Grand Valley Lanthorn vol. 56 no. 24

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

Learning

by Legacy Professors present their passions in Last Lecture

GV provost search concludes with appointment of Fatma Mili ADMINISTRATION| A2

Black History month comes to a close with “Don’t Box Me In” event CONVERSATION | A9

M O N D A Y, F E B R U A RY 2 1 , 2 02 2 // VO L . 5 6 N O. 24

@ GV L A N T H O R N

LANTHORN.COM

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

The Grand Valley State University community has had a cumulative total of 7,255 cases since Aug. 1, 2020. The university’s update for this brief was from Friday, Feb. 25.

Through testing results this past week, GVSU’s Virus Action team have so far reported 55 current active cases including five faculty members, six staff members, five on-campus students, 19 “off-campus Ottawa” students, 16 “off-campus Kent” students and four “off-campus other” students with active COVID-19 cases.

“Current active cases” is the count of positive cases reported to the Virus Action Team over the past 10 days. This is an estimate of those currently in isolation, assuming a 10-day symptomatic period following the reporting of a positive test result. Actual periods of isolation are specific to the individual and determined by the county health department.

Vaccination: GVSU encourages all students, faculty and staff to receive the COVID-19 vaccination as soon as possible. All students, faculty and staff are required to be fully vaccinated, barring a medical or religious exemption or postponement. According to the COVID-19 data dashboard, an 80% vaccination rate in the GVSU community is required to reach herd immunity and minimal virus transmission.

Currently, approximately 87% of students report being fully vaccinated, while approximately 94% of faculty and staff reports being fully vaccinated.

There are currently 2,214 students and 139 faculty/staff with approved vaccination exemptions.

Testing and Incidence: GVSU’s own testing program has performed 127,166 tests overall since Aug. 1, 2020, for a cumulative positivity rate of 1.14% from the latest update as of last week. A total of 878 tests were performed over the last seven days.

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

ADMINISTRATION

GV provost search concludes with recent appointment of Fatma Mili

BY AUDREY WHITAKER ASSOCIATE@LANTHORN.COM

Grand Valley State University President Philomena Mantella announced on Feb. 15 that the university had selected Dr. Fatma Mili as the next provost and executive vice president for Academic Affairs at GVSU. Mili is currently the dean of Computing and Informatics at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte. Her role at GVSU will begin in July of 2022.

Mili said she was contacted by Storbeck Search, a search firm hired by GVSU to identify possible candidates for the provost position. Mili said she had heard of GVSU during her time working at Oakland University in Rochester, Michigan.

“We do get solicitations frequently from search firms and this one just caught my attention,” Mili said. “I thought ‘Oh, GVSU, I know the area, I know the university,’ and as I read about it, I was more and more interested.”

Mili said she was impressed by GVSU’s commitment to its mission, community and connection to the surrounding area. Mili said she could see herself making a difference at GVSU and thus felt it was a good fit.

“I’m generally very interested in mission driven institutions where they don’t

PROVOST: Grand Valley State University has selected Dr. Fatma Mili as the next provost and executive vice president for Academic Affairs. Her role at GVSU will begin in July 2022. COURTESY | GVSU

see education as a competition,” Mili said. “Focusing on who we are, what we are trying to do, who our constituency is and so forth. I really felt that in in the description of the position of GVSU.” GVSU’s Provost Search Committee began working to identify which candidates best fit the role of provost at GVSU during the fall 2021 semester. Paul Stans-

bie, Associate Dean of the College of Community and Public Service and Felix Ngrassa, chemistry professor and chair of University Academic Senate, acted as co-chairs to head the search.

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POLITICS

U.S. will see slight fallout from RussiaUkraine conflict, says GV professor

BY JOSHUA ALBURTUS NEWS@LANTHORN.COM

GV FACULTY CONCERNED ABOUT STUDENT ABSENCES The Grand Valley State University campus community recently received an email concerning student attendance from Interim Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs, Dr. Chris Plouff and Vice President for Student Affairs, Dr. Jenny HallJones.

The email stated that despite the number of COVID-19 cases dropping, Plouff and HallJones have been notified by many faculty members that there is still a lack of attendance in their classes and that it’s unrelated to illness.

Plouff and Hall-Jones stressed the importance of attending class and engaging in in-person learning if students are not sick. It was also stated that faculty will only provide appropriate accommodations for excused absences.

FEBRUARY 28, 2022 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLNEWS

AMERICA: GV Professor Dr. Heather Tafel says U.S. will feel conflict in increased gas prices, far less than European countries. GVL | BRI CONWAY

The Russian invasion of Ukraine has begun, eliciting condemnation and impacting nations throughout the world – including the United States.

Since Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the invasion early on Feb. 24, Russian forces have moved rapidly in capturing strategic areas and installations throughout the country.

According to CNN reporting, during the first 24 hours of the invasion Russian forces had already taken up positions in the Chernobyl nuclear facility and the Antonov Airport about 25 miles outside the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv.

In an address to the nation on Feb. 24, U.S. President Joe Biden condemned the attack.

“The Russian military has begun a brutal assault on the people of Ukraine without provocation, without justification (and) without necessity,” Biden said in his address.

Biden was joined by a chorus of world leaders who similarly denounced the Russian invasion.

In a live press statement on Thursday, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen admonished President Putin as she announced a package of economic sanctions against his country.

“We will not let President Putin tear down the security architecture that has given Europe peace and stability over many decades,” Leyen said in the press statement. “We will not allow President Putin to replace the rule of law by the rule of force and ruthlessness.”

Sanctions imposed on the international stage are designed to punish a country by hindering their economic abilities and, in many instances, the ability to trade with one’s own country.

As global leaders have acted swiftly to penalize Russia for the attack, President Biden announced the United States’ own economic sanctions against major Russian banks, wealthy Russian oligarchs, Belarusian individuals and President Putin himself.

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A3 | NEWS

FEBRUARY 28, 2022 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLNEWS

CONTENTS AMINISTRATION

| A2

OPINION

| A4

MEALS

| A5

LAST LECTURE

| A6&7

HEALTHCARE

| A8

CONVERSATION

| A9

HISTORY

| A10

HOCKEY

| A11

TRACK

| A12 VOL. 5 6

NO. 24

Lanthorn Videographer KATE KIRBY

EDITORIAL STAFF Editor-in-Chief ZACK GOODROW

Layout Editor KHOI TRAN

Associate Editor AUDREY WHITAKER Associate Editor XAVIER GOLDEN

Layout Designer DONOVAN LOPEZ PROMOTIONS

News Editor MARY DUPUIS Sports Editor HOLLY BIHLMAN Laker Life Editor JACOB DEWEERD A&E Editor

Promotions Manager GRACE O’BRIEN ADVERTISING STAFF Advertising Manager JORDAN GREEN

COVID-19

Grand Valley Recreation Center struggles to enforce mask mandate

BY ELIZABETH SCHANZ NEWS@LANTHORN.COM

Grand Valley State University’s Virus Action Team (VAT) has announced that the university is currently at a COVID-19 alert level 2, which includes a policy for mask mandates inside of all on-campus buildings.

However, this guideline continues to be highly unpopular in one building in particular: the GVSU Recreation Center.

The GVSU community has been affirming this observation, as it’s recently become a topic of discussion.

Discussed by both word-of-mouth and through online platforms such as Reddit and Yik Yak, an anonymous social media platform that allows individuals to post and interact with users within a five-mile radius, there are varying opinions.

One Reddit user, Affectionate_ Case732, said, “(Do) people wear masks in the Rec Center and how strict (is) the staff with implementing the policy?”

Another user, JakkalAdrem, replied that they are not strict due to the belief that it’s difficult to wear a mask when exercising “Almost everyone has (their) mask not covering their nose, some don’t cover their mouth,” JakkalAdrem said. “You shouldn’t have to worry about someone coming up to you and telling you to put

POLICY: Despite the mask mandate in place for all buildings on GV’s campus, the recreation and wellness center has been known not to enforce the policy among its attendees. GVL | RACHEL SLOMBA

your mask on correctly. Most people realize that wearing a mask when working out is quite awful.”

Tori Miers, a frequent Rec Center attendee and GVSU sophomore, has witnessed similar improper mask usage and lack of enforcement.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen any of the employees go right up to students and say something to them just because they’re students too,” Miers said.

Sophomore Kylie McCaskill, a student worker in the rec-well division who teaches group exercise classes, said she’s

seen a change in enforcement of policies within the Rec Center.

“They’ve gotten a lot stricter on masks recently,” McCaskill said. “Before people would just say ‘Make sure to wear your mask,’ and then there would be announcements every so often.

Now they’re actually walking around and up to people.”

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BUSINESS STAFF

SABRINA EDWARDS

Image Editor MEGHAN LANGREN Multimedia EditorHAILIEGH HUBER

Business Manager MORGAN JOHNSTON

TEACHER

GV awarded global fellowship for 2022 research on equity among K-12 educators

Asst. Business Manager LUKE KREGER Distribution Manager DAYTON HAMMON

BY LAUREN FORMOSA NEWS@LANTHORN.COM

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EDUCATION: GV’s Center for Educational Partnerships will participate in an innovation challenge during 2022. GVL | MEGHAN LANDGREN

The Grand Valley State University Center for Educational Partnerships has been selected as one of 10 cohorts for the 2022 Steelcase Social Innovation Fellowship for their efforts to address the shortage and retention of educators of color in local communities.

This year, Steelcase’s innovation challenge will focus on issues surrounding equity in higher education.

The four-month fellowship, which is the second phase of the Equity in Education Challenge, will provide its cohorts with the tools, finances and support needed to carry out their individual projects.

For GVSU’s Center of Educational Partnerships, the resources and global networking from this fellowship will help further their research and community outreach to find better ways of supporting current and future educators of color.

Chasity Bailey-Fakhoury, associate

professor of education, said the team’s work will center on how to increase educator retention at every level, especially when educators are first entering the field.

“We already face a quick turnaround in the first three years and we see that about 19% of educators of color who come in each year will leave the profession,” Bailey-Fakhoury said. “We want to try to mitigate that, so you have to create an environment that’s welcoming and supportive and where folks have a sense of belonging.”

University students of color who’re working towards their education degrees also face barriers of entry that Bailey-Fakhoury and the rest of the team hope to address.

Bailey-Fakhoury said not feeling a sense of belonging in their future career or feeling as if their expertise is not appreciated, plays a big factor in students of color leaving education for other fields.

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A4 | OPINIONS

FEBRUARY 28, 2022 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLANTHORN

GVL EDITORIAL CARTOON

By Athena Jasman

EDITORIAL

Social media brings conflict, misinformation close to home

O 02/21/22

editorial@lanthorn.com

Column: Is pop-punk back?

BY AYRON RUTAN FRESHMAN ARTS@LANTHORN.COM JOURNALISM

If you were a teenager or young adult in the early 2000s, it’s likely that you and your friends were listening to bands like Blink-182, Sum 41, Green Day and Simple

Plan in the way that people of that same demographic today listen to Drake, The Weeknd and Ariana Grande.

The dominant genre of music on the airwaves shifts with every decade. Rock and its many forms ruled radio from the late 80s into the 2000s, with pop and hip-hop taking the lead in recent years. But that seems to be changing as we move into the 2020s. The pop-punk soundtracks of the era of Dickies shorts, spiky hair and “American Pie” are finding their way back into the spotlight through the music of today.

Since the release of Machine Gun Kelly’s 2020 LP “Tickets to

My Downfall”, new pop-punk artists have been getting big all over.

Artists like Mod Sun, Jdxn and Oliver Tree are rising up the charts to join their pop and hip-hop counterparts.

This new batch of artists features a different sound however, showing signs of a new iteration of the pop-punk genre. Elements of hip-hop are extremely prevalent, including trap beats and booming electronic bass.

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Grand Rapids MMA fighter works towards stardom

BY JAMES HERRICK JUNIOR SPORTS@LANTHORN.COM JOURNALISM

In the main event of UFC Fight Night, Walker vs. Hill, light heavyweight Jamahal Hill (10-1, 1 NC) found himself in the first main event of his Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) career. He lived up to his nickname of “Sweet Dreams” as he brutally knocked out his opponent, Johnny Walker, in the first round.

Training out of Black Lion Jiu-Jitsu Academy in Grand Rapids, Michigan, Hill is currently the most successful fighter training out of the city. The Grand Rapids area is not new to the mixed martial arts (MMA) scene as Grand Valley State University alumni Tony Ferguson and Kevin Lee have seen success in the sport. However, neither Ferguson nor Lee were actively training out of Grand Rapids during their UFC career. With Hill’s talent and personality, he has the potential to become the first UFC star training out of Grand Rapids.

The blueprint for achieving stardom in MMA was laid out beautifully by Conor McGregor during his early career. The formula is simple: it takes skill, highlight finishes and a personality that makes fans either love you or hate you.

Hill’s performance against Walker demonstrates his skill tremendous-

ly. This fight was not going to be an easy win for Hill as Walker presented some challenges that can be difficult to overcome. Standing at 6’6” with an 82” reach, Walker is one of the longest fighters in the UFC. To pair with this, Walker has great kicks and fights from an orthodox stance.

Hill on the other hand, fights from a southpaw stance. This is crucial as their contrasting stances allow Walker to attack Hill with kicks.

These challenges were present early in the fight as Walker was using his kicks to stay out of the reach of Hill’s punches. To counter this, Hill switched stances to mirror Walker’s orthodox stance. Hill then slipped a jab from Walker and countered with a massive right hand.

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ne week ago, the average student at Grand Valley State University may have seen the occasional meme about World War III or read a headline or two on the Russia-Ukraine crisis. Now, conversation about Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is pervading classrooms and dinner tables, and social media platforms are choked with real-time footage of the invasion and a plurality of hot-takes.

As peace talks on the Ukrainian-Belarusian border are authorized by President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine and President Vladimir Putin of Russia, and the world sees its first legitimate hope of de-escalation, GVSU students – and college students across the country – are coming down from a borderline-hysteric week-long period of existential crisis.

Social media, like Twitter and TikTok, brought a conflict an ocean away, that has a very small chance of actual U.S. military involvement, into the front of college students’ minds. While international awareness is a desirable trait in 21st-century global citizens, the means of this kind of connection are fraught with problems.

It became clear that misinformation and footage about the invasion were challeng-

ing to parse from falsified or misleading content; video from old military crises was recycled, and realistic footage from the video game Arma 3 was framed as real-time documentation of the war.

YouTube, TikTok and Twitter also became entangled in Russia’s efforts to spread disinformation about the crisis-turned-war, as a state-sponsored outlet— “RT” — posted misleading videos, defending Russia’s attack and deflecting attention, to the platforms.

Innocuous, misguided rumors worked in conjunction with strategically drafted propaganda – against a backdrop of accurate news from trustworthy sources – generated a chaotic field of confusion among social media users.

Profiles and pages were granted momentary legitimacy, as desperation for up-to-date information overtook skepticism. Generation Z’s heated, artificial intimacy with the topic undermined the level-headedness that students could use to vet the breaking news being presented to them.

Social media users took on the roles of commentators and observation-makers, in addition to producing and consuming the news.

GVL OPINION POLICY

Letter to the editor should include the author’s full name, relevant title and a headshot, along with a valid email address and phone number for confirming the identity of the author. Letters should be approximately 500-650 words in length, and they are not edited by the Lanthorn staff except to fix technical errors or to clarify. Reader submissions on the opinion page appear as space permits.

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

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

The Lanthorn strives to be a safe vehicle for community discussion. With this in mind, the Lanthorn will not publish or entertain any forms of hate speech, but neither will it discriminate against any other views, opinions or beliefs.

The content, information and views expressed are not approved by-nor do they necessarily represent those of-the university or its Board of Trustees, officers, faculty or staff.

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A5 | NEWS

FEBRUARY 28, 2022 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLNEWS MEALS

GV campus dining, University Food Committee work to improve food service

BY GILLIAN HANTON NEWS@LANTHORN.COM

The Grand Valley State University community continues to struggle with issues surrounding campus dining such the ability to provide quality food services amidst staffing shortages and limited locations.

Campus dining and the University Food Committee (UFC) are working to better the experience.

Although many students are active consumers of on-campus dining options, some are unaware of the UFC, an initiative within the division of student affairs with a focus on several aspects of food provided by GVSU. Dr. Aaron Haight, co-chair of the UFC, has helped to create its goals for campus dining.

“The purpose of the UFC is to evaluate the effectiveness of food services on all of GVSU’s campuses through student, faculty, staff and administrative representation,” Haight said.

“It determined four areas of concentration; accessibility options, food insecurity, staffing crisis and third-party contracts.”

The UFC has hosted monthly meetings to address campus dining concerns and recent achievements. The next meeting will be held on March 25 at 1:00 p.m.

in Kirkhof Center, Room 2270.

In addition to the work of the UFC, GVSU campus dining has recently hosted pop-up events around campus for students.

At a men’s basketball game, campus dining provided a free cookie for the first 100 concessions guests. The organization has also set up a free “make-your-own trail mix” bar at the Laker Store, with a free drink included.

Despite the efforts of campus dining and the UFC, several issues remain with food service at GVSU. The staffing shortage has persisted throughout the winter semester, which means several on-campus dining locations have been forced to keep their doors closed.

This issue has also put stress on existing campus dining locations because they need to provide for a bigger clientele with the same limited resources.

GVSU junior, Sara Vickrey, said she has noticed the increase in demand at popular locations.

“I stop at Panda Express and Starbucks pretty regularly and the line is usually out the door,” Vickrey said. “I’ve definitely had to wait half an hour for food before.”

STAFFING: Although GVSU’s campus dining and University Food Committee have been making efforts towards improving students’ experiences with dining on campus, the issue of staffing shortages and dining closures due to the effects of COVID-19 still remains. GVL | ANNABELLE ROBINSON

EXPERIENCE: Grand Valley’s campus dining and the University Food Committee have been trying to better student experiences through weekly meetings and new events. GVL | ANNABELLE ROBINSON

However, many students are understanding of the current staffing crisis and are trying to make the best of it.

One thing that hasn’t been compromised, Vickrey noticed, was the quality of service she has been receiving.

“Even though I’ve heard that Grand Valley is having staffing issues, the cus-

tomer service is still really good,” Vickrey said. “All the food service workers I’ve had have been very friendly and helpful.”

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A6&7 | LAKER LIFE

FEBRUARY 28, 2022 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLLAKERLIFE

BY JACOB DEWEERD LAKERLIFE@LANTHORN.COM

On Feb. 22, Grand Valley State University students and staff gathered in the Mary Idema Pew Library Multi-purpose Room to watch professors Polly Diven and Majd Al-Mallah give what may have been the most meaningful lectures of their lives. These lectures were shared as part of the annual Last Lecture event held at universities across the country.

Last Lecture is held every year in honor of Carnegie Mellon University professor Randy Pausch, who gave his own last lecture a year before dying of cancer.

The speech, which was given a month after Pausch learned his pancreatic cancer diagnosis was terminal, focused on celebrating the wonderful life he had lived instead of focusing on death.

“He’s an incredibly inspirational story of someone who decided that he wasn’t going to accept that his last few months are just going to be wallowing about the fact that he was going to pass,” Al-Mallah said. “He really made a conscious decision to take advantage of every moment to give advice and wisdom to the people.”

Al-Mallah teaches courses on Arabic language and literature, which were obvious sources of information for his lecture about taking risks and the common theme of the journey found in Arabic poetry.

“I joked with everybody that I needed to tell them about camels and Arabic poetry,” Al-Mallah said. “I tried to make sort of a larger point to link the importance of taking a risk in our life and in our journey in order to make meaningful lives and decisions.”

Knowing his audience well, Al-Mallah was able to relate his lecture to the journey all GVSU students are going through right now.

“The journey part is not really about the camel, but it’s about the poet’s journey with the camel facing difficulties, dangers and tribulations and having learned from that experience,” Al-Mallah said. “Students who are studying at the university are basically going through a similar journey of transition and a journey of becoming.”

Diven’s area of expertise is in international relations and foreign policy. Her lecture was broken up into three parts that all represent something about her or her career in teaching.

“It was a third about my influences in my life and where my political socialization comes from in particular, some of the early parts of my life and how I got interested in politics,” Diven said. “The second part was about how I teach, where my teaching style comes from and the third part was about why I teach what I teach.”

Because Diven’s lecture was focused on her own experiences, she ended up learning more about herself by the end of her lecture than she expected to.

“It’s the first time I’ve ever really talked about myself in a speech, so I think it’s very different because you learn more about somebody,” Diven said. “I guess the other thing that I think is very nice about it’s that in preparing for it, you do more reflection. I probably thought a lot more about where some of my political socialization comes from than I have ever thought about that before.”

Al-Mallah and Diven shared similar sentiments of what it was like to give their

last lecture. They championed the opportunity to teach about broader life lessons and share more about themselves with the audience. Both professors also highlighted how the experience of speaking at Last Lecture differs from teaching a class due to the format of the event.

“It was me just giving a lecture, which is typically the way these are,” Al-Mallah said. “Folks tend to do a presentation, but all of my teaching is based in discussion.

It’s a different type of environment where you have a limited amount of time.”

Last Lecture is also unique because the speakers are chosen by students.

Diven and Al-Mallah were the two finalists after Student Senate sent a survey out to members and various social media channels. Planning for the event was led by student and Senate Vice President for Educational Affairs Faith Kidd, who said the event was a success this year.

“After planning and attending Last Lecture, I left the library with a huge smile on my face, thanked the professors profusely and was motivated to take an additional class with both of them before I leave GVSU,” said Kidd.

Being able to learn more about professors was Diven, Al-Mallah and Kidd’s favorite aspect of Last Lecture. All three said it was the defining factor that made the event worth attending and participating in.

“Students sometimes fear professors or avoid getting to know their instructors,” Kidd said. “Last Lecture is great because students can learn about their professors and laugh and cry through their life stories with them. It’s more than a lecture or educational experience. Last Lecture allows us to connect as people.”

GVL | LAUREN SEYMOUR

A8 | NEWS

FEBRUARY 28, 2022 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLNEWS

HEALTHCARE

GV Scribe Academy opens new doors for students

BY ANTHONY CLARK JR. NEWS@LANTHORN.COM

Grand Valley State University’s Scribe Academy creates a segue for students working towards being in a healthcare profession by bridging the gap between educational resources and hands-on experience.

The program provides in-person and online healthcare courses that will earn them certificate of completion, allowing students a fast-track to work for local and surrounding healthcare providers at their own pace.

GVSU junior, Madisen Baliko, recently completed the Scribe Academy program and now works at Michigan Pain Consultants. Baliko said she joined the program to gain more experience related to her degree.

“I initially was rejected from the radiation therapy program the first time I applied and was told that I needed more healthcare experience,” Baliko said.

Although the program provides many opportunities, it does require a high level of attention to detail and time management skills.

“The only thing I wish I would have known prior to entering the program is the true workload,” Baliko said. “I knew this was a demanding program and required a lot of attention, but I didn’t fully grasp the material until I was in the program. On top of regular homework, I also needed to study the scribe materials and it definitely took some

time to adjust my schedule.”

Now working for a local healthcare provider, Baliko is one of countless individuals that continue to experience the effects of the shortage in healthcare workers in a field with a demand that continues to rise.

“My original plan was not pain management,” Baliko said. “(However), due to clinical sites falling through, I needed to pick a different route and I am so glad I did. Just like anything else, adjusting to working while being a student was difficult. However, my manager at Helix (Scribe Solutions) is super flexible and willing to make adjustments to my schedule in order to fit in my classes.”

With any demanding program comes challenges that can be difficult to overcome, but Baliko said she knows her decision to push through the adversity set her up for success in her career field.

“Doing the GVSU scribe program was a life changing experience,” Baliko said. “Going from the classroom, to clinical, to actually working in the field was such a great experience. Everyone is so welcoming and made sure I understood everything before I moved on to work by myself. This program is very demanding, some may say hard, but is extremely doable if you commit to it.”

Part-time positions are available to all students at scribe locations that work with Helix Scribe, including primary care, neurosurgery and orthopedics.

CAREER: Grand Valley State University students have found success in their experiences working in the GVSU Scribe Academy in partnership with Helix Scribe Solutions. COURTESY | MADISEN BALIKO

Another student that committed to the university and Helix Scribe programs has continued to experience success in his career path.

Alejandro Leon graduated from GVSU in 2019 with a degree in biomedical sciences and is currently working as an associate scribe at Helix Scribe.

“I was on the fence about going to PA (physician assistants) school versus medical

school,” Leon said. “After hearing about the GVSU Scribe Academy program and the opportunity to work alongside both PAs and physicians, I knew this would be the perfect opportunity to solidify which career path would be more suitable for me.

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CONFERENCE

GV hosts Michigan Model Arab League

BY JAMIE WILSON NEWS@LANTHORN.COM

DEBATE: Grand Valley State University held the Michigan Model Arab League once more. The conference offered students an opportunity to participate in passionate debate and develop problem-solving skills. GVL | MEGHAN LANDGREN

This year the Michigan Model Arab League took place at the Eberhard Center on Grand Valley State University’s Pew campus in Grand Rapids.

It was GVSU’s 25th anniversary hosting the conference, which took place from Feb. 17-19.

Organized by Majd Al-Mallah, GVSU professor and coordinator for GVSU’s Arabic and Middle East studies programs, the Michigan Model Arab League is a regional conference that draws students from across the state.

The conference typically consists of GVSU, Aquinas College, the University of Michigan Dearborn, Grand Rapids Community College and other schools throughout the Midwest.

“The Arab League is a very old organization,” Al-Mallah said. “It was actually established before the United Nations. It’s an organization that started by fostering collaboration among Arab countries and grew into the big international organization that operates today.”

During the conference, students each represent a specific country from the actual Arab League and are tasked with playing the role of diplomats. The students discuss topics such as joint defense, political and Palestinian issues and social issues within group committees. They work to create solutions for these issues.

The agenda is written before the conference, giving students time to prepare. When students arrive at the conference, they can petition to add topics they feel should be discussed. Topics include security, education and public health.

“The goal is to offer an educational opportunity for students to learn about the Arab world by having them generate their own topics and issues currently happening in the Arab world,” Al-Mallah said.

Kyla Ozinga, a GVSU student who was the Head Delegate for Jordan at the conference, won the Outstanding Delegate Award for the Joint Defense Council and the Overall Outstanding Delegation for Jordan in conjunction with another student.

Ozinga said her favorite part of the conference was the passionate debate.

“The atmosphere and immersion in the event was something that I thrived off of as someone who loves politics,” Ozinga said.

“The fact that everyone else there had relatively the same attitude and dedication to the Model made it a wonderful experience.”

Al-Mallah said this blend of collaboration and quick thinking is what makes the conference so special.

“The League is the essence of active learning and experiential learning because students can’t just memorize a bunch of information, they have to learn and understand the topics and then collaborate with others to find a solution,” Al-Mallah said.

The conference was open to students of all majors, as Al-Mallah said it could benefit any student interested and willing to put in the necessary effort to succeed.

“Some students are interested in diplomatic work, but the class is not only for those interested in these fields,” Al-Mallah said.

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A9 | LAKER LIFE

FEBRUARY 28, 2022 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLLAKERLIFE

A LOOK AT LIFESTYLE CELEBRATE MARDIS GRAS WITH THE FRENCH CLUB The French Club is hosting a Mardis Gras celebration on Tuesday, March 1 in Kirkhof 2264. The gathering will highlight the annual Louisiana tradition and include music, food, games and festive items like eye masks and beads. It’ll also be an opportunity to meet some new friends and get acquainted with the French Club. This event is open to all students.

LEARN ABOUT RAINBOW CAPITALISM WITH THE LGBT RESOURCE CENTER Rainbow capitalism is defined as the marketing effort towards the queer community, which has acquired major purchasing power over the last few decades. As Pride Month becomes more of an opportunity for companies and brands to advertise to the queer community, some of the meaning behind the event is lost in pursuit of profits. Mel Godwin and Abigail Liggett from the LGBT Resource Center are hosting an opendoor discussion of this phenomenon on Tuesday, March 1 in Kirkhof 1161.

The event is open to all who wish to attend.

NETWORK WITH GEOGRAPHERS AND URBAN PLANNERS GVSU’s Geography and Sustainable Planning Department is hosting a networking event for Geography and Urban Planning majors. The social event will take place at Squibb Coffee and Wine Bar at 6 p.m. on Thursday, March 3. Charcuterie will be provided free of charge, while drinks like coffee and wine are available a la carte. This event is open to alumni, faculty, staff and students.

SEE A DOCUMENTARY ABOUT TEACHER ATTRACTION AND RETENTION

In Michigan alone, there are approximately 60,000 certified teachers that are not teaching in public schools. The documentary “Teachers Who Are Not Teaching: Who Are They and How Do We Get Them Back” explores why that may be the case. The GVSU Charter Schools Office is hosting a screening of the documentary, which features interviews with researchers, schools and teachers in Michigan. A brief open discussion of the issue will follow the screening. Due to limited seat availability attendees are encouraged to fill out an RSVP form if they wish to attend.

CONVERSATION

Black History month comes to a close with ‘Don’t Box Me In’ event

BY MELIA WILLIAMS LAKERLIFE@LANTHORN.COM

As Black History Month comes to an end, the very last black history celebration event at Grand Valley State University, “Don’t Box Me In’’, took place via Zoom on the night of Feb. 21. The presentation focused on how multiracial and biracial individuals are often marginalized, alienated and forced to choose one race instead of valuing all the races that make them unique.

Director of TRIO Teacher Preparation Student Support Services (TPSSS) Aliya Armstrong kicked off the event with an icebreaker. She asked the Zoom room what races we see in artists like Drake and Alicia Keys. Many students were surprised by the results, such as Drake being Jewish, Canadian and African American and Alicia Keys being Italian, Scottish, Irish and African American.

“Which celebrity do you think will most likely be asked, ‘Where are you from, what language do you speak, where are your parents from?’,” said Armstrong. “We make so many assumptions about individuals that can be hurtful, damaging and cause longterm effects.”

Student Renee Carter showed a slide that read ‘I am very insecure about my looks, and I always have been because I’m mixed race’ and asked the audience what came to mind when they read the quote. The point was to show that people with diverse back-

grounds often feel they are too white to identify as one race, yet too dark to identify with another.

“I was called names such as ‘wheat thin’ to ‘white girl’ and even ‘mayo,’” Carter said.

“It really hurt and made me question how they thought of me.”

Another student leading the discussion, Hannah Markham, shared some of her experiences with colorism. Her first exposure to colorism came early in life when her older sisters didn’t want to interact with her due to her lighter skin. After Markham’s story, students in the audience joined in and told their own stories.

“It’s not really obvious what I’m mixed with,” said one student. “I’ve been mistaken for being from Hispanic descent so they would call me things like ‘beaner.’”

Many of the statistics included in the presentation were surprising. Markham shared a case study on biracial people where 55% said they were subjected to racial slurs or jokes and 24% felt annoyed because people made assumptions on their racial background.

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DISCUSSION

Counseling Center discusses body image and its involvement with media

BY CLEMENCE DANIERE LAKERLIFE@LANTHORN.COM

The Grand Valley State University Counseling Center hosted an event titled “Body Image” on Feb. 24 to bring awareness to how various kinds of media impact body and self-image. It was hosted concurrently with National Eating Disorder Screening Day.

DE-STRESS BY MAKING BODY SCRUBS COURTESY OF THE KAUFMAN INTERFAITH INSTITUTE On Thursday, March 3, the Kaufman Interfaith Institute is hosting a body scrub making event in Kirkhof 2270.

EQUALITY: Grand Valley’s TRIO holds its final event of this year’s Black History Month series, holding conversations about being biracial and the stigma and hardships surrounding that. GVL | SYDNEY LIM

RESOURCES: GVSU’s Counseling Center hosted an Instagram Live event discussing body image and social media. GVL | DOMINIC STANKIEWICZ

Nancy Graies, a doctoral intern at GVSU, hosted the Instagram Live meeting to introduce the idea of body image, explain misconceptions and provide resources for people struggling with body image issues. She explained that body image can be positive, negative or even both and is affected by social, cultural and environmental factors.

Body image is made up of four main factors: self-perception, how one feels about one’s body, how one believes others perceive them and how one behaves as a result of body image. Graies said all of these factors can contribute to satisfaction or acceptance of their body and the way it looks. They can also lead to dissatisfaction, which can cause people to engage in unhealthy behaviors in order to change the way they look.

“Someone who has a positive body image is comfortable in their own skin,” Graies said. “It leads to higher levels of physical and psychological well being and leads to better psychological development.”

Graies explained that 74% of average-weight women and 46% of aver-

age-weight men reported being unhappy with their weight and appearance. These negative self-images start at a young age when children start internalizing their surroundings, such as family, friends and more notably, the media. Graies’ report showed that 80% of children who are 10 years old are afraid of being overweight.

“We live in this media saturated world and are bombarded with images and we spend more time than ever using technology, using media and there are messages everywhere telling us how we should look and feel like,” Graies said. “That can reduce someone’s confidence overall.”

Women are constantly receiving messages that make them believe that being thinner, leaner and prettier will lead to personal and professional success. Men are often told to be bigger, stronger and more muscular and if that is achieved they will be happy, loved and successful.

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A10 | ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT ARTS AT A GLANCE BUTTERFLIES BLOOM AT FREDRICK MEIJER GARDEN

On Monday, March 1, Fredrick Meijer Garden’s butterfly exhibit will be opening to the public. This will last until April 30. This butterfly exhibit is the largest temporary tropic butterfly exhibit in the nation. The butterflies fly freely around the Lena Meijer Tropical Conservatory. There is no extra fee to see the butterflies, it’s included with the entrance ticket. Every Tuesday there’ll be extended hours until 9 p.m. where spectators can hunt for butterflies with their flashlights.

There are over 7,000 butterflies from 60 different species. As well as butterflies, there will also be caterpillars and an observation station. Those who attend can see the transformation process from caterpillar to butterfly, as well as watching some butterflies hatch before their eyes. Throughout the exhibit there will also be educational resources to learn more about the different butterfly species as well as activities.

GRAM TO HOLD NEW VISIONNAIRE SERIES

On Thursday March 3, the Grand Rapids Art Museum is hosting local photographer Alfield Reeves. Reeves is the Founder and Principal CEO of Alfield Reeves Photography. He’s worked for Vogue Greece, Grand Rapids Magazine and The Trace. He’ll be having a conversation about his career and how he’s navigated being a business owner and successful photographer. After this event there will be a question-and-answer section.

Registration is required to attend and is available on the GRAM’s website.

Reeves is originally from Liberia but is now located in Grand Rapids.

He is a self-taught freelance editorial and portrait photographer, specializing in showcasing Black people. His work is a mix of photojournalism, portraits and fashion. Reeves’ work has been featured in local and statewide exhibits as well as multiple publications.

STUDIO PARK TO HOLD MOVIES ON THE PLAZA On Sunday March 6 Studio Park will be showing a double feature outside.

Those who want to attend need to bring their own chairs and weather appropriate clothes. Both movies are free to view.

There will be fire pits as well a bar offering hot beverages. There will be snacks available for purchase at the concession stand, otherwise attendees can bring their own snacks from home. The first movie that is being shown is “Spies in Disguise,” which is an animated movie, rated PG. This will start at 1 p.m. and has a run time of one hour and 42 minutes.

The second movie is “Star Wars: The Force Awakens.”

FEBRUARY 28, 2022 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLARTS

HISTORY

GV exhibits the Interurban at the Pew Campus

BY COLLEEN GARCIA ARTS@LANTHORN.COM

Grand Valley State University is now exhibiting what is left of the Interurban railway track at the Pew campus. This will be used to commemorate and teach the history of the electric transportation system within the city of Grand Rapids dating back to the late 1800s.

Nathan Kemler, GVSU director of galleries and collections, worked on bringing this piece to GVSU. The idea for this exhibition came to life after the Mount Vernon Pedestrian Mall project was approved by former GVSU President Thomas Hass. After that, a letter was written to Haas asking for more attention to be brought to the tracks. Kemler would later be asked by the office of presidents to move forward with making the Interurban Railway marker exhibition.

The Railway exhibition is a unique opportunity for students and the Grand Rapids community to learn more about electric public transportation in the West Michigan community.

“This project is unique because we often forget about important past innovations that are still relevant today,” Kemler said. “In this case, we have tracks in the ground that are over 100 years old that point to an equitable transportation technology that we are finding ourselves in search of again today.”

Matthew Daley, a GVSU history professor, was also involved with this project. Daley said the exhibition is beneficial for students to learn about. He said the interurban system was an effective means of transportation between cities and towns for a relatively

RESPONSE: Two Grand Valley professors hosted a Zoom discussing a recent GVSU gallery from the lens of their fields, responded to the art and how they viewed these pieces. GVL | LAUREN SEYMOUR

low cost along with being less damaging to the environment.

“Today we talk about electric cars and electricity as if it’s some sort of new idea, but these concepts already existed and their disappearance was not merely due to having a ‘better technology’ in fact, far from it,” Daley said.

Kemler went on to speak about today’s changing world and how our surrounding landscapes and environments are constantly evolving. He said that the interurban railways of Grand Rapids had many benefits that many did not recognize.

“The Interurban railways of Grand Rapids include numerous community advantages for the residents of West Michigan,” Kemler said. “This included health benefits, economic benefits, social connections and a

safe and equitable transportation mode.”

GVSU was about to save two remnants of the original track, which is significant as it’s one of the only remaining pieces of the old city. Both the tracks and the bricks that encase them give viewers a look into the past.

‘The exhibit is more than just about railroads – it also shows the neighborhood where GVSU’s downtown campus sits today – that the space has been made and remade many times,” Daley said. “The community that surrounds GV’s campus remains a vibrant community as it was during the early 20th century and that legacy can be seen just walking down the street.”

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PERFORMANCE

MTD Department closes Black History Month with student concert

BY AYRON RUTAN ARTS@LANTHORN.COM

Black History Month is a time to celebrate, appreciate and acknowledge the rich history and achievements of African-Americans. Grand Valley State University’s Music, Theater and Dance Department closed out this month-long celebration with a livestreamed concert that was broadcasted on Feb. 25.

The show featured GVSU voice and piano students performing 12 pieces from

CONCERT: Grand Valley streamed a student-led concert celebrating Black composers for Black History Month. GVL | ANNABELLE ROBINSON

renowned African-American composer Samuel Coleridge-Taylor’s “24 Negro Melodies, op. 59.” Organized by GVSU professors Dr. Sookyung Cho and Dr. Kathryn Stieler, the event celebrated Coleridge-Taylor’s music which features an interesting blend of sounds from South African and African-American culture. Stieler was excited about the music and thought it proposed something new for her and her voice students to learn.

“This event has given me and my students an opportunity to see how folk songs - songs that reflect both South African and African American culture - have been passed down through a singing tradition and expertly arranged for piano by a composer who, in spite of not growing up in either culture, effectively captured the essence of the cultures musically,” said Stieler.

An opportunity to learn also appealed to Lindsey O’Donnell, a GVSU student who performed at the concert.

“These particular works of Coleridge-Taylor are based on spirituals,” O’Donnell said.

“It’s our job as vocalists to sing a few lines of

the spiritual that each piano piece is based on. By doing this, the audience was able to hear glimpses of those vocal melodies in the piano pieces. It’s also fun because these spirituals are generally well-known, so even people watching who had never heard of Samuel Coleridge-Taylor may have recognized some of the music being performed.”

The most important aspect of the concert was the music, as Coleridge-Taylor had a unique background that shined through in every piece he composed. O’Donnell said this element was a motivating factor.

“The music and composer are the most significant part of this recital – Samuel Coleridge-Taylor had a very interesting background and he wrote music that reflects that uniqueness,” O’Donnell said. “It’s been a fun challenge working on it over the past few weeks and it’s inspired me to look into other composers who, like Coleridge-Taylor, may be outside the realm of what we usually consider to be standard classical repertoire.”

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A11 | SPORTS

FEBRUARY 28, 2022 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLSPORTS

QUICK HITS SOFTBALL SEASON STARTS ON A FIVE GAME WIN STREAK The Grand Valley State University (5-0) women’s softball team swept the Lewis Dome Invitational in Rosemont, Illinois to kick off their spring season over the weekend. Starting on Feb. 24, the Lakers took on University of Minnesota-St. Moorhead (2-6).

Returning their all-star redshirt junior pitcher Hannah Beatus, the Lakers won 11-2 and followed Thursday’s games up with a no-hitter on Feb. 25 against McKendree University (4-6), 9-0. The Lakers then took on William Jewell University (0-3) for their second game of the day winning a near shutout game 10-1.

To wrap up the invitational the Lakers faced Truman State University (3-7) for another no-hitter game, 12-0 and closed out the weekend with a much tighter game against Winona State University (8-3) 6-5.

Moving forward with their season, the team will travel to Winter Haven, Florida for the Spring Trip where they’ll face 12 teams March 6-12.

MEN’S DIII CLUB HOCKEY TEAM WINS MCHC CHAMPIONSHIPS The Grand Valley State University (26-3) men’s DIII club hockey team started their Michigan Collegiate Hockey Conference (MCHC) Championships on Feb. 25 against the University of Michigan’s (16-14) DII team.

Starting off the scoring for the Lakers, forward Timmy Baldwin put the first shot in the back of the net in the first period and another in the second, followed by forward Steve Meyers’ to put the score up 3-0.

One goal from Michigan in the third and one last goal from forward Jack Meyers would end the game 4-1 and the Lakers moved on to the finals to face off against Hope College’s (29-0-1) DIII team.

With a slow start to the game, there were no goals scored in the first period until Hope finally put one in seven minutes into the period. The Lakers rebuttal with two goals in the second from Baldwin and Jack Myers to put the score up 2-1. Hope came back with one more goal in the third to tie the game at the end of regulation, which was wrapped up by forward Brenden Ramboer for the double-overtime win.

GV PASSES $14.1 MILLION EXPANSION TO FIELDHOUSE ARENA Since 1968, the Grand Valley State University Fieldhouse Arena has been the building that student-athletes, coaches and fans have used for basketball, volleyball, swim and dive and other club sports like wrestling, dance and cheerleading among many others.

The long-overdue renovations were decided last week on Feb. 19 during a board meeting and are set to begin in April.

With a 22,280 square-foot expansion, the Fieldhouse is expected to tack on athletic training rooms, a three-mat gym, weight room, locker rooms for men and women athletes and additional offices for staff. The renovations are projected to last until August 2023 but will offer GVSU students, staff and athletes beneficial amenities and upgrades.

HOCKEY

Men’s DI club hockey wins GLCHL Conference Championship

BY JOSH CARLSON SPORTS@LANTHORN.COM

The Grand Valley State University men’s DI club hockey team pulled off an incredible first Great Lakes Collegiate Hockey League (GLCHL) playoff weekend, coming out on top with the underdog double-overtime win in the finals. Their first season as a DI team has proven to be the right move for the program, making history in their inaugural year together with the first place trophy to show for it.

Coming in as the no. 4 seed, their firstround matchup against no. 5 seed Western Michigan University took place on Feb. 24 in a near shutout 6-1 win. Moving into the semi-finals on Feb. 25 to face the no. 1 seed Adrian University, the Lakers found all three periods to be a dogfight.

After going scoreless in the first period, the Lakers ended the drought with 1:11 left in the second as junior center Evan Chomchai slipped through two defenders and found the back of the net to put the Lakers up 1-0.

In the third, Adrian tied it 1-1, but the Lakers found another hole in Adrian’s defense, ending with a goal from junior wing Zach Borchardt making it 2-1 Lakers.

Heading into this game, coach Carl Trosien knew it was going to be a tough matchup but was proud of how his team came out and played regardless of the seeding difference.

“I told them we have to play a clean game,” Trosien said. “They are a team (Adrian) that capitalizes on mistakes; they’ve been one of the best teams in the land for about eight years now. We had to make as few mistakes

CHAMPIONS: GVSU’s club hockey team came out as the underdog winners with the no. 4 seed in their inaugural DI season, taking down every competitor for the win. COURTESY | BRIANNA SLAGER

as possible and get pucks deep, and I thought we did a hell of a job of keeping it simple and playing playoff hockey.”

After taking out the no. 1 seed team, the Lakers knew the championship game wouldn’t come any easier.

The next day, Feb. 26, the Lakers showed up to the final championship game to face off against the no. 2 seed Davenport University.

With a slow start to the high-intensity final game, the Panthers scored halfway through the first before they would go on another three-goal run in the second, putting the Lakers down by four.

Freshman defender Bryan Clahassey started off the Laker’s scoring with a goal 13 minutes into the second period, followed

up by sophomore wing Sam Lechel’s goal 14 minutes in. In the pivotal third period, the Lakers put up three more goals from sophomore center Nick Sommerfield, junior wing Zack Kippe and Borchardt. The game was tied 5-5 and to increase the tension even more, the game headed into two overtimes.

For his final goal of the wildly successful season, Borchardt put the winning shot in the back of the net on a breakaway shot for the 6-5 win and the team erupted in cheers and threw their gear for a classic yard-sale celebration.

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BASKETBALL

Unsung heroes of record-breaking women’s basketball season

BY JUSTICE STEINER SPORTS@LANTHORN.COM

When a sports team is in the midst of a special season, it can be easy to only pay attention to who’s scoring the most points or coaching the team to success. However, there’s a lot more that happens behind the scenes in a successful college basketball programs and that includes the players on the bench.

This is no exception for the no. 2 Grand

Valley State University (25-1) women’s basketball team, who just ended their regular season on a school-record 20-game winning streak.

“Our bench is definitely one of the best or the best in the conference,” said senior guard Emily Spitzley. “There have been instances even during the game where I’m guarding someone and they’ll turn to me and they’re like, ‘Hey, your bench is just really getting into it right now.’ They bring a

ton of energy for us.”

Leading the way from the sidelines are six redshirt freshmen, who make their presence known every game, most notably through performing creative celebrations.

“Our team makes it very easy to be energetic,” said redshirt freshman Lexi Plitzuweit. “They’re very talented players and off the court, we all have a very special relationship and we get along as a team, so we are genuinely happy when we see them succeed.”

That off-the-court bond is something that Plitzuweit said has made redshirting and sitting out her first season as a Laker a more pleasant experience.

“I couldn’t imagine getting along with people (fellow redshirt freshmen) better; it feels like I’ve known them my whole life,” Plitzuweit said. “Then the older kids also did a great job of welcoming us to the team.

It’s super fun to be a part of — super special.”

The Laker bench takes pride in bringing more energy than their opponents, creating celebrations that involve all six freshmen.

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REDSHIRTS: The women’s basketball bench has gained a reputation for their incredible support and creativity during games this season, contributing to the team’s success. GVL | DOMINIC STANKIEWICZ

www.lanthorn.com FOR THE FULL ARTICLE

FEBRUARY 28, 2022 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLSPORTS

A12 | SPORTS TRACK

GV track and field teams compete in GLIAC championship

BY BRIAN BLOOM SPORTS@LANTHORN.COM

The Grand Valley State University men’s and women’s track teams hosted the GLIAC championship meet starting on Feb. 26-27.

On day one of the championship meet, the men’s team dominated the competition recording 81 points. The second-place team, Northwood University trailed behind with just 35 points. The women’s team also held onto a narrow lead after day one of the meet, scoring 59 points.

“We came out and got some good things done,” coach Jerry Baltes said. “Jessica Gockley in the 5k was outstanding; both DMR’s were lights out. To come out and run those times solo is just outstanding at a conference championship. We advanced a lot of athletes to the conference finals.”

Both the men’s and women’s teams advanced a plethora of runners to the finals starting Feb. 27.

“A lot of people focus on the winning side of things,” Baltes said. “At our team dinner, I challenged us to focus on competing at a high level, competing with passion, with enthusiasm and for each other. If we do that on day two, we’ll get a lot done and we’ll have positive results.”

The men’s team saw 27 athletes advance to compete in the conference finals. Of those 27, a number of athletes took first place overall for the preliminary races including senior Enael Woldemichael in the 5000m with a 200 track record time of 14:25.61.

Senior Makiyah Smallwood took the 60m hurdles, posting a time of 8.09 and the Distance Medley Relay team of sophomore Caleb Futter, sophomore Myles Rhodes, junior John Groendyk and sophomore Isaac Harding ran a time of 9:40.86; this time is now the new GLIAC championship meet record, 200 track record and 300 track record.

“We should have a nationals time in the DMR,” Harding said. “It’s a confidence builder for me personally, having a good mile, it’s very satisfying. For about the last 200 meters (of the DMR), Coach (Baltes) was telling me I needed about a 30 second 200 to get nationals time, so I was just trying to not think about much and just pump my arms faster and not let my form deteriorate.”

On the women’s side of the meet, 32 runners advanced to the conference finals on Feb. 27.

“I’m really proud of (the team),” senior Jessica Gockley said. “Two weeks ago, we were disappointed about our performances, so it’s nice to come back and compete again when everyone is running well.”

Junior Judith Essemiah threw a distance of 20.08 meters in the weight throw, beating her distance from last year’s meet

when she won the GLIAC championship.

Like the men’s 4000m Distance Medley Relay, the women’s relay team of sophomore Klaudia O’Malley, freshman Taryn Chapko, sophomore Molly McLaughlin and senior Allie Ludge placed first, running a time of 11:36.49. The final member of the women’s meet to win her event was Glockley in the 5000m run. She shattered the GLIAC championship meet record and the 200 track record with her time of 16:29.42. “(To carry momentum into day two) we need to just take it race by race,” Gockley said. “I just focused on the 5k and doing the best I could and once the race is over, it’s all about recovering well, eating, feeling well and focusing on the next race.”

The men’s and women’s teams will be back in action on March 11, as they travel to Pittsburg, Kansas to compete for a national championship trophy.

“Everything is a progression, everyone is in different spots, some of our crew is in the national meets, so they had different preparation this week and they weren’t necessarily making (the GLIAC championship) their focus,” Baltes said. “Some of our throwers weren’t on their “A”-game Saturday, but that’s because they’re set up to be ready to go in two weeks.”

PREMIERES MARCH 16 AT 10P on WGVU 35/52

WGVU.ORG | WGVU PBS 35/52 NO. 1: Both the men’s and women’s track and field teams have placed themselves in first heading into the nationals. GVL | SYDNEY LIM