Ball State University - Local Atmosphere

College Prowler Take

Ball State students have some mixed emotions when it comes to Muncie. Although much of the city is rundown, the victim of outsourcing and substantial urban decay, there are some things worth seeing. The city’s downtown district is home to several art galleries featuring work by local and regional artists, a plethora of dining options and a fairly decent bar scene. Students often overlook many of the city’s festivals, which include Munciegras, Yart, and some surprisingly fun seasonal concerts. Instead, students tend to stick to the Village, a commercial district on the campus’ southeast side, which features, among other things, restaurants, a convenience store, a coffeeshop, several bars, and other stores geared toward college students.

In many respects, Muncie has never recovered from the loss of much of its industrial base, but the growth of Ball State has helped to soften some of the economic blow by providing work to many in the Muncie area, and the recent addition of a Sallie Mae office added over 700 jobs to the area. The University’s intimate relationship with the local economy has caused a kind of awkwardly ambivalent town-and-gown relationship to develop. It’s less of a marriage and more of an affair, as many in the community despise the students while recognizing they are the lifeblood of Muncie. As of this writing, the number-one complaint students had about living in Muncie was the fact that its liquor stores have stopped selling kegs.

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Students Speak Out

Anonymous says:

Muncie is a blue-collar town, and... Muncie is a blue-collar town, and there’s an obvious divide between the students and Muncie residents. They aren’t very welcoming, but they aren’t hateful. 12345 Local Atmosphere Report

kmorgan says: Ball State University 2013 Business

A Growing Community A Muncie is really starting to grow. There is a mall about 5 minutes away from campus. There are a good amount of restuarants close to campus too. Also, there are two movie theaters very close. There is a town bus system that takes students pretty much anywhere in town for free!!! Overall Muncie is becoming more and more of a college town. 12345 Local Atmosphere: March 16, 2010 Report

Anonymous says:

On the weekends, I like to hit up... On the weekends, I like to hit up the mall, but pretty much all you do on the weekends is stay home or go out to parties. 12345 Local Atmosphere Report

Anonymous says:

Muncie isn’t a huge town, and lots... Muncie isn’t a huge town, and lots of the townspeople don’t care for the college kids anyways. But, at the same time, the area around Ball State has grown up around the college, and it makes it nice. The mall is a cool place to visit, as well as midnight trips to some of the restaurants and stores that are open 24/7. 12345 Local Atmosphere Report

Anonymous says:

It’s a pretty good atmosphere... It’s a pretty good atmosphere here. It doesn’t seem to get enough attention from the students. There’s a lot of stuff that gets overlooked. It’s not a big city, but you do have some things to do. 12345 Local Atmosphere Report

Facts

Did You Know?

Five Fun Facts about Muncie:
• It’s the home of Jim Davis, creator of Garfield.
• It was featured in the film Close Encounters of the Third Kind.
• It was once the home of the Ball Corporation, maker of Ball Jars.
• It was featured in the “Middletown USA“ sociological study.
• The main character in the movie The Hudsucker Proxy
is from Muncie, and the town is mentioned throughout
the movie.

Famous People from Muncie:
Jim Davis, creator of Garfield

Local Slang:
Funcie – A nickname students have given to the city of Muncie. The term is typically used in a sarcastic or ironic way, as many students view the city as an undesirable place.
Munciegras – A 21-and-over event held the Tuesday before Ash Wednesday every year in downtown Muncie.
Muncie-trash – A derogatory term used by Ball State students to describe the citizens of Muncie. It is sometimes used endearingly, especially by students who are from the Muncie area.
Muncieite – A less offensive name for someone from Muncie.

Local Events:
The Budding, Green, Falling, and Dead Leaf music festivals
End of Summer Jam – A classic rock event
Munciegras – The city’s equivalent of Mardi Gras
Yart – A yard/art sale held every summer

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