It's nice to see journalists staying on top of the often contentious and difficult battles taking place in southern states and places like South Dakota that don't have state funded pre-kindergartens or standards for what preschool should look like. These battles are important to follow because they shed light on the priorities of legislators, educators and the public and can spur lots of follow-up stories.

The Argus Leader in South Dakota is covering a school-aid lawsuit at a time when state standards for preschool have failed twice, in two legislative sessions. South Dakota Governor Mike Rounds is pushing for preschool standards and certification guidelines for teachers that opponents have feared would turn into a mandatory statewide pre-kindergarten program, according to the Argus Leader.

In Mississippi, Superintendent of Education Hank Bounds has been pitching pre-kindergarten legislation and is running into continued opposition from lawmakers who believe getting children ready for school is a job for parents, not educators. The Associated Press followed that story this week, and it turned out that lawmakers decided to approve $3 million for the State Department of Human Services to help pay for childcare education programs.

That represents important news for Mississippi, traditionally lagging in education measures and now the only state in the south without state-funded pre-kindergarten. Mississippi is standing out at a time when other southern states are pushing for increased public spending.