Mississippi
Mississippi Senate kills school choice bill
JACKSON, Miss. (WLBT) – Mississippi lawmakers killed a comprehensive school choice bill on Tuesday in a Senate Education Committee meeting that lasted less than two minutes.
The committee rejected House Bill 2, a more than 500-page measure that included multiple school choice provisions.
The House Education Committee advanced its own teacher pay raise plan, proposing a total increase of $5,000.
The full Senate has already approved a $2,000 raise, but the committee chairman said he would like to see a higher amount if the budget allows.
House Bill 2 narrowly passed through the full House by a vote of 61-59 on January 16.
It passed out of the House Education Committee by a narrow margin on January 14, with a final vote of 14-11.
House Speaker Jason White criticized the Senate committee’s decision in a statement.
“The self-proclaimed deliberative body did not deliberate,” White said. “To avoid conversation, debate, or thorough evaluation is a disservice to parents, students, and future generations of Mississippians.”
The bill, called the Education Freedom Act, would have also allowed public dollars to go to private schools and included the Tim Tebow Act, which would allow homeschool students to participate in public school extracurricular activities.
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Mississippi
Mississippi Made brings artisans, food vendors to Laurel
LAUREL, Miss. (WDAM) – Mississippi Made is an arts and crafts festival hosted by Laurel Mercantile that includes makers from all over Mississippi.
About 60 vendors gathered on March 21 to display their creative art for local residents and tourists to enjoy.
“It’s relaxing out here. My husband loves art, and I was like ‘hey, the local artisans from the hometown show are going to be in Laurel, my parents live an hour away,’” said Brandy Haynes of Fort Worth, Texas.
“I said we could go see my parents, and I mentioned it to my son and his fiancée, and they were like ‘Oh, we’ll come along.’”
Not only were there vendors showing off their arts and crafts, but there were also vendors selling food that satisfied the taste buds.
“We started the farm two years ago and started going to local markets just kind of doing greens, corn, peas and then we got into making things,” said John Dew, co-owner of Dew Kissed Farms.
Members of the Laurel Mercantile are grateful for the turnout at the event and glad to be a part of people’s new experiences.
“I just want to thank the community for coming out and supporting. The weather was great today, and lots of footsteps,” said senior store manager Erica Crowder.
“It was great to see so many new faces coming to shop at our stores this week.”
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Copyright 2026 WDAM. All rights reserved.
Mississippi
How to Watch No. 6 Mississippi State vs. Vanderbilt at Dudy Noble Field
No. 6 Mississippi State won a low-scoring series opening game against Vanderbilt and Friday night. Now the two sides will meet again for a Saturday evening game. Here’s everything to know about the Bulldogs’ and Commodores’ second game of the weekend.
The Opponent: Vanderbilt
Vanderbilt brings a 13-9 overall record with it, including a series win over defending national champion and then 13th-ranked LSU at home last weekend. The Commodores are coming off a 5-1 loss to Indiana in Nashville on Tuesday.
Vandy is No. 2 nationally with 52 home runs, rank fourth in slugging (.603) and 10th in drawing walks (136). Tim Corbin’s club is batting .308 and scoring 8.6 runs per game. They have also stolen 26 bases in 31 attempts and have a fielding percentage of .979.
Brodie Johnston tops Vanderbilt hitting .393 while Braden Holcomb is tied for second in the league with 11 long balls to go along with 33 RBIs. Rigdon Rustan has been the Commodores biggest base thief with six steals in seven tries.
Fennell leads the way in strikeouts while Austin Nye, Nate Schlote and Adria Casoliba all sport flawless ERAs. Tristan Bristow and England Bryan are responsible for both of Vanderbilt’s saves this season.
Weather Forecast
Saturday should be another near-perfect night for a baseball game. The National Weather Service’s forecast is “clear, with a low around 61. South southwest wind around 5 mph.”
Vanderbilt
Out
P #43 Matthew Shorey
P #90 Miller Green
P #92 Adria Casoliba
P #99 England Bryan
Questionable
P #40 Austin Nye
C #44 Colin Barczi
Mississippi State
Probable
OF #5 Aidan Teel
How to Watch: Vanderbilt at No. 6 Mississippi State
- Who: Vanderbilt Commodores (13-10, 2-2 SEC) at No. 6 Mississippi State Bulldogs (18-4, 2-2 SEC)
- When: 6 p.m., Saturday
- Where: Dudy Noble Field, Starkville, Miss.
- TV: SEC Network
- Radio: Live Radio
- Stats: Live Stats
- Series History: Mississippi State leads the all-time series 77-59-2
- Last Meeting: Mississippi State 4, Vanderbilt 2 (Friday)
- Last time out, Bulldogs: def. Jackson State, 17-1
- Last time out, Commodores: lost to Indiana, 5-1
Pitching Matchup
- LHP Wyatt Nadeau (1-0, 1.50 ERA) vs. LHP Tomas Valincius (4-0, 1.30 ERA)
Mississippi State Batting Leaders
- Bryce Chance: .431/.552/.541, 1.093 OPS, 23 R, 25 H, 7 2B, 13 RBI, 11 BB, 3 K, 7 SB
- Reed Stallman: .375/.646/.484, 1.130 OPS, 9 R, 18 H, 4 2B, 3 HR, 22 RBI, 10 BB, 13 K, 2 SB
- Ace Reese: .375/.728/.453, 1.181 OPS, 26 R, 30 H, 11 2B, 6 HR, 31 RBI, 12 BB, 19 K, 2 SB
- Aidan Teel: .354/.521/.508, 1.029 OPS, 18 R, 17 H, 2 2B, 2 HR, 14 RBI, 13 BB, 12 K, 4 SB
Vanderbilt Batting Leaders
- Brodie Johnston: .393/.774/.475, 25 R, 33 H, 11 2B, 7 HR, 21 RBI, 13 BB, 11 K, 1 SB
- Braden Holcomb: .333.786/.420, 25 R, 28 H, 5 2B, 11 HR, 33 RBI, 14 BB, 23 K, 1 SB
- Ryker Waite: .333/.530/.521, 16 R, 22 H, 5 2B, 1 3B, 2 HR, 16 RBI, 26 BB, 22 K, 5 SB
- Mike Mancini: .333/.650/.432, 18 R, 20 H, 4 2B, 5 HR, 19 RBI, 12 BB, 16 K, 5 SB
Mississippi
Body recovered after truck drives into Mississippi River in Bemidji
BELTRAMI COUNTY — A man’s body has been recovered from a pickup truck after the vehicle left the roadway and drove into the Mississippi River east of Bemidji on Friday evening.
According to a release from Beltrami County Sheriff Jason Riggs, at 4:43 p.m. on Friday, March 20, dispatch received a report of a pickup truck traveling northbound on Sunnyside Road that entered the Mississippi River after driving through a residential yard.
The reporting party indicated that no one exited the vehicle and it became submerged in the river, the release said.
When emergency personnel arrived on scene, they were informed that the truck was believed to still be occupied. Bystanders attempted to assist the occupant of the vehicle, but it quickly sank, the release noted.
Attempts were made to remove the driver from the vehicle, necessitating the response of the Lakes Area Dive Team. The lone occupant of the vehicle was recovered at 6:30 p.m. and was pronounced dead at the scene.
“No additional information will be released at this time,” the release noted. “The cause of why the vehicle left the roadways is currently under investigation. The identity of the male is being withheld pending positive identification and notification of family.”
The Beltrami County Sheriff’s Office was assisted by the Bemidji Police Department, Lakes Area Dive Team, Minnesota State Patrol, Department of Natural Resources Enforcement, Bemidji Fire Department, North Country First Responders and the Beltrami County Emergency Communications Center.
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