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The pipes behind the Hills-

dale College Dow Leadership


Center have been a thorn in
the side of the college ad-
ministration since steam frst
seeped out through the open
manhole at the start of the
2011 fall semester.
Mending that damaged pipe
has proved to be a diIfcult
task.
After a failed attempt to
discover the source of the
leak with sonar, the contrac-
tor dug up the entire length of
pipe behind the Dow Center.
He discovered that the joints
where the pipe turned a corner
had been installed incorrectly,
and the resulting weakness left
the pipes susceptible to corro-
sion. More than 10 years after
the pipes were installed, water
Irom outside fnally eroded
away the protective coating,
resulting in the steam leak.
The original contractor,
whose name the college did
not reveal for legal reasons,
failed to put a reinforcement
piece called a boot on the
curved part of the pipe, and
this caused the weakness.
Larry Stonitsch, president of
Rovanco Piping Systems
the company that provided the
materials for the pipes instal-
The Republican primary has
come and gone for Hillsdale
County.
GOP candidate Rick Santo-
rum, while second in the state,
won the county with 43.6 percent
of the vote. Hillsdales votes
accounted for 2,269 of the nearly
380,000 votes Santorum received
in the state enough to make
opponent Mitt Romney sweat but
not enough to make the former
Michigander lose.
We didnt win by a lot, but
we won by enough, and thats all
that counts, the former Mas-
sachussetts governor said in his
victory speech Tuesday night.
Romney won Michigans pri-
mary after receiving just less than
410,000 votes, or 41.1 percent.
Former Sen. Santorum followed
with 37.9 percent. Rep. Ron Paul
and former Speaker of the House
Newt Gingrich were a distant
third and Iourth, fnishing with
11.6 and 6.5 percent, respectively.
Romney placed second in the
county primary with 32.9 percent.
Paul was third with 15.0 percent
and Gingrich fourth with 5.6
percent.
President Barack Obama, run-
ning uncontensted on the Demo-
cratic ticket, received the last 5
percent of Hillsdale Countys
votes.
I was 95 percent sure
Romney was going to win in
Michigan, said Gary Wolfram,
professor of political economy
and Hillsdale City resident.
Wolfram served as a policy
GOP hopeful Mitt Romneys
supporters rallied in Michigan on
Tuesday, barely giving him the
victory over former Pennsylvania
Sen. Rick Santorum.
Rep. Ron Paul and former
Speaker of the House Newt Gin-
grich trailed in third and fourth.
Not so at Hillsdale College.
Over 50 percent of the 184
students polled at Hillsdale Col-
lege said they supported Ron
Paul, while he received less than
12 percent of the vote in Michi-
gans primary.
Sophomore Spencer Amaral
said he believes that so many
students support Paul because he
understands and expresses the
principles taught at Hillsdale.
We should understand why
hes the best candidate and the
best statesman, Amaral said.
He is the only one we should
support now that we know what
we know.
Romney supporter sopho-
more Michael Koziara, however,
believes saying Hillsdale students
should support a particular candi-
date is presumptuous and that
all of the Republican candidates
are proponents of a limited, Con-
stitutional government.
Keep in mind, Koziara said,
that Hillsdales own Dr. Wol-
fram has voiced support for Gov.
Romney because of Mitts strong
understanding of free-market
economics and business.
Some students are concerned
that Paul supporters will hamper
the Republican party. Koziara
worries that, if Paul loses the
primary, some staunch Paul
supporters will detract from the
support of the GOP presidential
Vol. 135, Issue 18 - 1 March 2012
Michigans oldest college newspaper www.hillsdalecollegian.com
A5
In Spaces...
A5
A8
B4
TWITTER.COM/
HDALECOLLEGIAN
FACEBOOK.COM/
HILLSDALECOLLEGIAN
Caleb Whitmer
Copy Editor
Abi Wood
Copy Editor
Track
Magic: The
Gathering
Bomb
scare at
Davis
See A4
In Sports..
In City News...
Pipe erosion
blamed for leak
See A2
Santorum takes Hillsdale County
Student poll favors Ron Paul
(Joe Buth/Collegian)
See A2
Romney (1713)
Santorum (2269)
Paul (781)
Gingrich (290)
Obama (286)
Other (49)
Romney (9)
Santorum (45)
Paul (95)
Gingrich (4)
Other/Undecided (49)
Merry players
See B1
Romney barely wins Michigan primary
(Joelle Lucas/Collegian)
(Joe Buth/Collegian)
See A8
CHARGERS
PLOUGH AHEAD
Hillsdale Colleges mens
basketball team advanced
in the GLIAC tournament
last night in their 74-71 win
over Ashland University. The
Chargers will play their next
game in the tournament on
Saturday against Michigan
Tech University.
Sally Nelson
Web Editor
A tour bus covered with a
picture of GOP presidential can-
didate Rick Santorum came to
Hillsdale Saturday, Feb. 25, but
the candidate was not aboard.
Instead, the bus came to Hill-
sdale College to campaign for
Santorum, and is aIfliated with
CatholicVote.org and the Susan
B. Anthony List, said Marilyn
Musgrave, a former representa-
tive from Colorado.
Musgrave, now vice president
of government affairs for the
SBA List, said the bus came to
Hillsdale to get the vote out for
Santorum ahead of Michigans
Feb. 28 primary.
From about 12:30 to 2 p.m.,
the bus was parked between
Lane and Kendall halls and
students were invited on board
to hear more about the candi-
date and receive stickers and
campaign information. About 75
students came, including fresh-
men Shelly Peters and Rebecca
Robison.
They said they heard about
the bus from senior Laura
Wegmann, who alerted students
eating in the Grewcock Student
Union during lunch.
I think it shows how po-
litically active our college is,
Peters said.
In the past, SBA has used
the bus to campaign for Rep.
Michele Bachmann and former
Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.
'At frst, it was great to be
able to get on the bus and then I
realized I was sitting on the bus
with a former congresswoman,
sophomore Alex Anderson said.
It was also great to learn the
history of the bus that both Mi-
chelle Bachman and Sarah Palin
used for their campaigns.
Hillsdale was the ninth stop
of the day for the bus, which
was staffed by representatives
from other national pro-life
groups including Campaign For
Working Families, Culture War
Victory Fund, Eagle Forum, and
Let Freedom Ring.
We all know about Hillsdale
and the students and thought that
it was very important to come
here, Musgrave said. We loved
this and were hoping for a lot
of students. It has been a really
good turnout.
adviser for Romneys campaign.
Over the past month, Wolfram
has written op-ed pieces, felded
questions on Romneys tax
policy for the national media,
and helped the campaign frame
policy issues for Michigan
voters. He was even thanked
by Mitt Romneys wife, Anne
Romney, in Tuesday nights vic-
tory rally.
My wife pointed out I was
the only non-politician to be
thanked, he said.
The Romney campaign
asked Wolfram to help with
the Michigan primary after he
defended Romneys conserva-
tism in his weekly column for
Detroit News opinion blog, The
Michigan View, in January.
Anne had called me months
ago and Id just sort of gotten a
little bit busy and forgotten about
it, Wolfram said. I wasnt
thinking about getting that in-
volved, but then it became more
obvious to me that Romney was
the best candidate and I should
do something about it.
Senior Johnny Burtka, who
described himself uninformed
politically, got involved with the
Romney campaign too, but for a
different reason.
With the primary coming
up, I felt like I should go out and
fnd out more, he said.
On Monday, Burtka and four
other Hillsdale students drove to
a Romney rally held just outside
of Albion, Mich. They helped
pass out signs for the campaign.
The rally itself was good,
Burtka said. He seemed to
focus more on Obama than the
other Republican candidates.
Burtka said Romney seemed
to be trying to talk himself up as
a Michigan guy.
Kid Rock songs were played
as the candidate took the stage
and Romney told the crowd
he had gone to high school in
Michigan and how he met and
married his wife here.
At the end of the speech,
Burtka said he and the other
students got to shake hands with
him.
Although Romney won the
popular vote, of Michigans 14
congressional districts, Santorum
won eight.
CNN reported Wednesday,
Feb. 29 that each candidate
received half of Michigans 30
delegates.
Overall, I think the people
[of Hillsdale County] made it
pretty clear who they like: Rick
Santorum, said Park Hayes 67,
former city clerk and long-time
Hillsdale resident.
Hayes said he doesnt have
a favorite candidate. He said he
thought all the candidates had a
lot to work on.
I think Romney has a lot of
work to do, but I think Wash-
ington has a lot of work to do,
and especially Congress, Hayes
said. So far they have not
shown they have the fortitude to
do what they have to do.
Voter dissatisfaction with
the GOP candidates has been a
theme of the 2012 primary.
That was what got Wolfram
writing on Romney in the frst
place. He said he didnt like
voters or the medias miscon-
ception of Romney as a non-
conservative.
I have that column and when
things start to irritate me, Ill
write about it, he said.
Sophomore and Hillsdale
resident Ethan Gehrke is irritated
too, except hes irritated at Mitt
Romney.
Gehrke attributed Santorums
success to his connection to blue
collar voters.
The truth is the working
class is tired of rich guys, Geh-
rke said. People of the working
class like to be stared in the eye
and told the truth. That is what
Santorum did in Iowa and I think
thats why he won [in Hillsdale
County].
Wolfram said he believes
Romney will be the Republican
nominee.
[T]he problem is, by making
him spend money from this point
forward, and the Republicans
trying to spend all this money
on the nomination process, its
all money that cant be spent on
the general [election], Wolfram
said. It would I think be our
best interest to get behind him.
The next primary will be held
in the state of Washington on
March 3, followed by primaries
in 10 states on March 7, Super
Tuesday.
candidate in the fall.
Im fearful of a repeat of
history, Koziara said. The
general election in 2000 was so
close that had liberal votes
for third parties like the Green
Party gone to Gore as they
otherwise would [have] Gore
would have won Florida and the
presidency.
Second to Paul, Santorum
received about one-fourth of the
support from students. Sopho-
mores Melika Willoughby and
Brianna Walden actively support
Santorum because of what they
consider his proven leadership
with social issues and strong
understanding of economics.
I was a Santorum fan back
before it was cool, Walden said
with a laugh.
Santorum is the only candi-
date that articulates principled
beliefs without simply slamming
Obama or toeing the party line.
He made me sit up and listen,
Willoughby said. Santorum is
able to articulate the political
philosophy and reasons why
behind the policies he purports.
Walden chalked up Michigan
as a victory for Santorum
though Romney technically won
since he received so much of
the vote despite Romneys close
ties here.
It would have been nice if
he had won, Walden said. But
Santorum was outspent six to
one. Its amazing he did so well
in a state [Romney] grew up in.
Junior Katy Bachelder
disagreed because she believes
Romney won the media.
The headline is that Mitt
won. The delegate technical-
ity is not as important because
Santorum lost the news cycle,
Bachelder said.
In stark contrast to Romneys
41 percent of Michigan voters,
only nine of the 184 students
expressed support for the former
governor of Massachusetts. But
student supporters Koziara and
Bachelder believe that Romney
could beat Obama in the general
election.
There is no other candidate
with as much business experi-
ence, Koziara said. I think
he has the ability to turn the
economy around with a win in
November.
Bachelder said that Rom-
neys increasing conservatism is
positive in response to the accu-
sation that Romney 'fip-fops.
When someone comes clos-
er to what I believe, I consider it
a victory, not something worth
assailing, she said. That Mitt
moved to the right is an asset,
not a liability.
Walden, though, remains
unconvinced that Romney truly
upholds conservative values.
If we want to elect a
candidate to beat Obama, why
would we nominate someone
like Obama? We should go with
someone who has a complete
contrast to Obama, Walden
said.
Romney supporters ex-
pressed concern with San-
torums attempts to attract
Democrats.
I was concerned with Santo-
rum and his last-minute tactics,
Koziara said. Santorum is try-
ing to run as the true conser-
vative, and his move to attract
liberal votes may bite him in the
long run.
Bachelder said that Republi-
cans should take the Democrats
voting for Santorum as warning
signs.
The Democrats that are vot-
ing for Santorum demonstrate
that they are scared of Romney.
The Democrats are trying to get
the Republican party to play into
the hands of chaos, Bachelder
said. Santorum supporters
shouldnt be thrilled about it.
Walden considers both
candidates viable opponents to
Obama, though.
Hillsdale students remained
consistent with Michigan trends
towards Newt Gingrich. Only
four of those polled expressed
support for Gingrich.
Unlike the more political
students on campus, 31 students
responded as either non-political
or undecided. A few wrote in
names, from Gary Johnson to
John F. Kennedy to Louis the
XIV.
Im supporting Elizabeth
NEWS
1 March 2012 A2
www.hillsdalecollegian.com
Sarah Anne Voyles
Collegian Reporter
Pro-life advocates stump for Santorum
!
COUNTY
From A1
!
COLLEGE
From A1
CatholicVote.org and the Susan B. Anthony List brought a bus to rally support for
GOP hopeful Rick Santorum on Saturday, Feb. 25. (Sarah Anne Voyles/Collegian)
(Shannon Odell/Collegian)
When junior Danielle
Simpsons roommate got sick
last year in Benzing Residence
she couldnt use the toilet,
take a shower, or even wash
her hands. Thats because stu-
dents say the water supply in
Benzing shuts off every night,
sometimes for several hours.
My roommate had the
stomach fu at night and we
had no water in the bathroom
at all. Sorry for the gross
stories but its true and gross,
she said.
Several Benzing residents
have reported a problem with
the water pressure in Benzing
during early morning hours,
usually between 2 and 4 a.m.
Administrators say there
is nothing unusual about the
dorms water system.
Water is never shut off to
any part of campus during oc-
cupied times in the residences
unless it is necessary to do so
for repairs or construction,
said Timothy Wells, energy
education specialist. The
exception is when irrigation
systems get turned off during
the winter.
Some students think it may
have something to do with the
water softener.
The water softener in Benz-
ing must regenerate every 24
hours, said senior Sarah Fiore,
the dorms head resident as-
sistant for the past three years.
Fiore said regeneration takes
one hour usually between
2 a.m. and 3 a.m. every
night.
During that hour, women
only have access to the water
already in the pipes since the
water softener pulls the rest of
the water out of the system.
This is normal operat-
ing procedure for this type of
softener, Fiore said. We tell
the girls at the beginning of
the year and it has never been
a big issue. Girls plan around
it.
The water softener has
been in Benzing for the past
eight years, ever since House
Director Sue Abel took over,
Fiore said.
The loss of water pressure
generally affects the rooms
on diIIerent foors at slightly
staggered times throughout
the regeneration process.
Fiore said maintenance
has assured her the system is
working correctly. She has
only received two oIfcial
complaints in her time as head
RA and both were submitted
last year. She has not heard
any complaints this year.
Benzing RA sophomore
Morgan Linden said she has
heard several complaints
from women about the lack of
water pressure at night. Even
if water is not technically shut
off, the effect is the same.
I know [the water] doesnt
get turned off, but seriously,
it pretty much does, she
said. Ive had times where
not more than a few drops of
water would come out of the
drinking fountain or a faucet.
A shower is a near impossibil-
ity after 1:45 or 2-ish.
Sophomore Rebekah
Lindstrom said, Our water
[in Benzing] often turns off
at night around 2 or 3 in the
morning.
As illustrated by Simpsons
story, this seems to have been
a problem for women last year
as well.
Last year in Benzing the
water would sometimes be
turned off completely during
the night for a few hours and
it was terrible, junior Cath-
erine Feeney said. I couldnt
brush teeth, use the bathroom,
or get a drink of water.
Fiore said there are two
future options: to get a new
water-softening system, or to
change the time of the daily
regeneration. Maintenance can
adjust the time for the regen-
eration but Fiore said there is
no reason.
We havent had enough
complaints to justify calling
maintenance to change the
time, Fiore said.
She said pushing the
regeneration time back any
later in the morning would
start interfering with athletes
who get up early for morning
practices.
The girls work around it,
Fiore said. Every building
has its little quirks.
High and dry:
Emily Johnston
Senior Reporter
BENZING RESIDENTS FACE NIGHTLY WATER WOES
(Elena Salvatore/Collegian)
In the past 100 years, mil-
lions of people have died in
genocides worldwide.
Hillsdale Colleges In-
ternational Club is hosting
Genocide: A Campus-Wide
Dialogue from March 5 to 9 to
help students ponder genocide
beyond just its immorality and
examine its causes and effects.
Its a way to talk about and
understand what actually goes
wrong that allows for genocide.
We are not trying to establish
that genocide is wrong, said
junior and International Club
president Daniel Teal. We want
to ask, Where do cultures and
governments get off-track to
where their philosophy of the
human person allows for the
killing of millions?
The event will include
guest speakers David Rawson,
a former U.S. ambassador to
Rwanda and a dvisiting profes-
sor of politics, Professor of
HIstory Brad Birzer, and former
Europe correspondent Barbara
Elliott. The club will also host a
showing of Hotel Rwanda.
There has to be a common
thread from Rwanda to Armenia
to the Soviet Union to Cambo-
dia and so on, Teal said.
Vice president of the Interna-
tional Club, senior Kelsey Fox,
said that they are not prioritiz-
ing specifc genocides but rather
intend to show that genocide
is the primary fact of the 20th
century.
The club will raise money
for the Kigali Memorial Centre
in Rwanda through a silent
auction of art and cultural items.
Items include paintings, photos,
signed books, and more.
We hope to raise several
thousand dollars from students
and parents which will be used
for providing education for vic-
tims of the Rwandan genocide
and for the Centres project of
burying the bodies found in
mass unmarked graves, still
being discovered throughout
Rwanda today, Teal said.
The center works to educate
youth in Rwanda who cannot
remember the slaughter in 1994
or were born after it happened.
A study from 2006 showed
that approximately 60 percent
of Rwandan youth still display
genocidal tendencies, Fox said.
They dont have the ID.
cards, but there is still an aware-
ness of the distinction between
the Hutus and Tutsis, Fox said,
referring to the Rwandan tribes
involved in the tragedy.
The week-long dialogue
stemmed from an idea Teal
proposed to Fox and others in
the club over a year ago.
Daniel told me about his
idea to do a one-day event in
remembrance of the Armenian
genocide. I wanted to bring
Rwanda into the event, Fox
said. It evolved into a week-
long event.
The events will be held in
Phillips Auditorium.
NEWS A3 1 March 2012
www.hillsdalecollegian.com
DEBATE WINS BIG AT
BOWLING GREEN
MOCKTRIAL MISSES NATS
Coming back to campus
with very unusual trophies
a brain on a platter and a
gravestone the Hillsdale
College debate team sur-
passed its expectations this
weekend at Bowling Green
State Universitys Night of
the Living Dead-themed
tournament.
With topics including
whether the United States
government should contain
the outbreak of zombies, the
prevention of nuclear pro-
liferation, weapons sales to
Taiwan to Medicare, the team
had to think metaphorically
in order to have success at the
tournament.
Our team did not dress
up, and neither did most of
the other competitors, but
the host schools team and
staff did, said debate coach
Matthew Doggett, assistant
professor of speech.
It was a very fun and in-
teresting tournament. It really
challenged our team members
to think outside of the box.
The tournament was a
swing, meaning there were
two separate competitions on
Saturday and Sunday both.
On Saturday, Feb. 25, the
team won second place in
overall debate sweepstakes.
Senior Elliot Gaiser took sec-
ond in open Lincoln-Douglas
debate. Junior Bryan Brooks
and his partner, sophomore
Ian Hanchett, also took
second in open parliamentary
debate.
On Sunday, Feb. 26, the
team placed frst in debate
sweepstakes. Hillsdale
constituted three of the four
semifnalists in Lincoln-
Douglas. Brooks, Hanchett,
and sophomore Jonathan
Slonim closed out the round
by winning frst, second, and
third place.
When they close out they
just give us the awards be-
cause two members from the
same team cannot compete
against one another, Doggett
said. It doesnt matter who
gets frst, as long as some-
one from Hillsdale gets it, of
course.
Gaiser and his partner,
sophomore Lauren Holt, won
frst place in open parlia-
mentary debate. This was
their frst overall win in open
parliamentary this year.
It was encouraging to
fnally see results in the
out-rounds of that form of
debate, Holt said.
'This is the frst time that
Lauren and I have won a
tournament for Hillsdale,
Gaiser said. Shes only a
sophomore, so the league had
better look out.
The tournament did not
award speaker points.
Despite the farcical theme,
several factors made this tour-
nament challenging.
The topics in parliamen-
tary debate were very broad,
meaning that when we were
on the negative, we would
often have to adapt in-round,
Brooks said. Also, Grove
City College was at the tour-
nament, and they have a very
strong debate team.
Brooks and Hanchett faced
the Grove City team four out
of their six rounds throughout
the Saturday tournament and
won three of the four.
In addition to these chal-
lenges, many of the judges
had little or no collegiate
debate experience and some
had never seen an academic
debate before, Brooks said.
This made it challenging
for us because we are used to
judges who debated in college
and are used to the activity
and the regular jargon that
goes with it, Brooks said.
Just as some of the judges
were facing new debate expe-
riences, so were junior Alex
Graf and sophomore Harris
Wells.
GraI competed Ior the frst
time in International Public
Debate Association-style de-
bate and won second place.
Wells had never seen a
Lincoln-Douglas debate be-
fore Sunday and had not read
the evidence until Saturday
night.
Lincoln-Douglas has a
steep learning curve, espe-
cially when you jump in at
the end of the season because
everyone already has a lot
of knowledge on the topic,
which made it hard for Harris
to jump in with no experience
in this format, Brooks said.
However, Harris improved
so much that by the end of
the tournament he was able
to compete with one of the
top debaters from Otterbein
University.
Wells has decided to join
the team in its next tour-
nament in two weeks at
Michigan State University
undeterred by the unusual
experience of debating at a
zombie-themed tournament.
Some of the resolutions
were funny, but they were
still easy to understand and
debate about, Holt said.
They really left us a lot of
room to be creative and have
fun. Its nice to have a week-
end like this one. I really did
have a total blast.

The Hillsdale College
mock trial team traveled
to South Bend, Ind. last
weekend to compete in the
American Mock Trial As-
sociations regional tourna-
ment at the University of
Notre Dame.
The team won three of
its match-ups, but lost five,
some by a very close mar-
gin, and did not advance to
the national tournament. The
team struggled with the dif-
ficult schedule it was given.
We had the highest com-
bined strength score at the
competition, meaning that
we had the hardest sched-
ule of any team there, said
sophomore Evan Gage, who
gave closing arguments at
the trial.
Freshman Philip Hammer-
sley agreed.
The competition was
very tough. We faced some
really good teams. There
was no room for error [be-
cause] all the teams were
top-notch.
The team started hot, win-
ning against the University
of Chicago and performing
well against Loyola Uni-
versity. But then it came up
against Northwood Universi-
ty, the top-ranked team that
went on to win 8-0.
The margin by which we
lost to [Northwood] was in-
credibly small. We did very
well, Gage said.
Though they did not move
on to regionals, the team
members were pleased with
their performance.
We were always on the
brink of winning, but we
could never quite get there,
freshman Katie Kinell said.
Im really proud of every-
one, though. Each person put
a lot of effort in.
Gage echoed these senti-
ments.
Regardless of the fact
that we didnt qualify, we
had people who did a fantas-
tic job in certain parts of the
trial, he said. Some of the
new members performed to
the best of their ability.
Now that this season is
over, the team is looking to
next year with high hopes.
We knew that this year
would be a building year,
Gage said. Instead of hav-
ing an A team with more
experienced people and a B
team with new members, we
split up all the sophomores
to work with all of the fresh-
men. Now we have a huge
group of students who are
well-qualified. At the com-
petition, we ended up seeing
the foundation of a national
team. University of Chicago,
Northwood, Notre Dame
well take em down. I have
no doubt.
Freshman Sam Ryskamp
agreed.
This is only our second
year, and we could hang
with some good teams, he
said. Next year, well have
an opportunity to do some
big things and make some
noise.
Samantha Scorzo
Collegian Freelancer
Sally Nelson
Web Editor
Evan Brune
Collegian Freelancer
DEFEATED BY SCHEDULE, TEAM GOES 3-5
Intl Club to sponsor
Genocide Awareness Week
EVERETT FINALISTS
ANNOUNCED
On Feb. 24, 19 contestants vied for the oppor-
lur|ly lo corpele |r lre lra| rourd ol l|||sda|e
Co||ege's EdWard Everell 0ralory Corpel|l|or.
'Tre corpel|l|or Werl rea||y We|| ard We
rad a greal lurroul, ar adv|sor lor lre speecr
deparlrerl sa|d. 'Tre speecres |oo|ed prelly
slrorg ard everyore's do|rg a rea||y good joo.
Tr|s year's lra| corpel|l|or |rc|udes a
prev|ous Everell 0ralory W|rrer, ser|or T. E|||ol
0a|ser; lWo prev|ous lra||sls, ser|or 3ararlra
Nasser ard jur|or ArdreW 0y|sla|; ard a lorrer
rurrer-up, ser|or Trevor Ardersor.
Tr|s |s ser|or 8|a|e Fau||er's lrsl year lra|-
|rg, as We|| as jur|or J||| 8ucco|a's, Wro Was
rared as lr|s year's a|lerrale.
Co||ege Pres|derl Larry Arrr ard V|cr|gar
ous|ressrar 0or Tocco W||| oolr judge lre lra|
corpel|l|or Trursday, Varcr 8, Wrer lve cor-
leslarls W||| corlerd lor lre S3,000 grard pr|ze.
Tre lr|rd judge ras yel lo oe rared oy lre
speech department said.
-Tory Cooney
2012-13
CCA TOPICS
RELEASED
l|||sda|e Co||ege slu-
derls W||| oe ao|e lo Walcr
'8r|dge over lre R|ver
KWa|, ard |earr aooul
lre Arg|o-3axor ep|c
'8eoWu|l lor cred|l rexl
academic year.
Tre l|r ard ep|c are
parl ol lWo Cerler lor Cor-
slrucl|ve A|lerral|ves lop|cs
arrourced lor 2012-2013.
Tre CCAs W||| exar|re
ep|c poelry, l|rs lror lre
wor|d war ll era, 3uprere
Court cases, and the
ledera| |rcore lax rale.
Jur|or Asr|ey Logar,
lead ol 3luderl 3lall lor
Exlerra| Alla|rs, sa|d lre
se|ecl|or prov|des opl|ors
lor a|| sluderls.
'l rea||y apprec|ale lre
rarge ol lop|cs ollered oy
the Center for Construc-
l|ve A|lerral|ves, Logar
sa|d.wrelrer you're |r-
terested in art or econom-
|cs, lrere's sorelr|rg lor
everyore.
-Marieke van der Vaart
Author and journalist John Derbyshire will give two
talks in Phillips Auditorium next week sponsored by
the Dow Journalism Program and the Math Depart-
ment. On Tuesday, March 6 at 8 p.m. he will discuss
his book, We are Doomed, Reclaiming Conservative
Pessimism. On Wednesday, March 7 at noon, he will
talk about his popular writings in mathematics. (Sally
Nelson/Collegian)
Two hundred seventy-one stu-
dents applied to live off-campus
next year, about the same number
as last year, according to thedean
oI women`s oIfce.
Every year men and women
apply to live in private houses.
The number who are approved
depends on the size of the incom-
ing and graduating classes.
'We like to fll up all oI the
beds on campus before students
move off campus, said Dean of
Women Diane Philipp. 'Which
depends on how many people
are leaving and how many are
coming in.
That means that 1,010 beds
must be flled beIore students can
live off campus: 425 for men and
585 Ior women.
The majority of the men who
applied for off-campus housing
will receive approval, said As-
sociate Dean oI Men JeII Rogers.
The exact percentage could be as
high as 90 percent but there will
be no oIfcial numbers until the
end oI the month, he said.
Staff Assistant for Admissions
Margaret Braman said that the
admissions department has yet
to complete processing regular
decision applications, which have
just come in.
Acceptance letters will go out
to the class of 2016 on April 1,
giving the dean`s oIfce an idea
of how many students will be
coming in to fll the beds that
off-campus hopefuls currently
occupy.
We let
seniors with
90 credit
hours or
more know
frst, Philipp
said. 'Some
will decide
that they
want to stay
on campus,
so well be
giving more
women ap-
proval on a
daily basis.
Even if you
don`t get it in the frst round,
theres a good chance youll still
get approval.

Off-campus appeal
Both students who currently
live off-campus and those who
aspire to do so next year cite off-
campus community as a major
draw Ior making the move.
Its easier to entertain and
you can be very intentional about
forming these communities, said
sophomore Anika Top, who plans
to live oII campus next year.
My current room is big
enough for me and thats about
it. It`ll be nice having a kitchen
table, too.
Theres
a handful of
houses that re-
ally enjoy bring-
ing younger
students to their
homes as just
another place
to hang out,
Philipp said.
It gives them
a broader bit of
independence.
I get this
idea of living
off campus,
said Rogers,
who likened the
experience to his living off base
while in the Navy.
Its like, Hey, Im doing this
myselI. I am in charge oI my
liIe.`
But with that come huge
responsibilities and tons of things
you have to be cognizant of,
Rogers said.'Like paying rent.

7KHEHQHWV
This introduction to the real
world is good preparation for life
post-Hillsdale, said Rogers and
Philipp.
It prepares you for what
youre ultimately going to do
when you cant go running back
to momma and daddy, Rogers
said.
Why not start preparing for
adulthood now? Topp said. 'I
mean, bills? That will be excit-
ing.
Moving off campus can also
foster good relationships with the
community at large, as it gives
students the opportunity to serve
as good ambassadors to the
greater Hillsdale community,
Rogers said.
I miss the seniors sometimes,
though, Philipp said. 'Those
who move off campus are lost, a
little, to the rest of the on-campus
community, though not entirely.
But it is part of life and part of
the college experience, said the
deans.
You can say Hey, we lived
out in town in a place called Hill-
sdale in a far, far, away land and
here are our experiences, Rog-
ers said. 'It`s making memories
At least it will be for some of
this year`s 271 applicants.


NEWS
A4 1 March 2012
www.hillsdalecollegian.com
!
KATES TAKE
KATE
OLSON
Enraged
about the
engaged
Dear Kate,
I recently got engaged. While it`s nice to have fnally
taken that big step, its very hard to be in the state of re-
lationship limbo now. The next step is marriage, and until
then I feel like weve plateaued! Meanwhile, Im swamped
with wedding plans along with my school work. To make
everything worse, my single friends dont offer much sym-
pathy. How do I cope during this terrible waiting period?
Thanks,
Very Impatient
Dear Impatient,
LiIe is hard Ior everyone. Some people are poor, some
people have bad health, others are just lonely. Fortunately
for you, youre biggest problem is the stress of waiting and
planning Ior the happiest day oI your liIe. I don`t under-
stand you people. You`ve Iound your soulmate, you`ve
got someone by your side who will stick with you in thick
and thin, and yet you still want the rest of the world to cry
with you when everything isnt just perfect for the two
oI you. LiIe is never easy, I know that. I know that all oI
your problems don`t vanish when you Iall in love. But stop
rubbing your happiness in other peoples face and calling it
misery! You`re just impatient. How spoiled are you when
you have to complain about waiting a few months to get
what you want. It`s like a child whining because Christmas
doesn`t come soon enough. It`s annoying! We`re all happy
Ior you. Now be happy Ior yourselI. And that goes Ior
everyone in relationships, not just those of you who are en-
gaged. Use the time oI waiting to practice discipline. There
will be incredibly hard times during your marriage, no need
to manuIacture some right now. You`re in college, you`re in
love, youve got it all or at least youve got what counts:
good friends, time to read good books, and a wonderful
person by your side. Make up your mind about the fowers
at your wedding (because thats your biggest issue to deal
with) and ask your single friends about them for a change,
rather than moaning about your own minuscule problems,
like being engaged.
STEADY NUMBER OF OFF-CAMPUS APPS
GALLOWAY HOLDS VOLUNTEER COMPETITION
In hopes to join the com-
munity of Hillsdale and the
college, Ben Holscher, a resident
assistant on third-foor Galloway,
came up with an idea, a friendly
competition oI sorts.
Since Feb. 9, the men oI
Galloway Hall have been collect-
ing. Not cans, not money, but
volunteer hours. The entire dorm
has been challenged to assemble
more volunteer hours than the
competing teams by April 17.
Whoever has the most hours is
awarded an all-expense-paid trip
to Six Flags in Chicago. In order
to be eligible for the amusement
park excursion, each individual
must log a minimum oI 12 hours.
The three teams in the com-
petition are divided by foors.
The residents oI the frst foor
oI Galloway and the loIt were
added to the the teams of the top
three foors. 'Smart money is on
third foor to win, said sopho-
more Sam Stoneburner, team
second foor. Stoneburner logs
his volunteer hours flling in as
an assistant cook for the Equip
Bible study. 'I work Ior two
hours a week. That by itselI pulls
my weight, said Stoneburner.
The good will competition
was conceived last summer in a
brainstorming session to create
dorm camaraderie. Holscher
wanted the residents oI Gallo-
way to grow both as men and as
members oI the community.
I have gradually learned that
the community doesnt have a
good perspective oI the college.
They see students as privileged
or selI-centered. And that`s a
Ialse stereotype. Or at least it
should be. We want Hillsdale
County to be proud that they`re
home to Hillsdale College,
Holscher said.
As of recently, a new rule has
been added to the competition.
If residents convince non-
'Gallowayans to participate
in volunteering activities, the
non-resident hours will count to
whichever foor draIted the ad-
ditional hands.
I want it to get bigger,
Holscher said. 'We want campus
to get on board on this mission to
help others.
Junior Micah Speers has
found that the competition has
signifcantly raised volunteer
participation among his Gallo-
way peers.
'From what I hear, people
are really enjoying their time.
The time they spend volunteer-
ing is not time wasted, Speers
said. 'Lots oI guys on the third
foor volunteer at the King`s
Cupboard, do buddy reading, or
volunteer at the humane society.
At press time, Speers and his
third-foor teammates logged 55
hours.
Team Iourth foor has some
plans on pulling ahead, as they
are in last place.
According to Ireshman Caleb
Bowers, it is the best strategy
to collect hours in a big sum
rather than assembling hours in
small amounts. 'This Saturday,
Anthony Brooks is putting on a
Rubiks cube competition where
all proceeds are going to char-
ity, Bowers said.
'G-4 has a very giving heart
and attitude. We actually care
about the community. And Six
Flags.
The big threat Ior 'G-4 is
team second foor. According to
Bowers, 'second foor is killing
everyone volunteering-wise.
Fourth-foor resident sophomore
Michael Ragan, however, was
not intimidated, Despite second
foor`s lead, G-4 still has some
secret plans to come ahead,
Ragan said.
But competition aside, stu-
dents have realized the impact
their hours have had on both the
community and themselves as
individuals. 'I noticed how much
need there was once this started.
Even iI everyone in Galloway
was committed, we still wouldnt
be able to Iulfll all oI the volun-
teering needs in Hillsdale. It has
really opened my eyes, Stone-
burner said.
Senior Brad Deitzen has been
a regular in the volunteering for
quite some time. Ever since the
second semester of his freshman
year, Deitzen has volunteered
at Crossroad Farm, a church 15
minutes Irom campus. Twice a
week, Deitzen will spend three
hours working with middle
school and high school youth
groups.
Ive grown a lot thanks to
these kids. There is sometimes a
disconnect between the college
and the town. I want to get out
there. The whole experience is
really humbling, Deitzen said.
As for the competitive element
of this volunteer challenge, Deit-
zen has also posed some interest,
despite his indifference toward
the grand prize. 'I don`t even
like Six Flags. I don`t even like
roller coasters. I just want to win
it to win it, Deitzen said.
Tory Cooney
Collegian Freelancer
OFF-CAMPUS
APPLICATIONS
Women Men
Seniors 42 8
Juniors 63 32
Sophomores 12 77
Freshmen 0 36
Total 117 54
Bailey Pritchett
Collegian Freelancer
!
PIPES
From A1
lation said the companys
policy is to have men on-site
during construction.
'The pipe supplier certifed
that everything was installed
properly, Vice President for
Administration Rich Pw
said.
Stonitsch, however, said
the responsibility to install the
pipe correctly belonged to the
contractor.
Why it got installed im-
properly is a bone of conten-
tion now, he said. 'It`s not
like everyone is pointing fn-
gers. We just don`t know what
happened. We don`t know iI he
purposely cut corners or if he
just didn`t know what to do.
The original contractor
no longer has a commercial
plumbing license, and is
thereIore unable to help fx the
problem.
Brian Runde, the vice presi-
dent of engineering at Peter
Basso Associates Inc. the
engineering company respon-
sible for the project 10 years
ago said the company is
reviewing a quote for pricing
materials but that the project
could take a few more months
to complete.
Pw said the engineering
company had been very helpful
in terms of providing engineer-
ing assistance at a low cost.
Though the administration is
looking at quotes from mul-
tiple pipe installation com-
panies, it plans to stick with
Peter Basso.
Theyve been really good
to work with, Pewe said.
While the administration
works out the kinks in the in-
stallation process, the college
has been renting a temporary
boiler on a month-to-month
basis. Pewe is hopeIul, saying
he is ordering the new pieces
of pipe and expecting the pipe
to be mended in approximately
60 days.
Pw said that despite the
problems the pipe has caused,
he does not regret installing it
all those years ago.
In the end [the pipe]
replaced a failing boiler that
would have been just as expen-
sive to replace, he said. 'For
10-and-a-halI years oI signif-
cant eIfciency, I don`t regret
it. It`s still more cost eIIective
to replace the pipe and we will
still get signifcant beneft.
Palace Caf owner Leslie
Meredith used to take people
into her house who didnt have
anywhere else to go and tried
to help them get back on their
feet.
But when the Palace Caf
and both of its safes was
broken into in January, she
had a suspicion that one of the
people she had taken in was to
blame.
They had come in and
eaten the day before, she said.
They had never come in to eat
before.
The morning after the two
suspects unusual visit to the
Palace, one of the waitresses
who came in at 5:30 a.m. found
the back door kicked in and
both of the restaurants safes
pried open. Meredith told the
detective investigating the case
her suspicions, and four people
were arrested for the break-in
after cashing in the money at
Walmart, one of whom had
been staying with Meredith.
So it was an inside infor-
mation thing, Meredith said.
The Hillsdale Daily News
reported that Corey Demots and
Jordan Tracey were found to be
guilty last week by the district
court on one count of at-
tempted breaking and entering
with intent to commit larceny.
The charges of safe breaking,
breaking and entering with
intent to commit larceny, and
conspiracy to commit break-
ing and entering were dropped
as part of the plea bargains of
paying restitution to the Palace
Caf and testifying against co-
defendants, Kyle Brewer and
Michael Murray.
Demots admitted to telling
Brewer and Murray that the
Palace Caf did not have cam-
eras and disclosing the location
of the safes.
Brewer was arraigned on
Feb. 29. All four will serve
time in prison, which will be
determined by their sentencing
in April.
Ive decided my homeless
shelter is closed at my house,
Meredith said.
She said they have also in-
stalled a camera at the caf, as
well as a bigger, better safe and
new reinforced doors. Meredith
also said she no longer keeps
cash on the premises.
Its also affected my hir-
ing, she said. I have to look at
everyone differently now.
Detective Brad Martin said
this incident of breaking and
entering was isolated, but since
November, the city of Hillsdale
has experienced around 11
break-ins.
We believe that the residen-
tial burglaries are all connected
and all committed by one
person, he said.
The break-in at the Palace
Caf, however, was an isolated
incident.
Martin said the burglaries
that have been taking place at
homes in the area have been for
the purpose of stealing jewelry
to sell for money. While 11
have taken place within the ju-
risdiction of the Hillsdale City
Police Department, there have
been other incidents in Jones-
ville and outside of Hillsdale
city limits.
Martin said that with the un-
usual number of burglaries go-
ing on, no one should hesitate
to report suspicious behavior to
the police.
The best advice we can
give is for people to be cautious
and be aware of suspicious
people, he said.
The following is a list of calls compiled and reported by the Hillsdale
County Sheriffs Department.
Hillsdale City Police
Feb. 28
A 22-year-old Hillsdale man was arrested on suspicion of domestic
assault. A $1,000 bond was posted.
Feb. 26
A 29-year-old Hillsdale man was arrested on parole violation. No bond
was allowed.
Feb. 24
A 32-year-old Hillsdale man was arrested on suspicion of domestic
assault. A $1,000 bond was not posted.
Feb. 22
A 33-year-old Albion man was arrested on a criminal bench warrant for
driving with a suspended license. The man was sentenced to jail.
Jonesville Police Department
Feb. 22
An 18-year-old Jonesville man was arrested on a misdemeanor warrant
for assault and battery. A $1,000 bond was not posted.
Hillsdale County Sheriffs Department
Feb. 28
A 44-year-old Hillsdale man was arrested on a misdemeanor warrant
for domestic violence. A $1,000 bond was posted.
A 23-year-old Osseo woman was arrested on a misdemeanor warrant
for failure to report an accident and open intoxicants in a motor vehicle.
A $1,000 bond was posted.
A 26-year-old Fremont, Ind. man was arrested on a misdemeanor war-
rant for disorderly person. A $500 bond was posted.
A 19-year-old Hillsdale man was arrested on a felony warrant for home
invasion and conspiracy to commit home invasion. A $100,000 bond
was not posted.
A 17-year-old Jerome boy was arrested on suspicion of driving with a
suspended license. A $2,000 bond was not posted.
The Hillsdale County Sheriffs Department responded to one domestic
assault, one harassing communication, two animal control oIfcer ac-
tions, and one car-deer accident.
Feb. 27
A 23-year-old Kentwood woman was arrested on a misdemeanor
warrant for conspiracy to commit embezzlement. A $2,000 bond was
posted.
A 27-year-old Litchfeld woman was arrested on suspicion oI driving
with a suspended license. A $2,000 bond was posted.
The Hillsdale County Sheriffs Department responded to two car-deer
accidents and two animal control oIfcer actions.
Feb. 26
A 32-year-old Waldron man was arrested on suspicion of resisting and
obstructing a police oIfcer and two counts oI domestic assault. No
bond was allowed.
A 22-year-old Hickory, N.C. man was arrested on suspicion of driving
with a suspended license. A $6,000 bond was posted.
The Hillsdale County Sheriffs Department responded to one suspi-
cious situation and two domestic assaults.
Feb. 25
A 44-year-old Coldwater man was arrested on suspicion of assault and
battery. A $1,000 bond was not posted.
The Hillsdale County Sheriffs Department responded to two assaults
and one breaking and entering call.
Feb. 24
An 18-year-old Hillsdale man was arrested on a felony warrant for two
counts of criminal sexual conduct and accosting children for immoral
purposes. An $80,000 bond was not posted.
The Hillsdale County Sheriffs Department responded to one larceny
and Iour animal control oIfcer actions.
Feb. 23
A 25-year-old Jonesville man was arrested on suspicion of driving with
a suspended license. A $2,000 bond was posted.
Feb. 22
The Hillsdale County Sheriffs Department responded to two larcenies,
one suspicious situation, and two car-deer accidents.
Compiled by Sarah Leitner
Theres a bomb threat at the
middle school.
Darcy Wert, mother of a
sixth-grade boy, heard those
words when she called Hills-
dale High School on Feb. 23 to
ask why her son had been sent
there. The school was under
lockdown.
Davis Middle School of-
fcials moved students to the
high school around 9:30 a.m. on
Feb. 23 after the school received
a hand-written message saying
that part of the building would
blow up that morning, said
Director of Public Safety Chris
Gutowski.
The Hillsdale Police and Fire
Department arrived on the scene
and searched the building. They
found no evidence of a bomb
and allowed students back into
the middle school around 12:30
p.m.
Police are working with
school staff to match the
handwriting on the note with
students handwriting samples.
Both the Hillsdale school dis-
trict superintendent and police
chief said they plan to prosecute
the offender to the fullest extent.
This is a serious offense that
neither the police administra-
tion nor the school are taking
lightly, Gutowski said.
After discovering the
threatening note, Davis Mid-
dle School Principal Jackie
Wicikham immediately notifed
Superintendent Shawn Vondra
and the police. Vondra decided
to move students to the high
school, where they waited in the
gym and had lunch.
There wasnt validity to the
concern, but you dont know
that when youre in the middle
of it, Vondra said.
He sent out phone messages
to parents informing them that
the school had put a safety pre-
caution in place. The messages
did not, however, mention a
bomb threat.
Wert called the high school to
fnd out what had happened and
learned that the safety precau-
tion actually was the result of a
bomb threat. Then she rushed to
pick up her son.
When I got to the high
school, I could tell that no one
expected to see me there, but
I said, No, my kid is coming
home now, Wert said.
Other parents said they sus-
pected there was a bomb threat
but had no way of knowing for
sure.
I can understand not want-
ing to tell the kids at the time
that there was a bomb threat,
but the parents are still entitled
to know whats going on at the
school, Wert said.
Vondra emphasized the
importance of caution with
information in such a sensitive
situation.
You need to provide info
about where the children are and
whats happening with them,
but you dont want to miscom-
municate information and you
also dont want to cloud up an
issue until you have all the facts
down, he said. First priority
was to tell parents that the chil-
dren and staff would be moved
to a different school and that
their children are safe.
OIfcers looked in lockers
but did not check students bags.
No dogs were used to search the
school building
We didnt crawl under any
big objects, Gutowski said.
We checked in trashcans and
looked for something in plain
view.
Amanda Abbott, mother of
a sixth-grader, questioned the
reasoning behind grouping all
the students together in the high
school during a bomb threat,
saying they would be one big
target.
I think they need to come
up with a better plan because if
there was some crazy maniac,
they are just going to move all
the kids together, Abbott said.
I just dont think it is very
safe.
Vondra said the school
handled the situation appropri-
ately.
Our schools have well-
developed safety and security
response plans, and that was
clearly evident in the way
that the staff and the students
executed the plan timely and
effectively, he said.
Gutowski said there is no
apparent connection between
this incident and the November
meth lab explosion a quarter of
a mile away.
The threat reminded many
parents of the dangers their
children face when they leave
home.
Its always scary send-
ing your kid out, no matter if
theyre going to school or down
the street to a friends house,
Abbott said. Its always in the
back of your mind.
CITY NEWS
A5 1 March 2012
www.hillsdalecollegian.com
MISSING MAN FOUND IN DEFIANCE, OHIO
A larl, V|cr. ral|ve Was lourd |r 0elarce, 0r|o or Feo. 21 aller
walking away from the Michindoh Ministries Conference Center in Hills-
dale on the previous Saturday afternoon.
Nathan Mick left his church retreat group without informing other mem-
oers ol r|s |rlerl|ors, accord|rg lo sources al V|cr|rdor V|r|slr|es.
Apparently, he has a history of doing this kind of thing, said Jeff
Knoll, Director of Youth Programs at the Michindoh Conference Center.
'll Wasr'l arylr|rg lral cou|d oe preverled.
When the retreat leaders realized that Mick had left the group, group
reroers |aurcred a searcr lor r|r ard corlacled lre aulror|l|es.
V|c| ras a |earr|rg d|sao|||ly, oul d|d rol core lo lre crurcr relreal as
part of a special needs group.
'we d|d rol |roW lral re rad a |earr|rg d|sao|||ly url|| aller lre lacl,
said Knoll.
Due to prior incidents, relatives of Mick were not concerned with the
situation. The search was launched in an effort to ensure that he had not
come into any harm.
Evan Brune
Police Blotter
BOMB THREAT AT DAVIS
BURGLARS
CRACK SAFES
AT PALACE
CAF
Casey Harper
Collegian Freelancer
Sarah Leitner
Copy Editor
Students at Davis Middle School were evacuated on Feb. 23 because of a bomb threat.
(Greg Barry/The Collegian)
HILLSDALE VOTERS CHOOSE NEW CITY CLERK
The city of Hillsdale hasnt
had a permanent city clerk since
November of 2011.
That changed on Tuesday.
Julie Kast was elected to the
city clerk position from a four-
candidate feld with 297 votes.
Also running were Amy Eng-
land (209), James Pruitt (144),
and Adam Stockford (126).
The citys clerk troubles
began last August when Parke
Hayes announced he would not
run for reelection due to health
reasons.
Unfortunately, Hayes name,
running unopposed, had already
been printed on ballots to be
used for the the November 2011
election and it would cost too
much to print more. The city de-
cided to use the ballots and tried
to inform city voters of Hayes
decision.
The election was held in
November and after the votes
were counted, Hayes had been
reelected city clerk.
Hillsdale City Council ap-
pointed Michelle Lauren, direc-
tor of the parks and recreation
department, to interim city clerk
at Nov. 14s meeting.
I would advise candidates
for city clerk to apply and
circulate their petitions as soon
as possible, Hayes said, after
he swore in Lauren as his
replacement.
Since then, the city has been
especially concerned with com-
munication between the city
government and city residents.
In Feb. 9s meeting, the
council even created a tempo-
rary communications committee
to try to update the citys com-
munication capabilities.
In a nutshell, technology has
far surpassed the citys commu-
nication capabilities, Watkins
said at the meeting.
Hayes said he was happy
the city got four candidates for
Tuesdays election.
Caleb Whitmer
Copy Editor
S
hould every awkward statement made by
professors be posted on the Internet? Is
everything thats said out loud around cam-
pus fair game to be quoted and posted online?
The Facebook group Overheard at Hillsdale
College might make one think so. There are a
number of hazards with the group, but if students
are good stewards of it, it can be a positive and
fun contribution to our culture.
Overheard at Hillsdale College, for those of
you who are not one of its 980 members, is a
Facebook group where members can post quirky,
funny, or awkward statements theyve heard
around campus and in classrooms. Its impossible
not to share a professors description of Britain as
the ugly girl Thomas Jefferson could never have
seen himself with or an explanation for their
lateness by telling their students theyd give
them an A iI they can fnd two clocks that tell the
same time on campus.
Although this is a great idea in theory be-
cause whats better than publicizing someones
candid reaction to reading William Byrds Se-
cret Diary? There is absolutely no moderation or
limitation on what someone can post.
Newspaper reporters are required to ask
you if its all right to quote you on that, but
on Overheard, the expectation is that everyone
can quote everything all the time. Obviously, a
Facebook group isn`t as oIfcial as a newspa-
per, but peoples opinions are still being made
available to the public, sometimes without the
persons knowledge. A private conversation that a
stranger overhears can be instantly broadcast to
two-thirds of the student body, as one freshman
discovered when their disparaging remarks about
Adam Smith showed up online after they being
expressed aloud in the library.
Usually people will quote particularly damag-
ing or embarrassing tidbits anonymously, but
there is no guarantee that this will always be the
case.
Additionally, as with any mass media platform
that is unregulated, there is a certain amount of
spam that manages to get itself posted. These
include inane comments and obscene or vulgar
remarks only restricted by the whim of the poster.
Despite these concerns, however, I think the
benefts oI Overheard Iar outweigh the draw-
backs. For one, it does allow students to cap-
ture those truly Hillsdalian moments: sublime
discussion of the good, true, and beautiful, or
complaints about the problems inherent in the ex-
istence of Hillsdating and mega churches. There
is a certain philosophical quirkiness to Hillsdale
College that these conversational snapshots
promote and the use of Overheard to share them
can contribute to the growth and spread of that
culture.
When posting on Overheard at Hillsdale Col-
lege, try to contribute with a sense of common
decency and an eye to making it entertaining
and good fun. Good, true, and beautiful may be
too much to ask for, but at least keep it decent,
vaguely true, and attractive.
With my hands getting tired from typing, I
will conclude. I suppose its time to pray that the
hand cramp goes away. As a matter of fact, the
other day I overheard that If theres a patron
saint of writers cramp, it has to be Thomas Aqui-
nas. So maybe he can help.
OPINION
1 March 2012 A6 www.hillsdalecollegian.com
THE COLLEGIAN WEEKLY
THE OPINION OF THE COLLEGIAN EDITORIAL STAFF
33 E. College St.
Hillsdale, MI 49242
Newsroom: (517) 607-2897
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Online: www.hillsdalecollegian.com
Editor in Chief: Marieke van der Vaart
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Opinions Editor: T. Elliot Gaiser
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Features Editor: Shannon Odell
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Design Assistant: Aaron Mortier
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Copy Editors: Tory Cooney | Morgan Sweeney
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Photographers: Joe Buth | Elena Salvatore
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The editors welcome Letters to the Editor but reserve
the right to edit all submissions for clarity, length and
style. Letters should be less 350 words or less and include
your name and phone number. Please send submissions
to collegian@hillsdale.edu before Sunday at 6 p.m.
Y
oung Americans cannot afford four more
years oI out-oI-control defcit spending
brought about by the Bush and Obama
administrations. That is why we cannot elect Mitt
Romney.
Youth unemployment is the highest among any
demographic, hovering at around 17.4 percent.
The policies of the Obama administration have left
young people with massive student loan debt
averaging around $26,000 per head and no job
prospects to pay this off.
Then there is the national debt. To pay it off,
every man, woman, and child would have to pay
around $47,000. Interest payments are currently
budgeted, but at the rate Washington keeps spend-
ing, interests rates will consume the entire budget in
the future.
Mitt Romney has proven that he can operate
a business successfully, but our future demands a
president who understands free market economics
philosophically as well. He continues to run his
campaign on the same capitalist rhetoric we have
been hearing for the past few months, but Romneys
political career thus far shows that he has neither the
knowledge nor respect for the protection of capital-
ism as a political leader.
Does being a successful businessman automati-
cally provide the knowledge for a proper free-mar-
ket policy? No.
Take Warren Buffett for instance. Buffett has an
incredibly successful business career that made him
as one of the wealthiest people in the world. But
his support of higher taxes for the rich to change
wealth distribution prove that Buffett has a lack of
knowledge regarding the correct policies that have
paved the way to his success in the free market.
Romneys time as governor of Massachusetts
proves that he is also out of touch with free market
philosophy.
Exhibit A: RomneyCare. Romney ushered in this
legislation in 2005, individual mandate included, on
the basis that it would provide cheaper health insur-
ance while eliminating the free-rider problem. Its
2012 and Massachusetts has yet to see cheaper
healthcare. In fact, RomneyCare has caused the cost
of medicine and premiums to skyrocket. 60 percent
of this burden fell on individuals and businesses.
What was the predictable result? Price controls.
Due to the large spike in healthcare costs, Romney-
Care has led to government-imposed caps on HMO
rates. According to the Beacon Hill Institute, These
are, in effect, price controls that will dampen the
incentive to provide services and lead to longer wait
times and rationing of healthcare.
Anyone with a free market philosophy knows
that price controls bring about excess in demand
for the product supplied in this case healthcare.
Excess demand brings about one of two things: a
forced hike in prices or a shortage of the product.
Either way, the consumer takes the beating.
Romneycare also brought about a net increase in
government spending. An increase in government
spending can only mean one thing: an increase in
the tax burden for individuals.
According to the Cato Institute: Half of
RomneyCare`s new spending was fnanced by the
federal government through the Medicaid program
. which is fnanced through Iederal taxes, which
fall on taxpayers in all 50 states. That means that
when Romney fnanced halI oI RomneyCare`s new
spending by pulling down more federal Medicaid
dollars, he increased taxes on residents of all 50
states.
For those who understand even basic econom-
ics, taxes are the adversary to productivity. When
money is taken out of the hands of individuals, there
is less saving and investment. Businesses have less
money to work with, decreasing productivity and
job creation.
The fact that Romney still defends both of these
laws proves he is out of touch with free market
policy. It is one thing to make mistakes, but Rom-
ney`s continual justifcation Ior such policies earn
him a failing grade in free-market economics.
Exhibit B: raising the minimum wage. It comes
to no surprise that after the implementation of price
controls in RomneyCare that Mitt Romney would
be in favor of raising the minimum wage each con-
secutive year of his presidency.
Just how bad do consumers have it when price
controls are placed on the wage rate? Thomas Sow-
ell, an economist and senior fellow at the Hoover
Institution, said, There is no excuse for not being
aware of what a major social disaster the minimum-
wage law has been for the young, the poor, and
especially for young and poor blacks.
Again, the economics is simple: when you create
an excess demand for labor by raising the minimum
wage, people dont get hired especially young
people like ourselves. Essentially, the government is
raising the wage higher than young, inexperienced
labor is worth. In the end, we the consumers of
labor pay the price of a higher unemployment
rate, considering that unemployment is not ideal for
paying off college debts.
Those who are in support of Romney may
believe that, over time, he has solidifed a more
conservative political view. However, this coming
election is crucial and we need someone who can
articulate the conservative message eIfciently, not
just pay it lip service. Charles Krauthammer puts
it plainly: The idea that somehow we consign the
poor to the safety net and we patch it, and depen-
dency, is a liberal idea. It is not our [a conservative]
idea. And Romney is a guy who came late to his
new ideology and he still cant speak it very well.
Romney is new to conservatism, but is known as
the most electable candidate among his support-
ers. So, you may be asking, if not Romney, then
who?
As political leaders, all three of the remaining
candidates have proven through their actions to
have solid conservative principles tangible legis-
lation that proves strong conservative leadership.
As Speaker of the House, Newt Gingrich fought
a strong democratic force in both the House and
presidency. Through The Contract with America, he
implemented legislation such as welfare reform and
continuously balancing the budget.
Rick Santorum has been a strong advocate of
social conservatism, fghting Ior a precious child`s
equal rights under the law and fghting to save the
foundation of a strong family, the marriage cov-
enant between a man and a woman.
Ron Paul has the strongest budget plan of any
candidate. He is the strongest advocate for the Con-
stitution and returning America to the gold standard.
These three candidates are not perfect, but they
earn my respect by having the humility to admit
when they have strayed away from conservative
principles. Can that honestly be said about Mitt
Romney as well? No.
When questioned on the colorful array of
positions he has taken on the most precious issues
facing our country, he only tries to justify them.
When truly pressed on these issues, he struggles to
answer why he has fip-fopped so many times. In
a Special Report interview on November 29 with
Fox Newss Bret Baier, he was asked to explain his
fip-fops on amnesty Ior illegal immigrants. He ap-
peared extremely fustered. AIter the cameras were
turned off, he complained. The moment was telling.
This election will be won on solid principles
liberal or conservative. I would rather have a fawed
man with a political history who has repented from
past mistakes and shows regard for conservative
principles. Mitt Romney has only proven himself
to be a political chameleon, conforming to the party
that will get him elected he is not our conserva-
tive candidate.
T
he newly-announced CCA
topics are making us seniors
a little bit jealous.
I mean, we will always have
the hugely controversial archi-
tecture seminar and the week of
one-sided arguments for Abraham
Lincolns sainthood oh, dont
get us wrong, we still like Honest
Abe as much as the next Hillsdale
College Freedom Walk pilgrim
but we could use a little less
hero-worship. Our CCA memories
include lackluster singing per-
formances, and who could forget
Beyonc-gate?
Next years topics, though, are
on another plane.
A one-credit week-long semi-
nar about epics from the Aeneid
to Beowulf? Sounds fascinating.
Learning about The Divine Com-
edy from premiere Dante scholar
and translator Anthony Esolen?
The special person in Moss Hall
who planned that CCA, well, stu-
dents are indebted to him.
The week oI WWII-era flms
also sounds like a treat.
CCAs often become esoteric
discussions of dry subjects, or po-
lemics about conservative politics.
For people outside Hillsdale, a
week of conversations on the pos-
sibility of absolute aestheticism is
a rare treat. For Hillsdale students,
not so much.
We can commiserate with the
administrative challenge of CCAs
how can a series of talks deep-
en the education of students and
friends of the school? How can
you dig deeply into a topic with
two groups of audience members
that have little in common besides
physical proximity?
Were not jealous of their job.
So to the members of the CCA
oIfce, thank you. Next year`s
topics show a fresh perspective.
They present an opportunity for a
discussion that is less partisan and
more poetic, less academic, and
more artistic. They give us hope
that theres more to conservatism
than politics, that our beliefs are
as broad as literature and as deep
as history, and that our college
can bring this broad interest to
students and guests of the school
alike.
To the people in charge of next
years CCAs, we who are about to
graduate salute you.
T
heres a Facebook group called A Wrinkle
in Time Sucks. Its ungrammatical descrip-
tion states that, This book is boring. If
your a teacher plz dont make your student read
this.
Another reviewer recommends that all those
about to read the book should watch a documen-
tary on the history of the ice cube tray instead.
She deserves brownie points for creative imagery.
These people of the Internet agree that A
Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine LEngle is bor-
ing, confusing, and strange.
But theyre wrong. A Wrinkle in Time,
which celebrates its 50th anniversary this year,
is an excellent book. Its so good that Hillsdale
College should start sending it to incoming fresh-
man, making it the new book to read before com-
ing to campus. It would give them a good sense
of what life at Hillsdale is all about.
It would also show them what professors do
every day. We study Newtonian physics, ancient
history, ecology, Baroque music, and Renaissance
literature all because our professors think the
subjects are important.
Many of us complain about our studies at
some point or another almost as much as these
people who grumble about A Wrinkle in Time.
We wonder why we must learn things that have
no clear application to our future career plans.
We will plead with professors to lighten our read-
ing loads.
In response, our professors laugh and say that
we signed up for this. They point out that theyre
not just teaching us about English, chemistry, or
philosophy theyre teaching you us how to
think, and they might actually be right.
Like A Wrinkle in Time, a liberal arts edu-
cation is more valuable than some would have
you believe.
The people from the Internet who dont like
A Wrinkle in Time dont understand its pur-
pose. Yes, the text has problems. The book brings
up concepts, like Megs struggle with faith and
reason, which young children cannot understand.
When Charles cites Goethe, he proves hes far
too smart for his age. Tesseracts are geometric
concepts, not wormholes. The idea of a star turn-
ing into a woman who then turns into a centaur is
just plain weird.
But theres a lot more to the book.
Like a liberal arts education, A Wrinkle in
Time brings up Shakespeare, communism,
Einsteins theory of relativity, and much more.
But the most important facet of the book teaches
readers about what is good.
Facing IT, a bodiless brain controlling a
planet, Meg realizes that knowledge is more than
memorized facts; its even more than the capacity
to think. Meg discovers that wisdom is the ability
to love and thats what saves the day.
At Hillsdale College, the goal of learning is to
understand what is good. We read endlessly and
judge conficting ideas. Sometimes, we Ieel like
we have no idea what is right, but in the end we,
like Meg, will learn to discern what is important.
Some people see college as an assembly line.
The workers only need to do one task at a time,
with ruthless eIfciency, as the car rolls down the
conveyor belt. Any more information would be
wasteful and confusing.
People at Hillsdale think differently.
We believe that education should be more
than learning a skill so you can make money. We
think college is supposed to teach you what you
need to know to live. It sounds sentimental, but
we learn to think so we can learn to be a good
people. Thats exactly what A Wrinkle in Time
communicates.
A Wrinkle in Time shows that life isnt an
assembly line. Meg, Charles, and Calvin use all
of their knowledge to pursue what is right.
Freshmen will be expected to do that too, here
at Hillsdale. They probably wont save the world
with their wisdom when they leave, but they will
become a better people, and that sounds pretty
good to us.
A WRINKLE IN EDUCATION
ANYBODY BUT MITT
Celia Bigelow
Special to the Collegian
Ethan Showler
Special to the Collegian
L
ast semester, I was invited by a friend to watch
the abortion documentary Bloodmoney
in Phillips Auditorium. Having attended the
March For Life protest in 2010, I was interested to
see a good conservative case for the illegalization
of abortion. Instead, I found a series of interviews
almost exclusively about the evidence of a racist
agenda in Planned Parenthood and the testimony
from women that abortions have triggered post trau-
matic stress disorder, suicidal depression, an inability
to feel emotion, and other psychologically devastat-
ing effects.
I walked out after 20 minutes.
Dont get me wrong, I agree with many of these
claims. I agree that abortion hurts women, minorities,
and families. However, by concentrating on these
arguments, Bloodmoney essentially conceded the
liberal case and ignored the fundamental issue at
hand in the abortion debate: the defnition oI a human
being.
By focusing on testimonial evidence from women
who have had abortions, Bloodmoney gave liberals
ground. They conceded that the woman is the object
of the debate, that the womans pain is the reason we
should oppose abortion that the effect of abortion
is evil, rather than the act of abortion itself.
Conservatives should oppose abortion because
they believe the unborn baby is a member of the
human race and they should be bold enough to
defne the child`s humanity. My dispute here is a
matter of rhetorical means, not ends. Most pro-life
citizens agree on the end: eliminate abortion in the
United States. I simply want to see this brought
about through arguments oI defnition rather than
arguments based on consequences or circumstances,
which are the liberals safe haven.
Conservatives must primarily argue against the act
of abortion instead of the effect because 1) it is more
conservative and therefore more philosophically hon-
est, and 2) it is more persuasive.
According to Richard M. Weaver, the author of
Ideas Have Consequences, there are two primary
ways of arguing: Those who argue from conse-
quence tend to go all out for action; they are the
radicals. Those who prefer the argument from
defnition, as Lincoln did, are conservatives in the
legitimate sense of the word.
He illustrates what I mean by liberal and con-
servative. Liberals argue through the use of transient
consequences and circumstances to scare one into
action just as Bloodmoney did. But the conserva-
tive argues by defning something`s nature, the way
Lincoln defned slavery as wrong because slaves are
humans, in order to rationally move one to action.
The latter is the legitimate means for eliminating
abortion, but the former is the liberals means for
wasting money, time, and most importantly, life.
This is the most philosophically honest approach
because it deals with the skeleton in the closet that
everyone knows about but is too afraid to address:
the defnition oI 'man. OI all people, conservatives
ought to take up this task oI defnition. Conservatives
ought to be honest about their opposition to abor-
tion, which does not primarily rest on the effects of
maternal exploitation, racial inequality, or wherever
the wind blows on Thursday.
It rests on the natural and divine law, Thou shalt
not kill.
Conservatives should also argue against abortion
via defnition because it is more persuasive. I think
its safe to say that virtually everyone in the United
States believes murder is wrong and should therefore
be outlawed. Its written into our consciences. If
conservatives can convince Americans that abortion
is murder, then the case is won. The pro-choice advo-
cate must defend the notion that the fetus perhaps
the most terrifying word in the English language
is not a human being. Otherwise, abortion is indubi-
tably murder.
If the pro-choice advocate cannot distinguish
between a murderer killing a toddler with a gun and
a doctor killing a fetus with saline solution, then the
case is won. Abortion is murder and the honest citi-
zen cannot support the practice. Conservatives must
force the liberal into this corner. The problem is not
that the pro-choice movement doesnt want to have
this debate, the problem is that conservatives have
folded their hand and decided to use the liberals
cards instead.
This neglect Ior the defnition oI man not only
leads to men without chests and the abolition of natu-
ral law, but the abolition of physical human beings.
Blake Faulkner
Special to the Collegian
Rachel Cook
Special to the Collegian
OVERHEARD: ANONYMOUS ON BYRD
ABOLITION
OF HUMANS
SPORTS
A7 1 March 2012
www.hillsdalecollegian.com
The women of the track
teams Distance Medley Relay
are running faster than any DMR
team in the history of the school.
Currently they are ranked sixth
in the nation and on March 9
they will compete in the NCAA
DII Championships in Mankato,
Minn.
But its not just hundreds of
workouts and thousands of miles
that are fueling the womens
success this season. The three
seniors on the team are engaged.
Thats why were so fast,
senior Chelsea Wackernagel
said. We have guys to run for!
I doubt other teams are
stacked with brides, senior
Amanda Putt said.
The team consists of fresh-
man Amy Kerst on the 1,200
leg and Wackernagel, senior Jen
Shaffer, and Putt in the 400, 800,
and 1,600 legs, respectively.
The DMR team broke
Hillsdale Colleges 2005 school
record by 16 seconds. The four
women ran a time of 11:43 at
Grand Valley State Universitys
Tune Up Meet on Feb. 17.
They are all hardworking.
They are all confdent, wom-
ens head coach Andrew Towne
said. A lot of times that equals
success.
Putt, Shaffer, and Wackerna-
gel were part of the DMR last
year, and almost broke Hills-
dales record.
We were so close last year.
We fnally came together,
Wackernagel said. We are all
healthy and running well.
Putt, who was forced to
red-shirt her sophomore year
because of an injury, agreed with
Wackernagel.
Weve caught glimpses of
it, but now it`s fnally coming
together, she said. In a relay, it
doesnt work unless every one of
us is on her A-game.
Putt currently holds six
school records if you count
the DMR, she said including
the 800-, 1500-, mile, 3000-,
and 5000-meter run. She will be
competing individually in the
mile and 800 at nationals.
Just behind Putt in the 800
is Shaffer who provisionally
qualifed Ior nationals in the
event. Wackernagel doubles as a
400-runner and pole vaulter. She
will be competing individually
at nationals in the latter.
Last year, the 1200 leg
opened up, and Kerst was re-
cruited to run in the relay, Towne
said.
One thing about our team is
that we have a lot of studs and
not a lot depth, Towne said.
The people we have to pick
from are good.
Kerst, the only freshman on
the team, is from the Upper Pen-
insula of Michigan. In her senior
year, Kerst was the individual
champion in the U.P. Finals, the
Upper Peninsulas high school
state meet, in both in the 1,600-
and 800-meter run.
She has a lot of natural abil-
ity, Towne said. She is seeing
how much ability she has.
Though Kerst excels in the
800 and the 1,600, she was
needed in the 1,200 leg. She is
trying to learn the event, Towne
said.
The women train 46 weeks
out of the year. A consistent
training schedule allows the
women to maintain endurance
during the event, Towne said.
In addition to running, Shaf-
fer said she has chosen to take
a heavy course load. She has
class and homework from 8 a.m.
to 3 p.m. She then has practice
starting at 3:15 p.m., which can
go anywhere from two to four
hours.
On March 3, the womens
team placed second at GLIACs,
but did not improve on their
time. On Mar. 9 and 10 the team
will attend the NCAA Division
II Championships in Mankato,
Minn, where Towne said the
may be able to break the record
again.
They will train as they have
been but will decrease their
mileage and increase the inten-
sity of their workouts, Towne
said.
Towne said he believes that
the girls can break the record
again at the national champion-
ships, even though Putt will not
be running with them in order to
focus on her individual events.
Kerst will take her place in the
1,600 leg and freshman Shena
Albaugh will run the 1,200.
Experience helps. All these
girls have been down this road
before, he said. They under-
stand what makes you work best.
Between experience and good
training, you have success.
Next year, the DMR will
have three empty slots. Towne
said that recruiting has been and
will be heavily emphasized in
the next few years.
Putt, Wackernagel, and Shaf-
fer said that they hope the track
program will continue to gain
national prominence even after
they have graduated.
You cant coach what you
dont have, and upperclassmen
are hard to replace, Towne said.
But we could be at this level at
a continual and consistent basis.
Maybe we dont break records,
but we could be in the mix.
Emmaline Epperson
Collegian Reporter
school-record time.
The mens DMR team con-
sisted of seniors Jeff Wysong,
Michael Finch, and Jerry Perkins
with freshman Matt Perkins
closing on the 1,600.
The mens team also broke
the school DMR record earlier
this season and were looking to
drop their time to qualify for the
NCAA DII National Champion-
ships. They needed to beat both
GVSU and Ashland University
and run about fve seconds Iaster
to qualify. Their previous fastest
time was 10:04.54.
Wysong took the lead in the
frst lap. He tried to push the
pace to make sure the races
speed would be enough for the
team to qualify if they won.
Wysong handed the baton off
from second place at the end of
the 1,200.
Finch and Jerry Perkins both
maintained the teams second
place spot.
Our 400 leg did a fantastic
job, Jerry Perkins said. He
kept us right between Ashland
and Grand Valley.
In his own leg, Jerry Perkins
had fallen into third when at 650
he found a couple more gears,
went around Grand Valley, and
pulled abreast with Ashland Uni-
versitys runner at the exchange.
The 1,600 leg was a fght
between Hillsdale, GVSU,
and Ashland. After falling into
third, Matt Perkins kicked with
a lap and half to go. He passed
Ashland on the back stretch
and fnished second with a split
time of 4:13 and a team time of
10:05.00.
It was a really fun race, re-
ally competitive, Jerry Perkins
said. 'We fnished higher than
we were supposed to and we
beat the top ranked team [Ash-
land].
Notable performances from
the women included junior Andy
Yancho`s fIth place in the high
jump (1.64 meters), Wacker-
nagels fourth in both the 400
(58.95) and pole vault (3.80 me-
ters), and the 4x400 relay teams
third place fnish (3:59.26).
The womens 4x400 con-
sisted of Caldwell, Wackernagel,
Caywood, and Schaffer, who
also placed sixth in the 800.
Putt, including her two frsts
and the second place DMR, ac-
counted for 28 of the womens
59.50 points.
More often than not, Towne
said, the production of our team
this season started with Amanda
Putt.
He also praised junior Kayla
Caldwell, who placed fIth in
both the 200-meter dash (25.42)
and pole vault (3.65 meters). He
said the meet was something to
build on.
The key as we move forward
is just adding more more
quantity of the quality we al-
ready have, Towne said.
Forino pointed out that not
just one section of the mens
team was scoring points but all
of them. The sprinters, distance
runners, and feld event athletes
scored 19, 23, and 11 points,
respectively.
Top performances from the
men included three top-eight fn-
ishes from sophomore Maurice
Jones, a fIth Irom senior Nate
English in the shot put (16.61
meters), and two broken school
records: one from sophomore
Matt RaIfn in the 60-meter
hurdles (8.42) and the other from
sophomore Justin Fawley in the
heptathlon (4,935 points).
The mens distance runners
generated 12 points in just the
mile alone. Wysong took third
(4:13.94), senior Jacob Secor
fourth (4:15.07), and freshman
Matt Perkins eighth (4:16.88).
RaIfn, whose school record
time placed him sixth in the
60-hurdles, said he and fel-
low sophomore Elliot Murphy
have been pushing each other
all season. Theyve traded the
record back and forth and it was
Murphy`s record RaIfn broke at
the meet.
Overall, RaIfn said he
couldnt be happier with how the
meet turned out.
You have your struggles
and kids who dont do as well as
they wanted, RaIfn said, 'but
the effort was great.
!
TRACK
From A8
Senior Amanda Putt reaches for the baton to kick off the final leg of the distance med-
ley relay at the GLIAC championships last weekend. (Caleb Whitmer/Collegian)
Visiting Lecturer of Biology
Angie Pytel sat down with one
of her advisees.
What are you interested
in doing activity-wise? she
asked.
Row, sophomore Jessica
Youngstrom answered without
hesitation.
Pytel said she could tell
Youngstrom was passionate
about rowing.
I said to her, Do you
know its winter most of the
time in Michigan? Pytel said,
laughing.
But Youngstrom was
insistent on getting a rowing
team on the Hillsdale College
campus.
I rowed in high school,
and this was the only school
I looked at that didnt have
rowing, she said. I was really
giving something up coming
here.
Though the rowing team
is not an oIfcial club sport
on campus, a group of both
men and women are work-
ing towards club approval
Youngstrom is working with
nine other girls interested in
rowing, while sophomore Rob-
ert Ramsey works with four
other men.
Youngstrom said even
though they are not an oIfcial
club, the still hold practices six
times a week.
Trying to coordinate
schedules with 10 different
people is a huge struggle,
Youngstrom said. Its a big
commitment.
The women lift weights
twice a week and workout
on the ergometer, or rowing
machine, twice a week. They
do other team activities such
as play basketball or run on the
other two days.
In the spring, the team will
be able to practice on Baw
Beese Lake with Youngstroms
four-person sweeping boat.
Were still working on
team bonding, Youngstrom
said. Most of us are from
athletic backgrounds, so were
just trying to workout different
muscles and become friends.
The mens and womens
teams work out separately right
now. Ramsey said the men are
in the weight room three times
a week.
Though Ramsey said
he has never rowed com-
petitively, two of the men on
the team have. Sophomore
Tyler Herndon, a transfer from
Oglethorpe University, studied
abroad at Oxford University
last semester and rowed on the
team there.
Its a huge deal over
there, he said. It felt like
something I should do while I
was at Oxford.
Herndon said his crew
ended up getting to the fnals
of the novice regatta at the
end of the semester. Although
Herndon had never competed
on a rowing team before, he
said it was something he re-
ally enjoyed and something
he would continue to enjoy at
Hillsdale.
Ramsey said he also looks
forward to adding the club
team on campus.
I just thought it would be
a fun sport, he said. I love
boats. I love sailing. I thought
it would go really well with the
Hillsdale atmosphere.
Rowing was a part of the
Hillsdale atmosphere in the
late 1800s. In fact, the row-
ing team was one oI the frst
nationally recognized teams to
come out of the Hillsdale area.
Four men, all Hillsdale Col-
lege graduates, taught them-
selves to row on Baw Beese
Lake and in 1879 won the
National American Amateur
Rowing Championships. They
went on to win again in 1880
and 1881.
The colors the rowing team
wore, royal blue and white,
were adopted as the colleges
colors, which were an aquama-
rine blue at the time.
Ramsey and Youngstrom
said they had been tossing
around the idea of starting a
team since last year and fnally
did this semester. Along with
paperwork and by-laws, the
students needs an academic
advisor to begin competing as
a club team.
Youngstrom asked Pytel to
help out, even though she has
no background in rowing.
Ive canoed. Ive kayaked.
I would row my husband
around Rockwell Lake, Pytel
said, laughing. Ive played
a lot of sports, and Im into
exercise for sure.
Though Pytel said she had
some scheduling conficts and
cannot commit to be the teams
advisor, she said she is excited
that Youngstrom is pursuing
her interest in rowing.
Right now, Youngstrom said
she is content to build a core
group and continue practicing.
When spring comes, we
can get out on the water, she
said.
Sarah Leitner
Sports Editor
ROWING TEAM LOOKS
FOR CLUB STATUS
Womens distance medley relay looks to nationals
The womens rowing team practices six times a week lifting weights, using the
ergometer, and playing other sports to stay in shape and get to know one an-
other better. (Joe Buth/Collegian)
!
MENS BBALL
From A8
points, Washburns 15, and Ger-
ber and Dezelski with 12 apiece.
Throughout the game, both
teams played scrappy, physical
deIense. The oIfciating in the
game caused heated complaints
from the Ashland bench, and
boos from the Hillsdale student
section expressed the Chargers
equal displeasure.
Also last night, Northwood
University fell to Wayne State
84-77, Grand Valley State Uni-
versity lost 72-66 against No. 2
seed the University of Findlay,
and Ferris State University
bowed out against Michigan
Tech, 71-59.
Semifnals oI the tournament
continue this Saturday at 1 and
3 p.m., and wrap up with the
championship game on Sunday
at 2 p.m.
Saturdays matchup against
Michigan Tech will be the
second matchup of the year
against the Huskies. Hillsdale
dominated Michigan Tech on
Jan. 28 at home, winning the
matchup 91-69. However, since
that game the Huskies have won
six of eight, including a win
over Ferris State. The Chargers
will seek to remain undefeated
at home with a win against the
No. 4 seed.
Yesterdays matchup in the
GLIAC will be key towards
determining whether the Char-
gers earn an NCAA berth. The
Chargers rose to second in the
updated Midwest Regional rank-
ings released last week. Findlay
was the only other GLIAC
school in the top 7, while Wayne
State and Ferris State slotted in
at No. 9 and No. 10. A vic-
tory in the GLIAC tournament
would lock up an NCAA spot,
but Hillsdale could still possibly
make it into the tournament with
a loss this weekend. Of course,
the team wants to leave nothing
to chance.
This win was great to get
the monkey off our back from
last years loss, Eaton said.
Now we just have to take it one
game at a time this weekend,
and try to win the tournament
outright.
(Joe Buth/Collegian)
With seconds left in over-
time and a 74-71 Charger lead,
an Ashland University player
dribbled at the top of the key
looking for an opportunity to
shoot. He settled at the left point
outside the 3-point line and went
up for the game-tying shot.
But sophomore forward Tim
Dezelski was there to block
the shot, which was caught by
senior point guard Tyler Gerber,
who ran the remaining time off
the clock by tossing the ball
down the court and denying the
Eagles another last shot oppor-
tunity.
It feels unreal right now,
Dezelski said. This was huge
for us to build momentum and
work towards winning this tour-
nament on our home court.
The Hillsdale College mens
basketball team will face Michi-
gan Technological University
in the semifnal round oI the
tournament on Saturday at 1
p.m. The Chargers will host the
remainder of the tournament.
The Chargers were led down
the stretch by the inside scoring
of Dezelski and junior center
Nick Washburn. Both were the
primary targets of the Hillsdale
offensive game plan down the
stretch to take advantage of the
Eagles smaller interior defense.
It seemed like everything
that they shot fell in the second
half, senior point guard Tyler
Gerber said. But we man-
aged to execute offensively and
defensively down the stretch
and into overtime and we were
able to exploit the size advan-
tage that Tim had.
In overtime, the Chargers
managed to slow down the
Eagles scoring. Ashland missed
fve straight shots aIter the Iour-
minute mark while Hillsdale
chipped away at the lead.
We just managed to make
big stops down the stretch,
senior forward Brent Eaton said.
Dezelski hit the go-ahead
layup with 2:15 to play in
overtime to make it 72-71, and
Washburn added an insurance
basket with 1:23 to play on an
assist from Dezelski.
The Eagles shot an impres-
sive 55 percent for the game,
including 7 of 10 three-pointers
in the second half, but fell short
in overtime, making only one of
six shots.
The Charger defense forced
14 turnovers, against only fve
given up by Hillsdales offense,
which kept Hillsdale in the
game despite shooting a lower
percentage. The Chargers were
led in scoring by Guinanes 16
The Chargers went down
fghting last night, ending their
season with a loss at TiIfn
University in the quarterfnals oI
the GLIAC tournament. The No.
3 seed Dragons oI TiIfn topped
the No. 6 seeded Hillsdale,
68-58.
Junior Lea Jones led the
Chargers offensive effort with
12 points. Senior captain Chel-
sea Harrison and sophomore
Angela Bisaro each added 10.
The Chargers held a slight
lead Ior most oI the frst halI
until the Dragons tied the game
and went ahead with 2:26 left
in the period on a pair of foul
shots. Besides one more tie, Tif-
fn led Ior the rest oI the game,
but the Dragons couldnt put the
Chargers away until the end of
the game.
We gave it all we had
against TiIfn and played our
hearts out, senior captain Katie
Bildner said.
Hillsdale scored more points
in the paint than TiIfn (24 to
16), while TiIfn barely out-shot
them Irom the 3-point line (4 to
3). For the most part, the teams
were evenly matched, and it was
a closely-fought game on both
sides of the ball.
However, one area in which
the Chargers were obviously
outplayed was points off turn-
overs TiIfn scored a whopping
21 compared to Hillsdales six.
The Dragons scored 15 points
oII turnovers in the frst halI
alone.
We played our hearts out
and we played extremely hard,
but the biggest reason they won
was that they converted. We
scored more in the paint than
they did, and neither team was
great form the free throw line,
but they converted turnovers
into layups, head coach Clau-
dette Charney said. I am so
proud of how hard we played.
It was a war and a very hard-
fought battle up until the end.
The Chargers also missed
key foul shots when they were
down by fve, six or seven
points that could have changed
the momentum of the game,
Charney said.
Hillsdale had a successful
season, despite last nights tour-
nament loss. They fnished tied
for third place in a very com-
petitive South Division. Despite
losing starter sophomore guard
Marissa DeMott to a knee injury
a few weeks ago, the Charger
women have improved and
fought hard in the last leg of the
season,
'We defnitely had some
highlights, Charney said.
Beating then-25th-ranked
Michigan Tech at home was one
that comes to mind right away.
Going into this game we were
without one of our starters [De-
Mott]. We had a lot of freshman
step up and contribute, which
was a bright spot.
The Chargers will graduate
three starters in seniors Bildner,
Liz Brannick, and Harrison.
It will be hard to lose our
seniors because they were part
of a conference championship
team [in 2009] and they will be
hard to replace, Charney said.
Likewise, it will not be easy
for the seniors to leave their
team and a memorable fnal
season of basketball.
It hurts to lose and hurts
even more to end a 14-year ca-
reer, Bildner said. But I ended
it with an amazing group of girl
that have become my family
away from home.
The future looks bright for
Charger womens basketball.
Jones will lead next years team
with another new recruiting
class. Three girls have already
signed.
WOMENS TOP FINISHERS:
1st, Amanda Putt, 800
(2:10.51)
1st, Amanda Putt, mile
(4:57.28)
4th, Chelsea Wackernagel, 400
(58.95)
4th, Chelsea Wackernagel, pole
vault (3.80 meters)
5th, Andy Yancho, high jump
(1.64 meters)
!
ELIZABETH
BRANNICK
Senior Li: Brannick is hnishing the last season of her col-
legiate athletic career at the top of her game, having broken her
career-high score twice in the past weeks. She sat down with The
Collegian to discuss who inuenced her growing up, what her ex-
perience at Hillsdale College was like, and how it feels to hnallv
come to the end of this 'roller coaster` season.
What are the biggest things in your mind as you come to the
end of your career?
With the season coming to an end and the tournament just
around the corner, I never know how many more practices we
will have, so I am really trying to enjoy every practice and enjoy
time with my teammates.
What have you most enjoyed during your time here at Hills-
dale?
Kappa has been my most enjoyable and rewarding experience
here at Hillsdale. I have had so much fun being a part of Kappa.
I truly dont know what I would do without my amazing Kappa
sisters.
:KDWKDV\RXUQDOVHDVRQEHHQOLNH"
Very different from any other. It has been a bit of a roller
coaster with my own personal playing experience going from
starting, to not starting, to back starting again. I have grown more
this season than any of my other past seasons. I feel that I have
learned to have fun with basketball and to really enjoy my time
on the court.
:KDWLVWKHNH\WRVXFFHVVIRU\RXUWHDP"
Executing the game plan each game. Every team in the
GLIAC is very unique. We prepare every week putting in new
offenses and defenses that will work best for the particular team
we are playing. The games we have won we have executed the
game plan.
:KRKDVLQXHQFHG\RXPRVWDVDSOD\HUDQGDVDSHUVRQZKLOH
at Hillsdale?
My dad. He has so much passion and love for the game of
basketball [that] he sometimes drives from Jackson to shoot with
me on his lunch break. He has been my coach since I was in the
third grade and he pushes me as a player and as a person to reach
my full potential every day.
:KDWZRXOG\RXVD\WRDIUHVKPDQMXVWHPEDUNLQJRQWKHMRXU-
QH\\RXUHQLVKLQJ"
I would tell them to get involved. Dont wait until you are a
junior or senior to engage in campus activities. Hillsdale is so
much more rewarding when you are involved in campus life.
I would also tell them to enjoy every day on the court. Find
something fun about practice. Our team is pretty hilarious so that
really shouldnt be very hard.
:KDWZDVLWOLNHWREHDW\RXUFDUHHUKLJKVFRUHWZLFHLQWZR
ZHHNV"
It was a fun experience. I feel like my team is really coming
together. We are playing as a team and passing the ball really
well. [Senior] Chelsea Harrison and I have developed really good
chemistry on the court, and that is how I have been able to score.
:KDWDUH\RXUH[SHFWDWLRQVRQ\RXUVHOIZKHQ\RXUHSOD\LQJ"
Every game I want to beat the player I am guarding. I focus on
grabbing more rebounds, and holding her to fewer points than I
score.
Compiled by Casey Harper
6hargers n|sh fourth, fth at CL|A6s
:RPHQHQGVHDVRQLQ*/,$&TXDUWHUQDOV
Morgan Delp
Collegian Freelancer
Senior Tyler Gerber looks for an open teammate in last
nights game against Ashland University. The Chargers
defeated the Eagles 74-71. (Joe Buth/Collegian)
!
8ee A7
The mens and womens track
teams travelled to the University
of Findlay this past weekend to
compete in the GLIAC confer-
ence meet.
Grand Valley State Uni-
versity won the meet for both
the men and women, fnishing
with 150.50 and 203.75 points,
respectively. The Hillsdale men
took fIth with 53 points behind
15 top-eight places. Eleven top-
eight places totaled up to 59.50
points for the women.
We placed much higher as
a team than we were supposed
to, senior Amanda Putt said.
People got out there and shared
support and encouragement for
each other.
Head mens coach Jeff Forino
said he was pleased with the
effort the Hillsdale athletes gave
and especially praised the the
Chargers who doubled and even
tripled in events throughout the
two-day meet.
My only expectation was for
us to try hard, to work as hard as
we could, Forino said. They
did a great job with that.
Putt was one of the athletes
to triple.
She won the 800-meter run
(2:10.51), the mile-run (4:57.28),
and was part of the womens
second place Distance Medley
Relay team the same team
that broke the Hillsdale DMR
school record earlier this year.
At the end of the meet, Putt was
named GLIAC Female Runner
of the Meet.
[Putt] was incredibly im-
pressive in the DMR, said head
womens coach Andrew Towne.
When she got the stick, she was
not in a great spot.
Freshman Amy Kerst led off
the in the DMR on the 1,200 leg.
Although she was sick, Kerst
managed to run a 3:44 split a
two second PR.
Junior Becky Caywood
(1:00) and senior Jen ShaIIer
(2:19) ran the 400 and 800 legs.
When Putt received the baton
for the 1,600, she was in fourth
place and 75 meters back from
third. Putt moved her team into
second place in the last 400
meters and crossed the line for a
split of 4:42 and a team time of
11:44.51.
After conversion, Putts 1,600
time was faster than her mile
Sports
1 March 2012
Caleb Whitmer
Copy Editor
Q & A
Chargers defeat Ashland in overtime
David Gordon
Collegian Freelancer
(Courtesy of Elizabeth Brannick)
!
8ee A7
Hillsdale to face Michigan Tech in GLIAC semifinals at home
MENS TOP FINISHERS:
2nd, Maurice Jones, 400
(48.33)
3rd, Jeff Wysong, mile
(4:13.94)
4th, Justin Fawley, heptathlon
(4,935)
5th, Nate English, shot put
(16.61 meters)
6th, Matt Raffin, 60m hurdles
(8.42)
Get ready to immerse yourself in a play of sheer
slapstick comedy this weekend as the Hillsdale
College Tower Players perform William Shake-
speares The Merry Wives of Windsor.
The play is a story of twists and turns, as two
plots unfold in the town of Windsor. Shakespeares
tale follows Sir John Falstaff in his greedy en-
deavors to seek out the love and affection of both
Mistress Page and Mistress Ford eventually humili-
ate him into regretting his plan of seduction. All the
while, Mistress Pages daughter, Anne Page, is of
marriageable age and courted by three suitors.
The Tower Players will perform the feel-good
show tonight through Sunday, drawing especially
on the Waylon technique and concepts of Unre-
hearsed Shakespeare, students said.
With the aid of senior dramaturge Caitlyn Hub-
bard, the director, Professor of Theatre George An-
gell, Lecturer and
Costume Design-
B1 1 March 2012 www.hillsdalecollegian.com
!
See B2
The Tower Players present:
The Merry Wives of Windsor
The Tower Players performs The Merry Wives of Windsor by William Shakespeare this week. (Joe Buth/Collegian)
Leslie Reyes
Collegian Freelancer
A spacious stage sweeps out to a sea of red
chairs. A velvet curtain conceals fantastical realms
and characters bolstered by the dedication of faces
lurking in black folds behind the wings.
For audience members, the theater is an es-
cape. For players, it is home.
Senior Caitlyn Hubbard will say goodbye to
her home oI Iour years with her fnal perIormance
in Markel Auditorium this Sunday.
Its the last hurrah for a main stage go, Hub-
bard said. This is the last time.
Hubbard will play the role of John Rugby
in the Tower Players production of The Merry
Wives of Windsor by William Shakespeare.
Rugby is a clown character, a dunce, and a man.
Playing a man can be challenging but fun, Hub-
bard said. She also plays opposite her best friend,
sophomore Kyra Moss. Moss also plays a male
role: Peter Simple.
We got to be men together, and that was so
much fun, Moss said.
Hubbard and Moss met while they attended
high school at Hillsdale Academy. Moss was a
sophomore and Hubbard was a junior.
'We were not Iriends at frst because I thought
she was rude and blunt, and she thought I was
weird and eccentric, Moss said.
The two eventually became best friends the
following summer, but they were involved in the
theater together before then.
Hubbard had just transferred to the Academy
from a high school in Onsted, Mich. When she ar-
rived in Hillsdale, she was disappointed to learn the
school had no drama department.
The school that I had come from, I was wait-
ing to be in a high school position, so I could be a
part of it. It was a really strong [theater] program.
So I was like, WellIm just not going to give
up on that. Im going to make my own, Hubbard
said.
And she did.
I obtained a faculty adviser, [and] I chose the
show. I had a class the whole frst semester and
taught improv, basic acting skills, warm-ups and
things like that, Hubbard said.
Bye, Bye Birdie would be
the frst musical Hubbard helped to
put on at the Academy, and Moss
worked as her stage manager. The
show ran for only one night in the
school gym. The music was also
changed the night before the show
premiered. Despite the obstacles,
the Academy now has a theater
program.
The next year, a new director
stepped in to work with the faculty
adviser on a larger, grander show
The Sound of Music. Hub-
bard earned the role of the lead,
Maria, and Moss was her stage
manager yet again. The show ran
for three nights and was performed
in Hillsdale Colleges own Phillips
Auditorium.
It really legitimately came together,
and the program is still going strong over at the
Academy. Theyre doing Cole Porters Anything
Goes this year, Hubbard said. Everyone still
talks about The Sound of Music and how great
that was.
Hubbards passion for theater may have begun
before her collegiate career, but her goals did not
always include becoming an actress. She frst
wanted to attend Michigan State University to row
crew. After President Larry Arnn accosted her,
however, she decided to come to Hillsdale.
I was really passionate about it [theater].
Coming into college, I didnt ever think it could be
a career choice, Hubbard said.
After she completed her theater minor at the
end of her sophomore year, Hubbard decided to
pick up a theater major along with her econom-
ics major. It was only last year that she decided to
pursue acting professionally.
I realized just how much I loved it [acting]
and just how much I was not willing to give it up in
the real world, Hubbard said. So here I am. Im
graduating as a theater major.
Hubbard has played seven
different roles as a Tower Player
with great memories of each,
she said. One role in particular
she said she looks back on with
the most fondness: Pasquala in
Fuente Ovejuna. This was the
character she used as her senior
project.
It was actually not a role I
was trying to get. I was trying to
get the lead, but George [Angell]
had decided to reverse cast,
which is putting everyone in a
role that is not their type cast,
Hubbard said. He knew he was
working with really talented
people, and he wanted to give us
a little push outside our comfort
zone. Everyone really rose to the
challenge.
Hubbard said she did not initially like the
character, but in an effort to master Pasquala, she
created an extensive background story. The more
Hubbard began to immerse herself into
the role, the more she came to love
Pasquala and playing her.
'You have to fnd a justifcation
for her actions, for her words. To be
able to identify with her, to use a faade
within yourself, to become her, have
that empty palate there that becomes her
and shines out of you, Hubbard said. I
ended up just really coming to love her
and love myself as her.
As Hubbard prepares to step onto
the stage oI Markel Ior the fnal time, as
all senior theater majors eventually do,
her proIessors and peers refect on her
impact as an actress, person, and friend.
Professor of Theater James Brandon taught
Hubbard in her frst theater class at Hillsdale and
cast her in her frst play, 'Biederman and the Fire-
bugs.
Shes very driven, he said. Its not just that
she knows what shes doing, she knows why shes
doing it. I like Caitlyn quite a bit. Shes very not a
kid wise beyond her years.
Hubbards drive and spirit is leading her
toward good things in her future. She is apply-
ing to the Steppenwolf Theater in Chicago for an
intensive theater internship. She has also obtained a
summer job teaching drama at an all-girls camp.
From the Theatre Department faculty and to
the friends she has made within the program, Hub-
bard says she is grateful for the challenging and
rewarding experiences she has been given perform-
ing as a Tower Player.
When youre vulnerable on the stage, when
youre portraying a true character, when youre
having a living moment on the stage, its you, she
said. Its not some name youve given yourself
temporarily. It is you, your moment, and your
emotional roller coaster that is being put on display
for everyone to see. Its just really personal, and I
never would have gotten that opportunity anywhere
else.
rturnbull@hillsdale.edu
THE FINAL ACT
Senior Caitlyn Hubbard reflects on her journey as an actress
while preparing for her final role with the Tower Players
Roxanne Turnbull
Arts Editor
TOWER ARTS
(Courtesy of Caitlyn Hubbard)
1 March 2012 B2 www.hillsdalecollegian.com
!
IN FOCUS
STEVE
CASAI
When I locked the front doors to the old Dawn Theatre in
Hillsdale on March 29, 1982, I hoped I had remembered to do all
my usher responsibilities. I was in a rush. I wanted to watch on
TV the end of the Academy Awards; I wanted to see if Chari-
ots of Fire, my favorite movie, would win the Oscar for Best
Picture.
The movie tells the true story of two runners who prepare
for and compete in the 1924 Summer Olympics. One of the run-
ners, Eric Liddell, is a Christian who runs for the glory of God.
I believe that God made me for a purpose. For China
[to serve as a missionary], Liddell says to his sister, Jennie, in
one scene. But he also made me fast, and when I run I feel His
pleasure.
I was fortunate. I turned on the TV right before the award
for Best Picture was announced.
I knew Chariots of Fire deserved to win, but I was
unsure if it would do so. It faced tough competition, such as
Atlantic City, On Golden Pond, Raiders of the Lost Ark,
and Reds.
A scene in Chariots of Fire shows Liddell running in a
race. As he draws even with the lead runner, that runner elbows
Liddell, causing him to stumble on the grass and fall down. He
gets up immediately, starts running again, and remarkably wins
the race.
If Chariots of Fire was going to win, I thought, it would
have to be a come-from-behind victory, too.
The 54th Academy Awards showed a clip of each nomi-
nee. I was surprised that the flmmakers oI 'Chariots oI Fire did
not show what I thought was the best scene: the scene in which
the British Olympic Committee tries to convince Liddell that
he should violate his conscience by running in the 100-meter
trials on Sunday, though Liddell thought it was wrong to run on
Sunday.
Instead, the flmmakers showed various scenes oI the
movie, especially the running scenes, while Vangelis beautiful
theme song was playing. Using this kind of clip was different and
effective.
When it was announced that Chariots of Fire won the
award for Best Picture, I was overjoyed. I might have been just
as happy as Liddell was when he won the 400 meters in the 1924
Olympics, the race he ran instead of the 100 meters.
Chariots of Fire lost its next and last race. Many Chris-
tians, including me, thought that the movie would inspire Hol-
lywood to make more flms about Christian heroes. That Iailed to
happen. I had continued to work at the Dawn until it closed down
in December 1996. I cannot remember one movie that showed
a Christian in a positive light. Apparently, Hollywood regarded
'Chariots oI Fire as a fuke.
Still, the flm won the hearts oI many moviegoers. A lot oI
us had never heard of Liddell until we saw the movie.
After I saw Chariots of Fire, I read three books: The
Flying Scotsman, a biography about Liddell; The Disciplines of
the Christian Life, by Liddell; and Chariots of Fire: A True Story.
These books are still in my library.
I also had the privilege of working at the Dawn when we
showed Chariots of Fire. I was grateful to the manager when
she gave me the movies poster.
The night Chariots of Fire won the Oscar for Best Pic-
ture will remain one of the happiest moments in my life.
For 37 years, the DePauw
Undergraduate Honors Confer-
ence in Communication and
Theater has been gathering
students of extraordinary talent
to its campus for a conference.
For the frst time in its seven
years competing, 100 percent
of the Hillsdale applicants were
accepted. Out of only 36 students
chosen for the entire conference,
Hillsdale accounts Ior fve this
year.
The conference is an annual
event intended to bring students
of theater together to learn from
talented and successful icons of
the industry and to share their
own research with one another.
Sophomore Anne Peterson, ju-
niors Trevor Freudenburg, Mark
Keller and Catherine Shikla and
senior Lauren Hughes were all
selected this year.
The [DePauw Conference]
is simply the place where some
of the best undergraduate re-
search in the felds oI theater and
communication from across the
nation is acknowledged, James
Brandon, professor of theater
and communication said. The
conference allows the students to
work closely with mentors in the
feld who help them to develop
as researchers and writers.
The conference is considered
a prestigious honor for students
of theater, Brandon said.
The conference is also
particularly useful for students
interested in graduate school,
and previous attendees to this
event have made important con-
nections for their own graduate
education, he said.
The students will be sepa-
rated into three groups of twelve
in order to present their research,
and will be able to work closely
with other advance students and
with professors and profession-
als.
Each year the students
enrolled in a theater history
class write a research paper on a
topic of their choice, from Greek
drama to medieval drama. From
these, the best are sent to the
conference for consideration.
Im not sure of the format
as to how and when we will
be presenting, but I am really
interested to see what happens,
Hughes said. I thought it would
be a good idea to research
Eastern styles because we focus
mostly in the West.
The conference itself is for
the beneft oI those interested
in the theater arts and who are
accepted, but the high rate of
acceptance is a testament to the
strength of the department as
well.
Our students who attend
DePauws conference are typi-
cally practitioners: they work on
campus as actors, designers,
directors, stage mangers, etc. But
graduates from a BA program in
Theater should also be, frst and
foremost, excellent academic stu-
dents of the art, Brandon said.
Our success at being selected to
present at this conference shows
that we take this aspect of theat-
rical education seriously, which I
view as an important marker for
our program overall.
On average, three people
from Hillsdale go to the confer-
ence, Peterson said.
It was unusual when three
out of four [of the applicants]
went, so its extraordinary when
fve out oI fve were chosen,
Peterson said.
One of the major draws the
conference has is the profession-
al speakers brought in to speak.
Every year they bring in
some big theater presenter, lec-
turer or professor to talk to us,
Freudenburg said. Last year one
was Philip Auslander.
As a whole, the acceptance
indicates the success of the de-
partment, especially for a perfect
success rate in a competitive
organization.
I would really like to give a
shout out to James Brandon for
being a great professor and tak-
ing the time to give his opinion
and help us master our papers,
Hughes said.
tsawyer1@hillsdale.edu
Students triumph in conference selection
Teddy Sawyer
Collegian Reporter
For the first time ever five out of five outstanding theater
history papers were chosen to compete at a conference.
(Joe Buth/Collegian)
Hillsdale College students
and Iaculty helped fll the air oI
Albion Colleges chapel with
music Feb. 25 at the frst annual
Liberal Arts Jazz Festival.
Senior jazz singer Erin
OLuanaigh and senior drummer
Alexander Cothran both walked
away with Outstanding Soloist
awards.
It was very humbling,
and honestly quite a surprise,
Cothran said. I didnt feel as
though I had played particularly
well that day, but apparently the
adjudicators felt differently.
The jazz fest clinicians
honored only four students with
outstanding awards. The two
other award recipients were both
from Adrian College.
As part of their awards,
OLuanaigh and Cothran played
with the professionals in a
concert Saturday night after din-
ner. The Hillcats played Blue
Monk, a standard jazz tune, with
the clinicians and the awarded
students, OLuanaigh said.
It was an outstanding
concert, Teacher of Music Chris
McCourry said.
The group traded 4s, a
standard improvisation technique
where musicians take turns
improvising four-measure-long
solos.
Its a conversation through
jazz, OLuanaigh said.
Earlier in the day, student
bands and combos performed in
clinics. Clinics lasted from 10
a.m. to 4 p.m. Three clinicians
Jonathon Gewirtz, David Jensen,
and Jim Rupp gave construc-
tive comments and advice after
each group fnished playing.
Their comments were
really insightful and helpful,
OLuanaigh said. Im anxious
to apply what they said to my
singing.
In addition to the clinics, the
professional musicians offered
master classes, giving individual
attention to each student.
I have been to the high-
profle University oI Michigan
jazz festival twice now and have
never really enjoyed it, Cothran
said. I had a much better time
at the Liberal Arts Jazz Festival,
and I feel as though Ive learned
much more from it.
Even with the success of the
festival this year, there is still
room for improvement.
Next year, Id like to see
even more bands there from local
colleges, OLuanaigh said.
Cothran said the festival ran
smoothly. Though he said he did
not see any glaring problems that
were not attributed to a brand
new event, he would have liked
the scheduling to have worked
out differently.
Some of the scheduling
was a little unfortunate, as there
were times that I was playing
in one location when a band I
wanted to hear was playing in
another, Cothran said. Such
things are generally unavoidable
when youre scheduling eight to
ten different bands to play in the
span of four or so hours.
Despite this, OLuanaigh and
Cothran both said they enjoyed
the experience.
They could all play circles
around me if they so chose,
which makes one want to make
sure that youre playing your
best, Cothran said. Then there
was also the fact that Jim Rupp,
who had adjudicated my bands
that day and is undisputedly one
of the worlds best jazz drum-
mers, was sitting immediately
behind me while I was playing,
which defnitely added a certain
level of nervousness to the per-
formance that kept me sharp.
During the jazz fest, Rupp
also gave Cothran a pair of drum
sticks.
The festival was a great
success, McCourry said. The
bar has been set high for next
year.
ejohnston@hillsdale.edu
Two students awarded
at new jazz festival
39.3 million. Thats the
number of people who tuned in
to watch ABCs broadcast of the
84th Academy Awards on Feb.
26. Two weeks ago, the Gram-
mys captivated 39.9 million,
making history by beating out
the Oscars Ior the frst time.
The critical reaction to the
Oscars these last few years has
consistently been negative, and
this year wasnt expected to
be any better. Eddie Murphy
dropped out of hosting duties,
causing the shows producers to
hand the position to Billy Crystal
for the ninth time. Its true Crys-
tal has proved successful in the
past, but many felt the choice a
bit bland.
Bland it was. Such a state-
ment is a compliment, for I was
expecting boredom or incre-
dulity. In fact, viewership was
actually up four percent this year
over last.
Themed as a celebration of
the history of cinema, the Oscars
is supposed to be uplifting.
Instead, the nostalgia lent an air
of mourning to the proceedings,
almost as if the Academy was
preparing for the death of the
flm industry itselI.
Indeed, 2011 saw the lowest
movie attendance since 1995,
and the Academy voters revealed
their yearning for the glory
days of Hollywood in their
nominations for Best Picture. All
but one oI the nine flms nomi-
nated had its setting in the past.
In Iact, the two flms to garner
the most awards Sunday were
Hugo and The Artist. Both
flms were explicitly about flm
making in the 1920s and 1930s.
Unwilling to take chances
on original flm ideas, the studios
stick to big-budget spectacles.
The endless glut of comic book
adaptations and sequels has
slowly begun to repel audiences
from theaters. Through their
increasing dependence on fran-
chise movies they are killing the
goose that laid the golden egg.
We live in an era of sen-
sationalism. The Grammys,
Emmys, and even the Tonys have
fallen under the same spell that
turned the Super Bowl from a
sporting event into a entertain-
ment behemoth.
The Academy needs to de-
cide what it wants to be either
great entertainment or a source of
respectable authority. The Gram-
mys have chosen the frst and
to great success. The Academy
Awards should choose the latter.
Meanwhile, the Oscars have
disastrously chosen the middle
path in an attempt to retain the
honor of the award despite low-
ering class.
Not spectacle-driven enough
for the masses and not serious
enough for the cinephiles, the
ceremonies of recent years only
draw viewers through sheer
inertia.
For a time, a single popular
flm was nominated Ior Best
Picture in order to appease the
masses. Lately things changed
after the outcry following the
2008 ceremony, when the
intensely popular Dark Knight
lost out to the lukewarm Slum-
dog Millionaire.
The Academy resolved to
expand the number of possible
nominations to 10, and, in the
process, cheapened the value
of the nomination while simul-
taneously making it diIfcult
Ior viewers to attend every flm
before the awards.
Meanwhile, other critics of
the Academy, like myself, lament
the lack of ambition in most of
the nominated flms. Historically
the academy has displayed a ten-
dency to award Best Picture to
'saIe flms such as 'The King`s
Speech.
Is the existence of the
Academy Awards proftable
to the advancement of art and
culture? Jean-Jacques Rousseau
argued against the existence of
such academies, whether they
be for the arts or the sciences.
In his opinion organizations
meant to promote art or science
instead tend to stife creativity.
Academies are often dominated
by the mediocre men opposed to
change.
When choices like this
years The Artist are rewarded
in place of wonderfully ambi-
tious flms like 'The Tree oI
Life, I feel as if the Academy is
slowly tossing aside its rel-
evance.
hsmith@hillsdale.edu
The Oscars are in decline
Emily Johnston
Senior Reporter
Hayden Smith
Collegian Freelancer
er Bryan Simmons, and Techni-
cal Director Dave GriIfths, this
years cast transformed into
the characters of Shakespeares
The Merry Wives of Windsor.
The drama will be up close
and personal, consistent with the
interactive manner in which the
play was written.
Dont get freaked out if
someone takes your hand or
screams to your face or sits next
to you, junior Mark Keller said.
Shakespeares comedies have
entertained millions of people
with his clever word play, love
scenes, complex plots, and many
forms of mistaken identity.
Merry Wives is one of Shake-
speares more light-hearted
plays. It continues the trilogy of
Falstaff, who is also the knight
in both plays of Henry IV.
It is ridiculous I mean,
the things that happen in this
play are just insane, said soph-
omore Katherine Denton, who
plays the role of Anne Page. I
crack up at scenes I have seen
probably seven or eight times
now and every time I am in tears
just watching these scenes.
The play was said to have
been written under the order of
Queen Elizabeth, who wanted
a performance which included
Falstaff. Some scholars think
that Shakespeare wrote the play
in two weeks to celebrate the
inauguration of knights into the
Order of the Garter.
It is almost sickening how
ingenious he was, said fresh-
man Aaron Pomerantz, who
plays the role of Master Fenton.
The Order of the Garter was
established in 1348 by Edward
III and is the oldest British
orders of chivalry. The order
consists of 24 knights, a king
and a prince. The Knight of the
Garter was not an inherited title,
but a title earned with acts of
valor and held until death.
You could call Falstaff a
protagonist of this play. That
doesnt mean he is the good guy.
You are not rooting for him be-
cause of what he is doing you
are just rooting for him because
he is fun, said junior Stephan
Godleski, the plays Sir John
Falstaff. Bad things happen to
Falstaff and to the other charac-
ters, but in the end everything
always works out.
It is the love triangles and the
natural greed that drive many of
the characters within Windsor to
resort to practical jokes in order
to put people in their place.
Shakespeares comedy, in
this play, comes at the expense
of the characters, Pomerantz
said. You arent laughing be-
cause the characters are so witty
and they say such brilliant things
You are sitting there going My
god these people are so stupid.
Shakespeares use of the
English language in this play is
clever and delightful, twisting
and convoluting communication
between characters.
It is among Shakespeares
most diIfcult plays in terms oI
language, Angell said. It has a
number of things that are subject
matter that are not familiar to
modern audiences. Almost every
character in the play either mis-
uses English or makes mistakes
with it.
The Merry Wives of Wind-
sor combines the misuse of
language and thick accents to
showcase how versatile and
delightful the English language
can be. This is demonstrated
by Sir Hugh Evans the Welsh
priest, Caius the French Doctor,
Master Slender who speaks
nonsense throughout the play.
The Elizabethan society was
largely xenophobic, Hubbard
said. The foreign characters get
made fun of a lot and they dont
know what is going on because
they dont know what words
mean and they are tricked into
thinking that what is being said
to them is compliment.
Another important aspect
of the plays production is the
costuming. In the Elizabethan
era, classes were distinguished
through fashion from the rich-
ness in the fabric to the size
of a citizens ruff, or gathered
collar. All were subject to the
Elizabethan Sumptuary Laws.
People who broke these clothing
guidelines were fned or even
sentenced to death.
Recreating Elizabethan fash-
ion, Bryan E. Simmons, ecturer
in theatre and costume designer,
conjured a beautiful array of
various costumes from the rich
to the poor for the The Merry
Wives of Windsor.
It is interesting sometimes
I will walk away from rehearsal
without a fat suit on, just in my
normal people clothes, and I
will have my chin up and I will
have a little bit of swag in my
step. Just becoming him is a lot
of fun. And there are a lot of
things that I will never do, but
we are on stage so I can do it,
Godleski said.
Godleski said Simmons was
an amazing costume master,
able to manipulate materials in
new and creative ways. Sim-
mons elaborate designs force
actors to get further into their
characters.
I really like costumes
because for me, at least with
this show, it is almost half the
character, Keller said.
It always takes effort and
energy to put on a theatrical
production, and the colleges
production of The Merry Wives
of Windsor is no exception.
Look for excitement, humour,
and intricacy when you attend
this Shakespearean masterpiece.
And it is a whole hullabaloo
of fun, Hubbard said.
lreyes@hillsdale.edu
!
MERRY WIVES
From B1
Drawn by Greg Carlson
REMEMBERING MOMENTS
OF OSCARS PASSED
Lee Cole now works alongside the professors who
first inspired him
SPACES
B3 1 March 2012 www.hillsdalecollegian.com
In Their Eyes
Emily Johnston
Collegian Reporter
A
fter the Hillsdale College
Honors Program Retreat
in August 2000, incoming
freshman Lee Cole was in a bad car
accident.
He spent the next week at the Fort
Wayne hospital.
Junior Kelly Heinz 02, president
of the honors program, visited Cole in
the hospital and helped keep him con-
nected to campus, the honors program,
and classes while he recovered.
When Cole came back to campus
three weeks later, they went for a long,
late-night walk and ended up by the
eagle statue around 3 a.m.
Inertia ran its course after that,
Cole said. I obviously didnt show
much respect for our differences in
class and station, since we were dating
by October.
Four years later, on July 2, 2004,
Cole proposed to Heinz by the eagle
statue.
Cole married Heinz exactly one year
later and this past fall Cole returned to
his alma mater after accepting a posi-
tion in the philosophy department.
Student to Professor
Cole, instructor of philosophy,
matriculated in the fall of 2000
the same year President Larry Arnn
became Hillsdale Colleges twelfth
president. Cole graduated in the spring
of 2004 with a bachelor of science
in mathematics and philosophy. He
received his masters degree in philoso-
phy at Villanova University.
Last year, while researching at Notre
Dame University, Cole received a sur-
prising, but welcome, email from the
Dean of Humanities, Thomas Burke.
I opened my inbox early one frosty
February morning and nearly spit my
coffee out, Cole said.
After several interviews and much
counsel from friends and family, he
returned this fall to teach at Hillsdale.
He said his best memories as a stu-
dent involve his wife, Kelly.
I largely have in mind many cold,
wandering walks at night that involved
us conversing, getting to know one
another, he said.
Then and Now
Cole said he does not miss the old
buildings.
Im teaching in buildings that
didnt exist eight years ago, and many
of the rooms in which I attended
lectures have been destroyed, he said.
There is a bit less mustiness in the air
these days, which is probably a favor-
able change. Much important learning
happened there, but few tears were
shed in the architectural community,
Im sure.
There are subtler differences Cole
said he noticed as well, especially in
the students.
On the whole, the students are per-
haps a bit bolder and more self-assured
than they were a decade ago al-
though this assessment applies more to
their demeanor outside the classroom
than in it, he said.
Current students seem to display
more confdence in being on campus,
Cole said. At the freshman ice-cream
social he attended, Cole said the
students seemed smarter, more put
together.
The types and groups of students
do have family resemblances to types
and groups of students from when I
was a student, he said. Although
Id say that students used to dress in
a slightly more conservative manner
(although generally not as smartly)
and were a bit more timid outside the
classroom.
Perhaps social networking has
helped current students bond and form
camaraderie, Cole said.
Some things, like Hillsdating, have
not changed, although Cole said the
name did not exist when he was a
student.
Quirky dating rituals have always
been a part of this campus, Cole said.
There were strange dating practices
when I was a student but I tried not
to participate in those, I like to avoid
ambiguity.
Comfortable Challenges
These slight changes have not
signifcantly aIIected Cole`s transition
from student to teacher.
On the whole, the transition from
being a student here to being a fac-
ulty member has been quite seamless
and natural, he said. I dont in any
way still feel like a student despite
being surrounded by so many of my
own teachers but there is a common
thread of co-naturality with the culture
here that links my two sets of experi-
ences. So there is none of the uncanny
unfamiliar familiarity that sometimes
accompanies a return to a previous time
or place in ones life.
Cole said the ease of his transition
from student to teacher surpassed his
expectations.
Strangely enough, theres nothing
really unnatural about being co-work-
ers with my former professors, he
said. Ive always tried to be deferen-
tial, so calling Dr. Connor by his frst
name was understandably odd the frst
time, but theyve all been generous
about treating me as a colleague.
Cole said being a Hillsdale student
has helped him to be a better Hillsdale
teacher.
Im obviously aware of the campus
culture, he said. Already knowing
the defning end oI a Hillsdale educa-
tion has been tremendously valuable.
There are still challenges to being a
new, full-time, college-level professor.
Its always easy to become a bit
obsessive about helping your students
learn, Cole said. 'And it`s diIfcult
not to feel an added sense of invest-
ment in Hillsdale students, in a way
I wouldnt quite feel invested in, say,
Ferris State students. I was a Hillsdale
student, too, so I want them to receive
what I received, and if possible, even
more. The students here are generally
quite dynamic and, on the whole, more
interested in serious issues.
Cole said he needs to remember
that Hillsdale students, just like other
college students, are young adults who
Iace challenges and diIfculties and can
not always live up to undue expecta-
tions.
He reconciled himself to this fact
immediately upon receiving his frst
round of essays.
Back Home
I dont think of my time at Hills-
dale as a collection of favorite memo-
ries so much as an entire period of
intense formation that, while rather
trying at the time, constitutes with the
hindsight of a few years a rich and
happy period of my life apart from
which Id be a different person, he
said. Of course, much of the richness
of this period also follows from the
many deep friendships that I forged
with others, and these relationships
continue to this day, in effect, preserv-
ing our connection to the college.
One such lasting friendship exists
between Cole and Assistant Profes-
sor of History Matthew Gaetano. The
two were friends as undergraduates,
through their time at graduate school,
and even still as colleagues working on
the same foor oI Delp Hall.
I love the school, and I suppose I
never completely felt like I left Hill-
sdale behind, Cole said. For schol-
arly reasons, family reasons, social
and personal reasons, even spiritual
reasons, teaching at Hillsdale is in my
estimation a fairly enviable station. So
as for whether Im glad to be back: ab-
solutely. Unequivocally. Yes. I feel very
fortunate for having the opportunity to
teach here.
ejohnston@hillsdale.edu

Junior Ian Blodger plays Magic: The Gathering at Battlegrounds, a store in downtown Hill-
sdale that holds Magic tournaments, and provides a place for enthusiasts to gather to meet
fellow players and compete with one another. (Elena Salvatore/Collegian)
I met Blodger on Friday at Battlegrounds,
a store in downtown Hillsdale devoted to the
game. Richard Garfeld, a math Ph.D., invented
the game in the 90s. Since then, its become a
worldwide phenomenon. Every Friday night,
devotees gather around the world Ior oIfcially
sanctioned Friday Night Magic tournaments,
one of which Battlegrounds hosts.
Some of the tournaments have huge prizes.
Sheila Fox, the stores owner, said the best
players make a living off their winnings. In
Hillsdale, players compete for store credit and
more Magic cards.
Its like the chess of card games, said
Blodger
The game teaches players about strategy,
math, and everyday life, he said.
And sometimes, it changes their lives.
Harley Lundahl, one of the competitors in the
tournament, said coming to Battlegrounds to
play Magic helped him turn his life around and
fnd a stable job.
Lundahl moved to Hillsdale about a year
ago to live with his parents after losing his job.
Because he has agoraphobia, he had trouble
keeping steady work and faced crippling anxi-
ety when he left his home. But he loved Magic:
The Gathering, and frst came to Battlegrounds
to play it six months ago. For Lundahl, that
changed everything.
'This was the frst place I started coming
out to, where I could come out and be around
people who are a little bit more like me, instead
of feeling out of place everywhere else I went,
he said. So that really helped me out when I
moved into town.
By coming to the weekly tournaments, he
made friends and met his current boss. Now
Lundahl works as a graphic designer.
Beforehand, I didnt go out, I didnt do
anything, just because I couldnt, he said. So
it was almost like a savior.
For others, the game is just a distraction.
Luke Sanders, a senior, said his friend Evan
Williams 11 introduced him to Magic.
I would sometimes get back and have all
my work done and its before twelve oclock,
and think, thank God, Im going to go to bed on
time, Sanders said. Evan would just be sitting
here and he would seemingly from nowhere
just pull out the deck and start shuIfing, and
hed just get this look. And Id say, okay. And
then Iast Iorward fve hours, and we played like
10 sets and then just, wheres all the time gone?
Id think, oh God, I got class in four hours.
On Jan. 28, Sanders set a personal record
when he spent seven hours playing in a tourna-
ment at Battlegrounds. It began at 11 a.m. and
he didnt get out in time for dinner at Saga. By
the time he left, the storefront windows had
fogged over completely.
And I just remember thinking to myself
that there are a lot of sweating people in this
room, he said.
For some players, the game becomes a
cancer, he said.
Its really addictive.
So I had to learn how to play. After getting
back from Battlegrounds, I went to the house
EleIson and Sanders share Ior my frst and only
lesson. Heres what I picked up:
Players build their own decks of about 60
cards. Each card is one oI fve colors (black,
white, red, green, and blue) and features a
detailed image of the character or land it repre-
sents. Different characters have different pow-
ers, I think, and gain power by being played in
tandem with land, or mana, cards. Each player
begins the game with 20 lives, and the game
ends when one of the players loses all of his
(or, occasionally, her) lives.
But its actually a lot more confusing than
that, I think.
You can get a card thats called a
planeswalker, Elefson said, and it acts as
its own player. So you can play a card and its
your ally, and it has these different abilities
which you can control. Essentially, its just a
puppet. But it has its own life.
When he said that, I thought I understood
what was going on. In retrospect, though, I
have no idea what any of that means.
Its complicated, he said. I dont know if
you have to worry about that.
So I decided not to. I doubt Ill ever under-
stand what the little pictures around the edges
of the cards symbolize, or why a seemingly
normal guy like Sanders would play this game
instead of sleeping, or how a pile of cards on a
plastic table in a store downtown can be either
a savior or a cancer. But, as Elefson reassured
me, I dont have to.
After all, its Magic.
bwoodruff@hillsdale.edu
!
GAMES
From B4
Instructor of Philosophy Lee Cole with Hillsdale College President
Larry Arnn at Coles graduation in 2004. Cole returned to Hillsdale
this year as a professor. (Courtesy of Lee Cole)
SPACES
B4 1 March 2012 www.hillsdalecollegian.com
E X E R C I S E I N DI S G U I S E
Sharon Barrett
Collegian Freelancer
F
reshman Emma Langston, who leads
a Zumba dance class on campus every
Wednesday, loves sharing the art of dance
and the art oI ftness with Iellow students.
Zumba brings a little of that South-American
sun. It brightens up the middle oI my week, she
said.
Zumba (pronounced 'ZOOM-bah) is a dance
Iorm created by Alberto 'Beto Perez, a native oI
Colombia. It incorporates movements drawn Irom
salsa, merengue, reggaeton, and a Colombian
dance known as cumbia.
Langston said Zumba is an easy and effec-
tive workout because it uses intermittent cardio
exercises to burn calories. In contrast to interval
training, intermittent training raises and lowers the
heart rate repeatedly over a short time span.
Because of this, Langston calls Zumba exer-
cise in disguise.
The class, started this semester by Hillsdales
new Health and Wellness Club, drew about
50 participants the frst week, but the number
dropped to about 25 on Ash Wednesday. Now in
her Iourth week oI teaching the class, Langston
estimates attendance is about 40 students.
'People can come anytime, even iI they can
only stay Ior 15 minutes, Langston said. 'It`s so
relaxed. I try to create a party atmosphere, with
the music blaring and the lights down a little. The
room is packed.
The class meets in Curtiss Dining Hall at 7
p.m. on Wednesdays. Langston said she explains
dance moves before class, but expects dancers to
get creative.
'It`s easy to add your own fair. II you want to
get out there and bust your own move, do it! she
said.
To encourage dancers to keep moving, Langs-
ton tries not to talk while teaching.
'I use non-verbal cues: pointing my fngers,
nodding my head, tapping my leg, to keep the
energy going, she said. 'Zumba is all about Ieel-
ing the music. When you hear a certain part oI
the song repeat, you repeat that pattern of move-
ments.
Langston said most of her students have no
dance experience, but come from a wide variety
oI ftness backgrounds, ranging Irom athletes
who want a switch-up from their regular routine
to students who like to work out with Iriends to
increase their motivation.
Langston tries to get to know all her students,
who represent a variety of class years, especially
seniors.
Senior Brittany Baldwin, who has attended the
class since it began, learned about it when she met
Langston and saw the posters around campus.
Baldwin had previous experience with Zumba,
but said she has improved since taking the class.
'It is a Iun break Irom studying and a Iun way
to get exercise, Baldwin said.
Zumbas Latin dance roots help improve coor-
dination.
'It`s all about moving the hips, Baldwin said.
Baldwin recommended anyone interested in
learning Zumba should take the class.
Emma is energetic and she is really good at
showing us how to do it. She makes it look so
natural, she said.
While Langston and Baldwin agreed that they
enjoy having the class with all girls, Langston said
if there is interest, the Health and Wellness Club
will consider offering a Zumba class tailored for
male students in the Iuture.
Langston said she misses taking Zumba classes
back in her hometown oI Orlando, Fla. where
most of her Zumba instructors were of Latin
ancestry.
Langston decided to start a Zumba class when
she arrived on campus as a Ireshman.
'There were no group ftness exercise classes
oIIered, and I saw a need, she said. 'I went and
talked to the administration, and Iound out other
people had done the same thing. So we started the
Health and Wellness Club. It was great timing.
The Health and Wellness Club is a team eIIort.
Some of us teach, and others help with adver-
tising, Langston said. 'We Ielt a need to create
a mentality oI ftness on campus. It not only pro-
vides an outlet, but helps keep people accountable.
It gets them excited, is a great way to meet people,
and oIIers something Ior everyone at any level.
Langston has a passion for teaching, and taught
ballet as a side job in high school. At Hillsdale,
she is a member oI the Tower Dancers.
'I really do love the perIorming arts. Dance
plus ftness is a great combo, she said.
Teaching Zumba allows her to continue sharing
her passions and interests with others.
'I love that I have been able to keep dance in
my liIe. But I don`t want to keep it to myselI, she
said.
Langston has a track record oI spotting needs
and coming up with solutions. In high school, she
volunteered with an organization called Restore
Hope Orlando, which offered an after-school
karate class Ior inner-city children. Noticing that
the girls were not exactly exuberant about karate,
Langston asked iI she could start a ballet class Ior
them.
'I enjoyed teaching them discipline and
structure while giving them the chance to explore
artistically. This was an opportunity those girls
had never had. It allowed them to learn to love
something outside of school, and gave them some-
thing to work towards, she said.
While Langston loves to dance, she plans to
major in history and politics with the goal of at-
tending law school.
'Till junior year, I thought I would be a proIes-
sional dancer. But that wasn`t where God was
calling me, she said. 'So I switched my Iocus to
academics.
It was in the summer oI her junior year that
Langston discovered her passion Ior law.
'I had always pictured myselI at the ballet
barre, but instead I will end up beIore the legal
bar, she said. 'With the interests and skill sets
God has given me, that`s where I`m called.
sbarrett@hillsdale.edu
Freshman Emma Langston combines her love for dance with fitness in her weekly Zumba class
CARD MAGICIANS
Store downtown provides a haven for game enthusiasts
O
n Friday, Feb. 24, I
called my friend ju-
nior Ryan EleIson and
said 10 words that just a few
days earlier, I never imagined I
would say:
Will you teach me how to
play Magic: The Gathering?
He laughed nervously,
paused, and asked, 'Are you
sure you want to learn?
I`d asked myselI the same
question. Though I`ve had my
fair share of garden-variety
nerdy experiences (watching all
three original Star Wars mov-
ies in one day, mastering Mario
Kart Ior Nintendo 64, debating
in high school, etc.), I`d never
Iaced geekiness oI this magni-
tude and that`s no mistake.
I`m horrible at math, haven`t
ever made a cohesive strategy
about anything, and have the
memorization abilities oI a gold-
fsh. I don`t play Iantasy-themed
strategy games, ever.
But Magic: The Gathering
is more than a game. It`s an
investment, a language, and an
addiction. And over the last 12
months, its wormed its way
into the schedules of a growing
number of Hillsdale students
and taken over an entire build-
ing downtown.
'It is nerdy, said junior Ian
Blodger. 'It is very nerdy. I
don`t necessarily think that`s a
bad thing.
Betsy Woodruff
Opinions Editor
!
See GAMES, B3
(Elena Salvatore/Collegian)
Freshman Emma Langston leads her Wednesday night Zumba class in front of aproximately 40 students.
Participants say the class is a welcome break in the middle of the week. Zumba is a form of excersise involving
Latin dance that students say is as fun as it is a good workout. (Shannon Odell/Collegian)

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