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Hillsdale residents enjoy the farmers market every Saturday. Erik Teder | Collegian
Michigan’s oldest college newspaper
www.hillsdalecollegian.com
Vol. 147 Issue 3 – September 7, 2023
Q&A: Victor Davis Hanson shares secret to reliability By Isaac Green News Editor Victor Davis Hanson is a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University, Buske distinguished fellow in history at Hillsdale, and the author of almost 30 books. Who won the recent Republican presidential debate? Certain people are kind of boilerplate and detract from the debate because they don't have a realistic chance. Essentially, they're down now to four candidates. Ramaswamy,
DeSantis, Haley, and maybe Pence. Of those four, Haley improved herself just by her optics. DeSantis did what he had to do, and that was be viable. Tim Scott, I think he's not been able to translate his inspirational personal story and an effective blueprint of what he'd actually do. Mike Pence, I think, was the loser of that debate. I don't think he helped himself at all. Ramaswamy for the first 10 minutes was impressive with his rhetoric and his confidence and his apparent mastery of the facts, but after a while, he kind of became
grating with his bullying and back and forth. What do you think about Trump’s absence from the debate? It was very effective the first time, but he can't do that every time. In other words, he can’t time a Tucker interview, it's gonna get stale. You can do that one time. So he's either going to have to re-enter the debates, or he's going to have to come up with alternate venues that give him face time or playtime. Do you have a piece of wisdom to share with Hills-
dale students? I always tried to have a professional code, and by that I meant if I said I was going to be somewhere, I was there. If I said I was going to teach, no matter what, I taught. I've been writing two columns a week since 2002. I haven't missed one yet. I think I've had seven major operations in that period, but my attitude was I have to do the job. If you do that enough, you get a reputation of reliability. Second, I've always had the idea that whether we know it or not, even in the humanities, there
is a competitive nature. There are so many days, so many hours in a day, and I have average or above average intelligence. I feel that if I spend a lot of time writing and reading, there's not going to be too many people who work harder than I do. So, work very hard, have a professional ethos, and you will be surprised by the windows of opportunity that open. When you aren’t working, how do you spend your time? I have a farm of 43 acres, so I usually do yard work or work on some of the old buildings.
We have some electricians that are wiring and rewiring, and I help them, and then I have to check on the renter, and so I do things on the weekends that they don't do. And then I have a place way up high in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, so I go up there. How often do you write? I have one syndicated column a week and one larger column for American Greatness, and then I write three articles for my website. I'm writing about 5,000 words a week, and I'm usually working on a book on weekends.
College films old-fashioned commercial on campus Chaplain By Lauren Scott City News Editor Hillsdale College filmed a new commercial on campus this week featuring a horse and buggy. “We’ve created scenes that range in time from the 1800s to the present as a reminder that the steadfast mission of the college has always been to develop the minds and improve the hearts of its students,” said Mark Waters, director of visual media. Waters said the commercial, which features the Honor Code, focuses on the importance of character at the college. It will air on Fox News this fall and will be posted on all Hillsdale College social media channels, including YouTube. The present-day scenes feature current students, while the
people in the historical scenes are actors from Michigan and Ohio, Waters said. Aide to the Dean of Men Rita Conrad sent an email to all male dorms on Aug. 17 asking for student applications to be in the commercial. “Throughout the commercial, transitions will occur between the college’s modern-day students all the way back to its beginning, the 1800s,” the casting email said. Professor of Biology Anthony Swinehart said he is involved in locating, preparing, and placing some historical science equipment and specimens on a set built to re-enact a photo of former professor Daniel Fisk and one of his classrooms in 1885. “Fisk was the father of the sciences at Hillsdale and namesake of our museum,” Swine-
hart said. The college is working with Distant Moon, a production company that helps Hillsdale film online courses, according to Waters. The horses involved in the filming belong to local residents
Barney and Teresa Traylor, who allow people in Hillsdale County to use their carriage and horses for events. Junior Gavin Listro said he saw part of the Sept. 4 filming. “It was cool to see the people with the costumes and
fake mustaches,” Listro said. “I thought it would be very hot in those three-piece suits, and I felt bad for the girl I saw because her dress looked super heavy and layered. I love the idea though, and I’m excited to see the finished product.”
By Gray Turner Collegian Freelancer
The college hired actors from Michigan and Ohio to film the commercial. Courtesy | Anthony Swinehart
Hillsdale Pi Beta Phi wins third-best chapter in country By Erin Osborne Collegian Reporter Hillsdale College is home to the third-best chapter of the sorority Pi Beta Phi, following its competition for the Balfour Cup in July. “Every year Pi Phi nationals chooses the Balfour Cup award, which is given to the most outstanding and excellent chapter,” chapter president and senior Hannah Allen said. “It’s a tradition that we have to be an excellent chapter, and it is beautiful to think about that tradition and that connection.”
The Michigan Alpha chapter of Pi Beta Phi has received first runner up several times, Allen said. This year, the Balfour Cup winner was Missouri Alpha from the University of Missouri, followed by Arizona Alpha from the University of Arizona. “The criteria are based off of a lot of things. That includes how well the executive council leads the chapter as well as the health of the chapter and the events that the chapter puts on, like our programming,” Allen said. “A lot of our events are very intuitive to our chapter.
Juniors Maggie Carriker and Emily Hardy pose with awards. Courtesy | Maggie Carriker
founds Student Ministries Board
They’re things that we just do and don’t even think about.” Allen said academics are central to their success with the Balfour Cup. “We have a long history of winning the college scholarship cup or having the highest GPA among sororities on campus,” Allen said. “We also host certain career programming, finance, and member experience events. We just hosted a brunch for all of our members this weekend. We are a high achieving chapter that puts on a lot of successful programming.” The Balfour Cup is also
based upon participation in philanthropy. Pi Beta Phi’s charity is Read>Lead>Achieve, a sorority-run nonprofit focused on improving children’s literacy rates through book donations and classroom volunteering. “We consistently do a lot of work for philanthropy, and host a lot of events that are very successful throughout the year,” Allen said. “For example, we go into grade schools and read to children. That plays into our philanthropy as well as our service.” Sororities apply regionally for the Balfour Cup through monthly chapter evaluations the executive council members fill out. “Some of the questions on the evaluations pertain to staying within budget, retaining members, raising money for philanthropy, fulfilling roles as a chapter of Pi Phi, being active with your alumnae, being active on campus and in the community, and the health of the chapter as a whole,” said Maggie Carriker, vice president of finance and housing. The Balfour Cup is determined through regional nomination.
“People in Michigan, Indiana, and Ohio chapters are under a region,” Allen said. “We’re in region two, and our regional directors chose us as the top chapter in our region and therefore nominated us for the Balfour Cup.” Delegates Carriker and Vice President of Risk Management Emily Hardy went to the Pi Beta Phi convention in Phoenix, Arizona, on July 6. The semiannual convention stresses leadership training and personal development, according to Carriker. This year, more than 800 delegates attended. “At the convention, we had no idea that we were even in the running for the Balfour Cup, and it was a total surprise when our name was announced,” Carriker said. For Hardy, the Balfour Cup was a reflection of the hard work of the chapter. “I was exceedingly proud of our chapter and their demonstration of sincere friendship, integrity, and servant leadership,” Hardy said. “I am very proud to be a part of this chapter and cannot wait to see the things we accomplish in the future on campus and off campus.”
Beginning this semester, a new ministry group will provide student-led, interdenominational ministry opportunities to students on campus. The Student Ministries Board, assembled by College Chaplain Adam Rick, hopes to unite students across campus with the goal of worshiping Jesus together regardless of denominational or theological backgrounds. “There is no ministry on campus that is committed to ecumenical Christian action,” Rick said. “I wanted to create a forum where we could dream up ministry opportunities that were intentionally inclusive. As a consequence of which, I really wanted my team to be ecumenical.” Rick picked four upperclassmen students of various faith backgrounds for the team: senior Ingrid Dornbirer and juniors Alex Schrauben and Nathan Stanish, all three of whom attend College Baptist Church, and sophomore Andrew Winter, who attends St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church. “I’m really excited about my team,” Rick said. “They are all eager for a genuinely unifying ministry on campus. I think they all feel the burden of our divisions and, without denying our differences, they want to try to minister Christ to people anyway.” Winter said he hopes to bring Christians of varying denominations together in a supportive and welcoming environment.
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