BY KATHERINE HOLMESContributing Writer

Members of Starkville in Motion, an organization dedicated to improving pedestrian and cyclist safety, are eager for construction to begin next fall on the Safe Routes to Schools project.

“We thought we could get started this academic year, but it looks like it is going to be next fall before we have mortar down,” Ward Alderman and SIM mem-ber Matt Cox said.

The SRTS program is a cooperative effort between the city of Starkville, SIM and the Starkville School District to

provide sidewalks, bike lanes and traffic-calm-ing devices as well as an educational outreach program for children traveling to and from school.

The Mississippi Department of Transportation awarded Starkville a $281,476 grant for SRTS in July 2007 through a federal transportation enhancement fund.

The new infrastructure improvements include proposed bike lanes connecting

Rolling Hills and Green Oaks subdivi-sions with Ward Stewart Elementary School and Henderson Intermediate School. Along these routes are proposed sidewalks to connect the existing side-walks and caution lights at high traffic intersections. Chair of SIM’s Safe Routes to Schools committee Lois Connington said MDOT has held up the engineering aspect of the project.

The city finished preliminary engi-neering, Cox said. Now, the consultant engineer’s work is waiting to be finished and approved.

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Incumbent aims to hold 4thDistrict

BY WAYNE BRAGG

Staff Writer

Democrat Gene Taylor is seeking his 10th consecutive term as Mississippi’s 4th Congressional District’s U.S. rep-resentative with Republican John Mc-Cay looking to oust the 20-year incum-bent.

Candidates are running to represent the district with three of the four most heavily populated cities in the state: Gulfport, Biloxi and Hattiesburg. The 4th District is still suffering from the 2005 devastation of Hurricane Ka-trina.

Beau Gex, district director for Taylor, said the key issue on Taylor’s agenda at the moment is a multi peril insurance bill, which passed in the House of Rep-resentatives last year but not the Sen-ate.

Coast residents are having a tough time battling insurance companies with the ongoing dilemma from Ka-trina as to whether damage to homes were caused by fl ood waters or wind, Gex said.

“The bill introduced by Gene [Tay-lor], if passed this time around, will cover wind damage on citizens’ federal fl ood insurance plans,” he said. “This bill will make it much more affordable

BY CARL SMITH

News Editor

The Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning Board of Trustees announced the Mississippi State University presidential search is still currently on target, despite calls to reopen the search from the MSU Faculty Senate before the board’s Friday meeting.

The board announced the second-round interviews for presidential can-didates have been scheduled for Nov. 5 in Jackson.

IHL Board of Trustees President Amy Whitten said she believes in the integrity of the search despite the allegations and scandal that have emerged during the current process.

“We think [the search process] works,” she said. “The search is still on course and it’s working around the candidates’ [schedules]. We think it will produce sound results.”

City infrastructure improvements set to begin fall 2009

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The newly-crowned Miss MSU Sara Beth James waives to the crowd gathered for the 50th anniversary of the Miss MSU Pageant Thursday.

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Fourteen contestants compete for the 50th Miss MSU crown

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Nov. 5

BY PATRICK YOUNG | Staff Writer

The 50th annual Miss MSU Pageant took place Thursday in Lee Hall Auditorium with freshman communication major Sara Beth James taking the crown. James, a native of Madison County, defeated 13 other women to advance to the state pageant in Vicksburg. Sophomore communication major Robyn Ford was named first runner-up, and undeclared senior Danielle Smith received second runner-up with freshman communication major Fenly Akers taking third.

James said she was surprised with winning the title, especially with the caliber of this year’s beauty and talent. “I was very surprised,” James said. “I would like to emphasize that any one of those girls could and would have made a beautiful Miss

MSU, and I am honored to have been given the title.”As the winner of the pageant, James took home a $1,500 scholarship, a $500 Barnes and Noble gift card and the opportunity to be

photographed for MSU-related publications.

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