WEIRENS | A Smattering of Lessons Learned From Four Years at Cornell

BURZLAFF | The Grade Doesn’t Know You: On Final Exams and What We Can’t Measure

Columnist and Professor Jan Burzlaff reflects on the stress of finals as a determination of success and the end of the semester. But no grade can measure the questions that kept you up thinking, coming to office hours, or helping a classmate understand something better.

GUEST ROOM | Cornell AAUP Chapter Statement Condemning Cornell’s Disinvitation of Kehlani

KOH | Confessions of a Senior

Graduating Columnist Serin Koh reflects on her time at Cornell. She writes: I would say that I am glad that my four years here were not the best years of my life because they have prepared me for all that is to come.

AGRAWAL | A Rose by Any Other Name…?

Professor Agrawal, the point is, how we see ourselves through our name — and how others see us through the same, can be complicated. Names reflect our confidence, biases, comfort and ideas about society. A soul by any other name is still itself, and the given name, that initial sound, should not be of such significance. Or, perhaps, it’s a lot less complicated, and it’s simply a name. At the end of the day it’s your name, so you decide how you're seen.

FARAJ | Leveling the Playing Field for All: Athletics Must Protect All Sports’ Team Budgets

Cornell has long prided itself on being a trailblazer — one of first universities to allow women to attend, one of the first to preach equality in education. If that legacy means anything today, it must show in action. It’s not enough to point to our past. We must set a new standard — one for Ithaca, one for the Ivy League and most importantly, one of institutions nationwide to protect its female athletes. 

CHANCELLOR | Everyone is Religious

Columnist Armand Chancellor reflects on religion: Everyone has a god, whether money or themselves, because everyone believes in something.

CARUSO | The World Just Lost a Champion. Cornell Needs Its Own.

Opinion Columnist Paul Caruso reflects on Pope Francis' role as a unifying figure — and Cornell's need for one.

BURZLAFF | Let the Words Come First: On Final Papers and the Courage to Begin

Opinion Columnist and Professor Jan Burzlaff reflects on final papers as a process, especially as the stress of finals week encroaches.

ELMORE | The Rise of Hypocrisy: Kehlani versus Coulter

Columnist Grace Elmore discusses Kehlani's rescinded invitation to Slope Day in the context of Ann Coulter's campus talk.

STITH | Institutional Neutrality (Unless It's Palestine)

Opinion Columnist Yihun Stith reacts to Kotlikoff rescinding Kehlani's invitation as the headliner for Slope Day. He calls the act hypocritical, arguing that Cornell’s posturing as neutral is a tactical decision to suppress growing discontent on campus, and more specifically, suppress pro-Palestinian free speech. Cornell’s claim of institutional neutrality is a facade, selectively applied to silence dissent while protecting its own financial interests.

POGGI | Ithaca Is Monopolized

In her column, Julia Poggi urges readers to confront tough questions: Who benefits from Ithaca’s monopolies? Who’s left out? To protect the Ithaca we love — gorges, granola, grassroots — we must demand transparency, equity, and people-first solutions. 

SEIELSTAD | The Danger of “Live and Let Live”

Opinion Columnist Pilar Seielstad questions the repercussions of “live and let live,” which can become dangerous when it discourages students from engaging with the greater Cornell community.

BADAWI | Watch the Throne

Opinion Columnist Leah Badawi implores the reader to watch the throne. She writes: In the end, it is not the face, the figure behind the power that leads nations into authoritarianism, but it is the stretching of precedent, the disregard of the norms essential for democracy, that brings us closer to Caesar’s throne with each passing day. Even when Trump loses power, the precedent will already be set, and our democracy is vulnerable to whichever politician tries to fill the throne.

HARNEY | A Chill Comes Over Cornell

Sun Columnist and second-year law student Liam Harney makes an intrinsically American argument against the Trump administration's suspension of Cornell funding. Constitutional values and legal precedent are at stake.

CHEEK | The Toxic and Elitist Culture of Pre-Professional Clubs

In her first-ever column, Zara Cheek reflects on pre-professional clubs. She argues:Rather than fostering genuine learning and mentorship, these clubs often prioritize prestige and resume padding, reinforcing success as determined by connections and status rather than intellectual curiosity or ethical leadership.

WEIRENS | Dressed to Distress: White Dress Woes

Senior columnist Aurora Weirens takes us through the grueling process of finding a graduation dress, specifically a white one. Is it truly worth it for the 15 second walk across the stage and the onslaught of awkward pictures? Weirens is here to tell us!