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Expanding the mind GV BASEBALL TEAM DISAPPOINTED WITH SPLIT IN DETROIT
| EMILY FRYE
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STUDENT EMPLOYEES RECOGNIZED DURING APPRECIATION WEEK SEE A3
EDUCATING CAMPUS: Kate Remlinger speaks to students on Thursday for one of the Teach-In sessions. This is the second year the Teach-In
has been held at GVSU, and there were sessions hosted on both the Allendale and Pew campuses to teach students about social justice.
Teach-In starts dialogue on social justice, personal bias at GV BY STEPHANIE BRZEZINSKI ASSOCIATE@LANTHORN.COM
he Grand Valley State University Student Senate and the University Academic Senate came together on Thursday to host the second annual Teach-In, an all-day event with 26 sessions for community members to attend. This year’s event, titled “Power, Privilege and Difficult Dialogues,” brought about 1,150 people to the Mary Idema Pew Library and the Kirkhof Center on the Allendale Campus, and to the Loosemore
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DANCE TROUPE HOSTS RECITAL TO SUPPORT NONPROFIT SEE A6
Auditorium in Grand Rapids. Karen Gipson, chair of the executive committee of the University Academic Senate, said the idea for the Teach-In stems from a Martin Luther King Jr. quote: “Whatever affects one of us directly affects us all.” “We’re all part of the same community – of GVSU, of Michigan, of the U.S. and of the world,” Gipson said. “It’s crucial to see the consequences of our behaviors, words and even our thoughts. When we see, we have the option of making informed choices; without seeing, it’s as if we’re stumbling around in the dark.”
Gipson added that having the sessions in multiple locations was new this year. Although Gipson said the event may have been too spread out, she thought it was valuable to host it downtown. “I think it was a meaningful experience for everyone who came,” she said. “The evaluations showed that the vast majority of attendees were interested in having another Teach-In. I’d personally like to see the Teach-In grow into a yearly event that involves the entire campus community.” Student Senate President Andrew Plague agreed SEE TEACH-IN ON A2
Office of Fellowships welcomes new director BY DREW HOWARD ASSISTANTNEWS@LANTHORN.COM
lizabeth Lambert will replace five-year leader and founder Amanda Cuevas as the new director of the Grand Valley State University Frederik Meijer Office of Fellowships starting June 15. Located in Room 230 of the Mary Idema Pew Library, the Meijer Office of Fellowships is in place to help students pursue competitive scholarships, fellowships and awards. To date, the office has helped grant close to $1 million to GVSU students and alumni. In her current position as the director of fellowships at Indiana University, Lambert is responsible for advising students as they apply for graduate studies and programs, both in the United States and overseas. Prior to this, Lambert worked in various nonprofit foundations, museums and historic sites. Despite her success, Lambert said she originally had a different career in mind. “I began graduate school intending to become a professor,” Lambert said. “As a graduate student, I discovered a talent for grant writing and applying for fellowships. Along the way, I realized that, while I enjoy teaching, I love to assist students in identifying their passions – particularly if they involve studying abroad.” Lambert said she has lived outside of the U.S. for close to one-third of her life in a total of seven countries. These include France, England, Austria, Italy, Germany, Poland and the Czech Republic. As someone who has had more than enough experience
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DIFFERENCES: Robert P. George (left) and Cornel West (right) came to Grand Valley State University on Thursday to talk
about working with people who have differing opinions. They focused on finding truth that is found in middle ground.
Valuing disagreement Speakers share importance of discussion to find common ground BY LUCAS ESCALADA LESCALADA@LANTHORN.COM
rinceton professors Cornel West and Robert George visited the Grand Valley State University Eberhard Center on Thursday to demonstrate how friendship and partnership between people who disagree can help the search for a common ground in politics. West is a progressive race and political theorist, while George is a conservative philosopher of natural law and jurisprudence. They disagree on a lot of major issues, from politics to religion. However, West and George have found a way to collaborate at Princeton. They teach classes together, mentor students and hold a constant dialogue. “When I see (George), I don’t see him first and foremost as a conservative thinker, Catholic philosopher, one of the major political theorists of our day,” West said. “I see him as my brother, I see him as my friend
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and someone who has a right to be wrong.” The goal of discussion is truth, George said. The professors may disagree, but they encourage communication in order to find the truth. The truth they are searching for is hidden somewhere in the middle ground between both sides of the argument. For productive communication to occur, the members of the discussion must be civil. But more importantly, George said, both parties must accept that, even in their most solid beliefs, there exists the possibility of fallacy. “If you don’t have intellectual humility, you’re going to assume you have everything to teach and nothing to learn,” George said. When one understands the value of intellectual humility, argument loses the idea of winning and losing. George said that when one does not see a conversational partner as an adversary, a deeper understanding is gained. West argued that four key points surround argument: integrity, honesty, de-
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cency and virtue. In some ways, these points are often misused in the political world – deception replaces honesty and greed replaces integrity. He said there is an obsession with money, status, wealth and power. The focus should be on the kind of human one chooses to be, not the amount of money he or she makes. “When you make that short move form your mother’s womb to tomb, what will they say at your funeral?” West said. “They’re not going to talk about how much money you made, they’re not going to talk about your trophy spouse, they’re going to talk about whether this person really was serious about their quest for integrity, honesty, decency and virtue. And we all fall short.” Culture glamorizes power and influence, George said. However, with that power, no one pauses to ask influential questions. He argues that when individuSEE DISCUSSION ON A2
studying abroad, Lambert said she believes her stories abroad will benefit her as she works with undergraduate and graduate students at GVSU. “Working as the director of fellowships allows me to share experiences gained as a student and faculty member in various countries,” she said. “I can then assist students and faculty members in identifying salient funding opportunities, regardless of a student’s long-term goals, major/minor and life circumstances.” During her time in graduate school, Lambert was at the receiving end of awards such as the Fulbright Institute of International Education Award to Germany as well as the DAAD Fellowship, the German Academic Exchange Service award. Cuevas said that, in addition to Lambert’s diverse set of accolades and study abroad experiences, the GVSU search committee was also looking for a candidate who was completely devoted to helping students achieve their goals. “I thought it was critical that this candidate be a wonderful collaborator and connector on campus,” Cuevas said. “I hope Elizabeth will be able to take the vision I have established and bring her own vision in engaging more students and alumni.” As the new director, Lambert said she hopes to get the word out to campus on how the Office of Fellowships is there to help all GVSU students. “I want to encourage greater numbers of science, technology, engineering and mathematics students (STEM) as well as professional students applying for domestic and international SEE DIRECTOR ON A2
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