Collegian 11.17.2022

Michigan’s oldest college newspaper Professors react to mid terms

By Elizabeth Crawford Collegian Reporter

Republicans should focus on candidate quality and strengthening their platform after midterm losses, according to Associate Professor of Politics Adam Carrington.

At press time, Republicans have taken control of the House of Representatives with a narrow majority. They failed to capture the Senate, following predictions of success in the days before the election.

In Michigan, Democrats gained complete control of the legislature for the first time in four decades.

“While we should be ever vigilant against any attempts to suppress rightful voters or of fraud, I think pinning the performances in the last election on those for either Democrats or Republicans would keep them from honest self-assessment,” Carrington said.

The midterm elections were unfavorable for Republicans, he added.

“The midterms went poorly for the GOP on both levels,” Carrington said, “Nationally, this is especially true of the Senate, where Democrats might gain a seat when the map was pretty favorable.”

Associate Professor of Politics John Grant said ballot harvesting is wreaking havoc on campaigns and elections.

“We have balloting that goes on for months in some places and counting which goes on for many days or even weeks,” Grant said. “If we’re going to be serious and have credible elections, we have to follow the Constitution where there is an Election Day.”

Carrington said midterms should be limited to one day of voting.

“I don't think there is any Constitutional problem with counting votes for days or weeks after the election, so long as the election is certified in time for those elected to assume office when their term begins,” Carrington said. “While not unconstitutional, taking that long to count is quite damaging to our electoral process.”

Co-president of College Democrats and junior Avery Noel said he viewed the midterm elections as an acceptance of the Democratic platform and a rejection of the Republican agenda.

“We learned this election that reproductive rights are a kitchen table issue, one that will drive voting patterns going forward and one that strongly favors the pro-choice Democratic Party,” Noel said. President of College Republicans and junior Dan Harmon said Republican failures reflect on candidate quality and the loss of certain voting groups, rather than the Republican agenda.

See Midterms A2

Michigan Supreme Court unveils Markman portrait

By Maggie Hroncich Editor-in-chief

The Michigan Supreme Court honored Stephen Markman with an official portrait unveiling at the Michigan Hall of Justice on Wednesday.

Markman, who has taught constitutional law at Hillsdale College since 1993, is a retired chief justice of the Michigan Supreme Court. Justice Brian Zahra presided over the event, which was delayed for nearly two years due to COVID.

“On his last day in office, President Reagan presented Justice Markman a handwritten note thanking him for his service to the people of the United States of America,” Zahra said. “Chief Justice Markman greatly influenced our nation’s jurisprudence, and his contribution to the law goes well beyond the state of Michigan.”

Zahra said Markman built a reputation for his thoughtful and piercing questions during his 21 years on the court.

“I personally marvel at the way in which he could distill a highly complex and difficult case down to a handful of poignant questions,” Zahra said in his opening remarks. “Steve was a self-proclaimed devil’s advocate. And I mean no

disrespect at all when I state the devil could have no better advocate than Steve Markman.”

Speakers at the event also included Justice Richard H. Bernstein, Judge Richard Fred Suhrheinrich, and former Michigan Gov. John Engler, among others. Six of the seven sitting justices of the Michigan Supreme Court attended the unveiling, with Chief Justice Bridget Mary McCormack sending regrets for her absence, as she was in Washington, D.C.

Emeritus Professor of Art Sam Knecht, who taught at Hillsdale for 47 years, painted Markman’s portrait.

Knecht, who has been commissioned to do portraits of several other Hillsdale professors in the past, said he first met Markman at Hillsdale’s D.C. campus.

“I met Justice Markman somewhat by chance when I was at the Kirby Center preparing to apply final picture varnish on my big Constitution painting there,” Knecht said. “By 2012 he contacted me as he considered using me to do his official portrait per the tradition of the court.”

According to Knecht, Markman escorted him through the Hall of Justice in Lansing, and they examined dozens of justice portraits. Knecht also did

at least three picture taking sessions with Markman prior to painting. Markman told the Collegian he was very pleased

Charger Derby raises $85,000

By Thomas McKenna Collegian Freelancer

The third annual Charger Derby raised approximately $85,000 for scholarships on Saturday, according to its sponsoring group, the Hillsdale College Women Commissioners.

Hosted in the Searle Center, the event included simulated horse racing, an auction, and a cash bar.

Organizers said 100% of the funds will go toward student scholarships.

Attendees were invited to bet on horses in races played on a projector screen for the crowd. Committee Member Louise Worms said members of the crowd can bet on and buy names for the horses.

“People can buy a horse for $25, and if you buy a horse, you get to name it,”

Worms said. “It's very fun to read the names people have chosen for horses. Sometimes they're serious and sometimes they're just for fun.”

The auction included art from Hillsdale alumni, a climb up the Central Hall tower, monogrammed Hillsdale athletic equipment, vacations, and golf outings.

See Derby A2

Knecht was willing to do his portrait after seeing his earlier work.

“I was very enthusiastic about the possibility of

Professor Knecht doing this, and he agreed to it,” Markman said.

See Markman B3

Cyberattack closes local schools for three days

By Jane Kitchen Collegian Reporter

Schools across Hillsdale and Jackson reopened Thursday after three days of closures.

A ransomware attack shut down their internet systems over the weekend. Jackson County Intermediate School District Superintendent Kevin Oxley said in a Nov. 16 update that classes will resume, but students will still have limited access to certain technological resources.

“Our number one priority was to get kids back in school, and we’re thrilled to be able to do that tomorrow,” Oxley said. “While our restoration efforts continue, we prioritized bringing essential systems back online in order to allow us to safely resume operations and reopen school buildings across Jackson and Hillsdale counties."

Oxley first announced

the closure on Sunday night in a statement informing parents of a system outage that affected the Hillsdale and Jackson county schools.

“The outage affected critical operating systems in the district, including but not limited to heating, telephones, and classroom technology,” Oxley said in the statement.

Oxley said the district noticed suspicious activity over the weekend and preemptively shut down its systems to prevent further damage. He also asked students to avoid using school-issued devices until the issue is resolved.

The ransomware attack also closed Hillsdale County charter school Will Carleton Academy.

Don Brubacher retires after 15 years as athletic director

By Olivia Pero Assistant Editor

Hillsdale Director of Athletics Don Brubacher

will retire June 30, 2023

after 15 years in the role.

“He has made great hires in the different sports, shown in the success many of our sports have had in recent years,” said Chris Gravel, volleyball head coach. “He has also been a great advocate for the advancement of our

facilities, hence the many projects that are currently underway in the athletic department.”

Brubacher said he is retiring because it is time to do something different.

“It remains to be seen what I will do next,” Brubacher said. “I would be interested in some other kind of work, probably not in this particular field. I've done this for a long time.”

Brubacher said he will likely move to Kansas to be closer to his three sons and

seven grandchildren. Before coming to Hillsdale, Brubacher worked at Tabor College in Hillsboro, Kansas, for 31 years, including eight as its athletic director.

“Men's basketball was one of my primary responsibilities at Tabor,” Brubacher said. “I also coached men's and women's soccer and taught a lot in the classroom as an associate professor.”

Brubacher said he is particularly proud of

three accomplishments at Hillsdale: restructuring the physical education academic program, the growth in recreational sports, and the growth in varsity sports.

“It was obvious when I arrived here that the physical education program was seriously outdated,” Brubacher said. “With the help of many people around campus, we rebuilt the program. The sports studies department, the exercise science major, the sports management major, and the

sports psychology major came out of the restructuring of the physical education department.”

Brubacher said there were no club sport programs when he arrived at Hillsdale.

“That was added in my first year. We created an opportunity for students to register club sports, which are then supported by the college,” Brubacher said.

“Now we have over 20 registered club sports.”

See Brubacher A9

Emeritus Professor of Art Sam Knecht painted a portrait of former Michigan Supreme Court Chief Justice Stephen Markman, which was unveiled Wednesday night. Courtesy | Sam Knecht

Jackie Sullivan cheers on a horse at Saturday's Charger Derby.

Courtesy | Sarah Gillett

Butters named new free-market chair

By Elizabeth Troutman News

Editor

Associate Professor of Economics Roger Butters is the new Walter E. Williams Chair in Free Market Economics, College President Larry Arnn said at a Center for Constructive Alternatives luncheon on Monday. “Economic freedom has done more to create wealth for the masses than any other idea ever conceived,” Butters said. “It has the power to eliminate poverty and deliver human dignity. Walter Williams was one of the greatest champions of economic freedom the world has ever known. Establishing a chair in his name helps ensure that his ideas and legacy are not forgotten.”

Endowed by the McBroom family, the chair honors Walter Williams, a conservative economist, commentator, and academic, who died in December 2020. Williams was the John M. Olin Distinguished Professor of Economics at George Mason University, as well as a syndicated columnist, author, and a substitute host for the “Rush Limbaugh Show.”

“He was a free man, and he freed himself by his mind and his character,” Arnn said. “He was a thinker, a teacher, a husband, and a father, and there are no higher stations.”

Arnn said Williams, who was African American, faced discrimination for his race during his life.

Williams opposed the use of force, Arnn said, advocating for free-market economics. He spoke against the welfare state, socialism, and socialized medicine.

“The undeniable truth is that neither slavery nor Jim Crow nor the harshest racism has decimated the black family the way the welfare state has,” Williams wrote in the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal in 2017.

Williams’ daughter, Devon, said teaching was her father’s gift and passion.

“He was an educator, specifically an economics professor, but broadly, a teacher,” Devon said. “That's who he was, and he loved being a teacher. In fact, many years ago at the dinner table he told me ‘On the day I die, I'd like to have taught a class,’ and he did just exactly that. He taught his final Ph.D. course and then passed away in his car.”

Devon said Williams considered all of his platforms “his big classroom.”

“He completed his undergraduate and master's degrees, plus his Ph.D. by going to school for 10 years straight, summers included,” Devon said. “In his lifetime he wrote 10 books, hundreds of articles, book reviews, scholarly journal articles, and more than 1,000 weekly columns. He also gave hundreds of talks around the world. You can also find him on TV and radio.”

Williams had a gift for

breaking down complex economic ideas and making them digestible for any audience, Devon said. She said she learned a number of practical lessons from her father, including how to drive, the importance of hard work, planning for the future, fixing broken appliances, and prioritizing family.

Butters said he is honored to receive the chair position.

“Hillsdale College is one of the remaining champions of free market economics in the academic world,” Butters said. “This chair is both a recognition of and a further commitment to those ideals. I look forward to advocating for freedom and hope to do justice to Walter William’s memory.”

Butters encouraged students to study Williams.

“Walter Williams was an extraordinary man who deserves your attention,” Butters said. “If you have not discovered Williams or his good friend Thomas Sowell, it’s time you got to know them. You should feel urgency around getting to know these men and their ideas.”

Even though Williams has died, his lessons live on, according to Devon.

“Because of Mr. McBroom and his generous endowment of this chair, my dad’s passion for teaching and commitment to his students and economic principles will also endure,” Devon said.

Schools seek Hillsdale hires, O'Toole said

By Olivia Pero

Assistant editor

Hillsdale students are in high demand to teach at classical schools across the country, according to Assistant Provost for K-12 Education at Hillsdale College Kathleen O’Toole.

In a talk hosted by the 1844 Society on Nov. 9, O’Toole advised students interested in teaching, leading, or founding classical schools. O’Toole runs the college’s K-12 education office, which works with people across the country to set up classical charter and private schools.

“Our goal is to restore excellence to American education, both public and private,” O’Toole said. “It's a really urgent thing that we're doing that’s at the top of everyone's minds at the moment.”

More than 200 schools want to attend the classical school job fair each year because they want to hire Hillsdale College graduates, according to O’Toole.

“They’ve learned that this mission is impossible to execute unless you have teachers who know what they’re doing,” O’Toole said.

O’Toole said teachers must know the curriculum and have studied things in a deep and serious way. They also must know how to conduct themselves in a classroom, lead students of various ages, and be organized.

Midterms from A1

“We have a lot of seats that we should have won,” Harmon said. “In the past three elections, we have lost ground with suburban voters, who used to be a reliable demographic.”

Carrington said he attributes Republican losses in Michigan to the “weakness of the GOP.”

“I think Whitmer was primed to lose,” Carrington said. “She did not govern well during

Second CCA of the year 'Parallel Economies' seeks alternative institutions in America

By Anna MacPhee Collegian Freelancer

Americans must seek parallel sources for news, currency, technology, agriculture, and business, speakers at this week’s Center for Constructive Alternatives said.

From Sunday to Wednesday, CCA speakers discussed how to build alternative institutions in various industries that are independent from the larger economic framework.

Part of the education department’s job is to help prepare Hillsdale students to work in classical schools, O’Toole said. Apprenticeships and teacher observations at Hillsdale Academy help students determine if teaching is for them.

Being a teacher requires enjoying being around children, according to O’Toole.

“Maybe you believe in this mission, but you're not a kid person,” O’Toole said.

“We really need people in classical education who know some nuts and bolts things like lawyers, CEOs, and marketing people.”

Classical schools face great opposition, according to O’Toole.

“Sometimes what's needed is a marketing campaign, a bunch of fundraising, a lawsuit, or a political campaign,” O’Toole said. “That's kind of fun.”

The K-12 education office takes the vetting process seriously when determining if groups who want to start a classical charter or private school are a good fit.

“The last thing we want to be doing is attaching Hillsdale College’s name or sending Hillsdale College graduates to a school that isn’t going to be successful,” O’Toole said. “We want to help make sure that Hillsdale College students don’t end up in a school that isn’t going to take care of them and equip them to have a happy, successful career in teaching.”

COVID. She had very few accomplishments legislatively.”

According to Carrington, states should reform their voting laws to resemble Florida’s, which Carrington called “the gold standard.”

Carrington and Grant agreed Republicans should revisit their messaging and strategies heading into 2024.

Grant said he favors Trump’s focus on law and order, immigration restrictions, and non-inter-

Shaping human lives is what education is all about, O’Toole said.

“Education is a beautiful field to work in because you can do a lot of good,” O’Toole said. “It’s just fascinating to see all of the people that are out there and try to take the situation that you’re given and create some good out of it whether you do it as a teacher or in another way.”

Senior Anna Swartz said she attended the talk because she is interested in teaching and wants to learn more about working at a classical school. Swartz said she knows O’Toole because she attended the classical school in Texas that O’Toole helped open in 2014.

“This series is about different employees who talk about their departments,” Swartz said. “Dr. O’Toole works for the K-12 initiative, which is all about classical schools and the liberal arts and what I'm interested in doing, so I thought I'd just come and learn more about it.”

Junior Juliana Undseth said she came to the talk to get a clearer idea of a career in classical education.

“Dr. O’Toole gave me some clarity on what it looks like to be connected with the K-12 office,” Undseth said. “Although I'm not necessarily planning on starting a classical school myself, it gave me a better idea of what it looks like to work in one.”

ventionist foreign policy. Republicans would do better on a national level if they focused on these issues rather than social ones, Grant said. “I don’t think at the national level the Republicans can win fighting the so-called ‘culture wars,’” Grant said. “At the local and state level, you can address these issues on the basis of popularity. The president, or a national campaign, can’t do much on these social issues.”

Michael Rectenwald, scholar and author of 11 books, gave the first lecture on the rise of corporate fascism. According to Rectenwald, shareholder, or “woke” capitalism, is a dangerous system in which governments and businesses collaborate against the interests of the American people.

“Woke capitalism puts the interests of the vast majority under a woke agenda that dictates what is produced, how it is produced, and thus what can be purchased and by whom,” Rectenwald said. “Non-woke individuals are canceled from public life, and the spoils are left to the woke.”

According to Rectenwald, the recent alliances between corporate and government powers are dangerous to American freedom.

“Corporations play a large role in setting policies, assuming governmental power,” Rectenwald said. “We’re seeing a state-corporate hybrid development. This is the very definition of fascism.”

John Solomon, founder, CEO, and editor-in-chief of Just the News, lectured on the need for parallel news sources. According to Solomon, the Democratic party orchestrated a very specific plan to control the U.S. over the past 20 years.

“They had a strategic plan 30 layers deep: infiltrate the media, infiltrate bureaucracies, own the language, own the narrative, change the rules of election,” Solomon said.

New York Times bestselling novelist C.J. Box offered to allow the top bidder to name a character in a forthcoming book.

“We try very hard to get viable auction items,” Worms said. “That's something we pride ourselves on, in getting nice things that people will want. But yet all of the excitement from the evening is from the derby itself.”

Solomon said conservatives must present facts without editorializing so young people can reach conclusions for themselves.

“I believe that there is a significant population of America that is ready to be given the facts and make up their own minds,” Solomon said. “They’re ready to be free again.”

Junior Louisa Klaserner said Solomon’s lecture was her favorite of the CCA.

“I really liked what he had to say,” Klaserner said. “I thought his talk was really inspiring and empowering, especially for the younger generation. He wanted us to take more action in our conversations with people.”

On Monday, William J. Luther, director of the Sound Money Project at the American Institute for Economic Research, discussed cryptocurrency.

Luther said cryptocurrency has potential to stimulate the economy.

“When they are used, they tend to reduce transaction costs and promote economic growth,” Luther said. “And when they are available, they offer an alternative to government monies.”

Luther said governments often attempt to produce federal cryptocurrencies, which could deprive Americans of their right to privacy.

Walter Kirn, author and journalist, said dependence on big tech is a threat to freedom. According to Kirn, cell phones not only can track users but also can affect how a person thinks.

“People are willing to consider the notion that they’re being watched and that they’re creating a permanent record of their activities, interests, and so on,” Kirn said. “But, I think that they still hesitate to concede that they may be programmed, influenced, directed from afar. There may be, already or at least coming, such a thing as a remote controlled human being.”

According to Kirn, the best solution to this danger is for young people to educate themselves in

Attendance was lower than expected, according to Worms, as the derby date coincided with hunting season.

“Our goal was $100,000 for gross intake, but we did not achieve that,” Worms said. “We had higher costs this year, so our profits are not going to be what we've had in the past.”

Junior Mary Ann Powers receives a scholarship funded by the Women Commissioners. She said the money has relieved her of a great financial burden.

technology.

“We face a very powerful enemy in technology,” he said. “One that I think should be met not by abandonment of these devices and these platforms but by full scale confrontation.”

On Tuesday, Joel Salatin, author and owner of Polyface Farms, spoke on local food as potential parallel agriculture.

According to Salatin, local farm food is better than food from large processing plants. Salatin said large-scale production and shipment of food has degraded the quality of food in America, while smaller, localized farms could be more efficient and produce higher quality food.

“People think we could not have fed the world without chemical fertilizer, pesticides and hybridization,” Salatin said. “Not only would we have fed the world, we would have done it without three-legged salamanders and infertile frogs.”

Matthew Peterson, co-founder and general partner at venture firm New Founding, lectured on refounding America. He said conservative Americans must work together to form intentionally conservative companies to rival those which are hostile to freedom.

“The real way to take on woke capital is through competition. Right now, millions of Americans want to stop supporting companies that hate them,” Peterson said. “If we could meet this increasingly ravenous demand, it would be the single business opportunity of our lifetime.”

The CCA concluded with a faculty roundtable. Ivan Pongracic, professor of economics, said parallel economics are crucial for defending American liberty.

“This is not just a matter of political disagreement,” Pungracic said. “These are fundamentally evil, demonic attacks on liberty. This is a fight for liberty and civilization.”

“It's allowed me to focus more on my studies and my involvement in various activities,” Powers said. Powers said she helped set up for the event as a gesture of gratitude to the Women Commissioners.

“It was an opportunity to meet the women who work so hard to raise the money for our scholarship funds, take the time to listen to our stories, and help us out in whatever capacity they're able to,” Powers said. “They imparted so much wisdom and knowledge on us.”

Derby from A1

John Solomon of Just the News spoke on Sunday night about the media.

Jack Cote | Collegian

Alumna offers tools for disagreement

By Isabella Helms Collegian Reporter

Americans have lost the ability to disagree with civility, according to Rebecca Carlson ’19, a graduate student at the University of Southern California. Carlson proposed the love of truth and people and the pursuit of clarity as solutions to this common problem in a lecture Monday titled “How to Disagree Well.”

“The problem I’m describing is not a ‘left’ problem or a ‘right’ problem — it’s a human problem,” Carlson said.

College builds new track at Hayden Park

By Anna MacPhee Collegian Freelancer

Hillsdale will complete the construction of a new track in Hayden Park before the fall 2023 semester, according to Richard White, the head track and cross country coach.

Because of the renovation, a large area near the entrance of Hayden Park is closed for construction. According to Director of Student Programming Rachel Marinko, who said she frequently walks in Hayden Park, the construction of the new track is necessary despite its disruption.

“I was kind of sad at first because I used to go on walks out there all the time, but the new track was definitely necessary,” she said.

White said the college has planned the renovation for several years.

“I'm really excited that we're going to get this new facility,” White said. “It's really a testament to how much Hillsdale College cares about their athletic program, and we're grateful for that.”

According to White, Hillsdale needed an updated track. “The surface of the current track is weathered and it's old,” White said. “It has gotten really hard, and it has made training on it in high volume difficult because it's harder on your body. The new surface will allow us more volume of training on the track.”

The new track will also include a center field that the track team will be able to use for training, accord-

ing to White.

“Sometimes it's really nice for us to be on something softer,” he said. “From a training standpoint, it's really exciting.”

Hillsdale Chief Administrative Officer Richard Péwé said he has been involved in the renovation of the track. The new track will benefit every track event, Péwé said.

“It’s going to be a ninelane track, with lanes that will be a little bit wider than the existing lanes,” Péwé said. “We’ll have the ability to long jump or pole vault in any direction depending on the wind. Plus, you have throwing areas right there by it.”

White said the track will allow Hillsdale to host track meets in future seasons.

“Track is no different than home field advantage for baseball or football,” White said.“Now, we're slated to host conference championships in spring 2024.”

Junior Louisa Klaserner, a hurdler on the track team, said she is excited for the team to have a designated space for training and hosting meets.

“I’m excited to have a track that’s all our own,” she said. “Sometimes, we have to make accommodations for other teams, like when the football team uses the football field and we need to use the track. It will be nice to have our own track and our own space to use for whatever we need.”

According to White, Hayden Park was the perfect place to build the new

track.

“I think it's just a beautiful spot,” White said. "The cross-country course out there, in my eyes, is a world-class cross country course. Putting the new track out there will be perfect. It’s a unique spot, and it’s able to serve large quantities of people.”

According to Péwé, the renovation shows Hillsdale’s commitment to varsity athletics.

“Athletics has been an integral part of the college since its founding,” Péwé said. “It’s a source of spirit and pride. Athletes are driven by excellence, both in the field of competition and the classroom.”

The renovation of the track will include bleachers and a press box, according to Péwé.

“We’ll build it up more like a stadium in later phases,” Péwé said. “We’ll incorporate the existing building to add restrooms, concessions, and training locker room areas. We’ll have lights. It’s definitely a big project.”

Péwé said the renovation of the track will benefit the whole student body, who will be able to use it for club sports and intramurals.

“A track facility like this is not just for varsity athletics,” Péwé said. “In fact, if it was just for varsity athletics, we probably wouldn’t do it. Whatever we do, in terms of facilities, we want it to have an impact on the general student body. The track is always available to help improve the body and push yourself.”

Hillsdale Academy receives high marks

By Josh Newhook

Digital Editor

Elementary and middle school students at Hillsdale Academy ranked in the 99th percentile in a national test for the 14th consecutive year.

The Iowa Assessments

Exam, formerly called the Iowa Test of Basic Skills, or ITBC, is administered in both public schools and private schools. Since first administering the exam in 1994, the Academy has ranked in the 90th percentile or above every year.

“You get this score when you take all grades K-8 combined as a building and compare it to the national norm of other K-8 buildings,” Headmaster Mike Roberts said.

Roberts said private independent schools are not required to take standardized tests by law.

“When the state of Michigan is doing testing for their public school students, we can opt-in or optout of that,” he said. “The nice thing about that is we can control the amount of classroom time versus the testing time we have.”

Nevertheless, Roberts said the Academy uses the test to prepare students for college entrance exams like the SAT and ACT. The test also provides the school with a way to judge how students are doing overall.

“We also like to have some data every year to get an assessment of how our students are doing, how we are doing as a classroom, and how we are doing as a school. It is just one of the pieces of evidence to hold our school accountable,” he said.

Julie Budd, who has taught 8th grade math, history, literature, and language arts at the Academy for 23 years, said the test has remained basically unchanged for as long as she has been there.

“It is that very reason that we like it as a measurement tool: it tests basic skills, and it has been consistent over the years,” Budd said.

Budd said that while many schools spend a lot of time changing their curriculum to prepare for testing, the Academy never has.

“The strength of our classical curriculum is that it concentrates on teaching students to read well, write clearly, and think deeply,” she said. “Our core classes focus on literature, grammar, composition, history, science, and math, which prepare them well naturally for a test that measures what they know in each of these areas.”

Budd said her students have always done well on this test.

“Our curriculum has always comprised the traditional subjects that provide

According to Carlson, a typical disagreement in today’s society devolves into one of two extremes: either we stop talking to the person because we care too much about the issue, or we start screaming at each other because we lose our patience. In both situations, neither the screamer nor silent retreater treats the other person with respect or compassion.

“Communicate to the other person that you care about them and that you want to find the truth of things rather than hanging on to what you currently hold is the truth,” Carlson said.

Striving to figure out the truth together is one of the most important steps to disagreeing well, according to Carlson. Most people in today’s society identify with a team such as a political party or movement, Carlson said. If someone doesn’t agree with their team, they feel unheard.

“Disagreeing becomes competitive instead of pursuing truth together,”

Carlson said.

As soon as two people join the same team, the love of truth can give way to open-mindedness, Carlson said.

“What I mean by open-mindedness is believing a thing only if there is good evidence for that thing and continuing to believe in that thing only if it is true,” Carlson said. Without open mindedness, a person can fall into defensiveness, according to Carlson.

Fighting confirmation bias, the tendency to only look at evidence that supports one’s own beliefs, is an important step in disagreeing well, according to Carlson.

“Intentionally look for true things and good points that the other side makes because even the stupidest person you’ve ever met will say some true things,” Carlson said.

People should question evidence that supports their views, Carlson said.

“Look for what’s bad about it,” Carlson said. “There are really bad arguments for true conclusions, and if you don’t question them, you will start making arguments that are legitimately horrible.”

The second step of disagreeing well is loving the people you disagree with by engaging in conversations with good faith, according to Carlson.

“By good faith, I mean approaching the dialogue with a genuine desire to pursue the truth together,” Carlson said. “I think people feel that if they accept any common ground, if they say, ‘yeah, you might be right about that,’ they will fail to

convince them,” Carlson said.

Accepting common ground and engaging in conversions helps break down dividing walls, according to Carlson.

“People can’t be convinced if they feel like they’re being attacked,” Carlson said.

Pursuing clarity is the final step to disagreeing well. It is important to clearly understand what another person thinks and clarify what you think.

“Clarity is a very helpful means to pursue the goal of caring for truth and people,” Carlson said.

Carlson said the best way to clearly understand the other person is to be an active listener.

“Direct all of your mental energy to understanding what this person is saying, rather than to how you’re going to respond,” Carlson said.

Senior Andrew Davidson said he enjoyed the practicality of Carlson’s talk.

“I loved this lecture,” Davidson said, “I think that it was a lot more practical than any philosophy talk I’ve ever been to. It’s about finding knowledge together, and that starts with what she describes as common ground, humanity, good faith, and assumptions.”

Professor of Philosophy Ian Church said Carlson pointed out key themes of the Western philosophical tradition.

“These goals of seeking truth in love and clarity are at the heart of the academic enterprise and at the heart of the human experience,” Church said. “We have to care about truth, and we have to do it in love.”

New art professor joins faculty

By Michael Bachmann Assistant Editor

After living in Austria for more than a decade, Assistant Professor of Art Christina Chakalova has made Hillsdale her new home.

children with a well-rounded education, so, unsurprisingly, students have and continue to perform well on the Iowa standardized test,” Budd said.

Roberts said the COVID-19 shutdowns in the spring of 2020 were difficult, but he feels the students are back to their previous level of work.

“We were able to build some skill and knowledge with the partnership with our parents,” he said. “While it wasn’t that ideal, we were able to salvage something, even in that horrible spring.”

Budd agreed that Academy students were fortunate to have only missed a few months of school, but she noted that the COVID-19 lockdowns still have an effect on students transferring from other schools.

“We have noted a decline in preparedness and grade readiness from some new students enrolling from schools who did remote learning for a longer time,” Budd said.

Budd and Roberts said these tests are not the only way of seeing how the school is doing.

“While we are very proud of these test scores, and we take these into consideration, this is by far not the only measuring stick of a successful school,” Roberts said.

Chakalova, who earned her Ph.D. at Rutgers University in 2021, replaced Barbara Bushey as the new art history professor following Bushey’s retirement last spring.

“This is my dream job,” Chakalova said. “I started off at a place like Hillsdale and that was inspirational to me. I wanted to become a professor like my own professors.

I always knew that I was doing this to land a job at an undergraduate institution.”

Junior art minor Mary McGovern said Chakalova's care for her students is apparent.

“She is a really great lecturer and does a good job keeping us engaged,” McGovern said. “She even brought us cookies and coffees to keep us going.”

After majoring in art and religious studies at Lafayette College, Chakalova earned a master’s in art history while studying in Vienna. In 2015, she enrolled in Rutgers Ph.D. program, which allowed her to study further in Austria.

“Austria is one of the birthplaces of the discipline of art history,” said Chakalova, who is of Austrian descent. “It was a completely opposite experience to what I had in undergraduate. When I got to Vienna, nobody held my hand, no one knew that I existed.”

Chakalova’s professional focus is in the Italian Renaissance and the Baroque. She wrote her dissertation

on Prince Eugene of Savoy, the field commander for the Holy Roman Emperor who defeated the Ottomans in 1697.

“He was one of the richest men in Europe, and if he wasn't fighting wars, he was commissioning art,” Chakalova said. “What I looked at was his palace in Vienna and how he moved art objects and artists from across the globe to Vienna to create this beautiful garden palace.”

According to Chakalova, Eugene’s patronage of the arts and role in establishing peace in central Europe helped to contribute to the late Baroque.

Chakalova said her love of the arts developed at an early age.

“Growing up, I had professional artists and musicians in my family,” Chakalova said. “My mom is a professor of German language and literature, so she also took us along to all these cultural monuments, which made a great impression on me growing up.”

After going on a school-sponsored trip to Greece in high school, Chakalova said she fell in love with the relationship of art, culture, and history.

Following the trip, Chakalova took a class in classical mythology that further solidified her love of the subject.

“That experience made me realize I really love art and culture,” Chakalova said.

“From that point forward, I started to take private art lessons with representational artists, and I continued to take courses on classical methodology and history, which then morphed into an interest in the Renaissance

and Baroque.

Chakalova’s Austrian heritage also contributed to her passion for art history, she said.

“My mom is Austrian,” Chakalova said. “You get so much from your mother — the language, the food, the traditions. We don’t eat Turkey at Thanksgiving, we make ‘schweinebraten’ every year.”

Chakalova spent every summer at family’s village in Austria, where her grandfather and uncles work as rural vets tending to farm animals.

“It was tiny, and it made Hillsdale look like a metropolis,” Chakalova said.

Despite its size, the village was filled with history, including a renaissance-era castle.

“In Europe, everything is so old, even my uncle’s house is from the Middle Ages,” Chakalova said. “Here we don’t think as much about culture history because the objects are not there that tell us about it.”

Chakalova hopes to immerse her students in the environments that they are learning about.

“There's a reason that we go on vacation to Hawaii, and we don't just look at the beautiful picture of a beach in Hawaii. It's not the same thing.”

Last weekend, Chakalova brought her art history classes to the Toledo Museum of Art institute so they could view some of the works they have studied in class.

“The trip enhanced our study of the Renaissance because art is meant to be seen in person,” junior and art history minor Claire Hipkins said.

Christina Chakalova stands at the entrance to the Pantheon in Rome. Courtesy | Christina Chakalova

Opinions

Online : www.hillsdalecollegian.com (517) 607-2415

Editor-in-Chief | Maggie Hroncich

Associate Editor | Christian Peck-Dimit

Design Editor | Tracy Wilson

Digital Editor | Josh Newhook

News Editor | Elizabeth Troutman

Opinions Editor | Elyse Apel

City News Editor | Logan Washburn

Sports Editor | Claire Gaudet

Culture Editor | Megan Williams

Features Editor | Meghan Schultz

Social Media Manager | Jillian Parks

Circulation Managers | Linnea Shively | Micah Hart

Ad Manager | Carly Moran

Staff Photographer | Jack Cote

Outreach Director | Hannah Cote

Assistant Editors | Michael Bachmann | Michaela Estruth | Lauren

Scott | Evalyn Homoelle | Tess Owen | Olivia Pero | Isaac Green |

Alexandra Hall | Maddy Welsh

Faculty Advisers | John J. Miller | Maria Servold

The editors welcome Letters to the Editor but reserve the right to edit submissions for clarity, length, and style. Letters should be 400 words or less and include your name and number. Send submissions to the Opinions Editor at ehawkins@hillsdale.edu before Saturday at 3 p.m.

The Collegian Weekly

The opinion of The Collegian editorial staff

Pedestrians should cross at crosswalks

When the last Friday classes let out for the weekend, the remaining students pick up their backpacks and hurry down Manning Street. With AirPods blasting and a brisk pace set, it would be inconvenient at best and disastrous at worst to stop at the pesky intersections along the way home. But for a driver on their own timely journey, clueless student pedestrians wandering into traffic, heads down and eyes on phones, leaves an impression of carelessness unbecom -

ing to Hillsdale College students.

Living on a campus as small as Hillsdale’s makes it easy to forget that the surrounding town doesn’t always operate on the same wavelength. Drivers shouldn’t have to dodge jaywalkers on all corners of campus just so students can save a few seconds of time on their walk to class.

Beyond inconveniencing fellow pedestrians, blindly stepping into the road creates a great accident risk. Consider the overenthusiastic freshman,

who’s just gotten his first car and can finally take himself to Kroger. While someone out for a walk might assume he sees them hurrying into the street, he’s busy developing his multitasking skills. With Taco Bell in one hand and Snapchat open in the other, he might not exercise those fine motor skills quite in time. Don’t count on a speeding driver to see you. Give both yourself and them plenty of time to pass by.

For the average driver in Hillsdale County,

rolling through the streets surrounding campus can be a nerve-wracking experience, especially on dimly lit streets at night. Students tend to behave as though they have the right of way even if that means darting across Hillsdale Street before an unsuspecting minivan catches up to them. This Christmas, give your fellow townspeople the gift of peace. Cross at crosswalks.

Make America great again without Donald Trump

By Micah Hart

Former President Don-

ald Trump made and kept promises during his tenure in the Oval Office, but as Americans turn to the 2024 election, voters should look past Trump and seek a brighter and better future for Republicans.

The former president announced a third presidential run on Tuesday night, just a week after a red trickle, rather than a red wave, destroyed the hopes for a then optimistic GOP.

With a lackluster performance last week of Trump-endorsed candidates in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin, it is time to move on and move forward.

Three major gubernatorial candidates who lost in the midterm election all had one thing in common: they denied the 2020 election results and were from swing states. In Arizona, Michigan, and Pennsylvania, Kari Lake, Tudor Dixon, and Doug Mastriano claimed that the election was stolen. Michigan’s Republican candidate, Dixon, did appear to be quiet on the issue later in the primaries as the field narrowed; however, she still expressed it previously at an earlier debate. In swing states like these three, comments about the 2020 election should not be made. Election denying played into the 2022 elections. According to a recent Washington Post article, out of the 46 races consid-

ered competitive that had candidates who denied the 2020 election results, 31 out of the 38 called have lost.

Quality of a candidate matters. While John Fetterman somehow won in Pennsylvania, it is because Mehmet Oz was not a convincing and sensible candidate. People care about who is being nominated, and Trump ties don’t seem to be adding to Republican victories in key battleground states.

With a heated Georgia Senate runoff slated for Dec. 6, Trump’s announcement could hurt Republican candidate Herschel

Walker. Incumbent Gov. Brian Kemp won re-election with 53.4% of the vote. Kemp formerly refused to overturn the results in Georgia in the 2020 presidential election. Walker struggled and could not get over the 50% threshold.

It is time for the GOP to embrace the Chris Sununutype Republicans in liberal New England. Sununu, a Republican who trusts the results of the 2020 election, won a second term as New Hampshire’s governor with 57.1% of the vote, compared to New Hampshire Senate candidate Donald Bolduc, who scored only

44.4%of the vote against incumbent Democrat Maggie Hassan. Bolduc signed a letter saying the 2020 election was stolen. After winning the primary, the Republican nominee attempted to reverse his path. This clearly didn’t work and what was supposed to be a big upset turned into a big failure. While Sununu and I would not agree on several issues, he can win in places like New England, where the GOP could have made significant strides this past election cycle. Candidates need to reflect the people they represent. Rather than call these people “Re-

publicans in name only” (RINOS), get to know why their policies may not align with the MAGA wing.

Whatever the case may be, Republicans don’t need to nominate a Sununu type for president (these types are good for senate seats and house races), but they also don’t need to nominate another Donald Trump. Donald Trump’s policies were strong, but his rhetoric and relentless attacks on people on both sides of the aisle was, and is, abhorrent. Some attacks need to be made, but when the former president pokes fun at Glenn Youngkin on

Truth Social, Trump’s social media platform, by making fun of his name and calling him“Young Kin (now that’s an interesting take. Sounds Chinese, doesn’t it),”, it is not OK. This is not what a president, or even a former president (or any person for that matter) should say. These attacks are childish and do nothing but make the party look bad. Trump’s rhetoric has always been fiery, but the American people should not have to deal with another four years of it.

Trump’s reaction to the 2020 election also was unbecoming. Time after time, the president denied the results, even after lawsuits were struck down. He abandoned his vice president and put members of Congress in a dangerous situation.

Should Trump become the nominee, Republicans need to unite behind him to prevent another four years of record high inflation, a border crisis, and failed leadership. Yet, making America great again isn’t about one person. It’s about “we the people.” Let’s continue to make America great by moving forward with a new Republican leader who can achieve Trump’s goals but also stands a chance of actually winning in 2024.

Micah Hart is a sophomore studying politics and journalism. He is assistant circulation manager at the Collegian.

The US must prepare for the North Korean threat

By Josh Hypes

More than 80 North Korean ballistic missiles and 100 artillery rounds crashed into the seas surrounding South Korea and Japan last week. North Korea is showing off its increased strategic and tactical options—and illustrating the danger it poses to the free world. Not only is the rogue state getting closer to delivering nuclear payloads, but its development of short-range capacity and technical weaponry demonstrates its willingness to escalate tensions to increase its coercive bargaining power.

To meet the demands of this challenge, the U.S. must upgrade South Korean and Japanese missile defense systems, putting pressure on North Korea to make concessions, such as a minor arms control agreement supervised by international inspectors or a pause on missile testing.

The recent missile tests were a response to joint American, Japanese, and South Korean “Operation Vigilant Storm” air exercises.

North Korea claimed those drills were an “open provocation” against its sovereignty. In response to the North Korean tests, the South Korean Air Force fired three surface-to-air missiles north of the Northern Limit Line, the maritime border between the two countries.

Meanwhile, the Biden administration insists the “Operation Vigilant Storm” drills were defensive and not meant to aggravate tensions. This response is right out of Washington’s North Korea playbook. It seeks to cool tensions but it’s the type of response North Korea has come to expect from the United States.

These predictable responses to North Korea’s aggression give the North Koreans more time to develop more coercive means to spur possible American concessions at the negotiating table. Hypothetically, perhaps in a couple of months, Biden’s national security team might reach out to North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong Un, seeking to plan a peace summit. And within

a year, during the summit, the two leaders will call it a great diplomatic victory by lifting some sanctions on the North or ordering a minor withdrawal of troops along the North and South Korean border at the 38th parallel. Months later, North Korea will renege and continue to expand its arsenal.

This worn-out diplomatic approach to national security is a theme throughout the Biden Administration’s foreign policy. In his rhetoric, Biden will play hardball in China, excoriating it for industrial espionage and aggravations against Taiwan. In practice, he’s willing to give the totalitarian dictatorship massive concessions in international negotiations, such as the Paris Climate Accord conference.

North Korea understands its isolation from the rest of the world. The Western coalition is large, strong, and armed with more than 4,000 nuclear warheads. It also recognizes that the U.S. is weak when enforcing these agreements. Still, there’s much to gain through the appearance

of cooperation, such as the removal of sanctions or a pause on Western military exercises.

While these peace talks continue, North Korea builds a nuclear weapon capable of striking the American continent to discourage Western interference on the Korean Peninsula.

Rodger Baker, the Stratfor executive director at RANE, a private intelligence company, recently spoke on campus to the Alexander Hamilton Society regarding North Korea’s recent testing. He said North Korea is sending signals to the West that it can use various missile strikes to target and disrupt U.S. naval assets, including an electromagnetic pulse, which is a burst of electromagnetic energy used to scramble communication systems, and shorter-range missiles. This ultimately shows a North Korean interest in developing tactical weaponry to give it more options in conflict.

A North Korea with nuclear capabilities to strike the U.S. radically disrupts the dynamic of American

alliances in the Korean peninsula, according to Baker. For example, the U.S. might become less likely to assist South Korea with regional issues. North Korea would likely become bolder, reasserting itself on the international scene using the threat of nuclear retaliation to push off sanctions.

Yet Baker argues that North Korea’s specialization in its nuclear program comes at the cost of its conventional forces, which it has failed to modernize. The Korean People’s Army is largely relegated to serving as labor for state infrastructure projects.

Diplomacy is a tool, but it is not the only tool in the United States’ arsenal. If the opportunity for negotiations should come, they must clearly stipulate the means and objectives for denuclearizing the Korean peninsula. Deepening our alliances in East Asia with South Korea and Japan is one solution to increasing the pressure on North Korea. Preparing an effective system to shoot down short-range missiles in the area can effectively

counter North Korea’s tactical weaponry.

We also must take steps to improve relations and encourage cooperation between Japan and South Korea. Currently, the U.S. must often act as an intermediary between the two nations because of their shared complicated history, scared by the lasting legacy of Japanese imperialism. The U.S. must work with these two countries to reach a satisfactory agreement and encourage the two nations to look toward the future.

Re-establishing an Obamaera tri-lateral forum between the foreign ministers of the three countries is one way to improve communication and address some of these issues.

Ultimately, the U.S. must work to change the environment and neutralize the threat posed by North Korea before it goes nuclear.

Josh Hypes is a junior studying politics and journalism. He is a political correspondent at the Collegian.

On Tuesday, Trump announced his intention to run for president in 2024.

Courtesy | Fli C kr

Don’t listen to Christmas music before Thanksgiving

By Thomas McKenna

In the Nov. 10 issue of the Collegian, Meghan Schultz argued that we should listen to Christmas music before Thanksgiving. Alfred’s advice to Bruce Wayne in “The Dark Knight” has never had better support: “Some men just want to watch the world burn.”

Listening to Christmas music before Thanksgiving debases the currency of the Christmas spirit, tramples all over Thanksgiving, and further separates the holiday from the birth of Christ. We call it “Christmas music” for a reason: “O Holy Night” doesn’t hit the same in early November.

Where’s the limit?

What’s to prevent “Winter Wonderland” in July?

“There’s no such thing as a time too early to listen

to Christmas music. . . whether in July or after Thanksgiving,” she wrote. Listening to Christmas music out of season weakens its effect. Over the past year, every American has become familiar with inflation and its consequences. A currency loses its value when we create more of it. The same goes for Christmas music.

What Schultz is really arguing for is the rapid expansion of Christmas music throughout the year, which will quickly bring the devaluation of the Christmas spirit. Beware the binge that brings a “Blue Christmas.”

But this is merely the “ever-false myth,” Schultz claimed, “that Christmas music can get old and tired.” Tell that to the ears of every American on Dec. 26 after hearing Mariah Carey every day since

Thanksgiving or earlier. But there should be no escape.

“Christmas music is cool,” she said. “Every month. . . every time of day . . . every holiday.”

Every holiday? Is Schultz jamming to “Silent Night” on Independence Day? “I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus” on Father’s Day? “Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer” on Grandparents’ Day? At least have some respect for Thanksgiving.

Don’t forget about the nativity itself. The further we separate Christmas music from Dec. 25, the further the season drifts from the birth of Christ. The secular culture doesn’t need any more help than it already gets. Four in 10 millennials said they won’t be celebrating Christmas in any religious way, according to a Pew Research

Reduce the stigma of mental illness

By Megan Williams

Poll. If in 20 years we’re dancing to “Feliz Navidad” in the June sun, we might have to wonder, “What was this holiday about again?”

Schultz closes her piece by painting a wonderful scene. But notice the contradiction? “Picture this. . . in early December days, snow falls. . . tomorrow’s your last final . . . the union sparkles with Christmas lights and tiny, fake evergreen trees. . . and Frank Sinatra plays. . .”

What an excellent depiction of the Christmas season exactly where Christmas music belongs.

Thomas McKenna is a freshman studying political economy and journalism.

Shop in person on Black Friday

By Hannah Cote

The first time I ate pizza for breakfast, I thought I had broken the law.

Eleven-year-old me was shocked, amazed, and could not fathom the idea of eating “non-breakfast” food in the morning. But there I was, on Black Friday, chowing down on a slice of cheese pizza the size of my head — and joining in on one of America’s weird and wonderful traditions.

Though not an official holiday, Black Friday is widely celebrated across the U.S. Don’t spend your Black Friday online. Instead, make a holiday out of it for yourself and go shopping in person.

Nine years ago, I went to bed on Thanksgiving night excited to awake in just a few hours for my mom and grandma’s Christmas shopping adventures.

We started the day at 3 a.m., bundled up for the snowy weather, and hopped in the Suburban. It was just the three of us driving in the dark to the Tanger Outlets in Sunbury, Ohio, a 45-minute drive from our house. Even at 4 a.m., the mall

was already packed with hundreds of people. But my mom and grandma had the whole day planned, and we were ready to begin our adventure.

We started in Pottery Barn, and while they looked at clothes and bedding, I climbed on the bunk beds and couches, picking my favorites and deeming certain couches the most comfortable. We taste-tested all the free pretzels and chocolate samples scattered throughout the rows of stores. While they tried on clothes and shopped for the family, I smelled Bath and Body Works candles, using an abundance of lotions, soaps, and sanitizers, and dug through the treasure chest of dollar section bins in Old Navy and Gap.

As the sun began to rise, my grandma was ready for breakfast. She marched to Sbarro’s and ordered a pizza for us.

“You’re allowed to eat pizza for breakfast?!” I asked in awe.

Moments like this made our Black Friday extravaganza exciting and memorable, and we continued our Black Friday traditions for years to come.

After COVID-19, stores

were forced to limit the number of Black Friday shoppers allowed indoors. Malls were no longer flooded with people, and instead, most people had to wait in line to enter a store before waiting in another line to purchase something.

clothes, you can’t test out couches, and you can’t try food samples.

If you’re debating shopping online this year, don’t. Instead, go experience the thrill of Black Friday. This holiday doesn’t need to become a wasteful adventure with just over-shoppers and extreme couponers. Spend the day with your family and friends at the mall chowing down on Annie’s Pretzels and attempting to find the most bizarre pair of shoes.

Rather than wait in line, many chose to shop online last year and in 2020. Cyber Monday had a record-breaking 100 million consumers shop online in 2021, 8% up from 2019, while in-person shopping went down a whopping 37%, according to blackfriday.com.

This year, 55% of Black Friday shoppers plan to shop online instead of in-person. But no computer screen can make up for the in-person shopping experience. You can’t try on

And if you love shopping, don’t settle for hours of internet-surfing. My best friend and I have fashion shows in the Target dressing room every year, digging around the racks for the perfect outfit and trying on dozens of items for fun.

Plus, if you wake up in the middle of the night like my family does, you can always enjoy a hot slice of pizza for breakfast.

Hannah Cote is a senior studying English and journalsim. She is outreach director at the Collegian.

The fight to raise awareness about the mental health crisis in Hollywood has never been more present than it is today. With Olympian Simone Biles withdrawing from events to preserve their mental health, artists like Shawn Mendes canceling shows to provide a much needed break, and celebrities like Kristen Bell discussing their diagnoses and medications on live television, it’s hard to believe that the entertainment industry would allow Kanye West to remain this unhealthy and unstable for so long.

West was hospitalized and diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 2016, and publicly addressed it on the cover art for his 2018 album, “YE.” The album cover showcases a beautiful, mountainous landscape with the words, “I hate being Bi-Polar its awesome,” written in neon green. On this album, West refers to his mental health struggle as a “superpower.”

After that album, West began speaking openly about his diagnosis and mental health on television.

During an interview on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!,” West said bi-polar disorder causes him to “go high,” meaning he gets very energetic, erratic, and “ramped up.”

During one of these episodes, West infamously said that slavery was a choice in an interview. Director Spike Lee, Will.i.am, and other Black celebrities shunned West because of these comments and his newfound support of former President Donald Trump.

Recently, West become a topic of conversation again for wearing a “White Lives Matter” shirt, tweeting anti-Semitic comments, and breaking partnership contracts with clothing brands.

Looking at his most recent tweets, Instagram posts, and interview responses, West is in one of those “high” moments. But physicians and celebrities seem to have a lack of concern for West’s health. Instead of continuing their efforts to reduce the stigma around mental health, Hollywood is shunning one of its own.

As a culture, we praise performers like Demi

Should pitbulls be banned?

Protect the vulnerable: Ban pitbulls

By Hannah Tully

Imagine coming home one day to learn that your 2-year-old daughter and 5-month-old son are dead, and their mother is in the hospital in critical condition. For Colby Bennard, this nightmare became reality on Oct. 6, 2022, when the family’s pet pit bulls attacked and killed his children and mauled their mother, according to DogsBite.org.

The pit bulls had never demonstrated signs of aggression before, making their attack a shock to Bennard and his wife.

Because of their aggressive nature and history of vicious attacks, the breeding of pit bulls should be banned.

Stories of pit bulls killing or hurting people, including their owners, are common. According to DogsBite.org, an organization that seeks to educate Americans on dangerous dog breeds, pit bulls killed 283 Americans from 2005-2017, accounting for 80% of dog-bite deaths in the nation. While they are responsible for the majority

of dog bite-related deaths, pit bulls make up only about 6% of the dog population in America. These statistics show that pit bulls are much more dangerous than other breeds.

Given the history of their breeding, it makes sense. Originally, pit bulls were bred for dog fights, and as a result, they have certain genetic traits that give them an advantage in an attack, according to DogsBite.org. For example, after pit bulls bite, they hold on to their victims and shake them without letting go. Other traits include unwillingness to give up in a fight and unpredictable aggression.

The genetic history of pit bulls demonstrates that the problem with pit bulls is in the dog, not how the owner trained it.

Pit bull victims include owners, family members, and visiting friends, ranging from infants to elderly. According to data compiled by Kenneth Phillips, an attorney in dog-bite law, 53% of pit bull attacks have been pit bulls attacking their owners. Pit bulls do not form strong attachments to their owners. In

fact, Phillips has compiled data showing that pit bulls will even eat their owners, leaving nothing but bones after their attacks, according to his website, dogbitelaw.com.

Of course, many owners love their pit bulls and have never experienced an attack. However, the breed is unpredictable and a danger to not only the owners but also their guests.

While animals deserve to be treated humanely, their welfare should not be valued above that of a human.

Pit bulls pose a serious risk to American families, a risk that could be prevented by banning their breeding. While this may seem harsh, it is necessary for the safety of Americans. Although pit bulls attack a range of victims, often the ones who suffer most are the elderly or children like the Bennards. Protecting the vulnerable is nonnegotiable, even if it means sterilizing or banning a specific breed of dog.

Hannah Tully is a freshman studying the liberal arts.

Lovato and Miley Cyrus for talking about their substance abuse and depression. We encourage the spread of information about mental health facilities, physicians, and therapy. But, when there is someone obviously struggling on the national stage, he gets mocked, laughed at, and ultimately canceled.

Maybe it’s because he’s erratic, unreliable, and a flight risk for the image of Hollywood elites. The most plausible reason for this lack of assistance, though, appears to be his political opinions. Over the last few years, West has made his opinions on abortion very clear. He wore a photo of an ultrasound during New York Fashion week, posed with Candace Owens, and appeared on “Tucker Carlson Tonight.”

West has made inappropriate, hurtful comments that deserve to be condemned, and he should not be given a free pass just because of his mental instability. But, he also needs to be given the same resources and help that the entertainment industry gives to those whose views toe the line.

If we are going to reduce the stigma around mental health, it needs to start with celebrities like Kanye West. We cannot continue to ignore and dismiss West’s behaviors simply because that’s easier than addressing them.

Megan Williams is a senior studying rhetoric and public address and journalism. She is an editor at the Collegian.

Owners must be more responsible

By Aidan Johnston

During the recent Meet the Candidates Forum at Hillsdale College, former city council candidate Cindy Merritt voiced her approval for a city-wide ban on pit bulls.

“I don’t like pit bulls,” Merritt said. “They’re bred to fight. They’re bred to kill.”

She later reiterated her support for the ban.

“I would not have a problem with an ordinance outlawing pit bulls in this city.”

Merritt has a point. Pit bulls can be dangerous. I grew up hearing horror stories about pit bull attacks, but these stories ignore the noble side of the pit bull.

Pit bulls were once renowned as the all-American dog and were lauded for their loyalty and athleticism, according to BADRAP, a pro-pit bull group. The first pit bull I met was so mild that a family friend was willing to put her hand in its mouth. It wagged its tail happily.

Proponents of pit bull bans are quick to cite harsh statistics on pit bull

attacks. What they won’t tell you is how difficult it is to verify the numbers of dog attacks. PitbullHero, a pit bull advocacy group, argues that aggressive dogs are frequently misidentified as pit bulls. There is some basis for this claim: a 2015 study in The Veterinary Journal says one in three dogs without pit bull ancestry were mislabeled as a type of pit bull. Additionally, with no central database collecting statistics on dog bites, it is impossible to know the accuracy of the statistics on pitbull attacks.

The questionable validity of statistics on pit bull attacks makes banning the breed unreasonable.

Additionally, 87.4% of American pit bull terriers pass the American Temperament Test Society’s temperament test. For reference, German shepherds and golden retrievers pass 85.3 and 85.6% of the time, respectively.

Even if pit bulls are a problem in Hillsdale, a ban on the breed does not need to be the first step. There are other common-sense measures that would maintain the freedom to own a

pit bull while incentivizing responsible ownership. After violent outbursts, owners of any breed should be fined. This would discourage owners from leaving their dogs unattended while encouraging training the dogs well. Leaving dogs unleashed, unfenced, and unattended could be penalized as a risk to public safety, whether or not the dog actually attacks. If the public still views pit bulls as an issue, requiring a license to own them would ensure responsible ownership. These measures aren’t perfect, but they show the variety of creative solutions that could help the problem. Rather than banning pit bulls, city council should find solutions that minimize all dog violence while maintaining the liberty of dog owners.

Aidan Johnston is a senior studying English.

“When there is someone obviously struggling on the national stage, he gets mocked, laughed at, and ultimately canceled.”

“If you’re debating shopping online this year, don’t.”

City News

Parents speak against explicit books, sue Dearborn school board

Hillsdale attorney Daren Wiseley is representing the concerned parents in a lawsuit against the district

By Haley Strack, Logan Washburn, and Thomas McKenna

Senior Reporter City News Editor Collegian Freelancer

DEARBORN, Mich. — Michigan parents are suing a school board with the help of a Hillsdale-based lawyer for approving sexually explicit library books.

Parents with children in Dearborn Public Schools notified the Board of Education of their intent to sue at a Monday night board meeting. Parents, represented by attorney Daren Wiseley, claim the school board has not allowed parents to remove their children from instruction on explicit topics, and violated parents’ rights to free speech, freedom of religion, and the right to control their

childrens’ education.

“These parents have expressed to you great concerns regarding books depicting/describing pornography, pedophilia, and/or other sexually explicit content in your school library,” the lawsuit reads.

“They are also concerned over your sexual education policy, enhanced by your own denial of their rights as parents to be provided with the content taught on the subject, and the denial of their right to ‘opt-out’ of your district’s sexual education program, in direct violation of Michigan law.”

A group of mostly Muslim parents made national headlines after hundreds of them protested sexually explicit books at an October school board meeting. This spurred an internal review of books on library shelves and library websites. The school board announced the results at Monday’s meeting.

The board approved

“Flamer” by Mike Curato and “The Lovely Bones” by Alice Sebold, and restricted “Eleanor & Park” by Rainbow Rowell to high school libraries. The district removed two of the books in question, “Red, White, and Royal Blue” by Casey McQuiston and “Push” by Sapphire.

The novel “Flamer” contains explicit references to genitalia, masturbation, and sex. Hillsdale County native and mother Stephanie Butler read a graphic passage about masturbation from the novel during public comment at the Monday meeting.

“It is a felony to disseminate sexually explicit matter to minors,” Butler said. “This is the law. I don't care what the ACLU says. I don't know if they've read these books. We know our rights as parents, and we know that right now our rights are being infringed upon.”

Sebold’s book “The Lovely

Children’s Museum of Branch County meets fundraising goal

By Tracy Wilson Design Editor

The Children’s Museum of Branch County can now restore and move into a 19th century building in downtown Coldwater, following a fundraising effort.

“We’ve always wanted to go back downtown,” board member Shana Grife said.

“Finding a space has been the challenge.”

According to Grife, the project to relocate the CMBC to downtown Coldwater costs $500,000. CMBC raised over $73,000 through fundraising on Patronicity, a website that the Michigan Economic Development Corporation uses to match donations toward public projects.

“The goal is to have an inclusive platform that allows local residents and stakeholders to play a role in projects that will transform their communities into places where talent wants to live, businesses want to locate, and entrepreneurs want to invest,” according to the MEDC website.

Grife said half of the fundraising money will go directly toward improving the museum, while the other half will go to the Downtown Development Association, which owns the new building and has been working with the CMBC to borrow government money for the project.

“We’ve really focused a lot on our fundraising, trying to add more educational stuff to the museum. Largely, our money goes for fun stuff,” Grife said.

Grife said the DDA’s

money goes toward the essentials.

The new location will be significantly larger than the current location. One of the planned improvements will be a large retail section at the front of the store.

“We’re hoping that we have items you can’t get at big box stores,” Grife said.

The CMBC offers a variety of exhibits for children, such as a large wooden barn playset and an engineering toy called a Rigamajig. The new facility, Grife said, will include a multi-purpose STEAM classroom.

“It’s fun to see how excited they are to come, and it’s also, in a way, fun to see how sad they get when they have to leave,” Grife said. “When I first got involved, I was always excited when we had new visitors. And then the president of our board said, ‘Really, you should be more excited about our returning visitors because that means they had such a good time they want to come back, and there’s more for them to experience.’ Kids tend to bug their parents and want to come back.”

Local families from the Hillsdale, Reading, and Coldwater areas often visit the nonprofit CMBC.

Coldwater resident Jessica Carpenter said her 3-year-old daughter Adelynn loves to play with all of the toys at the CMBC.

“I don’t think she has a favorite thing to play with,” Carpenter said. “I think she’s pretty much played with everything here. I love how they have all the different activities. The music is amazing, and I don’t have to take it home to listen to it.”

Bones” describes explicit scenes related to sex, rape, and murder. Parents have expressed concerns the book is pornographic due to its graphic content, according to the Banned Books Project of Carnegie Mellon University.

“The parents had no other choice but to retain legal expertise in this,” Dearborn resident Mike Hacham said. “The problem is that this board did not take any parent or person up here seriously. And as I said at the first board meeting that I went to, we will take this to court, we will pursue legal action. The words that came out of my mouth were not a joke.”

As parents press school boards to remove explicit materials from schools, Michigan Democrats are rallying around LGBTQ books. The American Civil Liberties Union of Michigan sent Michigan public school districts a letter encouraging them to “protect the constitutional rights of

students and their families by opposing censorship in school libraries” on Nov. 1.

In October, Democratic Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer accused Republicans of exploiting the book debate, asking her election opponent Tudor Dixon: “Do you really think books are more dangerous than guns?”

“This is not about gay people. This is about children,” one Dearborn father said. “What is it going to take for you guys to take the books away? I'm not going to stop coming until these books are removed. We don't want to opt out, we want the books off the shelf. Nice and simple.”

Veterans Hall of Valor recognizes reporter’s service

By Olivia Pero Assistant Editor

Hillsdale Daily News

reporter Corey Murray

was inducted into the Hillsdale County Veterans Hall of Valor on Nov. 11 for his military service and involvement in the community.

The organization recognized Murray during its 21st annual ceremony in Plaster Auditorium.

"Like many veterans before me, I felt the need to be involved in something bigger when I returned home,” Murray said. “To continue my service to my community beyond my military service.”

From 2005 to 2011, Murray served as a junior enlisted soldier, producing daily intelligence summaries at an Army Service Component Command, the U.S. Army Pacific in Hawaii, and later at the Special Operations Command in the Pacific.

After returning from

the Pacific, Murray was assigned to the 3rd Infantry Division in Fort Stewart, Georgia, and was deployed to Iraq. He transferred to the Michigan National Guard in 2011 and served there until 2014.

Since then, Murray has lived in Hillsdale, where he is a crime and emergency services staff reporter for the Hillsdale Daily News. He has been a volunteer firefighter at the Hillsdale Township Fire Department and has organized fire department events for the community such as Trunkor-Treat at the Hillsdale fairgrounds.

“We were doing the Trunk-or-Treat at our station and Corey came to me one day and said, ‘Mike, I think we can do this bigger and better and use other facilities in town,’” Hillsdale County Fire Chief Mike Rose said.

Murray also founded the Hillsdale County Veterans Coalition, which provides local veterans with housing,

transportation, a designated veterans probation officer, and employment services.

Murray is a member of the American Legion, Post 53. He recently raised $15,000 for the legion to provide a mobile canteen unit –an emergency response vehicle stocked with food, hydration materials, and extra equipment for first responders to be dispatched on scenes at short notice.

still giving it their all,” Murray said. “I'm just proud that we can go out there and try and keep those guys in the fight a little bit longer.”

This past July, Murray led Post 53 in raising more than $35,000 to take over the annual Great American Celebration for Independence Day at the Hillsdale County fairgrounds.

“The look on those kids’ faces inside the fairgrounds that night made that 13hour day and seven months of work, fundraising, and organizing completely worth it,” Murray said.

Hillsdale Buick and GMC dealer Ken Joswiak has gotten to know Murray working on the Trunk-orTreat event and the Baw Beese Bash over the years.

“You see these guys after hours on the scene, especially during the summertime, where they're completely exhausted and partially dehydrated, but

“A community, especially of our size, really needs people like Corey Murray to be able to get out and get involved so that these events can continue to happen,” Joswiak said.

County expands road commission, seeks applicants

By Thomas McKenna Collegian Freelancer

The Hillsdale County Road Commission is looking for applicants to fill two new seats.

The county Board of Commissioners voted 3-2 to add two new members to the road commission board in August. The road commission oversees the maintenance of roads and state highways in Hillsdale County, including paving and snowplowing.

The county set aside a total of $50,000 per year to fund the positions, according to Mark Wiley, who chairs the Board of Commissioners and represents District 3.

Commissioner Doug Ingles voted in favor of adding the new members. He represents District 1, which includes the city of Hillsdale and some surrounding areas. Ingles said a transparency law has hindered the board because it only has three members.

“Any time two members are together talking about road commission, that creates a quorum,” Ingles said. “Then you need to fit into the Open Meetings Act.”

The Open Meetings Act is a Michigan law that requires government bodies to hold public

meetings if enough officials attend, according to the Library of Michigan. For the three-member road commission, a quorum only requires two members. Ingles said this limits the board’s ability to do business.

“The intent of adding two members creates the possibility for the road commission to create committees as needed so that official business can transpire more efficiently,” Ingles said.

Wiley voted against the expansion.

“I'm not an advocate of making government bigger,” Wiley said. “By adding two more seats, we're making government bigger. That board has been a three-member board for 106 years. I think time has proven three can do the job.”

He said he thinks the funds could go to better causes, including road maintenance programs.

“Training the drivers how to grade the gravel roads has been the biggest complaint,” Wiley said. “Some of these guys basically get hired, jump in a truck ride with somebody for two days, and then are turned loose. That's not much of a training program.”

Bob Godfrey, chairman of the road commission,

also said adding two members will streamline the board’s business by avoiding Open Meetings Act requirements on twomember meetings.

The board sends members to visit each of the 18 townships at least once a month, according to Godfrey. He said the new members will help with the visits, lightening the burden on each member.

“Each commissioner has six townships to visit each month. Some nights you have two or three township meetings on the same night. You just can't make them all so you have to stretch it out,” Godfrey said. “What this will do is let us divide it up between five commissioners.”

Data from the Michigan Transportation Asset Management Council reports that 54.2% of road miles rated for federal aid in Hillsdale County were in poor condition in 2021.

Galloway Residence House Director JoAnn Arendt, who said she has been driving frequently in Hillsdale County for more than a decade, said the roads are in poor condition especially in the city of Hillsdale.

“It's a shame,” Arendt said. “You have to go 25, but you have to kind of zigzag around to not hit the potholes. It would be a

good thing if they could fix the roads. I don't know how I could help them, but I'll cheer them on if they do.”

Godfrey said budget constraints have prevented the road commission from improving road quality.

“We can only do what we can do with the money we receive, and the money we receive comes from registrations on vehicles and gas tax,” Godfrey said. “We have $4 gas and $5 diesel. People have stopped driving. We could use twice what we're putting into roads right now to start bringing it back to a better percentage. Right now we're just trying to maintain and not get worse.”

The board has received four applications so far, according to Wiley. He said the board has yet to form criteria to judge applicants, but that he has some qualities in mind.

“I'm looking for a longtime county resident,” Wiley said. “I'm looking for somebody that expresses an interest and perhaps has some sort of background in either finance or heavy equipment or roads – some areas that might make them an asset.”

The county will accept applications online until Dec. 15 at 5 p.m. at co.hillsdale.mi.us.

“I felt the need to be involved in something bigger when I returned home.”

Stephanie Butler reads explicit book “Flamer,” approved by the board, during public comment. Haley Strack | Collegian

Adelynn Carpenter, age 3, rides a stationary bike. Tracy Wilson | Collegian

Judge grants injunction against county GOP’s ‘America First’ group ahead of convention

Logan Washburn City News Editor

A judge allowed an injunction against the Hillsdale County Republican Party’s “America First” leadership just days before Thursday’s county convention, after months of controversy over party control.

“It is clear that the court gave careful consideration to the arguments,” County Commissioner Brent Leininger wrote in a Nov. 15 memo. “We look forward to moving past the controversy of 2022.”

Judge Michael Olsalver of the Lenawee County Circuit Court granted an injunction against the HCRP’s original executive committee officers on Nov. 15. A different group of officials, led by Leininger, had filed a lawsuit attempting to gain control of the party.

“I’m pleased that the court upheld the law and the Republican delegates in Hillsdale County have clarity,” Leininger said. The injunction is not a final decision on the lawsuit, but Olsalver ordered the HCRP’s original leadership to refrain from conducting party activities while the suit is in court.

Cyberattack from A1

Hillsdale resident Robin Bertram is the mother of two elementary schoolers at Will Carleton. She said she was still waiting to hear whether school would resume late Thursday.

Bertram said her kids were initially excited about the break from school, but their enthusiasm waned as the closure extended.

“The first day, the kids were ecstatic. We decorated for Christmas, listened to music, and drank hot cocoa,” Bertram said. “By the third day, they were a little more restless, so we broke out some of the summer learning books and tried to incorporate some of their school routine.”

According to Oxley, the district is working with cybersecurity advisers and law enforcement to get the technology fully back online.

Oxley said the cyberattack seems to be part of a larger trend.

“Unfortunately, more and more school districts have become victims of ransomware attacks over the past few years, and we are no exception,” he said in Monday’s update.

Kim Spratt, a parent with two children in Hillsdale Community Schools, said that even though her kids are old enough to stay home alone, the closure was still disruptive.

“Defendants shall not assert or attempt to assert any authority over, interfere or attempt to interfere with, participate or attempt to participate in, the operations of the Hillsdale County Republican Party until this court has rendered a final decision on the merits of this case,” Olsaver wrote. Plaintiffs include Leininger, Zoning Board Member Penny Swan, County Clerk Marney Kast, Prosecutor Neal Brady, recently-defeated County Commissioner Kathleen Schmitt, and Bambi Somerlot.

The lawsuit names the HCRP’s original executive committee officers as defendants, namely Daren Wiseley, Jon Paul-Rutan, Lance Lashaway, Josh Gritzmaker, Belle Steier, and Jon Smith.

Smith, the party’s original secretary, said the HCRP’s “America First” leadership plans to hold their county convention Thursday, where party members will elect new leaders. Leininger said his group also plans to hold a county convention the same day.

“I think we’re going to both go with our county conventions, and the state

party is going to determine it,” Smith said. “We’ll kind of go from there, but for now, we’re proceeding forward.”

said in an email to local party officials. “This current leadership team will conduct [a] convention within 30 days of the Nov. 8, 2022, election.”

Background

The conflict started when the HCRP’s “America First” executive committee officers barred more than 61 local delegates from the August county convention, disavowing them as “Trochky [sic] International Socialists.”

County Commissioner Brent Leininger led an alternate convention at the same time, including those the party leadership had barred from the convention. The state party ruled in favor of the alternate convention on Aug. 19.

Leininger and his group met in an Aug. 25 meeting, where he and other local officials claim to have been voted in as the party’s new leadership. The party’s “America First” executive committee officers refused to yield control.

The Michigan Republican Party endorsed the Hillsdale County Republican Party’s “America First” leadership on Nov. 3, amid the legal fight over county party control.

“The MIGOP [sic] has and will continue to recognize the current Hillsdale GOP leadership,” state party CoChair Meshawn Maddock

Maddock said the state party will not review the dispute any further through the next county convention. She also verified an Aug. 27 letter from state party Chairman Ron Weiser, which recognized the HCRP’s “America First” leadership following weeks of controversy.

“I’m in a weird predicament, because I’m fighting for the common folk, I’m fighting for the little man,” Smith said. “The little man’s telling me, ‘Don’t give up.’ What am I supposed to do, just give up?”

Weiser sent a letter on Aug. 27 saying the state party ruled in favor of the original leadership. Maddock said in an email the letter was “valid

and authentic.”

“I was present when it was signed and delivered,” she said.

Leininger’s group sued the party’s original leadership on Oct. 12 to gain control of the party, according to plaintiff attorney Jonathan Lauderbach.

Plaintiffs take issue with an HCRP “America First” executive committee meeting on July 28, in which officers voted to disavow party members before the county convention.

“These guys committed a crime,” Lauderbach said. “They relied on a section of the bylaws that does not apply.”

Olsaver ruled the “America First” faction “illegitimately” removed other committee members to take power in their July 28 meeting.

“They did this in a manner that was both procedurally and substantively deficient,” Olsaver wrote.

Smith said he thinks the lawsuit will only complicate the county convention. He said he is unsure how everything will play out.

“I don’t know what’s going to happen there,” Smith said. “We have two factions and I don’t think there’s any fixing that.”

Community plans donations to nonprofits for Giving Tuesday

By Elyse Apel Opinions Editor

Local nonprofits are gearing up for this year’s Giving Tuesday, a global movement that encourages generosity and giving.

Domestic Harmony and Helping Hands Pregnancy Resource Center are just a few of the many local nonprofit groups that will participate in the Great Give on Nov. 28, an event hosted by the Hillsdale County Community Foundation.

“This day is so important to us because it helps raise a good portion of our unrestricted funds for our annual budget,” said Hannah Jordan, executive director of

Domestic Harmony, a local women’s shelter offering free shelter and services to those experiencing domestic violence.

Helping Hands, another nonprofit participating in the Great Give, is a pregnancy resource center providing services to local women and families in need.

The event is purposefully held after Thanksgiving and shopping events like Black Friday to encourage a spirit of giving, according to a statement from Hillsdale County Community Foundation.

“Giving Tuesday kicks off the charitable season when many focus on their holiday and end-of-year giving,” the statement said.

Bryce Asberg, Helping Hands’ executive director, said the Great Give encourages the local nonprofits that participate.

“It is an important day because it reminds us of the strong community support for our ministry,” he said.

Both Jordan and Asberg said the funds raised as a part of the Great Give are critical for local nonprofits.

“These funds help us maintain the shelter, staff the shelter 24 hours, seven days a week, pay our utility bills, and provide food to residents for free,” Jordan said. “We also use these funds to help with specific client needs such as steel toe shoes when starting a new job or school shoes for their kids.”

Asberg agreed, and said it allowed Helping Hands to continue providing its services free of charge.

“The generous support of our donors allows us to offer these high-quality services at no charge to our clients,” he said.

Funds raised during last year’s Great Give allowed Helping Hands to pay off the mortgage on its downtown building.

Asberg said Helping Hands is grateful for the community’s support.

“We are humbled by the generous support of our community,” he said.

“People across this county give sacrificially so that we can serve women and men and meet physical and spiritual needs right here in

Hillsdale County.”

From now until noon on Nov. 28, community members have the option to give in advance by dropping off donations at 2 S. Howell St. between 9 a.m. and noon and between 1:00 and 4:00 p.m. Community members also have the option to mail donations to P.O Box 276, Hillsdale, MI, 49242, or they can donate online to their favorite local nonprofit on the Hillsdale County Community Foundation website.

On the day of the Great Give, there will be a drivethrough and drop-off options for giving at the Hillsdale United Brethren Church Activity Center, located at 1300 S. Hillsdale Road.

Warehouse owner looks to donate 20 truckloads of sanitizer

By Jillian Parks Social Media Manager

When a tenant abandoned his inventory back in November, Hillsdale warehouse owner Drew Homovec found himself housing 27 truckloads of sanitizing supplies.

“The tenant went back to Houston, and nothing ever happened,” said Homovec, whose warehouse is on Industrial Drive. “All we can do now is give it away.”

“There’s the lack of routine and the fact that they’ll have to make up these days at some point,” Spratt said. “Practices were canceled, and we had to try and figure out schedules, so it’s been inconvenient.”

Bertram said that although the closures have been difficult, she thinks school officials did the best they could.

“It's hard for me to be unsatisfied with the handling of the situation,” she said.

“I know that the staff would rather have children in the classrooms and not risk making up days in the summertime.”

Antiseptic hand rub, hand sanitizer gel, and gallon buckets of sanitizer occupy 17,000 square feet of Homovec’s warehouse space. Homovec, owner of Corecoyle Composites LLC, has since reduced the inventory to about 20 truckloads after donating supplies to charities and businesses in southern Michigan.

Homovec said the tenant did not call him or find a way to dispose of the supplies, so he found himself with a surplus of sanitary materials.

“He didn’t call me, didn’t try to sell it, ship it, repurpose it, whatever. The month of October rolls around, and he was due for rent,” Homovec said. “I started communicating with him and he said, ‘Hey, you can’t sell it? You can’t find anybody that wants it?’”

Homovec said he is not only losing out on potential rent money from October

and November, but he is also holding thousands of gallons of highly flammable sanitizer containing 80% alcohol. The tenant met with Hillsdale Fire Department Deputy Chief Mark Hawkins within one week of the lease term agreement. Hawkins said he told the tenant the pallets cannot be stacked over five feet, due to the amount of alcohol they contain.

Homovec said he agreed with Hawkins that despite the warehouse’s advanced sprinkler system, a fire could be highly dangerous.

“This is not a three alarm fire,” Homovec said. “We’re talking about a three state fire.”

After failing to comply with National Fire Protection Association Code, city code, and stated specific guidelines, Homovec said the tenant was informed verbally and via email that this breach of lease agreement meant no further inventory was allowed into the warehouse as of Sept. 8.

The tenant allowed Homovec to give the sanitizer away rather than disposing of it, and Homovec thought it would be valuable to the community.

“I had read the product labels, and you can’t pour it into a retention pond or anything. It’ll kill fish or any other wildlife, so we want to properly dispose of it,” Homovec said. “That doesn't help the community, and

that doesn’t help those that need it.”

Homovec said he wanted to use the leftover supplies to give back to the local community.

“Hillsdale has been pretty good to me,” he said. “I’ve done everything in my power to aid the community and will continue to help those in need.”

Homovec said he ran into issues giving the supplies away at first, until Detroit’s Local 4 News reported the story.

David Gealer, director of operations at UniversalMacomb Ambulance Service, said he got six pallets of the product: two pallets of gallon hand sanitizer, two pallets of 32 oz bottles of hand sanitizer, and two pallets of disinfectant.

“He definitely has a lot, and I could see why he wanted to do something with it,” Gealer said. “The ambulances run 24/7, and we cover Macomb County, Oakland County, and Detroit East. Our units cover a large footprint of southeastern Michigan, so it helps to be able to have a donation of these products so that we don't have to worry about restocking.”

Gealer said he thinks anyone involved in medical care should pick up the supplies.

“Come get some, so it gets used and doesn’t just get destroyed,” he said. Other groups have also

taken advantage of the offer. Livonia-based company USA Labs, which distributes to labs and healthcare centers around the country, spent the day repackaging the product and loading semi trailers on Nov. 11.

Andrew Schultz, manager of the Brooklyn branch of Solid Rock Church, and Fathom Waters, church member of the Clinton branch involved with outreach ministry, obtained pallets of hand sanitizer and tuberculosis-fighting sanitizer to distribute to groups that can use it.

“We work with a lady in Jackson that helps the homeless, '' Schultz said. “She’s very well known in Jackson, and so we’re gonna reach out to her and donate this to her, too.”

They also distributed sanitizer to businesses and organizations in the area.

“The stuff that fights tuberculosis we’ll take to restaurants and the Community Action Center,” Waters said. “I would assume they would be happy because they deal with a large group of people.”

There are still thousands of gallons waiting to be claimed. Anyone interested in obtaining the sanitizer can reach Homovec at hillsdalehandsanitizer@ gmail.com.

“Those who need it are reaching out and coming to get what they need,” Homovec said. “I’m happy to support the Hillsdale community and all those interested in these products while the supply lasts.”

‘It is an important day because it reminds us of the strong community support for our ministry’

“More school districts have become victims of ransomware attacks.”

Judge Michael Olsaver granted an injunction against the HCRP’s original “America First” leadership. Courtesy | Brent Leininger

Drew Homovec (right) gave six pallets to David Gealer (left) of Universal-Macomb Ambulance Service. Jillian Parks | Collegian

Hillsdale club hockey is back on the ice, ice baby

By Hannah Cote Outreach Director

As the temperature drops back down to ungodly digits, a dozen students are getting ready for their favorite time of the year: hockey season.

Next spring, the Hillsdale hockey team will begin its third competitive season, with practices once a week, and games every Sunday in Jackson, Michigan.

Senior Ben Hanson, president of the hockey club, has been on the team since 2019. He handles all team logistics, including working with the ice rink in Jackson, finalizing the roster, setting up fundraising, handling finances, and communicating with referees.

“We play up in the men’s league in Jackson, simply because we just can’t play in a CHA or American Club Hockey Association because we wouldn’t win. But we do what we can,” Hanson said.

Last year, the team had 12 members — and while two seniors graduated, two more freshmen have committed to joining, Hanson said.

During the hockey season, the team’s homebase is alumnus Craig Connor’s ’77 outdoor rink. Connor was a member of the college’s former varsity hockey team, Hanson said.

“We really just play games versus being stingy on making sure we get up to fitness and whatnot,” Hanson said. “It’s more so just about playing hockey in college as a past time versus the competition of club soccer or something.”

Although Hanson played baseball up through middle school, he quickly discovered that hockey was his sport.

“I had never played until I was 10,” Hanson said. “Then I started skating and it just became everything for me.

Swim

All the guys I lived around, being from Minnesota, grew up playing and all of a sudden those guys were my best friends.”

Hanson said the friends he learned to play hockey with are still some of his best friends to this day.

said. “There’s just a plethora of students from the college that are always out there. There’s always a game of pickup going on.”

The hockey club first began in 2019, but fell away in 2020 because of Covid. Even last fall, the season was up in the air, Hanson said.

“When I was in high school, it was live, breathe, and die at the rink, and I was at the rink three hours a day,” Hanson said. “That’s what we did and it was just everything for me and still is a big piece of my life.”

Even though the team officially practices once a week, Connor’s rink is open all the time, and many of the team members play pick-up hockey multiple nights a week.

“Last year, myself and Zach Niebolt during the winter were out there four or five nights a week for three hours,” Hanson

“I always dreamt of playing hockey when I went to college, but opportunities are so few and far between because of how the system is,” Hanson said. “When I came to Hillsdale the opportunity presented itself, but even that was a challenge when I first came here because I was not really sure whether it was going to happen. But it worked out.”

Senior Jack Hammons played hockey for 10 years, but stopped halfway through high school, he said.

“Once you get into higher

levels of hockey, it’s much more competitive and it’s difficult to keep up with,” Hammons said. “It almost becomes a lifestyle more than anything. And for me, I just didn’t have that level of commitment at the time.”

Hammons first discovered

didn’t think I would remember how to skate,” Hammons said. “But I got on the ice and it came back just like that in the blink of an eye.”

Hammons said he enjoys playing on the team because it’s far more relaxed than any collegiate hockey team.

“It’s not like practices are mandatory. I always try to go out to them because it’s just fun and because the season is really so short,” Hammons said. “Even if the whole team couldn’t go out and skate, there were always still three or four of us who would.”

Although the rink in Jackson is indoors, Hammons said that he loves playing outdoors at Connor’s rink.

“I loved our very first game because it had a lot of nostalgia along with it, just reminding me of when I used to play back when I was younger,” Hammons said. “It was really cool being back on the rink. Seeing everything again, I just felt all the memories came back at once.”

Senior Eamonn Weed started playing hockey when he was just 8 years old.

the hockey club at The Source.

“My junior year was the first year I actually played for the club team,” Hammons said. “I talked to Zach Niebolt, who was the president at the time. It just sounded like a good way to be able to get back on the ice. I was able to jump right in and be a part of the team and have a good first season.”

When Hammons joined the team, it had been nearly four years since he had stepped on the ice.

“It was kind of a weird experience because at first, I

“The U.P. is a pretty big hockey hotbed,” Weed said. “I basically played all the way up through high school, but I just assumed I’d have to stop playing when I got to Hillsdale, which was a little bit of a bummer.”

Weed said he thinks Connor may set his rink up in the next week or two as the temperature drops.

“There are definitely some weeks where I skate a lot more than others,” Weed said. “I’m excited to be able to have that physical outlet, while also not letting it consume me.”

Although Hanson, Hammons, and Weed played hockey for years, Weed said that there is a wide array of talent and experience on the

team, and that some guys join the team without having any skating experience at all.

“We have a couple guys who have played most of their lives and hockey was very much one of their bigger commitments,” Weed said.

“And then some guys who are almost completely new to hockey, sometimes that don’t even know how to skate. It’s fun to see the guys who are new be super just committed to figuring it out.”

Weed said he loves sharing hockey with new people and spending time on the rink with new teammates.

“In those moments when school will pile up in the spring, it’s nice to get a little bit of energy out and go on the ice and mess around and play for a little bit and take your mind off of other things,” Weed said.

Weed recommended trying hockey even if you have no experience, and also suggested coming out to play pick-up hockey even if you can’t commit to joining the team.

“Even if it’s something that you’re totally new to, you may find that you like it if you have a chance to try a new thing,” Weed said.

Hanson said there’s been alleged news of a future rink being built nearby Jonesville.

“Hopefully one day that’ll be our legacy,” Hanson said. “Maybe we sparked enough interest to actually bring the NCAA sport back as an actual team.”

After graduation, Hanson said he not only wants to keep skating, but also would consider coaching some day.

“I only have the privilege of doing it because I worked with some phenomenal coaches,” Hanson said. “I just want to pass on what I’ve learned from other people because it’s just the gift that keeps giving.”

Hillsdale splits double-dual meet, triumphs over Lewis Flyers

By Maddy Welsh Assistant Editor

The swim team took a tough loss to rival Findlay University this past weekend.

The Oilers put up 157 points to the Chargers’ 105. At the same meet, the Chargers took down Lewis University Flyers 154-108, giving the team a 4-3 record for the season.

“It was a good meet for us even though we were not able to take down Findlay,” head coach Kurt Kirner said. “We actually won more individual events than either Findlay or Lewis.”

Kirner said Findlay had a good year for recruiting and added twelve freshmen women to its rotation, while Hillsdale only has five new swimmers this fall. The Oilers simply had more people

Football

in the water scoring points at this meet than the Chargers did according to Kirner.

“I think this experience really lit a fire under the team,” senior Marie Taylor said. “I think we will be able to use this to fuel ourselves at G-MACs.”

Another factor in the Oilers’ favor was the choice to race 50 yard and 100 yard stroke events rather than 100 yard and 200 yard events, which Hillsdale swimmers are stronger in.

“These events will not be the ones we will swim at G-MACS, so we can definitely come back from that and beat them in the events that matter at G-MACS,” sophomore Elise Mason said. Findlay showed its strength in the opening event, the 200 yard medley relay, finishing first and third

with Lewis in second. Hillsdale came fourth with a time of 1:51.16.

“Relays are always fun because you get to work together as a group and you really do focus on how you're swimming for the team,” Mason said.

Mason had a commanding first place finish in one of her top events, the 1000 yard freestyle, with a time of 10:57.07. Senior Sarah Clark followed in third with a time of 11:21.09.

In a nail-bitingly close 50 backstroke race, senior Leah Tunney finished third with a 28.33, just out touching senior Sydney Slepian in fifth at 28.83.

Sophomore Megan Clifford topped the 100 yard butterfly with a time of 58.01, just 23 hundredths of a second ahead of the second

place finisher.

Taylor finished first in the sprint freestyle events, swimming the 50 in 24.80 and the 100 in 53.84, a season best time for her.

“There was good competition in the 50 free and I always swim my best when that’s the case,” Taylor said. “It is definitely a great motivator.”

The 100 yard backstroke saw Tunney in third place with a time of 1:00.12. Junior Caroline Holmes finished fifth in 1:00.63.

The 400 yard individual medley saw three Charger swimmers in the top five. Burnham glided into an easy first place finish with a time of 4:41.87. Senior Amy Mills finished fourth (4:52.72) and Mason was fifth (4:53.07).

The Chargers closed the meet with a second place fin-

ish in the 200 yard freestyle with a time of 1:39.34. Taylor, freshman Julianna Weir, sophomore Lily Golladay, and Clifford worked together in this race.

“The 200 free always tends to be a close race given how fast it is, and I felt that we did our best to try and catch our competitors,” Taylor said. “Relays with Jules, Lily, and Megan are very fun as we all can turn on that pure sprinting mindset. I always love to watch Megan anchor the relay, as her motivation shows during all her races.”

Charger swim will spend this weekend in Grand Rapids, Michigan, at the Davenport University Invitational meet. This is the team’s last chance to race this semester before winter break.

“I am looking forward to seeing the team rested and

in our competition suits, especially the freshman,” Taylor said. “I just can’t wait to see how we will race with our first rest of the season. It should be a great glimpse into how we will perform at G-MACs.”

Kirner said the team is looking good going into the Davenport Invitational.

“I have been extremely impressed with how our team is building each other up in practices. For example, we have had some optional sessions and will get a collective group that pushes each other to be there and create challenges for each other,” Kirner said. “Support for each other at meets is at an all-time high. They invest in each other which collectively adds to the team’s strengths.”

Chargers drop season finale against ODU

By Christian Peck-Dimit

Associate Editor

The Hillsdale Chargers football team was unable to complete its late comeback bid, dropping the final game of its season against the Ohio Dominican University Panthers, 20-10, on Saturday.

ODU scored all 20 of its points in the final quarter and a half, leaving the Chargers 5-6 overall, with a 4-4 record in G-MAC play.

“We did a lot of good things on Saturday, missed a couple early opportunities,” head coach Keith Otterbein said. “Turnovers and finishing drives were frustrating on that side. Played really hard on defense, tackled well until the last half of the fourth quarter, then didn’t tackle well.”

The Chargers’ offense

made it into opposing territory six times throughout the game, though they were only able to finish two of their drives with points. One of those two drives was finished by a 34-yard field goal from junior kicker Julian Lee that gave the Chargers the first points of the game, sending the squad to halftime up 3-0.

On the Panthers’ second and third drives of the second half, however, they scored a pair of touchdowns to take a 13-3 lead. Hillsdale responded, going 87 yards in 11 plays to cut its deficit down to three points with a twoyard touchdown run from senior running back Michael Herzog with just under eight minutes remaining. Herzog finished the season with 940 rushing yards, second most in the G-MAC. “Once we went down the

field and scored and made it 13-10, that was one of those times where we needed a key stop and didn’t get it because we didn’t tackle real well on that particular drive,” Otterbein said.

The Panthers’ offense went 71 yards and burned more than four minutes off the clock before scoring a game-sealing touchdown with 3:36 remaining, handing the Chargers a loss in their final game of the season.

“I’m so proud of the effort that our guys put forth,” fifthyear linebacker Kyle Kudla said. “It was a battle, we knew it was gonna be a battle, it’s always a close game with those guys, it’s always a fun one to be a part of.”

The loss gave the program its first losing season since 2015, when the team also went 5-6.

“We have to find a way this winter and spring and summer, and fall camp, to make the key plays when the key plays need to be made,” Otterbein said. “To make the key drive or the key thirddown stop, or take advantage of a turnover. I don’t know how, mentally, we’re going to approach that, but that’s really what needs to be done.”

For the team’s 12 graduating seniors, the game marked the final time they will play in a Charger uniform.

“Hillsdale is such a special place and you get to be a part of that,” Kudla said. “What we have is so different compared to everyone else in the country, it is so special. I think this year we laid a groundwork of guys that are invested in not only their individual performances, but guys invested in each other.”

Kudla led the team defensively with 11 tackles, including a tackle for loss, as well as a pair of quarterback hurries.

“There’s a really good Vince Lombardi quote about how a man’s finest hour is when he can lie exhausted on the field of battle, and I definitely think I walked off the field with my head held high,” Kudla said. “It was a great way to go out, it’s always been a really fun game in my career playing against ODU, those have been some of my better performances.”

On the day after the game, the team held its end-of-season banquet. Nearly a dozen season-long awards were given out, headlined by sophomore wide receiver Isaac TeSlaa taking home the Roy Beck Most Valuable Player Award.

TeSlaa finished the season third in the nation among D2 players with 1325 receiving yards, which was also the third most single-season yards in program history. He also caught 13 touchdowns over the course of the season, tying him for sixth in the nation.

The banquet was also headlined by speeches given by each of the graduating seniors.

“The most impactful thing for me was listening to the speeches from the seniors, especially my closest friends,” Herzog said. “It was kind of a reality check that they’re not going to be here next semester and I’m not going to be working with them sideby-side like I had been for the past three years.”

The Hillsdale club hockey team was founded in 2019.

Anthony Lupi | Co LL egi A n

Chargers claim sixth straight conference title

By Isaac Green

Assistant Editor

The Hillsdale volleyball team took the conference crown for the sixth year in a row last week at the G-MAC Tournament in Ashland, Ohio.

The Chargers dominated throughout the three round event, losing only one of 10 sets in matches against the Northwood Timberwolves, Walsh Cavaliers, and Trevecca Nazarene Trojans.

“There was a lot of good ball played,” head coach Chris Gravel said. “All the teams that qualified, especially the ones that advanced, were playing really well. We had to deal with our ups and downs but in the end prevailed.”

All-Conference selections were also announced on Nov. 10 as the tournament got underway. The Chargers placed seven team members on the

list, tying its best showing to date.

Senior outside hitter Karoline Shelton, sophomore libero Alli Wiese, and sophomore outside hitter Marilyn Popplewell made the All-GMAC first team; sophomore middle hitter Maizie Brown and senior middle hitter Megan Kolp made the AllG-MAC second team; and senior middle hitter Linnea Larson and sophomore setter Lauren Passaglia made the All-G-MAC third team.

“Even though only 7 of us were honored, we all know that all 19 of us contributed to each other's recognition and it always goes back to the team and how hard everyone works to make eachother better,” Popplewell said. The G-MAC Tournament began with several upsets. In the first round, sixth-seeded Walsh took down third-seeded Findlay, eighth-seeded

Tiffin defeated first-seeded tournament host Ashland, and fifth-seeded Trevecca Nazarene advanced over fourth-seeded Cedarville.

“We know anybody can beat anyone on any given day,” Gravel said. “All over the region, all over the nation too, same thing. So we didn't have any idea who our next opponent was going to be.”

While most of the favorites fell early, the second-seeded Chargers took care of business right away with a sweep of a seventh-seeded Northwood team that had given them two of their toughest conference matches earlier this season.

According to both Gravel and assistant coach Allyssa Van Wienen, the second round match against Walsh was the toughest matchup of the tournament for the Chargers.

“They were swinging well,”

Gravel said. “I mean offensively they were hitting some bombs and their error ratio was lower than usual.”

The Chargers began the match strong and went up two sets to none with relative ease, but the Cavaliers rebounded in an attempt to save their conference title hopes, winning the third set 25-19.

Walsh continued to play strong in the fourth set, taking it down to the wire at 24-24, but Popplewell and freshman outside hitter Emory Braswell strung together two crucial kills to break the tie and give the Chargers the 26-24 victory.

“I think we went in with a mindset that no team was going to give anything to us easy, so going in with that mentality really helped us perform well,” senior outside hitter Madeline Zenas said.

The win placed Hillsdale in the championship match

against an unlikely Trojans team that had momentum coming into Saturday. With a conference title on the line, the Chargers put together an impressive outing with 38 kills, 44 digs, and seven service aces, to win the match 25-18, 25-13, 25-21

“It was super exciting to win a conference tournament again,” Wiese said. “I am super excited to move forward and every day moving forward will be a blessing to still be playing.”

On the back of this achievement, the Chargers received the seventh seed heading into the NCAA DII Midwest Regional. They will begin their defense of the regional title today in a 3:30 p.m. matchup against the Lewis University Flyers, whom they lost to in a five-set match earlier this season.

“We've played Lewis quite a bit over the years,” Gravel

said. “We’re gonna have to just play a good game and anything can happen. We had them last time. We were up two games to nothing heading into set three and let them slip through our fingers and then we couldn't recover, but since that match we haven't lost.”

Gravel said that this is a special year at the national level in the NCAA, and he hopes that this team gets the chance to experience it.

“We're really excited for this group to get to the NCAA Tournament, work hard, and try to get to the next level,” Gravel said. “This year at the national level it's what's called a festival year. So once every four years all the sports have their finals in one place, and the NCAA really goes overboard on making it a great experience so we'd love to be able to show this group that experience.”

Charger Chatter

If you had to outrun a serial killer or a bomb, which would you choose?

I would rather run away from the serial killer. I think I could outrun a serial killer pretty easily, but I'm not so sure about a bomb.

Sports Opinion

Could you play any other sports at the colle giate level?

I played basketball for a long time but don't think I'd make it at the college level. If pickleball was a collegiate sport than maybe I would give that a try.

Take a break from hating on the Astros to appreciate baseball

By Nathan Stanish Collegian Reporter

Too many baseball fans hate on the Astros instead of focusing on the positive stories from the 2022 World Series.

After several tough battles with the Philadelphia Phillies, the Houston Astros won their second World Series. Houston celebrated, other baseball lovers moved on, but a sizable chunk of Major League Baseball fans began a familiar chorus of complaints, accusations, and references to the sign stealing scandal of 2017.

No baseball fan can deny

that the Astros cheated to win the 2017 World Series. But, after 5 years and two different cheating scandals since, the hate has gotten old.

Instead of focusing on a single team’s cheating scandal from years ago, take a moment to appreciate the many moments that made this year’s World Series special.

First, the Philadelphia Phillies. Not only did the Phillies make the playoffs with their first wild card in franchise history, they won their first National League pennant since 2009 and took two games from a team that swept

the Yankees. For an underdog team, that’s an incredible achievement.

Then there’s 73-year-old Dusty Baker, the current Astros manager. Prior to the 2022 season, Baker already had the 9th-most wins as a manager but not one World Series victory. Now, he’s the oldest manager to win a championship in any of the four major American sports. After nearly 30 seasons managing baseball teams, Baker can finally retire in peace.

But the greatest story of the 2022 World Series is Trey Mancini. Three years ago,

What animal do you think you could beat in a race?

I would want to race a goat. Goats eat anything, like me. They also aren't known for their speed, but they could surprise you.

Is it true you have a lucky pair of socks?

Yeah, I've had them since my junior year of high school, but a teammate of mine tore a hole in them during our last race with one of the spikes on his shoe.

Sports Feature Jump

from A1

Additionally, Brubacher said the varsity sports program did not fully align with the college’s mission when he arrived.

Mancini was diagnosed with stage III colon cancer and had to miss the entire 2020 season. By 2021, he was cancer-free and back in play, and a year later, he became a World Series champion.

If the World Series should be about anybody, it should be about the first-baseman who went from cancer patient to World Series champion.

Baseball is more than a team sport, it’s a sport of individual stories. Don’t let team controversies take away from the individual stories of the 2022 World Series.

“The varsity sports program now consistently accepts the challenge of contributing as much as possible to the mission of the college,” Brubacher said. “Sports should be very much an integral part of the college itself, not its own thing that's done on the side.”

According to Brubacher, no other NCAA Division II school has Hillsdale’s academic standards or rigor.

“Our student athletes are succeeding at a very high level academically,” Brubacher said.

Gravel said Brubacher always takes the time to watch some of each team’s practices.

“The teams will all miss having a great supporter like him,” Gravel said.

Women’s basketball head coach Charlie Averkamp said Brubacher genuinely cares about others.

“He's someone who

really cares about the wellbeing of the student athletes and also the coaches in the program,” Averkamp said. “He wants everyone to be successful.”

Head coach of men's and women's track and cross country Richard White said the best word to describe Brubacher is “kind.”

“He’ll always pop into my office and check on how things are going, asking how he can be of service,” White said.

Brubacher’s parting message to Hillsdale athletes is to take advantage of the opportunity to learn, grow, and prepare for the world’s challenges.

“When we look at the world around us, the challenges are just beginning,” Brubacher said. “Hillsdale students have the opportunity to develop knowledge and skills that allow them to lead in all the right ways.

I encourage the student athletes to take advantage of this opportunity.”

C ourtesy | H illsdale C ollege a t H eleti C d epartment

C ompiled by e lizabet H C rawford

C harger S port S

Men's Basketball

Chargers start season undefeated, 5-0

By Christian Peck-Dimit Associate Editor

With the help of a pair of breakout performances, the Hillsdale men’s basketball team improved to 5-0 for the first time since 2015-16 and lept to No. 16 in the DII Sports Information Directors of America (D2SIDA’s) national top 25 rankings.

The Chargers stayed undefeated in non-conference play, taking down the Wayne State Warriors 66-64, the Saginaw Valley State Cardinals 71-55, and the Davenport Panthers 68-58.

While jumping into the highest spot in the national rankings of any previously unranked team, the Chargers also jumped from tenth to second in the D2SIDA Midwest Regional rankings.

“A couple different people stepping up in different games to get it done as a group, that was a big part of our success this weekend,” fifth-year forward Peter Kalthoff said.

Wayne State marked the team’s home opener, giving Charger fans their first opportunity to watch the team at the Dawn Tibbetts Potter Arena this season. The game did not disappoint, with five lead changes in the final four minutes, including a game-winning layup through contact from senior guard Kyle Goessler with less than 15 seconds remaining.

“They challenged us in a few different areas, and we got down and were in trouble a little bit,” head coach John Tharp said. “I was happy with how our kids

responded and fought back, and I thought our seniors made some big plays. I thought Jack really got us going there and made some big plays and Coach Bradley made a wonderful play call and Kyle scored at the end.”

Kalthoff stepped up, dropping a career-high 19 points on 8-of-10 shooting, including 2-of-2 from outside.

“Peter saved us, we wouldn’t have won that game if it wasn’t for Peter, I was really pleased with his effort,” Tharp said. “It was huge to have Peter step up, he’s a talented offensive player, I’ve seen it for a long, long time, and one thing I also think Peter’s done a great job of is he’s blocking some key shots for us with his athletic ability.

Down by nine with 8:23 to go, the team used a 15-2 run to take a four-point lead with 3:06 remaining. Senior guard Jack Gohlke scored seven of the Chargers’ points on the run, which was capped off by an and-one finish at the rim by Kalthoff.

Hillsdale, however, found itself down by one with the ball with under thirty seconds left. On a play drawn up by associate head coach Keven Bradley, Goessler curled off a dribblehand-off from Kalthoff, cutting into the lane and going right at the chest of his defender before finishing a tough layup that proved to be the game-winner.

The team’s next game — on Sunday against Saginaw — saw another Charger drop a new career high. Junior guard Charles Woodhams exploded for 17 points on 7-of-8 shooting in just 14 minutes.

Women's Basketball

“It’s so important for this basketball team for that to happen,” Tharp said. “It has to be such a collective effort by our group, and for Chuck to come in off the bench and give us what he did was magnificent.”

As soon as he checked in midway through the first half, Woodhams scored on his first three possessions.

“My role on the team right now is just to go in and give as much energy as I can,” Woodhams said. “I’m not looking to necessarily shoot it every time now just because I had a career high, I’m just going to keep doing what I’ve always done and just try to help the team win the best I can.”

The game marked Woodham’s first career game scoring in double-digits. Goessler, Gohlke, and Kalthoff joined him in double figures, each with 10 points.

Though sophomore forward Joe Reuter shot just 2-of-9 from the floor, he doubled his previous career-high in assists, finishing with a game-high eight. He was one of four Chargers who finished with at least four assists, joining Gohlke, Goessler, and senior guard Cole Nau.

“Jack’s assist totals have been great this year, he’s found people, he’s made some plays off the dribble,” Tharp said. “I think Joe is probably leading us in rebounding right now, he had a really big assist total against Saginaw Valley as well. Sometimes we define playing well or not playing well strictly on making shots, but there’s so many different ways that you

can impact that game.”

The newly-minted No.16 team in the nation started off strong against Davenport, taking a lead of as much as 21, and as much as 19 in the second half. The Chargers, however, shot just 29% from the field and 15% from three in the second half, allowing Davenport back

into the game.

The Panthers cut their deficit down to just three with 2:41 left, and again with less than two minutes to play. Hillsdale responded, with sophomore forward Eric Radisevic knocking down his second three of the game, and Nau grabbing an offensive rebound before put-

ting in an and-one layup with 40 seconds to play, effectively putting the game away. Nau also posted a new career-high in points, finishing with 13. The team now looks ahead to its second home game of the year, a Sunday matchup with Northern Michigan at 1 p.m.

Touchette scores career high, Chargers start season 2-1

By Moira Gleason Collegian Freelancer

The Hillsdale women’s basketball team took backto-back wins this weekend at home in a G-MAC/ GLVC crossover, and lost last night in Indianapolis, to start the season 2-1.

Senior guard Grace Touchette scored a career high of 31 points on Saturday as the Chargers took down the Truman State Bulldogs 98-90 in a thrilling overtime game.

Less than 24 hours later, the team pulled out a 66-55 win with a strong defensive effort against the Quincy Hawks. It was the first time the team had started a season 2-0 since 2017. “We have a different mindset going into this

season than we have in the past,” sophomore guard Caitlin Splain said.

“We know we’re good. We believe we’re good, and I think that showed the first two games of the season.

Everyone’s on the same page, and the excitement of playing together is really driving us right now.”

A first team All-GMAC player last season, Touchette started the season strong on Saturday. She led the team in scoring against Truman, with 31 points and 6 rebounds.

Touchette also played a strong defensive game, including a layup block that prevented Truman from winning in regulation and sent the game into overtime at 80-80.

“On Saturday, I think you saw probably the best game of her career and

probably one of the better games in the history of Hillsdale women’s basketball,” head coach Charlie Averkamp said. “For her to have that in her first game I think is really special and I think it just shows the type of player she is and all the work that she put in.”

Touchette wasn’t the only player in double figures on Saturday. Senior Sydney Mills scored a total 18 points and 15 rebounds, her first double double of the season after totalling 12 last season.

Sunday’s game against Quincy was a different story for the Chargers offense. With Touchette scoring just two points against the Hawks, Splain stepped up on the offensive end, sinking six 3-pointers for a game high

of 18 points.

“The backside of a back-to-back is always hard,” Splain said. “You’re tired from the day before, but we were able to push through. Different people were able to step up. That’s the great thing about our team. We don’t have to rely on one person every game. We have a lot of players that can step up at any moment.”

Mills totaled 14 points and 13 rebounds, posting her second double-double of the weekend, and junior center Ashley Konkle scored 11 points in the first half. Last year’s G-MAC conference freshman of the year, Peighton Nelson, had an impressive performance on Sunday with 10 points and 6 assists for the Chargers.

According to Avercamp

and assistant coach Brianna Brennan, both games this weekend demonstrated the strength and depth that characterizes the team as a whole.

“On any given night, it could be someone off the bench, it could be one of our starters that takes over. So being able to have that I think is a huge weapon for us this season and knowing that the pressure is not just on one, two or three of them, but it's going to be a team effort every single night, day in and day out,” Brennan said.

The Chargers traveled to Indianapolis to play the Greyhounds on Wednesday night, ending their streak with a 68-53 loss.

Touchette led the team again in points, finishing with 13 overall. She was

closely followed by Sysum and Splain, who both added 11 to the scoreboard. Mills racked up her third double-double of the week, scoring 10 points and getting 15 rebounds.

The team, however, is feeling confident from its wins against Truman and Quincy, Splain said, they know that they have a long season ahead of them, and the work is just beginning.

“We're really proud of ourselves after this past weekend,” Splain said. “But we know that our work isn't done and we're only going to continue getting better. With conference play coming up, we're just looking to get better every day, every practice. I think we all feel really confident in ourselves and we know what we're capable of.”

Joe Reuter looks to pass under pressure. Courtesy | Hillsdale College at H leti C d epartment

Culture

Student artwork featured in Day of Thanks

By Erin Osborne Collegian Reporter

This year’s Day of Thanks artwork will feature original designs by nine students.

“God is creator and allows us to be creative as well,” said sophomore and artist Caris Fickensher. “We should be thankful for that.”

Nine students won the Student Activity Board’s contest to submit artwork for the cards, including seniors Olivia Burke, Hannah Cheng, and Allison Dillow; junior Ingrid Dornbrier; and sophomores Lydia Colby, Isabella Dix, Caris Fickenscher, Rachel Hintze, and Emma Osborne.

Fickenscher and Osborne collaborated to

submit one card design to SAB, based on the concept of a fall harvest.

“We helped each other with our own ideas, and then somewhere along the line decided to do it together,” Osborne said.

The two were inspired by fall and the way that their homes look during Thanksgiving.

“When I am at home in the fall, I see the leaves and ravens everywhere,” Osborne said. “My family and I normally hang up corn stalks for decoration, and there are always a lot of berries on the trees, so we tried to show that.”

Dividing the work, Osborne sketched the bird and laurel wreath, with Fickenscher contributing the color and calligraphy.

Fickensher described using watercolor pencils to create a smooth, blended image. All in all, the design took about two hours to complete.

“We sat at a table while doing homework, and I would work on the colors as Emma sketched, and then we passed the card back and forth,” Fickenscher said.

Despite being newcomers to the Day of Thanks submission process, Fickenscher and Osborne were excited to share their creativity with others.

“I love being thankful for the gifts that God has given us and being able to share that with other people,” Fickenscher said. “The cards provide a neat way to pass on thankful -

ness.” Senior Hannah Cheng also used hand lettering on her card design, and made her own font in the process.

“It’s just words, but I used a humanist font that was inspired by a broad nib calligraphy style,” Cheng said. “I love fonts, and kept blending them together until I found something that I liked.”

Cheng first drew her design on paper, and then added a background on Photoshop.

“It looks very clean and digital,” Cheng said. “I decided to use fall colors as my background, since it drew more attention to the shapes of the letters rather than distract from it with backgrounds or textures.”

Bite the Bulleit under ‘Blinding Lights’

James Bulleit and the Dirty Blondes win Phi Mu Alpha’s Battle of the Bands

By Sarah Katherine Sisk Collegian Reporter

Hillsdale students packed inside of 55 Below last Friday to watch Phi Mu Alpha’s annual Battle of the Bands.

The lineup consisted of six student bands: Sean Connery Jr., Diet of Worms, James Bulleit and the Dirty Blondes, Schizmatics, The Drunk Uncles, and Half House.

“Most of the opportunities for musicians on campus are through the orchestra, choir, or jazz ensembles, so I’m really happy that events like this exist to give other kinds of musicians a chance to shine as well,” senior guitarist Michael Thelen said.

The bands were voted on by a panel of Hillsdale faculty judges: Arete Professorial Fellow Paul Rezkalla, Chair of Economics Ivan Pongracic, and Director of Health and Wellness Dustin Flores.

James Bulleit and the Dirty Blondes placed first, Schizmatics came in second, and Diet of Worms took third place.

Thelen said that seeing such a large crowd engage with their performance is one of the highlights of playing.

“Almost 400 people came to the event this year, making it one of the most-attended Battle of the Bands that Phi Mu Alpha has ever put on,” Thelen said.

James Bulleit and the Dirty Blondes, comprised of seniors Matthias Rhein, Nathan Bly, Michael Thelen, junior Avery Miller, and sophomore Matt Byrne performed a mix of old classics such as “Welcome to the Jungle” by Guns N’ Roses and “Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)” by Journey and rock renditions of newer pop songs like “Blinding Lights” by The Weeknd and “Bad Romance” by Lady Gaga

“We try to strike a good balance between songs that we really love and songs that we know the audience will really love as well,” Thelen said.

“Thankfully there tends to be a lot of overlap between those two categories.”

Senior Matthias Rhein, vocalist for James Bulleit and the Dirty Blondes, said the setlist that works well for a live audience consists of a surprising mixture of popular songs.

“It’s a learning curve to understand which songs actually make people dance,” Rhein said. “But Michael Thelen, who’s been at this for three years now, really knows the formula.”

Miller said. “I’m happy that our group can go out there, not having to worry about the music but only about performing an entertaining show for the audience. Song selection plays into this as well, so I usually bounce our setlist around to a few of my friends to see if they like it or not.”

The Schizmatics includes sophomores Gavin Listro, Owen Gerth, John Schaefer, Jack Walker, Dravyn Spies, and Matt Byrne.

Byrne, vocalist and bassist

James Bulleit and the Dirty Blondes in the lineup.

“The show felt really good because the energy in the room was fantastic after Bulleit’s set,” Listro said. “I felt really inspired to do well after watching them play their hearts out.”

Schaefer, trumpet player for the Schizmatics, said the band has improved significantly since they won last year’s CHP Showdown.

“Every one of us has grown so much in our musicality over the past nine months since we formed the band, and I think we learn more with every gig we play,” Schaefer said. “We had to learn seven new songs over the past two weeks in preparation for battle, and the music itself was some of the most difficult we have learned.”

Hillsdale freshman Patrick Hamilton enjoyed supporting his friends playing in the bands.

“I had a lot of friends perform that night. It was really cool to see every band perform, and I was impressed with the musical talent,” Hamilton said. “It was really cool to see alumni and professors there as well to enjoy the music.”

Cheng’s card says “In all things, give thanks,” based on her love of Thanksgiving as a holiday, and desire to have a message that applies to every person that may be writing or receiving a card.

“I wanted to write something that is true, regardless of any situation,” Cheng said.

Dornbirer also loves Thanksgiving, and was a first-time submitter after admiring the Day of Thanks project for a few years.

“Day of Thanks is my favorite day of the fall semester,” Dornbrier said. “I love the camaraderie of friends gathered around our Student Union and I wanted to contribute to it.”

Dornbirer’s art features a bouquet of seasonal orange and red flowerslike mums, with “Thanks a Bunch” written in calligraphy on the side. Using a reference for the carnations and wheat stalks, Dornbrier invented most of the flowers herself, drawing what seemed to fit the time of year.

Alongside floral inspirations, the design also incorporated concepts of unity and celebration, according to Dornbirer. “Flowers have an inviting, celebratory feel, and the bunch of flowers gave me that while allowing me to incorporate fall colors,” Dornbrier said. “It also plays off of a gathering of a community.”

‘Gray Man’ wowed

By Ty Ruddy Collegian Freelancer

An immensely fun and energetic action flick, “The Gray Man” is a perfect example of one and a half hours of absurdly explosive fun.

“The Gray Man,” based on the Mark Greaney novel of the same name, follows the story of CIA spy Six, played by Ryan Gosling. After a failed mission, the most dangerous men on the planet hunt him for the bounty put up by a former agent turned sociopath, Lloyd Hansen (Chris Evans). Through it all, he must protect his ex-boss’ niece and remain undercover.

Rhein said that the key to engagement is connecting with the audience.

“As a vocalist, my job is not to hit a specific pitch or to reproduce a studio recording—it’s to make energy,” Rhein said. “The ground has to shake, and our job is to facilitate that. My favorite moment was watching the crowd join in on the ‘shananananana knees’ from ‘Welcome to the Jungle.’”

Junior Avery Miller, president of Phi Mu Alpha and guitarist for James Bulleit and the Dirty Blondes, said he loves seeing the audience having fun dancing to live music.

“The best way to make sure the crowd has fun starts with the band having fun,”

for Schizmatics, said since the band formed in March, this was their first Battle of the Bands as a group. Still, Byrne said the energy was on par with their past performances.

Byrne said when choosing a set list, the band puts a lot of care into choosing songs that can feature their horn parts

“John and Owen are a huge part of the feel of our band, so to exclude them would feel wrong, not to mention that they’re two of my best friends,” Byrne said. “We also just play music we love. Billy Joel is one of my greatest musical influences, so to play ‘Tell Her About It’ was really fun for me.”

Listro, guitarist and vocalist for the Schizmatics, said it was motivating to follow

Believing stiff competition is essential for improvement, Schizmatics are looking forward to CHP Showdown in the spring.

“So often when a musician becomes first chair, or wins a competition, he can be tempted to sit back and rest upon his laurels,” Schaefer said. “I am sincerely hoping that some new band will rise up and shock the world at CHP Showdown, because that will make everyone involved better. Schizmatics is certainly looking forward to Showdown, and we are beginning to plan our setlist. This time we have a chip on our shoulders because we got second at Battle, but that just shows that we need to get better.”

Directors Joe and Anthony Russo, the visionaries behind “Captain America: The Winter Soldier,” “Captain America: Civil War,” “Avengers: Infinity War,” and “Avengers: Endgame,” bring a unique element to the spy/action-thriller genre: self-awareness. The film does its best not to take the absurdity of a worldwide manhunt too seriously. Between a high altitude plane crash and the desolation of Prague, watchers would never suspend their disbelief for long unless the movie blatantly acknowledged its own outlandish qualities. The directors acknowledge the wild premise of the movie and the absurdity of action. They blow up everything. The characters punch for two hours straight. The plot is fastpaced, the location changes constantly, and every set piece is used for action in some way. But the movie works because it recognizes itself as audacious from the beginning. The actors, too, play along perfectly with over-the-top performances to acknowledge the crazy world in which the characters live.

Dazzling visuals and a unique soundmix blends exciting action with gritty plot. Although the situation is tense, showing through the sound and music, the dialogue remains quippy throughout. The demeanor of the characters never waver from giddiness, even in the most ruthless scenes. This quality makes Evans especially enjoyable to watch as he shines playing a brutal, genius, sociopathic ex-spy hot on the tail of a talented, handsome counterpart, Gosling. Throughout, Hansen and Six exchange banter from nations away. But even when the two meet for a weaponized showdown, they ensure that the other acknowledges their marvelous qualities. Witty writing and constant banter create an engaging dynamic between the two. Hansen begins to reveal more of his tendencies – and audiences are inclined to believe and even like him. He was trained to torture as a spy and seems to take delight in it. Evans perfectly portrays a criminal who is far too excited about evil.

Six’s expression almost never changes. Whether he is interacting with a child, the head of the CIA, or his sociopathic nemesis, he is chronically deadpan. Even handcuffed to a bench in the middle of Prague, surrounded by bounty hunters, he manages to remain calm, fight, and live. Where Evan’s entertains with pure emotion, Gosling grounds audiences. He reminds viewers that a story with big stakes is still at play. Gosling and Evans – the former a traditional rom-com star and the latter one of the most iconic American cinema symbols this century – shock and thrive as an action hero and a brutal villain respectively in one of Netflix’s best releases of the year.

Students created the cards for Day of Thanks. Courtesy | SAB

Schizmatics play at 55 Below. Jack Cote | Collegian

Trotting for turkey

By Christina

Looking for a way to burn off some calories before the big Thanksgiving dinner?

Take part in Hillsdale Academy’s Turkey Trot. For over 20 years, students and members of the Hillsdale community have participated in this beloved tradition.

With races for all ages, preschoolers ran 200 meters, grades K-2 ran 600 meters, and grades 3 and up ran a mile. As participants arrived at the academy on the morning of Nov. 12, they checked in, received a number tag and T-shirt, and tried to stay warm despite the freezing temperature.

While participation awards were given to everyone who competed, winners of each race got to take home a turkey to have for Thanksgiving dinner.

Catherine Huffman has served as the parent leader for Hillsdale Academy’s service club for approximately four years. Huffman is in charge of planning and organizing all the events the club puts on. Huffman emphasized the importance of students finding ways to serve their community and fundraise for various non-profits.

Organized by Hillsdale Academy’s Service Club, the organization aims to empower students to pour into their community. Students at the Academy are required to volunteer for at least five hours each semester and help out with fundraising events throughout the school year, Huffman said.

Students are encouraged to get financial supporters for the fundraising events.

“We have to oversee the kids going out and getting sponsors for the Turkey Trot,” Huffman said.

Elizabeth Andaloro, a student at Hillsdale Academy, ran the mile. She described her experience as a member of the Service Club.

“You serve the community, help around the college, help around town, pick up trash,” Andaloro said. “Anything you can do to serve other people.”

The Turkey Trot was the first event of the fall season and was a big success, according to Michael Roberts, headmaster at Hillsdale Academy. Over $5,000 was raised and will be donated to the local homeless shelter, Share the Warmth of Hillsdale County.

Haven Socha, a sophomore at the Academy and a member of the Service Club, came to volunteer at the event.

“I’ve been helping with registration and helping people come in and get their tags and their shirts,” Socha said.

Another member of the Service Club, Jaylen Fisher, was in charge of writing timestamps for all the runner’s entries. She reflected on her time as a Service Club volunteer at this event.

“I love the Turkey Trot. It’s a good event,” Fisher said.

Pi Beta Phi crowns Mr. Hillsdale

By Elizabeth Crawford Collegian Reporter

Eight lucky men representing Hillsdale College’s fraternities and organizations competed for the venerable title of “Mr. Hillsdale” on Nov. 11.

Every fall, Pi Beta Phi hosts “Mr. Hillsdale” as a philanthropy event to raise money for their philanthropy, Read > Lead > Achieve.

The competition was divided into three rounds: formal wear, beachwear, and talent. The judges - Visiting Assistant Professor of Art Roxanne Kaufman, Associate Professor of Economics Charles Steele, and Assistant Professor of Biology Christopher Heckel - determined the winner based on contestant performances. Emcees junior Hannah Allen and senior Taylor Royston introduced the eight contestants, all of whom put forth their best efforts to win the title of “Mr. Hillsdale.”

When asked what his ideal date was during the formal wear round, freshman Sigma Chi John Weber said, “A girl.” He later clarified that while he didn’t have a type he preferred blondes, and that he would take the lucky woman out to Applebee’s for their first date.

During the formal wear round, the hosts teased Niedfeldt representative, senior Jack Golden, who is engaged to Pi Beta Phi junior, Shannon Spahr.

“This next upcoming contestant is one we have consistently seen in the Pi Phi basement, and if it was any other man we’d be concerned,” Allen joked. Allen and Royston pressed Golden about his ideal date.

“My ideal date is Shannon Spahr because her eyes are beautiful,” Golden said.

All the girls sighed in the audience, swept away by his romantic response.

Another memorable contestant, Delta Tau Delta representative Jack Hammons promoted hope and change for Hillsdale. When Hammons walked on stage, his fraternity brothers chanted “Hammy, Hammy, Hammy.”

“I believe that as Mr. Hillsdale, I want to make real changes,” Hammons said. “I stand on a platform of improving Hillsdale in any way possible, and if that means free tuition, then so be it.”

The next segment proved more exhilarating than the first, since the men had to wear swimsuits and woo the

audience with cringey pickup lines.

“Their pick-up lines were very uncomfortable,” Allen said.

Senior Nicholas Akers, representative of the ultimate frisbee team, sported a lei, coconut bra, and swim trunks.

“If you wax my board, I’ll let you ride some waves later,” Akers said, surfboard in hand.

All the women in the audience squealed while the guys squirmed in their seats.

Golden, on the other hand, rocked a more modest look, complete with sunglasses and American flag Crocs.

“Hey girl, are you my term paper? Because I’ve been putting it off for awhile, but I’m ready to lose a whole lot of sleep with you tonight,” Golden said, while looking at his date and fiancee Spahr.

A ripple of “ohs” flooded the audience, as everyone broke out cheering for Golden’s pick-up line.

Another memorable swimsuit competitor, junior Zach Tong representing Delta Sigma Phi, wore a white tank top, swim trunks, and slides with gray socks.

“You wear socks to the beach?” Allen asked.

“Yes,” Tong said. “Do you ever get sand in your shoes?” Allen asked again.

“I don’t,” Tong replied, and the audience laughed.

After the swimsuit section, the last and final segment of the evening was the talent show.

Sophomore Charlie Birt, Alpha Tau Omega’s representative, sang “You’ll Be Back,” from the Broadway musical “Hamilton,” while decked out in a King George III costume. The audience was impressed that Birt could hit the high notes and maintain his incredible British accent.

The most impressive part of the show, however, was Hammons’ magic trick, involving a Constitution reader, a Tiger King Instagram fan page, and a lot of Delta Tau Delta fraternity pictures.

“I’m going to do a magic trick that doesn’t go over five minutes and hopefully isn’t terrible,” Hammons said.

Using the reader, Hammons asked Associate Professor of Biology Christopher Heckel to pick a page and memorize its number and the first word. Showing the audience the page, and without looking at the reader himself, Hammons slid a

fraternity picture into the reader to use as a bookmark.

Using a framed Delta Tau Delta picture, Hammons undid the back of the frame to reveal the same page which Heckel had chosen from the reader. Then, he asked the audience to look up the word and number on the “Tiger King” Instagram page.

On the account’s story, the number “377” and the word, “explanation” were listed. “Explanation” and “377” were the same page number and word which professor Heckel had chosen.

The crowd went wild.

After much deliberation from the judges, Akers won second place for making his version of a tequila sunrise, which he presented to the judges.

Hammons, however, won the competition, leaving him king of Hillsdale.

“Hours before the event, I was still getting things ready because I was so dedicated to making sure that I did everything I could to put on the best performance, because at the end of the day it’s for the kids,” Hammons said. “It’s for charity. So I’m just here to do what I can to help.”

Sew your stress away: Students learn embroidery

By Isabella Helms Collegian Reporter

The scent of coffee and scones hovered over the crafting table as students sat surrounded by an array of colorful fabrics, meditating on embellished nature scapes and woodland creatures.

On Nov. 7 in the Grewcock Student Union TV Lounge, a group of excited women gathered around a table filled with pastel fabrics, assorted string, pins, and embroidery hoops to pause from their studies and get creative. Designed for students of all skill levels, the art honorary, Alpha Rho Tau, hosted its annual embroidery night.

Freshman Julia Widhalm found out about the event from one of her friends who had seen a poster in the union.

“The embroidery event was really fun,” Widhalm said, “I am thinking of majoring in art, so it was a great way to engage my interests while also having fun.”

Freshman Ana Acuna, who was busy embroidering a small mushroom

appreciated the mid-week study break.

“It’s been fun. I have other things that I should be doing, but it’s so nice to be embroidering and it goes by surprisingly fast,” Acuna said. “Honestly, when you just sit down and embroider, it looks so good.”

ago by a few Alpha Rho Tau members who really loved to embroider. What began as an individual hobby soon became a commonly shared appreciation for embroidery. “They just wanted to share their skills so they started teaching people a few things and then it

a smile. She also talked about the ease of preparing for the event, and the excitement leading up to the embroidery night. Each year, attendance increases, hidden embroidery talent is discovered, and a love of embroidery is fostered.

“It’s pretty simple to

tional images with richly embroidered patterns depicting flowers, birds, and small animals. These pictures were helpful for beginners and experienced embroiderers alike.

“We usually just find resources online that take you through a few simple steps, and then it’s pretty easy to figure things out,” Connell said.

Before this event was established, Connell had had very little embroidery experience. By virtue of accommodating a range of skill sets, Connell was able to leave her first embroidery night completely competent with needle, thread, and hoop. She looks forward to this event every year.

“The great thing about this event is that embroidery is really easy to pick up,” Connell said.

From geometrical shapes and flowers to cats and cactuses, the embroidery event was a perfect creative outlet for busy students.

According to Alpha Rho Tau Secretary, Mikhaeli Connell, embroidery night was started a couple years

really caught on,” Connell said. Connell has helped organize this event for the past two years, and said this year’s event had the best turnout yet. “I don’t remember ever running out of embroidery hoops before,” Connell said with

get ready for this event,”

Connell said. “Every three or so years we will have to buy some more supplies, but otherwise we just have to secure the location, get some snacks, and set everything up.”

Connell even printed inspirational and instruc-

Inspired to start her own weekly embroidery night, Widhalm looked at her friends at the end of the event and said, “We should go to Walmart and get some supplies.”

Netflix hit show proves love is blindsiding

By Micah Hart Collegian Reporter

Some couples find love even before meeting their future spouse, others can’t seem to get over the physical connection that they believe is required in a relationship, and some are left shocked at the altar. The newest season, which premiered on October 19, serves up all three types of relationships, as individuals attempt to ditch their former dating history and test if love truly is blind.

“Love is Blind,” a Netflix original dating show, gives individuals the opportunity to build a relationship based on emotional connections alone.

Placing contestants in “pods,” couples talk, bond, and “fall in love,” with a wall preventing them from seeing their date. The only way to meet in person is to get engaged. This 12-episode season will leave viewers both concerned about the meaning of love and enthralled by the captivating stories of the individuals

and couples.

At first, this season got off to a slow start, with couples seeming to connect and fall in love without many obstacles. However, the season picked up momentum after five couples got engaged and their relationships began to blossom throughout their honeymoons.

Learning how to interact with one another, most couples had to adapt to being with their new partner. For Raven and SK, their cultural differences seemed to make the biggest impact. SK, a proud Nigerian, stressed the importance of his culture through food, attire, and his family’s patriarchal view of marriage. Introducing his family to his fiancee, SK cooked a traditional Nigerian meal, which the family ate with their hands. Yet, Raven refused to follow suit, asking if she could eat with a fork. This cultural struggle continued up to the wedding. While SK wore an agbada, the traditional attire for a Nigerian male,

Raven attempted to blend their cultures by pairing a traditional head wrap with her wedding dress. Cul -

Honeymooning in Malibu, the couples quickly learned that life can’t always be sunny and carefree. Nancy and Bartiste were also forced to discuss and reconcile their opinions on issues like abortion, the role of an ex, and their age difference. The couple’s largest conflict centered on if abortion is acceptable, especially if a child would suffer from birth defects. This moment defined their chemistry throughout the show, but it also showcased the practical side of being in a relationship. These difficult discussions are some of the most important when developing a connection, and this specific disagreement added to the relatability of the show.

ture had an impact on this relationship, and others throughout the season.

Not only did this season highlight these difficult issues, but it also focused on grief. Because of the show’s premise, it’s common for contestants’ families to disapprove of the circumstances and their new partners. Cole’s family told their son that they would not even meet his

fiance, Zanab, until after the wedding day. On top of his family’s disapproval, both of Zanab’s parents died when she was young, so the couple was forced to reconcile the absence of some of the most important people on their wedding day. This is supposed to be the best day of these young people’s lives, yet their families sometimes fail to support them and either miss a beautiful day when their support would be the most appreciated.

Overall, this season is packed with drama. Contestants shade each other. Superficial relationships either grow into something great, or snowball into big arguments that end in “I do not” at the altar. Shockingly, this specific season sheds light on more significant issues and seems to be much more like real life. Reality television will always be scripted and staged in hopes of high viewer approval, but the production team made this season much closer to what ordinary people experience.

Lewis Collegian Freelancer

“Reality television will always be scripted and staged in hopes of high viewer approval, but the production team made this season much closer to what ordinary people experience.”

Alpha Rho Tau hosts embroidery night. Isabella Helms | Collegian

Hillsdale Academy Service

Club organizes Turkey Trot. Christina Lewis | Collegian

‘An enduring tradition’: Swing by swing club

By Moira Gleason Collegian Freelancer

Every Friday evening, jazz music echoes through campus as students flood the Old Snack Bar or gather outside Christ Chapel for a night of music, camaraderie, and dancing with the Hillsdale Swing Club.

Though the swing dance club has been at Hillsdale College since the 1940s, it came back to life over the past three years. When junior and club president Jacob More arrived on campus in 2020, there were only 10 or 15 students in the club. But thanks to the efforts of More and the current junior class, swing has grown to become one of the largest clubs on campus with a total of 411 members on the weekly email list.

“Our class brought the swing club back,” More said. “We came in ready to dance and ready to meet new people.”

According to More, the growth of the swing club started at a speakeasy event in 2020 when the annual 1920s themed dance brought in more than 70 students.

“Live jazz, mocktails, lights, and decorations, everything was there, you name it,” More said. “That was the first time we thought this was something that could keep growing, that could be very good, and that could be something more than just fun and could be something moral on

In looking back at his time on the court, Markman described his constitutional philosophy as originalist.

“Originalism was the idea that, in trying to give meaning to the Constitution, we look to the language of the Constitution and we look to the intentions of the framers as communicated by that language,” Markman said. “That’s very distinctive from the approaches to the Constitution where judges are allowed to determine what they believe are the evolving meanings of the Constitution.”

Markman said the justice system should look to the rule of law instead of rule of judges.

“I authored about 175 opinions of the court — that is majority opinions of the court — and of course

campus.”

Since then, More and the other club officers have focused on advertising swing to as many current and prospective students as possible. Beyond teaching students to dance, they hope to make the club a welcoming and fun environment that supports the mission of the college as a whole.

“When we became officers, we wanted to change the mission of the club. Instead of just dancing, we wanted it to be an atmosphere students could go to rather than late and loud frat parties or just getting stuck studying in their dorm all night,” More said. “No one is required to dance at swing. The mission now is to provide the kind of strong community of mutual respect which the students were told they would have when they got to Hillsdale. Swing takes the mission of the college and communicates it through dance.”

Senior and swing club treasurer Lewis Degoffau said the growth the swing club has seen in the past few years is a natural result of the community it fosters.

“We haven’t done a lot of specific things to grow it,” Degoffau said. “The majority of the work has been done by the students themselves and people inviting their friends and others to join them.”

Freshman and recently elected swing club officer Erik Teder recalls experiencing

I had some dissents and concurrences as well,” Markman said. “It’s not the role of judges to construct the law, to fill in gaps, or to substitute their own judgements for those of the legislative branch. The role of the judge is to say what the law ‘is,’ and it is the role of the legislature or Congress is to say what the law ought to be.”

Markman’s career began when he worked as a legislative assistant for Congressman Ed Hutchinson. Before President Ronald Reagan nominated him as assistant attorney general, he worked on the Subcommittee on the Constitution and then the Senate Judiciary Committee. After the Senate unanimously confirmed him, Markman said he worked mainly on policy development in the Department of Justice and coordinating judicial selection by recommending judges for

this welcoming environment at his first swing night on his scholars weekend.

“All the prospective students showed up at the old snack bar at 10 p.m. I had never been much of a dancer, and I expected to stand there and watch people have fun and for it to be awkward,” Teder said. “But Jacob and Lilliana and all the other officers at the time gave us a quick lesson, and from that point onward, I was just

exercise, not only is it camaraderie, but it’s also this really nice recharge because you come and you break from your academics,” Laymann said. “I think that Hillsdale has to have things like that. We’re not going to create the kind of people we want to create if all we’re doing is sitting in towers and reading books all the time.”

Junior and swing club officer Lilliana More said she loves seeing students at swing

semester that comes to swing and gets flipped into the air.”

The universal appeal of swing club allows it to grow beyond the weekly Friday Old Snack Bar swing nights. On Sept. 21 this year, More recalled, a flash mob of swing club members came pouring out of the library and their dorms to dance to “September” by Earth, Wind, and Fire in front of the chapel at 9:21 pm.

Earlier this month, the swing club earned recognition from Harry James Orchestra leader Fred Radke when they took the dance floor by storm during the big band’s concert. Radke told the students at the concert that he was glad young people were learning to dance and finding joy in carrying on the rich culture of swing and jazz music.

social outlet.

“We want to strike that balance of not only being respectful to the past but also fearlessly evaluating the new ideas in the future,” Layman said.

The officers of the swing club hope to keep promoting the club and host more events including a Christmas dance, an electro dance, and a WWII V.E. day themed dance later this year. They will also run a YouTube channel, where new and old members can watch the week’s lesson taught by a club officer. Ultimately, Teder said, the club wants to establish a tradition and culture at Hillsdale that will outlast the current members and officers and continue to bring in new students each year.

hooked with the whole idea of swing dancing for lots and lots of reasons. I had never been at an event before where someone who was a complete outsider was welcomed into a social group with such open arms.”

For sophomore and swing club officer Harrison Layman, swing provides the kind of recreation and community necessary to Hillsdale’s mission as a college.

“It is this multifaceted thing where not only is it

coming out of their shell and form friendships while learning a new and fun artistic skill.

“It’s a great talent to have under your belt, and it looks really cool. My favorite thing about swing is how diverse it has grown. It attracts everyone from football players to anyone who would be quiet on a normal basis but at swing totally comes out of their shell,” More said. “It’s the person that doesn’t raise their hand in class for a whole

Layman commented on how the swing club hopes to carry the great tradition of American jazz music into the future while allowing students to experience swing as a fun

“We’re setting up something for the future,” said Teder. “We’re not just looking at how to make swing fun this Friday, but we want to create a club and an enduring tradition that will exist for as long as Hillsdale does.”

positions across the country. He eventually returned to Michigan, where he continued working in the courts and expressed interest in teaching at Hillsdale.

“The college has evolved a great deal since I first started teaching here nearly 30 years ago, but I’ve always had great admiration for the people I’ve known here, and I think we’re all blessed to be involved with this remarkable academic community,” Markman said. “I admire the sense of independence of Hillsdale, I admire the quality of education, I admire the traditionalist values that it brings to bear, and I admire the first premises and the foundational principles of Hillsdale.”

Professor of Politics

Mickey Craig, who has known the former justice since Markman began teaching at Hillsdale, said he has been an “unexpect -

ed and delightful” friend of almost 30 years.

“He’s always getting involved and people are happy to have him involved. He’s political in the noble and best sense,” Craig said. “ I think he’s one of the most brilliant people I’ve ever known, and he really knows constitutional case law as well as anybody I know.”

According to Craig, Markman has been respected across the political spectrum for his honesty and unwillingness to grant special favors.

“He thinks that his job as a judge is to read the plain language and give it a common sense original meaning and apply that to disputes that come before him,” Craig said. “That’s the way he did his job for 21 years as a Supreme Court justice.”

“We wanted it to be an atmosphere students could go to rather than late and loud frat parties or just getting stuck studying in their dorm.”

Swing club occasionally holds themed-dress events. Courtesy | Jacob More

Markman from A1

Knecht shows Markman’s grandchildren his new portrait. Courtesy | Douglas Milligan Photography

FEATURES

QUICK HITS: John J. Miller

By Hannah Cote Outreach Director

In this quick hits interview, Director of the Dow Journalism Program John J. Miller talks Taco Bell chalupas, Clint Eastwood, and his favorite Collegian staff member.

What would you order at Taco Bell?

Chalupas.

Who is your favorite author?

H.P. Lovecraft. When I was a kid, he blew my mind. Reading him now is pure nostalgia.

What piece of writing are you most proud of publishing?

The last thing I wrote. That’s what it should be if you’re a writer.

Do you believe in ghosts?

I’m willing to consider the evidence.

What is your favorite thing about yourself?

I’ve got a good, strong family, and I’m a happy person. I feel blessed to be here at Hillsdale College.

Who would you like to cowrite a book with?

I did co-write a book a number of years ago with a college friend who is now a professor at Seton Hall. We’re still friends and the book was fine, but I don’t think I want to do that again. I want my books to be my own books rather than collaborations.

What is your favorite Bible verse?

Matthew 6:7, “In praying, do not babble like the pagans, who think that they will be heard because of their many words.” That’s Jesus going Strunk and White, with his version of “omit needless words.” That’s totally Jesus the writing teacher.

What is the most underwhelming state you’ve ever been to?

I want to say Ohio because it sounds like an insult, but Ohio is overwhelming with its awfulness. So I’ll say Nebraska. It’s flat and it’s empty.

What are some of your hot takes?

The problem with the Mexican War is that the United States didn’t seize more of Mexico, Jared Kushner deserves the Nobel Peace Prize for negotiating the Abraham Accords, and Picasso is the

most overrated artist in the history of everything.

What album would be the soundtrack to your life?

My favorite album is called “Starfish” by a group called The Church. I was playing it yesterday. It’s from 1988 and I play it a lot.

What did you want to be when you grew up?

Third baseman for the Detroit Tigers.

If you could be the main character in any movie, who would you be and why?

It’d be a Clint Eastwood movie for sure. Maybe one of the “Dirty Harry” movies. But a Clint Eastwood film because I love what he represents as a vision of America.

What’s your favorite Hillsdale College experience?

It’s when one of our journalism alumni edited me for the first time. The servant had become the master. Now it’s normal for a former student to edit me.

What was your all-time favorite movie growing up?

“Raiders of Lost Ark,” and it remains my favorite, partly

for sentimental reasons. I was 11 when it came out and I saw it five times in the theater, which was, at least for me, extraordinary. I’ll never get sick of it.

What is one habit you have that you would recommend to anyone?

Wake up early. I get up between 4 a.m. and 6 a.m.

I don’t set an alarm. I had a hard time getting up early when I was young, but now I look forward to getting up early. I get a lot done. I also write best in the morning.

If you could only drink one liquid for the rest of your life, what would it be?

That’s a tough one between beer and coffee. I’m gonna

go with coffee. I have coffee every day.

Who is your favorite Collegian staff member?

Always the editor-in-chief. I love you all, but the editor is the hardest worker and has the biggest responsibility. I really depend on a great editor with sound judgment.

DC campus celebrates WHIP’s 50th anniversary Hillsdale archives house historical treasures

By Erin Osborne Collegian Reporter

Long guns, slippers with President John F. Kennedy’s face on them, and a lump of coal may seem completely unconnected. But they all find a home within the depths of Michael Alex Mossey Library’s Archives and Special Collections.

The archives, first founded in the 19th century, house rare and antique books, as well as Hillsdale College memorabilia and assorted artifacts. The long guns are from the Revolutionary War, and the lump of coal was recovered from the wreck of the Titanic.

“You would not expect a lot of these archival materials to be here in Hillsdale,” Natalie Spaulding, sophomore and archives employee, said.

The archives contain two main collections that include national and international history works that support the college’s curriculum, according to Mossey Library Director Maurine McCourry.

The library’s archives include complete collections, such as the Ludwig von Mises collection and Sir Martin Gilbert’s documents, as well as more isolated pieces, like an original copy of Jacques Necker’s publication of Louis XVI’s finances.

“I found an amazing group of items from the French Revolution sitting in the Dow Room, including a document from Jacques Necker, the Minister of Finance for Louis XVI, after he had asked to publish the finances of France,” library archivist Lori Curtis said. “He was told not to, and Necker said, ‘Hold my beer,’ and published it.”

A rare copy of James Joyce’s “Ulysses,” illustrated by Henri Mattise and signed by both men, a German Bible from 1661, and an early copy of the Augsburg Confessions sit among the collected books.

The library houses most of the archival material in the Heritage Room, the Dow Room, the Ludwig von Mises Room, Dow A & B, and a storage warehouse behind Simpson dormitory.

“We have random doodles from congressmen and house managers that were serving during Clinton’s impeachment,” Spaulding said. “They’re just doodles that congressmen did while they were listening to the case.”

Students and professors have access to all the materials, and professors occasionally bring their classes to the archives.

“A class was studying the 1964 presidential election campaign, and so I covered every available surface of the Heritage Room with political memorabilia, a lot of which was focused on 1964,” Curtis said. “The professor had both his undergraduate and graduate classes meet in the Heritage Room, and they absolutely loved it.”

Curtis also has done presentations on the Byzantine coins in the archives for economics classes, and presentations on French publications and literature for Assistant Professor of French Anna Navrotskaya. Associate Professor of English Kelly Franklin stops in just to see a copy of Walt Whitman’s “Leaves of Grass.”

“All of the fliers that get posted on campus and every campus publication end up in archives,” Spaulding said.

By Victoria Wagner Collegian Reporter

Each semester, a small group of Hillsdale students makes a new home in Washington, D.C. This year marks 50 years of the Washington-Hillsdale Internship Program, a semester-long opportunity for Hillsdale undergraduates to live and work in the nation’s capital.

During their time on WHIP, students work fulltime while taking part-time classes in the evening. The program started in 1972 with only a few participants. Since then, hundreds of students have gone on WHIP and used their experience to further their careers.

On Sunday, Nov. 13, the Kirby Center, Hillsdale’s Washington, D.C., campus, held a commemorative ceremony where alumni, faculty, staff, and students gathered to reflect on WHIP’s history.

“When I looked about from my podium, everybody had a smile on their face and they were just enjoying each others company,” Undergraduate Program Coordinator Mary Greco ’22 said.

The Kirby Center opened in 2010. Before its creation, there was no Hillsdale campus in Washington, D.C. Instead, it looked more like a study abroad program.

“When the first WHIP class came, the Kirby center did not exist, so they took classes at Georgetown and then they had their internships,” Greco explained.

The Kirby Center now provides students and professors with a formal space in Washington, D.C. It houses classrooms, offices, and gathering spaces for networking sessions with alumni, mentors, and faculty in the area.

“Undergraduates are a

joy to teach,” said Matthew Mehan, director of academic programs for Hillsdale in D.C., and assistant professor of government. “There is something invigorating, for both the students and the professor, when we are all ‘in it together’ in this delightful challenge and time of growth

Tucker Watkins ’73 joined the first-ever WHIP class back in 1972. He went on to become a businessman and now describes on WHIP as a formative experience. During an anniversary celebration, he reflected on his time with the program. “No matter what career

Partnerships at OptimaEd, a classical education services provider.

“The Washington-Hillsdale Internship Program was a game-changer for me, and ultimately made me feel so much more prepared for graduation and to move forward in my career,” Clemons said.

WHIP alumna and senior Julianna Rylko expressed gratitude for the opportunity to work with a variety of people.

“Being surrounded by peers with different educational backgrounds made me realize that good workers are hard to come by,” Rylko said. “I learned how to handle difficult situations with patience and logic.”

Jennifer Lessnau ’20, WHIP alumna and former undergraduate program coordinator, is now a graduate student at Sotheby’s Institute of Art in London. She reflected on how the program affected her studies.

“It’s really important as an undergrad to take what your professors have been teaching you on Hillsdale’s main campus and throw yourself into a different environment,” said Lessnau.

Mehan noted how “WHIPsters” learn to blend their active and contemplative lives, contributing to developing practical wisdom.

for our students here on the D.C. campus.”

WHIP alumnus and current senior Joseph Coleman said WHIP was transformational for applying what he learned at Hillsdale in everyday working life.

“I’m thankful for how WHIP showed me to take the values I learned at Hillsdale out into the working world,” Coleman said.

path you choose to follow, the experience of the WHIP program will stay with you forever as it has for me, and it will be truly beneficial,” Watkins said.

Domine Clemons ’20 spent her WHIP internship in the U.S. Department of Education under former education secretary Betsy Devos. Since then, she has become the Manager of Strategic

“WHIP students make special demands on themselves to balance a serious professional internship with a serious course of study in the evenings,” Mehan said. “That means saying no to certain creature comforts in a strenuous semester. But as they will tell you themselves, the sacrifice is worth it.”

The very first WHIP class stands before famous D.C. landmarks. Courtesy | Mary Greco

Miller visits his older brother, a student at Hillsdale College, in the 1970s. John J. Miller | Collegian