West Virginia students to receive Golden Horseshoe award
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — More than 220 eighth graders are being honored for their knowledge of West Virginia history.
The Department of Education is set to host the Golden Horseshoe ceremonies on Tuesday at the state Culture Center in Charleston. Three ceremonies will take place for students from different parts of the state.
More than 15,000 West Virginia students have received the Golden Horseshoe Award since 1931. Thousands of eighth graders take the Golden Horseshoe exam each year and the top-scoring students in each county receive the prestigious award.
The award’s name comes from golden horseshoes that Virginia Gov. Alexander Spotswood gave to a party of about 50 men who explored land west of the Allegheny Mountains in the early 1700s.
The Golden Horseshoe test is the longest running program of its kind in the United States.