| Friday, May 2, 2025 |
| Jake Kasitz of Gainesville named Mississippi State's latest NOAA Hollings Scholar | |
 | Jake Kasitz, a sophomore meteorology major from Gainesville, is Mississippi State's latest recipient of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Ernest F. Hollings Scholarship, a prestigious award providing financial support and hands-on, practical experience to the next generation of NOAA-related scientists, policymakers, and educators. The Hollings Scholarship program prepares undergraduates for careers in weather- and natural resource-related fields, including those with government agencies and educational institutions. Kasitz, an MSU Louis A. Hurst Jr. Presidential Endowed Scholar and student in the Judy and Bobby Shackouls Honors College, will receive up to $9,500 per year for two years of full-time study and a full-time, paid summer internship at a participating NOAA facility. "When I toured Mississippi State, I could tell the faculty were overwhelmingly supportive of my goals and invested in helping me succeed," he said. "MSU has provided many unique experiences that have been instrumental in my college journey. All of them have expanded my skill set and prepared me for the Hollings Scholarship." |
| Cosequin Celebrates AKC Diving Dogs Premier Cup as Presenting Sponsor at Mississippi State University | |
| Cosequin, the #1 veterinarian-recommended retail joint health supplement brand, proudly served as the presenting sponsor of the 2025 American Kennel Club (AKC) Diving Dogs Premier Cup, held on the campus of Mississippi State University on Saturday, April 5. The event brought together some of the nation's top canine athletes for an exciting display of speed, strength, and agility in three high-energy events: Distance, Air Retrieve, and Hydro Dash. Athletes competed in three divisions -- Lap, Elite, and Premier -- in the Distance events. Air Retrieve comprised two divisions -- Open and Lap. The top three athletes in each division took home prize money. The competition was filmed on-site and will be broadcast nationally on ESPN2 on May 4 from 8-10 PM ET, offering dog lovers across the country a front-row seat to the action. "Supporting this event allows us to celebrate the incredible bond between dogs and their owners," said Dr. Todd Henderson, DVM, President and CEO of Nutramax Laboratories Veterinary Sciences, Inc. "I am honored that the American Kennel Club's Diving Dogs Premier Cup, presented by Cosequin, was hosted on the campus of my alma mater, Mississippi State University." |
| Coast team tests for the trouble that keeps turning up on our beaches | |
 | The truck pulled off the coastal highway and Jennifer Ahlbrand jumped out, bound for the beach on an urgent mission. She headed for the shoreline to fill a clear bottle and stick a measuring device in the choppy brown waves. Then she drove off to the next of 21 beaches the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality tests every week for pollution. "A lot of people don't realize there's always bacteria in the ocean," Ahlbrand said. "So when they see us testing, they kind of freak out." But the bacteria turning up in her samples has also appeared this year in Texas, Hawaii and Florida. It is a common finding and not worrisome enough to close beaches. Still, each time it shows up, scientists warn swimmers there could be stormwater runoff in the waves that might give them digestive troubles or infections. The beach tests are also fueling research. Holley Muraco, a Mississippi State University professor, tracks the advisories to understand where bacteria most often appears. She will use that information as a guide for more testing and hopes it will answer questions about how far the bacteria reaches from the shoreline and how it might impact dolphins and other creatures. |
| Public Service Commission of Yazoo City Provides Computer Training for Field Employees | | |
| The Public Service Commission of Yazoo City, Miss., on April 24 announced the launch of a hands-on computer training initiative designed specifically for its field employees. This professional development opportunity is being provided in collaboration with the Mississippi State University Extension Service. The training, which focuses on improving digital literacy, basic computer operations, and utility-related software skills, is part of an ongoing effort to equip employees with tools that enhance operational efficiency and service delivery. This initiative was organized by Dennis McFee, CEO and General Manager of the Public Service Commission of Yazoo City, in partnership with Sharon Nettles of Mississippi State University Extension. Mississippi State University Extension's experienced trainers, India Crews and Delta Newman with the MSU Center for Technology Outreach, are leading the sessions, which include both classroom instruction and hands-on learning. "Mississippi State University Extension remains dedicated to delivering educational resources that empower communities and enhance local workforce capacity," said Nettles. "Our collaboration with the Public Service Commission of Yazoo City highlights the impact of working together to broaden digital skills and foster sustainable workforce development throughout Mississippi." |
| Stop! That baby animal doesn't need your help, Mississippi experts say | |
| Every year around this time in Mississippi, animal rescue centers and the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks (MDWFP) receives an influx of calls from well-meaning residents who find young critters alone and assume they need help. Even though you may be well-meaning, wildlife experts say: Don't be too quick to intervene. In many cases, what looks like an abandoned animal is perfectly normal -- and trying to rescue it could actually do more harm than good. Mississippi State University's Bronson Strickland says "Even though you're well-intentioned, you may kill the [babies] with love if you take them away," Strickland said. "If you aren't sure if the mother is alive, check back in a few hours." Sometimes hidden in tall grass or shrubbery, many people mistakenly believe that these babies have been abandoned, when really it's "the mother's way of preventing attracting predators." In most cases, the best thing you can do is nothing at all. Nature knows what it's doing and sometimes the kindest act is simply letting baby critters grow up wild. |
| Mississippi under risk of severe weather, large hail and 70 mph wind Friday | |
 | Much of Mississippi is now under an enhanced risk warning for severe weather and according to the National Weather Service in Jackson, those areas are likely to experience strong thunderstorms, large hail and high winds that may down trees and power lines. "In the enhanced risk area, it looks like the damaging winds increased to 70 mph and the potential for hail has increased up to golf ball size," said Sharonda Waddell, meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Jackson. "In the slight risk area we're looking at damaging winds up to 60 mph and hail up to half dollar size." The area under an enhanced risk warning extends across the state from the southwest corner below Natchez, northeast to Meridian and north. The lower portion of the state is under a slight risk warning. The strong winds expected to come with Friday's storms could be dangerous. "You could see some downed trees and maybe some downed power lines," Waddell said. Waddell said the timing of the severe weather is from 1 p.m. through 10 p.m. and will affect the Northwest part of the state first and then make its way across the state. |
| May 4-10 declared Hurricane Preparedness Week in Mississippi | |
| Governor Tate Reeves has declared May 4-10 Hurricane Preparedness for Mississippi in preparation of the upcoming 2025 Atlantic hurricane season. One hurricane, category two Francine, directly impacted the state during the 2024 season. But a total of 18 named storms and 11 hurricanes made up what was a busy season in the Atlantic. Five of those storms intensified into major hurricanes. In his proclamation, Reeves noted the importance of Mississippians being prepared ahead of the potentially dangerous stretch. He also highlighted the upcoming benchmark of remembrance for the worst storm to ever strike the state in 2005. The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) will use the week to educate residents on how to properly prepare your loved ones and home to weather intense storms. Recommendations include having a fully stocked disaster supply kit with necessities like water, non-perishable food, flashlights, and batteries. MEMA also encourages homeowners to conduct an insurance check before hurricane season and purchasing flood insurance if their home is in an area susceptible to flooding. |
| Investigating Shrimp Fraud Is an Urgent Matter on the Gulf Coast | |
 | Imagine sitting down for a meal at a restaurant with a view of the ocean. You are on vacation, and the restaurant's décor includes fishnets, pictures of boats and taxidermied exemplars of the local catch. You order a plate of shrimp, reasonably expecting it to have come from nearby waters. Way too often it comes from thousands of miles away, Dave Williams told a small crowd at the Louisiana Shrimp Festival on a summer-hot day in New Orleans last fall. "And that's despicable," he said. Mr. Williams is a commercial fisheries scientist who was in New Orleans to shed light on what he considers an epidemic problem: restaurants and festivals misrepresenting imported shrimp as locally caught. These farm-raised imports from Asia and South America have flooded the U.S. market, depressing prices. Fishing communities along the Gulf Coast have been decimated and livelihoods destroyed in part because the domestic shrimp industry is being pushed to the edge of extinction. Mr. Williams founded a company, SEAD Consulting, that developed a genetic test to rapidly identify seafood species. He is using the technology to expose restaurants and festivals misrepresenting their seafood offerings, especially shrimp. |
| Employers Added 177,000 Jobs in April Despite Tariff Uncertainty | |
 | The U.S. economy continued to add jobs at a steady clip in April, although the pace of gains slowed slightly during a month that saw changing tariff announcements and market turmoil. The U.S. added 177,000 jobs in April, the Labor Department reported Friday, above the gain of 133,000 jobs economists polled by The Wall Street Journal had expected to see. The unemployment rate, which is based on a separate survey from the jobs figures, held steady at 4.2%. However, fast-changing policies from Washington could soon begin to take the momentum out of the jobs market, economists said. "There's a lot of anxiety about what tariffs mean for supply chains," said James Knightley, an economist at ING Financial Markets. "The longer that this uncertainty lasts for, the more cautious businesses become about hiring and investment." In earnings calls over the past few weeks, companies have complained of the high degree of uncertainty created by tariffs. Many, including General Motors and JetBlue, withdrew their earnings guidance for the year. But relatively few have talked about the need for layoffs. Though hard data on the economy has held up well, businesses and individuals are telling surveys that they are worried. Consumer sentiment in April hit one of its lowest levels on record, according to the University of Michigan. More Americans said they expect weaker income growth for themselves in the year ahead. |
| Governor Reeves' 'Power Play' seeks to make Mississippi a national leader in energy | |
| State and federal officials met with energy leaders for three hours in Jackson on Thursday to explore how to make Mississippi an energy-producing powerhouse, a cornerstone to the governor's Mississippi Power Play. Governor Tate Reeves described the meeting as "productive," saying "it was the first of several meetings" held to look at "bold solutions" to make Mississippi a bigger exporter of energy and to attract business. "While I'm proud of the big role Mississippi plays in America's energy production, I know we can do even more. It's clear to win in the future, we have to do more," Reeves said. Natural gas, nuclear, and oil and gas companies and cooperatives, as well as federal and state leaders, participated in the summit. The governor added that after the meeting, he had a better understanding of the growth barriers Mississippi is facing. Throughout a 45-minute press conference after the summit, Reeves stressed the need to "knock down" regulatory hurdles. However, Reeves admitted, some of the "roadblocks" are federal regulations and outside of the Magnolia State's control. |
| Gov. Reeves launches 'Mississippi's Power Play' aimed at becoming national leader in energy | |
| Gov. Tate Reeves is looking to make Mississippi a leader in American energy through a partnership with the public sector and private businesses. The Republican official announced the launch of "Mississippi's Power Play" during a Thursday press conference, building on a promise he made during his State of the State Address in late January. Referring to power as the "key to prosperity" during his address, Reeves said officials are working to bring more nuclear, solar, and wind energy to the state's grid while trying to emphasize the natural gas sector. He believes economic development and the ability to provide power are married in concept. Ahead of the press conference, the governor hosted an energy summit featuring a litany of public and private sector leaders, including representatives from ABB, Chevron, Entergy Mississippi, Atmos Energy, and Mississippi Power, among others. At the meeting, officials discussed ways to spur economic growth by improving the power grid in the state through increased private investment. |
| House, Senate still at impasse over state budget, governor says | |
| Legislative leadership is still divided on a final budget proposal for the upcoming 2026 fiscal year that begins July 1, Gov. Tate Reeves said Thursday. If lawmakers can't agree on a proposal for the state's $7 billion budget by the time Reeves calls a special session, he may force them to vote on withholding their own salaries until the state's government spending is secured, he said. "This notion that I think it's a good expenditure for the taxpayers to spend $100,000 a day for the two chambers to come to Jackson and stare at each other, well, that's just not a very good idea," Reeves said. Reeves, a Republican, told reporters House and Senate leadership failed to submit a budget proposal by an April 30 deadline because of disagreements over whether to have a local projects funding bill. A local projects bill is typically a $200-$400 million appropriation for various local projects throughout the state. The funding for it is typically determined by what funds are left over for lawmakers to divvy out. Reeves said if House and Senate leaders cannot agree on a local projects bill, he will simply scrap it out of the special session and force them to work on the budget. He also said legislative negotiators are about 95% complete with the budget. "We can have discussions. We can have debate on any expenditures of the capital expense fund, but the annual operating budget will not be used as leverage going forward by anyone," Reeves said. |
| State legislators meet in Laurel to discuss this year's legislative session | |
 | Five state legislators were in Laurel Thursday discussing this year's 2025 legislative session. First on the list was House Bill 1, set to eventually cut out the state's income tax over a four-year period. The bill would also lower the state's grocery tax while raising the gasoline tax. Rep. Omeria Scott (D-District 80) believed the bill could have waited until leaders found alternative funding. "Mississippi depends on 46% of its budget coming from the federal budget," said Scott. "The state has only been able to generate about $7 (billion) to $8 billion on its own." However, Rep. Donnie Scoggin (R-District 89) said it will put more money back into Mississippians' pockets. "Twenty gallons per week that you're buying gas," said Scoggin. "Then, $100 per week in groceries. "You're going to save $150/month plus the income tax." Many of Scoggin's efforts were geared toward workforce development. Revisions to the Mississippi Tuition Assistance Grant were aimed at making certain technical programs more accessible at local colleges. "If you wanted to go back and become a welder or a nurse, we would pay for it," Scoggin said. "That did not pass because we couldn't agree on the budget." Sen. Robin Robinson (R-District 42) said she is hopeful education is a top priority. "We've got to get it to Jackson and get the budget set so that agencies and schools will know what funding they have on July 1," said Robinson. |
| Senator muddies Gulfport mayor's campaign with 'racially charged' comment | |
| Opponents for Gulfport mayor -- Hugh Keating and Sonya Williams Barnes -- agreed early on that they would run clean campaigns. But Mississippi Sen. Joel Carter of Biloxi, Keating's godson and a fellow Republican, has taken a swipe at Democrat Barnes on social media that some of residents deemed offensive. He also inaccurately commented, Barnes said, that Barnes secured federal disaster cleanup contracts. "What he is trying to do is cause division and we have been very intentional about being very inclusive of all races, all religions," said Barnes, who is Black. On his Senate Facebook page, Carter noted that Georgia politician Stacey Abrams is financially supporting Barnes' campaign. Abrams, also Black Democrat, focused on voter turnout and came stunningly close in 2018 to defeating Republican Gov. Brian Kemp in a race that drew national attention. Keating hasn't publicly rejected or apologized for Carter's comments. "I speak for myself," Keating said. " . . . I don't have any control over what some of my supporters may say, any more than my opponent has control over what some of her supporters may say." |
| 'May Day:' Protesters rally at the state capitol in Jackson for the fifth time | |
 | At least 150 protesters chanted and held signs supporting the rights of federal workers, civil servants and educators for what is known as "International Workers Day," or what has come to be known as May Day. There was also a wider spectrum of protesters than earlier demonstrations. Allison, who declined to give her name to avoid conflict with her family, is a 35 year old nurse who says she was raised in a conservative, Christian community. She says she doesn't identify as either Republican or Democratic, but instead, a "free agent." "The reason why I came out today is my concerns for our country's democracy and adhering to the Constitution, which I feel like are American issues, not partisan issues," she said. "Something that I think Republicans and Democrats should be concerned about, angry about, and feel the need to change." Eduardo Rangel is from Philadelphia in Neshoba County. He has Mexican and Choctaw Indian heritage and decided to wear a shirt that reads "I just look illegal." Rangel says he believes the contributions of undocumented workers in Mississippi's labor force is not recognized enough. "So many of our farms in Mississippi are worked by illegal labor," he said. "So many of the millionaires that live in Mississippi, their businesses are running off of illegal labor." |
| Dozens gather for 'May Day' protest against Trump, Musk in Tupelo | |
 | As part of a national "May Day" protest, advocates and residents from across the region gathered at Fairpark Thursday afternoon to show support and demand action against what they called the "billionaire takeover" of American democracy. About 60 protesters from across Northeast Mississippi brandished signs admonishing the Trump administration and Elon Musk's involvement in cutting funding for federal agencies and firing governmental employees in the name of cost reductions. "We are here as part of a nationwide mass mobilization," Indivisible organizer Mary Jane Meadows said. "We are all concerned about what is going on in our nation (and) about the rule of law being trashed." Ty Pinkins, who is running against Sen. Cindy Hyde Smith in the upcoming midterm election and previously ran against Sen. Roger Wicker, spoke to the crowd, reading the preamble to the Constitution before giving a call to action. "I believe in an America where ordinary people have extraordinary power, and seeing you all here today is a testament to the collective power we have when we come together," he said. |
| Mississippi congressional delegation urges Trump to provide disaster relief after tornadoes | |
| Mississippi's congressional delegation hopes President Donald Trump's administration will approve a disaster declaration for the state after deadly tornadoes ripped through the South, but the request has been pending for a month. Gov. Tate Reeves submitted a disaster declaration request to the Federal Emergency Management Agency on April 1. If approved, it would allow millions of federal dollars to be allocated to state and local governments. The state's four congressmen and two senators signed a letter on April 2 urging the Trump administration to quickly approve the request. But Lea Crager, a spokesperson for FEMA, told Mississippi Today in a statement that the request is pending. The tornadoes impacted around 20 Mississippi counties in mid-March. They caused an estimated $18.2 million in damages, destroyed 233 homes and damaged 208 homes, according to the letter from the federal lawmakers. U.S. Rep. Michael Guest, a Republican congressman who represents areas struck by the tornadoes, said in a statement that he has been in contact with Trump's staff multiple times over the last two weeks and is waiting for the administration to sign off on the request. |
| Rural communities were promised millions in disaster funds. Trump is ending it | |
 | In DePue, Ill., sewage will keep backing up into people's basements when there's heavy rain. In Rising Sun, Md., a mobile home park that has already flooded six times will remain in harm's way. And in Kamiah, Idaho, houses won't get upgrades that would protect them from wildfires. These rural communities were awarded grants from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to fix long-standing infrastructure problems, and they expected funding to be delivered this year. But last month, the Trump administration canceled their grants and hundreds of others, including ones that had already been promised but not yet paid out. Since 2020, FEMA has awarded about $4.6 billion to communities across the U.S. through a program known as Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC). The goal was to help local, state and tribal governments protect residents from future disasters such as floods, wildfires, tornadoes and hurricanes. The BRIC grant program was established during President Trump's first term and was dramatically expanded by Congress in 2021. Now, the Trump administration has ended it. Many small, rural communities applied for federal money because they have no other option. For many, federal funding is the only source large enough to update the aging infrastructure that's vulnerable to increasingly intense disasters. |
| Trump is not 'commander' of Congress, top GOP appropriator says | |
 | House Appropriations Chair Tom Cole vented Thursday about the White House's seemingly inattentive approach to its relations with congressional funders, saying that President Donald Trump is not the "commander" of Congress and that top Republicans need the White House to quickly share their funding plans. The unusually tart comments from Cole (R-Okla.) came after White House budget director Russ Vought canceled a planned Thursday morning meeting with the House's GOP funding leaders because of a "presidential request," Cole said. While a White House official said that was "fake news" and that the meeting was rescheduled for later Thursday, Cole noted that most lawmakers would already be headed back home. "It's not going to be happening with all the cardinals later today, because we're not going to be here later today," Cole said of the dozen chairs of the House's appropriations panels. Those leaders are increasingly vexed that the White House budget office has not shared details of the funding cuts it is already undertaking at federal agencies and its plans for the fiscal year that starts in October. "Look, no president -- and administrations -- don't get to dictate what's going to happen here," Cole told reporters Thursday morning. "Congress is not the Army. And the president is the president, but not the commander in chief of Congress." |
| GOP senators wonder about Hegseth's future amid Trump administration turmoil | |
 | Senate Republicans are standing by embattled Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, but they are privately wondering how much time he has left atop the Pentagon amid ongoing turmoil within the Trump administration, which resulted in the replacement of national security adviser Mike Waltz on Thursday. Republican senators expressed disappointment over the initial news that Waltz would step down as national security adviser. They viewed him as well qualified for the job and a steady hand to work with Hegseth, who has less national security policy experience. Hours after news broke of Waltz's impending departure, Trump nominated him to be United Nations ambassador and added the national security adviser role to the portfolio of Secretary of State Marco Rubio. GOP lawmakers view Hegseth less favorably, and several Republicans, including Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.), said the Defense secretary needs to surround himself with a better team. One Republican senator who requested anonymity to comment about Hegseth's status in the Trump administration said he could be next on the chopping block. "Hegseth is next in line not because he's a jerk, but because I think they're concerned about his management and that his team is a mess," the source said. |
| Sen. Rand Paul on Trump tariffs: 'If tyranny is wrong in blue, it's still wrong in red' | |
 | Sen. Rand Paul's push against tariffs backed by President Donald Trump fell just short of a major milestone Wednesday evening. A resolution Paul co-sponsored that would have rolled back Trump's 10% tariff on all imported goods and more failed in the Senate 49-49, with two possible supporters unable to vote. One of those was Sen. Mitch McConnell, who has been a consistent opponent of tariffs, particularly those levied against all American trading partners, like the blanket 10% tariff. A McConnell aide said he was at home "under the weather" Wednesday but is back in the office Thursday. Earlier this month, both Paul and McConnell drew the ire of Trump as "incredibly disloyal" for their stand against tariffs on goods coming from longtime U.S. ally Canada. The pair, not known for their proximity on many issues, have taken turns as the loudest Republican voices in Congress against the tariffs. Paul's criticism of the policy has been increasingly sharp in comments to the press and social media posts. Paul compared a congressional meeting with one of Trump's trade representatives as Stalin-esque, describing his colleagues as tripping over themselves to compliment the representative and beg for tariff exemptions that would benefit their districts. He also implied in a social media post that some of his Republican colleagues were hypocritical in their acceptance of the Trump administration's use of emergency powers. |
| GOP balks at approving even a fraction of Musk's DOGE cuts | |
 | White House officials have in recent weeks brainstormed strategies for enshrining into law the government cuts implemented by billionaire Elon Musk's team, aiming to turn the U.S. DOGE Service's moves into lasting policy shifts. So far, however, administration officials are running into resistance not just from Democrats, but also from congressional Republicans, who have in private conversations made clear that it would be difficult to codify even a small fraction of the measures that Musk's team unilaterally implemented, according to lawmakers and several other people familiar with the discussions. GOP members of Congress have also raised concerns about tackling cuts as Republicans are trying to corral their rowdy and tiny majorities into extending tax cuts in one "big, beautiful bill" that President Donald Trump has demanded. As the White House prepares to release its budget proposal Friday, the impasse over DOGE reflects a looming challenge for the administration's vision of a sprawling overhaul of federal agencies. With both the courts and Congress refusing to provide legal cover to spending cuts that Musk forced through, the administration is running out of options for ensuring that its unilateral reductions take effect -- potentially limiting DOGE's lasting impact despite the disruption it brought to the government. |
| The U.S. set the global order after WWII. Trump has other plans | |
| From the ashes of World War II, President Harry Truman presided over the creation of global institutions that have defined the international order for the past 80 years. "It must be the policy of the United States to support free peoples who are resisting attempted subjugation by armed minorities or by outside pressure," Truman said as he spelled out his doctrine in a 1947 speech to Congress. In a few short years, the U.S. helped establish and lead the United Nations, NATO, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. The U.S. helped rebuild Europe with assistance funneled through the Marshall Plan, and it also funded the reconstruction of Japan. Democratic and Republican presidents supported these institutions for generations. They sometimes grumbled at the cost, yet they believed the institutions ultimately strengthened the U.S. as the world's leading superpower. But 100 days into his second term, President Trump is moving aggressively to scale back the United States' role in the world, based on his "America First" agenda. Trump sees this web of alliances, treaties and soft power as expensive, outdated relics that restrain America's ability to act decisively on its own. Hal Brands, a historian at the American Enterprise Institute, a conservative Washington think tank, puts it this way: "If I had to boil it all down, I would say Trump's goal is to extract more privileges from the international order while bearing fewer responsibilities for upholding them." |
| Trump signs order seeking to end federal funding for NPR and PBS | |
| President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Thursday evening seeking to prohibit federal funding for NPR and the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS). The order, which could be subject to legal challenge, called the broadcasters' news coverage "biased and partisan." It instructs the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to cease providing direct funds to either broadcaster. It also orders CPB to cease indirect funding of the services through grants to local public radio and television stations. CPB is the main distributor of federal funds to public media. It receives about $535 million in federal funds per fiscal year, which it mostly spends on grants to hundreds of stations nationwide. The stations spend the grants on making their own programming or on buying programming from services such as NPR and PBS. CPB, created by an act of Congress in 1967, also sometimes provides direct grants to NPR and PBS to produce national programs. Trump and his allies have long accused NPR and PBS of favoring progressive positions. This week, CPB sued the Trump administration after it sent a letter to three board members attempting to terminate their positions. The lawsuit argues that the White House does not have authority over CPB because it is a nonprofit private corporation, not a federal agency. The lawsuit is ongoing, and Thursday's order could be subject to a similar legal challenge. |
| Email mistake reveals secret plans to end research on Head Start and other child safety net programs | |
 | The Trump administration could gut research on the effectiveness of child welfare programs, with plans to terminate dozens of university grants studying improvements to Head Start and child care policy, according to a spreadsheet mistakenly made public this week. The document listed more than 150 research projects under consideration for termination by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. It covered grants funded by the Office of Planning, Research and Evaluation, which says it "builds evidence to improve lives" by helping policymakers evaluate programs that help low-income children and families. "These grants are aimed at learning how to make programs more effective at pursuing goals like healthy child development, reducing abuse and neglect and promoting economic self-sufficiency," said Naomi Goldstein, who led the office for nearly two decades before she retired in 2022. "It's hard to see why they would want to cancel these efforts." Dozens of grants related to child care policy, child development, foster care, preventing child abuse, the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families program and more were also listed as set for cancellation, reflecting ACF's widespread portfolio. |
| Ole Miss junior named Truman Scholar, the school's 20th | |
| Yasmine Ware walked into Chancellor Glenn Boyce's office thinking she would speak with a prospective donor. Instead, she walked out as the University of Mississippi's 20th Harry S. Truman Scholar. Boyce surprised the junior with the news on April 10. Unbeknownst to Ware, her mother, father and younger brother, who traveled from their hometown of Madison, were waiting in Boyce's office. "You have so much to be proud of," Boyce told Dr. Terrance Ware and Zandrea Ware, Yasmine's parents. "You have an amazing daughter." Winners were formally announced on April 18 by the Harry S. Truman Scholarship Foundation. Established as a tribute to the 33rd U.S. president, the foundation awards merit-based scholarships annually to students dedicated to careers in government or public service. Ware is an interdisciplinary studies major with concentrations in international studies, Chinese and global security. Over the last three years, she has interned in Congress, studied abroad with the United Nations and researched Japanese heritage in Kyoto, Japan. She plans to use her Truman Scholarship to apply to Harvard Law School with a goal of earning her Juris Doctor and a master's degree in public administration and international development. |
| Donald Trump tells U. of Alabama graduates: 'You fight, fight, fight and you win, win, win!' | |
 | President Donald Trump has arrived in Tuscaloosa aboard Air Force One this evening to speak at an event kicking off the University of Alabama's 2025 spring commencement. "Just landing in Alabama, where I look forward to giving the Commencement Address to the Great University of Alabama. They put all of their nine Graduations into one, so I better do well. These are tremendous people. I won the State by 45 points. No pressure!," Trump posted on social media shortly after 6 p.m. His speech is at a specially arranged event before the start of the commencement weekend graduation ceremonies. Trump's speech contained multiple false claims. Here are the facts. John Wahl, chairman of the state political party, said that Trump officials reached out to university officials about the possibility of him taking part in the commencement ceremony "as it was one of the places he specifically wanted to visit." Trump's advice to the class of 2025: "If you think you are too young to do something great, you're wrong." |
| Fiery speeches mark protests of President Trump's visit to Tuscaloosa | |
 | "Dump Trump" and "Lock him up" were among the milder chants ringing out from at least three locales across Tuscaloosa on May 1 as hundreds of protesters gathered to voice their opposition to the president's appearance at the University of Alabama's special commencement ceremony. The crowds gathered in Government Plaza downtown, at Butler Field on the UA campus, and another 1,000 or more in Snow Hinton Park. The first two of those gatherings coalesced, as about 200 organized by Alabama members of the 50501 Movement and Indivisible Northport-Tuscaloosa -- a nonparty-affiliated organization -- began a march from the Plaza, picking up others along the 2.3 mile walk, joining those on campus who'd been directed to a roped-off "designated protest area." Once united at the Million Dollar Band's Butler Field, the group of about 400 to 500 then marched past Coleman Coliseum, where Trump took the stage an hour and a half after the ceremony's 6:30 p.m. start time. "The University of Alabama (system) is one of the biggest employers in the state, and it feels kind of mocking that he's coming to speak here, when he has taken millions of dollars of (research) funding away from our faculty, away from people who rely on these jobs here in the university, and who has stolen one of our students and is threatening visas of other students at the university," said Heather Love. |
| Hope for autism: Groundbreaking research emerges from UT Health Science Center | |
| Autism Spectrum Disorder rates have increased in Tennessee -- in 2014, about 1.5% of children had ASD, which doubled to 3.4% a decade later. ASD also disproportionately impacts children -- minority groups have higher rates of the disorder compared to white children in Tennessee. To address ASD and its complications, Il Hwan Kim, a researcher with the UT Health Science Center, took the initiative to create a study on the development of ASD along with his other researchers, Yong-Eun Kim, Sunwhi Kim and Yusuke Ujihara. Kim's work aims to understand ASD at a deep level by analyzing the brain's gatekeeper -- BBB (blood-brain barrier). According to Kim, the BBB decides what can enter the brain and is affected by various environmental factors like pollution, infections and stress. "This growing body of evidence suggests that ASD-associated genetic and environmental risks may disrupt the BBB independently of their direct influence on neurons," Kim said. "Thus, I have hypothesized that BBB dysfunction and neuronal abnormality synergistically impair brain function, contributing to ASD-like behaviors." In addition to BBB, Kim and his team also studied the combination of the gene SHANK3, which provides instructions for constructing proteins in the brain. Mutations in SHANK3 are known for their connections to ASD, but their function with BBB was unknown. |
| UGArden hosting its first Community Day farming event in Athens | |
 | People will have a chance to tour a University of Georgia farm on Saturday that for more than a decade has been a research facility for developing new farming practices and producing fresh food for multiple community food programs. Called the UGArden, the 10-acre farm is located on South Milledge Avenue near the State Botanical Garden. The event begins at 9 a.m. and runs through 1 p.m. Officials at the farm reported the event will include games, crafts, an open market and other activities. The farm is under the UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences and was founded 10 years ago by students. Ty Brooks, an Athens native with bachelor and master's degrees from UGA, was appointed farm director in 2023. "People will be able to walk around the farm. We'll have plots labeled and people can ask us questions," Brooks said. "A main thing is we have a lot of our partner organizations -- about nine in total -- that will be out here with various stations doing educational activities. It will be a family fun event." |
| In some states, colleges face a double dose of DOGE | |
| Oklahoma wants some of its less-expensive universities to cut travel and operational costs, consolidate departments and reduce energy use -- all in the name of saving money. Already, earning a degree at one of these regional institutions is relatively inexpensive for students, costing in total as much as $15,000 less per year than bigger state universities in Oklahoma. And the schools, including Southeastern Oklahoma State University and the University of Central Oklahoma, graduate more teachers and nurses than those research institutions. Those graduates can fill critically needed roles for the state. Still, state policymakers think there are more efficiencies to be found. Higher education is one of the specific areas targeted by a new state-run agency with a familiar name, with the goal of "protecting our Oklahoma way of life," Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt said in the first DOGE-OK report this spring. Oklahoma is one of about a dozen states that has considered an approach similar to the federal DOGE, though some state attempts were launched before the Trump administration's. The federal Department of Government Efficiency, established the day Trump took office on Jan. 20, has commanded deep cuts to federal spending and the federal workforce, with limited justification. |
| U. of Texas at Austin sued over arrests during 2024 pro-Palestinian protests | |
| Two recent University of Texas at Austin graduates and two current students filed a federal lawsuit against the university over their arrests during an on-campus pro-Palestinian protest in April 2024 Arwyn Heilrayne, Citlalli Soto-Ferate, Iliana Medrano and Mia Cisco are also suing the University of Texas System Board of Regents, former UT-Austin President Jay Hartzell, Gov. Greg Abbott, as well as officers for the UT Police Department and the Texas Department of Public Safety. "These students committed no crimes but endured violent arrests," said Christina Jump with the Muslim Legal Fund of America (MLFA), one of the groups representing the students. "They have scars -- physical and mental -- from their experiences." The four students allege they were unlawfully targeted because they expressed pro-Palestinian views. According to the suit, they all plan to continue their activism in the future but are afraid of additional retaliation. "Texas [officials] want to treat people differently based on their views. The law just simply doesn't allow that," Jump said. "And we're glad to help these students fight back against it." The students are seeking, among other things, a jury trial and for any compensatory damages to be determined during the trial. They are also requesting UT-Austin reverse the disciplinary actions against them. |
| Mizzou alumnus' additional donation transformative for veterinary cancer research | |
 | More than a decade ago the beloved family dog of Cot Fox, a 1971 graduate of the University of Missouri School of Journalism, received cancer treatments at the Mizzou Veterinary Health Center. The drug used on the family pet, Samarium, which also is used in human cancer treatments was developed at Mizzou. The drug helped treat Fox's father-in-law, as well. This led Fox to make his first major gift of $5 million to Mizzou in 2013 and the formation of the Cot and Kay Fox Family Oncology Research Laboratory. Another gift made this week brings Fox's total contribution to more than $10 million to continue advancements in oncology research, support the renovation of the Veterinary Health Center and expand the innovative work of the Research Center for Human-Animal Interaction. "Cot's generosity reflects a belief in the future of veterinary medicine and the role it plays in improving lives," said College of Veterinary Medicine Dean Srinand Sreevatsan, adding research drives discoveries in both animal and human health. "This gift brings us closer to reimagining the Veterinary Health Center to better serve our students, our patients, our research mission and the people of Missouri." |
| U. of Missouri Faculty Council weighs how to address the state of higher education | |
 | On Thursday, the University of Missouri Faculty Council outlined options for how it plans to address concerns regarding recent attacks on higher education. This is based on an invitation to consider joining the Mutual Academic Defense Compact led by the University of Massachusetts-Amherst's Faculty Senate. The MADC is a coalition of faculty councils and senates on behalf of the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities. Key motives for actions included the termination of student visas and freezing of federal grants, according to previous Missourian reporting. The MADC was created on April 10 to defend institutions when "escalating actions by governmental bodies threaten foundational principles of American higher education, including the autonomy of university governance, the integrity of scientific research, and the protection of the freedoms of inquiry, speech, and association," according to a letter from UMass-Amherst to the Faculty Council. MU's Faculty Council chose to halt voting on joining the compact in order to discuss whether it plans to formally address the state of higher education. |
| Indiana Required Colleges to Accept Complaints Against Instructors. Here's How Many They Got. | |
 | Last year, Indiana enacted a law requiring public colleges to set up a complaints system that students could use to report professors who fail to "foster a culture of free inquiry, free expression, and intellectual diversity," among other things. The legislation touched off fears about whether it would, paradoxically, hinder academic freedom and freedom of speech. Some effects are now coming into focus. Less than two dozen complaints were submitted at public, four-year colleges under the law in the six months after it took effect on July 1, according to records obtained by The Chronicle. Ball State University topped the list with 11 complaints. All Indiana University campuses received a total of 9 complaints. Indiana State University received one. The University of Southern Indiana, Vincennes University, and all Purdue University campuses received zero complaints. At Indiana University, the nine complaints described eight unique events at four campuses. Eight complaints were related to political speech in the classroom and one was related to "a failure to consider alternative viewpoints on a non-political matter." Indiana University also reported that 37 "frivolous complaints" were submitted anonymously "as a form of protest." |
| Duke University offers buyouts and signals future layoffs as federal cuts hit | |
| Duke University is offering voluntary buyouts for employees and has frozen hiring as it braces for federal funding cuts, the institution said Wednesday. The North Carolina institution signaled that layoffs were likely in the coming months, but said it is "pursuing several employment actions now in hopes of reducing the scale of involuntary separations later this summer." The moves are in response to federal cuts and policy shifts, which could translate into funding losses for Duke between $500 million and $750 million, university officials said during an internal webinar Wednesday, according to media reports. Historically, much of Duke's research enterprise has been devoted to work on behalf of the government. Federal grant support made up nearly three-quarters of the $1.5 billion in sponsored research funds that Duke received in fiscal 2024, much of it going toward health science. Duke is trying to cut $350 million from its budget, according to reports of the university's presentation, as it grapples with funding gaps under the Trump administration. As it trims down, Duke has paused capital spending on buildings, renovations and other projects that are "not fully funded or deemed essential," the university said Wednesday. |
| Trump says administration will pull Harvard's tax-exempt status | |
| President Donald Trump on Friday said his administration would revoke Harvard University's tax-exempt status, escalating his fight with the nation's oldest institution of higher education. "We are going to be taking away Harvard's Tax Exempt Status," Trump wrote in a social media post. "It's what they deserve!" Harvard, along with many other universities across the country, are exempt from paying taxes because they are included in section 501(c)(3) of U.S. tax code which designates them as nonprofits. Trump's latest post comes as a battle between the prestigious university and his administration continues to spiral. Already, the administration has pulled more than $2 billion in federal funding from the school and is considering pulling $1 billion more in grants. In addition, the IRS is scrutinizing the university's tax-exempt status, and the Department of Homeland Security has threatened to revoke Harvard's ability to enroll international students, who make up about 27 percent of its total enrollment. The Education Department is also probing the university's federal funding. |
| College Access Groups Scramble After AmeriCorps Cuts | |
 | Brianne Dolney-Jacobs has spent the last year advising high school seniors in Bay City, Mich., on their options after graduation. She met with 96 percent of the seniors at least once to talk about college applications, financial aid options, standardized tests and more. In doing so, she helped nearly 30 students access a countywide scholarship, up from under 10 in the previous year. But now, she's one of 32,000 people affected by sweeping cuts to AmeriCorps, a federal agency focused on service and volunteerism across the United States. At least 100 college-access groups, including the Michigan College Access Network, where Dolney-Jacobs works, rely on AmeriCorps funding or members to make the college application process more accessible to high school students, especially those in low-income areas and at schools with low rates of college attendance. The National College Attainment Network, the association for MCAN and other similar organizations, is still taking stock of how many of its members have been impacted, said Elizabeth Morgan, NCAN's chief external relations officer. But damage has been widespread. "I think it's safe to say probably our members that use AmeriCorps are serving hundreds of thousands of students across the country," Morgan said. |
| Education Dept. Moves to Make It Easier for Colleges to Switch Accreditors | |
| The Education Department announced Thursday that it is streamlining the process through which colleges can move from one accreditor to another, even for some colleges that are at risk of losing accreditation from their current accreditor. In a news release, the department also said it is moving forward with accepting and reviewing applications for recognition from new accrediting agencies. The Biden administration had put a hold on considering new accreditors because of staffing constraints. Making it easier to change accreditors and creating new ones is a goal of one of President Trump's recent executive orders, which disparaged accreditors as failing to uphold academic quality and forcing colleges to adopt policies promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion. Both changes are meant to create more of a marketplace for accreditation and spur competition among accrediting agencies that serve as the gatekeepers for more than $100 billion in federal financial aid. Colleges must be accredited by a federally recognized agency in order for their students to receive federal student loans or Pell Grants. |
| Amid DOGE-induced turmoil, National Science Foundation in crisis | |
| From Antarctic research stations to telescopes high in the Andes to research submarines miles below the waves -- and in laboratories and classrooms across the United States -- the fingerprint of the National Science Foundation is vast and consequential. The 75-year-old government agency has one function: keep the U.S. science enterprise at the leading edge. In the past two weeks, however, the $9 billion agency, which exists entirely to fund science researchers, projects and facilities outside its Alexandria, Virginia, headquarters, hit reverse on its main mission. NSF has been forced to cancel more than a thousand active research grants. Funding for new research has slowed to a crawl, as the agency has awarded half the number of grants since President Donald Trump's inauguration compared with the same period in 2024. On top of that, officials are running budget scenarios of drastic cuts for next year. NSF funds basic science research -- the kinds of questions sparked by curiosity that may have no clear application and little interest from corporations or philanthropies, but that can deepen our understanding of nature, spawn new industries and change the world. The first months of Trump's second presidency have been marked by the unraveling of a historic relationship between research institutions and federal government. That partnership, forged in the wake of World War II, has powered American science preeminence. |
| White House Tech Bros Are Killing What Made Them (and America) Wealthy | |
| David Singer, managing partner at Maverick Ventures, a venture capital firm, writes in The New York Times: Basic research conducted by America's universities is crucial to our world-class entrepreneurial culture. How do we know this? Let's take a short tour through the White House. The venture capitalist David Sacks of Craft Ventures runs the White House's Council of Advisers on Science and Technology. Scott Kupor of Andreessen Horowitz is the nominee to run the Office of Personnel Management, and Sriram Krishnan, from the same firm, is a policy adviser on artificial intelligence. They have all successfully financed companies in the digital economy. The infrastructure beneath those businesses -- the foundational internet protocols known as TCP/IP -- was developed in part by the computer scientist Vint Cerf (Stanford University). ... One would think that venture capitalists, especially those with ties to the Trump administration, would be the most forceful champions of America's research universities, given how much these institutions have fueled our careers and fortunes. Instead, many of us are scratching our heads as to why officials from the industry have turned their backs while the government chaotically terminates funding for this work. ... Drawing a causal link between federal investment in basic science research and the rise of the venture capital industry is about as difficult as reading a map. The geographic centers of venture capital and the industries it has spawned overlap precisely with the locations of our great research universities. |
SPORTS
| Softball: Blaine Crushes Walk-Off Homer To Open Rivalry Series Against Ole Miss | |
| After she had struck out with the bases-loaded in fifth inning of a tied game, senior Jessie Blaine launched a two-run walk-off homer in the bottom of the seventh to defeat No. 17 Ole Miss, 3-1, on Thursday night. The Bulldogs (36-15, 12-10 SEC) had tied the game in the fourth inning on an RBI double from Ella Wesolowski after Ole Miss (34-15, 10-12 SEC) had opened the scoring on a solo homer in the top of the frame. State left runners in scoring position in both the fifth and the sixth inning before Blaine's redemptive heroics. "It was a great way to start the series, and we knew it was going to be high emotions and high energy. They are a great team over there and I think it is an evenly matched series and it's always great to start it out with a win. I thought Raelin gave us another quality start and a great outing from her in the circle and just continued to fight and keep us in it. I loved the response from the offense to score right back in the fourth and I think the two plays in the game with Kiarra Sells throwing them out at third base, is a huge momentum shift that probably keeps one off the board and then it allows Jessie to come up and be the hero with the big homerun to end it for us." The series continues on Friday as part of Mississippi State's annual Super Bulldog Weekend. First pitch has been moved to 11 a.m. CT by mutual agreement of the two teams in light of the most-recent weather forecasts. |
| Baseball: State Set For Super Bulldog Weekend Showdown | |
| Mississippi State's annual spring homecoming, Super Bulldog Weekend, will be headlined by an SEC baseball series between the Diamond Dawgs and Kentucky. The three-game series gets underway on Friday at 6 p.m. followed by a Saturday first pitch at 2 p.m. Sunday's finale is slated to begin at noon. The first two games of the series will be streamed on SEC Network+ and the final contest is airing on SEC Network. MSU will send its ace Pico Kohn to the mound to begin the series on Friday. The junior left-hander is 4-2 with a 3.82 earned run average, 89 strikeouts and only 15 walks in 61 1/3 innings this season. Kohn ranks fifth in the conference in punchouts while holding opposing hitters to a .219 batting average. The Wildcats will counter on Friday with freshman right-hander Nate Harris, who will be making his 10th start of the season. Harris is 4-2 with a 4.32 ERA, 31 strikeouts and 15 walks in 41 2/3 innings. New interim head coach Justin Parker, who also still serves as the Bulldogs' pitching coach, will also keep the rest of his weekend rotation intact. Junior right-hander Evan Siary (1-1, 4.09 ERA, 37 K, 11 BB) is scheduled to start on Saturday while senior righty Karson Ligon (4-5, 7.03 ERA, 48 K, 17 BB) gets the nod on Sunday. Mississippi State leads the all-time series against the Wildcats 65-44 and swept Kentucky during its last visit to Dudy Noble Field in 2021. |
| What to watch, keys to victory for Mississippi State baseball against Kentucky | |
 | The final three-week sprint to the end of the regular season begins this weekend, and Mississippi State will need to find another gear under interim head coach Justin Parker to return to the NCAA Tournament. In the visitors' dugout at Dudy Noble Field will be an old friend and potential future bench boss for the Bulldogs. MSU hosts Kentucky for a three-game series beginning Friday evening, and Wildcats head coach Nick Mingione was a longtime assistant with the Bulldogs from 2009 through 2016 under John Cohen. After winning 22 games in Southeastern Conference play and reaching the Men's College World Series for the first time ever last year, Kentucky (25-17, 10-11 SEC) has regressed to the middle of the pack. The Wildcats have a few questionable losses to non-power conference teams, most recently a 6-4 defeat at Western Kentucky on Tuesday night. But Kentucky also won a series at then-No. 2 Tennessee and took a marathon middle game against Texas. "You know they're going to play high tempo. You know they're going to run. You know they're going to do the short game," Parker said. "They're going to exploit a lot of your weaknesses defensively." |
| Men's Tennis: No. 12 Mississippi State Set To Host Privateers in NCAA First Round | |
| For the third consecutive season and fifth time since 2018, No. 12 Mississippi State is set to host the first and second rounds of the NCAA Championships on its home courts. The top-seeded Bulldogs (22-5) will take on the fourth-seeded New Orleans Privateers (15-7) on Friday at 1 p.m. at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Center. The Michigan State Spartans (16-9), ranked 22nd nationally and the second seed, will face the three-seeded and No. 68 ranked North Alabama Lions (19-3) to start off postseason play at 10 a.m. The winner of Friday's matches moves on to the second round set for Saturday at 1 p.m. at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre. In the case of inclement weather, matches will be moved inside the adjacent Rula Tennis Pavilion. |
| Track & Field: Freshman Record Falls On Day One | |
| Mississippi State track and field concluded the first day of the Maroon and White Tune Up with two event wins and a new freshman record. While the day was low on events, it was not short on strong performances from the Bulldogs. The day began in the women's hammer, with Marie Rougetet winning the event by over 15 meters. Rougetet threw a solid 63.42m to solidify her sweep in the hammer for the home meets this season. Caleb Kaplan took down the freshman record in the hammer with a personal best of 59.87m. His fourth-round attempt secured him second place and moved him to No. 3 on the MSU all-time performance list in the event. The sole running event of the day took place in the women's 5000m. Louise Stonham made her outdoor debut in the distance in a big way, winning the race with 16:57.69. Senior Madison Jones finished closely behind, earning a personal best of 17:01.65. |
| Tommy Tuberville blames Democrats for NIL mess, meets with President Trump and Nick Saban | |
 | As the issue of name, image, and likeness makes its way to a possible conclusion and regulation in the world of college athletes, the United States government is getting involved as the courts continue to sort out the issue. Alabama Republican Senator Tommy Tuberville and former Alabama coach Nick Saban met with President Donald Trump to discuss possible NIL reform measures before Trump was set to deliver the commencement address at the University of Alabama. Before that meeting, Tuberville spent his time in a radio interview 100.9's "The Game with Ryan Fowler on Wednesday playing the blame game, aimed explicitly at Democrats. "I think we can get it on the floor, the problem is getting it past a Democrat group that really wants nothing to do with making this country better. They don't care about college sports or education, they worry about the power that they control in this country. It's a hard way to go, but if anybody can get it done, it's President Trump, and hopefully we can have some discussion to get on the right track toward helping the NIL and college sports," Tuberville said. |
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