Collegian 11.10.2022

Governor Gretchen Whitmer wins re-election over Tudor Dixon

By Elizabeth Troutman News Editor

Democratic Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer will spend four more years in the governor’s mansion after winning 54.5% of the vote in Tuesday’s midterm elec tion. Voters approved three ballot proposals, adding new amendments to the state constitution.

“We will protect the Great Lakes for generations and ensure that every Mich igander can pursue their potential from preschool to post secondary,” Whitmer said in a speech to support ers in Detroit Wednesday morning. “And we'll keep fighting like hell to protect fundamental rights, as they've continued to be un der assault across the nation. We made huge strides yes terday, but that's important to continue as well."

Only 29.89% of Hillsdale County registered voters cast their ballot for the incumbent.

Among the 13 U.S. House of Representatives seats on the ballot for Michigan, Democrats won seven seats and Republicans won six seats. Incumbent

Tim Walberg, the Repub lican representative of the 5th district, which includes Hillsdale County, won a de cisive victory over Democrat Bart Goldberg.

A Republican majority is projected to control the House for the first time since 2018.

“For the past couple

months conservative voters have felt shut out of Wash ington, and this will go a long way to helping rein in an extremely unpopular administration,” senior and College Republicans presi dent Dan Harmon said. “It is also amazing that Michi gan congressional districts

helped contribute to this victory.”

The most controversial of the proposals, Proposal 3, enshrined legal abortion on demand in the state constitution in all stages of pregnancy.

The passage of Propos al 3 made Michigan the

By Sarah Katherine Sisk Collegian reporter

Hillsdale students premiered their documen tary about Elizebeth Smith Friedman, a codebreaker whose achievements helped win World War II, but who died anonymously.

The college’s documen tary filmmaking class debuted the film, titled “Hillsdale Student, Amer ican Hero: How Elizebeth Smith Friedman Beat the Mob and Won the War,” in Plaster Auditorium to an audience of more than 120 people on Wednesday.

The film follows the life and legacy of Friedman, a 1915 Hillsdale College alumna.

Lauren Scott, a student in the class, said the film sheds light on Friedman’s achievements, which were classified until 2008, as well as provides insight into her character and time at Hillsdale.

“When she played a significant role in ending World War II, FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover erased her name from the over 4,000 decrypts she and her team worked on and replaced it with FBI identification numbers,” Scott said. “The Navy made her swear an oath of secrecy, so every one thought she was an ordinary suburban mother with a routine Navy job.”

Buddy Moorehouse, adjunct instructor of docu mentary filmmaking, said the documentary focuses on Friedman’s career and Hillsdale’s role in forming her as a person.

“This documentary is

so important for Hills dale College students to see because it's going to tell them the story of a woman they've probably never heard of before,” Moorehouse said. “Elizeb eth Smith Friedman is one of the most remarkable women in American histo ry — she's a true American hero — and just like all of you, she went to Hillsdale College.”

Maggie Wackenhut, another student in the class, said Moorehouse taught the class in an open, student-led manner.

“It’s almost entirely discussion-based and feels more like a creative, col lective brainstorm than a class,” Wackenhut said.

Wackenhut said aside from providing topics, showing students how to research and interview ef fectively, and helping with travel plans, Moorehouse gave the students free reign to make the film their own.

Moorehouse said the project is the product of the hard work of students in the documentary film making class: sophomores Jack Cote and Lindsey Lar kin, juniors Lauren Scott, Maggie Wackenhut, and Maddy Welsh, and senior Christian Peck-Dimit, who began work on the project in September.

Students traveled to Arizona and Virginia to conduct interviews and gather information for their film.

By Linnea Shively Circulation manager

Campus Rec moved into the old security offices on E. Galloway Drive, expanded their team, increased one-time events, and released a new logo this fall, according to ju nior Tristan Wertanzl.

first state in the country to prohibit a statewide abortion ban, according to Reproductive Rights for All. The ballot proposal, called “confusing and extreme” by pro-life yard signs through out the state, invalidated all of Michigan’s pro-life legisla tion. This includes parental

consent requirements for minors to get abortions, laws that only a licensed physician can perform abortion, and the state’s ban against partial-birth and late-term abortion.

continue to

See A6 for more local election coverage.

Hillsdale

for free speech

By Logan Washburn City News Editor

Although Hillsdale is the best college for free speech in the nation, according to the 2022-2023 College Free Speech Rankings, the report excluded Hillsdale from overall rankings, citing the college’s disciplinary mea sures against some speech.

“Last year, Hillsdale scored third-highest overall in the Foundation for Indi vidual Rights in Education's College Free Speech Rank ings. Hillsdale’s free speech policy hasn’t changed in any way, though it was scored lower in this year’s rank ing,” Hillsdale’s Executive Director of Public Relations Emily Davis said. “Though we don’t know the reason behind the drop, FIRE’s de sire to defend free speech on college campuses across the country is admirable. Rest assured, Hillsdale is still a place where free speech flourishes.”

College Pulse, Real ClearEducation, and FIRE released their second annu al report on free speech on Sept. 21, based on student surveys from more than 150 colleges. Hillsdale ranked first for free speech in al most every category, but the groups labeled it as a “warn ing school” since the college is free to take disciplinary actions on students’ social media posts.

“[The warning label] is assigned to a private college or university when its poli cies clearly and consistently state that it prioritizes other values over a commitment to freedom of speech,” ac cording to FIRE’s website.

According to soph omore marketing team member Maria Ritchie, Campus Rec aims to ex pand into one-time events and intramural sports in

earns high marks

State Rep. Andrew Fink and Mayor Adam Stockford will

serve Hillsdale County after Tuesday's elections. Professor of Political Economy Gary Wolfram and Hillsdale Ph.D candidate Joshua Paladino will join City Council.

Chigozie Obioma discusses new novel

By Elizabeth Crawford Collegian Reporter

Author Chigozie Obioma said he tells the story of Ni geria’s civil war through the voices of both the living and the dead in his newest novel, “The Road to the Country.”

The President’s Office and the Hillsdale College Cre ative Writing Honors Pro gram hosted Obioma Nov. 7 for a lecture on mystical realism, an ongoing theme which he said characterizes his work.

Obioma said an email from a professor at the Uni versity of Toronto prompted him to define his work.

“I got this very lengthy email one day that I paid a lot of attention to because it was from a University of Toronto professor,” Obioma said. “She said that magi cal realism would not be a fitting genre for my novel because there isn’t any magical happenstance. She said that the novel does not contain magic but rather the spirit of magic.”

This “spirit of magic” cap tured Obioma’s imagination and helped him to define mystical realism as the bor der between the realistic and the spiritual, Obioma said.

“When we write fiction, whether it’s Raskolnikov from ‘Crime and Punish ment’ or Ishmael from ‘Moby Dick,’ we are never writing about real people,” Obioma said. “The act of creation itself is extracting the spirit of something and then putting it in the form of a story.”

Obioma has a Master’s of Fine Arts in Creative Writ ing from the University of Michigan and is an associate professor of English at the University of Nebraska-Lin coln. He is the author of four books, including “The Fish ermen” and “An Orchestra of Minorities.”

Obioma is finishing his week-long residency with the Hillsdale College

Creative Writing Honors Program, where he has been teaching a hybrid class throughout the semester.

Obioma said his ap proach to novel writing combines realistic settings with a recognition of what is beyond the physical, materi al world.

Senior James Shotwell, who attended the lecture, said he appreciated Obioma’s understanding of mystical realism.

“I find the ideal appeal ing, but I think that mys tical realism has a sense of being almost more real than realism,” Shotwell said. “It’s portraying aspects of reality that aren’t caught in a strict ly realistic mirror.”

Obioma said his up coming novel puts mystical realism at the forefront.

The excerpts of “The Road to the Country,” which he read to the audience, focused on a prophetic seer, who is an omniscient nar rator in the novel. The seer both observes and enters into the near death experi ence of a soldier in Nigeria’s civil war, the Biafran War.

“He’s on a mountain in 1947,” Obioma said. “And he’s watching the stars and he’s seeing the future of this child who’s about to be born. So the whole story happens through this viewpoint of this seer.”

According to Obioma, who is a native Nigerian, around 1.5 million people died during the conflict. Obioma said the victims of the Biafran War inspired the novel. His family, who moved from western Nigeria to eastern Nigeria, encoun tered war victims in their local village.

“Most of the people were deformed one way or anoth er,” Obioma said. “In fact, there was a lady whom I will never forget because half of her face had been eaten by some kind of disease.”

Senior Colleen Blochus, a student in Obioma’s creative writing class, said she takes

inspiration from his writing style.

“There’s always some thing that either you learn about or you see that just sticks out in your mind,” Blochus said. “And in my experience, it is really tough to write about that. It seems like it should be the source or the muse, but whenever you write about it you never really feel like you get close to it.”

Blochus said she was im pressed with how Obioma captured the reality of the war.

“I thought it was really interesting that he saw the war, and it became such a core memory for him,” Blo chus said. “He wasn’t able to fully express it until he was able to think of it in terms of the living and the dead.”

Obioma acknowledged the tension between cap turing these ideas through writing and the process of revision.

“Letting go of the project is an act of compromise,” Obioma said.

Associate Professor of English Dutton Kearney and the director of the Visiting Writer Program, said Col lege President Larry Arnn suggested Obioma teach a creative writing class. The pandemic delayed these plans until this fall.

“I thought the lecture was fantastic,” Kearney said. “It was really nice to see that people in the office of critic can see that they have a positive influence on art and artists.”

Kearney said he encour ages interested students to apply for the class.

“It’ll be offered next academic year, and I would definitely encourage stu dents to look into that or get in touch with me,” Kearney said. “And then the class will dovetail with the presenta tion of his novel, ‘The Road to the Country.’”

The text of Proposal 3 also allows a variety of health care professionals to deter mine if abortion is necessary and perform the procedure, including chiropractors, dentists, marriage therapists, optometrists, physical ther apists, counselors, athletic trainers, and many others.

Christen Pollo, execu tive director of Protect Life Michigan, said though the pro-life movement grieves today, it must get to work convincing the state to pro tect unborn lives tomorrow.

“We save lives by winning people to our side,” Pollo said in an email. “No secret abortions, no illegal abor tions, no legal abortions. We have a responsibility to defend all human life, no matter the laws we are under.”

Proposal 2 changes election requirements in the state. It allows nine days of early voting, expands absentee voting, and enables registered voters to vote without a state ID if they sign an affidavit stating their identity.

"Prop 2 sounds nice in theory, but really what it does is loosen election laws in this state by subverting voting ID requirements," Harmon said. "In a time where election integrity is a huge issue, this will do little to address concerns of those worried about the security of our elections.

Proposal 1 reduces the number of years lawmakers can serve in the state legis lature. Previously, legislators could serve a maximum of six years in the House and eight years in the Senate, equaling a total of 14 years, but Proposal 1 changed the maximum to 12 years. It also required lawmakers and state executive leaders, like the governor, secretary of state and attorney general, to disclose their finances.

“Michigan was one of the only two states in the nation that didn't require state

wide elected officials to file financial disclosures,” Alexis Wiley, senior adviser to the Proposal l campaign, told Michigan Radio on Wednes day.

Expanding abortion was central to Whitmer’s cam paign.

“It was a good night for democracy in Michigan,” se nior co-president of College Democrats Emmie Gilchrest said. “The re-election of governor Whitmer and the passage of Proposal 3 is great news for the protection of women’s rights in Michigan. Gov. Whitmer is extremely experienced and accom plished, and her passion for defending reproductive rights makes her an excellent choice."

Michigan College Repub licans say they believe Dixon will be a promising candi date in the future.

“Dixon was able to make this a close race despite hav ing significantly less money and name recognition than the governor,” Harmon said. “This election just goes to show that this state is not as blue as it used to be, and we may not have won the gover norship, but we have proven that Michigan remains in play for Republicans. I guar antee this will not be the last we see of Dixon.”

After two failed senatorial bids, GOP rising star John James will represent Mich igan in Congress, winning 48.8% of the 10th district’s vote. He beat Democrat Carl Marlinga, who serves as Macomb County Prosecutor, by fewer than 2,000 votes.

The Trump-endorsed former army pilot campaigned on growing Michigan’s econo my, creating jobs, and reduc ing inflation and gas prices.

The new 10th Congres sional District, created by Michigan's independent redistricting commission last year, was a toss-up between Democrats and Republicans.

Democratic incumbent Elissa Slotkin narrowly beat Republican challenger Tom Barrett to represent

the seventh district. On her campaign website, Slotkin said she ran for re-election to restore American car manufacturing, lower the cost of prescription drugs, secure abortion legalization, and keep corporations out of politics. Slotkin previously worked as a Middle East analyst in the CIA and in na tional security under former Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama.

Barrett, a Michigan state senator who campaigned on reducing inflation, lost by 4%. Barrett cinched the endorsement of former Democratic congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard, while contro versial Republican Rep. Liz Cheney crossed party lines to endorse Slotkin, the first time Cheney has endorsed a Democrat.

Democratic incumbent attorney general Dana Nessel beat Trump-endorsed constitutional lawyer Matt DePerno. Nessel tweeted she believes “Michigan values” handed her the win.

Democrat Jocelyn Benson will remain Michigan’s sec retary of state after beating Kristina Karamo, a teacher and commentator who focused her campaign on election integrity.

“In this election, de mocracy was on the ballot,” Benson said in a statement.

“Our right to vote was on the ballot. And tonight, democ racy won here in Michigan.”

Harmon said he is proud of the hard work done by the Michigan Federation of College Republicans from the local level to the federal level.

“After this midterm, it is even more important to be involved and fight for con servative ideals in Mich igan,” he said. “College Republicans are the future of the party, and with the people I work with every day, I have no doubt that the future here in Michi gan and nationally is very bright.”

Hillsdale scored first in the nation for comfort expressing ideas, lack of dis ruptive conduct, openness, administrative support, and tolerance of liberal and conservative speakers.

“You have to think through arguments, and there is truth,” Professor of Politics Mickey Craig said.

“It becomes part of conver sations about these things.”

The groups gave Hillsdale a score of 57.5, compared to a national average of 50, but excluded Hillsdale from the school rankings due to its warning label.

Because of the exclu sion, the report ranked the University of Chicago first in the nation for free speech instead of Hillsdale. The university scored 60th for comfort expressing ideas, 91st for lack of disruptive

conduct, 83rd for openness, and tied with Hillsdale for first for tolerance of liberal and conservative speakers.

The groups said the University of Chicago had an overall “good” speech climate, while they said Hillsdale had a “slightly above average” free speech climate.

FIRE Director Robert Shibley said the group takes issue with Hillsdale’s speech policies, even though students provided positive answers to the survey.

“Students in the aggre gate provide very positive answers in the survey about the environment for free speech at Hillsdale,” Shibley told the Collegian last November. “If a Hillsdale student were to say some thing ‘disparaging’ about a political figure on social media – which is forbidden in Hillsdale’s rules – and be

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targeted for ‘cancellation,’ the college is free to take disciplinary action.”

Shibley said Hillsdale will remain a “warning” school for free speech unless the administration changes its policies.

Craig said he doesn’t think Hillsdale has any policies that penalize stu dent speech, no matter the opinion.

“As far as I know, we don’t forbid anyone from saying they think gay mar riage is good,” he said. “If they think that, they should defend it.”

Free dialogue and thought is an essential part of the academic experience, according to Craig.

“If you want to really know how to defend your position, you need to know the arguments of the people against it,” he said.

“In

Wackenhut traveled to Tucson, Arizona, with Larkin. The two spoke with Chris Atchison, grandson of Elizebeth Friedman, in order to better understand her character and personal life.

“Normally for the films made in the documentary filmmaking class, stu dents work with what they can while on campus,” Wackenhut said. “Our class was lucky enough to receive a grant to produce the film that allowed all of us to take trips across the country, gathering inter views and information on Elizebeth.”

Scott said this docu mentary is different from the only other documen tary about Friedman, produced by PBS because it provides a more holistic view of her life.

“Our documentary focuses on the life of Eli

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zebeth Smith Friedman as a mother, wife, Hillsdale student, and spy,” Scott said. “There was a docu mentary made about her in 2021, but they barely talked about her experience at Hillsdale College or her role as a mother.”

Scott said the oppor tunity to interview Fried man’s grandson separates their documentary from the one released in 2021.

“Her grandson gave us many details about who she was as a mother and grandmother, allowing us to better understand her as a person,” Scott said.

Wackenhut said Fried man emulated the college’s ideals through her sense of duty, honor, determination, humility, and love.

“It’s important to acknowledge her accom plishments, but there’s a lot to be said for her char acter and spirit as well,” Wackenhut said.

Scott said the students filmed many of the shots in the documentary on an iPhone.

“Mr. Moorehouse emphasized that we have the ability to tell a great story with the resources we already have,” Scott said.

The documentary aims to dispel the secre cy around Friedman’s achievements. Accord ing to Scott, Friedman is “finally getting her story told.”

“The world needs to know about her, and the people at Hillsdale College are a great place to start,” Scott said.

Sophomore Abigail Pionk and junior Emma Montague both came to the premiere to support friends in the class.

Montague said she enjoyed learning about one of Hillsdale’s most notable alumna.

“As a history major, the documentary was right up my alley,” Montague said.

Pionk said she was excited to see the final product of many months of work.

“I had no idea what to expect and was so im pressed by the amount of information that fit into just 40 minutes,” Pionk said. “The student’s short films were so interesting and really represented the individuality of the stu dents in the class.”

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late October, two of them flew to Arizona to interview Elizebeth’s grandson and four of them flew to Virginia to do research at the Elizebeth Smith Friedman Archives,” Moorehouse said.

Friedman from A1

Students in the documentary filmmaking class presented their documentary Wednesday night. Hannah Cote | Collegian

Business curriculum to include two new courses this spring

By Jane Kitchen Collegian Reporter

A new class and a cap stone course will be added to the business core in the spring.

One of the new courses will cover introductory topics, and the other will synthesize ideas from dif ferent areas of business.

Associate Professor of Economics Charles Steele, chairman of the economics, business, and accounting department, said the courses will be in troduced as part of a series of changes to the business curriculum.

“The changes have been in the works for several years, at least,” Steele said. We've thought about this and it is taking a bit of time to work it all out, but I think we finally have.”

Faculty in the busi ness department held an open meeting on Nov. 3 to explain the changes to students.

Steele said the new

core class will serve as an introduction to business, establishing the purpose of business and examining the history and develop ment of the American corporation.

“The American corpo ration is distinctive, it’s really unique,” Steele said.

“When you look at how and why it developed the way that it did, it says a lot about why America has consistently been the most entrepreneurial country in the world and why our economy has consistently outpaced anyplace else.

Steele said the corner stone will investigate the proper role of business in society. He said this aspect of the course is especially important given the recent emergence of environmen tal, social, and governance standards, which frame corporations as instru ments of social change rather than providers of goods and services.

“This is a particularly opportune time for these changes because business

education in most schools now is really taking a bad turn. It's a mess, and it has a lot of people alarmed,” Steele said. “Hillsdale is going to provide an alternative direction for business education.”

The upcoming chang es will also include the addition of special topics courses featuring guest lecturers and class offer ings that Steele said will be easier for students to fit into their schedules. Steele said students will integrate knowledge from account ing, finance, marketing, and management to solve business problems in the new capstone.

Junior Josh Devlieger, a financial management major, said he has been working with Assistant Professor of Management Douglas Johnson, the Management Consulting Club, and others to create a course for the business department that would fo cus on business valuation and financial modeling.

Devlieger said he thinks the addition of the special topics courses will have a positive effect on the department.

“They add an extra layer of technical depth that allows students to dive deeper into specialized areas of study, and I think that the courses create a strong differentiating fac tor that will make Hillsdale students stand out in the workforce,” Devlieger said.

Senior Annette Postma, who’s pursuing a financial management minor, said the curriculum changes will allow her to take class es that better align with her professional goals.

“I am interested in the business and corporate perspective of finance, so having more of a variety in courses I can take is fantastic,” Postma said.“I think future students will find it easier to complete the business minor re quirements and have more freedom in choosing the classes that fit their inter ests and career goals.”

Founders Gym officially opens

By Linnea Shively Circulation Manager

On Saturday, Nov. 5, students, faculty, and staff celebrated the grand open ing of the Founders Gym on Union Street.

Attendees received free T-shirts with the gym’s logo: an image of George Washington flexing.

Freshman Grady Ste venson said he decided to visit the grand opening of Founders Gym because he saw posters around campus.

“I like to run a lot, but when I strength train I enjoy coming to Founders Gym,” Stevens said. “I like the atmosphere and size.”

The gym features free weights, squat racks, some cardio machines, and a wrestling mat, according to sophomore and fitness ini tiative team member Justus Hume. The gym is open from 6 a.m. to 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday.

“It offers another place to work out,” Hume said. “It allowed more fitness clubs to be built on campus.”

Several new clubs exer cise in the Founders gym, including the Powerlifting Club and LIFT, or Ladies in Fitness Training, Hume said.

According to Strength

Mock trial team wins second tournament of the season

By Evalyn Homoelle Assistant editor

One of the Hillsdale Col lege Mock Trial teams won its second tournament of the season last weekend after the program’s three teams com peted at invitationals around the country.

Team Charger, the pro gram’s new member team, won the Nov. 4-6 Illinois State University invitational tournament and took seven out of the eight possible ballots. Senior and one of Team Charger’s captains Abigail Elwell received an outstanding attorney award at the invitational.

Lindsey Church, Team Charger’s coach, said the win was an exciting improve ment from the first tourna ment.

“The new members went above and beyond, putting in a lot of extra time outside of practice to improve in the areas of performance and argumentation,” she said.

“It was so exciting to see the hard work pay off and to see

By Michael Bachmann Assistant editor

Hillsdale will explore the “Parallel Economies” of business, the media, and agriculture in its second Center for Constructive Alternative of the semester from Nov. 13-16.

According to the CCA website, parallel economies are institutions in various industries that are inde pendent from the larger economic framework.

their reaction to the win.”

While many other pro grams choose to check their win-loss record after each round, Hillsdale Mock Trial chooses to compete blindly to keep their competitive performance and team mo rale consistent.

“We deliberately chose not to check our record throughout the tournament, so it wasn’t until Team Char ger was called as the first place team that they realized they had been doing so well,” Church said.

Junior Curtis Herbert, one of Team Charger’s cap tains, said he was extremely proud of the new member team’s performance.

“As a captain, I got to see how their hard work this last week made the difference, especially on both sides of crucial cross examinations,” he said. “Winning is always a thrill, but it felt especially nice to see our new competi tors rise to the challenge.”

Team Blue also competed at the Illinois State invita tional and took fourth place overall with a 6-2 record.

Senior Allison Dillow received an outstanding witness award, and junior Caleb Sampson received an outstanding attorney award at the invitational.

“This is the second year in a row that Hillsdale Mock Trial has delivered a dom inant performance at the Illinois State tournament,” said Sampson, one of Team Blue’s captains. “As a captain, it’s extremely rewarding to see how not only our veteran teammates but also our new members have risen to the challenge this competitive season.”

The judges awarded Dillow for her portrayal of the case’s plaintiff, a woman suing an aircraft company for negligence after the death of her husband in a plane crash. She said the tournament results show the dedication and hard work the team has put in.

Dillow said she feels opti mistic about future tourna ments.

“It was so fun to compete alongside friends, and it was very encouraging to receive

an award for my witness portrayal,” Dillow said. “I’m looking forward to our next tournament.”

Hillsdale College Mock Trial’s third team, Team White, competed in At lanta, Georgia, from Oct. 29-30 at Emory University’s Peach Bowl tournament and achieved a 6-2 record. Senior Ashtyn Harms received an outstanding witness award with a perfect score, and sophomore Njomeza Pema received an outstanding attorney award.

Harms said she has seen remarkable growth in both individual and team perfor mance since the program’s first tournaments a few weeks ago.

“This tournament was very different from the first,” she said. “After not perform ing as well as I would have liked at the first tournament of the season, I was ready to work for an award this tour nament. Our team put in a lot of effort to prepare and adjust following the previous tournament, and it definitely paid off.”

Matt Bell, executive director of programs for external affairs, said creat ing parallel institutions is necessary for preserving liberty.

“Many of our institu tions are broken, and we need alternative structures and sources that will be able to stand when these legacy institutions are no longer able or willing to serve citizens,” he said.

“The mission of the col lege, in part, is to defend

liberty. We will need strong parallel institutions if we are going to save liberty.”

The CCA will begin on Sunday with lectures from author Michael Recten wald and journalist John Solomon. On Monday, William J. Luther of Amer ican Institute for Econom ic Research and author Walter Kirn will discuss technology and crypto currency. On Tuesday, Joel Salatinchael’s will explore

local agriculture and Mat thew J. Peterson will the refounding of American institutions.

Sophomore Matt Byrne said he is interested in at tending the CCA since he is unfamiliar with parallel economies.

“I’ve never heard the term before, so I’m inter ested in learning more,” Byrne said.

and Conditioning Special ist Chris Netley, Founders Gym decreases the busi ness of the Roche Sports Complex.

“Before we put Found ers Gym in, the biggest complaint we received was that there wasn't enough space to train, especially during peak hours,” Netley said. “Founders Gym is providing the space and an opportunity for people to get into the gym.”

This year, under the direction of Associate Dean of Men Jeffery “Chief” Rog ers, the college began the ChargerFit initiative to help students incorporate fitness into their everyday lives, according to Hume.

“Chief and a couple of faculty members helped our team build the ChargerFit initiative and promote it through Founders Gym,” Hume said. “The vision was to change fitness on campus from one workout a week to more of a lifestyle.”

Faculty, staff, and stu dents both use the addi tional space, according to Hume.

“One of my advisers told me he started working out at Founders Gym every day with other members,” Hume said. “I think it’s cool to see both students and faculty enjoying the gym.”

Education master's program announces expansion plans

By Sarah Katherine Sisk Collegian Reporter

On Nov. 2, Dean of Mas ters in Classical Education Daniel Coupland announced the graduate program in classical education’s plans to expand the program in the future and eventually offer courses online.

Coupland led the presen tation, explaining the pur pose of the program, its class requirements, and guidance on the application process.

“The focus is a broad, philosophical, historical, literary, curricular, and pedagogical perspective on classical education,” Coup land said.

The master’s program aims to answer six funda mental questions. According to Coupland, the questions involve understanding clas sical education, its history, its deficiencies, and how one leads others well in the practice of contemporary classical education.

The graduate program welcomed its inaugural class of 11 students this fall, and hopes to expand to as many as 20 students in future years, according to Coup land.

Coupland said students in the program study great minds, like Aristotle and John Dewey, and interact with primary sources.

“These are some names that our students are in teracting with right now, learning about classical ed ucation both from antiquity and modernity,” Coupland said. “For example, we're not going to read critiques of Dewey, we're going to engage with his work directly.”

Coupland said while the program doesn’t require teaching experience for admission, it strongly en

courages it because spend ing time in the classroom cultivates a richer learning experience.

“The target audience is primarily people who are teachers and administrators and who want to pursue a graduate degree,” Coupland said.

The program also offers two apprenticeship classes for students to work with nearby schools to get handson teaching and administra tive experience.

“Within a two-hour radius of Hillsdale we have about a half a dozen charter, private, protestant, Catho lic, Lutheran, and classical schools that we have a very close relationship with,” Coupland said.

At these schools, graduate students have the opportuni ty to spend time in class with master teachers and attend meetings with administra tors, whether it be regarding school policy or resolving a parent conflict, Coupland said.

Senior Rachel Warren, who attended the session, said she plans to pursue teaching after graduation.

“I'm not planning on go ing to grad school, but after college, I do want to teach,” Warren said. “I just wanted to learn more about the program in case somewhere down the road, I am interest ed. Or if I get questions from people, I can better answer their questions about it.”

Senior Katherine Luke said she hopes to get a mas ter’s degree in the future.

“I’m interested in ad ministration and education,” Luke said. “I’m not sure what my plans are for next year, but I would love to, at some point, get a master’s in classi cal education.”

Team Charger holds its award after winning over the weekend. Courtesy | Lindsey Church

Sophomores Sophie Pfaff, Matthew Karten, Justus Hume, and Tatum Linde attended Saturday's open house. Jack Cote| Collegian

Opinions

The Collegian Weekly

The opinion of The Collegian editorial staff

Take this as a lesson for 2024

Despite the hype, a red wave did not sweep across the country as many predicted. While it looks like the GOP will take the majority in the House of Representatives after four years of Democratic dom inance, the party has lost a Senate seat in Pennsyl vania, leaving only a slim chance for it to maintain even marginal control of both legislatures.

Hillsdale students should take this as a warn

ing going into 2024: in the divided country we live in, no election is certain until every ballot is in. Every vote counts, and it’s important to use that right wisely. In a decade where mail-in ballots and early voting have prolonged the process of vote counting, it’s even more important to get political messages out swiftly and strongly. Ballot initiatives like Michigan’s Proposal 3, which claims that “every individual has

a fundamental right to reproductive freedom,” without mentioning that it allows for abortion up to birth, are often worded in a non-offensive way to get more voters to say “yes.” Without proper education, many people consent without knowing what they are voting for.

Ballot proposals also force moderate voters into all or nothing decisions. Even in a county like Hillsdale, where state election victo

ries seem lopsided inside our local jurisdiction, it’s important to see the end goal of every vote count ing toward what voters believe to be true. Other wise, what might appear to be overwhelmingly supported in our county may be narrowly missed on a statewide level.

Election season might be over for now, but our work of acting out our beliefs and helping others to do the same has just

Hillsdale is a leader in promoting campus free speech

By Alexander Frigerio

Students at Hillsdale College enjoy the coun try’s best campus envi ronment for free speech, according to a recent report which surveyed

45,000 students from 208 schools. Hillsdale College outperformed the entire field by a margin so wide that it borders on the comical, but was removed from the published re sults for having an overly restrictive speech code.

The survey, published by the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), posed 27 questions on students’ campus speech environ ments, from which FIRE distinguished six basic metrics such as comfort expressing ideas and ability to have an open conversation on campus. Hillsdale scored first in the nation as a wide statistical outlier on three of these metrics, and second in the nation on two others.

On one question, 78% of Hillsdale students, more than any other col lege surveyed, said that they would be “very com fortable” expressing their views on a controversial political topic during an in-class discussion. The national average was 23%, and the runner-up was the University of Mem phis at 38%.

FIRE is a nonpartisan advocate of free speech, it exclude the perfor mance of the only college in the country that truly excelled in their data. In addition to the survey, FIRE also evaluates col leges’ written policies that regulate student speech. Hillsdale was one of five schools evaluated as “Warning” and removed from the field for having policies “that clearly and

consistently state that it prioritizes other values over a commitment to freedom of speech.” FIRE evaluates colleges’ speech codes as they are written, not as they are applied.

I followed up with FIRE to determine the reasons for this judg ment. FIRE stated that Hillsdale’s policies have no explicit protection for students’ speech rights, and pointed out two restrictive policies. The first was Hillsdale’s “Guidelines Regarding the Mission and Moral Commitments of Hills dale College,” which states that Hillsdale will not support organizations or activities that contra vene its commitment to a Christian understanding of marriage and sexuali ty. The second was Nos. 8 and 9 of Hillsdale’s “Regulations for Proper Student Conduct.” No. 9 is the most pertinent, which restricts: Improper, offensive, abusive, disparaging, threatening, lewd, inde cent, pornographic, or obscene conduct, com munication or material on an online social net work or third-party Web site, cell phone, email, Twitter, Facebook, blog or other social media.

This regulation allows Hillsdale’s administration

the extraordinary power to use “suspension or ex pulsion” to enforce a ban on “improper” or “offen sive” material in students’ texts, emails, and social media posts. If this power were exercised to even a fraction of the extent its wording allows, the vio lations of student speech rights would be drastic and intolerable. It is my assessment that FIRE’s evaluation of Hillsdale’s speech code was rational and consistent with their methodology.

Nevertheless, FIRE’s decision to separate the five Warning schools and score them only against one another is unac countable. FIRE’s process makes these schools’ reported scores impossi ble to compare with the rest of the population, obscuring important data without benefit.

FIRE was, however, extremely receptive to my questions, and with some assistance I was able to recreate the methodol ogy under which school scores were assigned. If the Warning schools had been allowed to compete, Hillsdale’s overall speech score would have been the best in the nation at 105.30, beating the University of Chicago in second place at 75.72 by an astonishing margin.

This is after applying FIRE’s generous adjust ments to score for speech code, without which the gap widens yet farther.

Those skeptical of the meaningfulness of these results may argue that, with the highest ratio of conservative to liberal students in the nation (10.3:1 according to FIRE), Hillsdale’s student body assumes that its campus has wonderful freedom of speech merely because students never encounter any liberal speech. This is not borne out by the data. There are eight ranked colleges with a ratio of liberal to conservative students in excess of 20:1. If political uniformity did inflate student perceptions of free speech, it would be shown in each of these universities, none of which placed remarkably on any metric.

Restrictive written policies or not, Hillsdale’s performance evidences a campus speech environ ment not only superior to every competitor in the nation, but of a higher class entirely.

Christmas music before Thanksgiving

By Meghan Schultz

When the leaves go from green to red, it seems fitting that my Spotify playlists should match. I added the first few Christmas songs to my most recent playlist in mid-October, because there’s no such thing as a time too early to listen to Christmas music.

Streaming Christmas music should depend on when you’re thinking about the holiday, whether in July or after Thanksgiving. Some people keep a strict rule regarding when they begin listening and won’t go anywhere near that corner of Spotify before they’ve eaten turkey and had awkward conversations with relatives. But what’s a better way to survive Thanksgiving, or at best enhance your experi ence, than with the musical musings of Nat King Cole and Mariah Carey?

Now post-fall break, we’re more than halfway through the semester. Two full weeks of school, Thanksgiving break, and final exams stand between us and an extend ed escape from reading, assignments, papers, tests, and on-campus jobs. There’s plenty to love about life in Hillsdale, but the continuous

swamps of piling to-do lists leave little time for leisure, whether the Aristotelian or Gen Z kind. Goodbye to the mid-semester slump: hello, final stretch before Thanks giving. Clinging to memo ries of Christmas is simply the best way to get through it, and nothing evokes happy, reminiscent affection for Christmas more powerfully than a favorite childhood tune.

I started small: adding a few staples to a playlist I was already listening to. For me, that meant “White Christmas” and “Mele Kalikimaka” fit right in with the vibe of the rest of my current favorites. Find a few songs that match what you’re already listening to. Notice how quickly your mood lifts when amid the Spotify shuffle, the dulcet tones of Michael Bublé’s “It’s Be ginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas” bring an extra pep to your lagging step.

Yet, for every Cindy Lou Who, there will be a Grinch. Friends might react in hor ror at your joy, but be patient with them. They’ve merely bought into the ever-present, ever-false myth that Christ mas music can get old and tired. Fortunately, you know better. Christmas music is

cool, every month of the year, every time of day, and on every holiday. If you’re thinking about Christmas, it’s a perfect time for Christ mas music.

So, just in case you’re still not thinking about it, picture this. In early December days, snow falls softly outside the Heritage Room’s warm light. You sit in a red leather armchair, fire crackling in the hearth in front of you.

Tomorrow’s your last final and you couldn’t be more prepared. Every paper has been turned in, and your most difficult exams are behind you. Mom has prom ised a warm plate of cookies will be waiting for you when you get home in a couple of days, and your younger sibling recently begrudging ly admitted he’s excited to see you. The union sparkles with Christmas lights and tiny, fake evergreen trees, and a full-sized, beautifully decorated tree sits at home, all the ornaments of your childhood dangling from it. It is a lovely, silent night, and Frank Sinatra plays through your fully-charged AirPods.

Meghan Schultz is a senior studying English and journalism. She is an editor at the Collegian.

Alexander Frigerio graduated from Hillsdale in 2020. He is a staff writer for institutional advancement.

Courtesy | Pixabay

Hillsdale outperforms on free speech.

e lyse aP el | Collegian

Don’t let machines pressure you into a ‘guilt tip:’ give as you see fit

By Joshua Newhook

This summer, I walked into a frozen yogurt store in Grand Rapids. It was open, but there was no one to serve me. Five minutes later, a young woman appeared, and said “it’s self-serve.” I picked up a cup, poured my own yogurt, then added a few toppings. But when I went to check out, to my surprise, there was a tip option on the screen. Despite the worker glanc ing down at the screen, I held resolutely to my decision: “no tip.”

While the social pressure is looming large to tip in more and more instances, don’t feel pres sure to tip what the ma chine tells you to. Espe cially as college students, making wise financial decisions is more import ant than impressing the people behind you.

Over the past 10 years, the way we tip in the United States has changed dramatically. New technology is driving an influx of tips not only in the sit-down restau rant setting but also in non-conventional tip ping environments, from coffee shops to liquor stores. New point-of-sale systems like Square and Stripe prompt customers to leave a tip, and suggest large percentages first, usually 20 to 25 percent.

This might not seem like a big deal to some folks, but if you get a cof fee every weekday for $4, your 20 percent tips will add up to more than $200 a year on coffee alone.

But the worst part about the practice isn’t

the amount given, it’s how some might be giving out of guilt, and others might be judging you for not giving as much. “Do you hit the ‘no tip’ button and brace yourself for inferior service from an insulted cashier?” a Today article asks. This is feeding off our omissions bias: the natural tendency to feel guilty when we make an active harmful decision versus an equally harm ful omission, according to the Washington Post. Giving people a prompt to tip forces people to make a decision, and makes it feel morally wrong to skip a tip than if there was no prompt at all.

Square admits that its strategic software creates an uncomfortable spot for those who chose not to tip: “It’s one thing to by pass a tip jar or just leave the gratuity line blank when you are signing a check, but it’s harder to physically press a button saying you aren’t going to leave anything.”

A glaring iPad screen with pre-calculated tip prompts is a lot more intimidating than an old-fashioned tip jar, where someone can decide for himself how much to give. You used to be able to give out of the graciousness of his own heart without the jar being shoved in your face every time you pay for something.

Even when you mean to leave a tip, electronic systems make it easier to overtip. Systems like Square have a pre-set tip ping percentage that you program, and you have

to choose another option to get to another price.

So if you were thinking in your head of tipping $5 for something but the machine suggests $7, it is often more convenient just to go ahead and select what’s recommended even though you know you are overtipping.

Tipping a predeter mined amount can lead to the unintended con sequences of not distin guishing whether a person has done well or poorly in his work. It can also stan dardize tipping across dif ferent types of work that might not be the same.

For instance, I used to work at a gardening center that sold pre-cut Christmas trees. I would select the tree, bag it with netting, and freshly cut the stump, sometimes in the dark with the wind howling and the tempera ture dropping below 10 degrees Fahrenheit. In addition, I would have to tie it to a person’s car with numb, chapped hands be

fore they could drive away.

I would argue that this type of work deserves a larger tip than simply ringing up your yogurt in an air-conditioned shop.

In addition, waiting on a table deserves a larg er tip than passing you your coffee. Full-service restaurants rely on such gratuities since servers often are paid less than the federal minimum wage on the assumption they will earn tips, according to NerdWallet.

So tip generously when it’s appropriate, but choose your amount not because of what a machine says, but out of the wisdom and generosity of your heart.

Don’t be afraid of looking stingy, and don’t connect your self-image to the amount you tip.

Joshua Newhook is a senior studying history and journalism. He is digital editor at the Col legian.

Self Service helps students

By Victoria Wagner

Hillsdale’s recent change to Self Service was unex pected but long overdue.

After 15 years, the out dated and underpowered WebAdvisor has finally been replaced by Ellucian’s Self Service. This is the college’s first entire semester with Self Service, and students are beginning to integrate the program into their dayto-day lives.

At first, the idea of changing systems seemed inconvenient. WebAdvisor was familiar. People knew how it worked and were reluctant to change to a new system. With registra tion coming up, this is at the forefront of students’ minds. While WebAdvisor was familiar, it came with the unnecessary battle for the best Wi-Fi signal and the worry about who could get their course selections through the system before it crashed.

WebAdvisor’s underpow ered application architecture caused long wait times during early registration mornings, leaving many stu dents stressed and worried over whether they would be able to register for their classes of choice. Its lack of scalability became more apparent with the steady growth of the student body over the last several years.

While the change to Self Service requires an adjust ment period, there is hope that this will be a positive change that solves WebAd visor’s many problems by improving site architecture and its ability to host many students registering at once.

At first glance, Self Service’s Program Evalua tion function is confusing

BeReal: Yay or Nay?

that.

By Lauren Scott

As I walked through the streets of Washing ton, D.C., with my dear friend a few weekends ago, we stumbled upon the United States Cap itol. We looked at our phones and saw a noti fication from BeReal.

We snapped a sunny photo with the Capitol and went along our merry way. I forever have that picture stored in my BeReal memories to look back on and re member that moment.

BeReal is a fun way to store memories that are more authentic than the ones stored on any other social media platform.

BeReal is an app un like any other: It sends a notification every day to its users at the same time. The idea is that people will take a photo of whatever they are doing when they receive the notification. Since the notification goes off at a different time each day, its users have no idea when they will be expected to share what they are up to.

It is a social media platform that shows everyday, mundane activities, rather than the flashy and fun ones people often share on Instagram or Snapchat.

Sure, anyone can scrape together some “keep Instagram real” pictures to post, but how do we know they are actually “real”? We have all seen that one girl post a goddess pic ture of herself with the caption, “woke up like this” when she clearly did not wake up like

But, BeReal does not allow for any of that de ception for a few reasons.

First, as any good app does, BeReal exposes fake people. My favorite feature of the app is that it shows how many times a person retook their picture before posting. So, if someone retook a picture seven times, friends will see that and judge accordingly.

The app also exposes people for posting late. Sure, people may post their fancy dinner as they’re sipping on fine wine, but if they post ed it 15 hours late, it is more of a BeFake than a BeReal.

The memories in BeReal are a treasure in themselves. As I look back at all my posts, I see memories from my radio internship and grocery shopping with my friends. These are raw, candid pictures that I would not have taken otherwise because I was not at my “best” or “cam era ready.”

As I look back on my BeReal memories, I am reminded that there is beauty in the simplicities of life. Random car rides with friends, summer walks as the crick ets chirp, and grocery shopping are things that normally wouldn’t be captured for an Insta gram feed. But, BeReal welcomes these memo ries with open arms.

For those tired of looking at seemingly per fect lives on Instagram or Snapchat, BeReal is for you. I have posted BeRe als in bed, in the bath room, on top of moun tains, in the swimming

pool, and with all four journalism professors at Hillsdale College.

It is time to embrace authenticity and be surprised at how many simple memories can turn into beautiful ones.

a junior studying history and journalism. She is an assistant editor at the Collegian.

with all its tabs and ex pansions. Viewing all the requirements for a major requires the expansion of several menus to see the full picture. While this is the case, Self Service provides students with a concise and easy to understand overview of graduation requirements by breaking down classes into categories to focus on. It includes a larger overview of students’ progress at the top, letting students focus on the bigger picture with out getting bogged down in small details.

For student employ ees, logging hours on Self Service is simple and easy.

Weekly submissions allow students to keep better track of their hours, and past earning statements, hourly totals, and tax information are all in one spot.

Having everything from registration to taxes and tuition in one spot makes everything streamlined and organized. As with any new program or tool, it takes some getting used to. Once you use it enough, Self Ser vice is easy to understand and navigate.

After people figure out this first round of registra tion, it will be a great step forward for the college’s ability to handle more stu dents registering.

While it might be un comfortable in the adjust ment period, that’s exactly what it is - a short period of time. The change to Self Service will prove to be beneficial for the college and its students for many years to come.

Victoria Wagner is a sophomore studying politics and journalism. She is a reporter at the Collegian.

BeReal is really more like BeFake

By Logan Washburn

A dangerous drug is circulating. Not fentanyl, not cocaine, not even that dopamine you find when smelling good brisket. This drug is far more powerful. It’s called BeReal.

see what your friends are up to!”

Once a day, the app’s users simultaneously pick up their phones and take a photo of whatever they are doing at the moment. Studying, walking to class, or even brushing their teeth.

In George Orwell’s “1984,” every home and business houses a “tele screen,” a two-way televi sion found in each home or business so The Party can keep an eye on every thing. BeReal founders Alexis Barreyat and Kévin Per must have gotten their ideas from Orwell, because when BeReal tells users to take a picture of their sur roundings, they instinc tively obey, sending a sta tus update to their friends and the tech company.

Users always surrender to the app’s commands. This concerning feature serves to condition the people to serve arbitrary demands. The Chinese communist government uses the app WeChat to surveil its people, police their thoughts, and punish dissenters. It’s not farfetched to think that an app, which demands users send simultaneous status updates, could wittingly or unwittingly prepare the people for tyranny.

of BeReal claim this makes it more genuine than other forms of social media, like Snapchat. They also claim that because one only uses it once per day, it decreas es addiction to social media.

But you can take a Be Real whenever you want, and as many times as you want. The only restraint is that it tells other users if you posted late or retook photos. If users normalize this, however, then there is no restraint at all. If one has such a mindset, the app functions like Snapchat. And suddenly, your BeReal has become a BeFake.

In fact, the app com bines the functions of Snapchat and Instagram: BeReal features a photo feature like that of Snap chat and a scrolling func tion like that of Instagram. So the app has the same power to addict users as do other forms of social media.

Users shouldn’t fool themselves. This “alterna tive” app is simply more of the same social media. According to Statista, in 2019, 40% of American internet users ages 18 to 22 reported social media addiction. Why join that number in service of a mediocre app? It’s not worth it.

A notification lights up your phone.

“Time to BeReal,” it reads. “Two minutes left to capture a BeReal and

But not to worry, users don’t always obey their phones. Sometimes, they take BeReals late or retake them several times, in order to find the best angle or lighting. While this avoids the Orwellian issue of obeying an omniscient screen in one’s pocket, this defeats the entire purpose of the app.

The app is supposed to capture users in the moment. The proponents

BeReal is neither more genuine nor less addictive than other forms of social media. And who knows, it could be the tool of a total itarian regime. So be real, and don’t BeReal.

Logan Washburn is a junior studying politics and journalism. He is an editor at the Collegian.

Lauren Scott is

Washburn joins Scott in a BeReal photo. Lauren Scott | c o LL egian

Tipping is a common practice across the U.S. courteSy | Pixabay

City News

While Democrats take state control, local Republicans sweep the board

Local Republicans win state legislature races, Stockford wins re-election, Wolfram and Paladino win city council

By Logan Washburn City News Editor

Local Republicans swept their races on Nov. 8 as Democrats took control of Michigan's legislative and executive branches.

State Rep. Andrew Fink won re-election to represent the 35th District, and former state Rep. Joseph Bellino Jr. won his state Senate race in the 16th District. Both candidates are Republicans.

At the same time, Democrats gained the state legislature and maintained the governor’s office.

Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer won re-election against Tudor Dixon with 54.5% to 43.9%, according to the New York Times. While some races have not been counted, Democrats claim control of the state Senate with a balance of 20 to 18, according to the Detroit Free Press, and Democrats will control the state House by a margin of 56 to 54.

Locally, Mayor Adam Stockford won re-election, and Hillsdale Collegeconnected candidates Professor of Economics Gary Wolfram and graduate student Joshua Paladino ‘18 won their races for city council.

County Clerk Marney Kast said the results were not final as of Wednesday evening.

According to Kast, the board of canvassers will meet Thursday to review the unofficial election results.

Kast said she expects the race has settled its winners, but things can always come up last minute.

State House State Senate

56 (D) 54 (R)

In the state House race, Fink defeated Democratic opponent Andrew Watkins with 74.7% to 25.2%. Fink won 13,580 votes, while Watkins garnered 4,584 votes.

“I am looking forward to serving another two years, fighting for the people of Branch, Hillsdale, and Lenawee counties, and fighting for jobs, traditional values, and common-sense policies,” Fink said in a

Hillsdale Hospital leaders join state hospital group panels

By Kamden Mulder Collegian Reporter

Three Hillsdale Hospital employees were appointed in October to represent the interests of rural hospitals by the Michigan Health and Hospital Association.

Rachel Lott, John Robertson, and J.J. Hodshire will serve on various panels with the MHA.

Lott, Hillsdale Hospital’s director of marketing and development, was appointed to the MHA’s Legislative Policy Panel.

“The Legislative Policy Panel is a group of hospital leaders from healthcare organizations across the state,” Lott said. “We meet quarterly to review upcoming potential legislation. We also make certain recommendations or advocate for specific legislation that we support to the benefit of the hospital industry within our state.”

Robertson, the chief quality, information and technology officer at Hillsdale Hospital has assumed a role on both the Person and Family Engagement Advisory Council and the Safety and Quality Committee.

“This is my 6th appointment to MHA’s Quality committee,” Robertson said. “It is comprised of quality experts from around the State, as well as MHA Representatives, for both Quality and Patient Safety. I feel honored to be a longstanding member of this Committee and am often able to bring back ideas, tools and resources that benefit Hillsdale Hospital.”

Hodshire, the hospital’s president and chief executive officer, serves on the MHA’s Board of

Trustees, the Small or Rural Hospital Council, and the Human Resources Council.

The MHA fills its councils and committees through self-nomination forms. Its website explains that healthcare workers are able to nominate themselves for these positions and their applications are reviewed by the MHA Board.

“My goal in representing Hillsdale hospital is to be sure that the voice of rural hospitals like ours, and especially independent hospitals like ours, is part of that conversation and that we have a seat at the table,” Lott said.

Robertson said he hopes his work on the Person & Family Engagement Advisory Council will directly reach Hillsdale Hospital.

“I am hopeful to get suggestions and resources from this group to get our Advisory Council restarted at Hillsdale Hospital. It is a great tool for garnering input from customers directly, without the anonymity of a survey. I'm very much looking forward to hearing how others use this function to improve care and safety,” Robertson said.

According to Lott, the appointment of herself, Robertson, and Hodshire is important for advancing rural health initiatives and opportunities.

“All of those appointments contribute to our goal to make sure that we are a part of the process in a big picture sense, and that what we're doing is helping to further the cause of rural health in America, in addition to serving our own patients and community in the best possible way,” Lott said.

Facebook post. Fink said he thinks if Republicans want to win, they should focus on the Declaration of Independence, a “humane” vision of the American founders, and limited government by the people.

Watkins, a veteran, previously told the Collegian he hoped to represent the county’s Democrats and bring a spirit of bipartisanship to the state legislature.

20 (D) 18 (R)

will welcome Wolfram and Paladino after they won the only contested races.

Unchallenged incumbents Greg Stuchell and Will Morrisey will represent Wards 1 and 2, while Wolfram will represent Ward 3 and Paladino will represent Ward 4.

Paladino defeated opponent Penny Swan with 54% to 46%. Paladino won 386 votes, while Swan gained 329 votes.

Paladino said he looks forward to representing his constituents.

“I’m grateful to residents of Ward IV for choosing me to represent them,” Paladino said. “I’m excited to get to work on the issues that matter to Hillsdale’s residents.”

Wolfram defeated opponent Cindy Merritt with 52.3% to 47.7%. Wolfram garnered 325 votes, while Merritt won 296 votes.

Former state Rep. Joseph Bellino Jr., a Republican, won his election against Democrat Katybeth Davis to represent the 16th state Senate district which includes Hillsdale.

Bellino won his state Senate race against opponent Katybeth Davis, a Democrat, with 73.7% to 26.3%. Bellino gained 10,411 votes, while Davis won 3,714 votes.

“No single person should be at total power over everyone in our state, and the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic saw policies from our governor that crossed the rubicon,” Bellino said in a Facebook post. “We need elected officials that stand up

to misuses of power.”

Stockford won re-election against opponent Rondee Butcher with 83.5% to 16.6%.

Stockford won 1,840 votes, while Butcher garnered 365 votes.

“We won by a landslide victory,” Stockford said in a Facebook post. “Thank you Hillsdale for your vote of confidence! I am proud to serve you for an historic second term.”

The Hillsdale City Council

“It was an interesting race. Merritt would have been a fine city councilperson as well,” Wolfram said. “But I think I have a little more experience in the main thing, to try to increase revenue sharing.”

Wolfram said it would be easy to push road repairs off, but that infrastructure will eventually crumble without attention. He said he hopes to secure state tax funds for such projects while encouraging community development.

“The Keefer House is being redone, and the Dawn Theater is now back, it’s a new dawn,” Wolfram said.

“A lot of good things are happening in Hillsdale.”

Residents debate homelessness at city council meeting

By Josh Hypes Political Correspondent

Hillsdale Mayor Adam Stockford called for reforming a homelessness task force, after Councilman Robert Socha brought up a Hillsdale resident’s letter criticizing the city’s response at the Monday city council meeting.

Resident Nicholas Rorick claimed in his letter that Hillsdale’s homeless population has created a public safety problem. Rorick alleged that a homeless man exposed himself to children two weeks ago, and he called on the city to restrict or outlaw its homeless shelters if they are increasing Hillsdale’s homeless population.

“If people were bused here against the wishes of our town and community, we can send them back. There has to be a coordinated effort to fix this problem,” Rorick wrote.

Elijah Hardgrove, who is homeless, said Rorick is

POLICE

5 Nov.

making a false assumption that the shelter is attracting more homeless people.

“There are people camping out by the school because there’s not enough room at the shelter,” Hardgrove said. “There’s [sic] only 20 beds for 14 men and six women. So the common sense solution would be to create more space, so there are places to go.”

Hardgrove also said the letter falsely demonizes the homeless population as sexual predators.

“A series of unfortunate events led both my wife and me to end up at the homeless shelter, and without it, we wouldn’t have the opportunities we have now,” Hardgrove said.

Stockford said he intends to reestablish the homeless task force. Previously, the task force comprised residents, local community agencies, and police officers. After the Covid-19 pandemic, the mayor suspended the task force because of low participation and attendance.

REPORT: 7 Nov

- Hillsdale City Police arrested a 23-year-old Hanover man for operating a vehicle while intoxicated. The $10,000 bond’s 10% allowed was not paid.

- Michigan State Police arrested a 54-year-old homeless man for an offense of operating a vehicle while intoxicated. No bond was allowed.

The new task force will be manned solely by parents, residents, and police officers to address the public safety concerns posed by the homeless, according to Stockford.

Kathy Beckwith, a board member of Share the Warmth of Hillsdale County, an overnight shelter that operates during the winter, said the city needs more collaboration between community leaders, fundraisers, faith-based organizations, and public health officials to coordinate a response.

“Criminalizing homelessness is not the answer,” Beckwith said. “We do not want to be one of those communities employing aggressive and cold-hearted strategies to move homeless people out of our way. I feel like that was the tone of that letter that the council received.”

Dennis Wainscott, a member of the Housing Commission Board, said the city needs to embrace a more compassionate approach to the city’s

homeless rather than one motivated by fear.

“Sure, it’s easy to say we are just going to box them up and move them somewhere else,” Wainscott said. “But we need to do what we can to strengthen one another and lift each other up.”

Socha said Rorick and several other property owners were frustrated by the increase in trespassing.

“Property owners have rights, too,” Socha said.

“The property tax paying citizenry have a right to feel like they can walk on the bike trail unmolested. I have received emails from people who have stopped allowing their children to ride on the bike trails because of the homeless people.”

The council also approved a raise for the city manager’s work as Board of Public Utilities director. They discussed both a project to reroute a stormwater drain underneath Willow street, and applying for a resource officer state grant.

The Collegian has compiled a selection of arrests from the City of Hillsdale and Hillsdale County in the past week.

8 Nov.

- Hillsdale City Police arrested a 37-year-old Fremont, Ind. man for domestic violence and felonious assault with a dangerous weapon. 10% of the $22,500 bond was not paid.

- Michigan State Police arrested a 29-year-old Hudson woman for home invasion, assault, and failure to appear in court. No bond was allowed.

- The Hillsdale County Sheriff's office arrested a 38-year-old Waldron man for contempt and on a felony warrant for threat of terrorism. No bond was allowed.

- Michigan State Police arrested a 36-year-old Hillsdale man on two felony warrants for dangerous drugs, driving with a suspended license, and felon possession of ammunition. No bond was allowed.

Sources: City of Hillsdale Police Department, Hillsdale County Sheriff's Office

Source: The Detroit Free Press. Note: These numbers are based on preliminary results, and may change as officials count ballots.

State Rep. Andrew Fink, a Republican and Hillsdale College alumnus, won re-election against Democrat Andrew Watkins to represent the 35th state House district which includes Hillsdale.

State Rep. Andrew Fink (R) Fmr. state Rep. Joseph Bellino, Jr. (R)

By Lauren Smyth Collegian Reporter

Long before Republican state Rep. Andrew Fink won his re-election to the state House of Representatives on Nov. 8, his friends were canvassing Hillsdale College’s McIntyre Dormitory with a different election in mind.

They had nominated Fink as a blind date for Fall Ball, and as they went door-to-door advertising the dance, they found him a running mate: Lauren Grover, volleyball player and an editor for The Collegian.

“Get away from me!” were among Fink’s first words to Grover — he had bronchitis at the time.

Despite this introduction, the two remained friends as Fink graduated from Hillsdale in 2006 with a bachelor’s degree in politics and entered the University of Michigan law school.

When Grover called Fink after a football game, he realized she didn’t really want to talk about football. They had what Fink calls a “DTR” or “define-therelationship” moment, and later, a wedding.

Fink was still in law school during 2007 when the troop surge into the Iraq War reminded him of a promise he made as a 15-year-old.

“I told people I would readily join the military if we went to war,” he said. “While my classmates were competing for coveted interviews with big law firms for summer slots, I called the local Marine Corps office to see about becoming a Marine lawyer.”

Shortly after his marriage to Grover in 2009 and completion of his law degree in 2010, he entered the Marines and served five

years as a judge advocate.

“All the recruiter could promise was that I would serve my country and lead Marines,” Fink said. “That was all I needed to hear.”

Following his retirement from the military in 2014, Fink opened a satellite office of his family’s Fink & Fink law firm in Hillsdale, where he and his wife “wanted to raise our kids.” From there,

Andrew Watkins with 74.7% to 25.2%. Like Fink, Watkins served in the military during the Iraq War and said experience in the military is helpful for a political career.

“There are lots of politics in the military,” Watkins previously said. “Some of it’s good, and some of it’s bad. But it helps you because you get more diversity, especially compared to where I grew up in Hillsdale. You get introduced to other cultures and ethnicities and start learning that the world is big.”

Covid-19 was a central focus of the 2020 election cycle, and Fink said his legal background gave him a unique perspective on what he called Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s “unconstitutional” policies.

“We have a governor who says she can declare an

will center on education policy.

Meet Andrew Fink: from student to legislator Mayor Stockford’s mother competes in baking contest

Parents whose children attended online classes got a first-hand view of the Michigan education system, and according to Fink, many didn’t like what they saw. Fink said the most detrimental policies include closures due to Covid-19, mask mandates, and critical race theory in schools. He said they showcase the “radical left” and its “lack of concern for the well-being of young students and their desire to push their radical, collectivist ideologies.”

Caleb Lambrecht ’21, Fink’s legislative director, said popular support for Fink’s policies is encouraging.

“He ran an unapologetically profamily and pro-freedom campaign,” Lambrecht said. “Representative Fink is going to continue being a vocal advocate and an avid fighter for the principles of the founding within our system of constitutional government.”

Another issue that divided Michiganders this election was Proposal 3, which passed on Nov. 8, eliminating Michigan’s 1931 abortion ban and amending the state constitution to codify abortion.

By Lauren Scott Assistant Editor

Mayor Adam Stockford’s mother, Sheri Ingles, is participating in “The Greatest Baker” worldwide baking contest.

Bake From Scratch Magazine is running the competition, which is a fundraiser for the Andrew McDonough Be Positive Foundation - a group that provides financial and emotional support for families of children with cancer.

The winner of the competition will be featured in Bake From Scratch Magazine, Stockford said, and will take home $10,000, according to the Greatest Baker website.

judging, placing 4th out of 20 bakers. The next round of judging will be on Nov. 10.

Ingles said people can either vote by donation or they can vote for free.

“I have specifically asked people to only use their free votes,” Ingles said. “While I myself love donating to good causes, I've always been uncomfortable asking other people to donate on my behalf.”

Ingles said her fun and creative baking started when her grandchildren would make unique requests for their birthday cakes.

he said his step into elected office “just made sense.”

During the 2020 election, Fink won the Republican nomination to represent District 58 in the Michigan House. His wife, Lauren Fink, worked alongside him as the campaign’s media and design director.

Facing three Republican challengers, Fink won the primary election without a majority. He went on to win the general election with more than 70% of the vote.

Fink won his seat this November against Democratic opponent

emergency for any reason — it could be that it’s too sunny or too cloudy — that lasts for as long as she says it lasts,” Fink said during a July 2020 campaign debate. “That allows her to impact your rights under every other statute in the state code.”

While in office, he opposed vaccine mandates and supported a bill to end mandatory Covid-19 protocols. Fink predicts the issue of Covid-19 will again influence voters this November. This time, however, he said the debate

Prior to the election, Fink said the proposal was poor policymaking and would make Michigan the least pro-life state in America.

“I dislike Prop. 3 immensely, more than anything else I know about,” Fink said, whittling down his viewpoints to a single sentence: “Constitutional rights, defending innocent life, and respect for the rule of law are guiding lights for all conservatives.”

Ingles is proud to represent her city as the wife of a former Hillsdale mayor and the mother of the Hillsdale mayor, Stockford said.

Ingles said someone submitted pictures of her cakes to the competition, but she doesn’t know who.

“The Greatest Baker contacted me via email and told me that I had been accepted to be part of the competition and they would like me to be part of it,” Ingles said.

Ingles said she advanced through the first round of

“For me, baking and working with decorating cakes is just another art form,” Ingles said. “While I love the kids and adults getting excited about the cakes, it's an artistic outlet for me.”

According to Stockford, his mother bakes cakes for birthday parties, weddings, and baby showers. He said his favorite thing she bakes is a pumpkin roll around Thanksgiving.

Stockford said he encourages all Hillsdale residents to vote for his mother in the competition.

“She's a Hillsdale institution herself,” Stockford said, “One of Hillsdale's finest women.”

Hillsdale grapples with homeless crisis from ‘all walks of life’

By Colman Rowan & Thomas McKenna Collegian Freelancers

Law enforcement officers and community leaders are struggling to address homelessness in Hillsdale County as the approaching winter season drives the homeless to seek shelter.

Sylvester Taylor and his fiancee Latisha Brown walked into Share the Warmth of Hillsdale County and pulled chairs to a table. They said they are locals who have supported each other through years of homelessness.

“She's something for me to look forward to waking up in the morning,” Taylor said of Brown.

Brown and Taylor said they regularly stay overnight at the warming center, located in Sozo Church in downtown Hillsdale. Brown said she has struggled with drug addiction in past years, but has since overcome it and begun exploring her faith.

“I’m clean now, thank God for that,” Brown said. “That's how I want to stay: clean for the rest of my life.”

Taylor said one of his greatest challenges has been trying to find an affordable apartment.

“I’ve been on the waiting list for a pretty long time, it seems like there’s no light at the end of the tunnel,” Taylor said.

Tammy Henderson, a former homeless person and current volunteer at the warming center, said she has had similar difficulties finding affordable housing.

“It’s really hard to get an apartment here for lowincome,” Henderson said.

Henderson said she has seen homelessness strike different people in different ways.

“Sometimes you think,

‘Why

At Share the Warmth, which is open from November to March, volunteers provide dinner, breakfast, and a warm

it's the city government’s responsibility.”

The center has faced recent opposition from some community members who believe its services are attracting homeless people to Hillsdale. A letter from Hillsdale resident Nicholas

and that many of those struggling are residents. She also said the warming center’s work has revealed the extent of the issue.

“When we opened, there’s no denying it. It’s out in the open now,” Myers said. “Some people are

weren't able to get them anymore.”

Hephner, in contrast with Myers, said he thinks the number of homeless people has been rising.

“We still get new homeless people every year. The population increases,”

doing that, the courts have ruled that that is a law against this person's status,” Hephner said. “If they're homeless, they have to sleep somewhere. You can't create a law to go after that status.”

Hephner also said the Hillsdale County Jail has been too crowded to accept those arrested on misdemeanor charges.

“When it comes to jail overcrowding, our jail has been at capacity or over capacity for three continuous years,” Hephner said. “Sometimes we are just denied being able to lodge somebody because they have no capacity.”

The city created a task force in March 2020 to address homelessness in the city. Stockford said he was frustrated with the group’s lack of progress, and will be starting a new one in the near future.

place to sleep. Penny Myers, the center’s executive director, said she believes it is the community’s duty to provide these services to fellow community members.

“Whether you like it or not, they're here,” Myers said. “It's just our responsibility to take care of them. That's how I see it.”

Mayor Adam Stockford said it is not the duty of the city government to provide or support community services for the homeless, but rather the duty of private charity.

“I think it's a duty of individual people,” Stockford said. “I think it's the duty of the churches. I think it's people's duty as Christians to try to fix the issue, but I don't think

Rorick at the Nov. 7 City Council meeting said he thinks that local homeless shelters have contributed to the homelessness issue in Hillsdale.

Community volunteers and public officials disagree on whether homelessness in the area is growing. Myers said she thinks the number of homeless people has stayed the same in recent years, and that the warming shelter has not contributed to the problem.

“It has not increased,” Myers said. “That is something that is being said that really irritates me because these people have no idea what they're talking about.”

Myers said she believes the issue has always been present in Hillsdale County,

very irritated with us. It's easy for them to blame us for this, but it's not that it's not our fault. We have just decided to start helping these people.”

City of Hillsdale Police Chief Scott Hephner said he thinks community resources aimed at addressing the issue are attracting homeless people from outside of Hillsdale County.

“When you create services, that word gets around,” Hephner said. “What we found out is other counties then started bringing some of their people over here. That created problems because the people that came here had used up all their services where they were brought here from, and

Hephner said.

Hephner said he thinks an increase in the homeless population has also caused rising crime.

“We have seen an uptick, if you will, in larcenies, shopliftings,” Hephner said. “Sometimes we are able to get there while it's still in progress or find the people right after we left the store.”

The law restricts police officers in their ability to address the issue, according to Hephner. He said court rulings prevent the city from discriminating against people based on “status,” which can include homelessness.

“If you created a law that says, ‘You can't sleep on a park bench, or on a public lawn,’ and arrested a homeless person for

“At this point, I've decided to re-establish my homelessness task force,” Stockford said. “But I want to make sure that it's people that have a vested interest in the community instead of agencies that have a vested interest in homelessness.”

Stockford said he aims to produce better results with a second task force, composed of different members.

“I'm going to try to not have the task force be dominated by bureaucrats who are already dealing with the problem somewhere else,” Stockford said.

Solving the issue of homelessness is complicated, Stockford said.

“It really comes down to what you think the issue is,” he said. “Do you think the issue is that people are homeless in general, or do you think the issue is we have homeless people in the community?”

me? Why is it me?’” she said. “And then you get here and realize it’s all walks of life.”

“While my classmates were competing for coveted interviews with big law firms for summer slots, I called the local Marine Corps office.”

‘Whether you like it or not, they’re here. It’s just our responsibility to take care of them. That’s how I see it.’

Homeless people often walk the streets of downtown Hillsdale. Colman Rowan | Collegian

Andrew Fink graduated from Hillsdale

in 2006.

Courtesy | Facebook

Sheri Ingles designed a hamburger cake.

Courtesy | The Greatest Baker website

Shotgun competes in national championship

By Carly Moran Ad Manager

The Chargers experi enced mixed results at the 2022 National Sporting Clays Championship.

The event was held in San Antonio, Texas, the weekend of Oct. 22, by the National Sporting Clay Association. Other notable schools in attendance in cluded Schreiner Universi ty, Emmanuel College, and Texas A&M.

"Texas weather at the end of October is nice," head coach Jordan Hintz said. "The National Shoot ing Complex is very interesting both in layout and location. It is right off a packed road and in the middle of a bunch of neigh borhoods."

While the team's overall score was lower than aver age at 1146, it allowed for

Shotgun Football

valuable practice.

"Sporting clays has been where we’ve needed the most work," Hintz said. "We don’t have any stu dent-athletes that really specialized in it in high school and it is the most difficult game to train for. It was only the first or sec ond time for any of them at a tournament of that caliber."

Sophomores Gavin Drill and Jonathan Calabrese, both with a C-ranking, fin ished near the top of their class despite team difficul ties. Drill, who is from Elko New Market, Minnesota, scored a 232.

"In San Antonio I defi nitely had some good and bad rounds," Drill said. "One of the sporting clays courses that I did well on was probably the toughest there. My approach and attitude to the difficult

targets helped me perform well."

Calabrese, who is from Reed City, Michigan, scored 229.

"Coaching from Jordan taught me specific tech niques to break difficult targets like the ones thrown at San Antonio," Drill said. "As long as I stuck to my plan, I was able to make the difficult targets much easier."

Other team scores include senior Ida Brown's 231, junior Jessica Strasser's 228, and sophomore Joshua Corbin’s 242.

"This event is the best practice that we can get," Hintz said. "It is an oppor tunity to shoot some tough targets with the highest lev el of sporting clays compet itors and spend time at the facility where we compete at ACUI Nationals."

Women's club soccer reaches playoffs, makes history

By Jacob Beckwith Collegian Freelancer

The women’s club soc cer team will make school history this weekend as they compete in the con ference playoff tournament for the first time ever.

But their journey to reach that milestone has been a long one.

Club president, senior Lydia Barrows, said that from their founding in 2010 to the end of last season, the team had won a total of four games, all of which came in the last three years. In 2016, the club joined the Women's Midwest Collegiate Club Soccer League, and man aged to scrape together their first two wins in the fall of 2019.

“We then lost the 2020 season due to COVID, and we only had 13 girls on the team in 2021,” Barrows said. “2022 was really a huge leap forward.”

That leap forward started with the hiring of new coach and Director of Career Services Ken Koopmans in the spring. His passion and love for the game was clear to the entire club board from the first interview, according to Barrows.

“That’s translated onto the field, and his willing ness to pour his time and effort into the team has really earned our respect,” Barrows said.

Freshman Miriam Ritchey said the team would not have accom plished what it has without him.

“Even though it was his first year coaching, he defi nitely came in with a lot of energy and ideas,” Ritchey said. “His enthusiasm has helped our team reach its full potential.”

Ritchey is one of the 11 freshmen who made this year's leap forward possible, as the club almost doubled in size compared to last fall. With so many new faces, it took a week or two for the team dynamic to take shape.

“It wasn’t long before I realized we have an ex tremely hard-working group of players who are committed to getting bet ter,” Koopmans said.

The team practices three days a week, with games on the weekend, and when Koopmans can’t make a practice, the captains run it for him.

For freshman Sophia Schlegel, that determination to compete at a high level has helped shape the team culture.

“We’ve really grown, both in our relationships, with each other, and in our skills on the field,” Schlegel said.

This growth has made its presence felt in the wins column, as the team com piled a 6-3-1 record this season. For those of you

keeping track at home, that means the club won more games this year than the last 11 years combined.

Ritchey attributed much of this unprecedented success to the club’s leader ship, both from President Barrows and Vice President senior Cate Kelley.

“Lydia and Cate have been such role models in addition to being leaders on the field,” Ritchey said. “Lydia especially has gone out of her way to be avail able for the many freshmen, and we will really miss them next year.”

Koopmans said this sea son can really change what students associate with the club.

“Because we are now building this winning foundation, there are going to be students here who say ‘I want to be a part of a successful program,’” Koopmans said. “They can help to fill the holes left by graduating seniors.”

For now, the club is focused on preparing for Sunday as they take on University of Michigan in the first round. While the matchup is not a favorable one, freshman Moira Glea son is confident.

“They’re just a bigger name with a deeper bench, but we are the stronger team,” Gleason said. “If we really believe in ourselves and play our best game, we can win.”

Chargers fall to late Huskies touchdown

By Christian Peck-Dimit Associate Editor

The Hillsdale Char gers football team gave up 14-straight points to the Michigan Tech Huskies, falling 28-24 in this season’s final home game.

The Chargers led by as many as 10 points in the fourth quarter on Senior Day before back-to-back touchdowns — including a go-ahead 12-yard score with 40 seconds left — gave the Huskies a four-point lead and the win.

“I felt like we played well all around, but coach said it was going to come down to the final drive and whether or not we were able to come through,” sophomore wide receiver Isaac TeSlaa said. “Unfortunately, we came up short offensively and then defensively we also just came up a little short at the end there.”

The loss drops the team to 5-5 overall and leaves one remaining chance to finish the season with a winning record. A fumble late in the third quarter, forced by senior linebackers Zach Urda and returned for a touch down by senior defensive back Julius Graber, stood out in the last game in Frank “Muddy” Waters Stadium for the team’s 12 graduating seniors.

“It was pretty exciting,

I was thinking I was never gonna get an opportunity to score in college,” Graber said. “Zach Urda getting in there and forcing the fumble to start, that’s what made the play possible, I have to give a shoutout to him. He’s one of my roommates too, so we were pretty hyped that we could duo that one.”

TeSlaa’s performance stood out for the Chargers, as he posted six catches for 146 yards and both of the team’s offensive touchdowns.

His stellar game keeps his season-totals on pace with the nation’s best in Division II, ranking fifth in receiving yards with 1177 and tied for fourth in receiving touch downs with 13.

“My goal is just to go out there and do my best every play every game,” TeSlaa said. “So to do that and then get these accomplishments is obviously nice.”

TeSlaa also continues to crack into Charger record books. While still having a game left to play, his season so far has been among the best in program history for a receiver. His game Satur day vaulted him past the legendary Trey Brock’s (‘19) sophomore season in both yards and touchdowns.

TeSlaa’s current season now sits as the fourth best in yards and third in touch downs for any single season in Charger history.

“Isaac’s special,” head coach Keith Otterbien said.

“His ability, I think, that separates him from other receivers that I’ve watched, whether it’s here or else where, is he judges the ball flight and adjusts his path to the ball and can high-point it and anticipate where it’s going to be better than the guys around him.”

Early in the second quar ter, fifth-year quarterback Luke Keller found TeSlaa in bracket coverage on third and 17 for the Chargers’ first score of the game, tying it up at seven-a-piece.

Hillsdale then gave up another touchdown on the next possession before maneuvering into field goal range and cutting its deficit to four points as time expired in the first half.

Both offenses were quiet for much of the third quarter, with the teams combining for four straight punts to open up the second half. With less than three minutes to go in the quarter, however, Urda forced a fumble in the back field, which Graber returned for a 40-yard touchdown.

“Those are lifetime memories,” Otterbein said.

“20 years from now, the wins and losses don’t matter, but some of those specific plays jump out, those are the kind of memories that those guys will always reflect on.”

The Chargers’ offense

then expanded its lead in the opening minutes of the fourth, finishing off a 64-yard drive with a 14-yard one-handed touchdown grab from TeSlaa, who reached back and grabbed a ball thrown behind him for his second score of the game.

Huskies’ receiver Ethan Champley grabbed touch downs on two drives that combined to last just over four minutes, completing a miraculous comeback.

The Chargers will close out their season at Ohio Do minican University against the Panthers at 1 p.m. on Saturday. It will likely mark the final game in a Charger uniform for 12 seniors.

“I felt that especially this year, like we’ve flown through this season, it’s crazy to think that we’re already on our last game on Saturday,” Graber said. “It was definitely a unique experience that we had here, with the spring season and Corona sending us all home my freshman year, and the way we all came back and had a spring practice schedule, and then turn around and play the spring season, it was strange. It definitely left us with dif ferent memories than a lot of other people that have come through this program.”

The 2022-2023 women's club soccer team. Courtesy | Haley s tra C k

Ida Bown poses in San Antonio at the National Sporting Clays Championship.

Courtesy | Ida Browwn

Sophmore Isaac TeSlaa jumps for a pass from senior Luke Keller.

Colleg

Men's Cross Country

Chargers take fourth at conference meet for second straight season

By Alex Deimel Collegian Reporter

The Hillsdale men’s cross country team trav eled to the University of Findlay on Saturday to compete in the G-MAC Conference championship meet at Hillcrest Golf Course.

The Chargers took fourth, right above the Findlay Oilers, thanks to a collegiate-best 8k race run by senior Mark Sprague. In only his fourth race this season, Sprague finished at the 25:05 mark, which left him eighth overall out of 146 runners.

"I'm still surprised with myself that I was able to run like that,” Sprague said. “Competing at that level is a lot of fun, so I am grateful to all my teammates and coach for giving me endless support over the years.”

Sprague’s race earned a first-team All G-MAC honor, which was his first honor in cross country for Hillsdale.

Another Charger award-winner was ju nior Alex Mitchell, who received a second-team All G-MAC honor for his 18th place finish at 25:26. Mitchell was able to improve from his 25th

overall finish from the G-MAC championship meet a year ago.

“G-MAC's was the best our team has performed all season,”

Mitchell said. “We fin ished just behind some teams that are ranked at the top of the region and have national champion ship experience.”

Following behind Mitchell was junior Micah Vanderkooi and senior Isaac Waffle. Both finished at the 25-minute mark. Vanderkooi finished 28th

at the 25:52 mark, while Waffle finished in 25:53 for 29th place. Senior Sean Hoeft’s 26:38 finish helped boost the Chargers over the Oilers and the Tiffin

Dragons, earning 51st overall. Sophomore Don nie McArdle and freshman Nathaniel Osborne were right behind Hoeft. McAr dle finished 53rd overall with a time of 26:49, and Osborne finished 58th in his first ever conference championship at 26:51. Head Coach R.P White was positive regarding the team’s per formance.

“The guys ran tough on a tough day, with 40 mph gusts of wind. We handled adversity better than most,” White said.

“The upperclassmen had strong performances which helped the team finish in the same spot we did last year, despite the fact our conference added regionally ranked Northwood.”

The Chargers’ next meet will be the NCAA DII Midwest Regional in Kenosha, Wisconsin, on Saturday, Nov. 19.

“Finishing as well as we did and still seeing so much room for improvement gives me confidence that at the re gional meet in two weeks we'll give ourselves a shot to qualify for the nation al championship meet,” Mitchell said.

Campus Reacts

Athletes and coaches react to NCAA election-day rule

By Megan Williams Culture Editor

On Tuesday, Nov. 8, the NCAA canceled athletic practices for all Division II teams in an effort to give student-athletes time to vote.

Senior and captain of the men’s tennis team, Tyler Conrad, is the pres ident of the Student-Ath lete Advisory Committee at Hillsdale College. Present on all NCAA col lege campuses, this group represents student-athlete interests to the NCAA.

Conrad explained the SAAC voted last year to cancel practices on elec tion day.

“Some people did believe it could be very difficult for sports that are currently in season to go out, wait in line, and vote,” Conrad said. “If you have classes all morning, all afternoon, and practice in the evening, by the time you get done, the polls are almost closed.”

For students planning to vote in-person, this legislation is supposed to give them the time to drive home and fill out their bal lot. But, Hillsdale College is located in rural Michi gan, and as junior Caroline Holmes described, most student-athletes vote via absentee ballot.

“A considerable

Women's Cross Country

percentage of the stu dent-athletes on this cam pus, and probably most other division II schools, are out of state or live at least two hours away,” Holmes said. “For you to travel home, vote, and drive back in the allotted practice time, that’s not actually feasible.”

Out of the 386 stu dent-athletes at Hillsdale College, about 3% of them live within an hours driv ing distance. Both Holmes and head football coach Keith Otterbein noticed that most athletes use absentee ballots to vote, so they aren’t driving to polls on election day.

“You can’t fix stupid,

and sometimes the NCAA is stupid in what they administer,” Otterbein said. “Most kids don’t go to school in the hometown that they live, so they’re going to do an absentee ballot anyway if they want to vote.”

For teams in the middle of their season or in post season, the cancellation affected practice sched ules and preparations for upcoming games. Holmes described the swim team’s adjustment, especially before their meet against the University of Findlay on Saturday.

“We have two morn ing practices a week, five afternoon practices, and

we lift two times a week,” Holmes said. “With no practice on Tuesday, that affected most of the girls’ morning practice sched ule, so they had to go and try to make up a lift session on their own. With such a big meet this week end, it’s just chaotic, but we adjusted accordingly.”

Assistant women’s basketball coach, Brianna Brennan, described how the decision did not im pact their practice sched ule since they’re in the beginning of their seasons.

“It gives us one less day to prepare for our upcom ing games, but truly is not detrimental to us,” Bren nan said. “It is more likely

to negatively impact fall sports due to those teams preparing for conference tournaments and NCAA tournaments.”

Some fall sports, like the men’s cross country team, decided to continue with practice as normal and have a captains-led run on Tuesday.

“We just ended up orga nizing our own practice,” junior Alex Mitchell said. “The run was an hour, but we had our other warmup and recovery exercises. We had our conference meet last Saturday, so we’ve been recovering the last couple of days.”

Chargers take second in G-MAC championship

By Tracy Wilson Design Editor

Bringing home a victory for Hillsdale, the women’s cross country team took second place at the G-MAC Championship 6k race in Findlay, Ohio, on Nov. 5.

“I think everyone was very focused on the task at hand and everyone ran probably the best they’ve ever run at the conference race,” junior Meg Scheske said. “It felt like everyone went in with a ‘get it done’ mentality.”

Coach R.P. White used a baseball analogy to explain the team’s performance.

“It was a really solid weekend,” White said. “We didn’t hit a grand slam but we didn’t strike out.”

Sophomore Liz Wamsley scored first for Hillsdale, taking second place overall with a time of 21:27.9.

“I think on an individual level and a team level, my teammates and I accom plished what we set out to do,” Wamsley said. “I think because of the constant wind, it was just a huge mental battle the whole time.”

Scheske finished sec ond for Hillsdale and 6th overall with a time of 21:47.

Junior Gwynne Riley fol

lowed close behind, finish ing third for Hillsdale and 8th overall with a time of 21:51.

“Overall, I was happy with my performance,” Riley said. “My goal was to get in the top ten, so I worked to stay in the top pack throughout the race.”

Junior Natalie Martinson had a successful race as well, finishing 4th for Hills dale and 25th overall with a time of 23:07.

“Natalie Martinson ran a really strong race,” White said. “She’s made a lot of strides so far this fall.”

The course itself was very flat, which multiple women said caused them to think they would likely get fast times. On the day of the race, however, extreme winds presented an unex pected challenge.

“The winds were aw ful on the day of the race, about 20-30 mph, so we had spots on the course with the winds at our back, and other spots where the wind was hitting us with its full force,” Riley said. “The wind was a huge factor, but I don’t think any of the girls let that get to them. We still had a job to do — ruin people’s day — and the girls pushed to get it done.”

Scheske said looking

back on the race, she wish es she would have thought more about positioning herself behind nearby runners to avoid the winds’ effects.

“I wish I had stayed on someone and let them take the wind for me during the back segment of the race,” Scheske said.

According to Riley, the wind was strongest during the later portion of the race.

“The last 400m of the race began once you hit a turn, and after this, the wind hit you relentlessly,” Riley said. “I remember feeling exhausted at this point, so it’s at times like this where you question what you’re willing to give for your teammates.”

With the Championship race under their belts, the women will continue their season at the NCAA DII Midwest Regional race in Kenosha, Wisconsin, on Nov. 19.

“The big bulk of the work has been done and now it’s maintenance mode,” White said. “We’re on an upward trajectory.”

Mark Sprague rounds up G-MAC championship 8k.

Courtesy | Alex Mit C hell

Margaret Scheske and Liz Wamsley finished first and second for Hillsdale.

Courtesy | Alex Mit C hell

C harger S port S

Chargers finish regular season first in division

By Isaac Green Assistant Editor

The Hillsdale volleyball team secured first place in the G-MAC North Division last weekend while sweeping player of the week awards for the sec ond time in a row.

The Chargers won two fourset matches at home on Nov. 4 and 5 against the Walsh Uni versity Cavaliers and Malone University Pioneers to close out the 2022 regular season. Along with giving the team the lead in the G-MAC North Division, these wins positioned Hillsdale to enter the 2022 Great Midwest Volleyball Championship in second place, one spot behind the Ashland University Eagles.

The Chargers will play against the seventh seeded Northwood Timberwolves in the first round of the tourna ment.

“Originally we thought we were gonna get Walsh again so the Northwood matchup was just a little bit of a surprise to us, but we're really excited to take on Northwood,” assistant coach Taylor Wiese said. “At Northwood, they took us to five in a very very close match and played us incredibly tough. Since that match, I think we've made some adjustments so it'll be really nice to get them again on Thursday and hopefully get a win.”

Due to her performance in

the Walsh and Malone matches, senior outside hitter Karoline Shelton earned the G-MAC North Division Offensive Player of the Week Award for the fourth time this season. She put together 38 kills between the two matches, 21 of them on Saturday alone, and totalled an impressive .500 hitting percent age in the match against the Pioneers.

“This weekend was full of lots of fun and lots of love,” Shel ton said. “It really feels like all of our levels of play are peaking and we’re all starting to play to the best of our ability.”

Sophomore libero Alli Wiese likewise claimed her fourth G-MAC North Division Defen sive Player of the Week Award on the season, putting together a stunning performance Friday night against the Cavaliers with 40 digs. This tied the Charger’s single-match dig record set by her sister Taylor Wiese in 2019, and with 18 more digs on Satur day, Wiese broke the program’s single season dig record for the second year in a row.

On Saturday the Chargers also celebrated the six graduat ing seniors on this season's ros ter: defensive specialist Audrey Riley; middle hitters Megan Kolp and Linnea Larson; and outside hitters Emily Susitko, Madeline Zenas, and Karoline Shelton.

“Everyone was able to walk with their family, which was

really nice,” Wiese said. “Our first two set lineups had all six seniors in both of those lineups so every senior played almost the whole match which is really nice.We also had our banquet on Sunday so all their families were able to celebrate them, and even though the season isn't over, it was a really good oppor tunity for them to speak about their experience and their career and do a lot of thank yous.”

Friday and Saturday were the last times that these six senior’s would play at home. Wiese said that the Cavaliers came at them strong the first night.

“It was a really good match for us to have to work hard for every single point even though we were at home and proba bly had a little bit of a home advantage with a good crowd,” Wiese said.

The Cavaliers took the first set 30-28 and forced the Charger’s to work from behind. The Charger’s came back strong in the second set though and swept the next three sets 25-16, 25-22, 25-22.

“Coming into this weekend, we all knew that it would be emotional and tough to play, especially for the seniors,” Riley said. “However, the Friday win against Walsh was the match that confirmed our north divi sion title for the G-MAC. We knew we had some work to do, regardless of the emotions.”

The next day the team came

out strong in the first set and took the win 25-16. A 19-25 loss in the second set evened the match score, but the Chargers triumphed in the next two sets 25-20 and 25-12 to close out the season with a win.

“I love my team, family, friends, and I think the biggest part of my thought process this weekend was just proving how grateful I am for this program by performing with aggression and staying confident,” Kolp said. “It was sad to know that it was my last game at home, but I am happy knowing I could end my home career with a good win.”

The Chargers finished the regular season 24-6 overall, 16-2 in-conference, and will play their first match of the 2022 G-MAC today at 12 p.m. in Ashland, Ohio.

“Going into this postseason, I think we are all ready to show what we have been working on all year and are really excited to play against some of the best teams in Division 2 these next couple of weekends,” Shelton said. “None of us are expecting it to be easy, but we are all ready to work as hard as we can to represent our team and school.

I am really looking forward to finishing my last few weeks out with these girls and could not have asked for a better team to end my volleyball career with.”

Basketball Chargers start season 2-0 at Small College Classic

By Christian Peck-Dimit Associate Editor

The Hillsdale Chargers men’s basketball team opened its season with a pair of wins at the 2022 Small College Basketball Hall of Fame Classic in Lakeland, Florida.

Sophomore forward Joe Reuter and senior guard Kyle Goessler made the 2022 SCB HOF All Classic Team as the Chargers took down Dallas Baptist Patriots, 64-57, on Sat urday and Valdosta St. Blazers, 79-65, on Sunday.

The games marked the team’s first true action since playing in Evansville, Indiana, in the program’s first ever NCAA Tournament Elite Eight game. The team’s run to Evansville came one year after making the NCAA Tourna

Campus Rec

ment Sweet Sixteen for the first time in program history.

“A lot of us have played in a lot of meaningful games, so going down there, we were able to build on that experience,” Goessler said. “Obviously it’s a new team, so meshing with all the guys getting used to play ing with each other, it’s been pretty seamless so far, but still a lot of work to do.”

Fresh off of a season where he won G-MAC Freshman of the Year, Reuter wasted no time picking up where he left off. In his first two career starts, he led the team in scoring and rebounding both nights, posting a game-high 17 points and a career-high 10 rebounds on Saturday, along with a career-high 22 points and eight rebounds on Sunday.

“At the end of the year last

“Being in collaboration with SAB was a good way to promote Campus Rec with their reach on cam pus,” Ritchie said. “One day events are less intimi dating than a whole league and can encourage more people to play in leagues.”

Next semester, Campus Rec will introduce new one-time events, accord ing to senior creative team member Liz Oxaal. In Feb ruary, Campus Rec plans to host Winter Wars, an evening of snowball-filled fun and competition.

“Imagine your child hood, neighborhood snowball fight,” Oxaal said. “You’re sledding, throwing chunks of ice, and your soul is on fire for the sport of snow. That’s what we’re replicating with Winter Wars.”

According to Ritchie, the marketing team also keeps students updated on Campus Rec events, such as league standings, through social media.

The marketing team also designed a new logo this year that includes the group's new nickname, ‘The Rec.’

“The old logo is classic, but generic and doesn’t use the space well,” Ritchie said. “By shortening to ‘The Rec,’ we’re more recognizable and now have a nickname like everything else on cam pus. We wanted to keep up with the times and change to something sportier and recognizable to the rest of campus.”

According to Oxaal, the new logo and attempts to reach a wider audience complement each other.

“We're making a new logo and starting to make a new brand for Campus Rec,” Oxaal said. “I think our new events and this new brand go hand-inhand because we're just trying to reach more people and we think that there's lots of untapped in terest to discover through

year, he was playing a lot of minutes as a freshman, getting a lot of really good experience,” Goessler said. “Joe’s the hardest working person I think I’ve ever seen.”

Goessler was the only other Charger to post double-figures in scoring in each of the games, with 16 points on Saturday and 14 on Sunday. He also added three assists and three rebounds against Valdosta St. and shot 5-of-9 from three across the two games.

“He’s one of our best on-ball defenders, he’s a super con sistent scorer, he’s a great guy, I can’t speak enough about him,” Reuter said. “The term we use is quiet killer, because he just doesn’t say anything, just shows up, puts in the work, and you saw it in his perfor mances.”

Fifth-year senior Peter Kalthoff also made the first two appearances in the starting lineup of his career, putting up eight points in each game, shooting more than 60% from the field. He also totalled 12 re bounds and four blocks across the two games.

“Peter Kalthoff in his first time starting had some major blocks and major baskets,” head coach John Tharp said. “Eric Radisevic had a beautiful weekend, did so many things, they had 15 and 11 that first night on Saturday five spot, those two guys made a lot of different plays.”

Senior guards Jack Gohlke and Cole Nau rounded out the starting lineup with solid performances, each recording eight points and four assists on Saturday.

Nau stuffed the stat sheet on Sunday with eight points, eight rebounds, five assists, and a pair of steals on 4-of-7 shooting from the field. Gohl ke wasn’t far behind with 10 points, four assists, and three rebounds to go along with two steals.

According to Tharp, it was his guards’ play on the defensive side of the ball that stood out.

“I thought Kyle and Cole Nau, defensively, against the guards that we saw, were elite,” Tharp said. “Both programs that we faced had two elite guards on the floor, so four total guards, and they did an incredible job of guarding them.”

Hillsdale went deep into its bench during both of its games, with 10 different

doing more open, one day events.”

Most of these recent changes stem from a change in how Campus Rec is classified on cam pus. This year, Campus Rec moved from being under Student Athletics to Student Affairs.

“Last year, administra tion was more hands off,” Oxaal said. “This year, they put Ryan Perkins as our adult supervisor to make things more offi cial and more focused on Campus Rec.”

With an increase in staff and a new advisor, Campus Rec moved into a new building this year to have a designated meeting space and more space for organization, according to Oxaal. They are trans forming the old security building into meeting spaces, offices, and storage space for equipment.

“We’re planning to use this space to meet more as individual teams,” Ox

aal said. “Now we have a space where we can take more time to talk about our vision, expanding, and ways to implement our plans.”

Wertanzl said the Cam

pus Rec community is one of the best parts of the job.

“Working for Campus Rec is awesome because you’re getting paid to ref sports and have a good time with people,” Wer

p.m.

“It’s super exciting after a long road trip, it’s definitely nice being back on our home turf,” Goessler said. “Inter-re gion games are always big, especially early on in the year, they can have a big impact on tournament bids when the end of the year comes around.”

tanzl said. “You can joke around with supervisors and players while still planning cool, creative stuff for the purpose of having fun and promoting fitness.”

Chargers checking into each of the matchups. Freshman guard Ashton Janowski made his first collegiate in-game appearance, recording making his first ever field goal attempt and adding a pair of assists as well. The team now looks ahead to its home opener on Friday at 7

against Wayne State University Warriors.

G-MAC award winners Karoline Shelton and Allie Wiese.

Courtesy | Isabella s heehan

Culture

Choir debuts sacred concert

By Anna MacPhee Collegian Freelancer

The Christ Chap el Choir of Hillsdale performed a requiem of sacred music in honor of All Souls’ Day on Nov. 2. Hundreds of audience members gathered in Christ Chapel to listen to the Hillsdale Chapel Choir’s first concert. The concert consisted of a compilation of sacred music and concluded with “Requiem” by Gabri el Fauré.

“The students have been working really hard to overcome some of the difficulties of this piece,” said Katherine Rick, ad junct instructor of music and the choir’s accompa nist. “While it is beautiful and well-known all over the world, it is certainly challenging.”

The choir dedicated hours of rehearsal to per fecting the performance, sophomore Madeline Scheve said.

“We’ve been working really hard, and we’ve had a lot of extra rehearsals,” Scheve said. “Everyone is so invested in this concert, more than any other concert I’ve ever been a part of. You can tell that everybody really cares, because whenever anybody makes a mis take, they always correct themselves right away.”

The requiem features seven parts. According to Timothy McDonnell, director of sacred mu sic, who conducted the concert, the themes of the requiem are very import ant to All Souls’ Day.

“The requiem is an ancient text, which is tak en completely from the liturgy of the medieval Mass for the dead, so, the premise is really to reflect on mortality,” McDonnell said. “Truly, I find that

some of the most exciting music that’s ever been written is about these concepts. When thinking of great music, people often consider love songs, but there is also a lot of powerful music about

because they are so easy to connect to. Everybody has had family members who have gone on at some point.”

Conner said the choir worked to ensure that every note was beautiful and rich, and the experi ence of singing each song as a choir was incredible.

“It’s almost like biting into a really good piece of chocolate when you’re singing, because the vowels and the notes are so nice,” Conner said. “It’s such a fun experience.”

According to Rick, the setting of the con cert complimented the beauty of the music. The vaulted ceilings and the grandeur of Hillsdale’s Christ Chapel allowed the audience to fully engage with the music.

“The chapel’s beauty and acoustics were a per fect fit for the beautiful and melodic requiem,” Rick said. “The students have really sunk their teeth into the music. They put on a wonderful performance that was well-worth attending.”

At the end of the con cert, the audience rose to a standing ovation. The members of the choir exchanged congratulatory glances as the audience continued to applaud for several minutes.

Comedy & coffee for charity

By Carly Moran Ad Manager

The sound of a man sing ing the lyrics to Lizzo’s “Juice” echoed through the Chi Omega sorority living room before a round of applause. It’s Chi O Coffee House, one of the sorority’s most popular philanthropy events of the semester.

The Nov. 4 event raised money for Make-A-Wish Michigan. JuniorMary Ann Powers, community service director for Chi Omega, led the event.

“We send in the money directly to Make a Wish in Michigan, which is pretty neat, because then we get to follow the specific stories within Michigan of wishes that have been granted,” Powers said. “Before COVID, they would have families from Michigan who were being granted a wish or who had been granted a wish come out to our event and meet and greet with people.”

Besides Chi O Coffee House, the sorority also hosted a car wash earlier in the semester, and a pancake breakfast in the spring.

“I’ve loved having this role,” Powers said. “It’s really helped me grow in many different areas of my life, but especially leadership skills.

One of our Six Purposes is service and it’s something that I think really grounds the house.”

The event featured pastries from Market House and the Jonesville Bakery, while the coffee was homebrewed. There were eight performances total, with five music sets and three comedy routines.

“I had a wonderful time at the Chi O Coffee House,” junior Caleb Holmes said.

“Claire Gaudet had everyone in stitches with her standup and Matthias Rhein delivered a moving rendition of Lizzo’s ‘Juice.’ The event was emceed by Mary Ann Powers—al ways a delight—and I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the coffee. All in all, it was a great success for a great cause.”

Sophomore Jillian Parks and junior Abigail Tizedes performed multiple duets together.

“I went to Chi O Coffee House last year as a fresh man, and that was my first interaction with Chi O,” Parks said. “That was obvi ously a positive experience because I ended up joining Chi O, but it was a really cool full circle moment for me to participate as a sophomore in something I admired as a freshman.”

Parks and Tizedes per formed a variety of songs, with a notable range of genres.

“We started with an acoustic version of ‘Crazy in Love’ by Beyonce, and then we went into ‘Teenage Dirt bag’ by Wheatus. We ended with ‘Ain’t No Mountain High Enough,’” Parks said. Despite the levity of the evening, the money raised goes towards helping chil dren with critical illnesses.

“Chi O has taught me a lot about selflessness, about the purpose to love each other and to help each other grow,” Powers said. “It translates to being a good citizen; I think that carries over after you graduate into any communi ty that you enter into.”

these central aspects of human existence, like death and suffering.”

Junior Stephen Con ner, the baritone soloist for the concert, said the music also included a theme of light.

“I really like these pieces because they just feel like a wave of light,” Conner said. “The words are very significant

Freshman Noah LoBue said he was excited that the audience appreci ated the music on such an important religious day. According to LoBue, the sacred music glori fied God on the perfect occasion.

“The music was perfect for All Souls Day,” LeBue said. “I’m really excited that people saw the chap el choir perform, because the music was sacred and we lifted it all up to the glory of God.”

The 1975 harps on nostalgia

By Kamden Mulder Collegian Reporter

The 1975’s fifth studio album “Being Funny In A Foreign Language” is a lesson in yearning.

Composed of 11 tracks, The 1975 brings old listeners back to when they were first fans, most likely in formative years of their teenhood. Whether it’s chasing after a girl in tracks like “Happiness” or reigniting teenage rebellion in “Part of the Band,” The 1975 expresses the most vulnerable feelings associ ated with being young in a bold yet honest way.

The album might be thematically standard for pop, but the lyricism adds the punch. “Being Funny in a Foreign Language” is a windy road, taking unex pected turns from classic love songs like “I’m In Love With You” to raw and dark musings in “Human Too.”

Both of those songs were written utilizing lyrical repetition, and while they hone in on different human struggles, they both accom

plish their goal through the same stylistic choice.

In the song “Wintering,” the band reveals the com plexities of growing up and coming home to what life once was. The song itself is fast-paced, rattling through different descriptions of people and their quirky qualities. Think of return ing home for Christmas break: dinner with the ex tended family, running into old teachers at the grocery store, or socializing with acquaintances from grade school. The song embraces the home-grown feeling of familiarity paired with the unspoken distance between what life once was, and what it is now.

The 1975 takes an extremely vulnerable approach in this album, releasing a lyrically diverse set list that exudes a chaot ic relatability.

In “Human Too,” lead singer Matt Healy sings, “You know that you’re human too / And darling, that’s what humans do.”

This track feels like someone pleading to a friend, significant other, or

even themselves to remem ber that they are not per fect – but they’re human. And beauty often is fueled by imperfection. Similar to an irrational plea with a friend or family member, “Human Too” repeats the chorus over and over again for a large por tion of the three and a half minute song. The structure and lyrical choices are representative of an actual conversation with someone being irrational and not recognizing their worth.

The repetitive nature of the piece reveals the reckless ness associated with doubt and struggle.

Some songs of “Being Funny in a Foreign Lan guage” meet listeners in the darker spaces of vulnera bility. Others embrace it in a different way: through unabashed love, authentici ty, and risk taking.

The 1975 has managed to make cliché cool again.

“Being Funny in a Foreign Language” is an explo ration of young people’s hearts and struggles, inter woven with nostalgia.

Tower Players retell ‘Our Town’

By Aubrey Gulick Senior Reporter

Seventy-five years ago, The Tower Players presented a classic American tale of life, death, and humanity. This week, they will reproduce Thornton Wilder’s work “Our Town” to pay homage to those first performances.

“Our hope is that it not only honors the original Tower Players, students, and faculty, but that it honors the impulse to make theater at all, and that it honors the fact that busy, busy students still find the time to make a play,” said director and Associate Professor of Theatre Christo pher Matsos.

The Tower Players will present the play five times between Nov. 9 and 13 in Markel Auditorium.

As one of the first plays ever produced by the theatre department, this produc tion has allowed Matsos to research the group’s origins more deeply.

“This gave us a chance to really look through that his tory, which is really moving somehow, and really special,” Matsos said.

That history has inspired the actors to present the work in a unique way: as a theater troupe.

“Our version of it is a theater company coming together to tell this story of our town,” Matsos said.

The audience is guided through the play by the “stage manager,” played by soph omore Fiona Mulley, who

reimagined the role for this production. Typically an om niscient god-like character, Mulley’s version has her own story arc.

“The stage manager is essentially the narrator of the play; she is kind of the guide to the audience and the actors because our concept for the show isn’t just putting on the play,” Mulley said. “It’s as if we’re a theater troupe putting on this play, so there are two layers to it. In our version, the stage manager is as much the director as the narrator.”

The story is presented as a series of portraits of the community.

“It’s the story of two fami lies in the late 1800s growing up in a small town called Grover’s Corners,” said junior AJ Palubinskas. “It tracks their lives, how they inter mingle, how they get along with each other, and how they don’t. How they all end up sticking with each other in the end.”

Written in the early 20th century, the play is unusual, and unlike the overblown productions of its time, this set is simplistic and bare. Wilder even called for many of the props to be panto mimed, Matsos said.

“His hope was that you focus instead on the rela tionships and the characters’ journeys,” he said.

The bare and unadorned nature of the play has been a challenge that the actors have had to overcome.

“One of the major chal lenges of this play is that it’s

big dance numbers or dra matic arguments to keep the audience engaged,” Mulley said. “If we as actors don’t know why we’re doing this play. The audience is definite ly not going to get it right.”

In representing the life of a small-town community at the turn of the century, Wilder’s play illustrates important lessons about human nature and reflects on man’s inability to live in the moment.

“The big lesson of the play that everyone always points to is that, even when we try to value every moment and find what’s special in the minute details of our lives, we always fail,” Matsos said. “And no one, except, as one of the characters says, maybe saints and poets, actually have the ability to catalog and marvel at every moment that makes our lives special.”

Mulley said she finds the message of the play to be hopeful and comforting, especially for busy students concerned about the future.

“I think ‘Our Town’ is saying, ‘Take a deep breath; it’s going to be OK, I promise. Even if you don’t understand everything or end up in a different place than you thought you would be.’ It’s a good thing to think broadly and to want to find answers, but it’s not always possible in the way we think it’s going to be,” she said.

“Our Town” will be shown in Markel Auditorium on Wednesday, Nov. 9 - Satur day, Nov. 12 at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday, Nov. 13 at 2 p.m.

“The chapel’s beauty and acoustics were a perfect fit for the beautiful and melodic requiem,” Katherine Rick said.

“The students have really sunk their teeth into the music. They put on a wonderful performance that was well-worth attending.”

Sophomore Kenda Showalter and junior Jack Leatherwood perform in Markel Auditorium. Courtesy | Chris Matsos

Culture

sdale students showcase body art

over his face, so I trust his

numeral signifying a per sonal date IX/XVI/MMXI is on his chest.

Tong admitted he felt like the personal signifi cance of his tattoos might be lessened by openly sharing their artwork.

“I feel like it has more meaning when you don’t just show them,” Tong said.

Despite this, Tong opened up about the nottoo-painful process of getting a tattoo.

A local student from Coldwater, Michigan, Tong has now gotten all of his tattoos in Hillsdale after he first reached out to his step-uncle, who used to be a tattoo artist.

“He’s super passionate about it, but he was out of practice, so he recom

ally called ‘guinea pigs,’ get

Although he was initially worried since a new artist inked his first tattoo, Tong said he now often gets positive feedback.

“Usually, it’s like, ‘oh that’s cool, where’d you get it?’” Tong said.

Sophomore Ross Kuhn said the feedback he hears about his two tattoos usually depends on people’s backgrounds.

“I have gotten mixed re views on them,” Kuhn said. “Some people like them and some people don’t, I think it just depends on the person and if they are used to seeing them or not.”

Kuhn, who has a large black-and-white snake

tattoo twisted around a sword on his rib cage, and a large cross nestled in a bright, red rose on his leg, said he decided to get them mostly because he thought they were cool, and be cause he was inspired by his dad.

“I decided to get them just because I like them,” Kuhn said.“My dad has tattoos so I grew up seeing them all the time and I just think they look good if they are done correctly.”

Student bands prepare for war

Battle of the bands returns this Friday evening

By Jane Kitchen Collegian Reporter

On Friday, Nov. 11, six student bands will compete in Battle of the Bands, an annual event organized by musical fra ternity Phi Mu Alpha.

This year’s event, host ed at 55 Below, will feature the following bands: Sean Connery Jr., Diet of Worms, James Bulleit & The Dirty Blondes, Schizmatics, The Drunk Uncles, and Half House.

Junior Avery Mill er, president of Phi Mu Alpha, said he has high hopes for this year’s com petition.

“We had a great turn out last year, and everyone seemed to be having a ton of fun,” Miller said. “Each year, I look forward to hearing all the different student bands because ev ery year they change, and

they seem to be getting more and more entertain ing as the years go on.”

Miller said he hopes to see a few hundred stu dents attend the event.

The competition is judged by a panel of three faculty members and a popularity vote that gives students the opportunity to rank each band.

This year, the faculty panel includes Professor of Economics Ivan Pon gracic, Associate Professor of Theology Jordan Wales, and counselor Dustin Flores.

“This event is very different from anything you will experience on campus, so I encourage everyone to come and have fun with some live music,” Miller said.

Sophomore Stephen Berntson, lead singer of The Drunk Uncles, said

he looks forward to the competition, which will be his band’s first big event.

“I attended Battle of the Bands last year, and it was one of my favorite nights of the semester,“ Berntson said. “I’m super excited to participate this year because it seems like there’s going to be a good turnout, and we have great bands on the lineup.”

Berntson said that the event is a great opportuni ty for new bands.

“I’m excited to see new people contributing to Battle of the Bands, espe cially freshmen. You need to have new bands every year because that’s how they get their name out,” Berntson said.

The event starts at 8 p.m., and each band will play for 40 minutes.

Tickets are $3 pre-sale and $5 at the door.

Khun said the only thing he might change is getting his sword and snake tattoo in color, but expressed sat isfaction over all.

“So, like most con servative Christian kids, I grew up thinking that tattoos weren’t exactly the greatest idea,” Figario said.

“My mother would say something like, ‘I’d never get a tattoo, what if I got something like a butterfly and then grew to not like butterflies later.

I’d hate to have it permanently on my body.’”

Figario said even though this influ enced her decision to place her first tattoo, a simple Orthodox cross, on the back of her left middle finger to reduce visibility, she wanted a permanent reminder of her faith.

hesitant about it being a cross. He wasn’t a particu larly religious fellow, so I don’t blame him.”

Figario said she also decided to get a tattoo of two interlaced sprigs of lavender because of her fond association with the flower.

“I got lavender because it was my mom’s favorite flower, so when I would walk home from school with my dad, I would pick it from a bush we passed by to give to her,” Figario said. “I also made my wedding this last summer lavender-themed, so all

“I still like how it is,” Kuhn said. “I also plan on getting more, probably some more leg pieces and maybe a chest piece as well.”

According to junior Sophia Figario, her mom inspired her choice of tattoos even as she initial ly discouraged her from getting one.

constant reminder,” Figario said. “I chose the placement of it to be in an easily visible place for me, but not necessarily other people.”

The only person who ended up giving her neg ative feedback about her first tattoo was the artist himself, Figario said. “He made sure to warn me that the placement was potentially harmful to my job options,” Figario said. “He was also especially

Harry James Orchestra takes Searle Center by storm

By Moira Gleason Collegian Freelancer

Or

Nov. 5.

The orchestra special izes in jazz and big band music from the early 20th century. Radke has di rected the Harry James Or chestra since 1989, a year after trumpet player and composer Harry James’s death.

“It’s a pleasure to occu py the place that the great Harry James once occu pied for 40 years,” Radke said.

The orchestra compet ed against the college’s Big Band on Nov. 4 in the second annual Battle of the Bands.

The orchestra played some of the material from the Battle of the Bands, as well as some new material including Harold Arlen’s “That Old Black Magic,” Phil Boutelje and Dick Winfree’s “China Boy,” Mark Gordon’s “You’ll

Never Know,” and Henry Mancini’s “Moon River.”

About 400 students and friends of the college were pres ent, according to sophomore and music department employee Sophie Webster.

“It was nice to see a lot of people from the music depart ment in attendance,” Webster said. “All of the jazz instrumen talists were there, but it was nice to see support from the rest of the faculty as well.”

As the orches tra began to play, students began to do swing dance to the energetic music, including Lindy Hop, Charleston, and hustle styles of swing.

“I really appreciate being able to meet people and have social dances as a part of my college experi ence,” freshman Alba Blan co Padrón said. “It was

also cool to see professors and their wives dancing.”

Padrón says that the

swing in the lobby and Searle Center, including Charis and the Valley Cats,

ter

“I really enjoyed the Harry James Orchestra, but the

“Charis was great, and I enjoyed danc ing to the music.”

Webster says that the professionalism of the Harry James Orchestra is notice able.

“They have such a high caliber of performance as musicians,” Webster said. “The Harry James Orchestra cares about their craft and the musi cians have a really high quality.”

“Fred Radke let loose and flexed on all of us with his trumpet,” sophomore Jacob Schulz said. Webster said that she particularly liked when the orchestra played a song with sentimental value to the musicians.

“I loved ‘You’ll Never Know,’ and the fact that Fred Radke talked about how the orchestra made the song famous during the second world war,” Webster said.

Padrón also said that she enjoyed the stories, but that the music catered towards dancers.

“I liked the orchestra’s personal stories about what the pieces they played meant to them,” Padrón said.

Students also enjoyed the return to music from the 20th century, said senior John Gleason.

dance floor was packed with people.

Students also danced prior to the concert, during which student ensembles played jazz and

Charis and the Valley Cats is a student-run en

The orchestra blended well together, but sophomore Jacob Schulz said he enjoyed listening to Fred Radke’s features within the music.

“This was the best event I’ve attended during all of my time here, and I’m a senior,” Gleason said.

“Please, SAB, ditch the cover band and bring in jazz for student dances!”

The Harry James

chestra, directed by Fred Radke, had its fourth annual performance at the Searle Center on

semble that features Charis Linton on the guitar, Vicky Brown on the bass, Matt Bryne on piano, and Car

Floering on the saxo phone. Christ McCourry is the drummer and the group’s faculty director.

set bands were a lot of fun,” sophomore Natalie Parker said.

Joe at Outlaw Tattoos here

Harry James Orchestra plays jazz. Jack Cote | Collegian

Phi Mu Alpha hosts another Battle of the Bands at 55 Below.

Courtesy | Avery Miller

Sophia Figario (left) and Ross Kuhn (right) display their tattoos.

Courtesy | Sophia Figario & Ross Kuhn

FEATURES

Moore Group shares a perspective on hiring alumni

By Caroline Kurt Collegian Freelancer

Graduates from Hillsdale’s class of 2021 have found suc cess at companies and organi zations like the Mayo Clinic, The Wall Street Journal, and the U.S. Senate, not to mention Amazon, Goldman Sachs, and Fox. But what is it about the alumni of a small liberal arts college in rural Michigan stand out so much to employers?

Bill Moore has special in sight into this trend. Co-found er of the Moore Group, a for-profit fundraising firm that owns 42 smaller companies and employs 4,500 people, Moore has hired 16 Hillsdale alumni in recent years, and is in the process of hiring several more.

Freshman yo-yos his way to TikTok fame

By Nathan Stanish Collegian Reporter

Many TikTok stars stick to dancing and lip-syncing, but freshman Gavin Hubner has found his niche on the plat form: yo-yoing.

Hubner has more than 80,000 followers on TikTok, where he regularly posts short videos performing yo-yo tricks to the beats of different songs.

“I started the account in April, but I only really started making good videos around June,” Hubner said.

Followers often request that Hubner yo-yo to their favorite tunesshare their delight at his displays of talent.

“Can you yo-yo to ‘Enemy’ by Imagine Dragons?” one commenter asked. Another simply wrote, “WOW.”

Hubner started yo-yoing in 5th grade, after a friend brought a yo-yo to school.

“I hadn’t seen yo-yoing before, so that night I went to the toy store and got one, and I haven’t put it down since,” Hubner said.

Right away, Hubner began entering yo-yo competitions.

“I started competing the first year I got into it, at the 2016 Mideast Regional Contest in Detroit,” Hubner said. “At the time, I thought I was super good, but I went to that contest and got second-to-last.”

Even though he didn’t come out on top, his first taste of competition left him wanting more.

“The contest opened my eyes to see that there’s so much more you can do with a yo-yo that I hadn’t seen yet,” Hubner said. “That inspired me to compete more, and I’ve competed in contests across the country since then.”

At his most recent compe tition, the U.S. National Yo-Yo Contest, Hubner placed fourth in the single-hand string trick category.

“Nationals was crazy, be cause it was the first time in my life that all these people I had seen growing up were in one place,” Hubner said. “Between now and the time I graduate from college, I would like to win nationals.”

For Hubner, making friends at competitions is one of the best parts of yo-yoing. He reg ularly reunites with his fellow yo-yoers.

“I had an epiphany after watching a bunch of guys who could yo-yo do really well online, and I met a lot of these guys at the contest,” Hubner said. “So I asked, ‘Can you help me out?’”

Some of those friends helped Hubner with his Tik Tok account.

“That was my project over the summer,” Hubner said.

“I developed my own style of video using their advice.”

Hubner’s roommate, freshman Owen Johnson, gets all his yo-yo know-how from Hubner.

“I’ve had a lot of fun learn ing about the whole culture around yo-yoing,” Johnson said. “It’s a whole world I didn’t know anything about. Gavin even taught us yo-yo tricks.”

Johnson has also watched some of Hubner’s TikTok videos.

“I think it’s crazy that he has that kind of following from it. It’s awesome,” Johnson said.

Hubner found that there’s more to yo-yoing on TikTok than he initially thought.

“It’s not just getting up in front of a camera and doing tricks,” Hubner said. “You have to introduce to people why the tricks are hard and why you’re doing them, and explain it con cisely enough that they’ll want to watch the video instead of swipe past it.”

But Hubner’s favorite part of yo-yoing is not performing or competing, but teaching.

“I street-perform back in Grand Haven, and seeing kids come up to me with a yo-yo from the toy store asking me to teach them a trick is the best thing ever,” Hubner said.

“I worked at that toy store this summer and all I did was teach kids how to yo-yo. That was

the best.”

Hubner tries to use his Tik Tok account to teach as well.

“I am trying to make tutorials online now with my TikTok account, and honestly, just sharing it is the best part,” Hubner said. “Competing is great, but it isn’t everything.”

As a student at Hillsdale, Hubner appreciates the op portunity to be more than a yo-yoer.

“In high school, yo-yoing was my personality, and I really didn’t like that,” Hubner said. “Part of what attracted me to Hillsdale is that you’re looking at somebody as a person, not just their occupation or some skillset they have.”

When Hubner was looking at different schools, that focus on the person stood out to him.

“University of Michigan was my other choice. The small Christian private school did not really fit my personality at the time,” Hubner said. “But you walk on campus and there’s something different about this place, I had to ask myself, ‘What kind of person do you want to be at the end of college?’”

During homecoming week, Hubner put his yo-yo skills to use in the Simpson mock rock.

“I was more nervous to do mock rock than I was to com pete at nationals,” Hubner said.

“I’ve never ever found any candidate from Hillsdale that I haven’t offered a position to,” he said.

Moore has been continually impressed by the quality of his Hillsdale hires.

“One of the things that I’ve found about Hillsdale students versus other ones is that they’re hard workers, and of course smart,” he said. “But you can have smart people that don’t know how to communicate. And this is true of every one of them — even the math majors, and that surprised me.”

Some of his hires include Alexandra Whitford ’17, Account Executive for Direct Donor TV and Aidan Wheel er ’21, Associate Director of Business Development for SimioCloud.

Wheeler appreciates the commonalities between the environment at Moore and at Hillsdale.

“At Moore, I found an enterprise filled with talented and hard-working profes sionals that remind me of the professors and students I met at Hillsdale,” he said. “I work in a challenging and fulfilling role servicing some of the country’s largest non-profits and political organizations.”

Whitford described her role as allowing her to “mar ry passion with purpose and create lasting impact through our clients and their missions,” something she felt her educa tion prepared her for well.

The first Hillsdale graduate Moore hired was Macy Mount ’18, who graduated with a

politics degree. She served in the Trump administration as a speechwriter for the president and now works for Resource One, a Moore Group compa ny, doing nonprofit work for groups like Wounded War riors Project, Young America’s Foundation, and American Red Cross.

Mount said she appreciates the way her role at Resource One of account executive and business development director aligns with the same values she learned at Hillsdale.

“I wanted a mission-ori ented job that built up my strengths, challenged me, and put me in a position to help nonprofits do life-changing work,” she said.

Mount cites work ethic as something that translates well from the Hillsdale campus, where students juggle rigorous academics, social life, and a multitude of extracurriculars, to a corporate environment.

“Hillsdale students go the extra mile, take initiative, and are looking for needs that must be met and ways to meet them.”

Hillsdale graduates also possess a unique talent for listening. Mount says her boss Moore often remarks that, “You guys just know how to instantly make eye contact. You don’t try to talk over anyone and you don’t need to be told anything twice.”

Mount said Hillsdale grad uates’ mature communication skills extend from solid writing skills to hopping on phone calls to describe ideas accurately and clearly.

“It was exciting for me to join an industry that was new to me,” Mount said. “I think that the love of learning that’s cultivated at Hillsdale translates really, really well even into the private sector business world. We take that love of learning and apply it to every aspect. The camaraderie and spirit of the Hillsdale community, and the deep friendships fostered in such an environment, grow this love of learning.”

Moore is always on the lookout for impressive candi dates to work in his company and in the broader non-profit field.

“We do need future leaders, and a lot of them are going to be from Hillsdale,” Moore said.

You can’t live with them or go to college without them

By Michaela Estruth Assistant Editor

There are a lot of things students can bring to col lege to make it feel more like home: bedding, clothes, decor, food, books. Some people even bring their parents.

“Having my parents move to Hillsdale during my fresh man year was definitely some thing I never thought would happen, but I wouldn’t trade it for the world,” junior Caitie Dugan said. “It’s definitely a challenge that my parents are around all the time because I want to spend time with them more than I want to do homework, but it’s always so fun when I get to go over for dinner or to watch Michigan games.”

Despite the typical de sire for independence and distance from home, some Hillsdale students find them selves near their parents and families. Senior Gretchen Birzer said the adjustment between college and home life

was challenging at first, but now, she appreciates being close to home to be present in her younger siblings’ lives. Birzer’s parents, Brad and Deirdre Birzer, are a history professor and a lecturer in history, respectively.

“I like that I can have independence in college like everyone else but still have the option of seeing my family,” Birzer said.

Sophomore Raegan Coup land’s family lives in town, and her father, Daniel Coupland, is professor and chairman of the education department. She said it was tempting to go home often as a freshman, but she has learned to balance that with life on-campus.

“Even though they are a few minutes away, they are far enough to where I can still have the college experience,” Coupland said.

Coupland said she is thankful to be able to go home if needed when she is sick and to be able to stay involved in family activities.

“I think one of my favorite parts of living close to home is being able to have Sunday brunch with my family after church,” Coupland said. “It’s a time to reset and something I can look forward to after a long or stressful week.”

Birzer said she enjoys visiting her family and the conversations they share.

“I go home for a meal about once a week, which I think is equivalent to what most other students do when they call home,” Birzer said. “It makes more sense for me to go see them since I can.”

Birzer said she even some times runs into her parents and family around Hillsdale. While most peers do not ex perience this surprise, Birzer said she has adjusted well.

“I’d say my experience is different, but not necessarily in any drastic way,” Birzer said. “Having them nearby has had its challenges, just as living far away from them would.”

Dugan said she loves shar

ing daily occurrences with her parents and appreciates that her college memories include such depth and growth with her parents as well.

“My college experience is definitely different than most but in the best way possible,” Dugan said. “They know all my friends, which is really fun, and they’re around when ever I need to go home.”

Dugan shares the high lights of the semester and the usual qualms of the day with her parents. She recalled celebrating New Dorm’s Mock Rock victory not only with her residents but also with her parents who came to support her that night. Dugan also pops in to surprise her mom and tell a funny story from class or the dining hall.

“My mom and I have a standing coffee date on Tues day mornings,” Dugan said.

“During the busy weeks of the semester, it’s nice to know that I have at least one time during the week that I can see my mom.”

Students with parents and siblings in town and on campus relate their unique Hillsdale experience

Freshman Gavin Hubner displays his yo-yo skills in competition.

Courtesy | Gavin Hubner

Gretchen Birzer hugs her younger brother Harry.

Courtesy | Gretchen Birzer

‘Haunted’ house writes in to dispel rumors FEATURES

Dear Reader,

Junior Elizabeth Craw ford’s story “Students share creepy corners of campus” in the Oct. 27 edition painted an eerie portrait that makes me think that I – that big house on Manning Street across from College Baptist Church – have been mis understood. Rumors of my haunting, to misquote Twain, are greatly exaggerated.

Crawford’s account starts with junior Joey Spoelstra’s fear of the “giggling children” he claims he heard running up and down one of my stair cases after dark. Why child ish laughter should frighten Spoelstra may be a question for Director of Health and Wellness Brock Lutz and his staff at the Health Center Whatever Spoelstra thinks he heard that night alone prob ably says more about him than me — especially since he, a junior Delta Tau Delta, knows full well that his Gre co-pagan brothers routinely left my windows open and practically invited the bats,

feral cats, racoons, and all the other woodland creatures in for the night. But spectral children came to play on my stairs and tried to kill him in his sleep. As they do.

Then junior Liam Martin alleges that I have “quite the history with paranormal activity,” though he never actually cites any. Is that how we do history here since Doc Conner retired? And senior Charles Kippley remembers seeing “strange markers dotting the floor and walls” of my basement. Seeing spots may be nothing, or it may signal a severe retinal condi tion. Hard to say. But Kip pley goes on to accuse me of being a “very open-concept house” with “a lot of doors but very few walls.” Either Kippley is unfamiliar with the “open-concept” concept, or Joanna Gaines has some explaining to do.

Perhaps Spoelstra, Kip pley, and other students have looked “upon the scene before them — upon the mere house, and the simple landscape features of the

domain — upon the bleak walls — upon the vacant eyelike windows” with an “utter depression of soul.” But I’m no House of Usher.

I am not a house divided or a house possessed. My

don’t know.” I’m a Victorian Italian Villa or Italianate, an architectural crossover from England that had largely run its course here before the ’90s. And my handsome square-jawed foundation

spired rituals and sopho mores still scared of the dark, I belonged to Dr. Daniel York, a biology professor who poured neighbors a beer at the brass-railed bar he kept in my brick summer kitchen. He blessed my lintels with the epiphanic equation: 20 + K + M + B + 06, which, as everyone knows, loosely translates: “I know what you did last summer.” Before the professor, the Slovacek family broke bread here in what was once my drawing room but became my kitschy kitchen with thick layers of avocado linoleum, Formica coun tertops, and a surprisingly useless utensil drawer that won’t open without opening the oven first.

conveniently, if conspicuous ly, converted into a toilet. My front rooms on both floors boast 11-foot ceilings and 12-inch baseboards. The back rooms don’t; those were for servants. The front bedrooms perch aloft a spiral stair and octagonal banister the Delts thoughtfully spared, while the back bedrooms (servants’ quarters, really) are reached by a cock-eyed staircase that may or may not have en tertained some murderous toddlers.

cellar should be stocked with Chateau D’Yquem.

But even the county tax records have me all wrong. They list my date of birth as “circa 1890,” Dutch for “We

QUICK HITS: James Webb

By Meghan Schultz Features Editor

In this quick hits inter view, Associate Professor of Accounting James Webb talks ACDC, film noir, and advice for people who hate math. Webb joined the Hillsdale College faculty after teaching accounting and business at the University of Califor nia-Berkeley.

If you had to have one song playing in the back of your head forever, what would it be?

ACDC’s “Thunderstruck.”

Would you rather travel in space or time? Time.

If you could insert your self into any movie or book, which one would you pick?

I’d be the Count of Monte Cristo. He has this traumatic event in his younger life, goes through a challenge, ends up in a wonderful place, rich with a good woman, and is restored through the journey. That’s really cool.

What’s a piece of advice that changed your life?

You need to decide wheth er you want to rule the world or have your summers off.

If you became monarch of the US, what’s the first law you would pass?

A law that there would be no future monarchs.

What were some of the changes that you noticed between Berkeley and Hills dale?

Ideological differences, obviously. Significantly less crime. I used to get an email once a day about a burglary or assault or something. Students are happier and well-adjusted. They’re more respectful. So all positive things.

If you could have a useless superpower, what would it be?

Well, I’m gonna have to ponder that a bit. I think I would have casual conver sations with the deer on my property.

What is one of your favor ite memories from your time at Hillsdale so far?

I was really thankful to be a part of the freshman convocation. That was a really cool event to be a partner in something where we have such a valuable mission. That’s one of the first things that you do as a new faculty is kind of participate in that and just go see these 18-year-olds that roll in – they don’t know anything – and turn them into seniors.

What’s the worst book you’ve ever read?

“The 48 Laws of Power.” Usually, if I have a bad book I toss it out.

What did you want to be when you grew up?

I wanted to be a basketball coach until I was a junior in high school. And then I took my first accounting class and I said, “This is awesome.” And from that point forward since I’ve been 16, I wanted to be in accounting.

What’s awesome about accounting?

Basically, bringing order to decision-making about life and business is pretty cool. It’s a structured way to bring or der out of chaos in the world. So if you’re a person who likes putting puzzles together, then usually that jives pretty well with you.

What genre of movies would you eliminate from media?

Maybe obscure science fiction that is not even close to possible. Or film noir – I don’t like that either.

What’s your advice for people who hate math?

Give it a try. But if it’s not your thing, there are other things you can do.

stones are practically identi cal to the ecumenical foun dation across the street with the 1867 cornerstone. That’s more like it.

Before hosting pagan-in

I still have a formal parlor and dining room, but once upon a better time, gentle men retired to my drawing room for cigars and brandy to read from Longfellow or regale me with stories of General Grant. (Now, I hear The Jungle). Servants would serve supper through the passageway that someone

This summer, as Crawford rightly notes, I was sold –again. Bought with a price. Some might say redeemed and called unto a higher purpose to make Manning great again. Stop by and say hello. Come in for cocoa and a scone. You can call on me and mine anytime, but please don’t call me haunted.

Sincerely, Whitchester, that big creepy house on the corner of Fayette and Manning

Radio hosts election watch party

By Victoria Wagner Collegian Reporter

Election season is full of debates and discussions that culminate on the second Tuesday in November: elec tion day. Hillsdale students gathered to watch results come through in real time.

Radio Free Hillsdale 101.7 FM hosted an election night watch party in the Searle Center and broadcast election results live. Different students involved in politics spoke on topics from ballot proposals to gubernatorial races and gave listeners the results as they came in.

“I’ve never been in a place where they’re recording for a radio station,” freshman Anne Love said. “It is very cool to see my friend Mattie Grace Watson up there.”

With NBC news on the big screen, students had the opportunity to listen to and gain a variety of inputs on the results as they came in. Listening to WRFH, read ing websites like the New

York Times on their com puters, and watching NBC on the projector created an atmosphere buzzing with excitement and information.

Students discussed results with one another as they came in live.

“I like spreading the truth and getting information out to people so they can make decisions based on facts rath er than just opinions,” junior Faith Roys said.

Every 10 or so minutes, different students and pro fessors spoke about different topics, giving many students airtime to discuss results and present their predictions.

“Whether you’re Demo crat, Republican, or neither, whether you specialize in economics, history, or poli tics, you can put your opin ion out there and broaden everyone’s view of different topics,” Roys said.

College Democrats President Avery Noel spoke in several segments of the broadcast and gave listeners a more liberal point of view on

topics like Michigan’s three proposals and Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.

“I think it’s really import ant, especially here, where it’s so conservative and almost far-right to have these di verse opinions, to actually get the perspective that you’re not going to get in Hillsdale,” Noel said.

Roys agreed with Noel.

“It’s good to have opinions from every side, every angle, and I think that talking makes us less divided,” Roys said. “Rather than just point ing fingers, everybody can have a discussion and maybe make some progress some where.”

Student broadcasters shared their knowledge for listeners to hear and make decisions on.

“It’s made me a better citizen, frankly, to hold these opposing viewpoints that are so prevalent,” Noel said.

“You can call on me and mine anytime, but please don’t call me haunted.”

The old Delta Tau Delta house, previously described

as ‘haunted,’ pens a reply to defend itself against eerie accusations

Webb smiles with his two children.

Courtesy | James Webb

Students and professors gathered to watch election results roll in. Jack Cote | Collegian