In his final column of the semester, President Skorton reflects on the community's accomplishments and his wishes for the future. 

My first visit to Cornell was a thoroughly annoying experience. However, given that it was a sunny August day, and I was very impressed with the grace of its architecture, it began well enough.

Unfortunately, as I walked into Day Hall for a tour, things began to crumble relatively swiftly. As our miniscule tour group (consisting of a four individuals, including my father and myself) gathered, the bouncy fellow beside me attempted to win my friendship. His first question to me torpedoed his objective in an instant: “So are you, like, a grad student?” I gave him a withering look. While I may dress like I was born in 1953, I’d like to think that I have yet to begin exuding the world-weariness which might accompany a graduate degree.