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Arielle Dreher

Stories by Arielle

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A Waiting Game: What’s Next with ‘One Lake,’ Flood Control?

Despite multiple roadblocks and open questions, the controversial plan to create a large lake along the Pearl River for flood control and potential development in the Jackson area continues to move ahead as project sponsors respond to thousands of comments that poured in last fall.

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'One Lake' Could Mean 'Catastrophic Failure' of State-Owned Bridges

One day before public comment closed on the "One Lake" flood-control and development project proposed along the Pearl River, the Mississippi Department of Transportation sent a letter to the Rankin-Hinds Flood Control District attorney Keith Turner.

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UPDATED: Who's on the Ballot in Mississippi in 2018?

This year will be an entertaining ride for Mississippi voters, who will have elect all four congressional representatives as well as two senators to represent the state in Washington, D.C.

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Mississippi to Instate Medicaid Work Requirements?

Mississippi leaders' refusal to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act left about 300,000 Mississippians without access to health care and led to the closure of several rural hospitals deprived of funds—which has emerged as a 2018 issue in the midterm elections.

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Vetting the ‘One Lake’ Project

The Rankin-Hinds Pearl River Flood and Drainage Control District, often called the Levee Board, is supporting the "One Lake" plan, the latest version of a years-long strategy to create a lake development along the Pearl River through Jackson.

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Plugging Kids into Mental Health

NFusion Metro is a community-based mental-health-care program primarily for ages 11 to 18 years old in the Jackson area. During the summer, counselors are doing themed weeks for their lesson time.

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Planned Parenthood Braces for Battle

Federal funds cannot pay for abortions, but anti-abortion rights advocates and lawmakers object to funding Planned Parenthood at all with federal and state dollars due to the fact that they still offer abortions.

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'Thinking Out of the Box': The JFP Interview with Howard Sherman

Howard Sherman won the most votes (about 31 percent) on June 5 in the Democratic primary for Sen. Roger Wicker's Senate seat.

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'I Don't Mind Long Odds': The JFP Interview with David Baria

David Baria knew he was fighting an uphill battle when he decided to run for U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker's long-held Senate seat. Baria's first challenge, however, is securing the Democratic spot on the November ballot.

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Run-Off Blues: Inside the Playoff to Challenge Roger Wicker

Democratic U.S. Senate contenders David Baria and Howard Sherman share a common interest in basketball, at least for campaign metaphor purposes.

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Hiring Ex-offenders: Mixed Statewide Results

Matthew Riley has been on the road a lot lately. As the state re-entry coordinator, Riley visited all 82 counties in Mississippi in the past nine months in search of employment opportunities for returning citizens leaving the state's corrections system.

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UPDATED: Rep. Thompson Returns Sherman Donation; Will Endorse Baria

David Baria and Howard Sherman have both donated to federal election campaigns. Baria has donated to strictly Democratic campaigns, while Sherman has donated to Republicans and recently, Democrats.

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Hinds County Criminal Justice Council Gets to Work

A group of Jackson and Hinds County leaders has begun meeting bi-monthly to work on improvements to the adult and juvenile justice systems in the city and county, after Hinds County entered into a 2016 settlement agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice.

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How A ‘Brexit Boys’ Project Ended Up in Jackson Court

Kyle Taylor believes Eldon Insurance and Big Data Dolphins Ltd. might be using U.K. citizens' data in their new artificial-intelligence project they have planned to start in Oxford, Miss.

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JPS: $65 Million Bond 'The Only Option' for District After State Funding Cuts

The Jackson Public School District is moving forward with a $65-million bond referendum on Aug. 7 for Jacksonians to approve or strike down.

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Long-awaited 'One Lake' Proposal Should Go Public This Month

The draft proposal of the "One Lake" plan to dredge out parts of the Pearl River adjacent to the Jackson-metro area should go public this month.

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Third Graders Improve Pass Rate on Reading Test Statewide

Third graders around the state improved their scores on the reading assessments required for promotion to the fourth grade this year. Statewide, 93.2 percent of third graders passed the test, an increase from the 92 percent that passed last year.

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UPDATED: Inside the ‘Brexit Boys’ Data Project at Ole Miss

After months of negotiations and coordination facilitated in part by Gov. Phil Bryant to bring two British companies stateside, a public United Kingdom office that reports to Parliament is investigating those companies poised to set up shop at the University of Mississippi’s Insight Park.

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Governor Vows to Fight Foster Care Takeover

Gov. Phil Bryant seemed prepared to fight to keep control over Mississippi's foster-care system last week after attorneys representing the children asked U.S. District Judge Tom Lee to hold the State in contempt of court and to turn over the system to a court-appointed receiver.

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Corrections Fulfills Post-Epps Directive

It has been almost four years since the Mississippi Department of Corrections was turned upside down after a federal grand jury indicted former Commissioner Christopher Epps on several counts of wire fraud, bribery and money laundering.

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Vote Until 7 p.m. in Mississippi Primaries, Plus Candidate Questionnaires

Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. today, June 5, for Mississippians to cast their vote in the primary election to fill the state's congressional seats.

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JPS Board Announces Three Superintendent Finalists

The Jackson Public Schools Board of Trustees announced three finalists vying to lead the second-largest district in the state on Monday afternoon.

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Special Session to Fund Roads, Bridges May Depend on U.S. Supreme Court

Gov. Phil Bryant alluded to the possibility of a special session for infrastructure funding, if the U.S. Supreme Court allows states to start collecting use tax from online retailers.

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Jackson Schools Free Summer Lunch Program Begins Next Week

Kids and teens who are 18 years old or younger can participate in Jackson Public Schools' summer feeding program, which begins on Monday, June 4.

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Off To The Races: Mississippi Elections 2018

Mississippians will soon head to the polls for a federal election for the first time since Donald Trump became president in 2016. On Tuesday, June 5, registered voters can choose a ballot for either the Republican or Democratic primary election.

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JPS: Bond Can Help District Deficiencies

Jacksonians will head to the polls in August to vote on whether Jackson Public Schools will keep its current interest rates on bonds to help fund facility improvements district-wide.

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Mississippi Will Receive $4.7 Million to Secure Elections

Mississippi county election commissions will be able to apply to the secretary of state's office for federal grant funds to secure elections this year.

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Are Teacher Walkouts Possible in Mississippi?

Teachers in Oklahoma, West Virginia, Arizona, Colorado, Kentucky and now North Carolina have made national headlines as they strike for better wages, policy matters and other various reasons.

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Poor People's Campaign Seeks a 'Moral Revival' in State, Nation

Dozens of Mississippians gathered at the state Capitol on Monday, May 14, in coordination with more than 40 other Poor People's Campaign rallies throughout the country.

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Encouraging Mississippians to 'Think Again' About Mental Illness

It was a blistering morning, but people from state government, nonprofit and advocacy organizations gathered at the Capitol to launch a public-health campaign, encouraging Mississippians to "think again" about their mental health on Tuesday, May 15.

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Undocumented and Caught in the System

Traditionally, the Federal Bureau of Prisons houses undocumented immigrants charged with federal crimes in "criminal alien requirement" facilities. Private prison corporations run the BOP's 11 contract prisons.

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‘I’m So Scared’: Saving Kids from Suicide

In 2016, 385 Mississippians committed suicide, statistics from the Mississippi Department of Health show, which means more than one person per day took his or her own life in the state.

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Statewide School Testing Task Force Named, Will Meet Next Month

Mississippi public high-school students will have a place on the statewide testing task force, which will begin meeting in June.

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Reshaping JPS Needs Transparency, Inclusivity, Accountability, Locals Say

The hall in the Pearl Street AME Church buzzed with chatter as community leaders, students, Jackson Public Schools staff and Better Together commissioners worked to define "community engagement" as the commission begins its outreach efforts in the school district.

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Coalition Forms Against ‘One Lake’ Proposal

Several wildlife and environmental groups came together to form a coalition against the proposed "One Lake" flood-control/development project on the Pearl River a few weeks before the report detailing the proposal is published.

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How the Wage Gap Affects Single Moms

Amanda Furdge knows a thing or two about being a mom who fights for her kids. Furdge raises two boys on her own, as a single mother without child support.

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U.S. Senate Candidate Baria: Legalize Medical Marijuana Nationwide

Mississippi Rep. David Baria, D-Bay St. Louis, wants medical marijuana legalized nationwide. The state minority whip is one of six candidates running to be the Democratic nominee for U.S. Sen. Roger Wicker's seat.

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2019 State Races Shaping Up; Hood Has Edge Over Reeves for Governor

Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves and Attorney General Jim Hood are the obvious candidates expected to face off in the 2019 gubernatorial election if both make it past the party primaries, although neither one has officially declared his intention to run for the office.

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JPS to Change School Day Schedule for Middle, High Schools

School-board member Robbie Luckett said he intends to look at the district's makeup day policy because it needs to change.

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GOP Senators Praise Tax Cuts, Say Immigration Deal Unlikely This Year

Republican U.S. senators are concerned about the makeup of their chamber, which currently gives their party a slight edge in Congress by a one-vote margin. The stakes on Mississippi's Senate races, consequently, are quite high.

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Private Prison on Trial: Inmates at ‘Bleak’ Facility Tell Harrowing Stories

Merlin Hill was one of 19 inmates who testified during the five-week class-action trial against the Mississippi Department of Corrections for what they describe as appalling conditions at the privately run East Mississippi Correctional Facility near Meridian.

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More Charters Ahead for Jackson?

By August, four of Mississippi's five charter schools will be up and running in the state's capital city.

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Addiction Treatment Center Moves to Baptist Medical Center in Jackson

Pathway Healthcare, a drug and alcohol addiction treatment center previously located on County Line Road, has moved its Jackson office to the Baptist Medical Center campus.

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Third Graders Who Failed Reading Test Eligible for Free Eye Exam

Every third grader in Mississippi must pass the third-grade reading exam to be promoted to fourth grade. When a student fails the third-grade reading exam, it could mean they are struggling to read on grade level. It could mean that they are having vision problems, too.

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Lawsuit: Inmates Have the Right to Free, Secular Books in Prison

Big House Books, a nonprofit that sends free books by request to inmates, filed a lawsuit against the South Mississippi Correctional Institution this week because inmates there cannot receive books that are donated, the lawsuit says.

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Corinth Will Settle in Debtors' Prison Case

The City of Corinth will stop locking up men and women who cannot afford to pay their fines or bail after reaching an agreement with the Southern Poverty Law Center and the MacArthur Justice Center.

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Debtors’ Prisons Out, Parole For More People

Criminal-justice reform is and has been a bipartisan issue in the Mississippi Legislature in recent years, and 2018 is no exception.

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What Jacksonians Want in a New JPS Supe

Dozens of applicants are interested in being the next leader of the second-largest school district in Mississippi.

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Sheriffs Decry Cutbacks, Private Prison Contracts

Mississippi sheriffs packed into Room 113 at the Capitol Monday to express frustrations after the Mississippi Department of Corrections announced a reduction in inmates housed at the 15 regional facilities in the state even as taxpayer money is going to fund private, corporate-operated prisons.

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JPS Central Office Needs Restructuring, Report Says

The capital city's schools have been on a roller coaster the past year, avoiding a state takeover, then installing a new school board and adding a commission to help study the district.

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