News

PSC Asked to Remove Attorney in Kemper County Coal Plant Case

The Mississippi Chapter of the Sierra Club filed a motion Friday (PDF, 70k) to remove a Mississippi Public Service Commission attorney connected with the second-phase hearing on the workability of a proposed coal plant in Kemper County because her father could benefit from the plant.

Jackson State President: HBCUs' Future At Risk

Jackson State University President Ronald Mason Jr. predicted hard times for Mississippi's historically black universities if the schools don't work together. "When you confront the kind of problems that we're confronting, and when you take into account that we don't have the kind of cushion in our budgets that other universities have to handle these cuts, then you can envision the gap getting bigger and bigger and bigger," Mason said at a press conference this afternoon. "And the bigger the gap gets, the less able we are to survive in an increasingly competitive environment."

Budget Woes Overshadow City's Needs at Low-Turnout Confab

State budget woes cast a pall over the Jackson Convention Center yesterday, when city leaders solicited the support of state lawmakers over lunch. Hosted by the city's state legislative delegation and featuring a presentation by Downtown Jackson Partners President Ben Allen, the event drew roughly 150 people, with few legislators from outside the capital city among the attendees.

House Bill Restricts Sales of Meth Ingredient

Rep. Steve Holland, D-Plantersville, used the memory of his brother, who died from a meth overdose, to beg the Mississippi House of Representatives to pass a bill that will require cold and allergy sufferers to have a doctor's prescription for medicine containing pseudoephedrine, an important component of illegal methamphetamine, aka meth.

Amy Czajkowski

Amy Czajkowski's experiences as a facilitator in peacebuilding goes beyond countries devastated by war. As the program director of Coming To the Table, Czajkowski, 34, is bringing her skills to Tougaloo College for a round table discussion on the impact of slavery on today's society.

Monday: School District Merger Meeting

Monday, Feb. 1, the Commission on Education Structure will hold its second meeting to discuss how best to achieve school district consolidation in Mississippi. The meeting is scheduled for Room 216 in the state capitol building, starting at 1 p.m., and the public is invited to attend.

Money and Marriage

The biggest fight in the Mississippi Legislature still centered on money in week 3 of the 2010 session. The House refused to consider a Senate bill giving Gov. Haley Barbour the power to selectively cut 10 percent of certain state agency budgets while sparing other agenciesnamely the Department of Corrections. So Barbour responded with a more constitutional blanket cut.

Fewer Profs, High Tuition

If current state budget cuts stand, Mississippi's eight public universities will have to shed 1,000 jobs and raise tuition over the next two years.

New Farish Businesses Open by September

The first block of Jackson's Farish Street Entertainment District will be ready for new occupants by September of this year, Brad "Kamikaze" Franklin announced Tuesday. Franklin, a local musician and investor in Farish Street, also heads the public-relations department of Watkins Development, LLC.

Charter Schools Advance In Mississippi Senate

The Senate Education Committee just approved a bill that would allow privately operated charter schools to open in Mississippi starting in 2011. The bill is sponsored by Sen. Michael Watson, R-Pascagoula, and has many Republican co-authors. Opposition came primarily from Sens. David Jordan, D-Greenwood, and Alice Harden, D-Jackson, who were both concerned that charters would draw funds and students from regular public schools that have never been properly funded. Jordan also worried that charters could lead to re-segregation. Watson tried to assure him that, under his bill, charter schools would use a lottery system for admissions, but Jordan seemed unconvinced.

Obama's Jobs Focus Meets Resistance

President Barack Obama pushed for more job creation during his State of the Union address last night. Facing the loss of two governor's races and the Massachusetts Senate seat formally held by Ted Kennedy to Republicans, Obama's speech focused on job creation through expanding small businesses.

JPD Battles Church Burglaries

Major crimes in Jackson dropped a whopping 9 percent last week, but Jackson Police officers are concerned about a rash of burglaries at churches across the city. Since mid-December, the city has seen 14 church burglaries, most recently on Tuesday Jan. 26 at New Jerusalem Church on Old Canton Road.

Israel Martinez

Israel Martinez, 24, wants to make a difference in his community. Martinez, owner of Oasis Spanish Learning Center in Ridgeland, believes that a Latin American Chamber of Commerce will help make that difference.

Mississippi Unemployment Tops Double Digits

The average unemployment rate for the Magnolia state was 10.3 percent in December, slightly higher than the national average of 9.7 percent. For Mississippi, that percentage translates into 133,700 individuals collecting benefits from the state, at a cost of nearly $25 million.

Transcript of President Obama's State of the Union Address

This is the text released to media just before the speech began. Verbatim:

JSU Advocates React to ‘Jacobs State' Merger

Ivory Phillips, former dean of Jackson State University's College of Education, said he suspected Jackson State University President Ronald Mason Jr.'s proposal to merge three majority-black state universities into Jacobs State University falls in line with his recent push to downsize the university's curriculum. The Jackson Free Press broke the story here Tuesday afternoon.

Dim Prospects for House Plan to Restore Cuts

The Mississippi House of Representatives approved a plan yesterday to restore recent state budget cuts, but the proposal is unlikely to gain much traction in the state Senate or the governor's office. The House voted 73 to 47 yesterday to take $100 million from state reserve funds to shore up agency budgets slashed in Gov. Haley Barbour's most recent round of budget cuts, announced Jan. 22. The measure attracted fierce opposition from House Republicans, however, and House Democrats acknowledged that the plan stood little chance of passing the Senate.

Richard Stowe

Richard Stowe, 43, might have his own office but is rarely found there-he'd rather be working with his hands: constructing buildings, restoring old cars, painting landscapes and creating monotype prints.

A Federal Grant to Save Education?

In a year when Mississippi's K-12 educational system faces potentially crippling budget cuts, a federal grant program promising up to $175 million has offered a bit of hope to state education advocates. But the Mississippi Department of Education has frustrated some of those advocates by forgoing an early application deadline that many believe would have improved the state's chances.

Filmmaker Behind ACORN Scandal Arrested

The FBI in New Orleans has arrested James O'Keefe, 25, the amateur filmmaker whose film is the basis of the scandal that decimated ACORN last year. O'Keefe and three others allegedly attempted to tamper with Democratic U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu's phones, a felony, reports Southern Political Report, gaining entry disguised as telephone repair men.

JSU President Mason Proposes HBCU Merger Into ‘Jacobs State'

Read Jacobs State Proposal

House May Tap $100 Million of Reserve Fund

The Mississippi House of Representatives is expected to vote today on a plan to use $100 million in reserve funds this year to shore up agency budgets that were slashed in Gov. Haley Barbour's most recent round of budget cuts. The House Appropriations Committee approved the measure yesterday afternoon in a brief meeting.

Matt Casteel

Matt Casteel may claim Mississippi as home, but it's his travel experiences to countries like China and Mexico that motivate him to feed those in need.

Board Approves University Tuition Hikes

The state College Board approved tuition increases for Mississippi's eight public universities at a meeting this morning. The increases, which will take place over two years, are necessary to offset current and anticipated budget cuts, state Higher Education Commissioner Hank Bounds said.

Immigrant Group Wants Racial-Profiling Ordinance

Mississippi Immigrants Rights Alliance legal counsel Patricia Ice will appear before the Jackson City Council Tuesday at 6 p.m., to call for an anti-racial and immigrant-profiling ordinance.

Larry McAdoo

Teaching adolescents to make good choices is what Larry McAdoo says he does best. McAdoo, 58, has been working since 2004 with Redemption Outreach Ministries International, Inc. a non-profit organization that he founded with the intention of teaching local youths about abstaining from sex until marriage. This month, the National Advisory Board of the National Abstinence Education Association appointed McAdoo to serve as a board member. In his new role, McAdoo will help promote abstinence-only education by lobbying for legislation and promoting strategic goals of the NAEA.

Public Meetings and Community Events

The World Through Lou's Lens at Arts Center of Mississippi (201 E. Pascagoula St.). An exhibit showcasing 80 years of Lou Shornick's photography along with pieces donated by various local artists such as Anthony DiFatta, Tony Davenport and Bill Wilson. All proceeds from the sale of the artwork will go to the Kids Fund established at the Community Foundation of Greater Jackson to support the launch of Mississippi Music N' Motion, a new music education program for underprivileged students. Call 601-960-1557.

Stokes to Propose Pay Raises

Ward 3 Councilman Kenneth Stokes will propose $2-per-hour pay raises for employees of the city's Public Works Department reports WAPT. Stokes is aiming the raises at those who have worked over the past couple of weeks to fix the city's broken water mains in the wake of several days of sub-freezing temperatures.

Hell Freezes Over: Saints Going To Super Bowl

The New Orleans Saints defeat the Minnesota Vikings, 31-28 in overtime, to advance to the Super Bowl for the first time in team history. They will play the Indianapolis Colts in Miami on Feb. 7 (5:25 p.m., Ch. 12).

Open Thread: Saints or Favre in the NFC Championships?

Over here at the Jackson Free Press, it's Saints all the way! Tell us your thoughts; we won't hold them against you. Maybe.

Ellington