| Friday, February 13, 2026 |
| Mississippi Horse Park hosts Starkville Rotary Classic Rodeo Feb. 13-14 | |
 | Featuring top contestants from across the country, the annual Rotary Classic Rodeo returns to the Mississippi Horse Park this Friday and Saturday, Feb. 13–14, for two nights of competition and family-friendly entertainment. The Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association-sanctioned event begins at 7 p.m. each night. Admission for children 12 and under is free on Friday. On Saturday, children 3 and under are admitted free, while tickets for children ages 4–12 are $5. Adult tickets are $25 at the door or $20 in advance. Advance tickets are available at the Oktibbeha County Co-op, Greater Starkville Development Partnership and Tractor Supply Co. locations in Starkville and Columbus. Saturday activities begin early, with pony rides and a petting zoo on the arena floor 5-6:30 p.m. The rodeo began 22 years ago at the Horse Park and has served as the Starkville Rotary Club's primary fundraiser since 2007. Proceeds support the club's humanitarian, educational and community service initiatives. A division of Mississippi State University, the Mississippi Horse Park is located at 869 East Poor House Road. |
| MSU Extension agents, sites aid storm response | |
 | During weather-related emergencies, Mississippi State University Extension locations often serve as warming stations, distribution sites for basic supplies and bases of operation for first responders, but for the state's community-based educational agency, its people remain the most important resource. As communities across north Mississippi continue recovering from the Jan. 23-27 winter storm, MSU Extension coordinators and agents have been assisting local officials, county emergency managers and first responders since before the storm to help those in need. Personnel with MSU Extension and the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station prepared a staging area and mobile command center at the North Mississippi Research and Extension Center for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to store generators for public buildings and health care facilities in the state's many affected counties. Teams with the Mississippi National Guard have been stationed at MSU Extension's Lafayette County office. Lafayette is also among the hardest hit counties in the state. "Both Extension and MAFES are reliable partners with people who have gone through training over the years to prepare for these scenarios," said Jane Parish, head of the North Mississippi Research and Extension Center. |
| Shocking and strange: Experts compare Nancy Guthrie's case to other missing persons | |
 | The abduction of Nancy Guthrie is putting a spotlight on the excruciating uncertainty endured by thousands of families whose loved ones go missing each year. Experts see parallels with those cases, even as many details in Guthrie's case are unique, from the victim's age to her celebrity daughter, Today show co-host Savannah Guthrie. The circumstances of Guthrie's disappearance are "quite shocking," says Jesse Goliath, a forensic anthropologist at Mississippi State University. "Usually you hear about smaller children, juveniles that go missing" and attracting national press, Goliath says. "But having an older woman who's gone missing and having [a daughter] that you've seen on TV every day" is extraordinary, he adds. Other highly unusual revelations have emerged as her disappearance has persisted: from purported ransom notes sent to media outlets demanding millions of dollars to unsettling images of a masked gunman approaching Guthrie's front door on the night she disappeared. Taken together, it's like something out of a true crime novel, Goliath says: "That's something unheard of." |
| Camgian awarded position on Golden Dome Team | |
| Starkville-based Camgian has been awarded a position on the Missile Defense Agency's (MDA) Systems, Hardware, Integration, Enhanced Logistics, and Development (SHIELD) Indefinite Delivery, Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract vehicle, or what is referred to as President Donald Trump's Golden Dome Team. Camgian officials said the award positions the company to compete for future task orders that strengthen missile defense, enhance resilience, and accelerate mission readiness across critical defense programs. Mark Bennett, Chief Growth Officer of Camgian, said in a statement that the company is honored to be awarded a position on the $151 billion SHIELD IDIQ. "This award is a natural extension of the work we do every day delivering AI-enabled solutions that put decision advantage in the hands of the Warfighter," said Bennett. Mississippi U.S. Senator Roger Wicker (R), chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, expressed his pleasure on seeing Camgian added to the MDA Shield contract, and that it "now part of the Golden Dome for America team." "This is another great example of how Mississippi is leading the revitalization of our defense industry and creating jobs for hard-working Americans eager to support the defense of our Nation," Wicker said. |
| Starkville Derby bringing back world's largest wiener dog race in April | |
| The Starkville Derby, tabbed the world's largest wiener dog race and festival, is set to return this spring. Founded in 2023 by a group of friends, the Starkville Derby has grown into the world's largest dachshund race and festival, attracting more than 250 racers from 24 states, drawing hundreds of attendees, generating millions of social media impressions, and raising more than $150,000 for shelter pets. This year, festivities will take place on April 25. Organizers say the annual event has grown into a national draw for dachshund owners and racing fans, with racers registered from as far away as Rhode Island and Washington this year. Past champions have also come from outside of Mississippi. Winners in 2023 and 2024 were from Georgia, while last year's champion traveled from Texas to claim the title. More than just a race, the Starkville Derby also serves as one of the southeast's largest arts festivals. The Boardtown Pizza and Pints Arts Festival, which currently includes 192 approved food and arts vendors, coincides with the derby. The multi-award-winning event has been named the Mississippi Tourism Association's "Best Large Festival," the Mississippi Main Street Association's "Best Creative Large Event," and one of the Southeast Tourism Society's "Top 20 Signature Events of the Southeast." |
| 'We as a state failed them': Senators call for improved disaster response after winter storm | |
| North Mississippi senators pleaded for an improved disaster response from the state Thursday as thousands of their constituents still lacked power nearly three weeks after the January winter storm. Sen. Rita Potts Parks, a Republican from Corinth, repeatedly told her colleagues "we have work to do" to better prepare for future disasters. Her district includes Alcorn and Tippah counties, two of the hardest-hit areas in Mississippi. "I hope you remember how my people were cold, and we as a state, we failed them," she said during an emotional speech on the Senate floor. "I'm included." In her district, hospitals and nursing homes went more than four days without power or water, Parks said. "Can you imagine what those smells were like, what those cries were like by that second day?" she said. "And those people being placed with more and more blankets on them just to keep them warm." Parks and her colleague Sen. Neil Whaley, a Republican from Potts Camp, mentioned the response times of specific agencies as areas for improvement. "Us getting resources from (the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency) took days," she later told Mississippi Today. "I'm not throwing darts, I'm just saying it was a fact we didn't see supplies coming to us until Tuesday. That's water, MREs, cots. This event happened on Saturday, Sunday. You're Tuesday night, Wednesday getting us what we needed." |
| Billions in new economic development projects in the works for Mississippi in 2026 | |
| The head of the Mississippi Development Authority hinted earlier this week that the state will soon announce another major investment in the Magnolia State with thousands of new jobs in the pipeline. Without giving too many details, MDA Executive Director Bill Cork told the attendees at a Stennis Capitol Press Forum luncheon in Jackson that while 2025 was a great year for economic development in the state, 2026 will surpass it. "We will already break the 2025 record this year with what we already have in the pipeline," Cork said. "We will be announcing another 2,000-job project within the next 60 days. It's just an amazing run, and there is no end in sight." That pipeline of projects for 2026 is long, Cork said. However, while major developments like the $20 billion xAI data center in Southaven tend to make headlines, MDA also focused on smaller projects are just as important and more plentiful in areas across Mississippi. "The large projects get a lot of attention, and deservedly so," Cork said. "But through the first week of January in 2026, MDA has been involved in closing more than 219 projects. So, we had about five or six big notable projects, but we spent most of our time not working on those." |
| Tax break bill could save farmers thousands | |
 | A bill headed to the House floor is aiming to throw local farmers an economic lifeline after a difficult farming season. In 2025, Mississippi farmers dealt with poor weather conditions, lower crop yields and changing international demand that led to a disappointing season for many row crops. Farmers prepping cotton, corn and soybeans saw drops in revenue across all three. Including production costs and revenue, farmers were losing about $39 an acre on corn, $180 on cotton and $35 on soybeans, according to data from Mississippi State University's Department of Agricultural Economics 2026 planning budgets. "We just thought it was important to try to help our farmers in our state, because ... a lot of them are going out (of business)," said District 17 Sen. Chuck Younger, R-Lowndes County, who co-sponsored the bill. "They're selling the farm. They're selling out. It was a no-brainer." Senate Bill 2272, which passed the Senate on Monday, provides a pathway for commercial farmers and loggers to receive exemptions to the state's 1.5% sales tax on agricultural and logging equipment, like tractors and tree harvesters. The exception would also apply to parts and labor needed to maintain equipment, as well as for items used to contain and raise livestock. While the tax exemption certainly doesn't address every issue facing Mississippi farmers, Younger said, he hopes to provide at least some relief to production costs. |
| Lawmakers consider eliminating sales tax on agriculture equipment to support commercial farmers | |
| A Senate bill erasing the 1.5 percent sales tax on logging and farming equipment passed earlier this week, winning praise from farmers and state leaders. The bill, SB 2272, would allow commercial farmers to avoid paying taxes on farm implements such as tractors that are used directly in agriculture production. State Senator Neil Whaley (R), the bill's author, said the goal of the measure is to provide relief for farmers in the poultry, livestock, fishing, crops, and ornamental plants industries. Exemptions also cover parts and labor for maintenance and repairs. Further, the bill applies to the logging, pulpwood, and tree-farming industries. It exempts equipment, parts, and labor for machinery that "is self-propelled or permanently attached to self-propelled equipment." The legislation also requires the Mississippi Department of Revenue to create an application process to allow commercial farmers to obtain permits for the exemptions. During floor debate, Whaley said the farmers would present the certificate when purchasing qualified equipment to the seller at the point of purchase. Last year, agriculture brought in an estimated $9.51 billion to the state, according to the Mississippi State University's Extension Service, making agriculture Mississippi's largest industry. |
| Mississippi House passes immigration enforcement bill despite concerns over police protections | |
| The Mississippi House passed legislation Thursday requiring state and local law enforcement to cooperate with federal immigration agents, but the debate revealed deep concerns about what happens when those agents operate unlawfully. House Bill 538 would prohibit state and local agencies, including police departments and government offices, from adopting policies that interfere with federal immigration enforcement. The bill bans what some refer to as "sanctuary" policies that would shield undocumented immigrants from federal authorities. But during floor debate, lawmakers clashed over the bill's vague language and what it could force officers to do. "We're not committing the state to do anything with regard to enforcement of immigration laws," said Rep. Joey Hood, the bill's sponsor. "It's just saying they cannot get in the way or interfere." Yet critics questioned whether the law could require local officers to assist federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents even when those agents violate constitutional rights. Rep. Robert Johnson III pointed to the bill's language, which requires cooperation with "enforcement" of federal immigration laws, without specifying that the enforcement must be lawful. |
| Advocates, health providers lay out 2026 legislative priorities during Black Women Advocacy Day | |
 | Advocate Jessica Reese believes in Medicaid. She's the mother of two including an 8-month-old son with hypoplastic left heart syndrome, a condition in which the heart's left side does not function on its own. Both she and her son receive Medicaid benefits which have been instrumental in addressing his complex needs and her postpartum care. "They provided him with his oxygen tanks, his milk pumps, and then also for eight months, I did have to sit at his bedside," Reese said. Her son's coverage also allows them to visit the ER without a wait. It pays for his daycare, occupational therapist and the feeding tube he relies on for nourishment. "I think the misunderstanding of Medicaid is anybody that has any type of government benefit, the people, and when I say the people I mean those that are in charge, they think that people solely want to stay on Medicaid long-term," Reese said. "I am a mother that believes that this is a stepping stone. So meaning it's temporary, it's to get us back to where we need to be." Reese and other advocates met at the capitol in Jackson Wednesday to push for Medicaid expansion and several other legislative priorities that impact Black women disproportionately in the state. "I think this will make a huge impact when it comes to black women and not just them, but any woman in general," Reese said. "Because we're not the only ones who need those benefits." |
| Senate pushes to let rural hospitals offer new services | |
| The Mississippi Senate unanimously passed a bill Wednesday designed to help rural hospitals open needed services, joining the House in advancing proposals to support struggling facilities by loosening the state's certificate of need law. "I think we're moving closer to a consensus about what to do," Senate Public Health and Welfare Chairman Hob Bryan, a Democrat from Amory and the author of the bill, said of the overlap between each chamber's proposal. The Senate bill would create a pilot program that tasks the state health officer with issuing licenses for three outpatient dialysis units, three ambulatory surgery centers and geriatric psychiatric facilities connected to rural hospitals within five miles of the rural hospital's main location. The goal is to let hospitals open services that bring in revenue and help them keep their doors open, Bryan said Wednesday. The House passed a broader measure on Feb. 4 that would exempt 55 existing rural hospitals from certificate of need regulations, allowing them to open new health services or make improvements within a five-mile radius of their main building without state approval. The House and Senate will trade bills for further debate, and they must agree on a final plan before anything could go to the governor. |
| National defense spending bill to send $528M to Mississippi | |
| Mississippi is poised to receive at least $528 million in direct funding under the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act, according to figures released by U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker's office after congressional passage of the bill. The $528 million includes funding explicitly authorized for Mississippi military installations, universities, research and education programs across the state, said Wicker, the Republican from Mississippi who chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee. "Congress's annual defense bill is vast, authorizing programs for the Pentagon, as well as the State Department, the intelligence communities, the Coast Guard, and more," Wicker said in a statement. "But amid those diverse provisions, one fact is clear: Mississippi is a vital link in the chain of American national defense." That direct funding includes $53 million for five military construction projects, including upgrades at Columbus Air Force Base, Camp Shelby, Meridian's Readiness Center and Key Field Air National Guard Base. The act also authorized additional money for cybersecurity and artificial intelligence research, autonomous vehicle testing, JROTC programs and advanced manufacturing programs tied to Mississippi universities and defense facilities. |
| With no agreement on DHS funding, Congress leaves town | |
 | Lawmakers left Washington on Thursday without a deal on an immigration enforcement overhaul, virtually guaranteeing a partial shutdown of the Homeland Security Department when current funding runs out this weekend. Unless progress is made, neither chamber is expected to return to the Capitol next week, when Congress is scheduled to be in recess. Bipartisan negotiations on an immigration plan were expected to continue over the recess. Leaders of both chambers told members they would be given 48 hours notice to return to the Capitol if a deal is reached. The decision to leave came after the Senate fell short of the 60 votes needed to move forward on a House-passed full-year Homeland Security appropriations bill. The vote was 52-47, with all Democrats except Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania in opposition. Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., flipped his vote to a "no" when it was clear the motion lacked enough support, in order to be able to reconsider the vote at a later time. After the vote, Sen. Katie Britt, R-Ala., the chair of the Senate Homeland Security Appropriations Subcommittee, immediately brought up a motion for a two-week continuing resolution under unanimous consent. "We are working in good faith to find a pathway forward," she said. "What we're asking is 'let us continue to do that.'" Sen. Christopher S. Murphy, D-Conn., objected, saying Democrats had not received text from the White House until Wednesday night -- "far too late to be able to engage in any compromise before the deadline." |
| Solid inflation, jobs reports boost Trump as his polling on economy sinks | |
 | Consumers are sour on Donald Trump's economy, and GOP lawmakers are increasingly uneasy with the president's tariffs. But the White House is having a good week of news on both jobs and affordability. The Labor Department reported Friday that inflation cooled to a rate of 2.4 percent over the 12 months ending in January, the lowest rise in the consumer price index since May. Grocery prices last month also increased by the smallest amount since last summer. That follows data showing that the economy added more jobs than expected in January, with the unemployment rate dropping to 4.3 percent, an early sign that the labor market may be regaining strength. The White House touted the news as a sign that the president's economic agenda is working. Indications that inflation is stabilizing offer a reprieve for Trump, who this week saw multiple members of his party revolt and oppose his tariffs, partially over concerns about how they are raising costs for businesses. But the administration's difficulty in convincing voters that it's doing a good job handling the economy before the 2026 midterms is unlikely to fade. New polling from the Pew Research Center found that a strong majority of Americans disapprove of the president's trade agenda. And 51 percent say they believe his policies are negatively affecting the country as a whole, compared with just 25 percent who consider them positive. |
| Trump's Climate Rollback Draws Broad Backlash and Some Support | |
 | The Trump administration repealed a landmark climate finding on Thursday in a move critics say is likely to endanger public health, but which has been welcomed by the automotive industry. The Environmental Protection Agency rescinded the Obama-era Endangerment Finding, which classifies six greenhouse gases as a threat to public health and welfare. Repealing the finding will end rules that require companies to report and measure emissions for vehicles, and cut credit provisions and reporting obligations for other industries. "It didn't just regulate emissions, it regulated and targeted the American dream," EPA chief Lee Zeldin said Thursday. Zeldin said manufacturers will "no longer be burdened" by measuring and reporting on emissions, and won't have to transition to electric vehicles. There will be "no more climate participation trophies," he said. But the move brought sharp criticism. Several Democrat politicians hit back against the repeal, saying it would do more harm to American people and their health. Heather McTeer Toney, a former EPA administrator and former mayor of Greenville, Mississippi, called the reversal an attack on human health. "It is putting pollution and polluters ahead of everyday people," she said. "It's something people should be up in arms about." |
| Trump's Minnesota Retreat Points to the Power of Public Anger | |
 | The Trump administration's pullback of federal immigration agents from Minneapolis was a political retreat that showed there are limits to what Americans will accept as the president pursues his deportation agenda. The withdrawal came on the eve of a funding shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security, with a drumbeat of polls showing public opposition to President Trump's immigration tactics that rose after the fatal shootings of two protesters by federal agents last month. As Republican lawmakers increasingly worry about their midterm prospects, a few began to offer critical statements on the issue. Others warned that Democrats had been successful at stoking the backlash. "This is a highly organized, highly coordinated effort of resistance -- it's highly effective," Senator Ron Johnson, a Trump ally from Wisconsin, said in an interview on Thursday. "The left is very effective at organizing this. They exploited and used their martyrs effectively, and the Trump administration is reacting to that." In a hint of the new Republican wariness on the issue, Mr. Johnson suggested that Immigration and Customs Enforcement resources would be better deployed in cities and states with leaders and citizens who would cooperate with federal deportation efforts and be less likely to foment protests. In recent weeks, a slow but steady trickle of Republicans have found space to oppose parts of Mr. Trump's immigration agenda. |
| As electricity costs rise, everyone wants data centers to pick up their tab. But how? | |
 | As outrage spreads over energy-hungry data centers, politicians from President Donald Trump to local lawmakers have found rare bipartisan agreement over insisting that tech companies -- and not regular people -- must foot the bill for the exorbitant amount of electricity required for artificial intelligence. But that might be where the agreement ends. The price of powering data centers has become deeply intertwined with concerns over the cost of living, a dominant issue in the upcoming midterm elections that will determine control of Congress and governors' offices. Some efforts to address the challenge may be coming too late, with energy costs on the rise. And even though tech giants are pledging to pay their "fair share," there's little consensus on what that means. "'Fair share' is a pretty squishy term, and so it's something that the industry likes to say because 'fair' can mean different things to different people," said Ari Peskoe, who directs the Electricity Law Initiative at Harvard University. It's a shift from last year, when states worked to woo massive data center projects and Trump directed his administration to do everything it could to get them electricity. Now there's a backlash as towns fight data center projects and some utilities' electricity bills have risen quickly. |
| When is Lent 2026? Dates for Ash Wednesday, Good Friday, Easter | |
 | An important religious time for millions of Christians across America is almost upon us. Lent, the annual season to prepare for the celebration of Easter, begins on Feb. 18, or Ash Wednesday. The period of Lent is when many Christians of various denominations may fast, pray or give up certain activities as a means of growing closer to their faith. The 40-day season begins on Feb. 18 and ends on April 2, or Holy Thursday, which precedes Good Friday on April 3 and Easter Sunday on April 5. For the weeks leading up to Easter, which marks the resurrection of Jesus Christ following his crucifixion, followers of the Catholic Lenten rules fast, eating only one full meal, plus two smaller meals that do not equal a full meal, and cutting out meat on Fridays. The fast aims to mimic the tests of faith demonstrated throughout the Bible, marking a time of service and reflection. You may also hear of some Christians who "give something up for Lent," a practice intended to remind faithful of the suffering Jesus Christ endured toward the end of his life, according to The United Methodist Church. Not all Christians make these lifestyle changes or fast during Lent -- some may cut out alcohol, sweets or extra expenses in an effort to prioritize spirituality. Others may sacrifice nothing at all, but instead focus on prayer and community with fellow worshippers. |
| Mississippi nurses encouraged to apply for student loan repayment | |
 | The Mississippi Office of Student Financial Aid announced registered nurses and licensed practical nurses with outstanding student loan debt are encouraged to apply for up to $6,000 in loan repayment through the Nurse Retention Loan Repayment Program (NULR). "If you think you might be eligible to apply, don't wait," said Dr. Jennifer Rogers, executive director of the Mississippi Office of Student Financial Aid. "2026 is the last year of this program, and funds will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis through August 31 or until the funds have been spent." To be eligible for the loan repayment assistance, nurses must have a current relevant license and work full-time in Mississippi in a skilled nursing home or general acute care hospital that is licensed by the Mississippi State Department of Health (MSDH). Eligible recipients must also have outstanding student loans in their own name. Awards of up to $6,000 will be paid directly to the loan servicer after the nurse has completed at least one full year of eligible work. |
| Alabama has a nursing shortage. The U. of Alabama is spending $80 million to help | |
 | The University of Alabama is putting more than $80 million into a plan to train more nurses -- and hopefully keep them in Alabama. The university announced a plan Thursday to expand enrollment in its Capstone College of Nursing, find trainees more hospital placements, hire faculty and overhaul its physical nursing college. "We are putting together a bold and transformative plan that is going to double enrollment and double our graduation as well," Julie Sanford. dean of the college, said in Tuscaloosa on Feb. 12. "So we're going to be putting forward this plan that is going to address the nursing shortage and hopefully make a dent in it." Undergraduate enrollment in the college has increased 25% since 2023 and graduate enrollment has increased 55%; the school wants to keep that momentum going and is putting resources into hiring staff and making more space. The college plans to grow enrollment to 3,436 by 2030 and graduate about 1,200 nurses in undergraduate and graduate programs every year. UA will hire more nursing faculty and staff. And it's working to fill more clinical training spots with DCH Medical Center and UAB Medical System. |
| State Higher Ed Officials Do Away With the Term 'Noncredit' | |
 | A couple of years ago, the Louisiana Board of Regents decided to ditch the term "noncredit" as a way to refer to short-term and workforce programs at colleges and universities. Board members were struck by "what a terrible term that is" for the wide swath of education and workforce training pathways that students can take, said Tristan Denley, the Louisiana Board of Regents' deputy commissioner for academic affairs and innovation. "There's not that many things in life that get described by what they're not," Denley said. "That term just didn't in any way seem to capture what these kinds of credentials are, what students gain by earning them." Louisiana now uses the phrase "validated skills and learning." The goal is to convey to students that these programs show a mastery of skills valued by employers. Louisiana isn't the only one getting rid of "noncredit." The state is part of the Noncredit Mobility Academy, a group of higher ed officials from six states, which the State Higher Education Executive Officers Association, Education Strategy Group and Progressive Policy Institute brought together to work on their noncredit offerings. The group -- representatives from Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Montana, Texas and Virginia -- has collectively decided the term "noncredit" has to go, according to a recent blog post from SHEEO. |
| Conservative watchdog group pressed U. of Kentucky employees about DEI. Here's what the law says | |
 | Several videos posted to social media showing University of Kentucky employees being questioned about the role of diversity, equity and inclusion have garnered attention in recent days, as state and federal agencies have taken aim at such programs. Conservative media watchdog group Accuracy in Media posted multiple videos in the past week showing UK employees -- both are staff members, not professors -- questioned by "an undercover investigator posing as a prospective student," the group said on its website. The employees are asked about the role of DEI in curriculum in the university's psychology and sociology departments. In both instances, the employees said DEI is still in course curriculum and syllabi. Accuracy in Media later confronted the employees and UK administrators on video, asking about the university being "in defiance of state law." State legislators raised questions about the videos at a committee last week. Also, at the federal level, universities -- including UK -- have been investigated for DEI programming. House Bill 4, the state law passed last year which required universities to dismantle all DEI programs, offices and initiatives, includes an exception for course curriculum. Adam Guillette, president of Accuracy in Media, said his organization spoke to between eight and 10 UK employees, and has visited other public colleges in the state. "We've investigated universities in red states that have banned DEI in higher education across the country, so inevitably, eventually, we were going to get to Kentucky's many public universities, and I think we've investigated nearly all of them," Guillette said. |
| After anti-liberal pressure, U. of Texas to consolidate gender and ethnic studies | |
| The University of Texas's College of Liberal Arts will consolidate its long-standing ethnic and gender studies programs into one new department. The university will immediately begin the process of creating the new Department for Social and Cultural Analysis Studies after months of pressure from conservative politicians to eliminate "liberal" education and "gender ideology" from the state's flagship. There is no target date for the change to go fully into effect. UT's decision follows Texas A&M University move to close its Women and Gender Studies Department earlier this year. In a 9 a.m. meeting with department chairs Thursday, Interim Dean David Sosa said curriculum and degree programs in the departments are being reviewed. The future of the centers and programs within the existing departments is not yet clear, two faculty in the meeting confirmed. It is also unclear if layoffs will eventually accompany the consolidations, but Sosa did not announce any immediate firings, two faculty said. Affected departments include those that focus on African and African Diaspora Studies, Mexican American and Latino Studies, Women and Gender Studies and American Studies, which have a combined 307 undergraduate majors, according to UT data. |
| License plate recognition cameras in use on U. of Missouri campus | |
 | New signs appeared this week on the University of Missouri campus notifying people that license plate readers are in use. MUPD spokesperson Sarah Yoro-Massad said the cameras have been on campus for a couple of years for safety and security. "The new signs are being installed to make the public aware of their use in locations where doing so can help deter crime," Yoro-Massad said. Yoro-Massad said the cameras are used to identify vehicles that are suspected to be "involved in criminal activity." The university added more security cameras as part of efforts to increase safety on campus. Liv Daugherty, a student at the University of Missouri, had not seen the signs and was not aware of the cameras. They said the sudden appearance of signs on campus does not make them feel safer. "If the cameras have been here for years, why are we just now putting up the signs to let us know?" Daugherty said. Audrey Novinger, another Mizzou student, also had not seen the signs and did not know about the cameras. She said she was worried that having her name linked to a specific vehicle and location could put her at risk, especially in the event of a data breach. |
| Virginia Tech Bans University-Funded Identity-Based Graduations | |
| Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University has banned university-funded "identity-based Graduation Achievement Ceremonies," the institution announced on its website. The Virginian-Pilot reported the news Thursday, though the university made the announcement Jan. 26. "The decision aligns with guidance from the U.S. Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights, which states that federal civil rights law prohibits using race in decisions related to graduation ceremonies and cautions that such practices may be perceived as segregation," the university said in its announcement. But it's unclear what guidance it was referencing. A year ago, the Office for Civil Rights told universities that identity-based graduations were illegal. "In a shameful echo of a darker period in this country's history, many American schools and universities even encourage segregation by race at graduation ceremonies," the office wrote in a Dear Colleague letter. Some universities canceled similar ceremonies. But, last April, a federal judge blocked the department from enforcing that guidance and, on Jan. 21 -- five days before Virginia Tech's statement -- the department gave up defending it. A Virginia Tech spokesperson told Inside Higher Ed that recognized student organizations can still use nonuniversity funds to host the events on campus. |
| Faculty Moving Away From Outright Bans on AI, Study Finds | |
| Academics are increasingly allowing artificial intelligence to be used for certain tasks rather than demanding outright bans, a study of more than 30,000 U.S. courses has found. Analyzing advice provided in class materials by a large public university in Texas over a five-year time frame, Igor Chirikov, an education researcher at the University of California, Berkeley, found that highly restrictive policies introduced after the release of ChatGPT in late 2022 have eased across all disciplines -- except the arts and humanities. Using a large language model to analyze 31,692 publicly available course syllabi between 2021 and 2025 -- a task that would have taken 3,000 human hours with manual coding -- Chirikov found academics had shifted toward more permissive use of AI by autumn 2025. Academic integrity concerns were the main talking point regarding AI among 63 percent of course materials in spring 2023, but this fell to 49 percent by autumn 2025. Instead, policies shifted toward calls for students to attribute their AI use, which was cited in only 1 percent of syllabi in early 2023. By the end of 2025, this figure was 29 percent, according to the working paper, titled "How Instructors Regulate AI in College: Evidence From 31,000 Course Syllabi," published in Berkeley's open-access repository. |
| The Campaign to Make Professors Teach More | |
 | When some faculty members in a handful of states are given their fall teaching assignments, they will be saddled with more work than they're accustomed to -- not just for a semester, but permanently. That's because three states -- Wisconsin, Utah, and Kansas -- have adopted minimum teaching loads for professors, effective this fall. The specifics vary by state, and most instructors won't notice a difference. But the adoption of teaching-load requirements marks a significant expansion of conservatives' attempts to regulate the professoriate -- not just what faculty members teach, but how much. Imposing minimum teaching requirements -- eight courses per academic year, for example, at most University of Wisconsin campuses -- has been touted as a way to cut costs and "better focus university resources in the classroom," as one Wisconsin lawmaker put it. The notion is also gaining steam in conservative circles as a means of ensuring faculty productivity and curbing "intellectually unserious" research. Faculty opponents, meanwhile, argue that requiring them to teach a certain number of courses presents concerns about work-life balance, equity and pay, and their ability to deliver a quality education and stay current in their fields of study. Such a policy, one Wisconsin union leader told The Chronicle, is "a solution in search of a problem." |
| Professors in the Epstein files say they hoped friendship would lead to research funding | |
| There were Nobel laureates and acclaimed authors. Pioneers of science and medicine. At least one was a college president. High-profile academics spun in Jeffrey Epstein's orbit for years, even after he was convicted of sex crimes. Now, facing backlash, many say they were driven by a single factor: Epstein's wealth. A new trove of documents released by the Justice Department reveals Epstein's reach into academia was deeper than previously known. He kept close with dozens of researchers who exchanged chummy emails while leaning on him to fund their projects. Some sent him gifts and visited him in New York and Florida. Several offered sympathy as he faced fallout from his crimes. New scrutiny is landing on numerous academics whose emails surfaced among the files, revealing conversations that covered topics from scientific studies to sex and romance. At least one scholar has resigned over new revelations, and Yale University pulled another from teaching while it reviews his conduct. Asked about relationships that often endured for years, many have offered a similar response: Epstein had money to give, and they needed it. In the ultra-competitive world of research funding, professors rely not only on federal grants but also on private donations from wealthy benefactors, which they typically must secure themselves. Doing so helps to guarantee their jobs, fund graduate students and further their research. To some, Epstein was a willing donor with a personal interest in the sciences. |
| Colleges grapple with growing fallout from Epstein files | |
 | Colleges and universities across the country are dealing with growing fallout from the Epstein files, with professors, donors and at least one sitting school president revealed to have ties to the late sex trafficker. From state schools to Ivy League universities, administrators are now investigating faculty and facing calls to rename buildings and cut ties with powerful fundraisers. Ohio State University has been hit on multiple fronts, with its medical facility named after Les Wexner, a billionaire who gave Jeffrey Epstein as his power of attorney until 2007, when it was discovered Epstein was stealing millions of dollars from the businessman. Harvard University, Duke University, Yale University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and many others are all working to explain their own Epstein links. "It's a situation where there's been something that's been building for a long time, there's a political dimension to it, and then you have this trove of public documents where people can be kind of voyeuristic and see here into a world that they might not always get to see. It also makes it very easy for social media influencers and more mainstream reporters to report stories based on firsthand documents, and that just creates a firestorm that continues to burn for anybody who has any exposure," said Nathan Miller, founder and CEO of Miller Ink, a crisis communication and PR firm. |
| Professors in the Epstein Files Begin to Face Consequences | |
| Nearly two weeks after the largest trove of Epstein files was released, some of Jeffrey Epstein's regular academic pen pals are facing consequences for their correspondence with the late sex offender. University officials removed the profile for Mark Tramo, an associate adjunct professor of neurology at the University of California, Los Angeles, from the university's list of experts for media, KTLA reported. University spokespeople did not respond to a request for comment, and UCLA officials have not spoken publicly about Tramo's relationship with Epstein. A petition for his removal had garnered more than 6,000 signatures as of Wednesday evening. Duke University officials announced last week it had closed three research centers, including the Center for Advanced Hindsight, run by business professor Dan Ariely, who is named hundreds of times in the Epstein files. A university spokesperson told The Duke Chronicle that the decision to close the center was unrelated to Ariely's ties to Epstein. A few days earlier, Ariely wrote an op-ed in the student newspaper about his relationship with Epstein. At Yale University, officials temporarily removed computer science professor David Gelernter from the classroom this spring, The Yale Daily News reported. Gelernter, a Yale graduate who has taught at the university since the early 1980s, defended his correspondence with Epstein to multiple media outlets and said he does not regret describing a Yale undergraduate as a "v small goodlooking blonde [sic]" in a 2011 email to Epstein. |
SPORTS
| Baseball: O'Connor Era At MSU Opens Against Hofstra | |
| The Brian O'Connor era of Mississippi State Baseball officially gets underway this weekend as the fourth-ranked Diamond Dawgs host Hofstra to open the 2026 season. Friday's season opener is scheduled for a 4 p.m. first pitch followed by 1 p.m. starts on Saturday and Sunday. All three games will be streamed on SEC Network+. First team All-Americans Ace Reese and Noah Sullivan return in the heart of the order. Reese, the 2025 SEC Newcomer of the Year, led the team batting .352 with 80 hits, 18 doubles, 21 homers, 66 RBIs, 163 total bases and a .718 slugging percentage. The now junior third baseman finished in the top seven in the SEC in each of those categories. One of the biggest wins for O'Connor during the offseason was retaining Justin Parker as his pitching coach. In his first two seasons in Maroon and White, Parker's staff has struck out 486 and 494 batters respectively. Those are the third and fourth-most strikeouts in a single-season in MSU history. He has also seen 14 of his pitchers get drafted, which ties for the most of any school in the country during the past two years. Friday will be the first ever meeting between the Bulldogs and Hofstra on the diamond. |
| Softball: State Hosts Eighth Annual Snowman Tournament | |
| No. 19 Mississippi State will host The Snowman: Alex Wilcox Memorial presented by Newk's Eatery for the eighth year in a row this weekend. The tournament was named after Wilcox's nickname given to her by her father because of her now-retired No. 8 jersey. The Bulldogs are 41-6 all-time in the tournament, which dates back to 2015 when it was previously known as the February Freezer. Wilcox herself made her first career hit as a Bulldog at the event under its prior name while battling ovarian cancer. North Texas returns to the tournament for the second year in a row and will play its second and third games at the event against MSU. Meanwhile, Murray State will move into a tie for the Bulldogs' most-common opponent in the event's history when MSU opens play on Friday afternoon. Fans are encouraged to join the Bulldogs in wearing teal on Saturday to honor Wilcox's legacy and raise awareness of ovarian cancer. |
| Women's Basketball Earns Quad One Victory Over Georgia | |
| Mississippi State won their 17th game of the season when they took down the Georgia Bulldogs inside Humphrey Coliseum, 85-71. Five Bulldogs finished the contest in double figures, marking the eighth time State has done such this season. The Bulldogs of Georgia jumped out to an early lead in the first quarter, as they led 18-11 with three minutes remaining in the first period, which would be their largest lead of the game. State would end the quarter on a 10-0 run to secure a 21-18 lead going into the second period. Georgia would knock the State lead as low as one point, but the Bulldogs of Starkville would never relinquish the lead. Destiney McPhaul provided a spark off the bench for State, as she scored a team-leading 18 points while dishing out a team-leading six assists. She also led the team with four steals. McPhaul has scored double figures in 12 games this season, four of which have come in conference play. The Bulldogs will be back in action and will look for their second-consecutive win in Southeastern Conference play when they travel to Fayetteville to take on the Arkansas Razorbacks. Tipoff for Monday's contest is set for 6:30 p.m. on SEC Network. |
| MSU wins Battle of the Bulldogs | |
| Both Mississippi State and Georgia came ready for a physical battle on Thursday. The visiting Bulldogs played as such, coming out of the halftime break, pushing for a way back into the contest after trailing by seven. A quick 6-0 run saw them pull within one; the frontcourt players were taking the fight to MSU and things started to get chippy between the teams. MSU head coach Sam Purcell expected a physical test, a test of his team's grit, and he saw his team answer the call. Freshman Madison Francis and Georgia guard Trinity Turner got double technicals when the pair engaged in some extracurriculars after Turner gave Francis a push. Rather than letting a perceived injustice get to her, Francis immediately responded with a dish to Kharyssa Richardson on the offensive end and a gnarly block on the defensive end that got the home crowd on its feet. "Madison Francis for National Defensive Player of the Year," Purcell said after the game. "Not just SEC, National. Her four blocks, her length and athleticism along with eight rebounds is outstanding." Purcell took the time to lobby for Jaylah Lampley and Favour Nwaedozi for All-SEC selections as well, and recognized the team's selflessness on a complete performance against UGA. Five players scored in double digits, outrebounding the other team 36-30 and grabbing nine steals to pick up a much-needed conference win. They won the physical battle, and then they won the game 85-71. |
| Mississippi State rights the ship with win over Georgia | |
 | After back-to-back losses, Mississippi State righted the ship with a big home win. Mississippi State pulled away in the third quarter in a 85-71 win over Georgia Thursday night. Destiney McPhaul led Mississippi State with 18 points, and five MSU players finished the night with double-digit points. Mississippi State went on an 18-1 run in the third quarter and didn't look back. "If you're writing the (scouting report), who do you stop?" Mississippi State head coach Sam Purcell said. "I've talked about this from my Louisville days, the best teams I ever had didn't just have one scorer, they had a team. ... I've got unselfish kids that will play the game the right way. I play really smart coaches, I call it 'Million Dollar Row' here in the SEC, there's a lot of big-time coaches that are really smart, they know how to put a gameplan together. But when you see a statsheet like this, everybody's got to bring it." "I thought our fans were awesome, especially in a time where we got punched in South Carolina," Purcell said. "But again, this is a young team that's battling, they're learning. I've been preaching to them, don't pay attention to the scoreboard, pay attention to the lessons. I thought there was a toughness about us that we were able to win all four quarters." |
| Ole Miss hosts Mississippi State after Hubbard's 31-point game | |
| Mississippi State visits Ole Miss after Josh Hubbard scored 31 points in Mississippi State's 73-64 loss to the Tennessee Volunteers. The Rebels are 7-4 in home games. Ole Miss has a 5-6 record in games decided by at least 10 points. The Bulldogs are 3-8 against SEC opponents. Mississippi State has a 2-3 record in games decided by 3 points or fewer. Ole Miss' average of 7.5 made 3-pointers per game this season is the same per game average that Mississippi State gives up. Mississippi State has shot at a 44.2% clip from the field this season, 1.8 percentage points above the 42.4% shooting opponents of Ole Miss have averaged. The matchup Saturday is the first meeting of the season for the two teams in conference play. AJ Storr is averaging 14.3 points for the Rebels. Ilias Kamardine is averaging 10.5 points and 3.3 assists over the last 10 games. Hubbard averages 2.7 made 3-pointers per game for the Bulldogs, scoring 21.0 points while shooting 32.3% from beyond the arc. Jayden Epps is averaging 11.5 points over the past 10 games. |
| MRA alumnus Josh Hubbard remains consistent through a frustrating season for his Mississippi State men's basketball team | |
| Madison-Ridgeland Academy alumnus Josh Hubbard, with another season remaining in a magnificent Mississippi State career, will have a decision to make on his basketball future soon. It's not personal, it's business. It's the modern age of college athletics, a transient time in which athletes of all sports are basically free agents on one-year deals each season. Hubbard, though, will have more options than many: he can test NBA waters or NIL waters or return to the school that he's loved and has loved him back. He declared for the draft last season before choosing to return, and his stock has not really increased this season according to various mock drafts from ESPN and nbadraft.net "We're definitely going to look at it at the end of the year," Jason Hubbard, Josh's dad, told Mississippi Scoreboard. A 6-foot guard, Hubbard is among the program's most prolific scorers through 90 games, amassing 1,675 points in that span to surpass greats like Jeff Malone and Darryl Wilson. You have to go back to the 1950s to find Bailey Howell and Jim Ashmore who scored more in the same window. After reaching the NCAA tournament in each of its first three seasons under coach Chris Jans, State is now just 11-13 overall, 3-8 in SEC play, tied with Ole Miss for 12th out of 16 teams in the SEC. |
| Men's Tennis: Bulldogs Open ITA National Team Indoor Championship Against Florida | |
| No. 6 Mississippi State men's tennis will compete on one of college tennis' biggest stages this week, opening play against No. 23 Florida in the first round of the ITA National Team Indoor Championship. The 16-team event held Feb. 13-17 at host sites in Dallas and Waco, Texas, features the nation's top programs and serves as an early-season national championship showcase. The ITA National Team Indoor Championship brings together the winners of regional ITA Kickoff Weekend sites and provides a preview of the national title race, with a format similar to the NCAA Tournament. Teams compete in single-elimination dual matches, with the winner advancing through the bracket and the remaining teams playing consolation matches to determine final placement. Mississippi State enters the championship ranked No. 6 in the ITA team rankings, while Florida sits at No. 23. The matchup renews an SEC rivalry that has spanned decades. The winner of the Mississippi State-Florida match will advance to play the winner of No. 16 Clemson vs. No. 1 Virginia in the quarterfinals. |
| Mississippi State cancels future football series with Texas Tech | |
| The Mississippi State Bulldogs have canceled their future home-and-home football series with the Texas Tech Red Raiders, according to a report from the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. The two schools were slated to open the series in Starkville on Sept. 9, 2028, with the return trip to Lubbock scheduled for Sept. 8, 2029. Mississippi State would have hosted the first leg at Davis Wade Stadium before traveling to Jones AT&T Stadium the following year. Per the report, the cancelation stems from the SEC's move to a nine‑game conference schedule beginning in 2026. The Big 12 has operated under a nine‑game format since 2011, following the departures of Nebraska and Colorado. The move continues a wave of nonconference reshuffling across college football. Earlier this week, NC State and South Carolina mutually canceled their future home‑and‑home due to the new nine‑game formats. Last month, it was revealed that Texas Tech and Virginia Tech had canceled their 2034-35 series. Other high‑profile series scrapped over the past year include Cal-BYU, Georgia-Louisville, Miami-South Carolina, Alabama-West Virginia, Nebraska-Tennessee, Ole Miss-BYU, Ole Miss-USC, Cal-Florida, and Texas Tech-Colorado. |
| Starkville poaches West Point's Brett Morgan as head football coach | |
| It didn't take long for Starkville High School to find its next head football coach after John Carr accepted an NFL gig. One week after Carr joined Todd Monken's Cleveland Browns staff, the Yellowjackets didn't look very far in bringing in the next frontman, with West Point's Brett Morgan agreeing to travel just under 30 minutes southwest to lead the program. Morgan comes to Starkville after filling the big shoes of former Green Wave head coach Chris Chambless, who retired in 2023 after leading West Point to seven state titles across 17 years. When given the opportunity to lead the storied program, Morgan did not disappoint, earning back-to-back state title appearances and hoisting the title trophy in 2024. Morgan will be Starkville's third head coach in three years, with Carr heading to the pros after this past season and Chris Jones being promoted to the top spot at Hinds Community College after the 2024 campaign. Last year, Starkville was 6-5 and fell to eventual state champion runner-up Tupelo in the first round of the MHSAA 7A playoffs. |
| Ole Miss QB Trinidad Chambliss granted injunction by judge | |
| Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss was granted an extra year of eligibility by a state court judge, who issued an injunction that paves the way for Chambliss to be eligible in 2026. In a ruling that lasted well over an hour Thursday, Judge Robert Whitwell ruled that Chambliss clearly met the criteria to receive a medical redshirt for a sixth season. Whitwell detailed that the NCAA ignored medical evidence in denying Chambliss' waiver and the quarterback would suffer irreparable harm if denied this year. The judge concluded that Chambliss submitted adequate medical reference and that the NCAA didn't act in good faith in denying the waiver. The hearing for Chambliss followed his request for a sixth year of eligibility, which was denied by the NCAA on Jan. 9, and then his appeal was denied Feb. 5. Ole Miss has filed a request for reconsideration from the NCAA, claiming new evidence. That request was filed Monday and had also been denied. "This decision in a state court illustrates the impossible situation created by differing court decisions that serve to undermine rules agreed to by the same NCAA members who later challenge them in court," the NCAA said. |
| Trinidad Chambliss ruling just the tip of the iceberg in NCAA's eligibility crisis | |
| Ross Dellenger writes for Yahoo Sports: For years now, I've searched for a simple way to explain the current state of college athletics to those unfamiliar. How do you best help people understand the instability of a structure and system so profitable and popular? "Everything seems to be going well. What's all the hubbub about?" they'll say. Perhaps they are right. Perhaps the cries of chaos from stakeholders are only necessary growing pains for an entity evolving from amateur to professional. Perhaps that's OK. But on Thursday afternoon, for a few fleeting moments, a realtime snapshot existed that, more than anything, highlights the absurd state of the industry. Within a county courthouse, situated in the tiniest of towns in the most rural of areas in north Mississippi, a 23-year-old quarterback's collegiate eligibility -- his Heisman Trophy hopes, his team's championship aspirations, his more than $5 million in promised compensation -- hinged on a decision from a 70-plus-year-old chancery court judge who just so happens to hold a law degree from the school, Ole Miss, that stands to benefit most from his ruling. This is less than ideal. Set aside your feelings on the decision from Judge Robert Q. Whitwell to grant quarterback Trinidad Chambliss an extra year of eligibility. Remove the names and school logos. Put away your inherent bias and partiality. Look at the whole. Is it healthy for college sports to have the eligibility of athletes determined within courtrooms across America? |
| DOJ Antitrust Chief's Exit Could Impact NCAA, College Sports | |
| Assistant Attorney General Gail Slater, chief of the DOJ's antitrust division, announced on Thursday she is stepping down -- a move that could increase the odds of a settlement between the government and Live Nation and invite new thinking on antitrust enforcement and athletes' rights in college sports at a pivotal time. Slater is a seasoned antitrust attorney and expert confirmed by the U.S. Senate last year in a 78-19 vote. She has been an attorney for the Federal Trade Commission, served in the National Economic Council during President Donald Trump's first term and was advisor to Vice President JD Vance while he was a U.S. senator. A graduate of Oxford University, Slater has also worked at Fox, Roku and the international law firm Freshfields, handling antitrust matters. Slater has overseen the Justice Department's antitrust lawsuit against Live Nation. The case was launched in 2024 by then-U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland and then-antitrust chief Jonathan Kanter and joined by 30 states and the District of Columbia. The government accuses Live Nation and its subsidiary, Ticketmaster, of engaging in monopolistic and anticompetitive practices in the sale of tickets. Set to go to trial next month, the Live Nation case is centered on concert tickets but has a sports hook. |
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