Jackson Free Press

Jackson State University recently announced that it is an Alumni Enrichment Institute Partner for the 2022 Alumni Enrichment Institutes. The designation will allow 2021 Mandela Washington Fellowship Alumni to travel to the United States in summer 2022 to collaborate with U.S. counterparts following a series of virtual 2021 Leadership Institutes, a release from JSU says.

The Alumni Enrichment Institutes are part of the Mandela Washington Fellowship, the flagship program of the Young African Leaders Initiative. Since 2014, the U.S. Department of State has supported 5,100 Mandela Washington Fellows from across Sub-Saharan Africa in collaboration with U.S. professionals.

Before arriving at JSU, Alumni Enrichment Institute Participants will attend Welcome Events in Washington, D.C., where they will engage with U.S. non-governmental organizations, private companies and government agencies with an interest in Africa, a release from JSU says.

Beginning in late July, JSU will host 25 African alumni for a two-week Alumni Enrichment Institute, which the U.S. Department of State sponsors. The cohort will be part of a larger group of 200 2021 Mandela Washington Fellowship Alumni hosted at eight educational institutions across the United States. Participants will engage in programming on topics such as the United States’ diverse culture and society, resiliency and ethics in leadership and social justice principles.

JSU's program will include guided visits to local civil rights and art museums, the Chahta Immi Cultural Center, the Nissan Canton Assembly plant, and Sanderson Farms. Participants will also work with iVillage, Habitat for Humanity and a local food bank in Jackson. The program will also include roundtable networking lunches and receptions.

Program sponsors include Rotary Club of North Jackson, Greater Jackson Chambers of Commerce, Mississippi Business Bureaus, Institute for Social Justice and Racial Relations at JSU, Systems Electro Coating, LLC and Systems Consultants Associates.

For more information on the 2022 Alumni Enrichment Institute, email [email protected] or [email protected].

JSU Hosting EFLSC Week and MS Got Soul

The Jackson State University Department of English, Foreign Languages, & Speech Communication recently received a grant from the Mississippi Humanities Council to host EFLSC Week and a series of events titled "MS Got Soul: Thee MS Humanities." The first event took place on Monday, March 28, and the series will conclude on Friday, April 1.

"EFLSC Week—MS Got Soul: Thee MS Humanities" combines literature, language and communication arts as a means of exploring and critically engaging with people, places, cultures, histories, arts and literatures, a release from JSU says.

The National Endowment for the Humanities supported the grant. Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed during the event do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities or the Mississippi Humanities Council, the release says.

For more information, call 601-979-5859 or visit jsums.edu.

USM to Host Mississippi Science and Engineering State Level Fair

Some of the brightest young minds in grades 7-12 will be on full display when the Mississippi Science and Engineering State Level Fair will take place on Friday, April 1, at the Payne Center on the University of Southern Mississippi Hattiesburg campus.

The event is for children in grades 7 through 12. Projects that received first-, second- or third-place in each of 13 research categories in three competition categories from Mississippi’s seven science fair regions will be on display for judging.

One of the seven regions serves as the host site for the state fair each year. COVID-19 restrictions forced cancellation of an in-person state fair for the 2019 and 2021. This year Region I, which includes Hattiesburg, partnered with the Gulf Coast-based Region VI to host the event at USM.

Each regional science fair chooses one project to enter into the International Science and Engineering Fair held each May. The selected students will receive an all-expense paid trip for an entire week in Atlanta, Ga. One project from this year’s state fair will also go on to the ISEF.

For more information, visit sciencefair.msstate.edu.