South Georgia State College’s Amy Hancock is the 2024 Mosal Award winner for her proposal entitled “From Mystic, Connecticut to Mystic, Georgia: The Historical Connection.”
The Mosal Award, established in 1984 and named for the Honors Society’s late Executive Director Emeritus, Dr. Margaret Mosal, provides financial support to PTK chapter advisors for the completion of projects that lead to personal professional growth. It is considered one of the most prestigious awards for chapter advisors.
To discover the detailed story of Mystic, Georgia, Hancock will review historical documents, literature, and photographs related to the community’s history and connection with Mystic, Connecticut.
Hancock will explore historical sites with a link to Captain Henry Harding Tift who is known to have named the community after his hometown and his travel from Mystic, Connecticut to Georgia. She will travel to Mystic, Connecticut, to trace Tift’s journey to Georgia, and after researching best practices related to developing a social media blog, Hancock will share her findings online using photographs and words. She will also share her findings with the Mystic, Georgia community through a presentation and an exhibit of documents and photographs.
“I was raised in the community of Mystic, Georgia,” said Hancock. “My grandmother, Audrey Walden, was featured in a newspaper article in the 1980’s sharing the history of Mystic and how it was named after Mystic, Connecticut. That article has intrigued me all these years to learn more about the connection between Mystic, Georgia and Mystic, Connecticut. When a tornado hit our community in 2019, It made me even more aware that if the history of our community is not preserved, future generations will not know its story. I welcome those with historical documents and photographs of Mystic to contact me by email at mysticct2mysticga@gmail.com. The inclusion of stories and artifacts from days gone by will make a significant contribution to the collection I have started. Finding those hidden gems about the community are rewarding and exciting, and I look forward to sharing them with others.”
She mentioned her journey of research into this historical connection will benefit her in her role at South Georgia State College. She says, “Our college campus dates back to the early 1900’s. While much has been recorded about its history, learning more about researching and documenting will certainly help me to tell the story of our college in the future.”
“This is an outstanding honor for Mrs. Hancock,” said Dr. Jimmy Harper, Vice President of Enrollment Management and Information Technology. “She has a love for her community and the college, so I look forward to what she will do with her project to further the story of both places over time.”
Hancock has been at South Georgia State College since 2008 and is currently the Director of Recruitment, Marketing and Communications. She has been a Phi Theta Kappa advisor at the college since 2011 and currently also serves as the PTK Georgia Regional Coordinator.
Phi Theta Kappa is the first honor society recognizing the academic achievement of students at associate degree-granting colleges and helping them to grow as scholars and leaders. The Society is made up of more than 4.3 million members and nearly 1,300 chapters in 11 countries, with approximately 240,000 active members in the nation’s colleges. Learn more at ptk.org.