The Fear of God

I'm glad to hear that some universities are checking high school seniors' final grades, as "senioritis" is a poor excuse for laziness:

College-bound seniors beware: If you slept through your classes this semester and have the failing grades to prove it, your university may soon threaten to rescind your admission this fall.

For students admitted to Texas Christian University, a notice informally known as the “fear of God letter” will read something like this...

The above example is the tough version, sent to honor-roll students whose grades plummeted to Ds and Fs. The university also sends softer versions of the letter to A and B students who suddenly get Cs in the spring semester, Mr. Brown said...

“Senioritis is just sort of an assumed disorder that’s going to take us all,” Mr. Brown said. “You need to be aware that people are watching and that this is important. We care because your study skills are going to be atrophying.”

As I always tell my seniors, no champion runs up close to the finish line and then just walks across.  Finishing isn't the goal; heck, just about anyone can finish high school.  The goal is to finish well.

Hat tip to reader MikeAT.