For Mississippi State University graduate Alijah Jones, the road to a Fulbright Scholarship began in the stillness of the pandemic. Feeling a lack of connection, Jones said he “indulged” in internet browsing, happening upon a YouTube video––“Dinner with my Italian Host Family.” Stepping outside the loneliness of isolation, he found not just a glimpse into another culture, but a spark that would one day take him across the world.

Mississippi State University graduate student Sydney Goldberg took first place in graduate-level broadcasting recently at the prestigious Broadcast Education Association Festival of Media Arts, and an MSU-led team of broadcasters also earned top honors for excellence in student newscasts.

“More women now earn college degrees than men," said Rachel Allison. "While women still face barriers and challenges in the workforce, including their lower pay [compared] to men, women’s greater education may allow them to hold jobs that make homeownership more possible. There is also decreasing societal stigma to women’s singleness.”