To the Editor:
I write in response to “College Shouldn’t Be a Breeze” by Christian Baran ’22. He wrote, “I’ve met many students, including myself, who take the path of least resistance when it came to classes and course loads. We say that a good GPA is all that matters.” This is all too true at Cornell. I define this worldview as “conveyor belt philosophy,” and it is the predominant, although not the only, philosophy I see at Cornell. Conveyor belt philosophy values getting the highest GPA for the least amount of work, and then taking a gap year to find oneself. This philosophy prioritizes the measurable over the meaningful, credentials over education, foolishness over wisdom, and it is nothing more than a waste of time, money and life.
Prof. Randy Wayne, plant biology