January 2025

Great Books: Lessons on Learning

Every student is required to take two Great Books courses for the Hillsdale core: Great Books in the Western Tradition and Great Books in the British and American Traditions. Here is an FAQ for all your pressing questions by an economics major.

Driving Force: Former GLIAC Medalist Finds Faith, Academic Rigor at Hillsdale

Golf is what brought Joel Pietila, ’19, to Hillsdale College, but the academic experience is what kept him there. The former men’s golfer is now a financial planner for the Bahnsen Group in the Phoenix, Arizona, area.

“Good People”: Sarah Grunert Sobieszczanski Remains Close to Hillsdale Classmates

Hillsdale College is just “good people.” That’s the impression Sarah Grunert Sobieszczanski, ’16, formed of her alma mater. The former four-time all-conference performer (twice honorable mention, twice second team) said her Hillsdale experience has not stopped since graduating.

First of His Kind: Former All-American Cain Remains Connected with Baseball Program

A standout high school catcher, Tim Cain, ’85, received a postcard addressed to him from then-Hillsdale College baseball coach Marc Comstock, ’76. A week later, Cain visited campus, and the rest was history.

Marine Veteran Greg Whalen: Afghanistan Deployment Inspires Budding Music Career

As a Marine Corps veteran, Greg Whalen, a 2017 Hillsdale Academy graduate and soon-to-be Hillsdale College graduate, has life experiences that very few of his fellow students share. Whalen is sharing his stories and talents with an ever-growing audience with the release of his EP, American Deployed.

Education Through Experience: Hope Canlas’ WHIP Internship

Hope Canlas, ’25, describes her experience interning in Washington, D.C., on Hillsdale College’s Washington-Hillsdale Internship Program (WHIP), a unique opportunity that allows students to “study abroad” in the nation’s capital while remaining college students.

The Hillsdale College Alumni Dozen

With the start of the new year, senior director of Alumni Marketing Doug Goodnough, ’90, likes to reflect back on the year that has been. Here are the 12 interesting alumni he met for the first time over the course of 2024 (in no particular order or ranking).

May by the Bay: Becoming a Physician

Veteran David May graduated from Hillsdale College in 1988 with his degree in political economy, but went on to become a physician. Despite not taking a political economics career path, May still values his Hillsdale education.