Al Miller received his bachelor’s degree from Ball State in general business in the Spring of 1985. After graduation and a few years in the mortgage banking, he returned to Ball State in order to take pre-dental requisites for a future in dentistry. He then went on to pursue general dentistry and owned a family practice in Pendleton, IN until his retirement in 2018. Now, Al lives in Muncie and has enjoyed living right across from campus and loves taking walks to observe the beautiful scenery and architecture here at BSU. For him, making a planned gift means he can be a part of enabling future generations and help them get the best education possible.

Time at BSU

Although Al did not opt for the traditional course of getting a bachelor’s degree and working in that field for most of his career, he believes that his ‘asymmetric journey’ made life more interesting and that he was supported by Ball State through all the unexpected twists and turns. While studying business, he learned a great deal about what it took to start and manage your own business, which was something that many of his dentistry classmates did not know anything about. According to him, his background in business from Ball State gave him an advantage in his career and helped him actualize his goal of running his own practice.

After spending a few years in Washington D.C. working in mortgage banking, Al made the decision to switch career paths. However, he was lacking the credits required for him to apply and get into dentistry school. So, he decided to come home to Muncie and spend some time gaining the knowledge and skills necessary for him to be successful in his new field. He loved the professors that he had during this time and was greatly moved by the level of investment they had in him even as an untraditional student.

Al urges all students to not be scared to take an untraditional or asymmetric course in their education and career as this path provides you with a wide variety of life experiences and teaches you many lessons. He believes that if all students are diligent and unrelenting with their studies, they will realize their goals quickly and move onto bigger accomplishments. Finally, he would like all students to know that they shouldn’t be afraid of less than stellar grades. Through hard work and determination, along with the support of the professors here at Ball State, Al believes that all students can be successful.

Paying it Forward 

Al has decided to make a planned gift in order to support the next generation of students at Ball State. He realized early on that without the education he received here, he would not be where he is at today and would not have reached many of his goals. For him, supporting the campus that he was once a student at and now enjoys as an alumnus is a personal calling. He values education for anyone and everyone and is excited to see where Ball State is headed next. He would love for the university to continue to grow its endowment funds and provide scholarships for as many students as possible in order to give them access to education.

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