Special to The Clinton Courier   Sawyer Turnage, a senior at Clinton Christian Academy, recently earned the top prize in Mississippi College’s Select Scholars Competition, one of the university’s most competitive scholarship programs.   Turnage competed against over one hundred high-achieving students from across the United States in a rigorous selection process that included interviews,…

Special to The Clinton Courier Clinton High School student Jazlyn Leszczynska was recently selected to attend the Washington Journalism and Media Conference (WJMC) as a National Youth Correspondent, representing both Clinton High School and the state of Mississippi.   The Washington Journalism and Media Conference is a highly competitive national program hosted on the campus…

Special to The Clinton Courier Evan Lenow, associate professor and chair of Christian Studies and director of the Institute for Christian Leadership at Mississippi College, has been named the Mississippi Humanities Council’s 2026 MC Teacher of the Year.   As MC’s recipient, Lenow, of Clinton, delivered a lecture titled “Retrieving Virtue, Moral Character Development as…

Janae Sinclair and Daniel Dolson recently participated in the annual All-State Strings Orchestra hosted at Belhaven University. Both students have participated in orchestra in the Clinton Public School District since fifth grade.

Cullen Lay, a senior at Clinton High School, was recently named a Stennis Scholar by Mississippi State University.   The John C. Stennis scholarship is a four-year award for incoming freshmen majoring in political science.   The program is typically awarded to only one or two incoming freshmen each year, with an emphasis on leadership…

Crystal Utley Secoy, a Clinton resident and Director and Assistant Attorney General for the Mississippi Attorney General’s Office, recently completed the Mississippi LEAD (Leadership Excellence and Development) program.   Thirty participants representing twenty-three state agencies finished the program in December 2025 and were recently recognized by the Mississippi Legislature from the chamber floors. Secoy is…

By Randy Bell Dogwalkers in Clinton who aren’t prepared to clean up after their pets could soon be facing a fine if the Board of Aldermen passes a new ordinance, which was discussed at one of their recent work sessions.   Director of Community Development Roy Edwards explains the proposed ordinance: “If you’re walking your…

Special to The Clinton Courier The Mississippi School Boards Association (MSBA) recently announced its executive officers and directors for the 2025–26 term. New members were elected last November by the MSBA Delegate Assembly, a group representing school board members from across Mississippi. Sondra Odom from the Pearl Public School District School Board was elected Board…

When teachers at the Clinton Public School District’s Clinton Success Center (CSC) needed snack shelves restocked to sustain them during end-of-year student testing, members of the nonprofit Junior Auxiliary of Clinton answered the call.   Chapter members donated dozens of containers of snacks and collected water, sports drinks and soft drinks for delivery to CSC…

Special to The Clinton Courier Clinton High School senior Murphy Schoggen was recently selected to participate in the competitive Raytheon summer internship program in Forest, Mississippi.   More than eighty students applied for the internship, but only twenty-two were selected.   “Murphy and the other interns are going to experience all components of the engineering…

Firefighter Nathan Wisdom of the Clinton Fire Department recently graduated Class 219 from the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 1010 Firefighter I-II course held at the Mississippi State Fire Academy in Jackson.   The intense seven-week course combines online, classroom and hands-on instruction in the areas of fire behavior, fire suppression, rescue, incident command, hazardous…

Special to The Clinton Courier Mississippi Blood Services (MBS) recently recognized longtime donor Kent Mummert of Clinton, who reached an extraordinary milestone on April 29, 2026 – his 802nd platelet donation, equating to more than one hundred gallons of blood products donated over the course of his lifetime.   Mummert began donating as a freshman…

By Randy Bell It’s been a struggle for the Clinton Fire Department (CFD) to meet its goal of having a paramedic on duty for each shift at all four fire stations.  That would mean having at least twelve medics, and CFD currently has only four following the recent retirement of two veteran firefighters, both of…

Hinds Community College’s Raymond Campus recently inducted new members of the Gamma Lambda Chapter of Phi Theta Kappa. PTK inductees from Hinds and Copiah counties include (l to r), Front row: Amos Clinton of Clinton, Rihanna Haines of Crystal Springs, Lakiyah Sutton of Clinton, Autumn Johnson of Clinton, Caniya Milton of Crystal Springs, Aidan Lamar Bishop…

By Randy Bell Taking a stroll along East College Street in Clinton should soon be safer and easier.  The Board of Aldermen voted May 5 to advertise for bids to construct a new sidewalk from the eastern edge of the Mississippi College campus to near Fairmont Street.   “This is the project that was awarded…

The administration and staff of Funtime Preschool recently announced their graduating Class of 2026. Pictured (l to r), Front row: Barrett Chow, Ryan Nguyen, Houston McCrory, Emmaline Purdie, Amelia Pardue, Hayes Little, Montgomery Cobb, Kairi Funchess, Reid Jones, Chelsei Jones, Christian Beasley and Georgia Phillips;   Second row: Sydney Perkins, Autumn Wilson, Evelyn Nguyen, Scarlett…

Clinton Junior High School (CJHS) recently honored Mrs. Burgess as the school’s Teacher of the Month.   School officials say she is known for her outstanding dedication and impact in the classroom and is recognized for creating engaging lessons and building strong relationships with her students.   Further, they say her commitment to excellence continues…

Special to The Clinton Courier Bobby Jones Links (BJL), one of the fastest-growing club management and development companies in the industry, recently announced that it has been chosen to manage the semi-private Live Oaks Golf Club just outside of Clinton.   Just northwest of Jackson, where the city’s edges dissolve into a quieter, more pastoral swath of Mississippi…

By Cara Pridemore   For Dr. Claire Gilliam, a regular day may range from directing pediatric medical students at the University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC) to organizing a school book fair for her kids.   “It’s been a real blessing with the way my job worked out,” Gilliam, a pediatrician at UMMC, said. “I…

Special to The Clinton Courier Amber Elizabeth Amis, the daughter of Gary and Sonya Amis and a 2022 Clinton High School graduate, was one of ten seniors recently inducted into the University of Mississippi’s 2025-26 Student Hall of Fame. Students are selected for the Hall of Fame in accordance with a policy developed by the…

By Sherry Lucas Lariat, a five-pieced Philadelphia-based band, brings its signature country-rooted, rock-driven sound to Lions Club Park for the final show of Clinton’s Spring Concert Series on Saturday, May 23.   The free concert starts at 6:30 p.m. Attendees are encouraged to bring a chair or blanket for seating and enjoy the show.  …

  The Mississippi Department of Human Services (MDHS) today announced a $5 million investment of Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) direct funds to child care assistance for low-income working families in Federal Fiscal Year 2026. The new funding will be administered through MDHS’s Division of Early Childhood Care and Development (DECCD) and distributed through…

Residents from across the Jackson area are expected to gather on Saturday, May 30, 2026, for the annual BAPS Charities Walk-Run, part of a nationwide volunteer-driven event taking place simultaneously in more than 100 cities across North America.   The Jackson event, scheduled at 2390 Greenway Drive in Jackson, Mississippi, is expected to bring together…

By Randy Bell Clinton’s police chief uses four categories of felony property crime as a barometer to show how well his department is doing its job.  Chief Ford Hayman told the Board of Aldermen May 5 that, last year, the city had a combined total of sixty auto burglaries, residential burglaries, business burglaries and grand…