The $2-million home that Jackson State University plans to build for its president will be part residence, part showplace, and part meeting space — and, according to The Clarion-Ledger, a local newspaper, the most expensive dwelling for any of Mississippi’s university leaders. The president, Ronald Mason, said the on-campus residence would help in fund-raising efforts and would be “a good recruiting tool.”

He blames the hefty price tag in part on rising post-Hurricane Katrina construction costs. Still, critics suggest that other priorities should come first. “That money shouldn’t be disbursed until all the other things are done,” one student told the newspaper. “We need more parking spots before they build a house.”

Mr. Mason said plans to build the residence had already been on hold for a year while other projects took precedence, including the construction, still under way, of a new building for the School of Engineering.