Dear Colleagues:

     I am happy to share the progress in our plan to revitalize The Village, the commercial district located immediately adjacent to Ball State University’s beautiful campus.

     At its meeting on March 14, the Indiana Commission for Higher Education (ICHE) approved the following key components of the revitalization plan:

     We will now request approval from the State Budget Committee. Then, these contracts will go before Governor Eric Holcomb—the last step in the state approval process. If we secure all of the necessary approvals by the end of June 2024, construction of the Performing Arts Center, the new hotel, and the Center of Innovation will begin this Fall.

     I am grateful for the support we have received for this collaborative, comprehensive plan to revitalize The Village, restoring it to the lively destination it once was—with new options for entertainment, living, and dining. A revived Village will have sustained benefits on Ball State’s campus, the greater Muncie community, and our region. Learn more about the plan in this Ball State press release.

     Below are a few more stories that I hope you will enjoy and then share. Let your friends and colleagues know how “We Fly” at Ball State.

Sincerely,

Geoffrey S. Mearns
President
Ball State University

    Ball State University will play a significant role in NASA’s livestream of the once-in-lifetime total solar eclipse on April 8. Dayna Thompson, director of the University’s Charles W. Brown Planetarium, and Dr. John Millis, chair of the Department of Physics and Astronomy and professor of physics, will operate the telescopes at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway during the eclipse. The view from this telescope will be one of three telescopic views shared with the public via livestream by NASA. Read more in this Ball State press release.

     Ball State track and field student-athlete Jenelle Rogers earned a silver medal in the pentathlon at the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships March 8 in Boston. Ms. Rogers scored a program-record 4,430 points en route to a second-place finish nationally. She became the highest finisher at the annual indoor competition in program history and is one of four Ball State Cardinals ever to earn NCAA Indoor All-American honors, joining Charity Griffith (2022, 2023), Patricia Soman (2003), and LaTasha Jenkins (1998, 1999). Read more in this Ball State Athletics press release.

     Dr. Ashley Kalinski, assistant professor of biology at Ball State, was awarded a $75,000 grant from the Merkin Peripheral Neuropathy and Nerve Regeneration Center at Johns Hopkins University to study nerve regeneration in mice. Dr. Kalinski and her team aim to understand the mechanisms behind nerve regeneration in the peripheral nervous system so that the research can be applied to treating spinal cord injuries in the future. The research team, led by Dr. Kalinski and comprised of Ball State students, will be interacting and collaborating with world-renowned neuroscientists to generate three new transgenic mouse lines. Read more in this Ball State press release.

     This year’s One Ball State Day (OBSD)—Ball State’s award-winning annual 24-hour online fundraising event—will take place April 3. Gifts can be made between midnight and 11:59 p.m. ET that day at oneballstate.bsu.edu.

     Alumni, students, faculty, staff, and supporters of Ball State are welcome to make gifts in support of a specific school, college, department, or area of choice. Gifts made on this day, which are tax-deductible, could also earn matching donation funds, and also contribute to the University’s overall fundraising efforts for the Our Call to Beneficence capital campaign. Those who give are asked to share their OBSD gifting experiences. One way is to post about it on social media with #OneBallState and encourage friends to give as well.

     While Ball State celebrates all its donors year-round, OBSD is a special day for giving and highlighting the University’s impact on people and communities throughout the world.

     Learn more about One Ball State Day 2024 and how to give on the event website.

     On Feb. 12, the Ball State University Foundation announced the recipients of the University’s third-annual “Top 100 Student Awards.” This awards program recognizes 100 outstanding junior and senior undergraduates each year who represent the spirit of Beneficence, Ball State’s institutional statue and icon that symbolizes the generosity of the five Ball brothers whose land donation to the State of Indiana allowed the University to flourish. The Foundation will recognize all Top 100 Student Award recipients during One Ball State Day on April 3. The complete list of Ball State’s 2024 Top 100 Students can be found on the Foundation’s website. Read more in this Ball State press release.

     The renowned Thalea String Quartet will perform at Ball State’s Sursa Performance Hall on April 9 as part of the 2023-2024 Arts Alive series, which the University’s College of Fine Arts announced earlier this month. The performance, which is free and open to the public, is set to begin at 7:30 p.m. The Thalea String Quartet has gained recognition for its innovative approach to education and community engagement, with a specific focus on celebrating diverse musical traditions from around the world. Having graced prestigious venues across North America, Europe, and China, the Quartet has left an indelible mark on the chamber music scene, believing that music serves as a powerful tool to build community and human connection. Read more about the April 9 performance in this Ball State press release.

I'm a new paragraph block.

Follow us on social media to stay up to date with current campaigns, news and events