By Mike Martin—
MUNCIE, IN—The City of Muncie and the Miller College of Business at Ball State University are excited to finally share some of the innovations that have come out of Impact X, a free community class that has been taught at BSU over the last year.
Beginning in the fall semester of 2022, the City of Muncie and Ball State University started a collaboration to offer a free community class to all Muncie residents. “The idea was to eliminate all barriers to entry for local Muncie residents,” said Muncie Mayor Dan Ridenour who funded the program. “The In Place Impact model is designed to empower people in their own communities to develop and scale their own solutions to the unique problems that particular area faces.”
Since the start of Impact X there have been five local businesses that have launched already. Tania Said, a recent retiree from the David Owsley Museum of Art at Ball State University, launched Tania Said Consulting which is dedicated to helping non-profits, museums, and educational institutions “Do more good for more people.” “This class has been the most community-minded and giving group of people I have ever had the pleasure of being a part of. Thank you to all of you for your time learning, teaching, and giving back,” Tania shared upon finishing the Impact X course.
Other businesses that have launched after the class include TLC Equities, owned by Mekayla Cooper, whose goal is to change the narrative and reality of property management companies in Muncie. Growing Remarkable Opportunities for Women in Business (G.R.O.W.) a group dedicated to empowering women entrepreneurs, recently formed a partnership with The Ball State Entrepreneurship Center to host their weekly meetings to empower women business owners in Muncie. Legacy Village West African Cuisine offers authentic African food made with love by local entrepreneur Sasha Donati. Sasha’s mission is to bring international culture to Muncie.
This is just a short list of the many businesses that are already up and operating in Muncie with many more in the works now. Impact Day at BSU is open to the public, and local residents, business owners, and community leaders will have a chance to listen to them all share their ideas on April 18th from 5 – 8pm at the BSU Alumni Center.
Impact Day is the start to the ongoing project which will be housed at The Ball State Entrepreneurial Leadership Institute on Oakwood Avenue. The goal going forward is to launch the In Place Impact Fund and Incubator, meant to financially support, launch, scale, and repeat the principles of Impact Economics for local Muncie residents for years to come.
Muncie joins the list of cities across the globe that are investing in the future of their cities, communities, and residents to create a more equitable and sustainable economy that works for all residents. The initial In Place Impact course was launched at The College of Charleston in South Carolina where local artist and entrepreneur, Mike Martin, initially completed the class. After receiving certification, Martin facilitated a connection between the City of Muncie and Ball State University to work together on this proactive collaboration.
“I took the original Impact Certification class in Charleston with people from Liberia, South America, Boston, and other local South Carolina residents who were all taking this back to their own communities. I was really excited that Mayor Ridenour and Dean Ferris saw the possibilities of what was possible through a real city and university collaboration.”, said Mike Martin who taught the class along with Professor Christiana Mann for the last two semesters at Miller College of Business.
