Collegian 10.3.2024 by The Hillsdale Collegian

Courtesy | Greg Whalen

Courtesy | Marilyn Popplewell

CCA I discusses Christianity in America

By Christian Papillon Collegian Reporter

Christianity is necessary for the morality and preservation of the American republic, according to speakers at this week’s Center for Constructive Alternatives seminars.

“A post-Christian America will not just be hostile toward individual Christians, but it will also be hostile to those ideals and principles that are derived from and are dependent on Christianity,” speaker John Daniel Davidson said Tuesday evening.

Hillsdale held its first CCA of the academic year, “Christianity in America,” from Sept. 29 - Oct. 2.

George Marsden, author of “Jonathan Edwards: A Life,” spoke Sunday evening about “Jonathan Edwards and Christianity in Colonial America.” Marsden said Jonathan Edwards has become known as one of Christianity’s most prominent theologians and talked about how Edwards would contemplate God’s creation.

“God is constantly speaking in creation,” Marsden said. “We can all get glimpses of this in nature when we see a gorgeous sunset or wonderful trees in the spring, we get some sense of the beauty of God in creation.”

Marsden said Edwards would go into the fields and contemplate God’s creation and how it pointed to the beauty of Christ.

Marsden also talked about Edwards’ contemporary, George Whitefield.

“Whitefield was the first American celebrity superstar,” Marsden said. “He preached several long tours up and down the colonies. Word that he was coming would spread like wildfire, and it seemed that almost everybody who was able-bodied would come out to hear him speak.”

Daniel L. Dreisbach, professor of justice, law, and criminology at American University, spoke on “Christianity and the American Political Tradition” Monday afternoon.

Dreisbach contested the claims that the United States was founded as a secular nation with total separation between church and state. He said the Founders were inspired by the Bible while drafting the founding documents.

“My first observation is that the Founding Fathers read the Bible,” Dreisbach said. “That shouldn’t surprise us, because after all, the Bible was the most accessible and authoritative text for 18th-century Americans.”

Hillsdale Academy dedicates new wing after enrollment spike

Headmaster, professors praise continued commitment to classical K-12 education

By Olivia Pero Outreach Director

Hillsdale Academy and college staff dedicated a new wing of the K-12 school, with students performing recitations and choral music Oct. 2.

The new wing includes an atrium, a music room, two classrooms dedicated to the teaching of Latin, and classrooms for grades five through eight, said Hillsdale Academy Headmaster Mike Roberts during his welcome speech.

“Since 2020, our enrollment has increased by 50%,” Roberts said. “This increase simply caused us to outgrow our current space and was putting limits, especially on high school enrollment, and the ability to serve local families.”

Hillsdale College President Larry Arnn said the school is doing well.

“It’s bigger, and this is possible because of the love and knowledge and devotion of the people who work at it — and those students whose discipline and knowledge is manifest,” Arnn said.

Assistant Professor of Education David Diener previously served as the Academy headmaster from 2018 to 2022. Diener said when the Academy opened in 1990, it started with combined classrooms called “clusters” where, for example, there was one classroom for both third and fourth grade students.

“During my years as headmaster, enrollment grew, and we finished breaking apart those clusters so that each grade level had its own classroom,” Diener said. “As the enrollment has continued to grow, the Academy is now in a place to have multiple sections of some grades in the upper school.”

Additional classrooms have been sorely needed in order to accommodate the increased number of students and classes, Diener said.

“This new wing is a testament to the incredible education that Hillsdale Academy provides and to Hillsdale College’s commitment to K-12 classical education,” Diener said. “As the Academy continues to grow, the expanded facilities will enable the education we provide to bless not only families here in Hillsdale but school communities all over the country who look to Hillsdale Academy as a model to emulate.”

During her remarks at the

dedication, Kathleen O’Toole, assistant provost for K-12 education at Hillsdale College, said she thought the dedication ceremony called attention to the importance of good architecture.

“When you step into a building or a room that has been designed well, you feel different,” O’Toole said. “These things invite us in, and they encourage us to carry ourselves in a certain way, to regard others in a certain way, and to think of our own activity in

that place in a certain way.” Professor of History Ken Calvert, who served as the Academy headmaster for 16 years, said he thinks the new wing is beautiful. “The students and staff of the school are blessed,” Calvert said. “This is an important addition to Hillsdale Academy as it plays a role in the efforts of Hillsdale College to spread classical K-12 education in America.”

Hillsdale responds to free speech warning label

By Isabella Doer Senior Reporter

A free-speech group has once again placed Hillsdale College on its “warning” list.

Hillsdale College received a “warning” designation from the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education with an overall score of 46.73 in its 2025 College Free Speech Rankings, well below the topranked University of Virginia, which scored 73.41.

Laura Beltz, director of policy reform for FIRE, explained that while the evaluation considers multiple factors, it is based mainly on the institution’s written policies.

“We look to see if a private school has a clear and unequivocal commitment to freedom of expression,” Beltz said. “At Hillsdale, there isn’t a statement on the books that guarantees students the right to free speech. Certain policies state that the college’s values mean some types of speech or expressive activities are prohibited, and that’s what puts it into the warning category.”

FIRE’s rankings assess college policies, student experiences, and institutional responses to free speech controversies, placing schools with policies that prioritize other values above free speech on its “warning” list.

In collaboration with College Pulse, FIRE surveyed

58,807 students from 257 colleges and universities between Jan. 25 and June 17, 2024. This survey included responses from Hillsdale students enrolled in four-year degree programs.

While FIRE’s label may raise questions for outsiders, Hillsdale’s administration expressed confidence in the college’s commitment to free speech.

Emily Davis, Hillsdale’s executive director of media relations & communications said that the “warning” label is “misleading and inaccurate.” According to Davis, FIRE’s methodology fails to capture the true nature of free expression on Hillsdale’s campus.

“The issue, as FIRE sees it, is that Hillsdale doesn’t subscribe to an all-or-nothing view of free speech,” Davis said. “Hillsdale absolutely promotes free speech, but it’s framed within the principle of civility. Students are encouraged to speak their minds, but they’re also expected to do so in a way that contributes to academic discourse. That’s something FIRE’s criteria may not fully take into account.” College President Larry Arnn has been outspoken about Hillsdale’s approach to free expression. He said freedom of speech is essential to a college’s mission, but not in an unrestricted sense.

Michigan’s oldest college newspaper

Theater: Senior Fiona Mulley stars as Henrietta Leavitt in “Silent Sky.”

Courtesy | Austin Thomason

Hillsdale Academy Headmaster Mike Roberts, Chief Administrative Officer Rich Péwé, and College President Larry Arnn (left to right) cut the ribbon at the dedication ceremony Wednesday. Olivia Pero | Collegian

Courtesy | Austin Thomason

Compiled by Elizabeth Putlock

Courtesy | Greg Whalen

Courtesy | Marilyn Popplewell

CCA I discusses Christianity in America

By Christian Papillon Collegian Reporter

Christianity is necessary for the morality and preservation of the American republic, according to speakers at this week’s Center for Constructive Alternatives seminars.

Hillsdale held its first CCA of the academic year, “Christianity in America,” from Sept. 29 - Oct. 2.

Marsden said Edwards would go into the fields and contemplate God’s creation and how it pointed to the beauty of Christ.

Marsden also talked about Edwards’ contemporary, George Whitefield.

Daniel L. Dreisbach, professor of justice, law, and criminology at American University, spoke on “Christianity and the American Political Tradition” Monday afternoon.

Hillsdale Academy dedicates new wing after enrollment spike

Headmaster, professors praise continued commitment to classical K-12 education

By Olivia Pero Outreach Director

Hillsdale Academy and college staff dedicated a new wing of the K-12 school, with students performing recitations and choral music Oct. 2.

Hillsdale College President Larry Arnn said the school is doing well.

“It’s bigger, and this is possible because of the love and knowledge and devotion of the people who work at it — and those students whose discipline and knowledge is manifest,” Arnn said.

Additional classrooms have been sorely needed in order to accommodate the increased number of students and classes, Diener said.

During her remarks at the

dedication, Kathleen O’Toole, assistant provost for K-12 education at Hillsdale College, said she thought the dedication ceremony called attention to the importance of good architecture.

Hillsdale responds to free speech warning label

By Isabella Doer Senior Reporter

A free-speech group has once again placed Hillsdale College on its “warning” list.

Laura Beltz, director of policy reform for FIRE, explained that while the evaluation considers multiple factors, it is based mainly on the institution’s written policies.

In collaboration with College Pulse, FIRE surveyed

58,807 students from 257 colleges and universities between Jan. 25 and June 17, 2024. This survey included responses from Hillsdale students enrolled in four-year degree programs.

While FIRE’s label may raise questions for outsiders, Hillsdale’s administration expressed confidence in the college’s commitment to free speech.

Michigan’s oldest college newspaper

Theater: Senior Fiona Mulley stars as Henrietta Leavitt in “Silent Sky.”

Courtesy | Austin Thomason

Hillsdale Academy Headmaster Mike Rogers, Chief Administrative Officer Rich Péwé, and College President Larry Arnn (left to right) cut the ribbon at the dedication ceremony Wednesday. Olivia Pero | Collegian

Courtesy | Austin Thomason

Compiled by Elizabeth Putlock

College Republicans register students to vote in Michigan

By Skye Graham Collegian Reporter

Hillsdale College Republicans has registered more than 200 students to vote in Michigan, according to president of Hillsdale College Republicans junior Joseph “Hinson” Peed.

“We’re trying to get out the vote for Donald Trump,” communications chair for Hillsdale College Republicans senior Micah Hart said. “Michigan is one of the most important swing states, if not the most important. I think one of Trump’s best paths to victory is through Michigan.”

Josiah Jones, the club’s vice president, said it’s important for students to know that it is completely legal for them to vote in Hillsdale rather than their hometown.

“According to the Michigan voter registration form, it is legal for college students to vote in the state of Michigan if they have been residents in the state for at least 30 days prior to the election,” Jones said. “As college students, we are considered residents of Michigan.”

According to Jones, voting in Hillsdale allows students to vote in person rather than by mail, which limits concerns about election security.

“A lot of students are more comfortable voting in person,” Jones said.

Trump won Michigan by 11,612 votes in 2016 and Biden won it by 154,188 votes in 2020, according to Politico.

It’s important that young voters understand the stakes of this election, Jones said.

“As young voters, the future of a Kamala Harris presidency is going to hurt us more than anybody else,” he said. “If anybody should be worried about this election, it should be us. We need to make sure we are voting

Dreisbach cited a study from the American Political Science Review, noting that the Bible was cited more often than any European writer in early American political writings. He said the Bible gave a representation of human nature and showed the laws that the Hebrew republic put into place, which also aided the Founders in writing the early laws in the United States.

“Although the Founders did not seek to replicate the Hebrew model in all its details, its biblical precedent reassured many that republicanism was a political system that enjoyed divine favor,” Dreisbach said.

In addition, Dreisbach said the Bible also gave the early Americans justification for disobeying the unjust rule of King George III and declaring independence.

“Patriotic Americans emphasized that civil authorities are established for the good of civil society,” Dreisbach said. “Moreover, as the argument goes, civil magistrates have no authority from God to act contrary to the public good. Accordingly, one who bears the title of civil magistrate, but is a terror to good works, deposes himself.” Davidson ’04, author of “Pagan America: The Decline of Christianity and the Dark Age to Come,” gave the final lecture of the series Tuesday evening on “Christianity in a Post-Liberal World.”

According to Davidson, the United States is in danger of falling back toward paganism if we lose sight of Christianity.

where our vote is going to have the most impact.”

According to Peed, the College Republicans have registered more than 200 students to vote in Michigan.

Peed said the Hillsdale College Republicans will be making sure students in swing states send in their absentee ballots by their state’s deadline. College Republicans will be helping students who are voting in Hillsdale make it to the polls, Peed said.

“There are nine days of early voting in Hillsdale,”

Peed said. “We are going to be organizing rides throughout the early voting period and on Election Day to make sure that all of our students across campus are either voting here in Michigan or back at home.”

Peed said he believes Michigan would benefit from a Trump presidency because of the impact outsourcing has had on manufacturing in recent years.

“I was just at a town hall in Warren, Michigan, last week hearing from people at auto plants about how their plants are either shutting down or facing massive layoffs because these industries are going overseas,” Peed said. “We know that the Harris-Walz administration won’t give us a strong economy. Harris has been vice president for three and a half years and hasn’t done it.”

Hart said in states like Michigan, each individual vote is important to the future of the election.

“Sometimes it feels like your vote doesn't matter, but it always does,” he said. “Even one vote can change a district or a county, so it’s really important that students get out to vote this November.”

“The pagan ethos will be the dominant view of a post-Christian era,” Davidson said. “It is a worldview that is wholly incompatible with something like American constitutionalism or an American republic.”

Americans must return to Christianity to save the republic, Davidson said.

“We have to reject the fatuous notion that liberalism divorced from Christianity can sustain Western civilization,” Davidson said. “Liberalism’s claims about human rights and dignity are empty without the religion from which they sprang. The idea that we can have the one without the other is a pernicious delusion and the sooner we rid ourselves of it, the better.”

Sophomore Luke Myers said Davidson’s lecture was his favorite of the series.

“The claim that the future of America will be one characterized by paganism rather than secularism is a notion which definitely helps me understand the roots of wickedness in American public life,” Myers said.

The series concluded with a faculty roundtable Wednesday afternoon.

Assistant Professor of English Patrick Timmis encouraged young Christians to stay strong in the faith and to foster strong Christian communities on the local level.

“There is a virtue to staying true to the faith of your fathers, assuming that faith is orthodox trinitarian Christianity” Timmis said. “Keep the faith, and know that you will always be part of this work that we’ve begun here.”

Chemistry professor to compete in world gravel cycling championship in Belgium

By James Joski Collegian Freelancer

A Hillsdale chemistry professor will compete in a cycling world championship in Belgium this week.

Courtney Meyet, chairwoman and associate professor of chemistry, will compete with Team USA in Flanders, Belgium, as a participant in the 2024 Bolero UCI Gravel World Championships Oct. 5.

“I will be representing our country, wearing the national kit. It’s pretty sweet,” Meyet said, “It was a big goal for me to do this.”

The race starts in Halle, Belgium, and ends in Leuven, covering 113 miles.

Women and men will race in separate competitions Oct. 5 and 6, respectively, according to the Union Cycliste Internationale, the global governing body for the sport of cycling.

In gravel riding, competitors ride on unpaved surfaces, according to the Adventure Cycling Association.

“It came out of a rebelliousness of cyclists that wanted to hit the dirt roads and not be under a governing body that said you have to have this type of equipment and these types of clothes,” Meyet said.

As a sanctioned sport now, regulations on clothing and equipment have come to gravel biking, but the essence of the sport remains the same for Meyet.

“From the time I was a small child, a bicycle represented freedom,” she said. “You jump on your bike, and it’s transportation. You always knew what was happening based on how many bikes were piled out in front of someone’s house and even as an adult, it rekindles that childhood — the excitement for freedom.”

Meyet said she is excited to experience that same feeling on the trail.

“The speed, seeing a new country — it’s an escape,” she said. “It’s definitely a stress release. Time to think, to be alone.”

Meyet said her quest for health and fitness in midlife started with training for triathlons.

“I’m an average swimmer and when it comes to running, I’m definitely more back of the pack, but cycling — I really worked on cycling,” Meyet said.

Fire from A1

“The purpose of a college includes freedom of speech, but not as an absolute,” Arnn told The Collegian in an email. “Instead, students are guaranteed here that they may say whatever they please, if they can contrive to say it in a civil and academic manner contributing to thought. That is the purpose of a college. This particular college remembers that purpose.”

Arnn emphasized that Hillsdale’s policies, which students agree to when signing the college’s honor code, are clear from the admissions process onward.

“Students are told about this at every stage of the admissions process, and they signify their understanding of it and other things like it in their signing of an honor code,” he said.

Despite the “warning” label, Hillsdale’s own analysis of FIRE’s survey data suggests that students feel overwhelmingly supported in expressing their views.

For instance, in response to the question, “How clear is it to you that your college

Meyet’s hard work qualified her for a national triathlon championship, but she said it had nothing to do with her swimming or running. It was all in the wheels.

“After competing at the national championships, I thought I should just focus on cycling,” she said. “So I moved to gravel as a discipline, and I had good luck right away.”

Biking has personal roots for Meyet.

“My grandfather was an avid cyclist and he would ride his bike across the entire country,” Meyet said. “He would ride from California to Florida. Every summer, he would ride and he would do it in a month.”

Meyet said her grandfather’s passion for biking began to influence her life when she was only sixteen. It was then that he took her to participate in a five day biking tournament across the state of Wisconsin and made it a point to rise with the sun to see the best of the best cyclists take off.

“He would make me get up to watch the ‘fast guys,’” Meyet said. “The guys that were the tip of the spear that would get up and see how fast they could complete that day’s stage, and he was always so jazzed about it. I think that he had hoped at that point that I would get into cycling like him, but I didn’t.”

Now, two and a half years into her transition to gravel biking, Meyet said she has had strings of victories and accomplishments, but it has taken

administration protects free speech on campus?” — a key metric in FIRE’s rankings — 84% of Hillsdale students reported that it was either "extremely" or “very clear” that their free speech rights were protected, according to Davis. Nationally, the average was just 34%, with the next closest institution, Liberty University, at 50%, Davis said.

Similarly, when students were asked about their comfort level in discussing controversial political topics in class, 87% of Hillsdale students said they were “very” or “somewhat comfortable” doing so—compared to the national average of 47%. The sense of security extended beyond classrooms, as 97% of Hillsdale students reported feeling comfortable expressing controversial views in public spaces like the campus quad or dining halls, far above the national average of 50%.

Beltz said FIRE’s survey results show that Hillsdale students say they feel comfortable expressing themselves.

“That’s great,” she said, “but the rating of the policies is just that — it’s only look -

careful training balanced with career and family commitments to get her to Belgium.

“Sometimes I have to do two workouts a day so I get up early, like this morning, I got up at five o’clock,” Meyet said, “I get on what’s known as a smart bike and I can bring up a map of anywhere in the world and ride there.”

The smart bike takes actual geographic information such as hills and valleys to change the resistance on the bike.

On a typical day, Meyet said she could put in two hours of biking, followed by strength training.

“You do what you have to do when you are passionate about a sport or a hobby,” she said. “It’s a minimum of six days a week. I ride six days, and strength training or core, mobility, five days. And rest day isn’t just sitting on the couch. It’s an active recovery.”

This intense regimen has posed difficulties for Meyet.

“It can be a little bit of a struggle, especially when you have events on campus,” she said. “I have to either cut something out or decide I’m not going to that event, or get up really early and just get it all done. It can be challenging.”

Despite this, Meyet has managed to leave a lasting impact on her students.

“She genuinely cares about her students,” senior Colin Joyce said. “If you ever have a problem, she’ll sit down and walk slowly through things

ing at what the written policies say, and Hillsdale doesn’t have a clear commitment to protecting free speech. If a student were to face punitive action for their speech, they wouldn’t have the legal or moral recourse to say, ‘You promised me free speech rights.’”

According to Arnn, the college’s stance on free speech is not just about allowing unrestricted expression, but rather about ensuring that expression contributes positively to academic life.

“The result of our policy is two-fold,” Arnn said. “The first is positive: we are able to learn together, which is what human beings are made to do. The second is that we do not have students roaming our campus, screaming venom at each other. Our classes continue with intensity and good order.”

Nonetheless, FIRE remains concerned about policies that restrict certain types of expression, particularly those that aim to enforce civility.

“The problem with civility policies is that civility is in the eye of the beholder,” Beltz said. “Yes, civility is a good as-

with you until you actually understand.”

Colin said in his class of 30, all students who sought help got the same level of care.

“She is one of the most hardworking people I have ever met,” he said. Not even a wipeout could stop Meyet when she fell off her bike in a Nebraska race in early September.

“Post her crash at nationals a few weeks ago, I’m all the more impressed by her,” senior Emma Osborne said. “Cycling is a very dangerous sport. It’s very difficult to get back on the bike after a very serious accident because confidence on your bike is something that takes a long time to build up and can be destroyed in an instant.”

As the tournament draws near, Meyet said she has her own personal goals, but above all she views the race as a tribute to her World War II veteran grandpa.

“He fought in the Battle of the Bulge, and we are actually going to be racing through a country where he served,” she said, “It’s kind of coming together. I feel like it was meant to be because he always wanted me to be a cyclist.” Meyet said her achievement and success in cycling carries her grandfather’s memory.

“This fast guy thing," Meyet said, "my grandfather, he’s gone, he’s passed on. But you know, sometimes I think, ‘Grandpa, I’m one of those fast guys now.’”

piration to strive toward, but enforcing civility can really restrict folks.”

As an example, Beltz pointed to a case at San Francisco State University where students were charged under a civility policy for stomping on Hamas flags during a protest.

“The policy was challenged and thrown out by a federal judge, and the university had to revise their policy as a result because sometimes arguments and speech do require passion, and that may seem uncivil to others, but that’s necessary to get the speaker’s message across,” Beltz said. “Enforcing civility can end up restricting free speech in unintended ways.”

In last year’s ranking, Hillsdale was similarly placed in the "warning" category, despite scoring highly on student perceptions of free speech.

“Let me suggest to FIRE that if they undertook the difficult business of managing a college, they would have a better sense of what a college is,” Arnn said. “In the meantime, they may carry on as outside, ill-informed critics, which is easier.”

CCA from A1

Meyet will represent Team USA in Belgium. Courtesy | RBPICS Photography

Grove City professor addresses transgression

By Michaela Estruth Senior Editor

Modern culture defines itself by opposing whatever the established norm may be, what Carl Trueman called transgression in a Drummond Lecture titled, “Blessed Are the Transgressors,” Sept. 26 in Christ Chapel.

“Transgression can never be satisfied,” Trueman said. “Transgression needs always to break whatever rules are in place. Transgression is an aesthetic that pits itself against anything sacred or stable.”

Hillsdale College invited Trueman, Grove City College professor of biblical and religious studies to speak as a part of the Drummond Lecture series, which addresses matters of faith and learning to engage cultural issues, according to College Chaplain Rev. Adam Rick, who introduced Trueman.

Trueman is a graduate of the University of Cambridge, where he received his master’s in classics, and the University of Aberdeen, where he received his Ph.D. in church history. He is a fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, a regular contributor of First Things magazine, and the author of several books, including bestseller “The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self.”

In his lecture, Trueman analyzed the swift change of culture and the consequential result: modern expressive individualism.

Trueman demonstrated this cultural phenomena by contrasting today’s college graduation ceremonies to his own.

Perfect uniformity was essential upon graduation at Cambridge, Trueman said, adding that he had to lift up his pants to demonstrate matching socks — not between his two feet, but with his graduating peers.

“Had I worn green socks that day,” Trueman said, “I wouldn’t have graduated.”

Graduation today, however, features individual expression from various pins, cap decorations, and clothing, according to Trueman. This comparison, within one lifetime, Trueman said, demonstrates the radical and constant change in culture.

“A single lifespan covers social transformations that would have been inconceivable to pre-modern, even early modern people,” Trueman said.

Trueman contrasted the swift change of modern culture with the constant stability of the peasant farmer in the 12th century. He explained the rarity and near impossibility of social mobility and geographic movement of that time, which grounded humanity in a deep stability, a rhythm of life, and an order of nature. Trueman said with the rise of technology, from the printing press to today’s iPhone, the speed of change, social mobility, and geographic movement has greatly altered this stability and order.

“Things are happening within our culture, and happening at frantic speeds,” Trueman said. “But this is not simply leading to modifications of previous opinions and previous orthodoxies and previous thinking — not simply moderate change of direction — but complete 180-degree turns.”

Trueman said modern culture creates a world in which man is constantly trying to catch up.

“You will find the world running away from you,” Trueman said. “And that means the answer to the question, ‘Who am I?’ becomes a chaotic problem.”

To demonstrate the dramatic shift toward modern individualism, Trueman surveyed historical changes in religion,

literature, and philosophy.

He explained that the religious shift of the Protestant Reformation, which he emphasized as good and necessary, placed the responsibility of salvation upon the individual rather than the church. He quoted Michel de Montaigne and his use of the first person singular pronoun in much of his writing. Trueman compared Rene Descartes and Jean-Jacques Rousseau and their philosophies of human nature. Finally, he discussed both Friedrich Nietzsche and Karl Marx and their atheistic influence on modern day. Nietzche’s death of God, Trueman said, presented man with two options: to die miserable or to rise to the challenge of the “Overman,” who breaks with the status quo — Christian morality. This man becomes the transgressor, in Trueman’s words, who presents himself as the authentic individual.

“To be truly free is to break with the herd and desecrate that which was once considered sacred,” Trueman said, in explanation of Nietzsche.

In discussion of Marx, Trueman analyzed his common claim: “Religion is the opium of the people.” Trueman said Marx’s claim that religion is “the sigh of the oppressed creature” reveals man’s real pain.

“The very existence of religion indicates that all is not well with the world,” Trueman said.

Marx opposed religion to set the individual free, which is the common feature of culture today, Trueman said.

“What does it mean to be human today? I think Marx and Nietzsche would agree,” Trueman said. “It means to desecrate and transgress that which others consider to be sacred. Blessed are the transgressors, for today, they shall inherit the world.”

Rick said he appreciated Trueman as a clear, learned, and gifted speaker.

“His analysis of how we got here was quite fascinating, and his exegesis of Nietzsche and Marx was impactful — I didn’t know that Marx got his information about the state of English workers from the reports of parish clergy,” Rick said. “I thought he ended on a bit of a downer note, where we are without any kind of solution.”

Rick said Trueman offered a solution for our modern age in answer to a question following the lecture. Trueman called the church to responsibility, highlighting the necessity of the gospel, liturgy, and hospitality.

Sophomore Angelina Gardner said when she saw Trueman was coming to campus, she told everyone she knew.

“I had no idea that he was held at gunpoint or experienced the same level of protests as other political activists or speakers,” Gardner said in reference to personal stories Trueman shared. “When listening to him speak, he only showed the light of Christ and his pure joy for his vocation. I couldn’t believe he had such negative experiences, and talked about them with a smile on his face and was back on another college campus.” Gardner agreed with Rick that Trueman’s insights in the Q&A portion were especially impactful.

“I loved how he spoke about the Christian character,” Gardner said. “The desire to be right can consume us, blinding us of our true biblical calling to ‘love thy neighbor.’ It was a great reminder that proving the truth should never compromise our ability to see the humanity in another person.”

A taste of the craze: Campus Rec hosts pickleball tournament

By Micah Hart Senior Reporter

Campus Rec hosted its second weekend of its new pickleball intramural sport last week, with more than 30 teams showing out to play.

According to junior Sophie Schlegel, a member of the Campus Rec staff, there are more than over 30 teams signed up for this season’s “trial and error” run.

“We’re trying to figure out what’s working, what doesn’t, what people like, what people don’t like, how long the time slot should be, to what score should we play to,” Schlegel said. “It’s been successful so far, and I think it’s going to be a league that we keep."

Pickleball is a similar sport to tennis; however, teams of two in the case of the intramural league, use paddles to hit a plastic ball over the net. This continues as it does in tennis until one team does not hit the

ball over the net.

Schlegel said the league will run a little shorter than most IM leagues with three weeks of competition instead of five and that Campus Rec wanted to try something new to engage with students.

“That was our biggest drive, how can we reach campus more through our athletics and the events and leagues we put on,” Schlegel said.

Junior Ethan Bourgeois, a member of the media and promo team, said it is different from other intramural sports on campus because it is on the weekend as compared to others, which makes for a casual experience.

“It’s meant to be this more casual, fun thing that you go out and do with a friend and just have a good time,” Bourgeois said.

The first week of tournaments had to be moved to Hayden Park because of logistics with the football game, Schlegel said.

“We literally just drew chalk courts, but we still got a really good turnout,” Schlegel said. “I think that was encouraging to Campus Rec, and specifically the league’s team — that people are really wanting to do this.”

Bourgeois said everybody loved it.

“The time was supposed to be from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. They didn’t end until 2 p.m.,” Bourgeois said.

This past weekend, the league took place at the pickleball courts. Senior Emma Turner played the first game of pickleball with her partner, senior Seth Capelli.

The league is co-ed, which is not the case for every intramural sport. Schlegel said this has given way to more teams.

“You can have a team of all men. You can have a team of all women. You can have a team guy-girl,” Schlegel said. “The integration just in that sense allows for more teams, or easier to get a team.”

Turner said you don’t have to have any experience to join.

“I started playing this summer, and I’m taking the pickleball class, and I’m still very novice at the sport, but I’m having fun,” Turner said.

Her partner, Capelli, also didn’t start seriously playing until this summer. He said he recommends learning how to do it before joining the league.

“Once you get a good feel for hitting it on both sides, with your right and left, backhand and forehand, that’s probably about all you need to play,” Capelli said.

Bourgeois said the league will likely not return in the spring due to the number of leagues Campus Rec does in the spring, but he hopes it is back in the fall.

“I hope it’s something that we keep doing. I think it’s a really fun sport,” Bourgeois said. “The fact that it is so accessible to anybody to play I think is great for the campus.”

Simpson men prevail through the rain at Naval Battle

By Christian Papillon Collegian Reporter

Rain was not enough to dampen the spirits of students as they battled on cardboard boats and rafts at Campus Rec’s Naval Battle at Baw Beese Lake last Saturday. The men of Simpson prevailed 3-0 after 15 minutes of battle.

Two teams faced off in a water-themed version of capture the flag. The men of Simpson faced off against the “Coalition,” a combination of the other men’s dorms.

A tradition between the men’s dorms on campus, Naval Battle fell dormant in 2017 and returned last fall, according to Director of Campus Rec Ryan Perkins.

Both teams had 90 minutes to build boats and rafts out of cardboard, duct tape, pool noodles, and tarps. The teams then had to bring three flags around a buoy and to the opposing team’s shore, all while preventing their boats from being capsized.

Due to Simpson outnumbering the Coalition, the teams played a second round, with several Simpson men moving to the Coalition to even out the teams.

Junior and Simpson resident assistant Ezra Phillips and junior and head RA Nathan “Rasto” Rastovac captained the Simpson team.

“I led the strike force to sink their boats and Rasto was on defense,” Phillips said. “Once we got around our buoy, it was the whole team working.”

Phillips said he especially enjoyed the second round with the even teams.

“There were several guys from the Simpson team who volunteered to go to the other side,” Phillips said. “We actually sent several of our bigger and stronger dudes over there, so it was fun to wrestle the guys that were on our team.”

Phillips said the event helped men from different dorms get to know one another better.

“It’s amazing how wrestling people can help you become

friends with them,” he said. “There are guys in Galloway that I now know because we tried to drown each other last Saturday.”

Rastovac said he was impressed by his team’s turnout.

“We almost got 30 guys out there, even with the majority of our dorm having other commitments,” Rastovac said. “It was awesome to see that many guys come out.”

Rastovac praised Phillips’ leadership during the battle.

“Ezra led a charge and opened up the way for the boys in the back with the flags,” Rastovac said. “We got one flag and quickly got a second, but we really fought for that third flag.”

After Simpson moved their flags to the opposing shore, they employed a “wall defense,” according to Phillips.

“We thought if we got around the other side of the buoy and made a wall of our guys, there was no way they could score,” Phillips said.

Rastovac said despite the

rainy weather, his team had a good time.

“Even with the weather conditions, it was less than ideal to fight, but that made it more fun,” Rastovac said. “Seeing our guys really push through and have a good time was really what matters. The energy there is something that we as a dorm want to utilize as we push into homecoming.”

Freshman Aidan Watts competed with the Coalition.

“I thought it was a great way to have fun with the guys,” Watts said. “It was unfortunate that we were outnumbered by Simpson, but after they evened out the teams, we were able to get some even matches.”

Perkins said he believes the event was a success.

“I think everybody had fun. I think it all worked out,” Perkins said. “What I love most about Naval Battle is it’s one of our school’s traditions that brings together the men’s dorms in rivalry, camaraderie, and dorm spirit.”

Line dancing club brings honky tonk to Hillsdale

By Lauren Bixler Circulation Manager

A new line dance club brings a southern tradition to campus, according to sophomore and club president Amelia King.

“I danced a lot over the summer at different line dancing bars and honky tonks around where I’m from,” King said. “So then I thought, this is way too fun not to have at Hillsdale.”

Though the club is currently working with the Student Federation to become official, it has already held its first lesson with more events on the books.

King said general line dancing lessons are scheduled for Tuesdays from 6:30 - 7:30 p.m. in the Old Snack Bar and lead up to big dance nights. The first big dance night is this Saturday, Oct. 2, from 7 - 10 p.m. in the OSB.

Sophomore and vice president Lydia Marshall said the group tossed around the idea of this club last semester as a joke, but after this summer, they realized Hillsdale needs a club like this.

King said they want a club that reaches across the barriers between students and creates more community. Also, since the lessons are a small time commitment, Marshall said it can fit into most people’s schedules.

“It’s just one hour. Put down your Western Heritage Reader, your great books reading, and just come move your body a little bit,” Marshall said. “And invite Larry Arnn.”

As opposed to partner dancing atmospheres, line dancing allows everyone to get involved without the pressure of making a mistake, Marshall said.

“With line dancing, everyone can be dancing at the same time, and you’re not worried about what you look like or if you’re messing up the steps, because no one’s relying on you,” Marshall said.

Vice President for Student Affairs Diane Philipp said she is excited for this club and can see it growing in popularity.

“Line dancing is a great way to meet people,” Philipp said. “Everyone can participate because it’s easy to learn, and you don’t need a partner. Everyone can jump on the dance floor at the same time and have fun.”

Philipp also said the club can partner with other school organizations to host events.

“It would be fun if we can join the new Lone Star Society with the line dancing club together and host a campus dance,” Philipp said. “Maybe

these two groups can also teach everyone the Texas two-step.” King said the club is hoping to bring in live music for one of their events, and they may be able to partner with SAB in the future to put on a hoedown.

Sophomore Hope Huisman said she is excited for this club because it reminds her of when she goes line dancing back home in Arizona.

“I love line dancing because it doesn’t require a partner to dance and has simple choreography so anyone can pick it up,” Huisman said. “It’s also a great excuse to wear cowboy boots.” King said the stomping of cowboy boots fills the room as everyone dances together, and that is the atmosphere she wants to have at Hillsdale.

“Put your boots on, bring your friends, and come dance,” King said.

Sophomore Gabriel Higbie, freshman Christopher Ambuul, freshman James Joski, and sophomore Charlie Taylor (clockwise) compete for Simpson at Naval Battle. Courtesy | Kyle Johns

Opinions

The Collegian Weekly

The opinion of the Collegian editorial staff

Free tuition isn’t worth it

Editor-in-Chief | Jillian Parks

Managing Editor | Isaac Green

Outreach Director | Olivia Pero

Design Editor | Ally Hall

Senior Editor | Michaela Estruth

News Editor | Moira Gleason

Opinions Editor | Caroline Kurt

City News Editor | Thomas McKenna

Sports Editor | Jacob Beckwith

Culture Editor | Colman Rowan

Features Editor | Kamden Mulder

Social Media Assistant | Sam Otting

Circulation Manager | Lauren Bixler

Ad Manager | Nathan Stanish

Puzzle Editor | Matthew Tolbert

Illustrator | Maggie O’Connor

Faculty Advisers | John J. Miller | Maria Servold

The editors welcome Letters to the Editor but reserve the right to edit submissions for clarity, length, and style. Letters should be 450 words or less and include your name and number. Send submissions to the Opinions Editor at ckurt@hillsdale.edu before Saturday at 3 p.m.

Dear Collegian,

I missed swing. Am I meant for the monastery?

To the Editor —

I guess I should open by saying I’m sorry — I really didn’t mean to do it. It’s me again, Joseph Oldsboy, and I done messed up pretty bad last week.

You see, I’m always a regular attendee at swing; you can usually find me leaning against a pillar watching the dances and screwing my courage to the sticking point. I love swing — it’s the highlight of my week.

But this last week, things were… different, somehow.

To begin with, I was under an immense amount of stress. I’d only gotten seven and a half hours of sleep the night before, as opposed to my regular eight, and I had a twopage Western Heritage paper that I’d been slaving over for three weeks due at 5 p.m.

To put it lightly, I was swamped.

So after I got out of class, I immediately got busy on my paper — only occasionally texting an Olds girl I’d happened to have lunch with the day before (as good friends in the Lord, of course). It was nerve-wracking — as I’m sure you all know, the pressure of having to write papers at this college is immense. I was focused like a hawk. A dark, brooding hawk — one with razor-keen focusing abilities and amazing hair, not to carry the metaphor too far. But I was so razor-keen and focused that before I knew it, it was already 8:30 p.m., and I’d missed the first half-hour of the lesson at swing.

I was crushed — dismayed — distraught — undone. My dreams of marital bliss flashed before my eyes faster than a Mac boy diving headfirst through a McIntyre window at 2 a.m.

Without those precious minutes of swing lesson, I just knew that I’d fall behind in my swing repertoire, which would lead me to fall progressively farther behind my peers who learn cool tricks and aerials while I’d get stuck doing the Pretzel, all because of a rotten Western Heritage paper. I’d end up sitting on the sidelines

Be more cautious on Hillsdale Street.

The only thing scarier than operating a vehicle on Hillsdale Street is being a pedestrian on Hillsdale Street. Fate isn’t on your side either way. In the past few weeks, there have been a handful of accidents that have taken place at various intersections along some of the main hubs near campus. Thankfully, none have ended fatally or with serious injuries, but the quantity of mishaps is reaching dangerous levels.

The strip of Hillsdale Street

that hugs the far east side of campus is the riskiest. Driving up over the hill often results in higher speeds and more blind spots, making it an easy place for accidents to happen. Drivers should be extra careful of the speed limit and the various crosswalks that break up the blocks nearest to campus.

As the infamous Michigan winter looms, environmental factors are also about to increase chances for accidents. Though more intersections would benefit from complete four-way stops like Fayette

and West streets, it’s not likely city changes will occur any time soon. Students should be more careful of crossing the street, especially if they wear headphones or stare at their phones while walking. Drivers should increase stopping distance, double-check before making turns, and do their best to be aware of surrounding traffic.

Per Michigan law, motorists have to yield to pedestrians who are on the same half of the roadway as the approaching vehicle. If pedestrians are on the curb or

in areas not clearly designated as crosswalks, they technically don’t have the right of way. But seeing as though one party in this equation is operating a couple thousand pounds of metal and the other, maybe a couple hundred pounds of flesh, everyone would benefit from taking a second look. It seems self-explanatory: look both ways before walking, drive the speed limit, be a defensive driver. These are lessons we learn as children and when we first get our licenses. But it’s clear right now we might need a refresher.

talking to Whitleyites while my more dancingly-adept friends swung — swang? swingèd? swanged? — the night away with all the Olds girls on campus.

“What am I to do?” I cried out in despair. “Who will free me from this body of swing dancing ineptitude?”

And in the still, still silence of that lonely 8:35 p.m. night, a thought came to me. Could it be that I’m actually meant for the monastery?

After fasting for a minute or two and praying for discernment, I acted at once but with dignity, texting all of my just-good-friends-in-theLord in Olds and McIntyre to inform them of my decision (lest any of them should continue to have mixed messages from when I danced with them all last time). A define-the-relationship text, if you will.

I thought about trying to make it to the last few hours of swing, but I knew it wouldn’t be worth it. Once a man’s face is set towards Jerusalem, it ill-behooves him to swing by Atlantic City. I mortified my yearnings for swing and googled “monasteries near me.”

This, then, is my history, recorded for the edification of my brethren and sisteren. I’ve started attending swing again, but now I sit on the sidelines, expounding the joys of monasticism to the Whitley congregation and extolling my joyful yet weighty discernment process to an adoring Olds crowd, for whom I have but the most brotherly of affections.

Yes, I am happy, forgiven, and free. Who would have known missing swing could ever have led to such bliss?

Yours very truly, Brother Joseph Oldsboy of Olds

Joseph Oldsboy is a freshman. He hopes to graduate with a double-major in Aristotelian Philosophy and Monastic Studies as well as a double-ex in Mac and Olds.

By Thomas McKenna City News Editor

When former president Donald Trump was casting his heir apparent, he told allies he was drawn by J.D. Vance’s “beautiful blue eyes” — at least according to the New York Times.

The reality-TV star thought the 40-year-old senator from Ohio was made for the screen — smart, handsome, and sharp. If Tuesday night’s policy-heavy vice presidential debate with Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz was an audition for the Trump understudy, Vance killed it.

In his biggest moment since accepting the VP nomination in July, Vance was composed in delivery, quick in argument, and cutting on attacks. Most voters don’t choose presidents based on vice-presidential debates.

But if you’re wondering who could emerge as the leader of the American Right when the 78-year-old Trump inevitably exits, Vance made a strong case for himself Tuesday night.

From the start, the Yale Law School graduate and Marine veteran from a poor, rural town was quick to bring up his life story. Three weeks before Trump picked Vance, 56% of American adults had not heard of him, according to a CNN poll. Before an -

Vance auditions for Trump heir Gentlemen:

By Thomas Smith Collegian Freelancer Lads,

Drinking raw milk, lifting heavy weights, and taking ice baths will not help you find a wife. Men may benefit from these practices, but the women are not impressed, and the college’s ring-by-spring numbers are plummeting due to this immature neo-masculinity. A better way to develop yourself as a man is to join swing dance club.

The basic problem lies in neo-masculinity’s vanity. Hillsdale has never taught men to be vain. In fact, Hillsdale has always taught men to look outside of themselves and serve others. That’s why Hillsdale men left to fight in the Civil War and that’s why we memorialize them with statues.

A record number of men on campus now boast about their lack of bloating, low body-fat percentages, and sunbathing rituals. Then they pose for pictures and videos to post on Instagram. Meanwhile, they call

swering the first question in the debate, Vance introduced himself and his background.

“I was raised in a working class family. My mother required food assistance for periods of her life,” Vance said. “My grandmother required Social Security help to raise me. And she raised me in part because my own mother struggled with addiction for a big chunk of my early life. I went to college on the GI bill after I enlisted in the Marine Corps and served in Iraq. And so I stand here asking to be your vice president with extraordinary gratitude for this country.”

That message resonates with Americans more than hour-long rants about past election fraud.

The Ohio senator left his past criticism of “childless cat ladies” at home and stuck to policy issues. Both candidates were polite and, in some moments, even conciliatory.

Since Roe v. Wade was overturned more than two years ago, Republicans have struggled to scrape together a coherent answer while the pro-life movement repeatedly loses state ballot measures. But Vance sounded like a human being.

“I knew a lot of young women who had unplanned pregnancies and decided to terminate those pregnancies because they felt like they

didn’t have any other options,” Vance said. “One of them is actually very dear to me. And I know she’s watching tonight, and I love you.”

And then he turned to Republicans.

“My party, we’ve got to do so much better of a job at earning the American people’s trust back on this issue where they frankly just don’t trust us,” Vance said.

Unlike other Republicans, Vance did not dodge the issue. He offered his party a better strategy to address abortion.

Pro-lifers can be disappointed with changes to the GOP policy platform or the reluctance of Republican politicians to back more national restrictions. But Vance’s answer — one that first acknowledges the circumstances that drive women to abortion — will win more hearts and minds than one that does not. How often have Republicans omitted these kinds of statements from their rhetoric on abortion?

On other issues — from guns, to housing, to childcare — the candidates acknowledged they both wanted to address similar problems. When debating how to bring down firearm deaths, neither said the other wanted kids to die. Is it really 2024?

If he wants to lead the party four years from now, Vance

will need to bring other Republicans behind his support for higher tariffs and family entitlement expansion. Perhaps the biggest question for Vance is whether he can convince his party that taxes on imported goods — from steel to baby formula — will make Americans better off.

Trump still dominates Republican politics, and his running mate is forced to defend the former president’s more unpopular actions and statements. When asked if Trump lost the 2020 election, he glossed over Trump’s continued denials and pivoted to attacks on Democrats.

But soon, the 45th president will be out of the picture. So for any gamblers looking to make a buck, here’s a 4-leg parlay for the next four years: Hillsdale announces six more years of quad construction in 2025, the U.S. soccer team loses its first match of the 2026 World Cup, a 43-year-old Aaron Rodgers wins his second Super Bowl in 2027, and JD Vance accepts the 2028 Republican nomination for president.

Chargers with student debt, take note.

Thomas McKenna is a junior studying political economy.

narcissism isn’t

for female modesty and search for mute cavewomen brides.

Women on campus see these neo-masculine ideologues and lament, though they may appreciate the men taking care of themselves. It helps the classrooms smell better. Yet I suspect they would prefer to hear about it over a cup of coffee on an actual date that includes being asked a couple of questions about themselves. “What are your hopes and dreams?” goes a lot farther than “Let me tell you about the benefits of unnecessarily prolonged ice baths.” Showing interest in her as a person beats alpha-strutting in your old money polo while checking your reflection in every window, saying to yourself, “Yeah, she likes this masculine high-T hunk.”

Swing dance is better because it makes you look like a total dunce — something that petrifies neo-masculinists — as you stumble over your feet and try to stay on beat. You learn teamwork and practice humility with her. Laughing at yourself with her, instead of talking

about yourself at her, reveals a humble and mature worldview without you at the center. This will impress her more than that 500 pound deadlift.

Ultimately, the embarrassment is all worth it because you get to talk to a beautiful lady and release some of that pent-up “concupiscence” students are always hearing about in the Love, Sex, and Marriage class. We all know Dean Pete prefers concupiscence released via swing dance rather than any other outlet, such as premature procreation.

Ultimately, Swing Dance Club provides a respectful and polite atmosphere for men and women to get to know each other. This activity attracts and rewards both sexes. Because it happens weekly, it provides a natural progression for a relationship to grow. The men especially need this structure to pull them away from their dumbbells and mirrors. The women will appreciate the good time and friendship.

We are allowing a culture of barbarism to take over male

students. Men and women alike are hurting as neo-masculine self-centeredness pushes them apart. The men need to stop worshiping Bronze Age Pervert and start emulating Mr. Darcy. Many rugged men are shaking their heads reading this piece. They have never felt healthier, always pursuing a better body. To quote their exemplar of virtuous masculinity, psychopath Patrick Batemen, “You can always be thinner, look better.” They’re even in a serious Hillsdating relationship — maybe even marriage-bound. Unfortunately, your Hillsdating relationship will just result in awkward tension at Mass while your former flame sits a mere two pews away. The uncomfortable eye contact at the Sign of Peace is incomparable to the love grown between a couple who met while mastering their Lindy Hop.

philosophy.

This piece was edited by Zack Chen.

Thomas Smith is a junior studying

We’re Christians, not just denominations

By Catherine Maxwell Assistant Editor

Even before Martin Luther posted his theses, Christians had made up 95,000 reasons to disagree with each other. Churches split over everything from the nature of the Trinity to the color of the sanctuary carpet. But as Hillsdale College welcomes all sects of Christianity, students should take advantage of opportunities to learn about different perspectives by attending campus ministry events. Hillsdale’s faith community is a major draw for students. There are more than 30 churches nearby, and Christ Chapel

lets religious groups hold services every day. By calling itself non-sectarian, the college promotes Christian beliefs and values without advocating for a specific denomination and has large Roman Catholic and Protestant populations, which is rare for a religious liberal arts school. The Student Activities Newsletter features events from across the denominational spectrum.

On an individual level, students from different denominations tend to get along. There’s playful controversy on Reformation Day — the 95 Theses on the Christ Chapel door or the Council of Trent on every door in Benzing Residence — but

humor lets students explore and explain their beliefs while deepening friendships.

On an organizational level, however, ministering to campus often feels more like competition.

And Hillsdale has plenty of organizations. For specific demographics, there are Roman Catholic, Orthodox, Anglican, and Lutheran organizations. InterVarsity Christian Fellowship and Equip Ministry provide interdenominational events and Bible studies, and the Student Ministry Board hosts events intended to unify campus Christians.

The organizations provide Bible studies, lectures, and community events for everyone but inevitably compete with each other. Promoting one event often feels like trying to poach attendees from other groups, and Bible study posters become rival marketing campaigns.

A new religious group, the Reformed Student Fellowship, recognizes this problem and aims to solve it by promoting Protestant churches, events, and organizations. It’s a worthy goal, but students won’t be unified by excluding Roman Catholics and the Orthodox. And Hillsdale doesn’t need another organization to advertise events — it already has the resources it needs.

The Student Ministry Board,

Examine your life

By Ty Tomasoski Collegian Freelancer

At the end of my first semester at Hillsdale, I was diagnosed with cancer.

I had felt a sharp pain pressing on my windpipe during the last few days of finals. I went to the doctor’s office as soon as I flew back home, and after a day of bouncing from clinic to clinic, the verdict came back: it was lymphoma. Though there was little chance of death or lifelong injury, I was going to have to leave college for two semesters to undergo an intensive chemotherapy regimen.

I canceled my classes and took my first step on the long path through the next year. Days and weeks began to blur together, and in the absence of any obligations or difficult mental work, I gained a clarity that I had seldom experienced before. For the first time, I had time — time in which I reflected upon my foray into college life.

I had arrived at Hillsdale with a typical bright-eyed outlook. I was focused on learning, enjoying my college experience, and preparing for my future career. I tried out for clubs, joined organizations, went to networking and Career Services events, did my best to keep up with academics, and studied subjects outside of my classes when possible.

I tried to do everything right, attempting to create for myself the college experience

I had imagined when I chose to come here. I wanted to be both academically excellent and not over-focused on academics; to be widely socially integrated while retaining deep friendships; to be involved on campus without being overcommitted. In short, I wanted to become the model Hillsdale College student.

And at the end of my first semester, I fully believed I had succeeded. I had fulfilled all of the goals I had set for myself when I came to college. I had made great friends. I was enjoying competing with the Mock Trial team. I had done well in my classes. It took stepping away from Hillsdale to realize how empty my life had been.

While undergoing treatment after treatment to try to whip my rebellious lymph nodes back into line, I did a lot of pure, unfettered thinking. When I reflected upon my first semester at Hillsdale, I began to realize how much I had sacrificed to make my dreams of collegiate life come true. Yes, I had achieved every goal I had set for myself, but at the same time I had no free time in which to savor the fruits of my achievements.

I was so focused on academics that I cared more about my paper and test grades than actually learning the material and engaging with it in class. I was so focused on getting into clubs and doing well in them that I had started attending them for resume padding rather than actually enjoying the activities therein. I had loaded myself with so many social obligations that a fair amount of time performing them was spent worrying about how I would actually get my homework for the night done in time. Essentially, I had managed to construct such a good life that I was pouring all of my energy into maintaining it,

for example, hosts events for all campus Christians and especially hopes to bring Catholics and Protestants together. Formed in 2023, the board has Catholic and Protestant representatives and works closely with the chaplain’s office. One of its main events is Night of Testimonies, which usually features two Protestant and two Catholic speakers. Other events planned for this semester include a VeggieTales showing, a contemporary twist on Evensong called EvenPraise, and a hymn-focused worship night.

In addition to the board’s events, the Chaplain’s Office provides lists of services hosted by religious organizations. The fall 2024 schedule includes services at Christ Chapel, The Grotto, the Dow Chapel, and on- and off-campus Bible studies.

But students don’t need to go through the board or the chaplain to benefit from other organizations. Interdenominational groups like InterVarsity or Equip host regular events for all Christians. InterVarsity’s worship night, Soma, is a great way to gather with other Christians and a convenient study break every Thursday. Equip recently brought in John Stonestreet of the Colson Center to talk about the sexual revolution and will host a lecture on the Psalter in November. Both organizations also offer regular Bible studies

but weekly commitment isn’t necessary to benefit from them.

Students can also benefit from sectarian ministries even if they belong to a different denomination. The Anglican Student Fellowship has hosted lectures on topics like the Book of Common Prayer or T.S. Eliot. Members of the Catholic Society will participate in a Eucharistic procession hosted by St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church on Oct. 6, which is a way to experience Catholic tradition while honoring the Eucharist. The Lutheran Society hosts bonfires, speakers, and study of the Lutheran Confessions every Sunday. The other religious groups also hold regular services at Christ Chapel, the Dow Chapel, or The Grotto.

None of these events or organizations should replace a Sunday morning service, Mass, or a commitment to a church or a Bible study. One worship night or lecture doesn’t equal community, and ultimately the best way to learn about other denominations is through friendship and intentional conversation, not just a statement of

a faith. All of the campus ministries target different demographics, and it’s impossible to attend everything.

But if students want to grow in their spiritual life, they do themselves a disservice by staying locked in their organization’s bubble. So before this Reformation Day, take the time to visit a ministry you’ve never engaged with before. Then you can post all the theses and councils you want.

Catherine Maxwell is a junior studying history.

Illustrated by Maggie O’Connor, a sophomore studying art.

with none left over to spend enjoying it.

The worst part of that, I realized, was the fact that absent my diagnosis, I would never even have recognized that life for what it was. This sort of overcommitment trap is especially pernicious in that way: you don’t know you’ve sucked most of the joy from your own life until you’re forced to step away from it. And personally, the idea that I would have lost my four years at this wonderful school in a constantly shifting kaleidoscope of club meetings, social obligations, and last-minute work scares me more than any disease. Being able to step away for a year was a privilege; it prevented some of the best years of my life from becoming nothing but a blur.

I returned to Hillsdale with new eyes last spring and realized how many people are stuck in the same mire I used to be. The purpose of this article isn’t to burden you with my sob story, but to cause you to reflect upon your own life here; why you came here, and why you’re here now. I’m sure I’m not the only one who fell into the overcommitment trap when they arrived here, but I’m pretty sure I’m one of the only ones who was forced to wake from it by a cancer diagnosis. So, if you’re in the same position I was at the end of my first semester, think — and realize that your life might actually become richer if there was less of it.

Ty Tomasoski is a sophomore studying philosophy.

Conversion therapy ban threatens religious freedom

By Michaela Estruth Senior Editor

The governor of Kentucky signed an executive order Sept. 18 that forbids conversion therapy for minors — a sly political act that threatens children, parental rights, and religious freedom.

“Kentucky cannot possibly reach its full potential unless it is free from discrimination by or against any citizen — unless all our people feel welcome in our spaces, free from unjust barriers and supported to be themselves,” Gov. Andy Beshear said in a statement.

Kentucky joined 23 other states and the District of Columbia in banning this type of therapy for minors, according to a report from WORLD Magazine.

“‘Conversion therapy’ means any practice, treatment, or intervention that seeks or purports to change an individual’s sexual orientation or gender identity, including efforts to change behaviors or gender expressions or to eliminate or reduce sexual or romantic attractions or feelings toward individuals of the same gender,” the order reads.

This does not include any therapy that supports “identity exploration and development,” any practice that is neutral toward sexual orientation to prevent “unsafe practices,” or any treatment that assists an individual to undergo a transition, according to the order.

Beshear’s new policy, while claiming to reduce harm, is itself harmful to children, parents, and Christian therapists.

This definition of conversion therapy claims that counseling a patient to maintain his sex at birth is harmful. It is intentionally confusing because nothing is “converting” — this kind of therapy merely encourages a unity of physical and mental health without a biological transition. “Conversion therapy,” under the governor’s definition, is not the actual biological conversion, otherwise known as transition, of an individual’s sexuality. This practice, Beshear celebrates and defends. While terminologically confusing, Beshear’s definition of “conversion therapy” is important to understand the significance of his executive order.

“Conversion therapy has no basis in medicine or science, and it can cause significant long-term harm to our kids, including increased rates of suicide and depression,” Beshear said in a statement. “This is about protecting our youth from an inhumane practice that hurts them.”

What Beshear terms an “inhumane practice” is in fact more commonly called counseling, a compassionate, humane, and beneficial practice. Beshear is banning children from talking with counselors — who would oppose transition surgeries — about real identity crises and sexual questions. He claims this counseling would cause “long-term harm” while the surgeries he defends cause irreversible physical alterations.

Are counseling sessions really more inhumane than genital mutilation and lifelong sterility?

In an interview with WORLD Magazine last month, Richard Nelson of the Commonwealth Policy Center said he disagrees with Beshear but is opposed to physically abusive and shame-based counseling.

“The governor is essentially saying that anybody who tries to help a minor identify with their born gender— their heterosexual identity— that they are wrong. And that’s a problem,” Nelson said.

Not only does the governor’s order harm children, it also opposes parent rights. Under these guidelines, parents cannot take their struggling child to see a Christian therapist or even a more conservative counselor whose first option is not surgery.

The order applies to all counselors licensed in the state of Kentucky and prohibits federal funding to any organization that refuses to comply. This means that nearly any Christian organization must either violate its moral conscience or lose federal funding. The order also forbids companies from recommending a Christian organization, even if the company itself doesn’t facilitate the counseling. This is a direct attack on religious freedom because the order discriminates against Christian morality. Furthermore, it requires Christian companies to practice immorality.

Beshear defended himself in an interview with WORLD,

saying he is Christian.

“My faith tells me that I’m supposed to love everyone, everyone,” Beshear said. “And that means everyone, regardless of their sexuality.”

But his order opposes fundamental Christian beliefs in promoting a kind of sexual immorality clearly forbidden in the Bible. Instead, Beshear praises sexual transition and discriminates against Christian counseling.

“This order, like previous failed legislative efforts, is designed to promote false LGBTQ ideologies and muzzle Christian counselors, therapists, and pastors from helping children struggling with sexual orientation or gender identity confusion,” David Walls, executive of the Family Foundation said in a statement.

“Kentucky parents and their children should be free to seek the faith-based counseling on sexuality and identity issues that they need. The Christian message on sexuality and human dignity is not harmful, it is life-bringing,” Daily Wire reported.

Beshear’s executive order alone manipulates the proper governmental process by trying to avoid legislative objections.

Kentucky Republican state representative Shane Baker said in an interview with WORLD Magazine that Beshear signed the order because the Kentucky General Assembly repeatedly voted down similar bans in prior legislation.

“The legislature is elected to write law. The governor is not,” Baker said. “He is to execute the law that’s written by the legislature, the people’s body. And he’s overstepped his constitutional authority in what he’s done in this executive order, and yes, we will fight it.”

Not only does this ban violate children’s, parents’, and Christians’ rights, but it attempts to dodge the legislative process. Beshear’s executive order must be repealed, to preserve religious freedom, parental rights, and to protect children.

Michaela Estruth is a senior studying history.

lllustrated by Maggie O’Connor, a sophomore studying art.

City News

Hillsdale flight school takes off

By Eleanor Whitaker Assistant Editor

The Hillsdale Flight Center took off this past summer with five students enrolling in pilot lessons at the school.

“We expect that number to grow exponentially once our advanced training aircraft is online,” said owner and founder Travis Stebelton.

The Hillsdale Flight Center opened in May at the Hillsdale Municipal Airport and offers flight lessons in a Cessna 172 to those who hope to earn their private pilot license. John Truax, a 27-year-old Hillsdale native and Jonesville resident, was among the first to enroll.

“I’ve been extremely interested in flying since I was a young kid, and my grandma always told me, ‘You should do it, absolutely do it,’ but they just didn’t have any schools close to Hillsdale and I didn’t want to drive all over to Battle Creek or Jackson,” Truax said. “It was a bit too far for me, especially with working full time. And then I saw on Facebook that they had one at Hillsdale, and I was like, ‘Yes, this is it.’”

Truax enrolled soon after the school opened. He said his trial flight solidified his decision to take flight lessons.

“I was like, OK, wait, this is actually real,” Truax said. “This is a thing I can actually do.”

Traux’s lessons, which are three hours long and three times per week, include both ground school classroom sessions and in-flight training. He said he was surprised by how much background knowledge is needed to fly a plane.

“You have to know what type

of engine is in the aircraft, how much fuel it holds, how much fuel it burns per hour, how much oil it needs,” Truax said. “I had to take a step back. It is more than just flying the plane.”

On Sept. 15, Truax completed his first solo flight from Hillsdale to the Jackson County Airport, a requirement to earn his private pilot license, which Truax said he will likely secure before the first snowfall of this year.

After that, he will work toward his commercial pilot li-

cense.

“My end goal for right now is to obtain my private license,” Truax said. “At that point, I think I will probably take a little bit of next year off from training, and then my wife and I are going to travel around Michigan and have a great time. But my end goal is to definitely be able to fly the big planes.”

Stebelton said the goal of the flight school is to teach both recreational and career-oriented pilots.

“We are not a one-programfits-all school,” Stebelton said. “We will always tailor our service to each client’s needs. As for the future, bringing on advanced aircraft is our goal, as well as a flight simulator training aid. We hope to someday offer high-performance aerobatic and multi-engine training.”

Students interested in taking pilot lessons can reach out to the flight school at hfcjym@ gmail.com.

Truax said his favorite part about flying is seeing the clouds from above.

“I love getting all the views,” he said.

Meet Hillsdale’s next county clerk Deputy clerk Abe Dane is almost certain to win the election

By Jacob Beckwith Sports Editor

After graduating from Hillsdale College in 2009, Abe Dane worked up to managing a warehouse. Barring a political anomaly, he will be managing the Hillsdale County Clerk’s office next year.

Both Dane and his wife, Rebekah, were born and raised in Hillsdale County and currently reside in Litchfield with their three young children.

“I graduated during the economic downturn, but thankfully I was able to get into a small manufacturing business, and I eventually worked up to the office position of warehouse and shipping manager,” Dane said. “I did that for 11 years before I was hired as chief deputy clerk.”

Dane said his switch to a position in local government brought him closer to home.

“My dad was a clerk for Moscow Township, so I had a little bit of a feel for how small municipal governments work,” Dane said. “I assisted him as an election inspector in the 2020 elections.”

Through this role Dane met the chief deputy clerk at that time for Hillsdale County, Judy Leedy.

“I was in charge of talking Abe through his job as elec -

tion inspector,” Leedy said.

“He understood everything. His technical skills and handling of the electronic polling was just amazing to me.”

Shortly after the November 2020 election, Leedy decided to take a job at the County Road Commission.

“I knew Abe would be a great fit, and recommended him for the position,” Leedy said. After a short interview process, Dane made the transition from manufacturing. He said helping his father in the 2020 elections had sparked a desire in him to get involved.

“We have everything brought in, including the ballots, and we do a full audit of all the paperwork to make sure everything was done properly,” Dane said. “We count the votes on the ballots and compare that to the totals from that night, and just make sure everything is on the up-and-up.”

Since taking over in January 2021, Dane said he has managed elections every year.

Bellino, Lindsey push to rename road for Butler

By Luke Miller Collegian Reporter

A bill to rename a road in Hillsdale County after Deputy Sheriff William Butler Jr. is headed to the Michigan House of Representatives after a unanimous vote in the state Senate Sept. 25.

Michigan Sen. Joseph Bellino, R-Monroe, and Sen. Jonathan Lindsey, R-Coldwater, co-sponsored a bill that would rename a portion of Highway M-34 in Hillsdale County between Pioneer Road and South Pittsford Road as the “Deputy Sheriff William Butler, Jr. Memorial Highway.”

The bill is part of the Mich-

Bellino introduced Senate Bill 977 to the Veterans and Emergency Services Committee in August, where co-sponsor Lindsey argued for its passage.

“This man, it should be noted, was a military veteran, a veteran who served in the Iraq War, and then came back and continued serving in his community,” Lindsey said. Butler served in the United States Army National Guard, during which time he participated in Operation Iraqi Freedom. After returning home, he joined the Hillsdale County Sheriff’s Office, where he served for 12 years.

“My main focus right from the get-go was elections,” Dane said. “I was a skeptic of how Trump magically lost that night when we all went to bed and it seemed like his victory was a sure thing.”

Dane’s first task as chief deputy clerk was to audit precincts at random in the county.

“We have had something every possible election date, even in the off years,” Dane said. “There’s always been an election to prepare for, so it’s been a great learning experience.”

Dane said he asked other county officials for input.

“I got to know my peers in other counties, and in doing that, I was able to find answers to the questions I had,” Dane said. “I came to realize that I don’t believe there was fraud in the 2020 election, at least

not in the state of Michigan.”

Dane said honesty is at the heart of why he is now running for county clerk.

“I want to run things right here, but I also want to work with community leaders, work with the municipal clerks, and make sure everybody is doing things the right way,” he said.

Though Dane is uncontested in the general election, he ran against Stephanie Scott in the Republican primary in August. Scott received 2,395 votes against Dane’s 4,887.

Scott is also currently facing six different charges, including counts of concealing or withholding a voting machine, a 5-year felony, and using a computer to commit a crime, a 7-year felony.

Scott told The Collegian in an email comment that the Hillsdale County Clerk’s office unlawfully took over Adams Township elections at the Secretary of State’s order, and that the actions of both should be investigated further.

“The ultimate question is whether rule of law matters in Hillsdale County,” Scott said.

Though Dane said he didn’t have much time to campaign in the primary due to his responsibilities as chief deputy clerk, he admitted his work seemed to do the campaigning for him.

The Michigan State Legis -

“It’s important to recognize the sacrifice he made.”

igan Memorial Highway Act, which honors fallen law enforcement officers and military personnel. Butler was shot and later died of his injuries on June 27 while assisting another officer in a traffic stop about a mile from Osseo. His funeral was in the college’s Christ Chapel on July 3.

“It’s important to recognize the sacrifice he made for our community,” Bellino said. “And now every time you drive down the street, you’ll see a couple signs this bill names after him, and we’ll remember the sacrifice he made for us.”

“Senator Bellino and I have joined together with the community that has lifted up Deputy Butler, his family, the Sheriff’s department, and all of the people who have been impacted,” Lindsey said. “We appreciate the opportunity to take a further step to recognize his service to the community.”

Bellino said he expects the bill to be adopted once campaign season is over.

“Bills like this are usually pretty non-partisan,” Bellino said. “After things settle down, we have a great chance of passing it in the House after the election.”

Toddler killed after walking into the street at night

By Olivia Pero Outreach Director

A toddler died from injuries after a car hit her near her home in Allen Township on U.S. Highway 12 Sept. 13.

“Preliminary investigation shows this to be a tragic crash with the loss of life of a child,” Michigan State Police Lt. Rene Gonzalez told The Collegian.

“We do not suspect any drugs or alcohol involved with the driver, nor any neglect by the parents.”

Michigan State Police troopers from Jackson Post 13 responded to the car versus pedestrian crash at around 8:20 p.m. that Friday, according to an X post by the MSP.

“Upon arrival on scene

lature passed Proposal 22-2 early in 2024, which mandated early voting throughout the state. Dane spent weeks traveling to the townships and cities in Hillsdale County to help put the new system in place.

“In that process, I wasn’t really campaigning, but I was getting my name out there,” Dane said.

The current county clerk, Marney Kast, has been clerk since 2009, and has worked for the county since the 1980s. Kast announced last year she would not run for reelection and endorsed Dane as her replacement.

“When she hired me, she wasn’t intending on running another term,” Dane said. “So she was hopeful that I would want to run in 2024.”

Dane spoke highly of Kast’s leadership and the legacy she leaves behind.

“She is a very honest person who likes to do things

troopers found a 2-year-old female toddler lying in the road,” the X post reported. “A first responder was on scene performing life-saving measures, troopers assisted with life-saving measures until EMS arrived on scene and took over medical treatment.” After transportation to Hillsdale Hospital, the toddler died from her injuries, the X post said. Initial investigation found the parents put the child to bed and were working around the house when the girl left her bed and walked onto Chicago Street (U.S. 12), where a 38-yearold man hit her with a 2012 Volkswagen Jetta.

the right way and has a good rapport with the community,” Dane said. “She likes to save money where she can and be resourceful with taxpayer funds.”

Dane hopes to use more technology than in previous years while still maintaining well-established relationships throughout Hillsdale.

“I think in the county clerk’s office in particular, we have relationships with every aspect of county, township and city governments,” Dane said. “We touch them all, so because of that, my big goal is to continue to have good relationships with community leaders and other elected positions so that we can work together to serve the citizens of this county.”

John Truax and his wife, Mayson Truax, stand in front of a Cessna after his first solo flight.

Courtesy | John Truax

John Truax flies a plane. Courtesy | John Truax

Deputy County Clerk Abe Dane. Courtesy | X

City News

Hillsdale flight school takes off

By Eleanor Whitaker Assistant Editor

The Hillsdale Flight Center took off this past summer with five students enrolling in pilot lessons at the school.

“We expect that number to grow exponentially once our advanced training aircraft is online,” said owner and founder Travis Stebelton.

Truax enrolled soon after the school opened. He said his trial flight solidified his decision to take flight lessons.

“I was like, OK, wait, this is actually real,” Truax said. “This is a thing I can actually do.”

“You have to know what type

of engine is in the aircraft, how much fuel it holds, how much fuel it burns per hour, how much oil it needs,” Truax said. “I had to take a step back. It is more than just flying the plane.”

After that, he will work toward his commercial pilot li-

cense.

Stebelton said the goal of the flight school is to teach both recreational and career-oriented pilots.

Students interested in taking pilot lessons can reach out to the flight school at hfcjym@ gmail.com.

Truax said his favorite part about flying is seeing the clouds from above.

“I love getting all the views,” he said.

Meet Hillsdale’s next county clerk Deputy clerk Abe Dane is almost certain to win the election

By Jacob Beckwith Sports Editor

After graduating from Hillsdale College in 2009, Abe Dane worked up to managing a warehouse. Barring a political anomaly, he will be managing the Hillsdale County Clerk’s office next year.

Both Dane and his wife, Rebekah, were born and raised in Hillsdale County and currently reside in Litchfield with their three young children.

Dane said his switch to a position in local government brought him closer to home.

“My dad was a clerk for Moscow Township, so I had a little bit of a feel for how small municipal governments work,” Dane said. “I assisted him as an election inspector in the 2020 elections.”

Through this role Dane met the chief deputy clerk at that time for Hillsdale County, Judy Leedy.

“I was in charge of talking Abe through his job as elec -

tion inspector,” Leedy said.

“He understood everything. His technical skills and handling of the electronic polling was just amazing to me.”

Shortly after the November 2020 election, Leedy decided to take a job at the County Road Commission.

Since taking over in January 2021, Dane said he has managed elections every year.

not in the state of Michigan.”

Dane said honesty is at the heart of why he is now running for county clerk.

“I want to run things right here, but I also want to work with community leaders, work with the municipal clerks, and make sure everybody is doing things the right way,” he said.

Though Dane is uncontested in the general election, he ran against Stephanie Scott in the Republican primary in August. Scott received 2,395 votes against Dane’s 4,887.

Bellino, Lindsey push to rename road for Butler

By Luke Miller Collegian Reporter

A bill to rename a road in Hillsdale County after Deputy Sheriff William Butler Jr. is headed to the Michigan House of Representatives after a unanimous vote in the state Senate Sept. 25.

The bill is part of the Mich-

Bellino introduced Senate Bill 977 to the Veterans and Emergency Services Committee in August, where co-sponsor Lindsey argued for its passage.

“What I love about this job is I get an emotional paycheck.”

Bellino said he expects the bill to be adopted once campaign season is over.

“Bills like this are usually pretty non-partisan,” Bellino said. “After things settle down, we have a great chance of passing it in the House after the election.”

Toddler killed after walking into the street at night

By Olivia Pero Outreach Director

A toddler died from injuries after a car hit her near her home in Allen Township on U.S. Highway 12 Sept. 13.

“Preliminary investigation shows this to be a tragic crash with the loss of life of a child,” Michigan State Police Lt. Rene Gonzalez told The Collegian.

“We do not suspect any drugs or alcohol involved with the driver, nor any neglect by the parents.”

Michigan State Police troopers from Jackson Post 13 responded to the car versus pedestrian crash at around 8:20 p.m. that Friday, according to an X post by the MSP.

“Upon arrival on scene

Dane’s first task as chief deputy clerk was to audit precincts at random in the county.

“We have had something every possible election date, even in the off years,” Dane said. “There’s always been an election to prepare for, so it’s been a great learning experience.”

Dane said he asked other county officials for input.

Scott is also currently facing six different charges, including counts of concealing or withholding a voting machine, a 5-year felony, and using a computer to commit a crime, a 7-year felony.

“The ultimate question is whether rule of law matters in Hillsdale County,” Scott said.

Though Dane said he didn’t have much time to campaign in the primary due to his responsibilities as chief deputy clerk, he admitted his work seemed to do the campaigning for him.

The Michigan State Legis -

“In that process, I wasn’t really campaigning, but I was getting my name out there,” Dane said.

“When she hired me, she wasn’t intending on running another term,” Dane said. “So she was hopeful that I would want to run in 2024.”

Dane spoke highly of Kast’s leadership and the legacy she leaves behind.

“She is a very honest person who likes to do things

the right way and has a good rapport with the community,” Dane said. “She likes to save money where she can and be resourceful with taxpayer funds.”

Dane hopes to use more technology than in previous years while still maintaining well-established relationships throughout Hillsdale.

John Truax and his wife, Mayson Truax, stand in front of a Cessna after his first solo flight.

Courtesy | John Truax

John Truax flies a plane. Courtesy | John Truax

Deputy County Clerk Abe Dane. Courtesy | X

Trump courts Michigan swing voters in Warren

By Jackson Casey Collegian Freelancer

WARREN, Mich. — As former President Donald Trump spoke at a town hall at Macomb Community College Sept. 27, 13 Hillsdale College students joined thousands of attendees who said they were most concerned about American manufacturing and rising costs.

Trump stressed the importance of American industries and doing more to export American products, even if that requires the United States to be less lenient with its allies.

“A lot of the time, our worst foes are our so-called friends. Our ‘friend,’ the European Union, takes tremendous advantage of us,” Trump said. “As an example, they give us cars by the millions. We don’t have too many Chevrolets in the middle of European cities.”

Sophomore Nikolas Nisidis, a Hillsdale student who went to the town hall with College Republicans, said he was pleased to hear Trump touch on economic issues, even though he said he wished the former president would more thoroughly describe his policy plans.

“As someone from Michigan who regularly sees abandoned and run-down auto factories, I was pleased to hear Trump speak in person about an issue that affects my home state,” Nisidis said. “However, I would have liked to hear him talk about specific ways he planned to stimulate growth of Michigan car manufacturing rather than his typical economic growth positions of higher tariffs, and tax and regulation cuts.”

With about a month to go until Election Day, the former president trails Vice President Kamala Harris in Michigan

by about a point, according to the RealClearPolitics polling average.

Trump attacked Shawn Fain, president of the United Auto Workers labor union, for his willingness to work with President Joe Biden on automobile policies that would harm Trump’s vision for fair trade.

“Whoever this guy is, he sold you out because he let Biden — who doesn’t know what he’s doing — come up with an all-electric mandate,” Trump said. “Those cars are all going to be built in China. We want cars built in the USA. It’s very simple. We’ll be having auto manufacturing at levels that we haven’t seen in fifty years. We’re going to have a lot of companies coming in, and we’re going to make it competitive so they can come in and they can thrive.”

Kyle Strong of Madison Heights, a college-aged voter,

said he sees the “Make America Great Again” movement as promising an economic comeback.

“The economy’s bad, and we’d like to own a house one day, have a family, and especially the American dream, and it seemed like that’s been out of touch recently, since the economy is bad,” Strong said. “It’s something that our parents did, our grandparents definitely could do, but we can’t do that anymore. That’s what ‘Make America Great Again’ means to me.”

Liam Twiss, a Gen-Z voter from Port Huron, voiced the same concerns about the economy before the town hall.

“Everything’s so expensive, and especially being so young — I’m not fully into a career yet, I’m not making the big bucks — everything’s so expensive, especially gas when that goes up,” Twiss said. Twiss also shared his con -

cern for the country’s immigration policy and said he hopes Trump will work to handle the crisis if elected.

“Another huge problem is the open border,” Twiss said. “There are so many people coming in who we just can’t support.”

Twiss said he sees foreign policy as another key issue, noting his disapproval with the current administration’s strategy.

“There’s a lot of war and tensions around the world right now,” Twiss said. “We’re probably closer right now than we ever have been, really, to a war.”

During the town hall, Trump’s remarks mostly dealt with issues mentioned by supporters like Strong and Twiss. He spoke at length about his economic policies, including plans to increase tariffs.

“We have to keep out the competition, and we’re going to make fair trade by charging them tariffs,” Trump said. “If they want to come in and steal our wealth, and steal our jobs, and steal our companies, then they have to pay a price for that.”

Jacob Ranlow, a student at Michigan State University from St. Clair Shores, said he was glad Trump focused on his economic policies during the town hall.

“I thought that a very important issue he touched on was the tariffs and clearing up a lot of sense in the news on his position on that,” Ranlow said. “Those will generate a lot of income and stimulate

Hospital spokeswoman earns award

By Elaine Kutas Collegian Reporter

Hillsdale Hospital’s Rachel Lott was named a 2024 Rising Star by a national healthcare group.

“It’s pretty exciting and a big deal,” Lott said. “I think it is one of those bucket list moments for a career.”

The Society for Health Care Strategy and Market Development gives its Rising Star award to “health care strategy professionals who have demonstrated outstanding promise in their respective fields,” according to its website.

The SHSMD is a national membership organization that provides assistance and resources for professionals in healthcare marketing, communications, and strategy.

Lott is one of five recipients of the award. She has worked at Hillsdale Hospital since

2019, and currently serves as its chief communications officer.

“When the pandemic hit, Rachel had been here for less than a year, but she poured countless hours into keeping our public updated every day and making sure both the community and our healthcare team had the information they needed to succeed,” Hillsdale Hospital CEO and president Jeremiah J. Hodshire said in a press release recognizing Lott’s achievement.

community, including weekly livestreams and a podcast.

“One of the things we did kind of happened by accident,” Lott said. “The livestreams we are still doing started because we saw so many questions in the public, and it was a great way to talk directly with them regularly.”

“What I love about this job is I get an emotional paycheck.”

At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Lott began programs to inform and connect with the Hillsdale

Lott said the hospital values fostering a relationship with the Hillsdale community and strives to educate as many people as possible on rural healthcare and its importance to our country.

The podcast Lott and Hodshire co-host, “Rural Health Rising,” promotes conversa-

tions with national healthcare officials and state leaders about common and unique rural healthcare challenges. It released its 200th episode in September.

“We’re seeing this massive number of closures for rural hospitals in the U.S.,” Lott said. “‘Rural Health Rising’ seeks to raise awareness of rural America’s healthcare challenges, successes, and opportunities.”

Lott will receive the Shining Star award and speak on a panel at the SHSMD Connections 2024 conference in October. She said she believes her job impacts the community, making the hospital an enjoyable workplace.

“What I love about this job is that I get an emotional paycheck,” Lott said. “I know the work that I’m doing ultimately impacts patients and their families, and that work has been very rewarding.”

the economy in a great way that will put more money in the middle class man’s pocket.”

Twiss said he expects many Gen-Z voters to shift their support toward the former president as they enter the workforce and deal with economic issues firsthand.

“I think it’ll be a reality shock for many of them,” Twiss said. “A lot of these kids entering the workforce that haven’t really worked their whole life, they’re in for a big reality shock, learning how the world works and that it’s not all sunshine and rainbows like everyone thinks it is.” Twiss said it’s important for voters to research the candidates before making a decision.

“I think most of them are smart enough to figure out who to vote for, make their own decisions and do their own research,” Twiss said. “That’s a big problem, too — a lot of people don’t do independent research and figure out who’s actually telling the truth versus which sites are just telling lies or their own side of the story.”

Ranlow said even though he is confident in Trump’s chances, the former president’s supporters should still be wary of their opponent.

“I am a Trump supporter, and it is ‘Too Big to Rig’ as they said, but you never know,” he said. “We were confident last election as well, so we’ve got to be smart with our predictions.”

Gala to raise funds for mothers after miscarriages

College Republicans traveled to the former president’s town hall in a Detroit suburb Money will go to post-loss kits

By Sydney Green Collegian Reporter

The Early Pregnancy Loss Association will raise funds for women struggling with early pregnancy loss at its third gala event Oct. 12.

The event will take place in the Elizabeth Hoynak Archive Center at 7 p.m.

continue to provide these kits free of charge, so it’s essential that we build financial support through events like this.” Servold, the assistant director of the Dow Journalism Program, said that more than 800 kits have been distributed locally, around the state, and across the nation within the past year.

Servold said more funding will help with the costs of shipping.

“It has always been our vision to make sure that those suffering from early pregnancy loss do not suffer alone,” Executive Director Emily Carrington said. “This event will create fellowship with people who have had these shared experiences and also highlight the help that we have been able to provide.”

The EPLA is a nonprofit organization founded in 2016 that provides support to women experiencing early pregnancy loss. Its two main services are providing free miscarriage kits to women and a bill-pay program that provides up to $500 in relief to women for miscarriage-related bills from Hillsdale Hospital.

President of the EPLA Board of Directors Maria Servold said the gala will fundraise money for these services.

“Funds raised at the gala will go toward our core service, creating and sending miscarriage kits,” Servold said. “We think it’s important to

“We would love to have more of our donors give on a monthly basis,” Servold said. “That would ease the costs we face for shipping kits across the country.”

“It’s an uplifting, lighthearted time when we can all come together.”

The event will feature live jazz music, hors d’oeuvres, drinks, a basket raffle, and opportunities to learn about EPLA’s services and its growth.

Carrington said the gala will be a time of fellowship.

“Although we are talking about something serious, it is still an uplifting, lighthearted time when we can all come together and feel blessed and supported by this community,” Carrington said. “It has been an important time for many of us emotionally and spiritually.”

The event costs $50 per person but sponsorships are available. Those interested can buy tickets online by visiting miscarriagecare.com/donate.

to the City

Chief Communications Officer Rachel Lott and CEO and President Jeremiah J. Hodshire. Courtesy | Kyrsten Newlon

Former president Donald Trump visited Michigan towns Warren and Walker Sept. 25. Jackson Casey| Collegian

Action Shooting

Hillsdale hosts first USPSA championship

By Ty Ruddy Assistant Editor

The Hillsdale College Action Shooting team hosted the first ever national collegiate United States Practical Shooting Association championship.

The Chargers won both the Collegiate Limited and Collegiate Open divisions, and finished with the best four-man squad.

Coach Adam Burlew created and executed the idea for a national collegiate championship with the help of senior team captain Taylor Chen. Chen reached out to every school he knew that had a pistol team.

The list included Bowling Green State University, Clemson University, Michigan State University, Texas A&M University, United States Military Academy at West Point, United States Naval Academy, and Virginia Tech University among others.

According to junior team member John Beecher, MSU, BGSU, Clemson, and Michigan Tech all agreed to make the trip.

Sophomore team member Jianna Coppola said the goal for the tournament was to make a case that colleges should recognize the competitive side of team action shooting.

“There are more action shooting teams than you’d think,” she said. “But it’s a matter of making the competitions available.”

Coppola also said the team saw a surprising turnout despite the weather for the championship.

“It rained so maybe the crowd would have been bigger, but we all had friends show up which was nice to see,” Coppola said.

Gabriel Beckwith was one of the students who made the short trip to Hillsdale’s John A. Halter Shooting Sports Center for the competition.

“It was well-worth endur-

There are four ships of length 1 ( ), three ships of length 2 (◀ ▶), two ships of length 3 (◀ ■ ▶), and one ship of length 4 (◀ ■ ■ ▶). Each ship is surrounded by empty water on all sides, including diagonally; no two ships touch or intersect. The numbers along the border indicate how many ship pieces appear in that row or column.

Math Maze

A path starts at the top-left corner and exits at the bottom right, only passing through squares orthogonally. The numbers around the border indicate the number of squares in that row or column that the path passes through. It cannot pass through bolded barrier segments, and it never passes through the same square twice.

If you have questions or feedback, please contact Matthew Tolbert at mtolbert@hillsdale.edu.

ing the weather to watch the team compete this weekend,” Beckwith said. “The competition was well-organized and watching Hillsdale dominate was entertaining.”

The Hillsdale men’s and women’s teams each scored well overall. According to Beecher, they swept the podium in all but two categories.

The team looks forward to a few more opportunities to compete this fall, Coppola said, including a match over fall break.

But this national championship, the first of its kind, proved successful for the Chargers and fans of college action shooting alike, according to Coppola.

“We hope to organize or compete in many more collegiate matches in the near future,” Beecher said. “And we plan a repeat of this year's match next fall!”

By Francesca Cella Collegian Reporter

He was such a good referee that he was the only American invited to an international tournament.

Now, he coaches soccer at Hillsdale.

Ken Koopmans, executive director of Career Services and coach of the Women’s Soccer Club, first worked at Yale University and as an international referee before coming to Hillsdale.

“The lore behind him is crazy,” sophomore Katie Holford said. “Everyone kind of has a vague idea of Coach Ken’s past life, but nobody really knows what went on or how he got to Hillsdale.”

While recovering from a post-college soccer injury in 2006, Koopmans began refereeing games to remain involved in the sport.

“I was always the player that would yell at the referee,

Cross Country

Teams place second

Elaine Kutas Collegian Reporter

The men’s and women’s cross country teams both finished second, with the men competing against 11 teams and the women against 14, at the Lucian Rosa Invite, hosted by The University of Wisconsin-Parkside this past Saturday.

The men’s team finished 13 points behind the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs. Junior Gabriel Phillips finished third overall with a time of 25:30 in the eight-kilometer race. The first five Chargers finished in the top 26, with seniors Ross Kuhn and Richie Johnston, junior Nathaniel Osborne, and sophomore Caleb Youngstedt following Phillips across the line. Youngstedt, as the fifth runner, secured the Chargers’ second place over the University of Wisconsin-Parkside and Northern Michigan University.

“The race went well, we all knew what the plan was and what each of us had to do,” Youngstedt said. “We came up a little short of beating Colorado Springs, but to come within 14 points of a nationally ranked team at this point in the season is a very good sign of things to come.”

Four freshman racers also competed for the men’s team, finishing under 30 minutes. Freshman Zach Self finished in 26th place with his person-

al best eight-kilometer time of 27:10.

“Going from racing 5ks to 8ks is a big difference but I’ve loved just being present and learning from my experiences,” Self said. “It’s a lot of fun to work together with your teammates and keep each other in check before leaving it all out there in the last couple of miles.”

For the women’s team, freshman Evyn Humphrey finished first for the Chargers and fourth overall in the race with her personal best six-kilometer time of 22:11. Sophomore Savannah Fraley finished in sixth, and freshman Allison Kuzma in seventh. Senior Kayla Loescher and sophomore Eleanor Clark finished 23rd and 24th to round out the top five Hillsdale finishers and secure the team second place overall. Loescher, one of only two senior women on the team, ran just 16 seconds off her six-kilometer personal best time.

“We had a lot of really great performances, and I think it was another example of what our team is capable of as we move into the rest of the season,” Loescher said. “I don't think that I would be where I'm at in life without all of these amazing girls.”

The Charger’s next competition will be at the Jayhawk Collegiate Invitational hosted by Muskegon Community College on Oct. 12.

and so I thought ‘I can referee better than these guys,’” Koopmans said. “I thought I would do it for a season, just to be around the game.”

Koopmans said refereeing allowed him to use his soccer knowledge and remain involved in the sport.

“Not only was it fun to be around it, but then, unlike playing, I wasn’t getting injured all the time and I was getting paid,” he said. “For a while I was just using all my vacation days to referee soccer matches.”

When he started refereeing more seriously, Koopmans said his goal was to travel as a referee. After numerous phone calls and recommendations, he was invited to referee at an international tournament in Vancouver, British Columbia, alongside professional referees from the Premier League.

“They told me after I got there that they actually don't allow American referees to referee there, because American referees are so bad,” Koopmans said. “And I was the only American referee at this whole tournament. So then it was like, ‘Oh, no, pressure's on.’ I felt like I was representing my country.”

Koopmans paid the price for representing America. While the tournament committee accommodated all other referees with hotel rooms, they lodged him separately in a hostel. Expecting him to fail, the other refer-

CLUB SPORTS

ees showed up to his match, ready to laugh.

“They were waiting for the game to blow up, and they were sure the American ref was going to mess this up,” Koopmans said. “I actually had a really good game, and so the referee from the English Premier League took his jacket off and gave it to me, and he said, ‘You earned it.’ That’s one of my proudest moments.”

Once Koopmans proved he was not the typical American referee, the other refs invited him to leave his segregated hostel room and to stay in the hotel with them, Koopmans said.

Not only did he continue to travel for soccer games, but his job as Director of International Internships at Yale University also brought him to Italy, Turkey, and India, where he had many great experiences, Koopmans said.

But frustrated with the politics he saw not only at Yale but also at nearby Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Koopmans said he wanted to step back from working in higher education.

“That’s when I learned about Hillsdale,” he said. “I went from thinking, ‘There’s no way I can work at a college anymore,’ to then thinking ‘Okay, at least there’s one college where maybe I could work.’”

Hired by Hillsdale in March 2016, Koopmans moved to the area and mar-

ried his wife Sara later that year.

When Koopmans began coaching in the fall of 2022, the women’s soccer team had not won a game in years. After becoming coach, the team turned their record around, made the playoffs for the past two years, and moved up leagues into the Women’s Midwest Alliance Soccer Conference.

“We just really enjoy having him as our coach,” junior and women’s club soccer president Madison Gilbert said. “He brings a lot of hype. You can tell, even on the field, that he’s a family guy.” Raised in Medford, Long Island, Koopmans laughed at the fact that he and his wife are both from big cities, but currently live in rural Jonesville with their two daughters, where they raise chickens and have an outdoor cat.

“We love the small town,” he said. “It’s funny for me and Sara because it’s not us at all, but here we are!”

Although he misses traveling and enjoys the occasional road trip to the city, he loves stepping back into referee mode for a men’s club soccer match every once in a while.

“It’s a reminder of my glory days,” Koopmans said.

Sophomore Ellis Klanduch serves. COURTESY | KENNETH GAUDET

Chargers fall to rival Findlay, drop fourth straight on the season

By Alex Deimel Senior Reporter

The Charger football team dropped to 0-4 on Saturday despite another late second-half surge, falling to their Great Midwest Athletic Conference rival Findlay University 28-21. The loss ends any hope of a G-MAC championship this season.

The Chargers got off to a rough start, throwing interceptions on two different drives in the first quarter. However, the defensive squad was able to hold Findlay to a 14-0 lead by the end of the first half.

Men's Tennis

After sophomore quarterbacks Cole Canter and Reid Shumaker were unable to generate much offense in the first half, redshirt freshman quarterback Colin McKernan entered the game at the beginning of the third quarter and was able to connect with sophomore wide receiver Shea Ruddy for a 31-yard touchdown to bring Hillsdale within seven. A late interception thrown by McKernan ended the game at 28-21. “I think we’re still just coming together as a team,” McKernan said. “We made some great drives towards the end, which obviously weren't good

Chargers play in ITAs

By Jamie Parsons Collegian Reporter

Hillsdale’s men’s tennis team traveled to Davenport University to compete in the International Tennis Association Division II Men’s Midwest Regional Championships Sept. 28-29.

The first day of ITAs included two rounds of singles from the main bracket and one round of singles from the consolation bracket. Freshmen Alejandro Cordero-Lopez and Samuel Plys won their matches in the first two rounds of main bracket B singles, bumping them into the quarterfinals the next day.

Freshman Ryan Papazov and sophomore Henry Hammond lost their matches in the first round of main bracket B singles but both moved on to win their next match in the first round of the consolation bracket. Papazov and Hammond advanced to the second round of consolation matches the following day.

Hammond, who was injured during the tournament, said he kept a positive attitude throughout the competition.

On the first day, the Chargers also competed in a round of doubles matches. All three doubles teams lost their first match in the first round of the main bracket, placing them in the consolation bracket for doubles the next day.

On day two of ITAs, Cordero-Lopez lost 3-6, 4,6, in the third round of main bracket singles to Ethan Milgan from Walsh University.

When looking back on his performance at ITAs, Cordero-Lopez said he was overall happy with how he performed.

“My goal in every match

was to try to give my 100% and I managed to do that on my first day, winning against very good opponents,” Cordero-Lopez said. “The second felt like I could played a better but my opponent played great. Overall a great tournament.”

In doubles, Papazov and Plys secured a 8-4 victory in the quarterfinals of the consolation bracket.

During the competition, Hammond said he was helping his teammates by giving them his insight on how to deal with nerves when competing.

“Especially after experiencing the pressure and atmosphere for the dual matches in spring, ITAs really doesn't compare nerves wise,” Hammond said. “It all comes with experience and playing more of those matches and that’s what I was communicating to the freshman.”

The Chargers are scheduled to play at home in the Chargers Fall Invitational Oct. 5-6.

“There are going to be a couple very strong teams coming this weekend so it will be a huge challenge for us,” head coach Keith Turner said.

Cordero-Lopez said he hopes to continue to perform the way he did at ITAs.

“The goal for the invitational is to continue playing at the level I managed to display in the ITAs, and to continue to enjoy playing for the team,” Cordero-Lopez said.

enough, but I really do feel like this is not an 0-4 team. We just have to not beat ourselves early on.”

McKernan finished his half of play with seven completions for 165 yards on 13 attempts, as well as two touchdowns and an interception. The Brighton, Michigan, native now leads the Chargers with 553 passing yards this season.

After Findlay scored to make it a 21-7 game, McKernan found Ruddy again, this time for 57 yards, to cut the lead to seven once again. Ruddy finished with 126 receiving yards on three catches. His 96-yard kickoff return touch-

down added to a grand total of 343 all-purpose yards on the day, and earned him the G-MAC Athlete of the Week.

“It’s a great honor to have that award,” Ruddy said. “I’d much rather have that with a win, or just take the win, but I just have to keep doing my thing and keep moving forward.”

Ruddy also led Hillsdale in rushing yards with 59 on three carries. In the backfield for Hillsdale were running backs redshirt junior Kyle Riffel and redshirt freshman Zach Tetler, who splits time carrying the ball for the Chargers.

Defensively, the Chargers

held the G-MAC scoring leader Findlay to only 28 points, combining for six tackles-forloss, as well as two interceptions. Junior linebacker Jacob Vance continued his stellar season with seven solo tackles and two sacks.

“We know there’s nobody we can’t beat going forward,” Vance said. “Findlay’s likely going to win the conference at this point, and there’s no reason we couldn’t have won that game. We just gotta keep doing what we’re doing and be strong in the first half.”

Redshirt junior defensive backs Will Whims and Jack Trachet both had their first in-

terceptions of the season and combined for 12 total tackles. Trachet also contributed two pass-breakups and has a total of 23 tackles this season.

The Chargers will head to Midland, Michigan, this Saturday to face the Northwood University Huskies at 1 p.m.

“I think we’re in one of the most competitive conferences around, which is why I like competing in it,” McKernan said. “Any given year anybody can win, it’s just important to stay locked in.”

Final preseason match

By Bella Doer Senior Reporter

Sophomore Ané Dannhauser led the women’s tennis team with a perfect singles record as it concluded its season at the Charger Fall Invitational.

The invitational was held at the Biermann Center Sept. 28-29. The two-day event featured competition from Saginaw Valley State University, the University of Northwestern Ohio, and Lawrence Technological University.

Competing at the No. 1 singles position, Dannhauser posted an 8-1 victory over Lawrence Tech on Saturday, followed by an 8-6 win over Northwestern Ohio. She completed the weekend with a 6-1, 6-0 victory on Sunday against Saginaw Valley.

“It was a great weekend,” Dannhauser said. “The matches were tough, but I ended up getting out on top with all of them. The energy was good and the fall season really ended on a positive note.”

11-9, against Saginaw Valley. In the second and third round of doubles, Zlateva and junior Isabella Spinazze teamed up for a 6-1 victory against Lawrence Tech and a 7-6 (7) tiebreaking win against Saginaw Valley.

“I really enjoyed playing doubles with Bella this weekend,” Zlateva said.

Senior Libby McGivern added two singles wins to Hillsdale’s efforts, defeating Lawrence Tech 8-0 and winning 9-8 (3) in a tiebreaker against Northwestern Ohio. McGivern competed in doubles alongside senior Courtney Rittel, earning a 6-2 win against Lawrence Tech. Other singles victories for Hillsdale came from Rees, who won 8-1 against Lawrence Tech, and Spinazze, who secured a 6-3, 6-0 win on Sunday against Saginaw Valley.

Compiled by Sydney Green

Her performance earned her recognition as Great Midwest Athletic Conference Athlete of the Week, as she finished the fall season with a 7-2 singles record. Dannhauser also partnered with freshman Briana Rees in the second round of doubles matches for a 6-2 victory against Lawrence Tech.

Freshman Julia Zlateva finished the weekend with three singles victories as well.

She won 8-1 against Lawrence Tech, 8-3 against Northwestern Ohio, and capped off her weekend with a three-set victory, 4-6, 6-3,

While Hillsdale found success in rounds two and three of doubles, the Chargers lost all three doubles matches in the first round against Northwestern Ohio. The team is set to begin winter training ahead of their spring season kickoff, which begins Jan. 19 when they will host Michigan Technological University.

“We had another long tournament this weekend ending our fall competitive season,” Spinazze said. “We each played 3 doubles and 3 singles matches this weekend, but this tournament will give us confidence going into the spring season.”

Courtesy | Hillsdale College Athletic Department

Junior Isabella Spinazze starts her swing. COURTESY | VINCENT HILL

Sophomore Ellis Klanduch serves. COURTESY | KENNETH GAUDET

VOLLEYBALL

Charger Sports

Volleyball beats rival to stay undefeated in conference

By Ellie Fromm Assistant Editor

Hillsdale volleyball improved to 3-0 in conference play by defeating the Northwood University Timberwolves in three sets at home on Saturday.

“For volleyball, everybody’s kind of a rival because we’ve been at the top for so long,” head coach Chris Gravel said. “Northwood, Findlay, and Cedarville in particular.”

Hillsdale and Northwood were unbeaten in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference going into the game.

The Chargers took the first set 33-31 and finished the last two 25-12, 25-19. Hillsdale is in first place in the G-MAC North standings and has an overall record of 8-1.

Gravel said the first set was filled with energy from both sides of the court, which sent the first set to extra points.

“They were maybe just a little too hyped for the game,

Volleyball

so they were making some uncharacteristic errors,” Gravel said.

The Chargers’ games leaders in kills for the weekend were senior Lauren Passaglia with 11 kills, senior Marilyn Popplewell with 11 kills, and freshman Ellie Fles with seven kills. The dig leaders for the game against the Timberwolves were senior Amanda Hilliker with 13 digs, redshirt sophomore Chloe Pierce with eight digs, and Popplewell with seven digs.

Passaglia said the team is playing a new offensive lineup this year, giving her the opportunity to hit more and rack up more kills.

“It’s been a lot of fun to switch things up and get some different opportunities to challenge myself on the court,” Passaglia said. Fles played in her third game for the Chargers on Saturday. She said playing for the Chargers is exciting and relaxing.

“It feels easy for me because I know that my teammates are all around me and will pick me up if I make an error,” Fles said. “I can play relaxed and with confidence, but also have a fun time on the court.”

According to Gravel, the Chargers expected this to be a tough game and went into the game prepared to fight for it.

“They have some really big hitters there,” Gravel said. “We were hoping that if we could serve tough and keep them out of the system it would go a long way. And after the first set, that’s exactly the way it happened.”

Passaglia said the Chargers came out on Saturday with energy and battled for their win, especially in the first set.

“We expected a good challenge,” Passaglia said. “They’re a team that typically takes us to four or five sets. So we were ready to work really, really hard.”

Gravel said the Chargers

can improvise on the court and find their way to a victory.

“The path doesn’t always present itself to how we need to win,” Gravel said. “There’s a lot of times they’re going to make their own path.”

The Chargers are home at Dawn Tibbetts Potter Arena again this weekend. They play the Kentucky Wesleyan College Panthers for country and poster giveaway night on Oct. 4 at 7 p.m. Then, the Chargers will play the Thomas More

University Saints on Oct. 5 at 1 p.m. for alumni and poster day.

“We’re at home again, and that’s great, because our home fans are awesome,” Gravel said.

Popplewell records her 1,000th Charger career kill

By Megan Li Assistant Editor

She received 1,000 jelly beans for 1,000 kills. This is how senior Marilyn Popplewell found out she became the 13th member of the team all-time to record 1,000 kills for Hillsdale College volleyball.

“After the match, my grand ma gave me 1,000 jelly beans that she had counted out, which was really cute,” Pop plewell said. “Just my family cheering me on — that’s how I found out.”

At Hillsdale’s volleyball game at Ohio Dominican Uni versity Sep. 20, Popplewell’s family was among the audi ence watching her score her 1,000th kill, waving around cutouts of her face.

“I knew it was going to be this year, so I didn’t have a big reaction,” head coach Chris Gravel said. “Because, you know, after she got 1,000, I wanted 1,001.” Popplewell is an out side hitter for the volley ball team, but she was a middle hitter in high school. Gravel said she was a junior playing in a spring club tourna ment when he recruited her for the team.

“I had her play middle for about a week and moved her to the outside, and that’s where she’s been ever since,” Gravel said. Popplewell, who is from Mason, Ohio, said she tried out for her middle school volley ball team after attending a vol leyball camp in the summer. She said she had grown up playing basketball and softball.

challenge to get over mentally. But what I tell myself is that there’s 20 other girls on the team doing the exact same thing, and that I have to show up for them.”

Gravel said Popplewell is someone who leads by exam-

“You can tell that she really wants the ball, especially after an error, she wants it,” Grav-

“I didn't have a big reaction. Because, you know, after she got 1,000, I wanted 1,001.”

el said. “She wants to make it

Senior Lauren Passaglia said Popplewell’s drive and passion for the game are con-

“She makes everyone around her want to be the best versions of themselves,” Passaglia said in an email.

“She also knows when to let loose and have fun and is the first person I look to when I need a laugh.”

According to Passaglia, Popplewell is often the strongest hitter in the gym, and her defense is especially strong

“I admire her attitude on the court. She pursues every ball, whether it’s a few feet in front of her or in the back

corner of the gym, with 110% effort,” Passaglia said.

Popplewell said a lot of her inspiration comes from the hard work of her teammates, along with her family.

“My grandpa coached me when I was in seventh grade for basketball, and his go-to saying was always just ‘work harder,’” Popplewell said. “Whatever it might be, just always having that mindset of there’s more work to do, and being willing to do the extra work that is needed.”

Along with difficult opposing teams, Popplewell said she has had to face the challenge of growing expectations as her skills improved.

“When I first came in, there really wasn’t a lot expected of me, because no one really knew what I was capable of, or who I was, or anything like that,” Popplewell said. “But as I’ve gotten older and started having really good performances, I felt like it was expected of me every time to have a great game or play my best game ever every time I stepped on the court.”

Popplewell said she works to overcome this mindset by treating each game as a new day and a clean slate.

“I know my teammates and coaches and everyone else expect a lot of me, but it’s a new game, and it’s a new opportunity for me to just go out there and show everyone all the hard work that we’re doing as a team,” Popplewell said.

Popplewell has earned first-team All-GMAC honors for her sophomore and junior seasons, and last year was twice named G-MAC North

Division Offensive Player of the Week. She has also received multiple Academic All-District honors. Popplewell said her dream is to play volleyball in Spain for a year or two after graduation. According to Gravel, being a volleyball coach is also something that could be in her future.

“She really can do anything. She’s a great student here at Hillsdale, and a great player,” Gravel said. “She’s good at all of it, so it’s just going to be a matter of picking her biggest love.” To the volleyball players that are new to the sport, Popplewell advises looking at every failure or mistake as an opportunity to learn.

“Enjoy playing the sport,” Popplewell said. “Yeah, we make it really serious, and it’s our lives during the time that we’re here, but it’s just a game, and games are meant to be fun — find joy in that competition and love the people that you play with the best that you can.”

Popplewell said to get past bad days, she reminds herself why she loves playing for Hillsdale.

“I just think about what a privilege and honor it is to be a part of our team, and how grateful I am to be a part of it, and then I don’t need motivation anymore because I have everything I need.”

C U L T U R E

Tower Players perform ‘Silent Sky’ among the stars

By Jillian Parks Editor-in-Chief

Even STEM majors may want to wander into the Fine Arts Building this week to watch the stars of “Silent Sky,” which tells the story of the astronomers who discovered Earth’s position in the galaxy.

The Tower Players’ production of “Silent Sky” by Lauren Gunderson will take place in Markel Auditorium from Oct. 2-5 at 7:30 p.m. and Oct. 6 at 2 p.m. No ticket reservation is required to attend.

“As we know, the country gets more and more divided every single day,” senior Emily Griffith said. “But we all share the same sky. This is a wonderful, warm, uniting play that I think anyone would benefit from coming to see.”

The play follows Henrietta Leavitt, a real astronomer who made all of her discoveries while she was almost entirely deaf. Senior Fiona Mulley plays Leavitt who accepts a job at the Harvard Observatory in the early 1900s. She works alongside Williamina Fleming, played by Griffith, and Annie Cannon, played by junior Rachel Dunphey. The women are relegated to reading star charts, and are not permitted to do research or touch the telescope — a rule they often break.

Henrietta leaves behind a small town with her dad and

her sister, Margaret Leavitt, played by senior Kenda Showalter. While in Cambridge, she meets her colleague, Peter Shaw played by freshman Aidan Bauer, and scientific discovery and romance unfold simultaneously.

or at least brown, sets of stairs leading to a platform that overlooks the stage.

The show’s soundtrack, composed by Jenny Giering for the original production, is available for licensing. It has a magical, almost hymnal sound — especially with “For the Beauty of the Earth” repeated throughout the show — that often transforms the blocking into a kind of choreography. The opening track is a twinkling instrumental piano track that underscores Mulley as she enters the stage under a flurry of colorful light. For those who are disappointed about the lack of musicals this year, this play is a worthy supplement.

The scenic design by Chris Zinger and light design by Michael Beyer are truly marvelous. Strings of lights against the back wall of the stage and weaved across the ceiling illuminate the show’s central motif: the sky under which everyone sits regardless of sex or distance. The set presents an appropriately warm academic feel with books and wooden,

“It just seemed like the right move to go ahead and use it because that’s [the composer and the playwright] sort of talking to us about what they think the production feels like,” director Tory Matsos said. “The music itself has this kind of spaciousness. I feel like it sort of leaves you wondering what’s gonna come in the next phrase, but in a really beautiful and harmonious way, which I feel like is what the play is doing too.”

The action unfolds entirely in front of the main curtain, creating an almost 360-degree experience on the thrust stage. Actors frequently use the aisles and often face away from parts of the audience.

“Tory has always talked about how when you’re acting with a scene partner, you’re receiving something from them, and then you’re radiating it back. And that means you’re acting with your whole body as your instrument, not just facial expression,” Mulley said. “If you’re present in yourself, you can gain a different sort of experience, but just as valuable, from seeing maybe someone’s posture shift or how they’re holding themself. And we tend to try to do it on diagonals, so

at least one person is facing out to kind of counteract that.”

Mulley and Showalter both play characters with a sure sense of self, driven by the same degree of passion but different beliefs about how it should be enacted. Showalter and the family she represents give the show its high stakes in the beginning, rather than the science itself.

Griffith effortlessly provides the show with some much-needed humor amongst four other characters who take themselves very seriously. Her Scottish accent is steady yet understandable, and her serious moments manage to read naturally amid her fun demeanor.

Mulley, Griffith, and Dun phey all have distinct characterizations that make their scenes together really fun to watch. They, and the whole cast really, bring a lot of joy and friendship to the parts they play.

While some of this is baked into the dialogue, Matsos said the re hearsal process itself was a lot of fun. Four of the five people in the cast took Acting II together with Matsos in the spring, and this was their first opportunity to try out what they learned in the spring, on the stage.

ers ensemble. When he first enters the stage, he seems a little too suave to play a Harvard physicist. His character later mentions a bygone dream of becoming an actor, and things start to make more sense.

He fits in well with the women on stage, immediately presenting a clear character and a strong stage presence. His brown tweed suit suit, red leather loafers, and fedora also likely helps with that.

“Working in a college-level theater has been different in the sense that there’s more vocabulary for things to learn, like radiating and all these things that are kind of new to me, but it

stars, they can be blinding,” Griffith said. “The metaphor is clear, but I think it’s just a wonderful moment of drawing the audience’s attention to that parallel of the emotions that are running throughout the show and then the imagery of the stars. Those moments where they combine are just magical.”

The parallels between the science and person give the show a universal quality. The kind of humility that scientists need in order to pursue truth is the kind of humility everyone needs in order to really know and love the people around them.

still makes sense, because it kind of follows the same track of theater,” Bauer said. “That’s been new and exciting.”

“Coming out of having that class with her, which was a very intense, studio course, writing all this terminology and different techniques that we haven’t used before, this was our first chance to actually apply that to a show with a director who also understood the terminology,” Showalter said. “We actually used a lot of it to create the show. The final scene is one of my favorites, and that we made based on stuff we did in Acting II.”

As a freshman, Bauer recently joined the Tower Play-

One of the interesting things about Gunderson’s plays is that she often spells out her themes and takeaways for the audience in the form of monologues. In the midst of that, however, she comes up against hurt and human tension that she doesn’t fully resolve or explain away. Griffith’s favorite line of hers embodies this tendency.

“We are in the business of perspective. You know it is fundamentally hard to tell if something is big and bright or just close by. . . Hearts and

“There is this idea that in order to discover, we have to wonder first, and whether that’s about science or about relationships, I think there are a lot of characters in this show who start out thinking they know something, and feeling very certain about that, and then discovering that they don’t,” Mulley said. “That can be either really beautiful or really painful, but eventually, in order to move forward, you have to open yourself up to that possibility that you don’t know.” At the end of the show, I may have shed a few tears — not because I was sad, although the ending is a little sad — but because it offers a chance for the audience to appreciate the beauty of it all. This includes not just the set, music, costumes, and acting, but art, science, and life as a whole. “Silent Sky” serves as a reminder that as science changes, as people change, as matter itself and what matters to us changes, beauty and the human capacity for wonder do not.

Professors’ Picks: Stephen Smith, professor of English

Mozart, Finale, “The Marriage of Figaro” (1786)

Come for the famous overture but stay for the great finale. Do you desire beauty, forgiveness, and a taste of real joy? Share the glory of Mozart. As the final chorus sings: “Only love can resolve / this day of torments, / caprice and folly, / into joy and happiness.” Comedy leaves tragedy in the dust.

“The Sadness of Christ,” by Thomas More (1535)

Written in the months before his execution, Sadness is More’s commentary on Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane. In More’s mind, Christ “the commander” teaches through his actions “a battle code” and “fighting technique,” especially for his faint-hearted and weary followers. More’s writing helps readers glimpse the “lofty peak of heroic virtue” in a surprising place: Gethsemane.

“Coriolanus” by Ralph Finnes’ adaptation of a work by Shakespeare (2011)

“Coriolanus” surges to fresh life courtesy of Ralph Fiennes, a.k.a. Voldemort. A great soldier, Coriolanus, fights with spirit that would make even your modern bronze man tremble. And yet Shakespeare also reveals the insufficiency of the young warrior’s education and formation. Banished from the country he loved and having grown “from man to dragon,” Coriolanus returns to burn his own home, family, and friends to

in act five.

the ground

Compiled by Moira Gleason News Editor

Stephen Smith in high school in the late 1980s. COURTESY | Stephen Smith

Freshman Aidan Bauer plays Peter Shaw in “Silent Sky.” COURTESY | Austin Thomason

Senior Fiona Mulley as Henrietta Leavitt in “Silent Sky.” COURTESY | Austin Thomason

Left to right: Junior Rachel Dunphey and seniors Fiona Mulley, Emily Griffith, and Kenda Showalter in “Silent Sky.” COURTESY | Austin Thomason

Senior Fiona Mulley stars as Henrietta Leavitt in “Silent Sky.”

COURTESY | Austin Thomason

C U L T U R E

Off-campus residents share their house histories

By Caroline Kurt Opinions Editor

A sign of the rich culture Hillsdale students enjoy are the names of its off campus houses: some painted or engraved on wood, others just known colloquially.

Some off-campus houses take their names from their exterior appearance: Lodge, which looks like a log cabin; Duplex, which is exactly that; The Barns are distinguished by their colors: Green, Blue, and White. Others are less obvious.

BOG

Isaac Kirshner ’22 lived in a house named after a cartoon character.

“Bog was a radical experiment in off-campus life,” Kirshner said. “For better or for worse, we had an open door policy, which resulted in a kind of revolving-door sitcom for an entire year.”

Kirshner said others picked out the name “Frog Bog” before he moved in midway through the fall semester of 2020. The name was soon shortened to simply “Bog.”

“The guys picked ‘Frog Bog’ as an homage to a cozy cartoon frog on the internet,” Kirshner said. “And because the house was sweltering in August. Nominative determinism isn’t exactly scientific, but Bog, like a bog, attracted many different kinds of people from all over the campus-swamp.”

While he said he didn’t expect to make new friends his senior year, Kirshner attributes some of his lasting Hillsdale friendships to Bog.

“The whole house and adjacent friend group still has an active group chat three years later,” Kirshner said. “I am still grateful for the lifelong friends I made there. I know the rest of them feel the same.”

BOONDOCKS

Boondocks stands on the site of a former house that was destroyed in a fire, according to Boondocks resident senior John Vanopstall.

“It was originally the Doghouse, the seat of the pioneers of Sig Chi,” Vanopstall said. “That house burnt down and was rebuilt into what is now Boondocks.”

According to Vanopstall, the name references the 1999 film “The Boondock Saints.”

“It’s also a little ways from campus, so it’s a little ‘out in the boonies,’” Vanopstall said.

BURT HOUSE

Burt House is the house Becky Fultz-Roth bought in Hillsdale in 2009, gutted, and remodeled as her first college property. According to Fultz-Roth, she and her husband wanted the house’s name to reflect her husband’s family history.

“My husband wanted to honor his great, great, great-grandparents who came over from England in the mid1800s and settled outside of Hillsdale, Thomas and Sarah Burt,” Fultz-Roth said. “In fact, they bought a lot of underdeveloped land and built a home on it south of Osseo, and in turn the township named the street Burt Road.”

According to Fultz-Roth, she and her husband were able to find a window from Thomas Burt’s old barn, which they installed inside another one of their properties, the Manning Stables.

CAMELOT

“Our house has been Green Gables for a long time, to my knowledge,” senior Joanna Leckband said. “It switched to being a boy’s house in 2020, and they changed the name to CDC.”

When the house became a women’s house again, Leckband said the residents felt the original name needed to come back.

HALFWAY HOUSE

According to Berntson, each house member chose one of King Arthur’s knights for their house-naming part: King Arthur, Sir Lancelot, Sir Percival, Sir Gawain, Sir Dinadan, and Sir Bedivere.

CASABLANCA

Junior Margaret McGee said the origin of her house’s name is a mystery.

“We don’t know the original lore behind the name of ‘Casablanca,’” McGee said. “We only assume it was a spin on the fact that it’s a white house.”

THE COOP

The women’s house The Coop, not to be confused with the off-campus house “Coop,” which traditionally houses kappas, has Leo Bykerk ’24 to thank for its name. The first group of residents in The Coop named their house Ingleside, a reference to Anne of Green Gables, said The Coop resident senior Carolyn Bonar.

“They had a whole house-naming party and everything,” Bonar said.

But one of the women who lived there, Monica Blaney ’24, had a nickname courtesy of Bykerk: “The big chicken.”

“Leo and his friends, Bank and Andrew, renamed the house The Coop because ‘the big chicken’ lived there,’” Bonar said. “The name stuck.”

FRATICAN

Senior Samuel Wallace said his house has a decade-and-ahalf of tradition behind it.

“Fratican has been in Delt for around 15 years at this point, and has been ‘Fratican’ since Delts first lived here,” Wallace said. “I don’t think there’s a person I know who would know the original story.

I see a lot of houses changing names with every new set of people that live there and to me, Fratican and all the other Manning Houses keeping the same name year after year says a lot about the culture on Manning.”

GRACELAND

Senior Elizabeth Penola lives in a house inspired by the king of rock ’n’ roll.

“We’re not totally sure why the house is named Graceland but the Elvis presence is strong,” Penola said. “There’s a miniature cardboard cutout of him in a suit in our living room as well as a portrait of him crying in the hallway — both of which have remained in the house for years.”

According to Penola, while Graceland’s naming origins are a mystery, lore surrounds the house.

“There are rumors Elvis once stopped here after a concert in Detroit,” Penola said. “The tale goes that when his car broke down, he found respite on Manning. Perhaps unlikely, but just maybe possible. I guess we’ll never know.”

GREEN GABLES

Unlike the similarly-inspired Ingleside, Green Gables retains its literary name.

Camelot is among the newest off-campus houses on Manning Street. “Our house name came about as a derivative of ‘The Castle’ or ‘The Castle on Manning,’ which was a name that I was pushing,” senior Steven Berntson said. “ Other guys thought that name was a bit too boring for a new Manning house. ‘Camelot’ came about because the house does in fact have a round table and because we’ve been smoking a lot of Camels this year.”

Senior Alexander Vietor lives in Halfway House, which sits back from the road behind two other houses.

“As far as I know, Halfway got its name since its address is 163 ½ Oak St.,” Vietor said. “It reminds me of Platform 9 ¾ in ‘Harry Potter.’”

HARBOR

Senior Esdras Blackwell said his house is named because of the decor.

“Harbor gets its name from the two (formerly three) paintings of ships which hang in our living room. The third painting has apparently been lost within the recesses of Simpson, as things tend to do,” Blackwell said. “Now we have a few more ‘Harboresque’ items, such as global maps and nautical flags.”

THE HEARTH

When senior Maddie Hornell was a junior, her housemate Rosemary Surdyke ’24 came upon a name for their house.

“We had been trying to come up with a name for our dear little house for a couple of weeks,” Hornell said. “We were seeking to capture the quaint charm of the name of an English manor house or maybe the lack-of-a-definite-article charm of Jungle or Egypt.”

According to Hornell, Surdyke awoke one morning with a stroke of inspiration.

“We all knew right away that ‘The Hearth’ had to be its name immediately,” Hornell said. “Rosemary took the initiative to craft a lovely poem surrounding the name, telling the story of Hestia’s hearth, long abandoned, which made way for the fire of Christ’s love!”

ICE HOUSE

Senior Grace Chen, who lives at Ice House, said she may know the origin.

“I think it’s because Kappas who lived there said ‘I can’t even’ so much that it became an acronym.”

JUNGLE

Looking at Jungle, it’s not hard to guess how the house got its name.

“The house was named ‘Jungle’ after the plentiful foliage that conceals and surrounds the house,” Jungle resident senior Charlie Albus said. “We actually have vines surrounding the doorways to the actual house and our garage. We have saplings in the door frames and different mosses in the gutters. If the indoors belong to us residents, the outside is surely owned de facto, if not de jure, by the greenery.”

Jungle has housed ATOs since the fall of 2020, Albus said.

“The seniors who lived there when we were freshmen leased it after it was clear that their class of ’22 in the fraternity could not all fit within Duplex, the older of the two ATO Manning Street houses,” Albus said.

MURDER SHACK

Senior Kaeleigh Otting lives in the former house of an infamous Hillsdale figure.

“‘Murder Shack’ got its name because originally when my parents purchased the house in the fall of 2022, it was a 600-square-foot tiny white house that looked kinda creepy,” Otting said.

With the addition of a second story, ‘Murder Shack’ has a new name: ‘Murder Mansion.’

POOLHOUSE

Poolhouse is one of the most newly named houses off

campus. Senior Ashley DeMay said her house’s name is partially music-inspired.

“We love the song ‘Pool House’ by The Backseat Lovers, and there’s a lot of teal paint throughout the house that we wanted to emphasize in our decorations,” DeMay said.

RIVERSIDE

Senior Sarah Rands said Riverside’s name alludes to its location on campus.

“The house is blue and white and simply on the corner of River Street and Manning,” Rands said.

SANDLOT

Junior Luca Vitale said the exact origins of Sandlot’s name are a mystery.

“To my knowledge, it’s had the name for nearly a decade or longer,” Vitale said. “I don’t know if there’s anyone around who knows the story.”

According to Vitale, Sandlot used to house a group of baseball players, who named it after the baseball movie by the same name.

“I’ve never had that confirmed,” Vitale said.

SHOE FACTORY

One off-campus house has a highly literal name.

“Shoe Factory used to be a shoe factory, hence the name,” senior Anna Tencza, who lives there, said.

According to Tencza, the building was renovated and repurposed for student housing, still retaining much of the original exterior.

SKYFALL

The off-campus house Skyfall, though not currently student-occupied, has a dramatic event to thank for its name.

According to former Skyfall resident Paul Miller ’24, when the house was originally rented out to students a decade ago, the group of ATOs living there had a party.

“The theme was based on seasons and the rooms were decorated accordingly,” Miller said. “The main living room was beach-themed and the residents filled the room with sand. During the party, the weight of all the people in the room combined with the sand caused the support beams in the basement to give out.”

Miller said the floor collapsed.

“The house was then called Skyfall in honor of the party, and remained that way regardless of whether it was ATOs or Sigma Chis who lived there,” Miller said.

A group of independents renamed the house ‘The Well’ when they lived there in the 2021-2022 academic year. When Miller and his friends came to Skyfall the following year, they restored the original name.

MANNING STABLES

Senior Linnea Shively said stables has passed down through Chi Omegas.

“We are not sure how it got it’s name, but it looks like a barn from the outside,” Shively said.

TORTUGA

Senior Colin Joyce and his brother, Luke Joyce ’24, came up with the name of their off-campus house, Tortuga.

“Tortuga was a famous pi-

rate colony in the Caribbean, which matched the nautical theme for our interior,” Colin Joyce said. “We made laser engraved signs for all the rooms, naming them things like ‘The Crow’s Nest’ or ‘The Commodore.’ Tortuga was also the first independent nation to write into its constitution that all men are created equal, which kind of gave it a cool ‘pirate’s code’-type vibe.”

TRIPLEX

Senior Phoebe Vanheyningen lives in a house with a straightforward name.

“‘Triplex’ is called ‘Triplex’ just because it’s a 3-unit home,” Vanheyningen said. “This house has existed for quite a while — our landlord’s family has owned it since the ’50s and were responsible for turning it from a family home into a three unit collection of townhouses.”

WAFFLE HOUSE

Current Waffle House resident and senior Amanda Dover is not sure how the house received its name.

“It was likely named after Waffle House, the diner,” She said.

The house is recognizable for its mailbox, which has the Waffle House restaurant logo painted on it.

“It’s a lot of fun because when you tell non-students you live at Waffle House, they have a puzzled look on their face, and the yellow mailbox brings so much joy,” she said.

WEST BANK

According to senior Julian Burchard, West Bank is among the aptly-named West Street houses — with a twist.

“We inherited the name ‘West Bank’ from past generations of residents,” Burchard said. “We changed it to ‘Squirrel Bank’ because, before we moved in, apparently some squirrels had taken up residence in the walls.”

WEST EDEN

Belle Murphy ’23 was a resident of West Eden when its Steinbeck-inspired name was decided.

“We had a house-naming party and let people cast votes — a lot of the options were ‘West’ themed, since we were on West Street,” Murphy said. “‘West Eden’ was a play on Steinbeck’s ‘East of Eden,’ a favorite of many in our house.”

WEST WING

West Wing landlord Kirk Putnam said that, when he purchased the house in 2013, he wanted a way for it to be recognized by students.

“Since the house is on West Street, ‘West Wing’ was a logical choice,” Putnam said.

Senior Alydia Ullman said the name of the big white house is a nod to the actual White House.

After asking the tenants whether they liked that name, Putnam said he carefully made a sign in his garage with the name.

“After the first weekend, the sign had already disappeared, so the second sign I made needed to be attached to the house,” Putnam said. “So if someone really wanted it, they would have to put in the effort to take it.”

WIGWAM/WESSEX

According to Matt Sauer ’16 the house has undergone many name changes throughout the years.

Leo Bykerk ’24 renamed the house long known as Wessex to ‘the Wigwam’ last year.

“Frankly, with Dang Doung living in the house, we needed a way to show that we were a racially diverse community,” Bykerk said. “We looked for a name that would really put that diversity on display, without offending anyone, and ‘the Wigwam’ fit the bill perfectly.” Senior Brian Knewston said the name change was not immediately adopted by all.

“Having lived in the house when it was rechristened Wigwam, I use that name. Many of the other residents this year prefer the tradition that Wessex offers, which is OK,” Knewston said.

THE WOMB

This house has been out of the hands of students for three years, but is a longtime student house. Carl Vennerstrom ’12 explained how they landed on the name “the Womb.”

“There was a bit of debate in August of 2012. I think ‘the Womb’ was someone else’s idea, no one knows exactly. Some unmentionably sub-optimal names were thrown around. Poetic deep cuts and the like,” Vennerstrom said.

“But eventually Nicodemus’ question took root in our souls and we never turned back,” Vennerstrom said. “I obnoxiously shouted a lot, too. Tyler Herndon took the longest to soften to the maternal metaphor, if I remember correctly. He fought and she won, and now we’re all womb-mates unto the ages and ages.”

YELLOW HOUSE Sophomore Maggie O’Connor said her house has a family legacy.

“When my parents bought 75 E. Fayette St. in 2019, it had been an off-campus house called ‘Brooklyn’ for many years,” O’Connor said. “In 2021, when my older sister Jane [’22] lived there, she rechristened it ‘Brookland,’ the name of the neighborhood in D.C. where my grandmother grew up.” According to O’Connor, the house’s name remains Brookland, though some have taken to calling it a different name.

“My family has always called it Yellow House to distinguish it from the white house my parents live in down the street, called ‘White House,’” O’Connor said. “‘Yellow House’ has just stuck, I guess!”

8 MILE Senior Veronica Crnkovich, a former resident of 8 Mile, said a group of ATOs gave the house its name.

“Its address is 8 River St., so instead of 8 River they just called it ‘8 Mile’ from the movie ‘8 Mile’ with Eminem,” Crnkovich said.

“I had just taken Christian Humanism with Dr. Birzer where we read Chesterton’s ‘Ballad of the White Horse’ which is all about Alfred the Great, king of Wessex,” Sauer said. “In the ballad, Alfred calls on his men to be ‘little words’ that imitate the Word incarnate, and I thought that was a beautiful and noble way to imagine the Christian life. Dr. Jackson’s Anglo-Saxon Lit class also helped inform our ‘mead hall’ ethos, which helped balance out any piety that came from the Alfred the Great connection. Thus, Wessex was born.”

Illustrations by Caroline Kurt and Colman Rowan Opinions Editor and Culture Editor

Veteran and student Greg Whalen performs EP ‘American Deployed’ at New York music venue

By Megan Li ASSISTANT EDITOR

When the last strum of junior Gregory Whalen’s guitar faded into the Corning Museum of Glass auditorium, the audience brie y sat in silence.

“ ey would almost linger before applauding — like the silent reflection they had,” said concert attendee Amanda Kerwick. “It was truly beautiful.”

On Sep. 28, Whalen opened for the rock singer Five for Fighting, the stage name of songwriter and performer John Ondrasik, in Corning, New York. Whalen performed three songs from his newly released EP: “Nineteen,” “Broken Eyes,” and “Kabul 2021,” as well as a fourth song that he has not recorded yet, called “Rambling Man.”

“I added that one because I had it memorized and knew I wouldn’t mess it up,” Whalen said. “I was able to announce it’s on a list of songs that I want to record next for another, bigger EP.”

Ondrasik invited Whalen to perform a er an introduction by email from Director of the Dow Journalism Program John J. Miller, who has written about Ondrasik for National Review. Ondrasik said he was particularly moved a er listening to Whalen’s “Nineteen.”

“He’s very authentic. e songs come from his heart — they have a point of view,” Ondrasik said. “He was able to stay within himself and just play his songs. And he has such a unique voice, he’s a good guitar player and his presence definitely did not

feel like somebody was playing their rst show, which is a great thing for him.”

Whalen said he has played in co ee shops, such as Rough Dra , before but never in a venue like that of the Corning Museum of Glass. He said the venue seats about 760 people.

“It was a pretty relaxed, comfortable atmosphere, honestly, very much a friendly audience,” Whalen said. “Ondrasik does a lot of political type music — political and military — and so the military nature of my music t right in.”

Whalen said he had listened to Five for Fighting with his friend growing up in middle school.

“It was very weird being there, knowing that I was about to play with this before this guy,” Whalen said.

Whalen said he had spent the hours before the performance with Ondrasik and the members of Five for Fighting’s String Quartet during sound checks, and knowing them personally while watching their performance helped him see their performance with new eyes.

“ e way that they encouraged me in going up there to play, knowing that it was my rst time ever doing something like that,” Whalen said. “Just seeing them with their own skill and mastery of music.”

Ondrasik described how Whalen drove 7 hours to the venue and slept in his truck the night a er the concert.

“He really did the rock n’ roll lifestyle,” Ondrasik said.

Ondrasik said he enjoyed the way Whalen introduced

his songs and explained the experience that inspired them.

“It’s very important for soldiers, who are artists, to express themselves,” Ondrasik said. “One thing I love as someone who’s been fortunate to do this for 30 years and realize my childhood passion is introducing new artists to audiences and supporting new artists who I think have something to say.”

Ondrasik said the Hillsdale community around Whalen should be proud of him.

“I hope he does some shows around campus and on campus, because for folks that haven’t heard him — they need to hear him, because it’s very rare to nd artists who are speaking his point of view,” Ondrasik said. “I know because I’m one of them.”

Whalen said his favorite songs from Five and Fighting include “Superman,” “100 Years,” and “Chances,” all of which were played that night.

When Ondrasik walked out and introduced Whalen for the opening act, Whalen said he was surprised.

“I’ve been to a couple concerts, and the main event of the night does not show up until the main event,” Whalen said. “So he introduced his own opener, which I think just shows one how seriously he takes music and that kind of music, and how just completely generous he is, both in the invitation and the introduction.”

Whalen said he met a number of veterans in the audience while greeting people at the end of the concert, including a man who had been in Afghanistan during the invasion in 2002.

“We just connected on extreme ends of the war,” Whalen said.

Kerwick said she could tell that everyone was moved by the authenticity and depth of Whalen’s songs.

“Music is a very powerful channel for us to spread awareness of any traumatic event. It made me more thankful for service members,” Kerwick said. “Using his voice, using music to raise awareness and bring attention to that unseen trauma that’s carried by those in everyday life.”

Kerwick said the way Whalen portrays the military in his songs is something many can take for granted.

“We really don’t see things about it, o en going through the motions, but music is one of those things that can really make you stop and think,” Kerwick said. “I think that it is really great that he’s using that as his channel.”

Whalen said he had not expected the connection he would be able to make with the veterans to be made so clear a er his concert.

“For all I know, they have done far more than I ever

did, and they’re coming up to me thanking me for putting something into words that they’ve never been able to express or that they wish other people would think about more.”

Whalen said sharing his personal military experience through music has given him the opportunity to hear the experiences of others.

“Music has a unique way of reaching people, of calling things to mind, of moving the heart and soul in ways that just talking or reading don’t necessarily do,” Whalen said. “ e most powerful thing is this connection across generations of military members, something that I never would have really expected.”

Ondrasik said the messages of his music are considered “anomalies” today, but they are necessary to hear.

“We need all points of view of music,” Ondrasik said. “ at’s how you got to get a sense of history. In this day and age, many artists are afraid to speak their views, especially if they be conservative, or they’re talking about military issues that may criticize the administration.”

Whalen said his music career involves a lot of busy work, from shopping for equipment to setting up a business bank account, and attending Hillsdale has been a good break from that.

“I’m still starting and writing new stuff, finding time with all this to actually practice the guitar, and sing,” Whalen said. “School is really good because it forces me to have quiet moments where I’m not just doing scattered, busy work — it forces me to draw back in, sit down and read something for a couple hours.”

Whalen said his plans include going to Tuscaloosa, Alabama, to perform at a 5K memorial event for a Marine who was in Afghanistan for the evacuation. e Marine committed suicide after he returned from deployment and inspired Whalen’s song, “Broken Eyes.” Whalen also wants to start playing live gigs and at open mic nights in the area.

“Go to Ann Arbor, maybe Lansing, some bigger areas, try to build an audience, and then just reach out to venues to start getting hired,” Whalen said. “I’m experimenting with this, ‘is this a viable option post grad?’

Ondrasik gave a word of encouragement for the Hillsdale community to take strength in each other.

“This is America. What builds America is strong voices, strong opinions, and you guys are the hope for the future, and I don’t say that casually,” Ondrasik said. “I look forward one day to visiting, and me and Greg can do a song together.”

QUICK HITS with Rog Bu s

By Cauê Basso COLLEGIAN FREELANCER

In this Quick Hits, Roger Butters, associate professor of economics, talks “Star Wars” versus “Lord of the Rings,” dating advice, and his favorite video games.

What is your funniest story from class?

Can’t share. Not t for repetition. Let’s just say students should not save compromising materials in the same directory that contains a PowerPoint group project presentation.

You spent part of your life in Brazil. What do you like best about the country?

The people. They are unbelievably kind and courageous.

What was the biggest lesson you learned as a missionary?

e most important thing you will ever learn is that Jesus Christ was born, lived, died, and was resurrected on the third day. Everything else is just trivia.

How did you nd your pet python snakes that you o en bring to your classes?

e ones I have today were hatched by a breeder in Oregon, who also happens to be the guy that wrote the book on carpet pythons.

If you were stranded on a desert island, which three books would you like to have with you other than the Bible?

Other than religious books, I’d have to say a book on wilderness survival, a book on primitive rst aid, and a book on astronomy.

What is your favorite video game of all time?

First person shooter: “Quake II”

Campaign game: “Heroes of Might and Magic II”

What are your favorite movies of all time?

Hard one. Depends on the mood.

Serious: “Jean de Florette,” parts one and two.

Unserious: “Galaxy Quest.” “Star Wars” or “ e Lord of the Rings?”

The “Star Wars” original trilogy without enhancements. If the earth is ever destroyed it will be because a space-faring race intercepted the prequels, or sequels, and reasoned that we are un t for survival.

“The Lord of the Rings” movies are cinematically superior, but the alterations made to the characters of Aragorn, Faramir, and others stand Tolkien on his head and are unforgivable.

What is one thing a lot of people don’t know about you?

I’ve met Margaret atcher.

What advice do you have for students looking for a romance at Hillsdale?

Remember the purpose of dating, and date with purpose. No one will have a greater impact on your life, happiness, and destiny than the person you marry. Don’t compromise the foundation for the rest of your life by being cavalier during your search.

What’s your best piece of advice for students?

Go watch a YouTube video about Joseph Campbell’s “Hero’s Journey.” A good one is by Matthew Winkler, “What Makes a Hero” on the TED-Ed channel. en internalize two facts. One, you are on a hero’s journey. Two, you are the hero in your hero’s journey. en, answer the call to adventure whenever it comes, and act like a hero.

The Corning Museum of Glass music venue seats over 700 people.

COURTESY | GREG WHALEN

Roger Butters and his wife, Michelle, pose for a photo in a garden.

COURTESY | ROGER BUTTERS

Whalen performs songs from his new EP, “American Deployed.”

COURTESY | GREG WHALEN

E A T U R E S

Jewish students find ‘mishpacha’ within faith-based club on Christian campus

Arnn outlines possible opportunities to facilitate Jewish culture on campus

By Maggie O’Connor COLLEGIAN FREELANCER

What symbolizes a sweet new year better than apples dipped in honey?

On Wednesday evening, five Jewish students, seven non-Jewish students and three Jewish community members gathered in Dow over a Kosher, home-cooked meal to celebrate Rosh Hashanah, the start of the Jewish new year. e table was lined with owers, Kosher wine, electronic candles— real candles are not allowed to be lit on campus grounds— challah bread, sliced apples, and honey.

Rosh Hashanah is one of the many events hosted throughout the year by Hillsdale College Jewish Mishpacha, the Jewish faith club on campus. e club also celebrates Shabbat every Friday evening, gathering around home-baked challah bread and grape juice to celebrate the beginning of the Jewish sabbath.

friends loved it.”

The Mishpacha executive board this school year consists entirely of freshmen, with Yahli Salzman as president. Salzman, who is on the track and eld team, said he chose Hillsdale for its athletic and academic excellence and its vibrant spiritual life.

“I wanted to be a well-rounded individual by the end of my college experience,” Salzman said. “I didn’t want to be in a place where I would feel scared to be Jewish.”

Salzman’s plans for Mishpacha this year include Shabbat services every Friday and celebrations on major Jewish holidays. So far, the club has hosted Shabbat every Friday of the fall semester, o en in a classroom in Kendall Hall but sometimes at an o -campus house. e club also celebrated Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, with a meal in the Dow Hotel and Conference Center. e club’s events are open to students of all faiths.

en years, but its publicity has varied,” Fincher said. “I’m really happy with how things are going this year, that people are interested in coming to events.”

When Garfinkle and her friends ran the Mishpacha, the club had many non-Jewish students interested in and attending its events.

“I encourage Christian students to be curious. Get to know Jewish students, invite them to your events and go to theirs, eat their food — it will be delicious,” she said.

Garfinkle herself spent many Fridays baking challah, a traditional braided bread central to the Shabbat service, in her dorm.

“Some of my sweetest memories are making friends as I was baking,” Garfinkle said. “Baking bread makes the dorm smell wonderful, and people would come out and we would do homework together. It was marvelous. I hope somebody on campus is still baking challah.”

Rosh Hashanah, a meal which required her to drive to Ann Arbor for kosher meat. She made an effort to buy more food than necessary for the anticipated number of students.

“ is way the students can have a nice little dinner the next day, too,” Phillips said. “You know, food is love.”

Associate Professor of French Anna Navrotskaya is another frequent attendee of Shabbat.

“Considering what’s happening on other college campuses, I’m very glad I’m Jewish here,” Navrotskaya said. “ anks to all my students and colleagues, Hillsdale feels like home. I don’t feel like I need to hide my identity, which I probably would feel if I found myself at Columbia.”

‘Christian college’ label. Yes, this is a Christian college, but at the same time being respectful and welcoming are such important parts of Christianity.”

Being in the religious minority comes with its di culties, though.

“Everyone is very respectful, but the one thing that’s been slightly overwhelming is that nearly everyone in my dorm has tried to convert me at one point or another,” Rapoport said.

He explained that although many Christian students try to persuade him that the Christian ideas in the Old Testament are proof for Christianity’s validity over Judaism, they o en misunderstand that the Jewish Torah is very di erent from the Biblical Old Testament.

Arnn said in an email statement.

“Our plans are not firm,” Arnn said in the email. “ ey include a few things under discussion: hiring an additional Jewish professor or two to teach the classic Jewish texts; admitting some additional Jewish students if they want to come, that is, if they are willing and able to pursue our work with us in the proper spirit; launching a minor or a master’s program or both in classical Jewish studies; adding a kosher section to our kitchen. ese things would be open to all students.”

Associate Vice President for Curriculum David Whalen has been a part of these discussions for advancing Jewish life on campus.

“It’s just a short and very beautiful service to open the Sabbath period, which goes from Friday sundown to Saturday sundown,” said Hillsdale alumna Sara Gar nkle ‘20.

Gar nkle, along with two fellow Jewish students, revived the Jewish faith club on campus during their freshman year in 2016. en called Hillsdale Chavarah, the club began consistently celebrating Shabbat and other major Jewish holidays, and hosting movie nights and discussion groups.

“Of course, we would bring our friends to Shabbat,” Garfinkle said. “It was just a wonderful thing to do, to end the work week and to share bread and traditions that are important to us. Our Christian

“I want to make the club as open, welcoming, and educational as possible,” Salzman said.

According to Salzman, essential to the Mishpacha’s educational goal is the club’s faculty adviser, Joshua Fincher, associate professor of classics.

“He’s one of the most knowledgeable people I’ve ever met when it comes to Jewish liturgy and culture,” Salzman said. “He knows enough to be a rabbi.”

Fincher has been the Mishpacha faculty adviser since 2017 and has led Shabbat and other events for the club every year since.

“The club has operated consistently in the past sev-

Jonesville resident Cheryl Phillips became Mishpacha’s resident challah baker after moving to Jonesville from Toledo, Ohio, last December. She discovered Mishpacha on the college’s website and began attending the club’s Shabbat services on campus this semester.

“Hillsdale College is known for academic excellence and for its safe, beautiful campus and that’s what made me think, ‘I bet there’s Jewish kids there,’” Phillips said. “Praying together and coexisting in peace on this multicultural campus gives me hope for the future. You all are upli ing and doing good in a chaotic world.”

Phillips helped prepare dinner for the club’s celebration of

According to an Associated Press article from April, Columbia University was the rst of many colleges in the United States to experience pro-Palestinian, student-led campus encampments earlier this year protesting Isael’s occupation of Palestine as the Middle East conflict between Isreal and Hamas continues.

“ ere’s no harmful intent here, it’s just simply that they don’t know much about Judaism,” Rapoport said. “I think it would be really nice if the concept and values of Judaism were more known around campus.”

“I wanted to be a well-rounded individual by the end of my college experience. I didn’t want to be in a place where I would feel scared to be Jewish.”

These protests occurred seven months a er the Oct. 7 attack on Israel by Hamas that led to a rise in “protests and antisemitic incidents on campuses that have le many Jewish students deeply unnerved,” according to e Wall Street Journal.

Like Navrotskaya, freshman Leon Rapoport, the club’s secretary, has found a sense of safety at Hillsdale.

“Hillsdale is a very welcoming place, and that’s why I hope more Jews consider it,” Rapoport said. “I feel like people might be dissuaded by the

Fred Yaniga, chairman and associate professor of German, has worked with the German honorary in conjunction with Mishpacha in the past to celebrate Jewish holidays like Sukkot, encouraging students to learn from each other.

“A lot of our students want to proselytize,” Yaniga said. “I understand the drive to evangelize, but rst of all we should be ready to learn. We’re here to learn things that we don’t know about — that’s the exciting thing about being in college.”

The college is currently working on ways to strengthen the focus on Judaism within Hillsdale’s curriculum, Hillsdale College President Larry

“ ere is a great deal about Judaism and Jewish culture that is unfamiliar to many Christians and therefore perhaps puzzling,” Whalen said. “But greater knowledge of Judaism is a boon and a blessing for Christians, rather than a distraction or any kind of diminution.”

Salzman’s plans for mishpacha are focused on spreading this greater knowledge of Judaism on campus and on community building.

“I’m a social person. And I think that’s what this school is all about,” Salzman said. “You can talk about the good, the true and the beautiful, but they have no meaning unless you actually go out of your way to become a better person, to make better friends, make a family here.”

A er all, Mishpacha is the Hebrew word for family.

Jesse Mendoza and Lucy O’Connor celebrate Rosh Hashanah with Hillsdale College Jewish Mishpacha.

COLLEGIAN