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Bracken House, Ball State University

1937 establishments in IndianaBall State UniversityHouses completed in 1937Houses in Muncie, Indiana

The Bracken House is the residence of the President of Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana. The home is located just a few blocks west of the Ball State University campus in the historic neighborhood of Westwood. Many receptions, dinners, and other official university events are hosted at the home. The current residents are Ball State University President Geoffrey S. Mearns and his wife, Jennifer.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Bracken House, Ball State University (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors).

Bracken House, Ball State University
West Berwyn Road, Muncie

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N 40.203409 ° E -85.412136 °
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Ball State University

West Berwyn Road
47306 Muncie
Indiana, United States
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Shafer Tower
Shafer Tower

Shafer Tower is a 150-foot-tall (46 m) free-standing bell tower, or campanile with a carillon and chiming clock in the middle of the campus of Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana. The tower was conceived and designed by Eric Ernstberger, co-founder of architectural firm Rundell Ernstberger Associates. This three million dollar project was completed at the end of 2001 and received final inspection February 2002. Breaking the record for the highest bell tower in Indiana, Shafer Tower is one of the couple hundred examples of carillon bell towers spread among the United States. Dedicated in 2002 to Phyllis and Hamer Shafer, Shafer Tower has become an unofficial landmark of Ball State University. It stands in the median of McKinley Avenue on University Green, the northern quadrangle of campus. A narrow staircase in the tower leads to the control room of the carillon, which has 48 custom-made bells. From here a musician can play the instrument on special occasions or for concerts. The bells are programmed by computer to play the Westminster Quarters to announce the time between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. One can also control the bells of the tower with a keyboard, which depending on how hard the keys are pressed, will make the bells chime louder. If manual operation is not desired, Shafer Tower is also ready to play over a hundred of already programmed songs. Due to a construction defect in the type of cement used to build the tower, the masonry on Shafer Tower had to be built twice. Though other courses of action were considered, it was decided the masonry, which was 50% complete, had to be taken down and replaced March 2001. Completion was delayed as a result, however Ball State University didn't have to pay any reconstruction cost. The architect of record was Edmund Hafer Associates of Evansville, Indiana.

Bracken Library
Bracken Library

The Alexander M. Bracken Library is the main library on the campus of Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana. Opened in September 1975 and designed by Walter Scholer and Associates and the Perkins and Will Partnership of Chicago, the 320,000-square-foot facility is located in the geographic center of the Ball State University campus and is distinguishable for its unique, Brutalist architecture.The main collection of Ball State's University Libraries, the Bracken Library holds a collection of over of 1.5 million print volumes, over 2,900 periodical subscriptions, over 1 million microforms, nearly 98,000 government documents, and over 120,000 maps as well as audiovisual materials, music scores, and archival resources. In addition, Bracken Library visitors have online access to scholarly literature, learning objects, and primary sources though over 65 electronic research databases including the Digital Media Repository and Cardinal Scholar Institutional Repository which provide access to digitized archival resources and Ball State scholarly works. On average, the library receives more than 4,500 visitors per day to access collections materials, participate in instruction sessions and consultations, and use technology resources.The library is named for Alexander M. Bracken, Muncie lawyer and philanthropist who served as a member of the State Teachers College Board and the Ball State University Board of Trustees from 1954 to 1980 who “was instrumental in Ball State’s rapid growth in the decades following World War II.”A casting of Albin Polasek's Forest Idyll is displayed on the first floor lobby of Bracken Library. The sculpture serves as a popular meeting place for students and is colloquially referred to as "The Naked Lady."