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Laurene Powell Jobs Backs Initiative 42

Education topped the talking points at the Women's Foundation of Mississippi annual meeting on Thursday. Laurene Powell Jobs (Steve Jobs' widow), Donna Barksdale and Toni Cooley discussed education at national and statewide levels. Jobs is passionate about transforming the educational system in the U.S., and she recently launched a project …

Politics Blog

Election Official: Initiative 42 So Confusing Many Won't Vote on It

Earlier this month, the 42 for Better Schools campaign asked the Mississippi secretary of state's office to review ballots across all 82 counties in Mississippi after finding errors on ballots in Hinds County. A Mississippi voter in Hinds County found the errors when the voter went to complete an absentee …

SportsBlog

Clarion-Ledger to Suspend Beat Coverage of Jackson State

The twists and strange turns of the 2015 Jackson State football season continued today as the Clarion-Ledgers announced it was going to halt beat coverage of the team. This decision was made after JSU stopped making players and assistant coaches available to the media on Tuesdays and Wednesdays before practice. …

Jackblog

Jackson Pothole Report: Oct 20, 2015

This is a full, verbatim statement from the City of Jackson: City of Jackson crews are patching potholes across the city. • Crews are repairing potholes on areas of Woodburn Drive, Ellis Avenue, McFadden Road, Bellmont Street, N. State Street, Keele Street, E. Northside Drive. • Crews repairing sidewalk/curb & …

Jackblog

540: A New 'Ultra Lounge' on Farish St. Just in Time for JSU Homecoming

As Ward 4 Councilman De'Keither Stamps pointed out this week, the folks behind Johnny T's Bistro and Blues has done what people have been sitting around waiting for the city, state and a procession of developers to do for years: Giving people something else to do downtown, on Farish Street. …

Jackblog

Survey: Yarber Administration Seeks Input on Open Data

From the office of Mayor Tony Yarber: The City of Jackson urges citizens to complete a new survey that will help the city move forward with its open data initiative. Last month, Mayor Tony T. Yarber signed an executive order that will pave the way for a city government that’s …

Jackblog

108 Mississippi United Methodist Pastors Endorse Initiative 42

108 Mississippi United Methodist pastors have released an open letter endorsing Initiative 42. The letter states that each signing pastor's position on the upcoming ballot initiative stems from John Wesley's passion for meeting educational needs even in 18th century England and Jesus' command to let the "little children come to …

Politics Blog

Haley Barbour Comes Out Against Initiative 42, 42A

The following is a verbatim statement from former Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour: Advocates of the proposed constitutional amendment known as Initiative 42 have twisted a passage in my 2007 State of the State address to mislead voters into believing I support their very harmful ballot measure. Not only am I …

Jackblog

Four Mississippi High Schools Awarded Career Education Grant

Mississippi is one of three states selected to receive the Toyota USA Foundation Grant for career education. The $1.5 million grant will be shared amongst students in Mississippi, New York and Kentucky. The grant will span over a three-year project that focuses on increasing student interest in STEM (science, technology, …

Jackblog

U.S. Department of Transportation Awards Jackson $16.5M TIGER Grant

The following is a verbatim statement from the City of Jackson: The City of Jackson has been awarded a $16.5 million Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation. The federal award will help fund the city’s “Greening the Gateways” project that will integrate environmentally sustainable …

Jackblog

Mill Street Gets $3 Million Surprise from MDOT's Dick Hall

Dick Hall, the Central District commissioner to the Mississippi Transportation Commission, had a little surprise for Jackson Mayor Tony Yarber today. Well, not exactly little. It was a $3 million check for Mill Street reconstruction. Hall grew up in Fondren and said he wanted Mill, which runs from downtown northward …

Jackblog

Report: Fewer Mississippians Have Health Insurance Now Than in 2014

The number of Mississippians without health insurance has grown over the past year. Over 16 percent of Mississippians don't have health insurance in all but six counties, according to data from Enroll America and Civis Analytics. This number supersedes 2014 numbers and can be seen visually on the New York …

Politics Blog

Robert Gray's Mom: I Always Wanted Him to Run for Gov.

Judie Gray Livingston, the woman who didn't even know her eldest child was running for statewide office before August, said she always thought he'd make a good governor. "It was always my desire that he would run for governor," Livingston told the Jackson Free Press. "I think that's every mother's …

Jackblog

State Office Election Campaign Finance Reports

Candidates running for state office filed their final pre-election campaign finance reports on Oct. 27. Click a candidate's name to view the full report. Governor Phil Bryant (Republican) Amount spent this election: $2.74 million Amount still on-hand: $1.38 million Robert Gray (Democrat) Amount spent on this election: $3,100 Amount still …

Jackblog

Initiative 42 Campaign Responds to Defeat

Below is the verbatim press release from 42 For Better Schools sent out today. To the Supporters of Initiative 42 and All Proponents of Public Education: As another school day began this morning, the 500,000 candidates for whom we fought in the campaign for Initiative 42 took their seats in …

Jackblog

Mississippi Supreme Court Rules Same-Sex Divorce Legal

The Mississippi Supreme Court has ruled Lauren Czekala-Chatham's divorce legal in concurrence with the ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges, the U.S. Supreme Court case that legalized same-sex marriage in June. Czekala-Chatham filed for divorce from her estranged wife in 2013 in Mississippi, and has been waiting for an order from …

Jackblog

Mayor Yarber, Public Works to Hold Public Meeting to Address Water Bill Concerns

This is a full, verbatim statement from the City of Jackson: Mayor Tony T. Yarber, Director of Public Works Kishia Powell and other representatives will hold a public meeting to address water billing concerns on Monday, Nov. 16, at Smith Robertson Museum at 6:30 p.m. The City of Jackson recently …

Jackblog

Mississippi Earns D- on State Integrity Investigation

Mississippi has earned a D- grade on the Center for Public Integrity's 2015 investigation of state government transparency and accountability issues. The state's overall rank nationally is 33rd out of 50 states. After this year's election, it should come as no surprise that Mississippi was ranked last in the campaign-finance …

Jackblog

Will Farish Street Have a New Developer Soon?

The Mississippi Business Journal is reporting that Farish Street in downtown Jackson may soon have a new developer with plans to move forward with an entertainment district.

Jackblog

Study: Mississippi Has Highest Percentage of "At-Risk" Hospitals in U.S.

A new study found that Mississippi has the highest percentage of at-risk hospitals, mainly rural facilities that are caught in the crunch of rising healthcare costs and less reimbursements while serving at-risk populations that need the care. Researchers from the Center for Mississippi Health Policy, Mississippi State and the University …