Hillsdale, Michigan– October 2024– Hillsdale College held the dedication for its Ailes Action Shooting Range on Monday, Sept. 30. The construction was made possible through a leadership gift by Elizabeth Ailes. The range features five 30-yard pistol bays, a 40-yard pistol bay, and a 100-yard rifle bay.
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“The shooting sports stand for the independence of the human being, for the responsibility of the human being,” said Hillsdale College President Larry P. Arnn. “Elizabeth Ailes and others have helped us pursue this activity as an act of love. We are grateful to them, and we are very proud of our shooting sports teams.”
The Ailes Action Shooting Range is home to the national championship-winning Hillsdale College Action Shooting Team. In addition to hosting the Action Shooting Team’s practices and competitions, the Ailes Action Shooting Range is used for youth and community education, the College’s Liberty Shooting Camps, and action shooting leagues.
Hillsdale College, in collaboration with Springfield Armory, hosted the inaugural United States Practical Shooting Association Collegiate Championship at the range from Sept. 28-29, and members of the Action Shooting Team placed in the top three in five of the six divisions.
For photos of the dedication, click here. For photos of the Hillsdale College Action Shooting Team, click here. For photos from the recent Collegiate Championship held at the Ailes Range, click here.
About the John Anthony Halter Shooting Sports Education Center
The Halter Center is a state-of-the-art shooting facility located five miles from the Hillsdale College campus. Opened in 2008, the Center aims to introduce individuals to shooting sports and encourage interest across all levels of experience. The Halter Center also serves an educational purpose by promoting the principles of the Constitution and teaching beginner and experienced shooters in various classes. Home to Hillsdale College’s collegiate shooting teams and the USA national team, the Halter Center is also a resource for the public through camps, conferences, and other programming. For more information, visit shootingsports.hillsdale.edu.
Hillsdale College has been the home of the USA Shooting National Team since 2019 and has hosted USA Shooting Junior Olympic trap and skeet development camps and championships. The Center boasts 113 range acres, four international skeet fields, a 23-station sporting clays course, five international bunkers, a small arms range, an action shooting range, an enclosed and climate-controlled five-stand range, an international archery range, eight American trap fields, an AcuSport lodge and grill, and four cottages to accommodate overnight lodging. A 62,000-square-foot indoor/outdoor rifle and pistol building will be completed in May 2025.
About Hillsdale College
Hillsdale College is an independent, nonsectarian, Christian liberal arts college located in southern Michigan. Founded in 1844, the College has built a national reputation through its classical liberal arts core curriculum and its principled refusal to accept federal or state taxpayer subsidies, even indirectly in the form of student grants or loans. It also conducts an outreach effort promoting civil and religious liberty, including a free monthly speech digest, Imprimis, with a circulation of more than 6.6 million. For more information, visit hillsdale.edu.
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