Henry Goodelman (EDU ’11G):
I stood in total awe the first time I saw the Cathedral of Learning in person. Having moved to Pittsburgh in 2007 in order to live in Oakland during the summer before my junior year, I had never had the opportunity to climb the Cathedral’s stairs into one of its many storied classrooms. I was immediately drawn to the spectacle of the Cathedral and the message it relays. While other students throughout my coursework may have complained about having to trek up flights of stairs or waiting for an elevator, I always took the pleasure in having the opportunity to meet, study, eat, and learn in such an incredible building.
The vision behind the construction of the Cathedral is one that any Pathfinder can relay to you. What has a deeper meaning than any overview of the building’s history is the inspiration that it has instilled in every student to occupy one of its classroom’s chairs, or even rest for an afternoon on its great lawn. The Cathedral of Learning is just not comparable to any structure. If you look at the Cathedral, you can imagine that its peak could have a culminating marker, but a message relayed to me by a past graduate has stayed with me: “Where learning never has a chosen conclusion, neither did the Cathedral when it was built.”
This message is one that consistently motivated me throughout my enrollment and, later, in my career as an educator. Where education is a cornerstone of society, and higher education is the pinnacle of a student’s studies, the range from which student success can span and reach is limitless.
