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Edwards' Days Numbered?
With less than 30 days left before Jackson Public Schools Superintendent Lonnie Edwards' contract expires, school board members must decide this month who will serve as the district's superintendent as of July 1.
Fair Funds for Kids?
Sen. Thad Cochran, R-Miss., increasingly seems like a holdover from another, kinder era of national politics. Cochran has largely removed himself from the hyper-partisanship of recent years.
Teaching The Truth
Next year, for the first time, Mississippi will require all social-studies teachers to teach the history of civil rights in the state. The requirement will come more than five years after state lawmakers initially approved the curriculum change.
McMillin Talks Jail, Firings
Hinds County Sheriff Malcolm McMillin said today that he rightfully fired nine county-jail employees.
Health Centers Fare Better Under Agreement
The state's mental-health facilities may be open another year, now that Democrats in the Mississippi House of Representatives agree with Republican Gov. Haley Barbour on a new $5.5 billion state budget.
Byram Town Center Gets $5.5M TIF Boost
Construction workers have begun a commercial development that will bring new restaurants, shops and offices to the young city of Byram. The Hinds County Board of Supervisors voted today to approve a $5.5 million tax-increment financing, or TIF, plan for the Byram Town Center development.
A Mixed Bag for Mississippi Children
By many measures, children in Mississippi are worse off than kids in most other states, but Mississippi shows some bright spots. The Annie E. Casey Foundation's annual "Kids Count" report ranks Mississippi 50th overall for its children's educational, economic and physical well-being. At today's Mississippi Kids Count annual summit, advocates and educators shared challenges and success stories in the effort to improve the state's standing.
Shirley Brewer
Shirley Brewer has seen plenty of changes from her perch at the Fondren McDade's Market. Brewer has worked at the grocery store for the past 27 years, seeing the business change names and owners from Jitney Jungle to Winn-Dixie to, in 2004, McDade's.
Sharing Spaces, Building Community
While studying in Denmark in the 1980s, Charles Durrett noticed a housing community different from the typical condos and homes he passed during his 20-minute walk to the train station. He saw people drinking tea together on a porch and neighbors helping each other, and he felt a strong sense of community.
Johnson Counters High Crime Rate Claim
Jackson Mayor Harvey Johnson Jr. worked quickly this morning to tamp down the perception of the capital city as a "hotspot" for crime.
Legislature Agrees on Budget
Mississippi House of Representatives and Senate budget negotiators came to an agreement yesterday on the 2011 budget that pays the state's education department $14 million less than it did in 2010. House Democrats demanded K-12 education and the state's educational district distribution formula receive the same funding it received this year, but Gov. Haley Barbour sought to cut schools' maintenance and education materials budget by nearly $30 million.
Darion Warren
Every aspect of the physical world breaks down into numbers. A malfunctioning LED traffic light costs a certain amount of money to repair or replace. To keep traffic flowing, an ideal number of minutes must occur between the activation of a red traffic signal at Congress and Pearl Streets and the activation of the red signal at President and Pearl Streets. An ideal gradient is necessary for storm water to effectively run into the city's drainage system, and it is a process that needs to be maintained and kept free of poisonous urban run-off chemicals from paint, motor oil and antifreeze to keep the federal government happy.
Minority Contracts and C02 Testing
The city should study how well city contracts include minority-owned businesses, Jackson Mayor Harvey Johnson Jr. told the City Council Monday. He proposed a May 1 contract with Atlanta public-policy consultants Griffin and Strong.
Former Jackson TV Personality Dies
When he was 84, Jobie Martin was still working as a substitute teacher, but long before that, Martin was well known for hosting James Brown, Joe Louis and Mahalia Jackson on his commercial TV program in the 1970s.
State Executions Illegal, Attorneys Say
Two Jackson attorneys are asking the state to delay multiple executions to get itself legal on the use of a new euthanasia drug.
MPB Eyes Self Sufficiency
The Mississippi Public Broadcasting board voted this morning to start considering where to make budget cuts in response to threats to end its state funding.
Col. Paul Willis
Last year, approximately 86 percent of students who gradated from Jackson Public Schools Junior Reserve Officers' Training Corps went on to receive higher education. As the JPS Director of Army Instruction, Col. Paul Willis hopes to increase that number by next year.
Hinds County to ‘Rebrand' Itself
In an effort to improve the image of Hinds County and attract new residents and visitors, the Hinds County Economic Development Authority has contracted an urban planning firm to rebrand the entire county.
Changing Perceptions
It can be hard to understand why someone would move to Jackson looking only through the window of local media's barrage of crime and blight coverage.
It's The Weekend: Celebrate Spring
Ditch the office this afternoon and enjoy the early spring-like weather. Then, at 5 p.m., head to Lemuria (4465 Interstate 55 N.) at 5 p.m. where Joseph O'Conner signs copies of his book "Ghost Light" (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2011, $25) with a reading at 5:30 p.m., or grab the kids when John Bemelmans Marciano signs copies of "Madeline at the Whitehouse" (Viking Juvenile, 2011, $17.99) at what time?. If you need to let go and laugh after a long week, see The Cowboy Comedian, where Skip Guidry and Dane Faucheux perform at the Black Rose Community Theater (101 Black Street, Brandon). Show times are 8 p.m. and 10 p.m. and tickets are $20. To purchase tickets, call 601-825-1293. Check out the JFP's Best Bets page to begin your search of things to do.