Collegian 04.03.2025

Campus blacks out, dorms go up

and we tried to go to Walmart to get a case of water because the water fountains weren’t working,” Surmacz said. “But they didn’t have power. Meijer didn’t have power. So everyone went to the Dairy Queen drive-through line, which was a vibe. There were like 20 people there.”

Surmacz said Koon did not have any lights, Wi-Fi, or drinking water throughout the night, and using the bathroom in the dark was especially scary. She said she was discouraged about having to wait until 7 a.m. for any notice from administration.

Trump to name alumnus to OLC

By Catherine Maxwell News Editor

President Donald Trump will nominate Hillsdale College alumnus Elliot Gaiser ’12 to head the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel as assistant attorney general, the New York Times reported yesterday.

if the students thought he was over-serious. I told him probably — he was very serious. I also told him not to worry about it. It was not a bad problem, if it existed, and anyway he would grow out of it.”

The Office of Legal Counsel advises the president on legal questions and controversies.

By Catherine Maxwell, Tayte Christensen, and Megan Li News Editor and Assistant Editors

When the power went out on campus after a tornado warning the evening of March 30, many juniors and seniors were reminded of the ice storms and power outages of 2023.

While many hoped the outage would last until the morning and force the cancellation of classes, as it did in 2023, the city restored power just before

to have fun on a dark campus.

Sophomore Stephanie Surmacz, who lives in Koon Residence, said she was in her room when the power went out.

“I was studying for the exam the next day on my computer so I could still see really easily,” Surmacz said. “There were some girls in the hallway just laughing and joking.”

According to Surmacz, one emergency light remained on

By Frederick Woodward Collegian Reporter

in the hallway with the first power outage, but it eventually

“I was just studying in my room with my boyfriend as our devices slowly lost power,” Surmacz said. “We were both trying to do homework, but it started getting darker and harder to see.”

Surmacz said Koon does not have a backup generator, so all the residents were completely dependent on any other places that had power.

“We went for a drive so that we could charge our phones,

“All the streetlights went dark and it looked really cool, but also super sketchy,” Surmacz said. “Some girl was screaming bloody murder.”

Across campus in Kirn Residence, senior Caitlin Filep’s plans for the evening did not include sitting on the floor in a half-lit hallway.

Gaiser, who currently serves as the solicitor general of Ohio, recently defended the state before the Supreme Court in a discrimination case, The Collegian reported last month.

Gaiser participated in the Dow Journalism Program and was the opinions editor of The Collegian during his time at Hillsdale.

Gaiser declined to comment.

College President Larry Arnn previously told The Collegian Gaiser is diligent, honest, intelligent, and successful in everything he tries.

“I have been proud to watch his growth,” Arnn said in March. “He once asked me

“The OLC provides an official, executive branch interpretation of the Constitution and laws, and those opinions carry quite a bit of weight when it comes to constitutional interpretation and legal interpretation,” Associate Professor of Politics Joseph Postell said. Gaiser, a 2016 graduate of University of Chicago law school, clerked for Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito during the court’s 2021-2022 term. In that term, Justice Alito wrote the majority opinion overturning Roe v. Wade.

Alumnus

Education’s introduction.

Arnn discusses education on TV, X College hires new marketing professor

By Malia Thibado Collegian Reporter

The Economics, Business, and Accounting Department hired Neil Watson as an instructor of marketing. Chairman of Economics and Associate Professor of Finance Robert Atra said Watson will supplement Professor of Marketing Susan King. Watson will teach a Sports Marketing class in the fall and plans to teach both Digital Marketing and a class for nonprofit marketing, Atra said.

“It’s traditional business corporate marketing, like working for a publicly traded corporation. These are typical of the way we think of college classes,” Atra said. “I think there’s probably a lot of interactions between business and other areas of the college and this would be one of the ways we could do it.”

President Donald Trump’s efforts to dismantle the Department of Education represent an important first step towards educational reform, Hillsdale College President Larry Arnn said in a March 11 appearance on the “Dana Loesch Show.”

“If they just took the 50% of the money they saved by getting rid of the bureaucracy, and burned it, it would be a net gain,” Arnn said in the 13-minute long interview, which was one among several media appearances on outlets such as Fox News and Newsmax related to the Trump administration’s efforts to reimagine education at the federal level.

In a March 15 interview with Mario Nawfal on “69 X Minutes,” Arnn said there were currently more public education bureaucrats than the number of publicly employed teachers. Arnn compared the current state of the Department of Education to Soviet Russia and modern-day China, both of which were characterized by oppressive state control.

“Of all the things in the world that could be centralized, education should be the last,” Arnn

said. “Education happens in the soul of the student. If it doesn’t happen there, it doesn’t happen. Control of the system should be as near to the student as possible.”

Dean of Masters in Education and Professor of Education Daniel Coupland said he agreed.

“The family is the central unit of a healthy society,” Coupland said. “Parents, who are the first and often the best teachers, ought to be making decisions on what is best for their children.”

On March 20, President Trump signed an executive order directing Education Secretary Linda McMahon to take “all necessary steps to facilitate the closure of the Department of Education and return education authority to the States.”

In an exclusive statement to The Collegian, Arnn said the debate over the Department of Education was only part of the problem.

“The argument over the de partment of education is just one example of the larger issue,” Arnn said. “That issue is wheth er we will return to the practices of the Constitution, where the federal government is supposed to be supreme over named na tional matters, instead of doing the other things it does which

are too numerous to count. ” Arnn said Congress should act in concert with the president to abolish the Department of Education.

“As for the DOE, it was created in 1979-1980 by a law, which the Congress passed and the president signed,” Arnn said.

“The president cannot undo that alone. I understand that the president will support a bill or bills in Congress to abolish it. In my opinion that should be done.”

Junior Andrew VanDevere said educational outcomes had fallen since the Department of

“Since 1979, literacy rates have fallen, and educational costs have risen,” VanDevere said.

At the end of the day, Coupland said, abolishing the Department of Education would be an important first step toward renewing American Education.

“Shutting down the U. S. Department of Education will, at minimum, remind the country that education is the responsibility of states, local communities, and most importantly families,” Coupland said.

By Anna Broussard Assistant Editor

American Christians must defend Indian Christians, who face persecution from their government, said journalist Tunku Varadarajan in a lecture April 1 in Plaster Au-

“It is my fervent hope that Indian Americans who are successful, persuasive, eloquent, self-confident citizens of a powerful, persuasive, assertive nation will form a cohort of political and cultural advocates who keep India the land of their ancestry,” said Varadarajan, a Wall Street Journal contributor who is this semester’s Eugene C. Pulliam Distinguished Visiting Fellow in Journalism. India needs Western values, he said in his lecture titled “Is India Lost to the West?” Pulliam A2

Campus went dark Sunday, but the sky was on fire.

Courtesy | Makayla Hanna

Ruthie Chinery celebrated her engagement during the blackout. Courtesy | Ruthie Chinery

President Larry Arnn appeared on Fox News. Courtesy | Fox News

By James Joski Collegian Freelancer

Locals bring antiques to road show Pro-life CEO explains ethics of birth control

Crowded together, Hillsdalians waited with everything from comic books to lead pennies in hopes of exchanging their prized items for cash at the Premier Gold, Silver and Coin Association road show, hosted March 25-29 at the Dow Hotel.

Started in 2009, the business often hosts events called “road shows,” where it appraises and buys valuable items ranging from precious metals and jewelry to vintage stamps and war memorabilia.

Wait times often exceeded business hours as the sole appraiser Jon Armola vowed to serve everyone who had registered that day. On Saturday, people waited as late as 6 p.m., even though the event was slated to end at 3 p.m.

Hillsdale resident Christine Levack brought any item she had that she thought could be of value, including some custom jewelry.

“I was with Mary Kay Cosmetics for years, and we always wore this beautiful jewelry,” Levack said. “I brought a couple of earrings that I don’t wear anymore to see if he wanted to buy them.”

Levack also brought a vari-

ety of coins that she had collected over the years.

“My granddaughter traveled a lot on mission trips when she was in college, and she brought home coins from all over,” Levack said.

Among her collection of coins were some Guatemalan pesos from a mission trip. The most peculiar of all of her items was an antique backgammon set she found at a rummage sale.

Levack said she hoped she could help the next generation in her family by selling these items.

“I thought I could sell them and help my great-granddaughter’s college fund,” Levack said.

Another seller, John Cerne, had an entirely different set of goods: sports memorabilia.

His collection included signed helmets from Don Shula, a signed baseball from Don Rose, and a collection of baseball cards.

“Carl Yastrzemski, George Brett, Rickey Henderson — I used to collect cards like a crazy person,” Cerne said. “I always intended on displaying it in the barndominium or the garage or the bar but I never did.”

Donna and David Weir brought in a variety of coins dated as far back 1924.

Their collection included mercury dimes (minted be-

tween 1916-1945), lead pennies (coated with steel due to wartime shortages), and Morgan silver dollars.

Among her jewelry and vintage Tonka trucks, Jess Hindes said she wanted to identify a strange, compass-looking device.

“I don’t even know what that one thing is,” Hindes said, “I bought it at a yard sale and it’s

perience, a typical roadshow will have multiple appraisers and different rooms you can walk into.

“It would just be better if there was more than one person because I’ve been waiting since two,” said Hindes, who had been waiting for an hour and a half.

Eugene Hill said he was trying to sell a large collection of antique packaged comic books he got several years ago from a relative. The titles ranged from “Spider-Man” to “Teenageman,” and dated as far back as the 1970s. Though Hill said he found the books neat, he had more pressing needs for the

By Sophia Bryant Collegian Freelancer

sive need for more research into these contraceptives, but no one is financing that research.

Drugs marketed as tools of birth control would encompass both the prevention of pregnancies as well as the destruction of embryos in the 1960s and 1970s, said Christina Francis in a speech hosted by Hillsdale College for Life March 31.

“It will help pay bills,” Hill

Stauff publishes book on German hymns

By Gemma Flores Collegian Reporter

After ten years of writing, Associate Professor of Music Derek Stauff published his book, “Lutheran Music and the Thirty Years War: Confession, Politics, Devotion,” in late February.

The book, published by Oxford University Press, explores how the specific hymns and sacred music performed in German churches give insight into the German sentiment during the Thirty Years War.

“My main goal was to try to figure out the way in which sacred music could have contemporary and often political meaning in ways that are less than obvious,” Stauff said.

Stauff, who has worked at Hillsdale since 2015, said his research for his doctoral dissertation at Indiana University inspired him to write the book.

“I wrote on Lutheran music from central Germany during the Thirty Years War,” Stauff said. “That developed into this book project, and I reworked a lot of what I had in that disser-

“These values are at the core: religious tolerance, including the right of every citizen to decide which religion he’d like to belong to, and including the right also to change his own religion if he wants to; the rule of law; and democracy,” said Varadarajan, who also taught a one-credit journalism course on “The Art of the Review.”

According to Varadarajan, 80% of Indians are Hindu, 14% are Muslim, 2.3% Christian, 1.7% Sikh, and the remainder includes Jews and other religions.

Varadarajan focused on India’s Christian population of 24 million people.

“I want to focus on the plight of India’s Christians, a majority of whom are converts to Christianity from India’s lower castes or the descendants of such converts. The same, incidentally, is true of the plurality of Indian Muslims,” Varadarajan said. “Why wouldn’t you convert to a creed that offers you dignity and that says that all are equal in the eyes of God,

tation over the past ten years until it was in good condition.”

Stauff grew up in an area of Pennsylvania that had a strong German influence and studied German in school. Because of his experience with German, Stauff said he was drawn to studying German music. The real question, Stauff said, was what time period to specialize in.

“I had wanted to study a parallel time in European history, which would be the 1920s and ’30s,” Stauff said. “But it seemed like everybody was writing their dissertations on 20th-century music.”

Stauff said he was next drawn to 17th-century German music, which eventually became his specialization.

“It wasn’t as crazy as 20th-century music, and that could be better or worse, but there’s lots of interesting stuff to talk about,” Stauff said. “There also wasn’t as much competition in the field as there might be with 20th-century music in Europe during the 1920s and 1930s.”

The process of retrieving

and yet of these Christians, 74% of all Christians in India, continue to be stigmatized by others as low caste.”

Varadarajan said although there is a stigma surrounding Indian Christians, the current prime minister, Narendra Modi, and his Bharatiya Janata Party have promoted persecution of Christian organizations.

“Modi and his party, the BJP, have governed India in ways that are unabashedly Hindu,” Varadarajan said. “This has been terrible for the country’s religious minorities, particularly Muslims and Christians, and for the millions of Indians who don’t wish to be told what they should eat, wear, read and watch by a religiously driven government.”

According to Varadarajan, India is losing its connection to the West as the government oppresses religious minorities and undermines religious tolerance, endangering Western values.

More recently, the Indian government has outlawed attempted Christian conversions.

to: Advertise with The Collegian

advertise in The Collegian, please contact Nathan Stanish at

German was particularly useful when analyzing different primary sources. He scoured libraries and archives, looking at records and diaries to place which hymns were performed in what churches across Germany.

One of the most exciting discoveries Stauff remembers from his research was finding a diary page that told of a famous piece performed after a major victory in central Germany.

“A lot of it is just sheer accidental luck,” Stauff said. “I happened to be in the music library at Indiana University, and I looked on the shelf and pulled this book down and opened it up. The ironic thing was that I had just spent a month or two in Germany. I could have shot myself because the original diary page had been a block or two away from me in Dresden when I

Varadarajan said the legislation has shut down more than two dozen religious groups. He pointed to the example of Compassion International, a Christian charity that Modi’s government shut down in 2017.

Through such action, Varadarajan said the Western values of India are being reshaped by the government’s suppression of religious minorities and must be stopped before being lost to the West entirely.

“Their refashioning of India’s political and civic norms, Modi and the BJP government are not reviving any traditional code of governance — modern India’s political values since the very first minute of its independence have essentially been western values,” Varadarajan said. “If these are stripped away, India will be lost in uncharted territory, lost not only to the West, but also to itself.”

Paul Krepps from Mason, Michigan said he visited Hillsdale to hear Varadarajan’s lecture and said the focus on

“Dr. Stauff as a professor does a great job at explaining historical, musical concepts, either large or small, through his vast bank of modern and pop culture analogies or parallels,” Blackwell said.

Senior Anna Perrone described Stauff as a thorough and engaging teacher, who cares about helping his students fully grasp the course material. She said she has taken several classes with Stauff, including Music History I and II, which cover some of the material from Stauff’s book.

“The classes themselves were both highly entertaining and informational,” Perrone said in an email. “Time always flew by. The workload was heavy, but Dr. Stauff was always available to help.”

religious persecution was informative.

“I really appreciated his description of the religious intolerance that’s happening in India since Prime Minister Modi came to power and the influence of the political party that he’s associated with,” Krepps said. “Compassion International, which we’re all familiar with, was kicked out of the country. All of those personal connections that Christians here and other parts of the world had with Christians in India were broken through that broken relationship.”

Junior Malia Thibado said the talk was different from what she had originally expected.

“I knew very abstractly about the persecution of Christians. I was surprised that he focused on that,” Thibado said. “I did believe it was going to be more of a cultural and geopolitical overview, but I do like that he tailored it to what he perceived his audience would prefer.”

“This change in definition then allowed for the use of drugs or devices for contraception that act after fertilization to be defined as contraceptives,” said Francis, the CEO of the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists. “They could say, ‘Well, this prevents a pregnancy from occurring.’ Now, if you or I hear that, we might think that means no embryo is ever created, right?”

In her talk, titled “A Review of Contraceptives from a Life-Affirming Perspective,” Francis said pregnancy is now defined as after an embryo is implanted in the uterus. Drugs that destroy an embryo or prevent them from implanting, Francis said, are considered contraceptives.

“If you really want to be consistent in your pro-life ethic, and you want to be sure that even at our early stages, those early embryos don’t lose their lives as a result of these drugs, then we have to look at things a little bit differently,” Francis said.

According to Francis, there are large discrepancies between the risk of pregnancy and the percentage of women who actually get pregnant while taking popular contraceptives. Francis said this implies that created embryos are not surviving implantation.

“There is enough of a suggestion there because of that discrepancy that we see between actual pregnancy rates and what we would expect to see if they were only working by preventing ovulation,” Francis said. “Common sense would tell you that it’s acting through one of those other mechanisms.”

Francis said there is a mas-

Hire from A1

The marketing department has not previously offered sports or nonprofit marketing classes, but is looking to expand into more non-traditional businesses.

Courses like the nonprofit class are meant to reach more than just marketing majors.

“We believe the sports marketing class will interest sports management majors, and charter school educators will benefit from a nonprofit marketing class,” King said. “These new classes are designed for both business and non-business majors.”

According to King, Watson will bring prolific business experience to the EBA department. He has worked for Ave Maria College, Adidas, Tillamook Creamery, and TaylorMade Golf in senior marketing management positions. In addition, he has international and small business experience.

Junior Summerlin Williams said she met Watson when he came to campus for an in-person interview in January.

“The only safe methods if you are wanting to ensure no loss of life are those that prevent fertilization from ever occurring, or if they do allow fertilization, have no impact on a uterine lining whatsoever,” Francis said.

In the talk, Francis also addressed emergency contraceptives like Plan B, which is currently sold over the counter in all 50 states, and Ella, which is being marketed as a contraceptive so that it might be able to be sold over the counter in the future.

“Ella is important for you to know about because it’s on the rise right now,” Francis said. “It’s a relative of mifepristone, and it acts in exactly the same way. It can prevent ovulation, but it can also prevent implantation, and it can kill an already implanted embryo.”

Students said they appreciated Francis for bringing clarity to a confusing and controversial topic.

“I really appreciated her straightforward approach and her clarity in defining the terms, because I’ve realized how twisted language can get,” freshman Lyndi Klacik said. Klacik said it was helpful to know that even if something was legally labeled as a contraceptive that simply prevented pregnancy, it might actually be destroying a life that had already formed.

“It was very interesting to learn about all of the different technicalities of wording in trying to get certain agendas across,” freshman Sofia LaHood said.

Francis concluded by saying the only contraceptives we can be sure do not kill an embryo are fertility awareness-based methods and barrier methods, and pointed the audience to aaplog.org for more information.

“I don’t know that I could recommend any normal contraceptive at this point with the evidence that we have,” Francis said.

Williams said she is excited for the new professor because his addition will add more flexibility and variability to the marketing major as well as a different perspective from the existing faculty.

“There’s a different connection you can have with a professor at a different age and understanding,” Williams said. “I think having a younger professor in a different area of business will be able to convey information in a different way.”

With a younger professor who aims to teach both marketing and non-marketing majors, Williams said she hopes he will bring more intrigue to the marketing major itself.

“Marketing has so many different pieces to it,” Williams said. “I think you can find anything you want. The new faculty and expansion of courses will enable the marketing department to become bigger.”

“He’s a very nice guy from everything that I spoke with him about,” Williams said. “He is insightful and listens well. He definitely seems willing to adjust as he learns how students work, the college works, and how we work in class.”

to contribute to The Collegian through writing, photography, or videography, please contact Jillian Parks at jparks@hillsdale.edu.

Pulliam from A1

Eugene Hill hoped to sell vintage comic books.

James Joski | Collegian

CSP honor students present theses

By Ellie Fromm Assistant Editor

Seventeen seniors in Hillsdale’s Collegiate Scholars Program are defending their theses this semester following spring break, which is a culmination of approximately one and a half years of research and writing.

“By the end of the process, they go from just beginning with a general question to having written upwards of 30 pages about what they’re interested in,” Eric Hutchinson, Associate Professor of Classics and Chairman of the Collegiate Scholars Program, said.

The Collegiate Scholars Program offers lectures, classes, seminars, and senior thesis opportunities to students who participate. Students can apply to the program as early as their sophomore years.

Beginning the spring semester of their junior year, students in the program take a class titled “Life of the Mind,” in which students begin their thesis process.

“Ideally by the end of that class, they have a topic and a committee,” Hutchinson said. “They have a large part of their bibliography and they at least know where things are and what things they need to look at. By the end of that semester, they’ve submitted a prospectus to me and to other members.”

Students then spend their senior year narrowing their thesis and writing the paper, with a first draft due in the middle of February. Thesis topics vary within the program, depending on the discipline of the student. The maximum page limit for the thesis is 30 pages.

One senior had presented a thesis in the fall semester, with a total of 18 presenting this academic year, Hutchinson said.

“CSP theses are required to be interdisciplinary, and students are able to incor-

porate their major and their various interests. We have theses on political topics including abortion and legal issues, various authors and literary works, philosophy, history, and theology,” junior and co-consul of CSP Adeline Kaufman said in an email.

Senior Caitlin Filep defended her thesis, “Metaphor as Nature: Transcendent Truth and Natural Metaphors in Emily Dickinson’s Poetics” March 27. She is studying English with a minor in Greek.

“The defense went phenomenally,” Filep said. “It was absolutely a blessing from the Lord, it just went so much better than I could have expected. I was really pleased to see all the support that I received from some of the people that I invited.”

Filep said she is grateful for the opportunity to write and defend a thesis, which she sees as the best way to conclude her undergraduate academic career.

“It’s incredibly rewarding and fruitful to have something where you can culminate all of your thoughts and work during your academic career,” Filep said. “It kind of focuses it into something that you love, and you get to present it in that way. I didn’t realize how cool of an experience that would be until I was actually doing it.”

Thesis defenses are held in the Heritage Room and are open to the student body. More information regarding the times of specific defenses can be found in the Student Activities Office email.

“I think the process is really useful for students regardless of what sort of field or vocation they’re going to end up doing after college, because of what they have to learn to do,” Hutchinson said. “The kinds of skills that they have to use in completing this project are transferable to a lot of other domains.”

Scholar discusses China, TikTok

By Erin Osborne Senior Reporter

The United States is a Pacific power, Hudson Institute scholar Michael Sobolik said in a discussion about TikTok, China, and American foreign policy, hosted by the Alexander Hamilton Society March 26.

Sobolik divided his talk into two sections, the first being the importance of Indo-Pacific allies. He discussed the controversy of proper statecraft, including the question of whether alliances are transactionals or partnerships.

“The United States thought that if we could live in a world where we didn’t have to have a trade off between our economic prosperity and our national

security, that would have been a really great world to live in,” Sobolik said. “As it turns out, we do not live in a world without tradeoffs.”

The second bulk of Sobolik’s talk revolved around the Chinese Communist Party and its use of censorship.

“Asia and the CCP matter more than just our presence over there,” Sobolik said. “This is something that Washington has been beginning to reckon with, because the CCP is not confined to their near abroad. They are targeting our home. They’re targeting the integrity of our democratic system of government.”

Junior Malia Thibado said the Chinese government has been infiltrating the United

States through the media and intellectual programs, like the Thousand Talents Program.

“The Thousand Talents Program is a talent acquisition strategy that the CCP has leveraged to great effect over the past few years,” Sobolik said. “It basically says we will throw a ton of money at an American academic in exchange for a research partnership. It is a really clever way to not only get basic and applied research from American institutions, but to actually poach American talent.”

Hillsdale College Professor of History Paul Rahe drew parallels between Chinese media control and Nazi censorship tactics.

“The German consul in Los

Angeles got to see every Hollywood movie before it was released, and then got to give advice about how it should be reshaped,” Rahe said.

Sobolik said the CCP is waging war in the information domain, such as through TikTok.

“TikTok is the biggest threat vector to divide and control the American public,” Sobolik said. “The CCP leverages that user base to lobby Congress. The CCP is boosting narratives that are favorable to the party, depressing content that they deem necessary, threatening, and much if not all of the propaganda they are spreading are either half lies or total lies.”

Simpson Smackdown back for round two

By Nathan Stanish Ad Manager

Simpson Residence’s WWE-inspired Smackdown is returning for a second year with a free slate of fights between Simpson residents, faculty, and staff April 4.

Simpson Smackdown will take place in the Simpson Courtyard. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. and the event starts at 6 p.m.

“Simpson Smackdown has quickly launched into a Simpson tradition, but in many ways, it’s still a new thing for us, given that it’s only the second year that we’ve done this,” junior Simpson Resident Assistant Jonathan Williams said.

The main attraction for the event is the characters, played by students, staff, and faculty.

“It’s a great event where the guys of Simpson line up an entire night of fun fights,” Williams said. “We make up our own characters, background lore, and we fight and wrestle. The biggest part of the event is the surprise cameos that come along the way. We had a lot last year, and we have many more this year that we think will raise the roof even higher.”

Simpson Smackdown began last year, as the brainchild of

Simpson resident assistant and senior Caleb Flodstrom.

The funding for the first Simpson Smackdown came from the Suites, an upperclassmen men’s dorm that hosted Suites Shark Tank — an opportunity for other dorms to win money for big events or projects.

“The Suites last year presented the offer to come and pitch a new idea for money,” Williams said. “We saw this as a great opportunity. We secured those funds, and we put on what has now become an event that we really look forward to.”

To sophomore Simpson Resident Assistant Alex Buehrer, Simpson Smackdown is about more than entertainment — it’s about providing a holistic slate of events for residents.

“It’s important that we do events that kind of reach all levels of our guys,” Buehrer said. “We do more personal things like Bible studies, and we do things like homecoming, then we have big things that take a lot of pre-planned effort and take a lot of individual action and preparation. It’s like one last hurrah for us, one last big silly thing, before we do Hell Week, do finals, and

send everyone off.”

Simpson Resident Assistant and sophomore Joseph Vankat said Simpson Smackdown appeals to a broad range of people on campus.

“This is also something that draws out a lot of different people,” Vankat said. “Last year, we had athletes, we had people from Greek life, and people from all different kinds of dorms. It’s a really great way to unite the campus around a really fun night.”

Simpson Smackdown will debut multiple upgrades over last year’s event, including a homemade ring.

“We quadrupled our budget for the ring,” Williams said. “That’s Chris Vanpostall’s brainchild, so he has entirely planned it out. We have a bunch of lumber for it, it’s gonna be constructed entirely of wood this year. We have tires underneath there, so it’s up to code.”

Additionally, the Smackdown will lean more into the characters and backstory for each fight, this time “entering the digital realm,” according to Williams.

“As each fighter walks in, there will be a promo video that shows you highlights of their career, who they are as

fighters, and where they’ve been in their lives in addition to a walk-up song,” Williams said.

Fighters this year include returning fighters Raging Bull (sophomore Luke Waters) and Applejack (freshman Charlie Taylor), as well as new fighter El Bandito (junior Angel Jimenez). Additionally, there will be multiple cameos from staff and faculty — just like last year, when Assistant Professor of History Miles Smith IV and Assistant Professor of Medieval History Charles Yost made surprise appearances.

“We won’t reveal any of the guest stars that we’re going to have in it, but they are faculty and staff of the college,” Williams said.

Vankat said the Simpson Smackdown experience was the best of all worlds.

“If you like just hanging out with your friends on a beautiful Friday evening in early April, 60 degrees, and you like watching guys just beat the snot out of each other in a really funny way, and if you want to watch some appearances from some of your favorite professors, there’s only one place on campus that can get all of that: Simpson Smackdown,” Vankat said.

Taste of Manning will begin after Day of Service Day of service to help community

By Isaac Green Managing Editor

The Student Activities Board’s Taste of Manning event will start three hours later than usual to accommodate Day of Service this Saturday.

“There just aren’t a lot of good weekends that work left so we didn’t want to switch it,” senior and SAB Events Team Lead Josiah Jagoda said. “But I actually think that it might work to our advantage. I think it could be a cool situation for people to work all morning and then come and get free food and coffee and relax.”

The event will run from 2 to 4 p.m. and will feature dishes from nine different houses on Manning Street. SAB will buy up to $100 worth of groceries for each house with one provision.

“We will not purchase alcohol for people, so if they want to do a vodka pasta or a beer cheese, they have to do that,” Jagoda said. “But as far as what can be physically served to the people, anything goes.”

After tasting the selection of entrees, students will have the opportunity to vote for their favorite dish.

Senior Stephen Berntson, who is living on Manning Street for the second year in

a row, said one of his favorite entries from last year were the crab cakes made by the residents of Riverside. He said besides the fact that there is free food, Taste of Manning is a great opportunity to tap into the Hillsdale College community.

“It’s a wholesome way of seeing the different people of campus on Manning Street in the middle of the day,” Berntson said.

Jagoda said SAB hopes to have three student bands on site.

“They are newer bands with more underclassmen who do more bluegrass stuff,” Jagoda said. He said he thinks the event will be a good opportunity for students who don’t normally get out to Manning Street to get familiar with the lay of the land.

“It gives people a glimpse into Hillsdale’s off-campus culture in a way that it’s not just they’re going to a house party, but they get to go and meet and talk with those people and hang out,” Jagoda said. “The vibe is also just always really good. It’s usually relatively nice out and you just get to drink coffee and chat and listen to music and that’s always a recipe for success.”

By Ty Ruddy Assistant Editor

The Hillsdale College GOAL program will host its annual Day of Service this Saturday, April 5. Student volunteers will help local nonprofits and city organizations to complete projects, including yard work for community members, power washing exteriors of buildings, and firewood splitting.

“It’s such a great opportunity to be able to give back to the community in such

Blackout from A1

“My friend and I were going to watch ‘Deep Space 9’ together, but then when the power went out, we played board games on the hallway floor by the only light instead,” Filep said. “It was totally an unexpected adventure, and it ended up bringing all the girls in the dorm together. I even got to share SweeTarts ropes with my head RA because these kinds of situations obviously necessitate snacks.”

Just before the storm hit Hillsdale, senior Ruthie Chinery and Charlie Frazee ’24 got engaged. After the proposal, Chinery said the two went to dinner outside of Hillsdale where there was power. Chinery said Frazee, along with several of the couple’s friends, had planned a surprise party

a unique way,” senior Mark den Hollander, director of the GOAL program, said. “We are able to answer so many calls for help, answer their needs, and support them in their circumstances.”

Rachel Marinko ’20, director of student programs, said it will be as easy for students to be involved this year, as it has been in the past, but this time, they will get a free concert during lunch. Seniors Gavin Listro and Isaac Green will play music for students around noon.

at a friend’s apartment, where the two headed after their dinner.

“I had no idea any of this was happening until Charlie told me on the way there,” Chinery said.

But Chinery said while the initial plans for the engagement party were foiled with the loss of power, her friends, including senior Faith Henry and Director of Student Activities Ingrid Dornbirer ’24, improvised.

“They got some battery powered candles from SAB, and Ingrid brought out all the candles she had in her apartment,” Chinery said. “Ingrid also has this cool disco light that made a bunch of colored Northern-Lights-esque patterns on the ceiling. We previously used the same light to have a dance party in Waterman during the infamous ice

Livia Dodd, coordinator of the GOAL program, said Day of Service is a tangible way for students to live out the tenets of their education.

“The purpose of Day of Service is to make a big impact on our community in a short time,” Dodd said. “GOAL stands for greater opportunities for assistance and leadership, and Day of Service gives students the greatest opportunity for assistance in the community and leadership among their team.”

Den Hollander said Day of

storm of 2023.”

Chinery said her friends pitched in to create decor for the party, which Chinery said included a life-sized cardboard cutout of the couple, made by senior Maggie Baldwin.

“This had the potential to be very stressful for my friends, but as Ingrid said in her email to everyone after the power went out ‘Party is still on! We ball,’” Chinery said. “I’m so grateful for how the day went. It couldn’t have been more perfect.”

Chinery said the power outage made for a memorable celebration with friends.

“Someday Charlie and I will be able to tell our kids that we got engaged during a tornado warning and had an engagement party by candlelight,” Chinery said. “How cool is that?”

Service is a good chance for Hillsdale students to step back and show thankfulness.

“We have been blessed with great learning opportunities here, and this should drive us to want to help others,” den Hollander said. “Education is not meant to bring us closer to ourselves. It should bring us closer to others, guiding us to live principled lives in which we find unique ways to use what we have learned for the benefit of society.”

Following his time at the Supreme Court, Gaiser worked as an associate at the Jones Day law firm. Ohio attorney general Dave Yost then appointed him to serve as Ohio solicitor general, where Gaiser had clerked after his second year of law school. Given the contested actions Trump’s administration has already taken, such as firing commissioners from the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the OLC’s opinions will provide important guidance for the executive branch, according to Postell. “It’s a quite important office and tends to not get as much attention as it deserves,” he said.

Alumnus from A1

Opinions

The Collegian Weekly

The opinion of the Collegian editorial staff

Editor-in-Chief | Jillian Parks

Managing Editor | Isaac Green

Senior Editor | Michaela Estruth

Outreach Director | Olivia Pero

Design Editor | Ally Hall

News Editor | Catherine Maxwell

Opinions Editor | Caroline Kurt

City News Editor | Thomas McKenna

Sports Editor | Jacob Beckwith

Culture Editor | Colman Rowan

Features Editor | Kamden Mulder

Social Media Assistant | Sam Otting

Circulation Manager | Lauren Bixler

Assistant Editors | Megan Li | Tayte Christensen | Christina Lewis | Alessia Sandala | Zachary Chen | Eleanor Whitaker | Anna Broussard | Ellie Fromm | Ty Ruddy

Ad Manager | Nathan Stanish Puzzle Editor | Matthew Tolbert

Illustrator | Maggie O’Connor Faculty Advisers | John J. Miller | Maria Servold Online : www.hillsdalecollegian.com (517) 607-2415

Love pays attention

By Caroline Kurt Opinions Editor

Power outages thrill me. They always have.

I love candles. And I didn’t have raw meat in the refrigerator on Sunday night when the lights went out. So my enthusiasm for outages persisted that night, so much so that I found myself secretly hoping the lights would stay off for days even as I checked with my housemates for updates on when power might return.

One pleasure of an outage is the stillness. When the electricity failed, all of the background noise in the house stopped. Gone were the sounds at the edges of ordinary consciousness: the low hum of the refrigerator, the whoosh of the hallway fan, the buzz of overhead lights. It was quiet.

As dusk fell, we went from doing homework by the windows to congregating like talkative moths around candlelight in the living room and kitchen. We felt our way around the house, unable to rely even on far-off streetlight leaking through the windows.

In lieu of the sights and sounds of a normal evening, I found myself attentive to things I often miss and reminded of the breathless distractedness of the everyday world.

As I settled in my room with a trio of tealights and class reading, I was sad my computer and phone weren’t dying faster. The persistent, instantaneous availability of text messages, emails, and tweets disrupted the sacredness of the moment. Unlike with the microwave or toaster, if I wanted to put those options away, it required my own dreadfully faulty free will.

Even so, those five precious hours taught me again the romance of silent attention. The quality of life even the poorest Hillsdale students enjoy would dazzle their great-grandparents, and even some of their grandparents. The conveniences 21st-century Americans are accustomed to — electricity, modern plumbing, and the world wide web, to name just

Take your intellectual crisis to office hours

Many students struggle through at least one core course on their way to a degree. But it’s much harder for the virtus to gaudet when, instead of listening to the tenured professor whose class you paid to take, you spend 15 minutes subjected to a sophomore’s rambling, verbal magnum opus.

There’s a place to debunk Descartes or work out the philosophical implications of treating mathematics as a language, and it’s not a 50-minute

lecture. It’s called office hours. Professors hold office hours for a reason. Most of them love students who wander in with random musings and connections.

But your fellow classmates, who are just trying to get something out of Philosophy 105, do not love your eightpart questions. It’s easier to learn from the professor employed by the college, not the student who learned what the Trolley Problem variant was in the previous night’s reading.

If a core class makes you excited, that’s great. They’re all part of our liberal education for a reason. Exploring connections between Logic and Rhetoric and American Heritage can help you make the most of these required classes.

At the same time, respect your classmates and your professors. Just because you’re interested in the spiritual ramifications of a multiverse doesn’t mean everyone is. It takes a great deal of arrogance to assume that your digres-

sive musings are beneficial for everyone else. Stealing 10 minutes of limited class time disrupts the professor’s syllabus and prevents him or her from explaining important information.

As a general rule: If your question takes six sentences and involves three disciplines, ask it on your own time in office hours. You’ll get the deep conversation you want, and your classmates will get the lecture they paid for.

Ditch Ozempic, choose challenge

By Adriana Azarian D.C. Correspondent

a few — are blessings. These tools have saved, enhanced, and expanded lives. Yet a life of immense convenience so easily becomes one of distraction, dissatisfaction, and aridity. We lose the ability to pay attention and thus the ability to love. Love and attention are, after all, somewhat synonymous: Watch student artists or musicians at their craft, then observe a freshman busy flirting with his crush in AJs. The connection is apparent: Any relationship or pursuit worth sustaining demands a sacrifice of focused time and unflinching sight.

If to love is to pay attention, then what we lose in a world of distraction is the ability to love.

Very often our grandparents’ love stories begin with, “I first noticed him or her when…” One crucial moment of attention became the wellspring of generations of offspring. Many Hillsdale students owe their existence to that first glance across the classroom, dance hall, or bar. Their forebears didn’t have their faces locked onto screens.

Our grandparents were lucky to grow up in a less distracted world. Though we may be tempted to throw our hands up and surrender to the whims of the algorithm overlords, despair cannot be the solution. Our capacity for attention is neither fixed nor irreversibly damaged — something I learned in my art classes here. Rather, it expands rapidly with time and effort, which I experienced so keenly on Sunday.

Whether or not one observes the meditative liturgies of Lent, this spring is a perfect time to reclaim one’s attention, and thus one’s love, as the world blossoms anew. Register for an art class or music lessons, for a challenging lab or a sport. Go on a walk — alone and without earbuds. Linger in a conversation, and don’t check your phone. Notice the pretty girl in your class — and maybe even say hello.

Caroline Kurt is a junior studying English.

Ozempic was once just another prescription drug in a commercial featuring athletic, happy people. Now, it’s everywhere, and we can't just change the channel anymore. In recent years, semaglutide drugs like Ozempic have grown in popularity for those seeking weight loss, a side effect rather than the intended purpose of the drug. Ozempic, originally created to reduce insulin resistance in Type 2 diabetes patients, works like the naturally occurring GLP-1 hormone, which helps people feel full longer and maintain steady blood sugar levels. Certainly, semaglutides can be a useful and life-changing tool for those with severe challenges losing weight when used in conjunction with a healthy lifestyle. For the otherwise healthy adult, however, Ozempic is just a faster fix for what should be a long-term pursuit of health.

Ozempic exemplifies yet another way our culture looks for quick solutions to deep issues. To put it in context, the American weight loss industry has earned billions of dollars from people trying to lose pounds. Diet culture has seeped into the consciousness of generations of people. Yet, according to the Cen-

ters for Disease Control and Prevention, 40.3% of American adults are obese. Americans have a hard time losing weight and an even harder time staying fit. Enter Ozempic, the wonder drug that can have consumers losing up to five percent of their weight in a month. It’s easier than any diet — and certainly faster than a lifetime of moderate exercise and healthy food choices.

lifelong effects of an active lifestyle and a whole food diet centered around high protein and high fiber foods, which increase the natural GLP-1 hormone. If the end goal is to be skinny, then Ozempic would be the solution. But if the aim is better overall health, longevity, and a healthier body weight for years to come, Ozempic won’t cut it for most people.

Like all prescription drugs, Ozempic does come with risks. It has been linked with higher risks of pancreatitis and thyroid cancer. Moreover, once off Ozempic, patients may regain the weight they previously lost without having the blood sugar control or appetite-suppressant effects of the drug.

While Ozempic’s impact on the body is still somewhat of a mystery, we do know the

Caring for the body is just as good for one’s character as it is for one’s physical health. Eating nourishing, moderate amounts of food and exercising for strength and endurance manifests in a person’s physical and spiritual health. To be clear, not every healthy adult gains weight because they lack virtue or discipline. Likewise, not every thin person is healthy or temperate. Multiple factors are always at

play. A weight loss journey, however, like any health journey, can be an opportunity to reassess one’s habits and create new ones to become the healthiest version of oneself. Losing and maintaining weight requires a degree of self-denial and work toward a delayed reward. For many, it takes a great deal of patience, temperance, and perseverance to lose weight and keep it off. Changing one’s diet to incorporate whole foods when ultra-processed foods are much more convenient is challenging. Going for a long walk or hitting the gym without having already built those habits is challenging. Learning to adjust to one’s body changing is challenging. But overall health and lasting, stable weight are absolutely worth it. Ozempic may be an easier way out, but the most convenient option isn’t usually the most character-forming. Anyone can take an injection to get thin more quickly. Taking the longer road because of what you will become mentally, spiritually, and physically? That’s heroic.

Adriana Azarian is a junior studying politics.

Illustrated by Maggie O’Connor.

Letter to the Editor

Intelligent Design isn't synonymous with intelligent design

By Christopher Lee Guest Writer

Thank you for the reporting on my talk recently at Hillsdale on “Symmetry, Order, and Providence in Creation” and to my hosts and audience for the amazingly warm welcome and turnout. I wish to clarify one aspect of the “Two scientists lecture on faith” article, which appeared in the March 27 edition of The Collegian. It reports that I “presented on

symmetries suggesting intelligent design.” Taken at face value, with lowercase “i” and “d,” this is accurate, though I did not use the phrase itself in my talk. Given the risk that a reader may associate this phrase with the movement going by the same name with capital letters, I wish to clarify that in no way did I intend my arguments to support this movement.

My thesis was indeed that the symmetry, order, and

mathematical elegance science has discovered in the laws of nature do support its origin in a creator who surpasses the intelligence of any being in the physical universe, something the Christian faith affirms as well.

I do not believe, however, that any particular natural phenomena in the history of the universe, as complex and mind-boggling as they may be, require any “special” intervention by God other than the

natural operation of the laws and constituents of the universe that he willed and continues to will into being. The ability of nature over enough time to bring forth both galaxies and octopi eyes reflects the dignity endowed upon it by its creator as well as the providence of the creator himself.

Christopher Lee is a theoretical physicist.

Letter to the Editor

Open the Searle Center as a study hall

By Josiah Lippincott Guest Writer

Now that the library has been transformed into a construction zone, the amount of quiet space for students to work on campus has decreased substantially. There

is a simple solution, however: Turn the Searle Center into a study hall.

The conference room spends most of the year locked up and completely empty, but it doesn’t have to be this way. With the tables properly arranged, the room

can seat hundreds of students comfortably. The whole Searle Center could be set up as a place for students to work. With finals week approaching, students would greatly benefit by having another spacious, quiet place to study on campus. Searle is perfect for the task.

Josiah Lippincott is a Ph.D. candidate in the Van Andel Graduate School of Statesmanship.

Senior symposium: What

was the most influential class you took?

Advanced Writing

Jillian Parks Editor-in-Chief

Aside from Media Theory and Criticism, which I already wrote an entire article on last semester, the best class I took during my four years at Hillsdale was Advanced Writing with Director of the Dow Journalism Program John J. Miller. The class was made up of a small but diverse group of students, from seasoned journalists to curious English majors, and everyone had something to gain from that range of perspectives. It was enlightening to discover that, while my instincts when it came to writing were good, I lacked some of the foundational knowledge required to be a really good writer. From rules concerning concision, to feedback about word choice, to being pushed to get at the heart of what I want to say, Advanced Writing was the class that gave me the best practice for writing and sustaining an argument.

Aesthetic Theory

Isaac Green Managing Editor

When I signed up for Visiting Assistant Professor of Philosophy Alexandre Winston’s Aesthetic Theory course two semesters ago, I thought it would be nothing more than a niche class for nerdy philosophy majors like myself. I left the class with exactly the opposite opinion: The philosophy of beauty is a subject liberal arts students of all disciplines would benefit from studying. In addition to changing the way I think about art, poetry, and even music, the material led me to examine the place of wonder at the heart of learning for the first time — wonder that arises when we experience the infinite in something finite, when we encounter the divine in the sensible world. The class was full of frustrating paradoxes and seemingly unanswerable questions, but it gave me a much richer perspective on life and education than before.

History of Christian Thought I

Michaela Estruth Senior Editor

History of Christian Thought I with Assistant Professor of Theology Cody Strecker perfectly synthesized my interests and time at Hillsdale. Senior year, I intentionally left space in my schedule to take classes of my choosing that fell outside of my major and minor. I turned to theology classes, and this class happened to be open. The survey through centuries of early ancient to medieval history approached much of the historical knowledge I’d learned from a theological viewpoint. I enjoyed setting these thinkers in context and dialogue with one another. Theologians’ efforts to describe God flooded my mind with countless images I had never before considered, leaving me humbled in wonder at our God, who is beyond description. My theological knowledge deepened and so did the depth of my faith.

Public Policy

Olivia Pero Outreach Director

The most influential class I took during my time at Hillsdale was Associate Professor of Politics Kevin Slack’s public policy class this semester. It’s been the most interesting class to me because we talk about current events and issues that pretty much everyone in our generation has experienced or witnessed, such as COVID-19 and the pressure to get vaccinated, the chronic health issues many Americans face because of the foods we eat, and the detrimental effects of social media on children and teens. This class has led me to think beyond the things most college students are focused on and to consider how I want to raise my future children, especially when it comes to education, technology, and values.

Great Books I & II

Ally Hall Design Editor

The day you become annoyed with birds is the day you’re too busy with life, according to my former Associate Professor of English Brent Cline. The only people who are allowed this

peevish luxury are farmers. Charming lines of wisdom like this were weekly occurrences in both of Cline’s Great Books courses, classes I took out of order. My punishment for trying to drop out of college during spring semester freshman year was having to take an English course a year late with teenage boys. But Great Books I afforded me the chance to revisit texts I had rushed through when I first read them in high school. Cline’s lectures enriched my understanding of vital texts in the Western canon and crafted new patterns of thinking about literature, writing effectively, and existing beyond the classroom. I find myself spiritually richer and a far better writer because of his perspective.

Great Books I

Colman Rowan Culture Editor

It’s pretty simple for me. I’m an English major, so my most influential class was Associate Professor of English Dwight Lindley’s Great Books I. I’ve taken so many great classes here, always trying to take the best options — regardless of difficulty. Mercifully, the question does not demand me to determine the best course I’ve taken, but the most influential. My time at Hillsdale has been a little rushed since I transferred in and am getting out of here in only three years, so I had to pick my major pretty quickly. Along with Great Books that second semester of my first year, I took intro philosophy and American Heritage — both excellent courses — but Lindley’s impersonation of Homer’s Paris, along with many other things, won my heart. After this class I decided to be an English major. If you didn’t enjoy Great Books, you didn’t have enough fun. And if you regret skipping your Great Books readings, make some time to take an upper level English class. It’s worth it.

Progressivism and Liberalism

Kamden Mulder Features Editor

Some people say it’s wise to keep your friends close and your enemies closer. That’s precisely what I learned in Professor of Politics Kevin Portteus’s course Progressivism and Liberalism. Portteus taught me why the introduction of progressive philosophy has led to the degradation of the integrity of the U.S. Constitution, sparking a deep frustration with progressive thinkers and the expansion of the administrative state. Starting with German Hegelian philosophy and early progressivism, I now understand the foundation of the belief system and can interpret the actions of presidents such as Woodrow Wilson and Franklin D. Roosevelt through this lens. By understanding my enemies — or the progressives — I can better articulate how the history and politics of this era have shaped how our government functions today.

Classical Quadrivium

Nathan Stanish Ad Manager

Assistant Professor of Education Jonathan Gregg’s Classical Quadrivium showed me what it’s like to enjoy writing a paper and enjoy taking an exam — two things I formerly only thought possible for masochists. His class was the perfect synthesis between education (my career) and theology (my major). Journeying through arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, and music doubled as a journey through the development of faith, from the basics of God’s existence to the complexities of theodicy. Every exercise in that class opened my eyes to more imaginative ways to learn. The papers, in particular, demanded genuine creativity as we constructed dialogues and told stories rather than dissecting two lines of text in 10 pages of academic speculation. Every major stands to gain from studying the quadrivium. It is the foundation of our classical education and my inspiration as a future 3rd-grade teacher.

Return home after graduation

By Jillian Parks Editor-in-chief

A couple months before graduating elementary school, I asked God to save me from middle school. I was not afraid of the increased workload, bullying, or making new friends. I was afraid of getting lost in the hallways on my way to class.

As a kid, I had a mature sort of way about me, but I never developed the ability to find my way around like my peers did — it’s a skill I have not mastered, even to this day.

As I enter the postgraduate phase, I am experiencing that same kind of fearful anxiety. It is a fear, not of getting lost, but of feeling lost, surrounded by doorways and unsure which holds the right next step.

So after I graduate, I’m going home for the summer. Not solely because of the normal postgrad fears that come with this season of life, but also because there are good things waiting for me there, and it is the only place, besides Hillsdale, I really know my way around right now.

I have four younger siblings: Micah, Liberty, Jackson, and Saylor. The title I hold dearest — right above editorin-chief, of course — is older sister. Siblings don’t stop growing when you go off to college, I’ve learned, and my 8-year-old sister is actually 12 now, about to enter middle school. It is extraordinarily difficult to be a good big sister when you’ve missed out on four years of your siblings’ lives, especially formative years like 8–12 or 12–16. There is nothing wrong with starting a new life in a big city, but some of its excitement is lost to me when it makes people with whom I share DNA unfamiliar to me.

People at Hillsdale tend to value their families: It is not a

horrible, lazy thing for those values to affect life postgrad. A gap summer, or even a gap year, working a job potentially unrelated to one’s degree, allows a lot of people to stay close to the most important people in their lives, a value closer to godliness than the pursuit of success or selfish ambition. There’s no job in The Woodlands, Texas, I am dying to apply for, but I’m happy to return to the same job I’ve had since high school if it means crashing on the couch with Saylor after a long day. Going home is not right for everybody, and the increase in 20-somethings living with their parents likely doesn’t rely on the same family-first undertones I am attempting to promote. The next stage in self-governance for some, however, may be learning to rejoice in telling people they are “just going home” when asked for a rundown of their post-graduation plans. I am not a stranger to doing uncomfortable, difficult things. I spent a semester in Washington, D.C., working 40 hours a week for free. I moved to an island by myself and spent the summer interviewing strangers. I took Jason Peters for Great Books I. But being uncomfortable is not a virtue in itself, and a bit of comfort is not such a bad cushion after I exit academia and life fundamentally changes. What some of us may need more than a job right now is to slow down, spend some time with the people we’ve known since birth, and really think about the kind of door through which we want to enter.

Jillian Parks is a senior studying Rhetoric and Media.

Illustrated by Maggie O’Connor.

You don't need blue hair to ditch plastic

By James Joski Collegian Freelancer

Americans love their plastic. From bottles and take-out to food storage and construction, plastic is ubiquitous. It is a material we hold in our hearts — literally.

In 2023, a pilot study by the American Chemical Society found tens to thousands of individual microplastic pieces — particles ranging in size from a grain of sand to microscopic shards — embedded in the hearts of patients undergoing cardiac surgery.

Chemicals such as polyethylene terephthalate, commonly found in clothing and packaging, and polyvinyl chlo-

ride, found in PVC pipes, were among the eight types of plastic identified.

The heart isn’t the only place microplastics have been discovered either. They have appeared in human blood, kidneys, reproductive organs, and breast milk. The smallest particles, those known as nanoplastics, with a length less than one-thousandth of a millimeter, have even infiltrated the cell nucleus, the home of our biological blueprint DNA. The health consequences of this are still under investigation, but they don't look good.

Unfortunately, President Donald Trump’s Feb. 10 executive order “Ending Procurement and Forced Use of Paper

Straws” pushes America in the wrong direction for tackling this critical issue.

“I will be signing an executive order next week ending the ridiculous Biden push for paper straws, which don’t work. BACK TO PLASTIC!” Trump posted to Truth Social Feb. 7.

“Back to Plastic” has become more than a statement — it has become a rallying cry for the plastic industry.

“Straws are just the beginning,” said President and CEO of the Plastics Industry Association Matt Seaholm in a press release. “‘Back to Plastic’ is a movement we should all get behind. We appreciate President Trump’s leadership in recognizing the value of plastics and

look forward to working with his administration to advance our industry.”

Despite the plastic industry’s wishes, however, America cannot go back to plastic. Although current replacements for plastic may be lackluster, America cannot give up her efforts. This nation of innovators must continue in her search for safer alternatives. Our very health and fertility are at stake. Recall how microplastics can enter the nucleus, the home of DNA. Studies have shown that, once there, these plastics cause DNA damage and altered gene activity, known risks for cancer development. Another study published in Nature Medicine has found a link between mi-

croplastic concentrations in brain tissue and dementia. If cancer and dementia were not bad enough, microplastics have also been linked to decreased fertility, especially in men. Between 1973 and 2018, male sperm counts have decreased from 104 million sperm per milliliter to 49 million/mL, an average decrease of 1.2% per year. Since the year 2000, the rate has accelerated to 2.6% per year. At that rate, it won’t be long until the average male sperm count drops below 40 million/mL, the threshold below which chances of natural conception plummet drastically. Efforts to explain this phenomenon have proven difficult,

but research by the National Institutes of Health has firmly indicated microplastics as a suspect. Plastic cannot become a partisan issue in this country. It needs to go, period. America must continue to seek clean, healthy, biodegradable alternatives to petroleum-based plastics. The material doesn’t belong in our hearts — it belongs in the past. The transition may be inconvenient, at least for now. But which is ultimately more inconvenient: a mediocre substitute for plastic, or being robbed of health and parenthood?

James Joski is a freshman studying the liberal arts.

City News

Storm sparks citywide power outage

By Christina Lewis and Alessia Sandala Assistant Editors

A high-voltage transmission line went down Sunday, cutting off connection to the regional electric grid and causing the entire City of Hillsdale to lose power, according to the city’s Marketing and Economic Development Director Sam Fry. Fry said the damage to the electric system was relatively minor, with about a half dozen areas seeing downed power lines. The city’s Board of Public Utilities response to such damages depends on the cause of the outage.

“Because we lost our primary power feed, we couldn’t provide enough power to bring everyone back on at the same time,” Fry said. “Instead, we rotated service to provide temporary power where possible. Most customers had power restored for at least a short period during the night.”

According to Fry, restoration efforts during severe weather can be extremely hazardous.

“Lineworkers often work in dangerous conditions — high winds, rain, or at night — while handling high-voltage equipment,” Fry said. “The physical demands and risks are significant, so while we aim to restore service as quickly as possible, crew safety remains our highest priority.”

Michigan residents faced severe weather on Sunday, with high winds leading to four confirmed tornadoes, heavy rain, and ice storms shutting down the Mackinac Bridge. More than 180,000 homes lost power on Sunday night, according to FOX 2 Detroit.

The storm also knocked down a tree outside of the Grosvenor House Museum, which destroyed a glass case outside of the historic building. As soon as the severe weather warning sounded around 5:30 p.m. Sunday, Hillsdale resident William Brownlee and his family went down to their basement.

“It was a quaint sight to see everyone gathered around, sitting on the futon or on the

blanket sprawled on the floor,” Brownlee said. “We chatted and munched on snacks while we waited.”

Fry said having a plan is crucial when situations like Sunday’s storm and subsequent power outage occur.

“We encourage residents to not only monitor weather alerts but also to develop a severe weather plan,” Fry said. “This can include assembling an emergency kit, identifying a safe shelter location, making arrangements for those with medical needs, and ensuring flashlights, batteries, and other essentials are easily accessible. Being prepared can make a big difference in staying safe during and after a storm.”

Brownlee said he and his family tried to make the best of their time without power.

“We didn’t know how long the power would be off, so we gathered some flashlights and made our way back to the basement,” Brownlee said. “Even though the worst of the storm was past, it had become cozy in the basement together. It can

be refreshing to have our lives interrupted. It causes us to see our lives and relationships in a new light.”

Hillsdale College junior Olivia Finch and her housemates were “hunkering down in the basement” when the power went out.

“As a college student, I was OK because I knew a big storm was coming, so I made sure I had my phone and tablet at 100% before the power went off,” Finch said.

The college’s power was restored Monday morning. Small pockets of Hillsdale County are still without power, according to Consumers Energy’s outage map.

“When the power finally came back on, it was around four in the morning,” Finch said. “I had forgotten to turn my light switch off when the power went out, so the lights all came on in my room at once and woke me up.”

Car crashes into Brewing Company

By Jillian Parks Editor-in-Chief

An SUV traveling southbound on Hillsdale Street plowed into the Hillsdale Brewing Company’s front steps Monday morning, and they remained taped off on Wednesday.

The driver, a Litchfield resident, allegedly had a medical emergency and was found unresponsive with a head injury when police arrived on the scene.

“We suspect the victim was experiencing a medical emergency and was attemp-

ting to drive himself to the Hillsdale Hospital prior to the collision,” City Police Detective Bradley Martin said.

Officers of the Hillsdale City Police Department investigated the auto accident at approximately 6:50 a.m. Monday. The investigation is an ongoing collaboration between the police department and the Hillsdale County Sheriff’s Office.

Life-saving measures were performed before the driver was transported to Hillsdale Hospital, and the driver’s condition is currently unknown to law enforcement.

Airport manager resigns, cites “drama of the negative”

By Jillian Parks Editor-in-Chief

When Ginger Moore attended the grand opening of the Hillsdale Municipal Airport in 1963, she did not imagine becoming its manager, a flight instructor, or even a pilot. Her father, a private pilot, used the airport frequently throughout her childhood while she read comic books inside the building that would one day be her office.

After 20 years of working at the airport, from flight instructing to managing, Moore is retiring from her position as airport manager.

“Ginger was a true profes-

sional who did a wonderful job as airport manager. She served in the role for eight years, de-

“In working directly with her, I never met an official or agency contact she couldn’t win

“It gets old. Everywhere I go, people ask me questions. I’ve got grandchildren. I want to just enjoy life.”

veloping strong relationships within the aviation industry that helped bring in millions to improve the airport,” City Manager David Mackie said.

over with her enthusiasm for Hillsdale and deep aviation knowledge. She will be missed by many.”

Moore said her retirement is partly due to the negativity that characterizes much of the discourse surrounding the airport.

“It gets old,” Moore said. “Everywhere I go, people ask me questions. I’ve got grandchildren. I want to just enjoy life. It would be nice if there were more positive mentions out there, but instead, they love the drama of the negative.”

Though she was born and raised in Hillsdale, Moore said she did not see herself retiring here when she went off to Rollins College in Winter Park, Florida.

The summer before her senior year, she decided to take a flying lesson. After the second lesson, she said she fell in love. She got her license in Orlando and all her

ratings — or special certifications that allow a pilot to teach others how to fly — from American Flyers flight school in Fort Lauderdale.

“Back then, women weren’t really accepted in aviation, so I had a college degree, all my ratings, perfect eyesight and health, but I couldn’t even get an interview with the airlines,” Moore said.

She decided to start her own flight school and leased an airplane from someone she knew. Within a year, Moore’s school grew from using that one airplane and working out of the back seat of her car to having 10 airplanes, a building, and a flight shop.

She moved back to Hillsdale in 2005, where she taught flight lessons until she was asked to become the airport’s assistant manager, a role she held from 2015-2017.

She said she is most proud of the grants and improvements she secured over the years, including the addition of a partial taxiway, a new fuel station, and the new terminal. Many of the projects were paid for, at least in part, by grants.

“I guess the feather in my cap is the terminal, because the competition was huge to get any money for something, and they don’t always give money for terminals,” Moore said. “The airport gets an A-plus inspection from MDOT, which is why we qualify for some of these grants, because they see we’re taking care of it and we take it seriously.”

Moore said she will still attend the terminal grand

opening in September and be around to serve in an unofficial capacity.

“Ginger is a daughter of Hillsdale, and she learned to fly here at the airport, and her family’s been a part of the community for generations,” Ward 4 Councilman Robert Socha said. “She worked tirelessly to make the airport a better place, and I thank her for her contribution. It’s sad to see her go.”

Retiring will give Moore the time to pursue her other hobbies, she said.

“I’m an artist. I’ve done pet portraits for a long time, and I’m going to focus on that,” Moore said. “I sing in a group, The Unforgettables. I want to clean my house, minimalize a little bit. I’ve done a lot out here, and I just feel it’s time to pass the baton to somebody else.”

Ava-Marie Papillon illustrated the City News header.

A tree fell outside the Grosvenor House Museum Sunday. Courtesy | Facebook

Moore in Seattle in front of a Falcon 50 airplane. Courtesy | Ginger Moore

Moore and her sister at the Hillsdale Municipal Airport. Courtesy | Ginger Moore

The vehicle hit the steps. Courtesy | Facebook

Hillsdale Brewing Company’s front steps after the crash. John J. Miller | Collegian

Ginger Moore worked at the Hillsdale Municipal Airport for the past 20 years

Democrats protest Trump, Musk at county courthouse

By Thomas McKenna City News Editor

Ten demonstrators protested outside the Hillsdale County Courthouse Sunday afternoon, holding signs critical of President Donald Trump and Elon Musk at one of the city’s busiest intersections for passing cars to see.

The group stood near the intersection of Broad and East Bacon streets holding signs that read “Resist,” “We are not OK,” and “Voted for democracy, not the ‘Handmaid’s Tale.’”

Carol Taylor, who said she was the lead organizer of the protest, held a sign that depicted “Jabba the Trump” and “Musk-Vader” and read “Stop the Evil Empire.”

“We are attempting to save democracy,” Taylor said. “This is pro-democracy. Stand up. Fight fascism.”

Jeff Cooley, chair of the Hillsdale County Democratic Party, said he was prote -

Government Efficiency, which has fired thousands of federal employees since January.

“Your government is decimating all of your government services,” Taylor said. “For what end? This administration is literally following the dic -

“This is how dictatorships form in other countries.”

sting because other people in Hillsdale County are afraid to speak their minds.

“I want them to know they aren’t alone in their feelings,” Cooley said.

Taylor said she was concerned by Musk’s Department of

tator, autocracy, authoritarian playbook, and it’s terrifying to us.”

Mark Foust, Taylor’s boyfriend, chimed in.

“This is how dictatorships form in other countries,” Foust said.

Carmen Wyatt-Hayes, a former associate professor of Spanish at Hillsdale College who retired in 2021, said she opposes the administration’s mass deportations.

“I am 100% in favor of deporting immigrants who have committed crimes, just as I am in favor of American citizens who have committed crimes being imprisoned,” WyattHayes said. “But I’m thinking of someone — Marina is her name — who has done housework for one of my cousins in North Carolina for maybe 20 years. She contributes to our economy and is a completely peaceful person, and I am worried we are mixing in the ‘Marinas’ with those people who must be deported.”

Taylor said she is worried the Trump administration will not allow her to reenter the country — given her social media posts critical of the administration — when she returns from her cruise abroad next month.

“I’m terrified that they might not let me back in,” Taylor said.

This protest was one of many across the country against Trump and Musk, Taylor said. She was at the county courthouse because it’s the “government building in my community.”

“I watch Rachel Maddow and she’ll cover it every night,” Taylor said. “They’re protesting coast to coast in different cities.”

Taylor said she is trying to prevent the country from becoming authoritarian under Trump.

“I don’t have kids. I’m a childless cat lady — thank you, JD Vance,” Taylor said, referring to the vice

president’s 2021 comment that the country is run by “a bunch of childless cat ladies.”

“But I’m doing this for your guys’ kids,” Taylor said, “for the future of our country.”

Legislators aim to thwart foreign influence, surveillance

By Carly Moran Senior Reporter

As concerns about influence and surveillance by China and other foreign adversaries grow, legislators in Lansing, advised by a Hillsdale graduate, proposed a package of bills last month aimed at protecting Michigan.

Members of the Michigan House Oversight Committee introduced the 10-bill package last month, which included legislation to prevent foreign farmland purchases and factory construction within range of military bases to safeguard against surveillance. As of March 26, six of the 10 bills had moved out of the committee.

Joseph Cella ’91 advises Republican members of the committee on national security matters involving China. Before his time assisting in state government, he served as the ambassador to Fiji under Trump’s first administration. He is also the co-founder of the Michigan China Economic and Security Review Group.

“I’m an informal adviser to some members of the committee, which will provide the necessary framework to investigate, expose, and then counter threats,” Cella said. “This is an important educational moment. This also plays a very important role in educating the private sector citizens in terms of the nature of the threat that is out there.”

Many of those bills follow similar frameworks to legislation that Bill Evanina, a former intelligence official in the first Trump administration, helped

propose in Alabama, Arkansas, and Virginia.

“The strategic national threat posed by the Communist Party of China is, at its very core, local,” said Evanina, an informal adviser to some members of the Michigan House.

maintained in the United States or Canada.

Evanina said he advocates for a “copy-paste” campaign, where other states use legislation that was already effective in states that passed the policy earlier.

national security can’t be partisan,” he said.

“Other states have put in roadblocks and stop gaps. It’s a risk-based decision,” he said.

“The strategic national threat posed by the Communist Party of China is, at its very core, local.”

“Part of my business is to educate and inform governors, legislatures, and chambers of commerce on what China does at the local level,” Evanina said. “I would counter an error that there’s nothing partisan about defending against the Communist Party of China. And if someone tells you that it is, they’re just not educated enough to understand not only the nuances but what it really means for our nation.”

One of the bills would prohibit foreign entities from purchasing Michigan farmland, particularly if within a 20-mile range of military installations. Another would ban certain applications, such as TikTok, from being downloadable on government-issued devices. HB 4236-41 relates to combating foreign influence in economic and educational agreements, which often appear as grants or business contracts. The final bill, HB 4242, would require all state healthcare groups to only use online record software

“You can still decide to do this, but you know all the risks now.”

While it’s been a bipartisan effort at the federal level, Cella said, the Michigan House has had more of a partisan struggle.

“In D.C., you see great bipartisan success and collaboration, where it was almost a super majority, virtually unanimous vote to create the select committee on the Chinese Communist Party, doing cutting edge work,” Cella said. “That is the model for what Michigan legislators are now doing. The new Republican majority of the House was integral for this work to be done.”

Cella said he hopes Michigan House Republicans can gain cosponsors across the aisle, leading to a victory in the Democrat-majority State Senate and a signature from the governor.

“In the Preamble to the Constitution, there’s the charge to provide for the common defense, and anything involving

State Rep. William Bruck, R-Erie, chair of the newly established House Oversight Subcommittee on Homeland Security and Foreign Influence, said the key issue at hand is transparency.

“That’s what these bills are about, bringing to bear that there is an active threat in Michigan, and these bills will bring transparency to the public that we care about these threats,” Bruck said. “We care about our country, and we’re not just being complicit.”

Oftentimes, surveillance takes the form of factories owned and operated by foreign nationals, Evanina said. He said the 2022 CHIPS and Science Act’s goal of bringing semiconductor manufacturing back to the United States is under particular watch by the CCP.

The Ford Motor Company faced backlash over deals made with Chinese-owned battery corporations, most recently over the BlueOval EV plant, a deal made between Ford and Contemporary Amperex Technology, or CATL. State representatives, in a recent report on foreign influence, expressed concern over its close location to the Battle Creek Air National Guard Base. CATL was later blacklisted by the U.S. Department of Defense for its alleged ties to the Chinese military.

A similar deal was made with Gotion, another Chinese-owned battery plant. The Mecosta County facility’s construction has been halted by a lawsuit, citing concerns over its proximity to the Big Rapids National Guard Armory.

“The Chinese came in and manipulated economic development portions of Northwest Michigan, and they got agreements to build battery plants to facilitate the EV programs that were being promulgated by the Biden administration,” Evanina said. “But CATL, the company is a Chinese company. It’s a subsidiary of a state-owned enterprise. So basically, we are bringing the Communist Party of China into Michigan to build batteries and stifle our supply chain. They’re willing to build something that’s 80% of the technical proficiency at 20% of the price.”

The issue extends to farmland as well. A 2023 Department of Agriculture report revealed that China owns at least 277, 336 acres of American soil. While that represents less than 1% of foreign-held acreage, a substantial portion of that land is next to military and nuclear installments. Michigan, with 8.5% of foreign-owned land, is the state with the third largest amount of land in international hands.

“You look where they procured U.S. farmland. It’s usually not for farming. No, they’re all located near strategic military bases where they can put cell towers up, listening devices, and signal intelligence,” Evanina said. “And it’s not just farmland. They’re also buying commercial real estate in houses near strategic military locations because they can put people in those that serve as lookouts, as informants, as people who could recruit others who live around there.”

The Michigan House bill package expresses particular concern over “nontraditional collectors,” or citizens who act as proxy spies in everyday jobs. This often takes the form of interns, international students, or government-contracted employees.

This is partially by design — China’s National Intelligence Law mandates its own citizens, not just state-recognized spies, to “support, assist, and cooperate

with national intelligence efforts in accordance with law, and shall protect national intelligence work secrets they are aware of,” according to Section 1 Article 7. China’s influence often leaks into Michigan’s education system. Last year, five Chinese nationals who graduated from the University of Michigan were charged for filming the military training facility Camp Grayling.

The bill package also recognizes surveillance can take place without human presence, be it through drones or digital applications like TikTok. According to a release from the Michigan House Republicans, the Michigan State Police, for example, uses surveillance drones made by Chinese factories. When flying over government buildings, imagery can potentially be sent back to the CCP.

Evanina said foreign influence is far more inconspicuous than people may realize.

“If you own a farm somewhere in rural Michigan, and you are 100 miles from the military base, you probably don’t even know it,” Evanina said. “And then some company comes out, and offers you two or three times the value of your land, right? They’re not coming to you as saying, ‘Hey, we’re the Communist Party of China,’ they’re coming and saying ‘We’re LMNOP LLC.’ That’s where there has to be a better way, federal legislation to advise and inform those landowners and be able to prevent that kind of procurement.”

As it stands, Evanina estimates that CATL is looking to build 13 factories across the United States.

Rep. Bruck serves as chair of the Michigan House Oversight Committee. Courtesy | Mike Quillinan

Rep. Bruck speaks at 9/11 Remembrance Ceremony. Courtesy | Will Bruck

Protesters outside the county courthouse Saturday. Thomas McKenna | Collegian

Carol Taylor holds her “Jabba the Trump” sign. Thomas McKenna | Collegian

Sports Feature

Meyer awarded for highest GPA in G-MAC men's basketball

By Francesca Cella Collegian Reporter

Junior Jacob Meyer has maintained a 3.973 cumulative GPA and a 4.0 major and minor GPA while playing on the basketball team during his three years at Hillsdale, and is the 2024-2025 winner of the Great Midwest Elite 26 Award in men’s basketball.

“Grades and studying hard and giving everything my

best shot according to how I prioritize my life has always been just what I was taught to do,” Meyer said. For the second consecutive year, the Great Midwest Athletic Conference has awarded Meyer the Elite 26 Award, which is given to the athlete with the highest cumulative GPA in each of the 26 G-MAC sporting events. Meyer said when he was a kid, school always came be-

Each row, column, and bolded region contains one each of 1–9.

fore sports, and he has maintained that discipline as a student-athlete while pursuing a financial management major and accounting minor.

“My parents would always say, ‘You’re not doing anything until your homework gets done,’ or, ‘if your grade starts slipping, you can’t play sports,’” Meyer said. “It’s always been my faith comes first, then family, then school, then sports.”

Battleships

There are four ships of length 1 (•), three ships of length 2 (◀ ▶), two ships of length 3 (◀ ■ ▶), and one ship of length 4 (◀ ■ ■ ▶). Each ship is surrounded by empty water on all sides, including diagonally; no two ships touch or intersect. The numbers along the border indicate how many ship pieces appear in that row or column.

Sudoku Math Maze

Prioritizing school requires some sacrifice, according to Meyer.

“I have a room really close to our living room, so our friends will always be watching basketball, just chatting it up and I have really missed those moments sometimes,” Meyer said.

Redshirt sophomore CJ Yarian, Meyer’s teammate and housemate, said he tries to draw Meyer away from his homework to watch games with them.

“Sometimes I feel bad because we always bug him in his room when he’s studying,” Yarian said. “And then sometimes we get him to come out but he goes on his laptop out in the living room watching the basketball game with us. He misses out on a little bit, but not too much.”

Although Meyer redshirted freshman year so he would have the option to play basketball as a fifth year senior, he plans to graduate in four years. His four-year graduation plan requires him to take an average of 15.5 credits per semester in addition to his basketball commitments rather than the lighter course loads of many athletes. Despite his busy schedule, Meyer makes time for his friends.

“He’s always there to help

you,” Yarian said. “If you miss a class he always has notes for you and he’ll give them to you. Or if you ever need anything he’ll go out of his way to do that.”

Meyer said fifth-year senior Charles Woodham has inspired him in his academic pursuits.

“I found out toward the end of my freshman year that Charles actually had the highest GPA on the team,” Meyer said. “I knew he was a pre-med student, and I didn’t really know what all that entailed and how difficult that really was, but I knew getting a GPA like he had his junior year was really a testament to what he valued and the hard work he had put into school.

So I thought, ‘I want to be able to be in the same kind of position he is with such a strong GPA.’”

Meyer said he has formed his closest friendships with basketball teammates, which he attributes to the hours spent in early morning workouts, road trips, practices, and games. Even in times when he’s off the court, he works to improve the team.

“It was weird coming into college and not really playing heavy minutes or not getting to play all that much,” Meyer said. “I just thought it’d

be a good opportunity to be the locker room guy or just be the best teammate that I could because that’s probably mostly where I have a chance to make an impact.”

His efforts have improved the team, according to head coach Keven Bradley.

“He has been such a pleasure to coach and just be around,” Bradley said. “He comes in with such a great attitude and approach to practice every single day, and his demeanor is just naturally very uplifting. He’s a great friend in the locker room and he is just loved by the 13 other guys.” Meyer said he is only fulfilling his duty by reaching out to his teammates.

“I kind of just try to treat people the way they deserve to be treated,” Meyer said. “It’s never fun when anyone’s excluded or when someone feels left out, so I just try to get everyone involved.”

The basketball team won’t be the same without Meyer, according to Bradley.

“It’ll be a tough day saying goodbye to him next year, just because of his impact and what he’s done for the program and the locker room,” Bradley said.

Chargers hit new personal bests, Johnston sets record Track and Field

By Joshua Mistry Collegian Reporter

Junior Richie Johnston set a new Hillsdale record in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at the Texas Relays at the University of Texas at Austin, while other Charger athletes competed at the Bobcat Invitational at Texas State University and the Tiffelberg Open at Heidelberg University.

At the University of Texas, Johnston placed third with an NCAA DII provisional qualifying mark time of 8:53.50. Junior Anna Roberts placed 14th in the 3,000-meter steeplechase with a personal best time of 11:29.69.

Freshman Evyn Humphrey won the 1,500-meter race with a time of 4:28.94, a provisional qualifying mark.

Senior Ross Kuhn placed fourth in the 1,500-meter race with a personal best time of 3:51.72.

"The races this weekend felt pretty good. Coach White and I had an idea that I was in school record form and right now it’s all about finding races that can help me do that," Kuhn said. "I definitely prefer outdoor to indoor. As a tall runner the indoor curves break a lot of momentum and affect my stride that outdoor races do not."

Freshman Allison Kuzma placed 11th in the 5,000-meter race with a time of 16:40.09, a provisional qualifying mark.

On the track at Texas State University, sophomore Megan Roberts placed 25th in the 800-meter race with a personal best time of 2:17.34. Roberts also placed 35th in the 1,500-meter race with another personal best time of 4:53.39.

Junior Gabriel Phillips placed 16th and 11th in the 1,500-meter and 5,000-meter races with personal best times of 3:55.94 and 14:56.83.

Kuhn placed second in the 1,500-meter, beating the time he set in Austin with a new personal best time of 3:48.72.

"I was not too happy with the 3:51, but being able to bounce back the next day and run a 3:48 was great and just shows what kind of shape I am in to be able to run a PR a day after racing already," Kuhn said. "I do believe I am on the verge of breaking the school record. My training has been very good lately and now it’s just about staying healthy and continuing to do the right things in training to put myself in a position to do so."

Humphrey placed second in the 1,500-meter race with a time of 4:26.21. Sophomore Savannah Fraley placed sixth in the 5,000-meter race with a personal best time of 17:43.90.

In the field, junior Tara Townsend placed third in the pole vault with a mark of 3.90 meters, a provisional qualifying mark.

At Heidelberg University,

freshman Hudson Moorefield placed sixth in the 400 meter dash with a personal best time of 51.52.

"I was very happy with how the meet went as this is the fastest opening time of my career and a college best," Moorefield said. "I personally prefer the outdoors for multiple reasons: it’s much easier to breathe because there is airflow, I have little experience running indoors, and running anything over 200 meters indoors becomes much harder in my opinion."

Sophomore Anna Stirton placed second in the 1,500-meter race with a personal best time of 4:59.61.

"This past week many of us opened up in our first races of the season, and I think the results were reassuring that the hard work we have been putting in is paying off," Stirton said.

Junior Katie Clifford placed second in the pole vault with a mark of 3.78 meters.

"I think the team is feeling really good overall, we just need to focus on taking care of our bodies off of the track so we can continue to improve and stay healthy," Moorefield said. The Chargers will compete next weekend in the VertKlasse Meeting at High Point University April 4-5 and the Hillsdale Outdoor Invitational April 5.

Junior Jacob Meyer at a game against Kentucky Wesleyan College on Feb. 1.

Courtesy | Reva Ludwig

Members of the Chargers track and field team arrive in Texas for the invitational.

Courtesy | Chargers Track and Field Instagram

Women's Tennis

Chargers impress

By Tayte Christensen Assistant Editor

Charger women’s tennis went undefeated at home last weekend against the Ursuline College Arrows and the Walsh University Cavaliers.

The Chargers dominated in their 7-0 win against the Arrows March 29, winning all three doubles and six singles matches.

“This weekend can be best described as a team effort,” sophomore Ané Dannhauser said. “Everyone came out so ready with high energy to get the job done.”

Against the Cavaliers on Sunday, the Chargers secured a 4-1 victory.

“You could really tell we were the strong team and that we wanted it more on Sunday against Walsh,” senior Libby McGivern said.

The Chargers are now 10-6 on the season and 4-0 in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference.

In doubles, No. 1 pair Dannahuser and freshman Briana Rees won 6-3. Senior Courtney Rittel and junior Megan Hackman won 6-4 at No. 2 doubles, and McGivern and junior Bella Spinazze did the same at No. 3 doubles.

“Bella and I started our match down, but we never let that hurt our energy and kept putting pressure on our opponents which led us to a great win,” McGivern said.

In singles, the only loss from the weekend came from No. 1 Dannhauser, falling 6-2, 5-7, 1-6.

“Singles was not the highlight of my weekend,” Dannhauser said. “Saturday was super straightforward, but Sunday I quite literally choked. I was up and had the opportunity to close the match, but unfortunately it didn't quite go as planned. Tennis is just like that though, you never know what’s going to happen.”

At No. 2 singles, McGivern won 6-0, 6-4, and No. 3 singles Rees pulled off a 6-3, 6-1 win. Rittel finished off the weekend with a hard-fought 6-4, 3-6, 6-1 win at No. 4 singles.

“Everyone stepped up in different places and that’s how we got the job done,” Spinazze said. “Libby and I played our best tennis and had amazing energy.”

The Chargers’ win over the Cavaliers puts the team in a position to earn a top-four ranking in the G-MAC tournament later this month.

This weekend, the Chargers will go on the road to face the nation’s sixth-ranked team the University of Findlay on Friday and Tiffin University on Saturday. Both teams were top three in the G-MAC preseason rankings, and a win against either would put the Chargers in a position to earn a bye in the first round of the G-MAC tournament.

Sports Opinion

Hillsdale splits with Thomas More Baseball

By Elaine Kutas Collegian Reporter

The Charger baseball team split its first weekend series at home against the Thomas More University Saints, and then outlasted Saginaw Valley State University April 1.

The Chargers came out with a 15-0 win in the first game on Friday but dropped the nightcap, 2-1.

On Saturday, the Chargers won the first game 9-3 and again lost the second game in a close 8-7 matchup.

Freshman Billy Porotsky had five hits and four RBIs during the weekend, including a triple in the first inning of Friday’s day game and a three-run home run during Saturday’s day game.

“My teammates set me up for both my triple and home run by just getting on base and hitting the ball well,” Porotsky said. “Hitting is contagious in baseball, and it's all about doing your job and getting the next guy up in a spot to succeed.”

The first game Friday consisted of 18 hits by the Chargers, prompted by a strong first inning of seven runs on seven hits. Sophomore pitcher Daniel Higdon got the win with six scoreless innings, including five strikeouts and four walks.

After the blowout game

Friday afternoon, the Chargers struggled to keep up with the Saints. Along with Porotsky, sophomores Will Millard and Aaron Jasiak put up the four hits of the game, two of which were by Millard. One of his hits was

finishing with only one run.

“The seventh inning started with Augie Hutchison taking a good at-bat and getting a walk to give us a chance,” Millard said. “Late in games, it is about getting the next guy up when you

an RBI double in the seventh inning, bringing in the only run for the Chargers that game. The Chargers were unable to bring Millard in from second to tie the game,

are down a couple of runs, so, when I was at the plate, I was trying to do my job and get it to the next guy.”

On Saturday, the Chargers came out swinging with a

two-run home run by freshman Will Lehman in the bottom of the first inning. The Chargers brought in two other runs along with Porotsky’s three-run home run in the sixth inning, getting five runs off six hits in one inning. Sophomore pitcher Jacob Pallo pitched the entire game, striking out four and walking one in the seven-inning competition.

“Our offense got some runs up early which allowed us to relax a little bit and play looser, and then we played really well defensively, especially by turning a lot of double plays,” Pallo said. “It helped keep my pitch count low and allowed me to stay in the full game. The energy from the dugout was great too, it kept me fired up throughout the entirety of the game.”

The Chargers also traveled to Saginaw Valley State University on Tuesday, April 1. The rematch between the two teams ended with a 3-2 Charger victory thanks to a 3-0 lead by the fourth inning.

The Charger’s week of competition put them at 14-14 overall and 7-5 in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference. They will play another four-game series at home against the Lake Erie College Storm on April 5 and 6 at 1 and 4 p.m.

Duke Blue Devils will win March Madness

By Lewis Thune Collegian Reporter

While the surprises have been uncharacteristically few, this year’s NCAA men’s basketball tournament is nonetheless set for an exciting conclusion. With record-breaking viewership and close finishes, this year’s edition of March Madness has been everything viewers expect, and the upcoming Final Four games promise to keep delivering.

For the first time since 2008, the four remaining teams are the exact top four teams in the country: the Big 12 Conference champion in the University of Houston Cougars, the Atlantic Coast Conference champion in the University of Duke Blue Devils, the Southeastern Conference champion in the University of Florida Gators,

and the University of Auburn Tigers, who were top of the standings of the Southeastern Conference at the end of the regular season. Though playoff Cinderella runs are one of the most popular attractions for college basketball, it has been refreshing to see this season’s four best teams play the tournament like the four best teams. In contrast to the ever-expanding postseasons and the diminishing importance of regular seasons within both collegiate and professional sports, this year’s Final Four has shown that the regular season still matters as much as it ever has. It has also shown that the 68-team postseason tournament is just right for providing some underdogs, upsets, and craziness while still separating the best from the rest with finality.

The Southeastern Conference will send its finest to the championship game one way or another — either Auburn avenges their regular season loss to Florida or the Gators roll forward into the championship. The other side of the bracket provides the more intriguing matchup, as Duke and Houston meet for the right to play the Southeast’s champion.

Duke enters the matchup having trounced the University of Alabama Crimson Tide, the country’s preeminent offense in the Elite Eight round. Houston likewise enters having thrashed the University of Tennessee Volunteers in an Elite Eight contest which saw the nation’s best and second-best defenses pitted against one another. The San Antonio hardwood will feature a better-than-best offense meet a peerless defense.

To simplify, Saturday’s nightcap will finally give an answer to what happens when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object.

And in this Final Four, Duke is the clear team to beat. The combination of stellar offense and resilient defense is enough to best Houston, and likewise the SEC’s national championship representative — be it Florida or Auburn. The Blue Devils have uniquely shown why the regular season and postseason alike are spectacular in college basketball.

Duke entered the year having signed top high school recruit Cooper Flagg and with sky-high expectations, only to lose 3 of their first 7 games to subpar opponents. Salvaging their terrible opening, they entered conference play with something to prove — a position unfamiliar to a

college basketball blue blood program like Duke. An extremely weak ACC provided little challenge — the Blue Devils rebounded from the early-season adversity and cruised through regular season and conference tournament play.

But an awkward landing on March 13 put their hopes of an ACC championship on life support, as the spectacular Cooper Flagg was unable to walk himself off of the court. The Blue Devils rallied, eking out quarterfinal and semifinal victories against the Georgia Institute of Technology Yellow Jackets and arch-rival University of North Carolina Tar Heels, respectively. The University of Louisville proved no match for the inspired Blue Devils in the conference championship, and just like that, Duke rolled into March looking

better than ever. Still, questions swirled: if this Duke team could barely escape the ACC without Cooper Flagg, could they be trusted against SEC and Big XII opponents with him? As if to answer that question outright, Flagg returned to full health in time to continue the postseason march, sweeping the East en route to San Antonio.

This Duke squad has every storyline: the young coach, the early-season slump, the freshman phenom, the disparaged conference, the postseason drama, and the one that remains, namely, a date with destiny. They’re ready to make the most of it. This moment belongs to none other than the Duke Blue Devils.

Joni Russell, softball Charger chatter

Compiled by Francesca Cella

What is a weird-but-true fact about yourself?

I owned seven turtles as a kid.

What is your favorite road-trip snack?

Brookside Dark Chocolate, Pomegranate Flavor.

If you could only use one condiment, what would it be?

Courtesy | Hillsdale College Athletic Department

From left to right: sophomore Will Millard, sophomore Rocco Tenuta, freshman Will Lehman, and senior Zak Kent celebrate over the weekend. Courtesy | Emma Purdy

Charger Sports

Reale finishes first with historic second round

By Grace Novak Collegian Reporter

Senior Filippo Reale won first place this weekend at the Trevecca Music City Invitational after a record-breaking second round of golf, while the Charger golf team landed in 4th place overall.

An international student from Rome, Italy, Reale shot 9-under-par in the second round, scoring 61 on the par-70 Hermitage Golf Course in Old Hickory, Tennessee. This round broke the previous school record of 6-under-par. He also tied the course record with Annika Sörenstam, a professional Swedish female golfer with over 96 pro tournament wins to her name.

“He played just an incredible round,” head men’s golf coach Matt Thompson said. “It's hard to describe. It was really, really cool for him.”

Reale came into the sec -

ond round hot with a birdie on the first hole. He went on to shoot well on his fifth and sixth hole, scoring back to back eagles. Those scores shot him up to first place.

“So the ball went in the hole from 75 yards out,” Reale said. “Having one hole out is pretty rare. Having two in a row is pretty insane.”

Coach Thompson started following Reale as he played to bring some encouragement as he continued to score birdies. On hole 6, one of his last holes, Reale had the chance to hole out yet again.

“I hit a good drive and had 65 yards in. I'm walking up to the ball and I look at my coach and I say, ‘Hey, eagle time,’” Reale said. “I step up, I hit it, and it bounces and goes in. At that point I'm not even happy. I'm just in shock.”

Sophomore Ryan O’Ro -

urke said that his mom came up to him during his round to tell him how well Reale was doing.

“She was like ‘Filo’s seven under right now!’” O’Rourke

excitedly followed the results of the round from Hillsdale on the live scoreboard while Reale was playing.

“I really appreciate the amount of support I got from

“I have never heard of this happening before. Making three eagles from 70 yards in one round is unbelievable .”

said. “And it was just awesome.”

Reale’s friends and brother sophomore Francesco Reale

teammates, old teammates, friends, people that go to school, even professors,” Reale said.

Joni Russell named G-MAC softball Athlete of the Week

By Ellie Fromm Assistant Editor

Charger softball went 2-2 during its weekend of home competition, improving to a 4-2 record in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference.

On Friday, the Chargers beat the University of Findlay Oilers 1-0 in the first game and fell 8-4 in the nightcap. The next day, they defeated the Tiffin University Dragons 5-2 in their first game and lost 4-3 in the next game.

Head coach Kyle Gross said that the first win against the Oilers ultimately came down to the two team’s pitching abilities.

“In the Findlay series, we won the first game 1-0 so it was a pitcher's duel, and we had a couple other chances to score, but luckily we man-

ufactured the first run with a stolen base,” Gross said. “The second game against Findlay we made some costly errors in that game, but we came back and had the lead. They took the lead. We came back and tied it, but then another error changed the score.”

In the series against the Dragons, Gross said that the first game went well and that the Chargers hit well against their opponent, which is known for their pitching staff.

“The game was good as Tiffin had one of the best pitching staffs in the conference coming in, and we scored a lot of runs in there,” Gross said. “Then in the second game, they just scored more than we did. They had a fourth inning home run and then we scored three in the fifth, but just couldn't get that

fourth run across.”

Senior pitcher Joni Russell was named to the National Fastpitch Coaches Association’s Player and Pitcher of the Year watchlist. She was also awarded the G-MAC softball Athlete of the Week.

“This is the first time she's been added to the watch list, so that's exciting, and she's really pitching well right now,” Gross said. “She was injured at the beginning of the season, and she's fighting through some of that, but still being able to compete at a high level was awesome.”

Sophomore Sydney Davis said the team was high-energy in the first game against the Oilers and that this, along with their defensive skills and Russell’s pitching, contributed to the win.

“In the first game against

Findlay, Joni pitched lights out and the defense played well behind her,” Davis said. “She created lots of opportunities to get outs as well as producing them herself.”

The Chargers will face the Malone University Pioneers at home on April 5 for a doubleheader at 1 pm and 3 pm. On April 6, they play the Northwood University Timberwolves at home at 1 pm and 3 pm. They then play the Lake Erie College Storm away on April 9 at 2 pm and 4 pm.

“I am excited to continue to get in good games and play and hopefully compete at the top of the conference,” Gross said. “We have Northwood this weekend, which is another top team in the conference, and with us splitting with Findlay and Tiffin, which are arguably two top teams in the conference, our conference tournament is going to be that much more exciting if everybody splits.”

Junior Mackenzi Maxson said that the Chargers are looking to build on what they did well in their wins last weekend.

“We're talking a lot this week about not just going up to hit, but going up to hit with a purpose,” Maxson said. “Having a set result that we want out of it, versus just wanting success — having a specific type of success.”

Coach Thompson explained the rarity of scoring three eagles in a round.

“I've never heard of that happening before. That is just wild,” Thompson said.

“Making three eagles from 70 yards in one round is unbelievable. He’s in very small company if it has happened before.”

The team was excited to celebrate with Reale even though they didn’t place as well as hoped, ending in fourth place even though they had a chance at victory according to O’Rourke.

Next week, they head to the Ken Partridge Invitational in Indiana where they’ll compete against the best field of the year, according to Coach Thompson.

“There's definitely some things we’ve got to get cleaned up in a short turnaround,” Thompson said.

“We have to dig deep and figure out how to get better

Men's Tennis

over the next couple days and really just get mentally prepared to go out there next week.”

Despite the exciting individual victory, Reale said that the main focus is on placing well as a team.

“At the end of the day, winning individually is sweet, but winning as a team is even better,” Reale said.

For one of the final tournaments of his time playing golf for Hillsdale, Reale said he was really happy to have this experience.

“After four years of a roller coaster ride for him with times of playing well and then really struggling for a while, for him to be able to do this in his final semester and get a collegiate victory is great,” Thompson said. “He's become a great leader, really trying to get the boys across the finish line. I am just super excited for him.”

Chargers defeat Walsh Cavaliers

By Jamie Parsons Collegian Reporter

Charger men’s tennis snatched a 4-3 win at home against the Walsh University Cavaliers March 30 after trailing by one point going into singles play. The Chargers now stand 9-5 on the season and 3-0 in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference.

In doubles play, the Chargers won one of three matches and lost the doubles point. Sophomores Ellis Klanduch and Henry Hammond secured Hillsdale’s only doubles win by defeating their opponent 6-4 at No. 1 doubles.

Freshman Rintaro Goda, who lost at No. 3 doubles with his partner freshman Ryan Papazov, said it was beneficial for the Chargers to play a tough team.

“It really pushed us to stay focused and forced us to fight for every point in the match,” Goda said.

In singles play, the Chargers won four of six matches, with freshman Eddie Bergelin claiming a 6-2, 6-1, victory at No. 6 singles to close the overall match with a win for Hillsdale.

Head coach Keith Turner said despite the loss in doubles play, he had faith the Chargers could still win the overall match.

“We've been in this situation many times this year with losing the doubles point,” Turner

said. “But we were resilient. We didn’t get down on ourselves.” Papazov won 6-1, 6-4 at No. 1 singles, Klanduch won 6-3, 4-6, 6-1 at No. 2 singles, and freshman Samuel Plys won 6-0, 6-2 at No. 5 singles. Turner said he switched Papazov and Klanduch in the singles lineup, with Klanduch usually playing at No. 1 singles, because he felt they would match Walsh’s competitors better that way. Turner also said Papazov and Klanduch adapted to this change very well.

“Papazov stepped up by playing one of his best matches of the year at the most important match of the year,” Turner said. “And Klanduch did a great job changing up his strategy a bit in the third set to beat a tough player.”

Director of Athletics John Tharp said he was proud of the team because the players seem to want to play well for each other, and as a result are improving everyday.

“I hope they keep working hard, supporting each other, representing Hillsdale College with class and competing with grit,” Tharp said.

The Chargers are on the road later this week, playing the University of Findlay Oilers April 4 and the Tiffin University Dragons April 5. Both teams are expected to battle for the G-MAC title, but an upset in either match can put Hillsdale in the race.

From left to right: sophomore Ryan O'Rourke, junior Maxwell Burns, senior Filippo Reale, sophomore Robert Thompson, and freshman Jackson Piacsek after placing fourth in the Music City Invitational. Courtesy | Hillsdale Chargers Instagram

Senior Emma Vis bats against the University of Findlay at home over the weekend.

Courtesy | Kenneth Gaudet

C U L T U R E

‘To Whatever Variation’ showcases years of artistry

By Grace Brennan Collegian Reporter

Four seniors –Lucia Wilson, Jack Cote, Eleanor Vaughan, and Emily Hardy– displayed their artwork March 28 – April 1 for their exhibit “To Whatever Variation” in the Daughtry Art Gallery’s first senior exhibit of the year. Each senior contributed roughly 20-35 pieces of their artwork they had been working on during their time at Hillsdale College. The various mediums of art such as charcoal, oil painting, water color, and digital art showcased in the exhibit is telling of the students’ years of dedication, passion, and growth as art majors.

According to Vaughan, neither she nor Cote wanted their self portrait front and center, so Cote chose a photo of Rome, and she chose a painting of her grandfather which she completed this year.

“The one of my grandfather matched really well with his one of Rome because it’s another cityscape,” Vaughan said. Vaughan said motifs in her art include plants, childhood,

Senior Anna Baldwin, who attended the opening reception, said all of the pieces were unique in their own style.

“I love how everything is different. I think the title really captures the variations,” Baldwin said. “It’s fun to see their personalities.”

The entrance of the exhibit displays two self portraits by Wilson and Hardy, accompanied by an oil painting by Vaughan, and a photograph by Cote.

“It is one that I’m really proud of and meant a lot to me,” Vaughan said. “I painted it for my dad and my grandma and neither of them knew I was painting it, and so it was nice to have it right in the front.”

According to Vaughan, she framed three of her pieces with wooden frames, carved by her great-great-grandfather in 1902 and 1903.

“I had those at home and wanted to use them for my artwork, so those are very meaningful,” Vaughan said.

Chairman and Associate Professor of Art Julio Suarez said he loved the use of the wooden frame in Vaughan’s watercolor of a radish.

“I love this one, and I think it’s just beautifully done with the frame,” Suarez said.

Hardy said her family similarly inspired her work. She and her family visited Disney theme parks when she was young, and she hopes to work for Disney as an illustrator one day.

family, and growing up. The painting on display at the front of the exhibit was the perfect introduction to her art as it showed her love for family.

“My family really loved Disney, the stories that were told by them, and the theme parks really connected us,” Hardy said. “I really want to tell stories to families and give them that union, those feelings that my family was able to have.”

Hardy’s style is best seen in her watercolor master copies of Beatrix Potter, writer and illustrator of “The Tales of Peter

Rabbit” children’s series.

“I really enjoyed doing the Beatrix Potter master copies — the Peter Rabbit and the Benjamin Bunny were just so fun for me,” Hardy said. “That’s kind of like the character design aspect

“I grew up in Hillsdale the majority of my life and being in this tiny little town there was a part of me that wanted to get out since I was in high school,” Cote said.

According to Cote, he has

that I really want to go into.”

Cote’s inspiration comes from his mother, Shanna, the college’s senior art director, in the form of graphic design and photography, he said.

According to Cote, they have often swapped advice on coloring and formatting for whatever art projects they are working on.

“It’s a very special relationship I have with her that I am very grateful for,” Cote said.

Cote’s predominant theme in his photography is travel, which he said takes up two thirds of his collection.

“A lot of my pieces are from Italy, from out West in Montana, Colorado, Wyoming, and then all sorts of random cities past that,” Cote said.

According to Cote, he always wanted to travel outside of Michigan.

I’m interested in pursuing post grad,” Cote said. “I’ve done all sorts of concerts in Lansing, Ann Arbor, and Detroit for certain musicians, and if the opportunity were to arise where I could be a tour photographer for a musician or work for a music agency that would be really wonderful.”

Wilson, whose expertise is in charcoal drawings, said the culmination of her work throughout her time at Hillsdale is a simple mantra.

“I tend to like drawing ordinary things in extraordinary ways,” Wilson said.

According to Wilson, she does this by being messy and enjoying the process more than the product.

worked with musicians, taking photos of their concerts and their album covers, specifically the local band Lost Mary and the student band, Schizmatics.

“I would say music and art are the primary things that

“I really like high contrast art, like dramatic lights and shadows, and I also like the messiness of it,” Wilson said. “I come away with the idea that there is not an exclusive definition to art or to beauty.”

‘Remembering the Shoah’ reflects on 80th anniversary

By Faith Miller Collegian Freelancer

Some six million Jews died during the Holocaust — the genocide of European Jews by Nazi Germany during World War II. An exhibit commemorating the end of these persecutions, “Remembering the Shoah,” will be displayed April 3 with a recital in McNamara Recital Hall at 5 p.m. April 4.

Beginning at 11:30 a.m. today, “Remembering the Shoah” will feature a time of reflection in the Dow Room G with a series of lectures in the Hoynak Room following at 3:30 p.m. and displays of Churchill scholar Sir Martin Gilbert’s works.

“The Shoah is the Hebrew word for what everybody calls the Holocaust — more specifically related to the Jews,” Assistant Professor of German Jeffery Hertel said. “You can’t really fathom it; the scale of it is just so big and so terrible. You can list facts, and it still doesn’t fully allow you to comprehend what’s going on.”

According to Lori Curtis, archivist and special collections librarian, Dow Room G will have

the exhibit set up for people to stop in.

“Folks can come and reflect on the Holocaust,” Curtis said.

“They can be looking at the photographs that I’ll have up on easels around the room. They can sit and listen to music and reflect on all of this.”

Another exhibit, hanging on the new drywall in the first floor of the library, according to Associate Professor of French Anna Navrotskaya, came from Yad Vashem, the World Holocaust Remembrance Center in Jerusalem, Israel, and will be on display until April 7.

“It is called ‘The Anguish of Liberation as Reflected in Art.’ It features 11 paintings and drawings with accompanying biographical information about their authors,” Navrotskaya said in an email. “Yad Vashem offers several exhibits that can be ordered free of charge, printed and displayed. I chose this one, because it spoke of anguish, yes, but also of hope and humanity that does not die that easily inside us, even under horrific circumstances.”

Hertel said the lectures include talks from Curtis, Pro-

fessor Emeritus of History Tom Conner, and visiting Professor of Management of Purdue University Tom Brush.

“On the one hand, we needed informational stuff,” Hertel said. “We have Brush lectur-

prayer by Assistant Professor of Classics Joshua Fincher.

“We have a guest pianist coming to town, Eric Wagner, who has performed all over the country,” Hertel said. “I believe there are also some Hillsdale

“I cannot even describe how important, how meaningful it feels to see so many wonderful people coming together, not willing and not allowing them to forget it.”

ing, whose father was actually a surgeon in World War II and witnessed the liberation of the camps, and others also talking about the end of the war in general.”

According to Hertel, the April 4 event, a recital in McNamara Recital Hall, will feature music composed in the concentration camps, poetry written by German-Jewish poets, and a commemorative

students, who will also be playing some musical accompaniment, as well as a local choir group.”

According to Curtis, “Remembering the Shoah” is intended to keep the memory of the Holocaust alive as time passes, ensuring it is never repeated again.

“It’s becoming distant history to a lot of the students,” Curtis said. “We just need to remem-

ber this and hopefully work toward it never happening again to any group of people.”

Hertel said along with the informational lectures and exhibit, the recital will provide students and visitors a greater understanding of what this anniversary is commemorating.

“In combination with the more informational talks we’re going to be having, I think it is as close as one can get to even having a chance at grasping the enormity of the crimes of Nazi Germany and the tragedy of the Jewish people,” Hertel said

The exhibit and events have been put together over the past year by a committee including faculty from several college departments, according to Hertel.

“We’ve been talking sort of vaguely about this since last fall, and then a couple of months ago, plans started to materialize,” Hertel said. “A group of professors from French, economics, music, classics, German, and theology met together and decided that we wanted to try and do something to commemorate the Shoah.”

The work is very important because of the severity of what

is being remembered, Hertel said.

“It’s been 80 years since the end of World War II and on the one hand, that seems like it’s been forever,” Hertel said. “But it’s actually horribly recent. Since the late 1990s, many of the people who committed these crimes and have witnessed these crimes have all passed away. If we don’t continue to think about and contemplate these events, then there’s the chance we might forget about them.”

Navrotskaya said that this experience is deeply embedded in her culture and this commemoration is very special to her.

“I am Jewish, and, as you know, it is nearly impossible to find a Jewish family untouched by the Shoah and the war. To us, it is not a distant past, its memory is part of who we are. The dead are living through us,” Navrotskaya said. “I cannot even describe how important, how meaningful it feels to see so many wonderful people coming together, not willing and not allowing them to forget it.”

Eleanor A. Vaughan ‘Victoria Street, 2006’; Emily Hardy ‘Self Portrait’; Jack Cote ‘A Stroke of Luck’; Lucia L. Wilson ‘Self Portrait.’

Collection of Cote’s artwork. COLLEGIAN | Grace Brennan

Collection of Wilson’s artwork.

COLLEGIAN | Grace Brennan

Professors’ Picks: Tory Matsos, lecturer of theatre and dance

Song: “Linger” by The Cranberries (1993)

The original is brilliant, but the cover by Hillsdale trio Tuition and Fees is sublime. I loved hearing seniors Emily Griffith, Fiona Mulley, and Phoebe Vanheyningen share their version at the Sigma Alpha Iota Province Day event last weekend. Word on the street is they are performing one last time at Rough Draft on Friday, April 4, at 7 p.m. I highly recommend attending. (I’m not their publicist, just a big fan.)

Compiled by Francesca Cella Collegian Reporter

Movie: “Seabiscuit” (2003)

I love horses, and I love a good underdog story.

Book: “The Work of Art” by Adam Moss (2024)

Journalist Adam Moss interviewed artists from a variety of disciplines in an attempt to demystify the creative process. Bringing the necessary discipline to artistic work can be tedious and frustrating at times. This book is full of inspiring examples of artists led by dogged determination and curiosity.

‘Rushmere’ sounds like a nostalgic movie

By Charlotte O’Beirne Collegian Freelancer

“Rushmere,” British indie-rock band Mumford and Sons’ fifth studio album released March 28, plays like a beloved but flawed childhood movie, heavy on nostalgia, exhilarating at its high points, but with plenty of opportunities to doze off.

One of my favorite parts of returning home from college is revisiting beloved but flawed childhood movies. Sometimes, however, my nostalgia for these cinematic masterpieces has exaggerated their real quality. But, I can never resist a rewatch. I listened to Mumford and Sons’ new album with a similar cautious excitement.

Mumford and Sons have dominated the indie rock scene (and my family’s kitchen) since the release of “Sigh No More” in 2010 and the resulting radio dominance of the song “Little Lion Man.” But in recent years the band has suffered a drought. Seven years have passed since the release of the album “Delta,” which, although it had its high points in “Wild Heart” and “Beloved,”

Upcoming events...

Tower Dancers Concert

April 11 & 12

Hillsdale College Big Band

April 11 & 12

Joy String Quartet Concert

April 12

Chapel Choir Passiontide Sacred Concert

April 13

Jazz ensemble to perform

By Daniel Johnson Collegian Reporter

World music will be performed by Hillsdale’s percussion ensemble accompanied by two guest artists and the Rob Roy Jazz band.

The performance will be held in McNamara Recital Hall at 8 p.m. on April 5, and will feature 11 songs, including traditional music from Cuba and Ghana, and fusion works by guest artists Mark Stone and Patrick Fitzgibbon of Oakland University.

“We’re presenting a lot of new instruments and styles that people aren’t used to hearing,” Artist-Teacher of Music Stacey Jones-Garrison said. “Both of our guests, who specialize in these styles, are going to inform the audience about what they’re doing, and talk about the instruments, styles, and background.”

According to Stone, the performance will feature these new instruments, including the gyil, a wooden xylophone suspended over gourd resonators, in their traditional setting and integrate them into more familiar western styles.

Stone said that the concert will include two traditional West African drumming genres and a traditional Dagaa

gyil composition called Yaa Yaa Kole that he arranged for percussion ensemble and jazz combo.

According to Stone, the concert will also feature two of his original compositions.

The first half of the performance will feature Mark Stone, and the second half will feature Fitzgibbon, according to Jones-Garrison.

Stone said studying abroad in Ghana, Uganda, and South Africa has had a formative influence on his compositions and worldview.

“While my time living in these three African countries and traveling to many other countries has introduced me to a tremendous range of musical repertoire,” Stone said. “It has enabled me to develop diverse approaches to knowing, listening, playing, composing, improvising, and ultimately being in the world.”

Jones-Garrison said the audience can look forward to an upbeat performance.

“There’s going to be a lot of rhythm,” Jones-Garrison said. “There’s going to be a lot of groove.”

was ultimately disappointing.

Thankfully, with the advent of “Rushmere,” fans will find the drought is over.

“Rushmere,” the single released ahead of the album and its third track, surpassed them all. The name comes from a childhood hangout spot where the members first conceived of their band. The song uses striking imagery to evoke that teenage feeling of restlessness: “Don’t you miss the breathlessness / the wildness in the eye?

it that

moves in you”

/ Bloodshot dreams under streetlight spells / A truth no one can tell / when I was still a stranger to myself.” The chorus of “Rushmere” shows the redemptive optimism of Mumford and Sons, which saves their music from a common pitfall in their genre. To the familiar swell of guitar and banjo, Marcus Mumford himself sings “Light me up I’m wasted in the dark.”

The first track of the album, “Malibu,” is triumphant. The lyrics, “I feel a spirit move in me again / I know it’s the same spir-

From the heartbroken but hopeful verse: “I’m still afraid / I said too much / or not enough.”

The song crescendos to the chorus “I’ll find peace beneath the shadow of your wings.”

Throughout the song that lyric repeats in different tones and tempos. In the standout moment, Mumford halts on a syncopated delivery of “wings,” a moment guaranteed to bring tears to the eye of a true fan.

For a more casual listener, the second track, “Caroline,” is a

good place to start. It’s an easygoing lost-love song without too much emotional heft. Although the lyric “The stars can keep your secrets / I don’t want to owe them anything” has a certain melancholy ring, this is a catchy but ultimately lightweight song.

The fourth track, “Monochrome,” is a typical slow Mumford and Sons song, a lesser successor to masterpieces like “Timshel,” and “Ghosts That We Knew.” It’s a pleasant listen and the change in the final chorus to “There is Christ in the ground beneath your feet” is satisfying, if not revolutionary.

The next four tracks — the ambitiously named “Truth,”

“Where It Belongs,” “Anchor,” and “Surrender” — are impressively average. They lack the unique lyrical and tonal flourishes of the first few songs. Here is where the listener is free to take a metaphorical or literal snack break.

“Blood On The Page,” the second-to-last track on the album, and the only collabora-

tion, snaps the listener back to attention. Mumford and Madison Cunningham, a Grammy-awarded rising star in folk music, weave a haunting harmony together, and, in order to match her ethereal tone, Mumford pushes to the height of his vocal range with surprising vulnerability, most notably (and fittingly) on the line “I am in over my head.”

The final track, “Carry On,” competently delivers what seems to have become a staple Mumford and Sons message which, in comparison to the earlier highs of the album it falls a little flat.

“Rushmere” is a solid album which, although burdened by some filler songs, managed to — at its high points — charm a skeptical fan. Will I return to this album as a whole? Probably not. It does not achieve the unskippable status of “Sigh No More” and “Babel.” But my excitement to hear my favorite songs from “Rushmere” will match my enthusiasm at watching the climactic scene of “Anastasia,” and after so long a hiatus from Mumford and Sons, I can only be grateful.

Professor’s substack grows in popularity

By Megan Li Assistant Editor

Justin Jackson’s inbox began to blow up five years ago, after Hillsdale College released the trailer for an online course called “The Genesis Story.”

“When people send me emails, I feel an obligation to reply. I can’t not reply,” said Jackson, chairman and professor of English as well as the online course’s instructor.

To answer those questions, in early September 2023, Jackson decided to start a Substack called “How Do You Read It?” with his former student, Danny Rognlie ’22, the Substack’s executive producer. The Substack releases newsletters every Tuesday and video episodes every Friday to its 2,100 subscribers, where each episode, between 15 and 20 minutes, conducts literary analysis of a passage of Scripture.

According to Jackson, the producers edited the trailer — which has reached 20 million views on YouTube — and course videos in a way that generated more questions than answers for viewers. It kept the viewers watching, but also kept Jackson’s inbox overflowing with questions and critiques.

“This course is not about a Christian reading of Scripture at all. It’s not a Jewish reading. It’s a literary reading, and I abide by that,” Jackson said. “I think my viewers like it a lot. It is their spiritual meat to feast off of. But you need not be orthodox to feast off that spiritual meat.”

Not only that, the class’s six lectures amounted to only three hours of content on Genesis.

“Just one day of summer school, where in three hours we maybe get through four chapters of Genesis, is equiv-

alent to the entire online Genesis course,” Jackson said. “So they asked me to cover all of Genesis in three hours total. It’s impossible.”

After reading Genesis in Jackson’s class, Rognlie was eager to share Jackson’s reading with the world.

“When I was a student, he was a good friend and mentor despite my laughable performance in his courses, and here was an opportunity to continue learning and make available his unique teaching beyond the college,” Rognlie said in an email.

When Jackson came up with the idea of the Substack, he asked Rognlie to join him on the project.

“Danny knows tons of stuff and whatever he doesn’t know, the beauty of Danny is he’ll go figure it out,” Jackson said. “All of a sudden — all of my emails, I don’t have them anymore. It’s fantastic.”

Rognlie takes care of filming each episode, editing the audio and video, posting and copywriting the content, promoting the Substack, and handling technical difficulties that come along. He said he would like to thank alumni Luke Robson ’17, Gabe Listro ’20, and Shadrach Strehle ’19 for helping them launch the Substack.

“Jackson is the pretty face with the book learning, and I do the rest,” Rognlie said. “We like the division of labor; I don’t trust him on a program newer than Windows ’98, and he doesn’t trust me to be interesting on camera.”

Jackson said each episode of the Substack serves to mimic his classes at Hillsdale.

“We do what we need to do,” Jackson said. “Here’s the ugliness of human beings, here’s the beauty of human beings. It’s all in Scripture,

and let’s go from there.” Shea Whitmore ’18, now a classical school teacher in Florida, said he took both Great Books classes with Jackson.

“He just knows so much about these books, and he is able to draw such deep things out of the text,” Whitmore said. “It’s very simple. You read something and you have thoughts about it, and then we try to get you to figure out why you think what you thought and tie it back to the text.”

To prepare for the lectures, Jackson examines the author’s text, the Hebrew, rabbinic exegesis, Christian exegesis, and the Septuagint, among other materials. However, the lectures are not necessarily intended for experts to hear.

“It’s a non-denominational, non-religious, non-theological channel. I’m not there to debate,” Jackson said. “I give readings that aren’t even within my tradition or within my own published scholar, there’s just not a lot at stake for me in being right.”

Jackson spoke to the online learning team before starting the Substack, for it is inextricably connected to the college’s online courses.

“I had to figure out, ‘Can I go do this?’” Jackson said. “Not only did they give me the green light, but they’re very good about actually throwing out a link to the Substack.”

Jackson said he is very grateful for the college’s support and trust in his teaching of biblical narrative in a non-theological manner.

“I will take little offroads to do some sort of theological explanation, but it’s not apologetics,” Jackson said. “I promised the college that they’ve done right by me.”

Unlike the online course, where producers film with two

cameras from different angles, Jackson and Rognlie use one camera, with a tripod and lights. Every Friday, Jackson lectures from his office desk in his chair, with Rognlie behind the camera.

Jackson said he hopes to use the Substack to explore works like Euripides’ “The Bacchae,” especially a René Girardian reading; “Oedipus Rex;” “The Odyssey;” and more content from the Bible like Judges, the story of David, Job, and Ecclesiastes.

After finding the Substack through YouTube, Whitmore was shocked at the price of $5 a month for a subscription.

“It’s serious work, and these are the deepest questions about human nature that he’s getting out of Genesis, or whatever it is we’re reading,” Whitmore said. “But then at the same time, it’s very approachable and light and then genuinely funny. I remember most classes like really laughing about something. The Substack is like that — funny as hell.”

Rognlie said he would like to thank alumni Luke Robson ’17, Gabe Listro ’20, and Shadrach Strehle ’19 for helping them launch the Substack. Whitmore said he is very grateful to Jackson for offering his wisdom and scholarship to the world.

“It’s better content than anything I’ve seen on YouTube,” Whitmore said. “That way of reading and becoming aware of your own reading, and then becoming self conscious about it and then to do that with the most important literature for us — that’s the most worthwhile kind of thing to do in our intellectual life.”

still

hits the nail on the head and seems to have a Christian undertone.

Matsos riding a horses through the mountains. COURTESY | TORY MATSOS

‘Rushmere’ album cover COURTESY | SPOTIFY

Announcing the 2025

Robert H. and Susan M. Rewoldt Essay Contest in Politics

Organized Through the Politics Department and the Office of the Provost

This essay contest is open to all undergraduate students at Hillsdale College. Essays will be judged by the politics faculty, and the winners will receive monetary prizes:

1st place essay: $5,000

2nd place essay: $3,000

3rd place essay: $1,000

2025 Topic: Consent in Twentieth and Twenty -First Century American Politics

Maximum Essay Length: 1,500 words (longer essays will automatically be disqualified)

Only 1 essay entry will be allowed per student. The essay must be the student’s own, wholly original work. Essays written for Hillsdale College classes are not eligible.

Please note: Only the first 30 submissions will be accepted.

f e a t u r e s f

‘Striving to do the hard thing,’ Waters competes in MMA fight

By Isaac Green Managing Editor

As students traveled back to campus the weekend after spring break, sophomore Luke Waters sat in the back of the Motor City Casino in Detroit, Michigan, wrapping his hands and preparing for the first fight of his Mixed Martial Arts career.

“I was praying and I was begging for victory,” Waters said. “But there was a kind of peace that surpassed all understanding before I walked up there, which was, ‘God, if you will be more glorified in him winning the fight, then give him the victory, whether that’s tonight or later in my life.’”

Waters began his walk to the cage as “God’s Gonna Cut You Down” by Johnny Cash played over the speakers, blending with the noise of a crowd hidden behind the glare of arena lights.

“It was a very religious experience for me,” he said.

Waters had made the decision to fight just 10 weeks prior. But it was the natural next step, given how he spent his first few semesters at Hillsdale College.

After coming to campus in the fall of 2023, Waters got involved immediately. In addition to founding the nonprofit organization Legio XII Fulminata, he now serves as the vice president of the Reformed Student Fellowship and is a fellow in the Kehoe Family Initiative for Entrepreneurial Excellence. As the executive director of Legio XII, Waters has pursued his passion for developing young men physically, spiritually, and mentally. At four tiers of involvement, members of the group practice disciplines together — like fixed prayer, cold exposure, and martial arts — aimed at building a brotherhood of strong, Christian men.

“Part of that whole program is we’re seeking discomfort, we’re striving to do the hard thing,” Waters said. “One of the things we talk about quite a bit is putting yourself into

the challenges where on the average day you can’t compete, you can’t finish it, and forcing yourself by saying, ‘I will sign up for that,’ to train like it — to succeed very large or fail.”

The MMA match in Detroit was one such chance for Waters to challenge himself, but he said it was also an opportunity to build his resume as a leader in the “masculinity sphere” — what he called one of the “issues of our time.”

“Guys want to listen to guys who have been through really hard things,” Waters said.

“This is where you get the David Gogginses, the podcast bros who are all former military or mixed martial arts. Part of it is, ‘Hey, look I’ve done some really hard stuff,’ and building that up so you can have a place to speak to the guys, and you’re respected.”

In his first semester as a student, Waters began taking college-offered courses in Jiu-Jitsu. That’s where he met former professional MMA fighter Larkyn Dasch who helps teach the class.

Dasch started her training when she was 17 years old and fought in her first amateur fight at 18 before going pro. She fought under the Bellator promotion — one of the organizations that formerly sponsored and managed professional MMA fights — even landing a spot in the ring at Madison Square Garden before the COVID-19 lockdowns.

“Once you’re on the mat and you’re fighting, there is a true measure of ‘how hard did you train?’ and the truth will be revealed,” Waters said. “There’s something I love about that where the really quiet guy who you have no idea what he’s been through can step in and just dominate, and you see that internally there’s a lot of strength there.”

Seeing his potential as an athlete, Dasch agreed to help.

“He was strong on the ground, he could really maneuver people and he did a good job rolling with people

amateur license, Waters adopted a strict seven-days-a-week training plan. Fighting in a catchweight division, he had to cut 10 pounds to meet the weight requirement.

“I definitely cut down — no carbs, no sugar, I was doing keto, tons and tons of cardio, two hours of training a day, which sucks,” Waters said. “Cutting weight is just wearing a bunch of hoodies and doing treadmill stuff for hours.”

He even tried wearing a trash bag under his sweatshirt once before the fight to shed some water weight and get be-

announcer introduced him to the crowd.

“I have so much more immense respect for the guys who do it for a living,” Waters said. “It’s like you get stuck with two EpiPens and you’re just adrenaline dumping.”

When the referee gave the signal, Waters came out swinging and hit his opponent, Brody Kelly, in the eye.

“I thought in my head, ‘Sorry man, I didn’t mean to hit you that hard,’ which is what you do in training, you don’t want to hit a guy too hard in training,” Waters said. “But I quickly realized, ‘No, this is my job.’”

in Jiu-Jitsu, so I felt like he had enough skill that he could, even with this shorter notice, do well in a fight, and at least have a fighting chance to win,” Dasch said.

With such little time to train, Dasch decided to focus on developing Waters’ strengths.

In January, Waters reached out to Dasch, expressing his interest in taking on an amateur fight of his own. He said that, after falling in love with combat sports and martial arts, he wanted to test his will and his abilities.

“You really can’t, in that amount of time, teach somebody a bunch of new stuff, so you really have to dig into ‘what are you already doing well, let’s do that better,’” Dasch said.

In addition to obtaining an

low the 175-pound mark that would make him eligible.

After a couple months of intense training, the day of the fight finally arrived. Originally slated to fight at 8 p.m., the time kept moving up as other fighters missed weight or were disqualified for other reasons.

“All these fights are dropping and it’s like, ‘OK, now you’re actually the first fight of the night,’ and then they moved that even earlier to 6:45 p.m,” Waters said.

Unable to sit still once inside the ring, Waters began jumping up and down as the

Kelly responded with an attack of his own, grabbing onto Water’s torso, planting his feet, and throwing him onto the ground.

“I landed on my head, and then everything after that is a blur,” Waters said. “The whole arena was just spinning, my training went out the window, and really fast I got absolutely gassed.”

After moving around the ring for a couple minutes and trading blows, Kelly put Waters in a choke hold that forced him to tap out with less than a second left in the first round.

“There’s a lot of lessons in that even of ‘how often do you tap out in life 0.8 seconds before the round is over?’” Waters said. “So that really sucked, but it was overall an incredible experience, a great team, a phenomenal stage. There were a bunch of other pro fights that were awesome to watch, so I was glad to be a part of it.”

According to Dasch, MMA is an individual sport in the highest sense. Once you’re in the ring the only person you can rely on is yourself. This

self-dependency requires a lot of mental toughness and you learn more about yourself than you can in almost any other situation, she said.

“There are very few other things where you get in the ring and someone is actually trying to hurt you if you cannot keep your mental state in the right spot,” she said.

Although Waters didn’t win, Dasch said the effort he put into his training showed he took the fight more seriously than most amateurs.

“He did everything we asked him to do, took all the steps we needed him to take, and he did a great job,” Dasch said.

In addition to his coaches, Waters had family and friends come support him, including Hillsdale Graduate School of Classical Education student Samuel Sadler.

“I’ve known him for a while,” Sadler said. “I went to college with his brother, so when I came up here he was one of the guys I knew coming in.”

Sadler, who also does Jiu-Jitsu at Hillsdale, said he fought with Waters at some of the open mats on Fridays leading up to the fight.

“Usually, he’ll beat me with some move that I don’t know yet, and then he’ll teach it to me and help me out with that,” Sadler said.

Waters said he learned a lot about the importance of striving for excellence through the experience.

“Fail big, fail early, fail publicly even, because it humbles you,” Waters said. “But there’s also a godly confidence that comes out of it, which is like, ‘Hey, I put myself in a situation that was insane, and I got to come out of it and learn a ton from it.’”

Culture can’t change until men are confident in themselves, their abilities, and their relationship with Christ, Waters said. Those things have to be “antifragile.”

“I was on a stage where I wanted to just glorify God in the way that I fought,” Waters said. “The mission isn’t done.”

Hike Hillsdale’s portion of the 4,800-mile North Country Trail

By Carly Moran Senior Reporter

For seniors Audrey Kumpula and Evie Cliff, adventure is in their own backyard.

Their off-campus home, “Trailhead,” is located along the North Country Trail, a 4,800-mile hiking route that runs from North Dakota to Vermont. A portion of it crosses through Hillsdale.

The trails and bike paths by Walmart, Oak Grove Cemetery, Baw Beese Lake, and Sile Doty’s Cave all connect to the North Country Trail.

Kumpula and Cliff learned about the trail from Head of Security Joe Kellam, who teaches outdoor courses each semester.

“I highly recommend taking the backpacking course with Joe Kellam,” Kumpula said. “I have always loved hiking and camping, but I never had the opportunity to go backpacking. The course was a super fun way to step into the world of backpacking. It was one of the best classes I’ve ever taken.”

Kellam, who grew up in Jonesville, has spent thousands of hours on Michigan trails. His first introduction to the North Country Trail was the nine-mile segment in the Lost Nations State Game Area in Pittsford, Michigan during the 1980s, when the system

was first established by an act of Congress. Before working at the college, he served as a state trooper and became familiar with the Kalamazoo and Grand Rapids segments.

“The trail is what we consider moderate rating, so it’s an easy trail to get out and start,” Kellam said. “It’s really well marked, so there should be no problem getting lost. There is a downloadable app from the North Country Trail Association, as well as other apps that are really easy to stay on trail that allows students, faculty, and staff just to get out there and experience some of what nature has.”

The Hillsdale County part of the trail is maintained by a group of volunteers, known as the Chief Baw Beese Chapter of the North Country

Trail Association. According to Richard Katuzin, the chapter historian, the number of active members greatly fluctuates.

“We had a general meeting in January, and they had about 60 members, but we never get 60 [on the trail], right?” he said. “I think the busiest group we had show up would be in the summer. You know, very rarely do I see 20. And then in the cooler months, it is always less.”

The NCTA chapter meets for both work and play. Katuzin

first became involved in 2022 as a part of a bridge repair project, but also partakes in monthly group hikes.

“The best hike to do is in April, and it’s called the brewery-to-brewery hike,” Katuzin said. “We hike from the Hillsdale Brewing Company on Hillsdale Street, along M-99 that the trail parallels, up to Jonesville’s Ramshackle Brewing Company.”

The chapter historian credits his interest in hiking to his for-

mer career as a postman. One day he met chapter members repairing a historic bridge and decided to help. When he realized he enjoyed hiking while working with them, he joined the club shortly after.

“It was like 12 miles every day for six days a week [as a postman],” he said. “It was healthy for me, and I wanted to stay with that. And then when I started helping out the guys on the bridge, they said ‘Come on a hike with us, do a short one.’ I met some great people with common interests.”

While most locals stick to day hikes, some members of the national NCTA have hiked the entire trail.

Considered the longest scenic trail in America, it runs from Lake Sakakawea State Park in North Dakota to the Green Mountain

National Forest in Vermont. The journey takes months. This is where Katuzin and his “Angels” come into play: volunteers who drive hikers and deliver them food.

“We have this function called Angels, where a hiker would call from Ohio and would like to hike halfway through the Baw Beese trail community, and then want a ride back.” Katuzin said. “So, you would take your vehicle and drive down to where they’re at.”

For students looking to connect with nature, Kellam recommends his introductory wilderness survival and backpacking courses, as well as the YouTube channel “Darwin on the Trail.” Kumpula and Cliff also encouraged students to check out Kellam’s courses.

“One of the coolest and most memorable ways I’ve gotten involved is by taking the Leadership in Hiking course led by Joe Kellam, which prepped us all semester for an awesome backpacking trip in the Adirondack Mountains over spring break,” Cliff said. “It was definitely challenging, but such a cool opportunity. I would also highly recommend the backpacking course to anyone who loves hiking and is looking for a tougher challenge.”

Members of the Chief Baw Beese Chapter of the North Country Trail Association hike the trail all year round. Courtesy | Rich Katuzin

Luke Waters (left) kicking Brody Kelly (right). Courtesy | Instagram

v features u

Faith,

fun, and fearlessness

at local Christian rodeo

Pro Edge Arena hosts ‘unashamedly’ Christian rodeo show, emphasizing fellowship

By Catherine Maxwell News Editor

BANG!

The metal gate slams open.

A black bull bucks in a violent seesaw. A 19-year-old cowboy crashes into the arena dirt, 1,500 pounds of angry hooves above his head. The bull fighters lunge forward to chase off the animal as TobyMac’s “Til the Day I Die” blasts over the loudspeakers. Ten seconds later it’s over, the rider limping out of the arena to cheers.

It’s just another Saturday night rodeo at the Pro Edge Arena in Osseo, Michigan — an arena that hosts an unashamedly Christian rodeo.

The March 29 show started at 7 p.m., but by 6:30, the stadium was packed, with hordes of people still streaming in.

The wooden stands were a patchwork quilt of cowboy hats: green glitter, brown felt, black suede, and tan straw. A man with three kids wore a gray T-shirt that read, “Just a dad trying not to raise liberals.”

On the far side of the arena, a young man in a cowboy hat leaned in to kiss his significant other before entering the “competitors only” gate — good luck laced with the threat of goodbye.

The arena itself smelled like damp cow, and the air became hot and thick as spectators squished together. The veteran fans brought blankets and cushions. The unlucky latecomers ended up stuck by the entrance in an unofficial “standing room only” section.

Pro Edge proudly advertises its Christian faith. The chutes — where riders load onto bulls before releasing into the arena — are labeled one through four: Joshua 1:9, Galatians 2:20, Colossians 3:2, and James 4:7. The night began when the sta-

dium went dark and a Christian music video (Jon Reddick’s “No Fear”) played on the monitors above the arena.

After the video, the announcer, dressed in a cowboy hat and a gray blazer and sounding like a cross between a Southern radio host and an auctioneer, stepped into the arena and delivered a short Gospel message.

“How many of y’all used to ride horses as a kid?” he asked.

Riding a horse, he said, was like the Christian life. Children

“Tonight, the lives of these men will be in the hands of the guardian angels around this arena and these two men.”

trust horses to follow their lead, but adults overthink riding and confuse the horse with mixed signals. The same idea applies to faith in God: if believers trust him like a child trusts a horse, it’ll be easier to follow his guidance.

Another Christian music video played, this one Zach Williams’ “Jesus Loves.”

The cowboys sitting behind the chutes swayed and sang along. Christian music played throughout the night, usually hits from the 2000s.

“I had a blast hearing a bunch of Christian songs I listened to in middle school and had forgotten about,” Hillsdale College senior Noah Schmidt said.

Backlit with fire burning a large V in the dirt, the cowboys walked into the arena to another Christian rock song and were greeted by the roars of the crowd. The 36 competitors were all “champions in their own right,” according to the announcer, but the star was 22-year-old Preston Wentworth, “the number one man in the land” with a 33-point lead entering the rodeo.

Just as crucial as the bull riders were the cowboys trying to keep them as safe as possible.

“Tonight, the lives of these men will be in the hands of the guardian angels around this arena and these two men,” the announcer said.

“These two men” — the two bull fighters, whose job was to jump between a raging bull and the just-thrown rider. They usually pulled the cowboy out of the way in time. If they are too late, the bull can stomp the rider until chased out of the arena.

The fans and the riders sang the national anthem, and the announcer prayed for the men’s safety.

“I really appreciated the prayer for the bull riders,” freshman C. C. Roiseland said.

“Other than that, I was covering my eyes most of the time. This was a good strategy because I didn’t have to watch the bull riders get trampled on.”

Cowboy Zach Hartman needed the guardian angels and the prayer that night.

His bull burst from the shoot with Hartman along for the ride and gripping for his life. He only lasted 1.87 sec-

onds, rolling off in a backward somersault that ripped away his helmet. The bull, named Luke 23:43 by its sponsor Lifesong Church, leveled its head at Hartman. The bull fighters tried to shove the rider and the bull apart, but Luke 23:43 slammed his head into Hartman and jumped on him twice.

The fighters chased the bull out of the arena. Hartman staggered a few feet and collapsed to the ground in a tight ball. The crowd watched in shocked silence as a medic jogged in with a briefcase. A moment later, Hartman tossed the spectators a thumbs-up before being helped out of the ring.

After Hartman confirmed he was alive, senior Caitlin Filep looked up the verse corresponding to Luke 23:43’s name.

“And Jesus said to him, ‘Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.’”

“Oh,” Filep said.

The roots of rodeo go back to the early 1800s, when Mexican cowboys perfected their roping skills and invented classic cowboy fashion, according to Smithsonian Magazine. The word rodeo comes from the Spanish “rodear,” meaning to round up.

But the first organized rodeo event was Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show in 1883, which featured hundreds of performers and included sharpshooter Annie Oakley. By 1893, Smithsonian says, the show could draw crowds of three million.

Pro Edge Arena can’t fit millions, but it still brings the thrill of the Wild West to midwestern Michigan. Locals mixed with college students, including a group from InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, a

on an unlikely stage

handful of Chi Omegas, and a few couples on dates.

“I enjoy watching people pursue their passions, so it was exciting getting to watch the cowboys do the thing they love,” said sophomore Grace Canlas, a Wisconsin native, after the rodeo. “It was smaller than the other rodeos I’ve attended back home, but I really liked the atmosphere of it — we were closer to the action and there was a greater feeling of community present throughout the night.”

“I’m thankful for this opportunity to ride bulls. I put my faith in the Lord, and I know I have his hand of protection over me.”

It’s also a family affair. A woman rocked a chubby baby, who surveyed the crowd with wide, blinking eyes, apparently unperturbed by clanging and screaming. During the intermission, kids from ages 3 to 9 crowded into the arena for mutton busting.

Sheep shot out of the chutes, straddled by children. One sheep barreled into a trio of animals relaxing in the middle of the ring. The winner, a boy who looked about 8 or 9, man-

aged to hang on for three laps. The intermission also included Oreo-eating competitions, one for tweens and one for teenagers and adults.

“Go ahead and pick it up, a little dirt never hurt anyone,” the announcer told the participants when Oreos fell to the arena ground. “But just realize not everything down there is dirt.”

The top bull was called the Diamond Cutter. Only three cowboys have lasted eight seconds on its back, and Kodi Kies, that night’s unlucky rider, couldn’t break the streak.

Sponsors get to name the bulls, the announcer explained, and they win a prize if their bull gets the most points. Cottage Inn Pizza sponsored “Pizzachu,” “You Wanna PIZZA Me?” and “Another One Bites the Crust.” Finn Apple Farms Excavating named its top bulls “Donkey” and “Lord Farquaad.”

Cowboy Jonathon Dommisse won the night, his first victory at Pro Edge, according to the rodeo’s Facebook announcement.

“I just trusted in the Lord,” he said. “I’m thankful for this opportunity to ride bulls. I put my faith in the Lord, and I know I have his hand of protection over me.” Pro Edge will host its last regular season rodeo April 5, followed by its Finals Weekend April 11 and 12.

“There’s a high level of uncertainty and suspense to keep people on their toes, and that mixed with the energetic crowd made it particularly exciting,” Schmidt said. “The rodeo is a perfect reminder that we have more fun events and activities to go to in the Hillsdale area than we often say we do.”

Jonathon Dommisse, the night’s champion, riding a bull. Catherine Maxwell | Collegian

Before the bull riding begins, a Christian message is shared with the audience. Catherine Maxwell | Collegian

At the beginning of the rodeo, the 36 bull riders stood together. Catherine Maxwell | Collegian