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Last-Minute Decisions on Sex Ed
School districts across the state have only a few weeks left to decide on sex-education policies and curricula for next year, but many have yet to make their decisions, including Jackson Public Schools.
Private Prisons Flourish on Desperation
If you drive around Natchez, a sleepy river town of 16,045 people, and talk to folks, everybody has an opinion on whether Adams County Correction Center and its parent company, Corrections Corporation of America, have had a positive impact on the area.
[Stiggers] Hard Times Made Tolerable
Clubb Chicken Wing's goal during the recession is to create jobs for the unemployed. Our daily 'Hot Wing Happy Hour' provides unemployed Djs, emcees, college graduates, teachers with Ph.D.s and other mid-level workers with part-time income. And we are not afraid to host job-search seminars and resume workshops either.
[Kamikaze] Hold the School Board Accountable
I'm a proud product of Jackson Public Schools. I attended Boyd Elementary and Chastain Middle schools up until the 9th grade. I then went to St. Joseph Catholic School because my mother wanted me to attend Murrah High School instead of my neighborhood school, Callaway.
[Strachan] In Praise of Public Servants
Glendora businessman Mike Sturdivant passed away at age 84 on May 1, at his home on his Due West Plantation. It brought to mind many things about one of the Magnolia State's best leaders.
Private Prison, Public Problems
Gail Tyree exited U.S. Highway 84 onto Hobo Fork Road and drove through the rose-adorned entrance of the sprawling Adams County Correctional Center. A female correctional officer leaving the prison's main administration building scrutinized Tyree's car as she circled the parking lot.
A Journey to the Center of the Mind
Thornton Wilder's Pulitzer-Prize award-winning 1930s drama, "Our Town," is not just a play, but a spiritual voyage. The stage is barren, except for a row of chairs, and dialogue is often spoken atop ladders that represent houses.
Fairy Tale Redux
"Mirror, mirror on the wall, who's the biggest bitch of them all?" That is the real question never posed by the Evil Stepmother Queen (Charlize Theron) in "Snow White and The Huntsman."
Art Remix, ‘Latinized'
Lawn chairs? Check. Blankets? Check. Most importantly, your dancing shoes? Make sure you have these items when heading downtown to Art Remix at the Mississippi Museum of Art.
Evening in the Park
The turnout for Belhaven Park's outdoor movie for the month of May, a showing of 1961's "Blue Hawaii," was modest but spirited. In a soundscape of evening birdcalls and slow-passing traffic, locals converged on Belhaven Park just before dusk.
Melton Mentees Get Second Chance
The late Mayor Frank Melton may well be smiling from his grave over the good fortune bestowed by Gov. Haley Barbour and the city of Jackson to two of the troubled men he mentored over the years.
Whitwell: Getting Things Going
Quentin Whitwell, 39, was born in Memphis and grew up in Southaven and Oxford. His father, Robert Q. Whitwell, served as the U.S. Attorney for northern Mississippi from 1985 through 1993. After graduating from Oxford High School, Whitwell earned his bachelor's degree from Ole Miss in 1995 and his law degree from the school in 1998.
Conducting a Festival
Four smiling mop-topped men with skinny ties strum guitars to a familiar backbeat. "She loves you, yeah, yeah, yeah," they confirm in unison as if they really know something. Paul's big eyes and John's long chin move with the rhythm. It's the present, 2012, but the 1960s have returned. The four men in skinny suits not only sound like the Beatles, each member of this tribute performance resembles one of the Fab Four.
Hopes and Dreams
Last Friday was the first of the weekly Jackson Free Press summer intern workshops. With more than a dozen people stuffed into our classroom around the long stretch of tables, Editor-in-Chief Donna Ladd led a spirited discussion centered around the hopes and dreams of a talented group of young people.
Melissa Edwards
Melissa Edwards grew up surrounded by the influence of architecture through her two uncles who work in design. She did not know of any female architects who could serve as role models, however, but that didn't stop her from entering the field.
Ward 3 Hearing Begins
The hearing to contest the February Ward 3 runoff election began Monday at the Hinds County Courthouse. The judge and lawyers spent the afternoon picking jurors from a pool of nearly 300.
Nissan Workers Move to Unionize
The United Auto Workers and the Mississippi NAACP are supporting efforts by some workers at the Nissan automotive plant in Canton to form a labor union. A full-blown campaign is underway with workers planning to petition the National Labor Relations Board to set a date to put the question to a vote.
Kristen Dupard
Years of learning how to bring poems to life for an audience paid off for Kristen Dupard this spring, as she took home a national trophy for her poetry-recitation skills.
School Board Meeting Tonight
The JPS school board meets tonight at 5:30. Although there isn't anything on the schedule about selecting a sex-related education policy, there are only two scheduled board meetings before the deadline to pick either an abstinence-only or abstinence-plus policy to teach next year. It looks like the board will vote on the matter June 19.
Rep. John Lewis Rallies Dems
Sometimes, Democrats like to feast on red meat, too. At this year's Jefferson Jackson Hamer Dinner, held Friday at the Regency Hotel in Jackson, Georgia U.S. Rep. John Lewis, a civil-rights icon who marched with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., played the role of zookeeper.