The Ball State Entrepreneurship Center and Entrepreneurial Leadership Institute (ELI) hosted the first-ever Innovation Fest on Thursday, April 3, 2025, from 4–7 p.m. in the L.A. Pittenger Student Center Ballroom. Designed to highlight innovation across campus and the Muncie community, the event drew students, staff, and locals together in a celebration of creativity, and collaboration! 

Digital Corps Director, Brandon Smith, and Fabrication Lab Manager, Andrew Arthur attended this event. They had nothing but great things to share about their experience.  

“We had a great time talking to folks of all ages about the Fab Lab, our tools, and all of the cool projects we’ve been working on,” Arthur said.  “It was encouraging to see a lot of interest, especially from some of the elementary students in attendance. Hopefully they’ll join the fab team someday!”

While participants were not allowed to sell goods or services, the event focused on the power of ideas and the potential for those ideas to spark change. More than just a showcase, it served as a hub for networking, inspiration, and possibility by uniting students, educators, and entrepreneurs who share the goal of making a positive impact! 

This interactive showcase served as a precursor to the much-anticipated E-Day event for Ball State’s senior entrepreneurship students. In addition to those students, Innovation Fest featured pitches from community members in the Impact X program, youth from a local Youth Entrepreneurs initiative, and 4th and 5th grade innovators from Longfellow Elementary’s X-STREAM Builders program.

“Innovation Fest is another incredible outreach event from the Entrepreneurial Leadership Institute. The Digital Corps loves encouraging innovation of all kinds, so we were pleased to play a part in this year’s event,” Smith said.

Guests were given “E-Bucks” upon arrival to cast their votes for their favorite ideas, allowing them to actively participate in the innovation process. The teams who collected the most “bucks” received plaques in the following categories: K–12, Community, Ball State Student, and Ball State Staff. Voting concluded at 6:30 p.m., and the energy throughout the room was nothing short of inspiring. 

The event not only showcased great ideas but also created a space for connection between the academic and community sides of entrepreneurship. 

“I run all of our external programming and have been wanting to bring together the entrepreneurial and innovative work I’m doing in the community with the entrepreneurial academic space,” said Candy Dodd, Associate Director for External Programs at ELI. “This felt like a good place to start.” 

That vision came to life in a vibrant, engaging way. Attendees explored a variety of booths and presentations that addressed real-world challenges through thoughtful solutions and innovative thinking. From youth-led tech ideas to staff-driven social impact concepts, the range of projects on display reflected the diversity and talent within the Ball State ecosystem and beyond.

“Given Ball State’s rich entrepreneurship program history, it seems only fitting that we host the first campus and community Innovation Fest,” said Dodd. “There’s no better place to showcase entrepreneurial and innovative activity among campus and community members than through this event. We had over 20 participants from local youth and community members, along with Ball State students sharing their solutions to real world problems. We also had the opportunity to showcase some of ELI’s programs as well as innovative programs on campus.”