BSU 04-22-21

A DIVERSE DIRECTION Partnership Project

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04.22.2021

ballstatedailynews.com

ELLIOTT DEROSE, DN

@bsudailynews

DNNews

04.22.21

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Did you miss it? Catch up on the news from April 17-20 on ...

BallStateDailyNews.com Cardinals finish 5th Baseball splits at championship meet series with Eagles

GRACE RAMEY, DN FILE

UNSPLASH, PHOTO COURTESY

April 17: Ball State Women’s Swimming and Diving had its best finish at the Mid-American Conference Championships since 2005, placing fifth. Freshman Marcella Ribeiro became the Cardinals’ first-ever champion in the 1650 freestyle with a time of 16:32.61, earning All-MAC honors.

Ribeiro also finished with a time of 10:01.21 in the 1000 freestyle.

April 18: The Cardinals took two out of four games against Eastern Michigan. Ball State fell 10-6 in Friday’s series opener before splitting Saturday’s doubleheader with a 13-8 win followed by a 2-1 loss. In Sunday’s series finale, the Cardinals scored all five of their runs in the final three innings to earn a 5-2 victory. Ball State returns home against Northern Illinois April 23-25.

Indiana extends FAFSA filing deadline

Derek Chauvin convicted of 3 charges

April 19: The Indiana Commission for Higher Education has extended the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) deadline date past the original April 15 date. There is no set date for deadline extension, but the commission is encouraging all students to file the FAFSA as soon as possible. This extension also applies to state aid programs.

VOL. 100 ISSUE: 31 CONTACT THE DN Newsroom: 765-285-8245 Editor: 765-285-8249, editor@bsudailynews.com

The Ball State Daily News (USPS144-360), the Ball State student newspaper, publishes Thursdays during the academic year, except during semester and summer breaks. The Daily News is supported in part by an allocation from the General Fund of the university and is available free to students at various campus locations.

EDITORIAL BOARD Zach Piatt, Editor-in-chief Taylor Smith, Managing Editor Grace McCormick, News Editor Nicole Thomas, Lifestyles Editor Ian Hansen, Sports Editor Jacob Musselman, Photo Editor Elissa Maudlin, Interim Opinion Editor Josh Bennett, Video Editor June Cooper, Social Media Editor John Lynch, Copy Director CREATIVE SERVICES Elliott DeRose, Creative Director Maggie Getzin, Print Design Editor Kamryn Tomlinson, Web Design Editor

April 20: After 10 hours of deliberation, the jury on the George Floyd murder trial found former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin guilty of seconddegree unintentional murder, third degree murder and second degree manslaughter. Chauvin arrested Floyd for suspicion of using a counterfeit bill and kneeled on his neck for nearly nine minutes.

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CORRECTION In the April 15 edition of The Ball State Daily News, a flower photo gallery blurb inaccurately labeled photos of pansies as petunias.

4-DAY WEATHER

FORECAST Vanessa Hintz, Weather forecaster, Benny Weather Group

THURSDAY

FRIDAY

SATURDAY

SUNDAY

PARTLY CLOUDY

MOSTLY SUNNY

SCATTERED SHOWERS

MOSTLY SUNNY

Hi: 53º Lo: 36º

Hi: 63º Lo: 45º

Hi: 58º Lo: 40º

Hi: 59º Lo: 37º

THIS WEEK: Temperatures will start to rise this next week, ranging from the 60s to mid 70s. Mostly cloudy skies for majority of the week, mostly taking place during the second half. Precipitation and thunderstorms are likely halfway through the week.

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DNNews

04.22.21

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Karli Smith’s family mourns her death during a vigil at Monument Circle after the April 15 mass shooting April 18, 2021. The vigil was held for the eight victims killed in the shooting at an Indianapolis FedEx facility. JADEN WHITEMAN, DN; MAGGIE GETZIN, DN PHOTO ILLUSTRATION

ON BALLSTATEDAILYNEWS.COM: BALL STATE SGA INAUGURATES STRIVE EXECUTIVE SLATE

DNNews

04.22.21

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Ball State senior and Indianapolis community gather to mourn victims of FedEx mass shooting.

Maya Wilkins Assistant News Editor

B

randon Smith, 21, stood just below the steps at Monument Circle in Indianapolis April 18 with a megaphone in his hand, his voice shaking and his eyes filled with tears. Surrounded by family, friends and strangers, Smith told the story of his “baby sister,” Karli Smith.

Smith described Karli as “the glue that holds the family together.” He said she was always so happy and could make everyone smile, even if they were having the worst day.

That’s what made the April 15 mass shooting at the Indianapolis FedEx facility so much harder for Brandon Smith and the rest of his family.

Karli Smith was one of the eight victims who were shot and killed.

A prayer vigil was held at 2 p.m. April 18

at Monument Circle in Indianapolis to mourn those who died from the shooting.

Brandon Smith called for mental health reform, particularly because he believes the mental health care and police systems in place failed the shooter’s family. Police identified Brandon Hole the day after the shooting, and his family released a statement saying his mother tried to get help for her son a year prior to the April 15 event.

“All of us here — we’re grieving somebody.

We all know somebody who was affected,” Smith said. “And now, because somebody couldn’t get help for their son, here we are.”

Smith said he was still in shock over his sister’s death, and his heart goes out to all the families who are also hurting.

“For it to not just be close to home — but at home — is a shocking experience,” Smith said.

Ball State senior public communications major and Indianapolis native Taylor Hall helped organize the vigil.

“I just hate that we only come together as a community when tragedies happen,” Hall said. “This is not what I want us to get together for, but I’m happy we can come together in solidarity, and support each other and uplift one another.”

Hall said she never realized how much these events affect people until it directly impacted her. She knew Karli Smith from their days playing basketball together at Crispus Attucks High School.

“It’s just crazy,” Hall said. “When you know someone so vividly [and] you see something happen in your community, then, you realize that was someone you knew and that was someone you talked to every day.”

When Hall saw the news of the shooting, she remembered she had friends who worked at FedEx, but Smith didn’t immediately cross her mind.

“I saw her picture, and I realized I knew her,” Hall said. “I went to school with her

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DNNews

On the steps of Monument Circle in downtown Indianapolis, friends and families of the eight victims listened as members of the community spoke to the crowd about gun laws and remembering the victims.

JACOB MUSSELMAN, DN; MAGGIE GETZIN, DN

every day, I played basketball with her … I mentored her.”

Not only were the two teammates, but Hall also helped Smith and her friends with school.

When Smith decided she didn’t want to play basketball anymore, she was still encouraged to be part of the team’s “family” as a manager, riding the bus to each of the games and creating memories with the team.

“I’m glad we’re all together during this time because, if I was alone, I would probably lose my mind just thinking about it and thinking about everything that’s been going on,” Hall said.

As Hall shared her stories of Smith, her voice continuously grew louder, and her eyes welled up with tears. Smith’s family sat behind her, surrounded by flowers given in memory of their loved one, listening as Hall used her memories of Smith to inspire change.

“It’s like we can’t get a break,” Hall said.

“We’re in a pandemic. We’re dealing with police brutality, dealing with terrorism. We’re dealing with hate crimes. So, now more than ever, we need to come together.”

Hall organized the vigil with help from Tyshara Loynes, 21. Loynes works for

the Indiana Black Legislative Caucus in Indianapolis, an organization that works to improve minority communities throughout the state.

Loynes helped Hall organize the event after the two protested last week in honor of Daunte Wright, who died April 10 after he was shot by a Minnesota police officer, and decided they needed to do something for the victims of the FedEx shooting as well.

Loynes said they made sure to reach out to the victims’ families to be “respectful to everybody’s beliefs and their rights and not [speak] for them.”

Rep. Andre Carson from Indiana’s 7th Congressional district, who Hall interns with, told the victims’ families he was on their side and his office was going to try to do whatever it could to reform gun laws and prevent another mass shooting.

“Today should let you know that we are one community, we are one family, we are one America and we are one humanity,” Carson said. “All of the people here are concerned citizens who are standing with [the families] every day.”

Four of the eight victims were members of the Indianapolis Sikh community, whose families and friends are calling for a hate crime investigation. Friends and family members came forward, sharing memories of their loved ones and trying to ignite change.

Vigil attendee Gurpreet Balaggan lost two of his aunts in the shooting and spoke on behalf of his family.

“It’s really hard,” Balaggan said. “I have no words that can describe what the family is going through, but seeing everyone here together — it gives us a little hope. We know we’re not alone.”

Balaggan said most of the victims were working at FedEx to provide for their families and give them a better life, but, unfortunately, they couldn’t see it come to fruition.

“Let’s come together, let’s pray, let’s bring change, let’s end hate, let’s act as humans first,” Balaggan said. “We need you to all come together, learn to live together and love each other.”

Contact Maya Wilkins with comments at mrwilkins@bsu.edu or on Twitter @mayawilkinss.

DNNews

04.22.21

year-round gathering place

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come discover something new at minnetrista

Coming home at last Ball State prepares for Homecoming Week in a new format.

John Lynch Reporter

WHAT WILL BALL STATE’S SPRING HOMECOMING LOOK LIKE? April 26, 7 p.m. — Homecoming Kickoff:

This virtual event will feature speeches by the Homecoming Steering Committee, athletics coaches and President Geoffrey Mearns.

April 27, 7 p.m. — Student Scholarship Talent Search: This event will be posted on the Ball State Homecoming YouTube page, featuring pre-recorded student performances.

April 28, 4 p.m. — Virtual Alumni Panel- Feedback from our Most Engaged Alumni: Several successful donors and alumni will hold panels open to questions from viewers about their careers postBall State.

April 28, 7 p.m. — Alumni Chapter Night:

Held on Zoom, this event will include a town hall with Mearns, a student showcase and a panel with the alumni chapter leaders.

April 30, Noon — Bed Race:

The annual bed race tradition will be held in person, with spectators getting access to the race virtually. Teams of four will race down University Track at the Briner Sports Complex in assigned timeslots. Registration is due by noon April 28.

April 30, 1 p.m. — Homecoming Alumni Golf Outing at The Player’s Club:

at minnetrista come discove something new at minnetrista

Alumni will participate in a golf outing at 1 p.m.

April 30, 7 p.m. — Alumni Association Virtual Awards Reception: This virtual event will honor the accomplishments of members of the Alumni Association.

April 26 - May 1 — Cards in the Yard Decorating Contest

Students and alumni can decorate cards and place them in select locations to be judged on their design and appeal to Cardinal pride. Submissions close April 26 at 5 p.m. and will be judged in the April 29, 7 p.m. — Air Jam: following categories: Air Jam will be held virtually on the • Alumni house lawn Ball State Homecoming YouTube • Department (campus department) minnetrista.net page. According to Ball State’s • Faculty/staff lawn 1200lawn n. minnetrista pkwy. website on Homecoming activities, • Greek organization “Judges award points to groups that • Home office minnetrista.net muncie, in 47303 . 765.282.4848 build Ball State pride and spirit in • Independent student house lawn their act ... participants will be scored • Muncie business on how creative their dance is and • Residence hall room how well they perform their dance.”

Source: Ball State Homecoming Steering Committee

1200 n. minnetrista pkwy. muncie, in 47303 . 765.282.4848

1200 n. minnetrista pkwy. minnetrista.net muncie, in 47303 . 765.282.4848

11020IN

See HOMECOMING, 26

KYLE CRAWFORD, BYTE FILE

11020IN

Nearly 14 months removed from the last Homecoming Week, Ball State is preparing to hold the annual event again April 26-May 1 with some significant changes.

Other than the obvious rescheduling of Homecoming from the fall semester to the spring, the 94th annual week-long event will be held in a hybrid virtual and inperson fashion.

Senior advertising major and Homecoming Steering Committee General Chair Kelly Asiala said she remains excited about the latest rendition of the event despite a long wait and the many changes made to the programming of it.

“It’s been really both heartbreaking and amazing to be one of the leaders of this Homecoming because, of course, I wanted to give Ball State the Homecoming they know and love, but, without that being possible, we were able to create something amazing for them,” she said.

Asiala, along with Homecoming Steering Committee Advisor Michelle Johnson, learned Homecoming would play out differently shortly after concerns of COVID-19 sent students home and national lockdown orders were imposed.

Neither knew the extent to which they would have to adapt the event, Johnson said, so they made plans for various Homecoming scenarios that could create a suitable experience regardless of the conditions.

Students from the Ball State University Singers take off during the Ball State Bed Races Oct. 18, 2019 on Riverside Avenue. The Bed Races have been a Homecoming Week tradition at Ball State since 1980.

your year-round gathering your placeyear-round gathering come discover placesomething new

COVID choreography

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DNNews

Annual Air Jam competition continues with pandemic adjustments.

Elissa Maudlin Reporter

At first, there is silence. Several performers stand like statues on the stage, waiting for the first beat of music to signal the start of their dance. As their breath quickens from nerves, they might be tempted to look out into the crowd, where their friends would normally be cheering them on.

However, this year is different — there is no cheering crowd.

Air Jam, a lip-synching and dancing competition, is one of Homecoming’s most popular events, said Amelia Lynas, junior advertising major and social media and publicity chair of the Homecoming Steering Committee, and it usually brings a packed house to Emens Auditorium.

This year, the competing teams pre-recorded their performances, which will be compiled and aired on the Ball State Homecoming YouTube page at 7 p.m. April 29.

“The efforts are way more on me to make sure I’m communicating with people even more … There’s extra posts, extra communication,” Lynas said. “I have to make sure that all my information is accurate before I post and just make sure that [the performers] have everything they need … It’s all digital, so that’s a huge part of my job.”

Sometimes, I would show my first half of my body doing the dance. Then, I would lower the computer down so they could see my feet.”

- SIDNEY MILNE, Senior fashion merchandising major and Sigma Kappa Air Jam student leader The performances will not include lip-syncing due to maskwearing requirements. Another change from previous years is Air Jam will be free and exclusively on YouTube, giving incoming students the opportunity to experience Air Jam before they even set foot on campus.

One struggle in this year’s process was getting groups to participate, said Grace Belangee, senior exercise science major and Air Jam chair of the Homecoming Steering Committee. Last year, Air Jam had 20 groups while this year, it only had 11.

“Organizations are in transition with their budget because there is a $100 entry fee for Air Jam,” Belangee said. “So, they’re like, ‘Well, we didn’t really plan out our budget to be paying this’ because, normally, Homecoming is in the fall, so they can see that really early on.”

Performers have also dealt with challenges when it comes to online Air Jam. For Sidney Milne, senior fashion merchandising major and Air Jam student leader for the sorority Sigma Kappa, these challenges included teaching a dance routine over Zoom.

Members of the Ball State Code Red Dance Team perform their routine to an almost-empty Emens Auditorium April 14, 2021. The recording of Air Jam was closed to the public, only allowing media members and participants. JACOB MUSSELMAN, DN “Sometimes, I would show my first half of my body doing the dance. Then, I would lower the computer down so they could see my feet,” Milne said. “Automatically, when I started teaching it, I was facing the camera, when, in reality, you want to see the back of the person. So, everyone started learning it opposite. Once we put that together, I started teaching it with my back facing the camera.”

Milne also addressed the challenge of performers needing to be 6 feet apart at all times, and she had to think about that while choreographing. She was also concerned about whether she’d be able to meet in person with her organization.

Despite the adjustments, one thing Milne remembers is how excited people are to go to Air Jam. “You’d always hear people like, ‘Are you going to Air Jam? We should all go together.’ I just remember people building up that excitement,” Milne said. “Even when we would have our chapter meetings, the seniors would leave after chapter, and they’re like, ‘We have to race and change because we have Air Jam practice.’”

Kelsie Clayton, senior legal studies major and captain of the Code Red Dance team, said Air Jam has been part of Code Red’s traditions as an event where alumni come back to see the current group’s performance.

“I’ve never known another school to do something like this,” Clayton said. “It just brings all of Ball State together, and it kind of gives us something a little less formal to look forward to.

Everybody is there for fun — no one cares if you’re silly onstage or if you’re making fun of yourself. It’s a different side of your peers you don’t always see.”

Belangee said Air Jam holds a special place in her heart because her sister was the Air Jam chair when she was an undergraduate at Ball State.

“I guess you’d call it following in her footsteps,” Belangee said.

With the difficulties of the 2020-21 school year, this event is being treated as a silver lining for some performers, with their view of the event ranging from bringing them together with others to being the final page in this chapter of their lives.

“We actually got to interact with other girls in our sorority … It was really cool to hang out with them for those two hours for practices and

get to know each other,” said Nichole Eccles, junior exercise science major and Air Jam senior leader for the sorority Phi Mu. With half of Phi Mu’s sorority chapter meetings on Zoom, inperson communication has been in short supply during this school year. Eccles said Air Jam has given people in her organization “some kind of normalcy” because they were meeting for practices and still getting to interact in person.

Meanwhile, Clayton views Air Jam as a special event that impacted her college career.

“It’s a good way to end everything because, my freshman year, the best experience was Air Jam, and it was right at the beginning. It really kicked off how I felt about Code Red,” Clayton said. “Ending that chapter on Air Jam is just really special because it wraps it all up in a neat little bow.”

Contact Elissa Maudlin with comments at ejmaudlin@bsu.edu or on Twitter @ejmaudlin.

How to watch Air Jam Air Jam 2021 will be broadcasted on the Ball State Homecoming YouTube page at 7 p.m. April 29. Anyone can watch for free at any time.

Source: Ball State Homecoming Steering Committee

DNNews

04.22.21

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Parking lot

PARTY

The carnival has rolled into town.

From March 30-April 21, 2021, Muncie locals and others from neighboring areas attended the Muncie Mall Spring Fair, hosted and planned by Jessop Amusements, in the parking lot of the Muncie Mall. Attendees could enjoy circus rides, eat deep fried food and win prizes by playing classic carnival games.

PHOTOS BY RYLAN CAPPER, DN

Sunlight hits the carnival rides just before the carnival opens at 5 p.m.

Carnival worker Kenny Eldridge waits for customers in his booth. Eldridge runs a game where visitors purchase balls to knock down milk cans for a prize.

Carnival atendee Kavion Riley rides the swings at the Muncie Mall Spring Fair.

DNSports

04.22.21

One decision at age 6 shaped Haven Fields into more than just an athlete.

The circle of life Ian Hansen Sports Editor

It’s early 2016, 10 months before Haven Fields’ first son, Haven Jr., is born. Fields is sitting down every day, writing in a journal he will eventually give to his firstborn and, in time, his other son, Hendrix.

Whether it was a sentence or a whole page, Ball State’s deputy athletics director wants his sons — who he has with his wife, Mya Fields, to know what was on his mind.

“Fatherhood is really important to me,” Fields said. “I didn’t have anybody sharing any of that with me. I didn’t have anybody showing me things I needed to do. Having two sons, I will be able to teach them things that no one ever taught me and had to learn on my own.”

The circle of life.

Rewind to when Fields was 6 years old. One decision he made as a child influenced much of who he is today — giving him the opportunity to share his thoughts as a father and be there for his wife and kids.

It was a humid summer day at Coral Reef Park in Miami. Fields’ mother, Retta Mitchell-Brown, signed him up for summer camp. As camp wrapped up, a youth football team began practicing.

“Where’s Haven?” his mother said as she arrived to pick him up from camp.

The camp’s coordinator then told Mitchell-Brown Fields was playing football. Sweating in 65-degree weather, he ran over to the coaches, put his name down and immediately joined the team. From there, Fields fell in love with the game.

Football was just the beginning. Fields went to Miami Palmetto High School, where he also played baseball, basketball and soccer. Although he said playing multiple sports gave him great opportunities and even better experiences, Fields was always drawn to where it began.

He received his first offer to play collegiate football as a sophomore in high school, and his final decision eventually came down to Florida State and Auburn.

Fields said being close to home was important to him. His father lived in Atlanta, a 45-minute drive from Auburn. He wanted to get closer to his father, who was not around much when he was a child.

Fields ultimately chose Auburn, played for the Tigers from 1996-99 and earned his bachelor’s degree in exercise science in 2001. He credits his mother for keeping him focused on school and not getting distracted because she understood the importance of being a first-generation college student.

“She realized that it was a dream of mine,” Fields said. “While she realized football was important, that is never the thing we discussed much of. She always pushed me academically. I didn’t understand it at the time, but, now, I do.”

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Ball State Deputy Athletics Director Haven Fields adjusts a photo of his two sons on the shelving behind his desk April 19, 2021, in his Health and Physical Activity Building office. JACOB MUSSELMAN, DN

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Track and Field

Cardinals break school record at Vanderbilt The relay team of junior Kennedy Batts, fifth-year senior Bryeana Byrdsong, senior MaQuila Norman and senior Michelle Lehmann made history in the 4x100m relay at the Black & Gold Invitational April 17.

The group finished with a time of 45.14, beating the previous program record of 45.20 set in 2019.

Women’s Basketball

5 players earn academic honors Anna Clephane, Blake Smith, Thelma Dis Agustsdottir, Estel Puiggros and Annie Rauch all earned honors for their work in the classroom. A total of 60 student-athletes were named to this year’s honor roll. To receive this, players must have a cumulative 3.2 GPA and participate in at least 50 percent of the contests for the sport.

Softball

Cardinals split games with RedHawks Both Ball State and Miami (Ohio) came into their doubleheader as the only undefeated teams in conference play. In the first game of the day, the Cardinals came back and won the game 4-2, snapping the RedHawks’ 20-game win streak. In game two, Ball State was up 7-2, but Miami (Ohio) came from behind and hit a walk-off home run to win the game.

ON BALLSTATEDAILYNEWS.COM: SOCCER FALLS TO BOWLING GREEN IN MAC CHAMPIONSHIP

DNSports

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Senior goalkeeper Maitane Bravo blocks the ball from going into the net April 11, 2021, at Briner Sports Complex. Bravo had four saves against Eastern Michigan to help the Cardinals advance to the Mid-American Conference Championship.

JADEN WHITEMAN, DN

A PATH OF PERSONAL

TRIUMPH Charleston Bowles Reporter

From the moment she started playing soccer at 5 years old, Maitane Bravo knew she wanted to be a goalkeeper like her father, José Ramón.

At her first communion service, Bravo wore her soccer uniform — not a dress like the other girls.

Her parents gave her a doll for her 6th birthday, but she threw it away in anger. She wanted a soccer ball.

“I still remember being down on the floor, my dad tossing me a ball and learning how to dive,” Bravo said. “He knows how to push me more than anyone else, and he knows where I can get. He’s always the first one I go to for advice.”

Bravo played for her father’s boys’ team until she was 13. After that, she had to play club soccer with the girls. From there, Bravo spent a year playing on Spain’s third division team and her last four years in her home country on the second division team. “[Bravo] has always been very competitive, even in training,” Ramón said. “If she thought she had not worked hard in training or that the training session had not been challenging enough, she would come home grumpy.”

Bravo also had the opportunity to practice with Athletic Club, otherwise known as Athletic Bilbao, a professional team in Spain. She also competed on the U16 and U19 Basque Country national teams but credits her experience with Athletic Club as the most beneficial to her game.

While in Spain, Bravo received an email from the Navarro Junior College coaching staff in Corsicana, Texas, offering her a full-ride scholarship. During Bravo’s visit, Navarro’s coaches told her how passionate they were about landing her commitment, and she quickly made the decision to play overseas.

Maitane Bravo’s soccer experiences around the world have shaped her into the player she is today.

When she arrived in the United States, Bravo dedicated much of her time to the weight room and getting stronger. She said the international game is geared more toward the technical style while the American game is predicated more on physicality and strength. Bravo made the necessary changes to her body and went on to compile a 30-3-1 record from 2017-19 as Navarro’s goalkeeper.

“It was an amazing two years,” Bravo said. “It really helped me not just grow as a player, but as a person. I was the captain of the team, and the coaches gave me so many responsibilities and trusted me with so much. It changed me for the better and is a big reason why I’m here right now.”

After announcing her plans to transfer from Navarro for her last two years of eligibility in spring 2019, Bravo’s phone flooded with calls from college coaches. Former Ball State head coach Craig Roberts set himself apart, she said, because of how much he valued her international background and unique style of play. Bravo committed to Ball State because she thought the program gave her the best opportunity to get better every day.

“I’m not here to play and just have fun,” Bravo said. “I have fun when I win. If I don’t win, I don’t have fun. I care so much because soccer has given me so many things that I can showcase.”

Bravo was not able to play in the fall 2019 season due to injury, and when COVID-19 struck the following spring, she had uncertainties of whether she would play at all in the 2020-21 season. It made Bravo question if she was meant to play for the Cardinals, but she got her chance this spring, starting all 10 games and compiling a 6-3-1 record with 26 saves.

“When someone works and trains like Mai does, there’s a dependability associated with them,” Rife

said. “I think a goalkeeper who is confident and is composed with poise can have such a calming effect for the rest of the group, and Mai has that.”

Bravo said she understands that goalkeepers hold a different responsibility than the rest of their teammates, so she takes great pride in hard work, learning through trial and error and staying mentally tough.

“She knows her position in the field will always be examined with a magnifying glass,” Ramón said. “She has had to live with mistakes and know how to grow in adversity. Behind everything, Mai lets the rest of us see there is always more and more work.”

After a Mid-American Conference West Division Title and a MAC Championship game appearance, Bravo has an idea of her plans for the future. Ever since she can remember, Bravo said, she has had her sights set on playing at the highest level.

“I was 5 years old, and I was going to club practices and seeing them play,” Bravo said. “I always thought that I want to be here — I want to play here when I get older. Playing pro may happen, it may not. I always like to have that as something to look forward to.”

Contact Charleston Bowles with comments at clbowles@bsu.edu or on Twitter @cbowles01.

BRAVO’S JOURNEY TO BALL STATE

Maitane Bravo was born in Spain March 4, 1999. She moved to Texas July 25, 2017. Bravo moved to Indiana in December 2018.

Source: Maitane Bravo MAGGIE GETZIN, DN

DNPartnershipProject

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Leading while

LEARNING Courtney Williams, third-grade teacher at East Washington Academy, teaches her students how to use a wind sock April 19, 2021. Muncie Community Schools recently implemented a program called Project Lead The Way in first-through-fifth-grade classrooms to provide students with a new immersive learning experience. JADEN WHITEMAN, DN

ON BALLSTATEDAILYNEWS.COM: MCS ELEMENTARY SCHOOL TEACHES MULTIPLE LANGUAGES

DNPartnershipProject

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Rhonda Ward makes strides in promoting diversity in Muncie Community Schools.

Taylor Smith Managing Editor At the bottom of every email she sends, Rhonda Ward closes with a quote from Vice President Kamala Harris: “Our unity is our strength, and diversity is our power.”

As assistant principal of Muncie Central High School and Muncie Community Schools’ (MCS) newest director of diversity, Ward starts every day with the power of diversity pushing her forward and the goal to ensure equality and equity for all MCS community members.

While Ward has only held the director of diversity title since June 2020, she said she has been working on her goals related to diversity and inclusion within MCS throughout her 21 years as a faculty member.

“The more I think about it, I thought, ‘Wow, the goals I’ve set for this role I’ve kind of been doing and had been prior to the role,’” Ward said, “which made it so nice when they did officially name me director of diversity.”

Entering education Ward was born and raised in Muncie and found herself moving back after graduating from Tennessee State University with a bachelor’s degree in psychology. While education was not her initial plan, she said, working at Claypool Elementary School as an instructional assistant inspired her to follow a new path.

“From there is when I decided that I wanted to switch over to education,” Ward said. “I worked in a second-grade classroom and loved it. The principal at [Claypool] at the time is the one who encouraged me to go to Ball State and obtain my master’s in education, so that’s what I did.”

After receiving her master’s, Ward went on to complete the principal licensure program at Indiana Wesleyan University. Now, she holds two titles with MCS, sits behind two desks in two offices and works tirelessly in both positions to ensure equality and inclusion of all MCS members.

Taking on the role Since MCS first introduced the job of director of diversity more than a decade ago, it has never stood as its own individual role, Ward said, and, for a while, no one occupied the position. It wasn’t until last year that MCS’ District Equity Team (DET) brought up the idea of filling the position once more.

“I had started working with a group of individuals within the corporation last year,” Ward said. “We started trying to figure out ways that we can improve our district when it comes to ensuring that all of our students and families and staff feel valued and respected.”

DiLynn Phelps, MCS’ former director of

Muncie Community Schools Director of Diversity Rhonda Ward works at her desk in her office April 20, 2021, in the Muncie Community Schools Administration Offices building. Ward has been the director of diversity at MCS since June 2020. JADEN WHITEMAN, DN diversity, is a member of DET. When discussing the issues, Ward said, Phelps spoke up and mentioned the existence of the director of diversity role in the past.

“I did this role before,” Phelps said, “and we could use that role again.”

Ultimately, Ward said, DET continued the conversation of bringing the position back to MCS, and, after a few more meetings, settled on doing so.

“That’s kind of how [director of diversity] came into play,” Ward said. “The more we met, the concern came up that we need someone who can kind of be in charge and lead MCS in that way.”

After further discussion between DET members, it was clear the best person to fill that position was Ward.

“I am thrilled to be the director of diversity and serving in this role at this time,” Ward said. “I want to make sure that equality and equity are being fully enforced and emphasized.”

When Johanna Voss, MCS parent and mother of three Muncie Central High School students, read an article saying MCS was creating the director of diversity job and hiring Ward, she said, she was thrilled.

“I sent her an email at the time and said, ‘I can’t imagine a better person for this job,’” Voss said.

“She’s just been excellent. She has engaged with the students and our children in just amazing ways.”

Carol Daugherty, Muncie Central High School’s

with some other adults in the building,” Daugherty said. “Just being able to relate to who they are and their culture is very helpful.”

Rhonda Ward is deeply committed to doing everything it takes to build an inclusive community.

Whether it is part of MCS or through her work as a member of the MLK Dream Team, Ms. Ward is a visionary in the area of diversity and inclusion.”

- Melinda Messineo, Department chair of psychological science and professor of sociology at Ball State two-dimensional art teacher, also said she believes the position is much needed and Ward fits it well, particularly because of her ability to connect to MCS’ diverse student population on a deeper level.

“I know our students of color feel particularly more comfortable with Mrs. Ward than they do

Improving teacher diversity As director of diversity, Ward said, she is responsible for overseeing the diversity and inclusion efforts of MCS and ensuring culturally responsive practices are consistent throughout the district. To achieve this, Ward has laid out specific goals for herself she hopes to accomplish in her position.

“I would say, for the past few years, I have noticed some areas that I felt like MCS could improve upon when it comes to supporting Black and brown students and even teachers and the staff,” Ward said.

One of these areas includes increasing minority representation when it comes to MCS teachers of color. In an effort to increase these numbers, Ward said she has been coming up with strategies for recruiting teachers of color.

“One of the things that I have started doing is establishing partnerships and relationships with historically Black colleges and universities like Tennessee State University and Kentucky State University,” Ward said. “Another goal is continuing to provide implicit bias training and cultural competency training for our staff, our teachers, our resource officers, our bus drivers — anybody that’s considered a frontline worker in our district.”

13 04.22.21

Rhonda Ward’s director of diversity name badge is pinned to her suit jacket April 20, 2021, in her office in the Muncie Community Schools Administration Offices building. Ward splits her time between the Administration Office and Muncie Central High School, where she is also the assistant principal. JADEN WHITEMAN, DN Earlier this academic year, Ward partnered with Melinda Messineo, department chair of psychological science and professor of sociology at Ball State, to schedule implicit bias training sessions for MCS members in another effort to increase teacher diversity and inclusion.

“Rhonda Ward is deeply committed to doing everything it takes to build an inclusive community,” Messineo said via email. “Whether it is part of MCS or through her work as a member of the MLK Dream Team, Ms. Ward is a visionary in the area of diversity and inclusion.”

In addition to the efforts she has made in relation to improving teacher diversity in MCS, Ward said, simply having a director of diversity has had an impact on the recruitment of more diverse faces.

“A lot of times, when people are looking for jobs, if they see that [an employer] has a director of diversity, they think, ‘Oh, these people are all about equity and inclusion, and that’s where my heart and passion lie, so I’m going to go there,’” Ward said.

“I’m hoping that’s what people see — that there’s someone who will take charge and that they will not only have a voice, but they will be heard.”

Minority Educator Council To ensure minority MCS teachers and faculty feel heard, Ward established the Minority Educator Council (MEC), which she describes as a support group for all teachers of color within MCS. “This idea came to me back in the fall,” Ward said.

“I thought, ‘What can I do to make sure teachers of color feel supported since there are so few of us?

What can I do to help with this initiative?’”

Her main goal in establishing MEC, Ward said, is for these teachers to serve as a means of support

for one another, not just in relation to MCS, but in the inclusion and recruitment of more people like them. MEC serves as a resource where teachers of color can encourage one another, collaborate and bring more ideas and suggestions for increasing MCS teacher diversity.

“When I first met with the group, I told them, ‘I

MCS has 592 employees in its district. Of these employees, only 53 (9%) are minorities

Of those 53 employees, 29 are certified teachers and administrators, and 24 are secretaries and aid employees.

Source: Rhonda Ward ELLIOTT DEROSE, DN

24 (45%) are secretaries and aid employees

29 (56%) are certified teachers and administrators

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Rhonda Ward’s awards and degrees hang on the wall of her office April 20, 2021, in the Muncie Community Schools Administration Offices building. Ward completed the principal licensure program at Indiana Wesleyan University.

JADEN WHITEMAN, DN

want this to be our happy place,’” Ward said. “This is to bring encouragement and some positive light to the role that we have within the district.”

After the first meeting, Ward said, she was filled with positivity and excitement. There was something about meeting with MEC for the first time that made her feel accomplished as director of diversity.

“It was the greatest feeling in the world,” Ward said. “To see the smiles on people’s faces, the nods and the comments that were made was incredible.

We were all feeding off of each other, and the ideas were just coming out. It was the best feeling for me to find out this can really go somewhere and be very positive for the minority group of teachers, and that’s what I wanted it to do.”

While MEC serves as a networking tool for the district to help retain and recruit more minority teachers, Ward said MEC is also used to empower minority students. She said she hopes seeing the faces of diverse teachers working together and succeeding inspires these students to work hard to achieve similar goals.

“I want these students to feel like they have an opportunity to maximize their potential while they are a student,” she said. “I want [these teachers] to serve as mentors for our students.”

Since its foundation, MEC has developed and brought to fruition multiple ideas, including a Black History Month decorating contest, which started this year and will continue as an annual event.

“I was talking to the group, and I said, ‘What can we do that’s really unique or special for Black History Month?’” Ward said. “The idea came out of the group to have a Black History Month decorating contest.”

MEC decided to make it a contest at every level

and in every MCS school. Teachers across MCS were encouraged to include their students in the process of decorating their classroom doors, walls or bulletin boards with something related to Black History Month.

“Oh my gosh, we had so much fun with that event,” Ward said. “It brought a lot of joy to a lot of people — teachers and students. A lot of teachers all across the district participated and got so much joy in doing it. The students were so excited about it. A lot of them helped their classroom teachers. It was so cool.”

Decorations and information varied from school to school, Ward said, but some of her favorites highlighted Amanda Gorman, the Black Lives Matter movement and famous Black tennis players.

“They were phenomenal, oh my goodness,” Ward said. “Kids were excited about it, principals were excited about it. That was one way that our whole district was able to come together, and that’s what I really liked about it.”

While MEC is still relatively new to MCS, Ward said she has big hopes for its future and the ideas that will come out of further collaboration with MEC members.

“We are just getting started,” Ward said. “I’m really excited about the group. I’m hoping that MEC is something that will grow and it will remain in the years to come. That’s my hope, and my goal and my prayer for MEC.”

School Equity Teams In addition to MEC, Ward also decided to bring back MCS School Equity Teams (SET), a concept first introduced by Phelps when she held the role from 2009-16. Each MCS school has a SET

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composed of teachers and counselors that meets once a month at staff meetings to discuss issues of inclusion and diversity.

Daugherty said she has taken on the role of Muncie Central High School’s unofficial SET chairperson. She said she is thankful for what these monthly meetings have taught her about improving inclusion efforts in her classroom.

“Taking time particularly to think about, ‘Hey, what’s this experience like for your students of color, and how can we relate to their experiences, which might be different from ours?’ helps to raise awareness of the issues that we encounter every day,” Daugherty said. “It’s to help the teachers have a point in time monthly where we just give a little time and thought to some of the issues that are experienced, particularly by our African American students, who are a large amount of our school.”

During each SET meeting, Ward said, members participate in what they call “Take 10 Articles.”

Every month, teachers and counselors are given an article describing and discussing some kind of diversity-related issue, Ward said, and answer the questions that go along with the content.

“Teachers are really able to reflect and converse with others, sharing their thoughts, and their ideas and their opinions,” Ward said. “That’s some good dialogue that takes place at the staff meeting once a month.”

Student improvements and efforts Ward’s work regarding diversity efforts extends beyond just MCS teachers and faculty. Another goal of hers is to make sure MCS students feel welcome, included and comfortable in their classrooms.

To do this, Ward said, one of her hopes is to implement a curriculum that has culturally relevant material in each classroom, providing “a variety of texts that include positive, diverse characters.”

When it came to choosing where to send her three children to school, Voss said, this was an important aspect they searched for in every school environment.

“We were really wanting to be in a school district that valued diversity, and inclusion and equity,” Voss said. “I think it has the potential to create an environment in the school that we feel like is an incredible benefit to all students, not just students who would be considered a minority student, and that’s the kind of environment that we want our students to be a part of.”

A second goal Ward is working on for the benefit of MCS students involves efforts to decrease the number of suspensions of Black and brown students. One way she hopes to achieve this is through the continued implementation of MCS’ restorative justice practices, specifically focusing on the high school level.

A final effort Ward detailed involves addressing the practices put in place to provide students of color equitable access to the gifted and talented programs, advanced placement courses and dualcredit opportunities. A major factor in students’ placement into these programs is standardized testing scores,Ward said, and minority students typically score low.

“A lot of times, that’s one of the indicators of students being placed in the advanced placement courses and programs,” Ward said. “We’re trying to put a focus on that to see what other criteria we can come up with so that it’s equitable for Black and brown students.”

Rhonda Ward, MCS director of diversity and assistant principal at Muncie Central High School, takes a phone call in her office April 14, 2021, at Muncie Central High School. Ward was born and raised in Muncie and found herself moving back after graduating from Tennessee State University with a bachelor’s degree in psychology. JACOB MUSSELMAN, DN know they will benefit from a lot of these programs and scholarships that I’ve been able to pass on to them and share with them and their families.”

A representative face The overall goal is that everyone feels respected, everyone feels safe and everyone feels welcomed.

I think that’s huge and important, especially in this day in time that we’re living in.”

- Rhonda Ward, MCS director of diversity and assistant principal at Muncie Central High School

Ward said the role of director of diversity has also opened doors for her in terms of providing more opportunities for minority students regarding educational programs and financial aid, including some summer programs and scholarships.

“I am constantly recruiting students from all levels to get involved and participate,” Ward said. “I

While Ward works diligently on all of her goals behind the scenes, she said, she hopes she can serve as a reminder of the continued efforts of MCS to ensure equality and diversity in the community.

To her, Ward said, being director of diversity means ensuring equality and equity are present between all members of the MCS community, not just MCS leaders.

Ward said one of her hopes is MCS community members know there is a place for them to go where their concerns will not only be heard and listened to, but acted upon and, hopefully, improved.

“People see someone in charge and see that I’m actually taking a stand in being here for anyone that may need someone to speak to them, someone to hear them,” Ward said. “I think that, by having a director of diversity, I hope the community will think, ‘Oh, they’re really serious about this, and they’re truly committed to it because they’ve got someone leading the charge.”

Ward said one of the most important things about being director of diversity is being able to listen. She wants to be the person MCS community members can go to to speak about a concern they have and promise action will be taken to make sure MCS members feel appreciated and respected.

“You have to do more than listen,” Ward said.

“You have to take a stand, and address it and get to the bottom of things so that everyone can improve and be better. The overall goal is that everyone feels respected, everyone feels safe and everyone feels welcomed. I think that’s huge and important, especially in this day in time that we’re living in.”

Learning while leading For the MCS community, Daugherty said, Ward stands as a leader for what it means to work toward improving inclusion and promoting diversity, but Ward said she is continuing to learn herself.

For Ward, she said, becoming director of diversity has been an eye-opening experience. She has learned about the various opinions and biases different people hold and how, sometimes, it can be difficult to shove those aside, but it is necessary to achieve what she has set out to do.

“It’s taught me that we have to have an open mind, and, sometimes, our biases have to go out the window, so to speak, when you’re dealing with people, and you want everyone to feel included,” Ward said. “People will respect you more when they know that you will listen to them.”

While Ward has only been director of diversity for just short of a year, Voss said she has seen Ward’s efforts go beyond this position, as she consistently works with students and MCS members to improve the MCS community.

4See WARD, 19

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AN ONGOING

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online resource

The Education Support Hub helps students and parents navigate school during COVID-19.

Maya Wilkins Assistant News Editor Wake up, log onto Zoom, do school work, repeat.

This is the life millions of children are living across the country — doing everything solely online from their house, seven hours a day, five days a week.

In Muncie, things are no different. To help students navigate their work, members of the

There’s been a pretty positive response to the blog that I’ve been writing. [The audience] likes that it’s down to earth, straightforward and relevant conflict.”

- DAVID MCINSTOSH, Associate dean for faculty affairs and strategic initiatives for Ball State Teachers College

Ball State and Muncie communities created the Education Support Hub, a website built for students who go to Muncie Community Schools (MCS), Burris Laboratory School and Indiana Academy.

The website consists of blog posts providing resources for anyone looking for updates and information about how the COVID-19 pandemic is affecting the Muncie MCS communities.

Andy Klotz, MCS chief communications officer, is a member of the support hub’s advisory board and provides the website’s creators information about MCS. He said he gave information about how the school system is communicating information about COVID-19 and how it’s affecting the schools, families and staff to other board members from the Muncie and Ball State communities.

The Ball Brothers Foundation funded the Education Support Hub, and its advisory board asked Klotz in July 2020 to be involved with the project.

Klotz said he wanted to do whatever he could to help provide meaningful content for the website.

“It’s another way for us here at the school system to be able to reach people with information that we would hope they would want in order to keep everybody as safe as possible and up to date on the changes that have to be made,” Klotz said.

Klotz said the advisory board for the Education Support Hub started by providing content ideas and feedback on the development of the website to its contributors in the summer of 2020. As time went on, board members saw success from the website, and their meetings shifted to how to keep the website running smoothly and up to date with new information about COVID-19.

Some of the website’s topics include what to do about returning to school during the pandemic, how to safely participate in extracurricular activities and how schools will implement vaccines in the 2021-22 school year.

“We continue to talk about how the website should reflect the changing circumstances around the virus,” Klotz said.

David McIntosh, Ball State Teachers College associate dean for faculty affairs and strategic initiatives, has regularly contributed to the Education Support Hub blog.

McIntosh said the content he writes is aimed toward parents because it’s mostly local information about COVID-19, but his goal is to have more students use the website as a resource in the near future.

“There’s been a pretty positive response to the blog that I’ve been writing,” McIntosh said. “[The audience] likes that it’s down to earth, straightforward and relevant conflict.”

Education Support Hub

McIntosh said more than 1,000 parents access his blogs and utilize the Education Support Hub’s resources. “[Parents] like to be able to go to a website that has all the local information about support systems and advocacy groups available in the Muncie community,” McIntosh said.

The Education Support Hub is funded by the Ball Brothers Foundation for a year, but McIntosh believes the support hub plans to request funding for at least another year to get through the pandemic.

Klotz said he also believes having another year of the

HOW TO FIND THE EDUCATION SUPPORT HUB Website: educationsupporthub.com Facebook: Education Support Hub Twitter: @MuncieEdSupport

Education Support Hub would be beneficial for members of the Muncie community because of the ongoing uncertainties surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic.

“This is a useful website to be on and continue through the duration of the pandemic,” Klotz said.

While the support hub’s focus has been on education and keeping families in the Muncie community safe, Klotz said, he believes anyone can utilize this resource and benefit from the information it offers.

“It’s called the Education Support Hub, but it is also a great resource for anybody,” Klotz said. “Whether or not they are in school or they have kids in schools, there’s still a lot to be gained.”

Contact Maya Wilkins with comments at mrwilkins@bsu.edu or on Twitter @mayawilkinss.

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IMMERSIVE IMPACTS

What grades 1-5 learn in Project Lead The Way courses

1st Grade

Light and Sound: Students learn about the basics of light and sound. They record data from investigating the sun, moon and stars and also learn about animal adaptations.

2nd Grade

Properties of Matter: Students learn about biodiversity, classify different kinds of materials by their properties and research how animals disperse seeds and pollinate.

Programming Patterns: Students explore the foundations of programming, record data related to precipitation, temperature and wind and are introduced to life cycles.

Courtney Williams, third-grade teacher at East Washington Academy, teaches her students how to use an anemometer April 19, 2021. As part of third-grade Project Lead The Way instruction, students in Muncie Community Schools learn weather patterns and animal life cycles. JADEN WHITEMAN, DN

Muncie Community Schools introduces hands-on learning program to elementary and middle schools.

Mackenzie Rupp Reporter Crime scene examination usually isn’t part of eighth-grade curricula, but Muncie Community Schools (MCS) students have the opportunity to explore it and other topics as the district expands Project Lead The Way (PLTW) into all grades one through eight.

PLTW was founded in 1997 in Indianapolis and aims to bring more STEM curriculum into the classroom. Muncie Central High School began integrating PLTW into its curriculum in 2015, giving students the option to pursue the biomedical program.

“It’s focused on learning,” MCS Associate Superintendent Chuck Reynolds said, “not just completing tasks.”

Reynolds said three teachers from both Northside and Southside middle schools are certified in teaching PLTW in grades six through eight. Sixthgrade students learn to create apps, seventh-graders complete an “innovators and makers” program and eighth-graders explore and investigate different crime scenes.

These technology courses are built into the

daily schedule at Northside and Southside middle schools, so students attend a PLTW class each day until the semester ends.

“It builds its content with students seeking problems, not just problem solving,” Reynolds

Kids really love an opportunity to do hands-on learning, which is really what this is.

They’re actually building things.”

- ERICA COLLINS, Sixth- and seventh-grade PLTW teacher at Northside Middle School said. “Seeking answers or seeking problems that need answers and need solutions — it works through STEM activities.”

PLTW provides textbooks and other materials needed to teach the lessons.

Reynolds said Ball State University, the

George and Frances Ball Foundation and the Ball Brothers Foundation covered $350,000 of these expenses.

Reynolds said a four-day training was offered twice last year for teachers to earn PLTW certification.

“We are hoping that teachers will enjoy those hands-on learning experiences and adapt that to their other instructional practices,” Reynolds said.

“We’re hoping to see problem-seeking type[s] of activities transfer across all classrooms.”

Erica Collins, sixth- and seventh-grade teacher at Northside Middle School, began teaching PLTW at the beginning of the 2020-21 school year. She teaches the basics of programming to seventhgrade students.

Collins said her students create simple, working programs on a small computer called a micro:bit.

The micro:bit is designed for block code, which Collins said is easy to learn, but she said she also has students who choose to use JavaScript.

“They have to create physical computing systems that work,” Collins said. “For example, an alarm system that will trip if you open a door or if you get into a book of secrets.”

Students spend a semester learning how to code, Collins said, then make a program as their final project. In the past, students have programmed automatic pet food dispensers or a safety device, such as flashing lights for bike helmets.

See IMPACT, 19

3rd Grade

4th Grade

Collisions: Students learn how energy transfers, explore how computers work and relate them to the human body and its relationship to the environment.

5th Grade

Infection: Detection: Students inspect the transmission of infections and how the body stays healthy and learn about the three states of matter.

Source: Chuck Reynolds, associate superintendent of Muncie Community Schools KAMRYN TOMLINSON, DN

Achieving their

HIGHEST potential

MCS staff members discuss a unique program for gifted students.

Grace McCormick News Editor When Cindy Miller’s son, David Miller, was in kindergarten, she took him to the Levi Coffin House in Fountain City, Indiana, to learn more about the Underground Railroad and its history in Indiana.

“Usually, every summer, there’s something that

As far as Central Indiana, this program is really unique. It ends up being individualized for the families and the students. You can really hone your skills a little bit compared to doing that later when you’re in middle school and high school.”

specialized interests to students in kindergarten through fifth grade.

To find a similar program that teaches students at an accelerated level for the whole school day, Miller said, she believes she would need to send her son to school in Indianapolis.

“As far as Central Indiana, this program is really unique,” she said. “It ends up being individualized for the families and the students. You can really hone your skills a little bit compared to doing that later when you’re in middle school and high school.”

When David Miller enrolled in the program before kindergarten, Cindy Miller said, he had to take abilities and intelligence tests on an iPad. She then collected some of his work from pre-K that was reviewed by an identification team for the achievement portion of the enrollment review process.

17 04.22.21 Jenny Smithson, MCS director of High Ability Education and Special Education programs, said students can either test into the High Ability Program, like David Miller did, or be recommended by a teacher.

All MCS students take cognitive ability tests in kindergarten, second and fifth grade to measure their capacity for high potential. Smithson said any student who scores in the top 25 percent of their class takes a posttest to further evaluate their potential before selecting who moves into the High Ability Program.

The state of Indiana defines “high ability” as either having high potential or exhibiting high achievement, Smithson said, so students only need to perform well in one of those tests.

“Many of them are high in both, but that’s not a requirement,” she said. “You can have an average IQ and high achievement and still get into our High Ability Program, or you can have average achievement and a really high IQ, because we feel kids who are underachieving to their potential — maybe it’s because they aren’t being challenged.”

Smithson said both the potential and achievement aspects of the High Ability Program are predominantly determined by test scores, but teacher recommendations are also considered.

“Not every kid is a great tester,” Smithson said.

“If a teacher says to me, ‘This student really is curious, they ask good questions, they have great discussions, they’re a problem solver’ — all those characteristics of high ability kids — we’ll also take another second look at them as well if they’re borderline on the intelligence or achievement.”

Smithson, who has worked at MCS since 2019, said her favorite part about the High Ability Program is watching students grow and develop their own strengths, which wouldn’t be possible without high ability teachers.

Each MCS teacher in the High Ability Program must have earned a gifted teaching license or be working toward earning that license. The license is

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HOW TO APPLY TO THE HIGH ABILITY PROGRAM If any parent thinks their child might be high ability, Jenny Smithson, Muncie Community Schools director of High Ability Education and Special Education programs, encourages those parents to call the schools that provide high ability programs.

East Washington Academy provides high ability education at the elementary level while Northside and Southside middle schools, as well as Central High School, provide honors-level instruction for specific subjects. High ability instruction is continued for 11th- and 12th-grade students at Central High School in the form of advanced placement courses and the early college program.

To enroll an elementary student in the screening process for high ability placement, call the Student Services' Office at 765-747-5448.

Sources: MCS High Ability Education web page and Jenny Smithson, MCS director of High Ability Education and Special Education programs

available at Ball State and requires four classes that aim to increase understanding of how to identify and teach gifted learners, said Kristie Speirs Neumeister, professor of educational psychology and director of the gifted licensure program.

“I think the benefit of this license is being able to understand and connect with kids who are gifted because they don’t need as much repetition on subjects as other students and they’re able to learn a bit quicker,” Speirs Neumeister said.

See POTENTIAL, 19

- CINDY MILLER, Mother of David Miller, East Washington Academy fourth grade student he is fascinated by,” Cindy Miller said. “So, we work on trying to find new ways to explore a topic.

In kindergarten, the Underground Railroad and slavery was a big topic for him, and he felt it was a big social injustice for what happened to people during those times.”

Taking trips over summer vacations or watching educational YouTube videos during the COVID-19 pandemic is something Miller said she tries to do to foster her son’s enthusiasm for learning. In school activities, David Miller, now 10 years old, participates in math bowls and writing camps as a student in Muncie Community Schools’ (MCS) High Ability Program.

The program is based in East Washington Academy for gifted learners. Students are placed in an accelerated learning program that teaches math, science, English, music and other

Third-grade students at East Washington Academy use their laptops to learn about thermometers during class April 19, 2021. The High Ability Program teaches an advanced curriculum to gifted learners in a separate classroom from the general education population for the whole school day. JADEN WHITEMAN, DN

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Muncie Community Schools and Ball State create plans to reward teachers and staff members.

Angelica Gonzalez Morales Reporter Due to budget issues, Muncie Community Schools (MCS) teachers were working for the past seven years without any pay raise. Director of Public Education and CEO of MCS Lee Ann Kwiatkowski said MCS hopes to give all of its teachers raises and increase the starting salary for new teachers through its partnership with Ball State.

Kwiatkowski, who’s worked in MCS since 2019, said MCS’ innovation and strategic plans address issues of teacher compensation. The school district completed these plans in summer 2020 and shared them with the Indiana General Assembly.

Kwiatkowski emphasized the importance of the two plans that are in place to try to give teachers better annual pay and more pay raises. She said she

plans to have conversations with teachers, students and other educators to gain feedback about the innovation plan.

Beginning in the 2018-19 school year, Kwiatkowski said, Ball State’s Board of Trustees gave all teachers a $700 stipend and all support staff a $500 stipend.

“This was the first way the board and the administration took time to recognize our staff by saying, ‘We appreciate you, we support you and we are going to make sure that we are compensating you,’” Kwiatkowski said.

Marnell Bishop, Muncie Central High School teacher, said money was not her motivation to start teaching in the late 1990s.

“I got into it because I love teaching and I love my students, and my pay is not just monetary because I also knew way before I ever started …

I do recognize how hard our teachers and staff work. This year, with the pandemic and Muncie Community Schools teachers being in session since August … they work extremely hard, and it’s nice to be able to reward somebody for their good work.”

- LEE ANN KWIATKOWSKI, Director of public education and CEO of Muncie Community Schools

I wanted hours to be flexible and be able to have time to spend with my kids as they grew up,” Bishop said. “I wanted to teach where I lived, [and] I wanted to know part of my paycheck is being a part of the community.”

Kwiatkowski said Bishop and many other MCS teachers have worked hard for years, and she is glad the school district was able to reward them with pay raises.

“I do recognize how hard our teachers and staff work,” Kwiatkowski said. “This year, with the pandemic and Muncie Community Schools teachers being in session since August … they work extremely hard, and it’s nice to be able to reward somebody for their good work.”

Contact Angelica Gonzalez Morales with comments at agnozalezmor@bsu.edu or on Twitter @angelicag_1107.

BEGINNING PAY FOR CERTIFIED TEACHERS $40,000

$34,659

The beginning salary for the past seven years didn’t raise until 2019 due to MCS’ financial distress.

Muncie Community Schools did not offer raises for several years due to district financial issues.

$36,000

$32,000

$36,500

2014

2015

2016

2017

Through gradual pay raises, MCS hopes to increase its starting salary to $40,000 for new teachers.

2018

2019

2020

Sources: Lee Ann Kwiatkowski, director of public education and CEO of Muncie Community Schools (MCS) and Andy Klotz, MCS chief communications officer

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WARD

Continued from Page 14 “I just love the fact that, even as the years have gone by, we’ve just seen this continued commitment to these things,” Voss said. “[The fact] that she is the person in that role has been really wonderful.”

Ward may be the only director of diversity at MCS, but Daugherty said the job goes beyond the work of just one person. Ward stands as a leader for the rest of the MCS community, Daugherty said, and continues to guide them in the right direction regarding diversity and inclusion.

“If Rhonda can be a leader in helping filter down to the rest of the leaders in the school so that we have a better understanding on how to best help all of our students,”

DNPartnershipProject

Daugherty said, “then [teachers] can make changes and stand up for equity within the walls of our room. I think that’s the ultimate goal.”

Ward is proud of the work she has accomplished so far, she said, but she realizes change will not happen overnight. She hopes, as she advances in her role, she can still serve as a reminder of the continued efforts being made at MCS to improve diversity.

“It has taught me that we have a long way to go in terms of respect and biases,” Ward said. “Everyone’s a work in progress. Everyone wants to feel valued, and everyone wants their voice to be heard, and I feel like we must [continue working] in order to learn and grow.”

Contact Taylor Smith with comments at tnsmith6@bsu.edu or on Twitter @taynsmithh.

Historical figurines sit on Rhonda Ward’s office windowsill April 20, 2021, in Ward’s office in the Muncie Community Schools Administration Offices building.

Ward also has figurines of Booker T. Washington, Benjamin Banneker and James Beckwourth. JADEN WHITEMAN, DN

IMPACT Continued from Page 16

“Kids really love an opportunity to do hands-on learning, which is really what this is,” Collins said. “They’re actually building things.”

Some students choose to teach themselves complicated coding languages to complete this project, Collins said.

Giving the students the ability to be problem solvers is the most important aspect of PLTW for Collins.

“It’s hard to teach kids to persevere and to be confident in their own problem-solving abilities,” Collins said. “I think a class like this really allows them [to grow in their confidence].”

When introducing the PLTW curriculum at the beginning of each semester, Collins asks

POTENTIAL Continued from Page 17

Smithson said MCS high ability teachers are often able to pretest students over state requirements and dedicate more time to projects if students already know the requirements.

“Having really high-quality teachers is one of the biggest strengths of our program,” Smithson said. “Our high ability teachers are praised by our parents so much because

of the good work that they do in creating a challenging curriculum for them and building those relationships with students and families.”

While all Indiana elementary schools have some sort of enriched learning program, Smithson said, East Washington Academy’s is unique because its high ability student population is large enough to have its own

students to think of a problem they would like to solve.

“The way we interact with technology in our daily lives is expanding at such a pace,” Collins said. “We don’t even know what these kids will need to be able to do, but we do know that problem solving is going to be a huge part.”

Contact Mackenzie Rupp with comments at msrupp@bsu.edu or on Twitt er at @kenzieer18.

JADEN WHITEMAN, DN

classrooms for each grade level. Currently, 253 students are enrolled in the program, which, Smithson said, will increase once people return from virtual learning. She said each high ability classroom has approximately 20-25 students.

“Most other elementary schools — when they identify their high ability learners — they don’t have enough of them per grade level to create full classes,” Smithson said. “We felt it was important to provide an environment where they get to be gifted all day long and not just for the 45 minutes they see

the high ability teacher.”

Cindy Miller said she appreciates how her son is We felt it was important able to learn with students who are also high ability and to provide an develop closer friendships environment where they with his classmates.

“David’s experience, I don’t get to be gifted all day think, is unique compared to long and not just for the his peers,” Miller said. “Other 45 minutes they see the families, generally, have similar experiences — you end high ability teacher.” up with a little learner who is - JENNY SMITHSON, really excited about something, Muncie Community Schools and you’re trying to help grow director of High Ability that excitement.”

Education and Special Miller’s favorite aspect of Education programs the High Ability Program, she

said, is making sure gifted students are surrounded by like-minded peers.

“It’s a very individualized program where students get their needs met where they are,” she said. “The thing I think is so awesome about this is students who are gifted, sometimes, feel different or feel odd, and having the ability to be with alike learners is where this program can meet the needs of those children.”

Contact Grace McCormick with comments at grmccormick@bsu.edu or on Twitter @graceMc564.

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04.22.21

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Byte

‘Sons of Anarchy’ universe expands Kurt Sutter, the original creator of the “Sons of Anarchy” universe, has characters whose stories are yet to be told, as he was fired from the hit TV show’s production team when Disney took over FX. “First 9” — Sutter’s limited television series that was in the works — would have been the series’ prequel.

Online

Employees share greenhouse history Since its first donation of 800 orchids in 1970 from Bill and Goldie Wheeler, the Dr. Joe & Alice Rinard Orchid Greenhouse’s WheelerThanhauser Orchid Collection has grown to nearly 2,100 orchids.

Now, the greenhouse is an orchid rescue center and receives orchids from the United States Department of Agriculture twice a year. The greenhouse is having its annual plant sale, selling moth orchids online April 12-23 and in person April 24.

CUT, COL R, CURL. Local hair salons continue to navigate COVID-19 challenges a year after closing.423

ALEX HINDENLANG, DN

ON BYTEBSU.COM: REMIXED MINISODE: LIL NAS X STIRS UP CONTROVERSY

Online

Students learn Deaf culture, ASL Ball State assistant lecturer Stacy Steggs said her life was forever changed when she began learning American Sign Language at the Nebraska School for the Deaf.

As someone who was born Deaf, Steggs was signing exact English until she was 12 years old. If it weren’t for the residential Deaf school in Nebraska, Steggs said, she wouldn’t have learned ASL or be teaching it at Ball State today.

DNLife

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22

GRIPPING

GRAPHIC PAGE-TURNERS

NICOLE THOMAS, DN

Muncie Public Library hosts book club for horror-loving readers.

Nigel Meyer Reporter To unwind for the evening, Hannah Moody, circulation department manager at Kennedy Library, opens her copy of “The Ballad of Black Tom” to her favorite bookmark with blood-red lettering, which reads “Papercuts: an Adult Horror Book Club.”

Moody is one of the leaders of the Muncie Public Library’s Papercuts Adult Horror Book Club. From her bedroom, she participates in the group’s monthly Zoom meetings, trading weeks leading the Zoom with Dennis Everette, the reference librarian at Kennedy Library on McGalliard Road, and Joshua Vance, circulation supervisor at Maring-Hunt Library on South High Street.

Moody first participated as an attendee when the Kennedy Public Library began seasonal book clubs in 2019 with assorted genres, including mystery, graphic novel, sci-fi and horror. The clubs saw varying success but none as successful as the horror club.

Everette said reading is just like any other hobby — people need an outlet to gather, discuss and embrace their interest. Because members were sad they would have to wait another eight months for the seasonal horror book club to come around again, the leaders

Dennis Everette and Hannah Moody hold their favorite horror books near the library shelf where patrons can find books by author Ayn Rand, whose works they sometimes read in the Papercuts book club April 10, 2021, at the Muncie Kennedy Library. Everette has worked at the Kennedy Library since September 2014, and Moody joined the library’s staff in October 2019. NICOLE THOMAS, DN

decided to do a second four-month run of the horror book club.

After the second run’s continued success, Papercuts will deliver spookiness all year to fans who want to talk about their interests and share ideas.

The Papercuts Adult Horror Book Club had its first meeting Jan. 4 to discuss “The Willows” by Algernon Blackwood. The Facebook page for the club has 25 followers, and the meetings generally draw at least 10 participants — nearly double the size of the previous book clubs.

Moody said she believes Papercuts’ success is because other libraries don’t acknowledge the horror genre the same way the Muncie Public Library does.

“I do love horror — I’m a fan, but it also was something that no other libraries really were doing,” Moody said. “They have so many of the other typical genres, but no one thinks that horror — because it’s kind of outside of the box — [is] going to be popular. We’re really proving people wrong by the attendance.”

Moody said the horror genre is often associated with “weirdos” and not for women, but she thinks the club is proving otherwise, as it gives a space where people with this shared interest can be themselves.

“There’s this stigma around horror that, ‘Oh, girls wouldn’t like it because it’s too gory and scary,’ and I’m right up in there,” Moody said. “Sometimes, I like stuff that’s more graphic than Dennis does.

If you tell someone that you like horror, then … they put you into this group of weirdos. If that’s what we are, that’s fine.”

Everette said he thinks the club is breaking the stigma around libraries as well. He heard from some participants that they expected the library to be “stodgy” and “quiet” and that a horror book club isn’t something they would expect from a public library.

While the club is small, Everette said, he sees it as their way of building the community they want to see in Muncie. Where this would be common in big cities like Chicago or Indianapolis, he felt obligated to create something interesting to better his own city and thinks others should do the same.

“There’s constantly this [saying], ‘What is there to do in Muncie?’” Everette said. “I feel it’s up to all of us to create things to do and to make the place as interesting as we can.”

The Papercuts Adult Horror Book Club is open to everyone — no library card is required. Before the pandemic, members had considered meeting at Savage’s Ale House but had to turn to Zoom meetings during quarantine. Now, they hope to meet in person soon while still allowing remote library patrons an opportunity to participate.

Haley Perez-Arche attends the club’s Zoom meetings regularly from Atlanta. When she first moved to Muncie, Perez-

Arche said, she had no community and wanted to make friends, so she got involved with the Muncie Public Library through Books and Brews.

She attended the library’s book clubs faithfully for three years before moving to Atlanta in January 2020. Since then, she continues to participate because of her love for the library’s employees and the sense of community she found with the book club members.

“I enjoy the suspense and seeing what horrible things happen.

I love the spookiness, especially with ghost stories,” Perez-Arche said. “I also think it’s cathartic. I can’t stop in life to think of everything I’m afraid of, or else I’d be paralyzed. In horror, you can put yourself in a mental space where you can feel fear, anxiety and stress and just allow those feelings to exist. Then, you close the book, and it’s over. You’ve given yourself a space to feel bad, and, then, you can move on. I think that’s more valuable than people realize.”

If you tell someone that you like horror, then … they put you into this group of weirdos. If that’s what we are, that’s fine.”

-HANNAH MOODY, Co-leader of the Muncie Public Library’s Papercuts Adult Horror Book Club

The club plans to expand its outreach throughout the year on social media by dipping its toes into the BookTok trend, where people discuss and recommend books on TikTok. Moody sees an absence of horror books in the trend and hopes she might someday soon fill that role.

As members of Papercuts Adult Horror Book Club have built a small community around heart-racing stories, Everett said, he enjoys how horror can be an escape and a thrill ride or how it can reveal a truth about reality.

“I’m more interested in the stuff that describes how the real world is actually terrifying just the way it normally is,” Everette said. “[I’m interested in] anything that makes people understand how weird the world really is and how the little half-inch veneer of normality doesn’t count for much.”

Contact Nigel Meyer with comments at nmeyer@bsu.edu.

23 04.22.21

Hair stylists continue to safely style and tend to clients amid the pandemic.

DNLife

ALEX H INDEN LANG, DN ILL USTRA TION

Sumayyah Muhammad Assistant Lifestyles Editor Sunlight beams through the wide glass windows onto masked customers waiting to have their hair washed and styled at various hair salons in Muncie. Stylists, muffled by masks, talk with clients about their families and long days at work while dryers blow and water pours into shampooing basins.

Meraki Style Studio As part of the country-wide lockdown in March 2020, hair salons, including Meraki Style Studio, were forced to shut down to prevent the spread of COVID-19. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), hair salons were among the most high-risk locations because hair stylists work in such close contact with their clients. For months, stylists had to establish new ways to see their clients safely. Some cut hair outside the salon, and others opened their homes to customers while their salons were closed.

Che Hopkins, owner of Muncie’s Meraki Style Studio, said he was at work when he heard salons would have to shut down in March 2020. Because COVID-19 was new at the time, Hopkins said, he didn’t service any clients from his home and followed the guidelines set to socially distance himself from people outside of his home. Hopkins said it was a “godsend” when the state allowed hair salons to reopen mid-May 2020.

“It really took me by surprise,” said Hopkins, who opened the studio in October 2020. “It was surreal to actually be at work and to hear about going out of work [and being] shut down. You have to think about how to pay [your] bills at home, how long this was going to last, and it was just a real eye-opener.”

Adjusting to CDC recommendations, Hopkins and his five stylists at Meraki put safety precautions in place at the salon to keep their customers safe. He and his staff members do a “one-in-oneout” method of service to customers, with each stylist seeing one customer at a time. Patrons are required to wear masks, and stylists sanitize hair stations before and after each visit.

Prior to owning Meraki, Hopkins worked at Divine Designs Salon & Spa in Muncie for 13 years before the owner dissolved the business to work somewhere smaller.

Now at Meraki, Hopkins said, it’s enjoyable to run one of the city’s few hair salons that specializes in African American hair.

Hopkins said he has built his salon around faith to dispel any drama that stereotypically comes with an African American salon.

“You hear about a lot of people in salons who have a lot of mess going on in the background, but we don’t have that problem,” said Hopkins, who earned his cosmetology degree in 2005 from Hair Fashions by Kaye’s Beauty College in Indianapolis. “We have a very good staff, and everybody has a positive attitude. There’s really no downfall to it, and I love the people.”

in the cosmetology business for 39 years. After graduating from Amber’s Beauty School in Muncie in 1982, Rees studied entrepreneurship at Ball State and has owned Hot Heads Hair Design for 30 years.

“I love interacting with my clients,” said Rees, who also owns Hot Heads on Campus in the basement of Ball State’s L.A. Pittenger Student Center. “I like meeting new people, hearing their stories and giving them a really good style … A lot of boys are getting curly perms. There are some celebrities, like Patrick Mahomes, who are wearing curly hair. And then, girls are getting pixies.”

The capacity at Hot Heads Hair Design has remained at 50 percent because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Rees said her stylists work in separate rooms to keep her customers safe and socially distanced while taking 15-minute breaks in between customers, and the salon provides cloth masks in case a customer needs or breaks theirs.

To remain safe, Rees said she had to cut down to two stylists working at a time instead of four. Since owning Hot Heads on

Hot Heads Hair Design Tena Rees, owner of Hot Heads Hair Design in Muncie, said it was financially devastating for COVID-19 to shut down hair salons.

However, she was glad the state erred on the side of caution because she didn’t want to take the chance of catching or spreading the virus.

Rees, who grew up loving fashion, hair and makeup, has been

Sandra Williams, stylist and nail technician at Meraki Style Studio, said she has worked with Hopkins for 16 years. “I love interacting with clients and transforming their hair [because] your hair changes your mood and how you feel about yourself,” Williams said. SUMAYYAH MUHAMMAD, DN

Alexis Smith colors Brittany Mayer’s hair at Hot Heads Hair Design on McGalliard Road March 30, 2021. Tena Rees, owner of Hot Heads Hair Design, also opened Hot Heads on Campus after Ball State’s barber, Benny Benefield, retired in 2016.

SUMAYYAH MUHAMMAD, DN

Campus since 2016, Rees said she believed the school needed a styling salon and presence on campus.

“It is very beneficial to students to have a campus location since many of them don’t have a car to navigate to a salon off campus,” Rees said.

Shear Joy Although working from home is not ideal for some cosmetologists, Jenna Jackson has been styling clients from her at-home salon, Shear Joy, since 2016. The Muncie resident also worked for Craig & Friends in Upland, Indiana, for 13 years, but, since July 2020, she has seen clients solely at her home studio.

“It has been the best decision I could have made,” said Jackson, who is a mother of four. “It feels like the best of both worlds — as soon as I’m finished with a customer, I can step right into family life, and my kiddos know they are always welcome to come in [the salon] even if I’m working.”

Operating from the back of her house, Jackson requires her customers to wear masks at all times, sanitizes each tool after every use and gives her clients a new, clean cape after each visit.

When Jackson tested positive for COVID-19 in March, she couldn’t work with her clients for two weeks. She said it took time to reschedule her appointments, but her clients responded with kindness and grace.

“I appreciate their flexibility, so it makes me extra willing to work them back in,” said Jackson, “It’s give and take. I know, sometimes, my customers need to cancel on me, and I’ll have grace for them as well.”

Jackson said her favorite request from a client was from her first appointment as a hair stylist when a college student asked her to shave his head and leave a 6-inch Mohawk to dye blue. He told Jackson he liked to do something fun with his hair once a year to honor his mother, who died from cancer.

Being in the cosmetology business since 2006, Jackson said she loves the conversations she has with her customers and the one-onone connections she feels with her clients.

“I’ve learned over the last few years that it’s not just about doing hair — it’s about the people [and] the connections made,” Jackson said. “The hearts of my customers matter so much more to me than I ever could have realized. My job is a joy.”

Contact Sumayyah Muhammad with comments at smuhammad3@bsu.edu or on Twitter @sumayyah0114.

DNOpinion

24

04.22.21

Toadstool

BEHIND

her mask A story of a mask no one should have to wear

KAMRYN TOMLINSON, DN

BYTEBSU.COM: CELEBRATING DREW BARRYMORE’S ILLUSTRIOUS CAREER

25

Kamryn Tomlinson is a junior news journalism major and writes “Toadstool” for The Daily News. Her views do not necessarily reflect those of the newspaper.

I was 4 years old when I started going to my Aunt Jennae’s high school softball games. It was the time of year when the sun wasn’t quite warm enough Kamryn its own, so my parents had bundled me and my Tomlinson on brother in our school-spirited attire. I sat “snug as a Columnist, bug in a rug,” as my dad used to say, wrapped in a “Toadstool” blanket in the safety and warmth of his arms.

The smell of popcorn lingered under our noses as I watched my aunt. She was the one I looked up to most. I admired her every move.

She looked back from her position behind the plate, unrecognizable in her catcher’s gear. She waved her hand at me, mitt still attached.

Every time I looked at her, she had her mask on.

I was 5 years old when Jennae attended prom. My mom went to my grandparents’ house to do Jennae’s hair and makeup for the dance. I studied the way my mom brushed a light pink shade onto Jennae’s cheeks and painted gloss on her lips. In complete admiration of my aunt, I insisted my mom give the same makeover to me. As much as I wanted to be her, Jennae wanted to be me: a naked face, free from any mask.

She was wearing hers again, but she looked so beautiful.

I was 9 years old when she brought Tom home. They became friends during her time in the U.S. Army. Jennae decided to bring him home for Thanksgiving. I believed her when she said he was just a friend, but my family members weren’t convinced.

But what else were they supposed to think? They were still seeing a mask, even when one might not have been there.

I was 13 years old when Jennae got back from deployment.

There, I met Stacy. Jennae introduced her to me as “a friend who was dog sitting.”

“Dog sitting?” I thought. “Bullshit.”

My adolescent mind was quickly at work. Then, the carousel of thoughts and memories began.

Watching her head turn to me as she kneeled behind home plate with her strawberry blonde hair sticking out the sides of her catcher’s mask, the only indication the woman I was looking at was my aunt.

The time I saw the sliver of discomfort peek through her mask as she stood painted in a full face of makeup and a gown that looked like it was made for someone else.

The anger in her voice as she told our family for the 100th

time Tom was just a friend. Her face may have been masked with irritation, but the tone in her voice made every mask she’s ever worn around me disappear. Her voice quivered with a mixture of anger and frustration as she struggled to speak every word racing through her mind. Her hands shook in fear and impatience at the situation she was facing. She was experiencing something so intensely, and, in that moment, I knew exactly what it was.

It finally made sense. She was gay.

I grew up admiring Jennae — everything she did, everything she tried to hide. I thought homosexuality was a societial norm, and, because of the a progressive and inclusive generation I am a part of, it has always been hard for me to understand why some of the people closest to me, including my aunt, didn’t acknowledge her sexuality.

Some suppressed her sexuality, bringing forward a new mask for every new encounter they had with Jennae and what she was hiding behind them.

Jennae’s masks were a touchy subject for me growing up. It hurt me to know she didn’t feel like unmasking often — like I was one who didn’t accept her, believe her, love her for her. But, somehow, I still understood why a mask was around anytime I saw Jennae. She was facing a world that thought the most natural version of herself was “unnatural.”

There was one feeling that was always stagnant, I was confused.

A whirlwind of opinions flying around me about the rights and wrongs of sexuality. My question always was, “Who cares?” I never understood what was wrong about loving another person, something we are all too familiar with.

No one should have to feel the need to hide the realest parts of themselves — to mask the person they were always meant to be — simply because society has added a negative connotation to any sexual orientation that wasn’t straight or “traditional.”

Love is not limited to only being true when it is felt between a man and a woman. Love is a feeling, and feelings do not care if you are black, white, gay, straight or transgender. Love is as simple a feeling as happiness or sadness, something that can be felt in anybody despite who sparks it inside of them.

Love is something everyone experiences, and just because everyone experiences it differently doesn’t justify putting limitations on who people are allowed to love. If it isn’t socially acceptable to tell someone how to be happy or sad, how is it OK to tell someone how to love — who to love?

I can only speak for myself, but it doesn’t quite sit right with me that those who have the most colors also feel the need to wear the most masks.

Contact Kamryn Tomlinson with comments at kptomlinson@bsu. edu or on Twitter @kamrynwrites.

But, somehow, I still understood why a mask was around anytime I saw Jennae. She was facing a world that thought the most natural version of herself was ‘unnatural.’”

04.22.21

DNOpinion

Events

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26

CIRCLE

Continued from Page 09 When it was time to hit the football field, Fields said, he had goosebumps. In high school, he played in front of as many as 12,000 people, but, this time, there were 85,000 people roaring.

“The first time I saw him play, I had tears in my eyes,” MitchellBrown said. “I couldn’t believe how my child has come so far. Me, as a single parent, I was raising him and his sister, so it was great to see.”

After his football career, Fields returned to Auburn to earn his master’s degree in higher education administration and sports management.

Fields ended up in compliance and event management as a graduate assistant while pursuing his master’s. He said compliance wasn’t for him, but he found something else that would play a big part in his life.

“I found my calling in fundraising,” Fields said. “I love people — I love hearing stories. I think people and process drive everything we do. The process is being able to bring everyone together who are passionate.”

Fields assisted in the $170 million “Legends Campaign for Athletics,’’ which was part of Auburn University’s “It All Begins at Auburn” capital campaign, before taking the role of associate director of athletics development. He worked there until 2006, when he earned his master’s degree.

“It gave me a sense of pride,” Fields said. “Being able to work for the university and share my story for people to understand how that impacted my life — it inspires me to want to be a part of it in a way to give back. Connecting with people and getting them excited with the programs has a lot to do with it too.”

After working as the assistant athletics director for administration and major gifts at South Alabama for the next five years, Fields spent five years working at the University of Illinois, running a satellite office in Chicago as the university’s associate director of development. He later co-solicited $20 million for the Henry Dale and Betty Smith Football Center — the largest gift in Illinois’ Division of Intercollegiate Athletics history.

Chicago was where Fields’ two sons were born, and he said the city holds a special place in his heart. After his stint in Illinois, Ball State Director of Athletics Beth Goetz hired him as deputy athletics director before the 2019-20 school year.

Fields said it would be a rewarding experience to work next to someone who would push him, and he is grateful Goetz has provided that. The reason he came to Ball State was because of the leadership.

The way Fields connects with people is part of the reason Goetz hired him, she said, because it is a special gift that aligns with Ball

HOMECOMING Continued from Page 06

“Kelly and the Committee came up with a plan A, plan B and plan C for our events,” Johnson said. “Plan A would be to have [the events] the way we normally do, plan B was a hybrid-type model and plan C was all virtual, and I would say we were able to hit a mix between B and C with most of our events.”

The Steering Committee finalized its plan near the beginning of February 2021. Many of this year’s events will be either conducted virtually or reimagined to fit a socially distanced format.

Certain events from previous years, like the food truck festival, were removed entirely from the program due to their specific inability to adapt to the pandemic’s conditions.

Other in-person events that draw large crowds, like Air Jam, the Talent Search and royalty coronation, have been pre-recorded and will be broadcast live on Zoom or the Ball State Homecoming YouTube page.

State’s values.

“From day one, he has been able to build great relationships, both internally and across our campus,” Goetz said. “He has brought a lot of great ideas from a development standpoint and fundraising. I think he has put in place some ideas that will benefit us for years to come.”

Fields said some of his goals are to continue fundraising and getting people to invest in different programs for the school. He also wants to provide a platform for student-athletes and stay engaged in the community.

He said his experiences, all the way from a 6-year-old signing up to play football to working at Ball State years later, have shaped and molded him as father, husband and the person he is today.

The circle of life.

While he’s still learning, Fields said, he’s striving to be the best husband, father and colleague he can.

“The effort is what counts — not only as a father, but what I do every day in this athletic department,” Fields said. “When you think about being a father, or in any of these roles, hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard.”

Contact Ian Hansen with comments at imhansen@bsu.edu or on Twitter @ianh_2.

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“Talent Search and Air Jam [are] hybrid events because the participants got to participate in person, but they were in time slots, so they came and got their recording [done] and then left,” Johnson said. “We didn’t have any spectators, so that’s kind of how the hybrid part worked for that.”

Looking forward, the 2021 Homecoming Steering Committee has already been selected to facilitate a smooth transition to the next time the event will take place. Johnson said Asiala and her team are a special case as far as Steering Committees are concerned.

“Kelly and the others are the postponement from the 2020 Homecoming Committee, so they stayed on with us to help plan the Spring Homecoming, for which we’re so grateful,” Johnson said.

For Asiala, the Spring Homecoming will be the end of a year-long passion project that has faced its share of delays.

“My attachment [to Homecoming] comes through the growth opportunity that it’s given me, and the sentimental meaning that it has to me and, of course, the people,” she said. “The people are the best part of it every year.”

Contact John Lynch with comments at jplynch@bsu.edu or on Twitter @WritesLynch.

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508 S. Tillotson Ave. - (765) 288-5825 4000 N. Broadway Ave - (765) 287-8897 3505 Wheeling Ave - (765) 282-8191

WITH KIDS? To learn more and apply, visit www.gtkids.org

EDUCATOR POSITIONS AVAILABLE

15% OFF entire meal Can be used at all locations.

Must present coupon at time of purchase. Expires April 30, 2021.

View our menu at

puertomuncie.com

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Check out our new Puzzles & Games page online!

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Crossword & Sudoku

CROSSWORD EDITED BY RICH NORRIS AND JOYCE LEWIS; SUDOKU BY MICHAEL MEPHAM

ACROSS 1 Unisex dos 6 It beats rock, in a game 11 “Quiet, please!”

14 Bat mitzvah reading 15 Photographer’s concern 16 Concert souvenir 17 Routinely approve 19 Chicken-king connection 20 Recently 21 On the trail of 23 “Now, where __ we?”

24 Betty White’s “The Golden Girls” role 27 Crystal ball gazer 29 Isn’t elected 30 Nick of “Warrior” (2011) 33 Hold a session 34 Shade of blue 37 Dude 38 Assures, as an interest rate 42 Coffee server 43 2017 Best Animated Feature Oscar winner 45 Timid 46 Raw meat concern 48 Came up 50 Augur 52 .eps or .txt, e.g.

55 Turkish coin

59 __ God: tornado, e.g.

60 Respected 62 T’ai __ 63 Butchers’ stock literally found in this puzzle’s circles 66 Woolen cap 67 Wipe out 68 Buy and sell stock 69 Canonized Mlle.

70 Worldview view 71 Have a sneaking suspicion DOWN 1 Scarecrow stuff 2 Word with party or guest 3 Leafy recess 4 Gossipy gathering 5 “A Boy Named Sue” writer Silverstein 6 Right one for the rite job?

7 Chips in a pot 8 Golf tour letters 9 National Mall tree 10 Makes good on 11 The way things are 12 Mirren of “Trumbo” (2015) 13 Caught wind (of) 18 Like valuable coins 22 __ market 25 Fans of college sports’

SOLUTIONS FOR APRIL 15

Bulldogs 26 “Moi?” 28 Slim fish often smoked 30 “This Is Us” network 31 Olímpicos goal 32 Announcement before landing 33 Feature of many seascapes 35 Surfer’s link 36 Singer DiFranco 39 __ buco: veal dish 40 “Mermaids” co-star 41 Mustachioed guy on “The Simpsons” 44 Longtime Hydrox rival 47 Cause __: megastar 49 Counteract 50 Short-legged hound 51 Director Preminger 52 They’re hard to argue with 53 Former Apple messaging app 54 Reagan attorney general Ed 56 “That is ... “ 57 Wetlands growths 58 Website revenue 61 Young newts 64 Outrage 65 Sports radio host Patrick

27

04.22.21

DNPuzzles

VOTE FOR THIS YEAR’S

READER’S CHOICE AWARDS VOTING CLOSES APRIL 25

SCAN ME TO VOTE and find out what you can win for participating