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Barbour Names Commission on School Consolidation
Gov. Haley Barbour announced yesterday the formation of an advisory panel on school consolidation, one of the more controversial suggestions from his November budget recommendations. Composed of state and local …
Jackson Sees Sharp Drop in Major Crimes
Major crimes in Jackson decreased 18.1 percent last week, according to statistics (PDF) released at a Jackson Police Department command staff meeting this morning. Officers reported a 14.2 percent decrease …
James Meredith's Sister Speaks From Obama-Land
OXFORDA few hundred feet from the Square, three Obama t-shirt vendors have set up shop in the parking lot of Goolsby's Hair World. A banner proclaims this swath of concrete …
Matt Massingill
18-year-old Matt Massingill raised $1,100 through a charity golf tournament benefiting Ducks Unlimited.
Fair Funds for Kids?
Sen. Thad Cochran, R-Miss., increasingly seems like a holdover from another, kinder era of national politics. Cochran has largely removed himself from the hyper-partisanship of recent years.
Sleep Inn Poised for September Opening
After a brief hiatus, construction on the Sleep Inn downtown is set to resume in the next two weeks and finish in time for a Sept. 1 opening. Robert Gibbs, …
JFP People of the Day: John and Margrit Garner
As the Jackson Public Schools Board of Trustees has poured over its budget for the upcoming school year in a series of hearings, John and Margrit Garner have been there …
A Work In Progress
When Ira Murray moved to Jackson from Nashville four years ago, he knew the city was poised for metamorphosis.
Jackson Area Businesses Open, Close and Give Awards
BRAVO! Restaurant in Jackson is asking its patrons for stories of the people who changed their lives. The upscale Italian restaurant is giving away $600 in gift cards for the …
Edwards Resumes Arguing to Keep Job
A laudatory report that Jackson Public Schools Superintendent Lonnie Edwards has repeatedly cited as evidence of his good work dates back to 2009 and comes from an organization for which …
GO Zone Deadlines Coming and Going
Local governments in southern and central Mississippi must begin using federal funds for disaster recovery by the end of the year, according to Gov. Haley Barbour. Barbour recently sent a …
Court Casting Wide Net for Jurors In Melton Trial
Citing exhaustive coverage of Frank Melton in local media, U.S. District Court Judge Daniel Jordan said at a hearing today that juror selection for the Jackson mayor's federal trial will …
Hinds Signs Old Capitol Green Support Agreement
The Hinds County Board of Supervisors approved a tentative agreement today with the City of Jackson and New York City-based developers Full Spectrum Inc. establishing financial support for infrastructure related …
Parchman's Past, Prison's Future
It's a strange month when the Parchman Farm comes out looking better than a county jail. On March 10, a federal judge finally dismissed the bulk of Gates v. Collier. …
Loosening the Beer Bottleneck
Kevin Slark is a beer connoisseur. He can tell the difference between a Belgian Abbey-style Leffe and a German Helle Weissebier. He is also, if not a criminal, someone who …
'Good Time' For the Dems?
Amid cheers and declarations that "It's a good time to be a Democrat," the executive committee of the Mississippi Democratic Party met and unanimously elected Jamie Franks its new party …
‘Fresh Air' Returning to MPB
Mississippi Public Broadcasting is reinstating the nationally-syndicated radio program "Fresh Air," two weeks after its decision to cancel the show for "inappropriate content" drew widespread criticism. In a statement released …
JPS Cited For Handling of No Child Left Behind Funds
The Jackson Free Press has obtained Mississippi Department of Education documents that raise concerns about how Jackson Public Schools spent nearly $1.3 million in federal No Child Left Behind funds. …
School Funding Takes Hopeful Turn
An upcoming revised revenue estimate for Mississippi could give public-education advocates and supporters some breathing room. The state Legislature's Revenue Estimating Committee met this week, and Mississippi Parents' Campaign Executive …