I felt astonished. Julia is the girl I'm mentoring this year. Generation Z does not write letters. Instead they text, text, text.

Last Fall I asked Julia to get three signed letters of recommendation from teachers, the high school principal and her employer. "Their letters need to be on letterhead and signed."

"Get it done before Thanksgiving," I said. "After the holidays, teachers will be slammed by students asking for recommendations. Give them a deadline."

Julia asked but didn't follow up. Yesterday I emailed one of her teachers. Today I picked up signed letters of recommendation on high school letterhead.

Most scholarships are online. A half dozen scholarships still require students to fill out and mail their application with required documents (official transcript, essay, school activities, community service, parent's tax income and number of dependents, letters of recommendation, student's and parent's signatures, etc.) By the due date.

My guess it's to check the student's attention to detail and follow through.