College of Sciences and Humanities
In this ISSUE
Our Call to Beneficence
Supporting CSH in Ball State University’s largest capital campaign
Passing the Torch
A roundtable discussion between Dr. Patrick Collier, Dr. Richard Petts, and Dr. Melisa Stevens
CSI: Muncie
CSH launches Indiana’s only comprehensive Forensic Science program
Chemistry Science Day
Snapshots from the Department of Chemistry’s activity day for the public
Engineering Solutions
A profile on the first student to graduate from CSH’s dual-degree engineering program
Eclipsing with NASA
Ball State’s Planetarium Director and Chair of the Department of Physics and Astronomy operate telescopes to livestream the 2024 Total Solar Eclipse for NASA
Preserving Ginn Woods
The history of preservation efforts of Ginn Woods by the staff and students of the Field Station and Environmental Education Center
Cover: CSH students at Spring Commencement. Photo by JB Bilbrey, ’19, ’20
Right: Dr. Patrick Collier and Dr. Melisa Stevens at Spring Commencement. Photo by JB Bilbrey, ’19, ’20
17
DEPARTMENTS
Natural aNd ComputatioNal SCieNCeS
11 CENTERS AND INSTITUTES
SoCial SCieNCeS
HumaNitieS
290 faCulty
CSH DELIVERS 60% OF THE UNIVERSITY CORE COURSE ENROLLMENTS AND 35% OF ALL BALL STATE CREDIT HOURS
4500+
UndergradUate stUdents
CSH OFFERS OVER 125 DEGREE PROGRAMS ACROSS
69 majors
49 minors
105,000
ViSitorS to tHe CHarleS W. BroWN plaNetarium, CHriSty WoodS, aNd tHe riNard orCHid GreeNHouSe
400+ gradUate stUdents
Dear Friends and Colleagues,
It is with great excitement that I welcome you to read the 2023-2024 Year-in-Review of the Ball State University College of Sciences and Humanities. As we embark on a new academic year, we find ourselves at a pivotal moment in our college’s history—one marked by both change and growth, as well as a renewed commitment to our mission of academic excellence and community impact.
First and foremost, I am thrilled to share with you the launch of Ball State’s new capital fundraising campaign: Our Call to Beneficence. This campaign represents a bold step forward in securing the resources necessary to continue our tradition of offering exceptional educational opportunities to our students. Through your generous support, we aim to enhance our facilities, invest in cutting-edge research, and provide scholarships that make a transformative education accessible to all who seek it. This initiative underscores our belief in the power of education to change lives and our commitment to fostering an environment where every student can thrive.
As we look to the future, we also take a moment to honor the remarkable contributions of those who have helped shape our college. After years of dedicated service, Associate Dean Patrick Collier has retired, leaving behind a legacy of excellence in leadership and a profound impact on our academic community. Dr. Collier’s wisdom, dedication, and passion for education have been invaluable, and his presence will be greatly missed. However, as we bid farewell, we also welcome two outstanding individuals who will continue to guide our college toward new heights: Richard Petts, our new Associate Dean, and Melisa Stevens, our new Assistant Dean. Dr. Petts brings with him a wealth of experience in sociology and a deep commitment to student success, while Dr. Stevens’s background in academic administration and her innovative approach to student engagement will be instrumental in shaping our future. We are confident that their leadership will propel us forward in our mission to deliver an unparalleled educational experience.
In addition to these leadership changes, I am particularly excited to announce the launch of our new Forensic Science program. This interdisciplinary initiative is a testament to our college’s commitment to innovation and collaboration across disciplines. The program, which draws on the expertise of our Criminal Justice and Criminology, Psychology, Computer Science, Biology, and Chemistry departments, is designed to equip students with the skills and knowledge necessary to excel in the rapidly evolving field of forensic science. By combining rigorous academic training with hands-on experience, we are preparing our students to meet the challenges of tomorrow with confidence and competence.
We are also celebrating a significant milestone with the graduation of the first student from our dual-degree engineering program—a trailblazing young woman who exemplifies the strength, determination, and innovative spirit that we strive to instill in all our students. Her achievement is not only a personal triumph but also a powerful symbol of the strides we are making in diversifying and empowering the next generation of engineers.
As we navigate these exciting developments, I am reminded of the strength and resilience of our college community. Our alumni, donors, faculty, and students continue to inspire me with their dedication, generosity, and unwavering support. It is through your collective efforts that we are able to achieve so much, and I am deeply grateful for all that you do.
Thank you for being a part of our journey. Together, we will continue to build a brighter future for the College of Sciences and Humanities, for Ball State University, and for the world.
Maureen McCarthy, PhD Dean, College of Sciences and Humanities Ball State University
College Leadership
Maureen McCarthy Dean
Jill Coleman Associate Dean
Richard Petts
Associate Dean
Kevin Smith
Associate Dean
Melisa Stevens
Assistant Dean
Our Call to Beneficence
Supporting CSH in Ball State University’s
Largest Capital Campaign
Campus and Community Impact
Funding Opportunities
SUPPORTING ACADEMIC SUCCESS: $2.2M
This August, the CSH Success Hub opened. This is a single access point for students in the college who need assistance with facing obstacles such as financial need or experiencing a mental health crisis. The CSH Success Hub is staffed by student success ambassadors and directed by Assistant Dean Melisa Stevens, who brings decades of higher education and mentorship experience.
The college also seeks additional funding to expand the successful COMPASS Advantage program which is now part of the new Success Hub. COMPASS helps humanities students transition into careers with self-assessments, networking tips, alumni mentorship, and more.
STUDENT FINANCIAL SUPPORT: $1.5M
Approximately 80% of Ball State students qualify for federal financial aid, but finances still prove to be a struggle for our students. When federal financial aid isn’t enough, students often look to the extra support scholarships can provide.
To help meet those needs, we look to donors to help us create new scholarships that will make an outstanding education available to the most promising students, regardless of their personal resources. We ask that you consider creating a new, endowed scholarship with a minimum gift of $25,000.
SUMMER BRIDGE PROGRAMMING: $500K
The CSH Summer Bridge Program supports students by making the transition from high school to college smoother and easier. It features workshops to expose students to daily college life, study skills, and social development. Summer bridge programs get students ready to learn and thrive.
WELCOMING THE COMMUNITY: $2.5M
The College hosts public events and programs that bring 30,000 visitors of all ages to campus from surrounding communities and beyond. They come to experience educational shows at the Charles W. Brown Planetarium, see endangered species at the Dr. Joe and Alice Rinard Orchid Greenhouse, learn about the environment at our farms, natural areas, and so much more.
“In all of our departments, our faculty help students translate the skills they learn in class to a host of careers. We don’t know what jobs will be available in 2030 or 2040, but our students will be ready for them.”
- Dean McCarthy
Passing the Torch
Transition in the College of Sciences and Humanities Dean’s Office
In July 2024, Associate Dean Dr. Patrick Collier retired after more than 30 years of service at Ball State University.
In the three years that he served as Associate Dean, Dr. Collier transformed the role. He managed the inclusive excellence plan and led the creation of a new department: Women’s, Gender, and African American Studies. Dr. Collier was a champion for student success and he hired the inaugural student success director, Dr. Melisa Stevens. He also led the college efforts to increase student success by engaging faculty in learning communities.
Under his leadership, the college dramatically improved retention, but more importantly, his work changed countless lives of students.
Dr. Richard Petts has been promoted to Associate Dean of the College of Sciences and Humanities. Dr. Petts is a professor of sociology and has been at Ball State University since 2008. Dr. Petts will assume the responsibilities for faculty success, inclusive excellence, and student affairs.
Additionally, during this time of transition, we are allocating more resources to student success and admissions-related events. Dr. Melisa Stevens has been promoted to Assistant Dean and Director of Student Success, expanding and continuing her great work with our college’s students.
Before his retirement, Dr. Collier sat down with Dr. Petts and Dr. Stevens for a roundtable discussion about academic leadership.
This is a big step in your careers, how are you feeling?
Melisa Stevens (MS): I think for me being able to be at my undergraduate alma mater, it’s a full circle moment. I think back to when I was an 18-year-old freshman and changing my major four times, and finally landing in political science here in this building. It’s surreal to have this opportunity and hopefully be able to implement programs and processes that help remove barriers for students so that they can be successful.
I appreciate seeing the success that I’ve been able to create together with Dr. Collier. That’s something I’ll always say, you know, Dr. Collier and I accomplished a lot together in a really short amount of time. And I do feel like people here on campus see it as a model for what can be done. When you get people who are willing to put their heads together and have the support of a Dean that is very much student-centered in her thinking, we can change lives.
But for me, at the end of the day, I think if you told me when I was graduating from here in May of 1991 that I’d be Assistant Dean in this college, I would be shocked. I didn’t know what I was gonna do. I just knew I loved the social sciences. It all feels surreal.
Photo by Megan Neal, ’22, ’24
Richard Petts (RP): I think surreal sounds like the right word for me too. It’s strange, it’s exciting, and terrifying at the same time. I think looking back over my career up to this point, I feel like I’ve accomplished a lot in terms of teaching and in terms of research, but I think the frustrations that are mounting in higher education, I see this as an opportunity to work to combat some of those things and make this a better place for students and faculty, you know, given the challenges that we face as a college and as a University moving forward.
Patrick Collier (PC): Yeah, this is the chance to use capacities you’ve developed over your career. You know, dealing with these really complex problems is really a privilege. It’s a great opportunity.
And this is a really challenging time, right? But it’s a good time to be bringing your skill set to these problems. Things are changing really fast, both in Higher Ed generally and here specifically.
What are your hopes for the future of the college?
MS: I think I’m excited to see more opportunities to collaborate across departments and disciplines with students as well as faculty. I think we often have people with really great ideas and we need to figure out how to help those ideas bubble up and get to the point where people are talking about them. Then we can do something to help create more collaborative efforts, because that’s what our students see in the real world.
There are just really smart people here. Our students are really bright and they are also facing really big issues in their own lives and in our world, and so how can we create opportunities to bring those things together.
RP: I think along the same lines. I want to continue to increase a sense of belonging for students in our college to make those connections. As a major, you’re isolated in a department. But we want them to know that there’s a broader home with more opportunities if we sort of make those connections.
PC: I think that Ball State is doing something a little unusual in the degree to which folks like us are involved in what’s known as student success. I think it’s more common for it to exist as a thing that’s separate from academic affairs. But here our former Provost said that the colleges are going to be centrally involved in student success. And so we have a chance to do some things here that I think other universities might not be able to do. But we’re very much at the early stages of this.
We’re closer to faculty than the central administration and the folks in student affairs. And so we’re the best people to try to be orchestrating the culture change that is going to happen.
I say this without self-criticism, but when I started here I had the same attitude as most faculty, which is that I put my students in a position to learn and if they don’t, that’s their problem. That doesn’t mean not being a good teacher and not working on your teaching, but it means, for instance, if somebody doesn’t show up to class, it’s not my problem. Somebody doesn’t turn in their stuff, it’s not my problem. And I think the official position of the University, and really of faculty overall in higher education, has changed. If we admit these students, it’s our job to make sure that they can stay here and they can successfully complete the program. Now we’re not at 100 percent of faculty feeling that way. And so a big part of what we’re doing is trying to help bring about a culture change where pretty much everybody is on board
with the idea that we’re going to do everything we can, within reason, within the limits of having a reasonable work-life balance, to try to get our students to succeed.
RP: It’s been a shift for me. I used to have the same mindset as Pat did, you know, that I do my best but if you don’t show up and you don’t turn in work, then that’s on you, you’re an adult. It started before the pandemic, but I think the pandemic really accelerated an understanding, for me and others, that we’re all dealing with a lot. So to just sort of say, 'Hey, it’s on you,' like I wouldn’t say that to my kids, I wouldn’t say that to my colleagues, right, and so why do I say that to my students? And so I think that has shifted my mindset to this idea that it really is our job as a University to assist students beyond the classroom. I think it’s asking questions such as how do we prepare them for careers? How do we think about getting them in touch with other units on campus? How do we make sure that they leave here prepared for a variety of careers?
As faculty we’re teaching a particular class, but we should also be trying to equip them with skills, and we’re trying to communicate to them how those skills can transfer across disciplines and across departments, and all of these sorts of things.
Dr. Collier, what advice do you have for the incoming Associate Dean and Assistant Dean?
PC: That’s a good question. Richard and I are pretty much spending something like 35 hours together in this period of two and a half weeks. So, he’s getting a lot of advice from me, but if I were going to pick the main thing, it is something that I learned working with Melisa, and I would just distill it to this: maintain and expand your set of relationships.
I think that Ball State is a very relational workplace. And one of the reasons why I feel like I’ve been able to be fairly effective in my job is because I know a lot of people. The best thing about this job is I got to meet all these people in the sciences and I got to meet all these people all over campus, right? And that’s more resources right at your fingertips, and when something goes wrong or when you just have something you can’t figure out, there are more people that you can go to and have in your corner.
And so I was practicing some of that before Melisa got here, I don’t know how much time you spend talking to Melisa, but she literally knows like everybody in Delaware County, right? But you know, I think there are a lot of people in positions of relevant power at Ball State who have been here a long time. So really one of the keys to being effective is to be one of those people who has a lot of contacts and connections here. So that’s the thing I recommend the most.
RP: I know people, but not nearly to the same extent you probably did when you came into this office. But I want to work towards that networking, especially since my goals for the University haven’t changed coming into this office. We, all faculty, ultimately want our students to succeed. We ultimately want a better place to work. We ultimately want greater support. And so I’m shifting to a position where once I was looking for support and now I can provide support.
CSI: Muncie
Photo by Amber Pietz
Ball State University’s College of Sciences and Humanities has announced its newest exciting degree program: the Bachelor’s of Science in Forensic Science.
This new offering—in line with the University’s mission of engaging students in educational, research, and creative endeavors that empower graduates to have fulfilling careers and meaningful lives—will focus on the application of scientific knowledge and methods to investigate crimes, enforce government regulations, and resolve civil disputes.
“The College of Sciences and Humanities is excited to offer this robust program for our students. We are already seeing significant student interest in our Fall enrollments,” said Dr. Benjamin Gibbs, chair of the Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology and director of the forensic science program.
Starting this Fall, Ball State students will begin taking courses in Indiana’s only comprehensive forensic science program that offers four concentrations: behavioral forensics, digital forensics, forensic biology, and forensic chemistry.
• Behavioral forensics, also known as forensic psychology, will introduce students to human behavior in the context of criminal investigations. Students will be qualified for careers in probation and parole, community-based corrections, institutional corrections, case management, law enforcement, and addiction counseling.
• Digital forensics experts are at the forefront of confronting cybercrime. This program will educate students in digital evidence collection, preservation, and analysis. Students will learn to collaborate with law enforcement on identity theft, assist businesses with cyber-attacks and fraud, and collect and preserve sensitive data for the future.
• Forensic biology instructs students in innovative methods and approaches to collect and analyze crime scene evidence. Students graduating with this concentration solve crimes using modern cellular and molecular biology tools necessary for the analysis of forensic DNA and other biological evidence.
• Forensic chemistry prepares students to apply the scientific principles of chemistry to obtain samples from a crime scene, examine evidence in a lab, and provide courtroom testimony. The applied chemical analysis will enable students to have an immediate impact on criminal investigations after graduation.
Ball State’s new forensic science program serves a critical role in addressing the growing need for professionals with specialized skills to investigate, analyze, and communicate evidence in the justice system. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, positions for forensic science technicians across the United States are projected to grow 13 percent from 2022 to 2032—much faster than the average for all occupations. An estimated 2,600 openings for forensic science technicians are projected each year, on average, over the decade.
CHEMISTRY SCIENCE DAY
A public showcase of chemistry experiments organized by the Student Affiliates of the American Chemical Society (SAACS)
“Science Day allows our Ball State chemistry students the opportunity to connect and communicate their chosen scientific field with the general public and potentially inspire the next generation of Ball State students. The event would not be possible without the hard work of our Ball State student members of the Student Affiliates of the American Chemical Society who plan and execute the event. This year we had over 35 volunteers from three different Ball State University organizations come together to make this day happen.”
- Dr. Ryan Jeske Associate Teaching Professor, Department of Chemistry
Photos by JB Bilbrey, ’19, ’20
EnginEEring SolutionS
CSH’S FirSt Dual-DEgrEE EnginEEring graDuatE
By Nathan Herbst
For five years, Eaton Corporation had a manufacturing problem with their biggest electric breaker box, costing the company $350,000 every year. No one at Eaton could find a cost-effective solution.
During the 2023 summer semester, Lindsey Herrera,’24, the first graduate in the dualdegree engineering program, went to Eaton for an internship.
She solved the problem in two months, with no increase in cost to Eaton.
Establishing Communications
When Ms. Herrera arrived at the Eaton Corporation site in Lincoln, Illinois, the team had determined that a component in their household breaker boxes failed roughly 20 percent of the time it. Each time it failed, a worker would have to individually rework the entire case, resulting in scrap that cost the company tens of thousands of dollars per year.
Attempting to fix this persistent issue was Ms. Herrera’s top priority. She started by opening a dialogue with the design, manufacturing, and quality teams to clarify the issue, determine what solutions that had been previously proposed, and gain input on solution ideas.
As a result of this research, Ms. Herrera noticed that there were communication barriers between the separate design and manufacturing teams, so she made a concerted effort to bridge that divide.
“Just talking to the members on the floor and saying ‘Hey, what do you think we should do to fix it?’” Ms. Herrera said. “Because they know so much more about the product than I was ever going to know.”
Ms. Herrera said that one of the most important things she learned from the internship is the critical role of communication in effective teamwork.
“I remember when I was telling the team about [my solution] because I wanted to keep them updated, I wanted them to know… that we were actively trying. When I would update them, I had one of the team members one time ask me if she could hug me because she was so excited. Just to see the joy on their faces when I let them know that we actually did care about what they were doing and we were investing in them. That’s what matters. I think a lot of time engineers in a manufacturing setting like that can be seen with a negative connotation because a lot of the time engineers are super intelligent, but they don’t know how to communicate that with the team, or they don’t know how to communicate their ideas well or lead the team very well. I think the best way to lead them was to serve them and to show them that we’re actually trying to help them.”
Problem Solved
Ms. Herrera’s research and communication strategies worked, and a critical piece of the box was redesigned to solve the problem, saving Eaton hundreds of thousands of dollars a year.
Ms. Herrera graduated in May 2024 as the first student in CSH and Anderson University’s dualdegree engineering program in the Department of Physics and Astronomy.
She accepted an offer from Caterpillar Inc. in product development. Her job will give her three to four rotational positions to show her different parts of Caterpillar’s engineering and business processes and give her plenty of experience to set her up for a promising career.
Eclipsing with NASA
Ball State’s Planetarium Director and Department Chair of Physics and Astronomy Collaborate with NASA to Livestream the Total Solar Eclipse
By Monet Lindstrand, ’24
This spring, Muncie, Indiana and Ball State University had the opportunity to witness a once-in-a-lifetime event: a total solar eclipse. On Monday, April 8, 2024, the moon completely obscured the sun for 3 minutes and 40 seconds, and the city entered a state of twilight. For the first time since 957 CE, Muncie was in the path of totality. During the time of totality, viewers were able to safely observe the eclipse and the outer atmosphere of the Sun, the corona. It was an exciting event for all in attendance, and the College of Sciences and Humanities and its partners had the opportunity to participate in preparation for this day in a variety of ways.
Ball State University has the privilege of being home to the largest planetarium in the state of Indiana, the Charles W. Brown Planetarium. The planetarium and their staff provided resources and information about the celestial event in the months leading up to it, offering the community a behindthe-scenes look at what a total solar eclipse is and why it is so monumental. Under Ms. Thompson’s direction, the University purchased and distributed more than 70,000 eclipse glasses to ensure that people were able to safely view the solar eclipse prior to and after the point of totality.
In addition to providing information about the total solar eclipse to the press, Dayna Thompson, ’12, and Dr. John Millis, Department Chair of the Department of Physics and Astronomy and professor of physics, served as telescope operators during the eclipse at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. This was in collaboration with NASA, who livestreamed the eclipse from multiple sites, including from the Ball State telescopes at the Speedway. This was an incredible opportunity for Ms. Thompson and Dr. Millis to showcase the resources that Ball State has to offer, and it provided Ms. Thompson, in particular, a new avenue of planetarium research to explore.
Dayna Thompson has a long history with the Ball State University Charles W. Brown Planetarium. She came to Ball State as a graduate student in physics, where she first worked at the original planetarium in the Cooper Science building. What stood out to Ms. Thompson was the informal educational setting that the planetarium offered, as she could share her passion and enjoyment for science and math without the expectation of formal exams and memorization by her “students.” Due to this transformational experience as a graduate assistant, Ms. Thompson chose to apply for an open position at the planetarium upon finishing her degree. She was hired as assistant director in 2012, and became director in 2019. From day one of her career, Ms. Thompson has embraced dynamic and conversational educational settings that have helped her shape the programs and shows that the planetarium continues to offer today.
In her role as Planetarium Director, Ms. Thompson has a wide variety of duties. These include giving presentations to students and the public, hosting events, writing grant proposals and requests, planetarium show creation, and attending and speaking at conferences. The Charles W. Brown Planetarium is one of the few planetariums in the country that offers its public shows and programs completely free. Ms. Thompson has prioritized pursuing funding opportunities that continue this practice for the public’s sake. Additionally, it was Ms. Thompson’s presentation at a conference that led to the partnership with NASA for the April total solar eclipse.
Photo by Samantha Blankenship, ’15
When Ms. Thompson was approached by NASA about the solar eclipse, they had a goal of broadcasting the event in as many different points of totality in the United States and Canada as possible. To achieve this lofty goal, NASA was seeking experts who could operate telescopes and camera equipment on the ground in these various areas to ensure that viewers got the best experience possible. The prep work for Ms. Thompson was intensive, as the two telescopes that they elected to bring to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway (IMS) needed to be prepped and fitted to safely view and capture the eclipse and connect smoothly to the NASA broadcasting service. Both of the telescopes had a special purpose, as one had a high-definition, non-removable solar filter that allowed viewers to see sunspots and flares, and the other had a less-detailed, removable solar filter that allowed viewing during totality without the filter blocking the sun. She also worked with NASA to set up the technical side of livestreaming, which they tested numerous times in the days leading up to the event.
The physical setup at IMS began two days before the eclipse, on that Saturday. To ensure the telescopes would operate properly on April 8th, Ms. Thompson and Dr. Millis traveled to IMS both Saturday and Sunday to do a complete run-through of the equipment and steps they would take during the actual eclipse. On Monday, they arrived early at IMS but were unable to officially set up on pagoda level three where they were livestreaming until just a half hour prior to the eclipse’s start. Ms. Thompson shared that the most challenging point of the process was totality, as she was responsible for removing the solar filter at the exact right moment. If the filter is removed too quickly, the picture becomes over saturated, as the camera is hit with too much light. But every second counts, and so you will miss significant footage if the filter is taken off too late. The goal overall was to provide viewers with the smoothest transition between the telescope footage as possible to ensure they did not miss any of the eclipse in the live stream.
This experience was special for Ms. Thompson because it pushed her out of her comfort zone and encouraged her to explore an area of science that she had not yet delved into. When presented with the chance to work with NASA on eclipses, Ms. Thompson noted that she had little prior solar viewing experience and that while she was capable and competent, it was a new area for her. But ultimately she appreciated that even after over a decade in her field, there are still new things for her to do and explore.
Dr. John Millis, Chair of the Ball State University Department of Physics and Astronomy and professor of physics, accompanied Ms. Thompson to IMS for the NASA event. As a result of his background as an astrophysicist, Dr. Millis’ interests lie in the intersection of physics and astronomy, with a directed focus typically on physics. Given his experiences, Ms. Thompson recruited him for the project, for which he served as the hydrogen Alpha telescope operator while Ms. Thompson operated the white light telescope. Beyond this primary duty, Dr. Millis assisted Ms. Thompson in setting up the technology and transferring the video feeds as well.
In addition to having the opportunity to experience an eclipse for the first time, Dr. Millis enjoyed this experience as it allowed him to share the science behind the celestial phenomenon with the public. This included attendees of a local high school and college engineering competition and the Supermileage Car Challenge, both of which were occurring at IMS the weekend Dr. Millis and Ms. Thompson were preparing for the eclipse. Dr. Millis found it engaging and rewarding to have the unexpected opportunity to share his love for the eclipse with young people during his time at IMS.
Beyond just the day at IMS, Ms. Thompson and her team had the opportunity to host a wide variety of events leading up to the total solar eclipse. One special event that arose from her partnership with NASA was the ability to host the planetarium’s first-ever solar filter-building workshop. Due to the abundance of remaining material she had after building her own solar filter, Ms. Thompson was able to bring the public in for an event that had never been done before. Moving forward, the planetarium plans to continue educating the public on solar viewing safety, as it is important beyond just eclipses. Even now, the sun is going through a point of solar maximum, which led to the recent ability to see the aurora borealis as far south as Muncie. The eclipse drew many people to the resources of the planetarium, and the staff plans to continue showcasing the wonders of science and the sky in the months to come.
It is not everyday that our Ball State students, staff, and faculty have a front-row seat to a once-in-a-lifetime event like a total solar eclipse. The College of Sciences and Humanities and its partners were incredibly excited to play a role in organizing and preparing for this day, as it demonstrated the resources that our college and campus have to offer. As a result of the hard work of many, Ball State was able to support not only the local community, but the broader state of Indiana and beyond with accessibility to and understanding of this solar event. We look forward to partaking in future activities like these and being able to support hands-on advancements in science and society.
Preserving
Student Ecologists Embody Ball State’s
by
By Nathan
Photos
Nathan Herbst
Dense, muggy forest. Clouds of mosquitoes. Crawling ticks. Stinging nettles. Poison ivy. This is the workplace of a summer ecologist aide managing Ginn Woods, one of the Ball State University Field Station’s protected and preserved properties.
Student ecologist aides are the unsung heroes of the Field Station, laboring to maintain University land for educational and research use. These students spend their summers in deep forests and thick prairies managing Field Station land to keep them in pristine, natural condition. John Taylor, Restoration Ecologist and Land Manager of the Ball State Field Station and Environmental Education Center, guides their efforts in the field. The Field Station is a collaboration between the Department of Biology; Department of Environment, Geology, and Natural Resources; and Department of Landscape Architecture. The Field Station includes Christy Woods, the Dr. Joe and Alice Rinard Orchid Greenhouse, Hults Environmental Learning Center, Cooper Farm, and several more properties.
The aides carry everything for the day’s work with them into the forest. Safety vests, gloves, protective clothing, water, GPS units, trash bags, lunch, and DEET. Lots and lots of DEET.
Ginn Woods stands tall and proud over the corn and soy fields north of Muncie. Standing before it is like staring into a wall: thick, dark, impenetrable. There are no entrances, and it has no trail system; workers and visitors must blaze their own path through the wilderness.
The canopy shades the forest floor and keeps the temperature tolerable. A cool breeze blows through the trees and freshens the air. The understory is thick, but not choked with exotic, invasive species like many other forests in the area.
A sense of calm pervades the forest. The ecosystem is balanced and protected from human interference. The plants and animals can live undisturbed. Melodic birdsong fills the air. The exhalations of countless plants fill the air with a woody and sweet scent, and the trees sway gently in the wind. You can feel the earth breathe.
“We saw a tree yesterday that had fallen and burned,” Lauren Linzmeier, a natural resources and environmental management major, said. “We think it was from the lightning. It was just the top half and the whole thing was charred, but nothing else around it looked burned.”
Ginn Woods State’s Commitment to the Environment
Nathan Herbst
habitat destruction, and invasive species. The ecologist aides spend their summers learning about these threats and maintaining the land.
One of the invasive plants they focus on removing in Ginn Woods is garlic mustard—Alliaria petiolata. This heart shaped plant from Europe takes over ecosystems and crowds out native plants, blocking them from getting nutrients. The students spend their days hunting pockets of these plants, marking their locations, pulling them out of the ground and then disposing of them.
“As long as we get them out of the ground before they drop their seed, we’re good,” Lance Dillingham, one of the ecological aides and a botany major, said.
Students take their work seriously and perfect invasive plant removal to an art form. The team splits into two groups and head off in opposite directions to find their targets. When they come across garlic mustard, they mark the location via GPS to check the location for seedlings in the future. John even has a high-powered GPS antenna snaking from his bag to his hat to more accurately mark the coordinates through the thick canopy.
“We put [the garlic mustard] in bags,” Carter Hollems said. “We try to take the bags out, although that’s variable in practicality.” Lugging large trash bags full of invasive plants through dense forest and undergrowth is a challenge, even for these hardworking college students.
The student ecologist aides know where to go and what to look for in these deep woods, and their diligence pays off. Most of Ginn Woods is free from invasive species, and the small patches that remain are tracked through the data collection and GPS marking efforts. This is a marked success compared to most other forests in the area, which are slowly being strangled by invasive species that take over the habitat but lack anyone to remove them. After the work at Ginn Woods is finished for the summer, the aides will go to Cooper Farm and Miller Wildlife Area to remove other invasive plants like teasel, autumn olive, honeysuckle, and European buckthorn.
The Field Station ecological aides are the last line of defense for these valuable natural areas. Natural landscapes face many threats in today’s world: climate change, illegal hunting,
Ginn Woods is unique among the properties that Ball State University manages. The 161-acre forest is the second largest protected old-growth forest in the state and has escaped human disturbance, despite the region’s heavy deforestation and agricultural use.
“An old-growth forest has several different characteristics, including a history of no human-caused disturbance, but also multiple size classes of trees…how much dead wood there is on the ground, certain plants that are rare that only occur in undisturbed or highquality forests…Part of it is a lack of human disturbance and also the biodiversity that occurs here,” John Taylor said.
When asked if this is what Indiana originally looked like, Mr. Taylor said, “This is as close as we can get.” Only a few hundred years ago, most of Indiana resembled Ginn Woods. In 1800, 87.7% of land was forest, 9.6% wetland, and 2.7% dry prairie. Now, only 21% of Indiana is forest—a decrease of 75%. Most of the land in the state has been converted for human or agricultural use; little native habitat is left.
The recorded history of Ginn Woods dates to the 1830s, when the Ginn family settled the land. The Ginns were Irish immigrants and arrived in the United States in 1818. John Ginn, the head of the family, settled them near Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where they started a farm. The Ginns stayed there for seven years before moving to Ohio, where they farmed another six years. Finally, they moved to Delaware County, Indiana, where John would spend the rest of his life.
John Ginn was a self-starting man and successful farmer. He planted the first orchard in the county and became a community leader. But perhaps his greatest achievement is preserving the woods that now bear his name.
Unlike most property owners at the time, the Ginn family left a portion of their land undisturbed. They let the woods continue to exist as they had for thousands of years while the surrounding land transformed into barren monoculture crop fields. The Ginn family never cut the trees, burned the understory, or grazed their animals there, and so the woods avoided the ravages of farming, logging, and commercial interests.
The Ginns owned and stewarded the land until 1971, when they sold the property to Ball State, which recognized the immense ecological value of this forest. The original parcel of land was much smaller than the Ginn Woods of today. However, when natural areas adjacent to the woods were threatened with development, the University intervened and annexed Nixon Woods and Wesley Wetland as part of Ginn Woods.
Preserved for Future Generations
Ginn Woods isn’t open to the public so that it can be preserved in its natural state. However, the University does utilize the land for research and teaching. Classes from the college and local high schools come to Ginn Woods to study native Hoosier flora and fauna.
Researchers and students study different aspects of the unique ecology here. Botanists took a full inventory of the vascular plants in the woods and examined the micro-topography of the area and how it impacts plant growth. Wildlife, ornithology, entomology, wetland characterization, and soil composition classes regularly visit to observe animals, birds, insects, and water. Scientists also visit Ginn Woods to band birds, which allows them to be tracked during migration.
The Field Station properities offer many training opportunities for interested students. Students can take a course in wildland firefighting that ends in managing a live, controlled prairie burn. And in October, the station will build a wetland at Cooper Farm and give students the opportunity to put into practice what they learn in the classroom. Beyond class work, these opportunities give students plenty of experience for careers in nature.
“I kind of like the idea of what John does, being a land manager, and his variety of tasks,” Lance Dillingham said. “But I’m not sure how available those types of positions are right now in this market. So even if just out of the gate, I’m doing seasonal work in parks or things like that, I’d be totally fine with that. It sounds cliche to say, but I don’t want to be a desk jockey. I want to get out and be in the field. So, really conservation or restoration ecology work type of stuff.”
In March 2021, Ginn Woods became a state nature preserve. This will safeguard the land from threats and ensure the forest is conserved for future research.
“That’s an added layer of protection. Ball State already protected it as an area for study and nature education, but now the state also has control. If there’s a violation, then the state can take action to either prevent that or to address that,” Mr. Taylor said.
Ginn Woods is a unique asset to the University. Protecting it aligns with the University’s commitment to environmental stewardship and sustainability. Caring for the forest and allowing students to involve themselves in its preservation will give them the opportunity to appreciate Indiana’s natural areas and encourage them to preserve these habitats. Furthermore, current students will develop the skills necessary to preserve other endangered areas in the future through their continued work in the Field Station.
By studying this unique habitat, students, scholars, and community members can get a glimpse into the past and learn about the beautiful natural history and ecology of our state
161 acres of old growth forest preserved for research and teaching
First Game Design Student Cohort Launches Game on Steam
By Dr. Paul Gestwicki, Professor of Computer Science and 2023-2024 CSH Teacher of the Year
I joined the Computer Science Department at Ball State University as an assistant professor in 2005. By 2006, I started a shift in my research toward game design and development. Since then, I have mentored many student game projects in addition to writing research articles in this area and making games of my own. The idea I am most proud of from almost two decades of teaching is a two-semester course sequence that I used to mentor teams in community-engaged, immersive learning game development projects. Students worked with me in the Fall semester to learn fundamentals of game design while also serving as an R&D team for educational games. For the Spring, I would recruit a multidisciplinary production team that would turn the most fruitful idea from the Fall into a real digital game. These projects have won international awards, been the subject of academic and popular articles, and made a positive impact on our community.
The superlative student learning from these projects contributed to the development of a new concentration in game design and development (GDD) within the computer science department. Students in this concentration are real computer science majors, learning the fundamentals that any computer scientist should. They do a lot of this in the context of game design and development, and that makes this a distinctive program in the region. The game design and development concentration culminates in a threesemester capstone project, with one semester spent on preproduction and then a full academic year of game production. This curriculum became the backbone of a multidisciplinary collaboration with the Schools of Art and of Music: the Animation program and the Music Media Production program both have similar concentrations that funnel students into this same three-semester capstone.
But I’m getting ahead of myself!
As we finalized the GDD curriculum in Fall 2022, I was teaching Introduction to Game Design as part of a two-semester immersive learning collaboration with Minnetrista. This would likely be the last time I would be able to do this two-semester sequence since the new concentration was right around the corner. I was also teaching Advanced Programming–a required second-year course for computer science majors. A few students were in both courses, and I recruited students from both to work on the Spring game production course. That top-notch team would go on to make HabiTile, an award-winning two-player game about local ecosystems.
Also in the Spring, I taught our new preproduction course for the first time—the first course in the three-semester GDD capstone. It’s important to know that when a student comes to the University, they get a four-year plan, and they can follow that to graduation; however, if there’s a curriculum revision, students who are “mid-stream” can choose to follow their original plan or switch to one of the new plans. Several of our students courageously took the risk of changing programs, and they joined me in preproduction. Some of these students had come from my Advanced Programming and Game Design teams as well as the HabiTile team! That means that these students have the dubious distinction of having been able to take more courses with me than should normally be possible!
At the end of preproduction, the students had developed three game demos that they wanted to move into the yearlong production sequence. However, to do so, they had to pitch these demos to our inaugural Games Advisory Board. This group of professional game developers volunteered their time to help our students and give them industrial-strength critique on their work. This also helped our first batch of GDD students to see that they are not just working in isolation; they have already taken their first step toward being a bona fide member of the game development community.
The demo that moved to our year-long production sequence was a novel little game in which the player controls a long-abandoned planetary rover using keyboard commands. Following a rigorous game development practice—specifically, Richard Lemarchand’s Playful Production Process—this little idea became Mission Rovee, which is now available for $1 on Steam. Making a commercial release like this required the team to form their own company, Sphere Province Games LLC.
The team did not just create a fun and unique piece of entertainment; they did it using rigorous software engineering techniques that are often overlooked in the games industry. I’m not just saying that as a proud faculty mentor: the team wrote an article with the leading expert in game testing automation, Henry Golding, CEO of Lophus Labs.
This team of students has given me a lot to be proud of. I have tried to teach them everything I could, and in many of their collaborations, they now know more than I do! There is one story that stands out in my memory as the most important one to me.
We started the Fall 2023 semester by planning for the “alpha phase” of game development, which was scheduled to end just before Thanksgiving break. The team made the best production schedule they could based on what they learned in preproduction. However, by a month into the semester, it was clear to them that they were not going to meet their target based on the projection charts we used to determine completion date based on work completed. I was gearing up to break this to them, when one of the team said, “Well, there’s only one thing we can do. We have to cut the lowest priority features.” That is exactly right, and I didn’t have to say it! The team understood that the quality of the work was not negotiable, and they could not get more time–nor would they tolerate crunch. The only option was to cut nearly three-quarters of the planned features. This was a painful decision for the team, but they did it with grace, like pulling off an adhesive bandage: it has to be done, so let’s do it and move on.
As I wrap up the Spring semester with these students, all of whom are graduating, I have also been teaching the next cohort of students in preproduction. However, it’s also bittersweet, as I find myself missing the Sphere Province Games team even before they are gone. We worked so hard together on so many things that they feel like an essential part of the Ball State Gamedev community. I could spin up a new project and hand it off to them tomorrow, and I know they would know exactly what to do. I suppose that means it’s time to let them go, for them to start the next level in the adventure game of their own lives.
Keep your big batteries charged, Sphere Province Games, and come visit us at Ball State any time.
Data Analytics Hosts WiDS and Data Mining Events
Women in Data Science
Women in Data Science is a conference series promoting the involvement of women in the data science field. WiDS started at Stanford University in 2015 and now has 200+ conferences internationally and 150,000 supporters in 160 countries. Their goal is to reach 30% representation of women in data science by 2030. WiDS at Ball State is an independently organized initiative of this global movement.
“It offers participants practical experience in solving real-world data science challenges, promotes gender diversity by requiring teams to include women, and fosters a supportive community for networking and mentorship in the field of data science,” Dr. Faezeh Soleimani, assistant professor in the Department of Mathematical Sciences, said.
The conference took place in April and featured exemplary work by Ball State’s faculty and student data scientists. Dr. Jill Coleman, Associate Dean of the College of Sciences and Humanities, delivered the first keynote on “The World of Big Data: Interdisciplinary Programs and Applications.” Dr. Jennifer Coy, Department Chair of Computer Science, gave the second address on “Interdisciplinary Links Between Data Science and Astrophysics.” Dr. Munni Begum, Director of the Data Science and Analytics Programs, concluded the series by presenting her findings “Making Sense of Cancer Genomics Data.”
This event launched the WiDS Datathon challenge for the campus. The challenge covers a relevant and critical social topic and allows students to hone their data science skills by applying them to a specific problem. This year the challenge concerns gender and racial equity in healthcare. Students used data science to predict how long it takes women with breast cancer to be treated based on differences in ethnicity and other demographic factors. According to WiDS Worldwide, the difference in wait time between diagnosis and treatment is a good way to analyze disparities in treatment between groups in healthcare.
“The Datathon workshop promotes women in the data science field by actively encouraging their participation through specific team composition requirements, ensuring at least half of each team comprises women. This initiative not only showcases women’s capabilities in data science but also creates networking opportunities and fosters a supportive environment for skill development and career advancement in the field,” Dr. Soleimani said.
Data Mining
Data Analytics established the Ball State University Data Mine in partnership with Purdue University. This collaboration will give student data scientists experience solving real-world problems with data by assigning them university and business mentors.
Students in the Data Mine will take a 1-hour asynchronous course through Purdue University. Through this partnership, students will work on a research computing cluster with large data sets, just like they will do as an official data scientist. They can earn three additional credit hours by working with corporate partners to analyze recent data to solve current business problems. These partners will mentor them in the applications of data science and facilitate a smooth transition into the workforce post-graduation.
Data Science is a high-paying, emerging field and the Data Mine and WiDS conference will give students great experience working with businesses and contacts to help them compete in the job market, and ensure data scientists have equality in the workforce. - Nathan Herbst
Department of English’s Writer-in-Residence Program
Brings an Author and Free Books to Local Schools
By Jill Christman, Professor of English
I’m excited to share the story of the Ball State University Writer-in-Residence-in-the-Schools Program (WIR)—a collaboration between the Creative Writing Program in the Department of English, the College of Sciences and Humanities, and the Office of the President. Made possible by a generous gift from the Efroymson Family Fund, this unique residency brings a high-profile author to Muncie for a week to inspire students in our community to read literature and have real conversations about the diverse stories, information, ideas, and characters they encounter.
For the Fall 2023 residency, we chose a writer of both middle-grade and children’s books, Alicia D. Williams, a Newbery honor-winning author with extensive experience working with young people as a teacher and performer. Practically perfect in every way, Ms. Williams was the ideal multi-talented professional and big-hearted human to bring our writer-in-residence program into Muncie schools for the first time. Her incredible books and generous nature helped us to exceed our every expectation in terms of the number of readers we reached and the quality of our engagement. She even wrote a thoughtful response on a beautiful card to every student who wrote her a note after her visit.
I’ve been teaching here at Ball State for over twenty years—and planning literary events on our campus and in our community for almost as long—and a vital thing I’ve learned in that time is that the key to a successful author visit is giving participants the opportunity to read the book (or books) first. My goal with the writer-in-residence program was to get as many books in as many young hands as possible. Any teen or child who wanted to read would get a free book. To find these readers, in the month leading up to Ms. Williams’s November visit, I worked closely with my colleague in the Department of English, Dr. Susanna Benko (Professional Development School Liaison for Secondary English/Language Arts in the Muncie Community Schools and Director of the Indiana Writing Project), and coordinated with administrators and faculty at Ball State, Burris Laboratory School, Northside Middle School, and Southside Middle School, as well as leaders of community organizations, such as the Ross Community Center, the YWCA, Motivate Our Minds, the Boys and Girls Club of Muncie, and Greater Muncie Habitat for Humanity. We planned the program by engaging in a strong collaborative effort with teachers and community organizers, asking them what they wanted: our common goal was to get students reading.
In response to the ideas teachers and community members shared, we created a Ball State writer-in-residence website to serve as a clearinghouse not only for information about public events, but also for teaching resources to help get Muncie students engaged, reading, and excited for Ms. Williams’s visit. For example, in September, we posted a just-for-Muncie video created by Ms. Williams to encourage the students to read Genesis Begins Again, and in October, she made another video to answer questions from Muncie students and get them writing. The plan was to have students on the edges of their seats, well-thumbed copies of books clutched to their chests in anticipation when Alicia D. Williams arrived in November.
By the time Ms. Williams got to Muncie, we’d given away over 900 books!
Teachers from all three Muncie middle schools got involved. At Northside and Southside, participation was elective and we supported the teachers by providing discussion questions, writing exercises, and other materials to engage students. Southside students were also offered an afternoon of lessons from Ball State Creative Writing undergraduate students in Dr. Katy Didden’s “Creative Writing in the Community” class. At Burris Laboratory School, the middle school IMPACT program used Genesis Begins Again as a common reader for all 7th and 8th grade students, and both classes of 5th graders studied two of Ms. Williams’s outstanding picture book biographies. With M.A. in English/Creative Writing candidate, Katie Mathew, along to help, I visited all the 7th and 8th grade classes for a day to discuss Genesis Begins Again and work on writing together, and the 5th graders were treated to a lesson with Dr. Sharon Jones, the Chair of the newly formed Department of Women’s, Gender, and African American Studies, who also happens to be a Zora Neale Hurston scholar. Dr. Jones’s visit was magical, embodying the ideal bridge between the University and our schools that we are always striving to build.
Burris teachers at the elementary level did innovative, exciting things with Williams’s work in their classrooms. Ms. Phelps, the elementary art teacher, worked with students to design a bulletin board in which they used art to show what the inside of their heads feel like as compared to the outside front that they put up for others to see. Ms. Ohly-Davis, the orchestra teacher, made a spreadsheet of every song and artist that appeared in Genesis Begins Again, introducing the students to artists like Billie Holliday, Ella Fitzgerald, and Etta James. Mr. Jackson, the choral director, created a playlist with these artists for
Photo by JB Bilbrey, ’19, ’20
the evening writer-in-residence event at Burris. In short, everyone was inspired and the enthusiasm was contagious.
We collaborated with community organizations to distribute books and promotional materials in the months leading up to Ms. Williams’s visit. Our partners at Greater Muncie Habitat for Humanity even took books (complete with bookmarks advertising all the free events) around our neighborhoods to stock the local little free libraries. The staff of the Ross Community Center suggested having an afterschool program event at dinner time and providing a meal for all attendees in order to draw the largest number of participants from busy families in our community—a brilliant idea that resulted in over one hundred people attending our community meet-and-greet pizza party at the Ross Center.
Meanwhile, Ball State undergraduates were also studying Genesis Begins Again, across a range of programs including English secondary education, elementary teacher education, creative writing, and African American studies. These students had the opportunity to learn not only about teaching children’s books, but also about building community-focused programs around diverse literature. Ms. Williams’s speech on “Writing for Young People” created a lot of buzz among the Ball State undergraduates who attended her talk and participated in the accompanying literary publishing fair.
The Fall 2023 residency-in-the-schools program was inspired by the inaugural program in Fall 2021 during which we brought in bestselling author and Ball State alumna Ashley Ford. We are so excited to have Ms. Ford’s continued involvement and support as we expand this program into local schools. A dedicated advocate for Indiana youth and the arts, Ms. Ford has committed to being a part of the program moving forward and returning to campus during the residency to do a public interview with the writer, as she did last fall with Ms. Williams.
Ultimately, the campus and community had a lot of fun with storytelling, including at the Ross Center party where Ms. Williams signed books and answered questions about the writing life, and, when things got a little too rowdy, calmed and entertained the children by performing the story of Br’er Fox and Doc Rabbit. Together, Ms. Williams and Ball State faculty members visited Northside and Southside Middle Schools to have deep conversations about books and writing (one student asked: How did you feel when you were writing Genesis Begins Again?). At Burris, the students themselves were empowered to host fishbowl-style bookclubs with Ms. Williams on the stage in the auditorium. Burris 5th graders and middle schoolers asked insightful questions. The meticulous preparation and professional maturity displayed by these students was extraordinary.
I’m delighted to share that The Efroymson Family Fund will be supporting the program again this year and the 2024 Ball State’s Writer-inResidence-in-the-Schools Program will bring Hena Khan, an award-winning author of picture books and middle-grade fiction to Muncie October 28-30 for public events and school visits. Ms. Khan has five new books coming out this year, including Drawing Deena, Behind My Doors: The Story of the World’s Oldest Library, and We Are Big Time—a graphic novel about “an all-girls, hijab-wearing basketball team.” Her groundbreaking middle grade novel Amina’s Voice was named a Best Book of 2017 by the Washington Post, NPR, Kirkus Reviews, and others. As a child, Khan spent countless hours at the public library, but never saw her life as a Pakistani American Muslim reflected in the pages of a book. After completing her MA in International Affairs from The George Washington University, Khan worked with non-profit health organizations as a writer and editor for many years. Born and raised in Maryland, she enjoys sharing and writing about her culture and religion, as well as many other topics—from community and friendship to spies and space travel.
Once again, we’ll be focused on getting Ms. Khan’s books out to young people in the Muncie community, giving them greater access to books and the sense of possibility stories create.
As Ashley Ford says: “You can’t be it if you can’t see it.”
Photo by Samantha Blankenship,
’15
Political Science Major Elected Vice President of Student Government
The College of Sciences and Humanities was thrilled to have 36 students receive the honor of making the Top 100 list. One such student is Brenna Large, a junior double major in political science and history with a minor in fashion. The Plymouth, Indiana local Ms. Large was identified as a Top 50 student as well in recognition of all that she has achieved throughout her time at Ball State thus far.
As a double major, Ms. Large has had the opportunity to explore a variety of academic interests over the past few years. When asked why she chose to pursue her majors here at Ball State, she noted that she was influenced by the post-graduate opportunities that current students have received. In particular, graduates of the Ball State Department of History have gone into master’s degrees at universities that she is interested in, which is what officially sold her. It was evident to Ms. Large that the education she would receive at Ball State was ideal for her time after undergrad. In addition to history, she chose the political science program here because she was able to choose a general track rather than a specific niche, which would allow her to explore various topics of study, which is especially beneficial as a double major. Overall, Ms. Large chose Ball State because she truly felt at home on the campus and could envision herself at the University. This has proven true for her, as she highlights that one of the best things about her time here has been the friends and connections she’s made.
Outside of the classroom, Ms. Large has embraced all that Ball State has to offer regarding student activities. Her largest commitment is with the Student Government Association (SGA), for which she currently serves as the Vice President. Ms. Large has been a member of SGA since she was a freshman, serving as a senator, parliamentarian, and president pro tempore prior to her current role. She has been able to blend her positions within Student Government with her education, as Ms. Large has worked with the Department of Political Science to host events and recruit new SGA members.
One notable collaboration was the 2022 Election Night Watch Party, where Ms. Large, along with other members of the SGA executive board, coordinated with the department of political science and VSTOP to provide students with a non-partisan space to view live election results. Additionally, Ms. Large has worked with the department of political science on SGA recruitment efforts, speaking with prospective and current students about the organization and how to join. Through leveraging these connections, Ms. Large has been able to bring her studies and student engagement together.
Looking forward to the future, Ms. Large’s current post-graduation plans include pursuing a graduate degree in a public history museum program, ideally in Washington, DC, or in the New England/East Coast area. As she approaches her senior year, one piece of advice that she has for incoming freshmen is to take advantage of all the opportunities that they have here at Ball State. There are so many different avenues that one can take while at the University, and she encourages every student to go out and search for their community and second home. - Monet Lindstrand, ’24
Photos by Megan Neal, ’22, ’24
Criminal Justice Students Create Campus Police Virtual Training Simulator
This fall, a Criminal Justice and Criminology (CJC) immersive learning capstone course used Multiple Interactive Learning Objectives (MILO) virtual training software to construct various scenarios specific to Ball State University to train University police officers. The MILO Training Simulator allows trainees to choose their reactions to various scenarios. These training scenarios will allow UPD to better train for and react to the unique situations of policing on college campuses presents to them.
The idea for the capstone began when students in Associate Professor Dr. Indigo Koslicki’s CJC 333 (Policing in a Free and Diverse Society) class observed that current police training simulations in the MILO system seemed inadequate for the demands of university police departments, such as UPD. Current police training software is targeted toward the training needs of municipal departments and neglects more specific scenarios where campus officers may find themselves.
Dr. Koslicki created an immersive learning class to identify ways to remedy this gap in the police training curriculum. The class familiarized itself with the MILO software and its use by campus police, then created a survey for campus police to analyze their experience with the simulation and determine ways the training could be improved.
Upon analyzing the data, students found that officers frequently responded to mental health calls, domestic violence, crowd control, theft situations, and traffic stops. Many of these situations do not receive adequate coverage in the MILO simulation, especially crowd control situations. To remedy this issue, the class created new scenarios to be included in the MILO simulation. These included a student stealing a bike, crowd control at a fraternity party, a mental health crisis in a dorm room, and a traffic stop. Capstone students acted in these scenarios, and the Digital Corps assisted in filming them.
Officers training in the simulation are given a laser pistol and taser to be used on the virtual subjects at their discretion. They can interact with the simulation through several realistic preset courses of action. The system even has shoot-back capabilities using rubber bullets to further increase the reality of the simulation. UPD said the additions are useful to their training needs and help trainees work through the scenarios. Capstone students expressed that this experience was valuable in showing them all the various police scenarios, how to improve de-escalation, and how to put themselves in a public safety mindset for future policing and criminal justice careers. Many students have expressed that they feel proud to have been involved in a project with practical use and impact, and Dr. Koslicki plans to expand this capstone project in future offerings of the course. - Nathan Herbst
Photos by Megan Neal, ’22, ’24