C WHITT University Offers Customized Cursive Handwriting Instruction for Youth ages 8-17
While growing up in Gary, Indiana, Terrell Whittington and then Chelsea (Stalling) Whittington recalled learning cursive handwriting at Ernie Pyle Elementary School in the 1980s. A recent conversation reminiscing on their elementary school days and the fact that cursive was removed from Indiana schools in 2011, soon led to a new venture called Cursive Academy. The pair, who recently marked 16 years of marriage, decided to create customized workshops to re-introduce the art of cursive writing since it is no longer a required course in most school districts.
“It was like a right of passage when one graduated from manuscript to cursive writing,” said Chelsea Whittington. “Once getting the hang of it, then you could add your own flair, which ultimately became your personalized penmanship.”
It was Terrell’s idea to bring cursive handwriting to the forefront after conducting a bit of informal research.
“I chatted with friends and family who have younger children, and it soon became apparent that none of them could write in cursive or even sign their names,” said Terrell Whittington. “My handwriting is part of who I am, and we feel that youth should have the opportunity to learn what is slowly becoming a lost art.”
Whittington also discovered several benefits of cursive handwriting including enhanced fine motor skills, improved literacy, and faster, more fluent writing. It also promotes cognitive development, enhanced memory, improved spelling and can be particularly helpful for individuals with learning differences like dyslexia.
Chelsea Whittington opened her firm C WHITT PR, LLC in 2019. A division of the company titled C WHITT University was created for clients to benefit from various professional courses and workshops taught by Whittington and other team members. Cursive Academy is the newest addition to the course line-up which includes subjects like social media content development, public speaking, media training and email marketing.
After developing a plan of action and syllabus, the Whittingtons began reaching out to organizations that serve their targeted age group of 8 – 17. The first to sign up with no hesitation was Nina Burton of Woodland Child Development Center based in Hammond and Gary.
“I reviewed the proposal and no sooner than the Whittingtons began their presentation, we were all in,” said Burton. “It is the perfect complement to our summer camp activities, and the kids absolutely love learning new things.”
The first Cursive Academy class kicked off Monday, June 9th with more than 30 students in attendance. The Whittingtons, along with C WHITT PR team member Kennedy Rozier, conducted engaging handwriting activities complete with worksheets, workbooks and reel-time instruction at the chalkboard.
“We wanted to make these courses fun, especially since they just got out of school for summer break,” said Chelsea Whittington. “So far, their energy is infectious, and they really want to learn something new.”
The Cursive Academy sessions run twice weekly in 2-hour sessions through June 25th. The program will conclude with a graduation ceremony where the Woodland students will sign their completion certificates in cursive.
The YWCA of NWI has also signed up for Cursive Academy to be a part of its Summer Learning Lab curriculum later this month.
“This is such a brilliant idea,” said YWCA of NWI Executive Director Caren Jones. “We always like to offer diverse programming for our youth. They already swim, garden and take weekly field trips. Now they will be writing in cursive. Sounds like a great summer to me.”
The cost for instruction is based on the number of participants and length of the workshops. Those interested in hosting Cursive Academy sessions can call or email Whittington at 219-712-3182 or [email protected].