Grand Valley Lanthorn vol. 55 no. 8

‘People Hear Us’

G R A N D VA L L E Y L A N T H O R N

Students organize historic Black Lives Matter protest on campus

Behind the scenes of a social distanced film shoot with GVTV VIDEO | A9

New look for IM sports featured at GV this fall INTRAMURAL | A11

M O N D A Y, O C TO B E R 1 2 , 2 02 0 // VO L . 5 5 N O. 8

@ GV L A N T H O R N

LANTHORN.COM

A2 | NEWS NEWS BRIEFS GV COVID-19 CAMPUS DATA UPDATE

Since GVSU began conducting random testing on campus Aug. 27, the cumulative total COVID-19 cases since August 1st is 969. The university’s update of data used for this brief was from Friday, Oct. 9.

Through testing results this past week, GVSU’s Virus Action team have so far reported 1 faculty member, 5 staff members, 4 on-campus students, 31 “off-campus Ottawa” students, and 9 “off-campus Kent” students, 2 “off-campus other” students with active COVID-19 cases.

“Current active cases” is the count of positive cases reported to the Virus Action Team over the past ten days. This is an estimate of those currently in isolation, assuming a ten-day symptomatic period following the reporting of a positive test result. Actual periods of isolation are specific to the individual and determined by the county health department.

Testing and Incidence: GVSU’s own testing program has performed 14,073 tests overall since August 21, for a positivity rate of 0.19% from the latest update as of the last week.

“GV Surveillance” includes the GV/ Spectrum administered programs of: randomized testing, regular testing of high-risk groups, and invited testing of individuals connected to potential clusters. A calendar is available. “GV Total” includes surveillance testing plus all symptomatic/exposure tests administered

by Spectrum.

PADNOS/SAROSIK CIVIL DISCOURSE PROGRAM TO HOST POST-ELECTION CONVERSATIONS

This has been one of the most turbulent years in our nation’s history, and the upcoming November election seems likely to continue that trend. The Civil Discourse Program is hosting a post-election campus conversation — a space for open, honest, yet constructive dialogue to process election results. Civil Discourse Program leaders will facilitate a space for people to share their thoughts and feelings while remaining committed to ensuring a constructive and respectful conversation.

The discussions will be split into three groups: staff, faculty and student conversations. The staff conversation will take place Nov. 4, 9:30-10:30 a.m. The faculty conversation will be sponsored in partnership with Pew Faculty Teaching and Learning Center, and will take place Nov.6, 12-1 p.m. The student conversation will take place Nov. 9, 4-5 p.m.

All conversations will happen via Zoom and will be acilitated by Lisa M. Perhamus, Director of the PSCD Program and Jeff Kelly Lowenstein, Padnos/Sarosik Endowed Professor of Civil Discourse.

OCTOBER 12, 2020 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLNEWS

LOCAL POLITICS

Allendale public official pictured at rally with militia member charged in Gov. Whitmer kidnapping plot

BY NICK MORAN EDITORIAL@LANTHORN.COM

Following the fallout surrounding a foiled plot to kidnap Michigan governor Gretchen Whitmer, 13 people have been charged with a range of offenses related to the coup attempt. One of the charged, William Null, has local ties both through his attendance at a counter-protest against the removal of Allendale’s Confederate statue and his alleged association with Allendale Township Planning Commission member Ryan Kelley.

After Null’s arrest, pictures resurfaced online of him and Kelley at the statue protest, along with screenshots of text messages between Kelley and Allendale Township Supervisor Adam Elenbaas that indicated he would be in attendance with militia members. These messages were sent to the Lanthorn after being obtained by a Freedom of Information Act request.

Kelley was also seen with Null during another rally in Grand Rapids, which is also where Barry County sheriff Dar Leaf came under fire after he shared a stage with the militia member.

A screencapped Facebook comment also surfaced in which Kelley equated the Black Lives Matter movement to the Ku Klux Klan.

“BLM is a hate group that should be classified as a terrorist organization,” Kelley wrote in the comment to a post that had called him racist. “To your first statement, obviously you are misinformed.”

Kelley was an organizer of the American Patriot rally in Lansing in June, which had a

RALLY HORN: Allendale Planning Commission member Ryan Kelley holds a bullhorn as he attends a Confederate statue counter-protest with William Null this summer. COURTESY | JEFFERSON SEAVER

goal of uniting as a militia, he said in an interview with WWMT. Screenshots of Facebook posts featured Elenbaas showing his support for Kelley and the protests.

Elenbaas said that he does not have any information indicating anyone from Allendale knew of the plot to kidnap the governor, nor has he been contacted by law enforcement regarding Allendale’s association with the plot. Elenbaas is aware of the photos of Kelley but has not been able to draw a direct

association between the two.

“There were hundreds of people in attendance and I don’t know if William Null was there in response to the public events posted on Facebook or if he was invited by someone specific,” said Elenbaas.

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PUBLIC HEALTH

Outreach Ambassadors encourage, reward peers for following health policies

BY KYLIE ELWELL NEWS@LANTHORN.COM

MASKED LAKERS: Students adhere to public health guidelines and wear a mask while on GVSU’s campus. GVL | SHEILA BABBITT

One of the main and most common health policies that the university has been enforcing is the wearing of face coverings and staying 6-feet apart from one another, along with others. Starting in mid-September, the Laker Outreach Team (included within the Recreation and Wellness Division of Student Affairs) started to give out face masks and t-shirts to students on the Allendale Campus.

To follow guidelines and be as safe as possible, ambassadors have been following the “Staying Safe” order and only working on campus for the time being.

Mike Przydzial, Interim Director said, “Our Laker Community Ambassadors are currently focused on rewarding students who are observed to be in compliance with university health policies with free items on campus as a ‘thank you’ for doing the right thing like wear-

ing a face covering, staying 6 feet apart from others, and completing the daily self-assessment.”

So far, students have been given numerous items for staying safe while they are on campus. Ambassadors have given out a large amount of; t-shirts, face coverings, hand sanitizer, and magnets – all GVSU branded so students can continuously show their Laker pride. All of these items have been provided to students through different partners included in the Division of Student Affairs. The Ottawa County Sheriff ’s Department and the Ottawa County Public Health has been generous in donating even more items that will be distributed to students The whole program has been started and kept going with great effort from many organizations on campus.

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OCTOBER 12, 2020 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLNEWS

CONTENTS LOCAL POLITICS

| A2

EDITORIAL

| A4

GOVERNANCE

| A5

PROTEST

| A6&7

PERFORMANCE

| A8

GRAND RAPIDS

| A9

MENTAL HEALTH

| A10

INTRAMURAL

| A11

CROSS COUNTRY

| A12

VOL. 5 5

NO. 8

Lan thorn EDITORIAL STAFF

Layout Editor VIVIANA RUBIO

Editor-in-Chief NICK MORAN Associate Editor KELLEN VOSS

Layout Designer KHOI TRAN PROMOTIONS

Associate Editor XAVIER GOLDEN News Editor OLIVIA FELLOWS

Promotions Manager ALEX DAGASTINO ADVERTISING STAFF Advertising Manager SHANE MCATAMNEY

Sports Editor ZACK GOODROW Laker Life Editor YSABELA GOLDEN

A3 | NEWS GRANT

MDHHS recieves grant for suicide prevention in men

BY AUDREY WHITAKER AWHITAKER@LANTHORN.COM

The Michigan Department of Health and Human Service (MDHHS) announced on Monday that it has received $4.35 million in funding to be used over the next five years to address suicide in adult men. The new program is called “Preventing Suicide in Michigan Men” (PRiSSM).

Jennifer DeLaCruz, MDHHS Injury and Violence Section manager, said that Centers for Disease Control released this grant for the first time in the spring of 2020. She said that the state of Michigan applied for the grant because they recognize suicide as a public health crisis and hope to expand current programs.

According to the MDHHS, more than 48,000 Americans lost their lives to suicide in 2018, and over 6,700 Michiganders have died of suicide between 2014-2018.

DeLaCruz said that while suicide affects people of all ages and genders, adult men are the focus of PRiSSM. “When we looked at the data within Michigan but also nationally, we see higher rates of suicide deaths for men – 67% of all suicide deaths annually,” DeLaCruz said. “That is an area that we need to focus our energy on now that we have this great opportunity to receive the funding.”

DeLaCruz said that their goal is a 10% re-

duction in morbidity and mortality over the five years.

“We’re looking at a decrease in death rates, as well as ED visits and hospital visits for suicide ideation and self-harm,” said DeLaCruz.

Barbera Hawkins-Palmer, Executive Director of Healthy Kent at the Kent County Health Department (KCHD), said that educating the community about suicide is key to prevention. Hawkins-Palmer said that KCHD has many programs that aim to support those struggling with mental health and thoughts of suicide, survivors who have lost someone to suicide and educational programs.

Hawkins-Palmer said that educating students and young people is one way KCHD has been working to spark cultural change and “stop the stigma” regarding suicide and mental health.

“I think the average age for anxiety is 11 years old, so it’s not like you have to be 20 or 30 to receive intervention or recognition that something may not be right,” Hawkins-Palmer said. “Be Nice is a suicide prevention action plan that our community health improvement plan for mental health includes that brings suicide prevention programming to elementary, middle school and high school students and their parents and teachers.”

Hawkins-Palmer said that the budget for suicide prevention fluctuates, and is often relatively small. However, there is a dedicat-

RESOURCE: A new grant will help MDHHS address suicide in adult males. COURTESY | MDHHS

ed group of people, donors and organizations that keep up the work, Hawkins-Palmer said.

“I am part of the Suicide Prevention Coalition, which is statewide, and they’ve mentioned this funding that they’ve gotten and where they’re at in terms of trying to organize,” Hawkins-Palmer said. “We’re hoping there’ll be some local grants that will trickle down to us to apply for to help with services and keep the cost down.”

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BUSINESS STAFF

A&E Editor MARY RACETTE

Business Manager RACHEM MCDOWELL

Image Editor MEGHAN ANDGREN

Asst. Business Manager DAYTON HAMMON

RESOURCES

Online workshops seek to help students be proactive with mental health

BY ZSOLT PALMER NEWS@LANTHORN.COM

At the Lanthorn, we strive to bring you the most accurate news possible. If we make a mistake, we want to make it right. If you find any errors in fact in the Lanthorn, let us know by calling 616-331-2464 or by emailing editorial@lanthorn.com.

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GETTING HELP: GVSU’s Counseling Center is offering a slew of online resources to help students’ mental health. GVL | SHEILA BABBITT

This year, Grand Valley State University students are faced with a much more isolated learning and social environment. Most classes have moved to an online setting and so have most GVSU clubs, greatly reducing the opportunities students have to meet face to face with one another. The recent ‘Staying in Place’ order, and the current ‘Staying Safe’ county health orders have also contributed to keeping students apart.

“The challenges facing the student body are very unique and feelings of isolation can be very common,” said Nicholas Debernardi, Coordinator of Career Assessment and Programming at the GVSU Counseling Center.

However, Debernardi wants students to realize that they are not alone, and that resources exist for them at the Counseling Center. Short-term individual and longterm group therapy are provided at no cost to currently registered GVSU students.

The Center offers drop-in counseling services daily for urgent/emergency situations and coordinates with GVPD to provide after-hours services in the event of a crisis. In addition to those services, the Counseling Center has also recently launched a series of nine virtual workshops, to help students be proactive with their mental health.

“It was important for us to find new ways to disseminate mental health information and help connect students to resources,” Debernardi said. “These workshops allow students to access such information in the privacy of their own space and to work at their own pace.”

The ‘Healthy Lakers’ virtual workshops, which can be found on the Counseling Center’s website, cover a variety of topics from anxiety management during COVID-19 to self-compassion and stress management.

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A4 | OPINION GVL EDITORIAL CARTOON

OCTOBER 12, 2020 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLNEWS

By Athena Jasman

EDITORIAL

Whitmer kidnapping plot must force local reflection

L

10/12/20

editorial@lanthorn.com

‘Dick Johnson is Dead’ focuses on appreciating life, not death

BY SIMON WAGNER JUNIOR MULTIMEDIA JOURNALISM EDITORIAL@LANTHORN.COM

One of the most challenging things to come to terms with in this world is the inevitable end of one’s life. “Dick Johnson is Dead” delicately deals with this topic in one of the most touching

and surreal documentaries of 2020.

Filmmaker Kirsten Johnson said it best when answering a question from her father about why she chose to make documentaries instead of fiction films.

“Well, real life is often much more fascinating than what you can make up,” she said.

Nothing is more true than our main character Dick Johnson. As Johnson and his daughter believe that his last few years are upon him, Kirsten, who places herself into the film, helps her father cope with his declining memory and eventual death by staging fake accidents in the numerous ways that could kill him.

Strange? Yes. But what is so unique about this film is that by adding a sense of humor to each staged death, the pain of losing a loved one is steadily eased throughout the process.

Dick Johnson is the definition of a team player. He knows his time is coming to an end and the only thing he wants to do in his remaining days is spend every last moment with his daughter — even if that means watching himself die numerous times.

Whether it be falling down a flight of stairs, having a computer fall on his head from four stories up, or even watching his own funeral, Johnson always has a smile on his face. So while initially it feels like Kirsten is trying to help her father, what soon develops is a sense that this is more for her sake, as he has already come to terms with his fate.

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Talk, text, Snapchat and tailoring communication to your relationship

BY EMILY EATON SENIOR POLITICAL SCIENCE EDITORIAL@LANTHORN.COM

A few nights ago, when I was rolling over to fall asleep, I saw my phone buzz on my nightstand. I figured it was my boyfriend just responding to my “Goodnight, I love you” sappy message

that I do occasionally, and I was right (as I typically am in the relationship realm of my life). But my heart did a strange little plummet when I read the reply that said, “love you too.”

He left out the damn “I”.

For a second, I stared at the screen trying to figure out what secret language he was speaking, what he was really, truly trying to tell me, and whether or not he’s so sick of this relationship that he couldn’t even bother specifying the pronoun.

This bounced around in my head for about three seconds or so, and then quietly and quickly I slipped into this beautiful coma of melancholy where I realized just how much of a lunatic I truly am. I completed my roll and slept peacefully knowing I am a monster of relationship anxiety.

There are certain rules that most of our current dating culture tells you — including certain friends who might do it differently than you — regarding the necessity of breaking down the meaning of a text message.

I’ve been breaking down every letter of every text message since my purple flip phone in 2010. I’ve never thought I’d be the type to reminisce on the “olden days,” but I find myself wondering how much better off I’d be if texting just didn’t exist.

Since I’m in the first relationship that’s actually ever worked for me, I’ve learned it’s extremely important to notice when you’re sweating the small stuff.

However, if you’re not in a relationship, you can be a bit pickier.

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ast week, 13 men were charged for allegedly trying to kidnap Governor Gretchen Whitmer. Investigators gathered strong evidence; the men repeatedly spied on Whitmer’s vacation home, planned to detonate explosives on a bridge and at the State Capitol, and discussed executing her. So, while they haven’t been tried yet, the question we’re asking ourselves isn’t if these men planned to kidnap and murder Whitmer, it’s whether their plan could tell us about our community at Grand Valley State University.

The 13 men came up with this scheme because they felt like Whitmer’s efforts to minimize the spread of COVID-19 – a disease that has killed over 214,000 Americans and 7,221 Michiganders and may have left millions with lasting damage to their heart and lungs – were unjustified and tyrannical. This group believes that Whitmer deserves to die, that she is a tyrant, for instituting strict policies that undoubtedly saved lives.

These men, who probably pride themselves on their bravery and masculinity, were reduced to angry, violent children when they were told they couldn’t dine inside of a restaurant and to wear a mask; and it almost got people hurt. It’s frightening to think that anyone would believe this, but it’s even worse to know that these ideas live close to home.

Of the 13, only one man was from out of state. And of

the 12 men from Michigan, at least some of them are from Grand Rapids. The group also schemed in the basement of a Grand Rapids business.

Chances are, some of us at GVSU have met these men, including when they were in Allendale protesting the Confederate statue removal.

But it’s much more likely that some of us at GVSU might agree with them.

GVSU is, above all else, a place of learning. We come here – or remotely participate this year – to grow as academics, workers and people.

Every day, we’re encouraged to apply empathy to our studies and consider what our passions mean for the people around us.

But other parts of the world – households, towns, corners of the internet – seem like they were designed to do the opposite. To pull us into the mud, to drag us into selfishness and ignorance. If GVSU wants to stay compassionate and open-minded, it takes active resistance from all of us against the forces that might radicalize us towards hate and narcissism.

Those forces include, but are not limited to, the President of the United States.

On April 17, the President tweeted “LIBERATE MICHIGAN!” He was referring, of course, to Whitmer’s emergency orders. The President downplayed the pandemic, ignored the science, and encouraged violent outbursts from conservative militias.

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GVL OPINION POLICY The goal of the Grand Valley Lanthorn’s opinion page is to act as a forum for public discussion, comment and criticism in the Grand Valley State University community. Student and columnist opinions published here do not necessarily reflect those of the paper as an entity.

The Lanthorn strives to be a safe vehicle for community discussion. With this in mind, the Lanthorn will not publish or entertain any forms of hate speech, but neither will it discriminate against any other views, opinions or beliefs. The content, information and views expressed are not approved by— nor do they necessarily represent those of—the university or its Board of Trustees, officers, faculty

or staff.

Letters to the editor should include the author’s full name, relevant title and a headshot, along with a valid email address and phone number for confirming the identity of the author. Letters should be approximately 500650 words in length, and they are not edited by the Lanthorn staff except to fix technical errors or to clarify. Reader submissions on the opinion page appear as space permits.

To make a submission, email editorial@lanthorn.com or drop your submission off in person at:

0051 KIRKHOF CENTER GRAND VALLEY STATE UNIVERSITY

OCTOBER 12, 2020 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLNEWS

A5 | NEWS

GOVERNANCE

LAKER LEADERSHIP: GVSU President Philomena Mantella shares her congratulations and gratitude with a new Student Senate body at their first general assembly of the year. GVL | KATHERINE VASILE

President Mantella addresses new governing body at first 2020-21 Student Senate general assembly

BY KELLEN VOSS ASSOCIATE@LANTHORN.COM

For the first half hour of student senate’s first general assembly meeting for the 202021 school year, Grand Valley State President Philomena Mantella took some time to honor the new senators and answer questions the body had regarding GVSU’s COVID-19 response, online classes and more.

“I congratulate all of you on taking these seats of leadership, congratulation has a companion and that’s gratitude,” Mantella said in her opening address. “These are big roles, and substantial opportunities for those of us who care about this institution.”

In that opening address, Mantella gave an update on the university as a whole, which she mentioned has been hard than ever with everything going on in the world right now, emphasizing the flexibility students have regarding attending class either in person or online.

“When people ask me to give an update on the university, it’s challenging these

days,” Mantella said. “There’s so much going on, there’s so much in flux, there’s so much in front of us nationally and in our communities. No one of us experiences today, with the limitations that it offers to our lives, exactly the same way. Being able to provide as much choice for students who feel uncomfortable physically coming onto campus or uncomfortable being fully online have opportunity to make the best choices for them.”

After briefly bringing up economic impact on students during the pandemic in her speech, one senator asked lessening the costs of tuition, housing and meal plans, due to a lack of services that would normally be provided pre-pandemic.

Mantella answered the senator’s question bluntly, saying that although tuition costs have gone up, her goal from the start has been to give students all the resources possible to advance in their academic careers, even though campus life looks much different than it did last Fall.

“It’s been a very difficult year financially, because all of the testing... decreased class

size and increased faculty, the costs of the institution are way up this year to mount our experiences,” Mantella said. “(With the pandemic,) it is not an equivalent experience for our students on campus, but we want to provide students with an equivalent academic experience and provide the same support and services to keep you moving in your learning journey.”

After Mantella’s departure, President Kelly Dowker gave her president’s report, highlighting that a change regarding parking on campus that originated in Student Senate had been passed in the faculty senate. This change is allowing pregnant and newly-parenting people to request a temporary, 3-6 month parking pass that allows them to park closer to the handicap spaces.

“This is pretty cool,” Dowker said. “A couple years ago, a student senator proposed parking for pregnant and newly-parenting people, and then (University Academic Senate) passed an endorsement of this idea.

I was really happy that they passed that because it used to be a student senate project.”

After the president and vice president’s

reports and some a brief presentation laying out how new senators should act professionally, the senate voted to reinstate three subcommittees that all had active participation last school year.

Not only will the Sustainability Subcommittee (SUS) and the Mental Health Awareness Subcommittee (MHAC) be reinstated, but so will the Sexual Assault Awareness Committee (SAAC), who last year passed legislation to require that all women’s restrooms on campus be stocked with feminine hygiene products.

Student senate cabinets will move their weekly meetings to Sunday night, while the General Assembly meetings will continue to happen every Thursday afternoon, starting at 4:30 p.m.

These general assembly meetings are open to the public, offering multiple opportunities for attendees to make their voices heard regarding change on campus. For more information on attending a general assembly meeting, look no further than Student Senate’s portion of GVSU’s website.

OCTOBER 12, 2020 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLNEWS

A6&7 | NEWS

Hundreds gather for Black Lives Matter

protest, march on Allendale Campus

BY NICK MORAN EDITORIAL@LANTHORN.COM

A crowd of students, faculty and staff gathered around the Cook Carillon Tower Thursday afternoon before marching through campus to speak out about a lack of support for Black students at Grand Valley State University.

The protest, which was organized by members of GVSU’s Black Greek Council and Multicultural Greek Council, began with a moment of silence among a black-clothed crowd. Fists raised in the air, a sea of attendees peacefully stood in silence until co-organizer and National Pan-Hellenic Council President Shantiera Carprue announced it was time to march.

Clad with a bullhorn, Carprue and co-organizers started marching from the tower toward the Little Mac Bridge, taking a full crowd to North Campus before looping back to where they began.

The winding queue of protestors

echoed chants down the row, declaring that Black lives matter and reciting the names of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd. That movement, Carprue said, was surprising, especially as their presence made history on campus.

“People came out in a big way,” Carprue said. “Obviously on this campus, I’ve never seen a march or anything this big, so I’m proud. I love the Black community.”

The return to the clocktower concluded with a final expression of thanks from organizers before celebrating with song and dance. Co-organizer and Sigma Lambda Beta President Martez Lopez said one of the goals for the protest was to powerfully speak up about the Black experience on campus while demonstrating a peaceful protest that was proud to stand together.

“I wanted to do this to help change that narrative that these are peaceful protests, that we’re out here doing this because we want to see a

change,” Lopez said. “We are not a threat to anybody when we speak out against something wrong.”

Lopez initially began planning the protest after seeing natwional unrest and discussing it with his fraternity brothers. He was then connected with Carprue where joint planning began in August.

Initially, the protest was set for Sept.

23, but the county’s Staying in Place order pushed the date back. The delay sparked more issues from continued national strife to local examples of insensitivity like the “ghost photoshoot” trend denounced by the University.

Prior to protest day, organizers didn’t know what to expect, but it certainly wasn’t hundreds of protestors turning out. Carprue said that at a predominantly white institution at GVSU, seeing at least one white student to support every Black student in attendance would be important. The reach was far wider.

“What I expected was just Black students…,” said co-organizer Amber McIntosh. “(But then) faculty from administration, athletes, and so many different people that got to Allendale today. I just feel like this shows that Allendale can change the atmosphere and change the spectrum of Allendale in making it more diverse and inclusive.”

That goal Carprue set was superseded as notable turnout from University employees, student athletes, and community members and their families all stood together.

Even GVSU President Philomena Mantella walked among the crowd.

“I don’t feel like the Black community gets as much support, so today was like oh my goodness, what a turnout,” Carprue said. “I was appreciative of every staff, student and faculty member. Even the administration came out, so I was appreciative of that.”

Seeing administration especially show up was heartening as organizers called on them to stand by diversity messaging and do more than just sending emails.

Co-organizer Collin Lewis

said the first step toward making meaningful change on campus is having leadership listening to concerns and taking action moving forward.

“Honestly, it’s great to see the faculty, staff and administration standing by what they say,” Lewis said. “Diversity at Grand Valley is not as stressed as it needs to be, but we can still have events like this. It’s possible, so for that reason, we need to keep this up.”

The importance of allyship like that demonstrated at the event is that it breaks down the bystander effect, Lopez said. That rhetoric was popularized by those who let the bystanding officers in the Floyd killing off the hook because they didn’t directly kill him. That inaction was what led to Floyd’s death.

“It’s frustrating to see people see someone die with a knee on their neck for nine minutes and say, ‘Oh, if he can talk, he can breath,’” Lopez said. “Well obviously he couldn’t breathe because he’s dead. He’s dead now and he’s not coming back.”

Above all else, Lopez said he was focused on creating a movement on campus that would be historic. With no comparable protest of that size in recent years, Lopez knew that the march would be iconic.

“We knew that this was something that was going to make history on this campus,” Lopez said. “We said that when we started to walk out, like, ‘Are you ready to make history?’”

The march Thursday was a first step in many toward making change in Allendale, and organizers agreed that there would be more events like this protest. But as for their goal of being heard, McIntosh said the crowd was loud and clear with their message: Black lives matter.

“I feel like a lot of people hear us,” McIntosh said. “As far as Black people, they hear us, they see us and they are here with us. With that being said, hundreds and hundreds of people came out here to show solidarity that Black lives do matter.”

TOGETHER: Protestors march from the Cook Carillon Tower to the Little Mac Bridge. GVL | NICK MORAN

SEA OF SUPPORT: A blackout crowd chants “Black lives matter,” as they march around campus during Friday’s protest. GVL | NICK MORAN

A8 | ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

OCTOBER 12, 2020 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLARTS

PERFORMANCE

Quarantine pastime inspires GV professor to hold six-part cello concert series

BY MARY DUPUIS ARTS@LANTHORN.COM

With two concerts down and four to go, Grand Valley State University Professor Pablo Mahave-Veglia of the Music, Theatre, and Dance Department is holding six concerts this fall in a series titled “The Complete Bach Cello Suites in Six Concerts.”

Mahave-Veglia’s inspiration for this concert series took root during his sabbatical in Chile in the winter of 2020. It was there that he had been conducting a research project and was set to travel throughout the country performing until the COVID-19 pandemic set in.

Plans changed, all concerts were canceled and Mahave-Veglia spent almost six months in quarantine with his 92-year-old father. Finding himself unable to turn to soccer for entertainment due to the worldwide ban and lacking internet connection, he decided to play his cello.

“It started as a personal project and for my dad to have something to listen to on long afternoons,’” Mahave-Veglia said. “But then I thought I could actually share this with the GVSU community in some way. I came up with the idea in June or July and talked to the administration and they were all excited about the possibility.”

He said that although being unable to collaborate with other artists was a struggle at first, the opportunity to experiment with solo cello pieces was one that he ended up enjoying.

“I was stuck in a vacuum-sealed house,” Mahave-Veglia said. “As a performer since I was six, my nature is to be collaborative and play music with other people. Those six to eight months were anything but collaborative. So, I began to learn the Bach Suites — just cello by itself. It’s music I’ve always loved because it can be played, understood and analyzed at any level of development.”

Fast forward to two concerts having been performed already, Mahave-Veglia said he is very happy with how they unfolded and uses them as a form of self-therapy.

“I thought they were great,” Mahave-Veglia said. “It is a very selfish project where I do this for me as well. It started as a way for me to stay current, and it is a logical way for me to now share it. I enjoy being in a situation like this; one where people are benefiting and there’s also a benefit to the performer. We need a release for these things with everything going on. It’s like self-therapy.”

Aside from the first concert being held outside, all future concerts are taking place within different performance halls, the Art Gallery, and other areas all located throughout the Thomas J. and Marcia J. Haas Center for Performing Arts.

A small in-person audience is able to attend the concerts but there is a limit on the number of attendees based on the location of that particular concert.

Even though it is a smaller audience,

CHOOSING THE CELLO: Professor Pablo Mahave-Veglia was inspired to spread his love of cello digitally after being stuck in a “vacuum-sealed house” for months due to the pandemic. GVL | ARCHIVE

Mahave-Veglia said people seemed to really appreciate it, and there hasn’t been a single attendee that didn’t speak with him afterward about the concert.

“When you’re in a room with only five or six people it creates a sense of privilege and intimacy,” Mahave-Veglia said. “It feels like people have taken time to come to my living room for something I like to do. Concertgoers have recently been on diet without going to events.

Seeing another human being in front of them is good for them and for me.”

For those that are not able to attend the concert in person, they are being livestreamed to the department’s Instagram page, @GVSUmtd.

Mahave-Veglia said that even though he wishes LOG ON TO: www.lanthorn.com FOR THE FULL ARTICLE

MULTIMEDIA

Time Studio provides soundscapes for Rapid Art Movement MARY RACETTE ARTS@LANTHORN.COM

Visual performers and artists presented their art on the move at the Rapid Art Movement. The Avenue for the Arts event adapted to social distancing guidelines and innovated the way art can be viewed by audiences.

Saturday, Oct. 10, artists rotated throughout the stations scattered around the Monroe North Neighborhood. From 3-7 p.m., the public was welcome to en-

joy the local talent performing along the sidewalks.

One of the Rapid Arts Movement participants was the Grand Valley State University Time Studio, a course offered in the Visual and Media Arts Department in the Visual Studies area. The class consists of six students, all whose work was featured in the event. Time studio focuses on the element of time in art. Professor of the Time Studio course Sean Carney described the projects as pieces that “unfold for a viewer.”

MOVING AND GROOVING: Grand Rapids’ new Rapid Art Movement adapts the traditional art gallery experience with an interactive, mobile twist to accommodate social distancing. GVL | MARY RACETTE

Coincidently, Carney’s first project for his students aligned with the Rapid Art Movement’s initiative, which is to create art you can move with. Time Studio students each created a sound piece that incorporates a mix of field recordings, appropriated audio and other forms of music and noise. The results showcased the individuality of each artist.

“It is interesting how they have the same assignment but the pieces are so different based on that artist’s critical concerns, conceptional interests and how they make art in general,” said Carney.

Kristin Fowler, a junior in the Integrated Studies program and a student in the Time Studio course, said, “What I have appreciated so far with the work that we have done in this class is that it gets to be really playful.”

She said she enjoys being able to “play” with sound and treat it like an object that is eventually turned into a piece of art.

Fowler’s Rapid Art Movement Piece is titled “Unknown” and incorporates sounds from her everyday life. Fowler brings to-

gether sounds that are soothing to her, including birds chirping and the wind blowing. She does her own vocals in the piece and wrote and composed piano music. She describes the piece as an “ode to listening”.

“The Premise of my piece is that in any given moment there is noise all around us and some of it is heard, some of it is not,” Fowler said. “If we pay attention, the world is, and can be, full of magic and whimsy, and for me, I can access that when I really pay attention in my daily life to the things that are going on.”

As people walked the Monroe North Neighborhood, they could listen to the work of Fowler and her peers. The Time Studio’s soundscapes are compiled on a Bandcamp Playlist. The link to the Bandcamp was printed on the maps of the Rapid Art Movement. The playlist is intended to be listened to while experiencing the rest of the art at the event.

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OCTOBER 12, 2020 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLARTS

A9 | ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

GRAND RAPIDS

After Dark GR uses art-scavenger hunt to encourage community activation

BY CHAVALA YMKER ARTS@LANTHORN.COM

Lions and Rabbits hopes to address mobility, equity and accessibility with their city-wide art-based scavenger hunt, After Dark GR. Beginning only last year as an art activation in Grand Rapids’ Creston neighborhood, this year After Dark GR expanded to include five different communities including Creston, Downtown, Michigan Street, Southtown and Westside.

Forty-four artists, all represented in some way by Lions and Rabbits, have painted murals on local businesses across the city. Each neighborhood was painted by artists who live in that community.

Each group of artists is led by an artist liaison, supported by Lions and Rabbits to network with their community, locating interested businesses and coordinating the artistic collaboration.

“There’s no problem finding artists of all nationalities and backgrounds,” Hannah Berry, owner of Lions and Rabbits said. “There are more issues in finding a purpose and the funding to pull them together.”

The project is supported by multi-level community investment. Funding is primarily driven by crowdfunding, which is matched

BRING THE ART BACK: After Dark GR is getting communities around Grand Rapids involved in filling the streets with art after beginning initially in just Creston last year. COURTESY | GR AFTER DARK

by the state. Each community’s Corridor Improvement Authority also donated as much funding as they were able.

Berry points out that the project is extremely important for the artists involved, as they are funding them during a pandemic. But not only does it support artistic livelihoods, After Dark GR is economic development for small businesses through art.

Dayna Walton, who painted at Ananda Ice, knew that her mural couldn’t just be what she wanted to paint.

“The mural has to make sense for the business,” Walton said. “What will help them?”

Last year, After Dark GR ended with a party in the Creston neighborhood with all funds going to the Improvement Authority. Once the After Dark team realized parties weren’t going

to be happening this year, they shifted toward a game format that would still bring business to the neighborhoods.

The games took the shape of both a board game and an Instagram scavenger hunt. The board game is modeled after the Game of Life and set in Grand Rapids. For example, a space may prompt you to “plant a tree for the mayor’s green initiative.”

You can buy the After Dark Board Game at www.afterdark.com.

You can also sign up for the scavenger hunt on their website, where you will find a list of “tasks.” When you’re done, make an Instagram highlight reel documenting your journey. Each task equates to one raffle ticket toward a prize. You have until Nov. 1 to complete as many tasks as possible.

Whether you are finding a mural in Creston or buying a drink at the Lyon St. Cafe, you are a part of After Dark GR’s art activation. Murals make art accessible to all of us, especially during a time when indoor spaces are often closed.

Berry hopes that the project helps visitors start to see Grand Rapids as a whole rather than a collection of separate neighborhoods where some get all the attention and others get ignored.

“Together, we can create what everyone wants to create,” said Berry.

VIDEO

Behind the scenes of a social distanced film shoot with GVTV

BY ALLISON RAFFERTY ARAFFERTY@LANTHORN.COM

ON CAMERA: Members of GVTV have adapted to keep their craft alive. GVL | BRITNEY WATKINS

Despite the social distance guidelines and the Stay in Place order issued by the Ottawa County Department of Public Health, members of GVTV have still made it possible to produce new content for shows.

Lauren Sargent, Vice President of GVTV, said that behind the scenes of a film shoot during COVID-19 is a very professional experience.

Sargent said that everyone is encouraged to get a COVID-19 test done prior to coming on set. People are not allowed on set unless they have a negative test result, adhere to isolation guidelines such as not going out to eat and not partying, and wear a mask at all times on set.

“When we break for meals, everyone sits six feet apart while eating with their face masks off,” said Sargent.

GVTV also has a designated COVID-19 Compliance Coordinator. Their job is to make sure everyone is wearing their masks, not touching their face and washing their hands.

Local Laker News producer Jacob Peters

said that with fewer people behind the camera than usual, producing a story ends up taking more time than the crew would like it to.

“But on the bright side, I am just happy we have the opportunity to shoot,” said Peters.

Meetings for the club have also been altered so now they are done virtually over Zoom.

GVTV also utilizes a discord server where members can have casual conversations, plan film shoots and more. Despite that, Peters said that the COVID-19 pandemic has made finding stories easier.

“Despite the fact that campus is certainly less lively due to COVID-19, there are plenty of interesting stories that are out there because of COVID-19,” Peters said.

“Even in a little town like Allendale, it’s easy enough to find a good story.”

Despite challenges and having fewer people allowed to work together, GVTV members have been working hard to produce stories and stay on track.

“During the Stay in Place order, our production crews focused on planning future shoots and developing their scripts so when the order was lifted they were better prepared to go on set

and film their content,” said Sargent.

“Obviously if someone isn’t feeling well they are not allowed on set,” Peters said. “I don’t care if you just have the sniffles, I would much rather have to do extra work on a shoot than put any of our cast or crew in danger.”

Sargent noted that the process of creation has changed dramatically, which in turn, has changed how she sees her craft.

“The greatest reward is creating great content despite the restrictions and the challenges they present to us,” Sargent said. “COVID-19 has challenged us all logistically and creatively, but that can be a good thing. Sometimes you need a good challenge to come up with an awesome idea that results in wonderful content.”

Peters said that the plan for GVTV moving forward is to keep producing content. Laker News filmed their first episode of the semester last Friday and Peters hopes to air the episode as soon as possible. After that, GVTV is shooting to keep producing more content.

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A10 | LAKER LIFE A LOOK AT LIFESTYLE PLAN AHEAD WITH THE 2020 STUDY ABROAD FAIR

Grand Valley State University’s Padnos International Center suspended their study abroad programs for the fall 2020 and winter 2021 semesters, but are looking forward to accepting applications for spring/summer 2021 and beyond. They’re encouraging students to explore the opportunities available the same way they do every year — with their annual Study Abroad Fair.

Occurring virtually from Oct. 12-15, the week of events includes both live presentations and Q&A sessions, as well as “virtual fair booths” that can be browsed for information at anytime. Links to individual Zoom sessions as well as the full schedule of events can be found on the Padnos International Center’s website at www.gvsu.edu/studyabroad.

CELEBRATE LAKER PRIDE WITH GVSU SPIRIT WEEK

The Campus Activities Board is once again heralding in October with a weeklong celebration of school spirit. Events start on Monday, Oct. 12 with a virtual GVSU trivia night and continue until Friday, Oct. 16, where it will be concluded with a Spirit Week pep rally on the Library Lawn.

Other planned events include DIY tie-dye, a cross-campus search for prizes, a giveaway of 500 potted succulents, and stress-relieving plate smashing. A full schedule of Spirit Week 2020 can be found on CAB’s website at www.gvsu. edu/cab.

GET A FLU SHOT AT GV

Though the seasonal flu may seem like an afterthought during this global COVID-19 pandemic, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is urging Americans to take it more seriously than ever in these unique circumstances. Communities need to vaccinate themselves again the flu to reduce the burden on health care systems and save medical resources for COVID-19 patients.

The GVSU Family Health Center is helping to meet this need by providing a number of opportunities for members of the Grand Valley State University community to get their flu shots.

This week, flu shots will be available from 1-3 p.m. on Monday, Oct. 12 at Cook-DeVos Health Sciences, as well as from 5-7 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 15 at the Kirkhof Center. A full schedule of October dates is available on their website at www.gvsu.edu/fhc, where those interested can also find the insurance and flu forms necessary to get the vaccine.

OCTOBER 12, 2020 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLLAKERLIFE

MENTAL HEALTH

University Counseling Center encourages community to take suicide prevention training

BY KATHERINE ARNOLD LAKERLIFE@LANTHORN.COM

Sometimes the only thing standing in the way of asking someone about suicide is a lack of knowledge. Is it okay to ask someone about whether they have suicidal thoughts? Will it make them angry if I do? For students who ask these questions and who have felt powerless in helping others cope with their suicidal thoughts, QPR training teaches you how to help.

This semester, the University Counseling Center is hosting a series of virtual QPR Suicide Prevention Training sessions where they explore the topic of suicide and how important it is for everyone to get involved in preventing it. For many college students, it can feel like we are powerless against it. Evoking its name is enough to cause uncertainty and hesitation for those who don’t understand it.

The training session offered virtually on Thursday, Oct. 8 not only worked to combat uncertainty and fear in its participants, also provided strategies to use when trying to help someone, explained common myths about suicide, and gave warning signs of when someone might be experiencing suicidal thoughts. After going through the training session, each participant was officially certified to be a Gatekeeper for the GVSU community, allowing them to be in a better position to help those around them get the help they need when they need it most.

Each training session is run by a different

SEEKING HELP: As many try to destigmatize conversations around suicide, University Counseling’s QPR training teaches students how to address helping their peers. GVL | KATHERINE ARNOLD

member of the GVSU Counseling Center, and they walk the participants through a presentation that provides answers to common misconceptions, addresses concerns and questions about how to help others, and discusses local organizations and resources that are available to help those in need.

QPR stands for Question, Persuade, and Refer, which are the three steps someone should take when helping someone who may have suicidal thoughts. One of the biggest myths about suicide is that you shouldn’t

directly ask someone about it, because you might offend them, make them angry, or push them into a suicidal episode. This is false. In fact, asking someone if they have been thinking about suicide opens the door for conversation, lowers anxiety, and lowers the risk of impulsive acts.

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CONVERSATION

Hauenstein hosts talk from Michigan neurology leader YSABELA GOLDEN LAKERLIFE@LANTHORN.COM

Every year, Grand Valley State University’s Hauenstein Center for Presidential Studies hosts a series of lectures called the Wheelhouse Talks, where community leaders share life lessons from their personal and professional experiences.

Though the Wheelhouse Talks have had to go virtual alongside the rest of the Hauenstein’s fall schedule, they’ve still

been a success thus far for the Presidential Studies Center’s Peter C. Cook Leadership Academy.

“This semester has come with new challenges and obstacles,” said Grace Tummel, Program Manager for the Cook Leadership Academy. “I am proud to say that these hurdles have not stopped the collective learning and relationship building between this year’s Peter C. Cook Academy Cohort. We have proven that even though our programming

may look and feel a little bit different, we still have insights to gain, connections to make, and understanding to share.”

The Wheelhouse Talk hosted on Friday, Oct. 9 was a discussion led by Dr. Eva Feldman, a faculty member at the University of Michigan’s Department of Neurology.

“One of the first questions we are tasked to answer when applying to the Cook Leadership Academy is what leaders in society inspired us most,” said Erin Reasoner, a fifth year undergraduate student at Grand Valley and second year Fellow candidate at the Leadership Academy. “On my application, I wrote about Dr. Eva Feldman, my first lead investigator. I was continually struck by her level of individual attention and genuine compassion afforded to every member of the team — including her undergraduate interns.”

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SMILING SCIENTIST: Neurology leader Eva Feldman was the latest speaker for the Hauenstein Center for Presidential Studies’ Wheelhouse Talk series, which took place Friday. GVL | YSABELA GOLDEN

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A11 | SPORTS

OCTOBER 12, 2020 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLSPORTS

QUICK HITS GVSU GOLF FRESHMAN TIED FOR TOP THREE PLACEMENT

At the Eagle Eye GCAA Amatuer tournament this past week on Oct. 5-6, several GVSU students made their presence felt.

Two Grand Valley freshmen, Charlie DeLong and Nick Krueger, tied for third place at the end of the event. DeLong and Kruger were paired together and finished the event three under par and with 213 shots total. DeLong opened the event with a 72 followed by 70 his second round with five birdies with four of them on the back nine. Krueger had four birdies in his final 12 holes.

On the women’s side of the event, senior Katie Chipman and freshman Megan Miron finished the event tied for 23rd. They finished with an overall score of 231 and 15 over par.

Other GVSU participants included freshman Drew Coble and Alex Jordan.

Coble finished tied for 23rd place scoring a total of 231 points and 15 over par. Jordan finished the event in 37th place with a final score of 240 and 24 over par.

HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL SCORES

Jenison 28, East Kentwood 21 Grandville 62, Holland West Ottawa 26 Hudsonville 17, Caledonia 7 Byron Center 36, Lowell 22 Spring Lake 38, Allendale 36 Grand Rapids Forest Hills Central 17, East Grand Rapids 9 Zeeland West 66, Holland 6 Muskegon 49, Zeeland East 20 Schoolcraft 55, Saginaw 0

INTRAMURAL

New look for IM sports featured at GV this fall

BY ZACK GOODROW SPORTS@LANTHORN.COM

Weekday nights at the Kelly Family Sports Center on campus at Grand Valley State University are filled with competition, but it’s not like a normal sporting event.

The field isn’t loud with competitors. The stands aren’t filled with fans. There are no coaches barking orders to players. Instead, it’s a quiet atmosphere filled with small groups of people playing games like cornhole or spikeball. While it may not be what students are used to when it comes to intramural (IM) sports, it does bring back some sense of normalcy to GVSU. “I was going to do volleyball, but why not take my talents to cornhole?” said cornhole player and GVSU junior Matthew Bridges. “I wanted to play cornhole because I enjoy doing it casually with friends and it was one of the only things offered to us. It’s tough and it’s hard to find a community here. I think that a lot of people feel that way. You get up, go to class, eat, then don’t really do much else.

It’s not really the full college experience that we’ve had or we’re used to. Cornhole helps us get together and just have fun.”

With little sports being offered to students, let alone student athletes at GVSU, this fall semester of 2020 has felt foreign to many.

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to spread, restrictions will still be placed on stu-

FANTASY FOOTBALL RANKINGS

SET IN THE SAND: GVSU students compete against each other in Intramural Volleyball on Allendale’s campus. IM Sports will be limited this semester, but free for participants. COURTESY | GVSU

dents for their safety. Those guidelines have extended to the department of Recreation and Wellness at GVSU, who have worked diligently to offer students at least some leagues of IM sports to compete in.

Mitch Eastlick, the interim associate director of sports programs, and his team have been hard at work making sure that playing IM sports this year was feasible. Their first task was deciding what sports could be played. Cornhole, kickball, Spikeball, sand volleyball and tennis were all offered, as they could be played while being socially distant. Their next job was to make IM sports free this year.

“In this time, everyone has a lot going

on,” Eastlick said. “We understand that finances are a concern for college students.

They’re really always a concern for students, but especially more of a concern right now. Being able to provide this opportunity for students to do things in person and be able to offer it for free are a couple of reasons why we made this decision.”

Eastlick and the Rec and Wellness department knew that they would have to offer less to students this year.

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CLUB SPORTS

Roundnet Club looking to spark Spikeball interest at university

QB: Russell Wilson 122.9, Dak Prescott

122.2, Josh Allen 119.34, Patrick Mahomes 108.16, Aaron Rodgers 104.06

RB: Alvin Kamara 127.7, Aaron Jones

101.9, Dalvin Cook 93.4, Ezekiel Elliott 88.2, Chris Carson 80

BY KELLEN VOSS ASSOCIATE@LANTHORN.COM

WR: Amari Cooper 85.1, DeAndre

Hopkins 84.7, Calvin Ridley 80.5, Tyler Lockett 79.8, Stefon Diggs 78.3

TE: Travis Kelce 65.7, Robert Tonyan 60.3, Darren Waller 57.7, Noah Fant 54.9, Mark Andrews 52.6

NEED HELP WITH FANTASY FOOTBALL?

For fantasy football advice every week, make sure to check the Lanthorn’s website every Saturday night, where we will publish a start em’-sit em’ guide ahead of Sunday’s slate.

SPIKEBALL: Members of the GV Roundnet Club pose for a photo. COURTESY | JACK BUSHART

With intramural sports kicking off safely this fall, dozens of Grand Valley State students will be taking part in what has been dubbed as the fastest growing sport in the world.

Jack Bushart, President of the GV Roundnet Club, says that the popular backyard game played with a round net and a small plastic has grown leaps and bounds over the last few years, largely because the pool of people looking to play the game has expanded to ex-college athletes.

“I think it has the potential to be a really good college game, like how Ultimate Frisbee is,” Bushart said. “One of their slogans is that they’re the fastest growing sport in the world. It’s a thing that they always say, but it’s actually true at this point. Even at the top level, most

of them are ex-college sports players, so they’re actually good athletes. Once their sport-playing time is over, they still want to compete, so they hop into a game.”

Founding the club in Winter 2020, Bushart didn’t really know what to expect when it came to leading a new student organization on campus, but was happy to do it in Allendale with so many resources to help him get the ball rolling.

“I would describe it as educational,” Bushart said. “When you try to start something up, there’s a lot of asking questions and being redirected to someone else, but overall, this is a pretty good university to start a club at since they’re so organized. It was fun and interesting, and I learned a lot.”

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OCTOBER 12, 2020 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLSPORTS

A12 | SPORTS CROSS COUNTRY

Coaches of GV: Jerry Baltes

BY JOSH CARLSON SPORTS@LANTHORN.COM

When it comes to success in sports, not a lot of coaches can say they have accomplished as much as the head coach of the Grand Valley State University cross country and track and field programs, Jerry Baltes. Baltes showed the epitome of success so much that he even had an award named after him: The Jerry Baltes Division II Program of the Year Award. He’s won seven of them.

The road towards having an award with his name on it started from a young age.

“I knew growing up and through high school that I wanted to be involved in athletics, and that I wanted to teach,” said Baltes.

After graduation, Baltes started his college athletics career as an athlete himself. He was a four-time letter winner and captain of the cross country and track and field teams at Butler University. After graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in secondary education-physical education, Baltes began coaching as a graduate-assistant for Butler.

“I decided I wanted to give it a shot,” Baltes said. “Fortunately, our head coach at the time at Butler, Joe Franklin, welcomed me and took care of me. It was a great situation and a great opportunity that put me in a position to get here.”

After getting his foot in the door at Butler, Baltes was hired at GVSU at just 24 years old where he got the opportunity to take over and lead the program. Twenty two years later, that opportunity has proved to be worth it for the Lakers. Since being hired, Baltes has had 11 championship teams and has led GVSU to 11 out of 12 cross country, indoor and outdoor track & field GLIAC championships. He has also won 65 GLIAC Coach of the Year titles and trained 200 All-American athletes for a combined 788 All-American honors.

Even though Baltes has a list of awards to fill a phone book by himself, he doesn’t give himself full credit.

“At the end of the day, it’s cooperativeness of everyone being on the same page and working together,” Baltes said. “Support from the administration, great assistant coaches, great athletic training and ultimately we get great student-athletes.”

Although cross country and track and field seem to be more individual sports, Baltes has a theory on how to use that itself to help the team overall, and it appears to be a recipe for success.

“One thing we talk about is finding a greater purpose than your own self,” Baltes said. “I mean sure you have to take care of business as an individual competing, whether it’s running or throwing or jumping, you ultimately have to take care of business. But finding that extra

motivation from within for others around you, whether it’s teammates, or coaches, maybe even something outside of sports. We try to find a greater purpose in what we are doing.”

For Baltes and his staff, they certainly love to compete and win championships. But when it comes to achieving that success, Baltes believes that when his team looks outside of themselves and not just compete for themselves, or train for themselves, that they will find that greater purpose and be more successful overall.

Baltes has shown his dedication to the program and his ability to squeezing every ounce of potential out of athletes. Being a head coach of two different teams may seem like it would have an incredibly large workload, but Baltes isn’t doing this alone.

“It’s one big picture in our program,” Baltes said. “Our program is three different sports, but its melded into one. It’s a continuous process.

I rely heavily on my assistant coaches to take care of their event groups in track and field. I turn the keys over to them and give them the responsibility and the opportunity to lead, recruit, coach, and mentor their event group at the highest level possible. I’m, of course, there to support, but ultimately they’re the ones getting the jobs done on a day-to-day basis.”

The Jerry Baltes Division II Program of the Year Award is accurately named. Baltes doesn’t look at any awards, individual or not, as a reason to feel good about himself,

CHAMPION COACH: GVSU XC and Track & Field coach Jerry Baltes is one of the most successful coaches in program history. GVL | ARCHIVE

or as an addition to his legacy. He looks at them as a badge of honor for everyone else who helped him get there.

“Awards are great, but awards are because of the people that you surround yourself with,” Baltes said. “That award is a staple of our program, not me.”

RECRUITING

K-Central’s Trevon Gunter looking forward to shooting his shot with GVSU basketball

BY KELLEN VOSS ASSOCIATE@LANTHORN.COM

The best basketball game that Trevon Gunter ever played started in a way that no hooper wants a game to start: with an ugly airball.

Gunter quickly recovered after that miscue, as the 6’1” point guard balled out for the Kalamazoo Central Maroon Giants with a laser-sharp focus. He managed a decent first half before scoring 30 points in the third quarter and making 8 of 9 threes on his way

to a career-high of 42 points. That high-scoring quarter is the second-highest in Michigan High School basketball history.

“It all happened in a blur,” Gunter said.

“I saw one shot go on and from there I just stayed focused and fed off the energy from the crowd and my teammates.”

While games like that prove that Gunter is more than capable of performing at a collegiate level, Gunter didn’t realize he could actually play college ball until he joined the varsity squad after his freshman season.

KZOO HOOPER: Freshman guard Trevon Gunter (left) joins the Lakers, filling in the shoes of other former Kalamazoo Central alums Darius Norman and Hunter Hale. COURTESY | GVSULAKERS.COM

“I knew I could play in college when I got pulled up to varsity my sophomore year,” Gunter said. “After a few weeks of practice, I knew I could hang with the big boys.”

Gunter certainly accomplished a lot in three short years, as he was a three-time all-conference performer in high school, including first team honors each of his final two seasons.

His senior season saw Basketball Coaches Assocation of Michigan first team All-State honors and MHSAA All-State honorable mention accolades. He was a two-time captain of the Maroons and his team named him ‘Most Improved Player’ in both his sophomore and junior seasons.

He’s one of the most accomplished basketball player out of a school with an impressive alumni list that includes current Division 1 basketball players in Isaiah Livers, Devon Daniels, Devin Oliver and Doug Anderson, a few former NFL in Greg Jennings and Jerome Harrison, and a sharpshooter by the name of Derek Jeter (Yes, that Derek Jeter).

Gunter has had a basketball in his hands as

long as he can remember, as one of his favorite Christmas presents is the little Tykes hoop he got when he was one.

From there, he practiced dribble moves and shot on his mini-hoop, trying to replicate moves he saw a certain King-like player execute in Cleveland.

“I loved Lebron James growing up,” Gunter said. “He’s always been incredible, on and off the court.”

While his love for Lebron James was almost instant, his love for GVSU did not come until high school, when assistant coach Taylor Johnson spoke to his AAU team.

Johnson’s down-to-earth personality and passion resonated with Gunter, and a few visits to Allendale, Gunter fell in love with the sense of home he had found less than an hour away from his home in Kalamazoo.

“I love how it feels like a tight-knit community, and I love how close it is to home,” Gunter said. “My Mom will especially love that.”

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