GRAND VALLEY
A L L E N D A L E & G R A N D R A P I DS , M I C H I G A N ST U D E N T- R U N P U B L I C A T I O N S // P R I N T · O N L I N E · M O B I L E // L A N T H O R N . C O M
M O N D A Y, M A R C H 1 9, 2 0 1 8 // VO L . 52 N O. 5 0
POLICY
Senate discusses dean of students search, gun safety resolution BY SARAH HOLLIS SHOLLIS@LANTHORN.COM
Despite student senate elections getting closer every day, and only three general assemblies left for the current student senate body at Grand Valley State University, the senators are still working hard on projects to improve the campus environment for students. During the general assembly Thursday, March 15, senate discussed the ongoing search for a new dean of students at GVSU, voted to pass a resolution in support of two bills regarding gun safety that are currently in the Michigan House of Representatives and invited the Title IX coordinator to speak with them. The search for a dean of students at GVSU has been progressing for several months now, and in the first week of April, students might be able to catch a glimpse of a few of the candidates during their on-campus visits. “Currently, we have only an acting dean of students, Dr. (Stephen) Glass. We have been doing a search for the past few months,” said Jonathan Bowman, student senate president. “A few weeks ago, we went through resumes for a bunch of different candidates that had applied for the position, and we selected a few of our top candidates that we liked and wanted to see in person. “So, we met them for our interviews off campus on Tuesday and Wednesday of this week. We got to interview them all and were able to give our recommendations of our thoughts on each of the candidates to the provost, and the provost is choosing three to four candidates to come and do on-campus visits. That will be happening in the first week of April.” By a secret ballot vote of 39 for, two against and one abstaining, the senate body approved a resolution written by two senators that will support two gun safety bills currently in the Michigan House of Representatives. SEE SENATE | A2
SHAPE: GVSU alumnus Matt Maletich emcees the TEDxGVSU event Friday, March 16. With its ‘Shape’ theme, the event featured several speakers, including GVSU alumni, professors and Grand Rapids community members, who discussed various topics. GVL | MATT READ
TEDxGVSU event delivers lessons on shape, identity BY RACHEL MATUSZEWSKI RMATUSZEWSKI@LANTHORN.COM
T
he DeVos Center Loosemore Auditorium was packed with intelligent energy Friday, March 16, for TEDxGVSU’s independently organized TEDx event, which gave Grand Rapids employees and GVSU professors and graduates a chance to share their ideas worth spreading. The night’s theme was “Shape.” Talks were broken into topics regarding impressions, identity and impact to pose the questions, “What impressions have your experiences left you with? How have they shaped you? What shape does your identity hold? How can
you impact and shape society?” GVSU alumnus Matt Maletich emceed the evening. Among those challenging the audience to explore impressions were GVSU math professor Robert Talbert, author and speaker Thad Cummings, and teacher and standup comedian Catye Palomino. Cummings discussed how today’s society does not measure your success by your level of happiness. Instead, success is defined based on the size of your house, the car parked in your driveway or the amount of money you make working. “The American lifestyle comes with a fair amount of societal pressure and performance
stress that says if you are not growing, building or achieving, you are in fact failing, lazy or incompetent,” Cummings said. Cummings’ own success story began in college after he got lucky with his business. He rode the high as his multiplying businesses grew to secure him his own nonprofit, social programs, a six-figure income and a seven-figure net worth. But by 2016, it was gone. Yet, his joy was much greater in this low than when he had it all. “What if the goal was to laugh more and have a bit less stress?” Cummings said. “To worry about ourselves a bit less and to care for others more? What if we took time to engage the interconnect-
OPPORTUNITIES
Design Thinking Academy searching for applicants BY DEVIN DELY DDELY@LANTHORN.COM
Grand Valley State University’s Design Thinking Academy is looking for applicants for the fall semester. The academy, headed by director John Berry, is looking to accept 20 new members, and at less than a year old, it has already attracted the interest of
many students. “The idea of an academy came about to see if there was interest in students who wanted to know enough about design thinking to go through the academy and meet all the requirements,” Berry said. “It is cross-curricular, so it’s not for credit, but it’s really good on your resume. It provides a set of experiences that are somewhat unique.
“There is no other undergraduate-focused design thinking academy anywhere in the U.S. There’s a graduate-level program at Stanford called the ‘d.school,’ which is also not for credit, but the students that get accepted, I will tell you: Companies vie for them when they are coming out of school.” The Design Thinking Academy has been in the making for
FUTURE: The Connection on Sunday, March 18. A section of the Connection’s second floor was converted to a workspace and offices for the Design Thinking Academy, which is seeking applicants for the 2018-19 academic year. GVL | EMILY FRYE
quite some time and is just beginning to take shape. Recently, a portion of the second level of the Connection was converted into a workspace and offices for the academy. According to Berry, through its surging popularity he learned that a semesterlong commitment is not enough for participants to fully experience all that the program has to offer. So, beginning in the fall, being a part of the academy will be a year-long affair. “The genesis of design thinking at Grand Valley was to help build experiences for students of any major to have an understanding of this collaborative process to help them be more employable when they graduate,” Berry said. “Businesses and organizations are looking for people who can function as a collaborative team and be more innovative, to be able to discover problems and then be able to solve them in a collective way.” The program involves teams of students working closely with organizations, under the guidance of a faculty coach, to address real-world problems. Along the way, students learn skills in such areas as improvisation, storytelling and professional design—all to address professional and everyday problems from a new perspective. SEE DESIGN | A2
edness of our communities, not the monopolistic agendas of our own pride and egos?” Palomino’s struggle with boredom in school inspired her to teach. After years of getting students interested by being interesting, she found herself labeled as a veteran teacher, and her passion was lost. She spoke of being fully present, being able to live in the moment. “All of us at some point get in a rut,” Palomino said. “It’s easy to get caught up in the work part of our jobs instead of the joy of the actual career. Sometimes we have to be dramatic of reminding SEE SHAPE | A2
GOVERNANCE
Karen Ingle to assume associate VP of facilities planning role BY JAMES KILBORN JKILBORN@LANTHORN.COM
Grand Valley State University will have a new head of facilities starting next month. With the announcement of former head of facilities James Moyer’s retirement, Karen Ingle will fill the position of associate vice president for facilities planning Sunday, April 1, and will be tasked with continuing the university’s commitment to sustainable development and efficient stewardship of campuses resources. Ingle’s appointment comes at a time of change on campus, as increasing enrollment creates demand for additional buildings and facilities on campus. When Ingle arrived at GVSU in 1996, total university enrollment was 14,662. Today, that number has risen to more than 25,000, and the facilities department is tasked with creating a campus that can accommodate the influx of students. “When I started in 1996, the Life Sciences building had just been completed,” Ingle said via email. “The Eberhard Center was the only GVSU building downtown, and there was no development in Muskegon or Holland. The university was experiencing a tremendous growth in enrollment, so there was a great demand for new programs and classroom space, offices and housing. SEE INGLE | A2