Class of 2025: A few of our favorite things

College isn’t just about what you learn—it’s also about what you come to love. From the first cup of coffee that fuels a morning class to the quiet corners that become a second home during finals week, every student finds their own favorites along the way. 

As the Class of 2025 wrapped up their time on the Hilltop, they shared advice for new students, insights for prospective ones, and surprising facts from their journey. Now, they’re offering a look at the places, people, and moments that made their Cornell experience unforgettable.

Foods:

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   1. “The best place to eat is at the high tops. We would sit at these tables for almost the entire meal time, laughing.” ~Clare Green, majored in finance and Spanish with a minor in applied statistics.

1. 2. “One of my favorite events is Liquid Nitrogen Ice Cream that Chemistry Club does in the first block of every year.” ~Emma Rowe, majored in biochemistry and molecular biology, pre-pharmacy.

1. 3. “One of my favorite memories was the burger sauce at the cafeteria. Oh my goodness that stuff was delicious. I would basically drown my burger in it every time it was available.” ~Laura McLees, majored in biochemistry and molecular biology.

1. 4. “Taco Tuesdays.” ~Krystin Kamrath, majored in finance with a minor in kinesiology.

1. 5. “The orange chicken/sesame chicken.” ~Peyton Bainbridge, majored in psychological sciences.

1. 6. “Fuel's coffee and molasses cookies.” ~Tess Cooper, majored in art history with a studio art minor.
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3. Classes and Professors: 
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5. 7. “Stagecraft was a great class.” ~Krystin Kamrath, majored in finance, with a minor in kinesiology.

   

1. 8. “My favorite class definitely has to be Saints and She-devils with Chris [Penn-Goetsch]!” ~Audrey Gardes, majored in theatre with a minor in art history.

1. 9. “Global Health in India with Professor Aparna Thomas: this class made me fall in love with global and public health, and I had such an amazing experience learning from and interacting with local populations to spread knowledge of health.” ~Adrien Kaplan-Mazur, majored in gender, sexuality, and women’s studies 

1. 10. “Any class with Assistant Professor Megan Goldberg is always a blast.” ~Aurora Elliot, majored in politics.

1. 11. “Favorite professor(s): Associate Professor Steven Neese and Assistant Professor Joshua Otten.” ~Peyton Bainbridge, majored in psychological sciences.

1. 12. “I loved being in so many of Professor Chris Penn-Goetsch’s art history courses because of how energetic of a professor they are.” ~Tess Cooper, majored in art history with a studio art minor. 

Hangouts:

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   13. “Doing things as a campus: one of my favorite memories is when the solar eclipse was going on and everyone on campus left class to go watch!” ~Josalin McKeever, majored in biochemistry and molecular biology.

1. 14. “The top place to study is either the second floor of the library or Moosehead Lounge.” ~Abby Burns, majored in psychological sciences.

1. 15. “I loved being able to hang out at Ink Pond.” ~Raissa Jacobs, majored in German studies and ecology and evolutionary biology.

1. 16. “Algebear is the big stuffed bear that lives in West Science. He belongs to the math department and helps with their mental health.” ~Marley Gillespie, majored in mathematics with a computer science minor. 

1. 17. “Sometimes you can see the Northern Lights in Iowa; my favorite memory would be going out with friends to look at them.” ~Natalie Zenk, majored in archaeology and art history.