Delaina Boyd, associate vice president for Community Engagement, is retiring after 32 years of dedicated service at Ball State University. A reception in her honor will be held from 4-6 p.m. on Dec. 6. in the E.B. and Bertha C. Ball Center.

Ms. Boyd began her career at the University in 1990 as the associate director of the Center for Organizational Resources, which helped design training and consulting programs that addressed employee and organizational development needs. A short time later, she became the unit’s director, a role she held until 2008.

“Delaina has weathered a lot,” said Suzie Jones, project coordinator in the Office of Community Engagement and team member of 30 years. “She’s been the glue that has held everyone together and connected. Once you work with her, you always want to work with her.”

For decades, Delaina has spearheaded efforts to build mutually beneficial partnerships in the Muncie community and East Central Indiana. She was instrumental in creating the outreach unit Building Better Communities in 2009, developing the University’s first outreach and engagement reporting protocols, and serving as the division director. Building Better Communities then became the Office of Community Engagement, with Ms. Boyd serving as its founding director. She later became the office’s associate vice president in 2017.

Ms. Boyd has worked tirelessly with her team to develop and implement strategic initiatives across campus that further the goals and best practices in teaching, research, and service that support partnerships across East Central Indiana. She guided the creation of Northeast Indiana Area Health Education Center (part of the College of Health) and the Building Better Neighborhoods initiative that supports the revitalization of Muncie neighborhoods.

Her hard work and dedication earned her the Muncie Women in Business Unlimited Lifetime Achievement Award in 2017, Indiana Campus Compact’s (now Community-Engaged Alliance) Community Engagement Administrator of the Year in 2019, and Ball State’s Outstanding Administrator of the Year in 2020.

“Delaina has always worked alongside her team, never out front,” said Lisa Garner, executive assistant in the Office of Community Engagement. “She is an optimizer that goes 90 miles per hour and makes everything she touches better.”