News
February 20, 2025
Lapp Klassen wins oratorical contest
Naomi Lapp Klassen won the annual C. Henry Smith Peace Oratorical Contest on Tuesday night, with her speech entitled “Confronting Mass Incarceration: A Story of Agency and Sight.” The contest was judged by Breanna Nickel, an assistant professor of bible and religion; Richard Aguirre, clerk treasurer for the city of Goshen; and Mark Schloneger, a pastor at Berkey Avenue Mennonite Fellowship. The judges deliberated for 34 minutes, before awarding Lapp Klassen, a senior history and criminal and restorative justice double major, the $500 first place prize. Peace Muhagachi, a senior sociology major, was awarded second place and a $350 prize...
February 20, 2025
Cupid’s Chokehold
On Friday, Feb. 14, students gathered in Newcomer 19 for a workshop titled “Cupid’s Chokehold: The Realities of Sexual Asphyxiation.” Hosted by Leah Kurz, a member of the Family Justice Center of St. Joseph County, the meeting aimed to educate students on the risks associated with the topic. Emily Hahn, program director of interpersonal violence prevention, education and advocacy, was the event organizer. She spoke about the importance of bringing such discussions to the college’s environment. “It’s so important for the general safety standpoint, there’s so much not known about this topic and it’s important that our students are informed...
February 20, 2025
Voices on Paper: students unite
A variety of students gathered in the visual arts building on Wednesday to make posters in support of the protest that will be held in downtown Goshen this Saturday. The event was organized by students from the student task force — the organization’s current name that the leaders hope will soon become more refined, as they plan to submit an application to become an official club soon. The event opened with a brief presentation from the planners, explaining the reason for gathering, and providing ideas for possible poster slogans — such as “we are human,” “unidos jamás seremos vencidos” or...
February 20, 2025
Romero elevator down multiple times
The elevator in the Octavio Romero Apartments, the primary residential building for upperclassmen on campus, has seen an increase of issues in the last few months. In addition, Romero has seen an increase of fire alarms recently, leading to questions about the alarm system, and making students reluctant to leave the building when the alarm goes off. Brian Mast, director of facilities, said that troubles with the Romero elevator began right before winter break. Mast said that within the past few months, there have been seven or eight reports of the elevator breaking down, with half of the outages being...
February 13, 2025
Student Senate Summary 02/13
Student Senate met on Monday in their new meeting place, the Mark Community Room in Westlawn, across from the entrance to the dining hall. The meeting began with Aaliah Higareda, president of the art club, who came with a proposal for a club fair in the second semester. Higareda noted that the only club fair of the year happens during orientation week. “Returning students don’t get the opportunity to look at the new clubs,” Higareda said. “And also new clubs form all the time.” The proposal was received positively by the senate, and ideas were tossed around for a club...
February 13, 2025
SST leaders announced for spring ‘26
Leaders for the Ecuador and Indonesia Study Service Terms in spring 2026 were announced recently by the Global Engagement Office. Global citizenship is one of GC’s core values, and one of the ways it is fulfilled is through semester-long SSTs which are led by a faculty director and a resident director. For the Indonesia SST, Luke Beck Kreider will act as faculty director, and his spouse, Janie Beck Kreider, will act as resident director. In Ecuador, Duane Stoltzfus will act as faculty director, and his spouse, Karen Stoltzfus, will act as resident director. Jerrell Ross Richer, professor of economics and...
February 13, 2025
Housing application process changes
On the evening of Monday, Feb. 10, students who will return next year gathered in the Church-Chapel fellowship hall for a housing meeting led by the Residence Life team. The purpose of the meeting was to inform students of changes being made to the housing application process for the upcoming year. Several significant changes were introduced, beginning with the housing placement fee required from students upon application, which is now a $20 non-refundable deposit. This payment will be the same across all housing options: Intentional Living Communities, Octavio Romero Student Apartments, Kratz and Yoder Residence Halls and now the first...
February 13, 2025
GC faces reality of new presidential administration
In light of President Donald Trump’s recent executive orders and policies on immigration, Goshen College has begun establishing protocols for the possibility of Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers appearing on campus. Amidst feelings of fear and anxiety from students who may be affected by these changes to national policy, GC leaders are doing their best to provide reassurance. ICE is a branch of law enforcement that focuses on “criminal investigations and enforcing immigration laws,” according to the organization’s mission statement. Peter Claassen, a supervising attorney at the Goshen branch of the National Immigrant Justice Center, described the specific section of...
February 6, 2025
Student Senate Summary 02/06
The Student Senate has met twice since the most recent issue of The Record, meeting on Jan. 23 and 27. A motion was passed to reduce the frequency of senate meetings to biweekly. Student Senate President Javier Reyes cited a lack of agenda items and a desire to “lower [the Senate’s] stress and time commitment to being [at meetings] in person.” The motion passed 5-0. A concern was raised during the meeting on Jan. 23 about the state of some of the washers and dryers in laundry rooms across campus. The concern had come through the grapevine and was not...
February 6, 2025
Carson Kreitzer brings art and activism to GC
Carson Kreitzer, an award-winning playwright, hosted Goshen College’s Umble Master Class in Speech and Theater on Tuesday evening, drawing a crowd of students, staff and community members alike. Kreitzer talked about the craft of playwriting and the complexities of historical storytelling. Kreitzer earned a bachelor’s in theater and literature from Yale University and a master of fine arts from the Michener Center for Writers at the University of Texas at Austin. A playwright for over 20 years, her plays have garnered recognition and been produced internationally. One of Kreitzer’s newest works, “Lempicka,” is a musical she co-wrote and lyricized alongside...
February 6, 2025
‘A remarkable Indiana woman’
Anita Stalter, a retired education professor and academic dean, unexpectedly died on Dec. 10, 2024. She was age 77. Stalter began at Goshen College in 1987 in the education department. First, teaching part time, and later becoming a full-time professor in 1989. She later served as the chair of the education department, and eventually became the interim dean of students. In 2001, Stalter became the first woman in the history of GC to be academic dean. She continued to serve as academic dean for 14 years until her retirement in 2015. A celebration of life service was held at the...
January 27, 2025
Dryer catches fire in KMY
Kratz and Yoder Residence Halls were evacuated on Sunday afternoon at 4:30 p.m. after a dryer in the Connector laundry room caught fire, triggering the alarms in the building. The cause of the fire is unknown. The fire was not caused by an attempt to dry an electric blanket, a rumor that spread around campus. The fire was contained to one unit – all the clothes in the surrounding units were unaffected, other than a smokey smell. The sprinkler system kicked in and had put the fire out by the time emergency services responded, minutes after the alarm went off....
January 23, 2025
GC returns to three-day orientation
Starting next fall, Goshen College will return to a three day orientation for first-year students, paring down the full week model that started in the fall of 2021. An email went out to GC employees on Tuesday afternoon that attributes this decision to their continued effort to “decrease costs while maintaining high quality.” The transition to a full week came in response to perceived loss of learning by high school students due to the COVID-19 pandemic. While GC has seen an increase in retention from first-year students during this period, Academic Dean Ann Vendrely told The Record that the rising...
January 23, 2025
Goshen Anabaptists celebrate 500 years
On Tuesday evening, College Mennonite Church hosted “Looking Back, Living Forward: A Worship Service Celebrating 500 Years of Anabaptist Faith and the launch of the Anabaptist Community Bible.” Hundreds of Anabaptists from the Goshen area and beyond gathered to celebrate the 500th anniversary of the first adult baptisms in Zurich, Switzerland. The service included a series of songs from Goshen College’s choirs, congregational hymns, reflections from members of the Anabaptist Community Bible publication team, and a homily from John Roth, the project director of Anabaptism at 500. They even had a life-sized cardboard cutout of Menno Simons. “500 years ago...
January 23, 2025
Campus leaders celebrate MLK Day
On Monday, Jan. 20, Goshen College hosted a student-led convocation in the Church-Chapel to honor the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. The event was followed by a short march to the Recreation-Fitness Center, where participants engaged in activities such as interactive stations and raffles while enjoying snacks and drinks. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was a civil rights leader who fought for racial equality and justice through nonviolent activism in the United States. On the campus of GC, his achievements and history are annually celebrated. This year, students in the Black Student Union, Advocates (LGBTQIA+ advocacy),...