Last week, a sixth grade class from Long Cane Elementary School brought a suggestion to the LaGrange City Council that the city consider installing more electric car chargers.

The students made their case using a fact based presentation that considered major trends and long-term profitability. We aren’t sure what grade these students received on the engineering project that sparked the discussion, but we give them an A for their civic contribution to the city.

Many people live their entire lives without ever stepping foot into a city council chamber or presenting an idea to their representatives.

However, these students with the help of their teacher, Chris McCalla, not only presented a well thought out idea to the council, but were also able to answer essential questions from council members.

Their recommendation gave council members a lot to think about. Whether the chargers are ultimately installed or not, these students are already on track to make a difference in the community.

Through this experience, they learnted the importance of being involved community members, and how anyone — regardless of age — can be involved in local government.

That lesson is something that we hope they will carry with them through their lives, and if we see electric car chargers installed in the near future, then we know who to thank for politely pointing out to the LaGrange City Council that by 2040, there will be over 400 million electric cars on the road, based on data compiled by Bloomberg New Energy Finance, Marklines.