Ball State University Alumni Association
Greater Indianapolis Chapter
Board of Directors Meeting
Saturday, March 3, 2012
Members and Guests Present: Tom Andrews, Jason Blythe, Brenda Cox, Russ Lawrence, Steph Meyers, Mike Shumaker, Kara Traut, Kate Webber, Scott Wenclewicz
The group welcomed new board member, Scott Wenclewicz.
Casino Night Outing – Russ Lawrence reported that we added Bingo to the event this year. We are going to look into ways to keep the cost lower for attendees next year in hopes that cost will not be a deterring factor for attendance. The board agreed to keep the same location for next year, since it is easily accessible and has free parking.
Summer Outings:
Golf and Dinner Outing – Bob Browning has already started the planning process for this event. The outing will be held on Thursday, June 28 at Wood Wind Golf Club in Westfield, IN. The price to attend will be $80 and includes golf, cart, range balls, beverages on the course, a steak dinner, and prizes. The group suggested we do separate flyers for the Golf and CPE portions of the day, as to avoid confusion on who is invited.
Continuing Professional Education Seminar – Kevin Ervin will chair this outing again this year. It will be held on Thursday, June 28 in the pavilion (enclosed/air conditioned building) located at Wood Wind Golf Club.
Indians Picnic and Baseball Outing –John Waite and Tom Nowak are chairing the event. The first choice dates were already booked in June, so suggested dates were Friday, May 25 and Friday, June 29. The board unanimously decided that too much was going on the weekend of May 25 (Memorial Day weekend, Carb Day, Race weekend, etc.) so the event will be held on June 29.
Symphony on the Prairie – Kara Traut agreed to chair the event this year. After reviewing the schedule of events, the group decided on the Saturday, August 18 show featuring The Classical Mystery Tour – A Tribute to the Beatles.
Theatre Outing: Brenda Cox reported that Sesame Street Live is playing at the Murat on April 14. The group thought the show may not be targeted to a wide enough range of kids/people may already have their tickets. She will continue to look for shows with the potential of having an event in the fall.
Pacers Outing: Brenda brought the upcoming schedule of games and suggested the Family Night packages ($29.68 per person for the balcony level). Scott Wenclewicz mentioned that Tuesday nights are buy one-get one free ticket nights, so he and Russ will contact the Pacers for availability. The initial date selected was for Tuesday, April 3 vs. the New York Knicks. We will plan to market the event via e-mail and social media since it is approaching quickly. Mike Shumaker agreed to help chair the event.
Pub Crawl: Tom Andrews contacted his friend who runs the Indy Pub Crawls. He said our group could piggy back on their existing event. Tom will get the date and relay that to the group to see if it will work. The board would like to look into having our own Microbrewery pub crawl. This could be a fall or winter event. We need to look into logistics/providing transportation, etc.
Comedy Sportz: Steph Meyers suggested an outing at Comedy Sportz. We could host a reception beforehand and get a block of tickets for a 10 p.m. show. She will look into specifics.
Board Positions: The board selected two new board members. Mike Michelin and Janene Andrews will be asked to join.
Alumni Council and Alumni Association Reports – Mike Shumaker gave an update on the BOLD campaign. Although our total goal was surpassed, the alumni giving rate goal fell just short. The anonymous donor graciously agreed to still give the $1M matching gift even though the goal was not reached.
The BSUAA license plate program has grown by double. This is a great source of income and your license plate purchase now counts towards a charitable gift. Money brought in from license plates go towards student scholarships.
The Alumni Council has created an Engagement Committee, which aims to get students involved while still in college, so they will be more active alumni. The board discussed possible ideas and Wenclewicz suggested inviting college seniors to our alumni events free of charge. This will allow them to network with professional alumni and get a taste of what an alumni event is like (i.e., not asking for money, it’s fun, etc.).
Next Meeting – The next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, October 2 at 6:00 p.m. at Three Wise Men Brewery in Broad Ripple.