Michigan’s oldest college newspaper
Vol. 141 Issue 10 - November 9, 2017
www.hillsdalecollegian.com
Hillsdale sets new GPA high
Construction workers place the cornerstone for the new chapel. Breana Noble | Collegian
College dedicates chapel cornerstone New building’s foundation rests upon ‘For God and country’ By | Breana Noble Editor-In-Chief A crane lifted an L-shaped cornerstone and placed it into the southwest corner of the under-construction Christ Chapel on Tuesday to a round of applause. The stone proclaims in Greek and Latin: “For God and country.” Rev. Adam Rick, Hillsdale College chaplain, blessed the cornerstone during a dedication ceremony, immediately following Convocation. Provost David Whalen said the event marked the spiritual significance of the new chapel and religious founding of the college. “This ceremony recognizes the unique nature of this building as set apart, as sacred to God,” Whalen said. “The building of this chapel is very much an act of gratitude, and we trust, we hope and pray that generations and genera-
tions of warm gratitude will be given to God for all of our blessings.” The $28.5-million chapel — due for completion in May 2019 — will be 27,000 square feet and hold up to 1,350 people for large lectures, music concerts, and Convocation. “You can’t read the story of Hillsdale College without understanding freedom, high learning, character, and God,” Arnn said. “Those four things are an integrity. They are part of a whole. They always have been. Because the whole has an integrity, the college thrives.” Before the cornerstone was set in place, Jo and Jack Babbitt, the leading benefactors of the building, fixed into the chapel’s wall a Bible, the ceremony’s program, the Honor Code, and the college’s Articles of Association to be preserved there in perpetuity. “All those things are per-
manent things,” Arnn said. “They are part of the record of the making of this college and this chapel.” It may also be a testament to the dedications of other cornerstones on campus. Senior Hans Noyes, who is doing a project of Hillsdale’s religious history for a public history project to be put on display in the Heritage Room, said he learned a Bible was placed into the foundations of Central Hall, as well. “It’s neat they’re paying homage to that,” Noyes said. Jo Babbitt said Psalm 118:22 explained the significance of the dedication: “The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone.” “I hope God’s wisdom and knowledge will be built up on that cornerstone — Christ alone and cornerstone,” she said.
By | Breana Noble Editor-In-Chief Hillsdale College students set the highest average all-campus GPA since 2007 with an average of 3.343 last spring, surpassing fall 2016’s record of 3.34. Provost David Whalen made the announcement on Tuesday at the first-ever Convocation held in the Searle Center, as the college gathered together to honor scholarship, excellence in instruction, and the college’s religious heritage. A faculty committee selected Assistant Professor of Chemistry Courtney Meyet to receive the Emily Daughtery Award for Teaching Excellence, which recognizes a junior member of the faculty each fall. “I was absolutely surprised,” Meyet said. “I was definitely humbled by it; I don’t think I deserve it. It is one of the sweet high points of my career.” Whalen once again awarded Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority and Alpha Tau Omega fraternity the Greek scholarship cups. Kappa earned a 3.44 and ATO a 3.259 average GPA last semester, respec-
Gov. Pete Ricketts of Nebraska visited campus on Monday to speak at a luncheon hosted by the Omicron Delta Kappa leadership honorary and the President’s Office. In his talk, entitled “Taming the Leviathan: Reducing the Size and Scope of Government,” the governor discussed how he has applied his business experience, which includes serving as the Chief Operating Officer of TD
Ameritrade, to state governance.
Q: Nebraska is the only state to have a unicameral legislature. Do you think this is an effective system of government? A: Like any system, it’s got pluses and minuses. On the plus side, I am told we are less polarized than other state houses, and I think that makes it easier for us to work on different solutions.
From my perspective, one of the challenges a one-house system presents is that I’m the only check and balance in the system. So it puts a lot more pressure on the executive branch when it comes to bad bills that might come out of the body to try and stop those. Q: I want to talk about the death penalty repeal bill, which you vetoed, which was followed by a veto override, and then ended up on the
ballot last November after you helped get enough votes for a petition. Why is this issue important to you? A: The death penalty is an important tool to protect public safety, in particular for protecting our law enforcement officers, and I also think about it from the standpoint of our corrections officers. We ask our corrections officers to go into our prisons,
See Ricketts A3
Stockford wins mayor elections with 56% of vote By | Kaylee McGhee City News Editor City Councilman Adam Stockford was elected mayor on Nov. 7, carrying 56 percent of the vote and defeating incumbent Scott Sessions. Hillsdale residents also voted on four open city council seats. City Councilmen Will Morrisey and Bill Zeiser ran unopposed, holding their seats in Wards 3 and 4. Ray Briner, a senior credit analyst at County National Bank, took Ward 4’s seat and writein candidate Greg Stuchell surged ahead in Ward 1, taking the seat Stockford vacated in order to run for mayor. “I am excited, humble, and grateful for the public support,” Stockford said. City Clerk Stephen French said voter turnout was abnormally high, more than double Follow @HDaleCollegian
more than 17 percent of the county voted. French said candidates’ focus on the local economy could have contributed to the turnout. “The city has had contested elections before, so I’m not sure what was different about this one,” French said. “Both Adam Stockford was elected mayor on Tues- candidates did day, winning 56 perecent of the vote. good camCity of Hillsdale paigning.” Stockford’s campaign what it had been in years focused on growing the local past. Hillsdale normally sees economy. He said this issue 7-8 percent voter turnout in resonated with voters. local elections, but this year
anonymously written poem called “Golden Keys” from a book he had as a child. Although the four keys — good morning, if you please, goodnight, and thank you — seek to teach young children the importance of manners, Barnes compared them to how people should approach the challenges they face. “I trust you see here the hints of these four keys: the creating of a problem, the search for its solution, the laying to rest of the puzzle, and the welcoming back of a insight,” Barnes said. “What puts our place in the right place when we are committed to truth is not a technique of verification but a disposition, and the golden keys prepare us to express it. I am speaking here of reverence.” Valuing tradition, specifically liberal arts, enables the college to pursue truth and serve eternal ideals, Barnes said. From the sound of it, Hillsdale, just as its motto says, will continue to do just that. “The college is doing pretty well,” President Larry Arnn said. “We’ll have college again next year.”
The chamber choir performed at Tuesday’s convocation. Matthew Kendrick | Collegian
Q&A: Nebraska Gov. Pete Ricketts
-Compiled by Brooke Conrad
tively. KKG President Maria Thiesen, a senior, said the sorority placed extra emphasis on academics last semester during the recruitment process, at chapter meetings, and a new academic structure that prioritized accountability in grades and study table times as well as incentivized good work. “We were really happy to keep the scholarship cup,” Thiesen said. “I think we’ve fostered an environment of positive academic growth. It’s great to see that work pay off.” Overall, women at Hillsdale once again had higher grades than the men, earning an average 3.425 to their 3.260. All average GPAs increased from the spring semester. Because of scheduling conflicts with College Baptist Church, Convocation was moved to Searle. Coordinating with events there, the college moved the event from Thursday to Tuesday. Assistant Professor of Psychology Collin Barnes, selected as Professor of the Year by the class of 2017, spoke on the pursuit of hidden truth. He framed his talk around an
“All they have to do is look around them to see how it’s going. This election was a reflection of that,” Stockford said. Stockford said he plans on getting right to work and that his campaign promises were not just promises. He said he wants to begin by shifting the city’s economic focus to an industrial one. “Everything I said during the campaign I meant,” he said. Hillsdale resident Natasha Crall said Stockford will bring a strong, much-needed presence to the city. “Mayor Stockford is a man with a vision for the future of this city, and his experience will serve the city well,” she said. “I am excited to see what his leadership brings to the table.”
See Election A6
www.hillsdalecollegian.com
Hoath pleads guilty By | Kaylee McGhee City News Editor Ashley Diane Hoath, 27, pleaded guilty to second degree murder on Oct. 31 — days before she was supposed to testify in a jury trial regarding the murder of 37-year-old Jeremy Alan Barron. The details of the plea bargain have not been released. A group of Amish children found Barron’s body in April, while riding their horses through a wooded area near Reading. Shortly after being arrested, Hoath admitted to police she wanted Barron dead. She told police in a recorded interview that he was an abusive boyfriend who took her children from her. According to police records, she said she sat by while her friend Jay Clark shot Barron four times in the back of Clark’s Chevrolet Tahoe. “‘Tell her you are not going to hurt her again,’” Hoath recalled Clark saying to Barron in a police document. When Barron didn’t reply, Hoath said Clark looked at her and asked “Get her done?” “Yeah, get her done,” Hoath responded, before four gunshots rang out. On Oct. 5, Hoath requested a motion to suppress these statements and others made before and after her arrest. Hoath’s attorney, Zach Rusk, said in a court testi-
mony that his client had not slept in the two days leading up to an interrogation led by Michigan State Police Detective Sergeant Nathan Horan, who used a polygraph, or lie detecting machine, at Hoath’s request. Horan testified at the hearing and said Hoath was obviously lying about not being involved with Barron’s murder, scoring a negative 18 on the polygraph compared to the American Polygraph Association’s dishonesty standard of negative 4. “I said cut out the act, and let’s talk about this,” Horan said in a court testimony. During cross examination, led by Hillsdale County Prosecutor Neal Brady, Hoath denied conspiring to murder Barron with Clark. She said she felt pressured to give into Horan because of his aggressive interrogation tactics. “I just wanted it to be over with,” Hoath said, who now faces up to life in prison. “He was verbally attacking me.” After allegedly shooting Barron, Clark dumped his body in the woods and burned the rifle and backseats of his truck to hide the evidence. He faces charges of first degree murder or open murder, using a firearm to commit a felony, concealing the death of a person, and carrying away a corpse. If convicted of first degree murder, he will serve a life sentence in prison. Look for The Hillsdale Collegian