| Thursday, January 8, 2015 |
| Mississippi State Again Ranks Highly in U.S. News and World Report | |
 | Mississippi State University is listed in the 2015 U.S. News & World Report rankings of the nation's online programs, getting especially high marks for online graduate programs in computer information technology, business administration and engineering. "As chief academic officer, I am proud of the rankings of the various MSU programs by U.S. News & World Report. These rankings are quite an accomplishment and a tribute to our fine distance programs," said Jerry Gilbert, provost and executive vice president. "Our faculty who teach these distance learning programs have gone above and beyond to meet student learning needs with new technologies and tools to reach students across the nation. This demonstrates MSU's commitment to academic excellence." |
| Mississippi State's Keenum to speak at Northeast First Pitch Banquet | |
 | Northeast Mississippi Community College is adding a touch of maroon and white to help celebrate the start of a new and promising season on the diamond. Mississippi State University president Dr. Mark Keenum, a former Tiger football player, will be the keynote speaker for the ninth annual Northeast First Pitch Banquet next month. "We're very excited about having Dr. Keenum and his family here for our banquet," said Northeast head coach Kent Farris. "The things that have been going on at Mississippi State, with the prominent rise of the football program and the baseball program going to Omaha, starts at the top and he's the man in Starkville." Keenum was named the 19th leader of Mississippi State in January 2009 and has subsequently guided his institution to new heights with record student attendance, new facilities and major fundraising efforts. |
| Area mainstays are shutting down business | |
 | In Starkville, Bill Robinson confirmed that Robinson Western Auto also plans to close. Robinson's parents -- V.J. and Faye Robinson -- took over the store at 308 University Drive in 1965. When they retired, their son stepped in. Now Bill Robinson says it is time for him to retire. "It's time for me to move on," he said. "It's mixed feelings." As he looks to get rid of his merchandise through the next several months, Robinson said prices have been reduced. The business offers appliances, electronics, lawn and garden supplies, Stihl brand equipment, Honda generators and more. Also in Starkville, CJ's Pizza in University Square Shopping Center will close next Thursday, and Taco Del Mar in Cotton Crossing Shopping Center opened Wednesday. |
| Wiseman: Aldermen offered no explanation for LGBT-related policy discussions in executive session | |
| Starkville Mayor Parker Wiseman slammed aldermen Wednesday for removing LGBT-friendly policies without public debate and began the process vetoing the board's action. Five aldermen repealed the city's equality resolution -- a non-discrimination policy that included language protecting lesbian, gay, bi-sexual and transgender employees -- and ended its plus-one insurance option available to workers' same-sex partners after three hours of closed-door deliberations. Wiseman vowed to veto the actions, but the 5-2 breakdown will overturn his order if an override vote is called. Even though a majority of aldermen took the matter into executive session on the grounds of potential litigation, the mayor said the public was owed open and transparent discussions. |
| Perkins initiated closed-door policy changes | |
| Documents show Vice Mayor Roy A. Perkins initiated Tuesday's executive session motions that repealed Starkville's resolution supporting equality and amended the city's plus-one insurance option to only spouses in state-recognized marriages. Unofficial city minutes released Wednesday also show Perkins, who originally authorized last year's agenda item adding specific non-discrimination language for lesbian, gay, bi-sexual and transgender employees, stifled closed-door discussions on the repeal by calling for a close to debate and a roll-call vote. |
| Yokohama begins hiring for production line | |
| The Yokohama Tire plant in West Point is hiring production positions. The Japan-based tire maker announced Tuesday that it is looking to hire approximately 400 people. Roughly 110 people have already been hired by Yokohama Tire Manufacturing Mississippi -- from engineers to technicians. But the jobs made available Tuesday represent the lion share of jobs the plant will offer, as production positions will be the largest department of the plant's workforce. Macaulay Whitaker, vice president of internal and external affairs for the Golden Triangle Development LINK, told The Dispatch that while the positions are open to people all across Mississippi, the LINK believes most will be filled by Golden Triangle residents. |
| Mississippi Economic Council to host 'Regional Roundup' session at EMCC | |
 | The Mississippi Economic Council is looking to compile more accurate data on the challenges and strengths of various regions throughout the state, and on Jan. 22 the local business community will have the chance to weigh in. Beginning at 11:30 a.m. at East Mississippi Community College in Mayhew, MEC will host its annual regional roundup for constituents of Clay, Oktibbeha and Lowndes counties. The session will feature a luncheon presentation from MEC President Blake Wilson focusing on economic competitiveness, education achievement and workforce development, resource management and technology commercialization. (Subscriber-only content.) |
| Cracker Barrel: 'We're coming to Columbus' | |
| Columbus is getting a Cracker Barrel. Teresa Miller, a corporate communications specialist with the Tennessee-based chain, has confirmed that the restaurant "has plans to join the Columbus business community." The plan is to open in the fall but an "actual open date is contingent on construction progress," according to a statement Miller sent The Dispatch on Wednesday. Tony Tate, a local Realtor with Swoope Real Estate who was part of negotiations, said a deal is in place for the restaurant to be built on a 2.5 acre lot near the intersection of 18th Avenue North and Sixth Street North, across from Logan's Roadhouse. |
| Sandwich maker creating 200 jobs in Shannon | |
 | The creator of the frozen deli sandwich soon will be making them in Mississippi, creating 200 jobs and occupying what had been an empty building. Hayward, California-based Raybern Foods, which specializes in heat-and-serve sandwiches sold at grocers including Walmart, is relocating its manufacturing operations to the former Sara Lee building in the Tupelo Lee Industrial Park in Shannon. The company is investing $10 million, in conjunction with state and local help. The Mississippi Development Authority is providing up to $2 million in assistance, including $1.75 million to building improvements and relocation costs, $200,000 to local governments for infrastructure work and $50,000 for worker training. |
| Southaven outlet mall announced | |
 | Outlet mall operator Tanger is partnering Poag Shopping Centers on a development in Southaven. Southaven and DeSoto County officials several years ago approved a $15 million tax increment financing plan in which bonds will be issued to pay for the infrastructure for the outlet mall. Construction will begin immediately, and the mall is expected to be open for the 2015 holiday season. Called Tanger Outlets Memphis, the development is expected to have about 70 "upscale brand name and designer outlet stores," said Steven B. Tanger, president and CEO of Greensboro, North Carolina-based Tanger Outlets. |
| Mississippi moving toward more detailed state budget process | |
| Mississippi lawmakers say they're gradually starting to use performance-based budgeting --- a system that requires state agency leaders to set clear goals and provide detailed information about whether programs are working. Rep. Toby Barker, R-Hattiesburg, told members of the House and Senate appropriations committees Wednesday that the system is being phased in, a few agencies at a time, over the coming years. If it works as planned, it will allow legislators to answer important questions about state government. Sen. Terry Burton, R-Newton, said Mississippi enacted a 1994 law that required performance-based budgeting, but it was loosely enforced. "You'd be surprised how much we don't know," Burton said. |
| Lawmakers pick sides in MAEP battle | |
 | State lawmakers this week started choosing sides in what's likely to become one of the biggest showdowns in the 2015 legislative session, if not the entire year. A lawsuit filed last year by attorney and former Gov. Ronnie Musgrove seeks to recover withheld MAEP funds from the past, while a November ballot measure would force the Legislature to comply with MAEP in the future. Both efforts have the backing of numerous school districts, educator associations, parents and lawmakers. But they'll face opposition from some of the state's top brass. |
| Black Caucus calls on full funding for Mississippi schools | |
| The Legislative Black Caucus' request that House and Senate leaders fully fund Mississippi's school budget formula appears likely to be fulfilled, based on early recommendations for state spending in this election year. The Mississippi Adequate Education Program is designed to give schools enough money to meet midlevel academic standards. It has been fully funded only twice since being put into law in 1997. The Black Caucus chairman, Democratic Sen. Kenny Wayne Jones of Canton, said Wednesday that it's time for lawmakers to stop shortchanging MAEP. "It's always been a political pawn, but we haven't put our money where our mouth is," Jones said during a Capitol news conference. |
| South Mississippi educators gear up for Common Core fight | |
 | The new legislative session is only two days old but Gulf Coast educators are already anticipating a fight over the Common Core standards, now in their first year of full implementation across the state. And they aren't waiting until education bills come up for debate to start lobbying legislators. Several said they would use a planned trip to Jackson start pressing elected leaders on the issue. "We'll give them a copy of the standards and ask if there's any one they specifically object to," Gulfport School District Superintendent Glen East said. "They're saying Common Core needs to go but no one can point to a standard that's bad." |
| Parents group urges Mississippians to join virtual rally for education funding | |
 | One group is asking you to put your social media skills to work to push for more money for Mississippi schools. The group is worried that some state lawmakers may try to jeopardize efforts to pass an education funding amendment. Members held a virtual rally Wednesday to urge lawmakers to leave the amendment alone. "We have far more children, greater number of children in poverty. We are providing our schools fewer resources than other states provide their schools," Nancy Loome said. Loome spoke to the Gulfport Kiwanis Club about how extra money in the classroom can help Mississippi children get a quality education. Loome is the Executive Director of the grassroots organization Parents' Campaign. She said Amendment 42, which goes up for a vote in November, would force lawmakers to adequately fund education. |
| Wright: Commitment has not changed | |
| Carey Wright remains committed to her mission to "change the trajectory of education in Mississippi," the head of the state's public education system said on Wednesday. Speaking to the Daily Journal editorial board, Wright was asked about recent comments made by Gov. Phil Bryant in response to Wright's strong support for the Common Core State Standards, which Bryant opposes. Wright reiterated her support for Mississippi's College and Career and Ready Standards, which follow the Common Core guidelines for math and English instruction. She and the board see those standards as the floor, she said, adding they are open to discussions about adding additional standards, or Mississippi-centric ones. |
| Mississippi school rating at bottom, but preschools get good mark | |
| Mississippi again ranks last in the nation in school performance according to an influential evaluation released Thursday, but the state ranks near the top in a new measure of how many students are participating in preschool programs. Education Week's Quality Counts report gave Mississippi a "D" overall for school performance, 51st among the states and Washington D.C, well below the national average of "C." The state ranked third-to-last in a measure of what chance of success in life a typical child has, and 41st in measures of how much it's spending and how evenly that spending is spread among rich and poor districts. |
| Bounds hopeful about funding for Williamsville connector | |
 | With the state Legislature convening its 2015 session on Tuesday, state Rep. Scott Bounds, R-Philadelphia, is hopeful and confident that more funding will be allocated toward right-of-way acquisition for the Williamsville connector during this term. Last year, the state gave $2.65 million toward right-of-way purchases in response to Weyerhaeuser's $57 million investment to modernize its Philadelphia mill. The right-of-way purchases are a step toward an $80 to $100 million four-lane project that would give Weyerhaeuser access to the Williamsville connector. "Hopefully, we will be able to get even more funding toward the right-of-way acquisitions," Bounds said. "MDOT is in the processor of surveying [property], but before anything can be built, rights-of-way must be bought." |
| State candidates throw hat in ring | |
 | It's been a busy day at state Republican and Democratic party headquarters in Jackson as candidates announce their intentions to run for state office in Mississippi's 82 counties, including DeSoto. Candidates have until the end of February to file qualifying papers to seek office. The entire existing DeSoto County delegation will seek re-election. State Rep. Wanda Jennings, R-Southaven, State Rep. Forrest Hamilton, R-Olive Branch, State Rep. Pat Nelson, R-Southaven, State Rep. Gene Alday and State Rep. Bill Kinkade, all Republicans, are seeking re-election and have filed the necessary paperwork to run. There are also some new names that have come to the fore. |
| Adams County legislators say education, state budget will dominate session | |
 | Adams County's representatives at the state capitol say they anticipate education and state budgetary issues will dominate this year's legislative session. Sen. Melanie Sojourner, R-Natchez, said she attended an anti-Common Core rally at the Capitol following the close of Tuesday's proceedings, a cause the senator said she will continue to push. "The rally was great," Sojourner said. Sen. Kelvin Butler, D-Magnolia, said he supports Common Core. Butler also said he would fight for education funding, and would renew his nearly annual effort to implement a state lottery to fund college tuition for Mississippi students. |
| Hundreds attend Gulf Coast Legislative Reception in Jackson | |
| Hundreds attended the Gulf Coast Legislative Reception on Wednesday night at the Trade Mart in Jackson. Held annually at the start of Mississippi's legislative session, it gives those in attendance a chance to talk issues with lawmakers while enjoying the food that's made South Mississippi famous. The reception has been held for more than 20 years. The event was sponsored by the Hancock County Chamber of Commerce. |
| Most area legislators running for re-election | |
| Tupelo businessman Mark Prince has qualified to run as a Republican for state House District 17, which encompasses portions of primarily western Tupelo and Lee County. Brian Aldridge, a Republican who is finishing his third term as the District 17 representative, already has said he is not seeking re-election. Thus far, Aldridge is the only legislative incumbent who represents Northeast Mississippi who has announced he is not running for re-election. Other incumbents contacted since the 2015 session began Tuesday have said they plan to qualify or already have qualified to seek re-election later this year. Feb. 27 is the deadline for candidates to qualify for either the Aug. 4 party primaries or the Nov. 3 general election. |
| U.S. House grants OK for Nunnelee's oath | |
| The U.S. House of Representatives, in a special vote, agreed Wednesday that District 1 Rep. Alan Nunnelee, R-Tupelo, can be sworn in in Tupelo, where he is recovering from a hematoma suffered during the holiday season. Consultant Morgan Baldwin said Wednesday afternoon the family-only event will be scheduled when planning is completed. Nunnelee, re-elected in November, suffered a stroke in 2014 during surgery to remove a malignant brain tumor. He has made substantial progress with medical and physical therapies. |
| Gay marriage cases from Louisiana, Texas, Mississippi to be heard in appeals court Friday | |
 | A federal appeals court in New Orleans will hear arguments Friday in three cases involving state bans on same-sex marriage, including Louisiana's, in what could be one of the final courtroom showdowns over the marital rights of same sex couples. A panel of three appeals court judges -- two Reagan appointees and an Obama appointee -- will listen to arguments in a case appealing a district judge's September ruling that upheld Louisiana's 2004 constitutional amendment banning gay marriage. It's the first case on the docket for Friday's session in the 5th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals, which will also hear arguments in cases from Texas and Mississippi, where lower courts struck down marriage bans as unconstitutional. Court officials are preparing for a large crowd interested in hearing the arguments, and for possible demonstrations outside the building on Camp Street downtown. |
| Farm states: Let us sell to Cuba | |
 | Farm state lawmakers and agricultural groups are ramping up efforts to lift the trade embargo against Cuba in the wake of President Barack Obama's decision to normalize diplomatic ties with Havana. More than 25 food and agricultural interests including Cargill, the National Chicken Council and the National Turkey Federation on Thursday will announce a coalition aimed at pressing Congress to scrap the embargo and open up the island to increased investment with the United States. Among the attendees at the rollout of the U.S. Agriculture Coalition for Cuba are Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. Obama last month announced that the U.S. will open an embassy in Cuba for the first time in 53 years, and his administration would ease some travel and trade restrictions. |
| Drone market resembles Silicon Valley's early days | |
| In many ways, the nascent drone industry looks a lot like the personal computer industry did in its infancy. The money to fuel development is coming largely from entrepreneurs' own checkbooks. "They get just enough money to make a prototype, get it out the door and get a couple of clients," says Maryanna Saenko, an analyst with the science and technology consulting firm Lux Research. When the Federal Aviation Administration announces rules opening U.S. airspace to some commercial drones, more investors are expected to get on board. But until then, many venture capitalists say, drones remain too risky and too expensive to bet on. |
| A Cyberattack Has Caused Confirmed Physical Damage for the Second Time Ever | |
 | Amid all the noise the Sony hack generated over the holidays, a far more troubling cyber attack was largely lost in the chaos. Unless you follow security news closely, you likely missed it. A German report released just before Christmas revealed that hackers had struck an unnamed steel mill in Germany. They did so by manipulating and disrupting control systems to such a degree that a blast furnace could not be properly shut down, resulting in "massive" -- though unspecified -- damage. This is only the second confirmed case in which a wholly digital attack caused physical destruction of equipment. The first case, of course, was Stuxnet. According to the report, the attackers appeared to possess advanced knowledge of industrial control systems. |
| New antibiotic teixobactin kills drug-resistant superbugs, study says | |
 | Using soil from a grassy field in Maine and a miniaturized diffusion chamber, scientists have cultivated a microbe that could help tame the spread of antibiotic-resistant superbugs. When tricked into growing in a lab, the microbe makes a compound that kills strains of tuberculosis, MRSA and other deadly pathogens that are immune to even the most powerful drugs. Experts said the discovery could lead to a new class of antibiotics for the first time in decades. If so, it would give doctors a much-needed weapon in the microbial arms race that has tilted in favor of bacteria. NovoBiotic Pharmaceuticals of Cambridge, Mass., owns the patent for the new molecule. Several of the researchers have financial stakes in the company. Financial support for the research also came from the U.S. National Institutes of Health and the German government. |
| Police search for two brothers in massive French manhunt amid fears of more attacks | |
 | A massive manhunt for the perpetrators of France's worst terrorist attack in generations shifted to the countryside north of Paris on Thursday as commandos and helicopter patrols poured into villages following reports that the two main suspects --- both heavily armed --- were spotted on the run. The investigation also broadened on another front, with police conducting arrests amid fears that more attacks could be planned. A day after the massacre of a dozen people at the offices of a satirical newspaper, France's capital was a mix of mourning, anger and hair-trigger tensions -- raised even further after the slaying of a policewoman in a Paris suburb Thursday morning. |
| Ole Miss student gets 'Idol' ticket to Hollywood | |
| Two Mississippi natives earned coveted trips to Hollywood during Wednesday's premiere of "American Idol." Lumberton's Michael Simeon, 21, sang Sam Smith's "Stay With Me" and played guitar during his audition. 19-year-old Priscilla Baker, of Amory, also earned "yes" votes from judges Keith Urban and Harry Connick Jr after singing "Delta Dawn." Simeon's mother, Lumberton Public School District Superintendent Linda Smith, was waiting outside the audition room for him. She said she was excited to see him emerge with the ticket to Hollywood. The Ole Miss junior very nearly didn't make it in front of the judges for "Idol's" 14th season. |
| U. of Florida gets new Peace Corps recruiter | |
 | A counselor who has worked with Costa Rican youth has been appointed as the new Peace Corps recruiter at the University of Florida. Bobbi Stienmetz joined the UF International Center in mid-November after Nargiza Ludgate, the center's grants and contracts coordinator, secured a $25,000 grant to reopen the recruitment office that had been closed since 2012. UF has been a top provider of volunteers to the Peace Corps. Since the 1960s, more than 1,200 UF alumni have served with the agency, which was started by President John F. Kennedy. UF has consistently ranked among the top five colleges and universities in providing undergraduate and graduate school recruits. |
| U. of Tennessee says Nashville campus means more local doctors | |
 | A top administrator at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center said the institution's impending expansion in Nashville, along with an initial investment of $40 million, will help to meet the growing need for doctors here and across the state. The university is planning to begin construction on a satellite campus adjacent to Saint Thomas West Hospital within the year, according to Ken Brown, UTHSC executive vice chancellor and chief operations officer. In an interview, Brown said the number of medical residents being trained through the university at Saint Thomas Health hospitals would likely increase sixfold, from about 32 to 200, by the time construction is complete. |
| Texas A&M Bush School professors: Attack on 'Charlie Hebdo' has national security implications | |
 | The Wednesday morning attack on French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo that left 12 dead and 11 injured has immediate implications for national security, according to Texas A&M Bush School counterterrorism and national security experts. Although authorities have not indicated the assailants had any affiliations as of Wednesday night, the fluid and ruthless manner in which the assault was carried out led Bush School professors Jim Olson, Jasen Castillo and Larry Napper to believe they could have been trained or inspired by a larger terrorist organization like ISIS or al-Qaida. Olson predicts Wednesday's attack will lead to a more aggressive surveying program on Muslim communities in Europe and the U.S., specifically mosques, which have traditionally been off-limits as religious establishments. |
| Proposed U. of Missouri rule change would allow tenured faculty to be dismissed in some circumstances | |
 | A proposed change in the way complaints against faculty for harassment, discrimination and/or misconduct are handled was presented Wednesday to the University of Missouri's Faculty Council. Some members expressed concern about how the changes would be applied. "I really think we identified that we need to work on the implementation of it -- the details of it," said Dennis Miller, who presented the changes on behalf of the University of Missouri System's Intercampus Faculty Council subcommittee that proposed the revisions. The most significant change from previous policy is that administrators will be able to dismiss accused faculty members if found guilty in some circumstances, even if the accused is tenured. But that would involve a nine-step procedure before dismissal, according to an executive summary from the Office of the General Counsel. |
| New Congress seeks to redefine full-time work in health law, which colleges support, adjuncts don't | |
 | As Republicans formally take control of a new Congress this week, one of the party's top priorities is pushing through a change to President Obama's health care law that many colleges are cheering but that adjunct faculty have criticized. Both the House and Senate are expected to vote, as early as Thursday, on legislation that would redefine full-time work under the Affordable Care Act as 40 hours a week, up from the current 30-hour threshold. Senator Susan Collins of Maine, a Republican, and Senator Joe Donnelly of Indiana, a Democrat, on Wednesday reintroduced legislation defining full-time work as 40 hours a week. They said the change would help workers in a range of industries, such as higher education, regain the hours that employers cut to avoid hitting the 30-hour threshold. |
| Report details microaggressions on campuses for students of color and women | |
| Women and students of color continue to encounter psychologically damaging racism and sexism on college campuses, creating a climate where students struggle to graduate and are unsure who to turn to for help. That's according to an article published this week based on the findings of Harvard University's Voices of Diversity project. The report is based on the interview and online survey responses of more than 200 students across four institutions -- Missouri State University; two anonymous public institutions in the South and the Midwest; and a private, elite university in the Northeast. The bulk of the incidents described in the report are what social scientists call "microaggressions." |
| Clemson students march and demand school address 'pattern of social injustice' | |
 | On a cold, windy first day of classes as Clemson University opened its spring semester, nearly 80 students marched from the university's center of social and athletic life -- Memorial Stadium -- to the school's administrative offices in Sikes Hall to present a list of grievances and demands to the school's president, Jim Clements. The students, a loosely formed group called A Coalition of Concerned Students -- many but not all of whom are black -- say the university as a whole and many students in particular have exhibited a pattern of social injustice that exploded last semester after a fraternity gang-related "Cripmas" party and comments by Clemson students on social media. |
| Lessons on Small Particles Yield Big Gains, Say Proponents | |
 | As schools look for ways to implement the Next Generation Science Standards, some scientists and educators argue that schools should start small---really, really small. The topic they have in mind is nanoscience, the study of particles in the range of a billionth of a meter. Nanoscience is a rapidly expanding part of fields from medicine to high-tech manufacturing. Federal and industry experts at a National Science Foundation meeting last month believe it could provide a path to break down some of the silos separating science, technology, engineering, and mathematics classes and link their concepts to future careers for students. |
| Study Finds Reading to Children of All Ages Grooms Them to Read More on Their Own | |
 | Cue the hand-wringing about digital distraction: Fewer children are reading books frequently for fun, according to a new report released Thursday by Scholastic, the children's book publisher. In a 2014 survey of just over 1,000 children ages 6 to 17, only 31 percent said they read a book for fun almost daily, down from 37 percent four years ago. There were some consistent patterns among the heavier readers: For the younger children -- ages 6 to 11 -- being read aloud to regularly and having restricted online time were correlated with frequent reading; for the older children -- ages 12 to 17 -- one of the largest predictors was whether they had time to read on their own during the school day. The finding about reading aloud to children long after toddlerhood may come as a surprise to some parents who read books to children at bedtime when they were very young but then tapered off. Last summer, the American Academy of Pediatrics announced a new policy recommending that all parents read to their children from birth. |
| WYATT EMMERICH (OPINION): Opinions vary on what makes a better business climate | |
| Mississippi newspaper publisher and columnist Wyatt Emmerich writes: "With the new legislative session upon us, our state leaders are listing their priorities. None of them has a proposal to improve our business climate and create jobs. ... Our goal should be a favorable business environment for all businesses, not just the handful of mega corporations. That is the key. How do we do this? For one, get rid of several of the anti-business taxes that hurt job growth. Mississippi has several under-the-radar business taxes. ...Ironically, huge tax breaks to mega companies seem to pass unanimously in special sessions with little debate. How can this be? We jump to give some Japanese multi-national half a billion in tax breaks while we wipe out our home-grown companies in 40 years with the franchise tax. Go figure." |
| BRIAN PERRY (OPINION): Ward elected state Senate pro tem | |
| Consultant and columnist Brian Perry writes: "Speaking at what he called 'the Mother Church of Mississippi politics,' Senator Giles Ward (R-Louisville) announced at the 2014 Neshoba County Fair he would not be seeking re-election. This past Tuesday at noon, Ward's final year in the Senate commenced with his colleagues electing him by acclamation president pro tempore of the state Senate, where he will serve as president of the Senate in the absence of Republican Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves. ...Speaking with Ward at the most recent Neshoba Fair, I sensed a certain amount of relief as he looked forward to more time with his family as they continue recovering from the tornado. Those plans haven't changed with his new position, but I doubt he expected he would serve his final year in the Senate as second in succession to the Governor." |
| PAUL HAMPTON (OPINION): Madison mayor just might challenge Pickering for state auditor | |
| The Sun Herald's Paul Hampton writes: "A longshot potential candidate seems to be inching toward running in the Republican primary. Madison Mayor Mary Hawkins Butler has been testing South Mississippi for support should she decide to run for state auditor. It's a place where the average voter probably has at best a vague recollection of her but where Auditor Stacey Pickering still has some explaining to do about his handling of the DMR affair. He ended up in hot water down here with a chancery judge holding him in contempt after the Sun Herald took him to court in a public records case." |
| BOBBY HARRISON (OPINION): Legislature harbors potential opposition to referendums | |
| The Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal's Bobby Harrison writes: "When the legislative leaders decided to pass a bill in the early 1990s creating a process so that citizens could bypass the legislative process and have an issue placed on the ballot, they had two simple goals in mind. The first was simply to create the initiative process to satisfy the demands of the electorate. The second was to make the process so difficult that it would never be used. For a while it looked as though they had succeeded. ...But in 2011, three efforts were successful in reaching the ballot. ...Now, four years after those three reached the ballot, another initiative effort has been successful in garnering the signatures needed to be placed on the ballot. ...But before the issue reaches the ballot, the legislative leadership is contemplating using another provision of the initiative law that was developed to ensure the difficulty of passing an initiative." |
| SID SALTER (OPINION): House protest votes against Boehner more about optics than public policy | |
 | Syndicated columnist Sid Salter writes: "The 114th Congress officially took office this week and most of the national attention was directed at how Republican House members cast their votes for House Speaker John Boehner, who was re-elected to the speakership by a margin of 216 to 192, with a total of 408 lawmakers voting. ...One GOP member who voted against Boehner told the media: 'I think the 25 of us who voted the way we did -- we represented the frustration of the American people.' Perhaps they did, but the fact is that the vote was far more about political optics than about any substantive change in federal spending." |
SPORTS
| Mississippi State women's basketball team on record-pace in both wins, fan attendance | |
| Commitment means something to Bob and Carol Schwanebeck. When you have been married 40 years, you find a special way to celebrate your anniversary. Little did Bob Schwanebeck realize that he and his wife would spend their special day with the Mississippi State women's basketball team in Columbia, Missouri. "For the past several years, we spent our anniversary wherever the girls were playing basketball," Bob Schwanebeck said. "If it was in Starkville, that is where we went. We have been to Nashville (Tennessee) to watch the team, too." The trip to Missouri is just one the Schwanebecks, who live in Meridian, have made with the No. 14 team in the nation. The fact that the Schwanebecks were willing to go on the road with the Bulldogs is another sign of the team's growing fan support. |
| Schaefer wants Bulldogs to remain selfless, relentless | |
| Selfless and relentless. Those are words Vic Schaefer holds near and dear to his heart. Those words also might be the best ones the Mississippi State women's basketball coach can use when asked how he wants his players to play. Through 17 games, No. 14 MSU has lived up to those expectations without a blemish. The Bulldogs have overcome injuries, inexperience, and youth to get off to a program-best 17-0 start, which includes a 2-0 mark in the Southeastern Conference. But Schaefer knows his team is scratching the surface of its potential. "I think this team has a chance to be really, really good," Schaefer said. MSU climbed three spots this week and is ranked No. 14 in The Associated Press Top 25 entering its game against Arkansas (10-4, 0-2) at 8 tonight at Humphrey Coliseum. Fox Sports Net South will broadcast the game live. |
| Diaz eager for new beginning at Mississippi State | |
| It's a new beginning -- not a return -- for Manny Diaz. That was the theme the Mississippi State football team's new defensive coordinator followed Wednesday night when he was introduced to local media. In a news conference that lasted nearly 30 minutes, Diaz spoke about coming back to MSU after a four-year absence. On Monday, MSU coach Dan Mullen hired Diaz to replace Geoff Collins, who left MSU last month to take the same position at Florida. After his hiring was announced Monday afternoon, Diaz arrived in Starkville on Tuesday. According to the 40-year-old Diaz, that's when the work began. "We jumped right into it," Diaz said. |
| Manny Diaz: This is moving forward | |
| Manny Diaz moved around quite a bit over the last eight years. Diaz just took his fifth defensive coordinator job over that span but wants this stint at Mississippi State to be his last. "It's the last defensive coordinator job I ever want to take and the last defensive coordinator job I ever intend to take," Diaz said. "You have goals of what you want to do and where you intend to be and this is it. This is where I want to coach defense." Things have changed on State's campus as well during his time away. The Bulldogs opened its $25 million Seal Football Complex in January 2013 and finished a $75 million renovation to Davis Wade Stadium this fall. "It's amazing this difference," Diaz said. |
| In second run at Mississippi State, Diaz promises to stay for a while | |
| This is it. The last time Manny Diaz held the defensive coordinator position at Mississippi State, he bolted after one season. As the school reintroduced him on Wednesday, Diaz made it clear: This stay in Starkville will last longer. "This is the last defensive coordinator position that I ever want to take," Diaz said of a conversation he had with MSU coach Dan Mullen. "This is it. This is where I want to coach defense." Diaz signed a three-year contract worth $1.8 million on Monday to replace Geoff Collins as the team's defensive coordinator. He'll also coach the linebackers. |
| Manny Diaz eager in return to Mississippi State | |
| Manny Diaz was officially introduced as Mississippi State's new defensive coordinator in a press conference Wednesday evening. A familiar face to Bulldog fans as the play-caller of the stellar 2010 defense, Diaz said the program has evolved from four years ago and that this is an opportunity to continue going forward. "I don't look at this as a going back," he said. "I look at this as I am going forward. I know I'm a much better coach today than I was here four years ago. Mississippi State is a very different place today. I have always felt a sense of pride in the continued steps that Dan (Mullen) and the program have taken in the time I've been gone..." Diaz arrives in Starkville after a successful year at Louisiana Tech. |
| Slow starts, free-throw shooting doom Mississippi State | |
| The Mississippi State's men's basketball team's Southeastern Conference opener against Tennessee on Wednesday night was a chance for a fresh start. Two dreadful starts turned that opportunity into a nightmare. Tennessee outscored MSU 12-0 in the first four minutes of the first half and used a 14-4 run to open the second to earn a 61-47 win at Humphrey Coliseum. Kevin Punter had a game-high 15 points to help Tennessee (9-4, 1-0 SEC) win its first game in a row. "You can't win a ballgame when you spot the other team 12 points," said MSU coach Rick Ray, whose team fell to 7-7 and 0-1. "I thought our guys did a good job battling back, but, ultimately, this game boiled down to our inability to hit free throws. I don't think I've ever seen a game where a team shoots 44 times from the free-throw line, holds the other team to 35 percent shooting, and still loses." |
| Feds want aerial attack on hogs | |
| An attack has been waged against feral hogs in some of Mississippi's national wildlife refuges, but the government is losing. As a result, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is calling for more help. "We're infested with hogs. It's bad," Mike Rich, project leader for the Theodore Roosevelt National Wildlife Refuge Complex, said. "Since the flood, we've seen exponential growth." The flood Rich mentioned was the historic Mississippi River flood of 2011 that pushed man and animals to higher ground. During that time, federal officers took advantage of the concentrations of pigs along levees and other exposed areas, shooting them wherever they were found. With the ground assault failing, the USFWS is looking to attack from the sky. A proposal was recently announced that would add tracking and shooting hogs from helicopters at the 7 NWRs in the complex. |
| Jameis Winston to Enter N.F.L. Draft; His Accuser Sues Florida State | |
| Quarterback Jameis Winston on Wednesday announced that he would make himself available for the N.F.L. draft, the same day that Florida State was sued by the woman who accused him of rape. The lawsuit, filed in United States District Court in Orlando, Fla., seeks a jury trial and damages while alleging that the woman's Title IX rights were violated, a lawyer for the woman said. The lawsuit says the university created a "hostile educational environment." Florida State's president, John Thrasher, said in a statement that the university had not yet been served notice of the lawsuit and that Winston's accuser did not have her civil rights violated. |
| Why the Oregon Ducks Don't Believe in Yelling | |
 | As Oregon prepares to square off against Ohio State in Monday's national championship game, its coaches are starting to make some noise for their uncommon approach to dealing with players: They don't yell. In a move that may send football traditionalists into a sideline meltdown, Oregon coach Mark Helfrich and his staff have ditched the age-old technique of screaming at players to motivate them. Experts say that Oregon's coaches have hit upon the same discovery that workplaces across the country are starting to understand about how to interact with millennials, the generation born between 1980 and 2001. Some research studies show that the drill-sergeant approach long favored by football coaches doesn't resonate with millennials. |
The Office of Public Affairs provides the Daily News Digest as a general information resource for Mississippi State University stakeholders.
Web links are subject to change. Submit news, questions or comments to Jim Laird.
