DN
E E M T
NEW DIRECTION
THURSDAY, MARCH 26, 2015
Students respond to news of member leaving band
Get to know your future SGA secretary
SEE PAGE 3
THE DAILY NEWS
BALLSTATEDAILY.COM
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FOOTBALL
Injury to sideline Banks for season
SCRUTINY SPARKS ADMINISTRATIVE RESPONSE
Team looks for replacement running back for 2015-16 ROBBY GENERAL STAFF REPORTER | @The_Generex6
n email sent by student leaders EMAIL TO to President Paul W. Ferguson COMMUNITY Chief of was the catalyst for a campus- SGA Staff reaches to Ball State wide email from the president sent out community Wednesday, addressing the selection leaders of this year’s John R. Emens Outstand- + PAGE 5 ing Senior Award winner. The letter’s author, Student Government Association Chief of Staff Chris Taylor, along with SGA President Nick Wilkey, met Tuesday afternoon with Dean of Students Kay Bales and Associate Vice President for Student Affairs Thomas Gibson to discuss the letter, which was also sent to Bales and Director of Student Life Jennifer Jones-Hall. The email highlighted the concerns and complaints of many students. Those concerns include the need for:
Emens Award controversy opens dialogue on university’s standards on transparency, race relations
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LAUREN CHAPMAN UNIFIED MEDIA ONLINE MANAGING EDITOR lechapman@bsu.edu
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After losing record-breaking running back Jahwan Edwards and his 4,558 career rushing yards to graduation following the 2014-15 season, the Ball State football team was left looking for a new starter in the backfield. Horactio Banks, Edwards’ backup for the past three seasons, was expected to compete for a starting role, but a lower leg injury will lead to his missing the entire 2015-16 season. “For [Banks], it was time to hang it up,” Joey Lynch, Ball Sate’s offensive coordinator, said. “[Getting the surgery] was a tough decision for all of us, ... but I believe he made the right decision.” After using his redshirt his freshman season, Banks is not eligible to play this year after the injury is healed.
See BANKS, page 6
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Young cast performs classic show
The controversy stems from comments made two years ago by this year’s winner, who at the time owned a Confederate flag. She no longer owns the flag. Wilkey said students involved in the Office of Student Life — including student government
Musical theater students put on ‘Oklahoma!’ beginning Friday KATHRYN HAMPSHIRE STAFF REPORTER | kmhampshire@bsu.edu Starting Friday, a young cast of Ball State musical theatre students tackle “Oklahoma!,” a production that Director Karen Kessler, associate professor of theatre, said “changed the course of the American musical.” “The show is so much fun and a privilege to be a part of due to the iconic nature of the piece,” said sophomore musical theatre major ABOUT THE MUSICAL Maggie Ludwig, WHAT who plays Lau- “Oklahoma!” rey Williams in WHEN the show. “‘Okla- 7:30 p.m. Friday and March homa!’ was the 31 through April 4; 8 p.m. first musical to Saturday; and 2:30 p.m. truly bring to- Sunday and April 4 gether singing, WHERE dancing, and act- University Theatre ing as a mode of COST storytelling and General Public: $18; Faculty/ shaped the way Staff: $17; Senior Citizens: musicals were $15; and Students, $13 structured from then on.” Because of how well-known the musical is, Kessler said “when you do ‘Oklahoma!’, you have to do ‘Oklahoma!’” To make this production unique, the crew worked to create a set that capitalized on the wide open spaces of the state from which the show takes its name. For this reason, the houses and buildings will be more like outlines than solid structures.
See OKLAHOMA, page 3
MUNCIE, INDIANA
ANYONE KNOW WHAT HAPPENED TO SPRING?
An open forum to discuss race relations.
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DN PHOTO BREANNA DAUGHERTY
Ball State President Paul W. Ferguson spoke with more than 150 people at the Student Government Association’s open forum Wednesday. Ferguson answered questions about diversity, social media, racial sensitivity and the LGBTQ community.
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A review of the selection process for this and other awards.
An investigation of the Office of Student Life’s “advising practices and workplace culture.”
One of those examples was present in the email to Ferguson and his administration; Taylor highlighted a comment that Jones-Hall sent in an email: “The Big 4 are not making comments [about the Emens Outstanding Senior Award] because the[y] are funded
and the Big 4: the Black Student Association, Spectrum, the Latino Student Union and the Asian American Student Association — had presented complaints to Wilkey and Taylor about threats of funding cuts for moving away from the university’s message.
through the University and so is SGA. I would be careful not to bite the hand that feeds you. My two cents.” Early on Wednesday, JonesHall apologized about her statement to those involved but has not returned media calls regarding the comment.
See RESPONSE, page 5
CITY OF MUNCIE TO WIDEN NEELY AVENUE Street that connects university to Muncie will have new median |
ROSE SKELLY CHIEF REPORTER rmskelly@bsu.edu
The city of Muncie is widening Neely Avenue, adding a median and improving sidewalks. Superintendent of Muncie Public Works Duke Campbell said the city is redoing Neely Avenue from New York Avenue to Wheeling Avenue starting this year. The improvements will help connect the campus to Muncie, he said. “We want to get as much connectivity from Ball State to Muncie and to some of our assets, like Minnetrista. The mayor has a very good relationship with Ball State, and Neely is a heavily traveled road,” Campbell said. “We just wanted CONTACT US
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to beautify that area and make it much more walkable.” Once the city finishes its work on Neely, the street will look similar to the section of Neely that runs from McKinley to New York Avenue on Ball State’s campus, said Jim Lowe, Ball State director of engineering, construction and operations. Campbell said 80 percent of the cost will be covered by federal aid, with the city paying the remainder. Ball State is not providing any financial assistance for the project, but Lowe said the university is always looking for ways to collaborate with Muncie on projects that will benefit both parties. He hasn’t heard of any complaints from Neely residents and doesn’t foresee any, as the new road will increase property values. Campbell said the city is looking to repave Wheeling Avenue in the future. “Any time the city of Muncie is 1. CLOUDY
TWEET US
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DN PHOTO BREANNA DAUGHERTY
Muncie plans on widening Neely Avenue, adding a median and improving its sidewalks. Jim Lowe, Ball State director of engineering, construction and operations, said the renovations will help better connect the university to downtown Muncie. THE PULSE OF BALL STATE
doing improvements, … that’s an enhancement for all of us who live here and who work at the university, and the university itself,” Lowe said. “[The Neely Avenue improvement will] create a better connection to the downtown, which is what Mayor Tyler and others are working on:
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Scattered showers
High: 44 Low: 26
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The up-and-down pattern will continue as we cool down over the next couple of days. We will not even hit 50 degrees again until the end of the weekend and beginning of next week. - Cody Bailey, WCRD chief weather forecaster 10. DRIZZLE
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13. SNOW SHOWERS
$15 PRESALE - $20 AT THE GATE
Walnut St, Downtown Muncie. FREE trolley to campus & area hotels 7p-3a
LIVE MUSIC | 10 OUTDOOR BARS | BUDWEISER FIREWORKS AT MIDNIGHT 15. HEAVY SNOW
16. SLEET
17. FREEZING RAIN
Mechanical Bull | Stunt Jump | Human Orbs | Go-Go Cage | The Extreme Midget Wrestling Federation Blue Moon Circus Sideshow | Cirilla’s Dance Party & Game Tent | Live Music Stages from Be Here Now & The Acoustic Room BSU marching Band | Carenza’s Caravan of belly dancers | Fire Spinners & Aerial Acts | After Dark’s drag show and sizzling hot male revue
TICKETS AVAILABLE AT DOWNTOWNMUNCIE.ORG/MUNCIEGRAS | 765.282.7807 19. RAIN/SNOW MIX
20. THUNDERSTORMS
21. SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS
how to connect the downtown with the greater part of Muncie, Ind., and Ball State University. There’s a lot of wonderful establishments downtown, and if you can find a means to make it more of a connected area to campus, that could draw more people downtown.”
18. WINTRY MIX
THE PULSE OF BALL STATE
THE PULSE OF BALL STATE
VOL. 94, ISSUE 103
THE PULSE OF BALL STATE