On a good day, I view the job [of president] as directing an orchestra. On the dark days, it is more like that of a clutch -- engaging the engine to effect forward motion, while taking greater friction.

As I grew up, I knew that as a building it was on the level of Mount Olympus, the Pyramid of Giza, the nation's capital, the czar's winter palace, and the Louvre - except, of course, that it was better than all of those inconsequential places.

A liberal education is at the heart of a civil society, and at the heart of a liberal education is the act of teaching.

[Baseball] breaks your heart. It is designed to break your heart.

On matters of race, on matters of decency, baseball should lead the way.

Teachers believe they have a gift for giving; it drives them with the same irrepressible drive that drives others to create a work of art or a market or a building.

Universities are not here to be mediums for the coercion of other people, they're here to be mediums for the free exchange of ideas.