| Friday, November 7, 2014 |
| MSU to offer 4-year electrical engineering degrees through MGCCC in '15, mechanical in '16 | |
 | Representatives of Mississippi State on Thursday spoke to a packed auditorium on the campus of Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College on the new four-year engineering degrees the university will offer through MGCCC beginning next fall. Jason Keith, interim dean of MSU's Bagley College of Engineering, told MGCCC students that MSU will begin offering four-year programs in electrical engineering beginning in the fall of 2015, with a mechanical engineering program coming on line in 2016. "This is the beginning of a long relationship between Mississippi State and MGCCC," Keith said. Keith noted that studies indicate there will be a 20 percent growth in engineering jobs along the Gulf Coast by 2020. |
| Mississippi State to Hold Diversity Conference Next Week | |
 | Creating a better understanding of similarities and differences among cultures, ethnicities and races will be the focus of Mississippi State University's 2014 Diversity Conference next week. "From Conversations to Collaboration: Pathways to Diversity" will take place Thursday and Friday in Colvard Student Union. The public program will begin with an 8 a.m. welcome on Thursday in the Bill Foster Ballroom. Sessions will focus on such topics as diversity in institutions of higher learning, how communication enhances understanding and ways diversity positively impacts the state, nation and world. Panelists and speakers also will examine the best practices for developing diversity initiatives and meeting diversity goals. |
| Mississippi State, VA strike historic partnership for health care services to veterans | |
 | Mississippi State University and the U.S. Office of Veterans Affairs officials came together Wednesday to celebrate their partnership, the first in U.S. history according to MSU, to provide specialized campus health services to veterans. "I think Sonny Montgomery would be very proud today," said MSU President Mark E. Keenum. "This university is known as being one of the most veteran-friendly universities in the nation, and we're deeply honored to help bring extended healthcare benefits to our veterans." During the ceremony at MSU's Hunter Henry Center, U.S. Rep. Gregg Harper congratulated the leaders for establishing a new approach to providing veterans' healthcare. "Thank you for being willing to do something that has never been done," Harper said. "Making sure that veterans' needs are going to be met makes this an even stronger university." |
| New Map Provides Interactive Guide to Mississippi State Campus | |
| Mississippi State University has announced the implementation of its new online campus map, a richly interactive tool that will help guide students, parents, alumni and other visitors around campus, both online and in person. The map was created in conjunction with concept3D, Inc., developers of the CampusBird interactive mapping platform. "We believe this tool will not only serve our existing students, faculty and staff, but will also serve to amplify our recruiting efforts nationally as out-of-state students are able to virtually navigate our campus in a meaningful way," said MSU President Mark E. Keenum. |
| Mississippi State announces new interactive campus map | |
 | Mississippi State is getting a new feature that will help students and visitors navigate campus. The university announced Thursday its new online campus map with interactive tools that allow people to virtually navigate the campus. The map includes a self-guided walking tour of historic sites on campus, 360-degree panoramas of significant buildings, photographs of buildings, directions to eateries and more. |
| Sampling History: Mississippi State houses Ulysses S. Grant Presidential Library | |
| It is a bit unusual that the Ulysses S. Grant Presidential Library is located in the Deep South at Mississippi State University in Starkville given that Grant was a native of Ohio and the general who ultimately led all Union Forces in the Civil War and masterminded the 1863 Vicksburg campaign, a key battle in deciding the war against the South. I was fortunate to attend a program at the recent Mississippi Library Association annual conference in Vicksburg in which Ryan Semmes, MSU assistant archivist told of the library, its holdings and the scholars who were a magnet in bringing the honor to MSU, now one of only five universities in the nation to share such a distinction. |
| Mississippi State Horse Auction Has New Features | |
| Buyers shopping the Mississippi State University horse auction may be surprised to see bulls in the online photo lineup this fall. This is the second year for horses in the annual Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station's production sale to be auctioned online with eBay-style bidding. All the animals are available for viewing at http://www.auction.msucares.com. The online auction is a joint effort by the experiment station, the MSU Extension Service and the Extension Center for Technology Outreach. |
| Farmers looking for answers on 'magic' acres in new farm bill programs | |
 | They're beginning to be called "magic" acres. Those are the millions of cotton base acres that will become generic base when farmers enroll in the Price Loss Coverage or Agricultural Risk Coverage programs in the new farm bill. Farmers can use those generic acres in the calculation of base acres for crops such as corn, grain sorghum, peanuts, rice, soybeans and wheat because cotton is no longer a covered commodity when it comes to farm programs. Hence, the term "magic" acres. The changeover from cotton base to "magic" acres is one of the major topics of discussion as the USDA's Farm Service Agency, land grant universities and farm groups hold farm bill listening sessions, according to Larry Falconer, MSU Extension agricultural economist with the Delta Research and Extension Center in Stoneville, Miss. |
| Starkville Parks and Recreation runs an almost $2,000 deficit in October | |
 | Starkville Parks and Recreation's recent financial woes bled over from the end of Fiscal Year 2013-2014 to October as the independent group ran almost $2,000 over budget in October. Board support for a future financial bailout similar to the $60,000 given in September when Starkville Park Commission fell $57,000 short of its yearly operating budget is unlikely to form this term as Vice Mayor Roy A. Perkins said Tuesday he would not support an additional financial advance. Parks' financial health and SPC Chairman Dan Moreland's leadership were scrutinized in the 2013 election cycle when an audit revealed fiscal anomalies. |
| Starkville bans pets from public cemeteries | |
| Starkville aldermen instituted a short-term ban Tuesday against allowing pets inside its three public cemeteries as the city moves toward a public hearing process to permanently amend its animal control ordinance. The board acted upon recommendations made by the Starkville Cemetery Association after numerous complaints were filed regarding dog owners allowing their pets to relieve themselves on the public properties, specifically two Cotton District locations. Both Walker and Ward 5 Alderman Scott Maynard told the Dispatch in August that animal control issue highlights a need for more trash receptacles -- for garbage, pet waste and other materials -- in the University Drive-Russell Street corridor near the Cotton District's large student population. |
| KiOR fails to make MDA loan payment | |
| KiOR has missed its final deadline for making a $1.85 million payment on its $75 million Mississippi Development Authority loan. The loan payment was due by the end of the day on Oct. 31 after KiOR and MDA agreed in July to a 90-day forbearance when company officials revealed they were unable to make their bi-annual payment when it was due June 30. A three-day grace period ended Wednesday, with no payment made, the MDA confirmed Thursday afternoon. "MDA is working closely with its counsel and financial advisors to evaluate all options with the intent of finding the best solutions for the state in regard to the KiOR Columbus project," MDA spokesperson Marlo Dorsey said in a Thursday afternoon statement. |
| Court reaffirms BP is liable in Gulf oil spill | |
 | A federal appeals court panel has reaffirmed its ruling that BP is liable for federal Clean Water Act damages stemming from the 2010 Gulf of Mexico oil spill, the latest loss for the oil giant as it fights court decisions that could ultimately bring $18 billion in penalties. The three-judge panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected arguments that there were errors in its June 4 ruling on BP's Clean Water Act liability. The ruling released Wednesday night is not the final say from the court. BP and its minority partner in the Macondo well, Anadarko Petroleum Corp., have a request pending for the full 15-member court to reconsider the issue. |
| Big ideas spring from TEDx Jackson's 'Fertile Ground' | |
 | The ideas and innovation forum TEDx Jackson flourished with a "Fertile Ground" theme, but some stretched far past even the Capital-E Earth. Potentially, even, to Mars. Presenter Dr. Richard Summers, physician-researcher-scientist-professor at the University of Mississippi Medical Center, has been part of the team integrally involved in the NASA Digital Astronaut Project, developed to analyze what could happen to astronauts during prolonged space travel, exposures to microgravity (zero gravity in laymen's terms) and even on a trip to Mars. While TEDx Jackson's "Fertile Ground" theme is a nod to Mississippi's agricultural history, it's also a "great descriptor for all the opportunities we wanted to highlight in health care, education and the creative economy," TEDx Jackson organizer David Pharr said, "three of the biggest levers in what's happening in Mississippi." |
| Southaven man's drone army seeks to redefine 'neighborhood watch' | |
 | You might expect to find an army in DeSoto County -- an army of drones, that is. A Southaven man has an army of hand-crafted drones, all controlled from inside of his customized command center. Robert Estes is self-confessed country boy. "They probably think I am some type of redneck, country boy, and don't realize the extent we go to," Estes said. But despite humble beginnings, Estes established his own business and built what he says is the first drone command center in the country. Some of his neighbors worry what this technology could do if it is placed in the wrong hands. But Estes says he is not an outlaw. For years, Estes has written letters to the FAA, but he has not received much more than an automated response. He hopes when authorities actually see what he's created, he'll be on their radar, good or bad. |
| Epps, McCrory plead not guilty to federal indictment | |
| Prosecutors say Mississippi's longtime prisons chief was living high, buying beachfront condos and fancy cars, raking in so much in bribes he had to launder the money. Epps, usually gregarious, was uncharacteristically quiet as he entered and left federal court in Jackson on Thursday. He and his alleged co-conspirator, Rankin County school board president and former judge and legislator Cecil McCrory, each pleaded not guilty to a string of charges from a 49-count indictment. They were each released on $25,000 bond. Trial is set for Jan. 5 before U.S. District Judge Henry T. Wingate. Sources close to the investigation say Thursday's indictment, which had been sealed since August, is likely a first step in a case that could grow much wider. |
| Christopher Epps, Former Chief of Prisons in Mississippi, Is Arraigned | |
 | Christopher B. Epps, a former state corrections commissioner in Mississippi, was arraigned in federal court on Thursday on charges of participating in a corruption scheme in which he received nearly a million dollars from a contractor who paid off Mr. Epps's home mortgage and helped him buy a beach condominium. A 49-count federal indictment unsealed Thursday documents a complex conspiracy dating to 2007 in which Mr. Epps is accused of receiving dozens of bribes totaling as much as $900,000 in exchange for directing lucrative state prison contracts to firms connected to Cecil McCrory, a local businessman and former state legislator. |
| Mississippi Department of Corrections paid McCrory-linked firms close to $1B | |
| Companies tied to embattled Rankin County businessman and former state legislator Cecil McCrory earned nearly a billion dollars' worth of contracts from the Mississippi Department of Corrections, records show. McCrory, 62, appeared in federal court today along with former state corrections commissioner Christopher Epps, where both pleaded not guilty to 49 counts of conspiracy, bribery, money laundering conspiracy and wire fraud. Gov. Phil Bryant said through his spokesman Knox Graham that the state will rebid contracts with all firms mentioned in the indictment. MDOC already cancelled two of them based on an initial review, it said in a press release. |
| Lowndes Senate candidates had $33K in race | |
| The four candidates vying for the District 17 Mississippi Senate seat during Tuesday's general election had a combined $33,001 in campaign contributions at their disposal. The two top vote getters who advanced to a Nov. 25 runoff, Bobby Patrick and Chuck Younger, received $22,502 between them, campaign finance reports filed to the Secretary of State's office show. Patrick received the most out of all four with $14,917 as of Oct. 30. He received money from 40 contributors, one of which included Mississippi House Rep. Gary Chism. Chism, who represents District 37, which includes territory in Lowndes, Clay and Oktibbeha counties, donated $200 to Patrick's campaign. The District 17 special election will ultimately decide who replaces the late Terry Brown for next year's legislative term. |
| Mississippi senators will gain clout, could be thorns for Obama | |
 | Mississippi's veteran senators will gain clout when the resurrected Republican majority takes control next year, with Sen. Thad Cochran hoping for a second turn as the powerful chairman of the Appropriations Committee and Sen. Roger Wicker likely to lead two or even three subcommittees. Cochran and Wicker, who line up as allies on most issues, seemed in interviews to strike different tones, perhaps reflecting an internal debate as Republicans ponder how to approach deep impasses with the Democratic administration in advance of the 2016 presidential election. If the 76-year-old Cochran lands the appropriations post, he'll be in a strong position to channel more federal dollars to Mississippi. However, Cochran said that he could instead be asked to lead the Agriculture Committee, which he chaired in 2003-2004 and on which he currently serves as the ranking Republican. |
| U.S. Rep. Gregg Harper visits Lamar School | |
 | U.S. Third District Representative Gregg Harper spent Thursday morning at Lamar School in Meridian talking with seniors in the library prior to addressing students in grades 7-12 in an assembly. Harper visited the school at the request of Dr. Scott Crenshaw's senior government class. "I honestly thought he would not come to visit us," student Asia McCoy, 18, said. "We're a small school and I thought he would overlook us and I was very thankful that he did come and that our government teacher encouraged us to write him and that he took the time to respond and come down and visit us. It was a privilege and an honor for him to come and visit us and for him to answer questions that we all asked." The seniors asked Harper questions on issues ranging from gun control and immigration to the 2016 presidential election. |
| Gov. Rick Perry's abuse-of-power case gets underway in surreal fashion in Austin | |
 | There was no grand entrance of the accused for the media horde to document. No stirring speech on the courthouse steps. In fact, the defendant never spoke during the sometimes plodding and technical proceedings. Still, there was plenty of political theater -- and heated dialogue -- on the first day Gov. Rick Perry went to court to face abuse-of-power charges. Two days after he addressed a jubilant Republican victory party on election night, Perry made the short trip to district court, just blocks from the governor's mansion. He is the first Texas governor in nearly a century to face criminal charges, which involved the undignified task of being fingerprinted and having his mug shot taken. But Perry has worn the charges like a badge of courage. |
| U.S. economy adds 214,000 in October; unemployment rate sinks to 5.8 percent | |
 | The U.S. job market grew steadily in October, adding 214,000 jobs, according to government data released Friday morning, in the latest sign of a slow but substantial economic recovery. The unemployment rate also ticked down to 5.8 percent, the lowest level in six years, even as more workers entered the job market. The latest encouraging numbers keep the nation on pace for its best labor market year since 1999 and stand in noted contrast to a wave of discontent that helped Republicans sweep a round of midterm elections this week. Though wage growth has been sluggish in recent years, Americans -- helped by falling oil prices -- are seeing their purchasing power rise. |
| 'Trojan Horse' Bug Lurking in Vital U.S. Computers Since 2011 | |
| A destructive "Trojan Horse" malware program has penetrated the software that runs much of the nation's critical infrastructure and is poised to cause an economic catastrophe, according to the Department of Homeland Security. National Security sources told ABC News there is evidence that the malware was inserted by hackers believed to be sponsored by the Russian government, and is a very serious threat. DHS sources told ABC News they think this is no random attack and they fear that the Russians have torn a page from the old, Cold War playbook, and have placed the malware in key U.S. systems as a threat, and/or as a deterrent to a U.S. cyber-attack on Russian systems -- mutually assured destruction. |
| Global Web Crackdown Arrests 17, Seizes Hundreds Of Dark Net Domains | |
 | When "Operation Onymous" first came to light yesterday, it looked like a targeted strike against a few high value targets in the Dark Web drug trade. Now the full scope of that international law enforcement crackdown has been revealed, and it's a scorched-earth purge of the Internet underground. On Friday, the European police agency Europol along with the FBI and the Department of Homeland Security announced that the operation has now arrested 17 people in as many countries and seized hundreds of Dark Web domains associated with well over a dozen black market websites. Just how law enforcement agents were able to locate the Dark Web sites despite their use of the Tor anonymity software remains a looming mystery. |
| Ole Miss Chancellor Jones diagnosed with lymphoma | |
| University of Mississippi Chancellor Dan Jones has been diagnosed with lymphoma, the university announced Thursday. Jones went through his first round of treatment Thursday, and he will temporarily work out of a Jackson office. UM Provost Morris Stocks will handle some of the chancellor's usual administrative duties, and there is no time frame for the chancellor's return to full-time status in Oxford. "The chancellor is the type of person who never backs down from anything," UM Communications Director Danny Blanton said Thursday. News of Jones' diagnosis spread quickly on social media Thursday, and leaders across the state offered support for Jones as he battles the illness. |
| UM chancellor Dan Jones being treated for lymphoma | |
 | University of Mississippi Chancellor Dan Jones has been diagnosed with lymphoma and begun chemotherapy treatments, according to a press release from the university. Jones was diagnosed this week following several days of tests at the University of Mississippi Medical Center in Jackson. Chemotherapy began Thursday and will continue intermittently for several months. Jones plans to work from an office at the Medical Center between treatments, the press release said. He will take personal leave as needed for medical care. UM Provost Morris Stocks will serve as the senior university executive when Jones is unavailable. Jones has emphasized service and civility as central components of the student experience and the university has launched a diversity initiative under his leadership. He also has worked closely with Mississippi State University President Mark Keenum on several projects. |
| Parking spots in garage available for spring semester at UM | |
 | Come next semester, the Arena Garage next to Vaught-Hemingway Stadium at the University of Mississippi will provide an answer to many students' parking woes. The five-level parking garage, expected to open in January, is offering students and faculty parking spaces for the remainder of the 2014-2015 school year. Each spot will cost approximately $250, and will last from January until Aug. 15. The cost for a year-long parking pass, which will be offered starting in August of the 2015-2016 academic year, will be $500. Mike Harris, director of the Department of Parking and Transportation, said that of the 832 parking spaces in the garage, approximately 400 spaces will be available for reservation, and the remaining spaces will be used for timed parking. |
| Children's Center at Southern Miss Receives Important Designation | |
 | The Children's Center for Communication and Development at the University of Southern Mississippi has been recognized by the Continuing Education Board of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association as an ASHA Approved Continuing Education Provider. "Our approval as an ASHA Approved CE Provider demonstrates our strong commitment to meeting ASHA CEB's standards when we offer CE courses for speech-language pathologists and audiologists," said Children's Center Director Sarah Case-Price. |
| Drummer And Tuba Player, Work To Stay Sharp For Band And College at Jackson State | |
 | Six months ago, we brought you the story of the Edna Karr High School marching band in New Orleans. Two members of the band in particular, snare drummer Charles Williams and tuba player Nicholas Nooks, or Big Nick as his friends call him, earned scholarships to Jackson State University in Mississippi -- their dream. The marching band at Jackson State is known as the Sonic Boom of the South. Band camp began in August with 164 freshmen. But after weeks of late nights and early mornings, musical training and also push-ups, 24 had quit. Williams and Nooks never considered leaving. They'd come too far, Nooks says, to give up now. Both of them come from single-parent homes with not a lot of money. |
| U. of Alabama panel recommends Moody building expansion | |
 | Committees of the University of Alabama board of trustees approved a request for $615 million in funding from the state in the 2016 fiscal year and a series of resolutions related to construction projects at the Capstone, including a renovation and expansion of the Moody Music Building. The resolutions approved by the committees on Thursday will be considered by the full board today. On Thursday, the Finance Committee approved a resolution requesting state funding for the system in fiscal year 2016 at a level equivalent to fiscal year 2008, which would be about $615 million. |
| Forward progress: Backward-moving play pushes U. of Alabama students' acting | |
| The University of Alabama's Department of Theatre and Dance is pushing students with its newest production. "Merrily We Roll Along" is a 1981 Stephen Sondheim musical, with a book by George Furth, based on the 1934 comedy by George Kaufman and Moss Hart. It starts at the end of the main character's journey and works its way to the beginning. Franklin Shepard, who once composed Broadway musicals, has sold out to the bigger money and fame of Hollywood. So the show starts at the peak of his movie-making fame, then rolls along back through his past. It has pushed director and third-year master of fine arts in directing candidate Matt Davis, and his cast, to their limits. |
| Auburn College of Agriculture shows off diverse capabilities | |
 | From turning pine chips into jet fuel to maintaining a pristine playing field for the Tigers, the technological impact of Auburn University 's College of Agriculture reaches far beyond crop farming. Since 1927, people in the college's turfgrass management major in the Department of Crop, Soil and Environmental Sciences have been using science and math to create perfect sports fields. The major has helped maintain Pat Dye Field since games were first held at the then-Auburn Stadium in 1939, when Auburn University was still Alabama Polytechnic Institute. As the college's technologies are changing, so are its students. Today, many agriculture majors grew up in urban environments rather than the traditional farm ones of yesteryear. "We are at a tipping point in terms of colleges of agriculture," said Bill Batchelor , Ph.D., dean of the College of Agriculture . "Our students are farther and farther away from that farm heritage." |
| Auburn grad (and former Ms. AU) wants to be Nashville's first female mayor | |
 | Nashville resident Linda Eskind Rebrovick is hoping her business experience will help her become the city's next -- and first female -- mayor. But long before the marketing executive threw her hat in the mayoral ring, she was earning her degree and notoriety at Auburn University. Robrovick, most recently CEO and president of Consensus Point, a consumer marketing research firm, is a 1977 graduate of Auburn University's College of Business, where she earned her degree in marketing. She served as Ms. AU from 1976-77. |
| Board confirms Fuchs as U. of Florida president | |
 | The Florida Board of Governors on Thursday confirmed the appointment of new presidents for Florida's two pre-eminent universities. Kent Fuchs, provost of Cornell University and a 20-year career academic who graduated from Miami Killian High School, was confirmed as 12th president of the University of Florida. John Thrasher, a well-connected state politician and lobbyist who graduated from Florida State University, was confirmed as 15th president of his alma mater. Their appointments come at a time when both UF and FSU have been set with the high-stakes goal of becoming among the top-ranked public research universities in the nation and have been tagged by the Legislature as the state's top two universities. |
| U. of Florida researchers report progress that could lead to treatment of the so called cruise ship virus | |
| It is often dubbed the cruise ship virus because of the nightmarish news stories about sick passengers overcome by vomiting and diarrhea on the high seas, but the norovirus strikes about 20 million Americans a year, the vast majority of them on dry land. Highly contagious and quick to spread, the norovirus has no vaccine, although work continues to try and develop one, and no specific treatment except hydrating to replace the fluids lost to throwing up and diarrhea. But some University of Florida professors say recent success in the lab could lead to progress finding a treatment for the virus. A research team led by Stephanie Karst, an associate professor in the College of Medicine's department of molecular genetics, successfully grew the human norovirus in a cell culture dish. |
| UGA to lead study on economic impact of child care in state | |
| State education officials say they've commissioned a study to gauge the economic impact of child care on Georgia's economy. Officials from the Georgia Department of Early Childhood Learning say the University of Georgia and Georgia State University are leading the study. Officials say the last study on the topic in 2007 determined that childcare programs in the state created more than $4.1 billion in annual revenue and more than 61,000 jobs. |
| Suspect in Vanderbilt kidnapping attempt extradited | |
 | A man accused of trying to kidnap a woman who was walking on the Vanderbilt University campus in September has been extradited to Nashville on that charge. Suspect Scott Douglas Wallace, 38, was arrested Oct. 23 during a traffic stop in Florida. Metro police extradited him to Nashville, where he was booked into jail Thursday afternoon. Authorities say Wallace parked his white minivan at the crosswalk on 25th Avenue South while victim was crossing the road in the early morning hours of Sept. 21. As the woman was crossing, she locked eyes with Wallace, according to his arrest warrant. She told police that Wallace "had a crazy look in his eyes." |
| Texas A&M Board of Regents OK tuition hike for 2015-2016 | |
 | The Texas A&M System Board of Regents approved a 1.93 percent tuition increase and a $2.32-per-credit-hour University Advancement Fee hike for 2015-2016 incoming freshmen and graduate students in a 5-3 vote, despite an 11th-hour push by the Texas A&M student senate to oppose or delay the decision. Regents and student senate members were divided during more than an hour of discussion over whether such an increase was financially necessary or pushed through too quickly without the proper consultation of the student body. The proposed hikes would raise tuition rates at the Texas A&M System from an average of $9,242 to $9,490 per year for in-state students and will remain locked at that rate for the duration of their college careers. |
| Texas A&M symposium tackles issue that's still very alive today: Racism | |
| Fifty years after the Civil Rights Act passed, A&M Consolidated senior Tracie Purnell still experiences racism. "When we're in an advanced class, we're the only African-American person in that class," she said of herself and a friend. "Some people will say, 'Oh, she's smart for a black girl.'" The statement, which implies that being both intelligent and black should not be expected, is a "microaggression," an unintended slight and among issues of race discussed at a civil rights symposium at Texas A&M University on Thursday. About 400 people, including 160 students from local high schools, attended the day-long event. |
| Faculty Council at U. of Missouri discusses Title IX policies, provost search | |
 | University of Missouri Faculty Council members discussed Title IX issues and the addition of a fourth candidate for the open provost position at Thursday's council meeting. Faculty council member Tim Evans said that Title IX training should begin sometime this month after several faculty council members expressed concern at the last meeting that they hadn't yet been trained for the new Mandatory Reporting policy, which requires all university employees to contact the Title IX coordinator "when an employee becomes aware of an alleged act of sexual harassment, discrimination or assault." Rebecca Johnson, who sat in for Faculty Council Chairman Craig Roberts, emphasized MU's role in Title IX procedures. |
| U. of Missouri police investigate strong-arm robbery | |
 | The University of Missouri Police Department is investigating a report of a strong-arm robbery that happened near University Heights on Thursday morning. A man was approached from behind between 9 and 9:30 a.m., struck with an object and had cash taken, MUPD Capt. Brian Weimer said in a news release. The suspect was described as a heavy-set white man between 5 feet 10 inches and 6 feet tall. He was wearing a hoodie. University Heights, 701 S. Providence Road, is housing for graduate students, students with families and undergraduates older than 21. Weimer sent the information as a Clery release. Campus police nationwide are required to disclose information about crimes on or near school property as a result of the federal Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Police and Campus Crime Statistics Act of 1998. |
| U. of Missouri student completes Ironman to raise funds for African schools | |
| Evan Culbert is no stranger when it comes to pushing himself to achieve his goals. Last November, Culbert founded an organization at the University of Missouri called Hope 4 Africa, which aims to improve educational resources at seven schools in Kenya. Ten months later, the MU junior used his platform as a triathlete to raise money for the organization by competing in an Ironman competition in Louisville, Kentucky. He completed the race in August and raised more than $1,000 through crowdrise.com, the largest fundraiser by a single student for the organization. The money will be sent directly to Kenya for teacher support and student sponsorships in partner schools in the Nakaru area. |
| GOP Leaders in Congress Outline Education Priorities | |
 | After easily capturing the number of seats they needed take control of the U.S. Senate -- and padding their majority in the House of Representatives -- congressional Republicans have laid out an aggressive education policy agenda that includes overhauling the long-stalled No Child Left Behind law and the mammoth Higher Education Act. While divided government will remain, as the White House is in Democratic hands at least until President Barack Obama finishes his second term, the new political calculation in Congress will likely spur movement on education bills. Lawmakers who play major roles on the chamber's education committees were quick to outline their priorities, which also include school choice measures, funding issues, and generally scaling back the federal footprint on K-12. |
| Unanswered questions remain in Clemson University student's death | |
 | A month after the death of 19-year-old Clemson University student Tucker Hipps, questions remain about how he ended up in a lake outside the college campus. Did Hipps fall from a bridge on S.C. 93 during an early morning run with members of his new fraternity? Was he impaired? Could he have been helped? According to initial reports, Hipps, a sophomore pledge for the Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity, was participating in an early morning group activity run at Lake Hartwell with other pledges on Sept. 23. A swirl of social media speculation insisted the death was due to hazing. But Oconee County Sheriff Mike Crenshaw said there was no evidence of hazing during the initial investigation of the case. Even so, Clemson University officials suspended all new-member activities for fraternities on campus for two weeks following Hipps' death. But officials allowed activities to resume on Oct. 10. |
| JEFF AYRES (OPINION): The road to innovation full of potholes, bumps | |
| The Clarion-Ledger's Jeff Ayres writes: "KiOR wants to produce biofuel by burning woodchips. Mississippi Power wants to generate electricity by burning lignite coal and capturing about two-thirds of the carbon dioxide produced in the process. Both would utilize locally available raw material to achieve greater energy efficiency. Both could prove to be innovative, maybe even game-changing, approaches. But each is currently mired in problems that could slow or, in KiOR's case, kill those efforts before they have a chance to succeed." |
SPORTS
| Subbing pattern keeps Mississippi State defense fresh | |
| Mississippi State abandoned its hockey-like substitution patterns against Arkansas. Through the first seven games of the season, the majority of substitutions involved mass changes on defense. The first-team defense would start, labeled "1A." After a couple of series, 11 new players stepped onto the field labeled "1B." But that substitution pattern showed cracks against Kentucky on Oct. 25. The second team allowed more yards and points on fewer plays. However, the group made a quick turnaround last weekend against Arkansas. "It worked out pretty well in terms of points," MSU coach Dan Mullen said. "We made some big plays on defense and did not give up points. In the end, that is the most important aspect of it." |
| Welcome back: Skyhawks coach was two-sport athlete for Mississippi State | |
| This weekend, thousands of former Mississippi State students will flock to campus to celebrate the annual homecoming festivities. But a pair of former Bulldog quarterbacks won't be clad in maroon or clanging cowbells in the stands. UT Martin head coach Jason Simpson along with senior signal caller Dylan Favre venture back to campus with thoughts of upsetting the top-ranked former team. Simpson was a two-sport athlete at MSU from 1990-92, where he also played baseball for Ron Polk. He finished out his collegiate career on the diamond at Southern Miss. Simpson is excited to see his former school performing so well in the national spotlight. |
| Mississippi State's Will Redmond relishing role as closer | |
| He did in Baton Rouge. He repeated the feat against Arkansas. Will Redmond has three interceptions this year. Two sealed the game in or near the end zone. The junior intercepted passes against the Tigers and Razorbacks as both teams attempted to steal a victory from Mississippi State. "I like when the game is on me," Redmond said. "When it your time, when its your play to be made, you've got to make the play." With a month left to the season, Redmond is becoming one of the Bulldogs' best defenders. He's tied for the team lead in interceptions with three. Richie Brown also has three, which all came against Texas A&M. |
| Mississippi State football coach Dan Mullen's road to No. 1 ranking started at Grymes Hill | |
| So, you start out eating that awful college cafeteria food and living in one of those overcrowded, empty-refrigerator apartments on Grymes Hill, notorious first homes of graduate-school coaching assistants. And 20 years later you're the head coach of the No.1 college football team in America and hailed as a man who makes the impossible seem routine. How, exactly, does that happen? How do you travel from Staten Island to the heart of college football country and become a regional sports icon? Well it starts with passion, for sure. And Mississippi State head coach Dan Mullen always had plenty of that. |
| Ware dominates as Mississippi State hammers Delta State in exhibition play | |
| In the moments following Mississippi State's 72-51 win over Delta State in an exhibition game Thursday night, Delta State coach Jim Boone sought out MSU junior forward Gavin Ware to share a few words of encouragement. "I told him after the game that I loved watching him play," said Boone of Ware. "He is such a force inside, he's a really good player. He's very, very physical but he's got a soft touch. I love watching players that are his size play like that." It was that kind of night for Ware, the Starkville High product who led MSU with 19 points, including 12 in the first half. |
| 'Improved' Ware leads Bulldogs | |
| Although it was only an exhibition, Mississippi State head coach Rick Ray left Humphrey Coliseum pleased with what he saw Thursday night. The Bulldogs jumped out to a 24-2 lead over Delta State and never trailed in a 72-51 victory. "It was good obviously for our guys to play against a different opponent," Ray said. "I thought our guys really came out with a great intensity on the defensive end during the first half and it carried over to the offensive end." Gavin Ware paced the Bulldogs with 19 points on 9 of 13 shooting. "This is definitely a new and improved Gavin Ware," Ware said. "I'm more in shape, more fit and more able to help my team be successful in the long run." |
| 'Egg Bowl rivalry' highlights Sanderson Farms first round | |
| Strolling to the green midway through their round, Carlos Sainz turned to Jonathan Randolph. Sainz, a Mississippi State alum, motioned to the group gathered around the ropes. "Lot of maroon," Sainz said. "More blue and red," Sainz recalled Randolph, a 2011 Ole Miss grad, responding. The two long-time friends, whose golf-paths first crossed during their recruitments then in their college days and again on the Web.com Tour, were paired together during Thursday's first round of the Sanderson Farms Championship. They certainly drew a local crowd. Handfuls of spectators -- with Bulldog and Rebel gear dotting the crowd -- followed the pairing throughout the day. |
| McGillis confirms USM basketball under NCAA investigation | |
 | The Southern Miss basketball program is under NCAA investigation for potential improper financial aid benefits provided to ineligible signees under former head coach Donnie Tyndall, according to a report from Bleacher Report. Southern Miss athletic director Bill McGillis confirmed an NCAA probe is ongoing in a prepared statement. "The university is working together with the NCAA to review potential issues related to our men's basketball program," McGillis said. The report cites an unnamed source who says the investigation centers around the tuition and living expenses paid to "Prop 48" recruits who had signed with the Golden Eagles, but were academically ineligible. |
| Tennessee coach Donnie Tyndall will cooperate if NCAA asks; university defends hiring process | |
 | University of Tennessee first-year basketball coach Donnie Tyndall on Thursday said he has not been contacted by the NCAA but will cooperate fully if the organization requests to speak with him as it reviews "potential issues" related to the University of Southern Mississippi team Tyndall coached for two seasons before UT hired him in April. "All I'm going to say, and can say is, if I'm asked to cooperate, I will cooperate 100 percent," Tyndall told reporters at Pratt Pavilion. "And that's all I will say and can say about it at this time." Earlier in the day, Bleacher Report, citing an anonymous source close to the Southern Miss program, reported the NCAA is investigating the school for potential rules violations under Tyndall, who coached the Golden Eagles to a combined record of 56-17 from 2012-14. |
| Plan early to find free parking when the Tigers take on the Crimson Tide | |
 | A massive wave of football fans will roll into Baton Rouge this weekend, flooding the streets around LSU's campus with purple, gold and crimson, bringing with it the possibility of this season's thickest traffic jam. Come early, LSU officials said, or risk arriving without the benefit of free public parking for what has become an annual marquee game between the Fighting Tigers and Alabama's Crimson Tide. The plans to handle the swollen crowd aren't much different than they were two weeks ago when LSU squared off against Ole Miss. "We thought it went pretty well in most areas," said Adam Smith, the parking operations director for LSU's athletic department. |
| Colleges turn to athletics directors with business backgrounds, but results vary | |
 | When the University of Michigan chose David Brandon to be its athletics director in 2010, the university touted his experience as the chief executive officer of Domino's Pizza. At the time, the university saw his understanding of how to run a multibillion-dollar company as a fitting background for running a big-time college sports program. As college sports have become increasingly big businesses, more institutions have made similar assessments and turned to outside business executives to run their programs -- but it's not yet clear that the shift in preferred skill sets is paying off. |
| Colleges Push to Keep Financial Advisers Away From Athletes | |
 | It is illegal in most states for sports agents to provide gifts or other items of value to amateur athletes---and agents are supposed to register with state regulators before approaching an athlete. Violators can be prosecuted. Those laws rarely apply to financial advisers. While NCAA rules prohibit athletes from accepting money or gifts from anyone trying to woo them, there is little to discourage financial advisers from trying. As a result, brokers, insurance agents, bankers and other types of financial advisers often contact athletes who are promising pro prospects, according to college athletic officials. Momentum to narrow the regulatory gap is growing. At a two-day meeting that starts Friday, a Uniform Law Commission panel will consider expanding the definition of "agent" to include many kinds of financial advisers. |
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