MuncieP3 (MP3) is an after-school and summertime program at Longfellow Elementary School, specializing in improving students' reading and literacy skills.

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, Indiana's literacy rates declined every year, with the pandemic "exacerbating" students' literacy scores, according to data from Indiana's IRead results. In response to this, the state has made "historic investments" in helping more students read, according to the Indiana Board of Education.

MP3 is one of those investments.

"The overall goal is to make sure that our students are reading and reading proficiently by third grade," said program coordinator and director of the MuncieP3, Michael Long.

Long has been working as MP3's director for 10 years, but before that, he worked as the assistant director for two years. The program itself is under Ball State University's Early Childhood, Youth and Family Studies Department, allowing students from the university to be student aides for the program.

The program initially began after Ball State professor of early childhood, youth and family studies, Dr. Eva Zygmunt, wanted to start an immersive learning class in the community of Whitely, a neighborhood in Muncie.

In 2009, a "Mom's Night Out" event was hosted by the university's early childhood, youth and family studies department at Roy C. Buley Community Center. At the gathering, the department asked parents about their "hopes and dreams" for their children, Zygmunt said via email.

In response, parents said they valued education and wanted after-school and summer enrichment opportunities for their children to keep them on track academically. Zygmunt officially made the decision to move forward with the program after hearing this feedback, as several of the parents said they wanted their children to be taught by "trusted community members and teachers."

Two weeks after the program was in development, the Indiana Department of Education (IDOE) issued requests for funding new programs through the 21st Century Community Learning Center Grants, with grants estimated at $900,000 every four years. Long explained that these grants are very competitive, and only 25 to 30 programs receive funding after applying.

MP3 received a grant from the IDOE, allowing MP3 to begin the four-year grant cycle. Currently, the program is entering its fourth grant cycle, approaching 16 years in operation.

"[MP3] was birthed out of the need of the community, and right after that, the funding came," Long said.

The program applied for its four-year grant cycle in February 2025, but was rescinded in March due to President Donald Trump dismantling the DOE, which cut funding to after-school programs.

"It has been almost a year, and the funding is still not approved," Long said via email.

MP3 is still waiting for a decision from the DOE on whether grant money is still available in the department's budget. Once the DOE knows the amount of funding available, Long said it will reopen applications for its grant program.

In the meantime, MP3 is talking with local foundations about possible funding, as well as continuing to explore state and federal funding to keep the program operating.

Long emphasized how the families are an important part of the children's success with MP3. He said that, for a child to be enrolled in the program, the family would need to be interviewed to determine what works best or "fits" well for either the family or the child.

But ultimately, the students who stay all four years in MP3 become the "most successful," Long claims, saying "there is no program in the state of Indiana like what we do."

Recently, third graders IRead scores in the state of Indiana have improved from 2024-25, according to the 2024-25 IRead results. Students' literacy data grew from 2023-24 from 82.5 to 87.3 percent, representing 73,500 third graders out of 84,163 in the state.

Success like this is what pushed curriculum coordinator Faith Serf to be part of the after-school program, having experienced how much the program helped her son.

"I knew I wanted to be a part of this community, because they were really embracing not only the student, they were embracing the families as well," Serf said. "It was a very welcoming environment."

First-grade co-teacher for MP3, Tyana Isomi, also experienced watching her own children go through the program. Both Isomi's daughter and son attended MP3, and while her daughter was a quick learner, her son had an IEP, or an Individualized Education Program, and struggled academically.

Despite these challenges, her son received support from those around him. He made friends from the start of the program until the very end, and is still friends with them now as a sophomore in high school.

"His group of friends just took care of him," Isomi said.

Once students are done with their normal school day, they can take a "brain break" to transition to the after school program. During this time, Serf said that students receive a small meal or snack to prepare them to learn.

Serf said students also have the opportunity to use a digital program called Lexia, a computer-assisted reading and literacy program that is developed to support student reading, writing and language arts skills, with a "game approach" to its learning.

"We don't look like a school day program. However, we are using the standards and the content, and we refined it so that it looks more engaging," she said.

First-grade aide and second-year Ball State student Mackenna Johnson said they give students "wiggle breaks" to let them get all their "talkativeness out."

Johnson explained that understanding a student's individual needs makes it "easier for them to learn from [staff]" by recognizing when they are hungry or simply need to move around. She continued by saying that if a student's "mind is not in the right place," then they will not be able to learn appropriately.

Along with meeting the students' needs, Isomi said the relationship with the student is a "big part" of the program.

Having grown up in Muncie herself, she knows the families and children who are part of MP3. Isomi explained how having these connections benefits the community in addressing any challenges that may arise.

Isomi also described the program as having "good" communication with the families and being able to discuss problems with parents, describing the environment as "family."

"Longfellow [Elementary] itself is family," Isomi said. "It's easy to do here, because that's just how it's always been."

Serf said she wants MP3 students to know they are valuable and that they have something to offer. She wants them to "keep their head up" and look for others who will continue to support them after their time with MP3 is over.

"Find their next Faith [Serf], find their next Mackenna [Johnson], find their next Ty[ana Isomi] out there in the world. Because they're out there. There's a lot of them out there, but if we can equip them to do that, then I feel I'm at peace," Serf said.

Contact Linnea Sundquist via email at linnea.sundquist@bsu.edu.

February First Thursday

Join the community on the first Thursday of every month for a night of gallery walks throughout downtown. Watch and learn from local artists as they perform their crafts. Support community artisans and shops as you explore the downtown community.

• Price: Free
• Location: Downtown Muncie
• Date and Time: Thursday, February 5 from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

Ball State Symphony Orchestra

The Ball State Symphony Orchestra is a flagship ensemble of the School of Music that performs orchestral music from a wide variety of backgrounds and time periods. Come enjoy some beautiful music! This concert will also be offered as a livestream.

• Price: General Public: $8 in advance, $10 at the door | BSU Faculty/Staff/Seniors: $5 in advance, $7 at the door | Students: Free in advance, $5 at the door
• Location: Sursa Performance Hall
• Date and Time: Thursday, February 5 from 7:30 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.

"Big Astronomy" Planetarium Show

Journey to world-class observatories in Chile's rugged Andes Mountains and arid Atacama Desert. Discover how people keep these mega-machines running and see their remarkable research results. Suitable for adults and ages 10+; all ages are welcome.

• Price: Free
• Location: Charles W. Brown Planetarium
• Date and Time: Saturday, February 7 from 5:00 pm. to 6:00 p.m.

Fused Glass Workshops: Painting with Frit

Discover the art of using fine glass frit to paint a winter scene or unleash your creativity with an abstract design. Perfect for beginners and intermediates, this class requires no glass cutting. Participants may bring their own printed images, patterns, or drawings for inspiration, or work from the provided winter scene. All tools, supplies, and safety gear will be provided. Pre-registration is required.

• Price: $35, Member Discounts Apply
• Location: Cantina, Center Building, Minnetrista Museum & Gardens
• Date and Time: Wednesday, February 4 from 2:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. and Thursday, February 5 from 6:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

Head Coach Mike Iandolo said despite the team not playing perfect volleyball, the confidence is still "pretty high".

"We're definitely playing cleaner more often," Iandolo said. "I think the guys are getting on a roll."

Against George Mason, Iandolo said junior middle blocker Jacob Surette was not able to make the trip because he was sick. But his absence allowed fellow junior middle blocker Will Patterson to get the starting nod.

Iandolo said the team did not "miss a beat" with a new starter in the lineup, and that showed with Patterson's five kills.

The head coach said it is nice to see multiple different players stepping up when given the opportunity.

"There's going to be points where maybe we have to make a change," Iandolo said. "Having guys being able to get some court time now in January is going to pay off for us."

The team's game against George Mason was their first true road game of the season. The only other away games the team has played have been neutral site games.

Heading into the game, Iandolo knew it would be a challenge playing in another team's gym, and the head coach felt like the team responded really well.

George Mason's fight showed in the first set, as the Cardinals were pushed into extra points, barely escaping with a 31-29 set win.

"It was their gym, they were confident, they wanted to take it to us, [and] they gave it their best shot," Iandolo said. "That [first set] was their best shot and we weathered the storm."

The head coach said he saw his team not panic and play cleaner volleyball as the game went on. He has seen his team grow in that area as the season has gone on.

Iandolo said it was a big deal to see the team respond to their loss to No. 1-ranked University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) with a win over Stanford on their trip to Phoenix Jan. 17 and 18.

The head coach has seen that response carry forward as the season has gone on.

"We've got something here, we got some guys that are pretty focused and able to move on, and we have seen it continue that way," Iandolo said.

The wins over Maryland Eastern Shore and George Mason capped off the team's non-conference schedule. Moving forward, the team will take on Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (MIVA) opponent Queens Feb. 5 and 6.

The head coach said the team is still working on playing clean volleyball for the entirety of a match, leading up to conference play.

Iandolo said with non-conference play, you have to make "January as tough as you can", and the head coach has felt like the team has done that. The Cardinals have faced four ranked teams in the early season and taken away wins in three of them.

There are multiple returners from last season on the team that Iandolo said know what the MIVA looks like, and he said the team has one goal in mind for conference play.

"We have our goal, our goal is to win the MIVA, to be the best team coming out of the MIVA," Iandolo said.

The head coach said every day is a step to take in that direction, and that the team can only take care of what is in front of them.

Contact Kyle Stout with questions via email at kyle.stout@bsu.edu or on X @kylestoutdailyn.

The two teams matched up for the first team since each university held an NCAA tournament appearance on Feb.1, with the matchup being nationally televised on CBS Sports Network.

The Cardinals reached triple digits for the fourth team this season, taking down the Golden Flashes 101-91.

Head Coach Brady Sallee said that in a game of this nature, his team "better focus on competing and not the scoreboard", which he said his team did at a high level in the game.

"[When] you've got some talented players out on the floor, sometimes you just gotta play the next play and try and go answer their score with your score," Sallee said.

Sallee's team led the entire game, start to finish. That has been a narrative for the Cardinals this season, as their wins have featured them holding a lead for most of the game.

The head coach said the team was moving the ball very well from the start, which showed with their 30 assists in the game.

"We were able to just stay ahead of them with some balanced scoring," Sallee said.

It was a tight contest early for both squads, as the Cardinals entered halftime only leading by three points. But the team quickly jumped out to a run in the third quarter and saw their three-point lead grow to a game-high 16.

"In that run we played from defense to offense, we turned them over a couple times," Sallee said. "They missed some shots, we got some clean rebounds, and we were able to get out into transition."

The Cardinals' two seniors stepped up big in the spotlight of the game. Senior forward Bree Salenbien had 24 points along with a season-high of ten assists, and senior center Tessa Towers recorded a season-high 29 points along with 11 rebounds.

The senior's double-double efforts led to the Cardinals claiming their ninth conference victory.

Sallee said there is a "game experience factor" when it comes to games like this, and he said it was nice to have his seniors play the way they did in a road conference game.

"In a game like this where maybe some young ones could get rattled, you need your upperclassmen to be upperclassmen and I thought they certainly were today," Sallee said.

In a game where Ball State had 30 assists, it opened up the floor for the team to be able to make eight threes. Six of those came from the hands of sophomore guard Grace Kingery.

Kingery has been a huge factor to the Cardinals success, as the guard is averaging just north of 14 points per game in conference play.

Sallee said Kingery is "in tune with the passers and we're in tune with her."

"She's a bear to guard when she plays at that tempo and with that aggressiveness," Sallee said.

Coming up next, the Cardinals will host Northern Illinois at Worthen Arena Feb. 4.

Contact Kyle Stout with questions via email at kyle.stout@bsu.edu or on X @kylestoutdailyn.

"They were humble about it, you know?" said Head Coach Joe Rench. "We took it one game at a time. I kept stressing how important just each game is at a time."

Joe Rench took over the reins at Daleville going into last season. In two years with the Broncos, he is already the 3rd winningest girls basketball coach in school history, with a record of 29-13.

"He cares a lot more than any of the other coaches that I've had in my four years of playing basketball," said Makenna Corbin, a senior guard for the Broncos. "I think he puts in a lot more time than my other coaches have in the past."

Rench says that the team has been successful because of their unselfish play on the court. Daleville has three players averaging double-digit scoring. The scoring surge can be attributed to the Broncos solid ball movement on offense, averaging 14 assists a game.

"We used to be one and two-dimensional. But now, we've done a really good job of getting everybody involved," Rench said.

The girls say a lot of their improvement on the court is due to better habits in practice each day.

"We are all practicing harder," said Olivia Pratcher, a junior point guard who averages 16 points, eight rebounds, and six assists per game. "We're doing things to improve, and I think that it's definitely helping and making a difference."

Daleville will host Tri Friday night in their regular-season finale. Both teams will enter the game with a 14-5 record. For the Broncos, their final game will be a good way to see where the team stands before facing a tough playoff draw in Class 1A.

"In our sectional alone, six of the eight teams have winning records, so the competition's a little bit different," said Rench.

Daleville will tip off the postseason against North Miami on Feb. 3 at Southern Wells High School.

Contact Jayden Collins with comments at jayden.collins@bsu.edu.

"It's really only about a month-long process." Jackson Phenis, the Elections Board Commissioner, said. "But I'm sure some of these people have been talking about this probably since the beginning of last semester."

The Nomination convention is just the beginning of the process. Each of the tickets will be formally nominated at the convention, and the Elections board will also receive their campaign staff information.

"It's all really deciding, do I want to run? Am I qualified? And questions like that," Phenis said.

"I'd say what initially encouraged me to join was the influence from my older peers who are already in SGA," Quinn Davis, one of the candidates running in this election, said. "And wanting to make a difference in the community that we're a part of, I see a lot of people who feel unrepresented at Ball State, and they feel like they don't have a voice, so being able to join SGA and be that voice for them was important to me."

The student senate is composed of five causes representing five major areas of students: On-campus, Off-campus, At-large, organizational and Collegiate. This encompasses a vast majority of different perspectives, values, cultures, and ideas that candidates take into consideration when forming their campaign.

Polls for voting in the 2026 student government election will be open to students on Monday, February 16th, at 8:00 a.m. on "BeConnected."

Students can look out for the candidates' campaigns and more information on the Student Government Association's Instagram at "bsustudentgov."

If interested in contacting the organization directly, students can visit them in the Student Center, Room 112.

Contact Brianna Baariu with comments at brianna.baariu@bsu.edu

From the moment I was a little girl, I wanted to be a grown-up.

I would watch movies starring high school students and ponder what it might be like to be 17. I would read books about princesses and think about just how old I had to be to meet my Prince Charming or live in a castle. I would watch vlogs featuring extensive makeup tutorials or outfit ideas and wonder how I might do my makeup when I grew old enough to wear it.

I was not - and am not - alone in wondering.

In the last few years, the "Sephora kid" trend has taken over the internet, with a focus on kids and their deep interest in adult makeup and skincare. Social media was flooded with children, many younger than 13, sharing their $100 skincare or makeup routines. TikTok seemed to be swarmed with preteens imitating adults by showing off their skin-brightening serums and lash-extending mascaras to comment sections of people who questioned why a girl so young needed these products that were often used by adults.

For the most part, I agreed with these comments. Regardless, I learned that when I saw these "Sephora kids" in the wild, arguing with their parents in favor of the newest setting spray, there was real-world interest and demand.

In November 2025, Rini, a skincare brand targeted toward children aged 3 and up, catered to that demand. Actress and model Shay Mitchell created the child-targeted skincare line in response to her children watching her do her own makeup and skincare and asking to try it themselves - a popular trend with little kids who want to mirror their parents.

In their first three months, the brand has faced a polarizing response. Some are enthusiastic about a brand that is entirely child-safe and catered to little kids, perfect for their children who have an interest in beauty while also being moisturizing, skin-repairing and hypoallergenic.

However, others are enraged with the brand for placing yet another beauty standard on children, especially young girls, who are already overwhelmed with physical expectations for their entire lives. For this category of consumers, children are too young for cosmetics and do not have skin problems that require repair.

"Call me crazy, but the only thing we should be putting on kids' faces is sunscreen," one of the most-liked comments under Rini's brand announcement said.

"Healing serum? What [5-year-old] or even a [15-year-old] needs these products?" another said, making reference to specific healing ingredients advertised in Rini's campaign, aligning with other skincare products that are made to solve potential skin issues society tells us need solving.

Children often grow up mimicking their parents' activities and interests. After all, play kitchens have been a popular childhood toy for generations, allowing toddlers to play with plastic food while their parents cook dinner in the adult-size kitchen. However, pretending to make a snack with plastic fruits is not a proposed solution to a problem that does not exist. Skincare is often a remedy to adult facial flare-ups - something most toddlers and preteens do not have.

Today, children want to grow up faster than ever.

Teens in younger generations found comfort and a sense of belonging in spaces created specifically for teen girls, places like Justice or Claire's, places I remember loving. Over time, those safe spaces have disappeared.

As tweens feel pressure to grow up at younger ages, places designed for their stage of life have closed their doors. With the loss of those spaces, the sense of wonder they fostered has also faded, disrupting what was once a gentler transition from girlhood to womanhood. Without spaces that promoted individuality through that change, young women have been pushed to grow up faster, jolted from stores designed for children into those meant for adult women, exposing them to adult styles, behaviors and expectations long before they were ready.

In a Manhattan Institute article published in 1998, Bruce Friend, a vice president of the kids' cable channel Nickelodeon, stated, "The 12- to 14-year-olds of yesterday are the 10- to 12[-year-olds] of today."

The article goes on to explain that sexual activity, drugs and alcohol consumption are becoming increasingly popular with younger age groups in the last few decades.

Additionally, eating disorders are becoming increasingly common among late elementary-age girls. Not only that, but with child suicide rates rising 8.2 percent annually from 2008 to 2022, according to research that was published in 2024 by the National Institute of Mental Health, the concern seems warranted.

There are numerous reasons why children may want to grow up as quickly as possible. As I mentioned, I often found my preteen self fixated on adulthood. The freedoms, opportunities and romance - what was not glamorous about a life beyond my childhood?

Now, with children gaining access to screens at younger ages and online pressures increasing, life beyond childhood seems to start sooner than ever.

The desire to grow up disguises itself as ambition or maturity, when in reality, it often stems from insecurity and comparison. As a child, I believed adulthood was achieved after abandoning any practice that felt immature to fix something that was never wrong with me.

Today's children are being given the same message, only it is amplified by algorithms, marketing and constant exposure to the romanticized adult lifestyle. When skincare routines are branded as necessities rather than as play, the pressure to "fix" oneself emerges from an increasingly early age.

When I was younger, I felt similar pressures to grow up quickly so as not to be seen as childish. I remember, even without online influence, attempting to shrink my childhood interests upon entering middle school to try to seem as adult as possible to my new peers.

Yet, diminishing childhood excitement towards things that interested me did not make me any cooler or more accepted. I would later find a renewed interest in my childhood hobbies, such as arts and crafts and fashion, toward the end of my teenage years. Growing up quicker did not make me better, but growing into myself did.

A March 2025 article published by Medium echoes this call to action, urging us to talk directly to our youth.

"We can't control everything, but we can guide them," the article declared. "We can remind them that there's no rush. We can help them see that adulthood is not a destination to be obsessed with - it will come, whether they like it or not."

Ultimately, the question is not if children will grow up or not - they will - but how gently we allow them to do so. If we continue to treat childhood as something to grow out of as quickly as possible, we risk robbing youth of the space they need to discover who they are without judgment.

Childhood should not be sacrificed to adulthood before it even begins.

Contact Charlotte Jons via email charlotte.jons@bsu.edu.

The funding lapse is likely to be short, with the House returning from a weeklong break on Monday and the Republican president fully supporting the spending package. Many Americans may not even notice since most federal employees working on weekends, such as military personnel and air traffic controllers, are deemed essential and aren't furloughed in a shutdown.

This is the second timeCongresshas failed to fund the government since Trump returned to office last year. A 43-day shutdown during the autumn was the longest and most disruptive ever, with food aid halted to millions of households, thousands of flights canceled and federal workers going without pay for more than a month.

This shutdown is more limited since some parts of the government already are fully funded through theSept. 30end of the federal fiscal year.

That includes theDepartment of Agriculture, so there will be no interruption in food stamps. National parks, veterans' services and theJustice Departmentalso already have had their funding approved for the year.

Still, the affected agencies - which include theTreasury, Defense, Homeland Security, Transportation, Health and HumanServices and Labor Departments- will go through the formal process of shutting down, according to aWhite House Office of Management and Budgetmemo.

"It is our hope that this lapse will be short," OMB DirectorRuss Voughtwrote in a memo Friday, adding that the administration will be prepared to order the government to reopen as soon as Trump signs a funding bill into law.

TheHouse Rules Committeeadded a vote on the spending measure to the agenda for its Monday afternoon meeting to send it to the floor for final passage.

It's unclear whether theBureau of Labor Statisticswill delay the release of the monthly jobs report, scheduled for Friday, if there's a brief government shutdown.

The shutdown fight erupted after aU.S.citizen,Alex Pretti, was killed in a confrontation withBorder Patrolofficers inMinneapolislast weekend.Democratsrefused to renew funding for theHomeland Security Departmentunless new restraints were placed on immigration enforcement.

Democratsare seeking requirements thatDHSagents use body cameras and obtain judicial warrants. They also want to forbid the masking of agents and stop broad immigration sweeps.

Trump and Senate Democratic LeaderChuck Schumerstruck a deal Thursday to fundDHSfor two weeks while they continue negotiations over the demands. The rest of the government would be funded throughSept. 30.

TheSenateapproved the funding deal on Friday.

Trump has indicated in recent days that he would make changes to his administration's deportation campaign. The crackdown, according to polls, has grown increasingly unpopular with voters, posing a risk to theRepublican Partyin the coming midterm elections.

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(With assistance fromGregory KorteandMolly Smith)

No player sits there, but the whiteboard lets people know whose locker it is.

But it doesn't say Caroline Scheu, it says the name she is known as inside the program: Carol.

Chances are, you have seen the content creator donning bangs, decked out in Ball State merch, being swarmed by the Cardinals after a win in Worthen Arena.

Scheu has been running the Ball State Women's Basketball social media accounts as the Cardinals' content creator and is currently in her fourth season with the program.

But four years ago, Scheu was not even considering joining the program.

"My personality at the time, I was not going to reach out," Scheu said.

She was an anxiety-ridden, quiet person who overthought every interaction. She had social anxiety.

"I was a shell of myself," Scheu said.

She was dealing with the death of her grandfather - a large proponent of why she pursued basketball media - and was in a new town, surrounded by little to no people she knew.

But Ball State Women's Basketball reached out to her.

Scheu said she saw an email in her inbox about two weeks after coming to Ball State in the fall of 2022. While she still does not know how Head Coach Brady Sallee got her contact information, she toured the facility with assistant coach Casey Morrissette, who told Scheu the job was hers if she wanted it.

Initially, the role for Scheu was going to be helping out with recruiting and, maybe, using her skills here and there to market the program, Sallee said. But he soon figured out it could be so much more with Scheu.

"She's taken it and turned it into something crazy," Sallee said.

Scheu has grown the women's basketball social media accounts from averaging 764,000 views per season to well over 5.3 million.

Turning nothing into something

Women's basketball is a part of Scheu's identity. She grew up in a basketball house and was always in the gym. While her sister enjoyed playing basketball, Scheu said she was obsessed with basketball media, always knowing it would be her career.

There was no binder on her desk when she took the job at Ball State in the fall of 2022.

"No one ran it, there was no brand, no nothing," Scheu said.

She said it felt like she was thrown into the fire her freshman year. Scheu had never worked in collegiate athletics, was not used to the schedule and it took her time to get adjusted to the coaches and players.

She felt those same feelings she had before taking the job.

Even if it felt like she was "in the fire," the program always had her back. Scheu was integrated from day one.

She was always invited to team activities, was on every team trip and was constantly with the staff and players. Scheu said the team believed in her during a time when she did not even feel proven.

"It was something that I did not know I needed at the time, but I really did," Scheu said.

No doubt, she was still nervous, but after getting her feet wet during her freshman year, Scheu started setting goals to grow the brand.

In her sophomore year, she started with consistency. She posted more frequently and tried new things. Everything she did was self-taught, and she worked relentlessly on her design skills. Then she started creating more videos, laying the foundation for a strong social media presence.

Post by post, Scheu was building an online persona for the Cardinals. More and more views, shares and interactions started to roll in.

Sallee said he believes social media accounts have helped with recruiting, putting "butts in the seats," and have helped people understand what Ball State Women's Basketball is all about.

"I think the knowledge that people have about how special our program and our players are comes directly from the work she puts into it," he said.

Account Statistics

1. Monthly Growth
   1. Jan 12, 2025 averaged 439.7k views a month
   2. Jan, 20, 2026 averaged between 700k-1.1 million views a month for the past 7 months.
2. Three-year growth
   1. Aug. 2022-2023 = 764,000 views
   2. Aug. 2024-25 = 5.3 million views
3. Posts so far this season
   1. 107 Reels
   2. 224 Posts
4. TikTok Growth
   1. 5.2 million views since June 2025
5. X (Twitter) Boom
   1. Sept 14, 2022 - 6340 followers
   2. Jan 20, 2026 - 11.3k followers

It has been through the posts, videos and interactions where Scheu has found herself genuine relationships with the staff and players. It is a large reason the Cardinals are so comfortable around her camera.

A majority of her time is spent without a camera around the team. In fact, her favorite memories are off camera. The relationships formed make every long night, every bus ride and every post worth it.

She is with the program so much that she said it feels like she is roster No. 14, almost like a player under Sallee.

"I don't think they even realize how high they've set the bar," Scheu said. "I think that's just who he is and who this program is, but they don't understand that a lot of people in my position are not treated as well as I am."

She saw another opportunity to grow with the 2025 senior class, and she knew she needed to capitalize on their story. She created roughly 800 pieces of content last season.

Scheu said she always feels pressure to tell the players' stories, especially last season with the senior class. But after feeling successful in telling their stories, Scheu felt pressure to match what she did last year for this season.

"I feel pressure, but I am also confident in myself," Scheu said. "It drives me to do better. I like the pressure."

That pressure is a reward to her because before she took over, there was no pressure at all for the Ball State Women's Basketball social media to look a certain way.

Scheu usually stops by every single practice, posts multiple times a day and continues to edit and plan content for the future. Through it all, each post has a meaning. For example, the Cardinals' roster has completely changed since last season. So, for days on end, Scheu would post videos of riddles, questions and more, not to fill content, but so followers could get to know the athletes.

Sophomore guard Zuri Ransom said Scheu's heartfelt love for the job can easily be seen in the content that is produced, and the sophomore said she believes it is a reason the fans care so much as well.

Ransom said she feels nostalgia when she views older videos on the women's basketball pages because she can see relationships form through the content posted.

"She's turned a 6-foot-5 kid that wears number 22, who's a good basketball player, into someone that people feel like they know," Sallee said. "That's when you know you've got someone really good at what they are doing."

The good times

Sallee said players often enter the program wide-eyed, unsure how to navigate the collegiate atmosphere. But over time, they settle in. He said Scheu has been the same way.

"If I did not have this, I have no idea who I would be," Scheu said.

She has found herself in her work, alongside the encouragement and support from the program.

Scheu wants to leave a legacy of being known, not for herself, but for the Ball State Women's Basketball team. She said she wants their values known and wants people to know the players for who they are.

But she knows her career might never look the way it does now.

"There's that cheesy quote of, 'you don't know what you have till it's gone,' but I've always known what I've had here," Scheu said. "A lot of the time you do not know you are in the good times until you leave, but I have always known."

Scheu will never be 18-21 years old again, working with a team full of women her age. She will never experience coming into a program and college for the first time again, so she relishes this time.

"I will never be able to repay them," Scheu said.

Sallee said the Cardinals are going to try to create a position that would allow them to keep Scheu in the program after she graduates. He said there is no program that would not want Scheu, but in the age of the transfer portal, he is hoping she does not transfer.

Scheu said it has been confidence that has made her into a new person. Even if there are moments where she feels like an imposter, she has totally changed as a person from who she was just four years ago.

That confidence boost comes with the program, players and staff pouring into the work she has done. While it did not happen overnight, she still feels a real change.

"I feel like I belong here," Scheu said. "My freshman and sophomore year I felt like it was handed to me. Once I proved to myself that I was meant to be here, it transformed me as a person. It brought my old self back. It gave me back a part of me I thought I had lost."

Contact Elijah Poe via email at elijah.poe@bsu.edu or on X @ElijahPoe4.

The presentation followed the nomination convention at 5 p.m., which is where everyone can see who is running for the executive positions that will be opening up.

The presidential debate for all nominees running for the position is Feb. 10 and the vice presidential debate will be the next day, Feb. 11.

The nominees cannot nominate themselves, but any other student at Ball State University can nominate them. However, Phenis said there cannot be any campaigning before the end of the nomination convention, and there is also no merchandising, which means nominees cannot tell students to vote for them to be on the ticket.

"[Students] can ask questions like, 'Oh, when is the debate?' Or, 'Oh, how can I vote?' That's fine, but [they] can't ask very specific questions or talking points that lead to [them] supporting a ticket virtually," he said.

After SGA went over the elections timeline and rules, they moved into special orders of business with an off-campus senate applicant, Quinn Davis.

Davis, a third-year supply chain management and marketing major, is the vice president of the Sigma Chi fraternity. She is also a part of the Student Organization Fund Allocation Committee (SOFAC) and is a former member of the At-Large Caucus for three semesters last year. Davis was a former senate member of SGA, but had left due to picking up another major and taking on the vice president role at Sigma Chi.

Senator Charlie Isaacs asked Davis about what SOFAC does, and Davis said it helps allocate funds to student clubs and organizations.

"If the committee wants funding for this job, then they send them a request, and then we check to make sure it meets all the requirements, and then we either accept or not based on the payment requirements," he said.

Davis was approved for the off-campus committee with 24 yays, zero nays and three abstentions.

After the SGA had approved Davis, it moved into executive reports starting with President Chelsea Murdock. She reminded the senate they are helping out with upcoming events such as Dance Marathon Feb. 6 and events surrounding Sexual Assault Awareness Month coming up in April, which are meant to shine a light on the prevalency of sexual assault cases on campus.

"... We usually like to do something for Sexual Assault Awareness Month in support with Fraternity and Sorority Life," Murdock said.

SGA will meet again Feb. 4, at 3:15 p.m. in Cardinal Hall B at the L.A. Pittenger Student Center.

Contact Landon Jones via email landon.jones2@bsu.edu.

Comedy actress Catherine O'Hara, who starred in film classics like "Beetlejuice" and "Home Alone" as well as the television hit, "Schitt's Creek," has died. She was 71 years old.

The Canadian actress and comedian died Friday, her manager confirmed to Variety. TMZ was the first to report the news.

The cause of death was not clear and few other details were provided.

O'Hara kicked off her career as a performer and writer on the Canadian sketch comedy show "Second City Television," or "SCTV." She went on to star in several Christopher Guest films, including "Best in Show," "A Mighty Wind" and "For Your Consideration." Some of her other popular roles include that of Macaulay Culkin's mother Kate McCallister in the first two "Home Alone" movies, and Moira Rose, the uppity matriarch of the Rose family on "Schitt's Creek."

O'Hara earned an Emmy for her work on the show in 2020, decades after she scored her first Emmy for her writing contributions to the sketch comedy TV series "SCTV Network 90."

©2026 New York Daily News. Visit nydailynews.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

This year's theme was the beach, and students had creative freedom to interpret that in whichever way they wanted. Students were judged based on a rubric. The rubric had multiple scoring categories. Scoring focused on the use of materials, how well the theme was conveyed and presentation. The winning cake featured a theme of friendship, showcasing the cartoon characters SpongeBob and Patrick.

In addition to cake decorating skills, the RHA also encourages its members to build their communication abilities. Activities director, Haley Shipley, explains how this has helped her.

"It really helped me build my confidence. It really just built my resume essentially to do further things."

Shipley helped organize the event and has been planning for the past couple of months. She was hopeful about bringing the event back to life after the success of the previous year. Most importantly, Shipley wants to build an environment where everyone can feel safe and welcome. She elaborates that being a part of RHA is all about having fun, and that's something she thinks "Cake Warz" does well. She also encourages more students to get involved.

"We'd like students to understand what we do, and go up from there," Shipley said.

Although there could only be one winner, all teams participating were sure to enjoy their evening. The students got to take their cakes home with them, and the winning team was awarded mini trophies. The RHA has more events planned in February. You can learn more on BeConnected.

Contact Addison Hampshire with comments at addison.hampshire@bsu.edu

Last Week to sign up for Walt Disney World Summer Course

his course explores how Disney translates fairy tales into immersive storytelling within its theme parks and how that process creates authentic nostalgia tourism experiences. Students will experience this firsthand during a six-day visit to Walt Disney World, studying how Disney represents cultures from around the world in its parks.

All undergraduate students are welcome to join the course. The deadline to submit the participation form is Feb. 6. For more information, emailrblom@bsu.edu.

Come in From the Cold and Enjoy a Concert! Jazz Ensembles on February 3 & Orchestra on February 5

Tom Shah Memorial Concert | Tuesday, February 3 | 7:30 PM | Sursa Hall

Each year, Ball State's Jazz Ensembles honor veteran, alum and trumpet player Tom Shah with a concert and award ceremony. Join them for jazz favorites and a time-honored tribute. Tickets are available in person at the College of Fine Arts box office, online or by phone at 765-285-8749.

Ball State Symphony Orchestra | Thursday, February 5 | 7:30 PM | Sursa Hall

The Ball State Symphony Orchestra will present its first concert of the spring semester, featuring works by Beethoven, Mozart and Stravinsky. Tickets are available in person at the College of Fine Arts box office, online or by phone at 765-285-8749.

Ball State's Artificial Intelligence Symposium is Less than a Month Away. Register Now!

Ball State's first-ever Artificial Intelligence Symposium will take place Feb. 18 in the Student Center Ballroom. The day will feature tool trainings, roundtable discussions and opportunities for faculty and staff to explore the evolving world of AI.

Pro licenses for AI tools will be raffled off every hour, and attendees must be present to win. Food will be provided, and the day will conclude with open feedback and discussion. Don't miss the opportunity to innovate and help ensure these potential grant resources are used where they matter most. You can registerhere.

For more information, go toBall State's Communication Center.

As a nonprofit organization based in Indiana, Firefly has expanded its outreach across the country, opening new branches in multiple states and counties.

Firefly is one of the oldest businesses in Indiana and has opened over 20 locations across the state, including a recently opened shelter in downtown Indianapolis.

Not only that, but the organization has also grown from $13 million in revenue to $50 million in 2025, according to CEO and President Tina Cloer.

But it is not the number of locations or the amount of revenue they bring in that makes Firefly so special - it is the children and families that the organization has helped and continues to help.

"Firefly specializes in working with families that have experienced all forms of trauma," Cloer said. "We do services to strengthen families, which are largely child abuse programs that are working with families that are at-risk and really trying to help get them the help they need."

Firefly's resources vary by case, offering educational resources and mental health services intended to help families and kids across the state avoid involvement with federal systems and services. The organization also provides services for survivors of domestic violence, domestic assault, sexual assault and human trafficking.

Even with the recent November 2025 opening of Firefly's new shelter in downtown Indianapolis, which contains single bedrooms for all the children who reside there, sensory integration systems, classrooms for teachers, a place for therapists to perform their practice in a safe, secure environment and an art therapy room, most of what Firefly does takes place in people's homes.

"We are mostly home-based," Cloer said. "We go to them to remove the barriers of folks getting help, because for many of the people we serve, transportation and child care are significant barriers to seeking services. So, we go to them and eliminate those things."

Oftentimes, Cloer said, the Department of Child Services (DCS) will not remove kids from their homes but rather send them to Firefly. It is then Firefly's job to assess the family's lifestyle and determine how best to keep those kids safe in their home environment, despite any changes that may have occurred, she said.

Whether it be because a parent believes their child has a neurological or physical disability and they do not know how to properly care for or discipline them, or a family is in need of a helping hand to get by, Firefly is there to offer that help.

Cloer said the organization manages to keep 90 percent of the families it works with together, but in the instances where "too many terrible things have happened," there is a foster care program for kids who are removed from their families.

During that time, Firefly works with both the children and the parents to resolve their issues, whether that be their mental health or substance abuse. While a case is open, Cloer said Firefly works to prepare the home for the child to return.

In the instances that a child does not go back home to their family, Firefly will even take care of the older youth who are aging out of the foster system.

However, in most instances, therapists and case workers go to people's homes to work with them on an array of things, such as introducing families to prevention programs, helping them improve their budgeting and parenting skills and even helping them get employment and housing if necessary.

These house calls can be as frequent as once a month, and sometimes, especially in the beginning of cases, Firefly will visit their client's homes approximately five to six times a week as they work to assess the situation at hand.

In most cases, Cloer said, Firefly tends to work more with children than adults. Their goal is to try to create an environment that is trauma-informed and a space where children are allowed to adjust to whatever has happened to them.

"If you grew up in a reasonable home, you would think that the worst thing that could happen in your life is that somebody comes and takes you out of that," Cloer said. "But for our kids, sometimes that is not the situation."

In the instances where it is best for children to go to Firefly's shelter, the non-profit organization uses an evidence-based model called "Teaching Family" in order to teach children social skills, how to manage anxiety and uncertainty, how to navigate change and how to deal with conflicts from their family and their peers.

Tashia Weaver's job as the director of prevention services for Firefly allows her to oversee two of the organization's main prevention programs - Community Partners for Child Safety and Strengthening Indiana Families Family Resource Center.

Community Partners for Child Safety is where liaisons meet families in need and provide them with the support and education they need.

"We want to connect families to resources in the community and then break down those barriers preventing them from being readily accessible," said Weaver.

One of the most valued resources that Firefly administers is the Child Care Development Fund (CCDF), which provides subsidized childcare services across Indiana.

Joanne Crouch, a member of Firefly's Parent Advisory Committee and a former Firefly client, was assigned a case manager in 2014 after being involved in a domestic violence situation. To keep herself and her three children safe, one of Crouch's friends gave her Cloer's phone number-a life-changing lifeline.

Crouch received a case manager who went to her house and helped her with positively disciplining her children in a way that is acceptable for children who have been abused in the past. Crouch also recalled times when Firefly paid her electric bill because she could not afford it.

At the time, Crouch had to tread a fine line because she made too much money to get federal assistance, such as food stamps - but she did not earn enough to buy anything extra for her children - like Christmas presents

The main resource Crouch said she benefited from the most was the child care vouchers, which are available in 66 counties.



"As a single mom with three children in 2014, it was $600 a week for childcare services, and I was not making enough money to go to work and have my kids go to daycare," Crouch said. "So, I signed up for the CCDF program."

To this day, Crouch remains heavily involved with Firefly as a member of its Parent Advisory Committee and has used her position to share the organization's resources with the rest of the world.

"I just want so many people to know about Firefly's services, and I thought that if I could get out in the community and spread the word, then sign me up," Crouch said.

But more than anything, Crouch wanted the chance to offer hope to parents in desperate situations who think there is no way out - that there is light amid such darkness.

"We had reached out to a number of our clients and asked them what our organization meant to them and their family," Cloer said. "And that is where the whole notion of bringing light to darkness came from, and that is how we became Firefly."

In 2024 alone, 88,000 kids were impacted by Firefly's services, with approximately 50,000 in Indiana, Cloer said.

"We do not have to change every family we touch," Cloer said. "The reality is, if we can change one person in those 50,000 families, we are going to change the community for generations to come."

Contact Jayden Vaughn via email at jayden.vaughn@bsu.edu.

Tonight: Temperatures dropping below zero, with a low of minus 2. Calm winds will increase as we go throughout the evening.

Tomorrow: Very cold start to the morning with a temperature of 2 degrees at 8 a.m. High temperature will reach the mid-teens. Winds will shift to come from the north, bringing in chilly air.

Seven-Day Forecast: High temperatures will stay in the teens until Sunday where we will break the 20 degree mark. Temperatures will continue to be in the mid to upper-20s for the next work week. Low temperatures get down to 6 degrees below zero this weekend. Mostly sunshine is expected this Saturday and Sunday, with clouds returning Monday.

-Weather Forecaster Elia Stowers

Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and X @NLIWeather for breaking weather updates.

NewsLink Indiana is a proud Ambassador for the NOAA Weather-Ready Nation program.

For more information about the Weather-Ready Nation program please click HERE

Kelly, who has been swimming since she was eight, wasn't always the greatest at swimming.

"Growing up, I wasn't the greatest swimmer. I did it because it's what my friends did. Then once we got into high school, all of my friends kind of stopped their sports, but I kept going," Kelly said. "It taught me how to be really coachable, the value of hard work, and that I don't have to be good at something the first time."

The women's swimming and diving team has two more meets before the Mid-American Conference Championships, which has the entire team excited. Kelly is right there with the rest of the team in terms of excitement, but this last MAC Championship means a little extra to her.

"I just want to take in every moment, they're fleeing by. I mean, we've had a countdown of how many meets are left in Lewellen, and it's just getting too real," Kelly said.

The women's swimming and diving team faces Indiana State University this Friday in Lewellen at 5:30. This will be the last time they're at home this season.

Contact Caleb Murphy with comments at caleb.murphy@bsu.edu.

Today: Slightly warmer than yesterday. Winds will be calming down compared to what we have been experiencing here in the region recently. Expect cloudy conditions throughout the afternoon, then headed into the night expect winds to pick up with a low of -2 degrees.

Tomorrow: At the bus stop, expect the overnight temperatures still lingering around, with the temperature being below zero. Bundle up before going out, as frostbite can occur in less than 30 minutes on exposed skin, especially with temperatures being sub zero. Headed into the afternoon, we will warm up slightly to 11 degrees. Then eventually by your evening commute, expect the temperature to be 14 degrees with winds starting to pick up coming from the north east at 10 mph. Make sure to cover exposed skin and reduce the amount of time spent outside if possible.

Seven-Day Forecast: Expect temperatures for the rest of the week to be bitterly cold. Highs will only reach the teens and lows will be below zero, dipping into the negatives. Expect the rest of the week to have cloudy skies with winds calming down. However, on Sunday, we start to see temperatures increasing again, but with that comes a chance of snow. If it were to precipitate, expect snow flurries, with it being nothing like what we experienced this past weekend. Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, we do see persistently increasing highs and lows. Next week, we have hopes for a better and slightly warmer week compared to what we have been experiencing here in Muncie!

- Weather Forecaster Kendra Heath

Follow us on Twitter @NLIWeather for breaking weather updates.

NewsLink Indiana is a proud Ambassador for the NOAA Weather-Ready Nation program.

For more information about the Weather-Ready Nation program please click HERE

The team claimed two ranked wins against Stanford University and Charleston, and competed well with the No. 1 ranked University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), taking them to four sets and nearly winning.

Head Coach Mike Iandolo credited the team's success and fight against their early-ranked opponents to a lack of errors.

"We're just playing pretty clean volleyball," Iandolo said. "When you're playing tight matches against good teams, the ability to stay clean is pretty important."

The 2025 Ball State Men's Volleyball team got off to a less-than-ideal start to their season, with three losses in their first six games. The 2026 squad has completely flipped the script.

Sophomore opposite Ryan Louis said the team feels "more like a team" this season than it did last season after the team's win over Maryville Jan. 22. Sophomore outside hitter Wil Basilio said the on-court feeling among the team has been great, with everyone feeling connected.

"It's been helping a lot in terms of making sure we all stay meshed and on the same page during games," Basilio said.

The head coach said the team has been doing a good job of supporting one another on and off the court. Iandolo said there is a lot of "good vibes" surrounding the group, which allows them to push each other hard on the court.

Iandolo was an assistant coach on last year's team before becoming a head coach on this year's team. There were seven seniors on last season's team, and the head coach said there was uncertainty at times on who would take on what role.

But Iandolo has seen the three seniors on the 2026 team ensure the team spends quality time together outside of volleyball and does the extra things to bring the team together.

With seven new players and a pair of new coaches, Iandolo knew things could go one of two ways, but the head coach is happy with the team so far.

"We just have a good group of guys," Iandolo said.

With more youth on this year's team, Basilio is one of many young Cardinals players to step up into bigger roles. The outside hitter said that, despite fewer seniors, there is no lack of leadership on a fairly young roster.

"The young guys have done a great job of really stepping up," Basilio said. "The young guys that have come in have done a great job of following the steps of the older guys and doing it so much that they themselves have become leaders."

Last year's Cardinals squad lost three of their first four ranked games of the season, while this year's team has won two of three ranked matches they have played in.

There are a handful of returners from last year's team, and Iandolo said those players did not want the same results this season.

"It's a conscious thought of like, 'hey we gotta be better than we were last year,'" Iandolo said.

A big strength for the team this season has been the setting and passing. Senior outside hitter Patrick Rogers credited his uptick in kills to the team's passing after a win against Maryville Jan. 22.

Iandolo believes the team can end the season as one of the best passing teams in the country statistically.

"[It's] where some of our skill really lies," Iandolo said. "If you have a guy running the show, a setter who's making good decisions and putting up a good ball, our offense is going to be pretty effective."

Ball State has two more non-conference games coming up. The team will travel to Fairfax, Virginia, for a pair of games Jan. 30 and 31. The Cardinals will take on Maryland Eastern Shore in the first game and George Mason in the latter match.

Maryland Eastern Shore is a perfect 4-0 in the Northeast conference in their first season as a program. George Mason is 1-3 in the early season with losses to number 13-ranked Ohio State and number two-ranked Long Beach State.

So far in the early season for the Cardinals, the team has only played in front of its home crowd or on neutral-site courts. But their match with the George Mason Patriots will be the team's first true road test of the season.

Iandolo said that before the season, George Mason's coach said teams would leave their gym "bloodied and bruised" because of the team's style of play. The head coach said it will be a good test to play against a team of that nature in a true road environment.

"It's not going to be a cake walk by any stretch, we're going to go in there, we're going to have to fight," Iandolo said.

Basilio said the team sees the game against George Mason as another opportunity to get a win.

"It'll be fun to be in someone else's gym and have some other people's fans, but at the end of the day, we're telling ourselves it's another game and another opportunity to show what we got," Basilio said.

Basilio believes the team has established an early standard on their trip to Arizona, where they played Stanford and UCLA. The outside hitter said the team needs to continue that standard in their next two games to prepare for Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (MIVA) play to start.

The sophomore said the team realized they could have success against high-level competition.

"We've done a good job so far, but just going into conference play, maintaining that high level and confidence that we got in Arizona," Basilio said.

After the team's next two games against Maryland Eastern Shore and George Mason, the team will have a chance to prove themselves in MIVA play, when they will go on the road to face Queens University Feb. 5 and 6.

Contact Kyle Stout with questions via email at kyle.stout@bsu.edu or on X @kylestoutdailyn.