percent of the revenue that comes into the Notre Dame athletic department is due to football," Bevacqua said. "Now, we also have one of the two or three best women's basketball programs in the country. So we want to continue investing in all of our sports." Bevacqua's background includes a law degree from Georgetown and experience as a corporate lawyer at Davis Polk. He said that his previous roles prepared him for his current leadership position. |
| The Year College Football's Coaching Carousel Ground to a Halt | |
| College football is a sport defined by its traditions. This is the time of year for homecoming games, rivalry weekends, and storming the field to celebrate a nail-biting win. But this year, one of the game's most enduring rituals has been strangely absent, upsetting the familiar rhythms of the fall calendar and depriving fans of a cherished part of the game they love. We're talking about coaches getting canned. Three months into the 2024 season, not a single coach in the four major conferences has been fired. That counts as an unprecedented show of restraint from the sport's biggest schools, who usually hand out multimillion-dollar buyouts like Halloween candy at this time of year. Over the past decade, an average of nearly three coaches at major programs have been kicked to the curb by Thanksgiving, according to Stats Perform. "It's a weird blip," Chad Chatlos, a managing director at executive search firm TurnkeyZRG, said of the lack of firings so far this season. The reason for this sudden bout of inaction is one part timing, two parts money. That this trend has ground to a halt is due in large part to the looming legal settlement that will allow schools to share revenue with their athletes for the first time. As part of the House v. NCAA case, universities can pay their athletes up to approximately $20 million during the 2024-25 academic year. "You've got all these athletic directors thinking, 'I've gotta go find $20 million dollars next year to start paying the student-athletes in revenue share, I can't afford to pay a buyout for a coach,'" Chatlos said. |
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