Collegian 1.25.2024

Athletics department to replace Otter’s Army shirts in the fall

By Jamie Parsons c ollegi A n r eporter

A campus tradition has ended: the athletics department will replace the familiar “Otter’s Army” t-shirts it hands out in the fall.

“Starting at the Source in 2024, we will hand out the new shirts to unify our brand and vision,” said Regan Monnin, director of marketing and community relations for the athletics department.

The decision follows the retirement of Keith Otterbein last fall, who served as Hillsdale College’s head football coach from 2002 to 2023, and is the namesake for the shirt and its logo.

Police arrest man in predator sting

By Logan Washburn AssociAte editor

Jonesville police arrested a Hillsdale man after an anti-trafficking group confronted him in a sex predator sting.

The Jonesville Police Department arrested Mark Shemwell, 45, on Tuesday evening, according to Jonesville Police Chief Mike Lance. Shemwell faces charges of solicitation of a minor for immoral purposes and using a computer in commission of a crime.

“I run an organization that exposes child predators,” Christopher Abercrombie said to Shemwell in a video posted to Facebook. “Who is the girl you’ve been having a conversation with?”

“I think her name is Skylar,” Shemwell said.

“How old is Skylar?” Abercrombie asked.

“I think she said she is 15,” Shemwell said.

Shemwell was an English teacher at North Adams-Jerome Public Schools, according to LinkedIn, and part owner of Shemwell’s Academy of Martial Arts in Jonesville.

Abercrombie is part of an Indianapolis group called “Exposing Predators of Innocent

Children,” which creates profiles on social media platforms as bait to catch sex predators. Shemwell reached out to one of these profiles — which appears as a 15-year-old girl named Skylar — on a platform called “Tagged” on Jan. 4.

“They have to message us first,” Abercrombie said.

Shemwell asked if the girl had a Snapchat account, according to documents obtained by The Collegian. “Skylar” said no, but offered her phone number, and Shemwell reached out to the girl — actually members of EPIC — by text.

The two spoke for more than two weeks, acting as if they were in a romantic relationship. The documents appear to show they eventually planned to meet and have intercourse in Shemwell’s car.

Lance said the department would provide a thorough investigation, and officers are still working to verify the messages and evidence that EPIC provided them.

Abercrombie and Donnie Clifford, both with EPIC, confronted Shemwell in Jonesville at Shemwell’s Academy of Martial Arts on Tuesday evening close to 7:30 p.m. EPIC posted a video of the interaction on

Facebook, which showed them speaking with Shemwell as they waited for police to arrive.

A Jonesville police officer then arrived, Abercrombie and Clifford provided the evidence, and the officer arrested Shemwell.

“On the scene, he did a preliminary investigation based on the information he had and information from both EPIC and from initially talking to the suspect, Mr. Shemwell. He made a custodial arrest,” Lance said. “The investigation is ongoing.” Shemwell faced arraignment for the charge of solicitation of a minor for immoral purposes on Jan. 24 and is set for a probable cause conference Jan. 31 at 11 a.m., according to JailTracker. He has a $15,000 full cash bond.

Lance said police will pursue a forensic investigation, and Shemwell and his family will be given the same legal protections as anyone else.

“People can jump to the conclusions based on what’s been put on Facebook or livestream,” Lance said. “The suspect who was arrested and the family, they’re entitled to due process under the law.”

Radio students named finalists for major awards, winners to be announced in March

By Ty Ruddy collegiAn reporter

The Michigan Association of Broadcasters and the Intercollegiate Broadcasting System nominated twelve Hillsdale College students for radio awards.

“It’s always exciting and gratifying to have industry professionals acknowledge the outstanding content created by our students at WRFH,” said Scot Bertram, general manager for WRFH Radio Free Hillsdale 101.7 FM.

The IBS is a national radio and audio organization, meaning industry professionals judge student entries and compare them to other student entries from every state. The student broadcast awards from the MAB go to Michigan students only, and will be announced March 18 in Lansing, Michigan.

Students received nominations for special reports, musical specials, daily shows, and interviews among other categories.

Alumni Josh Barker ’23 and Abigail Snyder ’23 were nominated under the category “Current Events Story.” Barker earned two nominations for episodes of “The Policy Corner,” one about Michigan tax reform and the other about the repeal of the state’s “right to work” law.

“The goal of The Policy Corner was to provide listeners with a balanced overview of legislation in Congress and the Michigan state legislature that could impact them — what it would do and what people on both sides of the aisle are saying about it,” Barker said. “Each episode that was nominated was Michigan-focused, so I think that appealed to the MAB, and both bills covered later became state law.”

Snyder’s special report on the war in Israel earned her the MAB nomination.

Hillsdale nominees under “Daily Newscast/News Feature” were senior Therese

Boudreaux for “Spotlight on PFAS” and junior Lauren Smyth for her show “Lauren Smyth News.” Smyth was also nominated for best “On-air Personality or Team.”

Junior Gavin Listro and Snyder were nominated for “Editorials.”

Junior Gwen Thompson’s “The Timbrel and the Lyre” was nominated for “Music Feature or Special” along with “I’ve Got Aux” produced by Listro and juniors Bella Dix and Ally Hall.

Juniors George Accola, Joe Colaizzi, and sophomore Patrick Scott received a “Promotional Announcement” nod for their “Wall Street Weekly Promo.”

Sophomore Evan Mick received nominations under “Sports Feature” for two interviews. Mick works as the assistant sports director.

After former head football coach Keith Otterbein retired at the end of last season, Mick interviewed current head football coach Nate Shreffler.

He also interviewed sophomore Julian Lee, a kicker for the Chargers.

“My interview with Julian was a lot of fun because I am a kicker myself so I understand much of what he said,” Mick said.

The IBS also nominated Mick and sophomore Julius Graber for a broadcast of a Chargers women’s basketball game.

“The girls ended up winning by one point so it was an exciting game,” Mick said. “Julius Graber did such a phenomenal job as the play-byplay announcer that we were nominated.”

According to Bertram, Radio Free Hillsdale offers students the opportunity to produce shows while improving their craft in leadership roles.

“The student leadership structure helps ensure that students are holding each other to high standards year after year,” Bertram said. “We have a dedicated group of students who are committed to producing the best content possible and who are determined to improve over time.”

Barker’s graduation marked the end of “The Policy Corner,” but he said he believes his time at the radio station served him well.

“From a personal perspective, my hope was that writing and producing ‘The Policy Corner’ would help me gain a better understanding of the political and legislative climate and I think that was certainly successful,” Barker said. Bertram said he is excited about the recognition the students will receive for their work.

“I’m lucky to work with broadcasters and journalists who are willing to learn, listen to suggestions, and respond to constructive criticism about their shows and features and newscasts,” Bertram said.

By Logan Washburn & Lauren Scott Associ Ate e ditor & ci ty n ews editor

The 2024 senior class gift will be a glass conservatory, the Legacy Board announced on Jan. 19. The structure will serve as a year-round study and social space, surrounded at all angles by greenery.

“It is a gift that is timeless and timely,” said Braden VanDyke ’21, associate director of alumni relations. “A place to ponder the good, learn about the truth, and enjoy the beautiful. It’s a space that brings education to life, in a way. Timely in that campus has never needed such a space more than it does now.”

The class of 2024 gathered in the Searle Center Friday for the unveiling of the Conservatory, where students will be able to study indoors surrounded by plants between the Mary Proctor Randall Preschool and the Howard Music Hall.

“As a gift, it’s nice to see something that will be tangible and you can look back on,” senior Chris Dick said.

The college has raised more than $12,000 of the

$50,000 needed for the project, according to VanDyke. He said the college would not begin construction on the project until it secures enough funding.

“We hope to engage the senior class and specific partnerships with the senior class to see this project begin over the next few years,” VanDyke said. “I am unsure of how long it would take to erect the building once construction begins, but cannot imagine it being more than a six month process.”

College President Larry Arnn delivered remarks at the ceremony and said the plans are impressive considering modern construction costs. He said the Conservatory would help the college in its plans to beautify the campus.

VanDyke said he imagines the Conservatory will be able to hold a dozen or so students.

“The size and footprint of the Conservatory will depend on how much is fundraised for it,” he said. “Obviously, the more that is raised, the larger and more developed the building might be.”

Transfer class boasts competitive statistics

By Carly Moran AssistAnt editor

Seventeen transfer students joined the college this semester, up from 14 last year, according to the Hillsdale College admissions office.

The new group enters with an average GPA of 3.81 and an acceptance rate of close to 18%. It includes 11 men and 6 women from 12 states.

“When students apply as transfer students here, there’s no separate applicant pool,” Senior Director of Admissions Zach Miller said. “They’re competing along with all the other students for either the fall or the spring semester.”

The number of spring transfer students largely depends on how many beds are available, according to Miller.

“There has been a steady increase of spring transfers over the last few years since COVID-19,” Ben Strickland, assistant director of admissions, said. “Most of the spring transfers I’ve talked to over the years are because of dissatisfaction with their current ex-

periences at other colleges and are seeking a more serious and rigorous curriculum and experience.”

Sophomore and spring transfer student Erin Freidenfeld said the transition to campus has been easier than she thought it would be. She said students from her hometown of Austin, Texas, have helped her adjust.

“Having friends already on campus has helped me significantly,” Freidenfeld said. “Something as simple as seeing a familiar face across Saga during lunch hour makes me feel much more at ease and ready to tackle all the challenges of being a new student.”

According to Freidenfeld, a transfer from Furman University in South Carolina, the weather has been one of the biggest adjustments.

“I’ve been warned I will definitely get sick of it, but for right now I’m enjoying my bubble of optimism and appreciating how pretty the snow is,” Freidenfeld said.

The drawing shows a conceptual rendering of the Conservatory. Courtesy | r eagan Linde

College completes phase one work on track at Hayden Park

The college has completed construction of a nine-lane track, grandstand and pressbox, and a synthetic turf soccer field as part of a new trackand-field facility at Hayden Park.

Most of the work was finished by last October, with

the addition of a space for throwing events, a scoreboard in November, and electrical work in December, according to Chief Administrative Officer Rich Péwé. “We still need to install the sound system and PA system, which will happen in early spring,” Péwé said. “At that point it will be ready to host meets.”

Plans for the next phase include the addition of two more grandstands, concessions, ticket plaza and restrooms, athletic training facilities, and a paved parking lot. Construction will begin after the college has raised the funds, Péwé said. “The track itself is incredible,” senior Sean Fagan said. “It’s the nicest track I have ever run on.”

The track team used the new facilities for fall training, according to head coach R.P. White.

Fagan said the team enjoyed training outside at Hayden.

While the lanes on most tracks are 36 inches, Fagan said, the lanes on the new track are 42 inches.

“Having that extra space and having it be nine lanes all the way around,” Fagan said, “when you’re running in lane five going down the straightaway, it feels like there’s just nothing but track on either side of you.”

The college will host the 2024 G-MAC Conference Men’s and Women’s Outdoor Track and Field Championships May 1-3 on the new track.

“It will be one of the nicest Division II track facilities in the country,” Athletic Director John Tharp said. “And with the setting at Hayden Park, I think it’s one of the most beautiful settings in all of Division II college athletics.”

Though Hillsdale does not have a Division II soccer team, Tharp said the college is open and prepared for possible growth of its athletic programs in the future with the addition of the field.

“They weren’t thinking about something for one year, they were thinking about something for the next 10 or 15 years,” Tharp said.

Hillsdale has already hosted club soccer games on the turf.

“We were able to play on it for our last game of the fall,” sophomore and Hillsdale Men’s Club Soccer president Jacob Beckwith said. “Not having to worry about the weather and condition of the grass was really nice. Every pass was smoother, and you could control the ball much more easily. Having our logo in the center of the field and actual bleachers filled with supporters was pretty cool too.”

In addition to benefiting student athletes, the new track will give the whole student population of the college and Hillsdale Academy access to quality fitness facilities, Tharp said.

“I think it has a chance to touch almost every student on our campus,” He said. “That’s why we build these, that’s why we try to renovate these things. It’s not specifically for one sport. It’s for the betterment of the entire campus.”

Ricky Waddell speaks at Center for Military History event

By Joshua Mistry Collegian Repo R te R

An overlooked aspect of American foreign policy are the systems in which decisions and policy are crafted, said Major General Ricky Waddell in a lecture for the Center for Military History and Grand Strategy last Friday.

“Military strategy is not made in a vacuum, at least it shouldn’t be,” Waddell said.

“Military strategy should descend from policy, and as policy follows from politics, however formally or informally made, military strategy should fall in line with those policy statements of intent and application of resources in pursuit of stated or implied goals, ob-

Gift from A1

Senior Legacy Board member Caleb Holm said the Conservatory will serve as a place to further cultivate friendship and community, which is significant for the class of 2024.

“When we arrived on campus our freshmen year, we were still seeing the effects of covid policies and the serious harm they did to our communities,” he said. “Hillsdale was a safe haven where we were able to preserve the close-knit community that makes life so beautiful.”

With the quad under construction for the next few years, VanDyke said the Hillsdale community is in need of more developed green spaces.

“The Conservatory will offer a place of year round respite from the elements,” he said.

Senior Hannah Allen said the Conservatory will be great for Hillsdale students.

“Green spaces have been known to boost mental health and mood,” she said. “The greenhouse in the Strosacker science building has been a popular study spot on campus, so setting aside a space like this will be a great addition to campus.”

Holm said this was an arduous process for the Legacy Board, but he is happy with the gift they chose.

jectives, or outcomes.”

Waddell spoke in the Hoynack Room about how military planners must diligently strive to continually assess the outcomes of their decisions to make sure they align with the government’s stated policy goals.

“A good military planner will ask two major questions, ‘Are we doing things right?’ and ‘Are we doing the right things?’” said Waddell, the retired commander of the 76th Operational Response Command.

Prior to this assignment, Waddell served in numerous teaching, engineering, and commanding military roles, most notably as the director for European security affairs

on the National Security Council. Waddell said his talk was meant to give a brief insight into the nuances and difficulties of strategic planning in light of the overwhelming amount of information influencing policy outcomes.

“General Waddell gave an excellent talk, balancing well details and generalizations,” Professor of History Dave Stewart said. “All Americans should understand the multi-layered processes he described which govern the making of American military policies and strategies.”

Galloway Resident Director JoAnn Arendt said she walked away from the talk with the impression that our

military forces ought to use these critical methods to solve problems like the southern border crisis.

“I find it unbelievable that I can get a speeding ticket for any minor traffic infraction while anyone can come to and cross our southern border with no punishment,” Arendt said. “We have this huge military but no matter what happens at the border, no one seems to care or act.”

But as Waddell pointed out in his talk, the military is bound to the policy objectives laid out by civilian leaders and the journey that information takes to become coherent policy is often strenuous.

“Too often we think in some simplistic terms about

By

The

readers

Family

introduced new

entrance to improve efficiency and repainted the food stations. Metz Culinary Management installed the card readers over Christmas break, replacing the card swiping machines. The new readers are “touch and pay” and are faster than the card swipers, according to Metz operation manager Tammy Cole. “Our goal was to get students in and make it easier for them,” Cole said. “The swiping was a frustration not just for

me but for every student.”

Sophomore Avery Nowowiejski said she believes the new machines will improve the dining hall experience.

“I think that the scanning system will be very helpful for students who are used to unlocking doors with their card on the back of their phone,” Nowowiejski said. “It will make the lines go faster.”

According to Cole, Metz will eventually remove the phone scanners as well and only use the card readers. The readers will be used at all campus locations where Metz operates, from Jitters to the Roche Sports Complex. Students will also be able

to use their phones with the new readers by connecting them to an Apple Watch or downloading an app on their smartphone. .

Cole said she still encourages students to use their physical cards.

“Everybody in the college recommends everyone carry their card around anyway,” Cole said. “Honestly, the fastest way is the card.”

In addition to the new readers, Metz employees repainted the food stations. “They’ve been wanting to kind of make it their own,” said Kelly Syllaba, the dining hall greeter and cashier. “They had a lot of really dark colors

SAB to bring students to Bittersweet Ski Resort

By Jacob Beckwith Collegian Repo R te R

More than 100 students will travel to Bittersweet Ski Resort in Otsego, Michigan, for the Student Activities Board’s annual ski trip Jan. 27.

“I can’t wait to share in the enjoyment of God’s creation with dear friends, escape the Hillsdale bubble, and leave my mark on this fine earth by absolutely shredding upon the snowy slopes,” sophomore Dylan Hughes said.

Junior and SAB events lead Abby Richardson said this year has brought the highest involvement in the event’s history, with 117 students currently signed up compared to 110 last year.

the president simply announcing a policy with no insight into the complex nature of forming and executing that policy,” Stewart said. “I found it especially useful that General Waddell explored the process from a broad perspective, rather than providing only a single example.”

Given that the military is equipped with the right tools, Arendt said it doesn’t have an excuse not to solve problems sitting right in front of it.

“For as smart as our military is, sometimes I wish they would just act smart,” Arendt said. “Clearly the military has the systems in place to do the right things and I just wish they’d do that.”

“The ski trip is a great way for those who have a background of skiing and those who don’t to go for cheap,” Richardson said. “We provide the transportation and equipment, and that makes it easy for students.”

The total fee to participate is $40, according to SAB. This covers transportation, lift ticket, rental skis or snowboard, boots, and helmet.

“I’ve never been skiing before, but I’m excited to give it a try,” sophomore Alysha Katterheinrich said.

Richardson added that the trip is one of the few opportunities to get outside during the winter months.

“I’m so excited to have the opportunity to make lasting memories and bond with friends while falling down the slopes,” sophomore Gray Turner said.

Transfer from A1

in here, and over the break, they wanted to make things look new and a little brighter.” Metz was aiming to blend its aesthetic with the classic Hillsdale color scheme, according to Jeffery Cassell, the Metz general manager. “Metz Culinary Management has been on campus for three semesters and we wanted the space to represent more of our brand,” Cassell said in an email. “We wanted to update the look and feel of the servery with fresh paint and signage, while taking into consideration Hillsdale College colors.”

According to Cassell, Metz staff chose colors to correspond with each station. The salad bar, Green Scene, is now green while J. Clark’s Grille is bright red. Other colors include pale yellow at the Main Plate station and gray at the Bravo station.

The full-time Metz staff including Cole and Adam Harvey, the head chef, painted all the walls over Christmas break, according to Syllaba. Employees also installed the new signs at each food station.

“They’re pretty proud of what they’ve done,” Syllaba said. “I think it looks a lot brighter and I’m enjoying it.”

Cole said Metz has planned no further renovations at this time.

“The only annoying thing so far is that it takes longer to get ready in the morning. You have to put on so many layers and that takes time.”

Miller said many of the spring transfer students come from non-traditional education backgrounds. Some of them may also be trying to get into Hillsdale a second time as admissions rates drop each year.

“We’ve had students who maybe have not made it into Hillsdale in their initial goaround out of high school and maybe it’s because of academic reasons,” Miller said. “What they do is they go elsewhere for a year and establish a strong academic record at another university. We love those stories where we get to reward students for really persisting.”

According to Miller, Hillsdale’s curriculum is one of the key reasons someone might transfer.

“There are not a lot of options for students who are looking for something like Hillsdale, so the spring transfer route allows for students who maybe went to another college and aren’t happy with that choice,” Miller said. “We’re one of fewer and fewer colleges who are providing a classical liberal arts education consistent with Judeo-Christian and Greco-Roman virtues.”

By Moira Gleason a ssistant e dito R

The new track facility at Hayden Park will be one of the nicest in Division II sports, according to Athletic Director John Tharp. Erik TEd E r | Coll E gian

Mock trial takes fifth out of 24 at Great Chicago Fire Invitational

By Zachary Chen Collegian RepoRteR

Hillsdale College Mock Tri-

al Team A won fifth place out of 24 at the Great Chicago Fire Invitational tournament hosted last weekend by the University of Chicago.

“Top talent from around the nation was there – Harvard, Yale, UChicago, and the defending national champions UCLA,” senior and Team A co-captain Caleb Sampson said.

The Great Chicago Fire Invitational is one of the two most competitive invitational tournaments in the mock trial season, according to Sampson.

Hillsdale Team A competed against four highly-ranked teams, three of which are among the top fifteen teams nationally: Patrick Henry College Team A, the University of Michigan Team A, the University of Wisconsin-Madison Team A, and the University of Chicago Team A, according to Sampson and senior Justin Lee, Hillsdale Team A’s other co-captain.

In addition to the team victories, Lee also won a 22-rank witness award, according to Sampson.

Senior Curtis Herbert also performed well in the tournament, according to senior Abigail Davis.

“He was awesome this weekend, and when, in one round, the judge kept out some of our evidence, he quickly adjusted his closing argument to be rhetorically persuasive with what we were able to get in,” Davis said.

Herbert said he had to cut his closing argument from nine minutes to six and a half minutes while determining which evidence could be used most effectively in his speech. “The more experience you get in mock trial, the more you learn which things are really important to your case, and which things can go if they need to go,”

Herbert said.

According to Herbert, the

Hillsdale Team A defeated each of the teams from Patrick Henry College, University of Wisconsin-Madison, and University of Chicago, with a ballot score of 2-1 in each match. They lost to the University of Michigan Team A with a ballot score of 1-2, according to Sampson.

team performed particularly well in their last round against the University of Chicago Team A.

“I think our best round of the weekend was probably round four, which was against the University of Chicago’s A team, just in terms of the overall quality of the performance,” Herbert said.

According to Lee, UChicago Team A was ranked third in the nation at the time of the tournament.

Sampson said that Hillsdale Team A will continue preparing with scrimmages and practices before its next tournament at regionals.

“We’ll scrimmage some other teams to get real practice against real cases before we head into the official season,” Sampson said. “And of course we’ll be scrimmaging the B team and the C team as well, so everybody gets as much experience as possible, and so that iron sharpens iron among the teams.”

According to Lee, the team has room to continue growing after the tournament.

“We performed well,” Lee

said, “but at the same time there were a lot of really concrete things which we can improve on and are going to improve on.”

actually en-

Hillsdale students travel to DC for March for Life

By Skye Graham Collegian

Repo R te R

More than 130 students from Hillsdale College braved snow storms to reach Washington, D.C., for the March for Life Jan. 19.

“It was incredible to realize how many people came even though the weather was bad,” sophomore Anna Heldt said.

“When we turned toward the Capitol Building you could

look ahead and behind and see all the people there to support life.”

Students from Hillsdale College’s many religious organizations attended the march, including members of Catholic Society, Lutheran Society, and InterVarsity Christian Fellowship.

Members of the Hillsdale Orthodox Christian Fellowship broke off from the Hillsdale group and marched with

Orthodox Christians for Life.

“To be Orthodox and to be pro-life ought to be, and is at the general level, synonymous,” junior Anna Jackson said. “We believe that all mankind is made in God’s image and the destruction of that image – to kill a human being – is a great tragedy and is destructive to both the killer and the victim.”

The theme for the 51st March for Life was “With ev-

ery woman; for every child.”

A number of speakers at the rally addressed this theme in their remarks.

The pro-life movement should be optimistic about its ability to convince people that every unborn child has a value too precious to ignore, Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-LA, said in his address.

Johnson shared his personal story for promoting life.

“I am, myself, a product of an unplanned pregnancy. In January of 1972, exactly one year before Roe v. Wade, my parents who were just teenagers at the time chose life,” he said. “I am very profoundly grateful that they did.”

Jim Harbaugh, the head football coach for the University of Michigan, made a surprise appearance to introduce keynote speaker and former NFL player Benjamin Watson. “It’s a great example you’re setting,” Harbaugh said. “It’s testimony for the sanctity of life.”

Jean-Marie Davis, executive director of Branches Resource Center in Vermont, told her story of surviving human trafficking and choosing life for her son Jonah thanks to the help of a pregnancy resource center.

“My son saved my life,”

Davis said.“The pregnancy center saved my life.”

Author Aisha Taylor told those at the march about the pressure she felt from the father to get an abortion when she became pregnant with twins in a crisis situation.

“I picked up the phone to call an abortion provider,” Taylor said. “But God, they did not answer the phone. Do you know who did answer the phone when I needed them? My local pregnancy center.”

The rally lasted for close to an hour, and a march along the National Mall followed. Along with Hillsdale College for Life, a number of other prolife student groups attended. Students from Liberty University were in attendance, and a Pennsylvania State University student, Domenick Tolentino, spoke at the rally.

Christian organizations of many denominations attended and showed their support for the cause. Other attendees held signs saying “atheists for life” to show the diversity of the pro-life movement.

Johnson reiterated the goal of the march in his remarks.

“This is a pivotal time to promote quality healthcare for both women and their unborn children,” he said.

Students celebrate start of classes with late-night cereal

couraging because it means that there are still lots of things we can do to get better,” Herbert said. “We haven’t hit our ceiling yet.”

Metz updates grab and go options

By Anna Broussard Collegian RepoRteR

Students can choose from a variety of new grab-and-go food options at A.J.’s Cafe, the Roche Sports Complex, Kendall Hall, and Lane Hall. Starting this semester, 18th Street Deli Market replaced York Street Market as Metz’s partner for grab-andgo items.

Metz retail manager Paul Bowman said the change occurred over the break when York Street Market moved its production facility from central Ohio to New Jersey. “We wanted someone local to the area, and 18th Street Deli Market is from Detroit,” he said. “They are local, and the food looked great.” With the new company, the grab-and-go areas have a more extensive food selection including microwavable options.

“We want to offer a wider variety for the students,” Bowman said.

Junior Charlie Miggins said he likes the additions.

“I am super happy with the new grab and go,” Miggins said. “I appreciate how there are different food selections than last semester. I definitely will be using more swipes on the grab and go.”

18th Street will provide a revolving selection of food, Bowman said. “We have more microwavable options, which is great,” he said. “We will get new selections each week as well. Starting Feb. 5, they’re going to be able to send us mashed potato bowls and other dinner options.”

Bowman added that the overall feedback from the students has been positive, and they are excited to try out the new options each week to see what students enjoy.

The feedback from the students has become very beneficial to determining the favorites among the students, Bowman said.

“I enjoy having breakfast choices I can grab the night before and warm up in the microwave before I head up the hill,” sophomore Patrick Hamilton said.

Herbert said the team is optimistic about the rest of the season. “There’s still lots of work to be done, which is

More than 130 Hillsdale students traveled to D.C. to participate in the March for Life. Courtesy | Katie r eid

Students gathered in the union Jan. 17 to enjoy a bowl of cereal and chat with friends after the winter break. Courtesy | s tudent aC tivities Board

Hillsdale’s Mock Trial Team A competed against teams from schools like Harvard, Yale, and UCLA at last weekend’s invitational. Courtesy | Chloe n oller

Opinions

Devil’s Advocate with Claire Gaudet

Teachers and students agree: Don’t talk in class

There’s a reason you don’t see class clowns as stock characters in college movies: They’re too high school.

But in three of my classes this week, students have tried repeatedly to talk — at conversational volume — over lecturing professors.

Maybe I’m in more core classes than usual — or maybe freshmen and sophomores are holding onto high school habits more tightly than before — but no matter what the reason is, it’s horrendous.

Our professors work here because they are some of the best and brightest in their

disciplines. Some of them have three doctorate degrees. If their students are whisper-screaming something stupid to a person two seats away — or hunched over, mouth-breathing, playing Clash of Clans — that’s got to be the worst feeling in the world as a teacher of their calibur.

I don’t know what the certifiable geniuses at this college get paid, but it’s certainly not enough to deal with this level of immaturity. And, professors, if students are going to act like total jerks, I think most students would welcome

you shutting them down.

On a social note, talking in class is also incredibly annoying to the more subtle students who are also paying to attend these classes. You’re turning away potential friends when you act this un-charming.

Let me get one thing straight: I’m all for a quick quip or side-eye. I’ve communicated with classmates all four years at Hillsdale through looks and simple gestures.

If you can’t quietly do the same with the person sitting next to you, you’re probably

not good enough friends to absolutely need to communicate during class.

If you’re so bored that you really can’t pay attention, do us all a favor and fall asleep. Or don’t come to class. It’s less disruptive, and the rest of us won’t know about your startlingly unlikeable personality.

Claire Gaudet is a senior studying rhetoric and journalism.

Gun control shouldn’t be weaponized against pro-lifers

Why, after so many shootings, abortion remains a bigger threat to Americans than gun violence

By Evalyn Homoelle Senior reporter

This past weekend was a notable one for the pro-life movement, with the 51st March for Life occurring in Washington, D.C. and churches around the United States observing Sanctity of Life Sunday, the commemoration of the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision.

As such, social media and news outlets have been buzzing with arguments for and against abortion. For the past 51 years, advocates on both sides have employed variations of moral, scientific, and political arguments.

One of the most nuanced and difficult arguments from the pro-choice community is that of whether pro-lifers care for life postbirth and how they practi-

cally do so.

A 2019 blog post from Planned Parenthood claimed that “People who oppose abortion often call themselves pro-life. However, the only life many of them are concerned with is the life of the fertilized egg, embryo, or fetus. They are much less concerned about the life of women who have unintended pregnancies or the welfare of children after they’re born. In fact, many people who call themselves ‘pro-life’ support capital punishment (AKA the death penalty) and oppose child welfare legislation.”

At first glance, it seems like an understandable argument: the pro-life community claims to care so much for life, but only emphasizes its beginning and not any other context. What about the elderly, those who seek

medically-assisted suicide, or those who are victims of gun violence?

In the wake of the 40 instances of mass murder (in which more than four victims were killed) and more than 600 mass shootings (in which more than four victims were injured) that occurred in the United States in 2023, the argument that pro-lifers are inconsistent because they fight for the life of the unborn but don’t advocate for gun control is an especially visceral and emotional one.

But it’s also a fallacious distraction from the crux of the disagreement between the pro-life and pro-choice sides.

While both those on the pro-life and pro-choice sides can agree that people who are alive today are deserving of dignity and protection,

they fundamentally disagree on whether an unborn fetus is a human worthy of the same rights and protection.

Arguments that the prolife community isn’t doing enough to foster a culture of life post-birth are types of “moving the goalpost” and “tu quoque fallacies” meant to distract from the issue at hand.

The fact of the matter is that the fight for life is a war, and securing the rights of the unborn is just the first battle in that war. Although the loss of human life at any age is a tragedy, there is a particular and urgent gravitas surrounding the murdering of the most vulnerable. In the first ten months of 2023, more than 870,000 abortions were performed in the United States. While the 40 instances of mass murder are heartbreaking and should

spark preventative measures, these instances should not be equated with the millions of unborn children who have been killed in abortion clinics.

While pro-life advocates will readily admit that there is much work to be done on the front of protecting life in all stages, this extensive mission does not detract from the importance and focus of its starting point. The purpose of passing legislation to protect citizens from gun violence or provide welfare for children and the elderly is to protect and advance life. But if there is no right to life in the womb, there will be no chance for future protection. The pro-life cause is not a single-issue one, even though it has largely focused on the rights of the unborn since 1973. It strives for the reinstitution of a society

that values and protects the sanctity of human life in all stages, but understands that no society can properly view and protect life if that fundamental right is not secured for the most vulnerable.

As Ronald Reagan observed, “everyone who is for abortion has already been born.” So have the people who argue that because pro-lifers don’t support gun control, they don’t actually care about life. Life cannot be protected from violence if it doesn’t exist in the first place, and that is why stopping the horror of abortion is and should be the top priority for the pro-life community.

Evalyn Homoelle is a senior studying politics and journalism.

Iowa and New Hampshire reveal passion of Middle America

By Catherine Maxwell ASSiStAnt editor

Donald Trump won the Republican primary in New Hampshire this week and the Republican caucuses in Iowa last week — and soon he will clinch the Republican presidential nomination — because he appeals to the part of America most people want to overlook. His demographic consists of the Middle Americans. They’re an easy group to ignore. They aren’t the conservative elites in Washington or the intellectuals at think tanks and universities. They don’t spend their days crafting intricate policies or writing philosophical musings on the decay of society.

Instead, they’re the honest people living simple lives in rural America. They’re farmers and truckers, working hard and quietly keeping America running. They have a strong moral sense not because they studied great thinkers of the past, but because they believe in the traditional Christianity that raised them.

They’re not flashy or exciting, and while they have strong political beliefs, they are rarely loud about them.

For years their only politicians were people who shared most of their beliefs but didn’t seem interested in them as people.

Liberal commentators and Christian conservatives alike can’t understand why, with so many other options, Americans would still vote for Trump. The fact of the matter is, none of the other candidates have allied themselves with this common man in the same way as Trump. The liberal media is partly responsible for this alliance. Every time Trump has been attacked or demonized, his supporters have been attacked with him. Biden, for example, has repeatedly blamed “MAGA Republicans” for threatening democracy. The “MAGA Republicans” — also known as average Americans sick of liberal policies — are tired of it. They want someone who will fight for them as viciously as they are being attacked, and they have found one in Trump. Any attack on Trump is an attack on Middle America (and vice versa), and thus the alliance grows stronger. Still, credible options existed heading into the Iowa

caucus. Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida seemed like the perfect alternative. He’s proven himself by reopening his state during the COVID-19 pandemic and his willingness to fight large corporations like Disney. Michael Knowles recently described him as “Trump without the baggage” — he has all of Trump’s best policies without the glaring moral flaws.

The Iowa caucus revealed Middle Americans don’t want someone who’s Trump-like; they want the person who has heard and seen them for eight years and who has withstood the resulting persecution. DeSantis admitted as much when he suspended his presidential campaign Jan. 21.

Nikki Haley of South Carolina doesn’t have a real shot at Middle America either. She’s primarily attracting the never-Trump vote and the establishment conservatives, and although she can boast foreign policy experience thanks to her time as a U.N. ambassador, it’s not enough to sway Trump’s supporters.

To win the nomination, Haley will need to win more votes from every alternate branch of conservatism

than Trump will win from his Middle America demographic, and that’s not likely to happen.

Even on the East Coast, Trump’s demographic was strong enough to secure a win in the New Hampshire primary. Haley relied on never-Trumpers, neoconservatives, and independents in the hopes that they would outnumber Trump’s supporters, but his Middle America voters beat Haley 54% to 43%, according to a CBS New Hampshire Exit Poll, proving that his appeal applies to more than Midwestern voters.

Trump appeals to these people because he fights for them. Perhaps it’s absurd that a billionaire business tycoon would gain the following of millions of middleand lower-class Americans, but he’s won their loyalty in a way no one else can.

It’s time for other politicians to notice. Now that these people have found their voice, they won’t go away. There may be plenty of primaries left to go, but Trump has effectively won the nomination.

Catherine Maxwell is a sophomore studying history and journalism.

Donald Trump won both New Hampshire and Iowa. Courtesy

By Elizabeth Crawford AssistA nt Editor

It’s time women stop idolizing Taylor Swift Why I get Botox at 21

Seventy-two thousand lights sway and twinkle in a packed stadium as a blonde singer with cherry red lipstick stands on the stage with her guitar. For singer-songwriter Taylor Swift, it’s just another night on the Eras Tour, which will head overseas next month and return to the United States in October with shows in Miami, New Orleans, and Indianapolis.

Swift’s ability to capture the experiences of girls and women is unique. Every girl has the experience of crushing on a guy who doesn’t even know she exists. Every woman at some point will understand gut-wrenching heartbreak. And every woman can relate to the butterflies-inducing, heart-pounding, back-tingly experience of learning that the guy you’re crushing on does, in fact, like you back.

Many women feel like Swift is their best friend, emotionally validating their personal, raw, experiences.

Her song “Red” was on my breakup playlist after a rough ending to a relationship, and her song “Archer” reminds me of the beginning stages of my current relationship. Like any sensory nostalgia — such the smell of your favorite perfume or eating your favorite food — Swift’s songs define certain periods of my life, and hear-

ing her music brings back those memories.

And maybe Swift’s music touches on female loneliness, and the desire to be seen, understood, and heard.

She is, of course, a talented artist and a smart businesswoman. Very few artists

tionships and past exes for genuine lessons on life, love, and dating.

Idolizing her emotionally cripples her, rewarding her cycle of dating, breaking up, and making new music. But idolizing her doesn’t just emotionally cripple her — it cripples her fans as well.

can claim 39 Billboard Music awards, 26 Teen Choice awards, 19 iHeart Radio awards, 12 Grammys, and 10 albums, but Swift can. But regardless of her ability to channel the feminine zeitgeist, it’s time to stop idolizing Swift. Her fans — otherwise known as Swifties — often blur the lines between her as a person and her art. They mistake her confessional lyrics about previous rela -

Fully-grown women, for instance, will don their best Swift-inspired outfits, make and exchange friendship bracelets, and weep just to see Swift perform from the nosebleeds.

What married woman, in her right mind, posts a TikTok video sobbing over a highschool boyfriend while her daughter watches?

Or writing about a breakup, for instance, feels a bit out of touch coming from a

woman whose dating pool includes super hot, rich colleagues in Hollywood and NFL players.

Maybe every girl encounters rejection — but most girls could only dream about being turned down by the likes of Jake Gyllenhaal or Harry Styles, much less having a relationship with them.

And in some sense, her music is exploitative. Her most popular work focuses on past relationships, and she exposes previous boyfriends by dropping important key details and references, pocketing the millions she makes off of each track while leaving them vulnerable to the public and her fans — who are personally invested in her dating life and vicious to her exes.

So, appreciate her music. Enjoy her lyrics. Belt your heart out to “Cruel Summer” and weep to “All Too Well.” Good art should move you, and in an ideal world, it should help you grow from your pain and learn from your experiences.

But distinguishing the art from the artist is a part of growing up. And it’s time for Taylor Swift, and her fans, to grow up.

Elizabeth Crawford is a senior studying politics and journalism.

A Professor’s Opinion

“What

Compiled by Malia Thibado

are your thoughts on AI and education?”

Allison Postell, Philosophy Jordan Wales, Theology

“AI is a powerful tool that can be good in many areas so long as it is used in the context of a well-lived life. AI threatens to become deeply destructive when its good is determined by its abilities unmoored from this context. We must have a sound understanding of what it means to live well personally, communally, and economically for AI to be a blessing rather than a curse.”

“Like a dog’s ears hear more than we do, AI is good for finding harmonies and correlations that we might miss. And it’s really good for that and ought to rouse our wonder. However, we mustn’t forget that the dog, too, has a limited range of hearing, and that sound is not the only thing going on in the real world; moreover, we’re the ones giving the dog treats (training the AI), and so it learns to reduce the aural landscape to what we reward it for highlighting. Therefore, if we depend on the AI to tell us everything that’s out there, we’ll miss the things that it can’t hear or that we haven’t categorized as worthy of note. If AI augments our ears, we’d better not let our other senses atrophy in the process or let our pre-selected output categories obscure the options we haven’t yet considered.”

Michael Clark, Economics

“I can confidently say that it does not resolve F.A. Hayek’s knowledge problem (this was a bit of a talking point after an important economist at MIT named Daren Acemoglu insinuated it may). If I am somehow wrong about this the economy could theoretically be planned by a Socialist AI overlord. I do also see some benefits in certain contexts of early education programs like the Elon Musk inspired Synthesis program, though I do believe the abuse of technology there may be more harmful than the benefits of its proper use.”

John

Seiffertt Computer Science

“AI is useful for writing essays.”

By Alexandra Hall dEsign Editor

Because of the paralysis, I couldn’t raise my eyebrow at the girl who was telling me that my Botox injections were “unnatural.”

Paralysis is the primary effect of Botulinum neurotoxin, a protein produced by a bacterium most commonly used in cosmetic procedures to reduce the appearance of wrinkles and fine lines. But I don’t do it to look cherubic in middle age. I’m 21 years old, and I do it to survive.

According to her, I am poisoning my body. I should instead focus on eliminating gluten and sugar to “cure” my injury. But a loaf of bread and a Reese’s cup didn’t hit me in the back of the head. A car did.

A hurried woman rear-ended my aunt’s Jeep one summer when I was in middle school, and life as I knew it ended. The headrest was made of hard, angular plastic. It sharply nailed my occipital nerves and thrust a vertebra in my cervical spine out of place. Ever since, I’ve lived with daily migraines stemming from neuralgia and constant muscle spasms. Due to the muscle tightness, my cranium even rests slightly off center, like a broken bobblehead.

The pain is constant, but it’s manageable. My weight fluctuates due to constant nausea, I pass out randomly at times, some days I can’t see, and I’m haunted by a nerve sensation that feels like an egg was cracked on my skull and it’s gooey innards are dripping down my face. So instead of deciding what homecoming dress to wear and which boy was the cutest in my class, my young adult years were spent trying to stay alive until the next season.

Obviously, Ms. Natural didn’t know a decade’s worth of my health history. But that’s precisely why it wasn’t appropriate to comment on my treatment.

Chronic health problems are recurrent trauma: pain that lives in the past, present, and for most people, future. When discussing people’s personal health troubles, it’s best to tread carefully. Claiming that “cures” are just one step away if ill people could just muster up the faith to lift their foot is a harmful narrative people unknowingly push. There are mindful, kind ways to bring up treatment suggestions, but disparaging personal choices individuals make for their bodies isn’t helpful when you’re not privy to all the details.

If the only physical discomfort I experienced were stomach aches, common colds, and hangovers, I, too, would sneer at the concept of

injecting neurotoxins into my body. That’s an easy opinion to have when your life isn’t ruled by an invasive pain that isn’t your fault.

Botox wasn’t the first option. For years, I fiddled with elimination diets, strapped vibrating magnets to my forehead, joined pharmaceutical drug trials, and even got hypnotized once by a shoeless lady who told me to imagine myself as a celestial body. I’ve been on over 30 different medications, some of which are now on their way to becoming classified as controlled substances. I’ve done my homework for a class I’ve continued to fail.

Every three months, I get 32 injections in my face, neck, scalp, and shoulders not because I want to, but because I am unable to live life without them. Only after I began a consistent Botox regimen was I able to go to eat a meal without seeing its contents in the toilet an hour later, walk around a fluorescently lit grocery store with my mom, or go on a date without worrying I might fall unconscious.

Most people mean well. When they’re chronicling their dad’s mom’s sister’s best friend’s struggles or their own, even the worst comments are rarely malicious. But intentionality falls short when speaking to someone about a topic as intense as health. You never know the extent to which a person has tried to heal themself. Flippant comments about things to do and not to do can deliver more damage than an overdose.

When you have chronic health problems, conversations like these never cease. It doesn’t matter if you’re under the care of naturopathic hippies or a slave to Big Pharma — people always have something to say. Maybe some people really can solve their health problems with diet changes and niche, noninvasive treatments, but “natural” quickly becomes “tone deaf” when it lacks “empathy” and “social awareness.” The idea that you would know more about a condition than someone who has it (when you’re not their doctor) is an ableist savior complex. It’s best to offer help when you can and refrain from criticizing anyone’s treatment choices.

I don’t care if my Botox isn’t deemed “natural” to someone whose science background is Biology 101. We’re working with two very different pieces of real estate: one, a temple kept clean with a simple diet and maintenance plan, and another, a house on fire in need of first aid every day.

Alexandra Hall is a junior studying rhetoric, biology, and journalism.

Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour started March of 2023. Courtesy | FaC ebook

City News

Former Quincy school board member launches campaign

Wortz is running against Adam Stockford and Tom Matthew for state representative

By Logan Washburn Associate Editor

Jennifer Wortz, a mother, teacher, and former Quincy school board member, is launching her campaign for state representative.

“I hope to be a driving force in legislative change on more educational freedom,” she said.

Wortz announced her campaign for District 35 state representative in December. The district contains Branch and Hillsdale counties and part of Lenawee County.

Wortz is running as a Republican and so far faces two opponents in the primary: City of Hillsdale Mayor Adam Stockford and Branch County Commissioner Tom Matthew. No Democrats have yet filed to run for the position, according to the Michigan Secretary of State’s office.

Current state Rep. Andrew Fink, R-Hillsdale, announced his campaign for Michigan Supreme Court justice in September.

The primary will take place Aug. 6 and the general election will take place Nov. 5, Hillsdale County Chief Deputy Clerk Abe Dane previously said.

Wortz said she is planning to hold her official campaign kickoff event Feb. 11 from 12:30 to 3:30 p.m. at the Creal Soccer Complex in Coldwater.

If elected, Wortz said she hopes to advance accountability, constitutional rights, the role of the family, and educational freedom.

Wortz is currently Branch County Conservation District Manager and vice chair of the Branch County Republican Party, she said. She also works at Central Grace Farm. She graduated from Waldron Area Schools in 1997, graduated from Michigan State University in 2000, then moved to Branch County.

Wortz started Branch County Moms for Liberty in 2021 and served as chair for two years. During this time, the group sued the BranchHillsdale-St. Joseph Community Health Agency for its COVID-19 quarantine orders against students. Wortz said a federal court dismissed the case in April 2022 because the state legislature passed a law that could pull funding from agencies issuing such orders.

“By the time the case reached the judge the legal standing was no longer there,” Wortz said.

Stockford, who lost to Fink in the 2020 state representative primary, previously said his campaign is well-organized and ready to face opponents. He said he does not know much about Wortz, but welcomed her to the race.

“Seems like a nice enough lady,” Stockford said. “The more the merrier.”

Matthew said he is glad voters have different candidates to choose from. But Matthew, who sits on the board of the BHSJ Community Health Agency, said his experience in leadership roles gives him an advantage.

“The candidate must have the knowledge and ability to work with everyone to make it possible for our district to be the best while at the legislature in Lansing. My passion is for our community to strive, be safe and healthy,” Matthew said.

“The diversified knowledge I have gained over the last fourplus years as a county commissioner is a huge asset.”

The mother of four – recently turned grandmother – has served as a public school teacher, homeschool instructor, and classical education tutor, according to LinkedIn. She served on the Quincy Community Schools Board of Education for two years starting in 2017.

“I believe these experiences make me the best candidate for 2024,” Wortz said.

People began asking Wortz about running for state representative last summer, but she initially turned down the idea, she wrote in a letter to supporters. After attending the Michigan March for Life, however, she changed her mind.

“After much prayer, talking things over with my family and a couple other state reps [sic] who are moms, I said yes,” Wortz wrote. “I am running for the 35th Michigan House seat because moral truth matters. Constitutional freedoms matter. My goals are simple and true to what I have been taught by Godly parents, the word of God, and the Constitution.” Wortz is using the acronym “TIME” to describe her platform. Wortz said she hopes to promote “truth and accountability,” “individual constitutional rights,” “marriage and motherhood,” and “education freedom.”

Wortz said her main priority is to focus not on her opponents, but on advancing legislation she considers important.

She also said her time at Central Grace Farms has inspired her to protect land rights and take back local zoning control from the state.

“I don’t really have an opinion about either of them,” Wortz said. “Based on the attacks that women and children are facing right now, we need more moms in Lansing working for legislation that defends parents’ rights and protects children.”

City to complete courthouse renovations by November

By Christina Lewis Collegian Reporter

Renovations to the Hillsdale County Courthouse will be complete by November 2024, according to County Commissioner Doug Ingles.

The courthouse renovations started two years ago with the intention of repairing the roof. As the construction progressed, workers from Renaissance Historic Exteriors, the company contracted to do the job, noticed serious structural problems with the stonework, Ingles said.

“Some of the stonework was loose and there was a safety concern that the stones would potentially fall,” Ingles said. “In fact, three years ago we did have a stone fall from the cupola area and land on the roof.”

According to Ingles, the bell tower and clock tower still need to be repaired.

“It’s been over 100 years with very little maintenance,” Ingles said. “As we get into this renovation project, we find more and more issues that need to be dealt with.”

The once green cupola has been completely recovered

and is renewed copper, according to Ingles. “When you drive by, especially on a sunny day, you’ll see the beauty of the copper,” Ingles said. “The result we’re

“I would expect the courthouse to last at least another 100 years without concern for liability because of what we’ve done”

going to have with this historic courthouse is very incredible.”

Project Manager Jake Verhagen of Renaissance Historic Exteriors said that the scope has changed again because

the repairs required were beyond what anybody expected.

According to Verhagen, the scaffolding is still intact because mortar needs to be replaced and the new clock needs to be installed.

The cost of the courthouse renovations will be covered by the money Hillsdale County received from the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 and the county’s general fund.

“The major portion of the funds comes from our ARPA money, which is over $8 million, and other money is coming in through our general fund,” Ingles said.

Chairman of Hillsdale County’s Board of Commissioners, Mark Wiley, said the renovation project is important because of the building’s historic registry and the sheer cost of a renovation of this magnitude.

“We’ve preserved something for the county of Hillsdale citizens. I would expect the courthouse to last at least another 100 years without concern for liability because of what we’ve done,” Wiley said.

Jennifer Wortz is a mother and teacher. Courtesy | Jennifer Wortz

The courthouse has had minimal maintenance in the past 100 years. Courtesy | faC ebook

Artists to play live music at Rough Draft throughout winter

By Michaela Estruth Assistant Editor

Rough Draft is hosting live music nights on the weekends in January and February.

“We started it as another way to bring together the town and the college, which is a big goal of our founders,” said barista and Hillsdale College senior Anna Grace Russell. “It’s a great way to spice up the shop culture as well, and we have so much space for it that we can utilize.”

Performers include solo artists, jazz groups, and bands, according to Rough Draft barista and senior Nikoleta Klikovac.

“We bring back a lot of old regular performers like Tuition and Fees, and we’ve brought in new talent like Hillsgaelic,” Klikovac said.

“I’ve even had to turn people away from performing.”

Klikovac said Rough Draft hosted live music nights before the COVID-19 shutdowns, and about two years ago, decided to reinstate the event.

“First, we just had live jazz from whoever was willing to play,” Klikovac said. “Then Brianna Lambrecht, who graduated last year, took over since she was Phi Mu Alpha sweetheart and heavily involved in music. She started reaching out to students and local artists to perform. Once she left, I was passed the torch.”

One of the artists, junior Rachel Houts, said she likes the opportunity to perform at a non-college sponsored event.

“I love that Rough Draft

is separate from any kind of class or Hillsdale sponsored event because it feels like you’re getting a taste of the music the performer actually listens to,” Houts said. “I love how much live music the college organizes for us,

but I think some people feel pressure to play hits at some of these events. That’s just not the case at Rough Draft.”

“We started it as another way to bring together the town and the college, which is a big goal for our founders”

Houts said she appreciates the freedom to try new styles and perform songs that complement her voice.

“The expectation isn’t that you’re playing music other people know, or music for dancing, so you get to try out new songs that are sometimes less common,” Houts said. “I tend to pick songs that are very singer-songwriter, and I love incorporating music from a wide timeframe. I think that style of music suits my voice much better than rock does.”

Because of the calm, relaxing environment of Rough Draft, performing is often less nerve-racking, Houts said.

“I love playing at Rough Draft because it’s so low pressure,” Houts said. “Most of the people there are at least familiar to you, and it makes the whole experience so much fun.”

Beyond exploring styles, Houts said the laid-back scene

The Friends of the Dawn Theater to restore 1925 pipe organ by this summer

By Olivia Hajicek Science and Tech Editor

The 1925 theater organ originally installed in the Dawn Theater is on track to be fully restored and reinstalled this summer.

According to John Orensma, a member of the Friends of the Dawn Theater, the Wurlitzer theater organ was originally designed to accompany silent movies. In addition to organ pipes, it has sleigh bells, a snare drum, a car horn, hoofbeats, a duck quack and many other sound effects.

The theater organ was originally installed in the dawn in 1925 by former owner W.S. Butterfield, according to the Union City Society For Historic Preservation’s Facebook page. It cost $10,000 for the original installation. It will cost around $240,000 for the organ restoration and the necessary construction work, said Ron Scholl, a member of the Friends of the Dawn Theater. They still need to raise around $80,000 to complete the project.

“There’s only about thirteen Wurlitzer pipe organs in the world that are still intact

Predator from A1

Senior Sabrina Sherman said she was glad to hear about the arrest, and to see the local Facebook community condemning anyone who would take advantage of children.

“I’m really happy they were able to get him,” Sherman said.

Shemwell’s Academy of Martial Arts responded to the arrest Tuesday night on Facebook, saying Shemwell had been “credibly accused” of attempting to solicit a minor for sex.

“This is absolutely unbelievable. I have no words to describe how incredibly sorry I am that any of you have been exposed to this kind of behavior,” wrote Mark’s brother Paul Shemwell, also a part owner. “Shemwell’s Academy absolutely and unconditionally condemns this behavior. At this time, I honestly have no idea what to even do.”

Paul Shemwell said the gym would close through the weekend so it could respond to the news. He said people should call, text, or email if they need anything, and he would do his best to respond.

— meaning even though some of them aren’t playing, they haven’t been rebuilt or modified or ruined — so our little organ is really quite special, even on the national or world scene, in terms of theater organs,” said John Ourensma, who joined the Friends of the Dawn Theater after becoming involved in the organ project.

According to its Facebook page, Friends of the Dawn Theater is a local community group that facilitates support and programs for the theater.

The organ is currently being restored in the studio of J.L. Weiler in Chicago, where it is having its leather replaced, its console rebuilt, and its pipes straightened. The wooden components will also be refurbished.

“It’s not like they’re going to look brand new, but they’re all going to be refurbished enough that things look pretty spiffy and bright again,” Ourensma said.

According to Mary Wolfram, also a member of the group, a digital playback system installed on the refurbished organ will give it a function similar to a player piano. When an organist

Abercrombie said on Facebook that the community should respect the privacy of Mark Shemwell’s family. “Leave the family and their business pages alone, they are handling the issue,” Abercrombie wrote. “His wife, brother and kids had nothing to do with this, they are all dealing with their lives turned upside down.”

Abercrombie said he helped start EPIC because he experienced abuse. “I was abused as a kid, and there’s a lot of child predators in my family. I’ve been very vocal about this,” he said. “There are kids out there being hurt every day.”

Parents should speak with their children about difficult topics like abuse and online safety, Abercrombie said. “Parents are not checking these kids’ devices,” he said. “We’re allowing these monsters right into our house and they’re not walking through the front door.”

Lance said anyone with information pertinent to the investigation should contact the Jonesville Police Department or the appropriate law enforcement agency.

plays, electrical impulses tell different parts of the organ what to do. The computer will be able to record those impulses and then use them to tell the organ to play the song by itself.

“With a couple of keystrokes you can fire up the organ, and it will play on its own,” Scholl said.

Wolfram said they hope to show silent movies at the theater again as well as host organ concerts. She said they also hope to become a destination for organ tourism.

“The college has these beautiful two new beautiful organs in Christ Chapel, and there’s an organ museum in Homer, which is about 20 minutes up the road from here. So we could become an organ destination kind of thing,” Wolfram said.

Meanwhile, the building must be renovated to accommodate the organ pipes on either side of the stage as well as a blower and wind line in the basement.

Wolfram said that people who are interested in donating can contact the Friends of the Dawn Theater on Facebook or at 810-844-1396.

at Rough Draft also allows artists to perform their own originals and introduce new pieces to the public for the first time.

“There are so many talented musicians on the campus, and it’s always fascinating to see the kind of music they want to play,” Houts said. “I also think it’s great for music discovery; some of my current favorites I heard first at Rough Draft.”

Performances are held on Fridays and some Saturdays from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. through the end of February, according to Rough Draft’s Instagram page.

“We like to keep things interesting and give all types of artists an opportunity to play,” Russell said.

Craft supply to host card making class

By Caroline Kurt Assistant Editor

Hillsdale Craft Supply will hold a Valentine’s Day card making class Jan. 28 at its 164 Lewis St. location. The class will be held in waves: participants can come any time between 1 and 6 p.m. At the event, customers will be able to purchase a card kit for $4, which includes all materials and the necessary instruction. The class is open to people of any skill level.

“The only thing they have to bring is a smile,” said Shelley Mangus, the owner of Hillsdale Craft Supply. “We provide everything.” Mangus holds holiday-themed card-making classes on the fourth Sunday of every month.

Sidnie Kubien, who works with Close to My Heart, the paper supply company who partners with Hillsdale Craft Supply, will teach the class. Participants in the January session will learn to use die cut machines to construct creative Valentines Day cards.

“I love when participants use their own imagination and get creative with the tools I give them,” Kubien said. “That’s what excites me.”

Hillsdale Craft Supply offers a variety of other arts and crafts classes on a monthly basis, including in watercolor, acrylic, knitting, and crochet. Customers can also assemble a private custom crafting event with guests of their choosing.

“All of our classes are inclusive. You come with a smile and go home with your finished product,” Mangus said.

For students who would like to participate but lack transportation, Mangus said Hillsdale Craft Supply can send a car over for students who call ahead.

“Everybody has a little bit of creativity in them,” Kubien said. “You just need to pull that out of them.”

To register for the event, go to hillsdalecraftsupply. com.

The pipe organ was originally installed in 1925. Courtesy | FaC ebook

Mark Shemwell is from Hillsdale. Courtesy | FaC ebook

Men's Basketball

Hillsdale beats Kentucky Wesleyan, improves to 11-6

By Alex Deimel

After a 67-58 home loss to their G-MAC rival Walsh Cavaliers on Thursday, the Hillsdale men’s basketball team bounced back with a dominant win against another conference opponent, the Kentucky Wesleyan Panthers, in an 80-60 rout, improving to 11-6 on the year.

The Chargers had their work cut out for them going into the matchup against Walsh, with Cavaliers sophomore guard Kobe Mitchell putting up 25 points, shooting 10-13 from the field. Mitchell leads the Cavaliers with 18.6 points per game. The Chargers were outscored 33-17 in the first half, making only 22% of their

shots. They would go on to score 41 points in the second half, but it was not enough to overtake the Cavaliers, who put up 34 of their own.

Junior forward Joe Reuter led the Chargers in scoring against Walsh, putting up 18 points, and going 6-6 from the free throw line. Reuter has led the Chargers in scoring this year, putting up 15.7 points per game.

The Chargers would put the disappointing loss behind them on Saturday, dominating offensively against Kentucky Wesleyan with 80 total points. Reuter contributed 14 of those points, while also grabbing 9 rebounds and 3 steals.

“The biggest difference was our pace offensively in the Kentucky Wesleyan game compared to when we played Walsh," Reuter said. “When we play that quick, it’s easier for us to loosen up and not be as tight and let the game kind of come to us.”

Although the first half was an offensively focused game, with the teams combining for 87 total points, the Chargers held the Panthers to only 19 points in the second half, while also scoring 22 points off Panther turnovers.

Additionally, senior guard Samuel Vasiu earned a career-high 17 points against Kentucky Wesleyan, while grabbing four rebounds and two steals. In his first year as a starter, Vasiu has averaged 22 minutes per game, as well

as contributing 7.2 points per game. Another new starting guard for the Chargers this season is sophomore Ashton Janowski, who has averaged 9.1 points per game, and scored 14 points against the Panthers.

Off the bench, freshman Mikey McCollum has seen meaningful minutes, averaging 6.4 points in 18 minutes per game. McCollum contributed 14 points in the Chargers loss against Walsh, with a 66% field goal percentage.

“We came out the game with a much better start against Kentucky Wesleyan,” McCollum said. "Which set the tone for the rest of the game compared to Walsh where we had a very slow first half.”

In his first season as head coach, Keven Bradley has led the Chargers to an impressive 11-6 record. Bradley had spent the last three seasons with the program under current Athletic Director and former head coach John Tharp, and now leads a very young Charger squad, featuring only three seniors.

“Thursday night against Walsh, we did not move the ball well enough,” Bradley said. “We got caught up in too many one-on-one situations, but on Saturday I felt like we moved the basketball much better, which allowed us to make more plays. The ball movement was definitely a drastic difference between the two games last week.”

Swim Chargers split meets, prep for GMACs

By Maddy Welsh Senior Editor

The swim team wrapped up the regular season by splitting a pair of dual meets last weekend, defeating Aquinas College 196-72 but falling to Davenport University 181105.

“Overall, it was a successful meet,” head coach Kurt Kirner said. “I think we had an opportunity to swim some events that we normally don’t get a chance to.”

Kirner said the standout events of the meet were from juniors Megan Clifford, Elise Mason, and Emma Dickhudt who all won at least one individual event. Hillsdale opened the meet with a close second finish in the 200 yard medley relay, finishing in 1:50.38 to Davenport’s 1:49.22. Seniors Caroline Holmes and Sarah Pataniczek teamed with Clifford and Dickhudt for the race.

Freshman Alyson Early took second place in the 1000 yard freestyle with a time of 11:20.28. Early, who usually races short sprint events, said it was the first time she had raced the 1000 since she was 14 years old.

“It was definitely difficult to switch up from that race to sprinting the 50 free, but I’m grateful coach gave us the op-

“We are not necessarily ready to make decisions on the design or logo of the shirts. We just know we are looking to do something to create a more unified look for the student section for all sports,” said John Tharp, director of athletics.

Tharp said the “Otter’s Army” shirts were a tradition started by Otterbein.

“When coach Otter first came to Hillsdale he gave the

portunity to branch out a little and swim some non-typical events,” she said.

Freshman Isabel Ondracek and Mason finished second and third in the 200, just hundredths of seconds apart from one another and the first place Davenport athlete. The first place finisher swam a 1:59.43, Ondracek finished in 1:59. 45, and Mason finished in 1:59.92.

Dickhudt had the first top finish of the meet in the 100 breaststroke with a time of 1:08.50. Clifford got the next win with a first place finish in the 200 yard butterfly (2:06.59). Freshmen Callie Lucero and Inez McNichols followed her in second and third, going 2:12.81 and 2:17.59 respectively.

final first place finish of the meet in the 100 yard butterfly with a time of 57.94. Holmes swam the last individual event, the 400 individual medley, and finished second in 2:14.29. The Chargers closed the meet with a second place 200 yard freestyle relay (1:41.15).

The next time the Chargers compets will be at the G-MAC/MEC championship meet in Canton, Ohio from February 14 through 17.

“We are all excited to finish the season on a high note.”

Holmes and Ondracek took second (55.79) and third (56.25) in the 100 yard freestyle and Pataniczek took third in the 200 yard backstroke (2:15.35).

In the 500 yard freestyle, Mason earned the third top finish of the meet with a time of 5:15.13. Ondracek followed her in third (5:19.28).

Clifford got the fourth and

shirts to all the freshmen,” Tharp said. “He wanted a unified look for the ‘Otters army.’”

“Otter’s Army” shirts were first given out in 2002. Every year the shirt came in a different color: blue, pink, white, and gray; there was never a set color scheme, Monnin said. From the time the shirts were first given out, the logo on the shirt changed a few times; however, the slogan always remained the same, Monnin said.

Otterbein’s two sons, Steve Otterbein, defensive coordi-

“We will begin our meet preparation for GMACs or ‘taper’ next week,” Clifford said. “This is basically when we tone down the amount we swim to start focusing on the little things and recover. We are all excited to finish the season on a high note and as always make our seniors and each other proud.”

Last year, Hillsdale’s rival Findlay University won the meet after Hillsdale had won it for three consecutive years. Since Hillsdale and Findlay both joined the G-MAC in the 2017-18 season, the two teams have won the championship title three times each. Findlay won in 2018, 2019, and 2023

nator and cornerbacks coach, and Brad Otterbein, offensive coordinator and recruiting coordinator, remain on the coaching staff for the football team. The new head coach is Nate Shreffler, formerly the team’s offensive coordinator and offensive line coach.

Sophomore defensive linebacker Neal Likenssaid he liked having Otter’s Army shirts.

Despite the loss to Walsh, the Chargers saw some G-MAC success throughout December and the beginning of January. Hillsdale finished with a 3-2 record during the month of December, with notable wins against Ohio Dominican at home in a close game that ended 60-54 in favor of the Chargers, as well as a road win against the Northwood University Timberwolves 76-51.

The Chargers headed into the spring semester with a 2-2 record in the month of January, including wins against the

Tiffin Dragons and Thomas More Saints. McCollum led the Chargers in scoring and rebounding against Tiffin with 10 points and 8 rebounds, while senior guard Charles Woodhams led scoring against Thomas More with 15 points. The Chargers have two games remaining in the month of January. Northwood will travel to Hillsdale to face the Chargers tonight at 7 p.m., after which the Chargers will travel to Ohio to face the Cedarville University Yellow Jackets on Saturday, January 27.

Women's Tennis Tennis to start season vs. Eastern Michigan

and Hillsdale won for three straight years in 2020, 2021, and 2022.

But Charger swimmers say they feel ready.

“We look very strong,” Clifford said. “We have been doing a lot of hard, aerobic training since the beginning of our training trip. Although it has been difficult, I think that it is preparing us very well for the long meet that G-MACs is.”

Early agreed.

“Obviously we have some tough competition from Findlay, but I think we have an electric team culture and many fast races up our sleeves, so I think we are going to give them great competition back,” she said. “I think it's going to be tons of fun and one more opportunity to grow more as a team for this season.”

The G-MAC/MEC meet is the next obstacle, but Kirner is looking ahead too.

“We are looking to collect a number of national championship cuts as we go in to our conference championship,” he said. “We probably have three or four individuals who have a chance of qualifying, and our returning All Americans from last season have already got cuts that should be able to get them invited to the NCAA division two championships in March.”

“They are really cool shirts that show that people have been to at least one football game and have supported us,”

By Isabella Helms Collegian Reporter

The Hillsdale College women’s tennis team, led by Head Coach Liam Fraboulet, hopes to make it to the G-MAC tournament final after losing in the semifinal match last spring.

During the 2022-23 season, the Chargers won seven consecutive matches, including a win in the G-MAC Tournament quarterfinal against Ashland.

“I’m very excited for the season,” Fraboulet said. “It will probably be one of the busiest seasons in a few years, so I’m very excited to see how the girls compete. We have three seniors on the team, so a lot of experience, and I’m hoping that they’ll take us to a conference title this year.”

During the International Tennis Association Midwest Regional in the fall, Hillsdale’s doubles teams set a positive tone for the upcoming season. Senior Melanie Zampardo and sophomore Megan Hackman advanced to the quarterfinals of the top flight, while Hillsdale’s other doubles pairings also recorded wins.

In singles play, freshman Ané Dannhauser, who par-

Likens said. Likens says he also favors a new shirt for a new era of football.

“I think the concept of having a shirt that applies to more sports is nice because so many students are involved in things that aren’t football,” sophomore Ellyana Tierney said. Likens agreed with Tierney saying the new shirts can make more teams on campus feel supported and seen. Tierney said she associates the Otter’s Army shirts with

ticipated in the ITA Midwest Regional, is the only freshman joining an upperclassmen-heavy lineup which includes seniors Zampardo, Helena Formentin, and Julia Wagner.

Sophomore Isabella Spinazze commented on the team’s dynamics going into the spring season.

“We are super excited and it’s really great to be back on campus together,” Spinazze said. “We have eight girls this year compared to our 11 last year, so we really have to work hard, but we have great team chemistry which I think we’re all really looking forward to.”

The addition of Thomas More, a new member from the NAIA level, adds another competitor to the conference.

“We’re on the road a lot for our schedule. Being on the road is definitely going to be challenging, but we have done it before."

The Chargers will kick off the spring season in an away match against the Eastern Michigan University Eagles this Saturday, Jan. 27.

“We are starting against a strong team in Eastern Michigan this Saturday,” Fraboulet said. “That’s where things will start for us this year.”

Otterbein, so it would not seem right to continue that tradition with a new coach.

“The Otter’s Army shirts were fun to wear because they were funny, so it would be cool if the athletic department could come up with something that keeps the same energy, ” Tierney said.

Otter from A1

The Otter's Army logo. Thomas McKenna | Collegian

Senior Samuel Vasiu posted a career-high 17 points against Kentucky Wesleyan. Courtesy | Hillsdale College Athletic Department

Senior Charles Woodum scored 12 points on Saturday. Courtesy | Hillsdale College Athletic Department

Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy is ready for the NFL

By Nathan Furness Collegian Freelancer

Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy declared for the NFL draft on Jan. 14. With a year of college eligibility left, his decision has left many Wolverine fans heartbroken.

But it’s time for the junior quarterback to go. After winning Michigan a national championship, McCarthy is ready for the NFL.

The former five-star recruit ended his career at the University of Michigan as one of the greatest ever to take snaps in the iconic maize-and-blue winged helmet, going 27-1 as a starter. His accolades include three victories over Michigan’s arch-rival, the Ohio State Buckeyes, three Big Ten championships, and bringing a national championship to Ann Arbor in his final year.

Despite these feats, many of the Michigan faithful and national media believe that McCarthy is not ready to be a field general at the next level, which is why Michigan fans have lamented Mc -

Carthy’s departure. “I think he’s a quarterback that could benefit from another year in college football,” said ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit when asked about McCarthy’s de -

What did Herbstreit mean when he mentioned JJ’s lack of reps? The answer comes in Michigan’s dominant run game. Over McCarthy’s 28 games as a starter, Michi -

cision. “I always look at reps. How many reps did he get as a passer, and as a starter?

If he goes, I wouldn’t be surprised to see him do well, but if it was me, I think he should come back from another year.”

Sports Opinion

gan’s run game far outpaced its pass game. Running backs Blake Courm and Donovan Edwards excelled behind an elite offensive line, running for a combined 4,100 yards and a whopping 57 touch -

downs. McCarthy, in contrast, threw for 5,000 yards and 44 touchdowns. This contrast was especially apparent on the biggest stage of a national championship where McCarthy only threw for 140 yards and no touchdowns, and both Edwards and Corum ran for over 100 yards and 2 touchdowns each in Michgans’ 3413 victory over Washington.

Using these stats, many fans claim McCarthy was merely a “system quarterback” in his time at Michigan, carried by his run game, offensive line and high-level coaching. They further claim that he needs another year in college to grow as a thrower and become a true NFL quarterback who can succeed at the next level.

But McCarthy can excel at the next level with the talent he shows right now.

Although the quarterback’s stats as a starter were not flashy, his talent was on full display. One of McCarthy’s most impressive qualities is his ability to extend plays by avoiding the pass rush and make throws outside of the

pocket, which is a skill that he will carry into his NFL career. Any Michigan fan who watched him play knows that time after time McCarthy would bail out the offense on a third and long by extending the play long enough to find an open receiver down the field.

McCarthy also showed his quick legs when he needed to, rushing for over 600 yards and 10 touchdowns. Most of these runs came in close games when he was willing to put his body on the line.

Not to mention his arm talent. McCarthy rarely showed how powerful his arm was, but when he did it was spectacular. An example of this comes during the 4th quarter of a blow-out win over Western Michigan in 2021. On a third-and-25 play, McCarthy had to escape the pocket, scramble out to his right, and loft a perfect ball over 60 yards across the field with a defender in his face. Plays like this proved how far the young quarterback could throw. His arm is NFL-ready.

Wolverine fans only got to see these talents on full display a few times. Instead, the rest of the team took centerstage during much of his two years as a starter, leaving the quarterback to do little more than hand the ball off and let his running backs and offensive line do the rest.

This was especially apparent in Michigan’s 24-15 win over Penn State in 2023 when McCarthy attempted to pass only once in the second half. The passing game was often nothing but an afterthought, a phenomenon that likely would not change had McCarthy opted for another year in college.

There simply is no reason for an extremely talented quarterback who had accomplished almost everything possible at the collegiate level to stay another year. McCarthy will most likely be drafted in the first round. And with a team that fits his strengths, the Michigan legend is ready to succeed in the NFL right now.

The greatest football coaches of all time leave their dynasties

By Joshua Mistry Collegian Reporter

The GOATs are moving on to new pastures.

Alabama Football Head Coach Nick Saban and New England Patriots Head Coach Bill Belichick announced earlier this month they are leaving their respective teams. They part with their dynasties as the greatest college and NFL coaches of all time. Saban shocked the football world when he announced his retirement Jan. 10, wrapping up the greatest collegiate coaching career ever. The next day, Belichick, in a less shocking but equally weighty announcement, told the media that he would be stepping down from his post after winning a record six Super Bowls as head coach.

After graduating from Kent State, Saban began coaching at his alma mater in 1973.His collegiate coaching journey continued, including a fouryear stint at Michigan State, ultimately landing him in the Southeastern Conference. When Saban joined Alabama

in 2007, the Crimson Tide were coming off a 6-7 season that cratered in scandal after a strong start. Each of Saban’s 28 straight winning seasons was filled with his passionate leadership and stalwart fortitude, making his teams some of the most disciplined and ready units every year. Coach Saban only took one year to lay the groundwork for a dynasty that won 201 football games and only lost 29 under his tenure. The Crimson Tide won seven national championships, claimed 11 SEC championships, and spent 15 straight seasons as the top-ranked college team by the Associated Press. While at Alabama, Saban coached four Heisman trophy

winners and 173 NFL draft picks. Forty-nine of these were first-round picks, making him the most successful coach by this metric. Coach Saban, whose teams are known for smothering defensive play, deploys a versatile 3-4 defensive scheme which emphasizes strong fundamentals, gap control, and disciplined coverage. Saban's 3-4 defensive scheme used inside and outside linebackers to cover the middle of the field and rush the passer, allowing for more versatility and responsiveness to offensive play style in game.

"He ties man coverage into zone schemes which allows his players to create tighter coverage without the downsides of zone overloads or rub routes vs pure man coverage.

Saban is a master at teaching his rules and making sure his defenses are disciplined despite the turnover he experiences in personnel and coaching staff. His defenses continue to produce and help make him one of the best to ever do it," Casey Sully of Weekly Spiral said.

In the NFL, Belichick amassed the greatest coaching career of all, most notably as an assistant coach for the New York Giants then as the long tenured head coach of the New England Patriots. Belichick won an NFL record eight super bowls, six of them as head coach, and earned 12 appearances across an NFL best 19 postseason berths as a head coach. Belichick further cemented his legacy in the regular

season, winning 11 or more games across 17 seasons while coaching 96 pro bowl players. The Patriots head coach departs from the NFL with the second-most total wins as a coach with 333. Like Saban, Belichick's teams featured hard-nosed run defenses that limited opponents' ability to move the football, through what he called 'positionless defense'. Belichick relied on pass rushing linebackers who could contain the fast spread style quarterback offenses that have become common, big nose tackles to stop the run, interchangeable slot and outside corners to cover the boundaries in man coverage and hybrid safety-linebackers who were tough against the run and ag-

ile in zone coverage over the middle of the field.

"Belichick can flip from one scheme to another efficiently because of his vast knowledge. He needs hybrid players with multiple tools in the toolbox to do that. These jacks-of-all -trades are often overlooked in the college draft process or misused on other teams. Belichick has a talent for seeing the bigger picture regarding a player’s skills," Cody Alexander of Match Quarters said.

Additionally, his offensive strategy of a balanced and up tempo passing attack arguably developed the greatest quarterback of all-time, Tom Brady.

Regardless of what these two coaches do following these announcements, both have cemented their own personal legacies, building dynasties that sustained success in ways other teams failed.

Charger chatter

Zoe Burke, Track

What is the craziest thing you did as a child?

I got sent home from school in third grade for taking the paints in art class, and then pouring blue paint and soap into the toilet and flushing it several times to flood the bathroom with blue bubbles.

What is the best advice you have received?

"Friendships are made in wasted time.”

Do you have any hidden talents?

I don't have any hidden talents, but I don’t know how to open a banana, which is rather rare.

What is a food everyone should try?

People should stop eating bananas and peanut butter because that’s gross. Eat frozen grapes instead.

Compiled by Olivia Hajicek

J.J. McCarthy won three straight conference championships at Michigan. Courtesy | Instagram

Belichick won six Super Bowls. Courtesy | Twitter

Saban won six national championships. Courtesy | Twitter

Courtesy | Hillsdale College Athletic Department

Charger Sports

Keven

By Alex Deimel Assistant Editor

Four years ago, Keven Bradley received a phone call that changed his life — and ultimately led to him becoming the head coach of Hillsdale’s men’s basketball team.

The call came from a man whom he played for and coached with at Lawrence University in Wisconsin. That man was John Tharp, who was then the basketball coach at Hillsdale. He invited Bradley to join his staff.

“After we both left Lawrence, it felt like someday that we were going to reconnect, and that we were going to work together again,” Bradley said. “I was just fortunate enough four years ago to get a phone call from him where he said, ‘Hey, I need you, would you be willing to come to Hillsdale?’ I immediately packed my bags.”

Bradley left his job as the associate head coach of the University of Wisconsin-Parkside Rangers, where in six seasons he won four division titles. When Tharp became Hillsdale’s athletic director last year, Bradley succeeded his mentor as head coach.

So far this season, Bradley

is

has led Hillsdale to an 11-6 overall record, with a 6-4 G-MAC record. A team made up of mostly underclassmen, the Chargers are currently at seventh place in the G-MAC standings.

“Obviously, coach [Bradley] isn’t new to the program, so he knows and we know the standards that we have for each other and what we hold ourselves to,” junior forward Joe Reuter said. “He’s a great coach for us, because we’re a young team we need someone that explains exactly what we need to do as well as follow through with that and that’s something that coach Bradley does very well.”

During his time as an assistant, the Chargers went 67-18 in three years, with a 49-11 G-MAC record. During that time, he helped recruit and develop two-time G-MAC player of the year Patrick Cartier, who currently ranks seventh on the Charger all-time points list with 1,624 points, and is currently a starter for the Colorado State University Rams.

Prior to the Rangers, Bradley was an assistant coach at Upper Iowa University, and before that was a graduate assistant at his alma mater. A 2006 graduate from Lawrence

into the shoes of his old coach, John Tharp

University, Bradley played for Tharp all four years, and took the graduate assistant job right after Tharp came to Hillsdale. As a player, Bradley led the Vikings to two NCAA DII tournament appearances, and finished with a 98-16 record.

Like most players who compete at the collegiate level, Bradley’s basketball experience started at a young age.

“I grew up on a dairy farm, and there weren’t a lot of outside things we did, but I did spend most of my nights shooting baskets,” Bradley said. “I was really fortunate that I had some great family members, some grandparents and some uncles that were really supportive once I kind of got going into basketball.”

After being a player and assistant coach for Tharp, Bradley was able to work on gameplanning, recruiting, and many other aspects of the program. Now, as a first year head coach, Bradley is tasked with leading a young Charger squad, which currently only has three seniors.

“I felt like it was a very smooth transition given the opportunity Coach Tharp had provided me," Bradley said. “For me, I try to take pieces

from everybody I work with, and I’ve tried to absorb that into my coaching style.”

Bradley also has two familiar faces as his assistants this season. The first is John Cheng, who was hired by Tharp in 2022 after two years as an assistant for the Elmhurst University Bluejays. The program’s latest hire is Evan Morrissey, who was a student manager for Bradley at Wisconsin-Parkside from 2013-2016.

“When coach [Tharp] made the announcement that I would be replacing him, there was always a moment of uncertainty of how players would react. I’m so incredibly grateful that all 10 guys returned and all five of our freshmen remained committed,” Bradley said. “It’s a unique group this year because we’re young as far as court time and starting goes, but not necessarily playing the game our way.”

One of those freshmen was guard Mikey McCollum, who has averaged 18.8 minutes off the bench this season for the Chargers, and has averaged 6.4 points per game.

“Coach Bradley is a really knowledgeable coach and I enjoy playing for him.” McCollum said.

with anyone every single time we step on the court,” Brennan said.

Malone’s defense slowed the pace of the game, Brennan said.

“Malone uses a three-quarter court press, and they show it just to slow us down so we have less time to run our offense in the half court,” Brennan said. “That forced us to not be able to get the flow of our offense going.”

Hillsdale kept it close in the first half but trailed by as many as 10 points in the third quarter. The Chargers stepped up their offensive pressure and brought it back to a 5555 tie in the final minutes. The Pioneers went 2-for-4 at the foul line to gain a 57-55 advantage with 30 seconds left on the clock but failed to put the game out of reach.

With just seven seconds on the clock, Splain got the ball for a 3-point attempt. She missed, but junior Kendall McCormick grabbed the long rebound and found McDonald in the lane for the game-tying basket as time ran out.

“I thought, ‘Oh no, if she misses it’s over,’” McDonald said. “But then we got the rebound. It’s one of those things that you’re happy it happened.”

Splain set the tone with a

layup and free throw on the Chargers’ first possession, and Hillsdale opened overtime with an 11-0 run. Malone cut the difference to eight on back-to-back possessions, but McDonald sealed the victory for the Chargers with two points at the free throw line.

The Chargers focused on defense with a full court press in overtime.

“We noticed getting stops making our offense better, so focusing on that and putting more pressure on them with a full court press helped us a lot,” McDonald said.

In addition to her game-tying buzzer beater, McDonald tied her career high of 22 points in the contest and added five rebounds and two assists.

Senior center Ashley Konkle led the team with 12 rebounds and added nine points and three assists. McCormick chipped in six points, four rebounds, and a game-high four assists. Sydney Mills gave the team a huge lift off the bench in her first game since her injury, scoring nine of her 15 points in the fourth quarter and overtime.

The Chargers led the entire contest against Kentucky Wesleyan Saturday, establishing a 14-6 lead in the first quarter and keeping the pressure the whole way.

“They’re a very good shooting team, but they also love to get in the paint,” Brennan said. “We knew right away we had to jump on them and set the tone defensively to say we’re going to make you uncomfortable. And that’s what we did in that first quarter.” Kentucky Wesleyan tied it up once in the third quarter and trailed by only three entering the fourth quarter. The Chargers refused to back down on either end of the court and put the game out of reach thanks to a 3-point from McDonald and Konkle’s free throw shooting down the stretch. Hillsdale dominated the glass the entire game, outrebounding Kentucky Wesleyan 48-33.

McDonald led the team in scoring for the second straight game with 15 points, four rebounds, two assists, and two steals. Splain scored 14 points and added four rebounds and two assists. Konkle and Mills both had strong performances with nine points and seven rebounds each, and freshman Annalise Pietrzyk added 10 points and five rebounds off the bench. Mills was back on the court for the first time in over a month after being sidelined with an injury since the Dec. 9

road loss against Northwood. “We don’t win close games against top level teams without her,” Brennan said. “Having our fearless leader back on the floor really changes the tone for everyone that steps on the floor.”

Before Saturday, Hillsdale had lost to Kentucky Wesleyan in all of their 10 meetings since 2018. Their last match up was the game that knocking Hillsdale out of the NCAA tournament in 2023 in an overtime battle.

“At that point, no matter what they were doing to us, it wasn’t phasing us,” Konkle said. “It was in the back of our heads, ‘no, we’re beating you guys. We want this so much more than you.’”

Konkle said the team is calling its current winning streak a revenge tour. Hillsdale will look to continue that trend with a home game against Northwood University on Thursday at 5:30 p.m.

“The way we played when we first played them compared to now, we’re a completely different team,” Konkle said. “Everyone has found their role, and momentum is going our way. So we’re excited.”

Bradley

stepping

A10 January 25, 2024

www.hillsdalecollegian.com

Men's Basketball

Keven Bradley is in his first year as head coach. Courtesy | Hillsdale College Athletic Department

Freshman Savannah Smith grabbed six points on Saturday. Courtesy | Hillsdale College Athletic Department

C U L T U R E

Embracing femininity through clothing

By Olivia Pero Culture Editor

Women at Hillsdale College say they are especially intentional about showcasing the beauty of womanhood and individuality through their clothing.

Junior Anna Maisonville said to her, femininity means respecting the unique woman God has created her to be.

“Although clothing will never affect who I truly am, I see my style as a reflection of my desire to embrace womanhood and its joys, especially in a world that seeks to neutralize its power,” Maisonville said.

Expressing femininity through clothing is a powerful way for women to present their understanding of the world and the things they value, Maisonville said.

“By dressing well, individuals signal to their peers that they care about the details, and they take life seriously,” Maisonville said.

Junior Sarah Trimbath started working for a fashion company called Lady Lancaster

“I think it’s limiting to say a true girl should only wear pink, frilly dresses. I think you can be an amazing woman and not wear pink.”

when she was 16 years old.

“That’s where I started to fall in love with slow fashion, high-end luxury fashion, and runway looks,” Trimbath said. “I’m really inspired by vintage clothes because I think nothing is really new that we’re do-

ing now — it’s all variations of what’s already been done.” Trimbath said she doesn’t think clothes are a defining factor of whether or not a person is feminine or masculine.

“I think it’s limiting to say a true girl should only wear pink, frilly dresses,” Trimbath said. “I think you can be an amazing woman and not wear pink.”

Senior Nikoleta Klikovac said she doesn’t think there is a distinctively feminine way to dress anymore.

“For me, femininity means having confidence in your self expression regardless of societal expectations,” Klikovac said. “I think everyone would be surprised at just how feminine it feels to be confident in your outfit.” Klikovac said when she has an off day with her self image, wearing a form-fitting dress is not appealing to her.

“On those days, my baggy clothes are just as valuable for my femininity as anything

else,” Klikovac said. Junior Elke White said she made the commitment to only wear dresses and skirts when she was in high school.

Surrounded by people who didn’t dress that way, White said she reflected on whether dressing in a Biblically feminine way was something she was committed to doing.

“When I really thought about it, it was something I felt convicted about on a level of consecration,” White said. “I still feel very at liberty to express myself and wear what I want while in a physical way setting myself apart through femininity.”

Femininity should start inward and move outward, White said. It’s a process between a woman and God.

White partly grew up in New Mexico, where she said the blend of cultures and funky fashion influenced her style.

“My stepmom was an art major, and she sews her own clothes sometimes,” White said. “Being around people

who were making their own clothes and had really wild expressions of personality very much influenced my style.”

Junior Sarah McKeown said women should aspire to match their external appearance to their internal character.

“What you wear reflects yourself, your values, and your vision,” McKeown said. “It’s entirely your own.”

“It’s entirely within one’s power to decide who one seeks to be each and every day,” McKeown said.

If women want to evolve their personal style to better embrace their femininity, Maisonville said women can start by dressing up more than usual, wearing jewelry, and doing their hair. Learning what styles best accent a woman’s natural beauty is another important factor in displaying femininity through clothing, Maisonville said.

“What you wear reflects yourself, your values, and your vision. It’s entirely your own.”

As a woman, it’s a profound but often overlooked privilege to have abounding choices in how a woman composes herself, McKeown said.

It also helps to find inspiration in women from real life and online, asking them where they get their clothes from, Trimbath said. Learning the history behind feminine styles is interesting too.

“Don’t limit yourself. Try different things until you feel comfortable. Not every girl is going to feel comfortable in a frilly pink dress, but that doesn’t make you less of a woman,” Trimbath said.

Hitting Hillsdale’s slick slopes: A student’s guide to the best sledding spots around campus

By Tayte Christensen collegian Reporter

A Michigan winter plus Hillsdale’s hilly terrain equals opportunities for students to hit the slopes — sledding slopes that is.

I did what many students have done, taking advantage of the several weeks’ worth of snow and went sledding on a variety of hills in the vicinity of campus. Here’s what I found:

Biermann Center Hill: 6/10

Coming in at number three is the half-hidden hill directly in front of the Biermann Center. This hill is insanely steep and provides for a pretty decent sled ride, all things considered. It’s easy to gain speed on this one, although it’s difficult to do anything with that speed. While the ending is abrupt, a first-time rider wouldn’t know this and might be intimidated by the possibility of crashing into the Biermann Center. Although the Biermann lurks in the background, the chances of ending the ride by slamming into the building are scarce.

Following the ride, however, riders are faced with a daunting hill to climb and can be left winded. For an exciting study break, the Biermann Center Hill provides a fun hill in close proximity to campus.

Academy Sign Hill: 8/10

Sitting on the corner of Oak Street and Academy Lane is a classic sledding hill. There is nothing notable about this hill, but it provides a smooth and speedy ride. It takes a second to get started, but once riders are set in motion, they fly down the hill and spray snow everywhere. Although the hill itself is a great ride, the ending can be anticlimactic. The hill provides so much speed that riders may get lost in the thrill of the ride and neglect to notice the fast-approaching chain-link fence. For more adventurous riders, however, avoiding the fence might provide an adrenaline rush.

When riding the Academy Sign hill, be ready to bail at any moment to avoid a fence collision.

Hayden Park Hill: 12/10

A new addition to campus with the construction of the track and field complex is the Hayden Park hill. Two hills joined by a brief plateau provide the best sledding Hillsdale’s campus has to offer.

The parking lot at the base of the hill allows for riders to coast for longer without fear of crashing into anything –except for a couple of light posts a ways off. The only downside to the Hayden Park hill is its distance from campus, but it’s worth the trek. For students looking for a thrilling midnight adventure, the Hayden Park hill promises a memorable sledding experience.

While this is not a comprehensive list of Hillsdale’s sledding spots, it is three of campus’ best. The next time Hillsdale gets a big snow, grab a sled and hit these slopes.

Left to right: Junior Monroe Beute, sophomore Eryn Bayer, senior Holly Stover, junior Carly Moran, and senior Jessie Kidwell enjoyed an evening of sledding on the Academy Sign Hill last semester. Courtesy | Monroe Beute

Juniors Sarah Trimbath and Elke White show off their styles. Courtesy | Sarah Trimbath, Elke White

‘Three hours that kept me riveted’: Dan Thompson gives drawing demonstration

I tend to be very meticulous with music. I usually like only a few songs by a musician, rather than their entire body of work. I also find music to be very emotionally engaging, so I avoid listening to music unless I budget time to focus on it because it affects me a great deal and will draw my attention. Dawes’ album “North Hills” is one of the few full albums I enjoy as a unit. Lyrically, their writing reminds me a lot of Theodore Roethke, one of my favorite poets. Throughout the album, you travel through different impressionistic disillusioned emotional states, which culminate in “Peace in the Valley,” the climactic song in which the singer continues his search for balance and significance but doubts his ability to find it by changing his circumstances and ultimately its existence. That resonates a lot with the aporia of the preceding songs, and it very much connected with me as an undergrad. I think that melodically the way it spirals into instrumentals leaves no solid conclusion to the search and leaves us with a message that no apparent conclusion is ever final; that appeals to me in a world where many people propose easy solutions.

“Xenogenesis” trilogy by Octavia Butler (1987-89)

I am a big sci-fi fan, but I often find myself disappointed when aliens appear too human and too familiar. “Xenogenesis” provides alien aliens. It is a trilogy in which aliens resurrect humans, who have become extinct from war, so they can unite with them genetically, end both their species, and create an entirely new species that will travel through the universe seeking genetic uniqueness. Not only are the aliens drastically different, with a completely different sex, gender, and mating system, but their physique and emotiveness were almost impossible to visualize, since the usual physical reference points were absent. Their priorities and values were unexpected (surprisingly, cancer cells with their metamorphic possibilities are their human attractant). The novel’s focus on different themes, from violence to enthusiasm, to change, destruction, and alterity created a level of discomfort and bewilderment that especially appealed to me, and the author’s unapologetic forcing of the reader into unfamiliar experiences made me consider what it means to really experience an “other.” Books that challenge my expectations and my preconceptions tend to become some of my favorites.

By Isabella Helms collegian Reporter

Dan Thompson opened his drawing demonstration with the question: “How would you set things up so you could begin drawing without becoming set in your ways?”

His anecdotal response sparked laughter: “Draw like a man and don’t commit to anything.”

With these words, the renowned artist in skill-based figurative art addressed the audience of art students, alumni, and art enthusiasts who gathered to witness his artistic process Jan. 18 in the Fine Arts Building lobby. Thompson’s drawing demonstration preluded his art show, which opened the following day.

Chairman and Associate Professor of Art Julio Suarez served as Thompon’s model for the three-hour session. Thompson’s technique, involving a larger-than-life scale and an emphasis on drawing from life, became evident as he meticulously rendered Suarez’s portrait.

In terms of his teaching style, Thompson said his own specialty is helping students visualize the structure of the human body internally.

“When we draw pelvises and hips, I try to help students visualize the elements of the human pelvis in a structural, three-dimensional way and because of that, I need scale,” Thompson said. “If I draw small I can’t get in here and explore.”

Having dedicated over 25 years to his craft, Thompson has a portfolio spanning public and private collections worldwide — a feat which has earned him recognition as an Art Renewal Center Living Master Artist. Thompson co-founded two Manhattan art schools and has taught at prestigious institutions including the Art Students League of New York, the National Academy School, Parsons the New School for Design, and Studio 126 in New York.

Junior Eleanor Vaughan

This has been my favorite movie since I was in middle school, and it opened up the world of Chinese cinema to me.

Set in 1920s China, it focuses on a new concubine’s life in a house of oppressive traditions that use superficial honors, like the title’s red lanterns, to control the women and encourage violent and tragic competition among the different wives.

Director Zhang Yimou creates a stifling and claustrophobic environment for the viewer and draws you in with constant ritual repetition so that your perspective quickly aligns with the concubines and you get the same desperate competitive feeling. His use of color helps; the whole movie takes place in a dismal gray, and the only sources of color are the red lanterns given to the favored concubine, forcing you to focus on the lanterns and traditions in the same way the lanterns are the concubines’ only focus. That type of intense emotional desperation created by that kind of filmmaking and aesthetic is what I look for in films.

said she noticed how Thompson’s intuitive process reflects his engagement with the subject.

“He attempts to capture a likeness and something of the personality of his sitters and believes this is most effectively done when he engages with them and understands something of their story,” Vaughan said.

Senior Josie Cuddeback said she is a model for the art department and has had the privilege of watching students’ portraits of her slowly become her likeness.

“The difference I noted was the confidence with which Mr. Thompson started — no hesitation and no deliberation beyond the careful choice of the model’s position,” Cuddeback said.

Thompson spoke to the audience as he drew, answering and asking questions, cracking jokes, and generally engaging with the audience, Cuddeback said.

“His skill with the pencil seemed so ingrained that it coexisted naturally and easily with his conversation,” Cuddeback said. “I think it crystallized for me that being an artist is less a set of skills and more of a vocation.”

Thompson’s chosen subject is the human figure. In addition to working with live models, Thompson said he has experience working with cadavers.

is the arrangement of dark and light. This informs one’s composition of lines, shapes, and tones.

Thompson said artists should hone their craft in a similar way to musicians.

“It’s important for the individual to carve out creative territory for himself that isn’t governed by some kind of technical system,” Thompson said.

Suarez said he greatly admires Thompson’s ability to combine a deep knowledge of human anatomy with tremendous perceptual skills.

“Watching him work will reinforce what students are taught as well as expose them to other approaches and techniques,” Suarez said.

Junior Cecelia Cummins said the demonstration deepened her understanding of art as a discipline.

“It’s important for the individual to carve out creative territory for himself that isn’t governed by some kind of technical system.”

“I teach artists in dissection rooms, and we learn how to visualize the body three dimensionally and aesthetically,” Thompson said.

Thompson said drawing is a navigational tool for him, but he begins with what he observes.

“Eventually I go into a two dimensional way of evaluating the perceptual shape,” Thompson said.

Thompson said it’s important to be mindful of the entire paper, a principle he links to the Japanese concept of “notan,” which

“I found that meeting, conversing with, and learning from Mr. Thompson was incredibly instructive and fruitful. It was really an eye-opening experience,” Cummins said. “We often forget that the drawing techniques Professor Suarez strives to hammer in our brains are part of a long, rich, and invaluable tradition.”

Cuddeback said she noticed how art seems to be a core part of the way artists interact with the world.

“He really seemed to love what he was doing,” Cuddeback said. “It was three hours that kept me riveted.”

Professors’ Picks: Joshua Fincher,

assistant professor of classics

From the minds of Hillsdale’s professors: the song, book, and movie everyone ought to know

Joshua Fincher poses for a picture during his time as an undergraduate student. Courtesy | Joshua Fincher

Compiled

“Peace in the Valley” by Dawes (2009)

“Raise the Red Lantern” by Zhang Yimou (1991)

Dan Thompson sketches a portrait of Julio Suarez at the drawing demonstration. Courtesy | Isabella Helms

The completed portrait was on display for the audience to view at the end of the demonstration. Courtesy | Isabella Helms

Teaching a different kind of beauty

Hillsdale Beauty College has taught cosmetology downtown for nearly a century

By Carly Moran

Another college in Hillsdale focuses on the beautiful, but of a different kind: the Hillsdale Beauty College.

The school, located in downtown Hillsdale, enrolls between 25 to 30 students at a time, who study cosmetology, nail care, and entrepreneurship.

“Cosmetology is an industry that is not going to go away. It is constantly evolving,” co-owner Andy Young said. “COVID proved that people will go to the ends of the earth to get their hair, nails or make-

up done. They’re going to find a way to make sure that they look beautiful, that they feel good about themselves.”

The current owners are Zetave and Andy Young, residents of Coldwater, Michigan. The couple had been married for a few years when they were approached with the idea of buying the college. The idea excited Andy, who had been interested in owning a small business, but he had to convince Zetave, a former student of Hillsdale Beauty College. “I actually worked with our current owner, Zetave Young, at a salon,” head instructor Kelsie Smith said. “When she

decided that she was going to buy the beauty college here and take it over, she basically told me I had to come with her, and if teaching wasn’t something I was interested in, then they weren’t going to buy the school.”

When Smith said she would join the couple in their business venture, they quickly signed over ownership. The Youngs have overseen the college since 2013. The entire program is 1500 hours with a 100% passing rate and 100% job placement rate after graduation. The entire program costs $23,100, and runs from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Monday through Friday with part time options available.

According to Smith, the Hillsdale Beauty College provides a tight-knit environment that cannot be found at corporate, national level cosmetology programs like Paul Mitchell.

“I think the most students I’ve ever had in one class was seven or eight,” Smith said. “My last class only had two students. There’s definitely a lot of time to work one-onone with these girls, not only on their skills but if they’re just having issues in life. We’re here as a sounding board, someone they can talk to if they feel comfortable.”

Founded in 1928, the cosmetology school has gone from teaching shingle bobs to mullets to balayage. The school, founded under the name Riggs Beauty Culture, has been passed down through six different owners.

“Ten years ago, when I started educating, mullets were laughed at, men’s perms were laughed at. It’s really funny to see the change in what is popular,” Smith said. “I tell the girls I think it is so much easier than what I was doing when I first started. It was very particular, all the way to the scalp dye. Now it’s much more lived-in, very organic

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“She was such a kind and gentle woman,” Smith said. “It was my first school experience, and it was positive through and through.”

Even after Smith left Mauck, Ransford continued to reach out to her neighbor. “All the years following, when I was no longer in Mauck, I would bump into her and she would always remember me,” Smith said. “She was always checking in on me. And I was just some random kid.”

Smith remembers Ransford asking questions beyond the usual small talk. “It’s special when someone goes out of their way to remember you,” Smith said. “She actually cares. She’s an incredibly kind and genuine human being.”

Laura Smith, Will’s mother, appreciated the way Ransford nurtured her son’s strengths. “She always tried to draw out each student’s gift and help it to grow,” Smith said. “With Will, she was always helping with his creativity and his love of story and music.

with what people are wanting for their colors.”

Alumni are spread throughout the Michigan-Ohio-Indiana region and many return to teach at the college.

“We always try to have continuity, caring people that actually lend credibility to the education first and foremost,” Young said. “At the end of the day, we have probably 30-some students including high school dual enrollment because we’ve got contracts with Hillsdale County. Here you are a person. Everyone knows your name.”

According to Smith, marketing is one of the most important skills the beauty college teaches. The program requires each student to post their work on social media each day as a part of their education.

“Social media is the best marketing tool there is for this industry as far as I’m concerned, and it’s completely free,” Smith said.

Students close to graduating work in a full-service salon at the college. They offer services as low as $10 for a cut and style, by appointment only.

In addition to “in the chair” training, the students are also taught financial management by local accountants, including

What’s so beautiful is that all these years later, that’s really what flowered.”

Ransford has plenty of wisdom to share after her decades as a teacher.

“You’ve got to love kids,” Ransford said. “You’ve got to love being able to share your life with them.”

While teaching has gained increasing political and cultural attention, Ransford said some things haven’t changed.

how to start IRAs as self-employed individuals. They also learn stress management techniques and how to maintain a client list.

According to Andy Young, cosmetology provides a flexible means of starting a company, which can be expanded as far as the owner would like.

“I don’t believe it gets the positive recognition it should,” Andy Young said. “You can be an owner of your business, you can go to a resort and spa, maybe work on a movie set. There’s always going to be dances and proms, professional photography sessions, weddings.”

Delani Monahan, a current student on track to graduate this summer, said cosmetology has given her an opportunity for fiscal freedom and time management.

“I would like to be able to create my own schedule eventually and have that financial freedom,” Monahan said.

It was her passion for making others feel beautiful that led her to the industry.

“I want to be that person that can help someone else be at their best potential to feel like themselves,” Monahan said. “It feels so good when other people turn around in that chair and have the biggest smile.”

“Kids know if you’re being fair. They’re watching you.” In Ransford’s experience, a flourishing classroom can spring from this order and justice. “You turn that classroom into a community, a family,” Ransford said.

FEATURES

QUICK HITS: Lee Cole

Fifty years on Union Street

Hillsdale resident reflects on love, teaching, and small-town community

By Caroline Kurt Assistant Editor

Patricia Ransford has lived in the same white wooden house on Union Street for 47 years. Inside, it has all the color and tidy charm of a dollhouse. Hymns float through the sunlit rooms and a candle burns in her kitchen. Her walls are lined with bookshelves; Ransford loves historical fiction most.

“Every room in my house has bookshelves,” Ransford said. “That’s my weakness.”

A fan of American author Lynn Austin and American history stories, Ransford said she’s always looking for the next good book. She admits, though, that she isn’t a fan of book clubs.

“I just want to read for the sheer joy of reading,” Ransford said.

When Charles died in 2001 from a brain tumor, she didn’t remarry. Ransford recalled stories of her husband’s time with his psychology students, including an escapade with a monkey named Jojo. The monkey first belonged to a couple in Jonesville who donated him to Charles. “What they didn’t tell him was that this monkey was very aggressive and hated men,” Ransford said.

When Charles took the monkey to class, chaos ensued.

ing second grade in the nearby Madison Heights public school. After four years there, Ransford moved with her new husband to Hillsdale in 1973. In 1976, the two settled into a white house on Union Street. It’s been Ransford’s home ever since.

Ransford was drawn to teaching since her influential kindergarten and second grade teachers.

“You help them be successful,” Ransford said. “It takes about 20

Union Street has changed in the past few decades, but Ransford has happily welcomed her college-aged neighbors.

In this Quick Hits, Associate Professor of Philosophy Lee Cole talks Earl Grey cocktails, Joni Mitchell, and his ban from board games.

Do you like breakfast, lunch, or dinner best?

Junior Caris Fickenscher met Ransford when she needed a ride from the airport. The two connected through Hillsdale’s United Brethren Church, where they both attend.

Despite not having met Fickenscher before, Ransford offered to make the drive.

Besides reading, the longtime Hillsdale resident and widow of Hillsdale College professor Charles Ransford invests time in her church, where she led a Community Bible Study for years, babysits occasionally, and keeps up with her family. She spent all day yesterday at her grandson’s high school wrestling tournament.

“This monkey went after him and shredded his shirt,” Ransford said. “One of the college girls in the class sweet talked it back into its cage. Needless to say, Jojo didn’t last very long with the college.” Ransford grew up in Grand Rapids, the second of six girls. She attended a Dutch Christian Reformed church with her family and went to Christian schools from kindergarten through college.

“I had a very close knit family,” Ransford said. She attended Calvin College, now Calvin University, in Grand Rapids from 1964 to 1968, where she met Charles.

“At mandatory chapel, he sat behind me,” Ransford said. “I had been dating someone, and that didn’t work out, so I was kind of looking for someone. I came out after chapel and flashed him a big smile. Nothing. Oh well!”

Their story wasn’t over. Ransford worked for Calvin’s registration office, where she manually handled each student’s registration.

“He came through a little late,” Ransford said, since he had been working at a local hospital as a pre-med student. Ransford helped him process his registration.

“I’m learning all about the sport. Not my favorite,” Ransford said with a laugh.

Ransford first came to Hillsdale when her late husband, Charles Ransford, joined the college’s psychology department in 1973. “He was the love of my life,” Ransford said.

“After that, he called me up and asked for a date,” Ransford said. But I already had a date!”

But Charles persisted, and soon the two were planning a wedding.

While her soon-to-be husband attended graduate school at Wayne State University in Detroit, Ransford began teach-

“I always dreamed I could help students learn in a little better way,” Ransford said. “When I was in school, they didn’t hang up my papers. They used to hang up all the best papers on the wall. I felt so bad about that, and I just thought there are better ways to motivate kids.”

If I may shift the paradigm here: brunch. You’ve worked up an appetite but aren’t exhausted from the day. It’s a meal at which it’s socially acceptable to have both tea and a cocktail or tea in your cocktail — Earl Grey and gin, by the way. Bacon, skillet-fried potatoes, scones, eggs, eggs benedict, salmon, oysters, chicken and waffles, biscuits and gravy. What can’t this meal do for you? I don’t brunch on a daily basis, but I could eat eggs, bacon, potatoes, and rye toast every day.

What is your favorite board game?

Once in Hillsdale, Ransford dedicated her time to her children, raising them while she took a break from teaching professionally. She had two daughters, Jennifer and Amy, and a son Mark.

weeks, and you can have them be average or above average in reading and writing.”

“We always felt like we were part of everything. There was such camaraderie in the neighborhood.”

After 10 years, Ransford returned to the classroom, teaching first grade for a decade at Bailey Early Childhood Center. Ransford trained 18 educational assistants to meet the needs of disadvantaged students.

“There were students who had a hard time learning to read,” Ransford said. “I wanted to figure out how that worked. How do they learn?”

Ransford talked the superintendent into letting her lead Reading Recovery, working with the first grade students most at risk of falling behind.

Ransford went on to do professional development for the school district and teach literacy workshops around Michigan. She taught kindergarten at the now-closed Mauck School on Fayette Street, which her children also attended.

Ransford said she can remember a time before Union Street boasted an assortment of dorms and student housing. It used to be a neighborhood — her neighborhood.

“At one time, all five of us in my family could walk wherever we were going to go,” Ransford said.

Her children ice skated and swam in the Arboretum, sold lemonade to college football game attendees, and sledded by the field houses.

“When my son was little, he was into earthmoving equipment,” Ransford said. “They were building the track. So we packed a little picnic lunch and sat on top of the hill and watched all those big earthmoving trucks go around.”

Ransford loved raising her family on Union Street.

“After a long travel day, it was lovely to be welcomed with such kindness,” Fickenscher said. “She and I chatted the whole way to Hillsdale, and she told me stories about her family and her involvement with Hillsdale. She is very connected to the community here, to athletes and independents alike, as well as professors and their families.”

The airport ride was the beginning of a friendship between the two.

“It was such a blessing not only to be graciously given a ride from the airport from someone I had never met before but also to have found a new friend who lives on the street just behind me,” Fickenscher said.

Will Smith ’22, son of Dean of Humanities Stephen Smith, remembers Ransford as his neighbor and kindergarten teacher at Mauck.

“We always felt like we were part of everything,” Ransford said. “There was such camaraderie in the neighborhood.”

I’ve been soft-banned from playing complicated board games. I’m told that my need to discern the perfect move on every turn takes the fun out of the room. I don’t have the mental energy to spend on games anymore, but I used to enjoy Agricola and Ticket to Ride.

What is the most life-altering thing you learned in college?

That I was going to live long enough to take classes. I spent the first Sunday and Monday of my freshman year in the ICU. Dating my future wife for four years was also excellent practice for marriage.

Where is the one place you have always wanted to travel?

To the countries surrounding the North Sea. There is something alluring about rock meeting cold, open waters. And — for whatever reason — many of the shows and music that I’m drawn to come from this region.

What is the most amusing thing a student has done in your class?

Before class, a student drew a very detailed picture on the blackboard of a train coming down the tracks with my face on the engine. Did you say “amusing” or “disturbing”?

The Ransfords hiking the Appalachian Mountains. Courtesy | patricia Ransford. Charles

Cole loves autumn rain. Courtesy | Hillsdale College

Patricia Ransford poses in front of one of many bookshelves in her home.

Erik Teder | Collegian

By Alessia Sandala Collegian Freelancer