Crews at NASA’s Stennis Space Center near Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, worked April 19-20 to remove the first flight core stage of the agency’s Space Launch System rocket from the B-2 Test Stand in preparation for its transport to Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Operations required crews to lift the core stage from its vertical placement in the stand and lower it to a horizontal position on the B-2 Test Stand tarmac. The stage now will be loaded on NASA’s Pegasus barge for transport to Kennedy, where it will be prepared for launch of the Artemis I mission. Removal of the largest rocket stage ever built by NASA followed completion of a series of eight Green Run tests over the past year. During the Green Run series, teams performed a comprehensive test of the stand’s sophisticated and integrated systems. The series culminated in a hot fire of the stage’s four RS-25 engines on the B-2 stand March 18. During the hot fire, the four engines generated a combined 1.6 million pounds of thrust, just as during an actual launch. The test was the most powerful performed at Stennis in more than 40 years. NASA is building SLS, the world’s most powerful rocket, to return humans to deep space missions. As part of the backbone of NASA’s Artemis program, SLS will return humans, including the first woman and person of color, to the surface of the Moon to establish a sustainable presence and prepare for eventual missions to Mars.

Mississippi is now accepting applications to help struggling renters following passage of the massive COVID-19 stimulus bill signed by then-President Donald Trump, which included $25 billion for rental assistance. Mississippi Home Corporation is taking applications from needy renters, as well as landlords who file on behalf of tenants, at ms-ramp.com. The Home Corporation program, called the Rental Assistance for Mississippians Program (RAMP), received $186 million of the $200 million U.S. Department of Treasury allocated to Mississippi through the Federal Emergency Rental Assistance Program. The assistance is meant to help renters who were financially impacted by COVID-19. The Mississippi Home Corporation first began administering RAMP in July using $18 million the state received through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Emergency Solutions Grant. The agency, however, stopped offering rental assistance through the program in January on federal guidance because an eviction moratorium had begun September 4, according to MHC Director Scott Spivey. The federal government suggested renters were no longer at a great enough risk of homelessness to qualify for the grant, he explained. That initial program came with strict eligibility guidelines that caused several thousand renters to be denied, but new treasury money is more flexible. For one, the new program raises the income limit for eligibility from 50% to 80% of the area’s median income. Individuals can now apply to the program for help paying up to 15 months of back due rent, which should help to reduce debts and the number of evictions to come once the moratorium is lifted. Applicants can also secure help to pay for the following utilities and energy costs: electricity, gas, water and sewer, trash removal and fuel oil. The program will not pay for telephone, cable or internet bills. Renters will be eligible for the assistance if at least one person in the household meets three requirements: they qualify for unemployment or faced financial hardship as a result of COVID-19, are at risk of homelessness or unstable housing and pull no more than 80 percent of the area median household income. The Home Corporation directs applicants to call 601-533-8401or 1-888-725-0063 to speak to a representative.

Co-Lin will use $873,594 awarded by the Mississippi Department of Transportation from Federal Transportation Alternative (TA) Program funds to help ensure the safety of college students, pedestrians, and the citizens of Wesson by constructing new sidewalks and add speed tables on the Wesson Campus. Co-Lin will be responsible for a 20 percent local fund match. The primary area for use of the funds are high traffic areas for vehicles and student walkers, including the area between Fortenberry Career-Technical Building and Stone Stadium. The direct route from the residence halls to Stone Stadium, Fortenberry building, and the Wesson Building, walked daily by hundreds of students, currently has no direct walking route that includes sidewalks. The college is planning to remove and reposition the fence on the visitor’s side of Stone Stadium and add sidewalks with lighting along the roadway. Speed tables will be added along that same road. Not only will these funds assist the college in promoting student and visitor safety, but it will also enhance campus health initiatives by providing well-lit pathways for walking around campus. “Co-Lin is thrilled to be the recipient of these funds which will be utilized to significantly enhance the many safety and wellness efforts already underway on the Wesson Campus,” said Dr. Jane Hulon Sims, the college's president. TA funds are federal transportation dollars that are for non-roadway types of improvements such as sidewalks, multiuse paths, pedestrian lighting and traffic calming. The funds flow through the Mississippi Department of Transportation (MDOT) Local Public Agency (LPA). LPA programs leverage local investments with federal funds for infrastructure improvements to enhance the quality of life for residents throughout Mississippi. “This year, I am honored to provide these much-needed grants to our colleges, universities and small towns,” said Commissioner Willie Simmons, Central Transportation District. “During these challenging times, safety is a concern that we must address, and these funds will assist them in this effort.”

Attorney General Lynn Fitch invites all Mississippians to join the Attorney General’s Office in observing the week of April 18-24 as Crime Victims’ Rights Week. “My Office is dedicated to helping victims of crime and their families as they recover from and overcome the lasting physical, emotional, and financial challenges endured,” said Attorney General Lynn Fitch. “We can all help them find hope, peace, and dignity as they move from victim to survivor.” Over the past year, Attorney General Fitch and the Bureau of Victim Assistance have been working to create a closer network of partners across the State and provide a more personalized approach to victim advocacy. Last year, we served more than 2,200 crime victims and their families. This week, we launched new and improved resources for crime victims. Victim Advocates Our victim advocates have been assigned regions of the State so they can develop stronger relationships with domestic violence shelters, counselors, and other victim service providers. This network of dedicated professionals strives to help victims move toward recovery with hope, dignity, and peace of mind. For a map of victim advocates by region, click here. Victim Services Resource Directory Our victim advocates have assembled this comprehensive directory to help victims find the information they need to connect with various divisions within the Attorney General’s Office, find statewide services and hotline numbers, and access pro bono resources available to victims and their families. To download a copy of the Victim Services Resource Directory, click here. Victim Services by County We have also developed this interactive map to help victims and their families locate all of the resources available in each county statewide. These resources include: • children’s service providers; • domestic violence service providers; • sexual assault, rape crisis, and human trafficking service providers; • survivors of homicide victims’ service providers; • mental health and disability services providers; and • job training and employment services. To download a copy of the Victim Services by County map, click here. Clicking on any county will pull up a list of services in that county, organized by type. Crime Victim Compensation Fund The Attorney General’s Office administers the State’s Crime Victim Compensation Fund. This money provides financial resources to eligible crime victims and survivors to offset or reimburse expenses related to the crime. More information can be found on this brochure and on the Bureau of Victim Assistance division page of our website. “My team will continue to be unwavering advocates for crime victims and leverage public and private federal, state, and local partnerships to stop those who seek to harm our families and our communities.” said Attorney General Lynn Fitch. If you have been a victim of a crime or know someone who has, please visit AttorneyGeneralLynnFitch.com. There, you can learn more about the rights reserved for crime victims, get connected to resources in your community, and find a victim advocate to help you move toward recovery with hope, dignity, and peace of mind.

The Mississippi legislature has designated more than $2 million for Co-Lin and Wesson from $145 million the state will receive in bond sales it has authorized to fund repair, renovation and construction at public universities and community colleges and earmarked for an assortment of projects in various districts. The 2021 legislative session's bond bill includes $86 million in bonds for capital projects at the state's universities, $35 million for similar projects at community colleges and $24 million for the varied district projects. Co-Lin will get $1.9 million from the funds designated for community colleges and the town of Wesson will get at least $300,000 from the district project funds for Old School Community Center renovations. According to the bond bill, monies deposited into the fund for community colleges "shall be disbursed, in the discretion of the Department of Finance and Administration, to pay the costs of acquisition of real property, construction of new facilities, equipping and furnishing facilities, including furniture and technology equipment and infrastructure, and addition to or renovation of existing facilities for community and junior college campuses as recommended by the Mississippi Community College Board." Wesson Mayor Alton Shaw says funds for the Old School Community Center can be used as the town sees fit, but the priorities are a kitchen, the parking area, and HVAC controls. Although the Mayor estimated the Old School Community Center will see $300,000 for the rehabilitation project, an early draft of the bond bill showed $1 million allocated for the facility's "restoration and renovation." The bond bill is an important part of state funding. This year’s appropriation for debt service will be more than $439 million, which is more than that for the Department of Corrections (more than $323 million) or the Department of Mental Health’s general fund appropriation ($214 million). State taxpayers owe more than $4.634 billion in bond debt, according to the latest numbers from the state treasurer’s office.

The National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER) recognized Mississippi in its latest report on pre-K quality as one of only six states whose state-funded pre-K program meets all 10 quality standards for early childhood education. The latest ranking is published in the NIEER report, The State of Preschool 2020. The annual survey provides an in-depth look at state-funded education for 3- and 4- year-olds nationally and in each state with a focus on enrollment, spending and 10 policies that support quality education. NIEER evaluated Mississippi’s Early Learning Collaborative (ELC) programs, which are partnerships among school districts, Head Start agencies, childcare centers and non-profit organizations. There are currently 18 collaboratives serving more than 3,000 children. Because of the quality of the Early Learning Collaboratives, Mississippi has consistently been one of only several states meeting all original NIEER standards. “Mississippi sets an example of policies to support high quality preschool, but funding is too low to allow programs to implement those policies well,” said Steven Barnett, Ph.D., NIEER’s founder and senior co-director, who is pushing for more federal funding for high quality pre-K. “Increased funding is needed to ensure quality and expand access to more children who can benefit from the program.” The Mississippi Legislature passed the Early Learning Collaborative Act in 2013, which provided $3 million to establish a limited number of ELCs in underserved areas throughout the state. Funding increased in subsequent years based on the program’s immediate success. During the 2021 legislative session, funding doubled to $16 million, which will serve approximately 6,000 pre-K children. “Research consistently shows how high-quality early childhood education has a profound impact on children throughout their lives,” said Dr. Carey Wright, state superintendent of education. “High-quality pre-K leads to increased school readiness, reading proficiency by third grade, higher graduation rates and even less crime.” The Mississippi State Board of Education has made increasing access to high-quality early childhood education one if its top priorities. The Mississippi Department of Education has partnered with the W.K. Kellogg Foundation to build the state’s early childhood education infrastructure through coaching and professional development and by providing guidance and support to school districts. Mississippi’s Early Learning Collaborative program served 8% of 4-year-olds in 2019-20, up from 5% in 2018-19. When combined with Head Start (22%) and special education pre-K programs (5%), approximately 35% of Mississippi 4-year-olds attended public early childhood education programs in 2019-20. Mississippi ranks 39th in the nation for pre-K access for 4-year-olds and 42nd in state spending per child. Read the State of Preschool Report 2020 at NIEER.org.

Wesson Founders Day along with a Crystal Springs flower show and a music festival at Hazlehurst will bring some cabin fever relief to town folk, people throughout Copiah County and other Mississippians who venture into the area on April 30 and May 1. The COVID-19 pandemic caused cancellation of the events in 2020. Copiah County tourism director Nora Berch is encouraging area residents and visitors enjoy the events in all three municipalities May Day Cruise Copiah County alternative to staying indoors as COVID 19 vaccines, masking and social distancing have advanced pandemic safety. Wesson Founders Day starts at the town municipal park on the evening of Friday, April 30, with a concert presented by the Wesson High School band and a performance by dancers led by Sharon Langley. The Wesson Chamber of Commerce event continues all day on Saturday, May 1, starting a Glow Run/Walk. The run is in memory of two Copiah County police who have died this year -- Deputy Percy Calhoun of the Copiah County Sheriff's Office and Captain Joe Brown, formerly with the Wesson Police Department. It is called a "glow" run/walk because runners have been asked to glow in the dark as they run the route by wearing white shirts with glow necklaces, bracelets, and other items that will be provided, says event planner Stephanie Duguid. Runners will begin and finish on Highway 51, with signs directing participants along the route. The fees are $25 for the run/walk and $15 for the one mile event. Commemorative t-shirts and medals, beverages and fruits will be sold. Specific details, route, event sign-up are all forthcoming. Contact Duguid at 601-643-8341 for information. There will be a variety entertainment offered by bands and singers and others throughout the day, and the new Founders Day queen will be presented. Also featured will be: A kid's play zone with inflatables. An art walk with locals displaying paintings, sculptures, quilts and other works. A vendors row with arts and crafts on sale. Snacks, refreshments and meals. A car show. "Our local businesses have been asking about Founders Day plans," says Wesson Chamber president Marilyn Britt. "We think the timing is appropriate to bring people to town for some fun and help stimulate business," In downtown Crystal Springs, the Chautauqua Garden Club will be selling flowers and other plants from 8 a.m. to 12 noon. At Hazlehurst, the twelfth annual Rockin’ Railroad Festival will conclude the town's April Arts Month. At the largely music festival, a popular event is the Student Art and Recycled Art contests. These contests will be judged by a panel of judges. Divisions for judging will be: (1.) pre-school, (2.) first through third grades, (3.) fourth through sixth grades, and (4.) seventh through 12th grades. Any area students in K through 12th grades can enter the contest.

With glorious weather returning, many gardeners, like myself, are putting down fresh layers of mulch. It is roughly the equivalent of applying a fresh coat of paint in the house. Like paint, there’s a variety of mulch colors available. It is an easy way to make the landscape look great. The big home improvement stores have had bagged mulch on sale the last couple of weeks. Gardeners have also stocked up, waiting for that first nice weekend. But you can get a little overzealous in your mulching habits. Not all mulching is the same. Over-mulching of landscape trees is perhaps the most visual instance of over-fertilizing, creating what are commonly called “mulch volcanoes.” When a thick layer of mulch is spread around the trunk of a tree, many things can happen, and they’re all bad. A good rule to remember is to always go out with mulch, not up. In other words, spread mulch horizontally and don’t pile it up against the trunk. Use a rake or pull the mulch back away from the trunk by hand. As the mulch is pulled back, contour it to resemble a bowl. This configuration helps collect water and direct it towards the root system of the tree during rain or irrigation. Proper mulching provides so many great benefits to our landscape planting: It helps maintain soil temperatures, warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer, reduces weed seed germination and soil compaction and adds aesthetic beauty to your landscape beds. Most gardeners love their trees and shrubs and want to do what they can to help them grow and prosper. But you can kill your trees and shrubs with kindness. There are gardeners who think if 2 to 3 inches are good, then 6 to 10 must be great. Don't do that! The depth of the mulch layer depends on the plant. Annual bedding plants need only 1 to 2 inches. Woody shrubs and roses are longer term plantings and benefit from 2 to 3 inches. Trees like a thicker layer in the 3- to 4-inch range. EDITOR’S NOTE: Dr. Gary Bachman is an Extension and research professor of horticulture at the Mississippi State University Coastal Research and Extension Center in Biloxi. He is also the host of the popular Southern Gardening television and radio programs.

For over a year, supply and distribution chains in America have been adversely affected by COVID-19 and the related workforce shutdowns. Initially last spring, government mandates driven by the virus and by CDC recommendations forced many people other than those deemed “essential workers” to stay home from their jobs. For some, work could continue remotely as workers, teachers and students adapted to virtual classrooms and other technology-based methodologies. But for the bulk of the workforce and the public relying on manufactured and processed products, these shutdowns had an immediately noticeable impact in temporarily interrupting manufacturing and distribution systems across the country, and even around the world. I can give you one real-life example from the Mississippi State Fairgrounds. In 2020, the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce made the decision to continue working during pandemic restrictions, including the completion of the new Mississippi Trade Mart and Coliseum renovations. As the new Trade Mart was nearing completion, the contractor was faced with major backlogs in supplies from manufacturers across America – manufacturers who had halted or slowed operations. The dividing doors for the new Trade Mart being manufactured in another state were delayed six weeks, thus delaying the entire project. But this was only a small symptom of a much broader crisis. International trade halted or slowed. Manufacturing and food processing facilities shut down or scaled back as workers were forced home. Prices increased dramatically due to temporary shortages in products such as ground beef, coupled with higher demand. Lumber prices climbed exponentially as sawmills could not keep up with demand of the home improvement sector. Thankfully, most of these issues were only temporary as employers and workers adapted to find ways to keep plants open during the pandemic and eventually caught up with consumer demand. But as a lingering effect of COVID-19, I believe there remains a far greater and perhaps more significant long-term threat. Since last spring, governors across America’s 50 states have taken vastly different approaches in terms of “reopening” states as the threat of COVID-19 has dissipated. Some states such as California, New Mexico and New York have insisted on essential perpetual shutdowns of large portions of their manufacturing and economic sector. Meanwhile, states such as Mississippi, Texas and Florida have successfully reopened nearly completely, and employers are hiring. The problem is, in both sets of states, employers are faced with a seemingly insurmountable problem: the lack of a once existing robust workforce that is willing to return to work. People are choosing to stay home because the federal government adopted stimulus and unemployment policies making it more profitable for some people NOT to work for a lengthy period of time. Many people ask the question: “Why work when the government will pay me to stay home?” And so, jobs are not being filled. Factories are not operating at capacity. Slaughterhouses and food processing plants are not keeping up with demand. In America right now, there is a shortage of pork products – not because of COVID, but because of a shortage of workers. The agriculture sector has faced a shortage of skilled laborers for many years, and this is an issue my office has been working on since 2019. But the issue now is much broader and impacts all of us. Try to purchase a piece of manufactured equipment right now or parts to make a repair; chances are that delivery is severely delayed. There is a shortage of cashiers in grocery stores and other retail outlets, causing long lines and extreme wait times. Restaurants cannot serve at full capacity due to a shortage of staff. Cattle producers are experiencing delays in having livestock processed for consumption because there is a waitlist at the processor due to high demand and fewer workers. If Americans in all 50 states are not soon motivated to return to work, and if the incentives NOT to work are not removed, we could see the temporary shortages of the COVID Spring of 2020 repeat themselves in construction, manufacturing and transportation, as well as food production, processing and distribution at grocery stores, restaurants and ultimately, at our dinner tables. America, let’s all get back to work. Commissioner of Agriculture and Commerce Andy Gipson

Do you watch home remodeling shows and wonder where they find the unique pieces they put in the homes they remodel or do you have a Pinterest board filled with ideas for your home? Vintage Market Days® brings all of that to you! With numerous of the best vendors in Vintage from across the US – they bring truckloads of repurposed, specialty “finds” that will be unique to your home! Vintage Market Days® of Mississippi owners Chris, Jana and Betty Fuss are pleased to announce the Jackson area Vintage Market Days® event “Life’s A Garden” will be held at the Mississippi Trade Mart at 1200 Mississippi Street in Jackson. The three-day event will take place April 23 - 25. Vintage Market Days® co-owner Jana Fuss is excited to bring the Vintage experience to the Metro Jackson area. “Vintage Market Days® is more than a show” said Jana. “We love adding special touches to make it a special family friendly Vintage event.” We have been receiving great response from vendors and the community. The Vintage Market Days® vendors are some of the best in the country. About Vintage Market Days® Vintage Market Days® is an upscale vintage and vintage-inspired indoor/outdoor market featuring original art, antiques, clothing, jewelry, architectural salvage, handmade treasures, home decor, outdoor furnishings, consumable yummies, seasonal plantings and a little more. Vintage Market Days® also has the opportunity to give back at each event. We are honored to partner with the Metropolitan YMCAs of Mississippi, a powerful association of men, women and children committed to bringing about lasting personal and social change. With a focus on nurturing the potential of every child and teen, improving the nation’s health and well-being and providing opportunities to give back and support neighbors, the Y enables youth, adults, families and communities to be healthy, confident, connected and secure. “We are excited to help support the local area, specifically the YMCA’s feeding program. Vintage Market Days® is a franchised Vintage event that began in Tulsa, OK in 2012. It has grown to 70 markets and/or 150 events a year across the US. For more information, please visit Mississippi.vintagemarketdays.com, facebook.com/vintagemarketdays or email mississippi@vintagemarketdays.com. Vintage Market Days® is a registered trademark of Vintage Market Days®, LLC. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owner

The Mississippi State Department of Health (MSDH) will be closing all 81 of its Women, Infants and Children (WIC) food distribution sites throughout the state in the months ahead. Approximately 70 positions will be eliminated. This comes as WIC clients throughout the nation are being transferred to the use of electronic banking and a debit card for food purchases due to a federal mandate. The process has also started in Mississippi. The eWIC card will be more convenient for clients as they will have a choice of where to purchase food and infant formula. The list of products has been expanded as well. The eWIC phased rollout will take place over the next few months. For now, clients will have paper vouchers to take to the existing food centers for WIC food. To date, 85,000 Mississippians are enrolled in the WIC Program. The food distribution sites will be permanently closed by late summer and early fall.

Will McInnis of Wesson, Mississippi, was recently initiated into The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi, the nation's oldest and most selective all-discipline collegiate honor society. McInnis was initiated at Mississippi State University. McInnis is among approximately 30,000 students, faculty, professional staff and alumni to be initiated into Phi Kappa Phi each year. Membership is by invitation only and requires nomination and approval by a chapter. Only the top 10 percent of seniors and 7.5 percent of juniors are eligible for membership. Graduate students in the top 10 percent of the number of candidates for graduate degrees may also qualify, as do faculty, professional staff and alumni who have achieved scholarly distinction. Phi Kappa Phi was founded in 1897 under the leadership of undergraduate student Marcus L. Urann who had a desire to create a different kind of honor society: one that recognized excellence in all academic disciplines. Today, the Society has chapters on more than 325 campuses in the United States and the Philippines. Its mission is "To recognize and promote academic excellence in all fields of higher education and to engage the community of scholars in service to others." More About Phi Kappa Phi Since its founding, more than 1.5 million members have been initiated into Phi Kappa Phi. Some of the organization's notable members include former President Jimmy Carter, NASA astronaut Wendy Lawrence, novelist John Grisham and YouTube co-founder Chad Hurley. Each year, Phi Kappa Phi awards more than $1 million to outstanding students and members through graduate and dissertation fellowships, undergraduate study abroad grants, funding for post-baccalaureate development, and grants for local, national and international literacy initiatives. For more information about Phi Kappa Phi, visit www.phikappaphi.org.