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Traversing the Merit-Pay Thicket
Over the next five years, Oak Forest Elementary School will be on the vanguard of a nationwide experiment in school reform. The south Jackson school is one of 10 in Mississippi chosen to participate in a pilot program that will change the way the teachers are paid.
McMillin Endorses DA, Rumors Fly
Hinds County Sheriff Malcolm McMillin endorsed Hinds County District Attorney Faye Peterson over Democratic challenger Robert Smith on Tuesday. McMillin announced his endorsement to the Jackson Free Press, saying he opposes Smith because of a suspected alignment with Jackson Mayor Frank Melton, and opposes "Melton's attempt to expand his sphere of influence to county offices."
PSC to Rule on Kemper County in May
The Mississippi Public Service Commission will deliver a decision on a proposed $2.4 billion coal plant in Kemper County in May.
Homeless Connect Week Begins
During the fourth annual Project Homeless Connect Week, Jacksonians have the opportunity to address the issue of homelessness on several fronts.
The City vs. The Titty
The Jackson City Council voted 6-0 Tuesday not to renew the business license of nude-bar owner Gilbert Paige, who owns Centerfolds and Girls of Paradise.
Alabama, Apes and Adam Perry
I recently had a chance to sit down with Adam Perry, account and distribution manager for the Jackson Free Press, to talk about his first novel, "Boxing Gorillas." The story is a well-paced and fun read that deftly blends elements of suspense, comedy and action into an engaging romp through Alabama.
Lawyers Needed
Herding cats. That's the unwritten job description for soft-spoken Shirley Williams, executive director of the Mississippi Volunteer Lawyers Project. Formed in 1982, the MVLP is one of a handful of organizations providing pro bono legal services for Mississippians with low incomes and limited means. MVLP assists clients with non-criminal cases such as divorce, bankruptcy and adoptions, and is currently handling a number of FEMA cases, representing clients with insurance issues, contractor fraud and appeals.
Why Isn't Gene Phillips Mentioned?
Blog post by Donna Ladd:
Jack Mazurack never mentions controversial developer Gene Phillips in this story today about TCI's plans for downtown Jackson, helped along by City Council yesterday. And then there is this:
Whirly Bird or K9?
"Imagine yourself in the dead of night looking for a dangerous escaped inmate," a new promotional brochure from SafeCity Watch, which helps fund the privately owned Metro One helicopter, begins. "Witnesses saw the escapee flee to a heavily wooded area. Shots had been heard … and it's YOUR job to find him." (Caps in original.)
Ya Heard Me?
From Africa to America, everyone around the world has a story to tell, and more and more every day this story is being told through the medium of hip-hop.
Repugnant To The Constitution
Brian Johnson subpoena (PDF, 192 KB)
[Gigs] From Ole Miss to Al Jazeera
Annie Kate Pons knows the South. The Old Miss grad was born in Hereford, Texas, the beef capital of the world, and her dad was a cattle rancher. A committed Christian, she used to work for Fox News in Washington, D.C. Now she works for Al Jazeera English, a 24-hour television channel, broadcast by satellite to 100 million households worldwide.
Science Unclear on Gulf Future
Problems resulting from the April 20 deadly explosion of a British Petroleum oil rig could be nothing compared to the potential complications.
Medicaid Drops Therapies
Adele Krichbaum's son is 18, but he has a 5-year-old's grasp of conversation. "He can learn things as well as anybody, but you have to be able to talk to him and convey the information you're trying to give him," said Krichbaum, who lives in Terry.
Commence This
It's that time of year again, where we cheer and cry our hearts out to you, fellow grads! We here at the JFP, give much congrats to you for toughing it out and surviving homework.
Ben Allen of Ward 1 Elected ‘El Presidente'
Just in ... The City Council has elected Ben Allen of Ward 1, the council's only declared Republican, to the seat of council president. More details soon ...
Training Schools Flunk Again
Mississippi school children continue to suffer physical abuse at the Oakley and Columbia training schools, according to monitor Joyce L. Burrell's report. Burrell reports numerous allegations of abuse and glacial progress in the state's efforts to reform the schools.
Mayor Axing Police, Fire Budgets
Mayor Frank Melton sent out a Feb. 10 memorandum demanding that all city departments—including fire and police—take radical measures to rein in spending.
Barbour and HUD Under Fire
The Mississippi Conference of the NAACP and the Gulf Coast Fair Housing Center are suing the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development for allowing Gov. Haley Barbour to divert nearly $600 million in federal funding away from affordable housing recovery after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita and into a pet port project that Congress had refused to fund earlier.
DOJ Weighs in on JATRAN
The U.S. Department of Justice has intervened in a lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Jackson, buttressing accusations of the inaccessibility of Jackson's public bus system.