From the Nominator

"#ChirpChirp is an endearment from Cardinal to Cardinal here at Ball State. After two award-winning One Ball State Day efforts, and after so many other schools chose to delay their giving days due to the pandemic, we went for three times the chirp in 2021. From 4,138 gifts during the inaugural One Ball State Day in 2019 (our goal was 1918), we surpassed the 10,000 mark in 2021.  

We knew our students needed us, and we Cardinals rise together in the face of uncertain times. On April 6, 2021, the Ball State community said yes to the university once again. More than 10,000 gifts came in—a 58% increase over 2020! The gift goal aside, we also hit goals of surpassing what was raised in 2020 (a 71% increase), received gifts from all 50 states for the first time, increased support from all constituencies, and had more employee ambassadors than ever. With a social media reach of nearly 7 million, we trended on Twitter for the third year in a row.   

Pandemic or not, we Cardinals fly."

From the Judges

One Ball State is a day of giving that has the spirit of the university embedded in the DNA of the event. The themes and strategies are reflective of the university's values. The creative elements are innovative. The panel was particularly impressed by the use of life-size cut-outs of the administration, the successful social media campaign, and the campus-wide scavenger hunt. The team at Ball State demonstrated exceptional cross-team functionality, volunteer engagement, and use of resources. The team has demonstrated a year-over-year increase in both unique donors and dollars raised, no doubt due to their attention to detail and superb event execution.