The Collegian - Feb. 11, 2022

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The beloved Bibza

Gross Grover couples

Hot streak

PERSPECTIVES

COMMUNITY

SPORTS

Prof gives students dating advice

The

@Collegian_GCC @gcc.collegian The Collegian: The GCC Newspaper Friday, February 11, 2022

PDA is in the air, especially in MAP South

Women’s basketball keeps on winning

Collegian The Award-Winning Grove City College Student Newspaper

Vol. 107, No. 13

MyGCC forums attract interest Ayden Gutierrez News Editor

Senior Kyle Sweitzer reveals the class of 2022’s parting contribution to the college at the senior dinner last Thursday.

GRACE DAVID

NEW SIGN UNVEILED Latest senior gift sparks debate on campus Noel Elvin

Community & Entertainment Editor The class of 2022 crowded into MAP café on Feb. 3 for their 100 Days Out Dinner to hear the senior class president, Kyle Sweitzer, announce the senior class gift. Large, red letters spelling “Grove” will grace upper campus by the start of the fall semester. President Paul J. McNulty ’80 said this is one of his favorite senior gifts yet. The “Grove” sign will resemble the “Love” sign in Philadelphia, Pa. Various departments contributed to the senior gift decision: the Operations Office, the President’s Office and the Office of Institutional Advancement. Sweitzer pre-

sented numerous ideas that he had heard across campus since freshman year to the Advancement Department. Afterwards, the Operations Department advised on what was plausible with funding. “It’s a joint decision between those three departments and myself,” Sweitzer said, adding that the senior gift was a “last-minute switch.” “The original plan was to enhance the outdoor classroom because senior class gifts often look half-finished, and I wanted to improve upon an existing feature,” Sweitzer said. “This project, however, would have been too high of a cost, and the administration knew that not all students would donate their whole deposit.” “The Grove sign was a

more affordable option that was deemed more realistic of a goal to achieve,” he said. “Having a large sign is a pretty common occurrence on college campuses, but I worry that the sign will not match the aesthetic of Grove City,” senior Michelle Slone said. “We have a traditional Gothic style campus that is so beautiful, but the sign is rather modern and seems to clash with the architecture of our buildings.” Sweitzer encouraged the class of 2022, saying, “This is a great opportunity to give a gift to the school in gratitude to an administration that has done so much for us and is seeking a creative, realistic way to improve our campus.” Slone said she donated some of her deposit towards the gift before it was an-

nounced: “I’ve gained a lot from my time at Grove, so regardless of what the gift would be, I wanted to leave something behind from my time here.” While Sweitzer anticipates prospective students, alumni and families taking photos of or with the sign, some current students wish that the senior class gift focused more on the student body. “In general, I wish senior gifts would be more about enhancing the life of the student body,” senior Olivia Kane said. “Something fun like last year’s basketball court or something useful such as refurbishments to a space like South Recreation or more water bottle refill stations.” SENIOR GIFT 3

Barr set for Reagan Lecture Ayden Gutierrez News Editor

William P. Barr has been selected as the guest for the 14th annual Ronald Reagan Lecture, which will be hosted by the Institute for Faith and Freedom (IFF) on Thursday, Feb. 17, in the Pew Fine Arts Center. The former U.S. attorney general will be participating in a conversation with Grove City College President Paul J McNulty ’80 and Dr. Paul Kengor, professor of political science and senior director and chief academic fellow of IFF. According to the Faith and Freedom website, the annual Ronald Reagan Lecture “illumines Ronald Reagan’s contributions to America and the world.” Each year, the Institute hosts an individual who worked for, knew or has produced important work on the 40th President. “The goal of the Reagan

Lecture is to promote the principles of faith and freedom to the next generation of American leaders,” the website says. “As students learn about the life and accomplishments of Ronald Reagan, they can see the values of faith and freedom played out on one of the biggest political stages in the country.” According to Kengor, the college has held the annual Ronald Reagan Lecture since 2007. “The first was with Michael Reagan, the president’s first son,” Kengor said. “Af-

ter that, they included people like Bill Bennett, Peter Robinson, Ed Meese, Peggy Grande and many more. These are people who worked with Ronald Reagan or knew him well. Furthermore, we try to bring in speakers who are prominent and compelling. Bill Barr certainly fits.” Kengor noted that the event holds some interesting historical perspective as well. “When Judge Robert Bork lost his confirmation battle before the Senate in 1987, after he was nominated by President Reagan to sit on the Supreme Court, his first public speaking appearance was here at Grove City College,” Kengor said. “I believe this is Attorney General Barr’s first public speaking appearance since he left office under President Trump.” Although most people today know Barr as Donald Trump’s attorney general, Kengor said there is much more to Barr than one de-

scription. “Few know that he got his start serving President Reagan,” Kengor said. “Prior to that, he was rich in experiences, including working for the CIA. He has seen and done a lot and has found himself unavoidably in controversies.” Kengor noted that Barr’s visit is a testament not only to President McNulty but also to the Grove City College brand, as McNulty and Barr have been very close for decades. “Also, crucial to our vision at the Institute for Faith & Freedom and Grove City College, Barr has been a stalwart defender of religious freedom,” Kengor said. “He has been an unflaggingly courageous champion of freedom of religion, conscience and unborn human life. He has never been afraid to stand for truth. He’s not someone to push around. He is very independent.”

MyGCC, the website for active Grove City College students and faculty, recently made a splash amongst the student body with the release of its forum section. Jon DiBenedetto, a solutions developer for the college, was responsible for the release of the widget. “I’ve been helping with redesigning MyGCC and in the process I was experimenting with all the different widgets the website builder had to offer,” DiBenedetto said. “The forum widget seemed to have a lot of potential for internal communication, so I figured I would just create it as a prototype to see if anyone used it.” And use it they have. From lost wallets, to missing backpacks, to ride requests to airports and even offers for Lego sets, the forum consists of a variety of content. “I started brainstorming different categories to separate the conversations and make it easier for people to subscribe to them,” DiBenedetto said. “I honestly forgot about it until a little after Thanksgiving when I was cleaning up something on the site and saw that a bunch of posts had been added.” Although excited about the idea, DiBenedetto noted that his expectations weren’t high. “I didn’t have a lot of expectations for how the forums would be used. I honestly was just trying to create a space for students to find solutions to their problems. It’s certainly been great to see it being used so much. I figured the lost and found section would get used but it’s great to see so many other sections getting some good traction.” The website has received its fair share of criticism, even with the positive addition of the forums page. “It’s great to know that the forums are being well received, but I’ve had a lot of feedback from staff and faculty who are upset with the changes being made to MyGCC, because they got used to the old layout,” DiBenedetto said. “In contrast, the student response has been much more positive. I think once the dust settles on the major changes there will be more universal buy-in for the site as a whole. It’s very satisfying to see the progress we have made so far.” As with everything, progress always warrants a setback of some sort. As one menu is about to release, another function of the website will see its demise. “I’ll probably take down the ‘Prayer Request’ topic, since it hasn’t had anyone post on it,” DiBenedetto said. FORUMS 3


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