With blue books and handwritten exams returning to college classrooms in the wake of ChatGPT, it was only a matter of time before higher education tackled the challenge of reintroducing students to the art of cursive writing. As one professor recently put it, “the penmanship of today’s typical college sophomore resembles the splotched and splattered canvas of a Jackson Pollock painting…and is just about as meaningful.”
Leading the way, of course, is Harvard. Beginning in September 2026, the first floor of Widener Library will house the Crimson Cursive Center, providing students with intensive tutoring in all aspects of curly writing. According to John F. Manning, Harvard’s Provost, “elementary schools in the United States can no longer be relied upon to teach young people how to write in cursive, so we’ve decided to do it ourselves. Our faculty have demanded this.
“The Center will be open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and will be staffed by elderly monks and nuns from the finest Western European monasteries and convents. We’re working with the Trump administration around the clock to expedite their visa applications. If all goes well, we plan to establish an undergraduate major in Calligraphy by the fall of 2027.”
At Vanderbilt University, they’re taking a different, non-blue-book approach. Students type their answers to in-class exam questions on vintage Smith-Corona manual typewriters (circa 1920) that have been reconditioned but not electrified. Vanderbilt Chancellor Daniel Diermeier acknowledges that “our classrooms are quite noisy during exam periods, what with all those keys being struck, but silicone earplugs are provided free of charge to any student who requests them. Trust me, this is a lot easier than teaching Vanderbilt students to write in cursive.”
Wondering if the U. S. is losing its edge in higher education? Think again.