Ball State University on Saturday celebrated its Summer 2026 graduates during the University’s 205th Commencement ceremony, held at Worthen Arena in Muncie.
The University conferred approximately 1,200 degrees to graduates from its doctoral, specialist, master’s, and baccalaureate programs.
In keeping with Ball State tradition, the Summer Commencement address is delivered by the recipient of the University’s Outstanding Faculty Award. This year’s speaker was Dr. Katherine Denker, professor and director of graduate studies in Ball State’s Department of Communication Studies, who received the 2025 Outstanding Faculty Award.
Dr. Denker, who has served Ball State since 2009, delivered an address titled “Foundations and Flight.” Her remarks focused on hope—not as passive optimism, but as a choice to keep moving forward, adapt when plans change, and help build a better future for others.
“Hope is not the same thing as optimism,” Dr. Denker said. “Optimism says, ‘I think everything is going to work out.’ Hope says, ‘Even if I don’t know how this turns out, what I choose to do still matters.’”
Dr. Denker reminded graduates that Commencement was the result of years of dedication, perseverance, and support from others. She encouraged them to thank the people who helped them reach the milestone and to become sources of hope for others in their workplaces, communities, and relationships.
A scholar of instructional and interpersonal communication, Dr. Denker’s teaching, research, and service focus on student engagement, equity, voice, and the meaningful application of communication principles. In his introduction, President Geoffrey S. Mearns noted that Dr. Denker’s work reflects the transformational power of communication.
President Mearns also addressed the graduates, thanking the faculty, staff, family members, and friends who helped them reach Commencement. He connected Dr. Denker’s message of hope to Ball State’s mission of empowering graduates to have fulfilling careers and lead meaningful lives.
“We are in the hope-building business,” President Mearns said. “I share this to affirm the encouragement that she has given to you today—to always carry the hope shining in each one of you, a kind of hope that will afford you the confidence and, yes, the courage to embrace new opportunities in your careers and in your lives.”
President Mearns encouraged graduates to distinguish between professional success and career fulfillment, reminding them that titles, financial rewards, and recognition may be temporary. He urged them instead to seek work that improves the lives of others and to pursue lives shaped by service, integrity, gratitude, and the values represented by Beneficence.