Issue 21, November 2nd, 2017 - Grand Valley Lanthorn

GRAND VALLEY

MONEY MATTERS ISSUE SEE A6-A7

A L L E N D A L E & G R A N D R A P I DS , M I C H I G A N ST U D E N T- R U N P U B L I C A T I O N S // P R I N T · O N L I N E · M O B I L E // L A N T H O R N . C O M

T H U R S D A Y, N OV E M B E R 2 , 2 0 1 7 // VO L . 52 N O. 2 1

INITIATIVES

GV expands pre-university programs with new Pathways to College Office

BY ANNE MARIE SMIT NEWS@LANTHORN.COM

Applying to college is an overwhelming process for many high school students who may feel intimidated by the heavier workload, financial questions and the decision of where to enroll. By recently opening the Pathways to College Office under the Division of Inclusion and Equity, Grand Valley State University hopes to expand its precollege programs to provide guidance for middle and high schools throughout the state of Michigan.

Through the Wade H. McCree, Jr. Incentive Program and the Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP), GVSU is striving to connect with ambitious middle and high school students in the state of Michigan and help them achieve their goals and become better acquainted with university life. The Wade McCree program is for students particularly interested in GVSU, while GEAR UP exposes students to GVSU among other Michigan universities.

Bobby Springer, director of the Pathways to College Office, said the office will allow GVSU to connect with a diverse set of students with its programs reaching out to schools all throughout Michigan. By connecting with more communities, GVSU will reach more students and pique their interest in the university.

“When we’re working with diverse schools and those students come to Grand Valley, the number of diverse students is going to increase,” Springer said. “We want all students to have the opportunity to come to Grand Valley, not just a certain population of students, and to do all the things they need to do to make it happen.”

Under these programs, Springer visits local middle schools and high schools that select students with academic promise and an interest in going to college. Students under the Wade McCree program are assisted with ACT and SAT tests and must satisfy certain academic requirements, such as a minimum GPA of 3.3.

“They have to stay at a certain level in order to make this a reality,” Springer said. “There’s work to be done. That’s why we want those students who will reach for those levels. … We’re here to work with them through this process with group meetings, one-on-one meetings, campus visits, SAT preparation. We’ll do all of those things to make sure that they have the opportunity to be successful.”

Students enrolled in the Wade McCree and GEAR UP programs have the advantage of thinking about and being exposed to colleges early on in their academic careers, beginning in the seventh grade and continuing on until freshman year of college. Students interested in GVSU engage in a university classroom covering similar material to what they are covering in their high school classes.

“When they started high school, they started with biology,” Springer said. “When they visited (GVSU during their) freshman year (of high school), they did an activity with the biology department to connect what they’re doing in high school to college. They got a chance to work with professors here at Grand Valley during their high school years.”

Edith Reyes Justo, a GVSU freshman studying public relations, said she visited the campus every year after being in the GEAR UP program and that the classroom visits especially helped her understand what college entailed.

“We kept making college visits every year, so that’s what made me more familiar with the school,” Reyes Justo said. “The visits were different because we actually went inside the classroom and did labs with them. It was a way for us to know what the difference was between high school and college.”

The financial aspect of college can also be confusing to middle school and high school students. Recognizing this, the Wade McCree and GEAR UP programs introduce financial terms to students early on and build on that SEE GEAR UP | A2

Sparking conversation Teach-In sessions to cover social justice, equity

BY ARPAN LOBO NEWS@LANTHORN.COM

W

hile certain conversations are inherently difficult to start, engaging in challenging discussions can be beneficial for everyone involved.

To kick-start these dialogues, Grand Valley State University is hosting its fifth Teach-In Thursday, Nov. 9, from 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. on both the Allendale and Pew campuses.

The event is comprised of 55 different sessions, each designed to spark a conversation about issues related to the theme of “Power, Privilege and Difficult Dialogues.” The event is co-sponsored by student senate and the University Academic Senate, and each presentation is a collaboration between faculty and students.

“The biggest thing is to create a conversation, to allow people to come together and talk about differences and important issues and just topics that are going on in today’s world,” said Jonathan Bowman, GVSU student senate president.

GVSU has been holding the annual Teach-In since 2014. The event was a response to certain incidents of bias taking place on campus as well as the 2011 campus climate survey.

Topics such as race, ethnicity, orientation, ability, class and gender identity will be addressed in different Teach-In sessions. Melissa Baker-Boosamra, associate director of student life, civic engagement and assessment, will be among those presenting.

“These are, in some ways, abstract conversations,” she said.

“But in some ways, they relate closely to the lives that we have on

DIFFICULT DIALOGUE: MarcQus Wright, director of TRiO Student Support Services, speaks during the winter 2017 Teach-In Jan. 19. GVSU has been organizing Teach-In sessions since 2014. COURTESY | AMANDA PITTS, GVSU.EDU

campus. … These conversations around are more difficult now than they were several years ago.”

Baker-Boosamra believes that incidents such as the white nationalist rallies and subsequent counterprotests in Charlottesville, Virginia, in August and the mass protests against police brutality and other issues sparked by Colin Kaepernick in the National Football League have polarized many. She said by attending Teach-In sessions, community members stand to gain a new perspective on these polarizing issues.

“We can learn about each other,” Baker-Boosamra said. “While the topics are inherently challenging, it’s a step to building bridges.”

Baker-Boosamra is among the speakers for the “Confronting White Supremacy Through Consciousness Raising” session. The session is designed to enable conversation about topics such as white identity, white privilege and oppression.

“We often see the same history with different sets of glasses,” she said. “(Through the Teach-In) we can learn about each other.”

GOVERNANCE

Jeff Kelly Lowenstein, assistant professor of multimedia journalism at GVSU and another presenter, also believes the Teach-In provides an opportunity for community members to become more informed of the differences that exist at GVSU. “It’s an important space for our community to come together and learn from each other and talk about these important issues,” he said. “In the past year or so, as a national or SEE TEACH-IN | A2

RESEARCH

GV professors contribute to economic study of Huron River

BY SARAH HOLLIS NEWS@LANTHORN.COM

TOGETHERNESS: Justin Noordhoek poses with his family. Noordhoek is one of the five candidates running for three positions on the Grandville City Council. COURTESY | FACEBOOK.COM/ELECT JUSTIN NOORDHOEK FOR CITY COUNCIL

‘I could no longer sit on the sidelines’ GV graduate student runs for Grandville City Council

BY ANNE MARIE SMIT NEWS@LANTHORN.COM

A long-time advocate for political engagement, Justin Noordhoek (‘08), a Grand Valley State University graduate and graduate student, is hoping to make a positive impact on the local community by running for the Grandville City Council Tuesday, Nov. 7.

While Noordhoek has nurtured an interest in social and political issues from a young age, his decision to be engaged in local politics formed while he was studying for his undergraduate degree at GVSU. “I had really wonderful professors,” Noordhoek said. “They did a great job of really deepening that passion for me and telling me that I was on the right path.

“You always think that you’re well-informed, but then, when you go to school, you often learn how little you actually know, and that’s something that I really appreciated about Grand Valley.

They really exposed me to a lot of

very broad set of issues going on.”

Since Noordhoek has a degree in history and political science and is a social studies teacher in an alternative high school for Godfrey-Lee Public Schools in Wyoming, Michigan, social and political discourse is a part of his day-to-day life.

Most of the time, Noordhoek said, people are aware of what is happening on the national level but are uninformed on what is going on in their own community.

Noordhoek wants to engage his students and the community in local affairs and demonstrate that involvement in local politics is feasible and important.

“Students often know so much more about national politics than they do about the issues right here that are close to home,” he said. “We need to flip that upside down and say, ‘No, you need to focus on here. What can we change? What is in our power to actually make our community better, safer and stronger?’’”

In the classroom, Noordhoek

involves his students in local politics by introducing them to issues that are happening in the surrounding community. He hopes this exposure will inspire them to make a difference in the city at large or, at the very least, stay educated about what is happening at the local level.

“In some of the courses that I teach, students learn about the crimes against humanity that are happening right in our community, like human trafficking, and what we can do about that,” Noordhoek said. “They’re paying attention to what’s going on around them, and that’s my message as a teacher, to inspire them that you can make a change, that your political efficacy is strong at the local level. By running for the council, I’m showing them that I really do believe this.”

Noordhoek said that while he loves the U.S., there are certain changes he would like to see in government. He recognizes that involvement in national politics is a SEE COUNCIL | A2

What is the monetary value of a river? Some might say it’s impossible for a river to have a price tag, but according to a recent study conducted by several Grand Valley State University faculty members, the Huron River contributes at least $78.6 million to the southeast region of Michigan every year. This study looked at many different factors to estimate the economic value of the Huron River.

“We worked with the Huron River Watershed Council to measure the economic value of the Huron River, including its recreation value and also the value of its scenic amenities and other ecosystem services,” said Erik Nordman, associate professor of biology. “I did a portion of the economic analysis that was the realestate study. So, we used a technique called a hedonic model to tease apart the influence of proximity to the river on housing price.”

Nordman and Paul Isely, associate dean of undergraduate programs in the Seidman College of Business and GVSU economics professor, were a part of the study, which teamed the university with the Huron River Watershed Council. The river has a large impact on the region it runs through.

“The recreation and value along the river was approximately equivalent to an entire season of U of M home football games,” Isely said. “It’s worth 20 percent more than an entire season of visitors to Badlands National Park, or it’s worth more than an entire quarter of net income for Domino’s (Pizza).

“I was able to do the initial consult with the groups wanting to do it to get the study funded. It was my job to make sure that the results that were coming from all of this were correct and up to my standards. So, I had more oversight and less day-to-day.”

Isely found it interesting how much value the people of West Michigan SEE HURON | A2

NOVEMBER 2, 2017 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLNEWS

A2 | NEWS NEWS BRIEFS AMERICAN RED CROSS TO HOLD BLOOD DRIVE AT GV

The American Red Cross will hold a blood drive at Grand Valley State University Monday, Nov. 6, from 11:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. The blood drive will take place in the Kirkhof Center Pere Marquette Room. The Delta Zeta Sorority is hosting the event.

COO OF MUNSON MEDICAL CENTER TO SPEAK AT GV

The Healthcare Professionals Graduate Student Alliance is sponsoring a presentation by Derk Pronger, chief operating officer of Munson Medical Center, Tuesday, Nov. 7, at 4:30 p.m. in the DeVos Center, Room 107C (University Club). Attendance is free, and students are encouraged to come and discuss topics in health care administration.

NOMINATIONS FOR ‘I AM GRAND VALLEY’ RECOGNITION OPEN

Nominations for Grand Valley State University’s “I am Grand Valley” student recognition campaign opened Tuesday, Oct. 31. The recognition is for students who are involved in showing exceptional leadership qualities on GVSU’s campuses. The nomination period is open until Thursday, Nov. 30. Nominations can be submitted online at www.gvsu.edu/orgsync.

GV BOARD MEETING TO TAKE PLACE

The Grand Valley State University Board of Trustees will meet Friday, Nov. 3, at 11 a.m. in the Kirkhof Center. Items on the meeting agenda include the 2016-17 audited annual financial statements and the development division report.

SEIDMAN COLLEGE NAMED TOP BUSINESS SCHOOL

Grand Valley State University’s Seidman College of Business was named a top college to earn a Master of Business Administration by the Princeton Review. The Princeton Review analyzed more than 23,000 surveys from students and educators, and GVSU was named one of the top 267 business schools in the country.

GV SHAKESPEARE COMPETITION TO TAKE PLACE

The Grand Valley State University Shakespeare Student Competition and Awards Ceremony will take place Saturday, Nov. 4, from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. in the DeVos Center’s Loosemore Auditorium. The event will honor recipients in categories such as critical writing, performing arts and others. The event LIB 100-approved.

VO L . 52

NO. 21

Lan thorn EDITORIAL STAFF Editor-in-Chief EMILY DORAN Associate Editor JENNA FRACASSI

PROMOTIONS Promotions Manager SHAYNA KOZKOWSKI ADVERTISING STAFF Advertising Manager

News Editor ARPAN LOBO

IAN BORTHWICK

Sports Editor ROBBIE TRIANO

KATARINA ZOMER

Laker Life Editor TY KONELL Image Editor EMILY FRYE

Campus Accounts Manager

Account Executive RACHEL MOORE Ad Designer LIAM CARTER BUSINESS STAFF

Layout Editor BECKY OPPMAN

Business Manager SHELBY CARTER

Layout Designer RACHEL SPRING

Asst. Business Manager ALEXIS LAMB

WEB TEAM Web Manager JUSTIN GREEN

Distribution Manager MEGHAN FITZGERALD

PATHWAYS: (Left to right) Bobby Springer, Nyasia Montgomery and Edith Reyes Justo. GVSU opened the Pathways to College Office under the Division of Inclusion and Equity for underrepresented high schoolers in their pursuit of higher education. GVL | ANNE MARIE SMIT

GEAR UP CONTINUED FROM A1

knowledge each year, giving students from lower-income families in particular an understanding of the resources available to them and how they can make a college education a reality.

Nyasia Montgomery, a GVSU freshman studying social work and women, gender and sexuality studies, said the financial guidance was especially helpful to her when she was enrolled in the GEAR UP program.

TEACH-IN CONTINUED FROM A1

international community, people have been talking a lot about ‘Who has power? What is privilege?’ These are interesting and timely issues.”

Kelly Lowenstein is participating in his first Teach-In. He and a GVSU student will lead a session titled “The University of Makana: Khulu Radebe’s Social Justice and Political Education on Robben Island.”

COUNCIL CONTINUED FROM A1

bit out of reach at this level but that involvement in the local level is attainable.

“I really strongly believe in our system, the representative democracy,” Noordhoek said. “We’re very blessed in this country to have what we have, but I’ve grown so frustrated with our government. I know that I can’t effect much change at the national level, but I’m constantly trying to show my students that, really, we need to be paying attention to the local

HURON

CONTINUED FROM A1

At the Lanthorn, we strive to bring you the most accurate news possible. If we make a mistake, we want to make it right. If you find any errors in fact in the Lanthorn, let us know by calling 616-331-2464 or by emailing editorial@lanthorn.com.

place on natural resources such as the Huron River.

“Interestingly enough, when we value how much an individual values the natural resources, we actually see slightly higher levels here in West Michigan than we do in East Michigan,” Isely said. “It’s

“Part of (what helped me) was knowing the difference between scholarships and grants, unsubsidized and subsidized loans,” she said.

“Coming here every year and focusing on the different type of financial aid really helped me out. I knew what to expect and what would be better for me in the long run.”

In addition to academic and financial guidance, students in these programs have the opportunity to interact with college students, whom Springer encourages to share their advice with the high school students.

“I’ve always tried to have college students interact with them, to be part of that experience,” Springer said. “Once upon a time, college students were in the same shoes that they were in. I always ask the college students, ‘What would you do differently if you could do this over again?’ That information gets shared with them so they can make adjustments.”

Springer said students in the GEAR UP program have the opportunity to visit universities in Michigan as well as universities all across the country in states

like Tennessee, Georgia and Alabama. He said despite traveling to those universities, many students decide on GVSU anyway. The direct impact with GVSU year after year, he said, gives students a sense of familiarity.

Montgomery said coming to GVSU year after year helped her feel at home on campus and influenced her decision to enroll.

“I think it’s the sense of belonging,” she said. “You already know what Grand Valley is, where everything is. It already feels like home.”

The session will focus on the former South African freedom fighter Radebe and the lessons he learned when he was at the same age as many current GVSU students.

“I’m excited to participate,” Kelly Lowenstein said.

Baker-Boosamra’s and Kelly Lowenstein’s presentations are among 55 being given Nov. 9. The University Academic Senate and student senate, the two co-sponsors of the TeachIn, hope to inform students,

faculty and staff about issues of inequity as well as raise awareness and spark discussions about topics such as oppression and social justice.

“I think it’s very important, especially in today’s day and age, to communicate with others,” Bowman said. “You might not agree with certain things, but to be able to come together, especially at a university, that’s our purpose to have an open dialogue with different people.”

Baker-Boosamra also be-

lieves that community members will benefit by attending any of the discussions.

“I think that people stand to gain an opportunity to be open, to explore, to hear various perspectives, to learn from others and to develop a deeper level of empathy,” she said.

Community members can post about the Teach-In on social media using the hashtag #GVTeachIn17. The full schedule of events is listed at www. gvsu.edu/teach-in.

issues. … At the community level, we can really make a difference in our lives.”

As a father, husband, teacher and now graduate student at GVSU, Noordhoek leads a busy life and admits that juggling all of the responsibilities that come with those roles can be challenging. If elected to the council, Noordhoek plans to knock on doors in Grandville and try to stay up to speed on what is working and what needs to be improved.

“I have gone to almost every voter’s house in Grandville,” Noordhoek said. “I’ve done

about 200 hours of campaigning. Any free hour I had, I went for an hour and knocked on doors. I think about the word ‘representative,’ what that means, and what it was designed to mean is people who serve the community, look out for the common good, engage the people they serve and use that to make decisions that will have the greatest effect on the community.

“That’s why I went door to door, and that’s why, if I’m elected, I vow to go back to people’s doors, to engage them, to show them that the word ‘representa-

tive’ should not be lost.”

Noordhoek said a key motivation for him to run for the council is to set a good example for his students and other young people to use their passions for the greater public good.

“I could no longer sit on the sidelines,” Noordhoek said.

“I’m passionate about it. For me to be passionate about it and sit on the sidelines and just be frustrated, that was no longer an option for me. I have two kids, I am a teacher, I need to do something to make a positive difference.”

very interesting to me because we have lots more substitutes here, and it’s much easier for us to get to natural areas than it is for somebody in the Detroit/ Ann Arbor area, yet we value making it to those areas higher.”

Nordman was interested in exploring part of the state he’d never had the opportunity to explore before.

“I’m originally from New York, and I’ve been at Grand

Valley for 12 years now, so I know the west side of the state pretty well, but I had not really spent much time on the east side,” Nordman said. “It was great to learn about the communities in the Huron River area and get to explore the river a little bit.”

Both Isely and Nordman enjoyed taking part in this study and have already begun working on a couple of

similar studies for different bodies of water.

“This was a really great study to be a part of because we looked at so many different dimensions of the environment around the Huron River,” Nordman said. “Myself, Dr. Isely ... and Julie Cowie, the project manager, are working right now on an economic evaluation for Muskegon Lake.”

The Grand Valley Lanthorn is published twice-weekly by Grand Valley State University students 62 times a year. One copy of this newspaper is available free of charge to any member of the GVSU community. For additional copies, at $1 each, please contact our business offices.

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DOLLAR SIGNS: The Huron River has an economic impact of $78.6 million in the southeast Michigan region, according to a report. The report was a collaboration between GVSU researchers and the Huron River Watershed Council. COURTESY | VOLUNTEERWASHTENAW.COM

NOVEMBER 2, 2017 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLNEWS

NEWS | A3

ELECTIONS

GV alumna runs for Walker City Commissioner

BY KARINA LLOYD NEWS@LANTHORN.COM

At Grand Valley State University, civic engagement is valued as a core way for students to make a positive impact on their communities, and some even go a step further by running for local office.

GVSU alumna Melanie Grooters, for example, is running for a seat on the Walker City Commission Tuesday, Nov. 7.

Grooters’ ties to GVSU run deep as her family’s history is aligned with the university’s creation. Her ancestors moved to West Michigan in 1865, and GVSU eventually purchased the land that the

four “Lake” buildings currently stand on from them, the Reister family.

A GVSU scholarship has since been created in memory of the Reisters for descendants of families who settled in the area in the 19th century.

After raising her own children, Grooters attended GVSU herself, where she earned both her undergraduate degree (2002) and master’s degree in public administration (2012).

“I had such a great experience at Grand Valley,” Grooters said. “I was an older adult, but I learned so much. The professors all treated me very, very well. I had such a great time with the younger students— the ‘kids,’ I called them. That’s actually why I went back to school for my master’s degree.

I missed being with the students, and I missed learning. … (The professors) really took care (of their students) and wanted you to succeed.”

During her time at GVSU, Grooters formed some longlasting relationships. In one of her first classes at GVSU in 1999, Grooters met current Walker City Commissioner Cyndy Stek.

Following her years at GVSU, Grooters worked for two years doing nonprofit work with Home Repair Services of Kent County. The organization resonated with Grooters’ interest in housing and accessibility.

“They work to keep lowerincome homeowners in their home,” Grooters said. “In other words, they try to keep them in their homes. A lot of

FAMILY: Melanie Grooters (second from left) poses with family at the Walker Pumpkin Bash. Grooters graduated from GVSU in 2002 and received a master’s degree in 2012. COURTESY | MELANIE GROOTERS

times, they’re first-generation home owners. ... They’ve never seen anyone repair a toilet or a faucet. ... (Home Repair Services) offer classes and education for people who want to learn how to do it themselves and how to keep their houses up and running.”

Grooters then moved on to work with the senior administrative specialist of Kent County. She had worked there just one year when she decided to go back to school to get her master’s degree in public administration.

“I love learning, and I would be a full-time student if I could be,” Grooters said.

Grooters also worked as the assistant to the board of Home Repair Services, along with her other job, from 2010 to 2016. She worked with the board for six years until she decided to run for commissioner. This year will mark her 10th year working for Kent County, and it is this experience that Grooters believes qualifies her to run for a seat on the Walker City Commission.

“I think the city of Walker needs committed and qualified community members to serve, and I believe I have the experience and the education and the time now to devote to it,” Grooters said. “I think the fact that I have been in Kent County administration for 10 years and interacting with our 19 commissioners and tracking legislation in Lansing (and) meeting with

our representatives in Lansing ... has been very beneficial for serving in this role.”

Grooters believes her platform will be best for the city.

“I believe in living within your means and not spending more than you make,” she said. “I would translate that to the city as well. ... I think the (current) Mayor Mark Huizenga has done a really good job with that. I think his policy fiscally is very similar to mine. So, (I would be) very excited to work with him.”

If elected to the position, Grooters hopes to help the city adjust to the influx of new residents that Walker has continued to experience over the years.

“I think (the population growth) is wonderful, and I think Grand Valley has contributed to that, being that we are the corridor between the two Grand Valley campuses,” Grooters said. “I think that’s awesome, but I also want to keep in mind that every house that we build in Walker adds more traffic to our roads, more demand on our infrastructure.

“I just want to try to achieve some balance between maintaining our open space and the quality of life with the fact everyone thinks this would be a great place to live.”

Another cause near to her heart is working with the senior citizen community within Walker.

“The area that interests me is the senior citizens, and that

kind of ties into my home ownership (work),” Grooters said. “I would love to get involved with the senior citizens and find out what their wants and needs are (and to discuss) making sure they have the services they need so they can stay in their homes as long as they have.”

Throughout her campaign for commissioner, Grooters has received a tremendous amount of support. Most notably, Huizenga and Stek have both come out in support of her. “(Stek) has been a great resource for me,” Grooters said. “She has been very encouraging and supportive and has really helped me through this process.”

Grooters has also seen an outpouring of love and support from her children during her campaign run.

“My husband and my kids have all been very helpful (though the whole process),” Grooters said. “They’ve all pitched in. My daughter-inlaw is my teacher. All my kids have helped with signage. My husband has been fabulous driving around in the rain fixing signs. It’s been kind of fun.

We’ve been enjoying being together and doing that.”

If elected, Grooters would like to see the board of commissioners come together and really work as a team.

With only a few days left in the campaign, Grooters is excited and thankful for the experience she has had running for commissioner.

AWARENESS

Local organization reps respond to Trump’s opioid emergency declaration

BY MEGAN WEBSTER MWEBSTER@LANTHORN.COM

According to The New York Times, the opioid epidemic kills on average around 90 people a day and is the deadliest drug crisis in American history. On Thursday, Oct. 26, President Donald Trump took action against these staggering numbers and declared this opioid crisis a public health emergency.

While conducting a press release on the issue, Trump declared that something needs to be done about the country’s opioid epidemic.

“As Americans, we cannot allow this to continue,” Trump said Oct. 26 at the White House. “It is time to liberate our communities from this scourge of drug addiction.

Never been this way. We can be the generation that ends the opioid epidemic. We can do it.”

The public health emergency declaration has sparked various reactions from those who deal with the opioid crisis on a daily basis. Brandon Hool, director of clean works, overdose prevention and response programming at The Grand Rapids Red Project, thinks money needs to be allocated to effective resources and existing providers so that those who currently have an opioid addiction can reach out for resources that have proven effective.

“I would hope that this is addressed just like any other disaster where is money allocated to resources, not new resources but to ones that have already been proven effective in addressing some of the issues that come along with the opioid epidemic,” Hool said.

The use for the money includes making sure that those who wish to seek help have the resources available to them, such as coverage under insurance and the ability to find somewhere to get treated without risk of coming across a lack of resources like detox beds, medicine and other treatment options.

Hool also thinks there needs to be a systematic approach to dealing with the epidemic itself in order to achieve the best possible outcome. Hool compared

the opioid crisis to a sickness rather than a crime.

“You look at the smallpox epidemic, and they systematically worked as a network and figured out where the issues were coming up, and they addressed them with good medical procedures; they didn’t arrest the people who had small pox,” Hool said. “There were effective medical preventions with the best technology that we had. That’s what I hope to see, a science-based response.”

While the declaration does attract attention to the issue, the opioid epidemic isn’t necessarily a new problem in the U.S. Opioid addiction is a problem that surfaced in the 1990s when medical professionals began overprescribing painkillers like Oxycontin, resulting in a growing number of people becoming addicted to medications that fall under the opioid category. This isn’t a new concern, and The Red Project has been dealing with the epidemic officially since 2008.

“As far as overdose goes locally, we’ve lost a lot of people that are close to our program,” Hool said. “We’ve lost people that are close to our staff and to our volunteers. It kind of coincides with overdose awareness month that we’ve been made very aware of what’s going on. It hits home for us.

“For us, it’s just another day at the office. This is what we do every day of every year. We address drug overdose. We’re in the midst of it, and we have been since 2008. That’s what we do.”

Reginald Lott, director of program design and implementation at Matthew’s House Ministry, hopes that with this call for action come greater restrictions on the opioids as well as an increase in resources for those who are currently battling addiction.

“I would also like to see some positive restrictions on the pharmaceutical industry, adequate (assistance) for recovering addicts, and a social awareness campaign focused on prevention and intervention,” he said.

Lott and Matthew’s House unofficially declared November “Overdose Awareness Month” in Grand Rapids. In order to provide resources and support for those battling or those who know an individual battling opioid addiction, Mathew’s House is sponsoring many events during the month.

For more information on events for Overdose Awareness Month, contact Lott at regglott@gmail.com, or visit the Matthew’s House website or The Red Project website for announcements on future events.

CRISIS: U.S. President Donald Trump declared the opioid crisis a public health emergency Thursday, Oct. 26. GVL | EMILY FRYE

A4 | OPINION EDITORIAL

NOVEMBER 2, 2017 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLNEWS

GVL EDITORIAL CARTOON

By Athena Jasman

Pre-college programs a smart move on GV’s part

M

any prospective college students have no clue what they want to do once they graduate high school. As a general rule of thumb, most 18-year-olds don’t have enough experience to have their whole life realistically planned out, even though they are expected to start making those important decisions at that age. To complicate matters, students from underrepresented or low-income backgrounds often don’t have the resources to learn about or embark upon the journey to college in the first place.

To change this, Grand Valley State University has recently opened the Pathways to College Office under the Division of Inclusion and Equity in an effort to expand pre-college programming and outreach to help and encourage students from diverse backgrounds to attend GVSU and college in general.

The purpose of this office is to connect GVSU with middle and high school students to help them prepare for college and give them an understanding of how the whole process works. Aside from the intimidating prospect of enrolling in university-level courses, balancing a heavier workload and facing a greater degree of curricular difficulty, just getting started researching colleges and financial aid can be overwhelming for any student.

Implementing this program is a good move on GVSU’s part not only because students need this help to tackle daunting college prep but also because the university is setting itself up for adopting future successful Lakers, boosting GVSU’s enrollment, retention and academic numbers.

For the students, these programs provide muchneeded guidance. Simply thinking about college plans can be super daunting, and it can be difficult to prepare for standardized tests, pre-

pare competitive essays and understand complicated financial aid terms without sufficient help. These issues tend to only be aggravated for first-generation students and students coming low-income backgrounds.

With the new Pathways to College Office, though, middle school and high school students have the opportunity to visit GVSU well before it’s time for them to seriously consider enrolling so that they get a feel for what the college life is like and what GVSU has to offer.

Through the Wade H. McCree, Jr. Incentive Program and the Michigan Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP), which the Pathways to College Office takes advantage of, students also have access to tutoring, mentoring, college-prep workshops and other opportunities related to higher education. These are all things that pre-college students desperately need, and many individuals do not have access these types of resources without the aid of the program.

Many pre-college students who are from low-income backgrounds don’t even see college as a viable option.

That isn’t to say these students are any less qualified or deserving of an education than students from wealthier backgrounds. That’s why the help of programs specifically designed to provide a unified community regardless of financial need is so important. Everyone deserves a fair chance at an education.

Establishing the Pathways to College Office is one way GVSU is striving to boost its enrollment of students from diverse backgrounds and extend the offer of a college education to students who may have a harder time getting to college otherwise. The opening of the Pathways to College Office is an initiative that will surely prove mutually beneficial for both GVSU and the surrounding community.

11/2/17

editorial@lanthorn.com

Employers shouldn’t hire or fire based on social media

BY COREA PARKS SENIOR MM. JOURNALISM MAJOR EDITORIAL@LANTHORN.COM

It is no secret that the growth of technology and the digital footprint has brought along ethical issues with privacy. The most alarming truth behind this awareness is the fact that the World Wide Web is so “wide” in its reach that it is merely impossible to control.

According to BBC, 3.2 billion people used the internet in 2015 (half of the world’s population), yet in the U.S. there isn’t really much policing going on online. This is mainly due to the First Amendment, which grants freedom of speech and freedom of press.

While the U.S. did start cracking down on things such

Editor-in-Chief Associate editor News editor Sports editor Laker Life editor

WHAT IS A LANTHORN?

*0ƫđƫ$+.*Čƫƫn. [Old English] A lanthorn is a lantern that was used in mid-to-late 16th-century Europe. It was constructed of leather and a single lens made from a thin

piece of ox or steer horn. It was used for illumination and as a beacon.

The Grand Valley Lanthorn slogan is “Give light, and the people will find their own way.”

GVL OPINION POLICY 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.

Letters 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:

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whole idea of using social media as a means of screening and gaining a sense of character is that it is literally merging two entities together that are meant to stay separate: work life and personal/home life.

Now, I’m not saying that Facebook is the ideal place to vent; however, it is important to keep up with the times. The fact is that social media is a foundation for so many people now to communicate their feelings. It is a place that is used for socialization. People don’t talk on the phone anymore, they don’t write letters and they hardly do brunch outings with friends to catch up on gossip.

They log onto their phone and get connected through social media. It may be more public and much more raw, but it is still considered a personal opinion in a conversation taking place in a setting outside of the work place.

Now, employers will argue that the social media pre-screening has an equal chance of helping you based on how you present yourself.

However, it is important to realize that on social media most people aren’t presenting themselves entirely but

rather using it as a means of expression. Just as someone can act like a complete fool on social media but hold the ability to keep it completely professional in the workplace, someone could easily portray themselves as well-puttogether on social media and be a complete dud on the job.

In my opinion, potential employees should be picked and evaluated based upon the professional experiences they have pursued, which can be determined based on interaction between future employers and past employers. A sense of professional character can be obtained by personal and professional references, such as past coworkers and long-term friends.

An employer can also do a traditional background check. Resorting to spying on an individual’s social life online as a means of creating a professional judgment is too close to playing God. I think that after a hard, frustrating day at work a person should be able to say “my job stinks” without facing harsh repercussions in the near-to-far future.

GUEST COLUM N

‘No phone’ zones

GV L ED ITORIA L B OA R D EMILY DORAN JENNA FRACASSI ARPAN LOBO ROBBIE TRIANO TY KONELL

as sexually explicit material of minors and the protection of intellectual property online starting in the 1990s, the freedom to express an opinion online is still largely untouched by any regulatory measures. This is because by law any person is entitled to speak their opinion freely.

So, why is it that employers are able to base a worker’s job security on what they put on a social networking site?

A study from Career Builder shows that 70 percent of employers now use social media to pre-screen candidates who are applying for a job. While getting a job in the first place is more threatened by social media investigation than losing a job, there have been cases where employers wrongly terminate employees due to personal content that was found on a social networking site.

While I firmly believe that everyone should be careful with what they put out into this world, I cant help but think at what point does the line between one’s professional and personal life get crossed?

The problem I have with the

BY JOHN KILBOURNE GVSU MOVEMENT SCIENCE PROFESSOR EDITORIAL@LANTHORN.COM

Starting Wednesday, Oct. 25, pedestrians in Honolulu will be ticketed and fined $35 if they are caught viewing their electronic devises while crossing the street. Honolulu is the first city in the U.S. to enact such a ban. Might Grand Valley State University wish to consider a similar policy not only while crossing busy streets but in other areas of the university?

Walking across campus, in building hallways and

in classrooms, students are face-planted into their phones. Students are unengaged from their peers and the surrounding environment. It is as if they are in an alternative world.

With smart phone technology, some students think they no longer must pay attention in class. Their plan is to simply snap a picture of the white board following a spirit-filled lecture and discussion where the board was covered with notes, pictures and diagrams.

I have witnessed the same absence of personal engagement at department and university meetings. During meetings, many faculty are simply not paying attention.

They too are face-planted into their smart phones or notebook computers, checking in on email or Facebook, even shopping for shoes.

What is more, colleges and universities seem to encourage this un-engagement by requiring students and

faculty to bring notebook computers or smart phones to class or meetings. Some professors require students to have a smart phone with a clicker app so that they can “check in” during class.

What these professors do not realize is that their effort to have them check in provides them with the freedom to also “check out.”

Colleges and universities have bought into a world that Sherry Turkle, in her insightful book “Reclaiming Conversation,” says “… (has) sacrificed conversation for mere connection. We turn away from each other and toward our phones. We are forever elsewhere.”

This semester, to bring some measure of balance to these challenges, I have fashioned my classrooms into “no phone” zones.

Once the students enter the classroom, their phones are to be turned off and placed out of reach in a backpack, pocket or purse. They cannot use them during the class. I do make one excep-

tion by telling the students that if they are expecting an emergency call to inform me prior to the start of class. If their phone rings, they may retrieve it and step into the hallway to take the call.

At the start of the semester, our “no phone” zones created a real challenge for the students. The unease on their faces from not having their phones was obvious.

It was almost as if they were suffering from withdrawals from an addiction.

To support the idea of not having their phones in class, I also give an assignment where the students are to go by themselves to a favorite place in nature, leaving their phones at home or in their car, and stay for 45 minutes to one hour. When they return, they are to write a one-to-two-page essay on the experience. Reading about their experiences makes me think even more about what colleges and universities have done by hurling themselves into the black hole of smart-phone technology.

VALLEY VOTE

THIS ISSUE’S QUESTION

QUOTE

Do you think it’s okay to dress up as someone from a different culture for Halloween?

Are you planning to vote in the local elections this Tuesday?

Yes No

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“Nobody will ever deprive the American people of the right to vote except the American people themselves and the only way they could do this is by not voting.”

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QUESTION OF THE ISSUE

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ARE YOU PLANNING TO VOTE IN THE LOCAL ELECTIONS THIS TUESDAY?

DELAINY ROSARIO

JACOB HUNTING

“No, I’m not from here.”

“There’s local elections this Thursday?”

YEAR: Sophomore MAJOR: Hospitality and tourism management HOMETOWN: Chicago, Illinois

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JUSTIS WILLIAMS

RODGER JOHNSON

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NOVEMBER 2, 2017 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLNEWS

NEWS | A5

MEDICINE

Health Forum of West Michigan to discuss genetic research

BY DREW SCHERTZER DSCHERTZER@LANTHORN.COM

Technology is accelerating at a pace that creates new opportunities in the field of health. This comes with its own set of ethical questions and financial challenges. The Health Forum of West Michigan will discuss some of these questions, focusing particularly on human genetics.

The forum will take place Friday, Nov. 3, from 7:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. in the DeVos Center’s Loosemore Auditorium. The three panelists will be Janice Bach, state genetics coordinator and manager for the genomics and genetic disorders section of the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services; Megan Bowman, bioinformatics and biostatistics core for the Van Andel Research Institute; and Caleb Bupp, medical geneticist for Spectrum Health.

“I think that human genetics is an important area, and it’s new,” said Jean Nagelkerk, vice provost for health at GVSU. “A lot of research and discussion has been done, but there hasn’t been a lot of testing opportunities.”

Nagelkerk said research in the field of human genetics can have high potential.

An example Nagelkerk used was personalized medicine.

Right now, a common way to treat cancer is chemotherapy, which has a lot of downsides, like hair loss or nausea. She said if a tumor could be taken from the patient and the medicine could be tested on it, there could be better results. The patient theoretically could avoid some of the side effects.

Nagelkerk believes that human genetics is a very important field that will be increasingly relevant in medicinal practices. Further, there are

positives to studying human genetics but also negatives.

Nagelkerk posed that whenever you study anything, there are ethical dilemmas. Topics such as the use of stem cells, for example, have been controversial.

“People always ask if they can do something and not if they should,” said Carl Wilson, GVSU student and psychology major. “It’s a slippery slope with many key issues in science right now.”

As for the presentations, Bach will be discussing the big picture of policy development and will be looking into specific areas like genetic disorders. Bowman will talk about research she and her team are doing with genome sequencing; they look at medicine and ask why and how to use data to identify issues. Bupp will discuss challenges and opportunities for genetic testing being developed.

The Midwest Interprofessional Practice, Education and Research Center (MIPERC) is hosting the event with the Office of the Vice Provost for Health.

The event will begin with a light breakfast at 7:30 a.m. the day of the event. Afterwards, participants can expect the forum to take place from 8:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.

A forum is held the first Friday of every month during the academic year.

Topics vary and MIPERC accepts new ideas. For example, the forum will cover “One Health,” a medicinal initiative, Friday, Dec. 1.

This will be a similar process with Nagelkerk leading the welcoming remarks. The panelists will differ, and a new topic will be discussed.

GO TO: http://bit.ly/2gVkYza FOR MORE INFORMATION

ON LOCATION: The GVSU Cook-DeVos Center for Health Sciences Thursday, Sep. 14. The Health Forum of West Michigan will host another discussion, this time focusing on human genetics and research, in the Loosemore Auditorium Friday, Nov. 3, at 7:30 a.m. GVL | EMILY FRYE

PRESIDENTIAL: The president of Palau and GVSU alumnus, Tommy Remengesau, visited GVSU’s Allendale Campus Wednesday, Nov. 1, to discuss geopolitical issues and answer questions from GVSU students and community members. The event took place in the Kirkhof Center and spanned an hour.

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MONEY MATTERS | A7

A8 | LAKER LIFE ARTS AT A GLANCE

NOVEMBER 2, 2017 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLLAKERLIFE

ACTIVISM

ETCHINGS BY TONY FITZPATRICK ON DOWNTOWN CAMPUS

The artwork of Tony Fitzpatrick, an artist born and raised in the Chicago area, will be on display in the Grand Valley State University L.V. Eberhard Center’s West Wall Gallery from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. from Friday, Nov. 3, to March 2, 2018. Fitzpatrick was raised a Catholic and spent time as an actor, bartender and tattoo artist, all of which influenced his art pieces that were gifted to GVSU as part of a gift to the university consisting of more than 120 artworks.

The exhibit, called “Strange & Magical Beasts: Etchings by Tony Fitzpatrick,” was inspired largely by Fitzpatrick’s childhood and imagination, as well as by the influence of his Catholic upbringing and immersion in street culture.

For more information, contact the GVSU Art Gallery at 616-331-2563.

12-STEP MEETING FOR GVSU’S NARCOTICS ANONYMOUS TO BE HELD MONDAY, NOV. 6

The Grand Valley State University chapter of Narcotics Anonymous will be holding a 12-step meeting from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. Monday, Nov. 6, in the Kirkhof Center, Room 0073. All GVSU students, staff, faculty and community members with a desire to stop using drugs and alcohol are welcome to attend.

Narcotics Anonymous uses guidelines influenced by the 12-step program initiated by Alcoholics Anonymous and tries to help members overcome their addictions. A program promoting the complete abstinence from drugs and alcoholic substances, Narcotics Anonymous is working to make the GVSU community a place with more people living addiction-free lives.

For more information, contact the ACES Office at 616-331-2537.

‘ART IS A DRAG: THE LIBRARY IS OPEN’ REMARKS BEING HELD THROUGHOUT NOVEMBER The Grand Valley State University Drag Club is set to host an art exhibit, “Art Is a Drag: The Library Is Open,” in the Mary Idema Pew Library Learning and Information Commons Exhibition Space from Saturday, Nov. 4, to Wednesday, Nov. 29.

During the exhibit, there will be several events held by the GVSU Drag Club to highlight the work being showcased, including live drag-show performances. Opening remarks will be made by professor Jae Basiliere of the women, gender and sexuality studies department, and refreshments will be served at the opening of the exhibit.

For more information, contact Kaylee Britton at brittoka@mail.gvsu.edu.

HIGH SCHOOL VOCAL DAY

The Grand Valley State University Department of Music, Theatre and Dance will be hosting a vocal day for high school students from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday, Nov. 3, which will be held in the Haas Center for Performing Arts.

During the event, high school students who attend will learn vocal techniques, performance and audition techniques, and about careers in the fields of music and vocal health. In conjunction, the attending students will be able to watch current GVSU vocal students perform.

For more information, contact the Department of Music, Theatre and Dance at 616-331-3484.

PROTESTER: Jocelyn Gallegos, a sophomore at Hope College and the president of the college’s Latino Student Organization, at the DACA march and rally Tuesday, Oct. 31. Almost 300 people attended the protest held in downtown Holland. COURTESY | HOLLAND SENTINEL

‘Immigrants are welcome here!’

More than 250 people march at Hope College in support of DACA

BY JESSICA HARSEVOORT

JHARSEVOORT@LANTHORN.COM

Chants of “Say it loud! Say it clear! Immigrants are welcome here!” filled the streets of downtown Holland, Michigan, Tuesday, Oct. 31, during a Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) march and rally planned by students at Hope College.

From 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., almost 300 local students and community members participated in the protest to support DACA recipients and to advocate for the implementation of a clean Dream Act and comprehensive immigration reform.

“We are marching because we feel it’s important to support both community members and students who have been affected by the DACA decision,” said Julia Fulton, a Hope College student involved in organizing the event. “We’re using our voices, our time and our energy to stand up for what we believe in and show support in the most visible way we can.”

Protesters walked on the sidewalks from Pine Grove,

GIVING BACK

at the center of Hope College’s campus, to Holland City Hall.

Event coordinators contacted Hope College’s Campus Safety Department and the Holland Police Department to ensure the safety of attendees crossing two intersections.

At their final destination, the participants were greeted with snacks and speeches addressing the cause of the march. The speakers at City Hall included Nancy DeBoer, the mayor of Holland; Cady Short-Thompson, the provost of Hope College; Roberto Jara, the executive director of Latin Americans United for Progress; Gordon Wiersma, a co-pastor at Hope Church; and Alejandra Gómez Limón, a student at Hope College.

“What we really want out of it is not only to give people an outlet to take action but also to give people information from different viewpoints, which is why we have a variety of speakers,” said Gómez Limón, another student leader who coordinated the event.

Despite the cold, the atmosphere at the DACA community march was energized and positive. The protest was strictly non-violent, so hostile

words and actions were not tolerated. Attendees were told to stick to the message and respect the privacy of other participants, especially those impacted by the DACA decision.

The DACA program has protected more than 700,000 undocumented immigrants who were brought to the U.S. as children. The DACA decision will impact many people, such as college and university students.

“My family had a smooth transition through moving from Mexico to England to the United States,” Gómez Limón said. “It seems unfair to me that someone else can’t have that as well. DACA, specifically, impacts people who didn’t even have a choice in immigrating.

All of the opportunities taken from these students, when they are granted to others, like me, is really what drives my investment in this.”

Moving forward, Fulton and Gómez Limón said it is necessary for people to take action at a local level. They hope the DACA march and rally will be a starting point for change.

“People in this country have a way of polarizing and dividing and making our dif-

ferences seem bigger than our similarities,” Fulton said. “We want to empower students to be the change in this country because that’s how things are going to improve.”

The DACA community march was part of Hope College’s first Immigration Coalition Advocacy Week.

This week of events is taking place from Monday, Oct. 30, to Tuesday, Nov. 7, during the official #Faith4Dream Week held by the Interfaith Immigration Coalition.

The purpose of this week is to provide a well-rounded perspective on issues surrounding DACA and immigration. For those who could not attend the event Tuesday, there will still be opportunities to get involved through panel discussions and other activities.

The Immigration Coalition Advocacy Week is co-sponsored by groups at Hope College, including Campus Ministries, Vox Populi, the Center for Diversity and Inclusion, the GROW Collaboration, the Latino Student Organization, Hope United for Justice, Hope College Democrats, and the “Immigrants Are a Blessing Not Burden” campaign.

EVENTS

Center for Women and Gender Equity to host day of service

BY TY KONELL LAKERLIFE@LANTHORN.COM

Grand Valley State University is a school with a myriad of organizations that practice community service and giving back. No stranger to this practice, the Gayle R. Davis Center for Women and Gender Equity (CWGE) will be hosting a day of service Friday, Nov. 3.

The service event will last the duration of the day and will offer the GVSU and local community a day filled with collaborative efforts to work on various projects.

“Our days of service are day-long opportunities to engage with the community in meaningful civic collaboration,” said Jessica Jennrich, director of the CWGE. “The type of work can range from administrative to conducting surveys in neighborhoods to helping fix the grounds of a community partner.”

Jennrich said the days of service have been a part of

what the CWGE, formerly known as the Women’s Center, has done since the beginning of its presence at GVSU. The CWGE days of service occur several times throughout the academic year. After the event this Friday, the next upcoming date is Friday, Nov. 17.

“Days of service have been a part of CWGE history since the inception of the Center,” Jennrich said. “We have multiple days of service throughout the year with a number of different community partners so that students can understand how to apply the concepts of gender and social justice work.”

GVSU organizations offer public and civil services to several different organizations across West Michigan.

In keeping with that tradition, the CWGE offers its support to local community partners that may be in need of services the CWGE can provide. In doing this, Jennrich said, the involved students get a real-life

perception and application of the content they may be studying in their courses.

“To the community, it allows for large-scale projects in need of volunteers to be accomplished,” Jennrich said.

“For those involved, it allows them to think about how the things they are leaning about in the classroom apply in the world around them.”

Beyond simply giving back to the community, Jennrich said, the CWGE days of service also pave the way for reciprocated relationships with organizations and community partners that benefit both or all parties.

“I think it is more than giving back, but having a reciprocal relationship with those community partners who we value and whose ideas and services we rely upon to do our work, too,” Jennrich said.

GO TO: www.gvsu.edu/cwge FOR MORE INFORMATION

DISCUSSION: Professor Danielle Leek speaks to a group of GVSU students about women’s history inside the Gayle R. Davis Center for Women and Gender Equity Feb. 17, 2016. GVL | LUKE HOLMES

LEADER: Jim Keane, posing above for a photo, will speak about leadership and creativity in business for a Hauenstein Center and Design Thinking Academy event Friday, Nov. 3. COURTESY | CFN.NEWS

Wheelhouse Talk to feature Steelcase CEO

BY NICK KONDYLES NKONDYLES@LANTHORN.COM

The Wheelhouse Talks are a series of sessions orchestrated by the Hauenstein Center for Presidential Studies about once a month every fall and winter semester to bring local, cross-disciplinary leaders to speak to the Grand Valley State University community.

Jim Keane, the CEO of Steelcase, will speak at GVSU Friday, Nov. 3, from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. as a part of the series.

The event, put on by the Hauenstein Center and the Design Thinking Academy, will be held in the Loosemore Auditorium of the Devos Center, Room 122E. “The talks are an opportunity to bring in members of the Grand Rapids community and the greater Michigan area as part of a visioning process,” said Chadd Dowding, senior program manager of the Cook Leadership Academy in the Hauenstein Center. “Jim Keane will talk about leadership and how he implements design thinking at Steelcase.”

Steelcase is a multinational, furniture-manufacturing, architectural and technological corporation valued at over

$3 billion and based out of West Michigan.

“Keane will focus on decision-making on the hiringprocess level, organizing the long future of a business like Steelcase and the overall design of it,” Dowding said.

More than 120 students have RSVP’d to hear Keane speak about collaboration in leadership, the design-thinking process and creativity in decision-making.

“West Michigan is a design-centered region,” said John Berry, director of the Design Thinking Academy. “The Design Thinking Academy provides students with experiences of design thinking so they have the potential to be a better employee for Steelcase, provides and recognizes the value of design thinking as it is used today in the workplace.”

The Design Thinking Academy is intended to provide students with opportunities to work with organizations in the nearby community and expose them to talented design thinkers from outside of GVSU. The academy has a studio room in the upper floor of the Connection, complete with flip charts and technology, that serves as a multi-use student

lounge and office of operation for design thinking.

“Grand Valley creates students for employment,” Berry said. “Exposure to the employment world that will be out there for students when they graduate provides opportunities for students to be a part of real-life careers.

These are things to take advantage of in college years so that they will be better prepared for employment.”

The Hauenstein Center collaborated with the Design Thinking Academy for the event due to the fact that the two organizations both sought to expose students to a leader attuned to design thinking and influential in their field.

Academy applicants are given opportunities to work with talented individuals on activities such as improvisation, prototyping, reading body language and understanding themselves in the context of teams.

“Jim Keane is an advocate of the innovative problemsolving process, and design thinking often involves a diverse group of people working towards solving a common problem,” Berry said. “Keane and Steelcase Incorporated are a prime example of that.”

SPORTS | A9

NOVEMBER 2, 2017 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLSPORTS

QUICK HITS

FOOTBALL

SYDNEY DOBY NAMED GLIAC PLAYER OF THE WEEK

Grand Valley State senior middle blocker Sydney Doby won her first career GLIAC South Division Player of the Week honor for her performance during the week of Monday, Oct. 23, through Sunday, Oct. 29, in the Lakers’ wins against Tiffin and Ashland universities.

Doby racked up 27 kills on 61 attempts while committing only five errors. She added 17 digs, good for third most on the team over the pair of games, and a team-high four block assists.

Her strongest performance came Friday, Oct. 27, against the Tiffin Dragons in a tight 3-2 victory. Doby’s contributions were vital to the win as the Lakers found themselves in a 2-0 hole early before storming back for the comeback victory with 15 kills from Doby, the second most for GVSU. The Lakers, now 14-10 (9-4 GLIAC), will look to extend their season-high five-game win streak Saturday, Nov. 4, against the Wayne State Warriors (14-10, 9-4 GLIAC) in Detroit.

GV HOOPS PLAY FIRST EXHIBITION GAME OF SEASON With basketball season on the horizon, the Grand Valley State Lakers made the short trek to Hope College to do battle with the Dutchmen in an exhibition game for charity, benefiting the American Red Cross for hurricane relief. The theme of charity drew a crowd of approximately 1,100 fans into the gym for the exhibition.

The Lakers came out on top 84-72 despite trailing early.

Guard Lance Dollison led GVSU in scoring with 15 points, all of which came in the first 20 minutes, as the swingman shot four of seven from deep. Two of the triples came in the last minute in the first half, allowing the Lakers to take a 7-point lead into the break.

Guard Chris Dorsey and forward Ben Lubitz added 14 points apiece as GVSU shot 30 for 57 from the field, including eight for 21 from three. The Lakers also scored 36 points off of turnovers.

The Lakers will wrap up their exhibition season with a trip to Ann Arbor, Michigan, to take on the University of Michigan Wolverines Friday, Nov. 3, at 7 p.m. before kicking off their season against Missouri-St. Louis one week later Friday, Nov. 10, in Big Rapids, Michigan, as part of the GLIAC/GLVC challenge.

THREE LAKERS CLAIM TITLES IN CLUB WRESTLING SHOWDOWN

In their first action of the 201718 season, the Grand Valley State club wrestling team sent eight wrestlers to the annual Great Lakes Conference Fall Brawl.

Of the eight competitors, three Lakers walked away with titles and seven placed in the top three.

Freshman Joseph Posledni, who weighed in at 157 pounds, took three bouts en route to winning a title, including one against teammate Nico Martini, who had won two matches prior to the final showdown with Posledni.

Another bracket saw two Lakers duke it out in the finals where two GVSU freshmen, Brady Bischer and Nick Chapman, sparred before Bischer came out victorious.

Heavyweight freshman Michael Krahulik won his bracket as well, while a handful of his teammates placed in the top three of their respective weight classes.

Friday, Nov. 3, marks the next action for Laker wrestlers at the Muskegon College Jayhawk Duals at 5:30 p.m and again the next evening in the Ben McMullen Open at 9:30 a.m.

TO THE END ZONE: GVSU redshirt sophomore running back Bryce Young-Walls carried the running load for the Lakers as starting running back Marty Carter was out with a leg injury during the team’s convincing 28-3 Homecoming victory over the Northern Michigan Wildcats Saturday, Oct. 28, at Lubbers Stadium. GVL | EMILY FRYE

Sink or swim

GV football’s season on the line in showdown with Ashland

BY BRADY MCATAMNEY BMCATAMNEY@LANTHORN.COM

T

he Grand Valley State football coaches and players are a humble bunch.

Together, they preach the importance of every game being equally as crucial as the next. They genuinely believe that no one game means more than another.

It’s a sound ideology, one that allows the players to gear up each and every week as though each game will be their biggest, even games against teams whose records may not be as good as theirs.

There’s only one problem: It does not account for when they actually are competing in their most important game of the entire season, as they are this week.

Yes, it’s time for the Lakers to pull themselves up and prepare for their most paramount game of the regular season to date. The No. 19 nationally ranked Lakers will travel to Ashland, Ohio, Saturday, Nov. 4, to take on the No. 11 Ashland University Eagles (8-1, 7-0), who are currently riding a seven-game win streak, in a game with do-or-die playoff implications for GVSU in the GLIAC. “This is obviously a very critical game for our season,” said head coach Matt Mitchell. “With some of the losses that happened in our region, there’s a lot out in front of us.

We’re virtually assured getting in (to the playoffs) if we can somehow win out, and also, winning out ties us for the conference championship, so I think all these guys are attuned to what’s at stake for this contest.”

There are four “Super Regions” in Division II college football. The top seven teams in each region qualify for

the postseason; the Lakers currently sit at No. 6 in their Super Region Three, while Ashland is ahead at No. 3. As Mitchell noted, a win against Ashland on the road, followed by a win the following weekend at Lubbers Stadium against Tiffin University, would all but guarantee the Lakers a spot. However, if they lose to Ashland on Saturday, things will get murky in a hurry.

It would not be far-fetched to call Ashland the best team the Lakers will have seen this season, even accounting for the University of Indianapolis (No. 2 in Super Region Three) and Ferris State (No. 4 in Super Region Three).

The Eagles present a unique challenge for the Lakers, as their statistics as a team are strikingly similar to GVSU’s. For example, both teams’ defenses have allowed an average of exactly 287.7 yards per game. GVSU scores an average of 37.2 points per game and allows 11.3. Ashland scores 36 and allows 12.3. GVSU has eight turnovers this season. Ashland? Nine.

The similarities even extend down to the players. Ashland quarterback Travis Tarnowski, whom Mitchell revered as a “special player,” has completed 153 of 244 passes for 2,096 yards and 22 touchdowns with one interception this season. Compare that to GVSU’s Bart Williams, who has completed 136 of 218 passes for 1,939 yards and 22 touchdowns with two interceptions, and it’s clear that both defenses will have their hands full. “(Ashland is) No. 2 in the nation right now in third-down conversion percentage,” Mitchell said. “They are extremely effective, and it has to do with their quarterback. He can extend plays, keep them alive, and he’s a very special player. We’ve got three quarterbacks at some of the top teams (in the league) that are match-

ing up, and I think Saturday is going to be an example of that with Bart (Williams) and Travis Tarnowski.

They’ve only thrown three interceptions through nine games, which is pretty remarkable for two quarterbacks to be able to say that.”

Even Ashland’s running back Andrew Vaughn bears a striking resemblance to the Lakers’ star running back, Martayveus Carter. Vaughn has accrued 925 yards, 10 touchdowns and 5.7 yards per carry on 161 attempts, while Carter boasts 7.9 yards per carry on his 117 rushes for 920 yards and nine touchdowns.

The fact that Carter is talented could be a problem in itself. He did not play in GVSU’s 28-3 victory over Northern Michigan University Saturday, Oct. 28, as he nursed an injured ankle, nor did he participate in practice the entire week leading up to the game. His status for Saturday remains in the air, as does that of backup running back Bryce Young-Walls, who left the NMU game after halftime with an injury of his own.

It will be imperative for the Lakers to start well and take a comfortable lead into halftime—something they have not done in the past two weeks against Ferris State and Northern Michigan.

No matter what, the Laker offense is amped to hit the field and compete.

“As a unit, it starts tomorrow starting off with practice,” said wide receiver Brandon Bean, whom Ashland has no equal for. “We’ve got to bring a lot of energy, bring a lot of juice, and be excited to play and get better. Like Coach (Mitchell) says, looking at the game plan, we’ll prep for it, and we’ve got to be able to transfer what’s in the film room to the field, and I can’t speak too far ahead in the future, but it starts

(in practice). It’s about getting better week to week, so that’s our focus.”

The other players anticipate an electric game, too, and appreciate the unique opportunity to lock up a playoff bid.

“You play college football to be in competitive games,” Williams said. “I think we’re fortunate to be in the situation we’re in right now. These games are the fun ones to play–competitive, good, championship-level teams. It’s fun to square up against those guys.

I’m excited for the opportunity to prepare all week and show up on Saturday and try to get the win.”

The fact that their opponent is a rolling Ashland squad and not a down-in-the-dumps GLIAC bottom dweller won’t distract the Lakers. Besides, isn’t every game as important as the next to them?

“We can’t let the gravity of this game cloud what matters the most, and what matters most is blocking, tackling, catching, kicking, pass protection, kickoff coverage, you know, getting better at all those things like the extra-point team, the field-goal team and the kick-return team,” Mitchell said. “Those are the things we have to focus on in detail with attention to detail. Excited about the big picture opportunities, but we’ve got to narrow our focus to what matters the most.”

The players and coaches will hunker down and focus on winning a football game. Everyone else will turn their attention to two college-football heavyweights slugging it out in a game riddled with postseason implications.

The matchup is scheduled to kick off from Jack Miller Stadium at 7 p.m. and can be heard on ESPN radio 96.1 or livestreamed from Ashland Athletics’ website.

VARSITY SCHEDULE FOOTBALL Saturday 7 p.m. at Ashland CROSS COUNTRY Saturday 11 a.m. vs. NCAA Regional Championship MEN’S BASKETBALL Friday 7 p.m. at Michigan (exhibition) WOMEN’S SOCCER Tuesday 3 p.m. vs. Michigan Tech

TWIST AND SHOUT: GVSU senior receiver Brandon Bean lets out a congratulatory yell after the Lakers find the end zone during the team’s 28-3 victory over the Northern Michigan Wildcats Saturday, Oct. 28. The Lakers will face their toughest opponent, Ashland (8-1, 7-0 GLIAC), Saturday, Nov. 3, on the road. GVL | EMILY FRYE

NOVEMBER 2, 2017 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLSPORTS

A10 | SPORTS

Kicking off playoffs SOCCER

GV soccer opens GLIAC Tournament with convincing win over Michigan Tech

Hosler emphasized the importance of finishing their scoring opportunities.

After being shut out 1-0 With the Lakers’ five-score in their final regular-season performance, there was not match against archrival Ferris much to complain about.

“It was definitely good to State, the Grand Valley State soccer team was brought back see the offense come alive to reality after a dominating 15- again,” Hosler said. “It was the first time in the last four game winning streak.

The loss appeared to matches that we came out of wake up the Laker offense halftime and made the adas GVSU (16-3-0, 10-0-0 justments we discussed.”

By the opening whistle, the GLIAC) opened up the postseason GLIAC Tournament temperature was fluctuating with a convincing 5-0 vic- between the high 30s and low tory over the Michigan Tech 40s for the Lakers’ first taste of Huskies (5-11-1, 2-7-1 GLI- colder playing conditions this semester. But for some Lakers, AC) Tuesday, Oct. 31.

GVSU dominated the of- the cold weather isn’t an issue.

“I love this weather perfensive attack, showering the Huskies with 35 total shots, sonally,” said freshman dewhile Michigan Tech could fender Cecilia “Ces” Steinonly manage two. Although wascher. “I would definitely they only scored one goal in the rather play in the cold weathfirst half, the Lakers found their er than in the hot, no doubt.”

Hosler also noted that groove in the second half with the weather solid passing and wasn’t an issue. corner kicks to “We’re all post the remain“We know that from Michigan ing four. and kids from Because the every game the Midwest,” Lakers earned we go into we he said. “It’s the best overjust another all GLIAC have to win fall day for us.” regular-season The frigid record, they the physical weather seemed were awarded battle.” to help Steinwith the No. 1 wascher’s game seeding, meanas she opened ing the team AVA COOK has home-field GVSU SOCCER FRESHMAN up the scoring with a boomadvantage throughout the tournament. ing kick around 30 yards Michigan Tech entered the from the goal, rifling just out of the Huskies’ goalkeeper’s game as the No. 8 seed.

After the Lakers’ regu- reach in the 24th minute. Aslar-season finale and sub- sisted by Giana Parlove, the par offensive performances designed play not only was before, head coach Jeff successful for the Lakers, but

BY ROBBIE TRIANO SPORTS@LANTHORN.COM

it was one that caught the eye of Hosler.

“That’s going to be a ‘Goal of the Year’ candidate for sure, “ Hosler said. “But as much as I would love to defer to Ces, it was designed based on a decision and read by her. She made a brilliant play to take on the defender.”

Entering halftime, the Lakers only had a 1-0 lead but with a staggering 17 total shots. The Lakers had their share of scoring opportunities, but Michigan Tech goalkeeper Kirsen Hudak seemed to have her hand on every shot on goal, finishing the half with eight saves.

Coming out in the second half, the Lakers emphasized running their offense near the end line to force corner kick opportunities and offensive chances in the box. Freshman Ava Cook broke open the second half scoring after dribbling through three Michigan Tech defenders for an open shot in the 49th minute. Assisted

by Steinwascher, the goal was Cook’s 10th of the season.

After that, the Lakers dominated the possession until the final whistle.

Other goal scorers for the Lakers included senior Gabriella Mencotti and Corey Sawall, who scored the remaining two goals.

Although the Lakers managed to make the contest look easy, Michigan Tech played with intense physicality in order to keep their season alive. However, the Lakers were up to the challenge.

“We know that every game we go into we have to win the physical battle,” Cook said. “I

CORNER KICK: GVSU soccer freshman Cecilia Steinwascher boots a corner kick during the team’s convincing 5-0 victory over Michigan Tech in the GLIAC Tournament Tuesday, Oct. 31. GVL | EMILY FRYE

have to compete as hard as I can; if that means going a little bit extra to match them, if I get kicked by the other team, I’ll take that one for the team.”

With the win, GVSU advances to the semifinals for the GLIAC Tournament at home Friday, Nov. 3, at 3

p.m. Their opponent will be No. 4-seeded Tiffin University (8-9-1, 6-3-0 GLIAC), an opponent they defeated twice by a combined score of 14-0. However, Tiffin has won five of their last six matches, a stat line coach Hosler can’t overlook.

“We’re going to see a Tiffin team that is playing really good soccer right now,” Hosler said. “They have some great attacking players, one of the best goalkeepers in the league, and we’re going to have to keep doing what we do effectively.”

HUG ME, SISTER!: Members of the GVSU women’s soccer team all gather together to embrace freshman Cecilia Steinwascher after she buried a shot 30 yards away to give the Lakers an early 1-0 lead during their dominating 5-0 victory over Michigan Tech Tuesday, Oct. 31, in Allendale. The No. 1-GLIAC-seeded Lakers will face the No. 4-seeded Tiffin (8-9-1, 6-3-0 GLIAC) Friday, Nov. 3, at home. GVL | EMILY FRYE

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NOVEMBER 2, 2017 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLSPORTS

SPORTS | A11

M. BASKETBALL

Warming up

BY ROBBIE TRIANO SPORTS@LANTHORN.COM

As all Grand Valley State fall sports begin to either start playoffs or say farewell to their season, the core winter sports will finally have a chance to compete in action after a seemingly long offseason.

One of those sports teams busy in preparation is GVSU men’s basketball, which has already kicked off preseason action in preparation for the regular-season opener against the University of Missouri-St. Louis Friday, Nov. 10, in Big Rapids, Michigan.

Although the outcomes of preseason contests will not affect their overall record, the GVSU coaching staff, led by head coach Ric Wesley, treats the preparation and postgame adjustments the same as in season.

“It’s just like taking a quiz in school,” Wesley said. “The tests are where the bulk of the grades come from, but if you don’t study for the quiz, you’re going to hurt yourself in the long run.”

The Lakers opened up preseason play against crosstown opponent Hope College, where the Lakers took care of the Flying Dutchmen by a 84-72 final score at the DeVos Fieldhouse Tuesday, Oct. 31. The game was added last week after the NCAA allowed teams one more preseason contest as long as the proceeds went toward the American Red Cross to help those recently devastated by the southern hurricanes.

More than 1,100 people attended the event.

GVSU shot an impressive 52.6 percent from the field (30-57), with eight of those field goals coming from behind the three-point arc. Sophomore guard Lance Dollison led the Lakers with 15 points, while senior Chris Dorsey and sophomore Ben Lubitz both added 14.

With last season’s top three scorers graduating from the team, the Lakers have taken

advantage of the preseason opportunities to establish and experiment with various lineups, defenses and offensive schemes before the start of the year. For Wesley, a major part of this year’s coaching has been finding what buttons to push to motivate his players.

“Every player and team is a little bit different from each other,” Wesley said. “Luckily for us, basketball is a unique sport where energy and aggressiveness has this element where if you set up a player to succeed, he will run through a wall like a defensive lineman. But then there’s the times you need to be in chill mode when you’re trying to do the fine motor skills like shooting. It’s all about finding the balance, and our team is looking for that.”

Although the team will find difficulty replacing past talent, the Lakers are confident with the returning players and newcomers stepping up.

One transfer who has turned heads is former Central Michigan Chippewa guard Hunter Hale. The former McDonald’s All-American nominee from Kalamazoo Central played 11 games at CMU but only scored 8 points and made four rebounds.

“He’s a good worker, shooter and scorer,” Wesley said. “He’s a very instinctive guy that will be a spark plug that can have some big scoring nights off. We’ve been very happy with him, and you can never have enough shooters.”

Returning back for the Lakers is junior Zach West, who started 22 games and logged 25 minutes per contest during his GLIAC All-Academic Team season last year.

Although he only averaged 4.9 points, West is known for his ability on the defensive end, as he led the team with 38 steals while averaging 4.6 rebounds a game. Wesley has noticed the jump in his game coming into this season.

“People really notice the scoring, but he just does a lot of things to help our team,”

Wesley said. “He’s just a tough, hard-nosed guy who generally doesn’t make a lot of mistakes. He’s incredibly solid on defense and one of our few physical players.”

The season is about one

GV men’s basketball making the most of preseason contests

week away, but the Lakers will face one final yet tall task as they face the University of Michigan in their final exhibition game Friday, Nov. 3, at the Crisler Center in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Although the Lak-

ers don’t have that much time in a shortened week to prepare for the contest, there’s obviously pressure to have a great showing against an acclaimed Division I program.

“We’re still trying to figure

us out, so this game is about just doing what we do,” Wesley said. “But it’s going to be a good challenge and experience for us. (Michigan) coach John Beilein is fantastic, and it’s a beautiful place to play.”

FLY LIKE AN EAGLE: GVSU men’s basketball player Justin Greason attempts to finish a driving layup through three interior defenders against Macomb Community College at the GVSU Fieldhouse Sunday, Oct. 22. GVSU starts the season Friday, Nov. 11. GVL | SHEILA BABBITT

ATHLETICS

New Irwin Club improvements to attract donors with added incentives

BY KELLEN VOSS SPORTS@LANTHORN.COM

While some may be opposed to it, change can often be a good thing since it frequently revolves around improvement.

That is indeed the case with the Irwin Club at Grand Valley State, whose drastic changes this past year include increased donor benefits and higher-quality benefits as well.

These improvements should not only keep the current donors coming for more but should attract many new donors as well, helping both the university and the athletes.

According to its mission statement, the Irwin Club’s purpose is “to generate philanthropic support necessary to put each of Grand Valley State’s 20 varsity sports in a position to succeed academically and athletically.” The Irwin Club has been striving to live out this purpose for more than 20 years now, providing GVSU and its athletes the necessary funding to succeed.

Donors of $100 or more are automatically members of the club and get all the benefits that come with membership.

“Our athletic fundraising provides the unique opportu-

nity to provide benefits to its donors,” said GVSU Athletics Director Keri Becker. “We want our donors to keep donating while also giving them benefits, so this process is both transactional and transferable, and Athletics has the unique ability to do that.”

What separates the Irwin Club from many other university booster clubs around the country is the sheer amount of benefits donors receive in these new improvements. In the past, donors only had access to three levels of benefits. Those benefits included being sent a GVSU sports newsletter, an ex-

clusive parking pass for football games and an invite to the big donor golf outing.

With the new club improvements, though, donors can expect a lot more for their gracious monetary gifts.

“We have done a lot of research, and now, instead of three levels of benefits, we have eight levels of benefits and 24 benefits based on levels of donation,” Becker said. “It’s a more robust benefit structure.”

Donors can now expect to get many benefits from the university, including, but not limited to, invitations to the new Irwin auction event, personal-

ized sideline passes to football games and reduced greens fees at The Meadows golf course on GVSU’s Allendale Campus.

These donors obviously want to see today’s student athletes succeed, and Becker believes these new improvements to the Irwin Club can help facilitate that.

“The great thing about our donors is that most donors gave because they want to see our athletes succeed academically, athletically and socially,” Becker said. “What (these changes) do is give us a better way to engage with these people and say ‘thank you’ to these donors.”

FOR THE FANS: GVSU sophomore wide receiver Austin Paritee jumps over the railing into the Grand Valley State student section where he celebrates with the Laker fans after scoring a touchdown during the team’s blowout 48-0 victory in the team’s home-opening “Laker Blue Night” Saturday, Sept. 9, at Lubbers Stadium. GVL | EMILY FRYE

The improvements to the Irwin Club can allow the Athletics staff and administration to get in better touch with these donors, with more invitations to more events creating a tight community at a big school.

“My favorite part of these changes is the number of times we can have face-to-face interactions with our donors and give them the most,” Becker said. “We need to know who these people are, and we need to be able to thank them and welcome them appropriately when they come back.”

There are indeed a lot more opportunities for these donors to have face-to-face interactions, including with invitations to Irwin Club tailgates, basketball receptions and even Hall-of-Fame dinner tickets.

While there have been many changes to the benefits of the Irwin Club, the goals of it still remain the same.

“What we want is the most continued commitment to our athletes, and it’s the same purpose, just a different structure,” Becker said. “We have the same goals in mind, and this is just a whole new experience.”

The improvements to the Irwin Club may not only attract new donors but may also help those currently donating feel a sense of community and belonging at the club. These new opportunities for donor interaction may be considered crucial because, as Becker says, “understanding is only a conversation away.”

For more information on the club and how to get involved, visit www. g vsulakers.com/index. aspx?path=irwin_club.

NOVEMBER 2, 2017 GRAND VALLEY LANTHORN @GVLSPORTS

A12 | SPORTS CLUB ROWING

Around the nation

GV club rowing prides itself on travel opportunities, life experiences

BY D’ANGELO STARKS DSTARKS@LANTHORN.COM

The Grand Valley State rowing club has been busy traveling all over the U.S. during its fall season.

The Laker Navy has already competed in Nashville and Boston, and toward the end of the fall, they will also compete in Indianapolis.

Shortly after, the women will head to Tampa, Florida, for training camp.

Rowing was not only one of the first sports that was offered at GVSU, but it was also one of the first clubs to originate shortly after the university’s creation. The sport started in 1964 at GVSU as a varsity sport but was changed to a club sport in the mid 1980s and has remained one since. GVSU rowing coach John Bancheri believes the

club’s greatest trait is its strong-rooted tradition.

“Rowing at Grand Valley is an old sport,” he said. “It’s the first sport at Grand Valley. We had a really good run there for the past 10 years, but this past year, our numbers are down a little bit, and now we are working on recruiting and rebuilding.”

With rowing being such a storied program at GVSU, it requires a lot of hard work and sacrifice from the players. There are perks to traveling around the country competing, but Bancheri also realizes the time investment and physical toll the sport takes.

“We are competing at a high level, and there’s a cost to it,” Bancheri said. “Physical, mental, social—you have to commit and be willing to put the time in. This has become an elite activity on campus, and I believe

the guys and gals on this go to class, do homework team are true warriors. The before practice, go to pracones that don’t last, they tice, eat, do more homehave other things going on, work and go to sleep. My and I understand that.”

GPA (went) from a 1.8 to a The team trains and 3.9 when I started rowing.” practices 18 The rowing hours on avclub is constructerage every ed differently week. Throw than most other “Physical, that schedule clubs as there mental, social— are four differin with a full school workent teams that you have to load and it’s compete. Those commit and be enough to teams include potentially men’s varsity, overwhelm a willing to put the women’s varsity, student.

But men’s novice and time in.” senior captain women’s novDonnie Jensen ice. The novice JOHN BANCHERI said that isn’t teams are where GVSU ROWING COACH the case for the newer rowers him. first go, and it’s a “For me, when I first place where they can learn the started rowing, I had a technique and fundamentals of problem with time manage- rowing before having to comment, but it sort of just took pete at a high varsity level. away all my free time,” JenBancheri talked about sen said. “Now, I wake up, the novice men’s and wom-

en’s teams and how they are looking heading into the end of the fall season.

“Our novice men’s team is really rebuilding,” Bancheri said. “We’ve got some big, strong guys, and they’ve showed a lot of promise early in the season. The novice women have a nice group of athletes. Their new coach, Dan Martin, he’s done a great job. He’s put them on simmer mode, slowly developing them, but you can see them coming along.”

One of the leaders on this year’s team is senior captain of the women’s varsity team, Cass Bruins, who has had to learn to take the novice talent and newcomers under her wing.

“I really try to lead by example,” Bruins said. “I am one of the lesser-experienced rowers on the team, but I’m still one of the fastest girls on the team. It’s re-

ally about helping the people below you forward; this team is really good at that.

Everyone pushes everyone forward no matter what their status on the team is.”

Bancheri discussed his outlook on the rest of the season.

“This is preparation for the spring,” Bancheri.

“We have a race this weekend called the ‘Bald Eagle’ with top club teams from the Midwest and East. It’s going to be a competitive event, but our priority is on the freshman eights. Our freshman men got pounded last year, but I have a funny feeling that they are going to be in the hunt.”

The GVSU rowing club will be in Indianapolis this weekend, starting Saturday, Nov. 4, to row in the Eagle Collegiate Challenge. The event will be the team’s final event of the fall.

ROWING THE BOAT: Members of the GVSU women’s club rowing team prepare themselves to compete moments before the Lubbers Cup Regatta on Spring Lake April 9, 2016. Having already traveled out of state this semester to Nashville, Tennessee, and Boston, Massachusetts, the Laker Navy prides itself on offering opportunities for national travel and personal growth through the program. GVL | KEVIN SIELAFF

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Special events: Wild Wednesday's from 9:30pm to close, offering $1games, shoes, and more. Fridays after class from noon to 5pm they have $1 games, shoes, and miller high life. Located on 629 Leonard ST NW only five minutes from downtown campus! For more information give them a call at (616)454-4482

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For Sale: 2005 Dodge Neon SXT $2000 174,000 miles Great car!I commuted for 6 years during my undergrad at GV from Holland. The car runs really good! About 3 years ago I had a rebuilt motor placed in the vehicle and the engine has about 169,000 miles in it. Recently had front breaks/motors placed on the vehicle before I put it for sale. E-mail for pictures/inquiries: putnamau@mail.gvsu.edu

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