Mississippi
New program from the Mississippi Department of Human Services provides substitute teachers for child care facilities
JACKSON, Miss. (WLBT) – A 3 On Your Side Exclusive on a new program from the Mississippi Department of Human Services that is making sure Child Care facilities have the workers they need to stay open and provide services to children and their families. The Substitute Teacher Initiative is the first of its kind in the nation.
The new program has been in operation for a year. Officials with the Mississippi Department of Human Services say the Early Childhood Care and Development Substitute teacher initiative has given job opportunities at facilities across the state, which in turn has kept parents in the workforce.
Chad Allgood, MDHS Director of the Division of Early Childhood Care and Development, said, “When you talk about sustaining any kind of industry, you’ve also got to talk about building up the child care options for people that are going to work bottom line. So it’s absolutely crucial.”
By providing a pool of substitute teachers who have already been recruited, screened, and trained, the program is connecting qualified individuals with the facilities who need them, whether it’s for a day or longer. The program is also helping address needs in childcare deserts like the Mississippi Delta.
“With our child care industry, which is primarily our birth to five range. We are seeing just a high level of turnover in that field, especially since the pandemic. There are other industries we’re unfortunately losing teachers to those other, those other businesses because they can pay more”, Allgood said.
Nancy Sylvester is the director of Global Connection Learning Center, which has been open at Jackson Medical Mall for 15 years. The program focuses on teen mothers and their babies.
Sylvester said, “There are no fees associated. As long as they’re willing to re-enroll in school and keep their grades up, their behavior has to be good. Come to our after-school program where we work with them on parenting skills and financial literacy. We have a number of things that we work with them on, but they cannot have a repeat pregnancy.”
Sylvester says the substitute teacher pool became available while she was fighting breast cancer.
Nancy Sylvester said, “It made a tremendous difference. It took so much pressure off of me, I felt like I was able to relax and just heal from everything that I had gone through because we had staff here, I could get people in. Classes were covered.”
According to MDHS, over 300 substitute teachers are in the pool. An average of 40 job postings are listed per day statewide. 909 jobs were filled in July.
The program was originally scheduled to run for one year, but it has been so successful the project has now been extended an additional year through June 30, 2025. You can find more information on the program here.
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KEY WEST, Fla. (WLBT) – A Mississippi woman is dead after a snorkeling accident Tuesday, according to the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office in the Florida Keys.
At approximately 1:30 p.m. May 26, 63-year-old Lecia Elizabeth Spriggs of Madison, Mississippi, was snorkeling near Mule Key off Key West with a commercial company when she was found unresponsive in the water.
CPR began immediately and the U.S. Coast Guard brought Spriggs ashore, officials said.
Spriggs was taken to the Lower Keys Medical Center on Stock Island, where she was pronounced deceased.
Officials said autopsy results are pending but foul play is not suspected to be a factor in this incident.
No further information has been released at this time.
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Copyright 2026 WLBT. All rights reserved.
Jim Stewart Allen, also known as Broccoli Guy, is still trying to wrap his head around the last two weeks.
What started as a short trip from his home state of Washington to support Oregon in the Eugene Regional of the NCAA softball Tournament has turned into a trip to the Women’s College World Series as Mississippi State softball’s unofficial mascot.
“I’ve dreamed about going to a softball World Series,” Allen told the Clarion Ledger. “I didn’t know when it was going to happen. And so, to be able to finally go is one thing, but to be able to go with such a meaningful connection with one of the teams, with Mississippi State, it just means the world to me.”
Allen plans to be in Oklahoma City for every step of the Bulldogs’ WCWS journey, beginning with their opening game against No. 11 seed Texas Tech (57-7) on May 28 (11 a.m. CT, ESPN) at Devon Park. It will be the first WCWS game in MSU (43-19) program history.
Broccoli Guy surprised Mississippi State at super regionals
Allen has brought broccoli to games for nearly every Seattle professional sports team. It’s about more than just being a fun way to support the teams. It’s also about maintaining a fun environment and encouraging unity.
After watching Mississippi State use broccoli as a rally prop in its regional final win, Allen knew he had to travel to Oklahoma for super regionals. He surprised the Bulldogs in Norman and saw them hand Oklahoma its first super regional loss since 2015.
“It was very exciting,” Allen said of watching Game 1, which Mississippi State won 11-9. “It was just very clear during that whole game that Mississippi State came to play. They had the energy and they had the hunger.”
All weekend, Allen got to see firsthand how much his presence was appreciated by supporting and opposing fans alike.
“The environment was incredible,” Allen said. “I was nervous about how I would be received by Oklahoma fans. … I didn’t really know what to expect, but I got so much love from Oklahoma fans.”
Anytime they needed a boost, the Bulldogs held broccoli in the dugout for good luck. After losing Game 2, MSU leaned on broccoli to power past the Sooners in Game 3, posting pregame pictures and videos highlighting the vegetable.
Allen didn’t need to see the overflow of broccoli content to know that MSU had what it took.
“I woke up that morning on Sunday thinking, ‘I’m going to have to stay here probably because they’re going to win this game,’” Allen said. “… And then I saw pictures on Instagram of … someone holding a bag of broccoli on the bus and I went, ‘Yeah, I’m staying in Oklahoma.’”
What Mississippi State softball means to Broccoli Guy
As the Bulldogs secured the final out in Game 3, the ESPN broadcast showed Allen in the stands with tears in his eyes.
He joked that this was a result of the exhaustion of dancing in the hot sun and his tired acceptance of a trip to the WCWS. In reality, it was an outpouring of joy for the team he’d come to love.
“That’s just been two weeks of following this team at a pretty intense level, game by game, seeing them work” Allen said. “… I think right after that, the team ran over to me, and we had our own moment, which is so, so humbling.”
For as much as Allen enjoys watching the Bulldogs play, the players enjoy having him in the stands. Infielder Nadia Barbary said seeing him dancing during the games helps them remember to have fun and stay loose in tough moments.
This relaxed style of play is what helped them get past Oklahoma. The Bulldogs even thanked Allen for his contributions by letting him hold their super regional trophy.
“It’s just been great,” pitcher Alyssa Faircloth said. “He’s such a sweet guy, so just the fact that we can bring him along and celebrate him with our broccoli in our dugout and just make him feel a little bit special has been great.”
The wider MSU community has also embraced Allen. Leila Ammon’s dad, Charles, started a GoFundMe to help cover Allen’s WCWS travel expenses. It had received $4,165 in donations as of May 26.
Unsurprisingly, Allen believes the Bulldogs have a good shot to win the title, noting it would be a fantastic finish to his and their journey.
“For them to even get this far is just incredible,” Allen said. “… Mississippi State is representing what it means to be a hungry, energetic softball underdog and they’re doing it so well. … Anything they do, I’m going to be super proud of, and I’m not surprised if they win it all.”
Tia Reid covers Jackson State sports for the Clarion Ledger. Email her at treid@usatodayco.com and follow her on X @tiareid65.
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