In a recent schoolwide survey gathering MSMS students’ feedback on the Mississippi University for Women’s and Mississippi State University’s proposals to house MSMS, a majority of responding Blue Waves said they preferred MUW’s plan.

The poll, conducted March 3, was organized by five MSMS students — senior Seth Armstead and juniors Zander Dennison, Sasha Harvey, Izzy Rushing and Landon Strong — and sponsored by The Vision. 

Of the total 63 responses, with 56 students reporting they read both proposals, 59 said they preferred the MUW proposal, while four backed MSU’s plan. 

As of March 3, the MSMS student body consisted of 118 juniors and 114 seniors, meaning approximately 27% of students responded to the survey.

The poll asked students to share the reasoning behind their choices. One respondent said, “The MSU proposal seems to be benefitting MSU and Starkville more than MSMS.” A different survey respondent who supported MSMS moving to MSU said, “I believe [that] MSU is better as it would allow more research opportunities. Their plan is not perfect, though.”

Safety also emerged as a critical issue, after 37 students said they would feel safer on MUW’s campus compared to four who chose MSU. Twenty-two students said they viewed the campuses as equally safe. 

The survey also asked students to rate, on a scale from 1-10, with 1 representing the least change and 10 representing the most, how much a move to MSU would affect MSMS culture and values. That prompt received an average score of 8.46. The same question, when posed about sharing extracurricular spaces with Starkville High School, scored an average of 8.76.

Students chose “independence,” “opportunities to connect with like-minded peers” and “access to STEM classes” as their top reasons for attending MSMS. 

Dennison said he felt student voices were important for the Mississippi Department of Education to take into consideration. 

“I wanted to show the Board of Education how much we care about the proposals,” Dennison said. “We came here to be with like-minded people who wanted to get away from the standard education and further their education past what a normal high school would offer.”

The student survey organizers said they hope their findings inform state officials as they deliberate on the school’s future location.

Editor’s Note: Visit this link to read the published student responses. Each bullet point is an individual reply to the question printed above it.