While most kids can swipe before they can write, seven Richmond County elementary school students just proved the ancient art of cursive penmanship isn’t completely obsolete. The Georgia Department of Education has recognized these schools in its inaugural John Hancock Award program, celebrating excellence in teaching students to write in something other than emoji.
✏️ What We Know: Four Richmond County schools – Bayvale, Belair, Goshen and McBean elementary schools – earned the top-tier Ribbon of Distinction. This honor required 90 percent of students to write both their names and the entire preamble to the U.S. Constitution in cursive. Three additional schools – Hephzibah, Lake Forest Hills and Richmond Hill Elementary – received the Proficiency Ribbon for teaching 90 percent of students to at least sign their names with flourish.
👩🏫 Who Made It Happen: The recognition stems from dedicated teachers who refused to let cursive join the dinosaurs and rotary phones in extinction. Schools submitted student work samples that impressed a panel of judges who apparently still remember what cursive looks like.
🧠 Why It Matters: The award program aligns with Georgia’s new English Language Arts standards approved in May 2023, which will make cursive instruction mandatory for grades three through five starting in the 2025-2026 school year. These seven schools are ahead of the curve.
🏆 What’s Next: Richmond County’s seven honorees stand among the elite few selected from more than 300 schools that applied statewide. As Georgia implements its new standards next year, these schools will likely serve as models for others.
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Before You Dismiss This Article…
We live in a time when information feels overwhelming, but here’s what hasn’t changed: facts exist whether they comfort us or not.
When A&W launched their third-pound burger to compete with McDonald’s Quarter Pounder in the 1980s, it failed spectacularly. Not because it tasted worse, but because customers thought 1/3 was smaller than 1/4. If basic math can trip us up, imagine how easily we can misread complex news.
The press isn’t against you when it reports something you don’t want to hear. Reporters are thermometers, not the fever itself. They’re telling you what verified sources are saying, not taking sides. Good reporting should challenge you — that’s literally the job.
Next time a story makes you angry, pause. Ask yourself: What evidence backs this up? Am I reacting with my brain or my gut? What would actually change my mind? And most importantly, am I assuming bias just because the story doesn’t match what I hoped to hear.
Smart readers choose verified information over their own comfort zone.
B.T. Clark
B.T. Clark is an award-winning journalist and the Publisher of The Georgia Sun. He has 25 years of experience in journalism and served as Managing Editor of Neighbor Newspapers in metro Atlanta for 15 years and Digital Director at Times-Journal Inc. for 8 years. His work has appeared in several newspapers throughout the state including Neighbor Newspapers, The Cherokee Tribune and The Marietta Daily Journal. He is a Georgia native and a fifth-generation Georgian.
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