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Sen. Ress urges return of cursive instruction, committee lays bill over
Summary
Senator Ress told the Senate Education Policy Committee that teaching cursive reading and writing supports hand‑eye coordination, cognition and the ability to read historic documents; the committee adopted an author's amendment and laid Senate File 173 over for possible inclusion in the omnibus bill.
Senator Ress introduced an author's amendment to Senate File 173 and told the committee she wants students to learn cursive so they can read historical documents and gain cognitive and motor benefits. "Cursive is efficient. It improves hand eye coordination," she said, adding that many students who learned keyboarding cannot read cursive today.
Ress framed the change as both a practical skill and a civic literacy issue, repeatedly referring to the Declaration of Independence and noting the state's upcoming 250th anniversary of the founding era. She told the committee she distributes a pocket copy of the Declaration at civic events and said learning to read cursive would help students engage with primary documents.
Committee members asked how cursive instruction would fit into existing curriculum and what implementing it would cost. Senator Coleman requested information on potential district costs and whether the proposal would create an unfunded mandate; Senator Kunish and others described cursive as a "lost art" that can be incorporated into language‑arts instruction with minimal materials. Ress acknowledged that some teachers may need training: "We might first have to teach the teachers," she said.
The chair announced that Senate File 173, as amended, will be laid over for possible inclusion in the omnibus bill; the committee took no final vote on passage today.
Next steps: the bill has been laid over for further consideration and potential inclusion in the omnibus package.
