Throughout her life, Virginia Ball worked to continue the Ballbrothers' legacy of giving to the university, faculty members saidon the day of her death.
In 1999, she donated $2 million to help create the Virginia B.Ball Center for Creative Inquiry. Students in the program focus onone topic for a semester and present a final project to the Munciecommunity.
"(The Virginia Ball Center) will remain a special legacy fromher, and it also represents something she loved -- that theuniversity and community could work together," Beverley Pitts,provost and vice president for Academic Affairs, said.
Nancy Carlson, telecommunications department chairwoman, was afellow in the program in the fall of 2000.
"It was absolutely the best teaching experience of my career,"Carlson said. "Students who are immersed for a semester on onetopic can afford to take time to dig deeper and be moreproductive.
"When you're with the same students 40 hours a week, you reallyget to know them and bring out their best work."
Joe Trimmer, director of the center, said the center has changedmany students' outlooks. One student, a political science major,decided to go to law school to become a voice for immigrants, hesaid.
The program strengthened Ada Anderson's desire to become ateacher, Anderson said.
"Even though Virginia Ball wasn't directly involved in theireducation, she made it happen," Trimmer said.
Virginia Ball regularly visited with the students, Carlsonsaid.
Many students would send her three-to-four-page thank-you notes,according to Trimmer.
"I think she was a role model for young people ... alwayslooking for new things that would be worthwhile," John Fisher, herbrother-in-law, said. "She always had a great deal of faith inyoung people."
Dom Caristi, telecommunications professor, said the center israre.
"It's an opportunity that other faculty across the country wouldmarvel at when I told them," Caristi said. "It was thanks to herthat we were able to do something other schools can't do."
Trimmer said that the center is working on a memorial forher.
"We want to honor her name and the spirit of philanthropy,"Trimmer said.
Virginia Ball, along with her husband Ed F. Ball, also createdthe Ball Endowed Chair in the telecommunications department.
"Having spent 30 years as a communication lawyer in D.C., thisposition is a wonderful opportunity," Barry Umansky, the currentBall Chair professor, said. "I'll be doing the best to representthe same character that Virginia Ball had."
Previous Ball Endowed Chair professors were Richie Meyer fromPublic Broadcasting Service and Steve Bell from ABC. Umansky workedfor the Federal Communications Commission before accepting theposition.
All three men have enriched the department, Carlson said.
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