Tennessee public schools display national motto

JACKSON, Tenn. — When students in Tennessee walked into their schools this week, they might have noticed a new plaque hanging on the walls.

“The Tennessee General Assembly passed a law last spring that all schools have to display the national motto in a prominent location in the school,” Jared Myracle, Chief Academic Officer of the Jackson-Madison County School System said.

They hung the “In God We Trust” signs in all 23 of their schools. “We asked all principals to display them either near the front office or near the front entryway to the school,” he said.

The school district says all of the “In God We Trust” signs look just like this one, so the principals had an easier decision of where to hang them.

“In each one of the schools, the signs will be posted in one of those two places,” he said.

“In God We Trust” became the national motto in 1956 under President Eisenhower. It first appeared on the dollar bill the next year.  “The national motto is something they should be aware of anyways,” Myracle said.

Not only will students see it on money, they will also see it in their schools. “They’ll see it when they come in and it’ll just become part of what they see in the school on a regular basis,” Myracle said.