The Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning Board of Trustees approved contractual arrangements on a grouped vote Tuesday that will let Jackson State University charter a flight for its marching band and lease hotel rooms to house students while the board received an update on a long-running dorm renovation project.

The board approved (by roll-call vote) a contract with Principal Jets LLC to charter transportation for the JSU "Sonic Boom of the South" marching band to travel to Las Vegas for the Las Vegas HBCU Classic against Grambling State University, providing transport for 370 band members and staff; the agreement’s cost will not exceed $497,240. The board also approved a lease with High Street Hotel Group LLC, doing business as Holiday Inn Express Inn and Suites, to lease 106 rooms from 08/09/2025 through 05/03/2026 to house about 200 students and residential assistants at a stated total cost of $2,100,000 and a quoted per-room rate of $74.26 (transcript also references "20¢ per room per day").

The approval of the JSU contract and lease occurred as part of a grouped motion that covered three items on the finance and budget agenda; board staff had recommended approval after legal review. Trustee discussion included a presentation by Brad Rowland, associate commissioner for real estate facilities, who briefed trustees on the status of JSU facilities projects.

Rowland said the McAllister Whiteside renovation began with board authorization in October 2023 and currently has a budget of $27,089,500. He described the work as a complete redesign converting a traditional dormitory layout into modern suite-style residential halls with mechanical, electrical and utility upgrades. The project is divided into three phases: Phase 1 constructed a new IT building to replace the campus main network distribution center; Phase 2 performed interior demolition to expedite construction; and Phase 3 covers structural stabilization, code-compliance upgrades, electrical redesign and interior build-out. Rowland said the renovated facility will yield 335 suite-style beds and listed an expected completion year of 2027.

No trustee remarks in the transcript opposed the contracts or lease; the motion to approve items 1 through 3 passed by voice/roll-call with the trustees recorded as voting "aye." The transcript records legal staff screened the contracts and the fund-transfer request for compliance prior to the vote.

The contracts include standard termination provisions: the Principal Jets contract allows JSU to terminate for convenience with a termination charge that escalates over time; the Holiday Inn Express lease may be terminated with 60 days’ notice, per the documents described to trustees.

Trustees and staff said they expect to hear from JSU leadership and other university presenters at later meetings; the board’s roll call and voting sequence are recorded in the official minutes.