Using sharpies on t-shirts, students wrote ways that they saw gender discrimination at Calvin.  The t-shirts were then hung on a clothesline and displayed on commons lawn last Wednesday.

Student response was better than expected, according to current member Erin Smith.

“We originally just had one clothesline with t-shirts and then we added another,” she said. “Then we had to start changing them out because we had too many and we had to start putting them in bags on the ground; we couldn’t hang them all.”

This March, three Calvin seniors — Erika DenHoed, Jess Rinaldi and John VanderPloeg — decided to start a student organization dedicated to gender equality and justice for women.

Moved by the 2012 documentary, “MAKERS: Women Who Make America,” DenHoed spearheaded the creation of the definitively feminist group at Calvin.

“They watched this documentary and Erika was so inspired and she looked on the Calvin student orgs list and there [weren’t] any groups at Calvin that are specifically for women’s issues… so she decided to start one,” said Smith.

Since DenHoed, Rinaldi and VanderPloeg are all seniors, Smith, a sophomore, will lead the group next year.

The group displayed the t-shirts again Wednesday as part of the Spring Arts Festival.

Although the Gender Justice organization is only two months old, students have already raised several issues of gender inequality through meetings and the clothesline campaign.

“One [thing] that we talked about right off the bat was conversations involving violence against women and how Calvin addresses rape,” DenHoed said.

Smith noted gender discrepancies between majors, the gender distribution of professors in different departments and the portrayal of women in certain dance guild dances as other areas of concern.

Smith was quick to emphasize that, while discussing such issues is important, the group also wants to take specific actions to improve gender equality at Calvin and beyond.

“Academia, education can only take you so far before you start doing stuff,” Smith said.

While the group members are distinctly feminist (their promotional poster encourages students to “Join the Fourth Wave”), Smith emphasizes the importance of integrating their Christian faith.

“This is something that’s very important to me: showing that it’s so possible to be a Christian feminist…” Smith said. “Christianity and women’s rights can go hand-in-hand and they should go hand-in-hand.”

DenHoed agreed. “Women are God’s children and He wants all His children to be respected.” She said that, if we consider the dictionary definition, “God is the ultimate feminist.”

Acknowledging that feminism has negative connotations for some people, especially those who are politically conservative, Smith emphasized the group’s non-political focus.

“I think it’s very important to us not to be crazily political and just flinging words around but instead taking action in a community-based, loving environment,” she said.

DenHoed added, “This is an inspired group and we’re trying to do change in the right and just and loving way.”

Campus safety took a larceny report from a student who had several pieces of clothing taken from the Bennink laundry room over the course of the last two months. Residence Life and campus safety staff are attempting to identify possible leads.

Tuesday, April 30

Campus safety received a report of a suspicious person who had been on campus at approximately 6 p.m. on Friday, April 26. The subject was riding a black and white motorcycle and wearing a black helmet, black jacket and black pants. The suspect talked with students about how little security there was on campus to protect students and buildings. The suspect also asked students if they wanted to smoke marijuana.

Thursday, May 2

Campus safety responded to the report of smoke coming from the stove in Theta 31. An occupant had a small grease fire which had been extinguished prior to the campus safety officer’s arrival. Physical plant was advised that an extinguisher had been used so it could be replaced.

Sunday, May 5

A campus safety employee encountered a student who appeared to be intoxicated on a walking path between Schultze-Eldersveld and Rooks-VanDellen. The student was offered a portable breath test and it was confirmed that he was under the influence of alcohol. The information on the student was forwarded to judicial affairs for disciplinary action.

“When I think of a typical Calvin concert, I think guitars and strumming,” sophomore Erin Smith said, speaking exaggeratedly slowly to refer to the singer-songwriter musicians Calvin often attracts.

Student Activities Director Ken Heffner agreed. The Covenant Fine Arts Center auditorium, where most concerts are held, is designed for the audience to sit and take in a performance. Audience members are often encouraged to discern the music by thinking about the artistry and the lyrics.

By contrast, Heffner said, MGMT “isn’t a band you do a lot of thinking about.” The psychedelic rock band performs whimsical, electronic-feel music, primarily “dance music,” which Heffner adds is “the main reason we brought them.”

“We’re not really comfortable with our bodies at Calvin,” Heffner said, excited about bringing musicians to Calvin who valued expression and movement.

But with the band’s dance music style came a different type of audience. Despite bag checks at the doors and security hired for the event, some things slipped past security.

Sophomore Joel Gustafson, who worked the merchandise table, suspected several concert-goers had been smoking. “I got to smell them coming in,” he said. “It definitely smelled like marijuana.”

Ken Heffner confirmed the suspicion, reporting that 12 smoked joints and four empty flasks were found after the concert.

“Based on the evidence we found afterwards, we guess 50 or 60 people were smoking pot,” Heffner said, emphasizing that the number was typical for an event that size. But, he added, “If you do the math, that’s only 3 percent.”

In addition, he insisted, “I have no indication that any Calvin students were smoking.”

For Heffner, the presence of drugs was unfortunate, but he didn’t want it to shape the discussion of the night. He hoped students would look past what a handful of people did at the concert, and focus on the music itself.

“If you come to a concert at Calvin there’s going to be far less drugs and alcohol, but to say zero is unrealistic,” Heffner said.

 “We can’t ignore that those kinds of people go to concerts,” said freshman Daniel Woodiwiss, a longstanding fan of the band.

But he wasn’t overly concerned about the issue, preferring to discuss the best parts of the performance, like the 12-minute song “Siberian Breaks,” which Woodiwiss said was “even better than I expected.”

“I don’t think we can predict if people are going to come to a concert high or sober. It was a risk we were willing to take because [MGMT’s] music is important,” Gustafson added.

Though MGMT had roots in psychedelic movements, they have since confirmed in interviews that they are not a part of that scene anymore. The band has grown in prominence, featured in festivals all over the United States and internationally.

They were nominated for Best New Artist at the 2010 Grammy awards. When MGMT, which shares an agent with Fun., had an open date in their concert tour, they approached Calvin about the possibility of a concert here.

“To some degree, seeing how well Fun. went opened the possibility” for MGMT to come, said Heffner.

At the concert, as anticipated, few people stayed in their seats. The band performed against a screen spiraling with animated designs and film clips, and many people swarmed to the floor to dance when MGMT’s more popular songs played.

Reflecting on the concert experience, “I think it’s part of engaging the culture,” Woodiwiss said. “Experiences like this are why I chose to come to Calvin College.”

Provost Claudia Beversluis commended the students, calling them “group of people who make things happen.”

This year, Josiah Sinclair, the executive vice president of student senate, has worked to expand student involvement on governance committees and to make that involvement more effective.

Student senate has placed a higher goal on governance, initiating training sessions as well as banquets to connect committee members. “Our goal has been to build a sense of community, a culture of representation at Calvin College,” Sinclair said.

“It’s not always easy being 20 years junior to the next youngest member of the committee,” Sinclair said, but he emphasized the unique position of students. “Everyone else has been appointed,” he said. “You volunteered.”

Previously, student senators were the only students who served on governance committees, but this year, any interested student could apply with a resume and cover letter. A new senate cabinet position, vice president of representation, facilitated and encouraged student involvement.

“Rather than appointing already fully committed senators to serve on committees that likely didn’t have anything to do with their interests, senate began the far more challenging and rewarding task of seeking out students to match the committees,” Sinclair said.

“Whether your passion is gender equity, environmental sustainability, improving chapel, speaking into the vision of the college or rewriting Calvin’s core, there is a committee for everyone,” Sinclair said.

Calvin has about 30 governance committees, running everything from off-campus programs to scholarships and financial aid. Though the committees are made up of Calvin faculty and staff, most also have a spot for a student representative. Depending on the committee, the student may be a speaking member or an equal voting member.

Newly-elected Vice President of Representation Connor Schmidt wanted to affirm that students “do have a say” in policy at Calvin.

Students serve on nearly every committee, and are involved on almost every level of planning at Calvin. They participate in committees like the crucial planning and priorities committee, which evaluates which programs most effectively complete Calvin’s vision and will make tough decisions about which programs to keep and which to cut.

There are even “instances of students at Calvin writing Calvin College policy,” Sinclair said.

Senior David Witwer, who served the year on the educational policy committee, says whether it’s a communications professor being more able to speak to a communications proposal, or an English professor who understands the English department, “everyone has a certain specialty.” As a student, he said his input is considered very valuable as he “brings student culture and student opinion” to the debate.

Witwer was part of the discussion that formally defined a credit hour, which could have implications for how courses are evaluated. The proposal he worked on will be brought to faculty senate on Monday night.

Schmidt wants to continue senate’s commitment to governance next year.  “I want to focus on informing students on what’s going on,” he said. “Governance representation is strong, but not many students know about it.”

He will likely have help from newly-elected Student Body President David Kuenzi and his running mate Alicia Smit, who have both served on governance committees. The team ran with governance as a major part of their platform.

“We want people to be excited about governance appointments,” Kuenzi said. “Right here is where the voice of Calvin College goes on.”

Graduating seniors who have served on governance committees were also awarded special graduation tassels in recognition of their service.

Senior midfielder Nick Holtrop was an integral part of the men’s soccer team. He was named the MIAA Most Valuable Player. He was named to the D3soccer.com third team All-American and to the second team of the National Soccer Coaches Association of America. He had four goals and seven assists last season. He helped lead the Knights to their sixth straight trip to the NCAA tournament after Calvin earned their sixth straight MIAA title.

Dan Kerr (M. Cross Country)

Senior Dan Kerr was crucial to the Knights’ success out on the course. He was named All-MIAA first team for four straight years. He was also named MIAA Runner of the Year for the second consecutive year. He was runner-up at the regional meet and finished 41st at the national meet after suffering a fall early on in the race. He was named MIAA Runner of the Week three times last fall.

Ben Kuiper (M. Golf)

Senior Ben Kuiper helped lead the golf team to a national title berth for the second time in the team’s history. He was named to the MIAA First Team for the second time in his career. He finished the spring being tied for third individually in the MIAA’s three-round national qualifier. He was the medalist in the MIAA Jamboree at Olivet where he shot a 71, his best score of the fall.

Aaron Meckes (M. Track and Field)

Senior thrower Aaron Meckes has been named MIAA field athlete of the week twice this spring and for the fifth time in his career. He won the MIAA Jamboree shot put event with a throw of 49-6 1/4. His best throw of the indoor season came at the Trine Invitational, where he threw a 52-1 1/4.

Megan Rietema (Volleyball)

Junior setter Megan Rietema played a key role in bringing the Knights to the national title game. She was named first team All-American for the second straight year. She was also named All-MIAA first team for the third straight year. She led the Knights with 10.43 assists per set, bringing the Knights to third in the nation with 12.74 per set. She had a .325 attack percentage and averaged approximately one block per set.

Senior swimmer Elizabeth Counsell capped off her final season by being named All-American in three different events and Honorable Mention All-American in a fourth. Her first All-American title came in the 200-meter medley relay where her team placed eighth. Next, she finished second in the 100-meter breaststroke, taking three seconds off her previous record time over the course of the day. She placed in fifth in the 200-meter breaststroke to complete her senior season. Her honorable mention came in the 400-meter medley relay, which finished 10th.

Lizzie Kamp (Volleyball)

Senior outside hitter Lizzie Kamp finished her career being named Capital One Academic All-American of the Year. She was also named AVCA Division III National Player of the Year. She helped lead the Knights to the national title game for the second time in three years. She finished the season ranked eighth in kills per set with 4.33. She was named MIAA MVP and All-MIAA first team for the third time in her career. She hit 4.78 kills per set in the MIAA to lead the league.

Nicole Michmerhuizen (Cross Country and Track)

Junior distance runner Nicole Michmerhuizen started off her year being named MIAA Most Valuable Runner in cross country. She won both MIAA cross country meets. In indoor track, she was national runner-up in the 5k, leading for most of the race before being passed in the last meters. In outdoor track, she recently smashed Calvin’s 10k record by 1:30. She currently has the fastest time in D-III for the 10k. She won the MIAA’s 10k and 5k events and looks to repeat those this weekend at the MIAA field day.

Tom Snikkers (M. Basketball)

Senior forward Tom Snikkers quickly moved up the leaderboard on points in a career. He finished with 1,464 points and eighth place on the points in a career. He was named to the MIAA First Team for the third straight year. He was also named honorable mention All-American by D-III News and Great Lakes Region First Team. He led the team in defensive rebounds with 129 and also led the team with 403 points on the season.

Carissa Verkaik (W. Basketball)

Senior center Carissa Verkaik destroyed Calvin’s record books. She finished her career with 2,236 points, 1,071 rebounds and 440 blocks, all Calvin records. She raised the bar in points in the MIAA with 1,051. She was named MIAA MVP a record four times. She was named D-III News Player of the Year for the second straight year. She was the recipient of the Josten’s Trophy, becoming the second Calvin player to be given this honor. She was named Capital One Academic All-American of the Year. She started every game of her four seasons and was one of four women to play in 100 games in a career.

The men had won the fall’s MIAA tournament, giving them the honor of hosting two rounds of the national qualifier. The men scored a 304 in the first round at Hope’s Wuskowhan Players Club, a seven-stroke advantage over Hope, nine strokes over Adrian and 14 over Trine.

Calvin’s original days of hosting were postponed to later days due to the copious amounts of rain. On Calvin’s first day of hosting, Trine made up six points of their deficit. They scored a 323, Calvin a 329, Adrian 332 and Hope 336.

Calvin’s top finisher was sophomore James Van Noord, who recorded an 80 for second place. He was behind Nolan Eli of Trine who scored a 78. Senior Dave Sarkipato scored an 82 for fifth place and junior Jake Hoogstrate recorded an 83 for ninth place. Senior Ben Kuiper and junior Mark Allen both shot 84 to be tied for 13th.

After two rounds, Calvin maintained the lead with 633, followed by Trine with 641, Adrian with 645, and Hope with 647.

The next day, Calvin hosted again at Watermark Country Club. Sarkipato was the medalist for the day with 76 strokes. Kuiper and Van Noord tied for fifth with 79 points. Allen recorded an 89 for 18th place and Hoogstrate a 91 for 19th.

Calvin scored a 323 on the day. Adrian won with 316, Hope came in second with 321, then Calvin then Trine with 326. Calvin won the three round tournament with a score of 956, Adrian came in second with 961, followed by Trine with 965 and Hope came in last with 968.

With this win, Calvin qualifies for the national tournament in Destin, Florida from May 17-21. This comes on the heels of the Knights winning their second conference title in the team’s history and in three years. Calvin also qualified for the national title tournament that year.

Sarkipato took first individually for the spring by seven strokes. VanNoord and Kuiper tied for third individually out of a field of twenty.

“For starters, golf is extremely difficult because we started in early August and won the league in early October. Then we waited all the way until late April to play the four team qualifier for nationals. It was a long wait,” commented Sarkipato.

“Saying that, I am extremely proud of how we have handled the cold and wet conditions all spring. It is physically and mentally draining to play a pressure-filled five-hour round on consecutive days, but our team showed resiliency as we have all year.”

“As for nationals, I am overwhelmed with the task of rescheduling my exams!” Sarkipato quipped. “Golf-wise, I think Ben and I will be able to relay some helpful information to the younger players as this is our second trip to the NCAAs.”

“Lastly, it is humbling to be the first to do something. Calvin went 70 or 80 years without a league championship and a trip to nationals. Now being apart of the first two, I want to start to put Calvin on the map and build a tradition of excellence in the classroom and on the course.”

Host team Olivet took first place on Saturday and in the overall spring standings and will represent the MIAA in the NCAA D-III Tournament next month. Calvin’s top individual finisher on Saturday was junior Carlia Canto with an 81 for fourth place.

She was followed on the Calvin squad by senior Elise Doezema with an 86 while freshman Sarah Arendsen had a 92 and freshman Casey Harkema and senior Rachel Whitaker rounds of 100. Olivet had a team score of 322 on Saturday.

“Unfortunately, our team struggled to match our team or individual averages,” explains senior Rachel Whitaker. “Day one saw most of the team in the 90s with Carlia Canto being the only one in the 80s. Day two we were able to bring our score down a bit with both Carlia and Elise shooting in the 80s. Carlia truly had a stellar round shooting an 81. Elise was able to shave 10 strokes to a solid career-ending score of 86.”

“While we came in fourth place for the season, the team has a solid lineup moving into next year,” says Whitaker. “Carlia Canto is a solid golfer and leader who can help the team of young talent reach the goal of making it to nationals. Lots of practice this summer should help the team. There are a few new recruits coming in next year who should help with any consistency problems. Honestly, we have a great group of girls who are amazing golfers and who deserve to play at nationals. I look forward to coming and watching them play and win next year.”

The meet kicked off on Thursday night with the slower heats of the 5,000 meters. As the light faded and the wind died down, the Knights had great run after great run. Outstanding performances from sophomores Kate Ardinger and Paige McGahan and senior Hannah Kregal were highlights on the woman’s side. For the men, freshman John Gingrich and sophomore Josh Ferguson both ran big personal records.

Friday night the meet resumed for the fast heats of the 5,000 and 10,000 meter runs as well as the steeplechase. Junior Nicole Michmerhuizen ran 34:09 for the 10k, breaking the school record by 95 seconds, setting the top time in the nation for Division III women, and placing her seventh all-time in D-III history.

Michmerhuizen started off strong and never looked back as her coaches, teammates and even opposing athletes watched in amazement. After the race she said, “I wasn’t expecting this at all. I am just really happy about what happened tonight at the meet. I had a lot of support from my teammates and I am glad things worked out like they did!”

Other standout performances came from junior Sam Kerk in the 5,000 meters. He steadily moved through the field on his way to a 14:25, which will likely send him to the national meet in late May. In the men’s 10,000 meters, seniors Dan Kerr and Matt VanderRoest also ran times that will send them to the national meet in 29:39 and 29:43. The times were number 2 and 3 in Calvin’s history.

Steeplechaser Alyssa Penning took advantage of the rare spring-like conditions to run a time that places her among the top steeplechasers in D-III for the year, and second all-time in Calvin history. Sophomore Steven Haagsma also ran an excellent race in the men’s steeplechase finishing in 9:16 and placing him in the top 20 in the nation.

Coach Al Hoekstra was exuberant about the performances and said: “In 27 years, that is the craziest night of Calvin distance running I have ever been involved with. It was an absolutely magical night of fantasticness.”

On Saturday, sprinters, jumpers and hurdlers ran at the Ernie Moussa Classic at Houseman Field. The Knights had several outstanding performances on the storied track in downtown Grand Rapids.

Leading the men was junior Calvin Kuyers who won the 400-meter hurdles with a season-best time of 54.47 (ranking him 24th nationally) while teammate freshman Joel Ooms took second in 57.21.

Senior Aaron Meckes had a season-best toss of 158-9, taking third in the discus and also winning the shot put with a throw of 51-0 1/4. Sophomore Erik Holstege took second in the 110 high hurdles in 15.69 and junior Andrew Dykstra also won the javelin with a toss of 168-8.

For the women, junior Hilary Banning won the triple jump with a leap of 35-7 3/4 and long jump with a 17-0 mark. Senior Carissa Verkaik won the high jump, making 5-5 good enough for the 20th best mark in the nation currently. Freshman Natalie Kmet had a season-best throw of 37-2 1/2 that was good for second place.

Calvin will be competing at Hope on Thursday and Friday next week in the MIAA Conference Championship.

The first doubles team of junior Bethany Zoerhof and sophomore Megan Visser defeated their opponents, as did third doubles team Ali Roode and Samantha Reitsma, both sophomores. Second doubles team of seniors Elise Doezema and Jordan Ipema narrowly lost to Trine 8-6.

Ipema, Roode, Reitsma and Doezema all won their singles competition to bring the Knights to win 6-3.

On Wednesday, the team played St. Mary’s. Third doubles team of Reitsma and Roode won Calvin’s only doubles victory of the day. Visser, Roode, Zoerhof and Doezema all won their singles matches giving the Knights a 5-4 victory over the Belles.

The Knights are currently fifth in the MIAA standings. They play again on Friday at the MIAA tournament.