(Jackson, Miss.) The Mississippi Journalism and Education Group board of directors is proud to announce that it recently completed the acquisition of the journalism assets of the Jackson Free Press. The JFP has served Jackson, Mississippi, and surrounding areas for nearly two decades, covering Mississippi’s capital city and suburbs through print and digital media. MJEG is a 501(c)(3) that includes the statewide Mississippi Free Press and the Mississippi Youth Media Project, which offers young people journalism mentorship and job training in their own working newsroom. (YMP has been on hiatus ..read more

Jackson State University President Thomas K. Hudson, Interim Vice President for Institutional Advancement Gwendolyn Caples and College of Science, Engineering and Technology Dean Wilbur Walters recently held a ceremony to unveil the Brigadier General Robert Crear CSET atrium on the JSU campus. John Nau, president and CEO of Silver Eagle Distributors, L.P., contributed $1 million to JSU as part of the atrium dedication. Crear and Nau serve together on the Friends of the Vicksburg National Military Park Board of Directors. JSU will use the funds Nau donated for scholarships for students majorin ..read more

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A former Mississippi Department of Human Services director has been indicted on 20 additional felony charges tied to allegations that he participated in misusing money that was supposed to help some of the poorest people in the nation, including some spent to send a former pro wrestler to a luxury drug rehab facility. John Davis of Brookhaven has pleaded not guilty to the new charges of bribery, conspiracy and making false statements to the government. The indictments were unsealed this week, days after he entered the plea. In early 2020, Davis and five others were charg ..read more

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A mother and son who ran a for-profit education company have pleaded guilty to improperly obtaining millions of dollars from the Mississippi Department of Education by submitting false documents about schools they operated. Federal court records show that on Wednesday, Nancy New pleaded guilty to wire fraud and Zachary New pleaded guilty to conspiracy. They remain free on bond, and sentencing is set for Nov. 9. “My office was proud to continue our work with our federal partners to help achieve this result in this case," Mississippi Auditor Shad White said in a statement ..read more

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — An assistant chief says the police department in Mississippi's largest city is short-staffed, and recruitment and retention are big challenges. Joseph Wade of Jackson Police Department discussed staffing levels Monday during the Jackson City Council’s Public Safety Committee meeting, WLBT-TV reported. He said JPD is budgeted for 356 sworn officers but has 258. On the civilian side, JPD is budgeted for 199 employees and has 132. “I went to a leadership class in Ohio, and guess what? They’re having (retention issues),” he said. “It’s not a popular job right now.” JPD loses ..read more

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — For years, Tennessee Democratic Senate Minority Leader Jeff Yarbro’s call to require the state’s voting infrastructure to include a paper record of each ballot cast has been batted down in the Republican-dominated Legislature. But as false claims still swirl around the 2020 presidential election — and some GOP voters remain distrustful of voting machines — Tennessee Republican lawmakers who have held off are coming around on a paper-backed mandate. A similar scenario is playing out in some of the five other states -- four of which are Republican-led -- that do not curr ..read more

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A federal judge has ordered Hinds County leaders to implement several changes at the Raymond Detention Center. The ruling this week comes nearly a month after U.S. District Court Judge Carlton Reeves said the jail will remain in civil contempt for the second time, WJTV-TV reported. The new requirements include developing and implementing policies and procedures in areas where the jail has failed to provide proper conditions for prisoners, the TV station reported. The judge also ordered Hinds County leaders to ensure the jail is overseen by a qualified jail administrator ..read more

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Mississippi is creating a statewide office to spend millions of federal dollars for broadband internet development — an effort that could boost lagging rural areas. “One’s ZIP code should not determine their access to these technologies,” Republican Gov. Tate Reeves said Wednesday at a bill signing ceremony, according to the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal. House Bill 1029 became law immediately. It establishes the Broadband Expansion and Accessibility of Mississippi office, or BEAM, within the state Department of Finance and Administration. BEAM will manage hundreds ..read more

Jackson State University recently announced two speakers who will hold presentations during the university's 2022 commencement exercises. Thasunda Brown Duckett, president and chief executive officer of the Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association, will serve as the speaker for the graduate student ceremony on Friday, April 29, at 9 a.m. TIAA is a Fortune 100 provider of secure retirements and outcome-focused investment solutions to people working in higher education, healthcare and other mission-driven organizations. Homer Wilkes, under secretary of agriculture for the United States Depart ..read more

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — The Mississippi Department of Archives and History is allowing the public to have access to additional papers from the late author Eudora Welty, including letters written by members of her family. The release came Wednesday on the 113th anniversary of Welty's birth. She died July 23, 2001. According to her will, the family correspondence was to remain private for 20 years after her death. Welty, who lived most of her life in Jackson, was known for the lyrical quality of her short stories and was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1973 for her short novel, “The Optimist's Daug ..read more