| Tuesday, August 5, 2025 |
| Community Profile: Anthony uses 'heart of a teacher' to update state history textbook | |
 | By his own admission, Kenneth Anthony is not a historian, so when he was chosen to update the Mississippi history textbook the state's junior high and high school students are using this year, it may have seemed an odd choice. "I've never claimed to be a historian," said Anthony, 53. "I see myself as a teacher." Anthony is the head of Mississippi State University's Department of Teacher Education and Leadership, a background he said was particularly helpful as he accepted the challenge of updating the state's Mississippi history textbook. "I have the heart of a teacher, and I think that was helpful as I worked on the project," Anthony said. "With textbooks, you are writing for a classroom, and a teacher's perspective is important. You're writing for a standard that is not necessarily the same as writing for the general public. It's a distilling of all the stuff to determine what is the critical information we want students to know about the past." Two years ago, Claremont Press decided it was time to revise and update its current Mississippi History textbook, David Sansing's 2013 textbook, "A Place Called Mississippi." "I had a colleague that had worked with Claremont Press who suggested me for the project," Anthony said. |
| MSU Forensic Unit is helping solve missing persons cases | |
 | According to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System, at any given time 100,000 people may be reported missing in the U.S. That number has been as high as 600,000 reported in a year. "It is a big number." said Dr. Jesse Goliath, Assistant Professor of Biological Anthropology. "We call it the silent crisis or the silent epidemic that missing people throughout the country are going missing, and we do not know how long they have been missing for, and they sadly maybe victims of human trafficking and other criminal activity." The MSU Forensic Unit uses a variety of tools to help work these cases. "What we are trying to do is find resolution." said Goliath. "We do not call it closure because that is someone's missing loved one and they will never have that final goodbye, but we are trying to alleviate their pain and try to bring some type of resolution to their families." This Spring, MSU President Mark Keenum and the Mississippi Department of Public Safety Commissioner formed a partnership to work on forensic investigations. "The Cobb Institute fulfills the same mission as the University as a whole, which is to help the state, and to help solve problems for the state." said Goliath. "Archaeology and using our expertise in helping to find remains and finding individuals who go missing is just a part of that aspect." |
| Jacob Dykes named MSU Extension wildlife specialist | |
| According to Mississippi State University's press release, the Mississippi State University Extension Service named Jacob Dykes the new wildlife specialist and co-director of the MSU Deer Lab. Dykes specializes in white-tailed deer and has held a similar position at Texas A&M University since 2022. He was appointed to the MSU position in March, replacing Bronson Strickland, who retired on June 30, 2025, after serving in that position for several years. "As an Extension wildlife specialist, my goal is to bridge the gap between wildlife research and management," Dykes said. "I work directly with landowners, land managers, hunters, and the public to ensure they have the latest science-based information to implement practices on their properties that benefit wildlife." Dykes earned both his bachelor's and master's degrees in wildlife, fisheries, and aquaculture at MSU. He worked at the U.S. Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services National Training Academy at MSU before moving to Texas to work on his Ph.D. at Texas A&M University-Kingsville and the Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute. |
| Will Mississippi seafood labelling law work? Research suggests no | |
 | Though some state leaders expect the seafood labeling law to positively impact Mississippi, the current agricultural landscape and numerous lines of research suggest otherwise. Starting July 1, all seafood and crawfish sold in Mississippi must be clearly labeled as imported or domestic. Leaders like Mississippi Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce Andy Gipson (R-Miss.) recently asserted that the new legislation would strengthen the state's agricultural economy and influence Mississippians' buying habits. However, market realities and research assert the contrary. According to the Mississippi State University Extension Service, Mississippi's agriculture industry production value was approximately $9 billion in 2024. Mississippi leads the nation in catfish production, generating 65% of the U.S. supply, but catfish acreage has decreased more than 70% over the last two decades. Additionally, it made up less than 2.4% of the entire economic impact of agriculture that year. Mississippi's crawfish industry is extremely small. It is mainly due to the state's existing catfish industry, the proximity of Louisiana's large crawfish industry and a significantly smaller demand among Mississippians. As a result, it is unclear how the new labelling law will change consumer interest in crawfish statewide. Additionally, research regarding labelling shows that implementing labels to influence the type of food you buy may not be effective. |
| When it comes to finance, 'normal' data is actually pretty weird | |
 | Mississippi State University's Brian Blank and a colleague write for The Conversation: When business researchers analyze data, they often rely on assumptions to help make sense of what they find. But like anyone else, they can run into a whole lot of trouble if those assumptions turn out to be wrong -- which may happen more often than they realize. That's what we found in a recent study looking at financial data from about a thousand major U.S. companies. One of the most common assumptions in data analysis is that the numbers will follow a normal distribution -- a central concept in statistics often known as the bell curve. If you've ever looked at a chart of people's heights, you've seen this curve: Most people cluster near the middle, with fewer at the extremes. It's symmetrical and predictable, and it's often taken for granted in research. But what happens when real-world data doesn't follow that neat curve? We are professors who study business, and in our new study we looked at financial data from public U.S. companies -- things like firm market value, market share, total assets and similar financial measures and ratios. Researchers often analyze this kind of data to understand how companies work and make decisions. |
| Morning shuttle available for Henderson carpool students during road construction | |
| To help parents avoid the construction-related traffic on Highway 182, Starkville-Oktibbeha Consolidated School District has launched a morning shuttle for Henderson Ward Stewart carpoolers. The temporary shuttle will leave from Bridgeway Church on North Jackson Street each day at 7:30 a.m. as the city continues construction to revitalize a one-mile stretch of the highway, which includes Henderson Ward Stewart. District Communications Director Haley Montgomery said about 55 students took advantage of the shuttle during its first run on Monday. "We got some good feedback from parents who were coming through the line that it shortened their trip (Monday), and (for) some of them, allowed them to get to work on time," Montgomery told The Dispatch. "A lot of the kids seemed pretty excited to ride the bus because they are normally car riders, ... so they thought that was a super cool thing." The temporary shuttle is specifically for Henderson Ward Stewart who typically carpool. Two buses will be at the Bridgeway parking lot each morning from 6:50 to 7:30 a.m. to carry the students to school. The shuttle will not be available after 7:30 a.m. or for afternoon carpool. |
| SHERMAN MILLER: President/CEO of Cal-Maine Foods -- Guiding the nation's largest producer and marketer of shell eggs | |
| Founded in 1957 and headquartered in Ridgeland, Mississippi, Cal-Maine Foods, Inc. states that it's mission as a company is to be "the most sustainable producer and reliable supplier of consistent, high quality fresh shell eggs and egg products in the country by demonstrating a 'Culture of Sustainability' in everything we do, and creating value for our shareholders, customers, team members and communities." Cal-Maine sells the majority of its shell eggs in the southwestern, southeastern, mid-western and mid-Atlantic regions of the U.S. and aims to maintain efficient, state-of-the-art operations located close to its' customers. Overseeing this incredible Mississippi success story is Sherman Miller, who was named President and Chief Executive Officer of Cal-Maine in 2022. Miller is a widely- recognized animal protein industry expert across the nation and brings extensive experience in attracting and retaining the talent base necessary to support the Cal-Maine's strategy of growing by acquisition and integration, in addition to organic growth. Beyond his work as President and CEO of Cal-Maine, Miller's current and prior board service includes contributions to the United Egg Producers, the U.S. Poultry and Egg Association and the Mississippi State University Poultry Science Advisory Board, among others. He earned his B.S. in Poultry Science from Mississippi State University, where he currently serves as the Distinguished Fellow for the Department of Poultry Science. |
| MDOT working on several projects in Lauderdale and Neshoba counties | |
 | MDOT is currently doing a lot of work in the eastern part of the state. Transportation Commissioner Willie Simmons announced several projects in Lauderdale and Neshoba counties at the Neshoba County Fair. "We are excited about what's going on in the central part of the state, and especially on the eastern part, because the eastern part of the state of Mississippi seems to be a good area to grow industry and business and business community, but they're not going to come if you don't build it," said Commissioner Simmons. MDOT will return to pave a five-mile stretch on Highway 145 in Lauderdale County. Mississippi will have six bridges total coming to Highway 80. They will be completing the four-lane highway from Meridian to Philadelphia next year. There's also a project on Highway 80 and Highway 11 that will improve infrastructure for the surrounding areas. "That project is going to do great things for the Industrial Park, which is where Southern Pipe is located. And in addition to that, the new data center is coming, so they're gonna need new infrastructure, and we have committed to put money into that project to bring it up and widen it so that we can get the 18-wheelers in and out of it," said Commissioner Simmons. |
| Mississippi rocket motor facility open | |
 | Anduril Rocket Motor Systems has officially opened its full-rate solid rocket motor facility in McHenry, Mississippi in Stone County, the company announced on Aug. 5. This comes 18 months after ground was broken in January of 2024. The new site is expected to reach annual production of around 6,000 tactical SRMs by the end of 2026, Anduril said. Anduril's original facility at McHenry will focus on low-rate production and advanced research and development, prototyping new designs, testing novel materials, and refining manufacturing processes, the blog post added. The company highlighted two successful Standard Missile live-fire tests for the U.S. Navy in April 2025 following what it called "rapid and iterative design phase that positions Anduril to quickly transition to full-scale production." Rising geopolitical tensions -- including the Russia-Ukraine war and ongoing conflicts in the Middle East -- have fueled a global surge in demand for munitions, prompting militaries to replenish and expand their stockpiles, according to Reuters. Until now, only L3Harris Technologies and Northrop Grumman have manufactured SRMs at scale in the U.S. |
| Mississippi revenues exceed estimates to start new fiscal year | |
| One month into the new fiscal year, Mississippi's revenues outpaced estimates by $16.9 million. The Mississippi Legislative Budget Office released its July revenue report on Tuesday showing the state collected 2.95 percent above the legislative estimate for the month. July's collections were $9,402,762, 1.62 percent above the prior year's collections. Leading the revenue gains were sales tax collections, which were $8.7 million above the prior year. Individual income tax collections for the month of July were also above the prior year by $8.2 million. However, corporate income tax collections for the month were down slightly, coming in below the prior year by $400,000. The total Fiscal Year 2026 Sine Die Revenue Estimate for this new budget year is $7,627,000,000. Also of note in the LBO's July report was the total revenue collections for the previous fiscal year which ended on June 30. For FY 2025, Mississippi collected $7,642,409,141 -- an estimated excess of $567.6 million, including reappropriations, over the total General Fund appropriations for the year which were $7,085,211,784. |
| Coastal Mississippi property owners face sharp insurance hike in 2026 | |
| Mississippi coastal property owners are set to see a 16% increase in windpool insurance rates beginning Jan. 1, 2026, according to Insurance Commissioner Mike Chaney. The hike comes amid legislative changes affecting the Mississippi Windstorm Underwriting Association, also known as the windpool. Speaking at the Neshoba County Fair, Chaney contrasted the upcoming property rate increase with a decline in auto insurance costs observed statewide since 2024. He reported that more than 1.1 million Mississippi drivers have received reductions in auto insurance premiums ranging from 1% to 7%. "We've got another filing that came in Monday for another 120,000 that will be cut 3.8%," Chaney said in a report from AM Best. "I will approve that one. I can guarantee you that." He attributed the downward trend in auto rates to increased market competition. In contrast, the coastal property insurance market is facing higher costs. Chaney said the state has directed over $400 million since 2005 toward subsidizing Gulf Coast rates by purchasing reinsurance, a strategy he described as unsustainable. He noted that a new model is being implemented to address the long-term viability of the windpool. |
| Trump's Texas Gambit Ignites Nationwide Battle for House Control | |
 | President Trump's high-stakes push to create more Republican House seats and keep the majority from flipping to Democrats has erupted into a cross-country fight, prompting the exodus of Democratic state lawmakers from Texas and leading blue-state governors to hatch their own plans. Both parties are now racing to remake congressional lines in a slew of mid-decade redistrictings, breaking with traditional once-a-decade changes and injecting further uncertainty into what is expected to be a down-to-the-wire fight for control of the House in 2026. Texas is at the center of GOP gerrymander efforts after Trump successfully lobbied Republican Gov. Greg Abbott to call a special session to redraw the lines of the Lone Star State. While some Texas Republicans initially signaled they were reluctant to consider the idea of even two additional seats, Trump persuaded Abbott to go for a Hail Mary approach by attempting to win five more. Trump and his allies are looking at other states as well, including Ohio, Florida, Indiana and Missouri, to squeeze out more seats. Democrats are vowing to retaliate by potentially reshuffling lines in Democratic-run states such as California, New York and Illinois. Trump has a lot at risk if Democrats win back the House. A GOP loss would all but ensure expansive congressional oversight investigations by Democrats in the final two years of his administration and bring to a screeching halt any action on his legislative priorities. |
| In rejecting the jobs report, Trump follows his own playbook of discrediting unfavorable data | |
 | When the coronavirus surged during President Donald Trump's first term, he called for a simple fix: Limit the amount of testing so the deadly outbreak looked less severe. When he lost the 2020 election, he had a ready-made reason: The vote count was fraudulent. And on Friday, when the July jobs report revisions showed a distressed economy, Trump had an answer: He fired the official in charge of the data and called the report of a sharp slowdown in hiring "phony." Trump has a go-to playbook if the numbers reveal uncomfortable realities, and that's to discredit or conceal the figures and to attack the messenger -- all of which can hurt the president's efforts to convince the world that America is getting stronger. "Our democratic system and the strength of our private economy depend on the honest flow of information about our economy, our government and our society," said Douglas Elmendorf, a Harvard University professor who was formerly director of the Congressional Budget Office. "The Trump administration is trying to suppress honest analysis." Trump has a long history of dismissing data when it reflects poorly on him and extolling or even fabricating more favorable numbers, a pattern that includes his net worth, his family business, election results and government figures. |
| Trump and Schumer couldn't clinch a deal. Now a shutdown hangs in the balance. | |
 | Donald Trump and Chuck Schumer went head-to-head last week for the first time in nearly six months. Turns out they were only shadow-boxing -- and the real bout is still to come. The president pulled the plug on a possible deal to confirm some administration nominees, while the Senate's top Democrat -- under pressure from his party to take a tougher stand -- boasted afterward that Trump came away with nothing. Now, the two men are headed toward a fall rematch with much higher stakes: whether to keep the federal government open past a Sept. 30 funding deadline. Despite decades of history between them, their relationship is now almost nonexistent. They haven't had a formal one-on-one meeting since Trump's second inauguration. And they did not speak directly as part of the nominations negotiations, according to two people granted anonymity to discuss private details. The unraveling of a typical pre-summer-recess nominations deal has many on Capitol Hill concerned about what is to come. While other congressional leaders are sure to figure into the negotiations, it's Schumer -- who will determine whether Senate Democrats filibuster spending legislation -- and Trump -- who has to sign any shutdown-averting bill -- who will be the key players. "It would be better if those two negotiated," Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) said of Trump and Schumer. |
| Louisiana redistricting case could change the rules nationwide | |
 | The Supreme Court set the stage for a potential earthquake in redistricting across the country in its next term after setting new rules for a court fight over Louisiana's congressional map. The order Friday, which set the legal question for the state and map challengers to answer, comes after years of litigation around the Voting Rights Act, which requires states to provide minority communities with an opportunity to elect the candidates of their choice, and the Constitution's ban on racial discrimination. The court fight could result in yet another map for Louisiana and change the rules for redistricting nationwide. The justices asked the state and two sets of challengers to argue over "Whether the State's intentional creation of a second majority-minority congressional district violates the Fourteenth or Fifteenth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution." Friday's order starts the briefing for the court fight's second trip through oral arguments. During the last term, the justices heard arguments in a narrower version of the case before opting not to decide the issue in June. Justin Levitt, a law professor at Loyola Marymount University who served as the White House senior policy adviser for democracy and voting rights, said the Supreme Court could use the case to drastically alter how the courts consider race in redistricting. |
| Young adults are less likely to follow politics or say voting is important: AP-NORC poll | |
| Mairekk Griffiths, a 26-year-old cook in a Denver suburb, doesn't think he'll ever pay a lot of attention to U.S. politics unless radical change happens. "If another party was likely to win, I'd be interested in that," said Griffiths, who voted for Democrat Kamala Harris in last year's presidential race but, like many his age, does not see voting as that valuable. "I can't say either way that voting matters," Griffiths said. "It's just picking the least bad option. That's what I remember my whole life -- both sides are bad, but this side is less bad." Young people such as Griffiths are less engaged with U.S. politics than older Americans and less likely to say voting is important, according to a new poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. Young people -- even those who follow politics closely -- are less likely to say issues such as the economy, government spending and health care are "extremely important" to them than comparable older adults. The findings point to a broad sense of disillusionment among younger people about the country's political system -- even if, like Griffiths, they still end up casting a ballot. Alberto Medina, who leads the Center for Information and Research on Civic Engagement at Tufts University, which studies youth and politics, noted that turnout among young people hit record levels in the 2020 election and was high last year. |
| Ole Miss to Host 4th Annual Family Business Symposium | |
| Early registration is now open for the University of Mississippi's 4th Annual "It's All Relative" Family Business Symposium, scheduled for September 16–17. This year's event will be held at the Sheraton Flowood Refuge Hotel & Conference Center in Flowood. Hosted by the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE) on the Ole Miss campus, the event offers family-owned Mississippi businesses, leaders, and employees a unique opportunity to gather, learn, and network around issues vital to their long-term success. The symposium's theme will be centered on the critical theme of generational succession and ownership transfer. "This year, we are focusing on generational succession and continuity for your family business," said Dr. Clay Dibrell, Co-Director of the CIE. "The goal of the symposium is to provide a foundation for all Mississippi family businesses to become more successful by learning cutting edge best practices. I want to stress that this event is for people statewide---it is not just an Ole Miss event." The two-day event features keynote presentations from notable Mississippi business leaders, James and Thomas Duff, co-founders of Duff Capital Investors, and Jonathan Jones, CEO of Jones Capital. |
| Student housing development breaks ground near Ole Miss | |
| Development Ventures Group and Kayne Anderson Real Estate have broken ground on a new 755-bed student housing project less than half a mile from the University of Mississippi campus. The 243-unit development, located on Anderson Road, will include cottages, townhomes, and flats, with completion expected by summer 2027. The 370,000-square-foot complex will offer fully furnished 1- to 4-bedroom units and a variety of amenities, including a resort-style pool, beach volleyball and pickleball courts, indoor and outdoor fitness areas, sauna and cold plunge, lounges, study areas, a multi-sport simulator, and a yoga/spin studio. The site will also feature a food truck court and a 3,000-square-foot event venue. This marks the first large-scale student housing project built within a mile of the Ole Miss campus since 2018. |
| USM announces TEDx Southern Miss speaker lineup | |
 | The University of Southern Mississippi's School of Leadership has announced the featured speaker lineup for TEDx Southern Miss, set for Oct. 30, from 1-5 p.m. at the Fleming Education Center Auditorium on the Gulf Park campus in Long Beach. This highly-anticipated event will spotlight innovation, leadership and strategies for addressing critical issues related to coastal environments and the blue economy. Speakers will explore topics ranging from workforce and economic development to maritime science and community resilience. Jacob Breland, director of the School of Leadership, emphasized the significance of the event for the region. "We are thrilled to introduce our lineup of TEDx Southern Miss speakers, who will serve as the inaugural voices of the very first TEDx event on the Mississippi Gulf Coast," said Breland. Due to TEDx licensing restrictions, only 100 seats are available for in-person attendance. To ensure a fair process, the School of Leadership will use a lottery-based ticket selection. Individuals will be randomly selected from the submitted entries on Monday, Sept. 8. Selected participants will be notified by email and given a link to purchase one ticket. The cost to attend is $100. |
| Mississippi College, VA Hospital partner for counseling services | |
| The G.V. (Sonny) Montgomery VA Medical Center in Jackson is looking to expand their care with a new partnership with Mississippi College. Officials with Mississippi College (MC) announced their partnership with the VA Medical Center. This partnership will allow qualified students at the university to gain clinical experience by providing counseling services to veteran patients at the facility. A Memorandum of Understanding between the two institutions developed a mutually beneficial arrangement by establishing the Jackson VA as a "placement site" for MC counseling students. "This initiative provides a great opportunity for our students to serve veterans in a meaningful way right here in Mississippi," said Keith Randazzo, MC assistant provost for academic innovation. Through this partnership, MC agreed to send students in the clinical training portion of the university's counseling program to the VA to help provide counseling services directly to veterans. Students in the clinicals are required to accrue a certain number of hours for their clinical training. This partnership can help these students to acquire the necessary hours for their degree while also gaining vital work experience. |
| Senate bill advances, includes $305,000 for telehealth-based mental health at Copiah-Lincoln Community College | |
 | Funding for Copiah-Lincoln Community College for telehealth is among the recommendations approved by the Senate Labor-HHS Appropriations Subcommittee in the FY2026 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education Appropriations Bill. U.S. Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Miss.), of Brookhaven, serves on the subcommittee that developed the FY2026 funding measure, which was approved Thursday by the Senate Appropriations Committee. The measure, approved 26-3, is now available for consideration by the full Senate. "Mississippi is making remarkable progress in improving health outcomes, educational achievements, and job growth, but there is always room to do more. I've worked to direct federal resources to projects in this bill that can help our state do better on all those fronts," Hyde-Smith said. "Committee approval is an important step toward getting this bill and these projects over the finish line." As chair of the Senate Pro-Life Caucus, Hyde-Smith has promoted legislation to support expecting families, and some of the projects she supported in the appropriations bill reflect that priority. The Senator has also demonstrated the same interest in helping the state improve educational and job training opportunities, whether they are focused on agricultural aviation, nurse training, or coding. |
| Teens are turning to AI for friendship, advice and emotional support | |
| No question is too small when Kayla Chege, a high school student in Kansas, is using artificial intelligence. The 15-year-old asks ChatGPT for guidance on back-to-school shopping, makeup colors, plus ideas for her Sweet 16 and her younger sister's birthday party. The sophomore honors student makes a point not to have chatbots do her homework and tries to limit her interactions to mundane questions. But in interviews with the Associated Press and a new study, teenagers say they are increasingly interacting with AI as if it were a companion, capable of providing advice and friendship. "Everyone uses AI for everything now. It's really taking over," said Chege, who wonders how AI tools will affect her generation. "I think kids use AI to get out of thinking." For the last couple of years, concerns about cheating at school have dominated the conversation around kids and AI. But artificial intelligence is playing a much larger role in many of their lives, becoming a go-to source for personal advice, emotional support, everyday decision-making and problem-solving. As the technology rapidly gets more sophisticated, teenagers and experts worry about AI's potential to redefine human relationships and exacerbate crises of loneliness and youth mental health. "AI is always available. It never gets bored with you. It's never judgmental," says Ganesh Nair, an 18-year-old in Arkansas. "When you're talking to AI, you are always right. You're always interesting. You are always emotionally justified." |
| Teen suicide is on the decline, new federal data shows | |
 | A new federal report finds that the percentage of adults with suicidal thoughts and attempts remained about the same between 2021 and 2024. But the analysis of the National Survey on Drug Use and Health did offer some good news: Over that same time period, depression and suicidal thoughts and behaviors in teens declined. "I think it's very promising, and we're very hopeful about it," says Jill Harkavy-Friedman, senior vice president of research at the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. This is the first annual report released by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services since the entire team of scientists in charge of the survey was fired this year by the Trump administration. The federal government has been doing this annual survey for decades. It currently interviews over 70,000 people 12 years and older in households across the United States. The new report shows that the prevalence of serious suicidal thoughts in 12-to-17-year-olds fell from nearly 13% in 2021 to 10% in 2024. And the prevalence of suicide attempts by teens also fell slightly -- from 3.6% to 2.7%. Suicide is complex and influenced by a whole host of risk factors, including untreated mental illness, prolonged stress, isolation and access to lethal means such as firearms and medications. The new report doesn't delve into the potential causes for the improvement in teens in recent years. But one reason might be that more teens are opening up to others about their suicidal thoughts, says Harkavy-Friedman. |
| 'You are college-ready': Direct admissions comes to Alabama | |
| This fall, an Alabama initiative will begin offering interested high school students direct admissions to 16 of the state's four-year institutions and 23 of its community colleges based on their transcripts. Under the newly announced Alabama Direct Admission Initiative, high school seniors must upload their transcripts to an online portal to receive automatic admissions offers. The process will neither charge students application fees nor require them to upload additional materials like essays or recommendation letters. States have increasingly turned to direct admissions as a way to reach out to students who may not have considered higher education or don't view themselves as college material. In a Thursday statement, Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey called the initiative "a smart, student-centered solution" that demonstrates the state's focus on educational opportunities and workforce readiness. Alabama Possible, a nonprofit that's focused on educational attainment and economic opportunity in the state, is leading the direct admissions initiative in partnership with the Alabama Department of Education and the state community college system. The student-college matching software, Appily Match, is a product of education company EAB. |
| When the Legislature Kills Your Department | |
 | Sweeping reviews of whether to keep or ditch smaller academic programs have become a staple of college operations in the last decade thanks to mounting financial pressures. But they've always been initiated by leaders at the campus, or maybe at the system, level as a reaction to strained budgets or a perceived need to shake up curricula. And they have always been deeply unpopular with many professors, who bear the brunt of their impact. This spring, a handful of states -- Indiana, Ohio, and Utah -- have written academic-program reviews into law for the first time, making them mandatory for public colleges statewide. This goes against decades of institutional policy and practice at most colleges, where professors have played the key role in developing, approving, and maintaining curricula. For some lawmakers and proponents of the program-review laws, it's a matter of simple math. Public-college systems in many states were built to accommodate the enrollment bonanza of the Baby Boom and its wake and now serve populations with a waning number of traditional-age students. Meanwhile, state budgets remain snug almost everywhere. What is certain is that some elected officials have reached the end of their patience with higher education. |
| U. of Kentucky closes office created after elimination of DEI unit last year | |
 | The University of Kentucky is closing an office created last year after it eliminated its Office for Institutional Diversity, President Eli Capilouto said. The Office of Community Relations was created in August 2024 when the university dissolved the Office for Institutional Diversity in the wake of bills targeting diversity, equity and inclusion on college campuses. Though no bills banning DEI were passed in 2024, House Bill 4 was passed in the 2025 legislative session, requiring all public universities and the Kentucky Community and Technical College System to dismantle and defund all DEI initiatives. UK spokesperson Jay Blanton said Monday the Office of Community Relations had been disbanded, about one year after its creation. Units within that office will be reassigned across campus and Katrice Albert, who was the vice president for community relations, will move into a university adviser role working with Capilouto, the president said in a statement Friday. The move is part of a "closer review of how we better integrate services and functions across campus," which will occur over the next 18 months, Capilouto said. |
| U. of Oklahoma students present research on 'The Great Gatsby' at international conference | |
| University of Oklahoma students presented original literacy research in New York City this summer during a conference commemorating the 100th anniversary of the popular novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald, according to a press release. The international conference, "New York, New Perspectives, and The Great Gatsby," was hosted by F. Scott Fitzgerald Society and featured more than 300 scholars, writers and educators from around the world who came together to examine the impact of the 1925 novel "The Great Gatsby." This year's conference offered undergraduate students the chance to present research along with graduate students and professional scholars, including OU students Joe Carlson, Savannah Flynn and Autumn Furr and former student Nixon Gorka. The group presented on the "Repeating the Past in the Public Domain: Re-Teaching The Great Gatsby after 2021" panel, which was lead by Catherine Mintler. Mintler used to be an OU Expository Writing Program faculty member and now works with the OU Honors College, according to a press release. The four students received a $500 travel fellowship from the Fitzgerald Society and the OU Honors College students received additional funding from the college's student travel program. |
| A 'Nightmare': Alums and Retirees Say the Loss of Their College Inboxes Feels Personal | |
| When Russell Bryant was given his @temple.edu email address as a freshman in 2010, administrators assured him that he would have the account for life. So after graduation, he used the email for all sorts of things: Apple Pay, Spotify, his electricity bills, and more. Then, late last year, Temple University said that it would discontinue university email access for all alumni who had graduated more than a year before. "I was really just taken aback," said Bryant. Bryant, now a real-estate lawyer, decided to take his alma mater to court. "I've been using it for over 15 years, and the email address is tied to so many different (things)," he said. "... It's really a significant part of my everyday life." This past year, several other colleges, including Vanderbilt and Wright State Universities, have also terminated the email accounts of thousands of alumni and retirees in response to cyberthreats and changes in Google's storage policies. For administrators, maintaining thousands of alumni and retiree email accounts is costly and poses a high risk with little return, since so few people actually use the accounts. The number of ransomware attacks has skyrocketed in higher education since Covid-19, when colleges increased their reliance on remote work. One of the primary culprits is email. Ed Hudson, the vice chancellor of information technology at the University of Kansas, said it's become more and more difficult to fend off email hacks as the number of alumni and retirees grows. |
| International Student Enrollment Could Drop 15% This Fall | |
 | New international enrollments in the U.S. could drop by as many as 150,000 students in the next year, according to scenario modeling by NAFSA, the association of international educators, and JB International. Based on a 30 to 40 percent decline in new students, the research projects that colleges and universities could see a 15 percent drop in overall international student enrollments in the next academic year, resulting in $7 billion in lost revenue and 60,000 fewer jobs. "This analysis ... should serve as a clarion call to the State Department that it must act to ensure international students and scholars are able to arrive on U.S. campuses this fall," said Fanta Aw, executive director and CEO of NAFSA, in a press release. "For the United States to succeed in the global economy, we must keep our doors open to students from around the world." NAFSA attributes the projected decline to recent changes to international student visa processing under the Trump administration. The State Department paused student visa interviews between May 27 and June 18, during peak issuance season, and then implemented vetting protocols for students' social media accounts, which may have impeded some students' ability to receive a visa. NAFSA member institutions have also reported there are limited or no appointments available for their international students in China, India, Japan and Nigeria, which are among the top countries of origin for international students studying in the U.S. |
| How the Economic Case for International Students Lost Steam | |
| With widespread delays holding up tens of thousands of foreign students worldwide from getting their visas, the "U.S. economy could suffer a loss of $7 billion," a higher-education group warned recently. A precipitous drop in international enrollments wouldn't just be bad for colleges, it would be a blow to the larger economy, NAFSA: Association of International Educators admonished. Not only would tuition not be paid, plane tickets wouldn't be booked, apartments wouldn't be rented, and dorm-room refrigerators wouldn't be stocked. Across the country, 60,000 jobs could be lost. Arguments that emphasize the economic impact of international students are intended to resonate beyond campuses. What's more, they would appear tailor-made for the country's businessman-in-chief, who has prioritized cutting government costs and spurring economic growth. Yet such messaging seems to be falling on deaf ears. To the sector's dismay, the broader public also appears unmoved by what has long been a winning case. The arguments for enrolling international students may be falling out of vogue, while the arguments against it grow in popularity. In an America First moment, the politics of immigration seem to trump the economics of overseas tuition. And among Americans skeptical, or even hostile, to higher education -- well, they just might not be willing to buy colleges' reasoning. |
| How Trump's War on Higher Education Is Hitting Community Colleges | |
 | On a recent Monday evening in Michigan, about 40 miles north of Flint, a group of community-college students built and rebuilt hydraulic circuits. The 14 men in the night class -- they were all men, most of them bearded and baseball-capped, still in their boots and uniforms from their factory jobs earlier that day -- worked in pairs at specialized training boards. The students were early-career skilled laborers at some of the area's largest employers, at Dow, Nexteer Automotive, Hemlock Semiconductor. These companies needed to develop and retain a skilled work force, so they paid employees to take this class and ones like it, at a community college called Delta just outside Saginaw. "When they get finished, they'll get promoted," the instructor, Robert Luna Jr., who also installed and repaired machinery as a millwright at Dow. Since January, the Trump administration has waged war on the nation's wealthiest and most prestigious universities, freezing billions of dollars in research grants to Harvard and blasting away at Columbia's institutional autonomy. But collateral damage from these attacks has engulfed schools of all types, including the country's 1,100 community colleges, which educate about 6.4 million undergraduates each year -- roughly 40 percent of the national total and more than twice as many as are enrolled at every highly selective college and university in the country combined. |
| Under Secretary Nicholas Kent Sets Priorities for Higher Ed | |
| Nicholas Kent, a career higher education policy expert and now the Department of Education's under secretary, has made his priorities for American colleges and universities clear -- controlling student debt, building public trust and ensuring students experience a positive return on investment. "If colleges and other postsecondary institutions merit taxpayer investment, it is because they equip American citizens with the skills and knowledge needed to thrive in this rapidly-evolving economy," he said in his first letter to the department's staff. "The 'higher education industrial complex' must be shaken up by competition, accountability, and a future-focused mindset." The letter was Kent's first statement since being confirmed late Friday and sworn in early Monday morning. It is one of few times he has discussed what he plans to prioritize since President Trump nominated him to be the most senior official focused on postsecondary education in February. Over all, Kent's missive elicited praise and caution from higher education experts. A first-generation college student and Pell Grant recipient, Kent has spent the entirety of his career in higher education. Most recently, he served as deputy education secretary for Virginia governor Glenn Youngkin. But before that he advocated primarily for private institutions, working with both Career Education Colleges and Universities, which represents some for-profit colleges, and Education Affiliates, a for-profit college company that faced public scrutiny in 2013 after a whistleblower accused the company of fraud. |
SPORTS
| Oklahoma transfer Thompson embracing leadership role with Bulldogs | |
| "I've never seen a person with my own eyes that fast on the football field." Mississippi State wide receivers coach Chad Bumphis has had plenty of positive things to say about Brenen Thompson. "Someone who came here with one mindset. Like, he's all in," he added. "Obviously, a married guy, so mature, just carries himself like a professional... the room is really good, so you have multiple leaders in there, but it didn't take Brenen long to establish himself as a leader in that room, right? Just someone who's done it. And he knows, we brought him in here to go be productive. Go be a guy for us, help us win some games. So he's taking that role on, He's been great for the young guys. You can't say enough good things about BT." While it's not yet known what the Oklahoma transfer looks like as a feature receiver, it is known that he is exceptionally fast. Thompson clocked a speed of more than 23 mph this offseason, which helped him earn a spot on Bruce Feldman of The Athletic's 'Freaks List,' and, according to Sooners Illustrated, has a 40-yard dash time of 4.3. He isn't shy about how big of a factor his speed is, and in his time at State, he's enjoyed testing himself against others. |
| SEC Reveals Women's Basketball's Conference Schedule | |
| Mississippi State women's basketball now knows the dates of their conference schedule, as the Southeastern Conference announced each team's SEC slate on Tuesday. The schedule consists of a single round robin of home or away (14 games) with one rotating opponent that will be played at home and away (2 games). Each team will play eight home games and eight away games. The rotating opponent changes annually. This marks the 17th season of the 16-game schedule for women's basketball. The regular season concludes with the 2026 SEC Women's Basketball Tournament being held for the ninth time at Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, S.C. The tournament, which will include all 16 teams, begins on Wednesday, March 4 and concludes with the championship game on Sunday, March 8. The Bulldogs will play in 10 games against nine opponents that made the NCAA Tournament last year. Four of those games will be played inside of Humphrey Coliseum when LSU, Kentucky, Tennessee and Vanderbilt all come to town. Also coming to Starkville are Auburn, Missouri, Georgia and Florida. State's six road games against 2025 NCAA Tournament teams will be against Alabama, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas. The Dawgs will also travel to Fayetteville to take on Arkansas and College Station to take on Texas A&M. |
| Softball: Shaw Travels To China For World Games With U.S. Men's National Team | |
| Mississippi State softball assistant coach Zac Shaw and the United States' Men's National Team will be competing in The World Games in Chengdu, China August 5-10. The World Games is the only global multi-sport event that includes men's softball. Shaw and the Americans took home a bronze medal from the WBSC Men's Softball World Cup in early July. While serving as captain of the national team, the Bulldog assistant was errorless through 17 chances and recorded two RBIs. Team USA will start opening round by facing Canada on Tuesday night at 9 p.m. CT. The Eagles will then play Singapore at 11:30 p.m. on Wednesday and Australia at midnight the morning of Aug. 8. Following pool play, the top two teams in each group will play in the semifinals on Aug. 9. The remaining four teams will play in placement rounds. The bronze medal game will be played at 9 p.m. on Aug. 9 for fans back home in the United States, and the gold medal game is scheduled for midnight the morning of Aug. 10. Games can be streamed on The World Games and WBSC websites. Shaw is a veteran for Team USA as he has played for the national team since 2018. The past two summers he has been named team captain. |
| SEC Football: Any Given Saturday comes to Netflix Tuesday | |
| On Tuesday, August 5, Netflix will launch a new series, SEC FOOTBALL: ANY GIVEN SATURDAY, which follows the Southeastern Conference during the 2024 football season. The series places viewers inside some of college football's most storied programs in the SEC through unfiltered access to their coaches and players on and off the field: on the buses, in the locker rooms, at the barbershops, around the fire pits, running out of the tunnels, and more. The series takes an exclusive look at key matchups throughout the SEC season to show the passion and drama of college football's leading conference. The series was produced by Box To Box Films, which also produced other popular Netflix series including Sprint, Full Swing, Formula 1: Drive to Survive, and Break Point. "This behind-the-scenes docuseries will bring all the drama and pageantry of Southeastern Conference Football to a worldwide Netflix audience," said SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey. "Football in the SEC will be presented in a way never seen before through the elite storytelling skills of Box To Box, the content studio that has produced numerous award-winning Netflix docuseries. We are excited about this new delivery of content for SEC fans everywhere." |
| Ole Miss finalizes Grove plans for football season | |
| Following discussions with campus partners, local vendors and other stakeholders, Ole Miss Athletics has finalized operational plans for tailgating in and around the Grove for the 2025 season, including additional measures that provide for convenience, increased safety and reduced congestion during the setup process. There are no changes to the traditional gameday experience in the Grove nor the choices for setting up, either putting up your own tent for free or purchasing a setup from your preferred vendor. In order to make both options more advantageous, timelines have been adjusted to allow for earlier and more organized planning for all parties. "Our team is working hard and creatively to maintain the organic Grove experience while adapting to the new challenges that every athletics department is facing in this new landscape of college sports," said Keith Carter, Ole Miss Vice Chancellor for Intercollegiate Athletics. As announced in January, the biggest change for vendors this season is a new fee per tent, per game to the athletics department for each of their setups. The vendor's fee is $150 per 10×10 tent in single-game setups and $100 per tent per game in full season setups. The rates apply to both conference and non-conference games. |
| College Football's Most Valuable Free Agent Is a 60-Year-Old 'Mad Scientist' | |
| In modern college football, the offseason has turned into a mad scramble for talent. So when Penn State, this year's most ambitious challenger, went hunting for reinforcements, it made perfect sense to poach a key figure from last season's champions. But here's the twist: The star that the Nittany Lions spent millions to lure away from Ohio State isn't a gamebreaking receiver or phenom quarterback. Instead, the most valuable free agent in college football is a 60-year-old assistant coach. His name is Jim Knowles and he's known as the "Mad Scientist." He arrived at the highest levels of college football by way of a stint in finance, and his blitzes wreak so much havoc that he has been known to name them after hurricanes and tsunamis. For Penn State, among the favorites to leapfrog the Buckeyes for this year's championship, the cost to pry Knowles away was a contract worth $3.1 million a year. That's not just half a million dollars higher than the salary of any other assistant in college football. It's more than what 65 Division I head coaches are earning. "It's a big get," Penn State coach James Franklin said. Franklin has good reason to expect that it will be money well spent. Wherever Knowles goes, his players suddenly transform into quarterback-crushing machines. |
| NCAA Tournament won't expand in 2026, but discussions to continue for 2027 | |
| The NCAA Tournament is staying at 68 teams. For now. After months of debate, the NCAA men's and women's Division-I basketball committees announced Monday they will not recommend expansion in advance of the 2026 postseason. "Expanding the tournament fields is no longer being contemplated for the 2026 men's and women's basketball championships," Dan Gavitt, the NCAA's senior vice president of basketball, said in a statement. "However, the committees will continue conversations on whether to recommend expanding to 72 or 76 teams in advance of the 2027 championships." With the start of the 2025-26 season in less than three months, it had become less likely that expansion would be implemented in time for the 2026 tournaments. While many power-conference commissioners -- and high-major coaches -- have advocated for growing the current 68-team fields, public opinion has been markedly against expansion. A vote on expansion was initially expected earlier in July, when the men's and women's basketball committees met for summer meetings in Savannah, Ga., and Philadelphia, respectively, but no count materialized. That signified that expansion momentum had slowed, while widespread backlash from fans and prominent media members grew louder. |
| College tennis facing threats of cuts at same time many of its alums are starring in pro ranks | |
| This should be an exhilarating moment for college tennis. Wimbledon featured a record 26 current or former college players in men's singles and nine more in the women's draw. TCU's Jack Pinnington Jones and San Diego's Oliver Tarvet, who reached the second round, played for their college teams just this spring. Ben Shelton, a 2022 NCAA singles champion at Florida, reached the quarterfinals. All of this is occurring as the threat of elimination faces numerous tennis programs. Prairie View A&M became just the latest Division I college to eliminate tennis when it announced Monday it was dropping its men's and women's programs. According to the International Tennis Association, which governs college tennis, other Division I schools cutting tennis since 2023 include Central Arkansas (women), Eastern Illinois (men and women), Lindenwood (men), Louisiana-Monroe (women), Radford (men and women), St. Francis College (men and women), San Francisco (men and women), Seattle (men) and UTEP (women). David Mullins, CEO of the ITA, says college tennis is a great pathway to the pros. "Our position within the tennis industry has never been better," Mullins said. "But on the other side, we're dealing with all these things happening with the NCAA model. Probably the challenges that we're facing from the collegiate side domestically have never been greater." |
| Derek Dooley, son of Vince Dooley, announces bid to unseat Jon Ossoff in U.S. Senate | |
 | Derek Dooley, the football coach and son of legendary Bulldogs leader Vince Dooley, has joined the campaign to unseat Democrat Jon Ossoff from his U.S. Senate seat in Georgia next year. "Lawlessness, open season on the border, inflation everywhere, woke stuff. That's what they represent," Dooley, who is running as a Republican, said on YouTube Monday as he announced his candidacy. To get to Ossoff, he will have to go through two Georgia congressmen who are already vying for the GOP nomination. U.S. Rep. Buddy Carter from St. Simons was the first to enter the race in the spring after Gov. Brian Kemp, who had been expected to run, said he was out. State Insurance Commissioner John King then joined the fray but suspended his campaign in late July. U.S. Rep. Mike Collins, R-Jackson, then announced his candidacy. Although Dooley praises President Donald Trump in his video, Democrats noted that he did not vote in multiple elections when Trump was on the ballot. They also attacked Dooley's professional career. |
| Football coaches often enter political game. Which former Mississippi coach could become US Senator? | |
 | Former Ole Miss football coach Tommy Tuberville once said that the only way he would leave Oxford would be "in a pine box". Shortly after that he became the next head coach at Auburn University. After stints at Texas Tech and Cincinatti, he retired from coaching but is currently serving as a United States Senator for Alabama. He is also planning to run for Governor of Alabama in 2026. Now, it looks like Derek Dooley, the son of legendary Georgia football coach Vince Dooley and a former coach at the University of Tennessee is going to make a run at politics. He has thrown his hat in the ring as a Republican for a bid at the U.S. Senator's seat in Georgia. It makes one wonder if there are any former coaches from Mississippi, other than Tuberville, that might make a run for Senator once Roger Wicker or Cindy Hyde-Smith step away in the next few years. If there were ever former Mississippi coaches that could have been elected as U.S. Senators, No. 1 would probably have been legendary Ole Miss coach Johnny Vaught. No. 2 might be much more recent in former Mississippi State coach Mike Leach. While only a MSU coach for a short period of time, Leach, who died in 2022, was a true renaissance man. He was a law school graduate and had a way with words and could hold a conversation on seemingly any topic at any time. He also seemed to be beloved by all Mississippians, regardless of school affiliation. |
| So you want to be an athletic director: Why top college jobs are changing with the times | |
| College administrators and coaches are intertwined with business leaders and the financial piece of the pie more than ever. It's why the profile of a modern athletic director is evolving in real time. Since August 2024, 11 Power Four AD jobs have changed hands. Those openings have been filled by an amalgamation of candidates with wide-ranging backgrounds. Each of those hires checked different boxes. But as the economics of college athletics change dramatically, roles atop athletic departments have taken on new meaning -- and the candidate pools are shifting with it. "It's not as if someone can just drop several things one was doing in a previous model and trade them for what we might have to be doing in the new model," said Oklahoma AD Joe Castiglione. "It's both --- that's where the difference is. ... There isn't a 'how-to' manual that is being distributed to the member institutions. It's many of us having to lean into this, be innovative, not be afraid to try new things and probably have to go through a little bit of trial and error, which is uncomfortable." |
| After the House v. NCAA Settlement: Will college athletes be able to gain real power by 2035? | |
| A new chapter in college athletics has begun ... but the story is far from finished. This summer's landmark House v. NCAA settlement cracked open the door to revenue sharing and ushered in sweeping reforms, but even a multibillion-dollar agreement can't escape turbulence. Legal challenges are already mounting, Congress is inching closer to direct involvement, and the sport's power brokers are bracing for another round of seismic decisions as key media deals -- including that involving the College Football Playoff -- near expiration in the early 2030s. Using the House settlement's 10-year timeline as a guiding framework, CBS Sports spoke with dozens of stakeholders to explore what the future of college athletics might look like by 2035. This four-part series, begins with the most crucial piece of them all: the players. |
| The Pac-12, almost dead a year ago, finally sees a future for itself | |
| For over three years, the Pac-12 has existed in various states of transition. That is how long it has been since USC and UCLA announced they were leaving the conference for the Big Ten, knocking over conference realignment dominoes on the West Coast that only recently came to rest -- at least for now. For months, perhaps longer, survival was in question. Now, the future is beginning to take shape. With Texas State officially on board as the ninth member -- and, critically, an eighth football-playing member -- a cornerstone media partnership with CBS secured and a strategic plan unfolding around its proprietary production facility, the Pac-12 can finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. "This is truly a startup," said Pac-12 commissioner Teresa Gould. "On July 1, 2026, we are launching a new and different league, and it's not the old Pac-12 -- it's a new Pac-12. We essentially get to start over with a blank slate and create something new." Except, in this case, what is new is also over 100 years old. Washington State and Oregon State, the two remaining legacy members, are no longer just participants. They're co-architects. And for those two institutions, in particular, there is finally a feeling they're on solid ground again. |
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