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Be adventurous:

Feathertop:

JD Vance in Monroe:

OPINION: Build dad lore. Your kids will thank you.

The latest play at Hillsdale was set in 17th century New England.

The U.S. vice president spoke to Michigan voters.

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See A4 Illustration | Maggie O’Connor

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Michigan’s oldest college newspaper

Former Charger coach heads to World Series A former Hillsdale baseball coach is headed to the World Series. Eric $eisen will try to help the Milwaukee Brewers win their first-ever World Series title in his role as the team’s lead hitting coach. He was Hillsdale’s head baseball coach for eight seasons, from 2014 to 2021. “Eric $eisen was awesome to play for. He taught us how to be organized, be disciplined, and own our process to get better,” said Hillsdale’s current assistant coach Cody Kanclerz ’23, who played three seasons for $eisen. “He always wanted us as players to be our own best coaches, and that’s something I try to instill with my players as well.”

Theisen coaches the Brewers. Courtesy | @EricTheisen_ on X

$e World Series is scheduled to begin on Friday night, as the Brewers host the Tampa Bay Rays, the American League champions, in a best-of-seven series.

See Theisen A9

Sophomore presents research at Harvard By Kiera Zhang Collegian FreelanCer Sophomore Samiksha Yadav, studying biochemistry with a pre-med track, spent fall break sharing her research at Harvard as the only undergraduate among 217 presenters. “I was one of the youngest,” Yadav said. “One of the scientists was from Stanford, and he had 20 years of experience in neuroscience. I’m not even 20 yet.” Yadav’s work, featured in Harvard University’s online gallery for the global Women’s Health Conference 2026, focused on post-surgery care

Radio students place in top categories By Patrick Matteson assistant editor

By Robert Matteson sports editor

for mastectomy. Mastectomy is a common treatment for breast cancer, involving the entire removal of the organ. “Women get a lot of stitches,” Yadav said. “They need di!erent comfortable things to follow up after surgery. So my research was on that.” Yadav concentrated on the surgery’s psychological and social e!ects, as well as the integration of artificial intelligence into healthcare. Her work was the continuation of three years of dedicated cancer research, a journey which Yadav said she embarked upon as a homage to her family.

See Yadav A2

www.hillsdalecollegian.com

Vol. 150 Issue 8 – October 22, 2026

Three Hillsdale College students placed second and third in national radio competitions this month. Senior Luke Miller and Erika Kyba ’26 each earned second place awards from College Broadcasters, Inc., at the organization’s award ceremony in Philadelphia Oct. 14-17. Junior Lilly Faye Kraemer earned third place. All three students were finalists for the awards from their work at Radio Free Hillsdale 101.7 FM. “Receiving an award like this is like finding out you aced an exam, but it’s even better when it’s radio because it’s not like writing down a correct answer, it’s creating a world through your storytelling,”

Miller said in an email. “When someone else can appreciate the world you’ve created, it is really rewarding.” Miller placed second in the

“I loved telling the story of LBJ,” Miller said. “We tend to make the pPresidents something mythical in our memory, and so I wanted to humanize

“Receiving an award like this is like finding out you aced an exam, but it’s even better when it’s radio.” Best Documentary category for his documentary “Commander in Chief: Lyndon B. Johnson.” $e episode examines the life and time in office of former President Lyndon B. Johnson through historical narration and storytelling.

him by digging into the history, learning the things that made him tick and the eccentricities of his personality, and trying to tell that story in an e!ective and entertaining way that hopefully helps people care as much as I do about a

great man in American history.” Bertram said Miller has a unique show that demonstrates great craft and skill. “Luke’s got a very good sense of the way things should sound and getting that audio mental picture,” said Scot Bertram, general manager at WRFH Radio Free Hillsdale 101.7 FM. “He did a fantastic job with that. $at was a really long-form documentary. I think it was almost almost a half hour, so, a lot of care, a lot of work went into that, and it’s the second year in a row he’s been a finalist for best documentary.”

See Radio A3

Q&A: Pulliam Fellow on writing, careers By Monica Smies Collegian reporter

a speech titled “The Crisis in Public History” Oct. 15. He is the editor-in-chief of Modern Age magazine, a columnist for the New York Post and Spectator World, and serves as the Distinguished Fellow in Conservative Thought at the Heritage Foundation. Q: Why did you get into journalism?

Daniel McCarthy. Courtesy | Daniel McCarthy

Daniel McCarthy is the Eugene C. Pulliam Distinguished Visiting Fellow in Journalism this semester and gave

A. I had a talent for writing, and I had things to say. In high school, I desired not only to read political literature but to write some of it myself. In high school, I didn’t have too many opportunities for that. I was a student of Latin, and I became the editor of a newsletter we

created for the Latin club at my high school, and then when I got to college, I had more opportunities to write. I didn’t want to write for the establishment or mainstream campus paper; I wanted to have the freedom to write and also to edit. I wanted to commission other students to write things that were in a more conservative vein than were likely to be published in the establishment paper, so I founded a conservative campus publication at Washington University when I was a junior in 1998. Q: Who has influenced you the most? A. When I was in graduate

school, I was reading a lot of H. L. Mencken. I was reading Auberon Waugh. Both of whom are very lively, kind of satirical, and certainly quite right-wing, but fun authors. I was also reading Gore Vidal, who was a great left-wing essayist, and he really used the English language with tremendous acuity, and that was in&uential to me as well. $e authors you read often in&uence how you write in terms of publications. I was reading National Review in high school. But the publication that in&uenced me the most as an undergraduate and then in graduate school for a time was a magazine called Chronicles.

See Q&A A3

Rogers gears up for final weeks of campaign ‘Iconic’: Sophomore to By Ellie Fromm editor in ChieF Mike Rogers, Michigan’s Republican candidate for U.S. Senate, graduated from a college only a 45-minute drive from Hillsdale. Rogers, who grew up in Livingston County, Michigan, graduated from Adrian College in 1985 with a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice and sociology and then was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the

Army, becoming a company commander. “Hardworking families deserve a champion who will get to work — and that’s exactly what I will be,” Rogers told $e Collegian in an interview. Rogers told The Collegian that he worked on a factory &oor to put himself through college. His family has served in the U.S. military for generations, beginning with his uncle as a B-17 tailgunner in World War II. His wife’ s family was also in the mil-

itary, and her grandfather, who was stationed at Pearl Harbor on Dec.ember 7, 1941, survived the attack and became Chief of the Boat on his submarine. $eir son is a Naval Academy graduate and officer in the Navy. Rogers is runningcompeting against Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic nominee, for one of Michigan’s U.S. Senate seats. El-Sayed is a University of Michigan graduate and Michigan native.

self-publish debut novel By Blake Schaper Collegian reporter Sophomore Tanner Jelso has finished his four-year labor of love — a self-published fantasy adventure novel that will debut on Nov. 1.

inspired by “Dune,” “$e Lord of the Rings,” and “A Game of $rones.” “I wanted Leif to explore his own country beyond his own village in the valley, and be thrown into this giant world and overwhelmed with

Mike Rogers. Courtesy | @MikeRogersForMI

See Rogers A7

‘Born to entertain’: Junior crowned ‘Mr. Hillsdale’ By Reagan Vicars Collegian FreelanCer After performing on the dulcimer and delivering jokes in his thick Tennessee accent, junior Winston Dugdale of Whitley Residence was crowned “Mr. Hillsdale” Friday night. $e Mr. Hillsdale competition is Pi Beta Phi’s annual philanthropy event, and this year it raised almost $2,000 for Read Lead Achieve, an organization that promotes children’s literacy. Eight contestants representing the men’s dormitories and fraternities competed for the judges’ favor across four categories: formal wear, interview, pick-up line, and

talent. $e judges were junior Christopher Ambuul, who won Mr. Hillsdale in 2024; senior Luke Waters; and Hillsdale’s maintenance coordinator for events and safety efficiency Vince Cañete. “I was born to entertain,” Dugdale said. “I love to make people laugh and to give people a sense of endearment, and so I hope I’ve used my talent well.” $e interviews gave contestants their first chance to speak to the audience.

Junior Winston Dugdale and senior Elizabeth Taylor on stage Friday. Courtesy | Reagan Vicars

See Mr. Hillsdale A2

Sophomore Tanner Jelso’s debut novel will release Nov. 1. Courtesy | Noah Fletcher

“Alavi” is a 600-page fantasy adventure about Leif Hallgrimsson’s quest to defeat the king of the nation of Shaidan. Jelso said the story is

the evil and disparity he is faced with,” Jelso said.

See Wilson A2 See Jelso B3

A2 October 22, 2026

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Hillsdale launches new high school history curriculum By Newman Stirewalt Collegian FreelanCer Hillsdale College and Encounter Books recently released a new high school history curriculum that seeks to reinvigorate the study of Western civilization in American education. !e Golden !read Curriculum is based on “!e Golden !read,” a two-book history of Western civilization written by Allen Guelzo and James Hankins, former Ivy League professors who recently moved to the University of Florida. “In an effort to revive the study of Western Civilization in K-12 schools everywhere and make quality teaching materials available to all teachers and parents, the K-12 O$ce began working with Encounter Books to develop !e Golden !read Curriculum,” said Kathleen O’Toole, Hillsdale’s associate vice president for K-12 education. !e curriculum, whose title refers to the Greek myth of !eseus and the labyrinth, was released on Sept. 15. “We anticipate that the majority of our member and cur-

Mr. Hillsdale from A1

Dugdale opened his with a simple greeting. “Well hey everybody,” Dugdale said in his southern drawl. !e crowd immediately laughed in response. When asked about his strategy for surviving a zombie apocalypse, Dugdale joked about his own appearance. “Well dang, I look sickly enough,” Dugdale said. “Maybe I could just blend in with them.” A&er pausing for a moment, Dugdale decided the question was too personal. For the sake of wisdom, he said, he would

riculum schools will be using !e Golden !read Curriculum, along with many other classical private and public charter schools that are already using ‘!e Golden !read’ textbook,” O’Toole said. She added that Hillsdale and Encounter have had success in pushing the curriculum beyond the bounds of the existing network of classical education in the U.S. “Just recently, the U.S. Department of War announced that it will begin offering a Western Civilization course — using ‘!e Golden !read’ textbook and curriculum — for high school students at their public schools on military bases overseas,” O’Toole said. In addition, according to O’Toole, Idaho recently passed legislation requiring instruction on Western Civilization in public schools, and recommended the curriculum for this purpose. According to David Diener, assistant professor of education, the number of states that are recognizing the value of classical education and passing laws to support it is growing fast. Diener said classical educa-

tion has been able to break into mainstream education overall, which is a fortuitous sign for Hillsdale’s goal of bringing the curriculum to as broad an audience as possible. “It’s become something that’s not just a fringe movement, but is more widely known about in the mainstream,” Diener said. According to John Peterson, assistant director of curriculum in Hillsdale’s K-12 Education O$ce and a former high school teacher, the curriculum is built by teachers and caters to the needs of teachers. “It’s borne out of my own experience and some others we’ve talked to,” Peterson said. Peterson said lack of resources when he was a teacher led him to support a classical approach to history education, and how that approach inspired him to develop the curriculum as a unique solution. “I basically made what I would have wanted at the time, but it’s not a textbook in the conventional sense, or a curriculum in the conventional sense,” Peterson said. The curriculum offers teachers flexibility in the depth

and focus of the history education that they give to their classes, according to Peterson, adding that the curriculum “doesn’t dictate what you do” and lacks the “paint-by-numbers” approach that most curricula take. Peterson emphasized that the curriculum’s flexibility allows teachers to reach different kinds of students using the best method for each. “It’s a kind of differentiation between the different kinds of students you might have, or the different levels of students you might have in your classroom,” Peterson said. If all goes well, more students than ever will have the boon of a classical history education, which Diener explained is a unique gi&. “Classical education recognizes that there are aspects of human nature that are universal, and that we can best learn about who we are and what it means to live well by starting with those who have gone before us and learning about their thoughts and actions,” Diener said.

“Hey sugar, give me a second chance,” he said. Halfway through, he had to stop to recover from his own laughter, which gave the audience a chance to recover, too. !e talent portion brought a range of acts. S ophomore Christian Brossa represented the Legion XII club. He sat down at the edge of the stage, took off his le& shoe and sock, and read his own version of Dr. Seuss’ “Green Eggs and Ham.” His story poked fun at Waters’ cold plunge habit while stressing the importance of children’s literacy. Freshman Jacob Gamble, representing Galloway ResiThe Collegian | Reagan Vicars

haunting beauty, and there aren’t many songs that do that well,” Dugdale said. “!at song is a lot happier in the original version, but I actually rewrote the melody for it. It was a really ambitious part on my end, and thank God it came out right.” The act earned him his second standing ovation of the night. At the end of the evening, reigning Mr. Hillsdale and junior Mighael Liebenberg offered his successor some advice on how to spend the night a&er his victory. “Go make a fire, then go look at the fire and see how

announced, he received his third standing ovation as he accepted the crown from Liebenberg. !e judges chose Dugdale unanimously. “He went above and beyond,” Cañete said. “He controlled the crowd and really touched everyone.” Liebenberg said the class of 2028’s winning streak should be a challenge to everyone else. Before Liebenberg’s win as a sophomore last year, Ambuul won the title as a freshman, making Dugdale the third consecutive winner from their class this year as a junior.

Junior Winston Dugdale, of Whitley, plays on a mountain dulcimer. The Collegian | Reagan Vicars

dence, sang “Rainbow Connection” with a Kermit the Frog puppet. Ambuul said he was “most impressed by the creativity” of the talent acts, especially Gamble’s. Junior Liam Brennan, representing the Simpson Residence, performed a cover of “Careless Whisper” with a kazoo in place of the saxophone solo. He had already planted kazoos in the audience, and he threw more out into the crowd during his act. Before Dugdale walked on stage, the crowd began to chant “Winston.”. He sang the folk song “Black Is the Color of My True Love’s Hair” and accompanied himself on a mountain dulcimer that he said belonged to his grandmother. “I wanted something that captured the melancholy

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By Henry Fliflet assistant editor

Revised degree requirements for Hillsdale’s finance and marketing majors and minors will make the curricula easier to navigate, align credit requirements with peer institutions, and simplify course schedules, according to Robert Atra, professor and chairman of economics, business and accounting. The changes address confusion around the required credit hours and scheduling for finance and marketing majors, Atra said. !e department used data from Hillsdale’s admissions o$ce to find other colleges that potential finance majors also applied to, and then based the new course requirements on existing requirements at these schools. “We’re trying to do things that are beneficial to students,” Atra said. “!is should be student-focused.” Previously, some required courses in the finance and marketing majors were listed as open-ended classes, with varying topics and credit hours spanning the two departments. Students could also apply marketing courses toward their finance major requirements, or finance courses toward their marketing requirements, which created confusion for students and academic advisors, Atra said. !e departments established separate course numbers for the two topics, allowing professors to offer timely and specialized courses for the separate majors, Atra said. The revisions also eliminated two-credit courses from the major requirements, allowing students to fulfill their

Yadav from A1

Junior Liam Brennan, of Simpson, gives a kazoo performance.

refrain from answering. He added that the question would “really keep him up at night.” When asked what children’s literacy meant to him, Dugdale said the cause was personal. “I didn’t start speaking until I was 4, so reading was very important to me,” Dugdale said. “You could always tell which books were my favorite. I couldn’t communicate that I liked them, so I just ate the book. My favorite ones were the ones that were covered in bite marks.” Reading changed Dugdale for the better, he said. “It really domesticated me,” Dugdale said. “If I didn’t learn to read, I think I would have been a brute savage.” He le& the stage to a standing ovation. For the pick-up line portion, Dugdale used a line he said he learned from his dad.

Finance, marketing major requirements begin changes

Freshman Jacob Gamble, of Galloway, performs with Kermit the Frog. The Collegian | Reagan Vicars

all the little flames dance together,” Liebenberg said. “It’s really good. It’s really beautiful. And then drink a beer with that if you’re 21.” When Dugdale’s name was

“We just can’t stop winning,” Liebenberg said. “Another class needs to challenge us. Someone else needs to step up.”

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“My grandmother had cancer when I was in high school. I wanted to do something for her. That’s what drove me to publish my first research at the age of 16,” Yadav said. Yadav became the youngest sole author to be nominated for the Young Scientist Awards of India in 2025. She went on to have her work on breast cancer featured by the National Cancer Institute in April 2026, again as the only undergraduate. “She always works so hard,” said sophomore Electra Fire, Yadav’s friend and former hallmate in McIntyre. “I remember freshman year, she would just stay up super late doing research.” Yadav said her South Asian background was formative in her decision to pursue research on breast cancer. !e disease is heavily stigmatized in India, o&en leading to concealment of symptoms and delayed medical care. “That’s what happened with my grandmother,” Yadav said. “She didn’t tell this to us or anyone until it got too late. !ey don’t tell because it’s a social taboo.” Yadav said her goal is to raise awareness. If she discussed her research on breast cancer on a stage as big as Harvard Medical School, Yadav explained, people would be more likely to accept it in daily conversation. With around 100,000 deaths from breast cancer in India reported yearly, o&en due to late-stage presentation, Yadav said she hopes to make a positive impact with her work. !at conviction led her to apply to the Women’s Health Conference 2026 — even though she was still six years away from reaching the age requirement.

requirements entirely through three-credit classes. Both the financial management and marketing majors require 48 credit hours. “The way these changes work with the catalog is that you will be able to choose between the old and new catalogs,” Atra said. “So somebody midstream, let’s say a junior, could actually switch to the new catalog if they wish, or they could stay under the old catalog.” The business department currently has more than 160 majors, including 50 finance majors, Atra said. He added that many students combine business studies with more liberal-arts studies such as history. “When you take a business class, you’re not going to be starved of Aristotle,” Atra said. “You’ll have to take the core, but also, in my classes, we’re not just number-crunching robots. We talk about culture or Nobel Prize winners all the time.” Some students nonetheless expressed frustration at the change. “I have had a lot of confusion over the new finance major requirements,” said Collin Davis, a senior studying finance. “There has not been a good enough effort to make students aware of the changes. Also, Self Service has not been updated to match the new requirement.” Despite these challenges, senior and finance major Lucy Hicks said that she understood the need to make a change. “!e changes don’t technically affect me, since I am under the old catalog,” Hicks said. “But I have loved the major so far. !at said, I feel like I have taken more business capstone classes than major classes so far.” “The minimum age to apply was 25, but she wrote to them, ‘Hey, do you think you could make an exception?’” Fire said. “So she was the only person under 25 there.” !e differences in age became evident as soon as she arrived. Yadav said she found herself surrounded by Ph.D.s and practicing doctors. Nevertheless, she said she did not feel nervous at all. “I was pretty confident with my work,” Yadav said, adding that her years in research, as well as her experience presenting in April, had prepared her well for sharing her findings in front of a professional audience. While she has mostly been doing research, Yadav said she plans to focus more on outreach in the years to come. She thinks of her theoretical work as a necessary foundation for the building of a public platform, from which she could share more readable and understandable information about breast cancer to a wider audience. “If you start talking about this, especially at places like Harvard, people take you seriously,” Yadav said. “And I want people to take this seriously.” Fire said Yadav has a close relationship with her family and can be frequently found calling them over the phone. “She’s so funny,” Fire said. “She teases you if she likes you. She’s really fun, loving, and sweet.” Yadav is also a teaching assistant for Associate Professor of Chemistry Mardi Billman’s General Chemistry class. “She’s a dedicated student and a warm friend,” Billman said. “I don’t know how she finds the time to maintain both, but I believe that Samiksha is destined for great things.”

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October 22, 2026 A3

‘Different level of intensity’: Catholics and Protestants to clash at El Clásico By Gabriel Gerth Collegian FreelanCer In this year’s El Clásico soccer match, the Protestants have a chance to extend their undefeated streak while the Catholics are looking to !nd their !rst ever win in this annual contest, which !rst started in 2023. “The El Clásico game means everything to me,” Catholic team captain and sophomore Christian Rush said. “I have had this date circled on my calendar for a long time.” Micah Gregory, a sophomore and the Protestant team captain, said his expectation for this year’s game is “to continue the Protestant legacy and stay undefeated.” Alex Buehrer, a senior who is working with Campus Rec in organizing the game, said, “My prediction is that the Catholics will end their scoring drought, but the Protestants will have goals to keep things level. 2-2

Q&A from A1 Q: What is your favorite thing that you have written? A. I will say one of the most fun experiences I’ve had, and it’s happened three or four times, is I’ll be reading something and not know who the author is, and I’ll think to myself, “This is really well written, and this is on a subject I care about, but I can’t write as well as this. I’m really kind of jealous that there’s somebody out there doing what I do, but doing it better.” And then I’ll realize, “Wait a minute! I think this is actually one of my old articles.” So, that’s the best feeling, and it shows the kind of delight you can have in your own work, which, if you’re forgetful about, can wind up surprising you. In general, there are times I like some of the longer pieces I’ve written, which maybe haven’t been quite as successful with a large readership. I had one that I gave the wrong headline to because I called it “Make America Liberal Again.” I assume Trump supporters probably looked at it and they said, “We don’t like liberalism so we don’t want to read this.” Then people who don’t like Trump looked at it and saw it was in the format of a “Make America Great Again” kind of headline, so they didn’t want to read it either. But the essay was actually about education, not politics. It was about some insights that I picked up from reading the right philosophers. Q: What is your advice for Hillsdale College students? A. When I was interviewed by The Collegian maybe !ve or six years ago, during my !rst visit to campus, I urged stu-

Radio from A1 Kyba earned second in the Best Podcast category for “The Poetry Fix: Old Ironsides.” Kyba’s show explores poetry through readings and commentary, with the award-winning episode focusing on Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr.’s poem “Old Ironsides.” Bertram said Kyba’s work on “The Poetry Fix” improved throughout her time at Hillsdale, as she continually added new style elements and experimented with the features in her podcast. Kyba won “Best Specialty Show (Non-Music)” for “The Poetry Fix” in February. According to its website, “CBI is a member-driven organization serving students and advisers of student media. Through events, programs and a network of expertise, CBI fosters experiential learning, professional opportunities and advocacy for the success of student media programs.”

Catholic junior Julius Meduna gets ready to make a throw-in. Campus Rec | Alex Buehrer

full time, with the Protestants winning a penalty shootout.” Rush said he expects his team to play with grit. “I don’t think that there is anyone on our team who is taking this game lightly. We have a lot of players with great passion

for this game,” he said. “I also know the intercession of St. Sebastian, St. Michael the Archangel, and St. Luigi Scrosoppi will help.” To counter the looming Protestant offense, which includes the players who have

dents to really enjoy and take seriously the opportunity to study while they’re in college. Do the reading. Participate in class. This may sound basic, but what feels like a burden to you right now as a student will seem like a luxury to you when you are an adult. This is the prime of your life and the time you engage with ideas in the most serious way, and it’s your job basically as a student. You may !nd yourself longing to return to these days when you’re an adult or in a professional setting, and you don’t have time to think about big ideas and read great books and whatnot. Beyond that, I would say, for anyone thinking of going into journalism, the most important thing is practice actually doing it. Journalism is a very broad !eld. There’s always a need for people who are serious about reporting. But if you can write, desire to write, and have something to say, then proceed with it, whether that means writing an opinion or covering things that otherwise aren’t being covered either on campus or more broadly.

that our primary source of !nancial support didn’t feel as if his resources were stretched too thin, and also that even though we had a skeleton staff by this point, we had enough enthusiasm, energy, and ability to keep producing the magazine, and I succeeded in that. I was able to talk to other potential donors and supporters of the magazine, and so I was able to basically take the magazine from a position of being on life support to being sustainable again. We weren’t rolling in cash, but we at least had the ability to keep the lights on and start adding more staff again. Q: What do people often misunderstand about you or your work?

A. I became the editor of the magazine The American Conservative in 2010. The previous editor le$ to take up a job working in government, and the main financial supporter of the magazine wasn’t sure if he wanted to continue. So we went through an experience where we were almost not functional. We had the website. We went out of print in terms of the print magazine for a short time, and it was my responsibility to show that I could make the business at least somewhat viable. I had to make it affordable enough

A. There are some basic things that the readers of magazines and newspapers don’t understand, but that everyone who works in them does understand. Starting with the fact that writers don’t write their own headlines. Headlines are usually written by editors. Similarly, writers do not pick their artwork. So sometimes, I’ve seen it happen to other people, where it can happen either way. Sometimes readers get mad about a headline, even though they actually like the article, and then they get mad at the author, but the author didn’t write the headline. So that’s a case of someone being misunderstood. I’ve also had examples of authors who are unhappy with their headlines, which again are written by editors, but clearly editors know there’s a reason that editors write the headlines. Namely, they know what the message of the publication as a whole is. The editors also know they have every incentive in the world to make sure that the

Kraemer earned third place in the Best Regularly Scheduled Entertainment Program category for her “Story Behind the Song: Stephanie Childress” episode.

when I got third place, it was just such good news,” Kraemer said. “Radio is really a hobby for me, it’s something I do for fun, and it’s always nice when you do get recognized for do-

Q: What was your biggest challenge and how did you overcome it?

“It’s an honor that should reflect on the college and the journalism program.” “When I heard that I was a !nalist, that was really exciting because I’d forgotten that I submitted my piece on Childress in the !rst place,” Kraemer said. The program features the people and stories behind music through interviews with musicians and other !gures in the music industry. Kraemer’s episode featured Stephanie Childress, a Franco-British conductor. “I was just so happy that I made it that far, and then

ing something that you love. It’s a creative outlet, and I’m going to keep doing what I enjoy doing and see where that takes me.” Bertram credited Kraemer’s award to her skill in interviewing. “She has a knack for asking really good questions that allow her interview subject to talk about their work in the industry and talk about what they’’ve learned,” Bertram said. The students competed

scored every goal in the men’s club soccer season, Rush looks to their defensive front which he described as “one of the best we have put together in years.” “I expect us to really shut them down,” he said. Gregory said El Clásico bears personal signi!cance. “I love being Protestant and I love soccer, so I really can’t think of a better campus event than El Clásico,” Gregory said. In years past, the match has drawn a lively crowd. The Collegian’s coverage of the game last year notes that Catholic supporters read out selections of the documents from Council of Trent, while Protestants reenacted the famous nailing of the 95 Theses. Gregory said much of the game’s appeal is due to the fans. “The energy they bring is what makes the game so fun and intense,” he said. For Rush, some of the appeal of the game, other than beating up on Protestants, is

articles they’re publishing are getting read by the widest possible audience — that’s what editors are thinking about. Authors are o$en a little bit self-indulgent about what it is they want to say in their headlines. And it’s really more important that they defer to editors, although it’s !ne for an author to suggest a headline. Many readers don’t understand this, so I would caution readers to pay attention to what’s actually on a page, not assume that they know the backstory of a piece, and recognize that it may have been assigned by an editor and not the author. Q: What are you most excited for in this chapter of your life? A. I have a lot of ideas on a very wide range of topics, and so what I’m excited about is trying to distill my bigger ideas into something that is well-structured, and then being able to present that to the world in the form of a book, or a series of essays that would be clarifying on some very broad questions, particularly about sort of Western intellectual history. This may sound strange coming from a journalist, but Americans think in terms of election cycles, and sometimes we think in terms of decades or maybe even generations, but there is a story which has been ongoing for several hundred years about how the medieval world gave way to the world that we have today and what the principles of the world that we have today are. These are subjects that many people have addressed in different ways, but I think there’s still a lot to be said to give that big picture, and that’s something that I want to work on.

against entries from universities including the University of California, Berkeley, the University of Cincinnati, Michigan State University and Oregon State University. Bertram said CBI has a relatively small number of categories for audio submissions, making the students’ placements particularly notable. “Being able to compete at this level with a national competition in which anyone and everyone can submit for these categories, year in and year out;, being able to have !nalists and have some winners is really a nice testament to what we do,” Bertram said. Miller said Hillsdale College deserves great credit in these awards. “It’s an honor, and that honor should reflect on the college and the journalism program for putting us in a great position to succeed,” Miller said.

the sense of camaraderie. “I think my favorite part of El Clásico is the unity that I feel with the team,” Rush said. “It is one thing to play for a trophy or a win, but playing for our faith brings a different level of intensity.”

Buehrer noted that the settling of scores through El Clásico “brings campus together in a weird way.” This year’s annual El Clásico Campus Rec soccer match will take place at 6 p.m. this Saturday at Hayden Park.

Protestant senior Jacob Beckwith at El Clásico last year. Campus Rec | Alex Buehrer

McCarthy speaks on threat of historical revisionism By Monica Smies Collegian reporter The fight over public history will determine whether America will be guided by the principles of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, or become an entirely new nation, said Daniel McCarthy, editor-in-chief of the magazine Modern Age, in a lecture Oct. 15. A Distinguished Fellow in Conservative Thought at the Heritage Foundation, McCarthy titled his lecture “The Crisis in Public History.” McCarthy is the Dow Journalism Program’s fall 2026 Pulliam Fellow and is teaching a one-credit course, “Freedom and the Press.” “If one truly believes that America was morally wrong from the beginning, and what our Founding Fathers achieved was in fact to devise new systems to keep men and women from returning to their natural ful!llment and prosperity, it is entirely logical to try to tear down what the likes of what Washington, Adams, Hamilton, Jefferson, and Madison built,” McCarthy said. McCarthy is also a columnist for the Spectator World and Chronicles Magazine and his columns are featured in the New York Post, the Daily Signal, and the New York Sun among other publications. McCarthy defined public history as “the side of history as a !eld of learning, which is about educating the public as a whole,” involving museums and other public-facing institutions, according to The Collegian. He opened his lecture with the disclaimer that he would take a philosophical approach to understanding the crisis of public history and that it would require him to criticize some institutions that promote a false narrative. “Americans can never forget the Revolutionary War and the Declaration of Independence for the simple reason that if they ever do forget, they will not be Americans anymore,” McCarthy said. McCarthy emphasized remembering America’s founding causes, from philosophical to moral historical understandings. To have a moral history, a nation needs to be built on a moral philosophy, he said. As an example, McCarthy said the Smithsonian National Museum of American History has failed to feature exhibits on historical events such as the American Revolution during the 250th anniversary of our independence as a nation. “What takes the place of exhibits celebrating the greatest achievements of our history are o$en exhibits on the travails of immigrants and slaves, which are important subjects that are part of our story, and they’re not to be overlooked. But these side stories

do not explain how our nation came to be, or why it’s coming to be ultimately matters. There are also other exhibits which absolutely flaunt the radicalism of the new moral underpinnings of public history,” he said. McCarthy claimed Americans ought to be dedicated to accuracy in their understanding of the past. “A man would only give up his past if he believed that past was irredeemably wicked, and he must become, as a result, a new man if he wants to be a good man,” McCarthy said. Sophomore Robert Rodenbush said he found McCarthy’s lecture to be clear and concise. “The way he’s able to break down the history of journalism through very engaging language to paint a picture of where we came from and are now at today with modern conservative and more liberal journalism was a great pleasure,” Rodenbush said. Freshman Michael Matus, also a student in McCarthy’s class, reflected on the nature of the media and how it affects our understanding of our nation’s past. “It seems the more that things have become online, the more and more journalism has dri$ed over into the entertainment realm and where the negative aspects of understanding the history of our democracy are,” Matus said. Rodenbush said he was struck by the idea of conservative complacency, or inaction, on part of the conservative movement to stand up for the past, which was discussed in the Q&A following the lecture. “He’s very optimistic about young America, young conservatism, and the opportunities in journalism for students,” Rodenbush said. “He seems to, throughout the speech and even throughout the class, encourage students to learn the history and learn the original virtues portrayed by the founders, so that we can portray and develop those virtues through journalistic opportunities and other opportunities.” Matus said he was also impressed by the clarity and depth of the lecture. “We’re so lucky to have guests like Mr. McCarthy, who come and give us these talks,” Matus said. “He has a wealth of knowledge, and decades and decades of experience. I have thoroughly enjoyed his class.” “We’re so lucky to have guests like Mr. McCarthy, who come and give us these talks,” Matus said. “He has a wealth of knowledge, and decades and decades of experience. I have thoroughly enjoyed his class.”

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A4 October 22, 2026

The Collegian Weekly

Phishing tests are important to keep the college safe By David M. Pauken Guest Writer Every so o)en, the comments appear. Yes, Information Technology Services sees your complaints online. Another phishing simulation has completed its campaign across campus, and the familiar comments follow: “IT is just trying to trick us,” “Nobody falls for these,” or “Why aren’t they (xing the Wi-Fi instead?” Ironically, it is not uncommon to see those same criticisms appear alongside questions about whether an actual phishing email is legitimate. That alone is a reminder of why these exercises matter. It’s no fun taking tests, and it’s even less fun to fail one. But the purpose of phishing simulations is not to embarrass anyone or catch people making mistakes. Rather, the goal is to give you an opportunity to practice recognizing deception before someone with criminal intent is on the other end of the message. Today’s phishing attacks can be remarkably sophisticated. Many are personalized, professionally written, and generated with the help of arti(cial intelligence. They impersonate professors, supervisors, (nancial institutions, vendors, and trusted organizations with remarkable accuracy. They are not designed to fool careless people; they are designed to fool busy people. And if you are reading this, chances are you are one of those busy people. At Hillsdale College, that matters. It’s not just staff with access to high-value information who are targets of phishing emails. It’s also students who are employees of the college and have access to information that outsiders want. Students work in academic departments, admissions, residence life, athletics, administrative offices, the library, and

information technology. Any account, no matter what it has access to, can help someone build a better map of the institution for an attack. A compromised account does not simply put an individual’s security at risk — it can become the starting point for an attack that affects coworkers, classmates, faculty, and the college itself. Protecting the college is not solely the responsibility of ITS. It is a shared responsibility. Every member of the campus community plays a part in safeguarding the people and resources entrusted to us. That requires practice. Hillsdale has long emphasized that habit forms character. We do not become responsible, trustworthy, or disciplined by accident. Those qualities are developed through repetition until they become second nature. Cybersecurity works much the same way. The habit of slowing down, questioning an unexpected request, verifying a sender, or reporting a suspicious message is developed through practice, not wishful thinking. Every phishing simulation is an opportunity to build those habits in a safe environment, where the only consequence of clicking is receiving a noti(cation that you failed a phishing test. The next time a simulated phishing email appears in your inbox, don’t think of it as IT trying to fool you or as time we could have spent (xing Wi-Fi (which we are also doing). Think of it as your community asking you to invest a few moments of your time so that when a real attack arrives, you will be able to recognize it. David M. Pauken is a cybersecurity engineer for Information Technology Services.

Gra4 .i55a with your friends 4ack home Make as many friends as you can at Hillsdale, but don’t forget about your friends back home. It’s worth staying in touch with them, even if you only see them a couple times a year. Throughout your four years at Hillsdale College, you’ll be around more piano-playing, classics-reading, Aquinas-debating weirdos than you ever will again. It’s an awesome bubble, but you should make sure to remember what — and who — is outside of that bubble. People say you’ll meet

your best friends in college. They’re right. Some people you live and study with here will be at your wedding, bring you meals when you’ve had your (rst kid, and be the people you call when you’re in a life crisis. But if you want to maintain college friendships, practice by checking in with your old friends back home from time to time. It’ll make you a more well-rounded person and teach you how to maintain the friends you are making right now. Freshmen especially, try to see your old friends when

you go home during school breaks. There will be some awkwardness a)er a semester or two of independently living your respective lives, but there’s something special about hearing about what the people you grew up with are doing and how they’re growing. For upperclassmen who may feel far removed from home, this is even more important. Taking the initiative to grab coffee with your friends from high school as a senior in college will help you become the sort of per-

son who maintains the strong friendships you have made long a)er you’ve graduated. If there are people back home who you can still make old jokes with a)er a semester away, cherish them. It’s good to have people who knew what an idiot you were at 16 and will never let you live it down. Make sure you don’t lose them. Take the time to text your people back home. Try to get a pizza together over break.

Peter Kreeft understands love By Francesca Cella opinions editor When Peter Kreeft spoke about the beauty of marriage on Matt Fradd’s podcast “Pints with Aquinas” in July, he brought the podcaster to tears, and the clip of Kree) went viral. Hillsdale College should invite Kree) to speak at a Drummond Lecture in Christ Chapel. “Do you think that when you are very old, and your wife is very old and ugly and wrinkled and fat and not very bright or even nasty, that you will still (nd her beautiful? If so, marry her,” he said on the podcast. Kree)’s words were striking because he spoke with the love of a man who was married for 63 years until his wife died in May. But it was also because he spoke with the wisdom of a philosopher who knows the writings of Thomas Aquinas so well that he wrote a book called “Summa of the Summa.” I read Kree)’s book in my high school philosophy class, and I remember how remarkable Aquinas’ writings were. But I remember Kree)’s brilliant commentary on Aquinas even more vividly. I knew then that he was a genius if his footnotes to Aquinas were

sometimes more striking than Aquinas himself was. Kree) has also written more than a hundred other books about philosophy and theology that include a collection of letters he exchanged with an atheist, a guide to the meaning of life, and a philosophy of sur(ng. Drummond Lectures are meant to help students connect faith to “the life of our own times.” That’s been the focus of Kree)’s work. The 89-year-old philosopher has spent decades thinking

perience a tiny death. For most people, it means goodbye to being a student, living under your parents’ roof, and eating meals someone else made. For athletes, it o)en means the end of formal competition in sports. And for everyone, it means leaving behind a place that became home and entering the real world. Kreeft thinks and speaks about how to pursue “the higher things” in life, which is exactly what students crave as they realize their college days will

“It doesn’t matter what comes after college or what the state of the world is — we all will need to know how to love.” about how people should live and what’s beyond this life. His thoughts always revolve around the fact that we are mere mortals and that someday things must come to an end. But for Kree), death isn’t really the end. It marks the beginning of eternity. Students are immersed in the throes of college life for a brief four years before they graduate from college and ex-

only continue to dwindle and that the joy of winning homecoming will only last so long. And the higher things only become more relevant a)er graduation, when we must continue to pursue them for the rest of our lives without the help of the college. People might wonder if a man approaching 90 is too old to relate to college students, but his job isn’t to relate to us. It’s to

teach us the wisdom that’s impossible to acquire in 20 years of life. Besides, it seems that Kree) has a (ne time relating to college students. He’s teaching philosophy classes to students at Boston College, and he went viral on social media, which is my generation’s medium. If you’re above the age of 50, you probably won’t go viral unless a buffalo in Yellowstone National Park attacks you. Kree) doesn’t just know the great philosophers. He is a great philosopher. He knows how to break down the most complex subjects into readable books and bite-sized videos. We’d get to hear a mini “Summa” on a Monday a)ernoon. And as the viral clip of him speaking about his wife revealed, Kree) is a man with a great heart. He understands love, and how to teach others to love well. It doesn’t matter what comes after college or what the state of the world is — we all will need to know how to love. The college should invite a speaker who can teach us that. Francesca Cella is a senior studying English.

Letters to the Editor The death penalty serves justice By Monica Bentley ColleGian FreelanCer In his Oct. 15 opinion article “Public executions are evil. So is the death penalty,” Elijah Guevara argues that the death penalty is evil and promotes a “barbaric culture of death.” Although a justice system that refuses to punish murderers with death may appear to be more merciful, this is actually not a Christian approach to the problem. Executions for grievous crimes, particularly murder, are biblical and actually emphasize the value of life. Even before God gave the Israelites the Old Testament

law, He told Noah in Genesis 9:6, “Whoever sheds man’s blood, by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God He made man.” God is clearly stating that someone who sheds someone else’s blood will be required to pay for this offense with his own blood. This requirement will be exacted on this earth at the hands of other humans, regardless of what judgement the murderer will receive when he stands before God a)er his death. This does not change in the New Testament, as Paul states in Romans 13:3-4: “The authority . . . does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God’s

minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil.” A governing authority has a God-given duty to be an avenger and to bear the sword. Swords are not for correction: they are for punishment. Swords wielded in a God-honoring manner are used by the governing authority to execute those who kill others. Rather than fostering a low view of life or a culture of death, this reflects and promotes a culture that values life. If you value something greatly, you will put a high price on it. Human life is extremely precious because we are made in the image of

God, and the cost for taking life from someone else ought to be extraordinarily high. The appropriate price is a life for a life, because a lesser punishment is not just. As Numbers 35:32 states, “Moreover you shall take no ransom for the life of a murderer who is guilty of death, but he shall surely be put to death.” If we are Bible-believing Christians who value human life as we ought to, we must acknowledge the necessity of the death penalty as the punishment for murderers. Monica Bentley is a junior studying biology

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Don’t demean female F1 fans By Alessia Sandala ManaGinG editor When I first told a man I watch Formula 1 racing, I never expected him to quiz me on what DRS stands for. I thought the question was a social media trend, not something I would have to answer to prove myself as a female F1 fan. DRS is the acronym for Drag Reduction System, an aerodynamic mechanism on the previous generation of F1 cars meant to increase the speed of the car when activated by the driver. References to it have become a common example within motorsports of how veteran fans look down on new fans. )ese F1 gatekeepers seek to intimidate and exclude those entering the sport, especially women. The fan culture of F1 — the world’s fastest single-seater racing category with speeds of up to 230 mph in which 11 teams and 22 drivers compete in races around the world — is shifting to the next generation. The older generation of fans and gatekeepers shouldn’t talk down to us because we’re new. )e change in the F1 fandom is, in part, because Liberty Media acquired ownership of F1 in 2017. It seeks innovative ways to bring new fans into the motorsport world. Shows and movies such as Net(ix’s “Drive to Survive” and Apple TV’s “F1: )e Movie” have helped turn drivers and teams into personalities, which is an attractive feature for young fans learning the names and mechanics of the most exciting motorsport. I occasionally saw F1 on TV

as a kid, and my favorite character in “Cars 2” was Francesco Bernoulli, but it wasn’t until I watched “F1: )e Movie” that I realized I had been missing out on F1. Over that summer, I spent hours each day learning everything I could about F1, the drivers, and racing in general. Back in 2022, Christian Horner, Red Bull’s team principal at the time, reacted to the growing number of new female F1 fans. “F1 is bringing in a young generation,” Horner said in an interview with TalkSPORT. “It’s bringing in a lot of young girls

started with a story, but I’m a die-hard fan now. I became so hooked on the sport that I gave up my chance to sleep in on the weekends to watch F1 races that started as early as 3 a.m. My dream job is to be a motorsports reporter. I attended the IndyCar — an American single-seater racing series — Freedom 250 Grand Prix this year, and after feeling the vibrations of the cars in my chest as they shot past me, I can’t imagine being happy doing anything else. It was the first time I had ever been to a motorsports race, and I was able to write about

because of all these great-looking young drivers.” Almost half of all F1 fans are women, who make up 75% of the sport’s new fans, according to statistics published by F1. It’s true that many young women who start watching F1 aren’t interested in the inner workings of this year’s engine. But that doesn’t mean we watch F1 for the good looks of the drivers. We are interested in the compelling stories, like four-time world champion Max Verstappen’s climb from a 100-point deficit to nearly winning a fifth title, and in the skills one of the world’s most intense sports demands. My love for F1 may have

my experience for the Substack I started about racing. At Parabolica, named after the famous curve at the Monza racetrack, a friend and I cover every F1 race and write features geared toward the growing American audience. If you enjoyed the adventures of Lightning McQueen and Tow Mater as a kid, check it out. It’s especially difficult for Americans to get into F1 without shows like “Drive to Survive” because the U.S. doesn’t have the same historic relationship to F1 that Europe or Brazil does. With only a handful of American F1 drivers in its history, the sport could never successfully reach the American

demographic, especially American women. While there were occasional races in the U.S. for most of F1’s history, the current U.S. circuits — Miami, Austin, and Las Vegas — all joined the F1 calendar within the past 15 years and have helped to increase awareness of the sport. The growing F1 presence in the U.S. has increased the sport’s visibility. Social media, ads throughout the U.S., and “Drive to Survive” have captured an untapped group of fans who might never have known about F1. )ese new means of content delivery are just a way of showing more people, especially American women, what F1 is all about: speed, innovation, and perseverance. )e new generation of F1 fans isn’t tuning in because of the way the drivers look, but because of the stories that come with the sport. We stay because of the thrill of watching the world’s best drivers, mechanics, and engineers push the limits on the track. Longtime F1 fans shouldn’t talk down to this generation of female fans. Instead, new fans should be embraced into the fandom. Just because we’re not middle-aged men with car projects in the garage doesn’t mean we don’t know a good sport when we see one. Alessia Sandala is a senior studying history. Illustrated by Paige Kutas.

Build dad lore. Your kids will thank you. By Jayden Jelso assistant editor When I saw a man threaten another with a crossbow, I realized the importance of developing personal lore. Over fall break, my friends and I went camping in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula. After a Friday hike, we stopped at a lonely restaurant. As we pulled into the parking lot, we saw a bald, shirtless, and heavily tattooed man slam his decrepit Toyota into a parked truck before careening around our car and escaping down the highway. We were a little disoriented as the owner of the damaged truck showed us the dent in his driver’s side door, but we shrugged it off and went inside. Ten minutes later, we saw the man in the Toyota pull back into the lot, now wearing a tie-dyed shirt. By the time I realized it was the same guy, he’d climbed out of the car and begun rummaging around in the back seat. My first thought? Gun. But it was far more (abbergasting than that. He instead withdrew a heavy crossbow and began brandishing it around the parking lot, holding orange crossbow bolts in his left hand. After chasing the man whose car he hit, he threw the crossbow and the bolts at him. Yes, I too was thinking: “That’s not how you use it, bud.” As far as I know, he left

the weapon in the dirt before returning to his car and zipping back down the highway. While this was happening, I tried to call 911 but didn’t have any service. Still, the police eventually arrived because of phone calls from other bystanders, and my friends and I gave a witness statement. No one was hurt. This incident helped me

about himself and his college buddies. Many of those stories are the result of downright ridiculous adventures. Granted, I was in the vicinity of the crossbow incident by pure chance, but if I hadn’t agreed to take an unfamiliar trip to the rural parts of Michigan, I wouldn’t have the story. Nowadays, people cringe at

recognize the value of having lore. Making the most of one’s own experiences for the purpose of having stories to tell is how one develops this lore. Good lore-builders say yes to opportunities that may sound uncomfortable or ludicrous, but ultimately give them experiences worth sharing. )ere is no better time to build lore than in college. It seems like a requirement for every dad to have stories

the idea of an adventure that isn’t perfectly comfortable. If they’re going on a hike, it can’t be too long. If they’re going to a beachside hotel, it also has to have a pool. If they’re (ying on a plane, they must have extra legroom. It’s easy to get satiated by endless comfort, especially in Western countries. We have it all, so why wouldn’t we avoid the prospect of danger? Scrolling Instagram all day is easier than venturing through

untamed woods, sitting on the roof with your friends until 4 a.m., or sneaking into an abandoned building. On its own, comfort may seem like a good thing. But when colorful ads (ash the newest McDonald’s burger at you, or when companies build luxury hotels in rural places, satisfaction and comfort turn into the selling point, taking the place of discipline and adventure. But comfor t and adventure are not mutually exclusive. As J.R.R. Tolkien shows us in “The Hobbit,” adventurous curiosity and middle-class warmth are the two halves of a meaningful life. One cannot exist without the other. It is difficult for a man who knows only adventure to appreciate the quieter, calmer moments in life. On the (ip side, a man who knows only a comfortable middle-class life doesn’t experience the growth that comes with physical discomfort. Years down the line, when your kids ask you about your time in college, have stories to tell. Develop lore now so you can appreciate the comfortable moments later. Who knows? You might get to call 911. Jayden Jelso is a senior studying English. Illustrated by Mag gie O’Connor.

October 22, 2026 A5

Boring politicians are better By Jordan Nelson ColleGian FreelanCer Michigan is starving for a political celebrity, and it shows in this year’s Senate race. According to a poll published by the Detroit Free Press on Oct. 12, Democratic candidate Abdul El-Sayed leads Republican candidate Mike Rogers by 48.1% to 45%. Rogers has an impressive background as a U.S. Army veteran, former FBI agent, and seven-term congressman, but he has failed to present himself as a vibrant and entertaining choice. El-Sayed, meanwhile, has built an imposing empire on social media. On Instagram alone, ElSayed has amassed 1.8 million followers compared to Rogers’ 20,000. El-Sayed has harnessed the nostalgia of young voters throughout his campaign, such as in a June 25 video where he sings the famous “Mail Song” from the children’s show “Blue’s Clues” while surrounded by campaign signs. While showmanship is helpful on the campaign trail, it’s only part of the world he is fighting to enter. )e U.S. Senate, except for the occasional figure such as

You are the proud captain of a shipwreck. Rogers spent many years as an FBI agent fighting corruption and organized crime in Chicago. As a Michigan state senator, he authored the bill that created the Michigan 529 College Savings Program, which allows residents to invest money in a tieredrisk stock portfolio and cash out for educational expenses. As a U.S. Representative, he served as chairman of the House Intelligence Committee and fought attempts by China to steal trade secrets from the American auto industry. Rogers has an impressive record of service. El-Sayed’s platform communicates that he wants to rage against the machine. Rogers’ platform communicates that he understands the machine, and he knows how to use elected office for good. )e difference in their health policies demonstrates this divide. El-Sayed wrote “Medicare for All: A Citizen’s Guide,” a 2021 book that calls for the adoption of a single-payer healthcare system similar to Canada’s. Yet Canadian health care is notorious for long wait times, doctor shortages, and price ceilings that discourage pharmaceutical companies

“Rogers’ experience in Congress has taught him that there is a pathway through the law to improve American healthcare. It might take time and seem less exciting, but it will be more effective in the long run.” Louisiana’s John Kennedy, is incredibly unexciting. It is designed to be the deliberative body of an already slow-moving branch of government. Six-year terms and a higher age and citizenship threshold compared to the U.S. House create a chamber that is less susceptible to popular whims. James Madison wrote in Federalist No. 63 that the Senate is designed to prevent any decisions from being made “until reason, justice, and truth can regain their authority over the public mind.” )e Senate is for prudent statesmen, and it rewards patient people who understand federal institutions. In his political masterwork “To Be a Politician,” twentieth-century political scientist Stimson Bullitt argues that the good politician has two duties: do his job, and play a part. El-Sayed has successfully played the part of a scrappy man from Metro Detroit. What he lacks is experience: El-Sayed has never held elected office. He lost in the 2018 Michigan Democratic gubernatorial primary race to Gretchen Whitmer. His narrow resume does include a two-year stint as the director of the Detroit Health Department, followed by another two years as director of the Wayne County Department of Health, Human, and Veterans Services. While Wayne County is home to the city of Detroit and more than 1.7 million Michiganders, its public services have a statewide reputation for being insufficient and inefficient. Touting that you ran the Wayne County health department is like bragging that you planned the Bay of Pigs invasion:

from creating new medicines. Nobody knows exactly how much “Medicare for All” would cost, but the House Budget Committee puts the price tag at $47 trillion over 10 years. )is is more than the current national debt. Rogers recognizes that if Medicare for All were to become law, private agencies might o,oad the most expensive patients onto Medicare and exhaust the federal budget. Instead, Rogers proposes financial guardrails to prevent the exorbitant drug prices that lead people to seek answers through socialized medicine. He wants hospitals and insurance companies to disclose the cost of medicines and care before patients receive them. According to his campaign website, Rogers believes that hospitals and insurance providers “don’t want you to comparison shop” because doing so would force providers to lower their prices to stay competitive. Rather than ignoring the issues with private insurance companies, he proposes achievable solutions. As his website states, “Companies with excessive denials or delays should face penalties. If you repeatedly deny care that should have been approved, there should be consequences.” Rogers’ experience in Congress has taught him that there is a pathway through the law to improve American healthcare. It might take time and seem less exciting, but it will be more effective in the long run. You just won’t hear him sing a song about it like El-Sayed. Jordan Nelson is a sophomore studying politics.

A6 October 22, 2026

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‘Let’s be proud of Michigan’ JD Vance emphasizes the need for conservative leadership at Monroe rally By Ellie Fromm Editor in ChiEf MONROE, MI — Vice President JD Vance spoke in support of Republican U.S. Senate candidate Mike Rogers at a rally in Monroe, Michigan Oct. 15. “You all can make fun of me on Buckeye football all you need, so long as we get out there and make Mike Rogers the next senator from the great state of Michigan,” Vance, an Ohio native and Ohio State University graduate, said. Rogers, Michigan Secretary of State candidate Anthony Forlini, Michigan Attorney General candidate Doug Lloyd and Representative for Michigan’s 5th District Tim Walberg, all Republicans, addressed the crowd before Vance, the keynote speaker. Hillsdale County is a part of Walberg’s district. All speakers said Republican voters need to encourage others to vote for Republicans on the ticket so Michigan politicians can lower taxes and general costs, such as utilities and healthcare. “If we aren’t a majority, the socialists will be running the show in Washington, D.C.,

The vice president spoke about the necessity for conservative leadership in Michigan. The Collegian | Ellie Fromm

and make it more di!cult for John James, as the new governor of this great state, to make the impact that he could by keeping us out of the way,” Walberg said. Vance said Michigan’s Senate race is being watched nationwide and would be an important victory for Republicans and Democrats. “I hate to say that Michigan has become ground zero in that [election] battle,” Vance

said. “Because on one side [Rogers] you have an amazing American patriot running for the Senate, and Mike Rogers, who’s a lifelong Michigander who has dedicated his entire career to celebrating and serving his fellow citizens.” Rogers is running against Democratic candidate Abdul El-Sayed. Many polls show this as a close race. Every Michigander needs to vote for Rogers, Vance said, because

Rogers is proud of his state, while El-Sayed doesn’t claim his Michigan roots. “Instead of feeling gratitude, or instead of feeling love, [El-Sayed] chose to embrace the politics of grievance that is hellbent on our national self-suicide,” Vance said at the LevelUp Training Complex where the rally was held. “You listen to the man talk, and it’s clear Abdul doesn’t love the people who live here.

He hates the history of the United States of America.” Vance reflected on Michigan’s history, noting the nation’s past reliance on Michigan’s industrial strength, such as the auto industry, and how this industry created the “first middle class,” according to Vance. “You are a state that, when Americans needed an arsenal during the Second World War, this state said ‘aye-aye’ and got

to work,” Vance said. “$is state brought together 40,000 workers under one roof on an assembly line a mile long.” Rogers said El-Sayed’s policies would increase Michiganders’ already high costs, such as utilities and gas. “We already have the highest utility rates in the Midwest, thanks to the Democrats,” Rogers said. “Now, Abdul wants to add a new energy tax that will increase utility bills by $2,000 a family. He also wants to add 20 cents to the cost of every gallon of gas. You’re good having your gas go up?” Vance told the crowd that it was not enough to vote themselves, but that the crowd also had to encourage other voters to vote for Rogers Nov. 3. “Michigan, take it from me, you have nothing to be ashamed of,” Vance said. “Let’s be proud of Michigan. Don’t be ashamed of your ancestors. Don’t be ashamed of the factories. Don’t be ashamed of Friday night football.” This article was originally published Thursday night on The Collegian website.

Fry resigns from assistant city manager position after a year By Ethan Savka assistant Editor Assistant City Manager Sam Fry tendered his resignation to City Manager Dave Mackie Wednesday morning. Fry was promoted to assistant city manager from economic development coordinator in September 2025 and will continue to work in both roles through Nov. 6. $e assistant city manager is a full-time position that supports the city manager with day-to-day operations and special projects. In the city’s 2026–27 adopted budget, the position is funded with a $74,650 salary. Fry will start a new position outside Hillsdale, he told $e Collegian. “I’ll be leaving the city to take another position with a different municipality, a new job opportunity,” Fry said. “That community hasn’t announced it yet, so I won’t out of respect for them and the hiring process.” In his resignation letter, Fry thanked City Manager Dave Mackie. “My time with the City of Hillsdale has been an incredibly rewarding chapter of my

professional life,” Fry wrote in the letter. “I am proud to have contributed to the city’s growth and development over the past several years and grateful for the experiences, relationships, and opportunities this position has afforded me.” Mayor Scott Sessions deserves the city’s thanks as well, Fry said in the letter. “I also want to express my deep appreciation to Mayor Scott Sessions, who stepped forward at a critical time for our community and provided much-needed leadership and stability,” Fry said in the letter. “His commitment to Hillsdale, support for city staff, and willingness to lead with integrity during a challenging period have earned my sincere respect and gratitude.” Sessions said Fry excelled in his roles. “He did an excellent job for the city and he’ll be missed very badly, very much,” Sessions said. “He helped bring Marshall’s and Culver’s here, so he’s done a great job. It’s just hard to replace somebody like that.” Fry did not attend this week’s city council meeting. When the council received Fry’s resignation letter two days later, it

took them by surprise, Ward 1 Councilman Greg Stuchell said. “I knew Sam was looking at different opportunities for himself and different city management positions,” Stuchell said. “He’s a young man, he’s smart, he’s intelligent. I would be doing the same thing if I was his age.” Mayoral candidate and Ward 3 Councilman Bob Flynn said Fry’s resignation was abrupt. “I had just talked to him here a couple weeks ago about some plans for next year to try to come up with some newer things to bring people to town, and it’s going be sad that he’s not going to be able to help with that,” Flynn said. “He did not give any indication that he was not going to be here.” Fry often stepped in for Mackie at city council meetings to update the council on the city manager’s advice and recommendations, according to Ward 2 Councilman Will Morrisey. Stuchell said the city manager’s office will feel the loss of Fry. “He’s always been in a supportive role for the city manager and really filled every void we may have had and was very

articulate, very intelligent,” Stuchell said. “It’s going to be a big loss.” Ward 2 councilman and mayoral candidate Matthew Bentley said he disagrees. “I was surprised to read of his resignation, though I’d noticed his increasing absence from council meetings in recent months,” Bentley said in an email. “A year ago, Mr. Mackie promoted him to assistant city manager; and since that time, seemingly has delegated ever more of his workload onto Sam. Mr. Fry seemed to be a true believer in economic development, including being a booster of the Keefer and the Dawn.” During his tenure, Fry worked on the Keefer Hotel rehabilitation and the Dawn $eater project, coordinating with the Tax Increment Finance Authority on redevelopment to bring the long-vacant theater back into use. $e hotel is not ready to open yet, according to Collegian reporting. Bentley agreed with Flynn that Fry was a capable administrative asset. “Though I had my differences with Sam,” Bentley said, “he seemed to be an able and conscientious member of the

city staff. I wish him well in his future endeavors.” Flynn said Fry took over various responsibilities for Mackie. “I think he’s done a very nice job in his capacity with the city,” Flynn said. “I know he’s worked very hard on the economic side of things and also helped us when City Manager Mackie lost a couple of employees at the BPU. Dave had to take their roles as well, so Sam stepped up in his role to handle some of the day-to-day activities that he could take off of Mr. Mackie’s plate.” Many community initiatives came through Fry, Flynn said. “He was instrumental in helping with the train coming to Hillsdale when it does,” Flynn said. “I know his o!ce was instrumental in helping with the city’s Christmas parade, too.” Morrisey said he could not remember voting against Fry’s recommendations. He said Fry was always well-informed. “I regret that he’s leaving. He’s always a thoughtful, diligent kind of guy. Whenever I had any questions, he was well informed on all aspects of city government,” Morrisey said. “It

seems to me that he was pretty much involved in all things that we’ve been doing since he’s come here.” Mackie, who is leaving his city manager position in 2028 while staying on the BPU, will choose Fry’s successor. “It’ll be up to the city manager to get the application out there, start looking to see who’s available,” Stuchell said. “It’s really kind of a bad time because we’re going to be switching council members real quick. I only have two more meetings. We’ll have half the council be replaced in a couple weeks.” Hillsdale needs team players to preserve its future, Fry said in his letter. “As I look to the future, I remain optimistic about what lies ahead for Hillsdale,” he wrote. “$is community has tremendous potential, and I hope its elected leaders will continue to recognize the importance of demonstrating thoughtful and constructive leadership, fostering collaboration, and treating others with mutual respect. $ese qualities are essential to building strong organizations and successful communities.”

Mayor Sessions recommends himself for BPU position By Gemma Flores and Lonán Mooney City nEws Editor and CollEgian rEportEr $e Hillsdale City Council voted Oct. 19 to table the discussion of Mayor Scott Sessions appointing himself to the Board of Public Utilities. At the Sept. 21 council meeting, Sessions announced that he was appointing himself to the BPU board of directors after former member Mike Prince resigned, as previously reported by $e Collegian. $e Board of Public Utilities oversees services such as the city’s electricity, water, and telecommunications.

While Sessions nominated himself to fill the vacant seat, the council members still need to vote to approve him. A%er several council members expressed concerns about the mayor appointing himself for the position, the council voted to table the discussion until a later date. Sessions submitted a formal application for the position Sept. 22. $e council was set to discuss Sessions’ self-appointment at its meeting this week, but decided to table the discussion again. Jill Hardway, who is running for the Ward 1 city council seat, addressed the council members during public comments.

“I am here to respectfully urge members of the city council to vote ‘no’ on the mayor’s self-nomination to the Board of Public Utilities, or at a minimum table the vote until formal legal opinion is rendered by the city attorney,” Hardway said. Hardway asked if city council members were provided any form of written legal documentation regarding the decision. Assistant City Manager Sam Fry told $e Collegian that the city’s attorney had looked into the issue. “It would be legal for the mayor to serve on the BPU Board the same way that it would be legal for other coun-

cil members to serve on the various boards that they serve on like TIFA or the planning commission,” Fry said. “It’s not uncommon to have a council representative on those boards. With that being said, I understand that at Monday’s meeting it was tabled again so there’s been no action on that. As far as the legality, the attorney has looked into it, there’s nothing out of line with that.” Ward 2 councilman and mayoral candidate Matthew Bentley said he saw no good reason that Sessions should be on the BPU. “Why on earth should he be?” Bentley said in an inter-

view with $e Collegian. “It’s part of a pattern. Sessions has a bafflingly bad record of appointments.” Bentley said Sessions’ handling of the appointment of Police and Fire Chief Kristopher Joswiak was not a transparent process. “We got very lucky but the way that process was handled was awful,” Bentley said. Hardway, along with Bentley, commented on how Sessions recused himself from the discussion about his self-appointment. “Recusing oneself from a vote a%er introducing one’s own

nomination does not resolve the conflict because the act of self nomination itself is an exercise of executive authority in one’s own self-interest,” Hardway said. Bentley said that the BPU appointment is critical to making sure the board runs efficiently and transparently. “I’m of the opinion that BPU needs serious, competent, and as close to expert oversight as can be provided,” Bentley said. “I’m confident that the next mayor will be more thoughtful in his choices.”

Ava-Marie Papillon illustrated the City News header.

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October 22, 2026 A7

Jeff Cooley: Hillsdale’s unexpected candidate for state representative The Democrat decided to run in April By Kiera Zhang CollEgian frEElanCEr

his top priority, mostly because of how much he has seen his coworkers struggle with the cost and inadequacy of health insurance. “I vividly remember one of my friends going in there

current 4.25% flat rate to a graduated system that would require the rich to pay more. Abortion and sex-transition surgeries would be covered under MiCare, according to Cooley.

Je$ Cooley had only moments to decide whether to run for Michigan’s statehouse, when a Democratic o%cial told him April 19 at a party convention that his home district still needed a Democratic candidate. With no time left to search for another aspirant, Cooley was asked whether he would enter the race himself. He said yes. “They took me right up,” “Cooley said. “[!ey] got me all ready to go. And after all of that, I was like, ‘Man, I’d better text my wife.’ So I sent her a text: ‘You’re not going to believe this, but I just signed up for state rep,’” Cooley is running for Michigan’s 35th House District, which covers Hillsdale County, Branch County, and the City of Hudson in Lenawee County. One of the reddest counties in Michigan, Hillsdale County has leaned Republican in all but two of the presidential elections since 1860. The incumbent representative, Republican Jennifer Cooley is running as the Democratic candidate in Michigan’s 35th House District. Wortz, won the 2024 Courtesy | Jeff Cooley election with 74% of “Healthcare is my big the votes. She is running for for his health screening, and they took his blood pressure, one,” Cooley said. “I get re-election. and they were ready to call charged with healthcare. As Democrats already control an ambulance,” Cooley said. a voter, that’s the first thing both the executive branch “!is is a guy who had three I want to hear about. So as a and state Senate. The state kids and struggled financialcandidate, it’s the first thing I House, a Republican majorily. Didn’t take good care of speak about.” ty for now, is only three seats himself.” Cooley said he supports away from flipping. The 58-year-old Cooley was born in North Adams and has lived in Hillsdale County for all his life. “I’ve always b een a blue-collar guy,” said Cooley, who has worked in smallparts manufacturing for the last 30 years. “And I always felt like the Democratic Party was looking out more for the working class people.” A father of three adult children, Cooley first started following politics when his youngest child started tracking political news around age 13. “Well, I’m not going to have my 13-year-old son know more about politics than I do, right?” Cooley The solution, according renewable energy as a way said. “So I started paying more attention, so that we to Cooley, lies in MiCare, a for America to become could have conversations bill by Democratic state Rep. more self-reliant, but canand discussions. !en 2020 Carrie Rheingans that would not bring himself to apprewas really when I decided to provide healthcare to every ciate the massive solar fields get more involved and help resident of Michigan. To pay in Fayette Township. After for the program, income tax- building Heartwood Solar organize Hillsdale County.” Cooley said healthcare is es would be raised from the I, a 150-megawatt facility

“I’m running against an incumbent who already has her network built. She gets donations on top of donations, while I have to go out and beat the streets to just run a campaign.”

Rogers from A1 “Over the past quarter century, Michigan has sent two Democrats who talk the same way and vote the same way to the U.S. Senate,” Rogers told !e Collegian. “Meanwhile, our state has fallen to the bottom by almost every metric. We are number 45 in the nation for education and have the highest utility rates in the Midwest. More than 200,000 manufacturing jobs have left our state. Students are having to leave our state to start a family, buy a house, and build a future.” After four years in the Army, Rogers retired and worked as a FBI special agent, “taking down organized crime and public corruption

in Chicago,” according to his campaign. After that, he was a state senator for six years, writing Michigan’s 529 College Saving Program legislation and worked to get law enforcement the equipment they needed, according to his campaign. A 529 college savings plan is a “tax-advanatged savings/investment plan” to save for college expenses for the beneficiary of the account. He t hen repres ente d Michigan’s 8th congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives for 14 years, from 2001-2015. Michigan’s 8th congressional district includes Flint, Saginaw, Midland, and Bay City. While in the U.S. House, Rogers introduced the “Respect for America’s Fallen Heroes Act,” which made it

illegal to demonstrate “on the property of a cemetery under the control of the National Cemetery Administration or

By Weston Sanborn CollEgian frEElanCEr

tors include teams from Hospice of Hillsdale Country, Ad Astra Roasters, Mitten Smoke Barbecue Food Truck, Advanced Autometric Car Care, and More Digital. Student clubs, churches, and other organizations interested in participating may be able to join by contacting Hillsdale Renaissance. The cook-off supports Hi l ls d a le R enaiss ance’s broader mission to revitalize downtown through real estate development and a more active community life. By bringing local businesses together with residents and students, the event provides an opportunity for businesses to connect with the community and showcase what downtown Hillsdale has to o$er. Dante’s Paradiso Wine

covering roughly 900 acres, Ranger Power had proposed to install solar panels on an additional 1,350 acres of agricultural land. When Fayette Township rejected the proposal, Ranger Power filed a lawsuit. “I drive by these solar fields, and I can’t help but say, ‘Man, that looks terrible!’” Cooley said. He said he supports residential solar instead, with subsidies or tax breaks for people who install renewable energy in brand new buildings. Cooley also expressed support for a one-year moratorium on data centers, so that cities have time to consult professional legal advice and prevent companies from exploiting their zoning laws. Cooley knows that Wortz will be difficult to defeat. “ I ’m r u n n i n g against an incumbent who already has her network built. She gets donations on top of donations, while I have to go out and beat the streets to just run a campaign,” Cooley said. Cooley said he would like to eliminate corporate influence on elections, but he agrees that it would only be fair to lessen the power of workers’ unions at the same time. Cooley himself has received checks from two organizations, Planned Parenthood and MI Rural PAC, coming to a total of around $600. Cooley said that he supports same-sex marriage, abortion, and the Black Lives Matter movement, but prefers to avoid talking about social issues in his campaign. He said he agrees with most of the Democratic Socialists of America’s policies, though he is not a member of the group. Cooley said that he will probably not become a state representative this year. But he sees the process of campaigning and making his party’s message heard just as important as the final result. “While I don’t expect to win, I believe we have an opportunity to gain a significant amount of ground this year,” Cooley said. “It’s important to celebrate small victories.”

Hillsdale Renaissance’s second annual Chili CookO$ in downtown Hillsdale will take place Oct. 24, featuring free chili, a bounce house, food trucks, and live music by Hillsdale College student band GoodTime. !e chili competition will feature up to eight competitors vying for cash prizes and is sponsored primarily by Waldvogel Wealth Management, a Hillsdale branch of Edward Jones. Participants are fighting for $500 for first place, $350 for second, and $200 for third. Last year’s event attracted more than 300 attendees. Organizers say they expect similar attendance this year. !e event will run from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Each attendee will receive two votes to cast for his or her favorite chili, with the winners announced shortly after 7 p.m. “!e main goal of it is to have a nice, pleasant downtown event in the fall and highlight our businesses in Hillsdale and give a nice, warm welcome to parents coming to visit from the college,” said Charlie Miggins, Hillsdale Renaissance’s property and event manager. Miggins said Hillsdale Renaissance often schedules events to coincide with movein and parents’ weekends at the college, giving families the opportunity to explore the community alongside students. !ese events also bring more people downtown, creating opportunities for residents, students, and visitors to connect. !is year’s chili competi-

Pub is another product of Hillsdale Renaissance’s e$orts to revitalize downtown. In 2024, Hillsdale Renaissance founder Luke Robson partnered with Hillsdale College alumni to acquire and redevelop the property at 55 N. Broad St., transforming the former Broad Street Market, Bootlegger, and 55 Below into Dante’s. Hillsdale College junior Rylan Conley will perform at the event alongside fellow members of his band, GoodTime. “Just come on down and get to know some of the people who live in the community that you call home for nine months out of the year,” Conley said.

gence Committee and supported funding for national intelligence programs and sponsored designating the

against the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan, in 2011. Sixteen Afghans, including at least six children, were killed during the attack, according to the United Nations. Rogers said he is focused on making housing and healthcare more a$ordable. To help Michiganders a$ord homes, he plans to expand the 529 College Savings Program to allow them to cover vocational training and first-time home down payments as well. For healthcare costs, he wants to use Trump Rx, which lowers prices by buying in bulk, to bring prescription prices down on consumers. “My housing plan includes expanding 529 savings accounts to help you save for a down payment, ensuring rent payments count towards

building your credit, incentivizing new homebuilding, and cutting burdensome regulations,” Rogers told !e Collegian. “Michiganders also deserve schools that rank better than no. 45 in the nation. As your senator, I will make sure that we tackle Michigan’s education crisis head on by ensuring Title I money is being used for e$ective, phonics-based reading remediation.”

“Over the past quarter century, Michigan has sent two Democrats who talk the same way and vote the same way to the U.S. Senate” on the property of Arlington National Cemetery.” Congress passed the act in 2006. He was also the chairman of the House Intelli-

Hillsdale Renaissance to host chili cookoff

Haqqani network a terrorist organization. The Haqqani Network has worked with the Taliban and al-Qaida, and was responsible for the attack

Competitors in last year’s Chili Cookoff. Courtesy | Hillsdale Renaissance

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A8 October 22, 2026

SportS

Men's Club Soccer

'Outperformed the expectations': Chargers look to fulﬁll post-season hopes By Josh Mistry Senior Reporter Hillsdale is scheduled to host Central Michigan University Oct. 30 at Hayden Park as it prepares for a push in postseason play. A"er losing seven seniors this May, the Chargers entered the fall season hoping to establish themselves in a new league. So far this season, the Chargers won in a 3-2 comeback against Wayne State University and lost in a close match to the University of Michigan's second team, Maize Football Club, bringing their record to 3-1-2. "The team has played pretty well so far this season

and really outperformed the expectations we put on ourselves," sophomore Carson Brower said. Hillsdale opened the season with a home loss to Maize FC Sept. 11 before traveling to Wayne State the next day. Trailing 2-0 at hal"ime, the Chargers scored three unanswered goals to get their first win. The team has shown since that it can compete with stronger opponents, according to Brower. Against Maize FC, Hillsdale su#ered a defeat in the final 15 seconds. The Chargers also faced the University of Michigan's club team Oct. 16. Brower said Michigan entered the matchup ranked fourth nationally

and Hillsdale became the first opponent to score against the Wolverines this season. Sophomore Yves Jonathan Ulysse said the game was especially meaningful because his father watched him play the first half as he continued to battle a lingering knee injury. "Unfortunately, I tore my ACL during that game, which has kept me out this season. Even with that happening, if I could go back in time, I wouldn’t change a thing," Ulysse said. This season, younger players have been central to the team's improvement. "The young core of this team is really what makes it go," Brower said.

He praised sophomore Camden Bruce, a striker who has been scoring consistently and freshman Thomas Hiel for his composure with the ball. Freshmen Rafael West and Timothy Howard have also contributed to the team's success. "Freshman Camden Bruce is leading the team in goals with 6 goals in 5 games, including the only goal anyone has scored against University of Michigan this season so far," junior Cruz Reichert said. "We lost some real key seniors but these dedicated underclassmen have found a way to bring this team to new heights." Freshman Luke Carson and sophomore Andrew Spie-

gel have taken up responsibility for developing their teammates, according to Ulysse. "The younger players have stepped up by helping run drills, teaching the freshmen, and helping them learn their positions," Ulysse said. "They are doing the same things the seniors did for them last year, which has helped the new players adjust and improve." Reichert, the team president, and Luke Wilmington have helped create a supportive culture, according to Brower, while time together on and o# the field has strengthened the team's communication. "Our standard is integrity, discipline, and hard work on and o# the pitch and when

you get a group of guys willing to meet that standard they can do great things, and they get to enjoy that challenge together," Reichert said. "We push each other, pray together, encourage each other, and mess with each other too." Hillsdale’s past success and core group of young players give the team high expectations for the future. "A"er making it to nationals, I think we realized that we can compete and play soccer at a high level, too," Ulysse said.

Women's Swim

Hillsdale celebrates seniors; split invitational 1-1 at home By Lucy Billings AssistAnt Editor The Chargers defeated Davenport University and lost to Findlay University in their first invitational held at home and honored the team’s seniors Oct. 17. The women took Davenport 166-96 and fell to Findlay 164-98, ending with five first place finishes out of the 12 individual events. Sophomore Kate Potwardowski took first place in the 50-yard breaststroke in 30:29, second in the 200yard individual medley with a time of 2:15:27, and swam breaststroke for the 400-yard medley relay team, which took third in 4:01:93. “My mindset was that this is another meet, just like any

other meet,” Potwardowski said. “I knew it was going to be hard because Findlay is our rival team and they are first in the G-MAC, but I still wanted to have fun and race. I definitely got to do that. I was really happy with how I did in the 50 breaststroke. The goal was to cheer each other on and make sure everyone was having fun. It was a home meet so we wanted to soak in all the support from the parents, which was really fun to see.” Sophomore Avery May took second place in the 1000-yard freestyle, her first long-distance event since February of last season. “I just wanted to put together a good race and kick o# my distance events well,” May said. “The biggest di#erence

for distance events is that with most of our swimming events you get in and you know you’re going to be done usually within two minutes. When you get in for a distance event you have to be mentally ready to race, for the thousand, 10 minutes; for the mile, over 18. I really try to prepare myself to be mentally in the race the whole time.” Assistant coach Maggie Kayt Franks said it is early enough in the season that most of the team's competitive goals are personal. “We tend to go into these meets without trying to worry a lot about the competition. A lot of this has to do with the girl’s individual times. This early in the season we’re not concerned by a loss to Findlay or surprised by it,” Franks

said. Other podium finishes include junior Matilyn Wilhelmsen taking first place in the 100-yard freestyle in 53:34, second place in the 500-yard freestyle with a time of 5:13:09, and third place in the 50-yard freestyle in 24:81. Junior Ella Schafer finished first in the 100-yard freestyle with a time of 1:58:22. Junior Ella Malone took second place in the 50-yard butterfly in 26:75 and freshman Cali Kissel finished first in the 50-yard backstroke in 27:46 and first in the 200-yard backstroke with a time of 2:07:91. To celebrate the seniors post-meet, Franks and the team put together individual gi"s for each senior and each senior got a rose, according to Potwardowski. She said the se-

niors also shared some parting advice for the team’s future. “[The seniors] are really good at supporting one another and they have such a genuine love for our team,” Potwardowski said. “It’s fun getting to see them in the pool every day, how happy they are. Even though it's their last year, they are making the most of it, which is contagious for everyone else on the team.” Franks said the team is heading into the next block of training concentrating on technical details delivering them an edge. “We want to be the best technical team in the pool,” Franks said. “We try to show that especially through our underwaters and our turns. Those can make or break a race.”

The Chargers compete next against Bethel University and Anderson University at an invitational hosted in Elkhart, Indiana by Bethel Oct. 24. Potwardowski said they came into this meet o# a difficult training block and intend to carry that momentum forward. “We’re making sure to keep in the mindset that we still have future meets coming,” she said. “There’s a lot we have to do and we want to make sure everyone is putting in their full amount of e#ort these next couple weeks as we go into Bethel this weekend.”

Men's Tennis

'Get stronger and get more fit': Chargers end fall tennis season By Ethan Savka AssistAnt Editor Four singles players and three doubles teams won matches for Hillsdale’s men’s tennis team Oct. 17-19.The ITA Midwest Regional in Grand Rapids draws the top NCAA Division II players in the Midwest for singles and doubles brackets. In the A singles draw, junior Ryan Papazov reached the quarterfinals of the consolation bracket a"er Purdue University Northwest’s player retired while trailing 4-3 in his round of 16 match. Papazov and freshman Jack Ford also won a consolation match in the B doubles draw, 8-6 over a Purdue Northwest team. Freshman Zeteny Paragi won his opening A singles match against Cedarville University, 3-6, 6-1, and 104, before falling to the third seed. Paragi and sophomore Patrick Cretu beat a University of Illinois Springfield team 8-3 in B doubles. In B singles, junior Alex Cordero Lopez beat Quincy University 7-6, 2-6, 10-7. Junior Rintaro Goda won his C singles opener over Quincy, 6-3, 4-6, 13-11. Lopez and Goda reached the C doubles quarterfinals with wins over Tiffin University, 8-5, and University of Missouri-St. Louis, 8-2. “A big takeaway was that we all put up really, really good fights,” Papazov said. “No one seemed to quit or tank or fall o#, whether due to fatigue, injury, or just lack of motivation. Everyone stayed strong.” Senior Ellis Klanduch, who has played at the ITA, region-

al in each of his four years at Hillsdale, said Paragi’s opening win was impressive. “For your first ITA to be able to win your first round is pretty big,” Klanduch said. “Even if you just win one round in the A draw, it’s very good because of how ridiculously good the competition is.” Klanduch called it a comeback win, and said it shows the freshman has a strong head on his shoulders. “His power in general from the baseline is very impressive, and his shot-making ability is continuing to improve,” Klanduch said. “There’s nothing shameful in losing in that second round.” Papazov said Paragi’s loss against Wayne State University featured a lot of deuce points. “I think that’s probably the main thing we do have to work on,” Papazov said. “Being able to pull o# those little pushes to just get that point, get that game. Our conference is really, really stacked. There are a lot of good teams out there with a lot of good players.” In his B singles win, Lopez led the first set 5-0 before dropping five straight games and winning the tiebreaker, Klanduch said. “He was able to stay calm, listen to coaches’ advice, and work the point a little bit more,” Klanduch said. “He put in more high, heavy balls. He put in more slices. He got the guy o# of his rhythm.” Lopez said he has seen progress throughout the semester. “I am very happy that despite not being able to play

at my highest level, I am still capable of winning matches against good opponents,” Lopez said. “I think this is a major improvement for me this semester.” Klanduch and his partner, senior Henry Hammond, lost their doubles opener 8-6 to a team from Ferris State University that reached the quarterfinals. Both players are dealing with injuries, and Klanduch will sit out the rest of the semester to rehab his back. “College tennis in general really comes down to one or two points,” Klanduch said. “And Ferris State won the one or two big points.” The team will drop to an eight-hour weekly schedule the first week of November, Papazov said. “We will work on our point play and building up the point with di#erent strategies, different patterns,” Papazov said. Klanduch said each player has a focus. Lopez will focus on footwork and extending points, Papazov on finding more shape over the net, Paragi on shot selection, and Ford on extending his forehand. He said the o#season is a time for behind-the-scenes work, including li"ing. “This is our time to get stronger and get more fit,” Klanduch said. “It’s our time in the lab. We have the best shot we’ve had in a couple of years of making a good run, a good deep run in the conference tournament.” The Chargers will next play at home against Spring Arbor Jan. 29, 2027.

Sp"#ts

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Feature

October 22, 2026 A9

Shotgun

Chargers win all events come a long way,” Roberts said. other, they have success. under Roberts, a(er winning at Hoosier Invitational According to Katherine “Our goal, whether it’s aca- several conference trophies

Academy coaches awarded Coach of the Year By Tim Howard CollEgiAn FrEElAnCEr For the 'rst time in school history, two Hillsdale Academy coaches have been awarded State Boys Coach of the Year by the Michigan High School Athletic Coaches Association. Michael Roberts ’98, Academy headmaster and head track and 'eld coach, and Michael Nikkila ’05, head cross country coach, will be formally recognized at the annual MHSCA State Awards Luncheon Nov. 8 at the Great Hall Banquet and Convention Center in Midland, Michigan, according to a press release. Roberts and Nikkila are among 30 high school coaches and athletic directors awarded across the state. The MHSCA Coach of the Year is selected by their particular sports association across

Huffman, the Academy’s director of athletics, Nikkila is entering his 15th year at the Academy while Roberts is entering his 25th. Roberts and Nikkila don’t just coach, but help students to balance the rigors of school and athletics. “The same things that we’re trying to teach in the classroom carry over to athletics,” Roberts said. “The Academy’s sports are just as rigorous as its academics.” Roberts said being involved in the school as a coach and headmaster stretches the schedule but is the best way to stay directly connected to the student. According to him, it is one of the reasons he has continued coaching. According to Nikkila, in

Michael Roberts. Courtesy | Hillsdale Academy

all divisions and awarded based on leadership, involvement in athletics, and community. “It's an honor for the coach, but really it highlights the school, the tradition, and that Hillsdale [Academy] has really

Theisen from A1

In 2016 and 2018, Theisen led the Chargers to their 'rst two NCAA Division II tournament appearances as well as their 'rst Great Midwest Athletic Conference title in 2018. He was Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Coach of the Year in 2016. Theisen compiled a 164-204 record at Hillsdale. Before becoming head coach, he was an assistant coach for three seasons, 2011 to 2013. He coached alongside his father, Gordie Thiesen, who was the team’s pitching coach from 2014 to 2021. In 2021, Eric Theisen le( Hillsdale to become the hitting coach for the Carolina Mudcats, the single-A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. “Hillsdale certainly set the table for this opportunity,” Theisen told the Collegian after taking the job. “It’s a huge reason why I was in the position for the job like this.” Theisen served as the Brewers minor league assistant hitting coordinator from 2022 to 2024. He also became a hitting coach for the Nashville Sounds in 2024, the triple-A affiliate of the Brewers. In 2025, Theisen was elevated to an assistant hitting coach position for the major league squad. In 2026, he took over the lead hitting coach role. Hitting coaches help batters work on the mechanics of

cross country, the di)erence between a good team and a great program is the participation from students and the quality of their participation. He said when team members work together and serve each their swing, provide players with scouting reports on opposing pitchers, use analytics, and teach hitters to compete at the plate. Milwaukee’s 103-59 record was the best record in the league during the regular season. The Brewers are 7-1 so far in the postseason. They swept the back-to-back reigning World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers in the National League Championship Series. The Brewers led the league with a .258 team batting average in 2026. They were second with 832 runs scored, second with 668 walks drawn, and '(h with 279 doubles. Despite 'nishing 28th in the league with 154 home runs, Milwaukee has 10 home runs through eight postseason games, more than any other team in the playo)s. Neither the Brewers nor the Rays have ever won the World Series. The Brewers have made one previous appearance, losing in 1982 to the St. Louis Cardinals. The Rays have made two appearances, losing in 2008 to the Philadelphia Phillies and in 2020 to the Dodgers. Games 1 and 2 of the World Series will be played at Milwaukee’s American Family Field Oct. 23 and 24. The series will move to Tampa Bay for the next three games. If necessary, the series will return to Milwaukee for Games 6 and 7 Oct. 30 and 31.

10/15 Solutions

demic, artistic or athletic, is to try and build virtuous, godly men and women,” Nikkila said.

and a Michigan Interscholastic Track Coaches Association state championship, 'nally won

Michael Nikkila. Courtesy | Hillsdale Academy

Nikkila recognized two former students of his, Hillsdale College senior Emil Schlueter and Paul Whalen ’26, who helped create the winning environment through their leadership. “Coach Roberts and Coach Nikkila had a remarkable impact on me in high school,” Schlueter said. “High school sports is a revolving door, but seeing my younger siblings pass through the track and cross country programs at Hillsdale Academy and experience the same type of excellence and just plain fun as I did has been really wonderful, and made me appreciate the quiet work Roberts and Nikkila put in season after season to develop relationships.” In the past five years, the cross country team has won the MHSAA State Championship three times under Nikkila’s leadership. The track team,

the MHSAA State Championship for Division IV. It is this ability to win in big moments that Roberts says “put the whole program in the position for this recognition.” “If we’re going to do something we’re going to be excellent at it,” Nikkila said. “If you’re seeking a(er the kind of person that God wants you to be, when you do something, you’re gonna do it well.” According to Nikkila, there is much more in running for his athletes than the time on the clock at the end of the race. “The joy of competition doesn’t come in winning. That can’t be the case. It has to be in the challenge. It has to be in serving your teammates,” Nikkila said.

By Daniel Johnson AssistAnt Editor The Hillsdale shotgun team swept last weekend’s Hoosier Invitational, winning all six disciplines in both the men's and the women’s divisions. “It was a very good competition for us,” sophomore Zach Hinze said. At the ProNet Sports facility in Fishers, Indiana, and the Capitol Sports Center in Plain'eld, Indiana, the Chargers competed in American trap, handicap (23-yard), trap doubles, American skeet, 'vestand, and sporting clays, Oct. 17-18. The competition was scored in two separate sections divided between days and according to each discipline. Sophomore Zach Hinze won the men’s division overall a(er a close shoot out with senior Davis Hay. Junior Taylor Dale won the ladies division overall on the second day a(er taking 'rst in American skeet and sporting clays. Junior Marin McKinney took first in five-stand the second day a(er a three way shoot-o), while junior Lucci Kern shot a perfect 100 to win ladies trap singles the 'rst day. Hinze and Hay tied in the handicap trap division with a score of 46/50, and again in trap doubles with 93/100. Sophomore Max Versluys took 'rst in men’s sporting clays with a score of 93/100 while also winning men’s 've-stand. Dale shot an exceptionally high score of 97/100 in sporting clays, while Versluys shot a

perfect score to win 've-stand, according to Hinze. “Dale had the highest score by a six, maybe seven rock [clay target] lead,” Hinze said. “So she nearly ran that, and that was a huge accomplishment. And then Max Versluys had a 25 out of a 25 on the 've-stand, which is also really good.” Head coach Jordan Hintz added that four of Hillsdale’s 've scoring shooters — Hay, Hinze, sophomore Brayden Hoppa, and freshman Cameron Roberts — in American skeet, shot perfect scores. “The four-way skeet shooto) was really awesome,” Hintz said. “Especially Zach and Davis just kept going and going, which was really cool.” McKinney said the lower-stakes shoot brought out some areas where the team can improve. “We definitely had some things that came to the surface this weekend in a lower stakes competition that we need to work on,” McKinney said. “But coach made note of that and we are excited to continue progressing towards nationals.” Hinze said the team is feeling con'dent going into the next competition. “Going into that one, everyone has some pretty high hopes,” Hinze said. The Chargers will next compete in the Charger Classic National Sporting Clays Association shoot Oct. 31Nov. 2 at the John A. Halter Shooting Sports Center in Hillsdale.

CHARGER CHATTER Luke Penola, Football

If you were on offense, what position would you play?

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Women's swim celebrates Senior Day Oct. 17. Ashley Van Hoose | Hillsdale Athletic Department

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A10 October 22, 2026

Football

Oilers last-minute touchdown causes 'heartbreaking' defeat for Chargers By Robert Matteson sports Editor The Chargers gave up a goahead touchdown with 12 seconds le# in the game and fell to #16 ranked Findlay University 22-19 at home Oct. 17. “Heartbreaking,” sophomore offensive lineman Brady Francis said. “It’s really hard when you pour so much heart, so much time, and you feel like you’re the better team, and then things just fall apart like that. It’s really tough to see, especially for the older guys. It was a really tragic way to lose.” Hillsdale moved to 5-2 for the season and 3-2 in Great Midwest Athletic Conference play a#er the Findlay game. The Chargers opened the scoring with a "eld goal from sophomore Dylan DeDario in the "rst quarter. Following a touchdown from Findlay with 14:57 remaining in the second quarter, senior Shea Ruddy returned the ensuing kickoff for an 85-yard touchdown to regain the lead for the Chargers. The Chargers added another "eld goal from DeDario to take a 13-7 lead, but the Oilers returned the following kickoff for a 98-yard touchdown.

To close the "rst half, Boyce connected with sophomore running back Ben Ngishu for an 8-yard passing touchdown. The

upper-body injury a#er being sacked with 8:16 to play in the third quarter. He exited and did not return to the game. Senior

"eld and punched the ball into the endzone with 12 seconds remaining in the game. Findlay converted the two-point conver-

Junior Tutt Carrico celebrates with senior Jonathan Metzger and junior Ryan Skura after catching a pass. Courtesy | Reva Ludwig

Chargers took a 19-14 lead into hal#ime. “We responded well to adversity in the "rst half,” Francis said. “They go and get a kickoff return touchdown, and we come down a few minutes later and score to take the lead for hal#ime. That was huge, just for momentum and for the game.” Boyce went down with an

Colin McKernan took over at quarterback for the Chargers. Boyce finished the day 1419 passing for 179 yards and one touchdown. He also led the Chargers with 47 rushing yards. Neither team scored in the third quarter. Findlay received the ball at its own 1-yard line with 8:26 to play. The Oilers marched 99 yards down the

sion to take a 22-19 lead. Findlay tackled Ruddy on the following kickoff, and the Chargers were unable to score from their own 47-yard line on the "nal play of the game. “It is de"nitely a tough and disappointing loss,” head coach Nate Shreffler said in a press conference a#er the game. “The kids really fought hard. The effort

Volleyball

Women defeat Drury University in crossover By Ashley Luke

AssistAnt Editor Charger volleyball went 1-2 at the Midwest Regional Crossover Oct. 16-17, beating Drury University 3-2 but losing to Ferris State University and Maryville University 3-0 and 3-2, respectively. The Midwest Regional Crossover hosted 37 teams in the NCAA Division II in Hammond, Indiana, according to a Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference press release. Hillsdale now sits 5-4 in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference and 10-11 overall. Senior Chloe Pierce, a libero/defensive specialist, had 39 digs between both the Drury and Ferris State games, making her one of 13 players in the history of Hillsdale volleyball to have a career total of more than 1,000 digs, according to Charger Athletics. Hillsdale came back from a 20-10 point de"cit to win the "rst set 27-25 against the Drury Panthers, who compete in the Great Lakes Valley Conference, on Oct. 16. Freshman outside hitter/defensive specialist Taylor Brownsword led the game with 20 kills, while junior middle and outside hitter Ellie Fles led with four aces. “We had a fearless and ‘we got nothing to lose’ attitude that kept us focused on making big plays rather than

what the score was,” Pierce said. “Each person did their part and, thankfully, that was enough to pull out the win over a solid team.” Hillsdale played against Ferris State, part of the GLIAC and "rst in the nation for women’s volleyball, Oct. 16. Hillsdale’s inconsistency was evident during the weekend,

the second, and 25-19 in the third. “It was encouraging to know that we can play at a high level. We just need to "nd a way to play at that level consistently,” Pierce said. Sophomore outside hitter Taylor Cook said playing against the Bulldogs challenged the Chargers defense

Senior Molly Kennedy goes for a kill against Davenport University. Courtesy | Kyle Niermann

especially in the game against the Bulldogs, head coach Chris Gravel said. “This weekend we made some improvements as a team and played some very exciting volleyball.” Gravel said. “Unfortunately the task of playing consistent, winning volleyball is something we are struggling with against high-level teams.” Ferris State swept Hillsdale 25-11 in the "rst set, 25-22 in

and reaction times. “It was fun to compete against the number one team in Division II because it required us to rise to the challenge,” Cook said. “Our hitters had to expand their shot range, our defense and blockers had to react faster, and we had to push ourselves outside of our comfort zones. Playing Ferris was very bene"cial for us because it also exposed some of

our weaknesses that we can work on in practice moving forward.” The crossover weekend gave Gravel a chance to play a deeper rotation. Senior right side/outside hitter Marcelina Gorny has battled a back injury this season, Gravel said, but got 11 kills against Maryville Oct. 17. “It was exciting to see Chloe get her 1,000th dig of her career and fun to see Marcelina get some quality playing time in a#er being injured for so long,” Gravel said. Hillsdale fought against Maryville, also in the GLVC, and won the second and fourth sets 25-13 and 25-19, respectively. Maryville took the "rst set 25-20 and the third set 2624 before they won the match in the "#h set 15-10. Cook led with 17 kills and Pierce had 21 digs. “Maryville was a very scrappy team, and they ran their middles very well,” Cook said. “They were able to keep the ball alive and cover their hitters while we struggled at times to keep the rally going. However, at our best, we are a good match for them and should have won that "#h set.” The Chargers resume conference play at home to face Ursuline College and Lake Erie College Oct. 23-24 in Dawn Tibbets Potter Arena.

was certainly there, and hats off to Findlay for putting together a 99-yard drive there to "nish it.” Ruddy "nished the day with seven catches and 106 receiving yards. Junior wide receiver Tutt Carrico "nished with 66 receiving yards. Hillsdale’s defense forced Findlay to punt "ve times, and created two turnovers on downs, including one at the 1-yard line. “We didn’t give up a lot of big plays. Findlay was grinding it out,” Shreffler said. “They made a couple plays there on that last drive, but our guys made them earn every inch. It wasn’t given to them.” Junior linebacker Luke Penola led the Chargers with 17 tackles, setting a career high. Senior defensive back Jonah Jensen added 16 tackles, also a career high. Fi#h year defensive back Colin Morrow contributed 10 tackles. Penola was named G-MAC Defensive Player of the Week, his "rst career honor. “There was a lot of great stuff from how the defense played. I think the way we were able to respond to different situations is huge,” Penola said. “Coming up with a goal-line stand and being able to rally and get stops, a#er penalties allowed them to continue drives, is awesome and I

think it shows the character of our defense.” Senior defensive lineman Drake Badger had 1.5 sacks, senior Evan Bienick and Penola each had 1.0 sacks, and senior Chris VanOpstall added 0.5 sacks. The Chargers will look to get back in the win column when they play Tiffin University at home in Frank “Muddy” Waters Stadium Oct. 24. “It starts with coming out, doing our job, and just having a statement win at home, showing that yeah, we may have lost a week before, but we’re going to bounce back,” Francis said. “We’re going to fight through adversity, and we’re going to show everyone why we’ve been the dominant team that we have been all season.” The game will be the annual military appreciation game and also serve as a toy drive for Toys for Tots. Anyone who brings a toy to the game receives free admission. “It’s our way of giving thanks to all those service members here locally and within the families of our players, to tell them thank you for their service,” Shreffler said. “It’s been a big event and it’s been growing over the years.”

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October 22, 2026

Tower Players perform "Feathertop" on stage. Courtesy | Charlie Cheng

C u l t u r e ‘Sense and Sensibility’ makes romance sensible By Elizabeth Caneday Culture Assistant A new adaptation of Jane Austen’s classic novel “Sense and Sensibility” is historically inaccurate and captures the essence of Elinor and Edward’s romance differently than the book or the 1996 or 2008 movies. “Sense and Sensibility” (2026) follows sisters Elinor (Daisy Edgar-Jones) and Marianne Dashwood (Esmé CreedMiles), whose father dies, leaving them without a home and with very little income to support them, their mother, and their younger sister. The Dashwood women go from a well-off, settled life at their estate, Norland Park, to a limited income and a little stone cottage far away, thanks to their father’s misplaced trust that his son, the girls’ older half-brother, would provide for them. The story shows the sisters’ struggle to find love and correct their respective weaknesses. Elinor embodies “sense” and practicality, while Marianne represents “sensibility,” an excess of feeling and emotional sentiment. Focus Features and Working Title collaborated to produce and release “Sense and Sensibility.” Focus Features also distributed “Pride and Prejudice” (2005) starring Keira Knightley and Matthew MacFadyen. This new adaptation is filmed in mostly neutral, natural colors, similar to “Pride and Prejudice” (2005). It appears to have been mostly shot in

natural light or with candles, though the director has not confirmed this. These choices create a moody, dark movie, while typical Austen adaptations honor her bright and witty novels with color and light. At times, the lack of light and contrast also diminish the details, as it’s hard to notice much when struggling to see the characters’ faces. Overall, this adaptation feels similar to the earthy, pastoral film “Far from the Madding Crowd” (2015), based on Thomas Hardy’s 1874 novel, both stylistically and thematically. Director Georgia Oak-

sential tight curls and structure of fashionable hairstyles of the period. Elinor Dashwood in the book is a practical, quiet, reserved girl. Edgar-Jones’ portrayal of Elinor adds elements of humor and even an openness which changes the viewer’s perception of her. Demonstrating her responsibility in the family, she undertakes her youngest sister Margaret’s education. But at the beginning of the film, Elinor tackles Margaret when the girl tries to escape her studies. It’s a playful moment, but completely out of character for Austen’s Elinor.

becomes engaged to Lucy because he thinks he is in love with her, and he wants to rebel in some small way against his controlling mother, Mrs. Ferrars. In the movie, his mother arranged the match years prior because Lucy was wealthy. When her family lost their fortune, Edward secretly remained engaged to her because he did not want to desert her at her most vulnerable. This storytelling choice prompts other changes to the plot and emphasizes Edward’s honor in a way suited to modern audiences. Oakley, the director, made

like dance, but the waltz was not socially approved for use in London until the mid-1810s — and the movie is set in the late 1790s. Again, the couple’s romantic tension could have been shown through dancing which at least tries to look historically accurate to a modern viewer, such as the dancing in the 1995 “Pride and Prejudice” or the 2020 “Emma.” Perhaps the filmmakers’ strangest choice was to cast Eliot Sumner as Thomas Palmer, a side character who hardly speaks in the movie. Sumner, the nonbinary daughter of the British musician Sting, is be-

“Jane Austen’s novel is about propriety and society’s expectations as much as it is about sense and sensibility. By choosing to break with historically accurate fashion, behavior, and dances, the film missed the book’s point.” ley focused on the humanity of the story, emphasizing the grubbiness of real life and what she perceived as the reality of the late 1790s, according to an interview with the New York Times. The film played with — and ignored — 1790s fashion and hairstyles, frequently opting for a loose, modern half-up, half-down look for Elinor and always a bedraggled look for Marianne. In every scene, Marianne looks like she just rolled out of bed after showering the night before. Her hair is stringy and thin, lacking the quintes-

The film also changed Edward and Elinor’s relationship by showing their initial meeting as an awkward, tension-filled moment demonstrating an instant romantic connection. In the novel, the 23- or 24-yearold Edward is not supposed to be handsome, but the 32-yearold George MacKay definitely is. So Elinor’s awkward reaction to first seeing him makes sense — he’s a good-looking guy. But the film’s most significant change to Edward is his reason for his engagement to Lucy Steele (Ceara Coveney). In the book, Edward secretly

another interesting choice with the dances. At the balls in Devon and London, the dances are not historically accurate. The folk “hop” in Devon displays Marianne’s passionate nature and her infatuation with Willoughby, but it adds dramatic movements and lifts that are completely historically inaccurate. Instead of creating a new form, the film could have shown Marianne and Willoughby’s growing relationship through adding romantic tension to historically accurate dances. In London, Edward and Elinor share a sensual waltz-

ginning an acting career, having only played supporting characters in a few films and shows so far. “I don’t think it’s out of place at all,” Oakley told Evie Magazine. “Eliot can play Mr. Palmer just as well as the next person.” However, Palmer has an even more diminished role in the movie than the book. Side characters should not be distracting or confusing, but here, Sumner is both. In general, the film’s exclusions make more sense than the additions. The choices to cut or alter specific scenes from

the book make sense, especially since they explain skipped events well. When Marianne gets sick, for example, we see only her walk in the rain and return, soaking wet, to the Palmer’s estate, and then it jumps to the middle of a life-threatening illness. Marianne recovers quickly once she sees Colonel Brandon and Willoughby duel at dawn in front of the Palmer’s home, where she is briefly staying with Elinor. This happens off-page in Austen’s novel, but here is used as a dramatic plot device to explain Marianne’s interest shifting from the scoundrel Willoughby to the noble Colonel Brandon. Jane Austen’s novel is about propriety and society’s expectations as much as it is about sense and sensibility. By choosing to break with historically accurate fashion, behavior, and dances, the film missed the book’s point. But excellent acting and a well-written script nearly save the movie. Edgar-Jones’ portrayal of Elinor and MacKay’s of Edward reveal the depth of the characters’ emotions and show the importance of honor and respect in a romantic relationship. Perhaps more people will read classic works of literature because of the movie, though its style and themes are more similar to Victorian and Romantic novels than Austen’s. Fans of Austen’s novel will enjoy seeing Elinor and Edward’s relationship portrayed with a slight twist and find beauty in the moody aesthetic.

Student-actors show a witch and a scarecrow By Matthew Tolbert Web & Puzzle Editor Senior Maggie Saffian directed Maurice Valency’s adaptation of Nathaniel Hawthorne’s short story for her senior thesis “Feathertop” Oct. 16–18. In the play, a witch — Mother Rigby — turns a scarecrow with a feathered cap into the man Feathertop. Feathertop could remain human as long as he continued to puff on his pipe. Rigby sends Feathertop to meet a local judge, Gookin, to acquaint himself with the ways of the world he has just entered but cautions him against lies — or falling in love with the judge’s attractive daughter Polly. The judge greets Feathertop as a dignitary and shows him records indicating that other members of the local government are corrupt. Feathertop then meets Polly, hours before her lifelong friend Bob Endicott intended to ask her father for her hand, and the scarecrow is instantly smitten. When Gookin learns of this, he insists that Polly play along, even though Polly prefers Bob. But in a mirror, Feathertop and Polly see his true reflection and he recognizes that Bob and Polly are meant to be. Feathertop then flees back to Rigby, where he smashes his pipe on the ground, killing himself for lack of smoke. Feathertop was played by freshman Patrick Hennessey, and the witch was played by sophomore Celine Ibrahim,

who imitated an Irish accent for the play. Saffian chose this play at the advice of her father, who staged a performance of it in Poland. “My dad mentioned that I should look into this play,” Saffian said. “He directed it 30 years ago in Poland to a bunch of non-English speaking theater kids. During the performance their lead panicked, and he didn’t speak English very well, so he accidentally skipped all the way to the end of the show. So I dedicated this performance to Łukasz, the boy who skipped all of his lines, and I told Patrick that he was not allowed to skip all the lines.” According to Saffian, the play was a Hillsdale debut for eight of her nine actors. She said part of the challenge in directing the show centered around how to direct actors with little experience in Hillsdale theatre. “I had six freshmen and three sophomores,” Saffian said. “My biggest challenge was trying to figure out how to communicate my vision without forcing it on them.” However, Hennessey — one of the eight actors who debuted in Markel with this show — found that Saffian’s directing edified his work as an actor. “I came into the show not very confident in my acting ability because I haven’t really been trained,” Hennessey said. “When we started to learn about the language, process, craft of acting, that was very helpful for me. I grew to be a lot more confident in my

acting, and I credit that to the way that Maggie directed.” Another challenge in the performance was the love triangle between Bob Endicott — played by freshman Josh Dorfman — and Feathertop, and Polly, who was played by freshman Kara Kosage. According to Dorfman, it was a challenge to communicate Polly’s preference for Bob before Feathertop enters. “Part of the difficulty was trying to convince the audience that Polly’s supposed to be with Bob in 10 lines,” Dorfman said. “Not to have them think, ‘Feathertop’s the main character; she has to fall in love with him.’” Visiting Assistant Professor of Theatre Victoria Matsos advised Saffian on how to guide the actors’ performances. “We did a couple exercises where we talked about Polly and Bob,” Saffian said. “I did an exercise — this was my adviser’s idea — where you sit back-to-back because it creates a physical connection. Then, you just talk to each other about the backstory of your characters. Then when the lights come on, the audience is immediately sympathetic to this relationship because it feels like there’s something behind it.” Another aspect of this challenge, according to Kosage, was how to communicate Polly’s disinterest in Feathertop while still presenting him sympathetically. “There were moments where my reactions to things would dictate how the audience felt about Feathertop,”

Kosage said. “It was a balance to strike between ‘you guys should like Feathertop’ and also ‘Polly’s not into this.’” For one such event — when Polly slaps Feathertop after he kisses her without her permission — Saffian chose to walk this tightrope by presenting it as a playful, instinctive exchange rather than something more sinister. “This slap was originally blocked with a kiss on the lips. That’s assault,” Saffian said. “When we reblocked it, and he kissed her on the cheek, it follows as if Polly is responding with reflex: he’s coming close to her, she was not expecting it, and she swats him away.” According to Saffian, one of the difficult things for her to direct was Feathertop’s suicide at the end of the story. “Another challenge was having a character take their own life in the end,” Saffian said. “But it was really helpful to talk about how you handle that situation with professionalism and get somebody to act that out without digging into deep trauma.” Hennessey said he found Saffian’s instruction helpful with presenting the character’s depth. “Maggie taught me that when you’re acting, you’re not supposed to bring up real feelings in yourself to get the action right,” Hennessey said. “It was good for me to learn how to do these deeply emotionally attacking feelings — without actually feeling it.” Saffian said the entire experience was exhilarating.

“Directing is hard, but this has been the most joyful experience of my life,” Saffian said. “I found something that

I love to do with my whole heart, and I am excited to do it for the rest of my life.”

Freshman Patrick Hennessey and sophomore Celine Ibrahim. Courtesy | Charlie Cheng

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CULTURE Angel’s films fall from heaven

R E V I E W S

By Bristol Whitley Collegian Reporter Angel Studios will release its eighth of 10 films this year in theaters Nov. 6. “Drummer Boy” will follow seven theatrical releases spanning various genres and ratings. The new film, starring For King and Country lead singer Joel David Smallbone and British actress India Brown, will follow a drummer boy in the Revolutionary War and his forbidden romance with an enslaved woman. This is one of Angel Studio’s plethora of storylines created to “amplify light.” “Amplifying light” is the main driving factor in Angel Studio’s unique business model, according to Angel cofounder and Chief Content Officer Jeffrey Harmon. Named after “angel investors,” a term referring to independent investors in a show, Angel Studios uses member votes to screen and select every piece of content produced. Most directors will use test screening for audience feedback and to predict box office returns. According to Kevin Goetz, an entertainment data analyst, it is rare to find a director who doesn’t test screen. “In 2022 there were 130 studio movies that got a wide release, and I’d say that 90% of those went through a test screening, sometimes multiple times,” Goetz told the BBC. “The average movie will have three test screenings, and some will have as many as 10 or 15.” Through the Angel app, members can access short films or parts of shows that a director submitted for feedback. The members then have the opportunity to answer three ques-

tions: “Is there any part of this film that was boring?” “Is there any part of this film that was confusing?” “How would you feel if this movie never became an Angel film?” Test screening before a film is produced allows the studio to release successful films like “Sound of Freedom,” which earned over $250 million in box office sales worldwide despite predictions otherwise. In an interview with Todd Garner on the podcast “The Producer’s Guide,” Harmon explained that the Angel Guild votes on every film and series. “The biggest misconception is that the guild is going to only choose faith content or that it’s only going to choose cheesy content or not take risks,” Harmon said. Harmon offered “The Sound of Freedom” (2023) as an example. At the time, the guild only was 250,000 people, compared to the 2 million paying members now. The guild vote accurately predicted a high audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. “I think it was like 55% Republicans and 45% Democrats watching it,” Harmon said. “So it’s pretty equal on that front, and all of them universally on Rotten Tomatoes loved the movie, but that was something that was passed by the guild and it’s something that everybody else rejected.” That’s another part of Angel’s model: its goal to highlight filmmakers. “The guild is a filmmaker’s best friend because as a filmmaker, you get to come in, you submit to the guild, you’ll get hundreds of comments, especially if you’re trying to reach the values of the audience,” Harmon said. As far as the finances, the

filmmakers receive $2 for every dollar the studio makes. “We feel like when a movie takes off, that was the filmmaker that did that, not the studio,” Harmon said. These values are carefully communicated. Angel defines “amplifying light” as featuring stories that are “true, honest, noble, just, authentic, lovely, admirable, and excellent,” according to Harmon’s interview with Morning Wire. With these values in mind, the guild is free to choose the movies Angel releases. The studio is able to produce any story that lives up to these criteria, regardless of genre, topic, or age rating. Harmon explained the PG movie “Sketch” (2024) inspired the age-ranking process. It is about a young girl grieving the loss of her mother by drawing frightening pictures of her feelings with crayons, which then come alive and attack people. “There was a group inside of Angel that weren’t expecting it to be so scary,” Harmon told The Producer’s Guide. “We had to implement this feature in order not to disappoint or break the trust with our audience so that they could recognize not everything on Angel fits every age group.” The group of like-minded moviegoers now participates in a pay-it-forward ticket model. This allows users to purchase tickets on behalf of others who would not otherwise be able to afford it. These exchanges are moderated inside the website. Viewers can look forward to three new releases this year: “Drummer Boy,” “Hershey” premiering Nov. 17, and “Zero A.D.: The Birth of Christ” on Dec. 11.

October 22, 2026

Zach Bryan wrestles with ‘Young Manhood’ By Skye Graham Features Assistant Zach Bryan’s Oct. 16 EP, “Young Manhood and Other Donatable Organs,” is an eight-track project that explores the themes of youth, identity, and nostalgia. The EP blends a mix of genres, including country, rock, pop, and folk, as Bryan reflected on lessons he learned from his tumultuous youth. Bryan brought his traditional acoustic style to the first track on the EP, “Lodi When,” where he laments the happy times of a past relationship. The first verse of the song begins with the lyrics “If you could write a book on the man that you once were / Would you write about drinking or would you write about her?” Nostalgia is a thread Bryan wove through each song on the album, as he simultaneously expressed regret for his past decisions and hope for a simpler time. Bryan revealed that the EP’s title refers to a decision he made at 19 years old after his mother died, when hospital staff asked him about donating her organs. Bryan chose not to donate her organs, a decision which he said left a lasting impact on him. “Robot Killed the Working Man,” the second song on the EP, tackles the subject of artificial intelligence and automation, as Bryan yearns for a time before workers were

replaced with machines. “And this place don’t look like it looked like when I was a kid / Can’t you see what a giant step for humanity did?” Bryan asks in a sarcastic, rhetorical tone. The third song on the album, a collaboration with singer-songwriter Lana Del Rey, tells a story of two people experiencing a toxic relationship. In “Lies,” both Bryan and Del Rey admit they know the other is lying about loving them. “Truth means nothing when you look this way,” the pair sings. In “Dog Days,” Bryan takes on a more energetic, country-rock feel. The track shows Bryan’s stylistic versatility, yet carries on the same lyrical themes present in the rest of the EP. Again, Bryan takes stock of the mistakes he made in the “dog days” of his life, while choosing to right his past wrongs. Bryan expands on what those mistakes might be in the final track of the EP, “You’ll Get By.” The speaker discusses spending all his money on “women, weed, and wine,” as he came of age. But Bryan doesn’t leave the EP there. Bryan gives his listeners a reminder as the song closes: “And you’ll find God / The end of every hard road / The coming of the age is / Another practice in patience / And learning how to grow.” “Young Manhood and Other Donatable Organs” is yet another example of Bryan’s honest, reflective songwriting abilities.

New movie reckons with social media’s effects and Facebook’s faults By Elijah Guevara News Editor If you listen closely, you can hear it: that’s “The Social Reckoning” falling onto the mountain-like piles of movie sequels that couldn’t dream of living up to their originals. The film, released Oct. 9 by Sony Pictures, follows Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen (Mikey Madison) and Wall Street Journal investigative reporter Jeff Horwitz (Jeremy Allen White). The duo uncovered what would become “The Facebook Files,” a series of 2021 reports by the Wall Street Journal on how Mark Zuckerberg (Jeremy Strong) knew and did nothing about his platforms’ promoting inflammatory content and negatively affecting teenage mental health. Going into the movie, which was written and directed by Aaron Sorkin, I was almost giddy thinking of the themes and execution of the film’s predecessor, “The Social Network” (2010), written by Sorkin and

directed by David Fincher. The 2010 film was a treat filled with personal tragedy, tension, and Sorkin’s infamous quips and zingers. But “The Social Reckoning” is more of a semi-documentarian corporate exposé with little character development, stale build-up and flatter dialogue than its predecessor. “The Social Network” focused solely on college-aged Zuckerberg, then played by Jesse Eisenberg, as he went from Harvard dorm-room website coder to billionaire. That movie was Zuckerberg’s story, centered on him founding Facebook with his friend Eduardo Saverin (Andrew Garfield), whom he later betrayed for a larger share in the company (although they reached a settlement in the resulting lawsuit). “The Social Reckoning” takes place nearly decades later, in 2019–2021, focusing on Haugen and Horwitz as journalist and source, with Zuckerberg almost disappearing behind the shroud of Facebook as a worldwide corporation with unparalleled influence.

Ultimately, “The Social Network” succeeded where “The Social Reckoning” fails. The former excelled at tension, building plot points like Zuckerberg’s and Saverin’s relationship that later pay off in both good and devastating ways. But “The Social Reckoning” doesn’t offer such rewards to viewers who paid attention. The film drops big, dramatic scenes on the audience’s laps with little context, build-up, or explanation, leaving us to connect the dots to relevant plot points. For a film about a reckoning, you would think it would actually build up to and develop that reckoning. But instead of featuring relationships or basic character arcs, the movie gets bogged down in overusing statistics and data, stunting any tension. It almost makes me wonder if Sorkin had intended to write a documentary. A figure often repeated in the film is 64% — the percentage of Facebook users who joined extremist groups online after Facebook’s algorithm

sent them there, Haugen revealed. Haugen and Horwitz go on to discover that the figure was so high because Facebook promoted posts most likely to be inflammatory or misinformative, as they kept people on the site longer. In real, undramatized life, such statistics matter for understanding social media, and especially for grasping the scale of its effects across large populations. But in a feature film, without a coherent story, numbers alone fall flat. To show why the data and algorithm’s effects matter, the film throws several different scenes at the viewer that vaguely relate to Facebook, but don’t ultimately connect or build off of one another and ultimately feel disjointed. At the start of the movie, we see Haugen’s friend Kaylee get arrested for threatening to harm two police officers after she’s pulled over on the side of the road. Haugen says her friend was “radicalized” by Facebook — something she attributes to Kaylee spending more than nine hours a day on

the site. But we never see Kaylee again (only in reused phone footage from that first scene), and the other scenes Sorkin uses as evidence of Facebook’s harmful effects don’t build on it. In another scene, Haugen overhears a family speaking over dinner about their middle school-aged daughter dealing with cyberbullying. Near the film’s end, we see scenes of rioters on Jan. 6, 2021, breaching the U.S. Capitol and assaulting police officers, and are left to assume it’s because they were radicalized by Zuckerberg’s harmful algorithmic policies. That, however, isn’t explained. The Jan. 6 scene left me scratching my head the most. I’m not a fan of the events that day, but the implicit claim that it was Facebook’s policies that influenced the rioters to storm the Capitol — whether through online misinformation, non-fact-checked political ads, or President Donald Trump’s being allowed to post on social media — seemed out of place with the rest of

the story and had no prior build-up or tension. Even if that claim is somewhat true, the movie’s choice not to say it outright leaves viewers to connect the dots while wondering why we’re watching seemingly unnecessary reenactment footage of the Jan. 6 insurrection. The only vaguely consistent thread across all these scenes is the data, including that same 64% figure mentioned above, which the script repeats over and over, clinging to it as the only token evidence for its claims about Facebook’s dangers. But in a film, without anchoring that data in an overarching, flesh-and-blood story to establish the stakes, the figure quickly loses meaning. As a fan of some of Sorkin’s screenwriting, including “The West Wing,” “A Few Good Men,” and the predecessor to this movie, I was looking forward to “The Social Reckoning.” Let me spare you the trouble — stick with “The Social Network.”

Professors’ Picks: Lee Cole Chairman and Associate Professor of Philosophy

Lee Cole and his wife, Kelly. Courtesy | Lee Cole

“Interplay” by Bill Evans

“Persons” by Robert Spaemann

I do enjoy finding obscure gems, such as “good jazz made in the 1980s” — beyond Bill Evans’ “You Must Believe in Spring.” The “interplay” on this relatively unknown Bley Quartet track captures much of what I like in jazz: a sense of space that is opened up and gradually sculpted; virtuosity with restraint; intimation of themes and delayed resolution; flourishes of spontaneity that never quite sever the throughline. It’s 20 minutes of haunting, avant-garde alchemy from Bley, Frisell, Motian, and Surman.

Not my “favorite,” just one of the most insightful philosophy texts that I’ve read in the last 10 years. As a critic describes it “to rescue modernity from its own interpretation of itself,” Spaemann articulates a compelling vision of what distinguishes personal existence, what it means to be someone rather than something, by meditating upon our relationship to time, death, religion, freedom, and each other. It’s an attentive work of metaphysical anthropology, with a host of vital, ethical implications.

“Barry Lyndon” directed by Stanley Kubrick It’s been said many times, but watching “Barry Lyndon” is like passing through a gallery of oil paintings. The composition of scenes and use of lighting eclipse any other film I’ve watched — and the acting, music, costuming, etc., are incredible in their own right. When I first viewed the film in college, I had this abiding sense of “not believing what I was seeing,” despite the film’s realism. And Kubrick compels you to care about the fate of a protagonist who hardly deserves sympathy. Compiled by Gabe Gerth Collegian Freelancer

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October 22, 2026 B3

Campus Characters: Michael Bogumill

By Sophia Mandt

Collegian Reporter Michael Bogumill is a senior

physics major from Parker, Ohio. Bogumill works for Information Technology Services, is president of Catholic Society, and volunteers with Hillsdale Hospital.

What’s your favorite book besides the Bible?

I really like “Anna Karenina” because it has an incredible way of looking at the nuances of human life and communicating that most books or most authors can’t. I also learned it under Dr. Stephen Smith, who is one of the greatest professors here. So, that helped a lot. What’s your most embarrassing freshman moment? I would walk around barefoot a lot on the quad. Some people called me Barefoot Mike freshman year. That’s pretty up there. What advice would you give your freshman self?

Michael Bogumill poses with a fish. Courtesy | Max Cote

F1 from B4 F1 racing is the highest level of single-seater, open-wheel motor racing, featuring 11 teams with 22 drivers who race around the world chasing the championship. The sport is the world’s fastest circuit-racing, with maximum speeds of 230 mph. Unlike NASCAR races, in which cars race around an oval track, F1 races feature unique road courses. Sandala said F1 went from a shared interest to a journalistic endeavor because of a joke. “We were talking about it constantly,” Sandala said. “And then Catherine joked in the fall: ‘What if we actually went on

to be F1 journalists? How fun would that be?’ And then in the spring, I was super into it, and I was like, ‘Wait, Catherine, what if we actually did?’” Sandala said the two came up with their title and vision while traveling to the Intercollegiate Broadcasting System Media Awards with Radio Free Hillsdale right before the 2026 F1 season. “When we went to New York for IBS awards, that’s when we decided, ‘OK, this is happening,’ because it was right before the start of the 2026 season,” Sandala said. “We put together a logo in our hotel room in New York, and we decided what kind of content we were going to do.” Their Substack’s title comes from a famous curve at the Mon-

Sandala watches an F1 race with her friend, Anna Teply ’26. The Collegian | Alessia Sandala

Jelso from A1 Jelso’s brother, senior Jayden Jelso, said Tanner has always loved to write, and he wrote many short stories when they were children. “He started writing this book after watching the ‘Dune’ movie, and he has been heavily inspired by those types of epic scale stories,” Jayden Jelso said. “I remember when he first started writing it, and he sounded very passionate about it. I remember thinking, ‘This one’s different from the other stories because for the other ones, he

was just doing them for fun. This one sounds like something he really cares about.’” Tanner Jelso said his novel is a revenge story, where the main character Leif begins his journey after losing a loved one. Jelso uses Leif ’s quest for justice as a form of self-exploration. “I wanted to include some of my personal struggles and experiences in the main character,” Jelso said. “I used to deal with anger when I was young. I have great relationships with the people around me, but that wasn’t always the case. I wanted to explore all of that.” Jelso’s roommate, sopho-

Tanner Jelso’s debut novel, “Alavi,” will release on Nov. 1. Courtesy | Noah Fletcher

limit who you interact with and who you become friends with, because every person has Christ within them, and you want to encounter Christ with as many people as you can. Don’t let social pressure be the reason why you don’t interact with someone either because you think they’re too cool for you or not cool enough. If you were stranded on a desert island, what three things would you bring? A priest, a genie, and a yacht. What’s your go-to study spot? My room. I work for ITS, so if I’m working in a computer lab, that tends to be where I wind up studying a lot.

Sleep more. Stay involved, but don’t let FOMO be the reason why you do things. Don’t be afraid to state your opinions. You can get a lot more done in an hour than you think. Don’t let social cliches or social groups or cliques or stereotypes

What’s your favorite music genre and why?

za F1 racetrack outside Milan, Italy, nicknamed Parabolica. Sandala said since then, the Substack has provided news updates after every F1 race in the season, which started March 7 in Melbourne, Australia, and ends Dec. 6 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Each recap starts with race highlights, followed by Sandala or Maxwell’s breakdown of how the race went down and the team’s reactions to the race. The Substack also includes more in-depth stories on motorsport-related topics aimed at bringing readers into the world of racing. “We try to write at a level that everyone, even if it’s their first time watching F1, can pick up on,” Sandala said. “And write fun things, like the piece that I did after the IndyCar race in D.C., that really put you in the moment. And we also did some pieces on F1 KitKats and how that connects. It’s just like fun little stories that bring people into F1.” Maxwell said she hopes for the Substack to reach a growing number of American fans of F1. “What we’re trying to do is look at it from more of an American perspective,” Maxwell said. “Because it’s a huge international sport and it’s really big over in Europe, and its American fan base is definitely growing, but it’s not as big in the U.S. as it is in other countries.” As two new American F1 fans themselves, Sandala and

Maxwell want their Substack to reflect their own enthusiasm for the sport to reach a fresh demographic of F1 fans. “It’s a publication by two young new women fans, and that’s who we’re trying to reach,” Sandala said. “Basically, we’re trying to understand this new fandom in a way that other people can’t because that is who we are.” Maxwell added their highest priority for the Substack is practicing journalistic excellence. “Who we are as women, as Americans, that’s going to affect the things we choose to write about and in some cases, our perspective on things,” Maxwell said. “But we’re trying to create a really good product, and that’s what we want people to see first and foremost.” Sandala said she started the Substack to pursue her dream job. “The goal with the Substack is really to practice writing about F1 and motorsport in general,” Sandala said. “My dream job is to be an F1 reporter. This is the only thing I can really do right now because there aren’t a lot of opportunities to get into it in the U.S.” Maxwell sees the publication as a hobby. “It's more like a fun side hobby for me instead of something that I want to do professionally,” Maxwell said. “I just figured I enjoy watching the races, I enjoy writing about my

more Hiram Means, said that Jelso is known as the writer of Niedfeldt, as he wrote the winning script for Niedfeldt’s homecoming video. Means said their dorm room has a corkboard wall of all of Jelso’s maps and notes for the book. “There are a lot of aspiring authors at Hillsdale, including myself,” Means said. “It’s really neat to see a fellow student be able to get a

and if I found one, I would research that culture more, and what types of weapons they had and what goods they would produce for the economy or something like that.” Tanner Jelso said he enjoyed writing and expanding the story, and quickly ended up with a book over three times longer than he expected. “About a year after I had the ideas, I wrote down the outline

My taste is pretty eclectic, but I’d probably say classic rock just because it’s got the most diversity, and it’s got the word “classic” in front of it for

“I think there’s a little bit of fundie in all of us.” a reason. Fleetwood Mac, Bob Dylan, Jim Croce. How would your friends describe you? Probably relatively strange or goofy, and unopinionated. And blond. Emphasis on blond. Why did you choose to attend Hillsdale? I initially didn’t want to come to Hillsdale, and then I came here and auditioned for Choral Scholars despite not being able to sing, and that got me on campus. I realized that Hillsdale isn’t just a bunch of people in tweed suits, and that they’re all pretty cool. I wanted to come here to hang out with those people.

thoughts, so why not combine the two and also support Alessia as she’s trying to turn this into an actual career.” Sandala said that her dream of becoming an F1 reporter was cemented when she went to an IndyCar — an American openwheel racing series — race in D.C. “I was standing really close to the barrier at a point where the cars came super close,” Sandala said. “They almost touched the barrier, and you could feel it when they drove by; you could feel it inside of you, and it was just the most amazing feeling ever. And that’s really how I knew, ‘Oh my gosh, this is the thing I absolutely have to do for my job.’” Junior Morgan Milam, an F1 fan who’s contributed pictures to Parabolica from a race in Barcelona, said she loves F1 for many reasons. “What’s not to love? F1 is a sport like any other,” Milam

Why is physics your major? I chose it because I didn’t know what I wanted to do. I wanted as many options and doors to be open upon graduating that I could have. Do you consider yourself a fundie? I fall into the fundie category from time to time. I think there’s a little bit of fundie in all of us. As graduation comes near, what will you most miss about Hillsdale? My friends.

said. “It’s fun to root for your favorite teams and players, and they draw families together as well as people from around the world. With F1, it is a marriage of science and innovation with skill and hard work and it’s amazing to see. So many sports it feels like the game has already advanced as much as it can, so you go to watch teams work better together, have the best players, or strategize the best. F1 is constantly pushing the limits.” Milam encouraged others to get into the sport. “There is something in there for everyone,” Milam said. “Competitive sports, strategy, personal athleticism and capabilities, science and innovation, and more. If the sport doesn’t draw you in, then I know that the interviews and shows will. They did for me.” Maxwell will cover the United States Grand Prix on the ground in Austin, Texas, Oct. 25.

“I know this might sound biased because I’m his brother, but looking at it as objectively as possible, I do believe it’s the first book in a very long time that’s made me think of Tanner Jelso’s hopes to expand “Alavi” into an eight-book series. Courtesy | Noah Fletcher know this might sound biased ted States, with preorders the word ‘iconic.’” because I’m his brother, but available from Barnes and book published and get an audience that will read it.” Jelso is pursuing a history major and said he knows a lot about Norse, Egyptian, and Middle Eastern culture from his own research. Additionally, he researched medieval history during his writing process to fill in the gaps of his knowledge. “For worldbuilding, I researched as I went,” Jelso said. “If I thought of the city that they went to, I would know the general vibe of the city, and I would look up what culture it closely related to,

about much of the story,” Jelso said. “It was originally going to be a short book, but I had a great idea for a second part of the original story. It was originally going to be 70,000 words, but it ended up being 245,000 words.” Jayden Jelso refused to let Tanner share any of the details about the plot with him until Tanner completed the book, so Jayden could read the book completely without any prior knowledge. He finally had the chance to read it this summer. “I loved it. I thought it was amazing,” Jayden Jelso said. “I

looking at it as objectively as possible, I do believe it’s the first book in a very long time that’s made me think of the word ‘iconic.’ Because you read all these books like ‘The Lord of the Rings’ or ‘Dune,’ and you look at these characters, you say to yourself, ‘Wow, these are iconic characters.’ And you can’t really describe that feeling, but I had that same feeling when I was reading this book.” Tanner Jelso has been working with IngramSpark, a self-publishing book company. On Nov. 1, the book is set to release in 40,000 different retailers across the Uni-

Noble, Walmart, and Amazon. Jelso said he hopes to expand this book into an eightbook series. He is advertising his book and reflecting on the writing process on his Instagram @tannerjelsoauthor. “It’s really hard to traditionally publish your book these days, with all the slop going into the publishing market,” Jelso said. “And it gets to the point where you don’t get to write what you actually want, because you have to write what your publisher wants you to write.”

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October 22, 2026

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Students pick pumpkins in the dark. Courtesy | Mindy Poole

Fall brings the pumpkin harvest to Hillsdale By Megan Li

Senior Editor When freshman Rowan Woodard met senior Sam Montone in the Grewcock Student Union last week, he did not expect to be paid for picking pumpkins for three hours the next day. “Sam came up to me while I was sitting in the student union, and he was like, ‘So there’s a farm where they’re picking pumpkins, and you get paid $20 an hour,’” Woodard said. “So after my 1 p.m. class, I jumped in this truck, and we went to go pick pumpkins.” Woodard and Montone went to the Poole Farm, a farm started 18 years ago by Health Services Office Manager Mindy Poole and her husband Dan. After the couple married in 1997, they bought five acres of land. They have purchased the surrounding land over the last 20 years. With the addition of

a new field last fall, the Pooles wanted to try something different. “We have a few Amish neighbors that grow pumpkins and we talked to them. They were very helpful in getting us started,” Poole said in an email. “We planted about 10 acres of pumpkins this spring and are loading our sixth and seventh semi loads this week.” Woodard said the pumpkin fields were hilly, with stretches of mud and pumpkins “popping up in no particular order.” “What we did is we went over to a pumpkin, twisted it off the line, and moved it into a pile, so the tractor can come by, and we can efficiently move it into the tractor,” Woodard said. “We had one guy going around with clippers just chopping pumpkins off the vine, and then the rest of us would pick the pumpkins off and clean them.” Woodard said the farm sent some pumpkins to Walmart. The store required that the

A tractor hauls the pumpkins. Courtesy | Mindy Poole

Dan Poole with boxes full of pumpkins. Courtesy | Mindy Poole

pumpkins be clean, have living stems of a certain length, and could not be bigger than basketballs. “Apparently, Walmart is pretty picky about the pumpkins that they want,” Woodard said. “It’s like the classic ground orange pumpkin — easily carveable.” Woodard said over the course of three hours, he and five other workers packed one and a half semitrailers full of pumpkins, working toward a goal of 5,000 packed pumpkins by Thursday. Poole said it takes 60 large pallet boxes of pumpkins to load one semitrailer. Each pumpkin is then stickered with the broker’s label and stacked two boxes high in the barn to wait for the semitrailer. “When the semi pulls into the driveway, we have to be ready to move,” Poole said. “Dan uses our skid steer to put them in the back of the semi and our son, Reece, uses a pallet jack to push them to the front.” After each box received another label, Poole said two semitrailer loads had gone

to Aldi with 30 pumpkins in each box and to Walmart with 40 pumpkins in each box. She credited her family and friends, Hillsdale College students, and family business Poole Construction LLC’s crew for the work. Point Rental and Sales on Beck Road have also sold pumpkins for the Pooles. “We have handled between 15,000 and 20,000 pumpkins in the last few weeks,” Poole said. Poole said with students’ busy schedules, pumpkin picking often happens in the dark, lit only by tractor lights, truck lights, headlamps, and battery-powered lights. “There was always a lot of chatter over the sound of motors running. We think this is a great thing to do with our kids,” Poole said. “It’s a fun time spent together.” Montone was previously on call at the Poole farm for pumpkin harvesting and answered Dan Poole’s call to fill some large orders over homecoming week. “People have been working at all hours of the day, often 7 a.m. till well after sunset,” Mon-

Quick Hits: Julio Suarez

By Olivia Glisson

Collegian Reporter Julio Suarez is the chairman and associate professor of art at Hillsdale College. The art department is hosting an exhibit of Suarez’s paintings, titled “Unscripted: On Location Paintings from Michigan and Beyond” from Oct. 9 to Nov. 22. What is your favorite conspiracy theory? I wouldn’t say it is a favorite, but “flat earth” comes up often in Drawing I. How did you become interested in art? I always liked to draw and went to art school thinking that I wanted to draw comic books. There, I fell in love with drawing and painting from life and forgot about comics. If you were a ghost, who, what, or where would you haunt? I would go back to early 19th century France and haunt the painter Jean-Au-

guste-Dominique Ingres. I need to see if he was using an optical device to help him draw or if he was really that good. What is your dream vacation?

A summer in an Italian fishing village. I could walk down to the beach to paint the boats and eat the non-fattening pasta and gelato that they seem to have over there.

What do you like to do on weekends? Paint boats. If you weren’t an art professor, what would your job be? Part-time assistant quality assurance supervisor at the dark chocolate gelato factory.

What is your favorite part of your job? Convincing students that the world is flat. Suarez answered these questions in an email.

Describe your favorite piece of art that you own. It is a small watercolor called “The Cheese Master.” It depicts a fancy mouse wearing a cheese hat, smoking a pipe, and using a walking stick. A former student painted it for me. If you won the lottery, what would you do? I would fund a fellowship for students who wanted to stay in Hillsdale and continue working on their art after graduating. Also, I would buy a TRD Pro Toyota 4Runner and have it painted “traffic cone orange.”

“The Cheese Master.” Credit | Gillian Ruch

tone said in an email. “It’s pretty cool to be picking and cleaning pumpkins by the headlights of a tractor when you can also see the Milky Way above you. The field has great views of the stars away from light pollution.” Montone said he began to work as the point of contact between the Pooles, who inform him of orders and how much help they need, and the college students, who work around fragmented schedules and frequently need a ride to and from the fields. He now operates a “Pumpkin Harvest” GroupMe with around 60 students. “The Pooles are great people, and it’s been a blast helping them out,” Montone said. “You’ll remember it better than any two hours of homework.” Montone said the outside air is a great break from schoolwork. “Prioritizing everything that goes on in college is difficult for some, but more students should make time in their schedules to

get out of the classroom and work with their hands, especially when it’s outdoors and helping other people,” Montone said. Andrew VanDevere ’26, who was in town while Montone was recruiting pumpkin pickers, was one of those who offered to help. “I really like just being outside, working alongside friends, doing a fall activity and getting paid to have fun,” VanDevere said in an email. “It’s a ton of fun and you won’t regret it.” Poole said she and her husband are grateful for the help of the students. “It’s something we can pass down. It will make people happy and give them a chance to see God’s handywork,” Poole said. “We may plant pumpkins again next year or we may come up with some other crazy idea.”

A field of pumpkins. Courtesy | Mindy Poole

Student's Substack covers F1 races around the world By Daniel Johnson

Assistant Editor

When two Hillsdale journalism interns saw a movie in Nashville last year, they weren’t expecting to be inspired to start a car racing publication. Since March, senior Alessia Sandala and Catherine Maxwell ’26 have published a Substack called Parabolica, which features the latest news on Formula 1 racing along with analysis from a uniquely American perspective. Today, it has more than 100 subscribers. The Substack posts a recap after every race accompanied by occasional feature pieces on all things F1. Sandala also launched a podcast version of Parabolica Sept. 14. Sandala said the idea of writing a F1 Substack started with a conversation she had with Maxwell over dinner. “We had both seen ‘F1: The Movie’ when we were in Nashville,” Sandala said. “We were both interning at different places in Nashville over that summer. Somehow I started talking about F1 and how I

wanted to watch the races, and I was looking for somebody to watch with. She was like, ‘Wait, I kind of like F1, too.’” Sandala worked at The Tennessean, Nashville’s daily newspaper, and Maxwell worked at the Daily Wire, which is based in Nashville, in the summer of 2025. Sandala said that because of her family’s Italian background, she’d grown up around F1, but it wasn’t until she’d seen the movie that she began to watch the races again. “My earliest memory of F1 was when I was like five,” Sandala said. “But I wasn’t super into it then or anything. It had just been around me. But then when I saw the movie, I was like ‘Oh my gosh! Wait, this is the coolest thing ever. I should watch it.’” Maxwell said the movie came at the right time in her life to re-awaken her love for competition. “I feel like I just discovered it at the right time,” Maxwell said. “And getting into that has actually helped me get back in and care about other sports.”

See F1 on B3