Mississippi
Outlook: Miss Mississippi, Miss Mississippi Teen take off for Orlando – The Vicksburg Post
Outlook: Miss Mississippi, Miss Mississippi Teen take off for Orlando
Published 9:43 pm Saturday, January 6, 2024
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The time has finally arrived. After months of anticipation, Miss Mississippi Vivian O’Neal and Miss Mississippi’s Teen Nataleigh Nix boarded a plane Saturday heading to Orlando, Fla. where they will compete for the title of 2024 Miss America and 2024 Miss America’s Teen, respectively.
The competitions will take place at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts with Miss America Teen being crowned Sat., Jan 13. The new Miss America will be crowned, Sun., Jan. 14.
Prior to the crownings, delegates vying for both the Miss America Teen title and Miss America title will have a personal interview with judges, followed by preliminary competitions showcasing talent, fitness, and eveningwear for their respective competitions.
Nix, who was crowned Miss Mississippi’s Teen in April, said she has been preparing for all phases of the competition.
“For interview and onstage questions, I have had a mental management coach and countless mock interviews,” she said. “For fitness and evening wear, I’ve practiced walking patterns and adopted a #MissAmericaFit mentality and for talent I have had voice lessons to practice and improve my song.”
Like all delegates competing for the national title, Nix did not reveal what she will be singing, but during the Miss Mississippi Teen Competition, she sang “Never Enough” from the movie-musical “The Greatest Showman” from which she was recognized as a preliminary talent winner.
In addition to preparing for the Miss America Teen Competition, Nix said, she has traveled the state implementing her Community Service Initiative AOK – Acts Of Kindness, completed pulling together her wardrobe, created social media content and attended appearance and sponsor visits.
O’Neal was crowned Miss Mississippi in June and looks at being an ambassador for the Magnolia State as part of preparation for the national title.
“Truthfully, my life is preparation for Miss America,” O’Neal said. “Traveling, public speaking, representing and recruiting for the state organization, and working with my nonprofit organization are all things I do in my day-to-day life, but they also cultivate skills that I use as a competitor and hopefully, Miss America 2024,” she said.
O’Neal said she has had the privilege of visiting places like Stennis Space Center, Keesler Air Force Base, Camp Shelby and the Nissan plant – all of which have deepened her knowledge of the state.
“I learned so much about the nationwide and even worldwide impact that our state and its people have,” she said. “And I have been very intentional about using my social media as a way to showcase the diversity within the state of Mississippi.
During her reign, O’Neal said she has also focused on letting people see what really goes on behind the crown.
“One of the best compliments I have received this year is that I’m the same in person as I am on television and social media. My goal through social media is to showcase what real life looks like as a state titleholder,” she said. “I think that there is such a misconception that Miss Mississippi is supposed to be this image of ‘perfection’ and I knew going into the state competition that if I won, authenticity would be at the forefront.”
Preliminary competitions for Miss America will take place Wed., Jan. 10, and Thurs., Jan. 11, and like Nix, O’Neal was not at liberty to discuss the particulars about the talent or evening wear phase of the competition. However, she did say, “For my evening gown, it’s a color I’ve worn before but not in a very long time. And for talent, I will be dancing and I’m confident it will make the audience want to get up and dance with me,” she said.
Both O’Neal and Nix said they look forward to competing on the national level.
“I am most looking forward to the memories and friendships I will make and that I will remember for the rest of my life,” Nix said.
“I watched Miss America every single year growing up,” O’Neal said. “So, for me, the thing I’m looking forward to the most is finally getting to be part of that history in such a big way. Miss America and Miss Mississippi specifically have always been iconic figures both publicly and in my personal life, so I feel very honored to represent an organization with such a rich legacy.”
Schedule for the Miss America Teen Competition
Sunday, Jan. 7 – Private interview
Tuesday, 7 p.m. Jan. 9 – Miss America’s Teen preliminary competition
Thursday, 4 p.m. Jan. 11 – Miss America’s Got Talent teen competition (preliminary talent phase of the competition)
Saturday, 7 p.m. Jan. 13 – Miss America’s Teen Finals
Schedule for the Miss America Competition
Sunday, Jan. 7 – Private interview
Wednesday, 7 p.m. Jan. 10 – Miss America Preliminary competition
Mississippi
When will you get your April 2026 SSI check in MS? See payment schedule
Think tank proposes capping Social Security benefits at $100,000
A Washington think tank proposed capping annual Social Security benefits at $100,000 for couples as a way to shrink a looming deficit in the retirement trust fund.
People who get Supplemental Security Income checks will get paid on Wednesday, April 1.
The payments sometimes go out early. It happens when the first falls on a weekend or a holiday. Checks get sent on the last weekday before the normal send date.
Social Security recipients also will get their regular checks as scheduled in April. Benefits are typically disbursed to almost 74 million people on Wednesdays later in the month. Your payment date depends on the day of the month you were born.
Here’s what you should know about the April payment schedule, when the next time SSI checks will go out early and where to find a Social Security Office near you in Mississippi.
March 2026 Social Security payment schedule
The Social Security Administration’s 2026 payment schedules are online to help beneficiaries plan their budgets.
Regular Social Security retirement benefits will be issued according to the SSA’s standard payment schedule in March:
- March 11: Birthdates between the first and 10th of the month
- March 18: Birthdates between the 11th and the 20th of the month
- March 25: Birthdates between the 21st and the 31st of the month
When will SSI checks be sent early in 2026?
The next time checks will be sent early is Friday, July 31. August 1 is a Saturday this year.
SSI checks also will be sent out early for November because the first is over a weekend.
And the first check of the new year always gets sent on New Year’s Eve because of the holiday conflict.
SSI payment schedule for 2026
Supplemental Security Income checks will be sent out on the following dates in 2026, according to the SSA calendar.
It’s usually sent on the first of the month, but they are disbursed early if the first falls on a weekend or holiday.
- Wednesday, April 1 (check for April)
- Friday, May 1 (check for May)
- Monday, June 1 (check for June)
- Wednesday, July 1 (check for July)
- Friday, July 31 (check for August)
- Tuesday, Sept. 1 (check for September)
- Thursday, Oct. 1 (check for October)
- Friday, Oct. 30 (check for November)
- Tuesday, Dec. 1 (check for December)
- Thursday, Dec. 31 (check for January 2027)
➤ Most Americans think Social Security won’t be there for them. Are they right?
Why will some people get paid 3 times in certain months?
People who get both SSI and regular Social Security will be paid three times in October and December.
The regular SSI payment will come on the first. The Social Security check will be paid on its usual date. Then the SSI funds for the following month will be sent near the end of the month because the next SSI disbursement date falls on a weekend or holiday.
See the full 2026 Social Security Payment schedule
Social Security offices in Mississippi
There are almost two dozen Social Security offices in Mississippi. To find the one nearest you, visit ssa.gov/locator.
- Brookhaven
- Clarksdale
- Cleveland
- Columbus
- Corinth
- Forest
- Greenville
- Greenwood
- Grenada
- Gulfport
- Hattiesburg
- Hernando
- Jackson
- Kosciusko
- Laurel
- McComb
- Meridian
- Moss Point
- Natchez
- Philadelphia
- Starkville
- Tupelo
- Vicksburg
Contributing: Mike Snider and Laura Daniella Sepulveda
Bonnie Bolden covers money issues that matter to people in Mississippi for USA TODAY Network. Email her at bbolden@gannett.com.
Mississippi
Lawmakers signal K-12 teachers will get $2,000 raise, first pay increase since 2022 – SuperTalk Mississippi
A back-and-forth affair over teacher pay raises inside the Mississippi capitol – a debate that technically died before being revived – is expected to end with K-12 educators statewide receiving a $2,000 bump to their salaries.
The Senate on Sunday unanimously voted to fund the pay increase for teachers in the state’s public school system while conversations in the House affirmed the chamber will follow suit. Special education teachers, assistant teachers, speech therapists, and school psychologists will receive the same pay increase.
Notably, lawmakers are also working to budget for a $5,000 raise for school attendance officers and funding to hire nine more. The plan would ensure one attendance officer for every 4,000 students statewide. Attendance officers are responsible for investigating unexcused absences, making home visits, and coordinating with families and courts to improve dropout rates.
The anticipated investment comes as Mississippi continues to grapple with chronic absenteeism. According to an October report from the Mississippi Department of Education, more than a quarter of public-school students missed over 10% of the 2024-25 school year.
The raises will be immediate if a conference report approved by both chambers goes into law. It is expected to be passed by both chambers as early as Monday with Republican Speaker Jason White telling the House he expects the session to end “no later than Thursday.”
The deal to give teachers a $2,000 raise follows months of different numbers bouncing around the capitol. The Senate initially proposed a $2,000 immediate raise, while the House pushed for a $5,000 immediate raise. After missing a key deadline earlier this month, both chambers found alternative routes to revive the measures. The House maintained its $5,000 proposal, while the Senate advanced a plan to phase in a $6,000 raise over three years.
Despite recent academic gains that have drawn national praise – including a No. 16 national ranking after decades at the bottom – Mississippi teachers remain among the lowest paid in the country. A 2025 report from the National Education Association found the state’s starting salary of $41,500 ranks near the bottom nationwide, even when accounting for cost of living.
Sunday’s budgeting work is part of a broader education appropriation expected to round out at approximately $3.3 billion. If the numbers stand, it will make way for the first teacher pay raise since 2022.
Sen. Dennis DeBar, a Republican from Leakesville and chair of the Senate Education Committee, said lawmakers settled on the $2,000 figure due to competing budget demands, including Medicaid and the Public Employees’ Retirement System. The state’s total budget for Fiscal Year 2027 is expected to be around $7.4 billion.
“There’s nothing that says we can’t do a (teacher) pay raise again next year,” DeBar said. “However, we didn’t want to lock ourselves in somewhere we couldn’t pay.”
Mississippi
How Mississippi State’s Tomas Valincius dominated third straight SEC team vs Ole Miss
OXFORD — Tomas Valincius struck out top Ole Miss baseball batter Tristan Bissetta looking on his last pitch of the game.
There was no emotion from the Mississippi State starting pitcher as he walked back to the dugout after Bissetta was the fourth straight Ole Miss batter to strike out.
It was another instance of Valincius, the left-handed Virginia transfer, showing a trait that’s made him such a dominant pitcher for the No. 4 Bulldogs. The longer Valincius pitches, the better he gets.
The sophomore pitched another five shutout innings as MSU (23-4, 5-2 SEC) took down No. 18 Ole Miss, 6-1, at Swayze Field on March 28 to win the series.
“It’s all mental,” Valincius said. “Just going out there and just kind of trusting yourself and all the work you put in throughout the week. And even when you don’t have your stuff, it’s still a war between every battle in every inning. It’s kind of like finding a way to do what you can do with what you got.”
The win clinched the Bulldogs’ ninth series against the Rebels (19-9, 3-5) in the last 10 meetings. Another win March 29 (3 p.m., SEC Network) would make Brian O’Connor the third straight first-year MSU coach to sweep Ole Miss.
Valincius (6-0) hasn’t allowed an earned run in 19 SEC innings and his season ERA dropped to 0.91.
Against the Rebels, one game after striking out a career-high 14 batters against Vanderbilt, Valincius recorded nine strikeouts with three hits, two walks and one hit by pitch in 90 pitches.
“He buckled down when runners were in scoring position,” O’Connor said. “He’s always best in his middle innings. You see him just rise his game up.”
Why Tomas Valincius could’ve done even better against Ole Miss
While the Ole Miss game was Valincius’ third SEC start without allowing an earned run, it was his shortest outing of the three. The other two against Arkansas and Vanderbilt both lasted seven innings.
Valincius stranded six Ole Miss batters on base in his five innings.
“Early on, I didn’t really feel like I had anything going,” Valincius said. “I was kind of just finding a way to win. That was kind of my whole approach throughout the whole game. I couldn’t really figure out the slider and fastball command. It wasn’t working a lot. I just found a way to win.”
Sam Sklar is the Mississippi State beat reporter for The Clarion Ledger. Email him at ssklar@usatodayco.com and follow him on X @sklarsam_.
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