Jackson Free Press

Jackson State University's Council on Social Work Education recently named Carla Baskin as the 2018 fellow for its Minority Fellowship Program.

CSWE fellows provide mental-health or substance-abuse services to under-served racial and ethnic minority communities, and must commit to undertaking two years of direct behavioral health practice after graduation.

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, which is a branch of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, funds the MFP master's fellowship through grants. It provides a stipend, training and professional development support.

Fellows must also attend in-person training in Alexandria, Va.; participate in virtual webinars throughout their year in the program; and commit to seeking employment for at least two years in mental-health or substance-abuse services or prevention with racial and ethnic minority populations immediately after graduation.

For more information, visit jsums.edu/socialwork.

Mississippi College Holds Open House for Expanded Dyslexia Center

Mississippi College President Blake Thompson will serve as the keynote speaker at a Jan. 16 open house for the college's recent expansion of its Dyslexia Center in Clinton.

Additions to the facility include three new rooms on the first floor to evaluate students and two additional meeting rooms. School of Education Dean Cindy Melton said in a release that a donation from the Parker LifeShare Foundation of Mississippi paid for the expansion.

Dyslexia is a learning disability that involves difficulties with accurate or fluent word recognition. Affected people often have difficulty reading, spelling and writing. MC's Dyslexia Center offers evaluations for students, which take up to four hours. Staff members evaluate two to three people per day. The facility is open Monday through Friday.

Mississippi College also offers a master's degree in dyslexia therapy. For more information, visit mc.edu.

UM Among Top 100 Schools for Veterans

College-selection website College Factual recently named the University of Mississippi as one of the top 100 institutions for military veteran students for 2019.

The university came in at No. 88 among public universities for "veteran friendliness" in College Factual's Best College for Veterans ranking for 2019, placing it in the top 5 percent of schools nationally.

This is also the second year in a row that College Factual has placed UM as the top school for veterans in Mississippi. The rankings take into consideration affordability, veteran support services and available resources.

UM opened its Veterans Resource Center in February 2018 inside the E.F. Yerby Conference Center. The center provides academic resources, test materials and a gathering area for the university's 1,400 military-connected students. UM also has the Ole Miss Wish program, a philanthropic effort that works with military families to provide their children with a special experience at the university, touring athletic facilities, leading the through the Walk of Champions and more.

For more information on UM's Office of Veteran and Military Services, visit vms.olemiss.edu.