Jackson State University is offering free summer courses to assist students and families who faced academic or economic impact during the COVID-19 pandemic. The university has also not requested a tuition increase.

Financial assistance is available to current JSU students who will be attending JSU Summer Session 2021, as well as current undergraduate and graduate students who completed coursework at JSU during the Spring 2021 semester.

Federal Higher Education Emergency Relief funds, established in March 2020 as part of the $2.2 trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, cover the costs of the free classes

The grant covers tuition for six credit hours in face-to-face classes, seminars or lab courses and other mandatory fees, but not housing or meals.

Students must register for Summer 2021 classes and submit a completed Summer School 2021 questionnaire by May 26. For more information or to register for grant funding, visit https://www.jsums.edu/getaheadgrant/.

USM Partners with Project START on Motor-Sensory Rooms for Children with Sensory Disorders

Mississippi-based Project Success Through Assistive Rehabilitative Technology recently partnered with the Children’s Center for Communication and Development at the University of Southern Mississippi to provide funding for a new motor-sensory room and loan library for USM's Gulf Coast location.

The Children’s Center is a non-profit with locations on the Hattiesburg and Gulf Park campuses of USM that provides free therapy for children ages 0-5 with complex disabilities.

Nearly all of the children served out of the Children’s Center’s Gulf Park location are identified as having sensory differences or motor delays or disabilities, a release from USM says. "Motor rooms" or "sensory rooms" contain specialized equipment such as bouncing balls or other play objects to treat children with developmental disorders such as autism, ADHD, cerebral palsy, and Down syndrome who may suffer from sensory issues.

USM's sensory room will also be available for scheduled use by First Steps Early Intervention Program, which currently serves roughly 300 children in the region.

For more information, visit usm.edu or msprojectstart.org.

Home Depot Reveals HBCU Winners of 2021 Home Depot Retool Your School Program

Home Depot revealed a list of 30 historically black colleges and universities across the United States that won awards in the 2021 Home Depot Retool Your School Program on Thursday, April 15. Three Mississippi HBCUs, Tougaloo College, Jackson State University and Coahoma Community College, received campus improvement grants this year.

Home Depot launched the "Retool Your School" program in 2010 to support on-campus enhancement projects for Historically Black Colleges and Universities, with the goal of providing $1 million in campus improvement grants across 30 schools in 2021.

Tougaloo College placed first place in Cluster 3 of the program and earned the Campaign of the Year award, which Home Depot designated for the school with the most original and innovative campus improvement campaign. Tougaloo won a total of $120,000 from Home Depot’s Retool Your School Program.

Jackson State University previously redesigned and renovated the commuter lounge in its Student Center through a $50,000 campus improvement grant in January 2021.

For more information, visit homedepot.com.