That saying is rather amusing, given Harvard's (and other US colleges) grade inflation - for example, only 5% of Harvard undergrads get a C or less[1]. I wish the article had touched on this, the system makes it surprisingly difficult for kids to fail in the first place. Or perhaps it's more accurate to say that anything less than an A is seen as failing, so A is redefined as the new norm.
[1] http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/wp/2013/12/...