Student Musician:
Volleyball:
Theater:
Student veteran performs EP "American Deployed" at New York music venue.
Popplewell records her 100th Charger career kill.
Senior Fiona Mulley stars as Henrietta Leavitt in “Silent Sky.”
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Michigan’s oldest college newspaper
CCA I discusses Christianity in America By Christian Papillon Collegian Reporter Christianity is necessary for the morality and preservation of the American republic, according to speakers at this week’s Center for Constructive Alternatives seminars. “A post-Christian America will not just be hostile toward individual Christians, but it will also be hostile to those ideals and principles that are derived from and are dependent on Christianity,” speaker John Daniel Davidson said Tuesday evening. Hillsdale held its first CCA of the academic year, “Christianity in America,” from Sept. 29 - Oct. 2. George Marsden, author of “Jonathan Edwards: A Life,” spoke Sunday evening about “Jonathan Edwards and Christianity in Colonial America.” Marsden said Jonathan Edwards has become known as one of Christianity’s most prominent theologians and talked about how Edwards would contemplate God’s creation. “G o d i s c o n s t a nt ly speaking in creation,” Marsden said. “We can all get glimpses of this in nature when we see a gorgeous sunset or wonderful trees in the spring, we get some sense of the beauty of God in creation.” Marsden said Edwards would go into the fields and contemplate God’s creation and how it pointed to the beauty of Christ. Marsden also talked about Edwards’ contemporary, George Whitefield. “Whitefield was the first American celebrity superstar,” Marsden said. “He preached several long tours up and down the colonies. Word that he was coming would spread like wildfire, and it seemed that almost everybody who was able-bodied would come out to hear him speak.” Daniel L. Dreisbach, professor of justice, law, and criminology at American University, spoke on “Christianity and the American Political Tradition” Monday afternoon. Dreisbach contested the claims that the United States was founded as a secular nation with total separation between church and state. He said the Founders were inspired by the Bible while drafting the founding documents. “My first observation is that the Founding Fathers read the Bible,” Dreisbach said. “That shouldn’t surprise us, because after all, the Bible was the most accessible and authoritative text for 18th-century Americans.”
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Courtesy | Marilyn Popplewell
Courtesy | Greg Whalen
Courtesy | Austin Thomason
www.hillsdalecollegian.com
Vol. 148 Issue 6 – October 3, 2024
Hillsdale Academy dedicates new wing after enrollment spike
Headmaster, professors praise continued commitment to classical K-12 education By Olivia Pero Outreach Director Hillsdale Academy and college staff dedicated a new wing of the K-12 school, with students performing recitations and choral music Oct. 2. The new wing includes an atrium, a music room, two classrooms dedicated to the teaching of Latin, and classrooms for grades five through eight, said Hillsdale Academy Headmaster Mike Roberts during his welcome speech. “Since 2020, our enrollment has increased by 50%,” Roberts said. “This increase simply caused us to outgrow our current space and was putting limits, especially on high school enrollment, and the ability to serve local families.” Hillsdale College President Larry Arnn said the school is doing well. “It’s bigger, and this is possible because of the love and knowledge and devotion of the people who work at it — and those students whose discipline and knowledge is manifest,” Arnn said. Assistant Professor of Education David Diener previously served as the Academy headmaster from 2018 to 2022. Diener said when the Academy opened in 1990, it started with combined classrooms called “clusters” where, for example, there was one classroom for both third and fourth grade students.
Hillsdale Academy Headmaster Mike Roberts, Chief Administrative Officer Rich Péwé, and College President Larry Arnn (left to right) cut the ribbon at the dedication ceremony Wednesday. Olivia Pero | Collegian
“During my years as headmaster, enrollment grew, and we finished breaking apart those clusters so that each grade level had its own classroom,” Diener said. “As the enrollment has continued to grow, the Academy is now in a place to have multiple sections of some grades in the upper school.” Additional classrooms have been sorely needed in order to accommodate the increased number of students and classes, Diener said.
“This new wing is a testament to the incredible education that Hillsdale Academy provides and to Hillsdale College’s commitment to K-12 classical education,” Diener said. “As the Academy continues to grow, the expanded facilities will enable the education we provide to bless not only families here in Hillsdale but school communities all over the country who look to Hillsdale Academy as a model to emulate.” During her remarks at the
dedication, Kathleen O’Toole, assistant provost for K-12 education at Hillsdale College, said she thought the dedication ceremony called attention to the importance of good architecture. “When you step into a building or a room that has been designed well, you feel different,” O’Toole said. “These things invite us in, and they encourage us to carry ourselves in a certain way, to regard others in a certain way, and to think of our own activity in
that place in a certain way.” Professor of History Ken Calvert, who served as the Academy headmaster for 16 years, said he thinks the new wing is beautiful. “The students and staff of the school are blessed,” Calvert said. “This is an important addition to Hillsdale Academy as it plays a role in the efforts of Hillsdale College to spread classical K-12 education in America.”
Hillsdale responds to free speech warning label By Isabella Doer Senior Reporter
Courtesy | Austin Thomason
Compiled by Elizabeth Putlock
A free-speech group has once again placed Hillsdale College on its “warning” list. Hillsdale College received a “warning” designation from the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education with an overall score of 46.73 in its 2025 College Free Speech Rankings, well below the topranked University of Virginia, which scored 73.41. Laura Beltz, director of policy reform for FIRE, explained that while the evaluation considers multiple factors, it is based mainly on the institution’s written policies. “We look to see if a private school has a clear and unequivocal commitment to freedom of expression,” Beltz said. “At Hillsdale, there isn’t a statement on the books that guarantees students the right to free speech. Certain policies state that the college’s values mean some types of speech or expressive activities are prohibited, and that’s what puts it into the warning category.” FIRE’s rankings assess college policies, student experiences, and institutional responses to free speech controversies, placing schools with policies that prioritize other values above free speech on its “warning” list. In collaboration with College Pulse, FIRE surveyed
58,807 students from 257 colleges and universities between Jan. 25 and June 17, 2024. This survey included responses from Hillsdale students enrolled in four-year degree programs. While FIRE’s label may raise questions for outsiders, Hillsdale’s administration expressed confidence in the college’s commitment to free speech. Emily Davis, Hillsdale’s executive director of media relations & communications said that the “warning” label is “misleading and inaccurate.” According to Davis, FIRE’s methodology fails to capture the true nature of free expression on Hillsdale’s campus. “The issue, as FIRE sees it, is that Hillsdale doesn’t subscribe to an all-or-nothing view of free speech,” Davis said. “Hillsdale absolutely promotes free speech, but it’s framed within the principle of civility. Students are encouraged to speak their minds, but they’re also expected to do so in a way that contributes to academic discourse. That’s something FIRE’s criteria may not fully take into account.” College President Larry Arnn has been outspoken about Hillsdale’s approach to free expression. He said freedom of speech is essential to a college’s mission, but not in an unrestricted sense.
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