| Thursday, January 30, 2025 |
| Mississippi State, EMCC partner to boost advanced manufacturing workforce | |
 | Mississippi State University and East Mississippi Community College are partnering up to help train the future advanced manufacturing workforce. The two public higher-learning institutions will utilize the Columbus-based Communiversity, which houses EMCC's workforce services division, to jointly administer the Advancements in Manufacturing Upskilling Program, or AiM UP. The Communiversity is the perfect example of teamwork, and we're proud to be here as the higher education partner. The Communiversity is focused on giving students and workers the skills and training they need to compete and succeed in the 21st Century marketplace," Mississippi State University President Dr. Mark Keenum said. "We're working together at the Communiversity so companies will continue to create next-gen jobs in our state and more Mississippians will be ready to fill these jobs of the future." Mississippi State and EMCC leadership will work together to foster a culture of continuous learning, embracing advancements in innovation, and building a skilled labor force -- placing those from the Magnolia State at the top of the global manufacturing landscape. |
| Mississippi State, EMCC formalize Communiversity partnership | |
 | Mississippi State University (MSU) President Mark E. Keenum and East Mississippi Community College (EMCC) President Scott Alsobrooks signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Wednesday, January 29 to formalize the MSU at the Communiversity partnership through the Advancements in Manufacturing Upskilling Program (AiM UP). The Communiversity houses EMCC's Workforce Services Division and is located off Highway 82 between Starkville and Columbus. "Mississippi State is well-known for the collaborative culture we have, and so much of our success comes from the outstanding relationships and partnerships we have that made today possible," Keenum said. "The Communiversity is the perfect example of teamwork, and we're proud to be here as the higher education partner. The Communiversity is focused on giving students and workers the skills and training they need to compete and succeed in the 21st Century marketplace. We're working together at the Communiversity so companies will continue to create next-gen jobs in our state and more Mississippians will be ready to fill these jobs of the future." |
| MSU, EMCC hope to sustain local workforce with new training initiatives at Communiversity | |
 | As industries adopt increasingly advanced technology, the demand for skilled workers who know how to navigate the evolving workplace grows. Mississippi State University and East Mississippi Community College are tackling that challenge with a formal partnership that incorporates advanced manufacturing and workforce development programs from MSU into the Workforce Services Division at EMCC's Communiversity. During a ribbon-cutting ceremony Wednesday, the presidents of the two schools unveiled new facilities established to house the Advancements in Manufacturing Upskilling Program, or AiM UP, the Mississippi Advanced Composites Training Center and MSU's Center for Advanced Vehicular Systems Extension Center. The facilities offer advanced manufacturing and robotics education and training to students and workers to ensure they are prepared to work with evolving technologies. Brian Smith, an associate professor and undergraduate coordinator in MSU's Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering, said the goal is to give students an opportunity to learn additional manufacturing skills whether they're still in school, just entering the workforce or already employed and looking to upskill. |
| MSU partners with EMCC through new manufacturing program | |
 | Two is better than one. Mississippi State University and East Mississippi Community College formalized a partnership on Wednesday, January 29, at the Communiversity. In the Advancements in Manufacturing Upskilling Program, or Aim-Up, two-year and four-year students train and prepare together for the workforce. "This is a fabulous research training center that enables students to get skilled training for jobs of now and jobs of the future. This is to help support the workforce here in the Golden Triangle," said Dr. Mark Keenum, MSU's President. "They'll learn about mega-tronics. They'll learn about production. They'll learn about everything that happens inside a production facility, very specific skills that will allow them to enter the workforce as a great prepared entry-level employee," said Dr. Scott Alsobrooks, EMCC's President. EMCC and MSU also opened the Mississippi Advanced Composites or MAC Training Center at the Communiversity. Industries can send employees there for training. STEM classes are also offered through the MAC for K-12 students. The Communiversity also hosts the office space for MSU's Center for Advanced Vehicular Systems, which provides professional development training for industries across the US. |
| Compass Datacenters holds groundbreaking in Meridian | |
| Officials from across Mississippi welcomed Compass Datacenters to East Mississippi on Tuesday, January 28. They attended the East Mississippi Business Development Corporation annual meeting at Mississippi State University (MSU)-Meridian's Riley Center. The officials also took part in the international company's groundbreaking on the outskirts of the Queen City. The hyperscale campus, which will include eight data centers completed in an eight-year timeframe, will house computing and network infrastructure to support large, tech-intensive companies. "What Compass Datacenters is planning to do here in this community is going to have an incredible statewide impact as well. I'm looking forward to seeing a lot of our Mississippi State graduates work for Compass and the many other companies we are going to see as a result of this investment. Preparing students for these jobs is what we're all about at Mississippi State University," said MSU President Mark E. Keenum. |
| MSU, other state leaders welcome high-tech powerhouse Compass Datacenters to Meridian | |
| The state of Mississippi is accelerating its status as a hotbed for innovation and high-tech development thanks to several "stars" aligning -- including Mississippi State University. Leaders from the university, Mississippi Power, Mississippi Development Authority, East Mississippi Business Development Corporation, and Gov. Tate Reeves welcomed Compass Datacenters to East Mississippi. All were at MSU-Meridian's Riley Center, Tuesday, Jan. 28, during the EMBDC annual meeting and took part in the international company's groundbreaking on the outskirts of the Queen City. MSU President Mark E. Keenum said, "What Compass Datacenters is planning to do here in this community is going to have an incredible statewide impact as well. I'm looking forward to seeing a lot of our Mississippi State graduates work for Compass and the many other companies we are going to see as a result of this investment. Preparing students for these jobs is what we're all about at Mississippi State University." The announcement of Compass' decision to build in Meridian follows news from last spring of Amazon Web Services constructing multiple data center complexes in Madison County. |
| MSU Police Department celebrates K-9 retirement | |
 | The Mississippi State University Police Department on Wednesday celebrated the retirement of a well-loved police dog after nine years of service to the university. Bessi, an 11-year-old Belgian Malinois retired from MSUPD after nearly a decade of service as a dual-purpose explosive and patrol detector K-9. MSU Assistant Chief of Police Brian Locke said Bessi swept an estimated 400 campus events and responded to more than 40 bomb threats throughout her career, as well as assisting the Starkville Police Department and Oktibbeha County Sheriff's Office on numerous occasions. Throughout her entire MSU career, Bessi has worked alongside her handler Sgt. Nick Coe. "What we do with the K-9 unit is a huge part of what we do for the university," Locke said. MSU's Regina Hyatt, vice president for student affairs, the division that houses MSUPD, attended the ceremony alongside MSUPD officers, staff and students. "She's my favorite," Hyatt said." She's obviously a police dog, but her temperament is just so pleasant. Part of the reason we have these dogs, aside from their work, is they're great ambassadors to students and the community. Everyone loves Bessi and we're definitely going to miss her but we're very excited for the life of luxury and leisure that she'll be having in retirement." |
| Police K-9 retires after nearly a decade on the job | |
| A Mississippi State University police dog is retiring after nine years of service. Bessi is an 11-year-old Belgian Malinois. She served as a dual-purpose explosive and patrol detector K-9. MSU Assistant Chief of Police Brian Locke said Bessi swept an estimated 400 campus events and responded to more than 40 bomb threats throughout her career, as well as assisting the Starkville Police Department and Oktibbeha County Sheriff's Office on numerous occasions. Throughout her entire MSU career, Bessi has worked alongside her handler, Sgt. Nick Coe. As part of her retirement, Bessi received a certificate from MSU human resources, an official change of ownership from MSUPD to Coe and a small piece of cake to celebrate her years of service. Since its inception in 2014, MSUPD's K-9 Unit has employed three teams of dual-purpose explosive and patrol detector K-9s and one narcotics K-9 team. |
| Fun and learning meet as MSU Extension Service hosts Kitchen Science | |
| Itawamba County's MSU Extension Service is bringing science into the kitchen with the first meeting of its new Kitchen Science club last Thursday night at the Extension Service's Itawamba office at the Old Fulton Grammar School. The program offers Itawamba County youth an opportunity to get hands-on with fun science experiments that they can perform in their own kitchens at home -- with adult supervision, of course. Extension agent Casey Moss runs the program, which she chose from a selection of statewide Extension Service programs. "This (program) of the ones that kind of stuck out to me, because we do have a pretty good culinary group already," Moss said. "So I figured we could incorporate some of the science type stuff -- do experiments, things like that." Updates on times and dates for the culinary class and Kitchen Science are typically posted to the Itawamba County MSU Extension Service's Facebook page. For more information on Kitchen Science or other offerings provided by the MSU Extension Service, call the Itawamba County office at 662-862-3201. |
| Mary Means Business: Columbus, Starkville Bargain Hunt stores to close in March | |
| Bargain Hunt locations in Starkville and Columbus will soon close permanently. First Dirt Cheap and now Bargain Hunt. Times are tough. Store associates at both locations confirmed the stores were slated to shutter on March 14. The Columbus and Starkville locations both opened in 2017 offering folks name-brand products at discounted rates. ... a mixed-use development is on the way across from Scooter's Records on University Drive. Brian Roundtree of Madison is in the early phases of developing Charleston on University. This is Roundtree's first Starkville development and includes two separate buildings on one lot. The main building will be four stories and have one to two commercial spots on the first floor and two-bedroom rentals on the other remaining floors. The second building will be a duplex rental. Both buildings are styled resembling Charleston, South Carolina, architectural designs, hence the name. "We're thrilled to be a part of the next phase of development in the Cotton District," Roundtree said. "There are several exciting projects in development that will continue to transform the area into a premier living and entertainment district, and we believe that Charleston on University will contribute to the ongoing transformation." |
| Chicken changes: Connie's switches to new recipe for the first time | |
| After more than 45 years, change has come to Connie's Chicken. But it's a change for the better, said general manager Joel Driskell. The restaurant, famous for its fried chicken, chicken biscuits, onion rings and blueberry donuts, is changing the recipe for its staple chicken. "We lead a lot of our reviews, and the one thing we saw about our bone-in chicken was that it was bland," Driskell said. "So, we decided to make a change, and I think we're fixing that problem." The restaurant added a hint of more flavor last year when a spicy version of the bone-in chicken was added to the menu. Connie's has added locations in West Point and Oxford, and will open a location in Starkville soon. Driskell hinted that customers at the other stores were looking for a little more punch to their chicken. "The college towns are also a younger crowd, and they expect more flavor," he said. "Here in Tupelo, we've been here forever, and everybody is used to it. But while it is a new change, it's not a big change." The blueberry donuts and biscuits will not change, Driskell added. |
| Friday deadline nears for city election qualifying | |
| As the 5 p.m. Friday deadline approaches to qualify to run for municipal offices, competitive races are shaping up in both Starkville and Columbus. Party primaries are set for April 1. The general election is June 3. The mayor's race is one of only two contested races so far in Starkville, with incumbent Democrat Lynn Spruill drawing primary challenges from Brenna Betts and Charles Yarbrough. For Ward 7 alderman, incumbent Democrat Henry Vaughn has drawn a primary challenger in Nedra Lowery. In Ward 5, independent William Pochop is the sole qualifier to date, as incumbent Hamp Beatty does not intend to run for reelection. Other wards only have incumbent qualifiers with Kim Moreland (independent) in Ward 1, Sandra Sistrunk (Democrat) in Ward 2, Jeffrey Rupp (Republican) in Ward 3, Mike Brooks (Democrat) in Ward 4 and Roy A. Perkins (Democrat) in Ward 6. |
| Mall owner visits with public but details scant on potential tenants | |
| Hull Property Group has big plans for Columbus Place as it continues to "de-mall" the property, converting it to an "outward facing power center." But when tenants will fill the center is still up in the air. Hull Property Group Owner James Hull and Vice President for Government Relations John Mulherin said they are willing to be patient to find the "right tenants" for the space at a Wednesday press conference at property formerly known as Leigh Mall. "The reimagination of a property like this is a slow process naturally," Hull said. "When you think of what the mall was, and was looking like... what tenant that we would have wanted would have come? And we don't think tenants we would have wanted would have come." Hull Property Group, based in Augusta, Georgia, bought the mall property through auction in 2019 for $3.5 million and completed work last summer to convert most of the side facing Highway 45 into a retail strip, renaming it Columbus Place. The company is now preparing to do the same thing on the other side facing Highway 82 this summer, Hull said, demolishing the indoor enclosed mall area to convert 125,000 square feet for new outward facing tenants. Tenants could use the space for medical, institutional, or "any other kind of use," Hull told The Dispatch after the press conference. But while the company is casting a wide net, it is important for any Columbus Place tenants to be "high quality" and successful in the space. |
| Japanese automaker Nissan says it plans job and production cuts in the U.S. | |
 | Nissan is slashing production at its U.S. plants and offering buyouts to factory workers there as part of the Japanese automaker's urgent efforts to return to profitability. The move is part of Nissan Motor Corp.'s plans, announced two months ago, to slash 9,000 jobs globally, including in China, after it racked up a quarterly loss due to sinking sales and ballooning inventory. At Nissan's plant in Smyrna, Tennessee, one production line will maintain two shifts, while the other line will consolidate to one shift, the company said. The Smyrna plant makes Murano, Pathfinder and Rogue sport-utility vehicles and the Infiniti QX60 luxury model. In the Canton plant in Mississippi, which makes the Altima sedan and Frontier pickup, Nissan is reducing the speed on one line and consolidating another. In the Decherd plant in Tennessee, which makes engines, shift adjustments will be more gradual. Some will be maintained while others will be reduced by one shift, it said. When it announced its recovery plan in November, Nissan didn't give details on where the job cuts might come. "Nissan is taking urgent measures globally to turnaround its performance and create a leaner, more resilient business capable of swiftly adapting to changes in the market," the company said in a statement. |
| Nissan cuts US production, offers voluntary buyouts to Tennessee, Mississippi workers | |
 | Fortune 500 Japanese automaker Nissan announced Wednesday that it is cutting production lines and offering voluntary buyout packages to factory workers in its U.S. production plants in Tennessee and Mississippi. The separation package details will go out to eligible employees in February and shift changes will begin in April, according to Nissan Americas Senior Vice President of Manufacturing and Supply Chain Management David Johnson. "Obviously, over the past fiscal year, we've been running a more inefficient operation than what we would like because of where the market overall is on certain model lines," Johnson said. "So, we've been studying for several months now and verifying what is the most efficient operation pattern moving forward to be able to support the market needs of today, as well as generating the best outcomes for the company so that we can continue to invest in our future," Johnson said. "There are some head count redundancies that come along with that." The company will slash shifts from the Rogue assembly line in Smyrna, Tenn., and the Altima assembly line in Canton, Miss. |
| Canton Nissan plant could lose hundreds of jobs this spring. Local officials react | |
 | Factory workers at the Canton, Mississippi Nissan plant will be offered voluntary buyout packages in a cost cutting move by the Japanese auto maker. The buyouts are targeted at production lines in Canton and Smyrna, Tennessee. The separation package details will go out to eligible employees in February, and shift changes will begin in April. Madison County Economic Development Authority executive director Joey Deason said he is not surprised at the announcement that will impact the 4,500-employee, 1,400-acre Canton plant. Deason confirmed the news to the Clarion Ledger after talking with Nissan officials Wednesday afternoon. "As I have said before, and I know I sound like a broken record, but I worked for (General Motors) for 18 years. So, I have seen cycles in automobile sales and when you get to a low, there has to be an adjustment. And they are looking at profit numbers for sure, but they try to take care of the people in the plant," Deason said. "Sometimes that includes buyouts." Deason relayed a story about his father that took a buyout from GM at the age of 55. "It worked out tremendously for him," Deason said. "I assume Nissan will take care of these employees as well." |
| State of the State: Governor Reeves touts economic growth, education gains while backing more tax cuts for Mississippians | |
| Mississippi Governor Tate Reeves (R) delivered the annual State of the State address on the steps of the Capitol on Wednesday, touting the state's economic development achievements and laying out a vision for the future. In terms of investments, Governor Reeves noted that during his time in office, since 2020, $32 billion in private sector investments have flowed into the state, all of which have created tens of thousands of jobs for Mississippi's workforce. In terms of education, the Governor promised to work toward giving more options for parents while raising standards. As those students move on to higher education, Governor Reeves proposed that universities place more focus on offering degrees that offer earning potential, saying far too many students are stuck in tracts that will not lead to fruitful careers. “That may be fine for a few who want to go down academic rabbit holes, but the focus of our investment and our efforts should be preparing our kids to live well. We must focus on degrees that lead to lives of prosperity and stability,” he said. Some of those professions include engineers, mechanics and majors aimed at jobs in the tech field. “We need a return on investment for the hundreds of millions of dollars we put into our colleges and universities, and that return should appear in the wages of our workers. I urge my friends in policymaking to consider innovative approaches to achieve this,” Reeves said. |
| Gov. Reeves pushes income tax elimination, opposes Medicaid expansion in 2025 State of the State address | |
| Amid a likely debate between the House and Senate leaders over plans to slash state taxes, Republican Gov. Tate Reeves in his Wednesday State-of-the-State Address strongly encouraged the Legislature to pass a law that abolishes the state income tax. "This money does not belong to the government," Reeves said of the income tax. "It belongs to the hard-working Mississippians who earn it." The House last week passed a bill that phases out the state income tax, cuts the state grocery tax and raises sales taxes and gasoline taxes. The plan would, over time, cut about $1.1 billion from the state's current $7 billion general fund money. Speaking to a joint session of the House and Senate on the south steps of the Capitol, Reeves appeared to side with the House, stopping just shy of endorsing its plan. "This piece of legislation -- which was passed by a large bipartisan majority by the way – shows us a realistic path to eliminate the tax on work in Mississippi once and for all," Reeves said. "Thank you to everyone who helped get this bill across the finish line in the House." The second-term governor did not mention the part of the House proposal that raises sales taxes and creates a new 5% gasoline tax. In the past, Reeves has said he opposes "tax swaps" that raise any taxes even if the net is a cut. |
| Gov. Reeves touts economic development, calls on elimination of income tax in State of the State | |
| Republican Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves took to the podium Wednesday at the capitol building in Jackson for his State of the State speech, using the opportunity to tout achievements seen during his tenure and call on legislators to eliminate personal income tax. But one topic that was expected to be zeroed in on as it remains on the forefront of minds both inside and outside the capitol is tax reform. "The single best thing we can do for our state and her people is to eliminate our state's income tax," Reeves said. In the Democratic response to the governor's speech, Sen. David Blount, of Jackson, criticized the prospect of eliminating income tax. He said Republicans have failed to fully realize that federal funds stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic are the reason Mississippi is in financial shape, and without income tax, the state cannot operate on all cylinders. "We believe this is irresponsible. The income tax pays for one-third of the state's general fund budget," Blount said. "We all know that our state's economy -- like the economies of every state -- have seen an unprecedented windfall of federal money in recent years. This was during COVID-19 and the Biden administration. That money's gone and it's not coming back." Blount used ... his response to call for a raise in teacher pay while discouraging school choice, urge legislators to restore the ballot initiative process, shore up the public employees' retirement system, and find ways to prevent governmental corruption. |
| Senate, House committees pass 'dummy' Medicaid expansion bills | |
| Two bills that could serve as vehicles for Medicaid expansion this year passed their respective Senate and House Medicaid committees Wednesday. These bills are referred to as "dummy bills," meaning they have no details related directly to Medicaid expansion, but they bring forth the necessary code sections to do work on the policy later in the session while meeting legislative deadlines. They are authored by Medicaid Chairman Sen. Kevin Blackwell, R-Southaven, and Medicaid Chairwoman Rep. Missy McGee, R-Hattiesburg, respectively. "There's a lot of movement going on in Washington right now, not sure what these outcomes are going to be, so we're going to bring forward this bill and again, this is basically a placeholder to see what happens down the road," Blackwell said during the Senate committee meeting. House and Senate leaders said earlier this month they are waiting until the Trump administration and a new head of federal Medicaid take office to discuss expanding Medicaid in Mississippi. |
| House passes bill to remove hurdles to open some health care services | |
| The Mississippi House of Representatives passed a bill Wednesday that would make it easier to open or add certain health care services in the state. The proposed legislation would free substance use treatment, outpatient hospital dialysis, intermediate care facilities, psychiatric residential treatment facilities for youth, birthing centers and diagnostic imaging services from being required to acquire a "certificate of need" from the state to open. The bill also would double capital expenditure limits, or the maximum amount hospitals can spend on renovations or equipment without approval, streamline the certificate of need application process and require the Mississippi Department of Health to publish a State Health Plan annually using the most recent available data. The legislation is intended to make health care more affordable and accessible in rural parts of the state, said Rep. Hank Zuber, a Republican from Ocean Springs and author of the bill. "Hopefully it's just the beginning," Zuber said. "We're going to try to do everything we can to make sure the rural part of the state has affordable and accessible medical care." |
| Mississippi No Longer Leads Nation in Childhood Vaccination | |
| Mississippi no longer has the highest rate of childhood vaccinations in the country, falling from first to third place between 2023 and 2024 after a federal judge ruled that the state must allow religious exemptions for childhood vaccinations. Mississippi State Health Officer Dr. Daniel Edney announced the decline during a press conference in the Mississippi Capitol Building on Tuesday. Before the 2023 decision, Mississippi was one of six states that did not allow religious exemptions for childhood vaccines. U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi Judge Sul Ozerden's order said that the Mississippi State Department of Health "will be enjoined from enforcing (Mississippi's compulsory vaccination law) unless they provide an option for individuals to request a religious exemption from the vaccine requirement." Mississippi's mandatory childhood vaccinations include immunization for diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis; for polio; for hepatitis B; for measles, mumps and rubella; and for chickenpox. But because of Ozerden's 2023 ruling, parents can now submit a form to have their children exempted on the basis of religious beliefs. In 2024, 97.5% of Mississippi schoolchildren were vaccinated, which is still above the national average of 91%. But it's down from 99.3% in 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic kicked off an anti-vaccine fervor. |
| Report: Mississippi lagging behind rest of U.S. in tobacco control, prevention programs | |
 | Released this morning as part of the American Lung Association's annual State of Tobacco Control report, Mississippi's tobacco report card shows failing grades -- or F's -- across all five categories of the analysis. hey range from state-run control and prevention programs, smoke-free air ratings, access to quitting services and the amount of taxes charged for each tobacco product. Amid those failing grades, more than 5,000 Mississippians die each year from tobacco related illnesses, the leading cause of preventable death both in-state and nationally. In addition, the Lung Association estimates nearly 16% of adults in Mississippi use cigarettes, which is well above the national average. Those figures rise among users of other products, like e-cigarettes, at 27 percent, and high school students, nearly 22% of which in Mississippi are believed to be using some form of nicotine product. Calandra Davis, Mississippi policy director for the American Lung Association, says those numbers are a clear sign that state officials are not investing funds into what is ultimately a public health measure. Davis says the influence of the larger tobacco industry remains strong, if not changed, from previous generations. "They haven't declined, but rebranded themselves. We may not see as much marketing for traditional cigarettes, but there has been an increase in marketing of nontraditional e-cigarette, or vaping, flavored tobacco products. And the marketing now, along with social media and viral sensations, leads to an increase in other tobacco and nicotine products. |
| Fed Stands Pat on Rates, Entering New Wait-and-See Phase | |
 | The Federal Reserve hit the pause button on recent interest rate cuts, entering a new wait-and-see phase and drawing a rebuke from President Trump, as it tries to determine whether and how much more to lower rates from a recent two-decade high. The decision on Wednesday to leave the benchmark federal-funds rate at its current range around 4.3% followed three consecutive rate cuts beginning in September, when the rate stood around 5.3%. With interest rates now "significantly less restrictive" than they were before last year's cuts, "we do not need to be in a hurry to adjust our policy stance," said Fed Chair Jerome Powell at a news conference after the meeting. Those comments suggested the central bank was likely to stay on hold at its next meeting in mid-March. Powell said the Fed would need to see "real progress on inflation" or unexpected weakness in the labor market before considering further rate reductions. After Powell spoke, President Trump slammed the Fed and its leader for allowing inflation to accelerate four years ago and promised to put a lid on price increases. "I will do it by unleashing American Energy, slashing Regulation, rebalancing International Trade, and reigniting American manufacturing," he said in a post on his social-media site. Powell declined to respond to comments Trump made last week, when the president said he would demand lower rates once inflation was under control. Powell said the central bank would base its decisions only on impartial analysis of the economic data. |
| Gabbard to face questions on Assad meetings, surveillance policy | |
 | Tulsi Gabbard, President Donald Trump's nominee for director of national intelligence, is expected to get a grilling from Senate Intelligence Committee members Thursday on her controversial record on national security, including her 2017 meetings with then Syrian leader Bashar Assad. Gabbard, a former Democrat who represented Hawaii in the House, is seeking to solidify enough Republican support to carry her to confirmation. If confirmed, she would lead an intelligence office that spans 18 agencies and organizations. She would advise Trump, the National Security Council and the Homeland Security Council on intelligence matters. Some lawmakers have also criticized her support for Edward Snowden, an intelligence contractor who in 2013 disclosed the NSA's information-gathering programs. Snowden, who fled to Russia, disclosed details on the use of Section 702 of a law known as the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which allows the federal government to collect non-U.S. citizens' communications outside the country without a warrant and has at times ensnared U.S. citizens. Congress overhauled the law in 2024. The Senate hearing could also be an early roadmap for the intelligence agenda of Trump's second term. Gabbard is one of Trump's most controversial nominees. She's relatively new to the GOP. Her rightward pivot in 2022, when she left the Democratic Party and registered as an independent, could affect some Republicans' views. |
| FBI Overhaul Off to a Rocky Start as Kash Patel Prepares to Defend His Vision | |
| Trump officials tried to start their shake-up of the Federal Bureau of Investigation even before the president took office, picking supervisors in New York and New Jersey to run the agency until the Senate could confirm Kash Patel, Trump's choice for FBI director. But in an Inauguration Day scramble, White House officials goofed on the White House website and listed the wrong man in charge of the agency, people familiar with the matter said. Instead of correcting the error, officials let it stand, and the two men traded temporary titles, hopeful that Patel could soon be in the job, the people said. Trump's aggressive plans to reshape the bureau, and the chaos that could bring, will be in the spotlight Thursday when Patel is set to appear for his confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee. He is expected to face sharp questions about his close ties to Trump and whether he has the experience to lead the nation's premier law-enforcement agency. Patel has in the past said he wants to see investigations into many of the people Trump sees as enemies, including former FBI Director Christopher Wray, whom Trump picked during his first term and who stepped down this month before Trump could fire him. "I'd shut down the FBI Hoover building on day one and reopen it the next day as a museum of the Deep State," Patel said on a podcast last year. In a Senate questionnaire, Patel listed more than 1,000 media appearances and said he worked as a Trump surrogate, an unusual background for an FBI director. |
| White House rescinded funding memo after GOP senators 'hit the ceiling' | |
 | The White House budget office rescinded a memo ordering a broad freeze on federal grants and loans after Republican senators "hit the ceiling" over the order, which caught them completely by surprise and created confusion in their home states. Republican senators were careful not to criticize President Trump publicly after the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) released a broadly worded memo Monday that appeared to freeze broad swaths of federal funding but privately they were livid, according to Senate sources. "Republicans were starting to hit the ceiling, because the state governments, people in our states were coming to us saying, 'Wait, wait, wait, wait. What does this mean? Does it mean we're going to lose funding for X, Y, Z?'" said one Republican senator who requested anonymity to discuss the uproar behind closed doors caused by the memo. "As drafted the initial memo sounded so broad, and it sounded like a new order. It sounded like it was a new freeze, which was super confusing," the senator added. Another Republican senator characterized Monday’s memo as an unforced error. “Chaos is never good,” the senator said. |
| Everyone aboard an American Airlines jet that collided with an Army helicopter is feared dead | |
| All 64 people aboard an American Airlines jet that collided with an Army helicopter were feared dead in what was likely to be the worst U.S. aviation disaster in almost a quarter century, officials said Thursday. At least 28 bodies were pulled from the icy waters of the Potomac River after the helicopter apparently flew into the path of the jet late Wednesday as it was landing at Ronald Reagan National Airport near Washington, officials said. The plane carried 60 passengers and four crew. Three soldiers were aboard the helicopter. "We don't believe there are any survivors," said John Donnelly, the fire chief in the nation's capital. "We are now at the point where we are switching from a rescue operation to a recovery operation." The plane was found upside-down in three sections in waist-deep water, and first responders were searching an area of the Potomac River as far south as the Woodrow Wilson Bridge, roughly 3 miles (4.8 kilometers) south of the airport, Donnelly said. The helicopter wreckage was also found. Inside Reagan National Airport, the mood was somber Thursday morning as stranded passengers waited for flights to resume, sidestepping camera crews and staring out the terminal's windows at the Potomac, where recovery efforts were barely visible in the distance. |
| Federal workers reeling over Trump's 'buyout' offer: 'This is the last lifeboat in town' | |
 | A federal workforce of some 2 million people is still reeling after receiving a mass email that offered them a chance to preemptively resign ahead of additional and unspecified Trump administration efforts to shrink government. With the terms of a stark but murky ultimatum unclear and likely subject to legal interpretations and challenges, upwards of hundreds of thousands of individual employees were struggling with what to do, increasingly uncertain about the stability of their jobs and their agencies. Trump, who spent years decrying the "deep state," has long wanted to reduce the government's footprint. Frustrated over what he saw as overly lenient work-from-home policies nearly five years after the Covid-19 pandemic began, Trump has empowered Tesla CEO Elon Musk to help streamline government. "The blanket approach, which is pure Elon Musk, is going to have unintended consequences down the road," said Elaine Kamarck, a government studies fellow at the Brookings Institution who oversaw President Bill Clinton's initiative to reform government in the 1990s. "What if a third of the nation's air traffic controllers take this buyout? Or all the CDC scientists leave for the private sector and then there's a tuberculosis epidemic? That's the risk with the way they've done it, sort of using a blowtorch for a very small issue." |
| As Trump cuts federal jobs, even national parks are on the chopping block | |
 | As the Trump administration rushes to cut spending and eliminate federal jobs, even the people who work at the national parks -- among the country's most beloved and least politicized institutions -- find themselves directly in the crosshairs. Last week, the seasonal workers who staff 433 national parks and historical sites, including Yosemite, Death Valley and Joshua Tree, began receiving emails saying their job offers for the 2025 season had been "rescinded," with little further explanation. The move set off panic in the ranks of park employees, and threw into limbo the vacation plans of hundreds of millions of people who visit the parks each year. On the chopping block are hundreds -- and potentially thousands -- of park rangers who respond to medical emergencies, as well as visitor center employees and the crews that clean bathrooms and empty garbage cans. While many government agencies are unavoidably enmeshed in the nation's polarizing political tug of war, the parks are among the few public places where people of all stripes can escape. There's also the economic damage that could be suffered by the many hotels and businesses that rely on park visitors, and by the families who have already booked flights, rented cars and made hotel reservations on the assumption the parks would be open and functional this summer. |
| Steve Holland stars in 'Jesus Was a Democrat' | |
 | The Center for the Study of Southern Culture's SouthTalks series will screen "Jesus Was a Democrat" at 4 p.m. today in the Barnard Observatory. The documentary follows Steve Holland, a former member of the Mississippi House of Representatives from Plantersville, as he moves out of his office in the State Capitol at the end of his political career. Center for the Study of Southern Culture Director and McMullan Professor of Southern Studies and English Kathryn McKee offered a brief summary of the documentary. "('Jesus Was a Democrat') is about the unusual combination of two careers -- state legislator and funeral home director -- and the unexpected confluences between them," McKee said. "The film's subject, former Mississippi State Representative Steve Holland, will also be known to viewers as a central figure in the recently released Netflix documentary 'The Kings of Tupelo' and as the man who suggested, long before President Trump, that we rename the Gulf of Mexico." McKee clarified that Holland was only teasing when he suggested the rebranding of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America. After the screening, McKee will interview Holland in front of audience members. |
| Plans underway for health facility at Holmes | |
| Holmes Community College will soon have a brand-new building on the Ridgeland Campus -- plans are underway for the Allied Health Facility. This new building will house the Ridgeland Campus' Associate Degree Nursing, Practical Nursing, Occupational Therapy Assistant and Surgical Technology programs. "Madison County has grown 14.6 percent in the past 10 years; therefore, the addition of this new space has poised Holmes for future growth in our allied health programs," said Holmes Ridgeland Campus Vice President Dr. Bronwyn Martin. "The facility's location alongside I-55 will increase our visibility; therefore, emphasizing our footprint in Madison County. Watching projects of this magnitude come to fruition fills me with pride for Holmes and excitement for our future students and constituents." In addition to the classrooms and offices for the various health science programs, the new facility will also provide a large multipurpose space to be used as a shared resource. With banquet seating for 350 and lecture-style seating for 530, Holmes will be able to accommodate more group events for the local community. "The Health Science Building will allow the Health Science Programs on the Ridgeland Campus to continue to grow as well as expand our Health Science offerings," said Director of Health Sciences Allison DeWeese. |
| Ingalls Shipbuilding incorporates virtual reality to train shipbuilders | |
 | Similar to virtual reality video games, Ingalls Shipbuilding is now utilizing a unique and productive way of learning. Anna Bourdais, Director of the Maritime Training Center of Excellence says new workers coming in for shipfitting, pipefitting or welding will now have an easier transition. "This really is a game changer for our shipbuilders," she explained. "This helps ease them into a hot environment in a way that allows them to actually see their performance in real-time on a screen which isn't necessarily available with the naked eye." The lab consists of nearly 50 virtual reality training devices that Daniel Hunter, a first-class structural welder, believes will help with improving performance. "You will be able to get the muscle memory down, be able to understand your angles and how your travel speed works a little bit better more so than just jumping out there and trying to learn on your own," Hunter said. All of this came to fruition thanks to a multi-partnership between the Navy, Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College and AccelerateMS. |
| Gap between low- and high-performing students in US has never been wider | |
| America's children have continued to lose ground on reading skills in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and have made little improvement in math, according to the latest results of an exam known as the nation's report card. The findings are yet another setback for U.S. schools and reflect the myriad challenges that have upended education, from pandemic school closures to a youth mental health crisis and high rates of chronic absenteeism. The national exam results also show growing inequality: While the highest-performing students have started to regain lost ground, lower-performing students are falling further behind. Given every two years to a sample of America's children, the National Assessment of Educational Progress is considered one of the best gauges of the academic progress of the U.S. school system. The most recent exam was administered in early 2024 in every state, testing fourth- and eighth-grade students on math and reading. "The news is not good," said Peggy Carr, commissioner of the National Center for Education Statistics, which oversees the assessment. "We are not seeing the progress we need to regain the ground our students lost during the pandemic." Republicans in Congress were quick to blame former President Joe Biden's administration. |
| Mississippi's 4th graders making huge gains in the classroom | |
| Mississippi's 4th graders are scoring better than the national average on the National Assessment of Educational Progress, according to 2024 results. The NAEP is a test administered every two years to determine what students know while gauging the level of educational resources, including support systems, for which they have access. The test is also known as the Nation's Report Card, and is a reflection of 4th and 8th grader proficiency in reading and math nationwide. "I'm so proud of our teachers and students," State Rep. Rob Roberson (R) said about the results. "It shows that we are on the right track. The legislation we will continue to push will be innovative ways to continue getting better and better." The latest report shows that Mississippi's 4th grade students are making more gains in reading than students in other parts of the nation. Results from 2024 put Mississippi in first place nationwide in terms of gains since 2013. The Mississippi Department of Education noted in its announcement of the report that the improvements are indicative of reforms put in place in 2013. "The 2024 results prove that the education reforms the state has been implementing over the past decade work. They also validate the historic gains Mississippi students first showed in 2019," said State Superintendent Dr. Lance Evans. "When we keep academic standards high, focus intensely on literacy, and ensure a strong accountability system for schools and districts, student achievement improves." |
| Trump orders Education, Labor and other departments to enhance school choice | |
 | President Donald Trump on Wednesday directed several government agencies to develop plans for redirecting federal funds in an effort to expand school choice. "Parents want and deserve the best education for their children. But too many children do not thrive in their assigned, government-run K-12 school," Trump said in the executive order. He directed the secretaries of Labor and Education to review their discretionary grant programs and submit plans to "expand education freedom for America's families and teachers." Trump ordered the Education Secretary, within 60 days, to issue guidance to states on how they can use federal funds to support school choice. The order also directs the Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, to submit a plan outlining how Defense Department funds can be used to allow military families to send their children to schools of their choice. Among other things, the order also called for greater school choice in the Bureau of Indian Education, and for the Secretary of Health and Human Services to explore whether block grants for children and families can be redirected to "expand educational choice." The nation's two largest teachers unions, the National Education Association (NEA) and the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), condemned the executive action. |
| How Louisiana wants to reward colleges for developing students' job skills | |
 | Louisiana's higher education officials want to financially reward public colleges and universities that help students develop job skills, but first they need more state funding. The Louisiana Board of Regents at its Tuesday meeting unanimously approved a revised funding formula that aims to promote career and technical education by giving colleges a funding boost when students earn work-related credentials. The formula determines how much state aid goes to each of the four public college systems, and allocates funding based partly on school operating costs and their performance on metrics such as enrollment and graduation. However, due to an agreement between the Regents and the state Legislature, the new formula won't take effect unless lawmakers increase higher-education funding this year beyond its current level, about $1.3 billion. If the formula change does kick in, it would have a negligible effect on most institutions, said Commissioner Blake David, adding that the funding system is meant to incentivize colleges to focus on student outcomes. "That's what we want: Enrolling students, graduating students and putting them in good jobs," he said. |
| Déjà vu: LSU prof who talked Trump in class faces blowback | |
 | In November, Republican Louisiana governor Jeff Landry publicly targeted a law professor at Louisiana State University at Baton Rouge for allegedly making meandering -- but brief -- comments in class about students who voted for Donald Trump. Landry posted on social media a video from an unknown source allegedly showing Nicholas Bryner telling students, "if you voted for Trump on the idea that you don't like him personally but that you like his policies, I just want you to think about the message that that sends to other people." The governor declared online, "This professor has defied the 76 million Americans who voted for President @realDonaldTrump" and called for the institution to punish Bryner. It's unclear whether LSU ever did -- Bryner and the university haven't commented on the outcome, while Daniel Tirone, president of LSU Baton Rouge's Faculty Senate, said he hasn't heard of any discipline for Bryner, who has tenure. However, a lawyer representing another LSU Baton Rouge law professor says her client has now been suspended from teaching, pending an investigation of his own in-class comments. Ken Levy, the Holt B. Harrison Distinguished Professor of Law at the flagship LSU campus, had referenced both Trump and Landry in his lecture -- which was also recorded. Levy, who also has tenure, received a suspension letter Jan. 17 from a human resources official, according to a copy provided by Jill Craft, his attorney. |
| President Trump signs Laken Riley Act, named for slain Athens student | |
 | Legislation named in honor of a Georgia nursing student murdered by an undocumented immigrant on Wednesday became the first bill signed into law by President Donald Trump. The Laken Riley Act requires federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to arrest, detain and deport illegal immigrants who commit nonviolent crimes including theft, burglary, larceny or shoplifting. Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student, was murdered last February while jogging on the campus of the University of Georgia. An undocumented immigrant from Venezuela was convicted and sentenced to life in prison without parole. Jose Ibarra had previously been detained on shoplifting charges but was released from custody. "This horrific atrocity should never have been allowed to happen," Trump said during a ceremony at the White House. "As president, I'm fighting every single day to make sure such a tragedy never happens again." Both of Georgia's Democratic senators, Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock, supported the Republican-sponsored bill, as did two of the state's five Democratic representatives. All nine Republicans in the state's congressional delegation also supported the measure. |
| U. of Tennessee in 'period of uncertainty' after Trump backs off pause on federal grants | |
 | The University of Tennessee at Knoxville's research department is telling researchers to keep working on federally funded projects, but with an understanding future financial support could be in jeopardy as President Donald Trump's executive orders aim to force universities to recalibrate how they operate. Some of Trump's executive orders since taking office Jan. 20 have targeted federal agencies that fund loans and grants, as well as diversity, equity and inclusion programs. The president's Office of Management and Budget release a memo Jan. 27 announcing a pause on federal agencies providing grants, loans and assistance. Deborah L. Crawford, vice chancellor for research, innovation and economic development at UT, sent out a mass email Jan. 27 that outlined to students, staff and faculty some of the ways Trump's orders are raising questions within the university community. UT and its researchers spent $153.63 million in federal funds for research and development in 2023, according to the Higher Education Research and Development Survey. |
| Student Whose Racy Social Media Posts Riled a College Gets $250,000 Settlement | |
 | A month after Kimberly Diei enrolled as a doctor of pharmacy student at the University of Tennessee, the college's professional conduct committee received an anonymous complaint about her posts on social media. The college reviewed her posts, which included racy rap lyrics and tight dresses, and concluded that they were vulgar and unprofessional. It threatened to expel her. For the last four years, Ms. Diei has been fighting her school in court, arguing that her posts were fun and sex-positive, and unconnected to her status as a student. Now she has won a settlement: On either Wednesday or Thursday, she expects to receive a check for $250,000 -- both vindication and relief, she said. She has also graduated from pharmacy school at the university and is now a practicing pharmacist at a Walgreens in Memphis, a job where she says her comfort with her own sexuality has been an asset. Melissa Tindell, a spokeswoman for the university, said that in line with its general practice, it would not comment on a legal matter. Ms. Diei acknowledges that she is an unlikely poster child for freedom of expression. "I never had a strong interest in politics," she said in an interview. Even so, she said, she never doubted that she was doing the right thing by refusing to back down. |
| How Florida Scrubbed 'Identity Politics' From Universities' General-Education Curricula | |
 | In late July, trustees at Florida International University approved a revised list of courses eligible to fulfill undergraduates' general-education requirements. They thought they'd done everything necessary to comply with a 2023 state law that curtails "identity politics," distortions of major historical events, and "unproven, speculative, or exploratory content" in the curriculum. Three weeks later, Jennifer L. Doherty-Restrepo, FIU's assistant vice president for academic planning and accountability, got an email from a senior administrator in the state university system. Attached was a spreadsheet that highlighted issues with dozens of courses on the approved list. The feedback, and its specificity, varied. A course on the history of design from antiquity to the Middle Ages, for example, "does not seem broad enough for the general student population," says the spreadsheet, which The Chronicle obtained through a public-records request. For 20-odd courses, FIU administrators simply needed to "confirm alignment" with the new law, known as Senate Bill 266. In a federal lawsuit filed earlier this month, six professors argue that SB 266 is "vague, viewpoint-discriminatory" legislation that "restricts academic freedom and imposes the state's favored viewpoints on public higher education, punishing educators and students for expressing differing and disfavored viewpoints." |
| Tax withholding will be higher on 2025 vacation payout for U. of Missouri System employees | |
 | As University of Missouri System employees enter the second year of the transition to the new paid time off policy, the first payout of the year will come with a higher tax withholding. Employees who are expecting a vacation payout in February should take note of the 22% tax withholding that was not previously noted on their check stubs in 2024. In 2022, the UM System Board of Curators approved a new paid time off policy, which went into effect in January 2024. During that time, employees were told that their vacation pay would be distributed separately from their payroll and "would be taxed as regular earnings and will include standard deductions," according to the university's human resources website. Employees learned of this additional tax regarding the first payout of 2025 in early January. University spokesperson Christopher Ave explained as many as 5,000 employees may elect to receive vacation payouts. That number includes all four UM campuses plus MU Health Care. "People can still use that vacation time in lieu of receiving payments, so that number may go down over time," Ave said. |
| Insiders Reflect on the Scramble to Fix the FAFSA | |
| After the bungled launch of the new Free Application for Federal Student Aid last year, officials at the U.S. Education Department knew they had to do things differently for the next financial aid cycle. One of the first moves they made was to bring in outside help. The Office of Federal Student Aid, which oversees the FAFSA, hired two senior leaders at the nonprofit College Board to head up the 2024–25 rollout: Longtime College Board president Jeremy Singer took on the role of new "FAFSA czar," and chief information officer Jeff Olson was hired to help run the technical side. This year's FAFSA, which launched in late November, has been decidedly better received, and completion rates so far are on par with previous years. Singer and Olson ended their temporary stints at the department last month to resume their respective roles at College Board. On their way out, they sent a memo to the FSA detailing the challenges they faced and the lessons they learned, in the hopes that "it will be useful ... now and in the future as the work continues to strengthen FAFSA." The memo, which Singer shared with Inside Higher Ed, detailed some of the shortcomings they found at the department, including poor management of multiple outside software vendors, scattered leadership priorities and unrealistic timelines. Singer and Olson recently spoke with Inside Higher Ed at length about their experience. Both said they saw a well-intentioned but dysfunctional system at the heart of the FAFSA fiasco, and that the effort to fix the form required significant changes to how the FSA usually operates---changes they hope will have a lasting impact. |
| Trump Threatens to Deport International Students and Scholars Who Protested the War in Gaza | |
| The Trump administration on Wednesday issued guidance suggesting that international students and scholars who participated in protests against the Israel-Hamas war could lose their visas and face deportation. The White House fact sheet interprets a new executive order that President Trump says is aimed at "vigorously" combating antisemitism. Trump's move, which built on antisemitism directives from his first term, was not a surprise. Trump talked on the campaign trail about going after colleges that he believed were failing to hold pro-Palestinian protesters accountable for antisemitic behavior, and said that he'd try to deport international students who had protested. The White House fact sheet released Wednesday includes a quote from Trump directed at protesters: "Come 2025, we will find you, and we will deport you." The new executive order asserts that the onset of the war in Gaza "unleashed an unprecedented wave of vile antisemitic discrimination, vandalism, and violence" against Jewish people. International students and scholars face risks when participating in campus protests. Visa holders who have been arrested can face deportation -- but typically only if they've been convicted of a crime. The vast majority of students (international or not) detained by law enforcement during the recent spate of protests -- most of whom were accused of trespassing, a misdemeanor -- have had criminal charges dropped. |
| Trump axed support for tribal and Hispanic-serving colleges. They're not happy about it | |
 | Last October, Antonio Flores peered over the president's left shoulder. Though a nail-biting national election was less than a week away, the mood in the Oval Office was celebratory. Happy tears welled up in the eyes of Education Secretary Miguel Cardona, who flanked the president's other side. Clad in a dark suit and purple-blue tie, Flores, the head of the Hispanic Association of Colleges and Universities, stood just behind Joe Biden as he brandished a new executive order at the Resolute Desk. The decree created, for the first time, a presidential advisory board on Hispanic-serving institutions, or HSIs: colleges where at least a quarter of undergraduate students are Hispanic. "This pen belongs to you, pal," Biden said as he handed the ceremonial keepsake to his emotional education secretary. Three months later, with another stroke of a different pen, President Donald Trump reversed it all. As part of a flurry of actions on his first day back in office, Trump rescinded several of Biden's orders that established key supports for colleges and universities serving marginalized students. He scrapped Executive Order 14124, which staffed an Education Department office to steer more funding to HSIs (and designed the presidential advisory board of HSI leaders). He also nixed Executive Order 14049, which outlined the same types of assistance for tribal colleges and universities. |
| Trump's orders take aim at critical race theory and antisemitism on college campuses | |
| President Donald Trump is ordering U.S. schools to stop teaching what he views as "critical race theory" and other material dealing with race and sexuality or risk losing their federal money. A separate plan announced Wednesday calls for aggressive action to fight antisemitism on college campuses, promising to prosecute offenders and revoke visas for international students found to be "Hamas sympathizers." Both plans were outlined in executive orders signed by Trump on Wednesday. The measures seek to fulfill some of the Republican president's core campaign promises around education, though it's unclear how much power he has to enact the proposals. His order on K-12 schools declares that federal money cannot be used on the "indoctrination" of children, including "radical gender ideology and critical race theory." It says civil rights laws barring discrimination based on sex and race would be used to enforce the order, calling critical race theory an "inherently racist policy." The White House on Wednesday also reinstated an order from Trump's first term establishing the 1776 Commission to promote "patriotic education" in U.S. schools. Biden revoked the order and the commission's guide for teaching history. The guide played down America's role in slavery and argued that the civil rights movement ran afoul of the "lofty ideals" espoused by the Founding Fathers. It was widely panned by historians, who said it was outdated and ignored decades of research. |
| The Trump Administration Walked Back a Funding Freeze. Higher Ed Remains Unsettled. | |
| The Trump administration on Wednesday rescinded a memo ordering a federal-funding freeze after two days of widespread confusion across higher education and other sectors. The freeze, outlined in a memo from the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), had been temporarily blocked by a court injunction on Tuesday. A White House spokesperson posted Wednesday on X that President Trump's executive orders on how federal funding should be used "remain in full force and effect, and will be rigorously implemented." One such order said money should not be used to support diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts. The funding-pause directive, which did not apply to student financial aid, was particularly troublesome for scientists and other researchers, who rely on billions of dollars in federal grants to fund research projects, salaries, and equipment. For now, federal grant funding appears to be unfrozen. But its future remains uncertain. The disruption caused by the freeze has changed higher education's relationship with the Trump administration, said Jennifer Golbeck, a professor of information studies at the University of Maryland at College Park whose research is funded by an NSF grant. "It's sort of like the federal version of an abusive relationship," she said. "Your partner hits you one time, and then they're very sorry and they promise it'll never happen again. But like, is it going to happen again?" |
| NSF and NIH Grant Reviews Still On Hold After White House Rescinds Memo | |
| The Trump administration on Wednesday walked back its plan to freeze trillions in federal grants and loans, though a review of thousands of federal programs continues, along with a pause on grant reviews at the National Science Foundation and National Institutes of Health. A federal judge blocked the plan from taking effect Tuesday night, but the proposal, outlined in a two-page memo, raised a number of questions and concerns from higher ed leaders who warned of devastating consequences. Had the order taken effect, it could have cut off millions in federal aid to colleges, though not federal student loans or Pell Grants. Congressional Democrats and others called the decision to rescind the memo a victory but criticized the Trump administration for causing chaos and confusion. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on social media that rescinding the memo was "not a rescission of the federal funding freeze," adding that "the president's [executive orders] on federal funding remain in full force and effect and will be rigorously implemented." So, the White House is still moving forward with plans to stop funding programs that are at odds with the president's executive orders. In the last week, President Trump has issued executive orders that banned funding for diversity, equity and inclusion programs and "gender ideology" as well as cracked down on illegal immigration, among other issues. |
| As Trump Targets Universities, Schools Plan a Counteroffensive | |
| With a now-rescinded White House directive that threw millions of federal dollars for education and research into uncertainty, President Trump and his allies tried to prove they were not bluffing with their campaign threats to target universities. But before President Trump even returned to office, many of the nation's well-known universities were already preparing to fight back. While few college presidents are especially eager to spar with Mr. Trump and Vice President JD Vance in public, schools have been marshaling behind-the-scenes counteroffensives against promises of an onslaught of taxes, funding cuts and regulations. Some universities have hired powerhouse Republican lobbying firms. Others are strengthening, or rebuilding, their presences in Washington. Many are quietly tweaking their messaging and policies, hoping to deter policymakers who know it can be good politics to attack higher education -- even when they themselves are products of the schools they castigate on cable television. Some efforts to rehabilitate higher education's reputation were already in the works, a response to attacks leaders in Congress made after campus protests over the war in Gaza. But now university officials are confronting an administration whose leaders have made clear their contempt for some wings of higher education. Mr. Trump has said schools are dominated by "Marxists, maniacs and lunatics," and Mr. Vance has called them "insane." |
SPORTS
| Dates Unveiled For Mississippi State's Spring Football Game And Super Bulldog Weekend | |
| After seeking feedback from fans, alumni, letterwinners, students, and community members, Mississippi State Athletics is excited to announce the dates for the football program's Spring Game and the 39th Annual Super Bulldog Weekend. These two weekends feature a highly anticipated lineup of sports and community events throughout the upcoming spring season. Mississippi State fans will get their first look at the Bulldogs in 2025 during the Spring Game on Saturday, April 19, inside Davis Wade Stadium. Admission will be free. The Cotton District Arts Festival, presented by the Starkville Area Arts Council, will return to the spring calendar on Saturday, April 19. The festival draws visitors from all over the state and beyond, providing the perfect opportunity to enjoy all that the "Best Small Town in the South" has to offer. The Diamond Dawgs will host the Florida Gators for a three-game series at Dudy Noble Field. The games will be held on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. An annual spring homecoming tradition, Super Bulldog Weekend will kick off on Thursday, May 1, with the softball team hosting Ole Miss for a three-game series. The baseball team will welcome Kentucky for a weekend series at Dudy Noble Field from Friday, May 2, through Sunday, May 4. A fan favorite, the Starkville Derby, will return for its third edition in the Cotton District on Saturday, May 3. The annual event benefits the Oktibbeha County Humane Society and is regarded as the world's largest dachshund dog race. The track and field program will host its Maroon and White Invite on Thursday, May 1 and Friday, May 2, while the 2025 NCAA Tennis Regionals are slated for Friday, May 2, through Sunday, May 4. |
| Diamond Dawg Fan Day Announced | |
| First pitch at Dudy Noble Field in 2025 is right around the corner and the baseball program will host Fan Day on Saturday, Feb. 8 at the Palmeiro Center. Fan Day will run from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. on Saturday, Feb. 8 inside the Palmeiro Center, located adjacent to Dudy Noble Field and Humphrey Coliseum, weather permitting. Doors will open at 3 p.m. and fans are asked to enter through the southeast entrance of the Palmeiro Center. The 2025 roster and head coach Chris Lemonis will be signing autographs, while other activities include photos with the 2021 College World Series championship trophy, appearances by Bully, Belle, the MSU Diamond Girls and the Mississippi State Dance team, as well as the Lil' Dudes Zone with inflatable games for kids. To help ensure everyone in attendance has a chance to meet all the student-athletes and Coach Lemonis, student-athletes may only sign the official 2025 team poster, while Coach Lemonis will autograph one item of choice per person. Posters and schedule cards will be available for free to fans at the event. The 2025 season gets underway on Feb. 14 when the Diamond Dawgs host Manhattan in a three-game series at Dudy Noble Field. |
| Seventh Ron Polk Ring of Honor Class Announced | |
| The seventh group of inductees into the Ron Polk Ring of Honor will see their plaques unveiled this spring when the trio of Mitch Moreland, Ted Milton and Mike Proffitt are enshrined as the 2025 class. Moreland, Milton and Proffitt will be celebrated during Mississippi State's conference series versus South Carolina (April 4-6, 2025) with the induction ceremony set to be held on Saturday, April 5. The Ring of Honor is named after legendary head coach Ron Polk, who led the Bulldogs from 1976-97 and again from 2002-08. Affectionately referred to as the Godfather of Southeastern Conference baseball, Polk served 31 years as head coach in the league, including a stint at the University of Georgia (2000-01). The architect of five SEC championship teams and five SEC Tournament-title winning squads, Polk was a four-time SEC Coach of the Year and two-time National Coach of the Year honoree. The first SEC coach in any sport to reach 1,000 victories, Polk guided Mississippi State to six College World Series appearances and owned a 1,139-590 record with the Maroon and White. He totaled 1,373 career coaching victories, making eight total trips to Omaha. A two-time Team USA head coach, Polk is a member of the American Baseball Coaches Association, Mississippi Sports and College Baseball Hall of Fames. |
| Men's Basketball: The Final Horn: No. 4 Alabama 88, No. 14 State 84 | |
| Josh Hubbard put forth a career night for No. 14 Mississippi State, but it wasn't quite enough as No. 4 Alabama escaped a sold-out, electric Humphrey Coliseum with an 88-84 win on Wednesday in Starkville. MSU trailed by just one with under a minute to play and had a chance to take the lead, but the rim was unkind on a potential go-ahead layup and the Tide went on to knock down a trio of free throws in the closing seconds to seal their win. It was yet another Southeastern Conference barn burner featuring seven ties and 11 lead changes. For the majority of the evening, the contest stayed a one or two-possession game. Unfortunately for State, the Dawgs couldn't quite pull it out and dropped to 16-5 overall and 4-4 in league action. Hubbard's career-high 38 points jump off the page on the MSU side of things. The sensational sophomore put the Bulldogs on his back for much of the night, connecting on 14 of his 28 shots overall, including six 3-pointers. KeShawn Murphy also scored in double figures for State, totaling 18 points. However, Alabama's success from beyond the arc was just too much to overcome. Mississippi State plays in front of the home crowd for a second straight game. MSU hosts Missouri on Saturday, Feb. 1. Tip time at the Humphrey Coliseum is set for noon CT and the game will be televised by SEC Network. |
| Legalized online sports betting advances in Mississippi Legislature | |
| A panel of Mississippi lawmakers approved a bill Wednesday that would permit mobile sports betting, a move proponents say would satisfy strong consumer demand and produce millions in new tax revenue. House Gaming Chairman Rep. Casey Eure, R-Saucier, is trying again to pass legislation after lawmakers couldn't agree on a final proposal in 2024. Sports wagering has been permitted in the state for years, and casino gambling for decades. But online betting has remained illegal amid fears the move could harm the bottom line of the state's casinos -- a concern Eure acknowledged in committee. "I would like to start by saying I'm committed to the bricks-and-mortar casinos and this bill mandates that all sports betting is tethered to bricks-and-mortar casinos," Eure said. The House Gaming Committee approved a new version of the Mississippi Mobile Sports Wagering Act, which Eure said was reworked to address concerns raised by the Senate last year. One new provision would allow a casino to partner with two sports betting platforms rather than one. Allowing casinos to partner with an extra platform is designed to assuage the concerns of casino leaders and lawmakers who represent areas where gambling is big business. |
| Mississippi House passes mandatory deer harvest reporting, turkey stamps | |
 | Two bills dealing with hunting in Mississippi that have failed to make their way through the Legislative process in the past have passed in the House of Representatives this week and did so by wide margins. House Bill 553 calls for the creation of a stamp, or permit, to hunt wild turkeys in Mississippi in addition to an appropriate hunting license. The cost of the stamps, if signed into law, will be $10 for resident hunters and $100 for nonresidents. The revenue generated would be earmarked for improvements of turkey habitat and boosting population numbers. And that revenue could be significant and bring in even more dollars for turkey conservation. If used for qualifying projects, the revenue generated would be eligible for a three-to-one match from the federal government. So, for example, if sales generated $500,000, that would turn into $2 million. House Bill 816 calls for mandatory harvest reporting of deer. If passed into law, "The Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks shall develop, implement and regulate a mandatory harvest reporting program for white-tailed deer in order to collect and compile harvest data of such quality and quantity as to be able to assist the Legislature and the Commission on Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks in formulating the wildlife resource conservation policy for the State of Mississippi." |
| 14 from figure skating community killed in plane crash, six of them affiliated with Boston club | |
| Two teenage figure skaters, their mothers and two world champion coaches from Boston were among the 14 members of the skating community killed when an American Airlines flight collided with an Army helicopter Wednesday night and crashed into the frigid waters of the Potomac River. Skating Club of Boston CEO Doug Zeghibe said Thursday that skaters Jinna Han and Spencer Lane were among those killed, along with 1994 pairs world champions Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov. In all, 14 of the victims were coming back from a national development camp for promising young skaters following the U.S. Championships in Wichita, Kansas, Zeghibe said. "Skating is a very close and tight-knit community. These kids and their parents, they're here at our facility in Norwood, six, sometimes seven days a week. It's a close, tight bond," Zeghibe said. "This will have long-reaching impacts for our skating community." The Kremlin also confirmed that Shishkova and Naumov were aboard. Among their students is their 23-year-old son, Maxim, a former U.S. junior champion who has finished fourth at senior nationals the past three years, narrowly missing the podium on Sunday while his parents watched at INTRUST Bank Arena in Wichita. Considered one of the most prestigious clubs in the world, the Skating Club of Boston produced Olympic and world champions Dick Button and Tenley Albright, Olympic medalists Nancy Kerrigan and Paul Wylie and scores of U.S. champions. |
| Sources: ACC in process of extending TV contract with ESPN for 9 more years | |
| ACC executives are in the process of formally ratifying the extension of its television contract with ESPN for another nine years, sources tell Yahoo Sports. In a long-expected move, ESPN is exercising the option in its agreement with the league. The network's extension takes the contract, currently expiring in 2027, to 2036. The deal remains mostly unchanged. ACC presidents met Wednesday for a briefing and are expected to accept, if they have not already done so, the network's extension, though there is little to no other option. Within the ACC's deal with ESPN, the network -- not the league -- is afforded the option to extend the package by its own discretion. As part of a scheduling arrangement under discussion, the league's biggest brands -- Florida State, Miami and Clemson -- are expected to play more football games regularly with Notre Dame. The Irish are expected to play, at the very least, two of the three each season in a rotation. The extension paves the way for the league to potentially finalize a settlement with Clemson and Florida State that would keep them in the conference under possible alterations to the conference grant of rights and the league's revenue distribution structure, as Yahoo Sports reported in September. The sides, negotiating for months now, are inching closer to a resolution. |
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