Topic: Administrative

March 2, 2011

Marilyn K. Glick, longtime friend of Ball State and namesake of its Marilyn K. Glick Center for Glass opened in fall 2010, will receive an honorary doctorate of arts during the university's spring Commencement ceremony in May.

Ball State's Board of Trustees approved the award during its March 2 meeting on campus. It also received an update from athletic department administrators about NCAA compliance activities and an update from Randy Howard, vice president for business affairs and treasurer, about the ongoing budget process as the Indiana General Assembly prepares for the next biennium.

The Commencement recognition pays tribute to Glick's patronage of the arts, including her relationship with the Indianapolis Museum of Art, which has displayed pieces from her painstakingly gathered collection of stunning pieces of glass art from around the world. It also highlights the thousands of students who have discovered their creativity at the Marilyn K. Glick School of Art, part of the Indianapolis Art Center. Finally, it salutes her support of Ball State and the importance of the Marilyn K. Glick Center for Glass to the future of the university.

"The honorary degree, together with the President's Medal of Distinction, is the highest honor that the university can bestow," said President Jo Ann M. Gora, "and we give it gratefully to a woman who already has honored this university and her community so many times through her generosity, sage counsel and warm friendship.

"From bringing symphony music to Indiana's schoolchildren to increasing the interactivity of historical displays at our state museum to establishing a cultural trail in our capital city, through a lifetime of good works Marilyn Glick has created something of her own work of art — a better informed, more artistic, aware and engaged community in which to live. We all are enriched by Marilyn's enthusiasm for beautiful things and her support of those striving to create them, including thousands of Ball State students. We appreciate this additional opportunity to say thank you."

The origins of Marilyn Glick's collection of glass art started in the 1970s and the result is now one of the nation's most noteworthy assemblages. She also has made substantial personal leadership contributions to the Indiana State Symphony Society and served for eight years a member of the Indiana Arts Commission, earning recognition — along with her husband, Gene — with the Indiana Governor's Arts Award.

Together as advisors to The Glick Fund, part of the Central Indiana Community Foundation, the couple also supports the Indiana Authors Award, established through a generous grant to the Indianapolis-Marion County Public Library Foundation to recognize and encourage the contributions of Indiana authors to the literary landscape of the state and the nation.

When officially hooded on the steps of the Museum of Art on May 7, Glick will join a distinctive group of Ball State honorees, the most recent of whom is National Public Radio anchor Steve Inskeep, the university's winter 2010 graduation speaker. In the spring, "60 Minutes" correspondent Steve Kroft will share the Commencement dais with Glick and deliver the graduation address. He will receive an honorary doctorate in humane letters.

Previous honorary degree awardees also include editor, educator, and presidential advisor David Gergen; former White House Chief of Staff Andrew Card; U.S. Senator Richard Lugar; and Angela Ahrendts, Ball State alumna and current CEO of Burberry.

In other business, Tom Collins, director of intercollegiate athletics, and Pat Quinn, associate athletic director for compliance and operations, updated board members on NCAA compliance activities. "We take NCAA compliance seriously," said Collins. "Continuous monitoring and rules education are very important aspects of vigilant adherence to NCAA regulations."

Howard also provided an update on the university's ongoing work with state officials regarding the budget process.

"We are well aligned with the state's goals, and we've delivered by efficiently using our limited resources to produce quality graduates who will help drive the Indiana economy," he said.

Howard's presentation provided data that showed strong results in measures important to the state. A recent report from The Chronicle of Higher Education showed Ball State ranks sixth in the nation for improvement in graduation rates among public research institutions between 2001 and 2008 — the last year of data provided in the report.

"Our track record of operating efficiently is very strong and has been validated by externally generated data," said Howard. "We realize this is a challenging financial period for the state and we will all have to do our share. Unfortunately, our growth in state appropriations has not kept pace with our Indiana peers, and current recommendations in the General Assembly suggest we'd take another $13.5 million reduction over the coming biennium."

By Kevin Burke