| Monday, March 9, 2026 |
| Starkville, MSU partner to design new city arboretum | |
 | Mississippi State University's landscape architecture program and the city of Starkville are partnering to design a new public arboretum at Cornerstone Park. The project will create a free, public outdoor space focused on native plants, university research and community access. It is led by Bob Brzuszek, a retired MSU landscape architecture professor, who is working with city leaders and students to develop a long-term vision for the site, which includes young forest, grassland and wetland systems. "Landscape architecture students are an important component of creating an arboretum for Starkville," Brzuszek said. "They have a much-needed skill set for developing interesting ideas and exploring ways of linking places together." The project reflects MSU's land-grant mission by inviting faculty across disciplines to use the space as a living laboratory. Forestry students have already conducted a tree inventory, and wildlife students have completed a spring breeding bird count. "Research has shown repeatedly that being in a natural environment reduces stress and improves mental and physical health," Brzuszek said. "This will become an invaluable resource for residents, students and visitors." |
| Mississippi State Awarded $850K from DARPA to Advance Global Ag Security, Early Threat Detection | |
 | An interdisciplinary team of Mississippi State University researchers has been awarded $850,000 from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or DARPA, to enhance early detection of threats to agricultural security on a global scale. The award funding will help establish AgSENT, or the Agricultural Security Early Notification and Threat Network. AgSENT is a prototype interface that integrates key atmospheric, environmental, supply chain, biological and societal data to highlight early warnings of potential agricultural security issues. The funding was awarded by DARPA's Biological Technology Office as part of its efforts to defend against naturally occurring and manmade threats to the global food systems that the world relies on. The MSU team is led by Associate Vice President for Research and Economic Development Narcisa Pricope and includes Political Science and Public Administration Associate Professor Benjamin Tkach and Computer Science and Engineering Assistant Professor Dimitrios Manias. "Agriculture is a critical component of national security, and the threats to global food supplies are increasingly complex and interconnected," Pricope said. "The goal of AgSENT is to scan a wide range of potential threat indicators and translate that data into actionable insights that can help decision-makers anticipate and mitigate risks to food security." |
| Photo: Astronaut scholars | |
| Former NASA astronaut Curt Brown, left, and Mississippi State University President Mark E. Keenum, right, stand with Mississippi State University's newest Astronaut Scholars, from left, Spencer Lile and James "Brittin" Perdue. Lile is a senior physics and biomedical engineering major from Benton, Arkansas, and Perdue is a senior electrical engineering major from Tuscaloosa, Alabama. The Astronaut Scholarship Foundation provides scholarships to undergraduate STEM juniors and seniors, as well as professional mentoring, networking with astronauts, and career development. |
| Photo: A fiesta in the making | |
| From left, Ogo Johnson, Anita Nischol, Karolina Kastsiuchenka, Maite Baldini, Ruth De La Cruz, Joan Mylorie, Nevarn Josan and Kumiko Yamaji stand with a poster announcing the 34th annual International Fiesta, hosted on Mississippi State University campus. The free event, featuring performances, global cuisine and cultural crafts, begins at 11 a.m. on April 11 on the Drill Field. |
| Workshop aids those in pest management jobs | |
| Professionals who hold pest management certifications have an opportunity to fulfill the requirements for renewal at a Mississippi State University workshop March 24 in Raymond. The General Pest Management Workshop is held annually at the Central Mississippi Research and Extension Center. Participants must register and pay the $25 fee by March 16 to secure a spot in the workshop. Late registrants must contact workshop organizer and MSU Extension plant pathologist Rebecca Melanson to determine space availability. The program for this daylong event begins at 8:45 a.m. and concludes at 4:15 p.m. Attendees can begin checking in at 8 a.m., and lunch is provided on site. Topics for the 2026 General Pest Management Workshop include pesticide safety and regulation, disease management, insect management and weed management. "There are a significant number of employees in Mississippi whose jobs require them to hold current professional certifications in a range of pest management categories," Melanson said. "This MSU workshop allows participants to receive the continuing education they need to stay current on regulations, product changes and emerging pests and to apply pesticides safely." |
| Polls open Tuesday for congressional primaries | |
| Voters across the Golden Triangle will head to the polls Tuesday to vote in party primaries and decide candidates for key congressional races. In the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate, Scott Colom, Albert R. Littell and Priscilla W. Till are on the ballot. Republican voters will choose between Sarah Adlakha and incumbent Cindy Hyde-Smith. For the 1st Congressional District, which includes Lowndes County, Clay County and parts of western Oktibbeha County, Democrats Kelvin Buck and Cliff Johnson are on the ballot for the U.S. House of Representatives. Incumbent Trent Kelly runs unopposed in the Republican primary. In the race for the 3rd Congressional District, which includes Noxubee County and most of Oktibbeha County, both Republican incumbent Michael Guest and Democrat Michael A. Chiaradio are running unopposed in their respective primaries for the U.S. House of Representatives. Winners from Tuesday's primaries will move on to the ballot for the Nov. 3 general election. Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday and all voters will need a photo ID to cast a ballot. |
| More severe weather possible across Mississippi this week | |
| After a stormy weekend that left more than 8,000 Mississippians without power, the National Weather Service is warning that more severe weather could impact the state this week. NWS Jackson has issued a Slight Risk (Level 2 of 5) for nearly half of the state Monday with cities like Jackson, Meridian, Columbus, Greenwood, Greenville, Cleveland, Clarksdale, Oxford, and Tupelo falling into the impact zone. Conditions are expected to begin around noon and go through 9 p.m. "Severe storms capable of hail up to golf ball size and damaging wind gusts are possible over the area this afternoon and evening," NWS Jackson warned. "Tornadoes cannot be ruled out as well." The northern tip of the state, from Southaven east to Corinth, along with much of the Pine Belt west toward Natchez, is under a Marginal Risk (Level 1 of 5). Conditions could include storms, hail up to a quarter size, heavy winds, and possibly a tornado. The expanded outlook from NWS shows the entirety of the state under some sort of risk for storms on Wednesday afternoon and into the evening. |
| Travelers encounter long waits at some airports as DHS shutdown affects security checkpoints | |
 | Travelers complained of long waits Sunday -- lasting hours in some cases -- at security checkpoints at airports in Houston and New Orleans, which officials blamed on a government shutdown of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. The estimated wait time at the standard security checkpoint at the William P. Hobby Airport in Houston early Sunday evening was at one point three hours, according to the Houston Airports website. The Hobby airport on social media Friday said it expected more travelers than normal due to spring break. In a series of posts Sunday, the airport on X went from urging travelers to arrive early to asking them to arrive 3 to 4 hours before their flights to eventually asking them to arrive 4 to 5 hours early to allow extra time for screening, citing the partial government shutdown. Posts on X from Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport on Sunday said a shortage of TSA agents at the security checkpoint was leading to "longer-than-average" lines. The airport urged travelers to arrive at least three hours before their flights and said wait times could last up to two hours. It warned similar delays could continue through the coming week. Sunday's longer-than-usual wait times came on top of flight delays in recent days in places like Atlanta due to weather. |
| February jobs numbers worse than expected, especially in health care | |
| The first Friday of the month brought a fresh jobs report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. And this month, the numbers were worse than the industry experts were expecting. The report showed a loss of 92,000 jobs. After months of easing, unemployment numbers crept up too, to 4.4%. The big shift was in health care jobs -- usually one of the sectors that grows reliably. But in February, the country lost 28,000 health care jobs. The biggest and most immediate factor was the strike for mental health workers at Kaiser Permanente. Daniel Zhao, chief economist at Glassdoor, said the estimates are that about 31,000 workers were involved with those strikes, which had an impact on the jobs report. Zhao said that dip is temporary, so a lot of those jobs should bounce back in March when employees come back to work. "But all of that being said, health care jobs growth was still slow, even if you do account for those striking workers," Zhao said. The U.S. went from adding 77,000 health care jobs in January to losing 28,000 in February. The 30,000 workers who went on strike is a blip, and doesn't explain that entire gap. Dean Baker, a senior economist at the Center for Economic and Policy Research, said a medium-term trend for employment revolves around public funding, like Medicaid and Medicare. Government cuts mean less health care funding, even for the private sector jobs. |
| House revives teacher pay raise bill, giving Senate 'one more bite at the apple' | |
| After both legislative chambers killed the other's teacher pay raise proposals this week, the House on Friday unanimously unveiled a new teacher pay bill, sharply criticizing the Senate in the process. House leadership introduced the plan in a Senate education bill that originally dealt with school counselors. The latest House proposal would give all teachers a $5,000 pay raise, with special education teachers getting an additional $3,000. It would also raise assistant teacher pay by $3,000, school attendance officers' pay by $5,000 and school occupational therapists' and licensed counselors' pay by $6,000. "I feel like they need one more bite at the apple," House Education Chairman Rob Roberson, a Republican from Starkville, said of the Senate. "And we're going to give it to them." The bill also would cap superintendents' salaries, correct the pay gap issue that educators face over the winter holidays, allow retirees to return to the classroom while drawing retirement benefits, include changes to the Public Employees' Retirement System and establish an improvement program for districts rated "D" or "F." The raises would run the state $280 million a year, Roberson said, and would bump up the state allocation for funding each student from $6,961 to $7,482. |
| Mississippi House passes bill to bypass ABC warehouse amid alcohol backlog | |
| With less than a month remaining in Mississippi's legislative session, access to alcohol -- or the lack thereof -- has moved to the forefront at the capitol as the state battles what one lawmaker calls a "total mess" of a backlog in wine and spirits. Local liquor store owners, members of the state's hospitality industry, and restaurants have reported shortages in alcohol due to a conveyor belt software failure at the Mississippi Alcohol Beverage Control's warehouse in Gluckstadt, along with the delayed construction of a new warehouse. The House State Affairs Committee recently met with Mississippi Department of Revenue Commissioner Chris Graham, who oversees ABC, for an updated briefing on the issues, with Rep. Kevin Horan, R-Grenada, saying after the meeting that it's not an issue of supply but an issue of distribution. "We've got a total mess, especially when we've got a warehouse full of product we can't get to the package store owners," Horan said on Mornings with Richard Cross on Feb. 23. On Thursday, the House unveiled what they're calling the "Emergency Alcohol Distribution Act." With key deadlines already passing, the measure was substituted into a different alcohol-related bill, Senate Bill 2838, which originally revolved around the definition of resort areas as it pertains to alcohol regulation and distribution. |
| Pearl River flood control project could be a boon for the Jackson metro area | |
| The Pearl River Flood Control Project in the Jackson region could be a boon for economic development for the capital city, leaders said Thursday afternoon. The flood prevention project will offer business opportunities for commercial and recreational development, Keith Turner with the Rankin Hinds Pearl River Flood and Drainage Control District told Magnolia Tribune. Along both banks of the river, he said, retail space, walking and bike paths, and nature areas could be developed, prompting an economic resurgence in downtown Jackson. "On both sides of the river, we're going to have economic development, whether that be mixed use or restaurants," Turner said, noting that the project will help Jacksonians avoid flooding. "They're not moving their furniture every spring." Jackson officials agreed as the city's water crisis is still fresh in their memories. "The last flood was probably one of the lowest points for Jackson. It led to the water crisis. International attention for all the wrong reasons," Jackson Mayor John Horhn (D) said last week. "And we saw some of the most dramatic population declines in our community. We've been through some difficult times in recent years, but Jackson is rising." However, the restaurants and walking paths are not coming soon. The estimation for the first phase of the design and wetland mitigation completion is upwards of two years. There are also a "few" environmental components that needs to be completed. |
| Bennie Thompson Faces a Young Challenger in the Mississippi Primary | |
 | A cluster of union workers, chatting about politics at a gathering in Jackson, Miss., were in agreement about one thing: it was good to see younger candidates make a run for Congress and challenge the longtime incumbents. "I love it," said Sedric Lawrence, 53. "Keeps the old guys on their toes." But when the conversation came around to their representative, Bennie Thompson, and whether to side with a new voice over the 78-year-old Black Democrat who was first elected in 1993, it was no longer a simple choice. Some said they were drawn to Evan Turnage, the 34-year-old antitrust lawyer mounting a long-shot primary bid. Others, like Mr. Lawrence, were going to stick with Mr. Thompson. "I think Bennie's been doing a good job," Mr. Lawrence said. "He is somebody who is going to fight against that mess up in Washington." "My legislative record on voting for uplifting districts like mine is perfect," Mr. Thompson said in a phone interview as he drove between a series of campaign events on Saturday. Many voters are deeply loyal to Mr. Thompson, not just because of his decades of work on their behalf, but also because of the longstanding deference given to elder statesmen who have long fought against racism and Black disenfranchisement. But to hear Mr. Turnage tell it, Mr. Thompson now bears some responsibility for the district's struggles to draw investment and support for essential health and education programs. |
| Trump says he won't sign other laws until election bill reaches his desk | |
 | President Donald Trump on Sunday declared that he would not sign other legislation until a sweeping election operations overhaul headlined by new voter ID requirements reaches his desk -- even as there's no sign the bill can get the votes needed to pass the Senate. "It must be done immediately. It supersedes everything else," Trump posted on Truth Social, referring to the bill known as the SAVE America Act. That could serve as a table-setter for the president's interactions with Congress this week. The House is not in session this week, but the chamber's Republicans are huddling at Trump National Doral Miami, aiming to set the agenda for the year ahead of the midterms. Trump himself is expected to address members of the House Republican Conference during the gathering at his property. The social media post was itself not exactly a veto threat, as in most circumstances bills can become law notwithstanding the president's declining to sign them. Nonetheless, the president's position underscores the extent to which he's prioritizing the SAVE America Act over other business including even funding for the Department of Homeland Security. |
| Tillis calls on Miller to depart White House: 'Out of his depth' | |
 | While Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Kristi Noem will soon depart her Cabinet-level post, Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) also wants White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller to leave President Trump's inner circle. Tillis told CNN's Jake Tapper on "State of the Union" on Sunday that Miller, a longtime adviser to Trump dating back to his first presidential campaign, is "out of his depth" and has been "repeatedly responsible for embarrassments" for the administration. When Tapper asked whether Tillis thought Miller should be relieved of his duties, the retiring senator replied, "Oh, of course I do." "Not only does Stephen really want to just paint a picture. He's not worried about substance. He's more worried about form," Tillis added later. "But I also think that he has an outsized influence over the operations of the Cabinet," he continued. "And I believe we have got qualified Cabinet members there that sometimes are doing less than what they want to because of his direction and his outsized influence." Now, as Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) prepares for his confirmation hearings to replace Noem at the helm of DHS, Tillis believes his Senate colleague "will be independent" and "driven by data" in implementing Trump's deportation agenda. |
| Trump Comes Under Pressure to Address Gas Prices, Iran War Strategy | |
 | President Trump heads into the second week of the Iran war under growing pressure to address surging gasoline prices, stretched-thin munitions stockpiles and sustained opposition to the conflict among voters, including many in his MAGA movement. Trump and administration officials have so far dismissed concerns about increasing prices at the gas pump, saying those higher costs will ease once the war ends. The average cost of a gallon of regular gasoline climbed nearly 50 cents in the past week, according to AAA. "We figured oil prices would go up, which they will. They'll also come down," Trump told reporters on Saturday. "They'll come down very fast, and we would have gotten rid of a major cancer on the face of the earth," he said, referring to the national-security threat from Iran. On Sunday, he emphasized the point after U.S. oil futures topped $100 a barrel. "Short term oil prices, which will drop rapidly when the destruction of the Iran nuclear threat is over, is a very small price to pay for U.S.A., and World, Safety and Peace," the president said in a social-media post. But polls find that voters remain unhappy with the pain of inflation. An NBC News poll released this weekend found that 62% of voters disapprove of Trump's handling of inflation and the cost of living, up from 55% a year ago and well above the 36% who approve of his actions on inflation. Beyond gas prices, Trump also faces the challenge of how to quickly refill shrinking military stockpiles. |
| Khamenei's son chosen as Iran's supreme leader, extending hardline rule | |
 | Iran's selection of Mojtaba Khamenei -- a powerful regime insider deeply intertwined with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps -- to succeed his father as supreme leader cements hard-line theocratic rule in the country and sends a strong message of defiance against President Donald Trump as Iran remains locked in a conflict with the United States and Israel. An assembly of Iran's top Shiite clerics chose the 56-year-old son of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who dominated the country for more than three decades before he was killed in Tehran as the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on Feb. 28. With deep ties to the country's security establishment, Mojtaba Khamenei has long been a key power broker in the regime, despite never holding a formal role or becoming a senior cleric. Over a week of punishing U.S. and Israeli airstrikes on Iran have devastated the country's military infrastructure and senior leadership ranks but are not yet showing signs of weakening the regime's grip on power. Mojtaba Khamenei was long considered to be the top contender for the position, but he was initially discounted because of concerns that passing the position to a descendant of Ayatollah Khamenei could be controversial. The Islamic revolution in Iran was waged in part against hereditary rule of Iran's Shah, and hereditary succession is generally frowned upon by the Shiite Muslim clerical establishment. |
| Trump vows to 'take care of Cuba,' praises Venezuela cooperation at summit | |
 | President Trump on Saturday launched the Shield of the Americas Summit -- a coalition of Latin American leaders -- with a pledge to "take care of Cuba," as the United States increases its intervention in the region. "Many of you have come today and they say, 'I hope you can take care of Cuba.' Because you have problems with Cuba, right?," Trump said to the gathering of Latin American leadership. "I was surprised, but four of you said, actually, 'Could you do us a favor?' Take care of Cuba.' I'll take care of it, ok?" he continued to applause from the crowd. Attending the meeting were the leaders of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guyana, Honduras, Panama, Paraguay, and Trinidad and Tobago. The event was hosted at the Trump National Doral Miami golf course in Doral, Florida. His comments follow tension between Cuba and U.S. and as many Cuban-Americans are hoping for a change in regime for the communist nation. Since the United States' capture and arrest of Venezuela's president, Nicolás Maduro, in January, those who wish to see Cuba's government toppled see Trump's stance on foreign intervention as a signal that America might similarly help orchestrate the ouster of Cuba's Miguel Díaz-Canel. |
| Why Washington is hamstrung on protecting workers from AI | |
 | President Donald Trump's steadfast support for artificial intelligence is butting up against rising voter fears that the technology will take their jobs amid a weakening labor market and constant headlines about AI-related layoffs in Silicon Valley. Few technological innovations in recent years have had such a large potential impact on the economy, and few have been so hotly debated. But despite a flurry of hearings, letters and bill introductions, Congress has largely skirted the issue even though many proposals have bipartisan support. "We haven't done anything," said Sen. Josh Hawley, a Missouri Republican and one of the GOP's most vocal advocates of AI regulation. "The public will pretty soon demand it." That reflects the bind that many on Capitol Hill, particularly Republicans who control both chambers in Congress, find themselves in. On the one hand, data is still showing mixed signals about how AI will disrupt the labor market, making Republicans reluctant to get in the way of groundbreaking innovation or buck Trump, who has said the U.S. will do "whatever it takes" to lead the world in the technology. There's also the concern that constraining AI development could give China the upper hand in the technological arms race. And yet a slew of recent polls have made it clear that voters are worried about AI's effect on the economy. Roughly 63 percent of Americans, and 62 percent of Republicans, say AI will result in fewer jobs, according to a February The Economist/YouGov survey. |
| AI is spurring a big expansion of high-voltage power lines. Landowners and locals are fighting back | |
| For John Zola, the 40 acres were like a paradise: apple orchards tucked into northern Pennsylvania's rolling hills, a barn, meadows and more than enough land for four houses: one for himself and his wife and each of his three adult children. It's been "hell," however, since a contractor hired by the local power utility knocked on Zola's door in late 2024 and informed him that it planned to build a 500-kilovolt power line through his property. The 240-foot metal towers would reach 10 times as high as the century-old apple trees they'd plow through and loom over the Zolas' homes and the basketball court and swimming pool where his grandchildren play. This line and others like it are being planned in accelerating numbers in the United States to deliver power, sometimes across hundreds of miles, to enormous data centers run by the world's biggest tech companies. Although advances in artificial intelligence are seen by President Donald Trump as critical to the nation's economic and national security, their energy needs are threatening to overwhelm the power grid -- and people like Zola are caught in the middle. These high-voltage power lines are the latest front line in the battle over tech firms' massive operations. Angry local opposition has sprouted against dozens of the behemoth data centers amid fears of rising electricity costs and irreparable damage to their communities. |
| Music: More than just 'white, dead men' | |
| Natalia Merlano Gomez began her career like many talented children -- performing at home while family members watched from couches and chairs during reunions and special gatherings. Born and raised in Colombia, Gomez's love of music has taken her to Germany, San Diego, California, and this week to Columbus, where she performed at the 10th annual International Music by Women Festival. The opportunity to connect with musicians from around the world, Gomez said, has become one of the most rewarding parts of her career. The festival, hosted annually in Kossen Auditorium in Poindexter Hall at Mississippi University for Women, began Thursday morning and concludes tonight with a final concert at 8. Roughly 150 performers across the United States and three countries are presenting works composed exclusively by women. Artistic Director Julia Mortyakova said the festival was created in response to the lack of female composers represented in classical music concerts and curriculum. Similar festivals exist worldwide, she said, but The W's history as the first state-supported institution for women made it a natural home for a festival of its own. Devan Lott-Knipe, a junior studying music composition at The W, said the festival offers a "safe community" for musicians from all walks of life. |
| Scouts convene for Merit Badge College | |
| Scouts from five states convened on the Ole Miss campus for a one-day Merit Badge College last month. The event, in its fifth year, was held on Feb. 21 and drew a record attendance of 244 registered Scouts and Scout Leaders. This year, Scouts came from five states and eight Councils, according to Ben Pharr, director of the University's Mississippi Center for Supercomputing Research and one of the event organizers. "It is amazing how fast the Merit Badge College has grown. In the five years since we started, it has grown by 208%," Pharr said. "We had 65 Scouts registered for our first Merit Badge College in 2022. And all of those Scouts came from within our own Scouting Council, which represents Northeast Mississippi. "It just makes sense to use the resources Ole Miss and Oxford have to offer these youth." Instructors included undergraduates, graduate students, faculty, and staff members. Dr. Jason Ritchie, a recipient of the Elsie M. Hood Outstanding Teacher Award, taught the Chemistry merit badge. Emmy-Winning Meteorologist and Tupelo area celebrity, Matt Laubhan, taught the Weather merit badge. Other instructors who gave of their time included local vets, a physician, pilots, an attorney, UM alumni, and area professionals. |
| Jackson State University's 'Sonic Boom of the South' chosen to promote Michael Jackson film | |
 | It's all over social media. Filmed at Mississippi Veteran's Memorial stadium in Jackson, world-famous 'Sonic Boom of the South' performs a Michael Jackson classic: "Don't Stop Till You Get Enough." Meant to evoke the excitement of a traditional historically Black college and university (HBCU) homecoming performance, a film crew used drones and attached cameras to the instruments of band members to draw audiences in. Jackson State University's band was one of three HBCU bands, including those of Florida A&M and Southern University, chosen to perform in the promotional campaign of the upcoming MJ biopic "Michael." "I mean 'Don't Stop Till You Get Enough.' It's just one of those mainstay type of tunes that I feel was one that catapulted the solo artist career of Michael to the next level," said Dr. Roderick Little, a JSU professor of music at JSU and the director of bands. "We were extremely excited to be connected to, not only the movie, but just to be connected to something that's going to make a global impact," he said. "It's just going to be seen by millions of people. That's what we want to juxtapose our program to, we want to make sure we place them in front of not just people locally, but also people globally as well." |
| Jazz on the Plaza brings live music to Jackson State University | |
| Students and families gathered Saturday afternoon at Jackson State University for Jazz on the Plaza, an annual event held at the university. Trumpets, violins, and saxophones filled the building as performers took the stage. The event featured JSU students, a local high school, and the Music Alive Ensemble of New Orleans as special guests. Kingston Grandberry, a freshman trumpet player at JSU, said the event gives the university a chance to showcase a different side of their musical talents, beyond the Sonic Boom of the South. "Also, you gotta bring out the jazz part as well. And I come from the city of jazz -- Memphis, Tennessee -- and I come from a great jazz program, so for me to experience this as well is just very great," Grandberry said. Dr. David Ware, coordinator of jazz studies at the university, said exposure to jazz is a priority for the program. "It's important for us to expose our students to this type of music because we don't hear it all the time," Ware said. |
| Mississippi instructors see benefits after practical cosmetology exam eliminated | |
 | Weeks after Mississippi eliminated its hands-on licensing exam for cosmetology and barbering students, instructors say they are already seeing benefits in the classroom, including more targeted skills training and less pressure on students. The Mississippi Board of Cosmetology and Barbering voted last month to remove the practical skills test, effective Feb. 2. Licensing candidates must now pass only a written theory exam after completing the training hours required by state law. Local educators said the change allows them to focus more closely on individual learning needs rather than preparing students for a second state test. "Removing the practicals actually helps us to be able to hone in on the skills even more that the students are weak in," said Sylvina Buckley, owner and lead instructor at Hair Station Studio College of Beauty in Petal. Buckley said the shift reinforces accountability at the school level and places greater responsibility on instructors to ensure students are ready before graduation. "It's just really going to force the schools to do what they need to do to make sure these students are prepared when they graduate," she said. State officials said the change is designed to reduce costs and help graduates enter the workforce more quickly without lowering education standards. |
| A new poll finds young volunteers embrace informal, everyday acts of service. So do some nonprofits | |
| Questions about younger generations' community service habits abound for nonprofits, which are contending with an aging volunteer base whose participation levels are still rebounding from pandemic drop-offs. There are some signs, however, that young people are giving back -- though their charitable works might happen less formally and more sporadically. About 8 in 10 of 12- to 25-year-olds have engaged some form of community service or volunteering, according to a new survey by The Allstate Foundation and Gallup. Among young people who volunteer, about two-thirds said that helping others or making a difference was "a major reason" for their volunteering. About 6 in 10 said that a top reason was the ability to contribute to their community, and roughly half said that about supporting a cause they were passionate about. "When we typically think of service it can be very narrow. Of, like, kids picking up litter or engaging in food drives," said Zoë Jenkins, 22, who oversees recruitment for a youth engagement nonprofit called Civics Unplugged. "That all definitely counts as service. But I think for me, how I think about it is just people helping other people. And that's, I think, a really broad bucket." These attitudes have prompted some youth-facing philanthropies to rethink volunteerism for rising generations. |
| Enrollment, money woes cause some to ask: Does Louisiana higher ed need an overhaul? | |
 | Between the Louisiana State University System, the University of Louisiana System and the Southern University System, students have 18 public schools -- and 12 more within the Louisiana Community and Technical Colleges System -- to choose from when considering where to earn a degree in the Bayou State. Some Louisiana officials and higher education leaders say it's time to reevaluate: Is that simply too many colleges, at least in their current form, for a state of approximately 4.6 million people? "If you look at those metrics per pupil, it's hard," LSU System President Wade Rousse said at a press conference in February. "It's hard to understand how it all works and how it's sustainable." As the purpose and return on investment of higher education faces scrutiny on the federal and state level, Louisiana legislators have debated what to do with the state's sprawling system of postsecondary options. And that debate could play a role in the upcoming legislative session that starts Monday. The question becomes all the more salient as some of those schools struggle with enrollment stagnation and decline, as well as budget challenges that go back to historic cuts to state higher education funding under former Gov. Bobby Jindal. |
| Georgia to Launch Need-Based DREAMS Scholarship | |
 | As a college counselor for public high schools in Atlanta, Ashley Young heard the same story time and time again from parents and students: Cost was the biggest barrier to higher education for a majority of students, despite the fact that Georgia public colleges have some of the lowest tuition costs in the nation. She remembered wiping students' tears as they struggled to figure out how they would pay for college. She quickly realized the issue wasn't just an individual challenge but a broader policy issue; Georgia was one of just two states in the nation with no need-based financial aid program, the other being New Hampshire. Later, she learned about an unrestricted reserve of Georgia Lottery funds -- which now totals over $1.7 billion -- that is intended to go toward education in the state. "I could not, for the life of me, just compute: How is this money just sitting? And at that moment, I just had students' names popping in my mind and having a real social awakening moment because I was like, this feels so unfair. How is this possible?" said Young, who is now a senior education analyst at the Georgia Budget and Policy Institute. |
| $8B in growth, and billions more planned. What's next for U. of Kentucky's campus expansion? | |
 | Under President Eli Capilouto, the University of Kentucky has spent nearly $8 billion on renovating and expanding its campus, with more than $7 billion more planned in the coming years, according to university records. During Capilouto's tenure, since 2011, the university has renovated and added several high-profile buildings, including new dorms, construction -- and expansion -- of the Gatton Student Center and an $82 million renovation of Historic Memorial Coliseum. Increasingly, the university expanded its campus boundaries, buying property and buildings near campus. That's resulted in 8 million square feet of new or renovated space on campus, according to university records. And that doesn't include new student apartment complexes, which are private developments that aim to offer housing to students at UK, where enrollment has ballooned from 30,761 in 2015 to more than 38,000 this school year. Those private developments -- and plans to demolish historic, but often outdated, buildings -- have drawn the criticism of local preservationist groups and neighborhood associations. Still, the expansion continues. |
| U. of Missouri engineers celebrate patron saint with annual festivities | |
 | As the sun set over Columbia on Friday, the dome of Jesse Hall glowed green to indicate the start of Engineers' Week, also known as E-Week. The event has been celebrated annually by the University of Missouri College of Engineering since 1903. On March 17, 1903, a note inscribed, "Saint Patrick was an engineer. Holiday today," appeared on an Engineering Building bulletin board, according to the college's website. After researching his role in their trade, Mizzou students were the first to proclaim Saint Patrick as the Patron Saint of Engineering. This year, eight days of E-Week festivities started Friday. Throughout the week, students and faculty will celebrate 177 years of excellence in engineering education with 12 scheduled events. The E-Week observance will conclude on March 15. During Friday's opening ceremony, community members enjoyed hot cocoa and cookies under the green-lit hue of Francis Quadrangle; 300 free mugs were distributed, and the E-Week royalty court was introduced. |
| UNC Investigated Controversy Over Its Civic-Life School. It Won't Say What It Found. | |
 | Months after the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill announced it would bring in outside counsel to investigate the School of Civic Life and Leadership, the findings are in -- but not out. In a news release Friday morning, the university's general counsel, Paul Newton, said an outside firm had completed a "lengthy, detailed and exhaustive" investigation, but that its findings would not be publicized in accordance with university policy and state law protecting personnel information. "The University is committed to taking all steps appropriate to ensure that any necessary corrective actions are taken," the statement reads. It does not define those steps or actions. But the statement does say the school will "continue to make improvements" under its current dean, Jed Atkins, and that it is "proud" of his leadership. The review cost $1.2 million, a university spokesperson wrote in an email to The Chronicle, and did not use any state funds. Lee H. Roberts, the university's chancellor, announced the investigation in September, as the school found itself mired in controversy over its hiring practices and other issues. Atkins was publicly accused by several former faculty in the school of inappropriately strong-arming job searches, ignoring the input of inaugural faculty for a number of external hires. |
| Public colleges could face pressure amid state budget woes, Fitch says | |
| Public colleges could face more financial stress in the coming years as state budgets struggle to adapt to federal policy shifts and sluggish economic growth, according to a Thursday report from Fitch Ratings. When under budgetary pressure, states have often cut higher education funding, as it's "one of the more discretionary portions" of their budgets, analysts said. They added that less funding could lead to increased consolidation within and across public institutions. Analysts also noted that colleges might also consider divesting and monetizing "non-core assets" to help ensure financial sustainability. Fitch flagged a handful of the states where higher ed appropriations are pressured: Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Missouri, Ohio and South Carolina. Of those, Indiana and Louisiana's funding per full-time equivalent student fell in fiscal 2026. In Missouri, overall higher ed spending fell for the year, and it's set to decline in Ohio in fiscal 2027. "State budget dynamics may translate into rising credit pressure for some universities," Fitch analysts said in the report, but they said that they don't expect to make widespread downgrades or other ratings actions. "Public institutions generally benefit from a wider operating and asset base than private peers and have meaningful capacity for strategic realignment to support long-term sustainability," they added. |
| The Drop in International Students Last Year Was Worse Than We Thought | |
| The issuance of F-1 student visas worldwide took a nosedive last year, with the number awarded during the critical months of May to August 2025 declining 36 percent, according to a Chronicle analysis of U.S. Department of State data. The drop in issuances ahead of the start of the current academic year is far more severe than previously understood -- 97,000 fewer student visas were awarded. A preliminary snapshot survey of colleges, conducted last fall, reported a 17-percent decrease in new international-student enrollments. India, the top sender of students to the United States, saw an especially steep decline: American consulates there issued only about 22,000 student visas over the summer, a drop of more than 60 percent. Nigeria and Ghana, which had been seen as promising markets for American colleges, also saw outsized declines. The plummeting numbers worldwide are likely the result of an unusual nearly monthlong freeze in scheduling of student-visa interviews, abruptly imposed by the State Department in late May. Although visa issuances rebounded in some countries after the hold was lifted, in others, such as India, the number of visas awarded remained sluggish throughout the summer. The downturn could also reflect weakening global interest in studying in the United States in the wake of actions by the Trump administration. |
| String of legal wins offers hope to college protesters | |
| College protesters are riding high after a series of legal victories. After thousands of arrests and fierce pushback from schools during the 2024 pro-Palestinian demonstrations, many of those detained by the Trump administration have been released, and last week, the courts vacated school punishments against one of the most prominent groups: the activists who took over a Columbia University building, prompting a police raid. While the wins offer hope to protesters, they also show how long and costly the battle can be. Almost two dozen Columbia activists who took over Hamilton Hall back in 2024 had received suspensions, expulsions or revocations of their degrees from the university. Police charged them with misdemeanor trespassing, but the Manhattan district attorney's office dismissed the charges, assuming the university would deal out punishments on its own. But the dismissed charges meant the records were sealed, and the school had no evidence of individual offenses, choosing to punish the group as a whole, which a judge ruled illegal. Columbia has said is looking at its options. |
| Measles today, polio tomorrow? | |
 | Columnist Bill Crawford writes: Measles hit Spartanburg, South Carolina, hard. Reuters reported last month nearly 1,000 individuals got infected in Spartanburg County since October. The outbreak hit in places like the Global Academy of South Carolina where 21% of students had not been vaccinated, then spread to the unvaccinated at places like Costco, Publix, Goodwill, Burger King, the library, a museum, and the post office, reported the New York Times. "This is not normal," state epidemiologist Dr. Linda Bell said. "This is unprecedented." "School immunization rates statewide have dropped by nearly three percentage points since prior to the pandemic in 2020," Reuters reported, as leaders and parents pushed back against vaccine mandates and demanded more 'medical freedom.' The vaccination rate among kindergarteners last year dropped to 89%, below the 95% rate shown to spark herd immunity. Nationwide, the average fell for the fourth consecutive year to 92.5%. (So far Mississippi's rate remains good at 97.5%.) In 2025, 2,281 measles outbreaks hit 45 states, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as the share of children exempted from vaccination rose to an all-time high. Frighteningly, through just two months of 2026, the CDC has reported 1,136 cases in 28 states. |
| Hyde-Smith, Adlakha Republican Primary for U.S. Senate could impact general election | |
| The Magnolia Tribune's Russ Latino writes: Sarah Adlakha, an Illinois native, moved to Mississippi thirteen years ago. She registered to vote here for the first time in 2024, before the general election. Now she's attempting to unseat incumbent U.S. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith in Tuesday's March 10th Republican Primary. The likelihood of her success is small. It's difficult to knock off a sitting Senator, particularly when a challenger starts with low name identification and a substantial campaign cash deficit. The more likely effect is that Adlakha caused Hyde-Smith to expend funds and energy that would have otherwise been devoted to the general election contest, while introducing lines of attack that could impact November. In view of that handicapping, some Republican insiders have speculated that Adlakha is a "Democratic plant" or "coordinating" with Hyde-Smith's likely Democratic opponent, Scott Colom. They point to Adlakha's lack of involvement in Republican politics prior to declaring as a candidate in 2025, her open opposition to a GOP-endorsed mayoral candidate on the Mississippi Gulf Coast, past praise of Kamala Harris, and synchronized messaging with the Colom campaign. |
SPORTS
| Baseball: No. 4 MSU Completes Sweep With 26-0 One-Hitter | |
| No. 4 Mississippi State unleashed one of the most explosive offensive performances in program history Saturday morning at Dudy Noble Field, overwhelming Lipscomb 26-0 behind a 20-hit barrage and a one-hitter on the mound. The 26 runs were the most scored by a Bulldog team since State defeated Alcorn State 27-4 on April 20, 2010 and surpassed the 25 runs MSU had at Missouri on May 15 last season. It was also the largest margin of victory since a 29-0 shutout of Mississippi Valley State on Feb. 24, 1999. The Diamond Dawgs improved to 14-2 scoring in five consecutive innings and ending the game after seven innings due to the run rule. The pitching was equally dominant. Duke Stone earned the win for Mississippi State, tossing four perfect innings with six strikeouts to improve to 3-0. Charlie Foster allowed Lipscomb's lone hit in the fifth inning before Dane Burns and Parker Rhodes finished the combined one-hitter with three more scoreless frames. The Diamond Dawgs head to the coast for a midweek matchup with Tulane. MSU meets the Green Wave in Biloxi at Keesler Federal Park on Tuesday at 6 p.m. in the Hancock Whitney Classic streamed on SEC Network+. |
| Softball: Sells Slugs No. 12 Mississippi State To Sunday Victory | |
| No. 12 Mississippi State hit three home runs to provide all of its scoring in a 4-2 comeback victory at South Alabama on Sunday, and Kiarra Sells hit two of them. Nadia Barbary got the offense started in the third with a solo home run, and Sells immediately followed with a solo shot of her own. Later in the fifth, Barbary was hit by a pitch before Sells hit a two-run blast. "Ki is just a professional hitter," head coach Samantha Ricketts said. "She doesn't get sped up. She's able to hit all the different pitches that they're throwing at her and hit them hard. She just comes up clutch time and time again with some big RBIs and big swings for us when we need them." The Bulldogs return home host Southeast Missouri for a doubleheader on Tuesday, March 10 with first pitches scheduled for 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. CT. MSU then welcomes No. 1 Tennessee for its SEC opener on Friday, March 13. |
| Men's Tennis: No. 5 Mississippi State Secures Second Top-10 Win of the Season Against Georgia | |
| No. 5 Mississippi State earned a top-10 victory Sunday, defeating No. 8 Georgia 4-2 at the A.J. Pitts Tennis Centre. Georgia claimed the doubles point, winning on courts two and three despite a 6-1 victory from Mississippi State's No. 5Petar Jovanovic and Benito Sanchez Martinez on court one. Mississippi State responded in singles as No. 8 Jovanovic defeated No. 34 Will Jansen 6-1, 6-4 to even the match before Raphael Vaksmann added a 6-2, 6-4 win over No. 120 Noah Johnston to put State in front. Gabriele Vulpitta pulled Georgia even with a 6-4, 6-1 win over Roberto Ferrer Guimaraes on court six. No. 55 Sanchez Martinez topped No. 32 Arda Azkara 6-2, 6-2 to give the Mississippi State the lead once more before No. 125 Niccolo Baroni clinched the match, rallying past Derrick Chen 3-6, 6-4, 6-1 on court four. Mississippi State picked up their second top ten win of the season. No. 5 Mississippi State travels to No. 13 South Carolina Friday, March 13th at 4 p.m. CT. |
| How Kamario Taylor's parents kept getting surprised in Miss State QB's memorable season | |
 | Mississippi State football had just finished warmups before the 2025 Egg Bowl at Davis Wade Stadium when quarterback Kamario Taylor's parents looked up at the videoboard. They were expecting a video to play announcing MSU's starting lineup against Ole Miss, like it does for every single home game, even though they weren't expecting Taylor's name to be announced. Oddly, no starting lineup video was played. Shortly after, Taylor, a freshman from Noxubee County, surprisingly trotted on to the field instead of starter Blake Shapen. It was Taylor's first career start, a big stage in a rivalry game with bowl eligibility on the line, plus the extra national eyes wondering if Lane Kiffin would leave Ole Miss for LSU. "I wasn't even paying attention," LaQuandra Conner, Taylor's mom, told The Clarion Ledger. "I actually had my head down in my phone and my sister hit me like, 'Kamario's out there! Kamario's out there!' I looked up and I just started screaming." Mississippi State and coach Jeff Lebby kept the QB change secret so tight that not even Taylor's parents knew. No reports leaked out either until moments before kickoff. And it turns out it wasn't the first surprise Mississippi State pulled with Taylor that tricked his parents. |
| President Trump urges college sports leaders to return to pre-NIL era: 'I'd like to go exactly back to what we had and ram it through a court' | |
| Have you ever attempted to put toothpaste back into its tube? There is a way to do it, actually. You can find videos online of some folks accomplishing this feat. The videos show a person using scissors to cut the wide bottom end of the tube's plastic casing. From there, it's quite easy. You just swipe that pesky paste back into the tube, close the end with staples or glue, and -- voila! -- you've put toothpaste back into its tube. Of course, that tube is now maimed and probably not functionally useful. But, hey, you did it! On Friday here, as afternoon transitioned to evening, from within the gold-gilded and chandelier-adorned East Room of the White House, the United States President, in front of a nationally televised audience and before 50 sports and business dignitaries, announced to the world something altogether confounding. He wants to put college sports' proverbial toothpaste back into its collective tube. Why can't the industry "go back to the old system?" Trump asked a room of astonished and stoic faces. "I'd like to go exactly back to what we had and ram it through a court." |
| Trump says 'whole educational system' could go out of business without fixes to college sports | |
| President Donald Trump predicted the destruction not just of college sports but the entire U.S. collegiate system unless the industry is fixed quickly -- something some sports leaders who joined him Friday at a White House summit agreed could only happen by raising more money to pay players. Trump suggested he would write an "all-encompassing" executive order within a week in hopes it would spark action from Congress. He said he expected the order to trigger a lawsuit that could put the issue back in front of the court system that approved industry-changing payments to players for their name, image and likeness. That new system has left many schools drowning in red ink, while rules governing their payments to players are only slowly taking hold. "The whole educational system is going to go out of business because of this," Trump explained, when asked why he was devoting time to college sports with the war in Iran and other issues dominating the headlines. |
| Trump plans executive order to address college sports issues | |
| After a plea for help from the highest levels of college athletics, President Donald Trump on Friday said he will write an executive order within a week that will "solve all of the problems" brought forth in an unprecedented meeting at the White House to address the future of college sports. Trump, who was joined in the East Room by about 50 people from varied backgrounds, hosted the first "Saving College Sports" roundtable with vice chairs Secretary of State Marco Rubio, New York Yankees president Randy Levine and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. The group included other politicians, sports celebrities, media executives, conference commissioners, and university presidents, chancellors and athletic directors. Those who spoke delivered a similar message: College sports needs federal legislation to restore order in the NIL space and its overall economics. "I will have an executive order within one week, and it will be very all-encompassing," Trump said. "And we're going to put it forward, and we're going to get sued, and we're going to see how it plays, OK, but I'll have an executive order, which will solve every problem in this room, every conceivable problem, within one week, and we'll put it forward. We will get sued. That's the only thing I know for sure." |
| Dealing with Iran war is 'easy,' Trump says. College athlete pay? Not so much | |
| President Donald Trump said Friday that questions about the war in Iran were "easy" compared to efforts to better regulate college sports and rein in high salaries for football players -- an extraordinary suggestion that even he himself seemed to think better of a short time later. Trump convened a roundtable of experts that included former Alabama football coach Nick Saban, SEC commissioner Greg Sankey and Pete Bevacqua, Notre Dame's athletic director. He and others then spent over an hour arguing that big paydays for star athletes -- as well as other relatively recent changes to NCAA sports like the transfer portal -- have wrecked college athletics. Presidents are routinely called upon to tackle multiple issues at once, many of them extraordinarily complex. But the timing of this lengthy discussion was especially striking, given that the U.S. and Israel launched strikes on Iran a week ago. At the end of the event, a reporter started to ask about Iran and the president interrupted, "That's an easy problem compared to what we're doing here." The event boiled down to Trump imploring members of Congress to pass the SCORE Act, or legislation based on it. The bill is designed to impose new rules on college sports, but has been criticized by opponents as a giveaway to the NCAA and its most powerful schools. |
| Trump's college sports roundtable: Two hours of talk, with few solutions | |
| A White House roundtable spent nearly two hours discussing the future of college athletics on Friday afternoon, led by President Donald Trump and featuring the most prominent political and college sports leaders in the country. The meeting started with repeated acknowledgement of the many challenges facing the industry and ended with a frustrated Trump railing against Senate Democrats and the court system. Trump also promised to produce an executive order in the next week "because that's the only way this is going to be solved." "So I'm going to sit down, and I'm going to write an executive order based on many of the sentiments made (Friday), many of the sentiments I've been hearing over the last year about what a disaster this is for colleges, the players, the families, ruining families, ruining everything," he said. The event also reinforced how difficult it will be to reach those solutions, which led to Trump gathering this panel in the first place. The question is whether this event, which featured a lot of emotion, grandstanding and saber-rattling -- at times from secondary and tertiary characters who did not sound fully informed on the issues -- brings college sports any closer to a solution. The answer probably depends on the fate of the SCORE Act and whether the calls for compromise and bipartisan action come to fruition. |
| At White House, Leaders Plead for Federal Action to Overhaul College Athletics | |
| Declaring that "a lot of really bad things are happening" in college athletics, President Donald Trump said Friday he's planning to draft an executive order to overhaul the system. What would be in the order is unclear, but Trump said at the end of a two-hour roundtable about the future of college athletics that he would like to return to a system where student athletes are compensated primarily via athletic scholarships. He acknowledged that any executive order would likely face a court challenge. Trump repeatedly warned that without significant changes, college athletics threatens to bankrupt institutions. "Many are going to go down the tubes," he said of colleges. "The people he has in the room today will not solve the problem of college athletics; they have such a narrow viewpoint," Karen Weaver, an adjunct assistant education professor at the University of Pennsylvania and former athletic director, told Inside Higher Ed. She wasn't optimistic that the roundtable would lead to substantial progress on an issue that Congress has been trying to tackle for years. But Tim Walsh, managing director of strategy and operations at the consultancy Huron, said that when the president is involved, "all bets are off." |
| Trump Plan to Make College Sports Great Again Faces Legal Barriers | |
| The "Saving College Sports Roundtable" event at the White House on Friday featured President Donald Trump, along with prominent individuals from college sports, bemoaning the metamorphosis of college sports from an amateur model into a quasi‑professional one. Their ambition is clear: return college sports to a previous era, when, although colleges and coaches made millions of dollars, the economics were more stable, with athletes denied pro sports-like compensation. This was before NIL deals and revenue‑sharing contracts. It was before unlimited transfers, before athletes sued to keep playing and making money after five or six college seasons, and before athletes who signed NBA contracts and played professional basketball sued to go back to school. That world isn't coming back. There's no legal strategy that will recast the multiple areas of federal and state law at issue -- including a complex array of antitrust, labor, employment, intellectual property and education laws---to recreate a time in history that has passed. The reason the old model is gone is because, as multiple courts have held, it's illegal. |
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