Ball State University has combined nationally ranked programs in Teachers College, the College of Architecture and Planning, and the Miller College of Business to establish a center to train educators to run the schools of the future.

The Center for School Innovation will have three main functions. The first will be to train school leaders through the university's entrepreneurship and educational leadership programs, and eventually offer a degree program that is currently under development.

In conjunction with the university's Building Better Communities initiative, the center's second function will be to export its expertise to communities interested in establishing new school options including traditional public, public charter and private schools.

And finally, the center will tap into the resources of the College of Architecture and Planning and the Center for Energy Research, Education and Services (CERES) to help students and clients make informed decisions regarding facilities.

"We envision the center helping to raise the educational bar in Indiana," said Ball State President Jo Ann M. Gora. "Today's school leaders need the latest training on many fronts, including course development and student performance, finance, facilities and more, and the center offers that breadth through nationally ranked programs."

The center's first program, the Institute for Entrepreneurial School Leadership, will be offered this fall at the Ball State Center in Indianapolis. Twelve school leaders from across Indiana will meet for four Saturdays to explore such topics as entrepreneurial thinking and leadership, innovative curriculum models, increasing student achievement, creative and effective financing and strategic planning.

"We are so pleased to be a part of this initiative," said Lynne Richardson, dean of the Miller College of Business. "Having a high-quality school in a community plays a huge role in where companies decide to build or relocate, and this center will be a great resource for a community to not only improve upon education, but to also increase its probability for economic growth."

The co-directors of the center are Rodney Davis, associate dean of the Miller College of Business; Robert Koester, director of CERES; and Roy Weaver, dean of Teachers College.

Building Better Communities is a university-wide initiative designed to spur economic development and quality-of-life advancement in Indiana by extending Ball State's strengths in applied research and hands-on learning to community projects across the state. Building Better Communities works to match the university's expertise and resources to the varied needs of Indiana communities.

(Note to editors: For more information, contact Weaver at rweaver@bsu.edu or (765) 285-5251. Richardson can be reached at lrichardson@bsu.edu or (765) 285-9198.)