For students applying to Ball State University for the fall of 2019 and beyond, submitting scores from the SAT or ACT will be optional.

Muncie residents heard passionate answers from hopeful applicants for the future Ball State University-appointed Muncie Community Schools board Tuesday night.

Ball State first started accepting student registrations on June 17, 1918. The university will hold a centennial party Friday for faculty, staff and students.

The Ball State University Board of Trustees has approved the university taking over the financially troubled Muncie Community Schools - days after Gov. Eric Holcomb signed legislation allowing the move.

The university could be the first in the state to run a public school district.

The school's current multicultural center is housed in a 4,000-square-foot building that was built in 1934 on the campus' southern edge.

The school financials bill has ramifications for all schools in Indiana. But for Muncie, it will mean approving a state university to run a local school district for the first time in the state's history.

Ball State University officials are planning an $18 million project to build a new campus parking garage to replace an aging facility

University President Geoffrey Mearns says he believes the emergency management role is a temporary fix for Muncie Community Schools. He wants Ball State to be part of the long-term solution.

The U.S. Department of the Interior and the National Park Service announced Monday that the university is receiving an African American Civil Rights Grant for the project.