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2 months ago
Wilkinson County School District has a history of persistently poor academic performance and has not completed an annual financial audit since June 2022.
The Mississippi State Board of Education (MDE) recently announced that they had placed the Wilkinson County School District into a District of Transformation due to serious academic deficiencies. MDE said the deficiencies demonstrate the district’s inability to provide students with an adequate and stable education.
By Frank Corder - Magnolia Tribune on
2 months ago
Stewpot Community Services Director of Shelter Services Javonda Stanton, left, checks in people seeking shelter at the Opportunity Center as a winter storm heads to the area, Friday, Jan. 23, 2026 in Jackson, Miss. Credit: Vickie D. King/Mississippi Today
Jackson’s homeless shelters opened additional beds ahead of a potentially devastating ice storm to protect vulnerable residents from the freeze.
But advocates say it would not be enough to serve the city’s entire unhoused population – some of whom will weather the storm outside in tents, tarps and sleeping bags.
By Molly Minta - Mississippi Today on
2 months ago
A powerful winter storm that’s sweeping across a broad swath of the U.S. blew into Mississippi on Saturday, leaving much of the northern part of the state coated in ice and creating dangerous travel conditions.
The Mississippi Department of Transportation said ice had been reported on roads and bridges in at least 26 of the state’s 82 counties, primarily in northern Mississippi. In a social media post, the agency urged residents in heavily impacted areas to use roadways only for emergencies as crews monitored conditions and treated major routes.
By Taylor Vance and Leonardo Bevilacqua - Mississippi Today on
2 months ago
With the penny no longer in production, State Senator Johnny DuPree has filed a bill to outline how cash transactions should be handled.
The U.S. Mint ceased production of pennies in November 2025 after an order from President Donald Trump (R) to do so. Trump said the 1-cent coin was “wasteful” as it costs more than double its value to produce.
Since then, signs across Mississippi have popped up in retail stores notifying cash customers that they will be rounding to the nearest increment of five cents.
By Frank Corder - Magnolia Tribune on
2 months ago
See what legislation made it out of the Mississippi House Education Committee this week.
The Mississippi House of Representatives passed a number of education-related bills out of committee this week, ranging from requiring schools to have automatic defibrillators on hand during sporting events and practices to requiring parents to use vehicle registration as proof of residency during school registration.
Here is a look at what will be considered by the full House in the days ahead.
By Jeremy Pittari - Magnolia Tribune on
2 months ago
“This pilot is working the way we were hoping,” said Senate Judiciary Committee A chairman, State Senator Brice Wiggins (R).
Three months into the Mississippi Office of State Public Defender’s pilot program to place public defenders in the state’s underserved areas, the initiative is receiving praise from legislators. OSPD State Defender Andre de Gruy told lawmakers that the program “hit the ground running.”
By Daniel Tyson - Magnolia Tribune on
2 months ago
Below is an opinion column by Patricia Levesque:
Mississippi is at a unique crossroads: celebrating what’s already been accomplished and tackling what still needs to be done.
By Patricia Levesque - on
2 months ago
Lawmakers in both chambers continue to hold budget hearings with state agencies as they work to compile appropriations bills and set a Fiscal Year 2027 state budget.
The Mississippi Department of Employment Security, AccelerateMS and the Community College Board presented their budget proposals to the Senate Appropriations Committee earlier this week.
MDES kicked off the meeting by asking for level spending as well as the ability to keep 22 positions.
By Jeremy Pittari - Magnolia Tribune on
2 months ago
Can Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann do what so many government leaders have touted but failed to accomplish and actually reorganize state government? He has his Mississippi Senate looking to restructure state government and run it more like a business.
A little history.
By Bill Crawford on
2 months ago
Last week, House Speaker Jason White unveiled HB2, the Mississippi Education Freedom Act - the most exciting and ambitious advancement for school choice in our state in years, perhaps ever!
This comprehensive bill delivers everything supporters of parental power have long hoped for, and it aligns perfectly with President Trump’s strong commitment to education freedom.
This isn’t some minor adjustment or performative law – it’s the real thing for anyone who believes in putting parents in charge of their children’s education.
By Douglas Carswell - Mississippi Center for Public Policy on
2 months ago
Mr. Jefferson warned of the American Presidency: “bad men will sometime get in”. Now that we can plainly see; that we plainly know. The Sage of Monticello wrote for the ages. It is time for the Congressmen from both parties along with the Courts, and perhaps the Cabinet itself, to speak up more firmly to reign in a destructive President.
By Robert Wise on
2 months ago
Recently, I was listening to an interview with Dr. Robert Jeffress, pastor of First Baptist Church in Dallas, TX. During the conversation, the interviewer displayed a graphic showing the age groups of Americans who plan to “pray more in 2026.” I was inspired to see the group leading the way was adults ages 30–44.
As they discussed the reasons behind this trend, my mind drifted to the numbers for my own age group—those 65 and older. Only 12% of seniors said they plan to pray more.
By Andrew Oldham on
2 months ago
Book Review: Reagan: In His Own Hand (2001: Free Press, 546 pages)
By Robert Penny on
2 months ago
If you have followed my writing for any length of time, there should be no doubt about my love for the outside world. Whether I’m watching the foliage slowly turn from the deep green that growing seasons dictate to the fire of crimson and gold leaves gently falling to the earth, I wholeheartedly embrace the change. During the onset of the fall migration of waterfowl, I crane my neck with an ear towards the sky listening for faint cries of geese urging their leaders southward.
By Jeff North on
2 months ago
January 2026 is the 10th anniversary of the 2016 Mississippi River freak winter flood. It was only the third such flood ever recorded. It flooded habitat inside the levees and along the river and caused the deer season to close early.
By Kelley Williams on
2 months ago
In total, the federal appropriations bill directs more than $184.1 million for 30 authorized U.S. Army Corps of Engineers projects in Mississippi.
President Donald Trump (R) has signed into law the FY 2026 Energy and Water Development Appropriations Bill which includes $49 million for the Yazoo Backwater Pumps and $21.9 million for Arkabutla Lake dam repairs, among other appropriations.
By Frank Corder - Magnolia Tribune on
2 months ago
“I don’t know of anything more conservative than putting money away today for a future expense,” Senator Daniel Sparks said.
The Senate Finance Committee passed a bill that would add $5 million per year over 10 years for future cost-of-living adjustments (COLA) for new state employees hired after March of this year under the new Tier 5 in the Public Employees Retirement System (PERS).
The bill, SB 2613, is authored by State Senator Daniel Sparks (R).
By Daniel Tyson - Magnolia Tribune on
2 months ago
Important state and national stories, market and business news, sports and entertainment, delivered in quick-hit fashion
In Mississippi
Ole Miss closed until February 8
Ole Miss announced Wednesday that its main Oxford campus will be closed for classes and events until at least Sunday, February 8.
By Magnolia Tribune Staff on
2 months ago
Important state and national stories, market and business news, sports and entertainment, delivered in quick-hit fashion
In Mississippi
1. Two additional deaths reported from winter storm
Governor Tate Reeves said two more deaths have been reported as a result of the winter storm that blew through Mississippi over the weekend, bringing to state’s death toll to four.
By Magnolia Tribune Staff on
2 months ago
As cold as the January weather has been, the December warm weather was more extreme.
The recent lows in the mid teens don’t even come close to breaking any records for those dates, which are around five degrees. Whereas the highs in December were in the top five ever for those dates when the highs reached 77 degrees.
On average for the year, Mississippi temperatures are an ideal 68 degrees, but we definitely have some variation. Just toward the end of winter, I forget the heavy summer bake and start longing for warmth.
By Wyatt Emmerich on
