Two weeks before the filing deadline for Muncie City Council candidates, Tommy Rector received a phone call from Mayor Dan Canan.
Canan informed Rector that his name had popped up in a committee meeting to recommend candidates for Muncie City Council.
"I always wanted to get involved in public life and establish a career," Rector said. "I thought, 'Here's an opportunity. Let's take advantage of it.'"
Now the 25-year-old 2002 Ball State graduate is running on the Republican ticket for a position on Muncie City Council. He is also a Muncie native.
Though most graduates do not run for an office straight out of college, Rector is no stranger to leadership roles.
"Tommy is very actively involved in politics like SGA," Canan said. "He is young and a recent graduate and that's a perspective that the City Council doesn't have right now."
Though most Ball State students remember him as the 2001-2002 Student Government Association President, during his college career he also filled such roles as resident assistant for two years and president of the Theta Chi Fraternity.
Canan said Rector's Ball State experiences and his background as a Muncie native is an advantage.
"As a recent graduate, he knows the wants and desires of Ball State," Canan said.
Canan said if Rector is elected to a position on the City Council, he can bridge the gap between Ball State and Muncie.
"I know Ball State and have been part of the university," Rector said. "My parents are alumni as well."
Rector's father is a local business owner, with a dental practice on McGalliard Road.
Interfraternity Council and SGA president pro-tempore Ben Tietz said Rector was a proactive leader as SGA president.
"He knows what he is doing and how to get things done," Tietz said. "He knows how Ball State works and how Muncie works."
Tietz, a senator under Rector's administration, said Rector brought an understanding of the "bigger picture" to SGA because he helped start the Muncie Coalition, a group that is still active today.
The coalition is a group of students to work with the city of Muncie on issues that affect each other.
"There are nearly 20,000 students at Ball State and it's the largest employer in the community," Rector said. "Ball State can never be ignored."
Rector said he also wants Muncie to be more appealing to Ball State students.
"As a Muncie resident, which every student is, students should have some form of pride and connection with the city," he said.
However, Rector said he believes relations within the city also need improvement. He said the city should not limit community development to downtown.
"The south side of Muncie has no entertainment and no restaurant other than fast-food restaurants," Rector said. "The community needs to be revitalized."
Rector's solution is a neighborhood association or community organization that specifically deals with issues of Muncie's south side.
Rector is also looking to improve the city all around, including in the Muncie Police Department.
"There are accountability and ethical issues that need to be addressed," he said. "We need to ensure police officers know that they are public figures and that their actions are going to be recognized."
He said he also wants to focus on schools.
"The educational quality of our students, whether local students or university students, ultimately will affect your community," he said.
He said an improved education and community will keep college graduates in Muncie.
Meanwhile, Rector is working in nursing home administration, a career he said he has wanted to pursue for some time. He said he enjoys the leadership and business side of health care, but also enjoys taking care of people. One goal he has is to eventually own and operate a nursing home, he said.
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