MUNCIE, Ind. - As NewsLink Indiana reports an increase in student-led demonstrations at Ball State University, The Cardinal Independent investigates the issues and concerns driving these protests.
Suzanne Swierc Fired Over Personal Social Media Post
On September 24, students, professors and Muncie community members attended a protest at the Peace Plaza.
The protest came after the firing of the university's Director of Health Promotion and Advocacy, Suzanne Swierc, over a leaked, friends-only social media post regarding Charlie Kirk.
Muncie Resists and the Ball State University chapter of the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) issued statements condemning this decision.
Local Organizer Told to Leave the Arts and Journalism Building
Video obtained by The CI shows that, before the protest, local organizer Joseph Souza was told to leave the Arts and Journalism Building by the Dean of College of Communication, Information and Media (CCIM), Dr. Kristen McCauliff.
Souza had been informing students of the protest.
According to Souza and eyewitnesses, the University Police Department (UPD) arrived after Souza went to McCauliff's office to speak about the incident. The CI has not independently confirmed whether UPD was called.
When The CI visited McCauliff's office around 1:50 p.m., McCauliff said she reminded Souza of university policy, couldn't confirm or deny Souza violated university policy, and declined to make a statement.
$115,000: A Reported Price for the Press
Jeffrey Dreyer, former associate multimedia editor for the Ball State Daily News (The Daily), spoke at the protest.
"You may be surprised to find out that, yesterday, [The Daily] fired me for my participation in the student group Young Democratic Socialists of America," Dreyer said.
The Daily reports Dreyer's personal involvement with the Young Democratic Socialists of America (YDSA) created a "conflict of interest via political bias for the paper."
Although Dreyer was terminated over his involvement with Ball State’s YDSA, The CI has read recent articles from The Daily, noticing a right-leaning slant, including promotional pieces on Ball State's Turning Point USA.
"[The Daily is] comfortable writing unserious puff pieces, paying their writers poverty wages and killing stories the university disagrees with," Dreyer said.
While The Daily claims to be independent on its website, Dreyer claimed that a third of The Daily's funding comes from the university.
"That's $115,000, by the way," Dreyer disclosed.
The CI saw university representatives telling a protester to stop using a megaphone. The Daily confirms this in a captioned photo, taken by Andrew Berger, but not in the article.
University spokesperson Greg Fallon reportedly told The Daily in an email that the representatives, who were with the Office of Student Life, were at the protest to "provide information," including but not limited to "the University's noncommercial expressive activity policy."
Officer Involved in Eaton Resident Assault Now at Ball State
In August, The CI (operating as VBN, at the time) spoke with Tiffanie Williams over Zoom.
On July 17, 2020, when current UPD officer Michael Conner was working at the Eaton Police Department (EPD), Conner, along with EPD officers Jonathan Snodgrass, Andrew Storie and Chase Kneeper, entered Williams' apartment without a warrant.
"If [EPD] would've just called and done their correct job, it was very proven," Williams told The CI. "I was never served a protective order. I had no active protective order, and they were in my home for cursing out a non-protected person."
Body camera footage from Storie, obtained by The CI, shows Conner's foot positioned directly in between Willams' legs.
"He's got his foot on my vagina!," Williams said. "He just kicked me in my vagina."
"My camera's on," Storie said. "My camera's facing it!"
"[Michael] just kicked me in my vagina," Williams said.
"Get up," Storie responded.
Williams told The CI Conner kicked her in the genital area seven times.
"To me, that's sexual assault," Williams said. "I don't care how you go about it, it's not appropriate."
According to a medical record from a hospital in Anderson, Williams was assaulted. The record also showed she suffered a scaphoid fracture and multiple contusions (bruises).
Conner was transferred to work with UPD August of last year.
"How much abuse of his power has [Michael] used and will he use in the future on students?" Williams asked. "You got freshmen [who are] 18 years old, some of them as young as 16 on campus, living in dorms. Those students don't know their laws yet. They don't know their rights."
Williams alleges that UPD has been stalking her son, who doesn't even attend the university.
"My son lives within Ball State's jurisdiction," Williams said. "After the protest was posted, Ball State Police was sitting outside my son's apartment, parked behind his vehicle, and then another officer followed him to [a nearby] McDonald's."
"He's scared of what's gonna happen to him because they're already following him," Williams continued. "Police don't go and sit at his apartment. There's maybe twelve [apartment] units. It's not that kind of place."
Williams has sought political asylum in Mexico, and told The CI she has lost at least half a million dollars from the incident.
Ball State Trustee Scrutinized Over United Way Harassment Complaints
Brian Gallagher is the former CEO of United Way Worldwide (UWW) and a current member of Ball State's Board of Trustees.
Now, over 1,100 people have signed a petition for Gallagher to be removed from the board.
During Gallagher's leadership at UWW, HuffPost and Philanthropy News Digest report three complaints were filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) for sexual harassment.
Philanthropy News Digest reports the women "were fired or ostracized for reporting misconduct to United Way's human resources department," and that "more than twenty former employees subsequently sent a letter to the UWW board saying they had experienced harassment and discrimination while employed by the organization."
While UWW reportedly held investigations, HuffPost reports that "none of the three women who filed EEOC complaints said they’ve been contacted by investigators on behalf of the company."
The Nonprofit Times reports Gallagher said he would step down on March 1, 2021. In December of 2019, Gallagher was reportedly paid $1.5 million, "including base compensation of $548,784, bonus and incentive compensation of $630,170, and retirement and deferred compensation of $353,263."
Sam Allen, Vice President of Ball State Feminists for Action, recently sent an Op-Ed to The CI regarding Gallagher.
Allen wrote that Gallagher "needs to resign or be fired in order to protect student’s safety, Ball State’s reputation, and keep Ball State in accordance with their own supposed values of Excellence, Integrity, Social Responsibility, and Beneficence that they promote on their website."
The CI launched a dedicated email for Ball State students and staff concerned about expressing themselves: bsuexpressionconcerns@cimuncie.org.