You may be enjoying the last weeks of summer, but here at the Summer Kent Stater, we’re thinking ahead. The upcoming fall semester holds bright and shiny possibilities for Kent State students, and we’re eager to watch it all unfold. We’re especially looking forward to:

… President Lester Lefton’s second year in command, which offers more opportunities for him to revitalize our university. His first year seemed a bit lackluster, but now that he’s settled into his role, we hope to see big things happen.

… Incoming Provost Robert Frank’s first year. Lefton’s second-in-command has arrived, and it’ll be interesting to watch Frank handle the university’s academic programs. Lefton said he expects his own job to be “more interesting,” which could make ours a little more interesting, too.

… The implementation of Ruckus, Kent State’s music downloading program, which will offer 2.5 million songs for free downloading. It’s about time we made our way off the RIAA’s list of the top colleges that download illegally.

… A newly revamped Susan’s Coffee & Tea, which will give the anti-corporate crowd an updated place to boycott Starbucks. We just hope they continue to serve those amazing sun-dried tomato bagels.

… Watching what the new Undergraduate Student Senate will do. When Katie Hale’s I.O.U. (Improve Our University. Clever, right?) ticket swept the elections, she promised to strive for the “betterment of Kent State.” Now, Hale and her incoming USS army face the task of reorganizing senate to accommodate acquiring the All Campus Programming Board. Let’s hope Hale’s goals reach beyond keeping the Student Center open later.

… Kent’s new Save-A-lot Store, which will take Giant Eagle’s place. We weren’t without a grocery store for long, but it was just long enough to make us panicky about where we’d get our next Ramen fix.

… The launch of Kent State Student Media’s new Web site, KentNewsNet.com, which will combine the content of the Daily Kent Stater, TV2, Black Squirrel Radio and The Burr. It’ll be exciting and refreshing to see all our hard work come together in one place.

… The Daily Kent Stater newsroom’s move to Franklin Hall, which will finally happen a few weeks into the semester. We can’t wait to get our grubby little hands on the door handles of that new building. And with our new partnership with TV2 and Black Squirrel Radio, the possibilities are endless. Convergence, here we come!

… The Kent State Folk Festival. It doesn’t get much better than having a heap of banjos, fiddles and acoustic guitars invade the city of Kent. Whispers foretell a few big-name acts this year, and Rosanne Cash has already been booked. If you don’t like folk music, you can folk off!

… The mass invasion of college students. For months, the streets haven’t been jam-packed on Friday and Saturday nights and thousands of students haven’t been making their way past the newsroom each day. It’s been pretty lonely in Kent this summer, and we can’t wait to have a little more company.

… Being one semester closer to graduation. That says it all, right?

Thanks for a great summer. We’ll see you in the fall!

The above editorial is the consensus opinion of the Summer Kent Stater editorial board.