Honors Students Named 500 Festival Princesses
(Emerick, 2025)

As May approaches, one of the exciting events that comes along with it for the Hoosier state is the Indianapolis 500. With that, many festivities come along with the racing event attracting thousands of fans to the state each year. To help supplement these events across the state is the Indy 500 Festival Princess program.

Ball State Honors students Chelsea Murdock, sophomore, and Molly Henderson, senior, were recently accepted into the program. While looking forward to supporting many events the program champions, Chelsea is thrilled at the opportunity and shared her thoughts about the opportunity.

“There is so much that excited me about the opportunity of being a 500 Festival Princess this year and getting ‘Connected through May,’ said Murdock, “From connecting with my communities through various volunteer and outreach experiences to the AES 500 Festival Parade this May to connecting with my fellow Princess class, I am thrilled to experience Indiana, Hoosier pride, and 500 Festival excitement on a new level!”

As the program is extremely competitive, and receives hundreds of applicants each year, being chosen to represent Ball State was no understatement. With a huge commitment during the spring semester now being held with the Princess program, many look forward to the opportunities learned and connections made.

“I plan to hone in on those connections I form to impact my studies moving forward. Our Princess class is filled with competent young women who are passionate about the community and giving back,” Murdock said, “Additionally, we can connect with many diverse people across the state. By taking what I learn in these environments, I hope to bring in these experiences to help teach my future students about all that they can achieve, which will have been modeled by these tremendous few months!”

In learning to transfer valuable leadership and volunteer skills from the program to their academic studies, it is safe to say that the Ball State 500 Festival Princesses are eager to begin their roles and kickstart the “Is it May yet?” campaign.