Michigan’s oldest college newspaper
www.hillsdalecollegian.com
Vol. 147 Issue 2 – August 31, 2023
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Juniors Nathaniel Privitt and Julian Burchard (left- to-right) enjoy the swing set at Baw Beese BBQ on Friday. Erik Teder | Student Activities Board
Students react to first Republican presidential debate By Micah Hart Political Correspondent Some students thought Gov. Ron DeSantis excelled in remaining relevant and part of the discussion at the first Republican presidential debate in Milwaukee, WI on Aug. 23, while others said the Florida governor failed to connect with the audience. Eight Republican presidential candidates battled it out on Aug. 23 in the first Republican presidential debate, absent primary front-runner former President Donald Trump. Last year, three of these candidates — businessman Vivek Ramaswamy, former Vice President Mike Pence, and DeSantis — visited campus. Instead of debating his fellow candidates, Trump held a one-on-one interview with former Fox News host Tucker Carlson at the same time. “I think if Trump keeps playing wild cards, then he’s out for good,” junior Emily Griffith said. Others, such as junior Charlie Birt, said they believe Trump helped himself by avoiding the debate and that DeSantis, who attended the debate, presented himself as another strong option for voters. “Trump and DeSantis did well to stay above the fray in the two-person race,” Birt said. Junior Vivian Turnbull said the Florida governor did not present enough of a national case on specific questions. “DeSantis struggled with seeming stiff and once again reverted to only talking about Florida when asked certain questions, particularly the abortion one,” Turnbull said. When asked about his abortion policies, DeSantis said he would not allow lateterm abortion.
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Faculty responds to AI threat on campus By Sydney Green Circulation Manager Professors are including statements in their syllabi that limit or ban students from using artificial intelligence programs such as ChatGPT, following a letter from the provost’s office this summer. “Faculty are encouraged to discuss AI use with their students on the first day of classes and place a statement in their syllabus,” Provost Christopher VanOrman said in the letter. “It is essential for faculty to be transparent with their expectations and to have frank conversations with their students about the moral implications of AI.” VanOrman said he values
academic freedom and wanted faculty to consider specific policies regarding AI tools at their own discretion. “I hate making policies because I think that academic freedom is very important,” he said. “I want my faculty to know that if this is something they think is useful or should be prohibited, they should be able to do what they think is right in their own classroom.” VanOrman said some STEM faculty members permit the use of AI for research purposes, while others choose to give a verbal discouragement in class. According to VanOrman, all syllabi in the English department contain a department policy statement that prohibits the use of any AI
tools. VanOrman also said the history department is considering adopting the statement. The English department policy statement said that because writing necessitates wrestling with the text, any use of AI is strictly forbidden. AI uses accomplishes the opposite of the user’s intention, according to Associate Professor of English Jason Peters. “I happen to be one of those people who's not all that impressed by labor-saving devices,” Peters said. “I think what those devices finally do is they don't save labor — they get rid of laborers.” Writing becomes beautiful, Peters said, when the reader can grasp a sense of personhood.
From speechwriter to entrepreneur: alumna launches writing firm website By Thomas McKenna Assistant Editor After four years writing speeches for the president of the United States, one Hillsdale College alumna shifted to launch a communications firm. Brittany Baldwin ’12 launched the website for her firm, Illuminate Consulting, last month. “I resisted having a website for a long time,” Baldwin said. “It reached a lot more people than I thought.” She founded the firm after she left the White House in 2021. In the two and a half years since starting her own business, Baldwin said she has tried to focus on the distinguishing specialty she can provide her clients. “Everyone who has their own company has to think about ‘What is their secret weapon?’” Baldwin said. “A big part of my secret weapon is being able to really get to know a client, see their strengths in a way that even they themselves can't see, and then find a way to draw that out.” Baldwin wrote speeches for Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, including during his presidential campaign, before serving as a presidential speechwriter and special assistant to the president during the Trump administration. She credits her Hillsdale ed-
ucation with shaping her into a “sharper thinker” and a “sharper writer.” “Reading great books, learning how to become a great writer, constantly being pushed to be excellent, developing a great work ethic, being around professors who inspired me, and learning how to become the woman of
every other class that I took at Hillsdale because, frankly, it was very practical,” Baldwin said. “We were getting very specific, very concrete feedback on our work, which I think made us better quickly.” Miller arrived at Hillsdale during her senior year. Baldwin was one of his first students, Miller said. “It was a delight to teach her and now to watch her flourish as a professional writer,” Miller said. “Anybody who needs the services of a wordsmith would be wise to look her up.” An American studies major, Baldwin included Professor of History Brad Birzer Brittany Baldwin '12 worked as a among the professors who speechwriter at the White House. had the greatest impact on Courtesy | LinkedIn her education and character. character that “Dr. Birzer had this incrediI wanted to be have all funda- ble way of making history into a mentally shaped who I am and beautiful poetic story,” Baldwin therefore how I work,” Baldwin said. “Not only did it teach me said. to love history even more than I Baldwin said as a George already did, but it taught me the Washington Fellow, she did not power of storytelling.” want to complete the WashingBirzer said he greatly adton Hillsdale Internship Pro- mires Baldwin. gram, but found during her “I think the absolute world Heritage Foundation internship of Brittany,” Birzer said. “She that she loved writing. In the fall was not only one of the finest of her senior year at Hillsdale, students I’ve encountered at Baldwin took Advanced Writ- Hillsdale — all my students ing with John J. Miller, director are awesome — but she was an of the Dow Journalism Pro- amazing friend and babysitter gram. of my kids. I would trust her “It was so different from with the world.”
“Writing generated by ChatGPT is really kind of voiceless, and what makes writing interesting is this sense that there's a real person,” Peters said. Senior Caleb Greene spent his summer interning at a startup AI company and said he thinks faculty should not ban AI uses altogether. “It wouldn’t be smart for an institution like Hillsdale to just be anti-AI; the reality is that it is going to radically transform the world,” Greene said. “I think we need to start owning the conversation on it now and look into how we can adopt and engage with it.” Greene said AI can be helpful, but it becomes detrimental when students seek to use
it to shortcut their education. He said faculty ought to gain more familiarity with the tool they are prohibiting. “I think faculty should expose themselves to technology and have an understanding of how it works,” Greene said. “Otherwise they will fall behind the curve and not have the tools to combat it if needed.” Chair and Professor of English Justin A. Jackson reminded students to embrace the motto of the college in his lecture to the class of 2027 on academic honesty. “What's the point of strength rejoicing in the challenge if you're going to cheat?” Jackson said. “Don’t rob yourself of the education that you are paying for.”
Six student productions named CBI finalists
WRFH students hold award from Michigan Association of Broadcasters. Courtesy | radiofreehillsdale.com
By Jane Kitchen Assistant Editor College Broadcasters Inc. selected six Hillsdale student radio and video productions as finalists for the 2023 National Student Production Awards. Finalists include the four highest-ranked submissions for each of CBI’s award categories. This year, colleges across the country sent in nearly 1,000 total submissions. CBI will announce the winners this October at the National Student Media Convention in Orlando, Florida. “I can tell them, ‘Great job!’ over and over, but hearing it from someone outside the program, especially when being measured beside students from great radio/audio programs across the country, really can resonate with a student,” said Scot Bertram, gen-
eral manager of WRFH Radio Free Hillsdale 101.7 FM. Senior Abigail Snyder’s show “The Virtual Voyage” is one of the nominees for Best Regularly Scheduled Entertainment Program. Snyder said the show was the result of her desire to share her passion for the history and culture of Israel with others, especially when travel was restricted during the COVID-19 pandemic. “It's an armchair travel show where I take people to my favorite sites in Israel, all from their comfort zone,” Snyder said. “So once you put on your headphones, you can be in your dorm room or your living room, and you get to feel like you're there touching the Western Wall, or on the Temple Mount, or swimming in the Dead Sea.”
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