Podcasts about Ball State University

In this special episode of the Explaining History Podcast, recorded just days before the 2026 Academy Awards, we're joined by film and media historian Monica Sandler of Ball State University to explore what the Oscars tell us about American culture, power, and the film industry itself.Monica brings her deep expertise to bear on these questions, tracing the Oscars back to their founding in 1929 as a deliberate attempt to reframe film as an art form—a response to the 1915 Mutual Decision that denied movies First Amendment protections and labeled the industry "plain and simple" commerce. From Will Hays's 1930 speech describing the awards as "an educator of public taste" to the New York Film Critics Circle's 1936 declaration that the Academy was "completely out of touch," the tension between industry insiders and cultural arbiters has been there from the start.We dive into the economics of awards campaigning—how smaller films depend on Oscar success for profitability, while blockbusters don't need the validation—and the transformation of that process by Harvey Weinstein, who turned awards campaigning into a brutal, multi-million-dollar blood sport. The rules the Academy has had to create in response tell their own story.The conversation also grapples with the Oscars' troubled relationship with race and representation. Monica discusses the 2016 #OscarsSoWhite movement, which forced the Academy to overhaul its membership—then 90% white, 75% male, with an average age of 65—and the complicated legacy of that change. We talk about the first person of colour ever nominated, Merle Oberon in 1936, who passed as British and whose racial identity was unknown to the public, a poignant illustration of the barriers that existed.And we look forward: to the rise of streaming, the consolidation of media conglomerates, the threat of AI, and the question of whether the Oscars will remain relevant in a world where young people watch YouTube, not Hollywood. Monica argues that while broadcast ratings may decline, the social media visibility of awards moments—like Michael B. Jordan's recent SAG Awards win—shows that cultural impact is simply being measured differently.**Topics covered:**- The 1915 Mutual Decision and Hollywood's quest for artistic legitimacy- Will Hays and the "education of public taste"- The economics of awards campaigning- Harvey Weinstein's transformation of the Oscar industrial complex- #OscarsSoWhite and the Academy's membership overhaul- Merle Oberon and the history of passing in Hollywood- #MeToo and Harvey Weinstein's legacy- The future of film in the age of streaming and AI- Media consolidation and the concentration of power*Monica Sandler is a film and media historian at Ball State University, currently completing her book manuscript, *The Oscar Industry*, based on her doctoral research at UCLA with unprecedented access to the Academy's internal archives. We'll have her back when the book is published.*Additionally Monica has some excellent further reading recommendations:BooksElizabeth Castaldo Lundén, Fashion on the Red Carpet: A History of the Oscars, Fashion and Globalisation (Edinburgh University Press, 2021)Frederick W. Gooding Jr.'s The Black Oscars: From Mammy to Minny, What the Academy Awards Tell Us about African Americans (Rowman & Littlefield, 2020)Bruce Davis, The Academy and the Award (Brandeis University Press, 2022)“The First Years of #OscarsSoWhite: Louise Beavers, Hattie McDaniel, and the History of Black Media Discourse at the Academy Awards, CinephilePR and Politics at Hollywood's Biggest Night: The Academy Awards and Unionization (1929-1939),” Media Industries JournalExplaining History helps you understand the 20th Century through critical conversations and expert interviews. We connect the past to the present. If you enjoy the show, please subscribe and share.▸ Support the Show & Get Exclusive ContentBecome a Patron: patreon.com/explaininghistory▸ Join the Community & Continue the ConversationFacebook Group: facebook.com/groups/ExplainingHistoryPodcastSubstack: theexplaininghistorypodcast.substack.com▸ Read Articles & Go DeeperWebsite: explaininghistory.org Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

181.3K followers on TicTok , Over 3600 days running consecutively, One run across the state of Indiana, and finally serving at the athletic trainer at the same small high school that he graduated from Kyle Parkinson is busy guy. He thought he wanted to go into physical therapy but the sports bug was too hard to get away from and landed in the athletic training world. After attending Ball State University and graduating from the athletic training program in 2017 he worked it out to return to his high school, Monroe Central in Parker City, IN. In his time there he has served several rolls, Athletic Trainer, Athletic Director, Teacher, and currently the director of public relations and fundraising as well as his athletic training duties. He has mowed a few cross country courses in is day as well. Whatever needs done Kyle is usually there. So when two students offered to help him learn the world of TicTok for fun and promote the profession of athletic training and raise money for athletic training program, a star was born. With his signature tag line "Go Bears!" he has reach beyond little Parker City and into the world with his athletic training promotion. This has allowed him to follow other passion projects like running across Indiana to raise money for FCA. He continues promoting the profession on other social media platforms besides TikTok. He sought out as an advisor to other AT's that want to do the same thing at their school. He currently resides in Parker City with his wife, Makenzie and daughter Reese.

Mike Steele, Pacing Discourse-Rich Lessons ROUNDING UP: SEASON 4 | EPISODE 13 As a classroom teacher, pacing lessons was often my Achilles' heel. If my students were sharing their thinking or working on a task, I sometimes struggled to decide when to move on to the next phase of a lesson.  Today we're talking with Mike Steele from Ball State University about several high-leverage practices that educators can use to plan and pace their lessons.  BIOGRAPHY Mike Steele is a math education researcher focused on teacher knowledge and teacher learning. He is the past president of the Association of Mathematics Teacher Educators, editor in chief of the Mathematics Teacher Educator journal, and member of the NCTM board of directors.  RESOURCES Journal Article "Pacing a Discourse-Rich Lesson: When to Move On" Books 5 Practices for Orchestrating Productive Mathematics Discussions  The 5 Practices in Practice [Elementary]  The 5 Practices in Practice [Middle School]  The 5 Practices in Practice [High School] Coaching the 5 Practices  TRANSCRIPT Mike Wallus: Well, hi, Mike. Welcome to the podcast. I'm excited to talk with you about discourse-rich lessons and what it looks like to pace them. Mike Steele: Well, I'm excited to talk with you too about this, Mike. This has been a real focus and interest, and I'm so excited that this article grabbed your attention. Mike Wallus: I suppose the first question I should ask for the audience is: What do you mean when you're talking about a discourse-rich lesson? What does that term mean about the lesson and perhaps also about the role of the teacher? Mike Steele: Yeah, I think that's a great question to start with. So when we're talking about a discourse-rich lesson, we're talking about one that has some mathematics that's worth talking about in it. So opportunities for thinking, reasoning, problem solving, in-progress thinking that leads to new mathematical understandings. And that kind of implicit in that discourse-rich lesson is student discourse-rich lesson. That we want not just teachers talking about sharing their own thinking about the mathematics, but opportunities for students to share their own thinking, to shape that thinking, to talk with each other, to see each other as intellectual resources in mathematics.  And so to have a lesson like that, you've got to have a number of things in place. You've got to have a mathematical task that's worth talking about. So something that's not just a calculation and we end up at an answer and that the discourse isn't just, "Let me relay to you as a student the steps I took to do this." Because a lot of times when students are just starting to experience discourse-rich lessons, that's kind of mode one that they engage in is, "Let me recite for you the things that I did." But really opportunities to go beyond that and get into the reasoning and the why of the mathematics. And hopefully to explore some approaches or perspectives or representations that they may not have defaulted to in their first run-through or their first experience digging into a mathematical task.  So the task has to have those opportunities and then we have to create learning environments that really foster those opportunities and students as the creators of mathematics and the teacher as the person who's shaping and guiding that discussion in a mathematically productive way. Mike Wallus: One of the things that struck me is there is likely a problem of practice that you're trying to solve in publishing this article, and I wonder if we could pull the curtain back and have you talk a bit about what was the genesis of this article for you? Mike Steele: Absolutely. So let me take us back about 20 or 25 years, and I'll take you back to some early work that went on around these sorts of rich tasks and discourse-rich lessons. So a lot of this legacy comes out of research or a project in the late nineties called the Quasar Project that helped identify: What is a rich task? What is a task, as the researchers described it, of high cognitive demand that has those opportunities for thinking and reasoning? The next question that that line of research brought forward is, "OK, so we know what a task looks like that gives these opportunities. How does this change what teachers do in the classroom? How they plan for lessons, how they make those moment-to-moment decisions as they're engaged in the teaching of that lesson?" Because it's very different than actually when I started teaching middle school in the nineties, where my preparation was: I looked at the content I had for that day, I wrote three example problems I wanted to write on the board that I very carefully got all the steps right and put those up and explained them and answered some questions. "Alright, everybody understand that? OK, great, moving on." And then the students went and reproduced that. That's fine for some procedural things, but if I really wanted them to engage in thinking and reasoning, I had to start changing my whole practice.  So this bubbles up out of the original work of the 5 Practices for Orchestrating Productive Discussions [book] from Peg Smith and Mary Kay Stein. I had the opportunity actually to work with them both in the early two thousands at the University of Pittsburgh. And so as we were working on this five-practices framework that was supposed to help teachers think about, "What does a different conceptualization of planning and teaching look like that really gets us to this discourse-rich classroom environment where students are making sense of and grappling with mathematics and talking to each other in a meaningful way about it?" We worked with teachers around that and the five-practices [framework] is certainly helpful, but then as teachers were working with the five practices and they were anticipating student thinking, they were writing questions that assess and advance student thinking, some of the things that came up were, "OK, what are the moment-to-moment decisions and challenges related to that as we start planning and teaching in this way?"  And a number of common challenges came up. A lot of times when we were using a five-practice lesson, we were doing kind of a launch, explore, share, and discuss sort of format where we've got the teacher who's getting us started on a task, but we're not giving the farm away on that task. We're not saying too much and guiding their thinking. And then we let students have some time individually and in small groups to start messing around with the mathematics, working, talking. And then at some point we're going to call everybody together and we're going to share what the different ways of thinking were. We're going to try to draw that together. Peg Smith likes to talk about this as being more than a show-and-tell. So it's not just, "We stand up, we give our answer, we do that. Great." Next group, doing the same thing, and oftentimes they start to look alike. But there's some really meaningful thinking that goes on in that whole-class discussion. So one of the really pragmatic concerns here is, "How do I know when to move?" So I've got students working individually, and maybe I gave them 3 minutes to get started. Was that enough? What can I see in the work they're doing? What questions am I going to hear to tell me, "OK, now it's a good moment to move to small groups." And then similarly, when you've got small groups working, they're cranking away on a task. There might be multiple subquestions in that task. What's my cue that we're ready to go on to that whole-class discussion?  We were in so many classrooms where teachers were really working hard to do this work, and this happens to me all the time. I have somehow miscalculated what students are going to be able to do—either how quickly they're going to be able to do it, or I expected them to draw on this piece of prior knowledge and it took us a while to get there, or they've flown through something that I didn't expect them to fly through. So I'm having to make some choice in a moment, saying, "This isn't exactly how I imagined it, so what do I do here?" And frequently with teachers that get caught in that dilemma, the first response is to take control back, [to] say, "OK, you're all struggling with this. Let's come back together and let me show you what you should have figured out here." And it's done with the best of intentions. We need to get some closure on the mathematical ideas. But then it takes us right away from what we were trying to do, which was have our students grapple with the mathematics. And so we do this lovely polished job of putting that together and maybe students took the important things away from that, that they wanted to, maybe they didn't, but they didn't get all the way they were on their own. So that's really the problem of practice that this helps us to solve is, when we get in those positions of, "OK, I've got to make a call. I've got this much time left. I've got this sort of work that I see going on in the classroom. Am I ready? What can I do next?" That really keeps that ownership of the mathematics with our students but still gives me some ability to orchestrate, to shape that discussion in a way that's mathematically meaningful and that gets at the goals I had for the lesson. Mike Wallus: Yeah, I appreciated that part of the article and even just hearing you describe that so much, Mike, because you gave words to I think what sat behind the dilemma that I found myself in so often, which was: I was either trying to gauge whether there was enough—and I think the challenge is we're going to get into, what "enough" actually might mean—but given enough time, whether I was confident that there was understanding, how much understanding was necessary. And what that translates into is a lack of clarity around "How do I use my time? How do I gauge when it's worth expending some of the time that I maybe hadn't thought about and when it's worth recognizing that perhaps I didn't need all of that and I'm ready to do something?" So I think the next question probably should be: Let's talk about "enough." When you talk about knowing if you have enough, say a little bit more about what you mean and perhaps what a teacher might be looking and listening for. Mike Steele: Absolutely. And I think this is a hidden thread in that five-practices model because we say: "OK, we want that whole-class discussion to still be a site for learning where there are some new ideas that are coming together." So that then backs me up to thinking about the small-group work. I'm putting myself in that mode where I've got six groups working around the classroom. I'm circulating around; I'm asking questions. I of course don't see every single thing at any given moment that the small groups are doing. So I'm getting these little excerpts, these little 2- to 3-minute excerpts, when you stop into a group. So I think when we think about "enough," I want to think about, with that task that I'm doing, with what my mathematical goals are and knowing that we're going to have time on the backend of this whole-class discussion to pull some ideas together, to sharpen some things to clarify some of the mathematics. Do I have enough mathematical grist for the mill here in what the small groups are doing to be able to then take that and make progress with students' thinking at the center—again, not taking over the thinking myself—to be able to do that work. So, for any given mathematical idea, as I've started thinking about this when I plan lessons using the five-practices model, I am really taking that apart. What's the mathematical nugget that I'm listening for here, that I'm looking for in students' work that tells me: "OK, we've gotten to a point where, if I were to call people together right now and get them thinking about it, that there's more to think about, but we're well on our way." And also when I'm looking for that, knowing that I'm also not looking at those six groups all at exactly the same time. So, I want to look for those mile markers along the way that tell me we're getting close, but we're not all the way there. Because if I pick one that's, we're pretty much all the way there, that's the first group I come to and I'm going to circulate around to five more. They're going to have run out of interesting things to do, and they're off talking about, thinking about something else.  So, that really becomes the fine line: "What are those little mathematical ideas along the way that are far enough that get us towards our goals, but still we've got a little bit of the journey to go that we're going to go on together?" Mike Wallus: This is so fascinating. The analogy that's coming together in my mind is almost like you're listening for the ingredients for a conversation that you want to have as a group. So it's not necessarily "Has everyone finished?" And that's your threshold. It's actually "Did I hear this idea starting to bubble up? Did I hear elements of this idea or this strategy start to bubble up? Is there an insight that's percolating in different groups?" And it's the combination of those things that the teacher is listening for, and that's kind of the gauge of enoughness. Is that an accurate analogy? Mike Steele: It is, and I love that analogy because it reminds me of a favorite in our household as we're relaxing. We love to watch The Great British Baking Show. So, you're watching people take something from ingredients to a finished product. Now as you're watching that 20-minute segment, they're working on their technical challenge and they're all baking the same thing. I don't have to wait until the end of that, where they've presented their finished product, to have a good idea of what's going to happen. As I'm going through, as I'm watching 'em through that baking process, we're at the middle, my wife and I are talking, like, "Ooh, I've got concerns about that one. That one's looking good though." We get an idea of where it's going. So I think the ingredient analogy really lands with me. We don't have to wait. We're looking for those pieces to be able to pull that together, those ingredients. We're not waiting until there's a final product and saying—because then, what is there to say about it? "Oh, look, that looks great. Oh, that one, maybe not exactly what we'd intended." So, it's giving us those ingredients for that whole-class discussion. Mike Wallus: The other thing that struck me as I was listening to you is: We're not teaching a task; we're teaching a set of ideas or relationships. The task is the vehicle. So, it's perfectly reasonable, it seems, to say, "We're going to pause at this point in the task, or at a place where students might not be entirely finished with the task. And we might have a conversation at that point because we have enough that we can have part of the conversation." And that doesn't mean that they don't go back to the task. But you're really helping me recognize that one of the places where I sometimes get stuck, or got stuck, when I was teaching, is task completion was part of my time marking. And I think really what you're challenging me and other educators to do is to say, "The task is just the vehicle. What's going on? What's percolating around that task as it's happening?" How does that strike you? Mike Steele: Yeah, absolutely. And it was the same challenge with me and sometimes still is the same challenge with me. (laughs) Yeah, you give this task, and we think about that task as our unit of analysis as a teacher when we're planning. And so we want our students as we're using it to get to the end of it. It's a very natural thing to do.  And let me make this really concrete. If I'm doing a visual pattern task with third graders, we have, I think there's one of the elementary [5 Practices in Practice] book called "Tables & Chairs." So you've got these square tables that have four seats around them, and you're putting a string of tables together and asking kids to get at the generalization. "If you have any number of tables, how many people can you seat?"  And so I think early when I started giving those tasks, I was looking for, "OK, has everybody gotten to the rule? Have they gotten to that generalization? OK, now we can talk about it." And we can talk about the different ways people made sense of that geometrically and those connections, and that's what I want to get out of the whole-class discussion. But we don't even have to get there if groups have a sense of how that pattern is growing, even if they haven't gotten to the formal description of the rule. Because if they've gotten to that point, they've made some sense of the visual. They've made some of those connections. They've parsed that in different ways. That's plenty for me to have a good conversation, that we can come to that rule as a group and we can even come to it in different ways as a group. But it frees me up from being like, "OK, everybody got the rule? Everybody got the rule? Everybody got the rule?" Because that often resulted in, I'd have a couple of groups that maybe had been a little slower getting started and they're still getting there. And then I'm sitting there and I'm talking to them, I'm giving them these terribly leading questions. "Can we just get to the rule? Come on, let's go. You're almost there. We got it. We got it." And that then is, again, me taking over that thinking and not giving them the space for those ideas to breathe. Mike Wallus: What else is jumping out for me is the ramifications for how thinking this way actually might shift the way that I would plan for teaching, but also how it might shift the way that I'm looking for evidence to assess students' progress during the task. So I wonder if you have situations or maybe some recommendations for: How might a person plan in ways that help them recognize the ways that the task can be a vehicle but also plan for the kind of evidence that they might be looking for along the way? Could you talk a little bit about that? Mike Steele: Absolutely. So I'll give kind of a multi-layered description of this. When we're using a task that's got multiple solution paths that has these opportunities for diverse thinking, the five-practices framework tells us anticipating student thinking is a critical part of it. So, what are the different solution paths that students can take through it? So, if it's a visual pattern task, they may look at it this way with a visual. They may think about those tables like the tops and the bottoms and then the sides. They may think about the two ends of the tables having different numbers of chairs and the ones in between having a different number of chairs and parsing it that way. And we can develop those. It's actually, for me, quite a lot of fun to develop those fully formed solutions that students can do. And early on when I was enacting lessons like this, I would do that. I'd have those that I was looking for. I'd also think about questions I'd want to ask students who are struggling to get started or maybe were going down a path that may not be mathematically productive and the questions I might ask them to get them on a more mathematically productive path. And I'd go around and I'd look for those solutions, and I'd use that to think about my selecting, my sequencing, my connecting my whole-class discussion. So, great, check. That's layer one.  I think responding to the challenge of what's enough requires us to then take those solution paths apart—both the fully formed ones, maybe the incomplete thinking—and say, "OK, within that solution, what are the things that I want to see and hear that gives me some confidence that we're on this path, even if we're not at the end of this path, and that give me enough to think about?" So, if I think about, I'll go back again to this visual pattern task analogy. If I see groups that are talking about increases, so when we add a table, we're adding two chairs or they're making that distinction between those end tables and the center tables. And I've asked them a couple of questions like: OK, they've done that for 4, they've done that for 5. We may not have done that for 10 or 100 or a generalization, but that might be enough. So, I'm trying to take apart the mathematics and look for those little ideas within it. We've got this idea of a constant rate of change. We've got an idea that the number of tables and the number of chairs have a direct relationship here. So we're setting the stage for that functional thinking, even if, at a third grade level, we're not going to talk about that word. And those might be the important goals that I have for the lesson.  So that's the next phase of what I'm doing. In addition to those fully formed solutions, I'm figuring out: What are the little mathematical ideas in each that I would want to see or hear in my classroom that tell me, "OK, I have a good sense of where they are. I know where this bake's going to turn out 5 minutes from now on the show when they've taken it out of the oven." So, that's I think the next layer of that planning, of trying to figure out how to plan.  And then as we're in the moment in the classroom, being able to know what we're looking for and listening for. And the listening for me is really, really important. I think when I started doing this and I had a sense of, "What are the mathematical ideas I need to draw on?" I made the mistake of overly looking for those on paper. And if we think about how students make sense of writing things down, and sometimes despite our best efforts, the finality that comes with it: "If I've written it down, I have made it real." And if our thinking is still kind of this in-progress thinking, we may not be ready to write it down. So if I wait for it to be written on the page, I may have waited too long, or longer than I needed to, for everybody to get that idea. So again I want to make sure I listen for key words and phrases. And I might have a couple of questions teed up to help me hear those. And once I've heard those, I'm like, "OK, I am ready to go." And then for me—at least in my early fifties and not having the memory that I did when I was a 22-year-old, fresh-out-of-the-box classroom teacher—I need to have a way of keeping track of that and writing that down. So be it physical, be it digital, I want to say, "OK, I know what I'm listening for, what I'm looking for." And sometimes those may be interchangeable. If it's written on the page, great. If not, if I hear it, that's great too. And then if I've got a pretty good roster of that as I've moved through and say, "OK, I feel like all of my groups or most of my groups are at this point, there we go." I feel confident that when I pull us back together, it's not going to be me asking a question and then that terribly awkward sea of crickets out there. I'm like, "I know you were thinking about stuff; just give it to me. I know you've got this." But it gives me much more confidence that we're going to have that nice transition into a good whole-class discussion. Mike Wallus: OK. There's a ton of powerful stuff that you just said. So I want to try to mark two things that really jump out for me. One is an observation that I think is important, and then one is a thought that I want to pick your brain around a little bit further.  I think the biggest piece that I heard you say, which as you were talking about, is this notion that I'm waiting for something to appear in written form. And it feels really freeing and it gives me a lot more space to say, "This is something I could hear or I could even see in the way that kids were manipulating materials. That that counts as evidence, and I don't have to literally see it written on a paper in order for me to count that that idea is in the room." I just want to name that for the audience because that feels tremendously important. Because from a practical standpoint, if we're waiting for it to be written, that takes more time. And it doesn't necessarily mean that suddenly it appeared and before when it was just in a child's mind or in the way that they were manipulating something, that it wasn't there. It was there. So I just want to mark that.  The other thing that you had me thinking about is, I know for myself, I've gone through and done some of the anticipation work in the five practices, but what struck me is when my colleagues and I would do that, we often would generate quite a few alternative strategies or ideas. But I feel like what we were looking at is the final outcome, like, "This counting by 1 strategy is what we might see. This decomposing numbers more flexibly is something we might see. This counting on strategy is something we might see." But what we didn't talk about that I think you're advocating for is: What are the moments within that that matter? It's almost like: What in the process of getting to this anticipated strategy is something that is useful or important that counts as one of those ingredients? So I want to run that past you and say, does that follow or am I missing something? Mike Steele: It does. And I think those two things go together in a really important way because as you're talking about that pivotal moment in student thinking, as they're coming to this new understanding, as they're grappling with that mathematical idea, and thinking about, "What are the implications if we leverage that moment right there to then ask more questions to connect different ways of student thinking as compared to waiting till it's written down?" Because when it's written down, that exciting moment of the new discovery has passed. And so then when we want them to come revisit—"Tell us what you were thinking when you did that."—they're having to rewind and go back and reenact that.  If we have the ability to capture those neurons firing at full throttle in that moment of a new mathematical insight and then use that to build on as a teacher and to really get where we want to go with the lesson, I feel like we're doing the right thing by kids by trying to seize that moment, to leverage it. We always have time to write down what we think we learned later on at the end of the lesson. It's a great task for homework. And that's another thing I love about leaving some things unfinished with a task is, that's just a delightful homework assignment. And the kids love it because they don't feel like I've asked them to do anything new. (laughs) Just write down what you understood about this, and now we're codifying it kind of at a different place in the process. Mike Wallus: Well, OK, and that makes me think about something else. Because you've helped me recognize that I don't have to wait for a final solution in writing that's fleshed out in order to start a whole-group conversation. But I think what you're saying is, it changes the tone and maybe also the purpose and the impact of that conversation on students. Because if I have a task that I'm midway through and suddenly there's a conversation that helps create some understanding, some aha moments, if my task is unfinished and I had an aha, I probably really want to go back to that and see if I can apply that aha. And that's kind of cool to imagine like a classroom where you have a bunch of kids dying to go back and see if they can figure out how they can put that to use. Now you wouldn't always have to do that, but that strikes me as different than a consolidation conversation where it's kind of like, "Well, everything's finished. What have we learned?" Those are valuable. But I'm just really, I think in love with the possibility that a conversation that doesn't always wait until final solutions creates for learning. Mike Steele: And when I've seen this done effectively, there are these moments that happen. Mike, they're exactly what you're describing, is that there's an insight that comes up in the whole-class conversation, and you will see people going back to their paper or their tablet that they were doing their original work on and start writing. And we know oftentimes with kids, I remember so many times in my classroom where we're having this discussion, this important point comes up, and everybody's kind of frozen. And I'm like, "No, you should write that down. That's the important thing. Write that down." And when you see it happen organically, it's because something really catalyzed in insight that was important enough that they went back to that work and said, "Oh, I want to capture this." Mike Wallus: So, I'm wondering if there are habits of mind, habits in planning, or habits in practice that we could distill down. So, how would you unpack the things that a person might do if they're listening and they're like, "I want to do this today," or "I want to do this at my next planning."? Could you talk a little bit about what are the baby steps, so to speak, for a person? Mike Steele: Yeah, and I think the first one is really about getting into the mathematics and going deep with the mathematics in the task that you're hoping to teach. As somebody who is trained as a secondary math teacher, and early in my career, I was like, "Oh, I know what the math is. I don't need to spend the time on the math." I can't tell you how wrong I was about that. So anticipating those ways of thinking, thinking about where those challenges are, that sort of thing, is absolutely critically important to doing that work. And giving the time and space for that to happen. I mean, it was almost without fail. Every time I shorted myself on the time to think about the mathematics and just popped open my instructional resource and said, "Here we go. Class starts in 5 minutes. Let's get going on this," I'd bump into things that I was like, "Oh, I wish I had thought about that mathematical idea first." Or there'd be a question that would come up that I'd be totally unprepared to answer and I could have been prepared to answer. Now, we're not going to anticipate every way of thinking that students have or every question that they'll have, but I always find that if I've thought through it, I'm probably in a better position to give a meaningful answer to it or ask a good question back in response. And it also frees up my cognitive load to actually spend some time on those questions that I didn't expect rather than trying to make sense of everything as if it's the first time I'm seeing it.  And then along with that, doing this as a group, we used to sit in our PLC sessions and start to solve tasks together and share our thinking about, "OK, what are the mathematical ideas that we're really trying to take apart here?" And there were always insights that didn't occur to me that would occur to somebody else that added to my own thinking. And now in an increasingly digitally connected age, we don't necessarily have to be in the same room with people to do that. We can do that at a distance and still be very effective.  And then the last thing I'll talk about here in terms of getting started is: We are so good as teachers at sharing an interesting task that we found or that we used with our students with our colleagues. "Here's this thing I use in my class. It was great. You're a couple days behind me in the pacing. Maybe you can use this next Tuesday." What we I think are less good at is bringing back the outcomes of that and talking about that. "Here's what students did." I loved it when we had opportunities to gather a group of teachers in the PLC with student work from a task they did and talk about it and see: What did students make sense of? What were the questions that I asked that were helpful, or that maybe weren't helpful, in teaching that lesson. Because we'll share the task, but my goodness, the questions that we came up with to ask students in the moment, those are just as portable from one classroom to another. And we should be thinking about, just like we think about digital archives to share those tasks and those lesson plans—like sharing those questions, sharing that student work—those are the other legs of that stool that are important for really helping us do this work in a meaningful and collaborative way. Because if we don't talk about the outcomes of what students learned, the task could be great, it could be interesting, but so what? What's the important mathematical insights that kids took away from it? Mike Wallus: Yeah, I'm kind of in love with this notion that in addition to sharing tasks, sharing questions that really generated an impact in the classroom space or sharing moments of insight that led to something that jumped out. It's fascinating to think about taking those ideas and building them into a regular PLC process. It just has so much potential.  Before we close the conversation, I wanted to ask you a question that I ask almost every guest: If someone wanted to learn more about the ideas that you've shared today, what are some of the resources you'd recommend? Mike Steele: Well, I've talked quite a bit about the work of the 5 Practices for Orchestrating Productive Discussions and that series of books that have been written over the past 15 years on that—the resources that are available online for that, I think, would be a great place to start. I've only scratched the surface at taking you through those five practices—which are actually six practices, because early on we realized that attention to the task we select and the goals for that task is the important "practice zero." In fact, it was a teacher that pointed that out to Peg Smith. And that's the lovely thing. So the reason I've stayed in touch with and helped to develop this work over the years is because when we see teachers taking it up, not only is it meaningful, but the feedback we get from teachers then shapes the next things that we do with it. So there's the original 5 practices book that kind of presents the model, shows some examples of tasks and how you go through the model.  But then in 2019 and 2020, we published a series called The 5 Practices in Practice that, there's a book for each grade band—elementary, middle, and high school. But those were the ones that really aggregated the challenges that we heard from teachers over 10 years of doing this work and started to address those challenges. How do you overcome those things? We also, for each of those books, there's brand-new original video that we took in urban classrooms that illustrated teachers working really effectively with the five practices. I was able to be in the room when we filmed all of the high school classrooms in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and it was just amazing to see that work.  And then the last piece that I'll suggest to that, which is a book that came out relatively recently in that series. There is a Coaching the 5 Practices book. So if you are a coach, instructional leader who's looking to support a team and a PLC in doing exactly this sort of work that we've been talking about, the Coaching the 5 Practices book is an incredible resource for thinking about how you can structure that work. Mike Wallus: OK. I have to also ask you, can you give a shout out to the article that you recently wrote and published as well, the title and where people could find it? Mike Steele: Absolutely. Yes. The article is called "Pacing a Discourse-Rich Lesson: When to Move On," and I authored it alongside an elementary and middle school teacher who provided a reflection on it. It comes from the classroom of a high school teacher, Michael Moore, in Milwaukee, who we filmed for the [5 Practices in Practice] high school book. So I drew from his classroom. And then Kara Benson in Zionsville Community Schools right here in Zionsville, Indiana. And Kelly Agnew who teaches in Muncie Community Schools, which is where Ball State [University] is located. Each provided a reflection from an elementary and middle school standpoint about the ideas in the article. It was published in NCTM'S practitioner journal, Mathematics Teacher: Learning and Teaching PK-12, in the Volume 118, Issue 11, from November of 2025. Mike Wallus: That's fantastic. And for listeners, just so you know, we're going to put a link to all of the resources that Mike shared.  I think this is probably a good place to stop, Mike. I suspect we could talk for much longer. I just want to thank you, though, for taking the time to join the podcast. It has been an absolute pleasure chatting with you. Mike Steele: The pleasure has been all mine. As you can tell, I love talking about these ideas, and I was so glad to have the opportunity to share a little bit of this with the audience. Mike Wallus: This podcast is brought to you by The Math Learning Center and the Maier Math Foundation, dedicated to inspiring and enabling all individuals to discover and develop their mathematical confidence and ability. © 2026 The Math Learning Center | www.mathlearningcenter.org

The Alliance for Civics in the Academy hosts "What Counts as Success? Assessing the Impact of Civics in Higher Ed" with Trygve Throntveit, Rachel Wahl, Joseph Kahne, and Peter Levine on February 18, 2026, from 9:00-10:00 a.m. PT. As higher education renews its commitment to civic education, questions about how to define and measure success have become increasingly urgent. This webinar examines the strengths and limitations of common metrics and considers how different measures reflect competing visions of civic purpose in higher education. Participants explore emerging frameworks for assessing civic learning and engagement, and discuss how institutions can align assessment practices with their educational missions and democratic goals. ABOUT THE SPEAKERS Rachel Wahl is an associate professor in the Social Foundations Program, Department of Educational Leadership, Foundations, and Policy at the School of Education and Human Development at the University of Virginia. She also serves as Director of the Good Life Political Project at the UVa Karsh Institute of Democracy. Her research focuses on learning through public dialogue between people on opposing sides of political divides. Her most recent book is Keeping Our Enemies Closer: Political Dialogue in Polarized Democracies (University of Pennsylvania Press, forthcoming October 2026). Her prior research focused on efforts by community activists to change police officers' beliefs and behavior through activism and education, which is the subject of her first book, Just Violence: Torture and Human Rights in the Eyes of the Police (Stanford University Press, 2017). Her research has been funded by donors such as the Educating Character Initiative, the Spencer Foundation and National Academy of Education, the Carnegie Corporation, and the federal Institute of International Education.  Joseph Kahne is the Ted and Jo Dutton Presidential Professor for Education Policy and Politics and Director of the Civic Engagement Research Group (CERG) at the University of California, Riverside. Professor Kahne's research focuses on the influence of school practices and digital media on youth civic and political development. For example, with funding from the Institute of Educational Sciences (IES), and in partnership with scholars from Ohio State, Brown, and UCR, CERG has launched and is studying the impact of Connecting Classrooms to Congress (CC2C). CC2C is a social studies curricular unit that enables students to learn and deliberate about a controversial societal issue and then participate in an online townhall with their Member of Congress. In addition, Kahne and CERG are currently studying the Educating for American Democracy Roadmap. This work takes place through a partnership with reformers and school districts in NM, OK, and LA. In addition to studying the impact of these curricular experiences on young people's civic development, with John Rogers, we are currently devoting particular attention to the politics of democratic education. We are examining ways the political contexts of school districts shape possibilities for democratic education and the varied ways educators respond.  Professor Kahne was Chair of the MacArthur Foundation's Youth and Participatory Politics Research Network. Kahne was a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences Commission on the Practice of Democratic Citizenship. He currently chairs the Educating for American Democracy Research Task Force. Professor Kahne is a member of the National Academy of Education and a Fellow of the American Educational Research Association. He can be reached at jkahne@ucr.edu and his work is available at https://www.civicsurvey.org/ Trygve Throntveit, PhD, was appointed Research Professor in Higher Education and Associate Director of the Center for Economic and Civic Learning (CECL) at Ball State University in August of 2025. During the previous five years, he served as Director of Strategic Partnership and Civic Renewal Programming at the Minnesota Humanities Center (MHC), and as Global Fellow for History and Public Policy at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. At MHC, Dr. Throntveit expanded the Third Way Civics (3WC) initiative for undergraduate civic learning--which he first developed with partners at Ball State and Southeastern Universities in 2019--into a multi-state program, training dozens of faculty in Minnesota, Indiana, Florida, Missouri, and Montana to infuse student-centered, active civic learning into their regular courses and helping several colleges and universities build the original, US history and politics version of 3WC into their general curricula. As a result of his work on Third Way Civics, was selected by Campus Compact and the Civic Learning and Democracy Engagement coalition to co-author an upcoming guide to designing and implementing rigorous civic learning opportunities across the undergraduate curriculum, and has delivered presentations and workshops on 3WC and civic learning more generally across the United States as well as Austria, Germany, Japan, and Korea. Trained as a historian, Dr. Throntveit is an active scholar in the fields of history and political theory as well as civic learning, having published articles and books examining past and present developments in US politics, foreign policy, and social thought and served for eight years as editor of The Good Society, the journal of the transdisciplinary Civic Studies field. He has taught at Harvard University, Dartmouth College, and Minnesota State University-Mankato, and has overseen public humanities programs bringing communities into productive conversation across their differences on issues as diverse as election integrity, US-Tribal relations, and water use. Dr. Throntveit lives and works in Minneapolis, where oversees the increasingly national 3WC initiative and also directs the Twin Cities-based Institute for Public Life and Work, which he co-founded with Harry C. Boyte and Marie-Louise Strom in 2021.  Moderator Peter Levine is a philosopher and political scientist who specializes on civic life and has helped to develop Civic Studies as an international intellectual movement. In the domain of civic education, Levine was a co-organizer and co-author of The Civic Mission of Schools (2003), The College, Career & Citizenship Framework for State Social Studies Standards (2013) and The Educating for American Democracy Roadmap (2021). He is also the author of eight books, including most recently We Are the Ones We Have Been Waiting For: The Promise of Civic Renewal in America (Oxford University Press, 2013) and What Should We Do? A Theory of Civic Life (Oxford University Press, 2022).

The Oscars hold a special place in popular culture, but the first Academy Awards ceremony, held in 1929, bore little resemblance to the spectacle most of us know today. In this episode, media expert Monica Sandler takes us from that first award ceremony – when both Los Angeles and the films made there struggled for respectability – to the modern extravaganza that draws tens of millions of viewers worldwide. Monica also breaks down the way voting has changed over time, the evolution of categories, and what she thinks was the greatest snub of all time. Dr. Monica Sandler is a film and media historian at Ball State University, specializing in the history of entertainment prizes and their influence on Hollywood. You can find out more about her at her website: MonicaSandlerPhD.com. Come find Ben & Bob on the road this summer! -Bob will be speaking about his new book, America's Founding Son (out March 10) at bookstores across the country. Click here for dates & locations! -Ben will be joining his friend Greg Jackson of History That Doesn't Suck for a history cruise on the Caribbean from May 18-22, featuring a live recording of The Road to Now! Click here to find out more about a History Cruise That Doesn't Suck and use promo code RTN for $100 off a cabin!   This episode was edited by Ben Sawyer.

What a crazy week it's been with plenty of action in MLB Spring Training with ties to our provinces, as well as several player of the week nods in college baseball and new commitments state-side. We have the full rundown in the news, then visit with a trio of newcomers to the show plying their trades south of the border. Hear from Dawgs Academy alum Jacob Gillis (Fergus, Ontario) as he's off to a great start at Ball State University, then we visit with Martin Academy product Nathan Yunick (Estevan, Saskatchewan) as he's into his sophomore season at Trinidad State College. And we wrap things up with AHP Academy grad Seamus Lehman (Edmonton, Alberta) as he's into his first full season as a redshirt sophomore at Fort Scott College. 5:24 – Jacob Gillis 14:06 – Nathan Yunick 26:12 – Seamus Lehman

Dr. Bob Winters—The Confidence Doctor—is back for round two, and this conversation is a straight-up masterclass in what actually creates elite confidence. Because here's the truth: most golfers (and high performers) don't have an information problem. They have a compliance problem. We talk about why "positive thinking" is useless without "positive doing," how Dr. Bob uses a deceptively simple question—"Are you good?"—to expose blind spots, and why real confidence is earned through proof, not hype. We also go to a deeper place: the cost of becoming elite. The strain. The sacrifice. The quiet moments where you wonder if it's worth it. And why, for the people who truly want it, the hard is what makes it great. In this episode, you'll learn: Why "positive doing" is the missing link between ambition and results The simple question that exposes confidence… or hidden self-doubt How to stop "knowing what to do" but still not doing it What elite performers do differently when setbacks knock them down The real cost of elite confidence—and why it's worth paying How to use selective attention to train your focus (and your results) Why compliance is the separator between winners and wannabes Get your pencils ready and start listening.  P.S. Check out episode 76 for my past conversation with Dr. Bob.  P.P.S. Curious to learn more about the results my clients are experiencing and what they say about working with me? Read more here. Apply for 1-1 Mindset and Performance Coaching: Click here to apply to work with me. More About Dr. Bob Winters Dr. Robert K. Winters, affectionately known as "Dr. Bob," is an internationally renowned sports psychologist, author, and professional speaker with over 45 years of experience in the field of sports performance.  He holds a Ph.D. in Sport Psychology from the University of Virginia, along with Bachelor's and Master's degrees from Ball State University. Dr. Winters has dedicated his career to understanding the psychological components of athletic excellence, focusing on confidence development and mental toughness.  He has worked with a diverse range of athletes, including PGA and LPGA Tour professionals, collegiate teams, and junior athletes Purchase "The 10 Commandments of Mindpower Golf" Connect on Instagram - @dr.bobwinters  Play to Your Potential On (and Off) the Course Schedule a Mindset Coaching Discovery Call Subscribe to the More Pars than Bogeys Newsletter Download my "Play Your Best Round" free hypnosis audio recording. High-Performance Hypnotherapy and Mindset Coaching Paul Salter - known as The Golf Hypnotherapist - is a High-Performance Hypnotherapist and Mindset Coach who leverages hypnosis and powerful subconscious reprogramming techniques to help golfers of all ages and skill levels overcome the mental hazards of their minds so they can shoot lower scores and play to their potential. He has over 16 years of coaching experience working with high performers in various industries, helping them get unstuck, out of their own way, and unlock their full potential. Click here to learn more about how high-performance hypnotherapy and mindset coaching can help you get out of your own way and play to your potential on (and off) the course.  Instagram: @thepaulsalter Key Takeaways: Positive thinking without positive doing is emotional entertainment, not transformation. Confidence grows fastest when you collect proof—small wins, repeated, over time. "Are you good?" is a diagnostic question that reveals belief, hesitation, and identity. Most people aren't stuck because they don't know what to do—they're stuck because they won't do it consistently. Setbacks are training reps for resilience: reset, reframe, re-engage—especially in golf. Elite confidence has a cost: sacrifice, discomfort, doubt, and the willingness to keep going anyway. Compliance is the hard truth—if you won't do what you said you'd do, you're not committed, you just like the idea. Key Quotes: "I turn the improbable into possible." "We talk about positive thinking… but you have to have positive doing." "It takes a long time to learn how to play like yourself." "You do it until you become it." "We've got to get through the suck before we get through the success." "It's the hard that makes it great." "Are you doing what you said you wanted to do?" Time Stamps: 00:00: Introduction to Dr. Bob's Work 02:33: Bridging Positive Thinking and Doing 05:42: Peeling Back the Layers of Self-Discovery 08:34: The Cost of Elite Confidence 11:21: The Importance of Compliance and Accountability 14:19: The Role of Resilience in Success 17:05: The Journey of Self-Discovery and Growth 19:38: The Power of Self-Reflection 22:52: The Importance of Authenticity 25:33: The Balance of Selfishness and Self-Fullness 28:18: The Hard Work Behind Success 30:53: The Role of Truth in Personal Growth 33:39: The Mindset of Winners 36:45: Final Thoughts and Resources

#248: Kyle Stark is a baseball executive and leadership consultant best known for his long tenure with the Pittsburgh Pirates, where he served as Director of Player Development before being promoted to Assistant General Manager and later Vice President/Assistant GM, playing a key role in rebuilding the organization's farm system and supporting the club's return to postseason contention in the mid-2010s. A Pennsylvania native, Stark holds degrees from Ball State University, the University of Toledo College of Law, and St. Bonaventure University, and previously worked in baseball operations with the Cleveland Indians. After departing the Pirates in 2019, he transitioned into leadership coaching and consulting, working with sports teams, businesses, and organizations on culture, performance, and organizational development.

Jud Fisher is a member of the extended Ball family, a family whose vision and enduring philanthropic support founded and has sustained Ball State University. Jud Fisher is also the president and the chief executive officer of the Ball Brothers Foundation. In that role, he serves as living proof of the Ball family's longstanding commitment to our University, to Muncie, and to East Central Indiana.In this episode, Jud talks about his childhood growing up in northern Michigan and how he found personal and professional fulfillment after moving to Muncie. He describes the mission of the Ball Brothers Foundation, which this year celebrates its 100th anniversary. And he shares his gratitude in carrying on the stewardship legacy of the Ball brothers by supporting the community and continuing to improve the quality of life in Indiana. If you enjoy this episode, please leave a review to support the show. 

Jeff Mitchell was introduced as the Cardinals' Director of Athletics on February 6, 2023. A respected administrator with more than two decades of experience in higher education and athletics administration, Mitchell is currently in his third year as a member of the Ball State University senior executive team and leads an athletics department that sponsors 19 programs with more than 450 student-athletes.During his first two years at the helm, Mitchell's leadership fostered significant competitive success, new standards of academic excellence, increased commitment to community engagement, enhanced growth in philanthropic support and revenue generation, and investment in comprehensive facility improvements. In 2024–25, Mitchell led Ball State to secure its first-ever Carol A. Cartwright Award, signifying the Mid-American Conference's best overall athletics program, recognizing academic excellence, athletic success, and civic engagement.Ball State has claimed 10 conference championships under Mitchell's leadership. Academically, Ball State established a new benchmark in 2024–25 as all 19 varsity programs recorded a team GPA above 3.0 in both semesters. The department achieved its highest spring semester GPA in the past decade (3.487) and its highest full-year GPA in 10 years (3.46). In the community, the Cardinals logged more than 4,200 hours of service in Muncie and across East Central Indiana.In addition to these competitive and academic milestones, Mitchell negotiated a new multimedia rights deal with Peak Sports MGMT valued at more than $10 million. Fundraising for Ball State Athletics also recorded its highest two-year total ever, with more than $17.9 million raised. Nearly all Ball State sports venues have undergone significant updates over the past two years, with completed or approved construction projects accounting for approximately $25 million in facility enhancements.Mitchell is the co-author of the textbook Sport, Ethics and Leadership, published in 2017, and previously served as an adjunct professor of business leadership at the University of Southern Mississippi. He earned his Bachelor of Arts (2001) and Master of Business Administration (2003) degrees from Millsaps College in Jackson, Mississippi, where he was a four-year member of the varsity baseball team. He earned his Juris Doctor from the University of Mississippi School of Law in 2005, where he also served as a graduate assistant in the external relations unit, primarily working with the Ole Miss football and men's basketball programs. Mitchell and his wife, April, are parents to a daughter, Harper Wynne (17), and a son, Carson (12).

Episode 509 / Terra KeckTerra Keck is a Brooklyn based artist and performer. She received her MFA in Printmaking from the University of Hawai'i at Mānoa in 2018, and her BFA in Drawing from Ball State University in 2013. She moved to Brooklyn in the summer of 2018 and works in East Williamsburg. Terra's work featured in publications such as Hyperallergic, The Art Newspaper, and Oxford American Arts as well as in permanent institutional collections in Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Italy, Hawaii, and California. She's had solo shows at Field Projects, Sweet Lorraine, the Honolul Museum of Art amongst other venues and group shows at Maia COntemporary, Here to Sunday, Immaterial Porjects and many others. Terra is a founding member of the international artist collective GRRIC Contemporary, an experimental art space, happening, omnipotence. In 2017 she co-curated the show “Afterschool Special” at the Honolulu Museum of Art and several shows through the GRRIC Contemporary Art Gallery in Honolulu. Terra also co-hosts the comedy podcast “Witch, Yes!” which seeks the humor and humanity of the occult, folklore, and witchcraft in its relationship to history, identity and contemporary politics. 

Guest:Dan O'Toole, Founder, Chairman, and Chief Executive Officer of Arrive AI Inc.Company: Arrive AI - The Future of Autonomous DeliveryWebsite:https://www.arriveai.comTicker: NASDAQ: ARAIAbout Arrive AI:Arrive AI (NASDAQ: ARAI) is a technology company that transforms last-mile logistics with its AI-powered Autonomous Last Mile (ALM) platform, designed to make deliveries smarter, safer, and more efficient. Founded in 2020 and headquartered in Fishers, Indiana, the company's patented Arrive Points™ smart mailboxes securely interact with drones, ground robots, couriers, and people, enabling seamless handoffs and secure chain-of custody controls. The platform also provides real-time tracking and logistics alerts, helping shippers and delivery networks achieve greater speed and reliability. Backed by nearly $12 million in crowdfunding and $40 million in institutional investment, Arrive AI advanced to the public markets with a Nasdaq direct listing in 2025.Dan's BioDan O'Toole is a visionary leader bringing more than 37 years of entrepreneurial experience in building and scaling innovative businesses. He began his career as a national sales manager in specialty distribution before founding and exiting three companies, including Facility Maintenance USA, which provided nationwide services to Fortune 500 clients. Renowned for anticipating market shifts, O'Toole has repeatedly turned innovation into sustainable growth and long-term shareholder value. His track record spans securing patents, leading successful exits, and nurturing high-performance teams. At Arrive AI, he guides the company's overall strategy, governance, and global expansion as a publicly traded enterprise.Dan O'Toole is one of the first in the U.S. to secure patents for a smart mailbox capable of accepting packages via drones and other autonomous systems. His invention has since evolved into a Mailbox-as-a-Service platform powered by AI. A serial entrepreneur, he brings extensive leadership experience across startups, enterprise sales organizations, and commercial real estate. A graduate of Ball State University, he lives with his family in Carmel, IN, and is an avid car collector.

For more than 50 years, Stefan Anderson has had a distinctive relationship with Ball State University. Though he never attended Ball State, Steve became an advocate and friend of the University soon after he became the CEO of First Merchants Bank in 1974. In the decades since, Steve has served on numerous boards and committees, including the Ball State University Foundation Board, chairing Ball State's first capital campaign,  chairing the Ball Honors House campaign, and serving on the leadership teams of several subsequent major fundraising initiatives. In October, Steve received an Honorary Alumni Award from the Ball State Alumni Association. After listening to this episode, you'll discover why he is a deserving recipient of this award. Steve discusses how meaningful it was for him to receive this award, and he shares the many ways in which he believes Ball State is an exceptional University. Steve also shares stories about the front row seat he's had to the evolution of the University—and how gratifying it's been to witness the positive impact Ball State has had on so many people over the years, himself included. If you enjoy this episode, please leave a review to support the show.  

In this episode of PennyWise, host John Kiernan and guest Dr. Jessica G. Zeiss from Ball State University discuss the best ways to go about getting a credit card. It might seem like a simple topic, but there’s a lot more that goes into choosing the right credit card and actually getting approved than most people realize. John and Dr. Zeiss cover the process of getting a credit card from start to finish, highlighting money-saving strategies to use as well as costly pitfalls to avoid. They also talk about why getting a credit card is so important to achieving overall financial success and how many credit cards you should have. John answers some of your questions, too. More on this episode from WalletHub:  How to Choose a Credit Card How to Apply for a Credit Card  How to Get Approved for a Credit Card You can compare credit card offers on WalletHub to find the best card for your needs. You can also reference WalletHub’s editors’ picks for the best credit cards for building credit, rewards, 0% APR and more. 

Are we responsible for our choices? What can the laws of nature teach us about morality? On this classic episode of ID The Future from the archive, host Andrew McDiarmid welcomes back Dr. Eric Hedin, Professor Emeritus of Physics and Astronomy at Ball State University, to conclude a discussion about his two recent articles on suffering, free will, and morality in a designed world. Some scientists continue to argue that human free will is an illusion and that we have no more control over our choices than the decision to breathe. But this idea, known as determinism, flies in the face of our human experience. Dr. Hedin explains that far from being slaves to external forces, humans have a great latitude of freedom in the universe. In other words, the ball is in our court. This is Part 2 of a two-part discussion. Source

Welcome to Mysteries to Die For.I am TG Wolff and I'm here with Jack, my piano player and producer. This is a podcast where we combine storytelling with original music to put you in the heart of a mystery. All stories are structured to challenge you to beat the detective to the solution. Jack and I perform these live, front to back, no breaks, no fakes, no retakes.Our social media is alive and kicking. Check out Instagram @mysteriestodiefor (all spelled out) and on Facebook @m2d4podcast for the pulse on the shows happenings. And explore our website, M2D4Podcast.com for all our episodes and authors.The rules for law and order create the boundaries for civil co-existence and, ideally, the backdrops for individuals, families, and companies to grow and thrive. Breaking these rules puts civil order at risk. And while murder is the Big Daddy of crimes, codified ordinances across municipal divisions, counties, states, and countries show the nearly endless ways there are to create mayhem. This season, we put our detective skills to the test. This is Season 8, Anything but Murder. This is Episode 23, something is the featured crime. This is Detective Connolly Gets Filmed in 4K by Jack WolffWell, Connolly's gotten himself into another fine mess. He knows Danny Slaw is the bad guy…but what's his crime?Kidnapping, 'cause there's a missing personSmuggling, 'cause there's a tunnelMenacing, 'cause there's a creepy houseCoercion, 'cause something's scaring SilvaConspiracy, 'cause Danny isn't working aloneHere's what Connolly (thinks) he knows:Husband and father Marvin Young disappeared from Mackinac Island. He was last seen going into an abandoned house after an argument with his wife. Recently, there have been Marvin sightings. Locals think it's his ghost.Marvin had a good friend, Jenna, who worked on the docks. She left Mackinac shortly after Marvin disappeared, and showed up in Montana.Deputy Dippersby shared the file with Connolly. Dorthy called Shaw to let him know Connolly was investigating.Almost a year after Marvin disappeared, Danny Shaw arrived on the island with a grant to make a documentary about Marvin.Silva Young admits to arguing with Marvin. He wanted to turn their spare bedroom into an art studio while she wanted it for soon-to-come baby.In the old house, Connolly is warned against going into the basement because Deputy Dippersby said it could collapse. Connolly discovers a tunnel in the basement. When he investigates, Shaw locks him in. It leads to a harbor.Turn up the collar on your trenchcoat and decide: What do we collar Shaw for?ABOUT Jack WolffJack Wolff is a Ball State University student studying Media Production and Music Recording. He has been podcasting for five years now, and has written a number of short stories for the Mysteries To Die For show. When he's not podcasting, he is teaching marching percussion to high schoolers, writing and shooting films for his own enjoyment, or playing with his psychopathic border collie puppy. You can follow him on instagram at @wackjolff, that's jack wolff with the first letters of his first and last name flipped around, or if you are bored and want to email with him, don't worry, he's bored too, and can be found at j-w-i-l-d-e-317@gmail.com, that's jwilde317@gmail.com. On January 9, Season 9 Stuff That Can Kill You begins dropping. It will be all about the weapons but not trite guns and knives. We're talking about murders done using gravity, motion, mechanical, electrical, pressure, sound, radiation, biological, chemical, and temperature. Be sure to join in … it's gonna get messyWRAP UPThat wraps this episode of Mysteries to Die For. Support our show by subscribing, telling a mystery lover about us, and giving us a five-star review. Check out our NEW...

Los Angeles City College (CA) Professor of Music and Freelancer Kassandra Kocoshis stops by to talk about her PASIC50 Presentation on Cajón performance in Flamenco performance and how she came to love this genre of music (05:10), her job at LACC, how she got the job, freelancing in California, and working with the artist Ebi (19:50), growing up in Muncie (IN), her early musical experiences, working with Erwin Mueller at Ball State University while in high school, and her experiences traveling at a young age (53:30), her undergrad years at DePaul University (IL), encountering flamenco music during this time, and freelancing in Chicago after undergrad (01:06:45), heading to CalArts for her master's and working with Gustavo Dudamel as his personal assistant (01:21:15), and finishes with the Random Ass Questions, including segments on developing well-rounded percussionists, being a woman in the percussion field, bad impressions, Greek food, World Cup Soccer, great books, working with pop stars, and the artwork of Pablo Picasso (01:31:30).Finishing with a Rave on the 2025 film 28 Years Later (01:50:10).Kassandra Kocoshis links:Kassandra Kocochis's homepagePrevious Podcast guests mentioned:Damon Grant in 2021Erin Walker Bliss in 2024Other Links:Paco de LucíaEbiRaul PinedaRed Kite SessionsRandy GlossHerb AlpertJennie GarthMona TavakoliNikki CampbellThe CortégeErwin MuellerIndiana Ambassadors of MusicEric MillsteinGustavo DudamelEllen ReidSheila E. drum soloLongman & EagleRick BaylessThe Athenian RoomLife is Beautiful trailerThe Producers trailer (2005)American Gods - Neil GaimanCirce - Madeline MillerMuseo Reina SofiaGuernica - Pablo PicassoRaves:28 Days Later trailer

RFH 147: The Fight to Defend Free Speech at Ball State University (Interview with Sarah Vitale) by MHI

From the 1720s to the 1940s, parents in the kingdom and later colony of Dahomey (now the Republic of Benin) developed and sustained the common practice of girl fostering, or "entrusting." Transferring their daughters at a young age into foster homes, Dahomeans created complex relationships of mutual obligation, kinship, and caregiving that also exploited girls' labor for the economic benefit of the women who acted as their social mothers. Drawing upon oral tradition, historic images, and collective memories, Jessica Reuther pieces together the fragmentary glimpses of girls' lives contained in colonial archives within the framework of traditional understandings about entrustment. Placing these girls and their social mothers at the center of history brings to light their core contributions to local and global political economies, even as the Dahomean monarchy, global trade, and colonial courts reshaped girlhood norms and fostering practices. In The Bonds of Kinship in Dahomey: Portraits of West African Girlhood, 1720–1940 (Indiana UP, 2025) Reuther reveals that the social, economic, and political changes wrought by the expansion of Dahomey in the eighteenth century, the shift to "legitimate" trade in agricultural products in the nineteenth century, and the imposition of French colonialism in the twentieth all fundamentally altered—and were altered by—the intimate practice of entrusting female children between households. Dahomeans also valorized this process as a crucial component of being "well-raised"—a sentiment that continues into the present, despite widespread Beninese opposition to modern-day forms of child labor. Dr. Jessica Reuther is an associate professor of African and world history at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana, USA. She came to Ball State after earning her PhD in African History from Emory University in Atlanta, GA, in 2016. Dr. Reuther is a historian of Africa, specializing in Atlantic West Africa and French West Africa from the 16th century to the present. She has conducted archival and oral history research in Benin, Senegal, France, Switzerland, and the United States. You can learn more about her work here. Afua Baafi Quarshie is a Ph.D. candidate in history at the Johns Hopkins University. Her research focuses on mothering and childhood in post-independence Ghana. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

From the 1720s to the 1940s, parents in the kingdom and later colony of Dahomey (now the Republic of Benin) developed and sustained the common practice of girl fostering, or "entrusting." Transferring their daughters at a young age into foster homes, Dahomeans created complex relationships of mutual obligation, kinship, and caregiving that also exploited girls' labor for the economic benefit of the women who acted as their social mothers. Drawing upon oral tradition, historic images, and collective memories, Jessica Reuther pieces together the fragmentary glimpses of girls' lives contained in colonial archives within the framework of traditional understandings about entrustment. Placing these girls and their social mothers at the center of history brings to light their core contributions to local and global political economies, even as the Dahomean monarchy, global trade, and colonial courts reshaped girlhood norms and fostering practices. In The Bonds of Kinship in Dahomey: Portraits of West African Girlhood, 1720–1940 (Indiana UP, 2025) Reuther reveals that the social, economic, and political changes wrought by the expansion of Dahomey in the eighteenth century, the shift to "legitimate" trade in agricultural products in the nineteenth century, and the imposition of French colonialism in the twentieth all fundamentally altered—and were altered by—the intimate practice of entrusting female children between households. Dahomeans also valorized this process as a crucial component of being "well-raised"—a sentiment that continues into the present, despite widespread Beninese opposition to modern-day forms of child labor. Dr. Jessica Reuther is an associate professor of African and world history at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana, USA. She came to Ball State after earning her PhD in African History from Emory University in Atlanta, GA, in 2016. Dr. Reuther is a historian of Africa, specializing in Atlantic West Africa and French West Africa from the 16th century to the present. She has conducted archival and oral history research in Benin, Senegal, France, Switzerland, and the United States. You can learn more about her work here. Afua Baafi Quarshie is a Ph.D. candidate in history at the Johns Hopkins University. Her research focuses on mothering and childhood in post-independence Ghana. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/history

From the 1720s to the 1940s, parents in the kingdom and later colony of Dahomey (now the Republic of Benin) developed and sustained the common practice of girl fostering, or "entrusting." Transferring their daughters at a young age into foster homes, Dahomeans created complex relationships of mutual obligation, kinship, and caregiving that also exploited girls' labor for the economic benefit of the women who acted as their social mothers. Drawing upon oral tradition, historic images, and collective memories, Jessica Reuther pieces together the fragmentary glimpses of girls' lives contained in colonial archives within the framework of traditional understandings about entrustment. Placing these girls and their social mothers at the center of history brings to light their core contributions to local and global political economies, even as the Dahomean monarchy, global trade, and colonial courts reshaped girlhood norms and fostering practices. In The Bonds of Kinship in Dahomey: Portraits of West African Girlhood, 1720–1940 (Indiana UP, 2025) Reuther reveals that the social, economic, and political changes wrought by the expansion of Dahomey in the eighteenth century, the shift to "legitimate" trade in agricultural products in the nineteenth century, and the imposition of French colonialism in the twentieth all fundamentally altered—and were altered by—the intimate practice of entrusting female children between households. Dahomeans also valorized this process as a crucial component of being "well-raised"—a sentiment that continues into the present, despite widespread Beninese opposition to modern-day forms of child labor. Dr. Jessica Reuther is an associate professor of African and world history at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana, USA. She came to Ball State after earning her PhD in African History from Emory University in Atlanta, GA, in 2016. Dr. Reuther is a historian of Africa, specializing in Atlantic West Africa and French West Africa from the 16th century to the present. She has conducted archival and oral history research in Benin, Senegal, France, Switzerland, and the United States. You can learn more about her work here. Afua Baafi Quarshie is a Ph.D. candidate in history at the Johns Hopkins University. Her research focuses on mothering and childhood in post-independence Ghana. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/gender-studies

From the 1720s to the 1940s, parents in the kingdom and later colony of Dahomey (now the Republic of Benin) developed and sustained the common practice of girl fostering, or "entrusting." Transferring their daughters at a young age into foster homes, Dahomeans created complex relationships of mutual obligation, kinship, and caregiving that also exploited girls' labor for the economic benefit of the women who acted as their social mothers. Drawing upon oral tradition, historic images, and collective memories, Jessica Reuther pieces together the fragmentary glimpses of girls' lives contained in colonial archives within the framework of traditional understandings about entrustment. Placing these girls and their social mothers at the center of history brings to light their core contributions to local and global political economies, even as the Dahomean monarchy, global trade, and colonial courts reshaped girlhood norms and fostering practices. In The Bonds of Kinship in Dahomey: Portraits of West African Girlhood, 1720–1940 (Indiana UP, 2025) Reuther reveals that the social, economic, and political changes wrought by the expansion of Dahomey in the eighteenth century, the shift to "legitimate" trade in agricultural products in the nineteenth century, and the imposition of French colonialism in the twentieth all fundamentally altered—and were altered by—the intimate practice of entrusting female children between households. Dahomeans also valorized this process as a crucial component of being "well-raised"—a sentiment that continues into the present, despite widespread Beninese opposition to modern-day forms of child labor. Dr. Jessica Reuther is an associate professor of African and world history at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana, USA. She came to Ball State after earning her PhD in African History from Emory University in Atlanta, GA, in 2016. Dr. Reuther is a historian of Africa, specializing in Atlantic West Africa and French West Africa from the 16th century to the present. She has conducted archival and oral history research in Benin, Senegal, France, Switzerland, and the United States. You can learn more about her work here. Afua Baafi Quarshie is a Ph.D. candidate in history at the Johns Hopkins University. Her research focuses on mothering and childhood in post-independence Ghana. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/african-studies

Everyone has a story of how they've come into their career and many times on this podcast we hear the phrase “I got here by accident.” This week, we are joined by Angel Vazquez, a Field Atlas Ambassador and Ball State University student, who is exploring his interest in agbioscience careers, sharing the industry story with his peers and what he hopes to accomplish after graduation. We get into:  How he is thinking about his career journey as college winds down  Angel's personal story, why medicine is the path he chose and how he hopes to make a difference in the lives of others The curiosity of agbioscience and wanting to be a Field Atlas Ambassador Agbioscience conversations on Ball State's campus and how his peers engage when discussing career opportunities in the industry Learning from his peer Ambassadors on other college and university campuses What he thinks students are seeking in a career What employers should know about connecting with students His favorite Field Atlas experience and what it taught him 

GS#1,023 In this episode Chris Petefish highlights that golfers do not need to play perfectly to achieve great results, focusing instead on smart decision-making and managing expectations on the course. Chris also shares his journey as a professional golfer, discussing his experiences on the PGA Tour and the challenges he faces in balancing playing and coaching. He emphasizes the importance of strategic golf, mental resilience, and the role of statistics like strokes gained in improving performance. Chris also delves into the impact of LIV Golf on the professional landscape and shares insights on effective putting techniques, including the Aimpoint method and the significance of capture rate. This episode is sponsored by Indeed. Please visit indeed.com/GOLFSMARTER and get a $75 SPONSORED JOB CREDIT. Terms and conditions apply.This episode is sponsored by HIMS. Start  your free online visit today HIMS.com/golfsmarter and received personalized ED treatment options. This episode is brought to you by Policygenius. Secure your family's future at Policygenius.com to compare free life insurance quotes from top companies and see how much you could save. GS#445 July 15, 2014 Dr. Bob Winters returns to Golf Smarter to discuss his new book that will help your mental game and lower your scores. "Mistake Free Golf; First Aid for Your Golfing Brain". We detail 9 chapters of the book including conversations on “I don't believe in myself”, “I hit the ball when I know I'm not ready”, “I care too much about score, results and my reputation”. Any of those sound familiar?  Along with regular contributions to CBS Sports, the Golf Channel and GolfWeek, Dr. Bob has been the resident sports psychologist for the David Leadbetter Academy for years. Dr. Robert K Winters, affectionately known as Dr. Bob, specializes in sports and personal performance training. He holds a Ph.D. in Sport Psychology from The University of Virginia, a B.S. and Master of Arts degree from Ball State University. He has extensive training in sports psychology, motor and visual learning, sports vision, sports medicine, and educational psychology.This episode is sponsored by Indeed. Please visit indeed.com/GOLFSMARTER and get a $75 SPONSORED JOB CREDIT. Terms and conditions apply.This episode is sponsored by HIMS. Start  your free online visit today HIMS.com/golfsmarter and received personalized ED treatment options. This episode is brought to you by Warby Parker with over 300+ locations to help you find your next pair of glasses. You can also head over to warbypaker.com/golfsmarter right now to try on any pair virtually!If you have a question about whether or not Fred is using any of the methods, equipment or apps we've discussed, or if you'd like to share a comment about what you've heard in this or any other episode, please write because Fred will get back to you. Either write to golfsmarterpodcast@gmail.com or click on the Hey Fred button, at golfsmarter.com

Jill Lacy is an accomplished, committed graduate of Ball State University. She serves on the Women of Beneficence Leadership Council, and she is a member of the Ball State University Foundation Board. As a student, Jill was active in student government and in her sorority. After graduating, she earned her master's degree in higher education administration, and then she pursued professional opportunities that allowed her to work at several colleges and universities across the country. Today, she serves as the president of The Lacy Foundation. In this episode, Jill talks about the objectives of The Lacy Foundation and the challenges and opportunities of working in philanthropy. She also shares her excitement about her son attending Ball State, and how much she appreciated being asked to serve on the committee that developed the latest iteration of our University's strategic plan. If you enjoy this episode, please leave a review to support the show. 

GS#445 July 15, 2014 Dr. Bob Winters returns to Golf Smarter to discuss his new book that will help your mental game and lower your scores. "Mistake Free Golf; First Aid for Your Golfing Brain". We detail 9 chapters of the book including conversations on “I don't believe in myself”, “I hit the ball when I know I'm not ready”, “I care too much about score, results and my reputation”. Any of those sound familiar?  Along with regular contributions to CBS Sports, the Golf Channel and GolfWeek, Dr. Bob has been the resident sports psychologist for the David Leadbetter Academy for years. Dr. Robert K Winters, affectionately known as Dr. Bob, specializes in sports and personal performance training. He holds a Ph.D. in Sport Psychology from The University of Virginia, a B.S. and Master of Arts degree from Ball State University. He has extensive training in sports psychology, motor and visual learning, sports vision, sports medicine, and educational psychology.This episode is sponsored by Indeed. Please visit indeed.com/GOLFSMARTER and get a $75 SPONSORED JOB CREDIT. Terms and conditions apply.This episode is sponsored by HIMS. Start  your free online visit today HIMS.com/golfsmarter and received personalized ED treatment options. This episode is brought to you by Warby Parker with over 300+ locations to help you find your next pair of glasses. You can also head over to warbypaker.com/golfsmarter right now to try on any pair virtually!If you have a question about whether or not Fred is using any of the methods, equipment or apps we've discussed, or if you'd like to share a comment about what you've heard in this or any other episode, please write because Fred will get back to you. Either write to golfsmarterpodcast@gmail.com or click on the Hey Fred button, at golfsmarter.com

In this episode I am welcomed by visual artist Terra Keck. Together we explored her initial interests in occult spirituality and how that began to evolve in her life and especially its influence over her art practice.  We discuss the nature of awareness and the importance of cultivating a space (both physical and mental) that allows for channeling and transmission to come through the creative process.  ———————————Terra Keck is an artist, curator, and writer based in Brooklyn, New York. She received her MFA from the University of Hawai'i at Mānoa and her BFA from Ball State University. She is a partner at Field Projects Gallery in the Chelsea Arts District of Manhattan and cohosts the comedy-educational podcast “Witch, Yes!” Her work has been published in Hyperallergic, The Art Newspaper, and Oxford American Arts and can be found in permanent institutional collections in Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Hawaii, and California. She is a regular contributing writer to Artspiel, Impulse Magazine, and Artefuse. www.terrakeck.com  Field Projects Gallery https://www.fieldprojectsgallery.com/ Terra's Podcast: Witch, Yes! https://open.spotify.com/show/1kWQXQEAkBUhLRFpvqP0EJ Follow Martin Benson for more insights:*To stay updated on the podcast and related content, check out ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠my Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠*To support the show and access exclusive content, consider subscribing for $0.99/month on Instagram (link above).Credits: Special thanks to Matthew Blankenship of ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Sometimes Island⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ for our podcast theme music!Support this podcast: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/martin-l-benson/support

Send us a textIn this inspiring episode of The Days Grimm Podcast, hosts Brian Michael Day and Thomas Grimm sit down with Matthew C. Fitzpatrick — award-winning visual artist, muralist, and high school art teacher from Evansville, Indiana.Matthew opens up about his journey through art education, his experiences at Ball State University, and how creativity and persistence have shaped his life and career. From painting the massive “Welcome to Indiana” mural under Highway 69 to winning the Arts Council Visual Art Award, Matthew's story proves that the creative path is built on passion, patience, and process.

This week Kate Sheppard and Colin Colbourn return to ask if Notting Hill is the greatest romcom of its generation.About our guests:Dr. Kathleen Sheppard earned her PhD in History of Science from the University of Oklahoma in 2010. After a post-doctoral teaching fellowship at the American University in Cairo, she arrived at Missouri S&T in the fall of 2011. She teaches mainly survey courses on modern Western Civilizations, which is arguably one of the most important courses students in 21st century America can take. Her main focus is on the history of science from the ancient Near East to present day Europe, United States, and Latin America. She has taught courses on the history of European science and Latin American science, as well as a seminar on women in the history of science.Sheppard's research focuses on 19th and 20th century Egyptology and women in the field. Her first book was a scientific biography of Margaret Alice Murray, the first woman to become a university-trained Egyptologist in Britain (Lexington, 2013). Murray's career spanned 70 years and over 40 publications. Sheppard is also the editor of a collection of letters between Caroline Ransom Williams, the first university-trained American Egyptologist, and James Breasted from the University of Chicago (Archaeopress, 2018). Sheppard's monograph, Tea on the Terrace, is about hotels in Egypt as sites of knowledge creation in Egyptology during the discipline's “Golden Age,” around 1880 to 1930.Women in the Valley of the Kings: The Untold Story of Women Egyptologists in the Gilded Age was published in July 2024. It has been reviewed in the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and was a top 6 Reader's Choice non-fiction book on Goodreads.Dr. Colin Colbourn is the Lead Historian for Project Recover, where he manages historical operations to locate and identify U.S. service members missing in action from past conflicts. He is a graduate of Ball State University and went on to earn his MA and Ph.D. in U.S. History from the University of Southern Mississippi. His work at Project Recover blends family outreach, archival research, case analysis, and global field investigations to bring home missing service men and women. At Project Recover, Dr. Colbourn works with an interdisciplinary team of archaeologists, oceanographers, marine scientists, and engineers in order to apply modern technology to the mysteries of the past. Dr. Colbourn also teaches U.S. Military History as an Adjunct Professor at the University of Delaware.

Today we're joined by Kevin Miller, an architect who also serves as the President of the Board of Baltimore Architecture Foundation. Kevin and his team have been preparing for Doors Open Baltimore, an annual city-wide festival honoring Baltimore's diverse cultural tapestry by highlighting its vibrant neighborhoods, captivating architecture, and distinctive spaces that contribute to the city's exceptional charm. Kevin obtained a BS in Architecture and a Master of Architecture from Ball State University in May 2017 and has been working professionally as an architectural designer for the last five years. He is a digital artist, author, parametric designer, and thought leader with a strong interest in computational design, architectural interiors, design details at all scales, and visual representation. Kevin is always excited to learn new skills and connect with other people who share a passion for design

The past few weeks have marked a low point for free speech principles in America. The head of the FCC openly threatened ABC for the language of a comedian. The president told a reporter that networks that are "against" him should have their licenses revoked. The vice president went on TV and told Americans to turn in their colleagues if they spoke ill of Charlie Kirk. And many have. After Kirk was killed, Suzanne Swierc, an employee at Ball State University, posted that “if you think Charlie Kirk was a wonderful person, we can't be friends.” Within hours, Libs of TikTok, a social media account, posted her message publicly, Elon Musk retweeted it, and, with the approval of the White House, she was fired. Conservatives claim that Democrats fired first. They say it was the campus left that got "cancel culture" rolling. It was Joe Biden who pressured—or jawboned—the social media companies to take down misinformation, in violation of free expression. It was Democrats who suppressed information on the Hunter Biden laptop. So what can we say fairly and honestly about the state of the First Amendment? Is the Trump administration uniquely perverse? Are we all hypocrites? And why does it seem like so many members of each party can't wait to use the machinery of the state to limit the speech of their political opponent? Greg Lukianoff, the president of FIRE, the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, joins the show to discuss. If you have questions, observations, or ideas for future episodes, email us at PlainEnglish@Spotify.com. Host: Derek Thompson Guest: Greg Lukianoff Producer: Devon Baroldi Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Tom makes sure to commemorate National Daughters Day; have you heard the one about Kevin and a beautiful blonde walk into a bar; Jimmy Kimmel is back; Ball State University worker fired over a private social media post about Charlie Kirk; Trump's about-face on Ukraine; James Comey indicted.

The Indianapolis ArtsGarden celebrates 30 years this month as a landmark destination downtown where arts and culture collide. The ACLU of Indiana has filed a lawsuit against Ball State University's president over the firing of an employee who posted about Charlie Kirk's death on social media. USA Gymnastics has selected Noblesville as the location for its new training center and headquarters office. Construction on new affordable housing in a near northeast side neighborhood will start soon. Want to go deeper on the stories you hear on WFYI News Now? Visit wfyi.org/news and follow us on social media to get comprehensive analysis and local news daily. Subscribe to WFYI News Now wherever you get your podcasts. WFYI News Now is produced by Zach Bundy and Abriana Herron, with support from News Director Sarah Neal-Estes.

In this episode Eric interviews Mary Kite from Ball State University in Muncie, IN. Mary shares her recent retirement journey and the factors influencing her decision, including personal loss and the changing landscape of higher education. The discussion delves into the impact of legislative changes on academic freedom and the introduction of AI in education. She reflects on her extensive career, the evolution of teaching psychology, and the importance of following one's passion. Offering advice to new educators, she emphasizes maintaining a work-life balance and avoiding the pitfalls of comparison. The episode concludes with an optimistic outlook on academic life and the lasting impact educators have on their students. [Note. Portions of the show notes were generated by Descript AI.]

Citizens Energy Group is suing the Indianapolis Housing Agency, claiming the agency owes them hundreds of thousands of dollars in utility service payments. Former U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg urged hundreds of Hoosiers at a Statehouse rally Thursday to hold Republicans accountable if they redraw the state's congressional map. Ball State University has fired an employee after online comments she made about the Charlie Kirk shooting were highlighted by the state's attorney general. Paramount doesn't just have high test scores. It also has among the highest suspension rates in the state. Want to go deeper on the stories you hear on WFYI News Now? Visit wfyi.org/news and follow us on social media to get comprehensive analysis and local news daily. Subscribe to WFYI News Now wherever you get your podcasts. WFYI News Now is produced by Zach Bundy and Abriana Herron, with support from News Director Sarah Neal-Estes.

Ball State University President Geoffrey Mearns joined the football halftime show on the radio vs. the Purdue Boilermakers.

Dylan Query is an independent filmmaker from Southern Indiana. His short film, She's On The Run, screen at the 15th annual Flyover Film Festival. His first feature film "Gun Fight at Cold Cross" acquired a distribution deal with Wal-Mart in 2023. An alum of Ball State University, Dylan has taken his production company Query Productions full time and serves the commercial market of Southern Indiana and Kentucky with high end digital media production.Support the show

In this episode of the IngenioUs podcast, host Melissa Morriss-Olson sits down with Dr. Susana Rivera-Mills, president of Aurora University and the first Latina to lead the institution.Susana's inspiring journey—from immigrating to the United States during the Salvadoran Civil War to becoming a transformative leader in higher education—offers a masterclass in resilience, authenticity, and purpose-drivenleadership.Listeners will hear:How her early experiences in a country whereacademic freedom was under attack shaped her lifelong commitment to open dialogue and diverse perspectives.Why becoming Aurora's first Latina president was a deeply personal and “full-circle” moment forher—and what it means for students to see themselves reflected in leadership.The two-sided “superpower” she brings to the presidency: leading with authenticity and seeingthe humanity in others.The powerful lesson she learned about building initiatives that last beyond a leader's tenure.How she is creating a groundbreaking career ecosystemthat integrates career readiness into every aspect of the student experience.Practical,empowering advice for aspiring women leaders, especially first-generation professionals and leaders of color.Susana's leadership story is a reminder that lasting impact comes from aligning who you are with the work you do—and frombuilding institutions where everyone has the freedom to bring their wholeselves to the table.About the Guest:Dr. Susana Rivera-Mills is the 14th president of Aurora University in Aurora, Illinois, and the first Latina to hold the role. An accomplished scholar and leader with a background in sociolinguistics, she has devoted her career toadvancing student success, institutional transformation, and inclusive community engagement. Before joining Aurora University, she served in senior leadership roles at Ball State University, Oregon State University, and Northern Arizona University. Her leadership is anchored in authenticity,equity, and the belief in higher education's power to change lives—not just for individuals, but for entire families and communities.Tune in to be inspired, challenged, and reminded of the transformative power of authentic leadership in higher education.Listen now and subscribe to IngenioUs wherever you get your podcasts.

Send us a textWhat happens when traditional masculinity meets modern mental health needs? Dr. Tim Hess, licensed psychologist and Associate Director for Clinical Services at Ball State University's Counseling Center, joins Dr. Beth Trammell to unpack the complex world of men's mental health in this thought-provoking conversation.From the moment Dr. Hess introduces his metaphor of "deciding when to stop yelling at the tsunami and start surfing," listeners are drawn into a nuanced exploration of how masculinity scripts shape men's emotional lives. Drawing from his extensive experience working with college-age men, Tim reveals how traditional Western masculinity ideologies—focused on achievement, emotional control, and independence—continue to influence how men perceive themselves and their emotional needs, even as these scripts evolve across generations.One of the most powerful insights emerges when discussing romantic relationships: many young men place all their emotional eggs in one relationship basket, leaving them devastated and without support when that relationship ends. This leads to the profound observation that "the moment you need a friend is not the moment to build friendship"—a universal truth that resonates far beyond the realm of men's mental health.Throughout the episode, Dr. Trammell and Dr. Hess navigate the delicate balance of recognizing patterns in masculine socialization while honoring individual differences. They explore how therapy provides a safe space for vulnerability, the challenges men face in building meaningful friendships, and the often-undiscussed impact of body image and sexual performance concerns on men's self-perception.Whether you're a mental health professional, someone who identifies as male, or simply interested in understanding how gender expectations shape emotional wellbeing, this conversation offers valuable insights into creating more supportive environments where vulnerability is welcomed rather than stigmatized. Join us for this engaging discussion and tune in next week when Dr. Hess returns to tackle the increasingly relevant topic of self-diagnosis.Support the showwww.bethtrammell.com

Dr. Adam Berland from Ball State University joins us to talk about research on why trees are important for people in an urban environment. He also talks to us about the surprising conclusions from his research in Minneapolis on how urban foresters can plant trees to prevent future large die offs from climate change and invasive species such as we've seen from Ash trees with Emerald Ash Borer, and Elm trees with Dutch Elm disease. He gives some advice on how you can choose trees that will help increase the resilience of trees to stress in the area. 

What does it take to build a resilient cybersecurity strategy in higher education - especially with limited resources and rising threats?Tobey Coffman, Chief Information Security Officer at Ball State University, and Ron Pelletier, founder of Pondurance, share how their partnership grew from a single pen test into a fully managed, 24/7 detection and response program. Together, they break down the real-world challenges campuses face, the tipping point that led Ball State to invest in around-the-clock protection, and what makes a vendor-university relationship truly work.Whether you're just getting started or looking to deepen your institution's cybersecurity posture, this conversation delivers insight, strategy, and lessons learned from the front lines.Guests: Tobey Coffman, Executive Director of Information Security and Chief Information Security Officer, Ball State University & Ron Pelletier, Founder & Chief Customer Officer, Pondurance Host: Matt Levine, Category Marketing Manager, E&I Cooperative Services Relevant Links:E&I's Pondurance ContractCooperatively Speaking is hosted by E&I Cooperative Services, the only member-owned, non-profit procurement cooperative exclusively focused on serving the needs of education. Visit our website at www.eandi.org/podcast.Contact UsHave questions, comments, or ideas for a future episode? We'd love to hear from you! Contact Cooperatively Speaking at podcast@eandi.org. This podcast is for informational purposes only. The views expressed in this podcast may not be those of the host(s) or E&I Cooperative Services.

Welcome to Mysteries to Die For.I am TG Wolff and am here with Jack, my piano player and producer. This is a podcast where we combine storytelling with original music to put you in the heart of a mystery. All stories are structured to challenge you to beat the detective to the solution. Jack and I perform these live, front to back, no breaks, no fakes, no retakes.The rules for law and order create the boundaries for civil co-existence and, ideally, the backdrops for individuals, families, and companies to grow and thrive. Breaking these rules puts civil order at risk. And while murder is the Big Daddy of crimes, codified ordinances across municipal divisions, counties, states, and countries show the nearly endless ways there are to create mayhem. This season, we put our detective skills to the test. This is Season 8, Anything but Murder. This is Episode 12, cock fighting is the featured crime. This is Detective Connolly Gets Down ‘n' Dirty by Jack WolffDELIBERATIONDetective Connolly is up to his eyebrows in another bird-brained investigation. As always, he needs our help if he's going to catch Picante and earn his supper. Here are the places rattling through Connolly's brain where Picante could be hiding:His house, because a home is a castleThe airstrip, because it's bigThe chicken coop, because Conquistador needs his PapaAbout CockfightingCockfighting is an ancient bloodsport. It was believed to have originated in southeast Asia and migrated east. The Persians were believed to have introduced it to the Greeks, where it later spread into Rome. Depicts of cockfighting decorated pottery and other artworks, showing it to be a normal part of life. Numerous sketches and painting depict cockfighting events in England in the 1700s and 1800s. The sport migrated to the US. Over the 20th century, cockfighting was outlawed in many countries but now all. In Colombia, Cuba, Haiti and others, cockfighting is considered part of the cultural heritage and identity. Although legal, many of these regulate the sport. Check out the Wikipedia link for a country-by-country status.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cockfightinghttps://www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry?entry=CO012#:~:text=The%20history%20of%20cockfighting%20goes,it%20originated%20in%20Southeast%20Asia.ABOUT Jack WolffJack Wolff is a Ball State University student, studying Media Production and Music Recording. He has been podcasting for five years now, and has written a number of short stories for the Mysteries To Die For show. When he's not podcasting, he is teaching marching percussion to high schoolers, writing and shooting films for his own enjoyment, or playing with his psychopathic border collie puppy. You can follow him on instagram at @wackjolff, that's jack wolff with the first letters of his first and last name flipped around, or if you are bored and want to email with him, don't worry, he's bored too, and can be found at j-w-i-l-d-e-317@gmail.com.

This week's guest is Professor Michael Hicks, George & Frances Ball Distinguished Professor of Economics at Ball State University.  Mike brings an economist's perspective on the recent introduction of tariffs as well their sudden modification or removal in many cases.  Being located in Indiana, Mike is keen on the impact that different policies have on manufacturing and agricultural firms and communities.  In our conversation we discuss the idea and objectives of tariffs in general as well as the specific impacts that the most recent tariffs have caused.  Mike notes that the effects will not be evenly distributed and that, in fact, Red States which have more manufacturing will be negatively impacted more than the Blue State areas which feature more knowledge workers in the services.  

Sarah Anderson is a traveling ceramic artist, teaching ceramic workshops across the country in a renovated Shasta camper with her dog Pip. After graduating from Ball State University with a sculpture degree, Sarah worked as a ceramic studio chair, sold work at craft fairs and numerous national galleries, partnered with her companies on the road, and now is opening an art therapy and ceramic store front called Dusty Pants Studio. https://ThePottersCast.com/1141

Indianapolis-based housing developer Onyx + East recently scored a three-peat on IBJ's annual list of fast-growing companies—all of which were on the watch of CEO Kelli Lawrence. She took the top job in 2019, when its annual revenue was about $19 million. By 2024, its annual revenue had climbed to $90 million—a nearly 375% increase over five years.   Founded in 2015 as an offshoot of Indianapolis-based apartment developer Milhaus, Onyx + East has specialized in for-sale housing such as townhomes, duplex homes and single-family residences within planned communities in high-demand urban and suburban areas. Its focus has widened from Marion Couty to the Indianapolis metropolitan area to markets in Ohio and Florida. It also has expanded into the build-to-rent category.   Kelli Lawrence grew up in a traditional suburban home in Toledo and was a first-generation college student. She entered Ball State University with a strong sense of what she wanted to do—study urban planning and development in Ball State's school of architecture—and a hunger for student governance, joining and leading a wide array of campus organizations. He first job out of school was long-range planner for the city of Carmel, getting involved in the early stages of some of the city's signature projects. All of these topics are on the table for this week's edition of the IBJ Podcast, as well as her current role as CEO of Onyx + East. We discuss the economics of developing and pricing its projects in central Indiana, how to onboard new employees in the midst of business growth, her early years in the housing development when she often was the only woman in the room, and why she describes herself as a “joiner.”

In the episode host Elizabeth Emery speaks with Staci Mannella about ski racing legally blind with a guide, training for effective communication, why working with a counselor as an athlete is great idea, and why and how sport has been so important in her life, plus where it is leading her now.  Staci Mannella is a third year Ball State University PhD. student in counseling psychology with a focus on sport and performance. She is a mental health therapist and mental performance consultant in training at SKADI Sport Psychology. Drawing from her journey as a visually impaired Paralympic skier at the Sochi 2014 and PyeongChang 2018 Paralympic Games, Staci brings a unique blend of firsthand experience and academic rigor to her clinical work and research. Staci's academic journey, including a Bachelor of Arts at Dartmouth College, a Master's of Science from the School of Kinesiology at the University of British Columbia, and a Masters of Arts in Counseling from Ball State University, underscores her commitment to evidence-based practice. Her ability to produce, consume, and apply sport psychology research ensures that her clients receive the most effective strategies for optimizing their performance. When she's not supporting the performance and wellbeing of athletes, Staci enjoys staying active herself! She loves hiking, skiing, spending time with her animals, and enjoying the outdoors.  Get involved and support the show directly at https://bit.ly/givetoHHSpodcastFind all episodes http://www.hearhersports.com/Sign up for Hear Her Sports newsletter at https://bit.ly/HHSnewsletterFind Staci at https://stacimannella.com/Follow Staci on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/staciskier96Follow Staci on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/staciskier96/Find Sisters in Sports at https://sistersinsportsfoundation.org/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

At the heart of Dylan Martinez's work lies the striking H2O/SiO2 series, inspired by the artistic tradition of Trompe L'œil—the technique that deceives the eye into perceiving three-dimensional objects on a flat surface. Each sculpture is meticulously hot-sculpted and hand-molded by Martinez, capturing the fluid movement of rising bubbles and the delicate form of what appears, at first glance, to be bags of water. These pieces transcend objecthood; they are immersive experiences that invite stillness, inspection, and recalibration of the senses. Martinez reflects, “Our vision has the greatest effect on our understanding of the world. Through my artwork, I create scenarios where viewers must question their ability to navigate between reality and illusion.” Blending classical craftsmanship with contemporary conceptual inquiry, Martinez uses glass as both material and metaphor. His work explores how perception constructs truth—how desire and expectation often override what is actually seen. In his latest series, Martinez introduces vibrant color for the first time in years, signaling a shift influenced by pop art. Sculpted forms inspired by Pac-Man ghosts and hyperrealistic water balloons appear light, buoyant, and playful, yet reveal an intense precision beneath their surface charm. Also central to this new body of work is a group of hard-edged, geometric sculptures rooted in optical art. These pieces employ sharp lines, layered transparency, and refraction to produce illusions of shifting depth, bending geometry, and visual vibration. As viewers move around them, the forms seem to flicker, realign, or dissolve—forcing perception into motion. These optical works expand Martinez's inquiry into the unstable boundary between what is there and what is seen. Born in Stillwater, Minnesota, Martinez earned his degree in science from the University of Wisconsin–River Falls in 2008. It was during his junior year, upon visiting the university's glassblowing studio, that he discovered a profound connection to glass—drawn to how the material responded to physical forces he had studied in physics, chemistry, and geology. He recalls, “I tried it out, and it really resonated with me—in the way you move the material and how it reacts to heat and physical forces.” He later earned his MFA from Ball State University in 2017. Martinez honed his craft through an apprenticeship with Sam Stang at Augusta Glass Studio (2010–2012), evolving from functional glassware and vases into sculptural and installation-based work. He currently lives and works in his studio in Bingen, Washington. Martinez's work has earned global acclaim, appearing in public and private collections worldwide. International publications such as Elle Decoration (UK, NL, Germany), American Craft Magazine, Interior Design Magazine, and Aesthetica have celebrated his contributions to contemporary glass. His accolades include the Enrico Bersellini Award (Miano Vetro, Milan, 2018), the Stanislav Libensky Award (Prague, 2017), full scholarships to Pilchuck Glass School and Pittsburgh Glass Center (2017), and numerous Best in Show and Juror Awards. In 2021, he received Best in Show, OP ART/Glass, from the Imagine Museum in St. Petersburg, FL. In 2025, Martinez's work will be featured in More Than Meets the Eye at Belger Arts, Kansas City, MO (June 6 – September 6), as well as in a solo exhibition titled, Glass Reimagined, at Square One Gallery, St. Louis, MO (June 6 – August 1). Through a fusion of light, form, and material truth, Martinez's sculptures prompt a quiet confrontation with the limits of perception. As he states of his waterbag series, “The trapped movement of rising bubbles and the gesture of the forms convince the eye that the sculptures are exactly as they appear. What fascinates me is how our desires often override our true perception, leading us to believe what we see as the absolute truth.”  

Sean Imboden is an American saxophonist and composer. Sean has released three albums as a leader, the most recent being Communal Heart by the Sean Imboden Large Ensemble. His music pioneers forward-thinking, original compositions, and presents cutting-edge live performances. Sean has performed and recorded with GRAMMY-winning artists and jazz luminaries, including Slide Hampton, Taylor Eigsti, Mike Rodriguez, Sean Jones, Emmet Cohen, Steve Allee, Kenny Phelps, John Raymond, and Valery Ponomarev (of Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers). A long-time member of Indianapolis-based quartet Tucker Brothers, Sean plays on the band's four critically-acclaimed albums. An active sideman, Sean has appeared on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and with the Radio City Music Hall Orchestra, the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, the Buselli-Wallarab Jazz Orchestra, Aretha Franklin, The Temptations, Barry Manilow, Johnny Mathis, and Idina Menzel. Sean toured internationally for many years with various Broadway productions, and as a featured soloist with Blast II. Sean has taught at the Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University, and is currently on faculty at Butler University and Ball State University. Sean is a Conn-Selmer artist, and works with students around the world through his online Virtual Studio.

In this week's episode of the Bourbon Lens, Jake sits down with one of the original ultra premium bourbons: Joseph A Magnus.  We are joined by CEO of Craft Co Ali Anderson and world renowned blender Nancy Fraley.  You won't want to miss this episode as we unpack the history of Joseph Magnus, Murray Hill Club and the original Cigar Blend. Stream this episode on your favorite podcast app and be sure to drop us a review while you're there.  We are thankful for your support over the last 6 years. We must give the biggest shoutout to our amazing community of Patreon supporters! As always, we'd appreciate it if you would take a few minutes time to give us feedback on Bourbon Lens podcast. If you enjoy our content, consider giving us a 5 Star rating on your favorite podcast app, leave us a written review, and tell a fellow bourbon lover about our show. Follow us @BourbonLens on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn and X.  Also, consider supporting Bourbon Lens on Patreon for some of the behind the scenes, to earn Bourbon Lens swag, join the Bourbon Lens Tasting Club, and more. If you have any comments, questions, or guest suggestions, please email us at Info@BourbonLens.com. Check out BourbonLens.com to find our blog posts, whiskey news, podcast archive, and whiskey reviews. Cheers,Scott and JakeBourbon Lens   About Ali Anderson: Ali Anderson is the CEO of CraftCo, a diverse portfolio of innovative, premium craft spirits brands produced in Holland, MI. Prior to taking on the role in June 2024, Ali served as the National Sales Director at CraftCo since 2019 and was responsible for spearheading the commercial growth strategy and national expansion of all CraftCo's premium spirit brands from launch to maturity, including strategic initiatives to drive consumer engagement and brand equity growth and the innovation and launch of two new whiskey brands to the national stage. She also led the development of strategic agency relationships, delivering impactful execution in response to an increasingly demanding marketplace. Previously, Ali served as the General Manager and Director of Sales at Jos. A. Magnus & Co. In 2015, she was pivotal in re-establishing the historic, pre-Prohibition brand in Washington, D.C., overseeing sales and operations to grow from start-up phase to national distribution and transforming the company into the most highly awarded and widely distributed brand of the CraftCo portfolio. Ali earned her MBA from Webster University in St. Louis, her Bachelor of Science degree in Management from Ball State University and recently completed the DISCUS Executive Leadership Program at the University of Kentucky Gatton College of Business & Economics. Ali's ongoing commitment to professional development and industry engagement underscores her dedication to driving innovation and creating value in the spirits industry.   About Nancy Fraley Nancy Fraley serves as the Master Blender for Jos. A. Magnus, where she provides custom blending, product formulation services, creation of maturation & warehousing programs, and sensory analysis. An icon in the world of whiskey, her contributions have led to the creation of numerous award-winning spirits for the brand, including Joseph Magnus Bourbon, Murray Hill Club Bourbon Blend and the most coveted of the Magnus expressions, Joseph Magnus Cigar Blend Bourbon. Nancy's career in the distilled spirits industry began with Germain-Robin brandy/Alambic Inc. in Ukiah, CA, one of the first craft distilleries in the U.S. From there, she went on to further study advanced blending techniques in France. In addition to her role at Jos. A. Magnus, Nancy holds a faculty position at Moonshine University in Louisville, KY and is the creator of the popular seminar, Blending and Nosing for Faults, with the American Distilling Institute. She is the creator of the first American Craft Whiskey Aroma Wheel, a sensory tool now widely used by distillers and whiskey connoisseurs alike. Nancy holds a Master's degree in World Religions with an emphasis in Tibetan Buddhism from Harvard University and a Juris doctor degree from The University of San Francisco School of Law with a focus on Maritime & Admiralty law and International Human Rights.  

J.R. Jamison explores the diverse definition of recovery through the lens of a recent book project, Facing Recovery, a collection of 17 first-person narratives that captures the wide spectrum of what recovery means and that, contrary to popular belief, it's not just tied to addiction. Special guests: Dr. Kathryn Ludwig, assistant teaching professor of English at Ball State University and editor of Facing Recovery, Bridgett Nesbitt and Hayden Gorham, two writers on the project, and Abby Gluvna, program manager for Recovery Café Muncie.