(Ball State University: Muncie, Indiana) -- Ball State University is incorporating a nationally recognized business management strategy and an immersive learning experience into the core of a new minor as a result of a gift-in-kind valued at $1.4 million from a prominent alumnus.

Mikel Harry, a 1973 Ball State graduate and president of the Six Sigma Management Institute, recently presented the university’s department of technology with an unrestricted perpetual license to allow undergraduates enrolled in the minor in process improvement to earn a Six Sigma Black Belt certification—one of the most popular credentials in business today.

As part of the gift, the university’s school of extended education also will offer Six Sigma education training programs as part of its online curriculum.

“I believe that by implementing the Six Sigma system into the university’s curriculum, we will create a center of excellence that will heighten students’ education and make them more valuable to a variety of industries,” says Harry, co-creator of the Six Sigma methodology. “The basis of a Six Sigma Black Belt is the ability to solve problems, which is what companies across various fields are looking for today in their employees.

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