Around Kennesaw Letter From the Editor
When school starts every year, I can’t help but think about how the education process has changed since my Stone-Age days in the classroom. Everything was so much simpler and less stressful back then, and I wish it could be like that for this generation. In the 1970s and ’80s, we didn’t know what technology was. There were no computers or online resources. Our essays were written by hand or typed on a typewriter (a what?). Online tests didn’t exist. The closest we came were the sheets on which we filled in a circle next to our answer with a No. 2 pencil, and our answers were run through a Scantron machine. We lugged around heavy textbooks that we actually held in our hands. In elementary school, our lessons were printed on a mimeograph machine — the precursor of the modern-day copier — and the copies had a distinctive smell and left your hands purple. Our internet was called encyclopedias, which usually required a library visit. And our parents weren’t able to see our grades until they got our progress reports and report cards. Riding the bus back then was different. Parental supervision wasn’t required at bus stops. Our buses weren’t air-conditioned, so all the windows were open. Some buses even had radios — the music-playing kind, not the two-way kind. We also didn’t have assigned bus stops. We could get off at different places and walk home different ways if we wanted. And notes signed by two witnesses and a notary public weren’t required for us to ride home with a friend on another bus. Calendars have changed. I don’t remember ever starting school before the last Monday in August. We didn’t have fall or winter break. We usually had three days at Thanksgiving, two weeks at Christmas, a week in the spring and three full months of summer. Ah, those were the days. The stress level of today’s students is off the charts, but I didn’t even know what stress was until I started high school. I wasn’t expected to think about a career in elementary school. We didn’t have a million standardized tests every year (I only remember one). We didn’t have honors, Advanced Placement or SAT-prep classes. Way less pressure. School has progressed a lot since the Class of 1981 graduated, but for the most part, we’ve done just fine. Since it’s back-to-school month, don’t miss our feature on Kennesaw State’s Caveman Crew on Pages 14-15, our easy schoolnight recipes on Pages 16-17 and our college-essentials guide on Pages 24-27. Also, turn to Pages 36-37 to see photos of Kennesaw’s July Fourth celebration and to Pages 44-45 to learn how an Acworth church received a much-needed piano free of charge. Happy reading!
Donna Harris Donna Harris is the managing editor of Aroundabout Local Media. She’s a veteran journalist with newspaper and magazine experience and is excited to bring her expertise to ALM. Email her at donna@aroundaboutmagazines.com.
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AROUND KENNESAW | August 2022
Out and About
Aroundabout Local Media President Kim Dahnke caught up with Kennesaw Mayor Derek Easterling during the city’s Fourth of July celebration last month.
What’s Coming?
The Cobb Veterans Memorial Foundation hosted a groundbreaking ceremony last month for Memorial Park, a veterans memorial that will be built at 502 Fairground St. near the Cobb Civic Center in Marietta. The park will honor members of the U.S. armed forces and their families and will feature a 142-foot Star Tower monument, honor walls listing the names of veterans from each military branch, a plaza for events, two reflection pools and a service hub that provides information to veterans and their families. Construction is expected to be completed in 2024.
Ribbon Cutting
Honeysuckle Biscuits & Bakery
2825 S. Main St., Suite 100A, Kennesaw
Upcoming Ribbon Cutting
Classy Clay’s Catering & More — Aug. 19 3415 Old Highway 41, Suite 700, Kennesaw (Across from North Cobb High School)
