Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/171231
the lasting lecture You may not remember the finer points of your mathematics or history lectures, but you do remember those few professors who made you sit up and take notice. Maybe they challenged you in a way that sometimes felt frustrating, pushed you beyond what you thought you could achieve. Maybe they listened to you and encouraged you to find your voice. They changed your life, and you will never forget them. CMU is fortunate to have more than a few of these professors in our faculty ranks. We asked several to share some words of wisdom that go beyond their subject matter – those lessons that really speak to what life is all about. Here are their lasting lectures to you, their beloved former students. Photographs By Peggy brisbane 6 centralight fall '13 Gary Gagnon: 'Striving and struggling The Swiss have a saying, "Let's put the church in the middle of the village." Let's put everything in the middle of the table now. Why are we here? That's the question I always begin with, and it's the most important thing to ask, whether you're an athletic coach, a parent, a business person … If you're just here to check off a box, well, I can't be of much help to you. If you really want to learn, grow and challenge yourself, I'm your guy. Let's go. I dare you. "Forget about the points, forget about the damn money. Make it about being part of something meaningful." We are not in the classroom – or in the world – to know. We are here to learn. Once learning becomes the goal, you open yourself up to taking risks, trying ideas on for size and realizing that we can live with imperfection if we are striving and struggling for the sake of learning. We must create this culture. Even at 8 o'clock in the morning, students instinctively know why they have to learn, and they know why it is important to them. I don't mean points – some students estimated they earn about 30,000 points in college. I ask them, "Where do you keep these points? What do you plan to do with them after college?" Show me instead someone who is fired up about learning, and I will show you a path to unstoppable success. After graduation, instead of points, we make it about the money. Forget about the points, forget about the damn