Amid bomb threats at the local school, armed and screaming police officers and countless evictions, poverty-stricken citizens tried to go about the daily business of buying groceries, paying utility bills and pawning belongings.
A total of 112 Ball State University students, faculty and staff, along with several community members, participated in the "Realville" poverty simulation Tuesday from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. in the L.A. Pittenger Student Center Ballroom.
It was sponsored by the Department of Social Work and not-for-profit organization TEAMwork for Quality Living. Student Voluntary Services helped with registration, Judy Gray, associate professor of social work, said.
Participants were assigned roles as citizens of "Realville." Some were part of a family living in poverty, and others worked at community businesses. The program simulated four weeks that were each fifteen minutes. At the end of each week, Kyra Hainlen, TEAMwork for Quality Living project coordinator, blew a whistle and briefed participants on the upcoming week's events and changes.
Secondary education major Hilary Brown played Nathan Nattin, a 13-year-old boy who liked sports. Brown said she signed up for the simulation, which was her third, after hearing about it in a multicultural education class.
She said she hoped to teach in an inner-city Chicago-area school after college and thought the poverty simulations might help prepare her for that experience. The simulation reminded her of the real world because of the characters in it, she said.
"I like seeing the people by themselves, because that makes it seem even more real-world," Brown says, raising her voice to speak over the noise of the crowd. She feels the loners in "Realville" effectively represent the loners in real-life.
She said she would do it again because each time is different.
"I think it's something people are really concerned about and interested in," Gray said.
Gray said she wanted Ball State to hold the simulation for four reasons: to provide a meaningful service-learning experience, to work with a local agency to promote poverty awareness, to help students realize problems in the community, and to encourage people to take action.
Funding for the simulation came from a Indiana Campus Compact grant. The organization promotes service-learning experiences at universities, Gray said.
She said her favorite part was the end when people realized how the simulation made them feel.
"I've seen people literally cry," Gray said. "You can really hear that it's hit home."
James Carper, a 44-year-old local volunteer, said he and his wife participate in all the poverty simulations in Delaware County. They were contacted by the welfare office, and he said his favorite part is when lots of people participate.
"That just means there are more people wanting to get involved," he said. "[Participants understand] how hard it is to live day by day here in Muncie with all these minimum-wage jobs that they've got."
Project coordinator Kyra Hainlen said 17 percent of Delaware County residents are in poverty. TEAMwork for Quality Living has done eighteen poverty simulations in the area.
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