Hillsdale Homestead
Why must we exercise the body as well as the mind?
It is for this reason, too, that the College encourages physical activity among its students. Long experience and research confirm that strenuous activity is both good in itself and in its ability to sharpen the intellect and build character. While many today think that one’s mind is one’s identity, we know by faith and by reason that the mind is no “ghost in a machine.” Body, mind, and soul are all integrated together and made to be a unity, a person. Together, they constitute who we are. Because what touches one—body, mind, or soul—normally influences the others, Hillsdale College seeks to cultivate the excellence of each. With regard to the body, it provides students the opportunity to create a structured, individually designed system of physical activity, and by so doing contributes to the improvement of mind and heart so central to the Mission of the College.
Character
We believe that the work of cultivating the soil and tending animals builds responsibility, patience, confidence, and humility.
Agricultural Skills
Working on the homestead provides students with a unique opportunity to learn hands-on practical skills that will help them later in life as home and property owners.