Through the university's Business Fellows program, more than 90 Ball State students spent a semester in an intense applied work experience that benefited an Indiana business, industry or community. At Paws, Inc., five students fed content to the reading section of Professor Garfield's Web site. Ball State's and other education companies' contributions to the project have created a Web site with educational resources worth an estimated $3 million.

Helping Garfield was one of this year's 13 Business Fellows projects funded by a $1.5 million grant from Lilly Endowment Inc. Here's a sampling of the projects:

Paragent Software -- Through Ball State's Miller College of Business, this start-up company based in Muncie now has an in-depth marketing plan. Eric Banter, Paragent's chief operating officer, said the strategic marketing plan developed by the students far surpassed his expectations.

"We are a small firm that has only been around for about 18 months and cannot, at this time, do a project of this magnitude," he said. "We are extremely pleased with what the students have been able to do for us. We asked them to create a strategic plan for the security market, and they have done just that." 

Entrepreneurial assessment -- Ball State's nationally renowned Midwest Entrepreneurship Education Center has helped Jay County identify potential markets and funding for business development, provided an assessment of barriers and facilitators to complete new venture development and more. The program was so successful that project coordinator Jeff Hornsby has been asked by Washington, Ind., officials to conduct a similar assessment.

According to the Washington Herald, Ball State will "identify entrepreneurial projects, find markets, train people to market their products and help find funding for new businesses."

Virtual Nashville -- Traveling to Brown County, architecture and planning students developed proposals to enhance the hamlet's main thoroughfares.

"Specifically, we will be presenting plans to enhance the Highway 135 and Highway 46 corridors. We will also propose a bike path that connects Brown County State Park to Nashville," said Joe Blalock, project coordinator.

Rehabilitation Hospital of Indiana -- Design ideas for a research center at the Indianapolis hospital's 38th Street campus have been completed through Ball State's College of Architecture and Planning. Schematic designs presented to hospital officials provided facilities ready for future scenarios rather than ones simply based on past needs.

"The students had great enthusiasm, great professionalism, although they're not professionals quite yet," said Denny Armington, Rehabilitation Hospital of Indiana's CEO. "We were very impressed with their engagement when they came to us, but the results -- the end results -- were quite impressive." 

The goal of the program from its inception was to help students turn academic knowledge into business solutions, and these projects stand as testament to that goal, said Deborah Balogh, Ball State's associate provost and Business Fellows co-director.

"The initiatives in a wide variety of disciplines will boost these in-state companies and help increase future job opportunities in Indiana for these students," she said.

These projects and more will be featured at the Business Fellows Showcase at 4 p.m. April 20 in Ball State's L.A. Pittenger Student Center, Ballroom. The Student Center is located at the intersection of McKinley and University avenues. Parking is available in the garage behind the Student Center.

Business Fellows, funded by a $1.5 million grant from Lilly Endowment Inc., gives Ball State students the opportunity to turn academic knowledge into business solutions through intense, semester-long applied work experiences that will benefit an Indiana business, industry or organization. The program works in concert with Ball State's Building Better Communities initiative.

Building Better Communities is an initiative designed to spur economic development and quality of life advancement in Indiana by applying Ball State's strengths in applied research and hands-on learning to projects across the state. With financial support from the Indiana Legislature and Lilly Endowment's Business Fellows Program, Building Better Communities works to match the university's expertise and resources to the varied needs of Indiana communities.