| Tuesday, February 25, 2025 |
| Education: Partnership Middle School tree planting | |
 | Photo: Rowan Anderson, left, and Taliyah White grapple with a sapling Friday at the Partnership Middle School. More than 200 saplings of local trees like Red Cedar and Arizona Cypress found a new home in an Arbor Day planting put on by the Tennessee Valley Authority and Starkville Utilities. The event celebrated two tree planting programs funded by the TVA natural resources team, which aims to plant one million trees on public and private lands. "We're making an investment in the class of 2055," said Wes Burger, dean of MSU's College of Forest Resources. "Trees are mechanical wonders that can live over a thousand years, a remarkable, renewable natural resource. ... They contribute to the prosperity and productivity of Mississippi, they bring a sense of place and community. They have a soothing, calming effect on our emotions. They provide a window into our past, and a promise for our future." |
| At MSU, students tackle food security challenges | |
 | High school students from across Mississippi convened at Mississippi State as participants of the eighth annual World Food Prize Mississippi Youth Institute, hosted Feb. 21 by MSU's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. Students were recognized as Borlaug Scholars as they tackled real-world challenges such as food insecurity, water resource management and human rights issues. Each student researched a selected country, wrote an essay exploring a critical issue from the perspective of a typical family and presented actionable solutions. They shared their findings through short presentations and small-group discussions, engaging with experts, educators and peers to exchange ideas and gain insight. Darrell Sparks, CALS associate dean and leader of the World Food Prize Mississippi Youth Institute, said the program's goal is to help students step out of their comfort zones and start thinking globally. |
| Newly appointed MDWFP commissioner has Brookhaven connection | |
 | A new man will represent District 2 on the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries and Parks Commission. Tate Reeves nominated Drew St. John to replace Scott Coopwood on the Commission effective July 1 if he is confirmed by the Senate. St. John's wife, Kathy St. John is originally from Brookhaven. Her maiden name is Moreton. The couple met while they were students at Mississippi State University and now live in Madison. A Hattiesburg native, St. John developed a love for hunting at a young age when quail were plentiful. "I got a shotgun for Christmas when I was 10. My dad also died when I was 10. I went out quail hunting with my grandfather and we jumped up a covey of quail. I shot a quail out of the covey and still have it mounted. I've been hooked ever since." In college, St. John attended Mississippi State University and earned a degree in Landscape Construction. He explained lessons learned from Landscape Construction at MSU have made a lasting impact on his conservation efforts. Currently, St. John serves on the MSU Wildlife, Fisheries and Aquaculture Advisory Board. He started an endowed professorship for Bronson Strickland and the MSU Deer Lab which has helped educate people on deer management. |
| 4-H Legislative Day brings awards for Lincoln County members | |
| Photos: Members of the Western National 4-H Roundup Meats Judging Team in Lincoln County were recognized during the 4-H Legislative Day Appreciation Reception on Feb. 5 in Jackson. Those participating in the recognition were AT&T Mississippi Director of External Affairs Michael Walker, Mississippi State University Extension Service 4-H Agent Jennifer Williams, District 39 Senator Jason T. Barrett, 4-H member Julian Chavez, MSU Extension Service Director Angus Catchot, and 4-H Foundation Advisory Board Members Gene Martin and Harry Dendy. Lincoln County 4-H member Samuel McDaniel received the Spirit of 4-H Award during the 4-H Legislative Day Appreciation Reception. Additional team members are Eden Conn, Lilly Conn and Abigail Russell. |
| Community Profile: Visual arts teacher pushing SHS students toward national recognition | |
| Nestled on the Starkville High School campus, the White House Studio where Andrew Lark teaches visual arts feels like it is in a different world. From the rows of paintings alongside the staircase in the front hallway to the galleries of first-time sketches from freshman students and the signatures of alumni lining its white walls, the house is a space for students to find their artistic voice. For Lark, the house is where he fulfills his mission of empowering young artists by helping them develop professional skills across multiple mediums, ranging from film photography to fashion design to sketching and even building instruments. He sees teaching as a calling and art as an opportunity for students to discover their potential and use it to build a future. "That's my whole thing, trying to give our kids ... a feeling that, 'We are Mississippians, and we can compete against anybody in the world,'" he said. |
| Nissan set to begin review process for buyouts at Canton | |
 | Nissan North America is still working through details for factory workers at the Canton Nissan plant who will be offered voluntary buyout packages in a cost-cutting move by the Japanese automaker. The buyouts are targeted at production lines in Canton and Smyrna, Tennessee. The review period for the buyout packages begins in mid March, according to Nissan. The separation package details will go out to eligible employees in February, and shift changes will begin in April. In 2022, Nissan announced it was investing $500 million to transform the Canton Assembly Plant to build the company's new electric vehicle line with production beginning in 2025. That has since been moved to 2028."Nissan remains committed to the future of mobility and electric vehicle production," Amanda Plecas, senior manager of Manufacturing and Communications for Nissan told the Clarion Ledger in January. "Our Canton, Mississippi, facility will transform into a Nissan Intelligent Factory, supporting the manufacture of five next-generation electric vehicles, beginning in 2028." |
| NASA's Stennis Space Center installs new production engine for upcoming hot fire test | |
 | Teams at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Stennis Space Center installed a newly produced RS-25 engine, marking a key milestone in pushing forward rocket propulsion technology. Originally, the RS-25 was used in the Space Shuttle Program and has since been upgraded for NASA's Artemis missions, which aim to return people to the Moon to explore deeper into space. The installation is considered part of a series of tests that are designed to support the engine's performance as well as efficiency for future usage. Playing a crucial role in powering NASA's space launch system, the RS-25 is the most powerful rocket ever built. Stennis engineers are conducting evaluations to ensure the engine has met the demands of deeper space exploration. The tests will provide valuable data to refine and optimize the RS-25–paving the way for lasting human presence beyond Earth. |
| Senate passes its tax cut package as negotiations with House loom | |
| The Senate passed its $538 million tax cut package Monday afternoon, setting up what could be contentious conference talks later this session. House leaders appear ready to battle for their $1.1 billion tax reform package that ultimately eliminates the income tax, something the Senate measure does not achieve. Both versions would equate to the largest tax cut in state history. Senators passed SB 3095 on Monday, which reduces the income tax as well as the sales tax on groceries while increasing funding for the Mississippi Department of Transportation for maintenance work. The bill passed the Senate by a vote of 34 to 15. "We looked at a lot of scenarios; we looked at a lot of different ways to do this. We felt this was a responsible way to achieve a couple of goals: continue to lower the burden on taxpayers and to provide relief at the grocery store, and to provide recurring revenue for the maintenance of our infrastructure system, which is the lifeblood of our state," said Senator Josh Harkins (R), chairman of the Finance Committee. |
| Mississippi Senate advances tax reform bill, setting up future negotiations with House | |
| The Mississippi Senate has officially moved legislation forward that will lower the state's income tax while simultaneously reducing the nation's largest sales tax on groceries. Lawmakers in the chamber voted 31-15 to send Senate Bill 3095 across the state capitol. The legislation, which received some bipartisan support, serves to phase the state's income tax down to 2.99% by 2030 and cut the grocery tax from 7% to 5% in July 2025 with the intent of providing financial relief for Mississippians. In total, the Senate's plan would eliminate an estimated $538 million in tax revenue from the state's general fund, per Republican Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann. Now the bill heads to the House of Representatives, which already sent its own tax reform legislation to the Senate. House Bill 1, or the "Build Up Mississippi Act," passed much earlier in the session as it was Republican Speaker Jason White's top priority. The legislation would fully eliminate the state income tax by 2037 and phase down the grocery tax to 4% by 2036 and has been publicly lauded by Republican Gov. Tate Reeves. Now that both the House and Senate have passed their respective tax proposals on the floor, the two chambers will have the opportunity to iron out a consensus plan in conference committees with the intention of sending some form of tax cuts to the desk of Reeves. |
| Senate passes tax cut plan | |
| The Mississippi Senate passed a net $326 million tax cut Monday, teeing up a debate with the House that could potentially cut the state income tax, reduce the grocery sales tax and raise the tax rate on gasoline. After more than an hour of debate, the Senate passed Senate Bill 3095 mostly by party lines. Despite the idea of a tax cut being a sticking point for GOP leadership this year, some Republicans voted against the bill, noting that it did not lower taxes on Mississippians but raised them on the gas tax. Sen. Josh Harkins, R-Flowood, told reporters after the vote that the Senate's position on tax cuts this year focuses on responsibly reducing the tax burden of Mississippians at the grocery store while ensuring equitable funding for key infrastructure such as highways and bridges via a gas tax increase. The bill faced some measure of opposition from Senate Democrats on the floor Monday, most notably from Sen. Hob Bryan, D-Amory, who offered amendments to change the nature of the tax cut. Bryan said the bill would do nothing but put the state in a vulnerable position in terms of paying for key government services. His amendments failed. |
| Senate passes its income tax cut plan | |
| The Senate voted Monday evening to pass a tax cut that reduces the state income tax and the sales tax on groceries while raising the gasoline tax, setting up negotiations with the House. The measure passed the GOP-majority Senate 34-15, with four Democrats supporting it and four Republicans opposing it. It now heads to the House, whose leadership is advocating for its own plan, which would eventually eliminate the state individual income tax. The Senate plan amounts to a net tax cut of $326 million, a more modest sum than the $1.1 billion net cut passed by the House. The Senate would reduce the state's flat 4% income tax to 2.99% over four years, while the House would eliminate the income tax over more than a decade. Senate Finance Chairman Josh Harkins, a Republican from Flowood, told reporters that the legislation was a responsible way to cut taxes while slightly increasing the gasoline tax to provide more revenue for infrastructure funding. "I think we've put forward a really good plan that helps families at the grocery store by lowering the sales tax on groceries," Harkins said. "And it provides incentives and rewards work." |
| MDOT weighs in on impacts of proposed tax reform plans | |
| With both the House and Senate now having passed tax reform plans, conversations now turn to where the two chambers are willing to compromise. While the question of how much to cut the income tax may be the biggest sticking point, there is an agreement that more money should go to infrastructure. No matter which version of tax reform wins out at the Capitol this session, both currently have you paying more at the pump. However, MDOT Executive Director Brad White wants you to know this about where those dollars would end up. "Under either plan, the taxpayers would be able to have confidence that the money that they're paying is going directly to bridge and highway projects around the state, all of which they would benefit from," explained Brad White. "Neither of these bills do anything to the fuel tax that would put us above any of the states around us," noted White. "We would still be one of the lower states in the country when it comes to fuel tax or taxes on fuel." MDOT isn't endorsing either plan. |
| Mississippi bill would create Immigration Enforcement Division | |
 | DeSoto County District Attorney Matthew Barton and Mississippi state Sen. Michael McLendon announced a proposed bill that, if passed, would create an Immigration Enforcement Division for the state. Dubbed the "MICE Act," short for Mississippi Immigration Custom Enforcement, the bill would allocate $500,000 to create a new Immigration Enforcement Division under the Mississippi Department of Public Safety that would focus on the deportation of people in the state illegally. During a press conference Monday, Barton said the bill would incorporate Section 287(g) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, which allows state and local law enforcement to enforce limited immigration authority with ICE oversight. "Whereas now if an arrest is made... they have to call ICE, wait for ICE to show up," Barton said. "Enabling the municipalities and sheriff's departments to participate in a very structured way would help act as a force multiplier, so more can get done." |
| From deportations to health care, state lawmakers are key for much of Trump's domestic agenda | |
 | Many of President Trump's plans aren't possible without help from state leaders -- who have the power to enable or block White House goals. Take Trump's deportation plan, what Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis says would be the "largest mass deportation program in American history." "That is not possible to be achieved unless states like Florida actively work to facilitate the federal operation," the Republican governor said recently when announcing an agreement with federal officials for the Florida Highway Patrol to carry out immigration enforcement. Not just a matter of manpower, it's also a question of authority. The federal government is powerful but states have jurisdiction over cities and counties, police, schools and health departments. The federal government has the responsibility for protecting U.S. borders but that doesn't mean it can force local law enforcement to join in. "The federal government actually is very limited in forcing states and localities to do anything," says Rick Su, a law professor at the University of North Carolina. But state lawmakers do have the authority to make police and sheriffs participate in immigration enforcement -- such as detaining people for immigration violations. |
| Senate considers House bill regulating hemp products | |
 | Mississippi lawmakers are looking to crack down on a thriving but totally unregulated market for intoxicating hemp products. In gas stations and vape shops across Mississippi you can find dozens of hemp-based products that promise a "legal high" by mimicking the psychoactive effects of cannabis. Unlike medical cannabis sold in the state, these products are not required to be tested. During a Senate Public Health Committee hearing, cannabis researchers and health officials told lawmakers that independent testing of these products has shown that many of them pose a public health risk. That risk comes from both the presence of harmful materials in the finished products and much higher THC levels than are advertised. "We have products all over the state that are open to all age groups that are not really what they're being touted to be," State Health Officer Dr. Daniel Edney said. ... "In the testing, we're seeing pesticides, heavy metals, other adulterants. That's just not what we need for the public. We don't allow that in any other sector." |
| Adopted people face barriers obtaining birth certificates. Some lawmakers point to murky opposition from judges | |
| When Judi Cox was 18, she began searching for her biological mother. Two weeks later she discovered her mother had already died. Cox, 41, was born in Gulfport. Her mother was 15 and her father didn't know he had a child. He would discover his daughter's existence only when, as an adult, she took an ancestry test and matched with his niece. It was this opaque family history, its details coming to light through a convergence of tragedy and happenstance, that led Cox to seek stronger legal protections for adopted people in Mississippi. Ensuring adopted people have access to their birth certificates has been a central pillar of her advocacy on behalf of adoptees. But legislative proposals to advance such protections have died for years, including this year. Cox said the failure is an example of discrimination against adopted people in Mississippi -- where adoption has been championed as a reprieve for mothers forced into giving birth as a result of the state's abortion ban. |
| Mississippi city drops lawsuit over newspaper editorial that judge ordered removed | |
 | A Mississippi city dropped its lawsuit Monday against a newspaper that had its editorial criticizing local leaders removed by a judge in a case that sparked widespread outrage from First Amendment advocates. The city of Clarksdale's board of commissioners sought to dismiss its libel lawsuit against The Clarksdale Press Register, filing the request moments after its board of commissioners approved the move. The judge in the case must still dismiss her order that the editorial be removed from the paper's website, which the city also asked her to do. She had originally set a hearing for Thursday in the case. "It's still very, very wrong what they did and it awakened the entire First Amendment community nationally, which is very encouraging," said Wyatt Emmerich, president of Emmerich Newspapers, the parent company of the paper. "I'm really excited to see how all these people rallied around us to protect our rights." |
| House Speaker Mike Johnson tries to push Trump's 'big' agenda forward, but GOP votes are in jeopardy | |
| House Speaker Mike Johnson will try against the odds to muscle a Republican budget blueprint to passage this week, a step toward delivering President Donald Trump's "big, beautiful bill" with $4.5 trillion in tax breaks and $2 trillion in spending cuts over stiff opposition from Democrats -- and even some Republicans. With almost no votes to spare in Johnson's bare-bones GOP majority, the speaker is fighting on all fronts -- against Democrats, uneasy rank-and-file Republicans and skeptical GOP senators -- as he works to keep the package on track. Votes set for Tuesday evening are in jeopardy, and the outcome is uncertain. The package, if approved, would be a crucial part of the budget process as Trump pushes the Republicans who control Congress to approve a massive bill that would extend tax breaks, which he secured during his first term but are expiring later this year, while also cutting spending across federal programs and services. But Republicans are running into a familiar problem: Slashing federal spending is typically easier said than done. With cuts to the Pentagon and other programs largely off limits, much of the other government outlays go for health care, food stamps, student loans and programs relied on by their constituents. |
| Republicans mostly mum on Trump's upending of Russia policy | |
 | On the third anniversary of Russia's full-scale attack on Ukraine, the United States voted with Russia in the United Nations General Assembly against a resolution calling for the withdrawal of Moscow's troops from Ukraine. The resolution passed anyway. The United States also supported a resolution calling for an end to the war -- without mentioning that Russia started it. After it was amended to reaffirm Ukrainian sovereignty and state that the Russian Federation had launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, that resolution passed, but the United States abstained and Russia voted against it. The two votes on Monday were the latest sign of a dramatic reversal of America's bipartisan policy since World War II of standing diplomatically and militarily with Europe to defend against the threat of Soviet and later Russian aggression. It is a shift that congressional Republicans have, with very few exceptions, silently watched unfold. Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., the chairman of the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, issued the most fulsome GOP dissent to date against President Donald Trump's position on Ukraine. McConnell, in a statement, called Trump's unfolding policy reversal "disgraceful" and "unseemly" and suggested it was a reprise of the appeasement that led to World War II. |
| U.S. Wins Backing for U.N. Resolution on Ukraine War That Doesn't Blame Russia | |
 | The U.S. sided with Russia and China to win the United Nations Security Council's backing for a resolution crafted in Washington that didn't blame Moscow for the Ukraine war and called for a swift end to the conflict, as President Trump said he was in talks with Russia about an economic-development deal. Trump's comments and the U.S.'s vote at the U.N. on Monday illustrated the extent to which the president has changed the U.S.'s posture toward the region, coming on the same day as European leaders gathered in Kyiv to mark the third anniversary of the invasion. Earlier on Monday, the General Assembly, which represents the 193 U.N. member states, had approved a Ukrainian resolution pinning the blame on Russia for the war, despite U.S. efforts to kill it. The U.S. was joined by North Korea, Russia and Belarus in voting against it. The Biden administration took pride in leading Western powers in an alliance against Russian President Vladimir Putin, marshaling a far-reaching effort to punish Moscow through economic sanctions. Then-President Joe Biden emerged as a leading critic of Putin on the world stage and framed the conflict as one of democracy versus autocracy. But Trump has positioned himself as a dealmaker willing to negotiate directly with Russia's leader to end the war. |
| Oversight agency finds Trump's federal worker firings unlawful, asks for some employees to be reinstated | |
| An independent federal oversight agency has deemed at least some of President Trump's mass firings of probationary period employees unlawful, creating a pathway for those employees to regain their jobs. The Office of Special Counsel, the agency responsible for investigating illegal actions taken against federal employees, issued its decision for six employees, each at different agencies. While the decision was technically limited in scope, it could have immediate impact on all terminated staff at those six agencies and could set a wide-ranging precedent across government. It has not been made public and was provided to Government Executive by a source within the government. OSC, which did not provide the document to Government Executive, verified its authenticity. OSC has turned the case over to the quasi-judicial Merit Systems Protection Board for enforcement of its findings and is so far requesting a 45-day stay on the firing decisions. The agency said it will use that time to further investigate the dismissals and determine the best way to mitigate the consequences from the apparent unlawful actions. The firings are ongoing and will likely eclipse at least 25,000 this week. |
| 'Please try to remain calm': ERDC employees receive 'confusing' email from DOGE as part of mass message to federal employees | |
| As part of an email sent to federal employees by the United States Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) Saturday, employees at the U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development and Development Center (ERDC) in Vicksburg were asked to "Please respond to this email with apporox. 5 bullets of what you accomplished last week and cc your manager." The subject of the email, which was sent to The Post, read, "What did you do last week?" The DOGE email, which one federal employee called "confusing," was referenced in another email to ERDC employees providing little clarification, but seemingly aimed at easing workers' minds. "HQ USACE is verifying that an email distributed to all Federal employees regarding a reply with 5 bullets of what you did at work last week is legitimate or not," the email reads. "It is slowly coming into mailboxes this afternoon. Please get with your supervisor Monday for guidance or there may be an ERDC wide email with guidance by then." The email also asked employees to not respond to the original email in a negative manner. As of Monday, no layoffs have been reported at the ERDC; however, the emails have spawned conjecture across social media about the center's future. The ERDC in Vicksburg has the largest concentration of U.S. Army Corps of Engineers employees in the world, according to the Mississippi Business Journal, which reported that "ERDC has 2,525 full-time employees plus several hundred additional contract employees. |
| Nearly 40% of contracts canceled by Musk's DOGE are expected to produce no savings | |
| Nearly 40% of the federal contracts that President Donald Trump's administration claims to have canceled as part of its signature cost-cutting program aren't expected to save the government any money, the administration's own data shows. The Department of Government Efficiency, run by Trump adviser Elon Musk, last week published an initial list of 1,125 contracts that it terminated in recent weeks across the federal government. Data published on DOGE's "Wall of Receipts" shows that more than one-third of the contract cancellations, 417 in all, are expected to yield no savings. That's usually because the total value of the contracts has already been fully obligated, which means the government has a legal requirement to spend the funds for the goods or services it purchased and in many cases has already done so. "It's like confiscating used ammunition after it's been shot when there's nothing left in it. It doesn't accomplish any policy objective," said Charles Tiefer, a retired University of Baltimore law professor and expert on government contracting law. "Their terminating so many contracts pointlessly obviously doesn't accomplish anything for saving money." |
| House Republicans unfazed by protests: 'We're moving forward with the cuts' | |
 | Rep. Jay Obernolte's town hall in California last week was drowned out by shouts of "No king!" Rep. Glenn Grothman entered his Wisconsin town hall to boos and jeers, while Rep. Cliff Bentz of Oregon faced so much heckling that he threatened to leave. But when the Republican lawmakers returned to the Capitol on Monday, few had wavered in their support for Elon Musk or his attempts to cut giant swaths of the federal government. The scenes that played out across the country over the House recess last week were reminiscent in some ways of 2017, when voters revolted over Republican attempts to scrap the Affordable Care Act. But this time, the anger was centered more firmly on Musk and the GOP's willingness to stand aside as he ordered mass layoffs and other budget cuts. Some Republicans have become increasingly alarmed by the speed and sweep of DOGE's cuts -- and the administration's seeming disregard for congressional spending authority. Others have voiced concerns about the impacts NIH funding cuts could have on research institutions in their states. Some senators have also begun urging Musk and DOGE to show more "compassion" for the civil servants they're culling en masse. |
| Move fast, break things, rebuild: Elon Musk's strategy for U.S. government | |
 | U.S. DOGE Service personnel come in hot. Striding into federal departments in casual clothes and moppy haircuts, they demand access to employment and funding databases. Federal workers who refuse can find themselves on a tense phone call with DOGE head Elon Musk or one of his senior aides. Once DOGE crews gain access to IT systems, they use tech tools to quickly identify programs to cut and people to fire. In some cases, they have used artificial intelligence software to comb through federal databases for targets. DOGE's actions reflect management practices that embrace upheaval and have cemented Musk's reputation in Silicon Valley as a visionary leader. Though the slogan "Move fast and break things" was coined (and later abandoned) by Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, it has found no clearer avatar than Musk. "You should just cut," one of the people said of Musk's philosophy, speaking on the condition of anonymity to describe private conversations. "Then, if it breaks, you can just add things back in." The consequences of that delete-and-rebuild-from-zero approach can be more drastic when applied to government departments that provide services many people rely on. |
| AI data centers burn tons of energy. Can consumers and the grid adapt? | |
| In a move aimed at pleasing President Donald Trump and avoiding tariffs on imports from China, Apple pledged to invest $500 billion in the U.S. in the next four years. The iPhone maker says it will accelerate plans for a manufacturing facility in Houston that will produce servers to power cloud-based functions of Apple Intelligence. It will also expand capacity at existing data centers in Arizona, Oregon, Iowa, Nevada and North Carolina. The artificial intelligence boom has brought an explosion in demand for electricity-hungry data centers. The Department of Energy predicts that in the next few years, data center growth will require double or triple the amount of energy it does now. And that's raising concerns about downstream effects. Data centers are an economic boon in many regions, but policymakers are starting to pay closer attention to the energy issue, said Ike Brannon, senior fellow at the Jack Kemp Foundation. "Politicians on both sides do not want to face the wrath of consumers if they're told that their energy prices are going to go up by 30% or they start having occasional brownouts," he said. |
| Locals leader push to keep MSMS on MUW campus | |
 | On February 24, local leaders called for a community meeting to discuss their efforts to keep the school on the Mississippi University for Women campus. Columbus City Hall was full of supporters and state lawmakers who want to keep the Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science on the Mississippi University for Women campus. Columbus Mayor Keith Gaskin said MSMS has become a part of MUW and Columbus. Students have access to several of MUW's buildings and shared access to resources, but Gaskin emphasized improvements and upgrades are the responsibility of the Mississippi Department of Education. He and MUW President Nora Miller say the agreement has not been adjusted to reflect the current cost of the services provided. "They have been underfunded and the W has been underfunded in supporting MSMS," Miller said. Miller said they were only given 18 days to respond to the RFP for the future expansion of MSMS. That deadline is on February 25. |
| MUW details plans for expanding, housing MSMS | |
| With proposals to house Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science due today, Mississippi University for Women is staking its claim on the residential high school with the announcement of plans to build new facilities on The W campus. President Nora Miller shared components of The W's proposal during a Monday morning press conference at City Hall, including plans to build new facilities on campus specifically for MSMS students. But proposals aside, Miller said it is imperative that the state invest in MSMS operations facilities at a higher, more adequate level. The State Board of Education asked both MUW and MSU to submit proposals by today to operate and house the school as it expands. After reviewing the proposals, the board will make a recommendation to the Legislature. MSU Vice President for Strategic Communications and Director of Public Affairs Sid Salter told The Dispatch he did not feel like there were any surprises in The W's press conference. "As they have, we are putting the final touches on our (proposal) and we will be submitting that in a timely fashion," he said, though he offered no specifics to MSU's proposal. |
| MSMS should remain in Columbus, MUW and city leaders plea | |
 | The future home of the Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science (MSMS) remains a hot topic. The public school houses 11th and 12th-grade students on the Mississippi University for Women (MUW) campus in Columbus. However, there's a discussion about whether it should remain in Columbus or move to nearby Mississippi State University (MSU). Some believe MUW's facilities are inadequate and MSU offers a better home. MUW and Columbus city leaders held a joint news conference on Monday morning, Feb. 24 in which they urged lawmakers to keep MSMS in Columbus. "The legislature needs to adequately support MSMS and they need to do that with the best interest of those students in mind," MUW President Nora Miller said. |
| National Guard, Southern Miss sign agreement for archive documenting Guard's history | |
 | The State of Mississippi is now the first to sign on with the University of Southern Mississippi to help preserve the past, present and future of the U.S. National Guard. "All 54 states and territories will sign a memorandum of understanding to put their archives in a repository at Southern Miss," Major General Bobby M. Ginn State and university leaders have been working over the past four years to establish the Center for the Study of the U.S. National Guard on the Hattiesburg campus. Ginn, who also serves as the state's adjutant general, said that documents, oral histories and other materials will be available to the public. Dr. Andy Wiest is one of two professors leading the initiative. The goal is to create an archive detailing the National Guard's role in state, federal and international conflicts. Wiest said he hopes the center will be of help not only to student researchers but also to people still serving in the armed forces. |
| Creating Futures through Technology Conference slated for March 5-7 | |
| Mississippi's premiere technology conference will bring together hundreds of technology partners March 5-7 at the Beau Rivage in Biloxi. The Creating Futures through Technology Conference (Creating Futures 2025) will cover a range of topics, including the inner workings of the Mississippi Artificial Intelligence Network (MAIN), AI, cybersecurity, workforce development, online learning, and innovative teaching tools. Speakers represent higher education institutions, data managers, industry vendors, and more. "It's a valuable opportunity for networking and collaboration," said Dr. Kollin Napier, executive director of MAIN, who will discuss "Driving the Future of AI and Workforce Readiness." Caleb W. Ramey, systems administrator for telecommunications and information services for Itawamba Community College, and coordinator of Creating Futures 2025, said the event is among Mississippi's most important technology conferences. "The conference enables vendors of all types to meet and work closely with educators from across the state they might not otherwise have access to," he said. |
| Miss. Dept. of Education to hire more reading coaches, update accountability model | |
| The Mississippi State Board of Education heard of upcoming changes to the state's accountability model during its recent meeting. The Board was also informed that efforts are underway to hire more than 20 reading coaches. During Thursday's meeting, State Superintendent Dr. Lance Evans told the Board that MDE is seeking to hire an additional 22 reading coaches, to get the state's number back up to 60. Even though that number will increase the state's student to coach ratio, Evans said that is not the real goal. "Our model is not a tutoring model," Evans described. "Our model is a coaching model in which we build capacity of the teachers to continue to work." Dr. Donna Boone, MDE's Chief Academic Officer, said those additional coaches will play a part in the creation of an adolescent literacy pilot program aimed at students in grades 4 through 8. |
| U. of Alabama among colleges waiving application fees for seniors | |
 | High school students have another opportunity to apply for colleges with no fees in the final week in February. This is an extension of the event that was held in October 2024 for thousands of high school seniors. Students that did not apply to a college or university during the initial campaign have the chance to participate in the Spring 2025 College Application Campaign. "During our college application campaign held in October, we had over 26,000 seniors across the state apply to colleges and universities. Due to the success of this campaign, colleges and universities have agreed to host another event for students" said Alabama College Application Campaign Coordinator, Monica Mack. "Students that did not apply to a college or university during the initial campaign are encouraged to participate in this event." |
| DeSantis establishes Florida version of DOGE, will cut positions, audit universities | |
| Gov. Ron DeSantis announced a Florida version of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), following the federal government's steps to eliminate "waste, fraud and abuse" but on the state level. The governor said over a one-year term the state will attempt to sunset 70 state boards and commissions, cut 900 positions, require universities to undergo independent reviews and audits and look into local government expenditures. The governor, who said the state will accomplish its goals with the help of artificial intelligence, said the audits would be the "DOGE-ing of the state university system." Moreover, DeSantis said the state would conduct a deep dive of university operations and spending, including debt and financial management practices. It will also include examining course catalogues and staff to "ensure that Florida students are receiving an education that will best equip them to gain meaningful employment after graduation." A recent Reuters/Ipsos poll shows a majority of Americans, or 58%, worry that Musk's slashing of the federal government could harm services, like Social Security retirement payments and student aid. |
| Starting construction, accreditation process expected this year at UGA's new School of Medicine | |
 | The University of Georgia is only about two months away from beginning construction on a new 92,000-square-foot building on the UGA School of Medicine off Prince Avenue. But earlier this month, the university announced that "a significant step in the accreditation process," will take place this fall. At that time the Liaison Committee on Medical Education based in Washington, D.C., will send a team to Athens to view the new school's compliance with its accreditation standards. Without this accreditation, students in medical schools are not allowed to take the national board exams or apply for a residency, according to the organization. The organization, however, did award UGA what it calls a "candidate status for accreditation." That is important, according to a statement from the Medical School Dean Shelley Nuss. This group will send a team to Athens at an undetermined day this fall to tour the facility, review materials and meet with those in planning, curriculum and those handling the admissions process. |
| Big, brick, right near campus: U. of Tennessee could spend $41M to rent Sutherland Ave. office complex | |
 | The University of Tennessee at Knoxville wants to move into one of the largest multitenant office buildings in town, with UT System representatives suggesting the board approve a master lease on the Sutherland Avenue complex to expand its flagship campus. Cherokee Mills, a multitenant office complex in the Marble City neighborhood, could be UT's to rent upon the approval of a 10-year master lease valued at upwards of $41.4 million. The lease could be renewed twice, allowing UT Knoxville to reserve the facility for an estimated $194.1 million over 30 years, with an option for UT to purchase the Cherokee Mills property at 2200 Sutherland Ave. when it's all said and done. By that time, some of the biggest development projects in UT Knoxville's pipeline should be up and running, from the Neyland Entertainment District to the pedestrian bridge connecting campus across the Tennessee River to the South Waterfront. In the short term, new dorms and campus buildings accommodating students studying nursing, business and chemistry will open, some by the upcoming fall semester. |
| Texas A&M regents may soon decide the university system's next leader | |
| The Texas A&M University System Board of Regents met Monday to decide who should lead the sprawling collection of 11 universities and eight state agencies. The board, which gathered in Houston, adjourned at about 6 p.m. without selecting a sole finalist. The Texas Tribune has learned that the regents have narrowed their nationwide search to five candidates, including some prominent political names. One individual with knowledge of the process confirmed the five names to the Tribune. A second person was able to confirm four of the five names. The candidates are Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar, Texas A&M Foundation President Tyson Voelkel, University of Alabama President Stuart Bell, State Rep. Trent Ashby, R-Lufkin, and U.S. Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Austin. Four out of the five candidates are Aggies. Hegar graduated in 1993, Voelkel and Ashby in 1996 and Bell in 1979. Whoever is chosen will succeed John Sharp, the system's longest-serving chancellor. He had said he plans to retire in June. Sharp, 74, also had a long political career before he became chancellor. The Victoria native earned a bachelor's degree in political science from Texas A&M in 1972 and a master's in public administration from Texas State University. |
| U. of Missouri budget changes coming after federal funding cuts, president tells staff in letter | |
 | The University of Missouri is looking at belt tightening as federal funding cuts continue. The university is trying the lessen the impacts, though, MU President Mun Choi said in a letter Monday to faculty and staff. "I'm very hopeful and excited about our future. But, there are some challenges on the horizon. One of the challenges is the reduction in indirect cost returns as well as cancellation of specific federal projects," he wrote in the letter. Despite the federal funding challenges, Choi still has brighter outlook because of the university's current financial landscape. This already "positive footing," growing enrollment, increased support at the state level and "profitable entrepreneurial programs," puts the university in "a much better position to weather the financial challenges," Choi noted. The White House has jeopardized billions of dollars in federal higher education funds. Scientists have been stopped from continuing lab work. Research programs have been scrapped. Contracts to publish key federal data about students were yanked overnight. |
| U. of Missouri leaders prepare for potential spending cuts | |
 | University of Missouri faculty and staff received an email Monday morning from MU President Mun Choi announcing plans to begin reducing expenses in response to the Trump administration's federal funding cuts. "We're not sure exactly what's going to happen at the federal level," said Matt Martens, MU's provost and executive vice chancellor for academic affairs. "So we are preparing for different sets of eventualities." Martens said academic units will be expected to evaluate open positions where hiring can potentially be delayed if budget cuts are made, but a hiring freeze has not been discussed at this point. Thomas Spencer, the vice chancellor for research and economic development, said the university's largest federal funding sources for research are the National Institutes of Health and the United States Department of Agriculture, and that federally-funded research has grown at MU in recent years. Conversations relating to research funding will continue to evolve, especially amid legal challenges to the NIH's 15% cap on grant funding for indirect research costs. |
| USDA launches compliance review of U. of Maine for Title IX violations | |
| The U.S. Department of Agriculture has initiated a compliance review of the University of Maine following the State of Maine's disregard for President Trump's Executive Order (EO) 14201, to keep men out of women's sports. "President Trump has made it abundantly clear: taxpayers' hard-earned dollars will not support institutions that discriminate against women," said U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins. "USDA is committed to upholding the President's executive order, meaning any institution that chooses to disregard it can count on losing future funding." As a federally funded land-grant institution, the University of Maine receives over 100 million dollars in USDA funding. Compliance with federal law is mandatory for institutions to continue receiving taxpayer funded support, including USDA grants. |
| Colleges Restrict Graduate Student Admissions After NIH Proposes Rate Cut | |
 | Several colleges and universities are pausing admissions to some graduate programs, reducing class sizes or rescinding offers to students in an effort to cut costs amid uncertainty in federal funding. The disruption to graduate school admissions is the latest cost-cutting move for colleges. After the National Institutes of Health proposed cutting reimbursements for costs related to research, several colleges and universities said they would pause hiring and cut spending, Inside Higher Ed previously reported. (A federal judge has blocked the NIH plan from taking effect for now.) In recent days, the University of Pittsburgh, the University of Pennsylvania and several other institutions have stopped doctoral admissions, at least temporarily. Some colleges are pausing admissions to some programs such as in the biomedical sciences, Stat News reported. At others, the pause is universitywide. The University of Southern California and Vanderbilt University temporarily paused graduate student admissions, though both universities later said that they'd ended the pause. |
| Student loan borrowers face abrupt 180 as GOP budget plans threaten to raise payments | |
 | Student loan borrowers could see their payments increase under budget plans currently under discussion by House Republicans, a violent about-face after years of working with the Biden administration to lower payments and secure debt relief. While the GOP proposals might change quickly, student loan forgiveness is now a thing of the past, and borrowers are bracing as their loans become a potential reconciliation target. "We really see this as an attack on students and working families with student loan debt. We've seen an array of really problematic proposals that are on the table for congressional Republicans," said Aissa Canchola Bañez, policy director for Student Borrower Protection Center. "Many of these would cause massive spikes for families with monthly student loan payments," she added. Republicans have been split over the reconciliation package, as moderates in the party are concerned about potential changes to Medicaid and others are worried about covering all the tax cuts in the bill; the House is aiming for $2 trillion in spending cuts. |
| Congressional Black Caucus Calls on Trump to Reinstate HBCU Agriculture Scholarship Program | |
| The Congressional Black Caucus (CBC) is urging President Donald J. Trump to reinstate a federal scholarship program designed to support students from rural and underserved communities pursuing degrees in agriculture and related fields at historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs). The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) indefinitely suspended the 1890 Scholarship Program on Thursday, with the program's website stating it is "pending further review." The suspension comes amid a broader funding freeze instituted by the Trump administration to review whether spending aligns with the president's executive orders on issues like climate change and diversity, equity and inclusion programs. The scholarship program, established in 1992, provides full tuition, room and board to students pursuing degrees in agriculture, food, natural resource sciences or related fields at one of 19 HBCUs, known as the 1890 land grant institutions. These include Alabama A&M, Florida A&M, North Carolina A&T, and Tuskegee University, among others. |
| Injunction Blocking Parts of Trump's Anti-DEI Orders Doesn't Affect DEI Guidance | |
| Even though a federal judge rebuked the Trump administration's efforts to crack down on diversity, equity and inclusion as "textbook viewpoint discrimination," the Education Department is still moving forward with guidance that requires colleges to end any race-conscious programs on campus by the end of this week or lose access to federal funds. The injunction, handed down Friday in a lawsuit filed by multiple higher ed organizations, blocked parts of two White House executive orders. But questions were raised about whether the order extended to a sweeping Dear Colleague letter the department issued Feb. 14. The plaintiffs who challenged the anti-DEI orders say the four-page guidance letter is "inconsistent" with the judge's ruling, which found that the language in the two anti-DEI executive orders was unconstitutionally vague. The judge blocked the Trump administration from terminating "equity-related" grants and investigating wealthy colleges. But the department says the injunction does not cover its guidance document. Outside higher education lawyers largely agree with the department and suggest that colleges should still prepare to comply. |
| Survey Shows Voters Not Keen to Slash Education Department Funding | |
| A clear majority of voters supports preserving or increasing funding for the Department of Education, according to a new poll from Morning Consult. Twenty-two percent of more than 2,200 registered voters surveyed over Valentine's Day weekend said funding should remain level for the department, and 41 percent said it should receive more funding. Those figures include 18 percent of Republican voters who want funding to remain the same and 31 percent who would boost it. Twenty-four percent of all voters surveyed -- and 37 percent of GOP voters -- said ED should receive less or no funding. The online survey research technology company also asked respondents about funding for other federal agencies, including the Department of Defense, the National Institutes of Health, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and the United States Agency for International Development. USAID fared the worst, with half of all respondents in favor of maintaining or increasing funding, including 34 percent of Republican voters. |
| Why the Government Historically Has, and Still Should, Pay For University Research Costs | |
| Before World War II, private donations and industry awards funded most science research. Agriculture was the exception. At land grant universities, a combination of federal, state, and local grants supported the growth of "extension services," outreach programs that brought new methods and technologies from agricultural researchers to farmers. The war changed everything. Under electrical engineer Vannevar Bush, the National Research Defense Committee pushed scientific research and development to unprecedented heights to serve the war effort. The Manhattan Project was proof of concept: when the American government leveraged its resources to organize and fund scientists, they could change the world rapidly. In 1945, Bush wrote Science, the Endless Frontier. Worried that demobilization would fragment the wartime scientific community, he wanted to persuade President Harry Truman that the U.S. could -- and should -- continue innovating. According to Bush, to maintain momentum the country needed to increase its absolute number of research universities and distribute them more evenly around the country. ... Vannevar Bush and his colleagues---and the presidents they served---wanted Washington to pay a higher percentage of universities' IDC than private funders did. That funding model would maintain federal power over research and ensure American scientists prioritized the national interest. ... Far from ripping off taxpayers, the current arrangement has paid off handsomely. |
| Is a standoff/shutdown brewing in the Mississippi Legislature over taxes? Legislative recap | |
| Mississippi Today's Geoff Pender writes: A main topic of conversation around the state Capitol last week was the specter of a special session, a session-within a session or some other permutation of the Legislature being so tangled up over taxes that they linger in Jackson for extra weeks or are forced to return in the spring or summer to finish business. Some House lawmakers on key committees said they've been told to hold off on taking up Senate measures until the leadership discerns the Senate will parlay on the House plan to over time eliminate the state individual income tax. Republican Gov. Tate Reeves last week added to the dread of extra innings for lawmakers this year when he threw cold water on the long-awaited Senate plan to cut state taxes because the plan does not fully eliminate the income tax. Reeves can't control what lawmakers do, but he can force them into special session(s) until they address an issue. He could even call special session(s) within the regular session, which could shut down all other work until they address the issue. Such a standoff could get ugly, cost taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars to pay, house and feed lawmakers for extra days or weeks and bleed over into work on all other legislation and setting a budget. |
SPORTS
| Diamond Dawgs Set for Top 25 Showdown With Troy | |
| The No. 18 Mississippi State baseball team is set for a midweek Top 25 showdown when they welcome No. 21 Troy into Dudy Noble Field. First pitch is set for 4 p.m. The game will be televised on SEC Network+ and will also be carried on the Bulldog Sports Network powered by LEARFIELD, along with a live audio stream via HailState.com/OnDemand. New rankings came out on Monday and the Diamond Dawgs are ranked in the Baseball America (No. 15), D1 Baseball (No. 18), USA Today Coaches Poll (No. 16) and the NCBWA (No. 16). Troy enters the midweek tilt with the Diamond Dawgs ranked in three national polls. They are ranked No. 21 by D1 Baseball, No. 20 by the NCBWA and No. 24 by the USA Today Coaches' Poll. The Trojans are 6-1 on the season and are on a three-game winning streak. They have won three-game set. The lone loss for the Trojans was a walk off loss to Auburn in midweek action. Mississippi State leads the all-time series 5-0. The last meeting between these two programs came during the 2018 season, when they met in May in Hoover, Ala. Mississippi State won, 9-8 in 10 innings. |
| Will Derrion Reid play for Alabama basketball vs Mississippi State? Nate Oats gives injury update | |
| Before looking ahead to Alabama men's basketball's upcoming ranked meeting against Mississippi State, Crimson Tide coach Nate Oats clarified Derrion Reid's status ahead of Tuesday night. Battling a leg injury, which Oats said is "improving, progressing" after being evaluated in Birmingham, Reid will not play against the Bulldogs. Reid played five minutes in Alabama's Feb. 15 loss to Auburn, but missed the Crimson Tide's road loss to Missouri and its home win against Kentucky Saturday. "He's out, but they thought he looked good," Oats said. "So he's coming along." After the Auburn game where Reid appeared sparingly, Oats said Reid had a "hamstring deal," one "where you don't want to bring him back too early." Alabama will host Mississippi State at 8 p.m. Tuesday on ESPN2. |
| Alabama basketball star added to injury report before Mississippi State | |
| Alabama men's basketball added starting forward Grant Nelson to the SEC availability report released Monday night before the Mississippi State game. Nelson was listed as probable, which bodes well for his chances of playing despite being added to the injury report. This season, Nelson is averaging 12.2 points, 7.9 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.3 blocks per game for Alabama. He is one of four Alabama players listed on Monday night's availability report in addition to Derrion Reid (out), Latrell Wrightsell Jr. (out) and Houston Mallette (out). Alabama coach Nate Oats said Monday that Reid would be out again for this game. No. 6 Alabama (22-5, 11-3 SEC) just beat Kentucky 96-83 at Coleman Coliseum this past Saturday. The Crimson Tide will now face No. 24 Mississippi State on Tuesday (8 p.m. CT, ESPN 2) at Coleman Coliseum. |
| Some big games are ahead in the SEC this week. The biggest involve a couple of teams from Alabama | |
| The biggest games of the week in men's college basketball reside in the Southeastern Conference. Seems to be a recurring theme this season. It make sense given the league that was once synonymous solely with football has four of the nation's top six teams in the AP Top 25, led for the seventh consecutive week by No. 1 Auburn. And that the league's eight total teams in the rankings are nearly double any other conference; the Big 12 is next with three in the top 10 and five total in the poll. But the focus this week can be narrowed even further: the state of Alabama. The Tigers (25-2, 13-1), who have won four straight since a loss to Florida, begin a brutal four-game stretch that would have been entirely against ranked teams had Mississippi not fallen out on Monday. Auburn faces the Rebels on Wednesday night before going to No. 17 Kentucky on Saturday, with No. 12 Texas A&M and No. 6 Alabama awaiting the following week. Speaking of the Crimson Tide, they enter the week tied with the third-ranked Gators for second in the SEC, two games behind their biggest rival. Alabama (22-5, 11-3) faces No. 24 Mississippi State on Tuesday night and visits No. 5 Tennessee on Saturday, part of a run of seven straight against ranked teams with the Gators and Auburn on deck next week. |
| Mississippi State wins three of four at Rocket City Softball Showcase | |
| Sierra Sacco needed just one pitch to hit more home runs against Louisiana Tech than she hit in two years for Louisiana Tech. While Sacco has been a productive and speedy leadoff hitter throughout her career, power has never been a big part of her game. But she led off Mississippi State's half of the first inning Saturday against her former team and homered to right-center field on the first pitch she saw. An inning later, Sacco hit a grand slam to break the game open, leading MSU to a 10-1, five-inning victory in Huntsville, Alabama. "I knew going against them would be a good matchup," Sacco said. "I was just focused on getting a good pitch that I could drive because that's what I've been working on in the cages." The No. 17 Bulldogs defeated North Alabama later that day, then split Sunday's two games against Jacksonville State and Miami-Ohio at the Rocket City Softball Showcase. With cold temperatures altering the tournament's schedule, MSU played two games at Toyota Field in Madison, Alabama, home to Minor League Baseball's Rocket City Trash Pandas, and two games at the University of Alabama-Huntsville. MSU (13-2) heads back home for a midweek game Wednesday against UAB and will then host the Bulldog Invitational over the weekend against Alabama State, New Mexico and Northwestern State. |
| In Brent Rooker, the A's find a centerpiece for their new home | |
 | If you'd like to win the hearts and minds of the new kids in town, get them courtside seats. And if you engineer a thrilling victory for the home team, all the better. "It was a double-overtime game, they won -- it was sick," said JP Sears, a pitcher for the Athletics, who will soon join the NBA's Kings as another major franchise in Sacramento, at least for the next three seasons. "Never really been that close to an NBA game, either. The city definitely seems excited to have us there." What really made the night, back in early January, was not the 30 points from DeMar DeRozan, the scoreboard salute or the selfies with starstruck fans among the overflow crowd at Golden 1 Center. What really made the night was the money for Brent Rooker. "People were very welcoming, very loving, so nice," outfielder Lawrence Butler said. "We saw some cool landmarks around the city, some phenomenal restaurants. We were able to bond -- and Rook got his big payout." As payouts go, Rooker's five-year contract extension -- broke while he was with his teammates at the game versus the Miami Heat on January 6 -- was relatively modest: $60 million for a slugger who was already under club control through 2027. But for the A's, it was deeply symbolic. |
| CFP buzz: What we're hearing ahead of this week's meeting | |
| Important conversations about the future of the College Football Playoff will continue this week in Dallas, where the 10 FBS commissioners and Notre Dame athletic director Pete Bevacqua will meet Tuesday. The commissioners and Bevacqua -- an 11-member group called the CFP management committee -- will discuss whether to change how teams are seeded in the 12-team field this fall, a tweak that would alter which teams earn first-round byes and an automatic $4 million for reaching a quarterfinal round. While the bulk of the meeting is expected to focus on 2025, debate around automatic qualification for the playoff in 2026 and beyond is at some point inevitable. The playoff appears to be rolling toward a 14-team field and a model that includes four guaranteed spots each for the SEC and Big Ten, two each for the ACC and Big 12, one for the Group of 5 and another at-large, which could account for Notre Dame. Officials from the Big Ten and SEC met last week in New Orleans and have the bulk of control over the playoff format, starting in 2026. Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti and SEC commissioner Greg Sankey declined to say after their meeting what they would like the playoff to look like, but the highly publicized model of automatic qualifiers has already caused angst publicly and privately. |
| Do college football coaches think new enforcement arm will work? LSU's Brian Kelly: 'It is not a slap on the wrist' | |
| Brian Kelly entered last week's joint meeting with SEC athletic directors admittedly skeptical of major college football's new enforcement entity. He left convinced that it would work. "There will be real enforcement," the LSU head coach told Yahoo Sports in an interview last week. "It will be an across-the-board, consistent [power conference] enforcement with severe sanctions. They will be quick. They will be swift. I think everybody is on board with that." The new power conference-led enforcement entity -- an LLC with a yet-to-be-named CEO -- is poised to implement significant penalties for those violating a variety of revenue share-related rules, including a restriction in the number of transfers a program can add, millions in financial fines, a reduction in a team's future rev-share pool and multi-game suspensions for coaches. These are only ideas and concepts under discussion, but they were shared with coaches and athletic directors last week in meetings in New Orleans as power conference leaders work to create this nameless, non-NCAA enforcement entity. |
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