Sears to close last store in the city it once called home

Fourth Quarter 2022 Highlights - Net sales of $8.3 billion, down 4.6% versus the fourth quarter of 2021; down 0.9% versus the fourth quarter of 2019. Comparable sales down 3.3% on an owned basis and down 2.7% on an owned-plus-licensed basis versus the fourth quarter of 2021; up 3.1% and up 3.3%, respectively, versus the fourth quarter of 2019. Full-Year 2022 Highlights -Net sales of $24.4 billion, down 0.1% versus 2021; down 0.5% versus 2019. Comparable sales up 0.3% on an owned basis and up 0.6% on an owned-plus-licensed basis versus 2021; up 3.5% and up 3.7%, respectively, versus 2019.

“Our letter carriers and facilities teams across the country, the 640,000 women and men of the Postal Service, are fully focused on the critical mission of delivering the nation’s election mail – just as we have done so excellently through this current primary season and as we have done in the past,” said Postmaster General and CEO Louis DeJoy. “We are proud to do our part to help citizens’ who choose to use the mail to vote to do so effectively.” In the 2020 general election, the Postal Service delivered 99.89 percent of ballots from voters to election officials within seven days. The 2022 midterm elections saw a similar level of on-time performance, with 99.93 percent of ballots delivered within the same timeframe. Post election analysis of the Postal Service’s performance in the 2020 and 2022 elections can be found here and here. The Postal Service has the operational capacity to deliver the nation’s ballots in the final weeks of the election. In 2020, ballots accounted for just .11% of the Postal Service’s total mail volume. USPS officials announced that the organization will once again implement proven extraordinary measures in the weeks immediately before and after the general election (Oct. 21 - Nov. 15, 2024) to enhance the timely delivery of mail-in ballots entered close to or on Election Day and/or the state’s ballot return deadline. These efforts may include additional pickups, extra deliveries, and special sort plans on processing equipment to expedite and enhance ballot delivery.

Savvas Learning Company, a next-generation K-12 learning solutions leader, is excited to announce that its mathematics and social studies learning solutions for grades K-12 have been approved by the Mississippi Department of Education (MDE) for inclusion on its list of state-adopted high-quality instructional materials (HQIM). The MDE determined that Savvas Mississippi math and social studies programs are fully aligned to Mississippi College- and Career-Readiness Standards and designed to be “robust and relevant to the real world, reflecting the knowledge and skills that students need for success in college and careers and to compete in the global economy.” In the state’s HQIM review rubrics, all Savvas math and social studies learning solutions received high scores — at each grade level — on all three gateways (or criteria), which include Alignment to Standards; Rigor and Instructional Practices; and Usability. Mississippi school districts can purchase state-adopted Savvas instructional materials beginning on April 1, 2025.