A rose to Columbus Municipal School District Interim Superintendent Craig Chapman, whose Superintendent’s Student Council is giving students a voice in school operations and policies. Most recently, the student council has worked with food service administrators to find ways to bring a greater variety to the menu while maintaining required nutritional standards. The agreed upon changes are no small matter; the district feeds thousands of children breakfast and lunch throughout the week. It’s one example of how CMSD, through this student council, is giving students a real voice in the decisions that affect them. During the meetings, students give feedback about what’s going on in the school district regarding anything from athletics to testing procedures to lunch food. It’s an opportunity for students to represent their student body with their concerns, requests and suggestions about ways to improve the district. We look forward to more collaborations with the students in other areas of school life. It’s good for the district and the students. Chapman has been offered the permanent position of superintendent but as of press time, had not responded.

A rose to Mississippi’s student newspaper, The Spectator, which is celebrating its 120th anniversary this year. Generations of student journalists have recorded the university’s storied history. Publication started just 21 years after the school’s founding. Over that time, student journalists recorded for posterity campus and student life through the culmination of the suffrage movement, two name changes, two world wars, integration, the admission of first male students (which came after a landmark decision by the U.S. Supreme Court), spirited debate about a third name change, the threat of losing Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science and questions about the school’s future. Newspapers bear witness to history in a way that no other media does. Through careful archiving the Spectator is an invaluable part of MUW’s story. We congratulate the student journalists and advisors who have contributed their effort in telling The W’s story over the years.

A rose to the city of Starkville, which will begin a lighting survey designed to identify areas where street lighting needs attention. In some cities, the only attention paid to streetlights is when a light goes out. The lighting survey Starkville will conduct will go far beyond that. Starting Monday night, city personnel will drive a truck with a Lumitracker attached to its hitch through about 311 lane-miles to identify dim areas where lighting could be improved. After the first survey is complete, the process will be done again in the summer when tree canopies are fully leafed out. Although the survey will measure visibility throughout the whole city, the main focus will be on high-traffic areas like downtown and the Cotton District. We applaud the efforts to make sure streetlights are functioning as intended.

The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.