Start: March 31, 2026 11 a.m.
End: March 31, 2026 12:15 p.m.
Location: Student Center, Ballroom
Contact Details
Entrepreneurship Center
765-285-9002
Ball State alumna Jennifer Wiese, '87 is the Founder and Owner of BeeFree Gluten-Free Bakery, a Noblesville, Indiana-based snack company she launched in January 2010 after her
family's gluten- and casein-free journey, sparked by her son's autism diagnosis, revealed a gap in great-tasting, better-for-you options.
With a foundation in fashion merchandising and business and professional experience spanning fashion, sales, and fundraising, Jennifer has grown BeeFree from a grassroots, farmers-market hustle into a nationally distributed brand-reaching major retailers and showing up in everyday places like grocery stores, coffee shops, and airports - while staying anchored to a "real ingredients" approach and a mission that encourages people to feel strong, fueled, and free from processed junk. Through BeeFree's nonprofit arm, BeeFree Bakes, she extends that purpose into community impact by creating job opportunities and support for adults with autism and other disabilities, demonstrating how values-led entrepreneurship can scale with both heart and results.
Returning to Ball State University to speak with students, Jennifer shares a candid, practical playbook on turning a personal challenge into a mission-driven company - covering resilience, brand-building, and leadership that creates opportunity for others along the way.