Our Call to Beneficence

After graduating from Ball State in 1984, Tim Andrews embarked upon a successful career that began in journalism and concluded in the promotional products industry. Tim spent 16 years at Dow Jones and Company in New York City, where he served in a variety of roles. Most recently, he completed a 23-year tenure as the CEO of the Advertising Specialty Institute (ASI), before retiring earlier this yea...

Len Forkas is an author and entrepreneur who, in his free time, pushes his limits as an endurance athlete to raise money for his charity, Hopecam. He’s also a proud graduate who credits his undergraduate education as the foundation to his fulfilling career and the meaningful life he leads in service to other people.  In this episode, Len talks about how his son’s childhood cancer diagnosis inspire...

Michele Musson is a proud two-time Ball State graduate who currently serves as an Executive Director of Marketing for Eli Lilly and Company. In this episode, she reveals how her interest in working for the Indianapolis-based Fortune 500 company began when she was quite young.  Michele also describes how being the recipient of our University’s Emens Leadership Scholarship changed her life. And she...

Marianne Glick is an Indianapolis-based philanthropist, artist, and entrepreneur. She is also a passionate supporter of student success and a former member of the Ball State University Board of Trustees.  In this episode, Marianne shares the evolution of her relationship with our University, from leading training seminars at our Foundation to becoming a trustee. She also reveals why she wanted to...

Jud Fisher is a member of the extended Ball family, a family whose vision and enduring philanthropic support founded and has sustained Ball State University. Jud Fisher is also the president and the chief executive officer of the Ball Brothers Foundation. In that role, he serves as living proof of the Ball family’s longstanding commitment to our University, to Muncie, and to East Central Indiana....

For more than 50 years, Stefan Anderson has had a distinctive relationship with Ball State University. Though he never attended Ball State, Steve became an advocate and friend of the University soon after he became the CEO of First Merchants Bank in 1974. In the decades since, Steve has served on numerous boards and committees, including the Ball State University Foundation Board, chairing Ball St...

Dr. Keith Robinson is an accomplished Ball State graduate who has dedicated his career to informing and inspiring high school students, first as an educator and now as an administrator.  In his current role, Keith serves as the associate principal of educational services for Evanston Township High School in Evanston, Illinois. He is also a dedicated servant leader. He is the first Black trustee el...

Jill Lacy is an accomplished, committed graduate of Ball State University. She serves on the Women of Beneficence Leadership Council, and she is a member of the Ball State University Foundation Board. As a student, Jill was active in student government and in her sorority. After graduating, she earned her master's degree in higher education administration, and then she pursued professional op...

Hugh Jackman is an award-winning actor of television and film. He is also an acclaimed theater performer who won a Tony® Award for his role in The Boy From Oz . Hugh’s most recent Broadway role was in the 2022 revival of The Music Man , which co-starred Ball State instructor and fellow Tony® Award winning actor, Sutton Foster.  In this episode, Hugh talks about joining Sutton this month on one of...

Don Mikesell served as Ball State's dean of students from 1985 to 2001. Before he was an administrator at our university, Don was both an undergraduate and graduate student on our campus.  In this episode, Don reminisces about what Ball State was like when he first enrolled in 1956. From Greek life to helping adopt a more relaxed student dress code (believe it or not, khakis were controversia...

Craig Hartman is an accomplished architect and senior consulting design partner at Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, one of the world’s largest and most prestigious design firms. Craig attended high school in rural Indiana. But it was the education that he received at Ball State University that opened his eyes to the possibility of making a professional name for himself on a global scale.  In this e...

Ron Galbraith is a retired CEO and entrepreneur with a distinctive career path—one that began in academia, continued in healthcare, and ended as an entrepreneur. But before he enjoyed career success, Ron was a Ball State student who, on his first day on campus, walked into the wrong science class.  Ron’s experiences as a first-generation college student in the 1960s shaped his professional aspirat...

Dana Kenworthy has dedicated her professional career to serving the people of Indiana—in particular those who have been victims of abuse and neglect. Currently, she serves as a judge for the second circuit of the Indiana Court of Appeals, which is the second-highest court in the state. But prior to her appointment to the Court of Appeals, Judge Kenworthy served as deputy prosecutor in Grant County...

Throughout Dr. Jeff Bird’s long and fulfilling career in medicine, he has put his patients—and the people of Muncie—first.  Dr. Bird grew up in Muncie. After completing his residency at Ball Hospital, he embarked upon a long and fulfilling career in medicine here in his hometown. As the hospital prepares to celebrate its 100th anniversary, Dr. Bird reflects on the decades he’s spent—first as a doc...

During Brandon Allmon-Jackson’s major theatrical productions, he is never seen by the audiences. But as a stage manager fulfilling his dream of working on Broadway, he’s the person most responsible for making sure big acts—including The Music Man, Back to the Future, and Sunset Boulevard—go off without a hitch. In the years since he graduated from Ball State in 2012, Brandon has applied the skills...

Hope Churchill is a senior studying business administration in our Miller College of Business. She’s also our current student representative on the Board of Trustees. In this role, Hope serves as the voice of her peers, advocating for her fellow Ball State students and bringing their perspectives to the board.  As she prepares to graduate in May, Hope reflects on her Ball State journey and her ser...

Jeff Feltman is a distinguished Ball State graduate who has had an impressive career in foreign affairs and international diplomacy. Currently, Jeff is the John C. Whitehead Visiting Fellow in international diplomacy in the Foreign Policy Program at the Brookings Institution, and he's a senior fellow at the UN Foundation, both of which are based in Washington, D.C. Over the course of his impr...

Paris McCurdy is a graduate who played a pivotal role in Ball State's own March Madness Cinderella Story. Paris was a senior for the Cardinals when he and his teammates won the MAC Championship and went on to compete in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament. As our basketball teams prepare to kick off another season of play, Paris reflects on his memories of that remarkable ’89-’90 season and a...

Roy Weaver spent nearly 30 years serving Ball State University—first as a faculty member and then as an administrator. He was the associate dean of our Teachers College for 10 years, before serving another 16 years as dean. In addition to his passion for serving Ball State students, Roy has a passion for Ball State football, which celebrates its 100th season in 2024. Roy’s appreciation for the Car...

Since 2016, Mike McDaniel has been a dedicated member of the Ball State Board of Trustees. He is also a proud two-time graduate of our University, where he met the professor who became the mentor who shaped his future career in state politics.  Mike recently finished his final legislative session as the executive director of governmental affairs for Krieg DeVault, a law firm based in Indianapolis....

Brady Sallee became the head women’s basketball coach at Ball State University in 2012. Since then, he has established a culture of excellence for the Cardinals, a culture that is rooted in fundamentals and teamwork. For years now, Brady has broken records in Ball State Athletics. He is the only head coach to take his team to nine postseason tournaments, and with 237 victories, he is the winninges...

Hollis Hughes is very well known by many members of the Ball State University community. As a two-time graduate, Hollis had the distinction of serving on the University’s Board of Trustees for more than two decades. Previously, he served as a board member of the Ball State University Foundation, the Alumni Council, and the Black Alumni Council. Hollis studied at Ball State at a time when segregate...

Anand Marri serves as Ball State’s Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs, a position for which he is responsible for the University’s academic mission, including supporting leadership for all academic units.  When he accepted the role in October 2023, Dr. Marri was no stranger to Ball State. He previously served three years as dean of the Teachers College, during which time enr...

Over the past three decades of his career at Ball State, Jim Lowe has dedicated himself to ensuring the functionality, comfort, safety, and sustainability of every building that makes up the University’s campus.  As the associate vice president for facilities planning and management, Jim is responsible for the day-to-day operations and maintenance of the University’s facilities—and for planning, d...

Over the past three seasons, President Geoffrey S. Mearns has been the one asking his guests questions on “Our Call to Beneficence.” For this episode of the podcast, his two youngest children, his twins Geoffrey Jr. and Molly, turn the tables by interviewing him. “Our goal in doing this was to hopefully give people a side of you that they might not know,” Geoffrey Jr. tells his father at the outse...