Football takes thirdstraight win of season
By Christian Papillon assistant Editor
The Hillsdale football team beat Walsh University 23-20 Nov. 8 to improve to 5-5 overall and 4-4 in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference.
Sophomore quarterback Colin McKernan completed 23 of 28 passes for 242 yards and three touchdowns, receiving the GMAC Offensive Player of the Week.
“The pass game felt great,” McKernan said. “Guys were getting open like we expected and they ran the coverages we expected.”
Head coach Nate Shreffler said McKernan and freshman quarterback Eli Boyce made good reads on option plays.
“The quarterbacks have done a nice job taking what the defense is giving us,” Shreffler said. “In the run-pass option game, they have made
the right reads and made the easy throws look easy. Most of Saturday’s throws were high percentage throws, so if everyone is doing their job, the results should look like that.”
After Hillsdale and Walsh traded touchdowns in the first quarter, the Chargers took the lead for good in the second quarter when freshman kicker Dylan DeDario hit a 24-yard field goal to make the score 9-7.
Hillsdale extended their lead to 23-10 in the third quarter after McKernan connected with sophomore receiver Tutt Carrico for a 48yard touchdown pass. Walsh pulled to within three points with eight minutes left in the game, but the Chargers got a stop on Walsh’s next possession, sealing the win.
By Moira Gleason Executive Editor
Some Hillsdale professors ban the use of artificial intelligence while others demand it, two years after the provost announced that instructors would determine individually what works best in their classrooms.
“The policy of the college is that students must do their own work so that the larger goal can be served,” College President Larry Arnn told The Collegian. “The larger goal is for the students to grow into excellent people, friends, citizens, husbands, wives, thinkers, worshippers.”
Arnn said the college is considering and will consider whatever policies are necessary to serve this goal.
“To that they must pay the price of time and effort to put things into their souls that are hard but wonderful to understand,” he said. “They must suffer, as we all must. It is a joyous suffering. We must not let AI take that away. AI cannot be human, but we must be.”
The provost’s office encouraged professors, beginning in 2023, to discuss the proper
use of artificial intelligence with students and to include statements in their syllabi outlining academic honesty policies. Rather than issuing a blanket policy on the use of AI in the classroom, the college allowed professors to determine the appropriate parameters for the use of artificial intelligence tools like large language models, or LLMs, in their classes. That approach
The Humanities
The English department adopted a zero-tolerance AI policy in 2023 after every professor in the department agreed that any student using an LLM to write a literary analysis paper would be harming his or her education, Chair and Professor of English Justin Jackson said.
I think we’re all on board that the use of AI in literary studies is largely harmful to the life of the mind.”
has not changed since 2023, Provost Christopher VanOrman confirmed.
Associate Professor of Philosophy Blake McAllister said he appreciates the college’s faculty-driven approach thus far.
“It shows respect for the professors and trust in us to be able to manage our own classrooms and courses, and I think generally that’s the best policy,” McAllister said.
“It’s really that simple. So we all agreed to say ‘no.’ I wish it were more complicated, but it’s not,” Jackson said. “Maybe another way of asking this question is this: ‘In what way does your discipline allow for the flourishing of undergraduate education by the use of AI?’ We couldn’t find any reason except by way of exceptions, anecdotal, lived reasons. But we decided the exceptions do not make the rules. Every professor could have decided otherwise. Heck, even now, any professor in our department could use another system. But
The history department also opted for a no-tolerance policy, according to Chairman and Associate Professor of History Korey Maas. Any use of LLMs in brainstorming, writing, editing, or test-taking in history classes is a violation of the college’s academic honesty policy, he said.
“It’s understood that individual professors may, of course, make exceptions they might deem appropriate,” Maas said. “It’s also understood that we’ll likely need to rethink even this blanket approach in light of rapid changes, for example, even basic Google searches automatically returning AI-generated content.”
McAllister said he has found AI tools to be helpful in teaching philosophy classes and, to a lesser degree, in research. An LLM can give him a succinct overview of unfamiliar areas in philosophy and can help answer questions that would otherwise require hours of combing through secondary sources, he said.
By Elijah Guevara Assistant Editor
When senior David Meyers rounded a corner on his motorcycle just outside the City of Hillsdale in May, a deer jumped into the road and crashed into his bike, sending him flying through the air.
out in the coun try and was going about 35 mph when the deer just popped out right in front of me,” Meyers said. “I was too close to brake, and I hit it.”
crashes, according to the Michigan State Police, and Hillsdale County is ranked 15th out of 83 Michigan counties for deer-related accidents.
The crash sent Meyers into a somersault, and he landed on his knee. He said the injury took out a “hugesized chunk” of his knee, requiring six stitches and months to heal.
Meyers said he wasn’t able to walk for three weeks.
“I couldn’t bend my leg or do anything like that,” Meyers said. “It was bad.” November is the peak time of year for motor-deer
Motor vehicle crashes due to the overpopulation of deer are not a new story in Hillsdale. Michigan motorists reported more than 58,000 vehicle-deer crashes in 2024, according tosity ofigantion Research Institute, about 1,100 of which were Meyers said the inability to run or do cardio especially affected him, as he was set to attend Marine Corps Officer Candidate School that sum-
Three economics professors sign letter against Trump’s tariffs
of the student economics club
By Charles Hickey Collegian Reporter
Three Hillsdale College professors joined hundreds of economists in signing an Oct. 24 letter that describes President Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs as a “threat” to the economic prosperity of America.
Professor of Political Economy Gary Wolfram, Associate Professor of Economics Michael Clark, and Associate Professor of Economics Christopher Martin were among the 467 economists who added their names to the letter.
The letter was published by the National Taxpayers Union, an organization that lobbies for fiscal responsibility and lower taxes, and argues that Trump’s reciprocal tariffs, not trade deficits, are the real threat to the American economy.
“We have to try to speak for what we think is true and useful to the country,” Martin said. “And if each of us does that, then maybe that’ll push things in a better direction.”
The letter was released in anticipation of a ruling in Trump v. V.O.S. Selections, a case currently before the U.S. Supreme Court that will eventually decide the legality of Trump’s tariffs. Trump’s justification for imposing the tariffs in question is that large and persistent trade deficits with foreign countries constitute a national emergency.
“As economists, we know that broad-based tariffs impose net costs on the economy,” the letter says. “They divert resources from their most efficient use, while making it more difficult and expensive for U.S. businesses to access inputs and capital goods, like steel and machinery for manufacturers and fertilizer and agricultural equipment for farmers.”
Wolfram predicted the Supreme Court would rule against Trump’s definition of a national emergency — a rare occurrence for the conservative-leaning court — because trade deficits are offset by foreign investment in America, either through the building of factories or the purchases of U.S. stocks and bonds.
economy, when the real problem is “profligate spending” by the federal government.
“The key point is that trade deficits are not inherently a problem,” Martin said. “They could even be good if it indicates that we’re an attractive place to invest.”
“Trade deficits are, in fact, a good thing, and not a real emergency.”
“A trade deficit is really a sign that people want to invest in U.S. companies,” Wolfram said. “So, trade deficits are, in fact, a good thing, and not a real emergency.”
Martin said a common misconception is viewing trade deficits as a drain on America’s
According to Wolfram, Trump’s tariffs are not just legally unjustified, but also economically unsound.
“Tariffs are attacks on the people that are in your own country,” Wolfram said. “They lower the amount of things being produced in the U.S. and lead to higher prices.”
Clark said he hoped
pro-tariff advocates would realize that the vast majority of economists are opposed to the use of tariffs and reconsider their position.
Martin and Wolfram both said tariffs can sometimes be justified for the purposes of national security.
“Should we be dependent on a powerful foreign adversary for critical military stuff? Absolutely not,”
Martin said.
Economics major and junior Stephen Zhu said Trump’s tariff policy is misguided because he imposes the same tariffs on allies and international rivals alike.
“Overwhelmingly, the tariffs are on things that are clearly not of national security concern,” Zhu said. “It’s hurting us, it’s making everything more expensive, and it’s hurting our relationship with our allies. I don’t think the tariffs are helpful at all.”
Junior Brian Shia, president
Praxis, said a better economic stimulant than tariffs would be repealing the 1920 Jones Act, which he said has reduced shipping off American shores and increased the cost of transporting goods.
“We disagree on the means to achieve the ends we all want: American strength and flourishing and economic dynamism,” Shia said. “But when you look at past examples, considering things like industrialization and national security, tariffs are really not the right solution.”
Sophomore Sophia Carey said she thinks it’s admirable for her professors to critique other conservatives, like the president.
“I don’t want to be so proTrump in the conservative movement that we just lose the ability to critically evaluate what is right and what is wrong,” Carey said.
Hillsdale radio student and alumnae receive top awards in national competition
By Rebecca Nuar Collegian Freelancer
Three Hillsdale radio students placed as finalists in the 2025 College Broadcasters Inc. awards in October.
Junior Luke Miller, Erin Osborne ’25, and Lauren Smyth ’25 were all ranked in the top four for their respective categories.
The CBI awards, held annually, are a national system of recognition for outstanding radio and television production among college students.
Smyth placed second in Best Newscast or Sportscast for “Lauren Smyth News.” Smyth was involved in the radio station throughout her college career and has been recognized by CBI awards
“Sometimes, I think my colleagues interpret my willingness to dip this ever slightest of a toe in the water of AI as a bullish optimism about it,” McAllister said. “It’s not that. I have plenty of concerns about it.”
He said he allows students to consult AI tools for research in the same way they would consult a friend or a secondary source.
“Whatever you learn from AI needs to result in a kind of internalized understanding of the material out of which you produce whatever written or oral performance you’re turning in as an assignment,” McAllister said.
He said he assumes the best of his students and trusts that they will use AI in an honest way. But as a guardrail, he said he reserves the right to call any student into his office for any reason and ask them to give a defense of the arguments in his or her paper.
LLMs can be useful to students for tasks like assessing the reputability of scholarly articles, quizzing themselves on reading material, and brainstorming paper ideas, according to Professor of Philosophy Ian Church.
“What I try to tell students to do is to imagine the large language model as a bit like a quasi-omnipotent roommate who will occasionally lie to them,” Church said.
Brainstorming with a roommate is fine, he said. Asking him to write your paper for you is not.
“I still want it to be your ideas,” Church said. “I want you to be thinking through these things in concrete ways.” Church said he is toying
in the past, including first place awards she won for best newscast in both 2022 and 2024. She said she finds radio, especially newscasting, to be rewarding.
“It’s just a fantastic opportunity to be a storyteller and to see a story from a unique angle and then share that story with other people,” Smyth said. “Talking on the radio is like having a conversation over the dinner table with a bunch of your best friends whom you’ve never met.”
According to WRFH Radio Free Hillsdale 101.7 FM General Manager Scot Bertram, Smyth has a natural talent for newscasting.
“She always has a great sense about what’s important to include in a newscast,
with the idea of creating an LLM trained on the core documents in the “Western Philosophical Tradition” course that students could then use as a resource for the core philosophy class.
“Again, if you are just relying on it to just tell you what you need to know, that’s not really beneficial,” he said. “But I think it can be trained to help facilitate understanding.”
The Social Sciences Use of AI verges on mandatory for some economics, business, and accounting classes, according to Associate Professor of Economics Charles Steele.
He said he includes an artificial intelligence statement in his syllabi that states the use of AI for brainstorming, composition, researching, and editing is not mandatory but is acceptable.
“Note that in the 21st century, learning to use and control AI will be an essential part of your intellectual growth,” the statement says.
Instructor in Accounting Deanna Mackie said she still makes her accounting students analyze data without AI assistance in her “Accounting Information Systems” class. Even if they learn to use AI later on, students will need to know how to prompt AI correctly and identify errors.
“Students need a solid grasp of the accounting concepts to be able to recognize if the results from AI are accurate and complete,” Mackie said. “In the next few years I do see expanding the accounting information systems course to include AI analysis, but it will not change the need for students to understand the systems and data structures that AI is analyzing.”
which stories to put up front, how to use sound, which is very important, how to tell a story, and just a wonderfully comfortable delivery where she’s talking with you and not at you to bring the news,” Bertram said. “And that’s been rewarded multiple times over the years.”
Smyth expressed excitement and appreciation at being recognized for her work, and specially credited Bertram with having taught her what she knows about radio.
“Mr. Bertram is a fantastic leader of the radio station and he really is the one who made all of this possible,” Smyth said.
Osborne placed fourth in Best Feature News Reporting for her piece on Battle of the
The use of AI is required in the economics department’s “Practical Data Seminar,” a course aimed at teaching economics students the technical skills they need to function in the field professionally.
The class teaches students to program and write code in order to work with data and conduct economic analysis, Lecturer in Economics Eric Ragan said.
“That’s where AI really comes into our class. We use it as a tool to help facilitate the learning process for programming and learning to write code,” Ragan said. “Our basic perspective is that we think in 2025 if you’re learning to code and program that AI is such a potentially valuable tool that you would almost be foolish not to use it.”
Students are encouraged to upload the code they write to ChatGPT to help identify errors. Students must write the code itself, but the chatbot identifies errors and cuts down on the time a student would otherwise use surfing online forums to answer a coding problem.
“Spending 20 minutes searching Google to answer a coding problem isn’t making you better at coding,” Ragan said. “Maybe it builds some perseverance, but you’re not actually learning or improving your coding skills.”
ChatGPT expedites this learning process, he said, and allows students to spend more time doing hard things within the code itself.
Students are required to keep a log of conversations with chatbots as a guardrail against cheating, Ragan said. The logs also helps professors to understand how students are interacting with the chatbot and where
Bands, a music competition held by men’s music fraternity Theta Epsilon. According to Bertram, her piece stood out for its natural sounds, as Osborne interviewed attendees with the sound of the bands playing in the background.
Miller placed third for Best Documentary. His documentary was about “The Alamo of the Pacific,” a nickname for the Battle of Wake Island, one of the first battles in the Pacific after Pearl Harbor.
“In spite of the fact that we lost the battle, a massively outnumbered and outgunned American Marine force stood their ground and wreaked havoc on the Japanese naval forces, inflicting 10 times the amount of casualties they incurred and sinking sever-
it can be helpful.
Steele said he asks his economics students to cite any use of AI for his class so he is aware where they have used its assistance.
“It is impossible to enforce a ‘no-AI’ zero-tolerance policy, and practically impossible for a student to obey one,” Steele said. “I am not sure one can even use a computer today without having AI involved. It is professional malpractice to set rules one cannot possibly enforce; all this does is incentivize violations and punish those who don’t violate the rules.”
Steele said one of his former students, Ian Schlagel ’24, took him up on his offer and used ChatGPT to help him write an essay answer for a final. He documented the process as he went.
“Honestly, it was a pretty good answer,” Steele said. “I also think it was the worst answer that I got out of the entire class.”
Most of his students choose not to use AI or limit its use to outlining and proofreading, Steele said.
“I understand why those who are teaching writing and how to be a better writer do not want students turning their writing assignments over to ChatGPT. That makes sense,” Steele said. “But simply saying ‘all use of AI is cheating’ doesn’t make sense. Aristotle’s concept of practical wisdom and a ‘golden mean’ seems appropriate. And, as Aristotle teaches us, it will take work to get this right.”
The Hard Sciences Assistant Professor of Computer Science Oliver Serang said he does not allow students to use LLMs in his “Intro to Coding” class because he wants them to learn the basics on their own. Most of his assign-
al important Japanese battleships with just a few land guns,” Miller said.
Miller said he focused on that battle because of how incredible of a moment it was.
“There are few instances that better represent the American spirit than what these soldiers did at Wake Island, and they gave Americans the first glimpse of hope for victory in their darkest hours,” Miller said.
Bertram praised Miller’s production, noting that he did an outstanding job with the pacing, flow, and overall presentation of the documentary.
“This was a really excellent documentary about a story that not a ton of people are aware of and done very well with interviews and sound
ments are AI-proof, he said.
“I want people to be able to do it if they’re scratching it in sand with a stick,” Serang said. “You should be able to do it without any help.”
LLMs become useful in more advanced computer science work, either to make repetitive tasks more efficient or as an advanced search engine to find technical help for coding problems, according to Serang.
“You don’t want it to think for you,” Serang said. “It’s just not going to be as good, and also it’ll rob you of some of the joy.”
His favorite way to use LLMs, he said, is as a strategy planner to help find the best way to approach a certain problem. In this way, it is similar to going back and forth with a friend.
“There, it’s actually teaching you,” Serang said.
Assistant Professor of Physics Michael Tripepi said he does not allow students to use AI tools in his classes. But the threats AI poses in terms of cheating in his discipline are not new, he said.
“We already had this problem with homework answers being available online through websites and solution manuals,” Tripepi said. “If anything it just reinforces what I try to tell my students in my classes, that the important thing is you understand the concepts and develop insight and understanding of the material.”
AI technology is still new, he said, and it is not yet clear where science professors may be able to incorporate it in student work in a helpful way.
The Liberal Arts Framework Church said he does not see AI as a threat to true liberal arts
effects,” Bertram said.
Currently, Miller hosts a show at the radio station called “Under the Radar,” which analyzes various activities by the federal government each week such as executive orders, bills, and Supreme Court cases.
Bertram expressed optimism for next year’s CBI awards, saying that the radio students and staff hope to win but the end goal is to create content of which the students are proud.
“We don’t create content to win awards, but our content is good enough to win those awards,” Bertram said.
education.
“If anything, LLMs are only a threat to education models that are primarily about memorizing and delivering facts, because that’s the kind of thing LLMs can easily handle,” Church said. “But the heart of a liberal arts education, as I see it, is about that in-person, human-centered learning that goes beyond facts — it’s about critical thinking, the shaping of character, creativity, humane learning, and those rich discussions that AI can actually help enhance rather than replace. So I think AI can actually usher in a new era for the liberal arts by supporting those deeper, more meaningful parts of our education.”
The conversations those in higher education need to have, Church said, are about how to use AI tools to help cultivate intellectual and moral virtue. As professors become more AI literate, they will be better able to instruct students to use the tools well.
“If you are just using it to replace your mind, then your mind is going to atrophy,” Church said. “But if you use it as a tool to strengthen your mind, I think that can be a different story. And so we have to talk about what a virtuous use of these tools is going to look like.”
Steele said Hillsdale should be a leader in the ethical use of AI in fulfilment of its mission to provide a literary, scientific, and theological education outstanding among American colleges.
“We are now a national, if not international leader, in education,” Steele said. “We ought to be pioneering the way to figure out how to use this properly.”
Library reveals new Teddy Roosevelt display
By Martha Kennedy Collegian Reporter
Students can explore the life of Theodore Roosevelt at Mossey Library’s newest exhibit, displayed in the Hoynak Room and Heritage Room.
The library acquired the exhibit from lifelong collector Fritz R. Gordner this summer, according to Markie Repp, library technician for Archives and Special Collections. The exhibit began in honor of Roosevelt’s 164th birthday on Oct. 27 and will be on display into January.
“The Fritz R. Gordner collection is actually listed on the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library under research where they list the repositories of Teddy’s information like Harvard, his alum, and the Library of Congress,” Repp said. “So, outside of being a government institution or one of his historical heritage institutions, it’s a very significant collection to have.”
The collection includes objects from Roosevelt’s life and campaign, including hundreds of post cards, campaign button pins and ribbons, and two banners once hung at the Republican Convention, according to Repp.
“The exhibit is a collective look at Theodore Roosevelt’s rather extraordinary life through different political objects and memorabilia,” Repp said. “There are so many unique objects in it that it is a very valuable asset to our cur-
riculum and our holdings.”
Miles Smith IV, assistant professor of history, said historical artifacts are valuable for the college to possess and for people studying history to explore.
“If you’re someone who’s interested in history, it is completely worthwhile having those physical things that you can, if not touch, at least see and interact with,” Smith said.
Junior Abigail Stonestreet, a history student, said visiting the exhibit brought Roosevelt to life for her.
“I thought it was really well put together,” Stonestreet said.
“My only impression of Roosevelt before this was Robin Williams in ‘Night at the Museum,’ and now I feel like I know the real Roosevelt.”
Repp said seeing artifacts brings history to life in a way that reading about it doesn’t.
“Reading about history is one thing, but when you can see it and touch it, that’s another thing,” Repp said.
According to Repp, Roosevelt’s story is worth understanding.
“Roosevelt is just a dynamic character who really stands out in American history — enough that he’s on Mount Rushmore with the Founding Fathers and Abraham Lincoln,” Repp said. “He’s just an incredible figure in our history, and whether you like him or not, there’re a lot of neat items to see.”
Marriage is hard — know where to hide the body
By Elijah Guevara Assistant Editor
A loving marriage may entail the thought of killing your spouse, Marie Bellet said jokingly in a Nov. 6 panel with her husband.
“I heard it said once that if you have not come up with a plan for how to hide the body, you have not been in love,” Bellet said.
For the past 15 years, Bill and Marie Bellet, who have been married for 38 years and have raised nine children, have counseled hundreds of engaged couples, according to Marie Bellet. In the Bellets’ Nov. 6 speech, titled “The Psychology of Marriage,” they emphasized the toll that marriage can take on one’s sanity.
“Marriage is the most exciting, meaningful, rewarding, frustrating, infuriating, and demanding relationship you will ever experience,” Bill Bellet, a clinical psychologist, said.
Marie Bellet added that marriages are a witness to hope.
“It’s in the context of marriage that we create families where we pass on culture and nurture individuals with high ideals, who trust and love and who are willing to do hard things for others,” Marie Bellet said. “The home should be a place where there’s kindness, forgiveness, a sense of humor — where people are well-known and well-loved.”
The Bellets’ speech in Plaster Auditorium was interspersed with original songs about marriage and family life written and performed on stage by Marie
Bellet, who was accompanied by her son, sophomore Dave Bellet, on the guitar. Pictures of the Bellet children growing up were displayed in the background alongside the presentation.
“Once you’re married, you are in the service industry,” Bill Bellet said. “In marriage, sacrificial love is imaged, not only for ourselves, but especially for those who are watching. We are forming souls for heaven, and our marriage is our gift to the Lord.”
Marie Bellet said marriage helps transform husband and wife through the gift of self.
beyond ourselves.
“Having a strong marriage is not just about picking the right person, but about being the right person,” Marie Bellet said. “Marriage is mostly a battle with ourselves. Our spouse is simply the provocateur.”
Marie Bellet said one primary area that can create misunderstandings and cause trouble in relationships is the differences between men and women.
en say, ‘Recognize the inherent goodness and beauty within me, adore me, and I will receive you and nurture you.’ Men say, ‘Believe in me and in what I can achieve, and I will protect and provide for you.’”
By Christian Papillon Assistant Editor
People typically use religious language, such as the word faith, when talking about worldly institutions, such as elections, indicating a loss of faith in religious institutions, Notre Dame Professor of Law Derek Muller ’04 said at a talk titled, “Faith in Elections: Trust, Legitimacy, and the Sacred in American Elections” Nov. 10.
The lecture was part of the Drummond Lectures in Christ Chapel series.
“The language of faith is powerful, and is undoubtedly used rhetorically to convey
By Ty Ruddy Culture Editor
When the clock hit zero at Frank “Muddy” Waters Stadium Saturday afternoon, the Hillsdale Chargers were somewhere in Ohio, but the Frats were celebrating their 12-6 win over the Fundies in the second-annual Turkey Bowl hosted by Campus Rec. The series is now tied, with the Frats and the Fundies claiming one title each.
The Turkey Bowl brings together the men of Hillsdale’s Frats and pits them against campus Fundies, the men from other dorms across campus, in competition on the gridiron. This year, on-field frustrations turned the flag football game into a series of arguments and, eventually, a scuffle at midfield.
Teams braved 30-degree weather to join in what senior Jonathan Williams, co-head resident assistant at Simpson Residence and hype man for
something significant,” Muller said.
Muller said Americans’ recent confidence in the legitimacy of elections is low, citing a 2016 survey that said 40% of Americans had lost faith in elections.
Muller said the issue of confidence in elections is not new, mentioning constitutional amendments going as far back as the early 19th century.
“The Constitution has a lot to say about elections,” Muller said. “It’s probably not the first thing you think about the document, or even one of its defining characteristics, but just as important to the framers as
the Fundies, called the spirit of friendly competition.
“I’m really glad Campus Rec has done this. It’s sort of like El Clásico in that way. Somehow recognizing the divide, whether it’s religious or just where you live, unifies everybody,” Williams said. “You meet people you would not have known otherwise. That and it brings the men of campus together in fun, friendly rivalry.”
Still, junior Nathan Furness, who played receiver for the Fundies, said it is important not to forget that the game is also about more than friendliness.
“A little bit of togetherness is great, and we can get that from this game,” Furness said. “But what’s really important on this day is the rivalry.”
The game was scoreless through most of the first half, but the Frats drew first blood with about five minutes to go in the second quarter. Sophomore Frat quarterback George Mehan connected on a 20-yard fade route to freshman Christian Sosa. Some controversy surrounded the call because the
what this government could do would be how this government should be formed.”
Problems with the elections of early presidents and vice presidents necessitated a change in the Constitution, Muller said. Under the original system, each elector would cast two votes, and the two with the most votes would become the president and vice president.
After the first few cycles, it was apparent that the system needed to change, especially after a tie in 1800 that required 36 rounds of voting to break, he said.
“It was quite clear that there were unanticipated conse -
Fundie sideline thought Sosa dropped the ball before completing the process of the catch. When the referees ruled that the call would stand, tensions built on the field and lasted until the final whistle.
On the next drive, the Fundies responded with a score of their own. Thanks to a few acrobatic catches from sophomore Jed Hamilton, they executed a successful four-minute offense and found themselves in the red zone with two minutes to go in the half. Sophomore quarterback Frank Fehringer found Hamilton from 10 yards out for a touchdown and the game was tied heading into halftime.
During the break, Campus Rec provided Buffalo Wild Wings for both teams and spectators.
Fundies coach and junior Joseph Vankat made a few adjustments for his team after the first half but said that for the most part, he thought his team played well.
“We have a size advantage in the trenches. We’ve been hoping to take advantage of that,” Vankat said at halftime. “After the first couple drives, we settled in and we’ve been running the ball much more effectively, and then we got some good passes.”
He also said that the Frats’ touchdown drive did not worry him.
“We’re just gonna keep doing what we’ve been doing. We just had some mishaps that one drive so we’ll flush that away and
“Marriage is mostly a battle with ourselves. Our spouse is simply the provocateur.”
“Marriage demands that we get out of our comfort zone and out of ourselves,” she said. “But the bad news is marriage demands that we get over ourselves, and that is always a painful process.”
Marie Bellet said successful marriages are rooted in service rather than the culture of victimhood that is prevalent today.
“People today tend to tell themselves that the difficulty of relationships is not their fault, that the expectations of a relationship are often unreasonable, or that they should not have to put up with a flawed individual,” she said.
Instead, she said, we should not blame a flawed individual for not meeting our needs, because marriage asks us to look
“Men are oriented outwards toward the world and action,” Marie Bellet said. “They are single, focused, and wired for productivity. Women are more receptive to people and are oriented toward nurturing and the subtlety of relationships. They are wired for connection.”
Bill Bellet said this leads to men and women having different emotional needs.
“Men need an affirming and receptive spouse,” Bill Bellet said. “Women are like a battery that energizes men and gives meaning to their efforts. They love when a woman is peaceful, confident, and playful — it makes it feel like everything’s OK in the world.”
Bill Bellet said for marriage to work, men should communicate effectively with women, and women should respect and affirm men.
“What do we need from each other?” Bill Bellet said. “Wom-
Marie Bellet said ultimately, marital sacrifice is not just about the dramatic and noticeable sacrifices, but also about the things no one gets credit for. “Most sacrifices are not even noticed by the very people you are sacrificing for,” Marie Bellet said. “Most sacrifices are just really irritating. And if you simply accept the small irritations, and are free of all that simmering resentment, you can see what’s good in your spouse again.”
Sophomore Madeleine Fleury said she found the talk to be insightful, and she liked how the Bellets incorporated music into their presentation.
“I think using Marie Bellet’s music was a super unique and great idea,” Fleury said. “I think it is so wholesome that she made songs about relationships, her family, and her life. It gave us a beautiful piece of their family dynamic.”
Freshman Bo Brannon said the part about loving one’s spouse despite their differences stood out to him.
“I like how they said you’re always going to have differences,” Brannon said. “Trying to focus on seeing the good in the other person and also learning to love those differences is really important for any successful marriage.”
Alumnus unpacks the meaning of ‘faith in elections’ in Drummond
quences from this system of elections that required changing that system in the 12th Amendment,” Muller said.
Muller also cited the 17th Amendment, which instituted the direct election of U.S. senators, and the 24th Amendment, which eliminated the poll tax, as other times the Constitution changed to increase confidence in elections.
“These are all debatable propositions, but the unmistakable pattern is that we have this practical wisdom to learn from our experiences,” Muller said.
Muller said a lack of faith in elections could be a distraction from God’s providence.
come out stronger in the second half,” Vankat said.
Play became heated in the second half and eventually the frustration spilled over and a scuffle broke out at the 50-yard line. The pushing and shoving resulted in multiple penalties against both teams. Sophomore Benny Cote said he thought the Frats handled themselves well.
“I think we also did a fantastic job staying calm and composed, even when the game wasn’t going our way, unlike the Fundies,” Cote said.
The only score in the second half came on a Mehan tush push in the third quarter.
Cote, who led the Frats with five catches and sealed the game with an interception late in the fourth quarter, attributed the win to the defense.
“The game was a battle all the way through, but we really won the game on the defensive end, picking off washed-up quarterback Frank Fehringer four times and sacking him over 10 times,” Cote said.
Despite the loss, Williams said the Fundies put up a valiant fight, and he looks forward to watching this tradition continue.
“This was not the outcome we wanted, but the Fundie squad played great,” Williams said. “Joe and I couldn’t be more proud of the Fundies. I think I have to come back next year to see where the Turkey Bowl falls.”
“To lose faith in elections might be to fail to remember God’s providence,” Muller said. “To place our faith in worldly things threatens to replace God’s providence with manmade institutions.”
Muller said the requirements for a good election are a lack of corruption and an independent judiciary.
“Elections are not flawless,” Muller said. “Nevertheless, we can still have confidence in those elections, at least as much confidence in worldly institutions as we can.”
Freshman Jonah Meduna said he found the lecture interesting.
Lecture
“I hadn’t really put much thought into the implications that faith may have on democracy and elections,” Meduna said. “It was a cool way to look at it.”
Freshman John Copeck also said he enjoyed the lecture.
“Overall, I’ve always thought that there was a sense in which there was a religiosity about elections and about how much faith we put in them,” Copeck said. “In putting so much faith in elections, we overinvest in the temporal sphere, and how if we put more of our faith in spiritual things, we will be able to trust the democratic process more.”
Student Fed. nominations open through Nov. 14
By Christian Papillon Assistant Editor
The Hillsdale College Student Federation is accepting nominations for independent officers and representatives through 5 p.m. Nov. 14.
Student Fed is made up of two independent representatives per academic class, three at-large representatives, and one representative from each Greek house, according to junior and Student Federation secretary Josiah Jones.
To obtain a nomination, students need 10 signatures on a form that they can submit at a kiosk outside the Student Activities Office.
While the Greek houses will nominate their own representatives, Jones said any independent student is eligible for a nomination, as long as they will be at the college for the 2026 calendar year.
Students will also elect four officers from the current representatives, who will each serve a term for the calendar year.
Jones said serving on Student Fed is a good way to connect with the rest of campus.
“I highly recommend that you run for Student Federation,” Jones said. “It’s a great
opportunity to gain leadership skills and just to learn about what’s going on on campus. We have clubs that come for funding that I didn’t even know existed, and then suddenly I show up at their meetings because I’ve now learned that they exist.”
Director of Student Programming Rachel Marinko said serving on Student Fed is a way to be involved in multiple aspects of campus life.
“It’s a very behind-thescenes job, but it is a lot more important than people give it credit for, because you are actively participating in helping all the clubs on campus be successful,” Marinko said. “It’s a way to make sure all campus clubs are running smoothly, which is unique. You can’t do that if you’re in leadership for just one club.”
After nominations are complete, students will then vote for representatives Nov. 17-21. During the election, Student Fed will have a table during mealtimes where students can vote. Students will vote for up to five independent representatives, with the top two from each class, and the top three of the remaining students gaining seats on Student Fed.
Frat from A1
Opinions
Congress, stop giving China AI tech
By Daniel Johnson Collegian Reporter
One of Congress’ jobs is to protect the American people. Yet a key Senate committee is standing by as we hand over cutting-edge U.S. artificial intelligence technology to China, undermining national security and enabling the oppression of the Chinese people.
Congress has wisely restricted the sale of advanced chips and AI technology to China, but senators on the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs are failing to close a key loophole: using U.S. cloud computing services to access our technology.
Trust Tolstoy over Fuentes
By Caroline Kurt Opinions Editor
According to Nick Fuentes, we have an epidemic of “Christian simps.”
“I don’t feel like we have an abundance of affection from women,” the far-right influencer said. “Women are not providing too much. They expect so much from the men.”
In his now-viral Oct. 27 interview with Tucker Carlson, Fuentes criticized men who respect their wives as best friends and equals while bemoaning the scarcity of marriageable women, as if his attitude toward the former had nothing to do with his perception of the latter. For someone who regularly defends traditional marriage, Fuentes is profoundly pessimistic about the institution. Even Carlson, in an otherwise cozy interview, pushed back against Fuentes’s claims.
“All I would say is that, in a happy marriage, all of that goes away,” Carlson said to Fuentes’s juvenile litany of complaints.
It’s tempting to dismiss Fuentes’ take as just one drop in an ocean of crazy. Yet the political commentator, at only 27, has gained a massive parasocial following of young men, many of whom respect and adopt his views. It ought to concern followers of Fuentes that he gets such a fundamental institution of human society terribly wrong.
Fuentes sees marriage as a business merger, not a covenant, which allows him to reduce the union to a scornful calculation of give and get. All the best and happiest fruits of marriage — children, intimacy, fidelity — are predicated on both spouses’ complete and total surrender of self.
“What am I getting out of this?” is a question that never even enters the picture.
Don’t take it from me — my wedding is still eight months away. Take it from Leo Tolstoy, who was married for 48 years when he died in 1910. In the first epilogue to his masterpiece, “War and Peace,” Tolstoy presented a vision of incredible marital
happiness. The former socialite Natasha and prince Pierre have wed and become dedicated parents, leaving their old selves behind.
Natasha, Tolstoy tells us, is uninterested in matters of petty justice between spouses, the sort Fuentes cannot shake.
“These questions, then as now, existed only for those people who see in marriage nothing but the pleasure the spouses get from each other, that is, nothing but the beginnings of marriage, and not its whole significance, which consists in the family,” Tolstoy writes.
Pierre, we learn, is what Fuentes would label a “Christian simp” — and Natasha the female equivalent. Pierre’s many years of Fuentes-esque bachelorhood did not make him a great man. Natasha did.
“After seven years of married life, Pierre felt a joyful, firm consciousness that he was not a bad man, and he felt it because he saw himself reflected in his wife,” Tolstoy writes. “Only what was truly good was reflected in his wife; all that was not entirely good was rejected. And this reflection came … as a mysterious, unmediated reflection.”
Can we imagine such happiness in a union in which the husband constantly asks himself whether his wife is “expecting too much from him”? Complete self-sacrifice makes marriage marriage.
We should pity Fuentes. If he sincerely believes what he says, he is one of the many Americans who have seen too few examples of strong, happy marriages, and thus cannot imagine what one would be like.
But we do not have to live by his bitter logic. If young men adopt Fuentes’ attitudes toward dating, they will never attract the kind of women worth marrying. Better to trust Tolstoy over Fuentes and give yourself away.
Caroline Kurt is a senior studying English.
chosen to chase corporate money rather than protect their constituents. After passing the House, the measure stagnated as tech lobbyists intervened to preserve these loopholes — according to disclosure reports — as said loopholes are lucrative for tech giants like Microsoft. The bill is not currently up for a future vote.
China, a totalitarian state whose stated ambition is to become the dominant world power by 2049, is the United States’ primary geopolitical competitor. Though free trade has many benefits, granting the U.S.’s biggest opponent access to our most advanced technology compromises our national interest.
China has been accessing advanced AI chips, the specialized circuits designed to handle complex artificial intelligence tasks ranging from robotics to military simulations, by renting cloud computing services from U.S. corporations, bypassing restrictions on hardware. Stateowned Chinese companies use cloud services such as Microsoft Azure and Amazon Web Services from American companies to access advanced AI models otherwise unavailable to them.
The Remote Access Security Act has sat in committee since September 2024. Senators on the committee have
The AI chips of concern, such as the Nvidia A100, are integral to advanced military simulations, research in models that imitate human intelligence, and surveillance systems. While accessing these chips, China can both sharpen its military capabilities and further its suppression of dissent.
Allowing Chinese companies to rent American cloud computing space comes with economic benefits. But those benefits aren’t worth heightening the threat that China poses to U.S. national security.
American technology is already a key part of China’s Orwellian surveillance sys -
tem — one they use to quash dissent, persecute religious minorities, and carry out the Uyghur genocide. By renting out these cutting-edge AI systems, U.S. companies are well on their way toward doing the same for China’s military.
We ought to regulate the sale of AI technology and services to foreign actors in the same way we do arms sales: treating the technology as a military asset and considering how it could or will be used by the customer nation as such.
While regulation does impede economic efficiency, the cost of further regulating the transfer of AI technology to China is less than the cost of protecting ourselves from AI-enhanced Chinese surveillance, espionage, and weaponry.
In failing to limit China’s access to the latest American innovations, Congress is empowering a malevolent nation with the ability to undermine the U.S. The Senate’s inaction also endangers other like-minded Western democracies and enables China to more effectively oppress its people.
This isn’t the first loophole Congress has left open. In 2024, China bought more than $20 billion in chip-making equipment from U.S. companies to bolster its own circuit-building industry. If
the Senate fails to act quickly, we will continue to strengthen China’s competing interests at our expense.
Tech giant Nvidia argues that cutting off these loopholes will only drive China towards competitors. But, according to the FBI, China steals up to $600 billion in intellectual property from the U.S. each year. Clearly, the U.S. has something China can’t get anywhere else.
Closing these loopholes puts America first. While the U.S. cannot and should not try to, as George W. Bush once said, “advance the cause of freedom everywhere,” we shouldn’t grant our totalitarian competitors technology that directly strengthens their ability to subvert American security and oppress their own people.
Any senator on the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs who cares about our national security should act now to pass the Remote Access Security Act. And President Donald Trump, instead of loosening restrictions on tech in his ongoing negotiations with Beijing, should tighten them.
Daniel Johnson is a sophomore studying the liberal arts.
The Big Apple has big amnesia
By Adriana Azarian Assistant Editor
New Yorkers have just elected an antisemite who cozies up to radical Islam as mayor. Zohran Mamdani’s victory signals voters’ alarming ignorance about their city’s history, from the tragedy of 9/11 to the more than 300 antisemitic hate crimes reported since Hamas attacked Israel two years ago.
During his campaign, Mamdani portrayed himself as a relatable millennial from an immigrant family. Mamdani’s social media accounts feature humorous videos about his policies and his Muslim background — see his video entirely in Arabic. But behind his charismatic persona, you’ll find a man who identifies with radical Islamic figures and organizations as well as blatant antisemitism.
While campaigning in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn, Mamdani met and posted photos of himself with Imam Siraj Wahhaj, an alleged co-conspirator in the 1993 attacks on the World Trade Center. Wahhaj called the CIA and the FBI the “real terrorists,” when in fact members of his own mosque had killed six people in the attacks.
Wahhaj has also denounced American ideals of liberal democracy in favor of Islamic law. Yet Mamdani called him “one of the nation’s foremost Muslim leaders and a pillar of the Bed-Stuy community for nearly half a century.”
Lest we chalk it up to ignorance, Mamdani has confidently condoned terrorist organizations in the past. During his short-lived rapping career, he sang in his song “Salaam”: “My love to the Holy Land Five./ You better look ’em up.” Perhaps his voters should have taken his advice.
The Holy Land Five Foundation, an Islamic charity organization, provided material support to Hamas and financed Hamas-controlled committees.
The U.S. government designated it as a terrorist organization in 2001.
The Council of American Islamic Relations was named a co-conspirator in the HLF trial. CAIR’s legally separate but closely tied action committee also backed Mamdani and donated more than $100,000 to his campaign.
Nearly one in eight New Yorkers is Jewish, but Mamdani’s record with Jews has been abysmal. He has dodged calls to condemn the phrase
“globalize the intifada” — an increasingly common, pro-Palestinian battle cry over the past two years. The intifadas were two Palestinian uprisings, the first lasting from 1987 to 1993 and the second of which killed 1,000 innocent Israelis between 2000 and 2005. Democrat and Republican politicians alike have condemned the use of the phrase.
“I am someone who, I would say, is less comfortable with the banning of certain words, and that I think is more evocative of a Trump-style approach of how to lead a country,” Mamdani said on the “FYPod” podcast.
After dodging the question and offering alternative interpretations of “intifada,” Mamdani eventually said, “I discourage its use.” Gee whiz.
In late October, Mamdani reminded the people of New York that the real victims of the 9/11 attacks were actually New York Muslims.
“I want to speak to the memory of my aunt, who stopped taking the subway after Sept. 11 because she did not feel safe in her hijab,” Mamdani said outside the Islamic Cultural Center in The Bronx.
Mamdani did not explain why his aunt — it was his dad’s cousin, he later clarified — felt
unsafe on the subway. And no doubt, innocent Muslims became targets of suspicion after 9/11. But Mamdani is tone-deaf to the physical and psychological scars that New Yorkers carry to this day because of radical Islamic extremism. New York deserves better than a mayor who skirts around, if not openly supports, radical Islam.
But maybe Mamdani is onto something. Perhaps 9/11 isn’t fresh enough in the memory of New Yorkers anymore. Perhaps the rise in violence against Jews hasn’t been enough to convince New Yorkers to protect their Jewish neighbors. New Yorkers elected Mamdani because they don’t remember who they are: the city that united after the tragedy of 9/11, that welcomed persecuted Jews, that raised immigrants seeking freedom to the heights of success. Whether the reality of Mayor Mandani will wake New Yorkers up remains to be seen. It’s up to you, New York.
Adriana Azarian is a senior studying politics.
Akitsu's Indian food wowed me — and I've had my grandma's Letter to the Editor
By Joshua Mistry Fast Food Correspondent
When I saw on Instagram that Akitsu Kitchen was serving Indian food, I had to give it a try. I’ve eaten butter chicken my whole life, and my grandma has perfected the recipe. Aktisu Kitchen's version was amazing.
For $15 and a 15-minute wait, Vince Cañate served up
two delicious Indian chicken recipes last week. The butter chicken came with warm rice and butter naan. The rich and creamy Indian curry was made with tender pieces of marinated chicken simmered in a silky tomato, butter, and cream sauce. The mild spice kick balanced savory warmth with a bit of sweetness and tang from the tomatoes, and Cañate killed it with this dish.
In a previous Collegian review, “Akitsu Kitchen spices up Hillsdale cuisine” (Nov. 6), Ameera Wilson said the portions were small and the price was high. Though Cañete’s portion sizes were not massive, the flavor and texture easily made up for that. While the price may seem high for Hillsdale standards, there's nowhere better to get fresh and tasty Asian food in Hills-
dale. Akitsu Kitchen offers the people of Hillsdale a chance to experience high-quality ethnic food that they cannot find anywhere else in town. Not everyone will like Cañate’s dishes, but when missing a taste of home, I’ll go to Akitsu.
Joshua Mistry is a senior studying politics.
Tucker Carlson offers the 'marketplace of ideas'
Elijah Guevara Assistant Editor
Conservative cancel culture over Nick Fuentes is mistaken and absurd
The conservative right is full of questionable and unpleasant figures. Canceling them is not the solution.
Since Tucker Carlson hosted far-right persona non grata Nick Fuentes on his show Oct. 27, The Daily Wire’s Ben Shapiro, Sen. Mitch McConnell, radio host Mark Levin, and many others have condemned Carlson for giving Fuentes airtime.
The backlash is grounded in clear rationale: Fuentes is notorious for racist, sexist, and antisemitic rhetoric. During his appearance on Carlson’s show, he continued spouting conspiracies of “Jewry” undermining the America First movement and even described himself as an admirer of Joseph Stalin.
For many conservatives, Carlson’s decision to plat -
form Fuentes — without many hard, direct questions or concrete follow-ups — is almost akin to espousing the controversial beliefs that Fuentes holds.
But some of the uproar toward Carlson has crossed the line from criticism to efforts of cancellation.
Levin implied on his radio show that Carlson and Fuentes should be alienated from the mainstream conservative discourse altogether, saying, “You don’t debate them. We patriots have no tolerance for these lowlifes, these Neanderthals.”
Watchdog organization
StopAntisemitism said Carlson “must be ostracized from public forums, insider circles, and every place in between.”
Last week, senior and Collegian Editor-in-Chief
Thomas McKenna wrote in his opinion, “Tucker Carlson is not your friend,” that Carlson “doesn’t deserve your
trust or a place in the conservative movement.”
Since when did conservatives support cancel culture?
Any viewer has the right to criticize Carlson for not challenging certain bad ideas and asking tougher questions, and we should. We should engage with these interviews critically and thoughtfully. But criticism is one thing. Cancellation — the calls to oust Carlson from the conservative sphere — is another matter entirely.
Public figures calling for Carlson’s alienation from the conservative movement have inadvertently created a form of cancel culture on the right. First of all, this should alarm us to the hypocrisy of conservatives who decry cancel culture yet deploy it against their own. But secondly, the efforts to cancel Carlson are rooted in a fallacious equivocation: that Carlson’s interview with
Gamble on: Sports betting teaches self governance
By Maxon Versluys Collegian Freelancer
Michigan began allowing sports betting back in 2019. Since then, it has become easier and easier to participate in and has commanded massive news and media coverage. Though many raise concerns that college students ought not gamble, the students of Hillsdale College should not be barred from sports betting.
According to Seton Hall University, over half of Americans believe that sports gambling should be legal, and according to Michigan law, mobile, internet, and casino sports gambling are legal for those over the age of 18. But legality alone is not what determines whether students should bet on sports.
Nowhere in the Christian tradition is gambling inherently a sin. It becomes immoral or sinful when done rashly, in excess, or with resources that should be used elsewhere. While it can be abused, placing wagers on games is not an intrinsic evil, but rather a matter of prudence. Like with alcohol or nicotine, discerning Christians should have the freedom to make decisions about their lives and face the consequences — good or bad — of their actions.
The University of California San Diego reports that legalized gambling worsens irresponsible behavior in many people. Clearly, it is not for everyone. In the hands of responsible fans, however, sports gambling can strengthen community and teach self-governance. Without the freedom to make mistakes, self-governance is impossible. Sports gambling gives Hillsdale students an opportunity to learn how to govern themselves and their desire for competition. Rational, cautious, and informed wagers can promote self-governance — even the decision to stop gambling.
Hillsdale senior Robert Lindau said he enjoys the communal aspect of sports betting.
“My friends and I can put down a few bucks on short or long odds and enjoy watching what happens to our money,” Lindau said. “We are able to throw together parlays, look at money lines, and just enjoy sports in a whole new light.”
Sports gambling can unite fans in a whole new way. When people put money on the line, they have more reason to cheer — or commiserate — with one another. Take fantasy football: Many men play in leagues with gambling and find relationships and community with other guys who share the same passion for that sport.
Hillsdale College students with this competitive and communal drive should not forgo sports betting entirely. With the proper precautions, they can find recreational and communal entertainment in placing wagers on their favorite sports teams. The college preaches self-governance, and sports betting is a valuable way to teach students how to manage their finances and time effectively.
Maxon Versluys is a freshman studying the liberal arts. Illustrated by Maggie O'Connor.
Fuentes amounts to an endorsement of Fuentes’ beliefs.
Make no mistake: Fuentes’ worldview is at best immature and at worst dangerous. But Carlson’s decision to platform Fuentes is not equivalent to an endorsement.
As Carlson explained in a text exchange with Levin, his stated role as a podcast show host and interviewer is to offer the “marketplace of ideas.”
To assume that he agrees with the ideas and worldviews of whomever he has on his show is not only mistaken — it’s absurd.
When the president of Iran, Masoud Pezeshkian, appeared on Carlson’s show in July and claimed Iran never sought a nuclear bomb, Carlson did not challenge the claim during the interview.
Although some may call it bad journalism, no reasonable viewer labeled Carlson an Ira-
nian nuclear program denier and demanded his removal from conservative politics.
Likewise, after Carlson interviewed President Vladimir Putin of Russia in February 2024, Carlson’s decision not to interrupt or fight back on Russian justifications for the war in Ukraine did not make him a puppet of Putin.
If we employ the same logic used to smear Carlson after the Fuentes interview, at this point, Carlson would simultaneously be an antisemite, white supremacist, Iranian nuclear program denier, and Putin apologist. But this is not the case.
To provide the marketplace of ideas is to give viewers the entire menu, however distasteful it may be. Carlson doesn’t believe everything Fuentes does. But by inviting controversial figures like Fuentes onto his show, Carlson is attempting to preserve
something he knows is far greater than himself: open, political discourse put on full display, regardless of how ugly the conversation gets.
Canceling someone because you disagree with them does not open dialogue. Instead, it shuts down any chance for conversation and unilaterally decides that only those with a certain set of views should be heard at all. That is not conservatism — it’s conformity, and it’s blatantly un-American.
Conservative discourse should include many voices espousing many viewpoints — that’s the beauty of America. No matter who Carlson invites onto his show, that shouldn’t be taken away.
more studying history.
Nobody wins in betting
By Francesca Cella Collegian Reporter
Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier III was arrested last month for allegations that he participated in a sports betting scheme. Allegedly, Rozier told bettors he would fake an injury and remove himself from a game in March 2023.
The Rozier scandal reveals the ugly underbelly of sports betting. It doesn’t just affect the 25-year-old men who wager their rent money on how many touchdowns Patrick Mahomes will throw in Sunday’s game. It takes a toll on athletes and sports culture by reducing players to mere statistics.
Before the rise of sports betting, an opposing player getting injured might be an occasion to recognize your team’s increased odds of winning, but it didn’t warrant much more than that. Even the most avid fans respectfully cheered the limping player off the field while rejoicing that there was one less obstacle to victory. But that was only fervent team spirit.
ter chance of bringing home winnings. Selfish motives, not epic rivalries or longstanding loyalties, motivate this fanbase.
It’s no longer player against player. It’s player versus gambler. The gambler sees the successful player of an opposing team as a threat to his winnings and the potential object of a future bet. Gone are the days of supporting the Lions through years of losing records. Why hope for a failing team to scrape together a winning season when you can be the winner in your next FanDuel bet?
Sports betting is a pub -
Now, sports bettors who wagered their money on the underdog have good reason to leap out of their seats when an opposing player injures himself and spends the rest of the game on the bench. Their player has a better shot at getting all 12 rebounds they wagered he would and a bet-
lic health crisis, according to Mark Gottlieb, head of Northeastern’s Public Health Advocacy Institute, with half of men between 18 and 49 participating in the gamble.
Americans bet $148 billion on sports in 2024, which was a 23.6% increase from the previous year. Gambling companies know how to keep the numbers skyrocketing. The gambling company FanDuel now owns the primary station that televises the Tigers, Red Wings, and Pistons, Michigan’s most popular professional teams. The number will inevitably increase — Michigan is one of 38 states that have legalized sports betting since 2018, not including the two most populous states in the country, California and Texas. As sports betting becomes more common, athletes have more and more money staked on their every move. A single assist can mean hundreds of dollars to some gamblers. Athletes feel the pressure, too. In the 20232024 championship basketball season alone, athletes received 540 abusive betting-related messages over social media, including death threats. This will only get worse. It’s time to stop treating athletes like video game characters. Recognize their prowess by good, old-fashioned cheering, not by adding them to your gambling roster. Keep your money in your pocket and save it for peanuts at the next home baseball game.
Francesca Cella is a junior studying English. Illustrated by Maggie O'Connor.
A new quad: 'STEM' is a bad term for Hillsdale natural sciences
By Eleanor Degoffau Senior Reporter
Most people assume that because I’m a physics major, I’m a STEM major — but at this college, that acronym doesn’t describe me, and it doesn’t describe anyone else at Hillsdale either.
Sure, I’m majoring in a subject that falls under the STEM categories of science, technology, engineering, and math.
But the acronym is more than a catch-all term for quantitative subjects. It’s a phrase that emerged as the battle cry of a secular education whose ultimate goal is to create a skilled American workforce — an educational philosophy that contrasts with the ultimate goal of Hillsdale College: to develop minds and improve hearts.
Yet even at Hillsdale, a bastion of classical education, many students call themselves STEM majors without realizing the ideological differences — and we don’t even offer technology or engineering degrees.
The term is now so pervasive, it's the norm in our culture to call any technical subject STEM. But Hillsdale College students should refrain from using this term because it in no way accurately describes the purpose of our science and math courses.
The National Science Foundation introduced the STEM acronym in 2001 as a re-arrangement of the previous term SMET. The improved term rose to prominence in education when President Barack Obama used it to launch “Educate to
Innovate” in 2009, a series of education partnerships and funding streams aimed at growing America’s technological workforce.
This is what STEM is — four technical subjects taught for the purpose of practical application in a society.
This contrasts with the liberal arts education offered here at Hillsdale, especially as offered in the core curriculum. Rather than focusing on the practical, a liberal arts education teaches the fundamental ideas and principles behind subjects. In science and math, this approach encourages students to appreciate the natural world for its own sake, and as a result, to appreciate its creator. This is why I came to Hillsdale College to study physics, rather than a renowned research institution.
My friends studying engineering at other colleges know more about fluid dynamics and architectural physics than I do. But my physics curriculum has focused on the core principles behind every idea in physics, which not only gives me a head start in learning almost any concept, but also deepens my appreciation of the underlying beauty and structure of the universe.
The acronym STEM has its place when describing jobs in the workforce, because jobs are, by nature, focused on practical application. Career Services does not need to change the name of the STEM, Healthcare & Research Job Fair.
Practical application of ideas and knowledge, or getting a job, is never a bad goal for education, especially in
college. I’ve learned skills to get a job in STEM myself, or in some way my degree would not be fulfilling its purpose.
But the best part about focusing on fundamental ideas is it also prepares people for applying those ideas in many situations. Many Hillsdale College science and math majors go on to have successful careers in STEM jobs.
Instead of using STEM at Hillsdale, it would be more accurate, although nerdy and not as catchy, to use a different term for a four-subject grouping: “Quad” students.
This term originates from the classical education term “quadrivium,” an ancient word for the four liberal arts of arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, and music. Unlike STEM, the quadrivium focuses on teaching students
how to appreciate the beauty and order in nature for its own sake, rather than on how to manipulate nature for their own ends. It also groups music with the natural sciences, highlighting the deep connections between music and mathematics.
The term probably won’t catch on — the residents of Howard Music Hall might protest being associated with Strosaker Science Center — but it’s better than lumping a fundamental and beauty-based education with its practical, secular opposite. Let’s return to the root of science and math education — not the stem.
Elijah Guevara is a sopho
Eleanor Degoffau is a senior studying physics.
City News
Mayor, council consider updates to 1958 city charter
By Moira Gleason
Ex E cutiv E Editor
The special meeting of the Hillsdale City Council lasted less than three minutes Monday evening before the council declared a recess. The council will reconvene Nov. 17 to swear in city officers elected last week.
The meeting fulfilled an obsolete provision in the Hillsdale City Charter, which requires the council to meet the Monday following an election. But because the timeframe for certifying elections has been pushed back in recent years to accommodate mail-in ballots, the election has not yet been certified by the board of canvassers.
“We can’t swear in the officers on the day that we’re supposed to according to the charter,” Mayor Pro Tem Joshua Paladino told The Collegian. “We called the meeting to order to meet the charter requirement and then recessed it so we can call it back to order next week when we can actually swear in the officers.”
It’s not the only provision in the charter that is now obsolete or illegal due to changes in either state laws or internal operations since the current city charter was last ratified in 1958.
It’s also a preview of how the city charter might change in the coming years.
Mayor-elect Scott Sessions told The Collegian he is open to amending the charter to correct
By Anna Stirton collEgian rEportEr
Hillsdale’s newest resale store, 517 Thrift Shop, opened in September af ter more than a year of preparation.
The shop’s owner, Andrea Dixon, said the store has been a dream of hers since childhood. The thrift shop offers a variety of refurbished clothing, furniture, dishware, and decor at low prices.
Growing up, Dixon said she remembers help ing her mom put on yard sales and hoping to do some thing similar on a larger scale. For the past five years, Dixon has been looking for an opportunity to start working on her dream. That opportunity finally arrived when her parents purchased a building on the corner of Willow and Oak streets and offered to rent part of it to her.
obsolete provisions like the one that required Monday’s meeting. Paladino, who endorsed Sessions’ opponent for mayor, said he would like to go further with a complete revision of the charter in favor of a stronger mayoral office.
State law
State law has superseded multiple provisions in the charter, including election date (section 3.6), elected officers (section 3.17), primary elections (section 3.12), nominations (section 3.13), form of ballots (section 3.18), canvass of votes (3.19), and compensation of mayor and councilmen (section 4.4), according to Paladino.
The charter also references positions that don’t exist anymore, such as municipal courts, which were abolished when the Michigan constitution of 1963 was adopted.
“This charter really probably should have been rewritten in the 1960s,” Paladino said. Paladino said the charter should now be updated to bring the document into line with current state law.
“It’s not like a constitution, because it’s not a fundamental law in the same way,” Paladino said. “It’s a fundamental law for the city. But every time the state constitution or state statute changes, a city charter is superseded if there's a contradiction. The charter is not the governing
document for the state.”
Michigan’s Home Rule Act allows communities to make revisions or amendments to the city charter as needed. Revision implies re-examination and restructuring of the entire document, while amendments imply the correction of details, according to the Michigan Supreme Court.
Charter revisions may be initiated by a resolution adopted by 3/5 of the legislative body or by a petition signed by at least 5% of registered voters, according to the Michigan Municipal League. Voters would then approve or reject the resolution and select a nine member charter commission to revise the charter. Amendments may be proposed by 3/5 of the members of the legislative body or by petition.
A change in the form of government would require a charter revision.
Council-Manager System
Hillsdale is one of 174 cities in the state with a council-manager system, according to the American City County Exchange. Under this model, the city council carries out general governing duties, and the council appoints a city manager to oversee the day-to-day operations of the city.
The mayor of Hillsdale chairs city council meetings, exercises limited appointment authority, and retains the authority to act
“My dad was like, ‘Hey, you want to do your thrift store?’” Dixon said. “I’m like, heck yeah!”
The building was just the first piece of the puzzle. For nearly two years leading up to
By Francesca Cella collEgian rEportEr
Hillsdale’s American Legion Post 53 named 97-year-old Lois Cogswell one of Hillsdale’s best bakers in a competition hosted during its annual Buck Hunter’s Ball Nov. 8.
Competitors donated baked goods for the ball’s dessert auction and entered a sample of their treats to the judges in the pie, cake, or cookie categories. The ball also featured a gun raffle and a prime rib dinner.
Cogswell took first place in the cookie contest for banana oatmeal pecan cookies from the Betty Crocker Cookie Book, with a few tweaks.
opening day, Dixon said, she would head to the store’s space after her day job and spend the evenings planning layout, buying shelving, building racks, and searching for merchandise. While some of her merchandise is donated, Dixon said much of it she purchases herself, sometimes buying entire yard sales.
“I didn't really tell anybody that I was doing it,” Dixon said.
“The banana oatmeal cookies are from the cookbook, but with a little added to it,” Cogswell said. “It doesn’t call for any vanilla, so I put vanilla in, and I put in butterscotch chips. People always like my oatmeal cookies.”
Cogswell said she started baking when she was 8 years old to help with chores at home.
“I was brought up on the farm, and there were eight children,” Cogswell said. “My mother would be outdoors, and for us gals, that was our job, doing the cooking and getting the dishes done. A sponge cake is the cake we always made at home, and I still make it.”
Andrea McCormick’s choco-
as a conservator of the peace in the case of riots and disorder.
“The mayor’s only real executive authorities are the ability to appoint people to boards, commissions, and a few departmental positions with the consent of council,” Paladino said. “So even that power is limited. It’s not a direct executive power. It’s an executive power checked by the legislative branch.”
Paladino said he thinks the city would benefit from abolishing the council-manager system of city government and shifting to a model where the council and mayor are more involved in the operation of the city.
“The current charter was built explicitly on the progressive model where politics and administration are separated,” Paladino said. “So the idea is that there are political decisions that the city council makes, and then there are administrative decisions which the city staff are left free to make on their own. And I just think experience has proved that this doesn't work in practice.”
Some municipalities in Michigan use mayor-council systems. In a mayor-council government, the mayor is the chief executive of the city, elected separately from the city council.
The mayor-council system may employ either a strong or weak mayor. Detroit, Michigan, uses a mayor-council government with a strong mayor, who
“I just lowered my hours at my other job and did it pretty much by myself here.”
Hillsdale College junior Jacqueline Roth, who recently visited 517 Thrift Shop for the first time to find a new outfit, said she was impressed by the business.
“You walk in and it’s really cutely decorated with the items that are for sale,” Roth said. “The owner did a really good job of putting everything together aesthetically, and everything was pretty well organized. It was easy to navigate the store and explore the different items available.”
Dixon said that she hopes to reach more college students as the business finds its rhythm.
“I definitely want to do college days in the future, when we do like 20% off for students,” Dixon said.
Roth said she believes college towns like Hillsdale benefit from thrift stores.
“I think it gives students another way to find high-quality items on very limited budgets,” she said.
While 517 Thrift Shop is not a nonprofit, Dixon said
she hopes to invest in the surrounding community through her business. She plans to help pay for children’s community sports over the summer and to donate to local initiatives for breast cancer awareness.
Unlike other thrift stores, Dixon said she makes sure to wash all the clothes and dishes and fix anything that is broken so people can find items at a relatively low price, while still clean and operable.
“I want people to be like, ‘OK, I can wear this when I get home,’ or, ‘I can put this on my kids,’” Dixon said. “Even things like putting batteries in toys if they need them is something I make sure to do,” she added, “because there are people who can buy a toy for their kids, but then they can’t afford to go buy the battery.”
Store employee and Hillsdale resident Jadyn Murphy said that one of her favorite things about working in the thrifting in dustry is the dynamic nature of the enterprise.
has appointment authority and veto power. The city of St. Clair, Michigan, has a weak mayor who presides at meetings of the city council but has an equal voice and vote as every member of the council and no veto power. A mayor-council system would give elected officials more knowledge of what is going on in the city and would provide a clear line of authority, Paladino said.
“If you’re not involved in the operations of the city government, you can’t really make informed decisions on political or policy matters,” Paladino said.
Ward 3 Councilman Gary Wolfram said he would object to changing the structure of the city charter to strengthen the mayor’s office.
“They’re not paid enough,” Wolfram said.
The money to pay the mayor for full-time work would have to come from the budget, Wolfram said. With the current structure, the mayor and city council members don’t have to spend their time overseeing day-today operations. They approach the role as a part-time job and receive a small stipend for their work.
“There’s only so much money in the budget,” Wolfram said. “So you could spend less on roads or less on police.” Wolfram said he does not see a necessity to alter the charter
“If it maybe is not quite up to quality, most bigger companies would just toss it, but we can fix it or lower the price.”
However, the negotiating element of the business model can also be challenging, according to Dixon.
beyond adding a few footnotes to mark the provisions that have been superseded by state law.
Possible Updates
Sessions said he would like to revise the charter to bring it in line with state law and to make it possible for those who do not live within city limits to serve on boards and commissions.
“I would work collaboratively with the operations and governance committee and the city council to review and identify any areas that may need revision or improvement,” Sessions told The Collegian.
Sessions said he is against changing the council-manager system.
“My primary concern with adopting a strong mayor form of government for Hillsdale is the potential risk of electing an individual who may lack the necessary experience or understanding to effectively manage the operations of the city,” Sessions said. “Under the current city manager form of government, the mayor and the city council have the ability to appoint a qualified professional who possesses the expertise and the knowledge required to oversee the city’s day-to-day administration in the best interest of the Hillsdale residents.”
“Probably the biggest thing I’ve had to just let go of is people’s opinions on my store,” Dixon said. “I usually don't really care about what people think, but it has actually really bugged me when some people come in here and argue and criticize the pricing or stuff like that.”
“One unique thing is that we can kind of negotiate prices on things we sell,” Murphy said.
late cupcakes with peanut butter frosting placed first in the cake category. McCormick said she entered the contest after someone brought her a flier for the baking competition.
“At work, one of my coworkers put the entry form on my desk because I bring stuff in all the time, and she said, ‘I think you could win,’” McCormick said.
McCormick said her coworkers often hire her to bake desserts for their family events and count on her to bring dessert to their monthly potluck. She said they will move the potluck to ensure she attends — with her desserts.
“One time I brought meat-
balls and everyone was like, ‘Where’s the cheesecake or cookies?’” McCormick said.
“They move the potluck if I have paid time off that day.”
McCormick said she enjoys baking as a hobby because it’s rewarding for her and brings joy to others.
“For me, it’s relaxing to create something, and I like making people happy,” McCormick said.
According to judge Joe Falater, Kim Dokurno’s apple pie was the tastiest dessert of the evening. The pie, made with locally grown apples, earned Dokurno first place in the pie category.
“Apple pie is a classic and a favorite,” Falater said. “It’s impossible to be disappointed with
a good apple pie.” Falater said judging the desserts wasn’t complex.
“It was just by personal taste and what appealed to me the most,” Falater said. “I’m not coming from a food critic perspective, but from the perspective of someone who’s eaten a lot of dessert over the years.”
Steve Strachn, the chaplain of the American Legion, said he had a lucky win in the gun raffle at the Buck Hunter’s Ball several years ago and now makes a point of coming.
“Four or five years ago, I won the main prize, I think, so I don’t miss them anymore,” Strachn said. “It’s a prime rib dinner and
While most shoppers’ responses have been positive and supportive, Dixon admitted that she has realized she can’t please everyone.
“It hurts my feelings, because I work really hard and a lot of hours were taken away from my kids and my family,” Dixon said. “But at the end of the day, it doesn’t matter what they say, because it’s going great.”
Despite challenges ranging from financial obstacles and time constraints to difficult customers, Dixon said she is grateful for how everything has worked out.
“Even though I didn’t have everything planned out at first, I just started because I knew this is what I wanted,” she said. “Sometimes you just have to go for it and do it, and trust that everything will fall into place.”
always a good event.” Strachn said he purchased pumpkin bars and applesauce cake in the auction because he wanted to bring dessert home.
The event is a good chance to connect with other people, according to Falater.
“It’s a nice way to get together with friends and neighbors and enjoy the evening,” Falater said. For the bakers, McCormick said, it’s a chance to bake their favorite recipes for an appreciative crowd. “They taste it and they’re like, ‘Oh, this is really good,’” McCormick said. “That makes me happy.”
Jacqueline Roth looks for a puzzle. AnnA stirton | CollegiAn
Lucy Bachiochi shops for a new sweater. AnnA stirton | CollegiAn
Hillsdale County honors local veterans
By Adriana Azarian and Gemma Flores AssistAnt Editors
Fifty people gathered outside the Hillsdale County Courthouse Nov. 11 at 11
a.m. to honor former soldiers at the Veteran’s Affairs Office’s annual Veterans Day memorial.
“It’s the time to honor veterans that served in the military. It’s what that day is set aside for. For both veterans who are with us and veterans who are deceased,” said Renae Shircliff, director of the Hillsdale County Veteran’s Affairs office.
The memorial included a performance from the Hillsdale High School choir and a keynote speech from state Rep. Jennifer Wortz, R-Quincy. Attendants also placed wreaths on stone crosses in front of the courthouse to show reverence for Hillsdale’s fallen soldiers.
“We have the women from the Daughters of the American Revolution present wreaths for each war. We
put them up front toward the grey stones that are there at the courthouse,” Shircliff said.
In her speech, Wortz expressed gratitude for growing up in a place that emphasized the importance of honoring the men and women who give their lives to protect the country.
“In the family that I was raised in here in Hillsdale County, we honor all who served, the living and the dead,” Wortz said in her speech. “I’m so thankful that I learned at an early age that it is our responsibility as residents of this state and this community and the United
States of America, to hold in high regard those who have fought for our country and to honor the sacrifice of those who have given their lives and served.”
Peter Jennings, associate professor of Leadership Studies, served as a Marine Corps infantry officer for 14 years with three combat tours in the Gulf, Iraq, and Afghanistan. He said those who did not answer the call to serve should not only express heartfelt gratitude to veterans but also spend time in prayerful thought and meditation.
“Do you really understand that your life was bought for you for a price, that our lives are not our own, that we’re called as Christians, and as men, and as republican citizens of this country to consecrate ourselves, to set our lives apart in sacrificial service to others, without expectation of reward?” Jennings said.
“Whether that’s our wife or family, our community, our country, they’re all our neighbors.”
Longtime police chief, Scott Hephner, announced he will retire effective Dec. 1.
Collegian Archives
Local tech startup develops academic AI detection software
By Henry Fliflet Coll E gi
A Hillsdale resident and Hillsdale College professor co-founded a tech startup aimed at bettering education in the face of rising levels of artificial intelligence plagiarism.
Associate professor of Economics Charles Steele and Joel Stewart started American Education Technologies in response to what Steele said is a crisis in American education.
“America was built on entrepreneurship,” said Stewart, president of AET. “That’s what made us so great. And the only way we’re going to make America great again is allow people to start doing things, start working, and start getting stuff done.”
The ultimate goal for AET, Stewart said, is to provide certifications for people who have taught themselves job skills by building a platform where they can receive credit for their work.
Steele said he joined AET as the director of academic strategy and innovation after a conversation with Stewart.
“He and I were talking
Deer from A1
Although Meyers was able to begin running again just two weeks before he went off to OCS, he said he would advise anyone who wants to ride a motorcycle in Hillsdale to wear the proper gear, which he was not when he crashed. “A deer can hop out right in front of you, at any time, even if you’re going the speed limit,” Meyers said. “Especially on a motorcycle now, I drive well below the speed limit.” Hillsdale Mayor Pro Tem Joshua Paladino said the city allows bow hunting within city limits, but that it would likely not allow sharpshooting to cull the deer population anytime soon.
about education, and he had a really interesting point. He said that education in America has failed in many respects,” Steele said. “People need to learn how to take care of themselves with some practical skills, and they also need a Hillsdale, liberal arts style of education so they know how to live a good life.”
Stewart said that AET will start by addressing one of the major problems threatening the legitimacy of any education: plagiarism using artificial intelligence.
“Our first problem to tackle is the issue of AI plagiarism, along with our concept of having this universal credentialing system idea is the goal to create an education marketplace,” Stewart said. “Everybody learns differently — we want to be able to credential people who took classes, took some courses, learned from professors or tutors. And one of the issues is, if we have an education marketplace, and people are writing papers, how do we know they’re not writing papers with AI?”
The AI plagiarism aspect of that long-term strategy, Steele said, was particularly interest-
didn’t want to look into deer population culling.
“We didn’t seek any information to help us make a decision: number of crashes, estimated cost in property damage each year, estimated danger to human life and health — crashes, tickets, et cetera — or cost of culling,” Paladino said.
However, Paladino said,
ing to him as a professor.
He said he allows the use of artificial intelligence in his classes if students acknowledge how they used it, since
that totally blocks AI so that, as a student, you have to use your natural intelligence, assuming you have it. But there are no one-size-fits-all solu-
place.
“So this is a solution for people
of caution as Meyers.
“My wife and I are really careful if we’re driving at night,” Steele said. “The deer are so thick here in Hillsdale County. We live just on the edge of town, and probably half the time, we see a deer on the way home.”
Steele’s wife was driving him in their Ford F-150 below the speed limit when a deer
himself how to build software that blocks AI
roughly $6,000–$7,000 in damage, according to Steele. Steele said he would like to see a special late hunting season to cut down on deer overpopulation.
“People back in these late hunting seasons in Montana could use crossbows and rifles, and the game wardens also came in with rifles and shot a few of them off of peo-
use, which he said is currently being reviewed for a patent.
“The idea is to get the plagiarism tool on the market and then use that as a gateway to the larger educational platform idea,” said Turner Korotzer, a junior at Hillsdale studying economics and the director of communications technology for AET. “It’s going to be a viable product that any institution, like a school or college, could adopt.”
The current version is still a basic proof of concept, Korotzer said. He added that the process of building it from scratch was an example of the confidence and entrepreneurship the company is trying to foster.
“None of us have extensive coding experience, but we were able to build an alpha version of it, with some help from AI,” Korotzer said. “AI helped us build out, just like a concept of what this could be.”
“A more American education” is the company’s motto, according to the AET website. Stewart said that this phrase came from a question: what kind of education did America’s founding fathers have?
“Most of them didn’t go to
“I was just coming back into town late one night, going probably 40 mph, when a deer darted out from the side,” Hickey said. “It went under and just crumpled the entire front right of my car.”
Hickey said the collision bashed in his right headlight and the radiator. The damage was estimated to cost $4,000 to repair.
college or even graduate from college,” Stewart said. “Yet they were obviously wise and very intelligent. So how on earth did they get that knowledge and their wisdom without attending college? They self educated.” Stewart said that his day job, refueling nuclear power reactors, reinforced his confidence in people’s ability to self-educate and study.
“When I show up to a nuclear plant, I take a few days to a week in classes to prove that I know what I know,” Stewart said. “Every single time I go there, I have to prove that I still know this. You don’t need to have a college degree to tear a nuclear reactor apart and move nuclear fuel. You just have to be able to do it.” Steele said he is looking forward to seeing what AET becomes.
“We’re going to get this thing ready to be rolled out and then tried somewhere, and some school system, or some college,” Steele said. “There’s no reason why this wouldn’t expand across the United States.”
cautiously,” Hickey said. “There are three spots in particular in town where I’ll usually see deer crossing the road, whether it’s a whole family or just one, and I’ll drive really slow. That’s the best thing you can do — when they dash out, there’s really nothing better you can do about it.” Steele said he would be willing to help reduce the deer population and make the roads safer if residents were given permission.
there has been some progress toward allowing culling, such as Rep. Jennifer Wortz's work on legislation to make it easier for farmers to cull deer due to the current lack of hunters.
suddenly ran out in front of the truck.
“In the past, the city has hired sharpshooters to reduce the population,” Paladino said. Paladino said the council
Associate Professor of Economics Charles Steele, who hit a deer with his truck this month, offered a similar word
“There was no way to avoid it,” Steele said. “My wife hit it head-on as she was hitting the brake, trying to slow down. It was kind of a surprise and just came out of nowhere.”
The deer took out the front grill of Steele’s truck, causing
ple’s porches,” Steele said. “Here in Hillsdale, they seem to be much more restrictive. They really need to manage some of this stuff a bit better.”
Sophomore Charles Hickey recounted a similar story of hitting a deer with his Volkswagen Jetta in Hillsdale last year.
A commuter to the college, Hickey said he takes much more caution when driving to and from campus.
“Now, I drive much more
“Turn me loose with some of my students and the Outdoor Adventures Club with spears, and we’ll take care of it,” Steele said.
“We’ll get the job done.”
The Hillsdale Exchange Club placed crosses by the courthouse to honor veterans. Alessi
Joel Stewart co-founded the local tech startup.
Symposium
Hillsdale baseball players discuss if big
Big-market teams monopolize
- Rocco Tenuta, junior
Major League Baseball should have a salary cap because it would make the game more fun to watch. Right now, big teams like the Yankees and Dodgers can spend way more money than smaller teams like the Pirates or A’s. That means the big-market teams usually just buy the best players and win more, which isn’t fun to watch. If there were a limit on how much each team could spend, every team would have a better chance to compete, and it would be
more interesting every year. A salary cap could also stop player salaries from getting too crazy and help keep ticket prices lower for fans. Smaller teams would be able to keep their good players longer instead of losing them to richer teams. For example, a team like the Pirates cannot afford to sign a superstar like Paul Skenes, so he is going to leave Pittsburgh for a big-market team after his rookie contract is over. I think this is bad for baseball in general, and a salary cap would be a good idea.
Chargers
Most teams spend too little
-
Nate Albanese, freshman
As a Cleveland Guardians fan, my team consistently has a payroll in the bottom quadrant of the league and it is very frustrating seeing teams like the Dodgers buy championships. But I am against the implementation of a salary cap. For one, it would be a logistical nightmare. Players are already on mega deals that span years into the future that would definitely go against the proposed cap. If it were implemented, it would have to be many years from now. Secondly, I do not see the
problem with MLB as teams spending too much, rather teams are spending too little. A high payroll does not make a team inherently good, “low” payroll teams such as the Guardians, Brewers, and Tigers still manage to compete; however, if owners spent just a little more money to put these teams over the hump they would also contend for a World Series. The idea of a salary floor has been kicked around, and although it sounds interesting I have not looked into it enough to comment on it.
A bigger pie is better for fans
- Winston Delp, junior
Major League Baseball should not impose a salary cap. The league’s “pie” — its total revenue and fan-engagement opportunity — is growing, so it’s beneficial when the top slice grows too. In fact, MLB reported record revenues of $12.1 billion for the 2024 season, representing more than a 33% increase from about $9 billion a decade ago.
As the overall pie expands, the fan experience improves. We get better stadiums, more broadcast investment, and more top-level talent on the field elevating
By Robert Matteson Collegian Reporter
The Hillsdale women’s basketball team was picked to finish fifth in the 2025-26 Great Midwest Athletic Conference Preseason Coaches Poll, but Charger players and coaches say they’re poised to make another GMAC title run and earn a second consecutive NCAA tournament berth.
men, four sophomores, and four freshmen.
“Our team is going to be a lot deeper this year than we have been in the past,” Brennan said.
The Chargers’ NCAA tournament appearance last year has become the new standard for the program, according to senior guard Emma Ruhlman.
“We should be able to get back there every year now,” Ruhlman said.
the entire product. Rather than limiting the big spenders so they match the conservative ones, we should allow investment and market differentiation because that growth lifts everyone. And when smaller-revenue teams respond with creativity, strong farm systems, shrewd trades, or unique branding, you still get the classic American underdog story — which only adds to the excitement for fans across the league.
forward Sydney Pnacek.
“It gives us more motivation to prove everyone wrong yet again,” Pnacek said.
In terms of playing style, the Chargers led the conference in rebounds per game last year and have worked hard in the preseason to establish themselves as more of a defensive-minded team, according to Brennan.
“We really pride ourselves on our defense and playing unselfish basketball,” Pnacek said.
The team’s culture and style of play have been enhanced by their three core values: gratitude, love, and respect, according to Brennan.
“This is very much how we want to live our lives off the court, but it’s also a direct representation of how we want to play too,” Brennan said. The Chargers will open their season at home against the University of Illinois Springfield in the Dawn Tibbetts Potter Arena Nov. 14 at 5 p.m. and then play again at home against Purdue University Northwest Nov. 15 at 7 p.m.
“Our players do such a good job of representing themselves in our program that we hope people want to come support our games and be a part of our success every step of the way,” Brennan said. “Come out, support, and cheer loudly.” The
“Our inner circle of our players and staff is so confident that it is not going to be a rebuilding year,” head coach Brianna Brennan said.
Brennan was named the 2024-25 Basketball Coaches Association of Michigan’s Women’s Basketball Coach of the Year in April. She is set to lead alongside assistant coaches Abbey McNeil and Sophia Pierce this season.
The Chargers went 21-10 overall last year, finished as the GMAC runner-up, and made the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2017.
The Chargers’ season concluded with a 61-56 loss to Northern Michigan University in the NCAA Division II Midwest Regional.
The Chargers graduated their two leading scorers, Lauren McDonald and Caitlin Splain, as part of a six-person senior class. The team is returning with six upperclass -
The Chargers are using the preseason ranking as extra inspiration going into the season, according to junior
— Compiled by Christian Papillon
Sophomore Magdalena Sularski at their first practice. Courtesy | Ashley Van Hoose
Junior Annalise Pietrzyk and sophomore Emilia Sularski go for a shot. Courtesy | Ashley Van Hoose
Season starts with GMAC aspirations
By Jayden Jelso Collegian Reporter
The Hillsdale men’s basketball team aims to win the Great Midwest Athletic Conference in the upcoming season, according to junior CJ Yarian. They finished third in the GMAC overall with a 2010 record last year.
“We’re a hungry team,” Yarian said. “We’re very young and there are a lot of opportunities for everyone. I think everyone’s ready to go, ready to play.”
Though the Chargers lost in the semi-finals of the GMAC, head coach Keven Bradley said he is confident for what is to come.
“I think the biggest opportunity for us this season is finding ways to be a little more consistent on the road,” Bradley said.
“We played a lot of really close games last season and we had some that didn’t go our way. So we’ll try to be a little bit better, a little bit tighter, and a little more efficient in late games.”
take constructive feedback well.
“They’ve done a great job listening to senior Cole McWhinnie and me and some of the older guys on the team, and then taking that and being productive on the floor,” Janowski said. “They’ve been great additions, and I’m excited for their growth throughout the season.”
At the team’s first open gym of the preseason, Janowski tore a tendon in his foot and has missed many of the workouts because of it.
“We're a hungry team. We're very young and there are a lot of opportunities for everyone.”
Bradley, who is entering his third season as head coach, has a win-loss record of 48-20. He said the upperclassmen members of the team have embraced the five freshmen who joined the program this year.
“Our older guys do such a great job with the younger guys, not only showing them the way and the standards and the expectations of the program, but also embracing them as their future teammates and brothers,” Bradley said. “That’s a huge credit to the senior captains, with their willingness to take them under their wings.”
Senior captain Ashton Janowski said the freshmen
“There’s been a lot of rehab,” Janowski said. “I’ve been in the training room and I’ve been doing a lot of physical therapy exercises. I’m trying to get my conditioning back up. It’s kind of the main thing that you lose when you’re out for so long. But the best ability is availability, and I got to be there on the floor both for my team and also as a leader. ”
Yarian said one way the team builds camaraderie is with a trip to Italy every four years. Every team member has an opportunity to go.
“We went for 10 days this summer,” Yarian said. “We went to Rome, Venice, and Florence, and we played three games out there. We were able to build a connection with each other through that to start the year, which we usually don’t have.”
The first game of the season will be both against and hosted by Saginaw Valley State University at 7 p.m. Nov. 14. The Chargers will then play Saginaw Valley a second time for their first home game in the Dawn Tibbetts Potter Arena at 3 p.m. Nov. 16.
What is one thing that you can’t live without? Chick-fil-A.
What is your favorite football moment of your life?
Senior year of high school we played a game through pouring rain and two lightning delays. We won as underdogs and everybody was dancing in the locker room postgame. The bus ride back after the game was great, too.
Do you have a hidden talent? I can dribble a football.
Have you ever signed an autograph and if so, what’s the strangest item you’ve ever signed? I've signed a couple autographs, but not on anything strange, so probably a shirt.
Men and women finish 11th in final meet
By Anna Stirton Collegian Reporter
Sophomore Ally Kuzma took runner-up honors at the recent NCAA Division II Cross Country Regional Championships in Kenosha, Wisconsin, punching her ticket to the NCAA DII National Championships. On the team side, both the men’s and women’s cross country squads placed 11th in their final race of the season.
Kuzma crossed the line of the 6K race in a time of 20:42.02,
just four seconds behind the defending NCAA DII national champion and Grand Valley State University runner Lauren Kiley.
Head coach R.P. White said he was thrilled with Kuzma’s performance.
“Ally did exactly what we had set out to do,” White said. “She was in a top-five spot early and made sure that she was saving something. It was tremendous for her to be a sophomore in that kind of high-pressure situ-
ation and handle herself as well as she did.”
Kuzma said she was personally satisfied with the way her race went.
“Going in, the goal was to get top five, a guaranteed spot for nationals, so I was very happy with my placing,” Kuzma said.
Junior Eleanor Clark was the next scoring runner for Hillsdale, finishing in 30th place with a time of 22:00.8.
White said he has been impressed with Clark’s athletic growth, especially this season.
“What an awesome career she has had thus far,” White said. “It really just kind of came to fruition this season.”
Three freshmen rounded out the scoring runners for Hillsdale, all achieving personal best times. Grace Tykocki placed 90th in 23:09.2, Caroline Roberts placed 95th in 23:15.6, and Mavis Banks placed 127th in 23:49.9.
performing their best on the ultimate scene,” White said. On the men’s side, senior Gabe Phillips earned All-Region Honors with a 10th-place finish and a personal best time of 30:42.5 in the 10K race. He was followed by junior Caleb Youngstedt, who placed 32nd in 31:41.7, and senior Nathaniel Osborne, who placed 66th in 32:25.2. Freshmen John Richardson and Jefferson Regitz rounded out Hillsdale’s scoring runners, earning 75th and 105th
White said he was pleased with the way the freshman athletes have stepped up on the women’s team.
“They did a really nice job
places in 32:34.1 and 32:59.9, respectively.
Youngstedt said he was disappointed with the overall results of the meet.
“We did not perform as well as we had hoped,” Youngstedt said. “But a handful of guys had PRs, and our freshmen who had never run a 10K before did really well.”
While most of the team is now finished with the 2025 cross country season, Kuzma will represent Hillsdale at nationals in Kenosha, Wisconsin, Nov. 22.
Chatter
If you could play a round of golf with three other people, which three would you choose?
Scottie Sheffler, Tiger Woods, and Robbie Berger.
If you didn’t play football, what other sport would you play?
I would want to play golf but I'm not good enough, so it would have to be baseball.
If you could eat one meal for the rest of your life, what would it be?
Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo.
What is the best and worst Christmas gift you have ever received?
The best I ever got was a trip to Disney, and one time I got the same Lego set I already had, so that was disappointing.
Compiled by Robert Matteson
Photo Courtesy | Hillsdale College Athletic Department
Sophomore Ally Kuzma pushes into the finish.
| Ashley Van Hoose
Seniors Emil Schlueter and Nathaniel Osborne after their last race. Courtesy | Ashley Van Hoose
Senior Anna Roberts and freshman Mavis Banks stick together after the start gun. Courtesy | Ashley Van Hoose
C harger S port
Volleyball
Chargers extend win streak to six on Senior Day
By Grace Brennan Assistant Editor
The Hillsdale volleyball team took the win in a five-set match against Walsh University Nov. 7, and swept Malone University at home Nov. 8.
The Chargers now stand 10-3 in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference and 12-10 overall, with senior Adi Sysum also named the GMAC North Division Volleyball Athlete of the Week.
The Chargers started their first set against the Walsh Cavaliers with 15 kills in a 25-18
set win. The Chargers lost the second set and were close to letting the Cavaliers take the third, trailing 23-19. A 4-0 run by the Chargers tied the set at 23, and the team fought off two set points to get to 25-all.
Freshman Grace Drake helped the Chargers win the match with two back-to-back kills, ending the set 27-25.
“Set three was definitely an important point in the game for us,” Drake said. “We showed that we had lots of fight left in us and the grit we would need to finish the game, which both showed up in the
last set.”
The Cavaliers took set four 25-21, forcing the game into set five, which the Chargers took 15-6.
“In the fifth set, senior Josie TeSlaa was very aggressive with her serve, which made it easier to set up a great block,” sophomore Ellie Fles said. “Once we had the momentum, we didn’t look back, and it just felt like big play after big play. I’m proud of our resilience and grit.”
The Chargers won Saturday’s game against the Malone Pioneers in a 25-15, 25-14, 25-
Football
“The offense started fast, which is always helpful to build momentum early,” junior receiver Shea Ruddy said. “We also played with physicality and determination. Our quarterback play was particularly good this week, which is always great to see from those guys.”
Ruddy picked up 102 receiving yards, 89 return yards, and 11 rushing yards. Ruddy is first in the GMAC in all-purpose yards this season with 1,304, and is 199 yards ahead of second-place Ronald Blackman of Tiffin University.
Ruddy credited Wide Receivers Coach Ryan Stokes with his success.
“I really enjoy kick return yards because it is such a hard unit to succeed in,” Ruddy said. “It takes all 11 guys to do their job. If even one guy messes up, the play does not work. The schemes can get quite complicated, but Coach Stokes does a great job getting us prepared and demands excellence from us.” Shreffler expressed admiration for Ruddy’s play.
“Shea is a very versatile athlete,” Shreffler said. “We move him around quite a bit on offense and try to put him in the best spots to make plays. Defenses have to be aware of him,
and when he’s not getting the ball, he still has an effect on the defense and helps open up other guys. He’s obviously proven to be a big weapon in the return game, and Coach Stokes and the rest of that unit have done a great job executing the game plan each week to produce the big plays.”
Shreffler said the team’s second-half performance has been strong in recent games, including Saturday.
“Starting field position always plays a role,” Shreffler said. “Obviously, we want to score points, but as long as we are taking care of the ball and kicking at the end of each series, we’ll be OK. Defense has done a great job keeping teams out of the end zone the past few weeks in the second half, and we’ve made big plays when we’ve needed to make them.”
Sophomore receiver Andrew Konieczny said the team is confident going into the season’s final game.
“We’re feeling good about our final game and are looking to keep this momentum from the last few weeks and finish the season off on a good note,” Konieczny said.
The Chargers will conclude their season by celebrating their Senior Day at home against Ohio Dominican University Nov. 15.
By Lucy Billings Collegian Freelancer
Hillsdale women’s swim clinched first place in two dual meets Nov. 8 and Nov. 9, with freshman Sasha Babenko named Great Midwest Athletic Conference Women’s Swimmer of the Week Nov. 3-10.
Competing in Albion, MI on Friday, the Chargers scored 106 points over Davenport University and 66 points over Albion College.
The following day, the Chargers celebrated Senior Day by swimming against Aquinas College and Indiana Wesleyan University at home. They placed 76 points over Aquinas and 77 points over Indiana Wesleyan.
Head coach Kurt Kirner wrote about the team’s goals going into the weekend and how well they handled the pressure of back-to-back meets.
“Our goals were to hold our own in these meets and defend our home turf,” Kirner said. “Four wins met our expectations and consequently winning nine of 13 events on Friday and nine of 11 events on Saturday. We spent much
13 sweep on Senior Day.
The Chargers played a strong offensive match with 45 kills, only trailing twice, but never more than two points each time.
Hillsdale celebrated its four seniors – Emory Braswell, Sysum, Chloe Pierce, and TeSlaa – with a victory and a postgame ceremony honoring their contribution to the team.
“It meant so much that so many people came to support us and that our team was so international about making us feel special,” Pierce said. “It was a bittersweet feeling to think that may be my last time stepping out on our home court, but it was so special to get to do it with this group of girls. I felt so loved this weekend and am full of gratitude for all this program and these girls have taught me after four years here.”
Head coach Chris Gravel said he enjoyed this year’s Senior Day, and he is grateful his assistant coaches had the idea to hold the ceremony after the game.
“It was my favorite because we could spend more time with them,” Gravel said. “It wasn’t rushed, and the players could stay focused on the match during the match, and then worry about their emotions after. The seniors are great — I don’t want to think about them leaving.”
time preparing for the backto-back action and the team truly rose to the challenge.”
Sophomore Ella Malone, took first place in the 100 butterfly, was on the 400 freestyle relay placing 1st, and the 400 medley relay placing 2nd during the meet against Albion and Davenport. In the meet against Aquinas and Indiana Wesleyan she placed third in the 50 freestyle with a time of 25.60 and was on the winning 200 medley relay team finishing in 1.50.80.
“I was proud of the team for pushing ourselves in every race,” Malone said. “We beat all four teams by quite a few points, but nobody threw a race because they were tired or knew they’d win. We competed against ourselves too.”
Babenko took first place in the 50 freestyle with a time of 25.30 and in the 100 backstroke with a time of 59.24. She was also on the winning 400 freestyle relay team. During the meet against Aquinas and Indiana Wesleyan she won the 200 backstroke with a time of 2.08.38, the 200 individual medley at 2.13.22, and led the first place medley relay team.
Hillsdale has two more regular-season matches remaining before the GMAC tournament. The Chargers will travel to Ohio Nov. 14 to play Tiffin University before wrapping up the 2025 regular-season with a game against Findlay University in Ohio Nov. 15. Gravel said the team is excited for the GMAC tournament, but will continue to focus on the games right in front of them.
“I think my personal goal was to win all my events,” Babenko said. “I wanted to defend our home pool. We were all really well prepared, mentally and physically, to swim both days in a row. It was hard but we were prepared to do it. I'm proud and glad I had God to help me through that.”
At the home meet, the team also honored the sole senior on the team, Rotem Andegeko.
Kirner said Andegeko’s outstanding hard work and commitment to the team is a contribution to its success.
“Rotem is always willing to fulfill roles that help the team be successful,” Kirner said.
“Her leadership, especially this
“Our focus is on our next matches and getting things done,” Gravel said.
season, has been above and beyond as she has connected in a special way with all of her teammates.”
Malone commented on the impressiveness and value of Andegeko’s leadership and lively disposition.
“I’ve especially appreciated Rotem this year as she’s a team captain and our only senior on the team,” Malone said. “It’s not ideal to carry that much on your own, yet she still makes me laugh every single day at practice with her lightheartedness.”
The team will next travel to Ohio to compete against the University of Findlay and Lewis University Nov. 15.
Senior Emory Braswell and sophomore Hannah Baker lunge for a hit.
Courtesy | Kenneth Gaudet
Football from A1
Freshman Sasha Babenko during Saturday's meet. Courtesy | Ashley Van Hoose
Senior Chloe Pierce serves during Senior Day. Courtesy | Kenneth Gaudet
Culture
Tower Players keep Shakespeare alive
By Anna Broussard
Design eDitor
Featuring original music by Hillsdale alumnus Ethan Graham ’25, “The Book of Will” explores how English playwright William Shakespeare lives on through his writings.
The Tower Players will premiere the historic account of Shakespeare’s friends collecting his writings in “The Book of Will,” written by American playwright and screenwriter Lauren Gunderson, this week with performances in Markel Auditorium at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, and a 2 p.m. matinee on Sunday. Ticket reservations are not required.
According to director Christopher Matsos, associate professor and chair of the theatre and dance department, the story is a tragedy and a comedy detailing the preservation of Shakespeare’s works.
“It’s a beautiful story about these two men who were probably Shakespeare’s best friends,” Matsos said. “They were some of his closest coworkers in running the Globe Theatre. And some years after he passed, they realized that everyone who had either owned copies of his plays or memorized copies of his plays were dying, and that if they didn’t do something to preserve the plays, they would be lost.”
The performance is a product of student work throughout the fall semester, with auditions held on the first day of classes in August. Matsos said the students are ready to share their work.
“It is such a blessing to watch that progression of students take place over the span of some years,” Matsos said. “We have a seamless record of leadership among veteran actors that is a joy to behold. What I’m really proud of, for this show in particular, is that there are about 15
students in it, and all grade levels are represented. It’s a real pleasure to watch everyone finding their voice as artists.”
Sophomore Aidan Bauer, who plays Shakepeare’s close friend and fellow King’s Men troupe member Henry Condell, said the play will be new to many in the audience.
“This show understates how much people did to preserve Shakespeare,” Bauer said. “When I first read the script, I was blown away by this point in history. I’m excited to present this to other people who might have been in the same boat as me and didn’t know anything.”
According to junior Sophia Miller, who plays Rebecca Henning, the wife of Shakespeare’s close friend, the production contextualizes the plays and history most students are reading in many of their classes.
“It’s such a beautiful, moving story that so many people don’t realize,” Miller said. “Almost every single student reads Shakespeare, and I don’t think they realize the work that it took to preserve Shakespeare’s plays. Authors live on through posterity, but you need to know why.”
Matsos said there is a piece of the play for everyone.
“Nothing really teaches you what a play is about like an audience in performance,” Matsos said. “I think the play will speak to people who have lost people, or who have been in positions where they’ve tried to honor the legacy of someone. It will really speak to those individuals, but it’s just going to be such a colorful and funny and ultimately hopeful piece that will have something for just about everybody.”
Q&A with Chigozie Obioma
Visiting professor explains why writing fiction was his fate
By Caroline Kurt o pinions eD itor
Novelist Chigozie Obioma, author of “The Fishermen” (2015), “An Orchestra of Minorities” (2019), and “The Road to the Country” (2024) is the Helen S. Lanier professor of creative writing and English at the University of Georgia and the program director of the Oxbelly Fiction Writers retreat. His first two novels have been shortlisted as finalists for the prestigious Man Booker Prize for Fiction. Since 2022, Obioma has taught a creative writing class through Hillsdale’s Creative Writing Honors Program.
What are the challenges of being a young person working on writing? Do young people with perhaps limited life experience run the risk of navel-gazing in their writing?
I always tell my students once you graduate, go into the world and do something. Go to Japan or Afghanistan — well, not Afghanistan right now, maybe. Go to a meat packing plant in Ohio, and just observe. Listen to people. Hear the cadences. Watch people. Stay with them for a while and absorb how they live, how they think. This will be, even if not in the immediate sense, useful for you later on. The writer has to be definitely cognizant of that, and I believe there are a lot of opportunities to remedy that situation.
What changed your mind?
I wrote my first novel, “The Fisherman,” without any sort of training. I was mostly an undergrad — I had the man-
“Shadrach” by Beastie Boys
My mind immediately goes to hip hop and rap music. Many possibilities come to mind, but for the sake of family-friendliness, let’s go with Beastie Boys’ single “Shadrach” from their 1989 album “Paul’s Boutique.” It is high energy and lyrical. In their prime, these three guys had amazing synergy. (Rest in peace, MCA).
uscript when I got to the University of Michigan for my master’s. But I did learn some things there.
I realized I didn’t know how to really revise, which is probably the most useful thing. In essence, that’s what we teach here. A good creative fiction teacher should teach you how to revise, because you know you already have the stuff, to a certain degree. It was interesting to hear people talk about my work and to weigh in on their work
me, I would think what kind of head does this person have? How did they write this? Nobody could give me an answer. My parents didn’t even know what I was talking about. My dad had close to a Ph.D. but he read more for the expanding of his horizon: there was utility to the reading he did. It’s true — reading helps you broaden your intellectual capacity. He didn’t have a sophisticated library, but I remember devouring everything that he had. It really began from there.
“[Fiction] is supposed to present beauty, it’s supposed to entertain, and it’s supposed to enlighten a certain portion of human nature.”
as well. It took me a while to adjust. I felt very odd for the first semester: I just didn’t know what to say. I was selftrained. I didn’t even know any writers. I’d never met a writer before. I felt like I was the only one in the world who was writing. Of course I knew of writers, but they were so far removed from me that I was shocked to meet actual writers were also doing the same thing.
What made you want to write — what was it that drove you? Did you write as a kid?
It was very early on that I knew I was going to write fiction. It was probably age seven or eight when I became very interested in stories. It wasn’t just the stories — it was the making of them. If I read something, and it touched
With the changes we’re seeing in technology and AI and the way the English language is evolving, how is that all affecting the landscape of modern fiction? How is fiction changing for the better or for the worse?
Everybody has anxiety about AI. What I see happening is there’s going to come a time when there will be an infiltration of the market, which is even happening right now. What it will do is force people to start looking for authentic fiction. It might actually be what realigns the system. It might do some damage first, but AI-driven fiction will die. Don’t use AI to write. The fiction you write is a piece of you. Don’t think that you are doing yourself any service when you use AI.
Professors’ Picks: Charles Yost Assistant Professor in Medieval History
“A Confederacy of Dunces” by
Kennedy Toole
This is the funniest book I have ever read. Ignatius J. Reilly is a morbidly obese anti-modernist who lives with his mom in 1960s New Orleans. He holds everyone in contempt because in his view they have no sense of theology and geometry. The book follows his misadventures and entanglements with many outrageous characters. Ignatius is constantly reading his surroundings through medieval categories, and hilarity ensues.
I grew up watching this film every weekend from the time I was quite young and I once had the entire script memorized. Very few people can tolerate this film, in all of its bizarre splendor, and so it is a great movie for date night if you want to break up. (My father apparently took my mother to see this movie when they were dating, and it is a miracle that I exist). In my humble opinion, Lynch’s film better captures the esotericism of Frank Herbert’s novels.
What do you think is the difference between good fiction and great fiction?
I think good fiction is writing that intensifies something that you already know about life, the humanity of the world, politics, etc. But great fiction goes further. It will renew your understanding; it will have those elements of good fiction. But it will demand that you read it again; it will leave room for that. Each time you read it, the experience is different. It’s very layered and complex. It doesn’t allow you to read all of it in one time. Great fiction is a work that stays with you for days, weeks. It’s not dispensable.
Why do we need fiction?
On the surface, we need fiction because we need something to do. Think about the 16th century, for instance. There’s no TV; there’s no phone. It was one of those things that you could do in your leisure time. I don’t think that has changed. The second reason is because we are interested in beauty as human beings. This is the synthesis of simple science and life, and they come together. That’s what poetry is. It’s very good for the soul. Fiction is the revelation of humanity as it is, not how it ought to be. I always run away from the idea that fiction can just change people. It’s not supposed to do that. It’s supposed to present beauty, it’s supposed to entertain and it’s supposed to enlighten a certain portion of human nature. But it’s not supposed to articulate the solution to that.
“Dune” (1984)
John
Compiled by Jayden Jelso Collegian RepoRteR
Yost actually deadlifting 405lbs. Caroline Kurt | Collegian
C U L T U R E Junior jazz pianist is fluent in bebop and blues
By Grace Brennan AssistAnt Editor
Junior Nick Heide started playing jazz piano during middle school in Las Vegas. Now he skips campus weekly to play professional gigs in Ann Arbor, Detroit, and Toledo.
“If you love something enough, everything kind of falls in place to make it happen,” Heide said.
Heide’s first teacher played on the Las Vegas strip and taught him how to play in the tradition of Dave Brubeck and Vince Guiraldi.
In high school he went to a performing arts school to specialize in jazz piano, where he was taught by professional musician Patrick Bowen. There he learned transcriptions and improvisation. Now Heide plays gigs regularly at the London Chophouse in Detroit, Lucille’s in Toledo, and Zal Gaz Grotto in Ann Arbor with the band PKO. The band is led by Paul Keller, a jazz bassist, band leader, and composer from Michigan who is Heide’s mentor and friend.
Keller said the first time he heard Heide play he was impressed by the ease and passion with which he played for someone so young.
“I met Nick in his hometown of Las Vegas when I went out there to play at a new jazz club called Vic’s, and he was playing with a student group while still in high school,” Keller said. “I couldn’t believe that someone who was so young had such an interest in that style of jazz and
had the faculty to pull it off. It was amazing to me.”
A few years later, Keller and Heide ran into each other when Keller came to campus with the Harry James Orchestra. Heide said they immediately clicked the second time they met, and Keller spontaneously offered him the opportunity to play with his band in Ann Arbor.
“We hit it off, and there were a couple times when he needed someone to fill in for his piano player,” Heide said. “So he gave me a call and we developed this relationship similar to all my mentors in Las Vegas. He took me under his wing, and the next thing you know he’s letting me stay over in his house in between gigs, and he’s showing me new music and teaching me things. It’s been very exciting.”
Keller said he was just as excited as Heide to be reunited and get the chance to play gigs together around Michigan.
“He’s just about as good as anybody I’ve ever played with, especially at this young age, so the sky’s the limit for him,” Keller said.
Keller said the first time he played with Heide was surprising and delightful. He said he was impressed with Heide’s knowledge of jazz styles from the 1920s and ’30s, as well as bebop from the ’40s and ’50s.
“It’s been very uplifting to me to be able to play with somebody that is very in touch with the old style of prehistoric jazz, but can take it into a modern and high energy place as well, delightful, satisfying and very rewarding,”
Keller said.
As he continues studying economics at Hillsdale College, Heide said he enjoys studying the connection between classical languages and music.
“The thing I like most about jazz is that it’s a language, and studying classical languages here has really helped make that connection,” Heide said.
Joseph Garnjobst, chairman and professor of classics, has spoken with Heide many times about the relation between jazz and language.
“Musicians speak through music rather than words, when in sync with each other they create something that no individual could have done alone,” Garnjobst said. “It’s a magical moment that would be nice to create in class.”
Garnjobst said classical languages and jazz are both learned through spontaneous practice.
“Jazz isn’t scripted. There’s always improvisation,” Garnjobst said. “In class there is technically a script, but student and teacher interactions cannot be scripted. The important part of these interactions is what each person brings to table, the same way musicians bring something to table.”
Keller said many emotions and thoughts are told through jazz.
“Just like any language, you can say all kinds of things, sometimes gentle, sometimes entertaining, sometimes happy, sometimes very harsh,” Keller said.
Heide has worked on ear
training so he can pick up on the spontaneous changes made by band members.
“Keller won’t even tell you the name of the tune or the key, he’s very spontaneous,” Heide said. “So I’ve developed an ear for most tunes. I could listen to it one way through, and then I’ve learned it already and can play it. I can also follow the harmony as it goes on, and play by ear.”
Performing with a band has taught Heide it is important to be selfless and not to take attention from other band members, he said.
“One of my mentors used to say: Listen to yourself last, because if you’re only focused on what you’re doing and trying to be creative on your own, you might be actually detracting from what other people are try-
ing to do,” Heide said.
Even with the right amount of selflessness, Heide is able to enjoy his favorite part of playing jazz — the melodies.
“As a piano player, I have a role to support the soloist, vocalist, or whoever’s having the main voice, and I’m trying to support that by laying out the harmony, and then at the same time create a melody on my own,” Heide said. “The thing that attracts me most is the melody.”
The band plays together best when each player knows how to work with and around the other players, Heide said.
“There’s a lot that’s intuitive, but at the same time jazz is about surprises,” Heide said.
“Sometimes whoever’s soloing will throw a curve ball, and then it’s interesting to learn how to
play something unexpected and how to follow it.”
Heide said he loves jazz for the feeling it brings those who are playing and listening alike.
“I just love to swing and I love how it feels,” Hiede said.
“It’s a very joyful kind of music and acts as a way to bring people together.”
The spontaneity of live jazz is better than any recording, Hiede said.
“There is nothing like going to a jazz club and seeing it happen in front of your face, in real time,” Heide said. “There is something really special about it which you have to experience for yourself.”
Radke blows audience away Jazz musicians bring the sauce
By Grace Brennan AssistA nt Editor
Purple lights lit the stage of the Dawn Theater Nov. 8, welcoming Fred Radke on stage to play songs that have defined the world of jazz.
Families, students, couples, and even Dennis “Gate Guy” Cook filled the theater, sinking into the mish-mash of theater chairs and velvet love seats, ready for a dynamic performance.
Senior Therese Williams, who works for the Dawn Theater, has heard Radke perform multiple times. She said she has a lot of respect for Radke and thinks it is incredible that he plays in Hillsdale every year.
“He performs in the Searle Center and he does master classes with jazz students, he tells them what they’re doing right and what they’re doing wrong so they can learn from a real professional,” Williams said. “He’s performed with every big jazz name out there. He’s played with Ella Fitzgerald and The Andrew Sisters. It’s absolutely insane, he’s a relic of a human being.” Radke’s trumpet pierced the silence, starting the first song with Terry Lower on piano, Larry Ochiltree on drums, Paul Keller on bass, and Chris McCourry also on trumpet.
The night began with “The Blues Walk” by Clifford Brown.
A large portion of the song was an exciting back-and-forth
between the drums and the piano, eventually being pulled back together by the bass, then accompanied by both trumpets and an exploding audience.
The second song, “Since I Fell For You” by Lenny Welch, started with a slow and sweet piano melody. After the first two songs Radke took song requests from the audience, such as “Take the ‘A’ Train” by Duke Ellington, and “’Tis Autumn” by The Nat King Cole Trio.
In between certain songs Radke would stop to tell a story of how the song was created and originally sung. According to Radke, “Take the ‘A’ Train”
“The history of jazz is such an important art form to keep alive in America.”
was written on a train by Billy Strayhorn and Ellington’s son Mercer Ellington.
Radke said he tells these stories to connect the audience to jazz.
“The history of jazz is such an important art form to keep alive in America,” Radke said.
“I’ll Be Seeing You” by Billie Holiday was a very important
song during World War II, according to Radke, and it still has a gravity to it that connects us deeply with the past.
The band played “I’ll Be Seeing You” upon request; Radke and McCoury played the song softly accompanied by piano, bass, and the soft sound of drum brushes to keep the pace.
Williams said “I’ll Be Seeing You” was one of her favorite songs they performed.
Jacob Moore ’24 and his wife, Liliana, sat in the audience with their baby girl.
Moore played in the big band when he was a student at Hillsdale College. He and his wife started the tradition of swing club at jazz events. The Moore’s and students in the swing club danced to the last song “Fly Me To The Moon” by Frank Sinatra.
Moore said Radke and his band are always in sync even when off script because of how knowledgeable they are of the songs.
“That’s one of the most impressive parts to me is they know this music, and they can pull it out of a hat at any second,” Moore said. “Every year watching Fred come back and blow that horn seems the same every time, if not better than the last year. He blows me away every time.”
By Sophia Bryant AssistA nt Editor
Pizza and jazz warmed McNamara Hall Nov. 9 as students gathered to play or sing with professional jazz musicians at Pizza Jam.
Trumpeter Fred Radke, bassist Paul Keller, pianist Terry Lower, and Adjunct Instructor of Music Larry Ochiltree on drums, performed with student musicians
“They’re the finest, first-call musicians in the tri-state area,” Chris McCourry, director of jazz ensembles, said in an email. “Most of them are local legends like Paul Keller and Terry Lower.” Ochiltree has taught at Hillsdale for 16 years, according to McCourry.
“He’s continuously produced great drum students,” McCourry said. “And he makes them out of nothing. He makes them out of a little dust that he finds and makes them into great drummers.”
Radke, the leader of the Harry James Orchestra, will be in Hillsdale for 10 days and will work with 40 students, according to McCourry.
“Nobody plays like him. Nobody,” McCourry said. “Nobody has his personality, the way he leads. It’s such a joy. He’s an old school big band, and I love that. You know what that means? That means he ain’t taking no mess from nobody. So you better act right. And I love it.”
The audience ate pizza from Cottage Inn while more than a dozen students played a variety of songs with the section. The professional jazz musicians frequently shouted out encourage-
ment to the students and led the audience in applause throughout the performance.
“Yes, that’s the money note, the jazz viola,” Keller said during sophomore Lilly Faye Kraemer, who plays viola, and senior euphonium player Gavin Todd’s performance of “All of Me.”
Kraemer, who performed first but stayed for the rest of the event, said it was fun to see other students in the music department that she hadn’t seen at other events play with professional musicians.
“It was fun hearing new jazz pieces with a professional section,” Kraemer said.
Sophomore Michael Choe, who attended the performance, said he was impressed that the rhythm section knew all the songs and were so in-sync.
“It was fun to see the diversity of instruments, because we had a soprano sax to a baritone sax, and we even had a clarinet,” Choe said.
Senior Therese Williams sang “Save Your Love For Me,” and said she appreciated the encouragement of the section.
“They were so appreciative of every student playing with them and hyped each one up,” Williams said. “I’m sure everyone walked away feeling gratified and good about themselves.”
Kraemer said she appreciated the unique opportunity to play with a professional rhythm section.
“Even if you messed up or you played really bad, the rhythm section still kept the song going, and they still made you sound good,” Kraemer said.
Senior Nick Rutkoski and
and fish
and sweatpants while they played “Freddie and the Freeloader” with the section. After their performance, Keller called them the “best dressed” of the night.
Senior Josh Hoggatt sang “Moonlight In Vermont.”
“It’s stress-inducing, just being in front of a crowd, but it’s really fulfilling to finally bring a song to life with a professional rhythm section,” Hoggatt said. Saxophonists sophomore Asher Moorefield and juniors Mikayla Manna and Nathaniel Mack performed “Sunday Room For Two.”
“It was really fun,” Manna said. “It was nice to have professionals backing you. Playing with Fred Radke was especially fun in a low stakes environment, surrounded by friends.” Todd joined senior Benjamin Cook to perform “Straight No Chaser.” Senior Alexander Lauve performed “Billie’s Bounce” on the trumpet.
“Mr. Radke was such a joy to sing with,” Williams said. “The band had perfect control and knew each song by heart. They needed no music and brought vivacious energy to each song. Nothing was rehearsed either, this is just what they do.” Radke said he is encouraged every time he comes to Hillsdale.
“Every time I come here it’s an uplifting experience,” Radke said. “Hillsdale is a wonderful place and it’s a positive place. ”
junior Nathan Fish wore pineapple
Hawaiian
shirts
Nick Heide said he loves the spontaneity of jazz.
Courtesy | Nick Heide
During Pizza Jam students perform with professional musicians.
Courtesy | Sophia Bryant
Canadian professor teaches U.S. politics Professors talk
By Lauren Bixler Assistant Editor
Born and raised Canadian, John Petrakis may now be found in Kendall Hall, lecturing passionately on the Federalist Papers or the Supreme Court’s exercise of judicial review.
“Who wouldn’t be intrigued by the prospect of taking an American Constitutional Law course with a French-Canadian professor?” asked Olivia Eames, a junior in his Constitutional Law class.
In the words of Petrakis, though, people might be surprised that there is precedent for being Canadian and teaching American constitutional law.
“There are more Canadians than you might think who are in this field of political science — constitutional law — who are usually of a more conservative bend,” Petrakis said. “A professor called Rick Avramenko, who’s Canadian, once joked that they should make a conference about conservative Canadian exiles in the American Academy in political science and law, and there’d probably be 50 of us.”
Petrakis taught at Utah Valley University before the politics department hired him in the spring. Associate Professor of Politics Joseph Postell said the department knew Petrakis would complement the strengths of other professors and bring a fresh take on American politics.
“One of the things we really appreciated about him in the interview, which wasn’t clear to us until he came here, is that he has this comparative perspective,” Postell said. “His dissertation was on euthanasia laws in different countries, and our department in politics tends to focus on political philosophy and American politics, but we don’t do a lot of comparative politics. And John has that perspective.”
Petrakis was born and raised in Montreal, Canada, where he received a legal education at McGill University and then clerked for the Federal Court of Canada in Ottawa. Postell said this legal experience is something the department does not have, so having a professor with practical experience studying the law and clerking would be useful for students.
many of our students want to go to law school. So many of our students are interested in the life of a lawyer. So it’s really great to have somebody who’s got that experience. Yes, it is in Canada, but obviously, to some extent, it’s practiced the same way in both countries.”
After getting two law de-
would do something important, everyone just couldn’t stop talking about it,” Petrakis said. “When Dobbs came out, I was in Montreal. I think Dobbs dropped the same day as Quebec’s national holiday, and the English language media, at least, were talking about the Dobbs case before telling you
grees at McGill and clerking, Petrakis decided to pursue graduate school in the United States.
“I had long considered grad school in an academic career, and in Quebec, you do not have crippling student debt after law school because it’s taxpayer subsidized,” Petrakis said. “So, you know, the province is going bankrupt, but I don’t have heavy student debt. So it was feasible for me to go to grad school.”
where you could go to celebrate Quebec’s national holiday, which just shows you the kind of fixation that some Canadians have with U.S. culture.”
Petrakis earned his doctorate at the University of Notre Dame, then took on a post-doctoral fellowship in Austin, Texas and at Utah Valley University.
“And then the politics department here had a temporary lapse in sanity and hired me on the tenure track, so I couldn’t
students, who keep him on his toes and in turn challenge him to be a better professor.
“I look forward to teaching more Hillsdale students,” Petrakis said. “Because I really do think it’s the most important thing of the college. I think the students are what makes the college in the first place. And the reason the college is so successful is largely because the students are so serious and committed.”
Eames said Petrakis is the kind of faculty member the department should be enthusiastic about — he is witty, animated, and passionate about his subject.
“He never misses an opportunity to throw California under the bus or iterate the thing that might have gotten him excommunicated in Canada,” Eames said.
When asked if Canada should become the 51st state, Petrakis said giving Canada just one state would be a disservice.
“I think we deserve at least three states. One state is kind of selling us short,” Petrakis said. “We deserve more senators than Rhode Island, I will say that, and Wyoming.”
While he jests in class and office hours, Eames said he is serious about the mission of the college and politics department.
“All jokes aside, Dr. Petrakis shares a deep sentiment for American conservativism, which is at the heart of the college’s values, and he is endlessly knowledgeable about American politics and our rights as citizens,” Eames said.
Petrakis said he always wanted to go to grad school in the United States, though — for the adventure and prestige, but also because Canada closely follows American law and court decisions.
“We also highly valued his experience,” Postell said. “So
Like Atlee, Peters said his day is structured around classes and reading, with a break at 10 a.m. every day for a communal chapel service.
“Then we all shift over to the student commons. We all have coffee and chat until about 11 o’clock,” Peters said.
Peters said at Hillsdale, he learned to read and understand great thinkers — skills that have transferred well to theological studies.
“The academic rigor that Hillsdale prides itself on prepared me more than anything,” Peters said. “By the time I got to seminary, I didn’t have to think so hard about how to work out a research paper.”
Peters’s best man in his wedding, Henry Eising ’21, is
“When I was at law school at McGill, every time the Supreme Court here in the states
a fourth-year student at Concordia Seminary in St. Louis. Like his friend, Eising also came from a family deeply rooted in the LCMS.
“My grandfather’s a pastor. His dad was a pastor,” Eising said. “It was what I was born and bred in, what I knew. At Hillsdale, I was exposed to a bunch of different things, and I wanted to make sure that I believed what I believed for a reason.”
Eising said he came out of Hillsdale able to back up his beliefs — and ready to pass them on to others.
“My senior year, I didn’t really know what I was going to do the next year,” Eising said. “At that time, the church was really what was keeping me together and my stronghold. I was seeking the most meaningful thing that I could do, and somehow, by the grace of God, I was given to see that
be happier,” Petrakis said.
Petrakis said he is not interested in returning to Canada.
“I’m very happy here and have no plans to leave, so please don’t terminate me,” Petrakis said. “This is directed to Dr. Arnn and all my colleagues.”
So far, Petrakis said he has had good reception with the
the best thing that I could do was to share and proclaim the forgiveness of sins that’s found in Jesus alone.”
According to Eising, everything seemed to fall into place once he realized he could go to seminary.
“It’s the best job in the world,” Eising said. “And
Postell said Petrakis is a joy to work with and always has a smile on his face.
“He brings a lot of levity, not just to the classroom, but he just brings a lot of levity to the department,” Postell said. “His joy at being here is kind of just a constant theme whenever we talk. So he’s been wonderful to have as a colleague, really and I’m hopeful that this is where he’s going to land and stay for a long time.”
Petrakis also said he can see himself staying at Hillsdale for a very long time and is excited to see what the future holds.
“I think after hopefully 10 years teaching here, I will be a much better professor than I would have been in an alternative reality where I spend 10 years teaching at a different institution,” Petrakis said.
guess what? I can do that for the rest of my life.”
Eising met his wife, Stacey Eising (née Egger) ’18, shortly after moving to St. Louis. There, Eising said, they have found seminary to be a continuation of the Hillsdale model of education, albeit in a theological direction.
Unique spring classes
Compiled by Adriana Azarian Assistant Editor
In this compilation, professors plead the cases for their niche classes of the semester — from Tolkien to detective novels to a partnership with Hillsdale Homestead.
“Hard-Boiled Detective Novels” 1-credit, T, 11-11:50 a.m.
Paule Rahe, Professor of History
“What genre is unique and peculiar to modern commercial liberal society? The answer is the detective novel, which was invented in the 19th century. And what makes the detective novel peculiar? Well, its focus is on the thing identified by Thomas Hobbes, restated by John Locke, and implicit in the Declaration of Independence, that the center of life is avoiding death, especially violent death. So what is the detective novel about? It’s about violent death and about a heroic figure who tries to head off violent death…So the idea is to look at a genre that is typical of the kind of society in which we live, and to think about the character of that society.”
“Designing Your Life” 2-credit, T, Th, 11-11:50 a.m. Kristin Kiledal, Professor of Rhetoric and Public Address
“I want students to be knowledgeable enough to apply the design strategy to their lives confidently, recognizing that risk is required, change, pitfalls and even failures will occur — and that when they occur, they may be places of growth, or even revolution.”
“Women’s Health & Nutrition”
2-credit, M, W, 2-2:50 p.m.
Nicole Walbright, Associate Athletic Director
“This class is one of my favorites to teach. It is such a fun opportunity to work with young women and help them discover the foundational ma-
terial that is so impactful to our health. I really appreciate how the class is a common denominator for them all, as our health is not specific to one major, one culture, or one type of person in general. Everyone should learn the basic principles of our own wellness.”
“Tolkien & the Lord of the Rings” 2-credit, M, 12-2 p.m.
Bradley Birzer, Professor of History
“I’ve been a huge Tolkien fan since about 1980, and I’ve spent much of my professional life and writing in Tolkien scholarship. So, I’m really, really happy the English department is kindly and graciously allowing me to teach this. I’m hoping the students will learn Tolkien understood that the good life can never be achieved without immense sacrifice. I like Tolkien because of his prose, his imagination, and his gravitas. For me, he’s the greatest myth maker of the modern world — equivalent to Homer, Virgil, and Dante.”
“Food & Faith in U.S. History” 1-credit, W, 3-3:50 p.m.
James Strasberg, Associate Professor of History, and Cody Strecker, Associate Professor of Theology
“We’ll think together about what it means for human beings and ecosystems to flourish, and we’ll reflect on how what we eat can be a means of loving God, neighbor, and creation. One of the exciting aspects of the class is its handson partnership with the new student-run Hillsdale Homestead out at Glei’s Orchard. Students will get the chance to tend the soil together and practice regenerative agriculture. We’ll cap off the semester with a celebratory farm-totable meal that the students themselves will have grown and harvested.”
Illustrated by Maggie O’Con-
nor.
“At Hillsdale, everyone is so dedicated to really pursuing the good life and figuring out what it means to lead a good life,” Eising said. “Being in that kind of community is super helpful, and it has prepared me really well for seminary. Even the approach that people at Hillsdale take to handling texts and looking at history becomes super helpful when you’re a student of theology and student of the Church.”
Eising described seminary as a similarly vibrant community.
“You take classes in the different sectors of theology, and then the rest of the time is spent having discussions with your classmates, hanging out with your family and friends,” Eising said. “There’s always something to go to.”
According to Eising, the substantial number of Hills-
dale alumni in Concordia seminaries reflects a broader push in the LCMS for vocations.
“Recently that’s been kind of one of the church body’s focuses — recruiting young people to pursue the pastoral office,” Eising said. “That initiative is bearing fruit. And it’s great to see my class is one of the smallest classes, but each class after me has grown in size.” As he looks forward to ordination in the spring, Eising says he will bring elements of his formation at Hillsdale into his role as a pastor.
“Hillsdale does a great job of getting us to consider what the good life is, and the Church is, of course, the best way to pursue the good life,” Eising said. “I thank Hillsdale for really getting me to consider that, and I’m excited to try and share that with the people that I serve.”
Petrakis with Mr. Bunns, aged 7. Courtesy | John Petrakis
Petrakis gives a public lecture at Utah Valley University. Courtesy | John Petrakis
Harvey Peters ‘22 with his wife Anna ‘23 and their son John. Courtesy | Harvey Peters
features
‘The best job in the world’: Lutheran alumni enter seminary
By Caroline Kurt Opinions Editor
What happens when God changes your post-grad plans?
For some Lutheran Hillsdale alumni, that means seminary.
Nine Hillsdale alumni are currently enrolled in the two Lutheran Church Missouri Synod seminaries in the U.S., following a four-year path to ordination as pastors in the LCMS.
Christopher Atlee ’23, a second-year seminary student at Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, said he came into the Lutheran faith while at Hillsdale.
“I was in Koon my freshman year,” Atlee said. “My resident assistant, Isaac Spangler, who was just ordained last summer, invited a bunch of us to church with him.”
So Atlee went. Though he
I guess I’ll be Lutheran,” Atlee said.
Atlee said he wanted to be a lawyer, not a pastor. But when friends of his in the Federalist Society encouraged him not to go to law school, he reconsidered. After getting married the summer before his senior year, Atlee realized he wanted a path that would allow him to prioritize his family.
“Having delved deeper into my faith and actually experienced some deep theology, it shaped me a lot,” Atlee said. “I had never considered any sort of church work or ministry work in my life before. It slowly developed into, ‘Well, actually, I could be a pastor. Maybe I should do that.’”
Atlee describes his daily schedule now as one of classes and reading — similar, he says,
grew up an evangelical Christian, Atlee said he was attracted to the style of worship at St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church in Hillsdale, so he continued attending with friends. Through late-night theological conversations and his own study, Atlee said he grew to adopt many Lutheran beliefs.
“At a certain point, I was like,
to Hillsdale. Seminarians attend daily chapel, as well as a Divine Service every Wednesday.
“There is just a wonderful community of believers here, and that’s especially wonderful for my wife and two daughters,” Atlee said.
Matthew Sauer ’16, a second-year student at Concordia Theological Seminary in Fort
Wayne, said he grew up Lutheran but experienced many different varieties of Lutheran worship before coming to Hillsdale.
“Hillsdale confirmed for me that there’s some beauty behind the traditional mode of worship and challenged me to take my faith more seriously,” Sauer said. “It confirmed that in the swirling fishbowl of Hillsdale, where you’re being fed all sorts of different ways of thinking and Christian traditions, being Lutheran seemed to be the best
dinners, and Bible studies.
“It was cool to see the growth of that group into something that was pretty robust by the time I had graduated,” Sauer said.
Unlike some of his peers, Sauer didn’t go to seminary right after college. It was eight years after graduation that he started at Fort Wayne, the consequence of a series of happy accidents — or moments of grace.
“It had been put on my mind by my home pastor before I
option out of a lot of options out there.”
According to Sauer, Lutheran Society was founded his sophomore year at Hillsdale.
“I kind of walked backward into it, because I noticed my Lutheran friends starting to wear green pants on Tuesdays. And so it became Lutheran Green Pants Tuesday,” Sauer said. “That turned into, ‘Oh, we’re also having a Bible study on Tuesdays, and also we’re having dinner on Wednesday.’ So it was great fun to start, and then it became a little bit more rigorous.”
By the end of his time at Hillsdale, Sauer said Lutheran Society was having morning and evening prayer, lectures,
came to Hillsdale,” Sauer said. “I said, ‘No, I don’t think so. Pastors only work one day a week anyway. That sounds lame. I’ve got greater things to do.’ And then over the course of Hillsdale, I realized, ‘Oh no, pastors are so great. I’m never going to be able to do that. It’s too much of a task.’ So then I was kind of despairing of ever doing it.”
Sauer accidentally visited the seminary on the way home from a wedding to take a selfie with the Martin Luther statue on its campus. His home pastor walked out of a building, spotted Sauer, and congratulated him on joining seminary.
“I tried to back out of it, but then he told a bunch of oth-
er pastors who then also told me, ‘Hey, you should do this,’” Sauer said. “It was just an avalanche. So I reluctantly visited and couldn’t find a reason not to come.”
Sauer said Hillsdale has given him the drive to investigate his Christian beliefs.
“You can’t sleepwalk your way through your Christian life,” Sauer said. “You have to take it seriously. And if it’s true, it has implications for how you live and what you say and do.”
The communal aspect of seminary feels like a continuation from Hillsdale, Sauer said.
“The conversations between the classes and after class and on the weekends with friends here are as formative sometimes as what’s going on in a lecture,” Sauer said.
For Harvey Peters ’22, former Lutheran Society president
to Hillsdale, he was interested in going to seminary: a gradual realization shaped by his own interests and the example of his father.
“I realized I had a great love for the work of studying the scriptures, studying our Lutheran theologians and ‘The Lutheran Confessions,’” Peters said. “My dad was a second-career pastor, which means he started seminary when I was 7. I saw him go through the process of seminary and then becoming a pastor. He always had me helping out at church.” Peters said Rev. Sean Willman, pastor of St. Paul’s, and Chairman and Associate Professor of History Korey Maas were role models and mentors.
“Pastor Willman was always very eager to engage with us students,” Peters said. “He was very helpful in guiding the Lutheran
and now a fourth-year student at Concordia Theological Seminary in Fort Wayne, seminary had been a longtime consideration.
“I was raised Lutheran,” Peters said. “My dad is actually a pastor in the LCMS. So I went to Lutheran grade school and Lutheran high school.”
Peters said by the time he got
was
Quick Hits with Tom Burke
Compiled by Faith Miller Collegian Reporter
In this Quick Hits, Professor of Philosophy and Religion Tom Burke talks Handel, prayer, and his childhood best friends.
Do you believe in any conspiracy theories? If so, which is your favorite?
Do I believe in conspiracy theories?
None of the conspiracies I believe in are theories. They’re fact. So probably the most obvious is that the JFK assassination couldn’t possibly have just been Lee Harvey Oswald. There had to be a bigger conspiracy.
What is your oldest childhood memory?
The oldest one I can articulate is playing outside my house. I was probably 4 years old, waiting for the four o’clock Western to come on. And then I saw my mother run out of the house with her apron on fire and running to the neighbors, who quickly put
the fire out. This was a long time ago, so she wound up spending three months in the hospital, but for a burn like that today, they’d send you home the same day.
Who is your favorite philosopher?
My two favorite philosophers to read are Ludwig Wittgenstein and Immanuel Kant, not because I agree with them, but because Kant’s arguments are so beautifully formulated, and Wittgenstein’s arguments are so obscure, so you have to really think about them.
What was your first job?
My first job was working in a print shop, sorting things out and doing little odd jobs around there, whatever needed to be done, sweeping the floor.
What was the most interesting class you took in school?
The course in Roman history I
took was fantastic. The teacher was an uncle to Van Cliburn, the pianist, but he had a deep, resonant voice, and every lecture was like a performance, and it was just a great course.
Did you have a childhood best friend?
I had two — one when I was younger, up till about the third
or fourth grade, then one up through high school. I was at a party, and I came down with appendicitis, and I fainted going up the stairs from the garage on my way to the bathroom to probably throw up. And my high school friend was behind me, and I fainted and fell backward. And so he probably, if he didn’t save my life, he certainly saved me from severe injury,
because I was about halfway up the stairs.
Which invention do you think changed the world most?
The development of written language.
Who has inspired you in your career?
Two people that were most influential on my life are Billy Graham, because I became a serious Christian at the 1957 New York crusade with Billy Graham. The second person would be John Warwick Montgomery, who was a professor at the seminary I went to, and probably the brightest guy I ever met and knew, and he inspired me to get into academics. He made it clear that scholarship was really important in the Christian faith.
What advice would you give to your younger self?
Pray more — particularly when you’re in the ministry, evange-
lize more, and write more.
Which song would you choose if you could only listen to one song for the rest of your life?
It’d have to be Handel’s “Messiah.” I mean, I like all the other stuff, but that would be the most enriching.
What was your favorite part about college?
I suppose what I enjoyed was the classes and then just fellowship — being with friends and talking and so forth.
Have you ever read a book that changed your life?
Just the Bible, I suppose. What advice would you give to a Hillsdale student?
I would advise them, first of all, to make sure they know Christ as their personal savior. Second of all, make sure their commitment is lived out with integrity.
students at Hillsdale and being a very, very faithful man for us to turn to with questions. For me at least, Dr. Maas
also extremely influential.”
Burke with his father. Courtesy | Tom Burke
Matthew Sauer ’16 (second from the right) with his family at his daughter’s baptism this past spring.
Courtesy | Matthew Sauer
Harvey Peters ’22 serves at his field-work church, Redeemer Lutheran Church in Fort Wayne, Indiana.
Courtesy | Harvey Peters
Henry Eising ’21 with his wife. Courtesy | Henry Eising
Chris Atlee ’23 and his wife Abby (left) at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church with Isaac and Katie Spangler ’21 at the baptism of their first daughter Hazel in 2023.
Courtesy | Chris Atlee