Students will be able to go home and relax for three weeks, but for the Ball State University facilities staff, Winter Break does not change their duties.Jim Lowe, director of engineering and operations said this year staff will have Dec. 24 and 25, and Jan. 1 off. Other than that, they will be working normal schedules, he said.
Ball State University's "Ball State Bold: Investing in the Future" campaign to raise $200 million by 2011 has raised 92 percent of its goal.Ben Hancock, vice president for university advancement, said Ball State Bold has received $183,876,189 as of Monday.
Shuttle services are available for students to and from the Indianapolis International Airport at the beginning and end of Winter Break.These services are available Dec. 17, 18 and 19 and again Jan. 10.
Ball State university officials are leery to comment on how the funding cuts for Indiana state universities will potentially affect next year's tuition.Director of Communications Kevin Burke said the university should have a better understanding of how the funding cuts could affect tuition after the Higher Education Commission's meeting Friday at IUPUI.
Director of Public Safety Gene Burton said Ball State University Police are still searching for a suspect in a robbery that took place near the intersection of McKinley and Neely avenues.No injuries were reported, but a purse was stolen in the incident, which occurred shortly before 10 p.m. Monday just north of the Architecture Building.
Freshman Marcus Gallagher expects to have about $100,000 in student debt by the time he graduates from college, and that's something he says he's okay with.The music education major opted for a five-year plan instead of the standard four-year plan, knowing that each year would cost him $20,000 in loans.
Heart of the City, a district of shops and homes in downtown Muncie, is getting ready to celebrate the new year. This is the second year Heart of the City will sponsor a family friendly New Year's Eve celebration.The event will begin at 10:30 p.m. Dec. 31. A candlelit unity walk will depart from the Muncie court house square and move to the 400-area block on Walnut Street where a DJ, children's play area and other activities will be featured.
Officials across Indiana are waiting to see how the loss of funding to state universities will be distributed since Gov. Mitch Daniels announced the budget cuts Friday.Ray Montagno, associate dean of Research and Outreach at Ball State University, said in the 30 years he's been here, he has never had to deal with any potential loss that sounded this big.
He's sitting there quietly, keeping to himself. He goes to school and looks like any typical child. Nobody would know it, but he's living in poverty.According to the National Center for Children in Poverty, a division of Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health, more kids are living in poverty than ever before. In fact, the rate has risen 20 percent since 2000. In the Midwest, 38 percent of all children live in low-income families. That's 6.1 million kids.
The first snow has kept Indiana State Police busy this morning.As of 11:30 a.m., state police spokesperson Sgt. Rod Russell announced troopers at the Redkey District, which includes Delaware, Grant, Blackford, Jay and Randolph counties, investigated 22 slide-offs, eight property damage crashes and two minor personal injury crashes.
Ball State University crews spent the early Monday morning sweeping snow off sidewalks with power brooms and putting salt down on the roads as needed, Kevin Kenyon, associate vice president of Facilities, Planning and Management, said."It worked out pretty easily," he said. "I don't think there was anything unusual ... We just did what we normally do."
President Jo Ann Gora will host meetings with other university professors next week to discuss strengthening a dual degree program for Chinese students.This 1+2+1 program allows bilingual Chinese students to earn two bachelor degrees from universities in China and America. Students study in China the first year, in America the second and third, and in China again for their last year.
Junior Joe Clemons said he wants students to be exposed to the positive messages and role models of hip-hop culture. "There's another side of hip-hop that isn't really shown on television," he said. To show that positive side, Clemons, vice president of the Black Media Association, organized a screening of the documentary "The Hip Hop Project" for students at Ball State University.
Freshman Kayla Shoenfeld went tanning almost everyday for a year during high school and reported no problems except sensitive eyebrows.This type of excessive tanning among teenagers is what Bob Jones, Delaware County health department adminstrator, is trying to avoid.
The Ball State University Entrepreneurship Center is providing business students with something they can't find many other places: exposure to technology and advanced science.Next semester, business students in a consulting class will be partnering with the Department of Defense and the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Crane Division for the Military 2 Market program. They will develop commercial uses for military technology, Michael Goldsby, the Entrepreneurship Center's executive director, said.
Health Center Medical Director Kent Bullis believes 8,000 H1N1 vaccinations is plenty for Ball State University this winter season."As hard as we've tried to get students in for the vaccine, I'm surprised how few students have taken advantage of it," he said.Bullis said between 150 and 200 free vaccines were given at the Atrium on Tuesday.Before Tuesday 771 vaccines had been given, and there are about 7,700 still available, Bullis said.
A group of Ball State University students has spent part of the Fall Semester investigating and studying happiness.They will present their findings at tonight's Happiness Showcase, which is happening from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. in the Fine Arts Building and Museum of Art Room 217. Interactive presentations, dancing, music and refreshments will be available.
Thanksgiving break brings relief from classes, opportunity to meet with family and unnattended houses for robbers.There were three burglaries off-campus and six lockers in Lewellen pool were broken into over the weekend, Gene Burton, director of public safety, said. Burglaries and thefts are common during academic breaks and students should take particular caution during breaks, he said.
The Blue Bottle is having an open house all day Friday to celebrate its expansion.With more space and items on the restaurant's menu, owner Tom Green said he expects to attract more costumers than the regular coffee crowd.Green added lunch, dinner, wine and beer to the menu shortly after he bought the Blue Bottle from its previous owner. He has been planning an expansion since a year and a half ago.
"Strange and Deranged," the showcase group from Austin, Texas, is on its first tour since it was formed.Jackie Molen, a group member, said everyone in the group has experience from other shows they performed at."We were all from different shows, we were all roommates and we just decided to start up our own group," she said.
