On March 23, 1965, Ball State University's College of Architecture and Planning (CAP) opened its doors.

From its modest beginning in a scattering of Quonset huts, the college has grown into an architectural and planning force with projects and centers around the globe, said Joe Bilello, dean of CAP.

"We have truly grown to become a contemporary college with talented faculty and alumni who have established themselves as some of the premier experts in our profession," he said.

The college now consists of three departments, nine degree programs, 750 students, 53 faculty members, 15 staff, four facilities in Muncie, one facility in downtown Indianapolis and two centers abroad.

CAP has logged more than 250 community-based projects, which have benefited Indiana cities and towns from South Bend to Madison, Terre Haute to Richmond. The college has also gained recognition on a larger stage, netting national rankings from the Almanac of Architecture and Design for its architecture and landscape architecture programs.

Some recent CAP headlines, which appeared in media outlets around the United States, include:

• CAP Asia participants help rebuild a fishing village in Sri Lanka, which was destroyed by the tsunami
• International experts come to Ball State to discuss future of health care
• Landscape architecture faculty and students design and build Ball State's Backyard at the Indiana State Fair, giving the university an annual presence at the summer event
• Students at CAP's Indianapolis Center (CAP:IC) help collect data for Mayor Bart Peterson's "war on abandoned housing"
• CAP faculty design Eco-House in Fishers, employing building materials of the future
• Historic preservation students document historic grist mill and locks
• Ball State professor and students help communities near proposed 9-11 park prepare for influx of tourists
• CAP:IC earned a Nuvo Cultural Vision Award while the center's Web site won a national award from the Center for Digital Education

"Seeing what our college has been able to accomplish in four decades is an affirmation that our commitment to a student-centered learning community helping students build meaningful and productive careers as well as educated citizenship is working well," Bilello said. "I'm looking forward to seeing what we'll be able to accomplish in the next 40 years."