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A family affair: Fifty sets of siblings on
campus
By Katie Truesdell
Collegian Reporter
Amid the
excitement of going away to college, there is a fear and an
apprehension present in nearly every student. For many Hillsdale
students, this fear was combated with the comfort of having
family on campus.
According to Dean of Women CarolAnn
Barker, there are currently 50 sets of siblings on campus, two
of them being a set of three.
Barker said that the number of
siblings on campus is high, but she is uncertain if it is an
all-time high because the college has always been a school of
strong family loyalty.
"I think legacy has a lot
to do with Hillsdale," Barker said.
She also said that families who
share the same educational, philosophical and religious beliefs
will be attracted to a school holding those same values.
"You get these great stories
that are handed down and you want to be a part of that,"
said Barker, herself a Hillsdale College graduate who attended
along with her two sisters.
Giles Jago, a sophomore from Georgia,
is a student with a long line of family at the college preceding
her, including her parents, two uncles and three aunts. Jago
also has three cousins on campus with her now: Brannon Jordan,
and Regina and Julia Burgess. Though she has no siblings on
campus this year, Jago is hoping her younger sister, Margaret,
will attend the college next year.
"You can't do anything too
stupid or get in trouble because then the rest of the family
hears about it really fast," Jago said.
"My family did have a lot
of influence on me," she said. "I grew up hearing
about how wonderful Hillsdale was, especially since my family
was so involved then and continues to be now."
Jago said that, although the choice
to attend the college was hers, she also took into consideration
that her parents told her that "Hillsdale is basically
where the check is going."
Barker said that in the 1960s,
there was monetary incentive from the college to attract other
family members of students. The college offered a $100 scholarship
to every sibling who attended. Though the scholarship is no
longer effective, some families, such as Jago's, create their
own incentive to carry the torch at the college.
The Burgesses have lived all over
the country, and now Hillsdale will be the place they have lived
the longest-together. Their father is in the army, so the girls
have gone through numerous living arrangements and station changes
with the family-ten assignments and 13 houses for Julia, a freshman,
and 12 assignments and 15 houses for Regina, a sophomore.
"It's just nice to have her
here. My sisters are my best friends-I can talk to her when
I'm worried about Dad, when I'm having a bad day, or just about
ordinary family stuff that no one else would understand,"
Regina said of having Julia on campus.
"When I fall moaning into
Regina's room, she says 'Get up, let's look at this-we can fix
it,'" Julia said.
People on campus have trouble
telling the Burgess sisters apart. Professors have told Julia
that she is not a freshman, insisting that they had her in class
the previous year. Regina said that, if they're in a hurry,
she and Julia just pretend to be the other sister because it's
easier than explaining. Regina and Julia have a younger sister,
Mary, 16, who is planning to attend Hillsdale also. Their older
brother, Lee, 25, graduated from Samford University and their
younger brother, John, 10, plans to "either play football
for Auburn or take over the world."
Sara, Kate and Carly Kosik of
Colorado are the sisters that make up one of the sets of three
siblings on campus. They were all born within two and a half
years and shared a room at home, all of which resulted in a
close relationship.
"I love having my sisters
on campus," Sara, a senior, said. "They're my best
friends and it's such a joy to see the growth and maturity that
develops in college."
Though the three Kosiks are close,
they are involved in different activities on campus. Sara is
a member of Sigma Alpha Iota and a student ambassador, Kate
is a new pledge of Pi Beta Phi sorority and a resident adviser
in Olds Residence, and Carly loves to dance and play the piano.
Sara and Kate even played IM football against each other.
"We pretty much just do our
own thing, although occasionally we'll walk to church together
or volunteer at something together, like Paint the Town,"
sophomore Kate said. "If I'm ever craving an Oakley I can
usually convince one of the two to join me."
Carly, a freshman, also visits
Sara often for late-night food and to chat with her sister.
Kristin Karl, a sophomore from
Wisconsin, said that her older sister Bridget, a senior, had
an impact on her attending the college, though it wasn't the
biggest factor in her decision.
"Many of my high school friends
thought it slightly childish to follow in the footsteps of an
older sibling, but I now have the opportunity to spend two years
of our young lives together-something that they are missing
out on when it comes to their own siblings," Kristin said.
"While we don't always see
each other, it's wonderful to know that she is there if ever
there is a time that you really need that sisterly shoulder
to lean on-because no one can ever take that place in your heart."
Though there are 50 sets of siblings
on a campus of 1,229 students, siblings don't see each other
all the time or have to share the limelight. Barker credits
this to the general, typical personality of Hillsdale students:
independent-minded. Students, including siblings, get involved
in different activities and create their own niche on campus.
"It's amazing how, even on
a campus this small, I can go for days without seeing either
of them. We have to make a special point to visit with each
other," Sara said.
"We really have our own very
separate identities and lives on campus, but it's a great thing
to run across her and just have a chat to catch up on the sidewalk,
as well as just knowing that she's there for any problem that
I need to talk to her about," Kristin said.
"We're not clingy nut jobs,"
Regina said. "However, whenever
either of us receives food in the mail, we make it a point to
stop by and visit."
For the most part, siblings come
to the college of their own accord and for their own reasons-another
testament to the independent thinking of Hillsdale students.
Kate said that Sara's positive
view of the college helped, but in the end, she had to decide
for herself.
"I was on my own to form
an opinion about the school, especially after learning the hard
way that Sara's opinion usually does not match mine," Kate
said. "In high school, she told me physics was easier than
biology, so I took it-twice-and failed both times."
Despite having to share cars or
listen to too much advice, the general consensus is favorable:
It's nice to have siblings on campus.
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Tyler Horning/Collegian
Brandon and Jordan Irish are one of the
50 sets of siblings on campus. The Irish brothers live in the
same off-campus house.
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