Shafer Tower is an object of mockery among students.
"Ball State's shaft is bigger than Purdue's."
"I guess we needed a tower to go with our 'Balls.'"
"It took us two tries to get it up."
Et cetera.
But Ball State telecommunications professor Micheal Gerhard hasan idea that could actually turn the tower into the belovedlandmark it was meant to be.
His "Rock the Bell Tower" campaign is an online movement toconvince the powers-that-be to play popular music on the tower'sbells. The petition is on the Web atwww.bsu.edu/web/mgerhard/belltower.htm.
Playing snippets of popular music on the tower could put a smileon student faces. It could attract prospective students by helpingthem to see how unique Ball State is when they visit campus. Thetower could rally the Cardinals on game days by ringing out theschool fight song.
Most importantly, it could brighten gloomy Muncie days foreveryone on campus. That's a worthwhile goal, and achieving itwould make the Ball State community look on the tower with fondnessinstead of derision.
Gerhard emphasizes that his campaign is not a matter ofparamount importance, and we agree. There are bigger issues on thiscampus, such as the lack of interest in SGA elections.
But if students were accustomed to Ball State's online votingsystem, they might be more likely to use it when election timecomes. And what better way to familiarize them with it than byusing the system to determine the Bell Tower playlist?
Our vote for the first song? The theme from "Shaft."
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