Muncie Micro-Cinema

During the fall and spring semesters, students worked with the Muncie Arts and Culture Council to plan ”That One Micro-cinema” screening series and the “That One Film Festival.” These projects are dedicated to screening and exhibiting works of the “moving image” that are experimental, weird, obsessive, no or low budget, avant-garde, and fun. That One Micro-cinema launched in Fall 2019 by inviting two filmmakers to Muncie to present solo screenings of their work, which allowed students to learn how to professionally screen film for a public audience. This semester, they planned a festival that was to take place over two days in April 2020. Students participated in a variety of event creation activities, including the development of a submission and review process in which they and community members reviewed 275 film submissions. They invited two recognized filmmakers to participate as “jurors” and developed marketing and promotional items, visual content, a website, press materials, publications, sponsorships, and professional relationships. The students and their partners have tentatively rescheduled the film festival for September 11-12, 2020.

PHOTO STORY


Faculty Mentor: Maura Jasper
Departments: Art
Community Partner: Muncie Arts and Culture Council
Students: Kai Cohen, Noah Davis Cheshire, Rachel East, Samantha Eldridge, Kendall Gavin, Phillip Gilkeson, Jalen Gill, Kayla Graves, Jerrica Hiddy, Alima Iscandari, Jenna Mesker, Andrea Mourey, Alex Radtke, Rachel Replogle, Maxwell Rinehart, Kwesi Rogers, Nik Stoll, and Chris Zurisk

Beneficence Records (ongoing)

Beneficence Records is housed in Ball State’s Music Media Production Department and is managed by a team of interdisciplinary students focused on promoting the local music scene. As a part of the Cardinal Music Group, this project is a new immersive offering that focuses on Indiana’s burgeoning music business and showcases a diverse roster of artists and their work. This semester, students merged the Beneficence Records project and Indiana Public Radio’s show, “The Scene,” to help support the regional music ecosystem.  Project deliverables included promotion materials for new musicians, curated playlists, music videos, social media, and email marketing campaigns.


Spring 2020 Semester

Faculty Mentor: Daniel Porter
Department: Music
Community Partner: Indiana Public Radio
Students: Megan Berger, Maxwell Denari, Christopher Golab, Lauren Haywood, Miles Jena, Evan Manning, Cesar Rodriguez, Hunter Shaffer, Andrew Smith, Wesley Skaggs, and Jamison Snyder


Fall 2019 Semester

Faculty Mentor: Daniel Porter
Department: Music
Community Partners: Indiana Public Radio

 

Sitting at the Feet of our Muncie Elders: Stories of Resistance and Resiliency

In this two-semester project, Ball State students from English, creative writing, journalism, public relations, and other humanities degrees connected with Muncie senior citizens to capture their stories of resistance and resilience. In the fall semester, students read, studied, and analyzed creative narrative nonfiction (memoir), ethnography narratives, and community writing. They then put those writing skills into practice by collaborating with seniors at Westminster Village, the Delaware County Senior Center, Whitely, and other interested seniors in the community. During the spring semester, the students set out to edit and design a book for those stories to be published through the 409 independent book press in the English department. In addition, they planned to engage local photographers, spoken word artists, and artists affiliated with YART (a local group of artists) to create visuals for a story collection and a spoken-word performance. Some of that work has been delayed, but, when finished, the publication will be free to participating senior citizens, community partners, as well as local libraries. Performances (dates to be determined later this year)will also be free to the community and hosted at established sites with YART’s assistance.  The students will run the same performances for seniors at the Muncie Delaware County Senior Center and Westminster Village.


Faculty Mentor: Darolyn “Lyn” Jones
Departments: English
Community Partners: Westminster Village, Muncie Delaware County Senior Center, Moth Danner and YART (Yard Sale for Art)
Students: Ki Adkins, Jennifer Criss, Mykaala Cagepork, Hannah Eadie, Ryan Hugo, Meara Kanalas, Andrea Mohler, Dilion O’Nail, Eddie Osburn, Eileen Porzuczek, Melissa Rahe, Emily Turner, Grace Wagner, Katelyn Warner, Laurinda Webb, Nykasia Williams, Bernedette Wilson

Spring 2020 Ball State Immersive Learning Projects

Ball State faculty, students, and community partners worked together this spring on a number of immersive learning projects in and around Muncie.

Academy of Model Aeronautics Video Project
Faculty Mentors: Tim Pollard, Department of Telecommunications; Suzanne Plesha, Office of Immersive Learning
Community Partner: Academy of Model Aeronautics

Assigning the Living Quality of Muncie Neighborhoods Using Remote Sensing and GIS
Faculty Mentor:  Jason Yang, Department of Geography
Community Partner:  Muncie Action Plan

Beneficence Records (ongoing)
Faculty Mentor:  Daniel Porter, Department of Music Media Production
Community Partner:  Indiana Public Radio

Capturing “The Big Idea”
Faculty Mentor: Melinda Messineo, Department of Sociology
Community Partner: Second Harvest Food Bank

Geospatial Design Laboratory
Faculty Mentor: Jörn Seemann, Department of Geography
Community Partner: Muncie Visitors Bureau

Halteman Park Landscape Architecture Studio Project
Faculty Mentors:  Chris Baas, Jeremy Merrill, J.P. Hall; Department of Landscape Architecture
Community Partners:  Halteman Village Neighborhood Association, City of Muncie, Muncie Parks Department

Human Rights Symposium
Faculty Mentor: Ruby Cain, Department of Educational Studies
Community Partners: City of Muncie Human Rights Commission, Industry Neighborhood Association, Whitely Community Council, Muncie Public Library, Muncie Housing Authority, It Is Well With My Soul, DePaul University School of New Learning and Service Engagement Projects, Northeast Indiana Workers Project, Inc.

i-Made (Indiana Made) Muncie:  Custom Fabricated Design-through-Production (ongoing)
Faculty Mentor:  Kevin Klinger, Department of Architecture
Community Partners:  Indiana Hardwoods (IHLA), Midwest Metals, Minnetrista, Mobile Market

The Junior Producers Club
Faculty Mentor:  Christoph Thompson, School of Music
Community Partners:  Boys and Girls Club, Buley Community Center

Muncie Neighborhood Visual Identity Design (ongoing)
Faculty Mentor:  Shantanu Suman, School of Art
Community Partners:  Building Better Neighborhoods, Muncie Action Plan

Preserving the Past and Looking Toward the Future:  Historic Preservation and Digital Storytelling for a Muncie Landmark Church
Faculty Mentor:  Peggy Fisher, Department of Communication Studies
Community Partner:  St. Mary Catholic Church

Renovation of Residential Structures
Faculty Mentor: Janet Fick, Department of Construction Management and Interior Design
Community Partners: ecoREHAB, Urban Light, and Brothers 2 Brothers

Sustainable Muncie Project:  Assessing Sustainability for the City of Muncie
Faculty Mentor:  Sanglim Yoo, Department of Urban Planning
Community Partner: Muncie Action Plan

Teen Dating Violence
Faculty Mentor: Ron Dolon, Department of Social Work
Community Partner: A Better Way

Tourist Maps for Muncie and Delaware County
Faculty Mentor: Jörn Seemann, Department of Geography
Community Partner: Muncie Visitors Bureau

Urban Health in Muncie, IN:  Pb in the Soils (ongoing)
Faculty Mentors:  Carolyn Dowling, Department of Geological Sciences; Jessi Haeft, Department
of Natural Resources and Environment Management
Community Partner:  United Way of Delaware County

Well Connected 
Faculty Mentor:  Jane Ellery, School of Kinesiology
Community Partners:  Muncie Action Plan, Future of Work/Sustainable Muncie, George and Frances Ball Foundation

Working with the Whitely Community to Identify Needs and Resources of Men who are Reentering the Community After Periods of Incarceration
Faculty Mentor:  Keisha Warren-Gordon, Department of Criminal Justice and Criminology
Community Partner:  Whitely Community Council

Preserving the Past and Looking Toward the Future: Historic Preservation and Digital Storytelling for a Muncie Landmark Church

Churches play a significant role in the lives of Muncie residents, and every church has a story worth preserving. St. Mary Catholic Church located on West Jackson, held its first mass on December 8, 1930. Then, the parish had 100 families. Today, the church campus has grown and the  community is now made up of approximately 700 registered families. Although the parish has kept an extensive collection of historical records, photos, and other memorabilia dating back to the 1930s, many of their stories had gone untold. The goal of this year-long, immersive project was to assist St. Mary Church with a variety of storytelling initiatives. Students conducted interviews, filmed and produced a series of seven short videos covering topics such as the grounds, the stained-glass windows, and church architecture.  The students are also publishing a photo book that incorporates augmented reality so that the photos can tell stories of their own.


Faculty Mentor: Peggy Fisher
Department: Communication Studies
Community Partners: St. Mary Catholic Church
Students: Scott Anderson, Nathan Guide, Abigail Huff, Elli Mott, Zach Neitzel, Avonlea Schnitzius, Cameron Toner

i-Made (Indiana Made) Muncie: Custom Fabricated Design-through-Production (ongoing)

Over the past three semesters, students and industry partners used “design-through-production” methods to prototype and assemble full-scale design solutions for area non-profits. Some of the products developed, fabricated, and constructed included benches and other structures for Minnetrista’s campus and farmers’ market. The students also redesigned the courtyard area at the MadJax location downtown. These improvements will benefit the entire community as Minnetrista and MadJax continue to play a central role in cultural enhancement for the City of Muncie.


Spring 2020 Semester

Faculty Mentor: Kevin Klinger
Department: Architecture
Community Partners: Minnetrista Cultural Center, MadJax, and Midwest Metals, and the Indiana Hardwood and Lumberman’s Association
Students: Craig AdamsJacob BurrisSchyler CerqueiraCaleb DavisTorey Dunn, Mitchell Geis, Jessica Franke James Harris, Nick Kiefer, Daniel KlemenJoseph Koslow, Scottie Manners, Rhiley McIntire, Al Mitchell, Austin Obermeyer, Emma OckenSteven PolchinskiLandon Underwood, Cole Walters, Olivia Zepp


Fall 2019 Semester

Faculty Mentor: Kevin Klinger
Department: Architecture
Community Partners: Indiana Hardwoods (IHLA), Midwest Metals, Minnetrista, Mobile Market