Petitioning for
BRIEFS
GV REOPENS SATELLITE CLERK’S OFFICE FOR UPCOMING ELECTIONGrand Valley State University’s Office of Student Life has set up operations once again for its Allendale Township Satellite Clerk’s Office on the main level of the university’s Kirkhof Center.
Aiming to increase student voter turnout through easier accessibility to the voting booth, the Satellite Clerk’s Office will allow students living in Allendale Township to vote via absentee ballot inside Kirkhof Center.
For students not registered to vote in Allendale Township, the Satellite Clerk’s Office features resources to allow students to re-register to vote in Allendale or access clerk, candidate and election information for the precinct corresponding with the student’s registered address.
POLL SHOWS HIGH ABSENTEE VOTING RATES IN MI, CONSISTENT YET NARROW LEADS FOR STATEWIDE DEMS
In the latest statewide polling from national polling group Cygnal, over 40% of Michiganders surveyed said they have already voted by absentee ballot or are likely to do so prior to election day.
The poll showed nearly one-in-four voters surveyed (24.1%) having already voted via absentee ballot, while another 14.8% indicated they would “definitely” do so and 3% said they would “probably” do so.
The newest numbers come three days following the latest update from the Michigan Secretary of State, announcing that over 1.8 million absentee ballots had been requested across the state and that over 771,000 had been returned.
The poll also included updated numbers on the races for Michigan’s three statewide offices. Despite 53% of respondents indicating that they believed Michigan to be on the wrong track, they favored all three Democratic incumbents in these races.
Those surveyed favored incumbent Governor Gretchen Whitmer by a 7-point margin, 51% to 44%, incumbent Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson by an 8-point margin, 49% to 41%, and incumbent Attorney General Dana Nessel by a 4-point margin, 46% to 42%.
JUDGE TO DECIDE WHETHER TO BRING TRIAL IN LYOYA MURDER CASE
61st District Judge Nicholas Ayoub is set to release his decision on Oct. 31 as to whether a trial will be held in the case of former Grand Rapids Police Officer Christopher Schurr.
Schurr stands accused of second-degree murder in the death of Congolese refugee Patrick Lyoya during a traffic stop in April. Video footage of the incident later released by the Grand Rapids Police Department showed Schurr tackling Lyoya during the incident and shooting Lyoya in the back of the head while on top of him.
According to the Detroit Free Press, the hearing in which Judge Ayoub will issue his decision will be held at 10 a.m.
POLITICS
MI gubernatorial candidates face off in final debate, local voters respond on issues
BY JOSEPH POULOS NEWS@LANTHORN.COM
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and her Republican opponent Tudor Dixon battled in the second and final Michigan gubernatorial debate at Oakland University on Oct. 25.
After the candidates exchanged a preliminary handshake the debate began with contentious disagreement about Proposal 3, the statewide ballot proposal that would codify abortion rights if passed, and what it means for women’s reproductive rights.
Gov. Whitmer said, “Proposal 3 is absolutely necessary to preserve the rights we’ve had for 49 years under Roe v. Wade.”
Whitmer encouraged the audience to “enshrine Roe v. Wade into law.”
Dixon was quick to point out what she perceived as hypocrisy from the current governor.
“It’s unfortunate that we are not being honest… the Governor has just been dishonest in her very first answer,” Dixon said.
Dixon made the argument that abortion “up until the moment of birth for any reason, including sex selection,” would be legalized under Proposal 3.
While never once looking at each other, the two candidates fought on stage, both decrying one another’s integrity as nonexistent.
Other topics of the debate were Dixon’s election denial as well as gun control.
“I would like to comment on Gretchen Whitmer and her demeanor tonight,” Dixon said. “Coming after me, calling me an election denier, we know this is the way the evening is going to go.”
Dixon said that Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist was also an “election denier” as it pertains to the 2016 election of Donald Trump. Whitmer skirted this accusation, calling it “silly,” and turned her focus to abortion rights once more.
When things turned to gun control, Whitmer criticized Dixon for what she saw as Dixon and the Republican Party’s inattention and apathy towards gun control. This includes the Republicans’ blocking of gun control bills in the state legislature after the Oxford High School shooting.
While many observers considered the first debate a good showing for Dixon, others were quick to point out the massive difference in campaign fundraising between the two candidates. As it stands, Whitmer holds a sizeable fundraising advantage, with over $36 million raised compared to Dixon’s $6.8 million according to the latest campaign finance filings.
For many who watched the debate and have kept up with national happenings, the fight over abortion rights has been the major flashpoint of this election and has proven to be an effective rallying point for Democrats hoping to turn out midterm voters.
“I think we’re at a very vulnerable spot now with the overturn of Roe v. Wade,” said Robert Butler, a filmmaker from Clarkstown. “I don’t want to see us become another state where we hear about the young teenage girls who are sexually assaulted or impregnated via rape to have to go to another state or even another country to get an abortion for an unwanted pregnancy. It just violates a lot of privacy laws as well. It really should be between a woman and her doctor.”
Butler was also quick to stand firm with Whitmer’s accusation that Dixon is an election denier.
“The main reason I’m voting for Whitmer in this election is really to protect democracy,” Butler said. “We have people running that don’t believe in it, and they will only accept the results if they win. What happens when these people get into power? They’re going to build up any conspiracy theory they can and go against the will of the people.”
Others were more apathetic but still settled on abortion rights as the pivotal issue at stake.
“I don’t want either of them to be Governor,” said Chelsea Renee, a GVSU graduate who resides in Grand Rapids. “However, I’d vote for Whitmer because of her stance on women’s rights.”
EDITORIAL
BY GRACE SMITH NEWS@LANTHORN.COMGrand Valley State University’s Family Health Center opened a convenience clinic for students in Raleigh J. Finkelstein Hall (RFH). Operated by the Kirkhof College of Nursing (KCON), the clinic seeks to treat minor injuries and illnesses for students and faculty.
Both walk-ins and appointments are available Mondays and Wednesdays with variability in hours to meet students’ busy schedules. The convenience clinic offers services ranging from acute illness treatments, such as the common cold, to mental health services. The clinic accepts most major insurance companies in an effort to make care accessible to as many as possible.
“We would all like to see this grow over the next couple of years and have it become an interdisciplinary health center,” said Practice Manager Tamara Van Kampen. “We have so many good programs here, and some really talented faculty and staff, and I think that’s something that we should be tapping into.”
With the goal of providing wellness services to all individuals in need, the
clinic offers options for uninsured individuals, so they are still able to seek services at an affordable price. The clinic offers a fee-for-service option that allows uninsured individuals to meet with providers with a set payment for office visits.
“We do have an uninsured fee schedule and it’s very reduced prices,” said Patient Services Manager Brianne Burke. “Most appointments start around $35 to $55, and for healthcare that’s very reasonable. Testing and labs would be in addition to that, but we can do quite a bit with the uninsured fee schedule.”
Those behind the convenience
clinic also hope to bridge the gap in GVSU’s mental health services. Although the University Health Center provides vital resources to the community, students are limited in the number of sessions they may attend in a given period of time. The clinic is working to grow its behavioral health resources in attempts to help students continue to make progress with their mental health.
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COURTS
McCormack speaks on tenure, student involvement in democracy
BY JOSH ALBURTUS NEWS@LANTHORN.COMThe Michigan Press Association (MPA) had outgoing Michigan Supreme Court Chief Justice Bridget Mary McCormack as the keynote speaker for its 2022 Convention in Lansing on Oct. 13.
Retiring six years before the end of her term, McCormack has overseen increasingly political decisions including
challenges from citizens and government officials to multiple pivotal ballot proposals put before voters statewide in recent years.
Most recently, McCormack joined the Court’s majority in ordering state entities to add to the November ballot a proposal that had already garnered enough signatures to qualify and, if passed, would codify abortion rights into the state constitution proposal.
“The dispute there was whether there were problems with the text of the ballot initiative itself such that it shouldn’t be put to the voters and the Court agreed with the challengers that it should be put on the ballot we directed the Board of Canvassers to put it on the ballot and it’s on the ballot,” McCormack said.
The case, McCormack said, challenged both the strength of governmental systems as well as the mandate of the Court.
“Of course, if there are not enough signatures, if the signatures don’t con-
form, hopefully, the Board of Canvassers takes care of that – that’s what they’re there for,” McCormack said. “It is certainly the case that the Court feels like it’s getting pulled into more of these disputes than any of the justices would prefer.”
Fights like these, McCormack said, are ones foreign to the Court and force them into situations that run contradictory to their mandate as judicial arbiters rather than political operatives.
“It does feel a little bit like a sign of the times that the Court is pulled into disputes that we never were pulled into before,” McCormack said. “It is, of course, the case that there are historical examples of challenges to ballot initiatives –sometimes to the substance, sometimes to the form – and that those have occasionally come to the Court over time.
EDITORIAL
The freedom to combat hate speech
Hate speech on privately owned platforms is a rising topic of conversation, and the distinction between being protected by the First Amendment and subscribing to the terms and conditions of social media platforms is seemingly being confused.
Column:
editorial@lanthorn.com
making excuses for Kanye West's antisemitism
none other than the nazi saltue.
As Kanye West’s recent and past antisemitic comments are gaining attention across the internet, a conversation about antisemitism is happening nationwide.
posts from “Ye” have given neo-nazis another excuse to show their true colors, for example drawing swastikas, committing hateful crimes and hanging banners like the one spotted in Los Angeles.
Adopted in 1791, the First Amendment ensures that citizens have the right to freedom of speech, press and peaceful assembly among other rights, and stipulates that Congress shall not pass any law to deny such rights.
is shared on them can have real-world implications. Countries across the globe have different government regulations when it comes to how big tech companies handle hate speech, and in the United States there are more people asking that the government insert themselves into social media companies’ affairs so that any and all speech can be shared.
These platforms are still largely self-regulated and it's up to them to decide what users can and cannot share across the platforms.
BY CHLOE SCHRAM SOPHOMORE DANCE EDITORIAL@LANTHORN.COM“Kanye is right about the Jews,” read a large banner hung above a popular highway in Los Angeles, California, earlier this week. The people standing by the banner do
About two weeks ago, Kanye posted to Twitter saying, “I'm a bit sleepy tonight but when I wake up I'm going death con 3 On JEWISH PEOPLE,” along with an offensive comment about a Jewish “agenda.”
His antisemitic comments are not just being posted on his twitter, though. Kanye’s hateful and disgusting remarks have been spreading over various media platforms for years.
Interviews and social media
This kind of hate is constantly undermined and ignored by non-Jews, despite how common these occurrences are.
The FBI reported that in 2018, 57.8 percent of religious hate crimes were anti-Jewish crimes (FBI, 2019).
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Freedom of speech in the digital world has similar, and potentially even more, regulations on what people are able to post. Social media and online companies have, and should, implement limitations on what kind of speech is allowed on their platform in order to prevent the spread of hate speech and posts inciting violence. It is of the utmost importance for social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook to set these guidelines, as what
More specifically, Twitter states in their hateful conduct policy that users “may not promote violence against or directly attack or threaten other people on the basis of race, ethnicity, national origin, caste, sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, religious affiliation, age, disability or serious disease.”
When signing up for these platforms, users are agreeing to their terms and conditions.
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fended, this is all in good fun and I mean no harm. This is simply my lighthearted opinion on the states. There is actually no evidence to back any of this up.
Naturally, this will be a countdown with five being pretty bad and one being the worst.
7,400 thousand square miles. Rhode Island is 1,200 square miles. That’s right. You can fit at least 6 Rhode Islands in our smallest Great Lake.
BY ALISON BAIR JUNIOR ENGLISH EDITORIAL@LANTHORN.COM
It’s common knowledge that the states in this country like to compete against one another. It’s basically part of the hardcore patriotism that rubs off onto us. Just like high school and college rivalries, it’s simply natural that we pit our states against one another like some dog fight.
Although many may get of-
State number five is, well, I couldn’t quite narrow it down. I was honestly stuck between Iowa, Arkansas, Kansas and Rhode Island. The first three are obvious. There’s nothing there. They’re the limbo of the states. Although technically not Midwest, they really give the most “mid” vibes in the West. We don’t need them, get rid of them.
Rhode Island, however, is a little bit different. It’s too small to be a state. For perspective, Lake Michigan is about 22,500 square miles. Lake Ontario, the smallest Great Lake, is a measly
Therefore, Rhode Island is in the running for being too small to be a state. In my opinion, it would be better to give the 50th state to a US territory.
Number four is California -controversial, I know -- but I'm counting all of Hollywood and SoCal for my reasoning. Why would I want to live in a desert state where it’s always on fire, over 90 degrees and there are earthquakes? Pass.
Number three is Texas, the desert state.
OPINION POLICY
The goal of the Grand Valley Lanthorn’s opinion page is to act as a forum for public discussion, comment and criticism in the Grand Valley State University community. Student and columnist opinions published here do not necessarily reflect those of the paper as an entity.
or staff.
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The Lanthorn strives to be a safe vehicle for community discussion. With this in mind, the Lanthorn will not publish or entertain any forms of hate speech, but neither will it discriminate against any other views, opinions or beliefs. The content, information and views expressed are not approved by-nor do they necessarily represent those of-the university or its Board of Trustees, officers, faculty
Letter to the editor should include the author’s full name, relevant title and a headshot, along with a valid email address and phone number for confirming the identity of the author. Letters should be approximately 500650 words in length, and they are not edited by the Lanthorn staff except to fix technical errors or to clarify. Reader submissions on the opinion page appear as space permits.
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U.S. Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Indian Affairs speaks at GV
BY KATHERINE RAUHUT NEWS@LANTHORN.COM
On Oct. 27, Grand Valley State University hosted U.S. Assistant Secretary of the Interior for Indian Affairs, Bryan Newland, at the Eberhard Center in downtown Grand Rapids.
To begin the panel, Newland told the audience about why his position exists.
“I often get asked ‘Why do you have your job?’” Newland said. “Well, it’s because it’s in the Constitution. That’s why we have this bureau. This bureau is one of the oldest federal agencies there is; it’s older than the Department of the Interior, the Department of Education and the Department of Homeland Security.”
Newland, a member of the Bureau for Indian Education (BIE) and a Michigan State University alum, provided those in attendance with background on Native American history following the arrival of the Europeans in the 1800s.
“Some of the very first federal laws that America passed were related to Indian affairs,” Newland said. “The Bureau of Indian Affairs’ job as a trustee was to decide what was best for Indian country, and what the federal government decided was that it was best if Indian people didn’t exist.”
In efforts to erase Native American culture, the federal government created boarding schools for Native American children. In reference to these boarding schools, General Richard Henry Pratt (1840-1924) said their main purpose was to “kill the Indian but save the man.” Between 1819 and 1969, the U.S. government took Native American lands and forcibly assimilated children by requiring families to send them to these boarding schools.
“There was rampant physical, emotional and sexual abuse of kids at these schools,” Newland said. “We also found that the school system used militarized identity alteration methods to force Indian kids to change.”
It wasn’t until 1978 that the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA) was passed, which stated that the government would stop targeting Native American children for assimilation, and instead would ensure that the children stay with their families. Following that legislation, the Native American Religious Freedom Act (NARFA) and the Indian Self-Determination and Education Act (ISDEA) were passed to give more freedom to Native American tribes.
On May 11 of this year, 408 Native American boarding schools were investigated and identified in the first-ever Federal Indian Boarding School Report. Newland explained that this was the first time the federal government has held itself accountable and acknowledged the horrors of these boarding schools.
“It’s only been in my lifetime that the U.S. government has repudiated those harmful policies,” Newland said. “We are in a new era, relatively speaking. We are embracing this new policy era where we ensure that tribes can govern themselves and continue to exist as Indian people.”
The success of the ICWA, NARFA and the ISDEA prove that the U.S. government’s constitutional powers can be used to help Native Americans.
“We have an obligation to remake, restore and revitalize the tribal way of life in partnership with tribes,” Newland said. “This is what the U.S. trust responsibility is, it means we work in partnership with tribes, not to destroy, but to revitalize.”
The U.S. government has taken large steps towards this goal in recent years, including $31 billion sent to tribal communities as part of the American Rescue Plan passed last year – the largest investment
allocated toward the Native American community in American history.
“We have a lot of people out there who are fine with returning to an era where Indian children are taken from their communities and their families,” Newland said. “This administration is defending the ICWA against those lawsuits in front of the Supreme Court in two weeks. We are going to do everything we can to ensure that it remains the law.”
Though many Native advocates believe the U.S. still has far to go in repairing the damage done to Native American tribes throughout its first two centuries of existence, Newland’s hope is to encourage a sense of optimism in the audience about the future of Native American affairs through his presentation.
“We’re not all the way there; we’re not even a little bit of the way there, but we are starting,” Newland said. “It’s a partnership with the federal government. We believe that the federal government’s Indian powers cannot exist only to do bad things. They must also be available to us to rebuild, repair, and restore. It’s our responsibility to do just that.”
Inspired by legislation introduced by Grand Valley State University’s Student Senate as well as conversations among friends and peers, GVSU’s Young Democratic Socialists for America (YDSA) chapter launched a petition to raise wages for student employees.
The petition calls on the GVSU Board of Trustees to “increase student wages per department, remove the current wage rate classification system” and conduct a labor market analysis to “determine the floor of student wages.”
In addition to collecting signatures, the petition calls on students to email the GVSU Board of Trustees with their demands.
Launched less than two weeks ago, the petition now has over 300 signatures. YDSA President Foster Thorburn said that in addition to flyers and signs around campus and posting on social media, the club collected signatures at the clocktower over the course of three days.
Thorburn said he is encouraged by the number of signatures and support for the petition he has seen on campus thus far. He surmised that many GVSU students, regardless of their feelings towards YDSA or the university, care about student wages.
“If we just have a sign that says, ‘raise student wages petition,’ people will stop and sign that,” Thorburn said.
Assistant Director of Student Employment Katelyn Johnson said GVSU employs over 3,000 students over the course of the academic year. Being former GVSU student employee and now working for the university full time, Johnson said she recognizes how important student employees are.
“I can guarantee there’s no way the university could run without our student employees,” Johnson said. “They’re the best people to help other fellow students on campus because they know exactly where the buildings are, they know what that student
is experiencing and they know what’s going on in their student life and they can really relate to them.”
Currently, GVSU student employee salaries are based on a classification scale. The scale ranks pay by the difficulty and supervision required for different roles, and students may earn anywhere from $9.87 per hour to $17.47, with a $0.23 raise for all positions scheduled for the winter 2023 semester.
“(State) minimum wage is the lowest we pay students on campus, but we always encourage supervisors to pay higher if they’re able,” Johnson said. “What it comes down to is each department is given a specific amount of funding and then from that funding, there’s a percentage that they can put towards student wages.”
The petition echoes legislation introduced earlier this fall by Student Senate Vice President for Diversity Affairs Larbi Al Moutaa. Both the legislation and petition take aim at the current wage classification scale. Al Moutaa said he wants there to be a defined wage for student employee roles that is comparable to similar off-campus positions in the area.
“If we get a more comprehensive chart with every single position that fits a labor market analysis, and we get the flexibility to the employees to pay whatever they can based on their budget, we’re making it equitable and flexible,” Al Moutaa said.
While Al Moutaa said he is confident that the bill will pass in the student and faculty senate, the university administration will ultimately decide its fate, according to Associate Vice President for Business and Finance Craig Wieschhorster.
“Is the board the ultimate place that approves it? Yes,” Wieschhorster said. “But the board is going to kick that back to the administration, and then to student employment and to the budget office to look at it and say if this is feasible.”
Wieschhorster said that the GVSU administration will take a serious look at any proposed legislation about increasing student wages, however,
he
According to Wieschhorster, a pay increase for students working in campus dining, for example, would require an increase in the cost of meals.
“You can’t just raise student employee costs, without a corresponding increase in revenue, so you’d have to probably raise food costs,” Wieschhorster said. “So, again, it’s that balancing act.”
Johnson said that while she and Student Employment support raising student wages, the decision to do so is ultimately coming from a higher level within the university administration.
“Student employment is supported in support of our student employees, and we really want them to feel like they’re being supported,” Johnson said.
“While I’m more than happy to advocate for them, I’m more than happy to push for higher student wages in meetings I’m in, it’s not something that student employment itself is able to do. It’s something that Grand Valley has control of at a higher level.”
In the meantime, Johnson encourages students to use the current classification scale to advocate for pay raises.
“Take a look at the classification chart, take a look at what responsibilities you have, how much supervision you’ve been given,” Johnson said. “If you think the work that you’re doing and the hours that you’re putting in and the amount of independent work that you’ve been doing requires higher pay, absolutely ask for it.”
Ultimately, students like Thorburn will continue to advocate for higher wages for student employees across the board as a solution to issues like food insecurity that college students face.
“First and foremost, people are going to live better lives if they have better wages,” Thorburn said. “The only way (the increase) is going to go through is if we can successfully build a number of students who care about the issue and then take action based off of it.”
Grand Rapids Mayor Bliss addresses Student Senate on leadership, local affairs
BY PAYTON BRAZZIL NEWS@LANTHORN.COM
Grand Rapids Mayor Rosalynn Bliss addressed the Grand Valley State University Student Senate at their Oct. 24 general assembly. Bliss was asked to share some of her insight on leadership and local government, but also touched on informed voting, local issues and the future of the city’s premier annual art event, ArtPrize.
Before entering the political field, Bliss worked as a social worker while also volunteering for campaigns. During that process, she got to know people active in politics, and through social work, she became active in the community by raising awareness about child neglect, violence against women and human trafficking. Through these connections with the community, she was encouraged to run for office.
When Bliss spoke about leadership and her time in office, she said a leader should surround themselves with a variety of opinions.
“Part of leadership is honing in on what kind of problems you are trying to solve, and then surrounding yourself with people who have different experiences and ideas to challenge you,” Bliss said. “I think the danger of today is that people surround themselves with people that think like them and don’t challenge them. We all make better decisions when we hear different opinions
and voices.”
Bliss also talked about the importance of local government and voting on the entire ballot.
Senate VP of Diversity Affairs Larbi Al Moutaa said that it might be challenging to learn about the candidates’ issues and standings, especially when they are lesser-known, local candidates.
“What advice would you give to the youth to make informed votes for the smaller candidates that are on the ballot?”
Al Moutaa asked.
“Call them,” Bliss responded. “Every single candidate has an email and a phone number, and I would call them.”
The mayor highlighted the stakes that each member of the Senate and the student body at GVSU had in the political process and encouraged their involvement while responding to the senator’s inquiry.
“Especially in Allendale, there are a lot of issues that affect all of you,” Bliss said.
“There’s been an uptick in gun violence, there are traffic issues, there’s growth issues, a lot of issues with pedestrian safety with some of these streets outside of campus, so I would call them up and see their stance on local issues.”
Along with their email and phone number, Bliss highlighted that students can find information from candidates’ websites, which can give some insight into their thought processes.
In response to a question brought up by a senator on the uptick in crime, Bliss said that Grand Rapids is trying to be more proactive in preventing crime and safety.
“Whenever there’s an increase in violence, we want to find a core issue,” Bliss said. “The root of the violence, in my opinion, is that we have this proliferation of guns and they’re so easily accessible, but I can’t do anything about gun laws with my position.”
Bliss said that the Grand Rapids Police Department (GRPD) is facing a staffing shortage of around 30 officers but is planning to recruit more staff. After they are
fully staffed, GRPD plans to have an entire team of officers that will walk around downtown and be visible.
After Bliss finished responding to the question on crime, Senator Zuriel Johnson asked, “In regards to ArtPrize, how will you implement ideas around the Grand Rapids area and implement expansion over GVSU’s campus?”
A 9 | LAKER LIFE
LAKER LIFE BRIEFS
DESTRESS WITH YOGA
On The University Counseling Center has partnered with the Recreation and Wellness Center to hold weekly yoga sessions to help students destress. This type of yoga focuses on enhancing psychological well-being which encourages improved concentration and mental clarity.
The yoga will take place in the dance studio in the Fieldhouse room 160. This event is held every Monday until Dec. 19.
SPEND HALLOWEEN WITH A MENTALIST
On Monday night there will be a mentalist on campus.
Students can spend their Halloween night at this show in the Grand River Room in Kirkhof Center performed by Noah Sonie. It will combine both hypnosis and magic into a mixture that Sonie calls “HYPE.”
Hype is curated by Sonie, a full-time performer from Minnesota. There will be magic tricks, mind reading and hypnosis sessions. The show is fast-paced and set to specific playlists made by Sonie.
HYPE will start at 7 p.m. and run until 9 p.m. The show is free to anyone who wants to attend.
PLAY GEOGUESSER WITH THE CHINESE CLUB
The Chinese Club is meeting to continue their Geoguesser event on Tuesday, Nov. 1.
The group will be meeting in the Language Resource Center (LRC), which is located on the second floor of Mackinac Hall. There will be various pictures of China displayed and it’s up to the guesser to try and figure out where it is located on a map. It is a competition and the winner will be the one who can guess the closest to the actual location.
The group will be meeting at 6 p.m. in the LRC, the event will last until 7:30 p.m.
DONATE TO KIDS FOOD BASKET
On Tuesday Women in Business (WIB) is hosting a service event to help donate to Kids Food Basket.
The group will be decorating bags and taking food donations as well as making holiday cards.
One of the main activities at the event will be putting together “sack suppers” which are well-rounded evening meals. The meals include fruit, vegetables, protein and a variety of healthy snacks. WIB is looking to collect non-perishables to put in the meals. This could be fruit cups or pouches, pudding cups, meat sticks like Slim Jims and 8LB or XL brown paper bags. Any brand of food is accepted, but the group does ask for items without peanuts or tree nuts on the ingredients list so they don’t serve something children could be allergic to.
The drive will take place in the Seidman Forum on Grand Valley’s Pew Campus from 5 to 6 p.m.
EDUCATION
GV helps students get involved in undergrad research
BY MELIA WILLIAMS LAKERLIFE@LANTHORN.COMUndergraduate research is a topic that many students may not understand the purpose of, or may not know what steps to take in order to get involved.
In order for students to get a grasp on all of this information and more the Grand Valley State University Office of Undergraduate Research and Scholarship (OURS) hosted an informational session to help explain the process.
Some GVSU faculty are required to conduct research in their respective fields, which creates additional opportunities for students to get involved and learn from people with real-world experience.
“We develop questions, maybe to address a particular problem or just to find out new information about something in the universe,” said Jodee Hunt, a biology professor and faculty fellow of OURS.
Being involved in undergraduate research doesn’t necessarily mean it needs to be in a STEM field. Students could potentially get the opportunity to introduce themselves to other types of research as well.
“No matter what major a student has, they could potentially participate in this scholarly adventure that we can
call research,” Hunt said.
At the session held on Thursday, members of OURS explained what students do in a research setting, what kinds of research can be done and how to go about finding a faculty mentor and an opportunity to do research.
“Sometimes the kind of research that a student might want to do might be done by a professor in a department or discipline that they might not think of,” Hunt said. “I encourage students to think outside the box and go to departments where there might be some overlap.”
COMMUNITY
Hunt highlighted that there are probably as many benefits to doing scholarly work and research with faculty mentors as there are students that pursue it. There are various reasons that a student might want to do research such as wanting to gain more experience in an area before contemplating a graduate program or seeing if including research is the right thing to do in terms of their future career.
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GV Elite Dance club enters second year as a student organization
BY COLLEEN GARCIA LAKERLIFE@LANTHORN.COMThe Grand Valley State University Elite Dance club celebrates its second year as an official student organization on campus.
GVSU Elite is currently a performance organization but working towards becoming a competitive team that attends dance competitions along with conventions. The club works to create a space for people to continue to dance in college and find community.
Elite Dance president Kylie McCaskill created the club because of her lifelong passion for dance.
McCaskill hopes to incorporate dance into her future career through teaching at Piazza Dance Company, her former dance studio in Northville, Michigan along with teaching barre, dance-based exercise.
“Since I have been dancing seriously for over 15 years now, I found it difficult to have to stop so suddenly after I graduated high school,” McCaskill said. “Dance has been such an important and big part of my life for so long and I want it to continue to play an important role in my future.”
McCaskill’s journey with dance began at the age of three at Piazza Dance Company. Later, at the age of eight, she would begin dancing competitively with Piazza along with dancing for her high school’s competitive dance team.
McCaskill said she loves dance because of the powerful emotions she experiences while performing. She said performing brings a “rush of joy” and the challenge that dance offers pushes each dancer to be their best self.
“Dance is an individual sport just as much as it is a team sport and you are able to push yourself to be better for yourself as well as your team,” McCaskill said. “I very much enjoy putting in hard work every week with my best friends and teammates and being able to showcase all of the hours of hard work put in on stage in one final product.”
McCaskill believes the team created a strong bond throughout the past year.
“We are also becoming very close as a team and I love how everyone feeds off of each other’s energy during practice,” McCaskill said. “We all truly care about improving as a team and helping each other improve individually.”
Additionally, McCaskill said amazing memories have been formed because of the club. One of her favorite memories throughout her time as president was watching her creation of Elite Dance become reality through various performances.
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ARTS AT A GLANCE
LOVELYTHEBAND SET TO PERFORM AT GV FALL CONCERT
GVSU’s 2022 fall concert, hosted by the Campus Activity Board (CAB), announced headliner lovelytheband for the performance with DJ Composition as the opener.
The concert will take place Thursday, Nov. 3 at 20 Monroe Live in downtown Grand Rapids. Doors open at 7 p.m. and the performance starts at 8:30 p.m.
American Indie Pop Band lovelytheband began in 2016 and consists of musical artists Mitchy Collins, Jordan Greenwald and Sam Price. Some of the band’s songs include “broken,” which charted on several U.S. Billboard charts, “pity party” and its new single “sail away.”
Tickets can be purchased online at gvsu.edu/fallconcert. Student tickets cost $13 and faculty, staff and alumni tickets are $23. Tickets are non-refundable. Attendees must bring a valid state ID and food and drinks will be available for purchase.
FACULTY ARTIST RECITAL FEATURES LECTURE AND PERFORMANCE
The GVSU Department of Music, Theatre and Dance is hosting a Faculty Artist Recital on Nov. 6 at 5 p.m. This performance will feature music professor Dr. Pablo Mahave-Veglia.
Mohave-Veglia will give a lecture and perform musical pieces of Grand Rapids composer Leo Sowerby on the cell. The recital is part of the department’s CelloFest events.
The event will take place in the Sherman van Solkema Recital Hall in the Haas Center for Performing Arts on the GVSU Allendale campus. The event is free and open to the public.
PERFORMANCE
GV music program brings in Grammy award-winning artist
BY OMARI SEABERRY ARTS@LANTHORN.COMOn Oct. 27, Grand Valley State University hosted a music concert entitled “Free Play 48” that featured multiple Grammy-winning cellist Nick Photinos. This was a one-hour concert of recent music parented by Photinos himself.
The event was part of Photinos’ week-long residency at GVSU in the Department of Music, Theatre and Dance. This was the 48th show of the Free Play series and it runs about two to three times a year. The event works to bring new music and artists to the audience and students.
“I aim for people to enjoy the music, and carefully select a repertoire that creates a good flow in concert,” Photinos said.
The Free Play events are a long-running series of music events curated by GVSU’s faculty. For his set, Photinos performed his own pieces that consist entirely of cello and electronics. He performed one work with six students from GVSU’s New Music Ensemble.
The Free Play producer, Bill Ryan, founded the program in 2005. His role involves booking guest artists and arranging events during that guest’s visit.
Ryan was ecstatic to invite Photinos, a familiar acquaintance. The two of them are very familiar with
each other’s work, working together in the past. Photinos also has history with the GVSU community.
“This is his third visit to campus to work with our students,” Ryan said.
Photinos’ career in music began developing at a young age, and he ended up playing the cello after first experimenting with other instruments.
“I initially wanted to start playing the violin at six, but when I first put one under my chin, it hurt like hell,” Photinos said. “So then they gave me a cello and I felt right at home. I do play some electric - and very occasionally - some acoustic bass.”
Photinos originally visited GVSU
COMMUNITY
BY ALLISON BAIR ARTS@LANTHORN.COM
Everyday Tuesday night Grand Rapids Original Swing Society (GROSS) hosts an open event for people to swing dance in downtown Grand Rapids.
with the musical group Eighth Blackbird, a group he played with for 24 years. It was not until 2017 that he started visiting as a soloist.
“I first came here in 2017, and working with Bill’s students is always a joy, so I know it’s going to be a great experience,” Photinos said.
Additionally, Photinos is part of CelloFest, working with student composers and performers and performing at multiple locations on and off campus.
He said that he is “extremely honored” to be a part of this program.
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“FASHION
AND NATURE” EXHIBIT AT GRAND RAPIDS PUBLIC MUSEUM
The Grand Rapids Public Museum is hosting an exhibit entitled “Fashion and Nature” that shows the relationship between how fashion influences the natural world.
There are three sections within the showcase that focus on discovery, exploitation and sustainability. Each area will feature artifact displays, hands-on interactive elements and photo opportunities.
The aim of the exhibit is to highlight how fashion impacts the global economy, the environment and people’s lives. Additionally, the content of the event highlights how the clothing industry, including in West Michigan, is working to create more sustainable practices.
The exhibit will run until April 2023 and the cost of the exhibit is included with the price of admission.
The organization was founded 18 years ago and aims to create a space for individuals of all ages to practice and learn swing dance. GROSS works to create community through the shared experience of swing dance.
The founder of GROSS, Steve Zaagman, expressed that he started the organization after finding a passion for swing dance.
“When I was in college (at Calvin College), swing dancing was making a comeback,” Zaagman said. “They (Calvin College) had this thing called Dance Guild that let you learn a dance, so I learned to swing dance there.”
Zaagman came up with the acronym, GROSS, based upon the “Calvin and Hobbes” comics in which Calvin and Hobbes have an organization called “Get Rid Of Slimy girlS.”
Zaagman and his friends would
watch popular movies filled with swing dancing to learn more steps and styles. After graduating, a friend of Zaagman asked if he could teach swing dancing lessons to a group of students. Over the course of two years, more people outside of the college were joining and the group outgrew its practice space.
“So we kind of outgrew that space, so we moved to a church and then outgrew that space, so we moved to Rosa Parks Circle and we just kept getting bigger and bigger and people started showing up to have fun,” Zaagman said.
As attendance at the event continued to grow, resulting in a greater number of people within Rosa Parks Circle, the city of Grand Rapids intervened and requested that they rent out space instead.
GROSS grew large enough to become an official non-profit organization and uses the funds they raise to go towards planning and hosting future events. Zaagman said the organization wants to be an opportunity for people to enjoy downtown Grand Rapids and meet new people.
QUICK HITS
WOMEN’S SOCCER CLUB GEARING UP FOR NATIONAL TOURNAMENT
Grand Valley State University’s women’s soccer club has closed out its regular season schedule in a regional tournament played in Ann Arbor that finished with a disappointing 0-2 record.
In back-to-back matches, the Lakers faced off against the University of Wisconsin-Madison and the University of Michigan women’s soccer club on Oct. 22.
UW-Madison came into it undefeated as their record stood at 9-0-0, while the Lakers maintained a solid 7-2-0 record themselves. However, the fierce opponent would ultimately be too much for the Lakers’ defense as GVSU would go on to drop the match, 1-6.
Following the loss, the Lakers were hoping to rebound and pull out with at least one win in the afternoon. However, UofM didn’t shy away on offense or defense as they shut out GVSU in a 0-6 finish.
With this tournament behind them and now maintaining a 7-4-0 record, the Lakers have quite a bit of time to regroup prior to the start of the postseason.
GVSU will play its first match in the national tournament on Nov. 17 in Round Rock, Texas as their first-round opponent has yet to be determined.
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL TO START 2022 SEASON IN HOME OPENER
After a disappointing ending to their national title run last season, the women’s basketball team is preparing for a redemption season this time around.
The Lakers fell to Glenville State in the final four of the NCAA Women’s Basketball National Championship last year after finishing with an illustrious 31-3 record in the regular season while securing the regional championship title.
GVSU’s first game will be an exhibition match against WisconsinWhitewater at home on Friday, Nov. 4 and will tip-off at 2 p.m.
XC TEAMS SET TO COMPETE IN GLIAC CHAMPIONSHIPS
GVSU’s men’s and women’s cross-country teams are on the road this upcoming weekend in an attempt to take home the conference title.
Both teams are defending champions in not only the GLIAC Championships, but are also the reigning national champions.
The men’s side is the only team to place first (twice overall) in a meet this season (Spartan Invite, Live in Lou Classic), while the women’s team has managed to place in the top four of all five meets they competed in.
As both teams are coming off a second-place finish in their last competition (Jayhawk Invitational), the Lakers will hope to maintain their momentum and make a strong push to the finish line on Nov. 4.
VOLLEYBALL
Women’s volleyball finds momentum in three-game week
BY MADELEINE SMITH SPORTS@LANTHORN.COMIn another competitive week of close-scoring matches, the Grand Valley State University women’s volleyball team took on three conference opponents that finished 2-1 overall.
The Lakers played on Oct. 25 (Davenport University), Oct. 28 (Ferris State) and Oct. 29 (Lake Superior State), all of which resulted 3-1, 1-3 and 3-1 respectively.
GVSU mustered a 3-1 redemption match against the crosstown rival Davenport as the previous matchup was dropped 1-3 at home. This time around, the Lakers found themselves on the offensive attack and the defensive blocks as the only set loss was by three points.
The first set started well as the Lakers came out hot and created an 8-4 lead early. However, the Panthers would respond as the set continued to be a back-and-forth battle up to the 20-16 mark.
Going on a 1-4 run, the Panthers looked as if they might come from behind and steal the set, but the Lakers didn’t fold and eventually took the first set, 25-20.
The second set looked as if Dav -
enport would tie up the match as they maintained a lead for the most part. That was until GVSU was down 18-20 and made a commanding 7-1 run to stun their opponent and take a 2-0 lead.
Facing a 3-0 sweep at home, the Panthers managed to make a resurgence and ultimately take the third set 22-25 to redeem themselves and extend the match to another set.
However, the set loss didn’t phase the Lakers as they would go on to close out the opponent in another
close set win, 25-21.
Freshman setter Jordyn Gates did an exceptional job of leading her team in the match, totaling 15 kills, 27 assists, 16 digs and four blocks. Freshman Kendall Stover also added 14 kills and five digs while junior Sara Wight and freshman Meghan O’Sullivan added nine kills each.
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SOCCERWomen’s soccer clinches first place in GLIAC rankings after two road wins
BY ANTHONY CLARK JR. SPORTS@LANTHORN.COMGrand Valley State University’s women’s soccer capped off their regular season with two season sweeps against Purdue Northwest (2-0) and Davenport University (51) that were both played on the road and solidified their first-place position in the GLIAC rankings.
The Lakers managed to close out the season series against PNW with a 2-0 record as they started the
match with a great deal of pressure against the opponent’s defense, as a foul inside the penalty box created a penalty kick opportunity for GVSU at the 6:46 marker.
Senior defender Brooke Russell faced up against the goalkeeper and sunk her shot attempt into the back of the net, puting the Lakers up 1-0 early and putting momentum into their favor.
The goal would be the first and only one scored throughout the first half as GVSU managed to get off a total of seven shot attempts that were either saved or missed the goal entirely while holding PNW to just one shot attempt the entire half.
Holding a 1-0 lead and containing PNW’s offense to an idle performance, the Lakers made several substitutions to start the second half but still managed to expand on their offensive momentum.
Six more shot attempts between the 53:39 marker and all the way up to the 89th minute by GVSU emphasized the dominant showing by the team, as senior defender Alexa Morello was the second Laker of the night to find the back of the net (71:51) and pushed the final score to 2-0.
Not only did the Lakers shut out the opponent, the sturdy defense held PNW to a pedestrian zero shot attempts the entire second half on their home pitch.
Following the win, GVSU also secured the season series against the Davenport Panthers (2-0) in a road win that saw yet another offensive clinic for the Lakers.
Wasting next to no time at all, freshman defender Kacy Lauer sent a shot that laced the back of the net just 38 seconds into the match (00:38) and put the Lakers on top 1-0.
The adrenaline rush proved effective once again as a foul call on the Panthers resulted in GVSU gaining possession and capitalizing without hesitation as Lauer scored off an assist by senior defender Cate Brown - putting the score at 2-0 and leaving the opponent disorganized (01:17).
Three corner kicks and two missed shot attempts by the Lakers was followed up by their third goal on the night by junior forward Taylor Reid on an assist by sophomore midfielder Nina Ferraro (13:18).
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GV football adds ninth-straight win against Michigan Tech with offensive explosion
BY BRIAN BLOOM SPORTS@LANTHORN.COM
The Grand Valley State University football team (9-0) defeated Michigan Tech University (3-6) this past weekend in yet another dominating win that finished 42-7.
With the win, the team extended its winning streak to nine games straight, its longest since 2016.
“We played a complete game in all three phases,” head coach Matt Mitchell said. “We did not turn the ball over and had a lot of explosive plays offensively. We were dominant defensively, aside from one drive, we played great shutout football. Special teams did a great job as well.”
Despite being short-handed offensively with sophomore wide receivers Jahdae Walker and Darrell Johnson sidelined due to injuries, GVSU got out of the blocks fast and never looked back.
After the defense forced a three-andout on the opening possession by MT, the momentum swung in GVSU’s favor as junior running back Tariq Reid found the end zone from 14 yards away for his 13th touchdown of the season, giving the Lakers an early 7-0 advantage.
The next possession saw the Huskies punting away again, only this time pinning
GVSU at their own four-yard line.
However, the tough field position didn’t phase the Lakers as junior quarterback Cade Peterson led the offense down the field in just ten plays, giving way for sophomore quarterback Avery Moore to waltz into the endzone from eight yards away to extend the Laker lead to 14-0 with 1:37 left to play in the opening quarter.
Michigan Tech responded quickly this time as their senior quarterback made multiple big plays to set up a four-yard touchdown pass to one of their wideouts to cut the Laker lead to seven points.
GVSU’s offense continued its near-perfect start to the game, as Peterson again led the Lakers on a long drive, this time in nine plays on 70 yards that was capped off by a one-yard touchdown pass from Peterson to Reid to make the score 21-7.
The Laker defense didn’t allow the Huskies to add to the scoreboard for the remainder of the half as they took their 14-point lead into the halftime break.
Wasting no time to start the second half, the GVSU offense kept rolling as Peterson completed passes to sophomore wide receivers Jaylon Tillman and Cody Tierney of 37 and 40 yards respectively. In a third-down situation from the Michigan Tech 11-yard line, Moore fired a pass to Tillman for a touchdown and extended the
BASKETBALL
Laker lead to 28-7.
“The whole offense executed really well,” Peterson said. “(Our) stats were a lot better this game than in the past. Our guys made good, contested catches. I’m (also) really happy with how I played, it sets a new expectation for me going forward.”
The following GVSU offensive possession saw Peterson and company again backed up inside their own eight-yard line due to another punt that fell in favor of MT. However, Peterson expanded on his passing accuracy and outran the de-
fensive line to position the offense deep in Husky territory and threatening to add more points to the scoreboard.
After throwing his only incompletion of the day, Peterson responded with a connection to Tierney from 23 yards for his second touchdown of the game, making the score 35-7 as the game clock dwindled and the final quarter of the game began.
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GV basketball drops another road exhibition against EMU
BY ERMIAS STEWART SPORTS@LANTHORN.COMGrand Valley State University men’s basketball faced off against Eastern Michigan University in their second exhibition game of the season last week, as they came up short on the road in a 69-85 loss.
The Oct. 27 game was the Lakers’ second game of their current six-game road trip, and redshirt freshman guard Trevor Smith said it’s never an easy feat when playing on the road, but at the same time, it creates a momentum build-up for the first home game.
“Being on the road is tough, but it’s just going to make us 10 times better when we get to play at home,” Smith said.
The Lakers struggled once more to find their shooting rhythm against the Eagles but still managed to stay within striking distance at the sound of the halftime buzzer with the scoring reading 33-35 in favor of the opponent; 40% 3PT (6-15), 37.1% FG (13-35).
However, the defense was persistent as they held EMU to low scoring percentages as well; 45.2% overall (14-31), 20% FT (2-10) and 35.7% 3PT (5-14).
In a back-and-forth battle, the lead
changed several times in the first half alone as the largest lead mounted to just seven points in favor of the Eagles while the Lakers led five different times (five points largest lead).
“We were more comfortable as a team going into this game as you can see by our first-half performance,” freshman guard Charles Turner said. “As a true freshman, (there were) some nerves and it was a big game. I do feel more comfortable (going forward), nonetheless.”
The exhibition continued to be either a back-and-forth affair or at least a game within striking distance for the Lakers all the way up to roughly seven minutes left (52-59 Eagles).
However, EMU’s offense would expand on its newfound rhythm and never look back as GVSU was only able to cut the deficit to five points (59-64) as the Eagles took off with the match and only allowed the Lakers to come within seven points.
In the loss, graduate student forward Chinedu Kingsley Okanu was the only Laker to score in double-digits (11) on 50% shooting (5-10) while adding six boards to the box score.
Freshman guard Jalen Charity led
the team in total minutes played (32) and contributed nine points (4-7 FG) with five rebounds, followed by senior guard Luke Toliver (eight points, 3-7 shooting) and eight points from both freshman guard Britain Harris and junior guard Austin James.
One would be remiss without addressing the fact that GVSU did their best to hold their own against two nationally-recognized players in sophomore guard Noah Farrakhan (former IMG Academy player) and sophomore forward Emoni Bates (ranked five-stars out of high school).
“The great thing about our team is that we don’t fear anyone,” Smith said. “When we (are) on that floor, it’s mano a mano. It’s tough against those top players but we just wanted to show we can play at a high level against high-caliber players.”
Bates finished the game with 27 points (9-17 FG) and six rebounds while Farrakhan had 22 points (9-13 FG), three assists and two blocks in the Eagles’ win.