‘Beneficence’: As the symbol of Ball State, Benny stands in a courtyard, past the Student Center and near Lucina Hall. It was built more than 60 years ago and has stood as a public monument in honor of the generosity of the Ball brothers. Daniel Chester French, best known for sculpting the Abraham Lincoln statue in the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., was commissioned by the Muncie Chamber of Commerce to create Beneficence. It was completed in 1930 and installed in 1937. After Ball State’s graduation ceremony, it has become a tradition for students and families to take pictures with the institutional icon.
Charlie Cardinal: A symbol of Ball State every student should know, Charlie Cardinal is Ball State’s mascot and is a familiar face to crowds at intercollegiate athletic events throughout the year.
Christy Woods: Originally known as the Arboretum, Christy Woods is a 18-acre tract of land that houses more than 300 species of trees, shrubs and flowers. On the southwest edge of campus next to the Cooper Science Building, Christy Woods is an outdoor classroom and laboratory that provides opportunities for hands-on learning and observation of nature and natural processes for students of all ages. It includes a forest, prairie, wetlands, greenhouses and agricultural ground. It was named after Otto Christy, the former head of the science department who was responsible for designing most of the campus landscaping.
Duck Pond: North of Johnson Halls, the Duck Pond is home to fish, ducks and geese. It’s also a great spot for students to picnic, relax and even study in the sun.
‘Frog Baby’: Sculpted in 1937 by Edith Barretto Stevens Parson, Frog Baby is a sculpture of a joyous little girl playfully holding a frog in each hand. She was originally housed in the Ball State University Museum of Art. Legend has it that Ball State students would rub her nose for good luck before taking their final exams. They soon were not allowed to touch her nose because at one point, the nose was rubbed off. Frog Baby now stands in the middle of a fountain north of Bracken Library. Instead of rubbing her nose, students now routinely loan Frog Baby a scarf and hat when the weather turns cold.
‘Naked Lady’: The name of the statue in the central lobby of Bracken Library is Forest Idyll, but students affectionately refer to it as “the naked lady.” It is the central meeting place for study groups and friends. Messages are left around “the naked lady” often to point fellow group members to certain locations in the library. Albin Polasek sculpted Forest Idyll in 1930.
Elliot Hall: Constructed from 1937-39 in a Tudor Gothic Style and named after the son of one of the founding Ball brothers, Elliott Hall was the first men’s dormitory on campus. Today, it houses about 120 students, all of whom are 21 years and older. Built to replicate a housing facility at Princeton University, the residence hall could pass as our own version of Hogwarts! Its three floors are rumored to be haunted by a World War II veteran who attended the university.
Scramble Light: Located at McKinley and Riverside Avenues, this intersection is so named because pedestrians scramble to cross the street every which way when the stoplights halt traffic in all directions. The Scramble Light is a popular place for people to meet. It’s also a place for organizations and groups to pass out fliers, promote events and spread the word about their cause.
Fight Song: Former Ball State student Jaron Henrie-McCrea created a film to teach the Ball State Fight Song and highlight Ball State’s memorable icons and landmarks. It can be seen at www.bsu.edu/fightsong
Ball State Fight Song: Fight team fight for Ball State; We must win this game; Onward now you Cardinals; Bring glory to your name; Fight! Fight! Fight!; Here’s to both our colors; Cardinal and White; Praying for a victory; So fight, fight, fight!
David Letterman: Ball State’s biggest claim to fame would have to be alumnus David Letterman. Host of CBS’s Late Show with David Letterman, Letterman has been making audiences laugh for decades. In 1969, Letterman graduated from Ball State with a telecommunications degree and went on to work as a weatherman for WTHR-TV in Indianapolis. In 2007, Letterman returned to Ball State’s campus for the dedication of the David Letterman Communication and Media Building, a cutting-edge facility that connects an impressive three-building communications complex and supports four departments: communication studies, journalism, telecommunications and the Center for Information and Communication Sciences. Indiana Public Radio also is housed in the building.
Jim Davis: Who doesn’t know the lasagna-loving, Monday-hating cat that stars in his very own comic in newspapers across the country? Ball State alumnus Jim Davis created Garfield, along with his owner, Jon Arbuckle, and Arbuckle’s dog, Odie. Davis graduated in 1967, having studied art and business during his time at Ball State. After working as an assistant for Tumbleweeds cartoonist Tom K. Ryan, Davis put his own talents to the test and debuted Garfield in newspapers across the country in 1978. An endowment, the Jim Davis Fund, was started in 2010 to provide Ball students with immersive learning experiences emphasizing emerging media.
John Schnatter: During a student’s time at Ball State, there will be lots of opportunities for free pizza given out at events, classes, etc. It is guaranteed the pizza will be from Papa John’s. This is because Papa John’s founder and current President and CEO John Schnatter is a 1984 graduate of Ball State. He created the concept for Papa John’s in 1983, delivering pizza from the back of his father’s tavern in Jeffersonville, Ind. Today, Papa John’s has nearly 3,000 restaurants in 49 states. Miller College of Business honored Schnatter in 2004 by inducting him into the college’s hall of fame.
Angela Ahrendts: Ball State’s fashion lovers have something to talk about when it comes to alumna Angela Ahrendts. The 1981 graduate is now the chief executive officer of one of the biggest fashion labels in the world, Burberry. Before becoming the CEO of one of the United Kingdom’s most iconic luxury clothiers, she was president of Donna Karen International, executive vice president of Henri Bendel and, most recently, executive vice president of Liz Claiborne Inc. In 2010, Ahrendts came back to Ball State to give the commencement address to the graduating class.
(Sources: www.bsu.edu; www.burberryplc.com)