The Institute for Disability Studies at the University of Southern Mississippi recently received a $100,000 grant from the Administration of Community Living. The grant, known as Pine Belt Transition Together Enhancing young Adult services in Mississippi, will go toward creating a network of resources for young people with intellectual and other developmental disabilities during their transition to adulthood.

USM and other grant partners will work with an advisory council consisting of youth and young adults with disabilities, family members and professionals from the community and government, nonprofit and transition-focused agencies and organizations.

Key areas the grant will support include employment, postsecondary education, healthcare, social supports, leisure, career guidance, housing and financial literacy. USM said in a release that it anticipates additional funding in 2021 to implement the plan.

For more information about IDS’ transition program and the Pine Belt Transition TEAM, visit usm.edu/ids or call 601-266-5163.

JSU Receives Grant for Minority Health Disparities Research

Jackson State University recently received a five-year, $11.2 million grant from the National Institutes of Health-National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities to establish a new facility called the Research Centers in Minority Institutions Center for Health Disparities Research.

The grant will help JSU researchers to research health issues of minorities and underserved communities, examine health disparity diseases and develop new prevention and treatment strategies and establish new infrastructure in the biomedical field, a release from the university says.

JSU's stated goals for the new facility include supporting career enhancement opportunities in biomedical research and helping students transition into independent research. The facility's anticipated pilot projects will also conduct research on the science of health disparities aimed at improving minority health and reducing health disparities in Mississippi and the United States, the release says.

New Historical Markers Unveiled for The Mill at MSU

Officials from Mississippi State University and the National Park Service unveiled two new plaques on Wednesday, Sept. 30, designating MSU's conference and event venue, The Mill, as a building listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The repurposed building has been listed on the registry since 1975.

The building was once the John M. Stone Cotton Mill and was formerly called the E.E. Cooley Building on MSU's campus until the university held a groundbreaking ceremony to convert the building into a conference and meeting complex in 2014. The $40-million renovation project concluded in October 2015.

The Mill at MSU hosts conferences, conventions, banquets, local meetings, bazaars and other events. For more information about the building and a timeline of its history, visit themillatmsu.com.