News to Use:

• Freshman enrollment for the Fall semester in 2019 is trending upward after setting a new record number of undergraduate applications for students. More than 27,000 high school seniors have applied for enrollment at Ball State this Fall, surpassing a record established in 2016 and 2017 of more than 24,000 applications, and confirmations are strong. Our 2017 and 2018 freshman classes were the most academically qualified and diverse. This year’s potential freshman class continues the tradition of having strong academic profiles. The diversity of the incoming class has increased from last year as well. This trend is evidence of how our test-optional policy for incoming students removes an unwarranted barrier for some bright, ambitious students.
• On May 3, our Board of Trustees approved the design and construction of a $15 million indoor practice facility for athletics. We anticipate the 84,000-square-foot facility will open in Summer 2021 southeast of the Fisher Football Training Complex. We will now be able to provide our student-athletes with an indoor facility to enable them to practice year-round. It will meet the needs of football, baseball, softball, and soccer programs during inclement weather and help our Cardinals be more competitive. This facility is only possible with the private gifts from our alumni and friends, and I am grateful to the people who made more than $13.7 million in commitments towards our goal.
• Our University will hold the Second Annual Community Campus Experience. Members of the Muncie community are invited to Heekin Park on Saturday, May 18, 2019, from 1-4 p.m. to get to know Ball State and the resources available to them. Admission is free. Activities include games, hearing tests, the Instrument Petting Zoo, and learning about Open Door Health Services. In case of inclement weather, the event will be at the Boys & Girls Club at 1710 South Madison Street. I am grateful to our community partners: the City of Muncie, Boys & Girls Clubs of Muncie, Indiana Blood Center, Indiana National Guard, Open Door Health Services, and YMCA of Muncie. The Community Campus Experience is an example of how we are all better together.
• As part of our University’s historic partnership with Muncie Community Schools (“MCS”), the public is invited to a community forum, Dreams for Our Schools, at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, May 21, 2019, at Minnetrista. Child care and snacks will be provided. The event will start with an update about our local schools. Then participants will engage in discussions about the future. The forum kicks off a series of focused conversations facilitated by the United Way of Delaware and Henry Counties. These conversations will inform the work of the Joint MCS/Ball State Academic Innovation Council, which is developing a long-term academic innovation and financial viability plan.
• Jake Logan will serve as the new president of the Ball State University Foundation and vice president for University Advancement, effective June 3, 2019. Jake is currently the assistant vice chancellor at the University of Missouri. He has been part of comprehensive capital campaigns exceeding $1 billion at three large, public institutions—the University of Florida, the University of Oregon, and the University of Missouri. His experience will be instrumental to building on our momentum of raising philanthropic support, including the remarkable success of our first ever One Ball State Day.
• Our University continues to attract world-class talent to our faculty. This Fall, Michael Rafter, an Emmy Award winning Broadway musical director, will join Ball State full time as an associate professor of musical theatre. Michael has served our University for several years as a guest artist and part-time instructor with the Department of Theatre and Dance. He arranged the anthem “We Fly” and enlisted three musical theatre students to assist with the lyrics.
• The Ball State Jazz Ensemble was invited to perform at Dizzy’s Club in New York City in March 2020 and be a part of the 2019-20 season of Jazz at Lincoln Center. Our Jazz Ensemble will perform two sets on March 23. This invitation is an example of the excellent education our students receive and how Ball State empowers students, faculty, and staff to “Fly”—and they love it.
• Our Centennial Celebration includes spotlighting our colleges’ proud past and bright future throughout the 2018-19 academic year. This month, we feature the College of Architecture and Planning (CAP). I invite you to watch a video of CAP Dean Dave Ferguson discuss how Ball State prepares tomorrow’s problem-solvers. I invite you to watch short videos of all the deans discussing their respective colleges on our University’s official YouTube channel.
• Our yearlong Centennial Celebration has presented opportunities to demonstrate how our University has grown beyond our roots as a teachers college into a world-class University with highly-respected programs in education, architecture, business, communications, fine arts, sciences and humanities, and the health professions. The closing event for our celebration will be Friday, June 14. We will close the University at 1 p.m. and invite the campus community to bring their families for an afternoon of food, fun, and games. Additional details are forthcoming.
• Our University reached the Top Tier—the top 3 percent—of U.S. colleges in identifying students with a natural aptitude to excel in cybersecurity in Cyber FastTrack. Launched by SANS Institute and 25 governors, including Governor Holcomb, the national initiative aims to close the elite cyber skills gap with China and Russia. On May 1, Ball State was ranked No. 2 in Indiana and No. 43 in the Nation, out of 5,200 U.S. colleges.