- Important state and national stories, market and business news, sports and entertainment, delivered in quick-hit fashion to start your day informed.
In Mississippi
Miss. Dept. of Education announces Administrator and Teacher of Year
The Mississippi Department of Education has announced the 2025 Mississippi Administrator of the Year is Dr. Marsha Peoples, principal at East Flora Elementary School in the Madison County School District, and the 2025 Mississippi Teacher of the Year is Ashley Barefoot, teacher at Longleaf Elementary School in the Lamar County School District.
According to MDE, the annual Mississippi Administrator of the Year program honors an administrator who demonstrates superior ability to inspire teachers, to employ exemplary leadership practices and to participate as an active member of the community. The recipient receives a $5,000 stipend and shares expertise through various presentations and activities for the improvement of education in the state.
The annual Mississippi Teacher of the Year program recognizes an exemplary teacher in the state who inspires students, demonstrates leadership both inside and outside the classroom and serves as an active member of the community. The award recipient also receives a $5,000 stipend and will share expertise through various presentations and activities. Barefoot will represent Mississippi in the National Teacher of the Year competition.
National News & Foreign Policy
1. Trump expected to soften tariff impact on automakers
The Wall Street Journal reports that President Trump is expected to soften the impact of his automotive tariffs, “preventing duties on foreign-made cars from stacking on top of other tariffs he has imposed and easing some levies on foreign parts used to manufacture cars in the U.S., according to people familiar with the matter.”
“The decision will mean that automakers paying Trump’s automotive tariffs won’t also be charged for other duties, such as those on steel and aluminum, according to people familiar with the policy,” WSJ reported.
WSJ went on to add, “The move would be retroactive, the people said, meaning that automakers could be reimbursed for such tariffs already paid. The 25% tariff on finished foreign-made cars went into effect early this month.”
2. Interior Dept. considers housing on federal lands
The New York Times reports that federal officials created a task force that would identify and release federal land that could be used for housing development.
“The announcement is the first major initiative the Trump administration has rolled out to address the nation’s affordable housing crisis,” NYT reported. “It is an idea that has bipartisan support. Both Mr. Trump and Kamala Harris, the former vice president and Democratic nominee for president, have supported efforts to build affordable housing on certain federal lands.”
NYT added, “As part of the effort, the Interior Department will identify locations that can support homes and aim to reduce regulatory barriers involved with transferring or leasing land to local governments or public housing authorities. The Housing and Urban Development Department will also ‘pinpoint where housing needs are most pressing’ and ensure that projects ‘align with affordability goals.'”
Sports
1. Lemonis out at Miss. State
Mississippi State parted ways with head baseball coach Chris Lemonis on Monday after 7 seasons and the school’s first National Championship in 2021.
Assistant coach Justin Parker will serve as interim head coach for the remainder of the season.
“A change in leadership is what’s best for the future of Mississippi State Baseball,” AD Zac Selmon said. “We have not consistently met the standard of success that our university, fans and student-athletes expect and deserve. I want to thank Coach Lemonis for his work and the time he gave to our program, including a national championship in 2021. We appreciate his efforts and wish him and his family all the best moving forward.”
Under Lemonis, MSU was 232-135 and made three NCAA Tournaments (2019, 2021, 2024), two College World Series (2019, 2021) and won the 2021 national title.
2. Mud Monsters won’t require clear bags
The Mississippi Mud Monsters are high on fan freedom as they have announced that Trustmark Park will not require clear bags for the 2025 season.
“Because if you can dodge a Mud Monster,” the team said, “you can carry a purse.”
“We don’t want to turn a trip to the ballpark into a scavenger hunt for an approved plastic cube,” said General Manager Andrew Seymour. “We want you to come out, have a blast, and maybe eat 7 mystery-flavored sausages on a stick without worrying if your bag passes some weird fashion test. Around here, we play ball, not bag inspector.”
Security will still check bags at the gate to keep things safe, the team noted.
Markets & Business
1. Futures little changed before Tuesday’s opening bell
CNBC reports that S&P 500 futures were little changed on Tuesday “after the broad market index posted its fifth straight day of gains on Monday.”
“Futures linked to the broad market index hovered around the flatline, along with Nasdaq 100 futures. Dow Jones Industrial Average futures ticked up 172 points, or 0.4%,” CNBC reported.
CNBC reported that on Monday, “The three major indexes swung between gains and losses in the choppy session. The Dow tumbled more than 240 points at its low and rallied around 300 points at the day’s high. The S&P 500 and Nasdaq both traded more than 1% in the red at session lows before taking a leg up in afternoon trading.”
2. White House cheers new Gulf of America oil production
FoxBusiness reports that the White House sees the first oil production from a joint U.S.-French corporate venture in the Gulf of America as “a welcome indication that President Donald Trump’s agenda to ‘unleash American energy dominance’ is taking shape.”
“American energy titan Chevron and French firm TotalEnergies announced the start of production last week from the deep-water Ballymore oil field off the coast of Louisiana and Mississippi, in what is a 60-40 partnership favoring the Texas company,” FoxBusiness reported.
Fox noted, “Chevron is the official operator of the oil lease, according to the company, which said in a statement to FOX Business that the start of production is only the latest step toward a company-wide goal to produce 300,000 net-barrels of oil per day from the Gulf of America through 2026.”
Magnolia Tribune
