The William S. Ballenger Field House
When Flint Junior College, (now Mott Community College) moved to its current Court Street Campus, the first building on the new campus was the Ballenger Field House, completed in 1954. In the college’s previous locations in both Central High School and the old Oak Grove Campus one of the challenges was the lack of athletic facilities for students. Students were required to use the Central High School gym for their physical education activities. With the new campus, the Ballenger Field House became the center of much of the college’s athletic activity and more, in the decades to come.
The Ballenger Field House was built with a grant of $200,000 from the will of William S. Ballenger Sr. He was on the board of the Flint Wagon Works when it purchased Buick Motor Company and served as secretary when Buick was purchased by General Motors. Ballenger’s will left $4-6 million for the college and was a major factor in the move to the new Court St. Campus and the creation of occupational training at the college. A bust of William S. Ballenger is in the lobby of the Field House that carries his name. The statue of the Mott Bear in front of the Field House is the work of Mott art students and faculty.
Over the years the Ballenger Field House has been the home to a long list of events, athletic, academic, and community focused. It has been the home for Mott’s championship basketball teams, its volleyball teams, and a newly formed wrestling program. In the early spring the baseball teams begin their practice in the Field House. It has been the location for many of the Ballenger Eminent Persons Lecture speakers over the years, where well known individuals addressed the college and community on the topics of the day. The Ballenger Field House was the location for President Bill Clinton’s visit to the college in 2000, the first sitting president to visit the campus. Over the years many other political candidates made the Field House their Mott College campaign stop. It has been the location for many college and community events such as college sponsored Halloween parties, employment programs, career fairs, workforce development graduations, pop-culture events, college registration information programs, and many athletic events for the Flint and Genesee County community.
Over the years the Ballenger Field House has honored others who have contributed to Mott and its athletic success. The basketball gym is named for Mott’s winningest basketball Coach, Steve Schmidt. The Bill Blamer Hospitality Room, named for another of Mott’s winning coaches, is where the Bruin Club meets, to support many of the college’s athletic activities and more. The men’s locker room was named the Judge Thomas C. Yoetis and Justus Thigpen Bear Den in 2019. Recent renovations updated the men’s and women’s locker rooms and coaches’ offices, created a new weight room, redid the Steve Schmidt basketball gym and installed new air conditioning.
With the continuous investment into the facility, the Field House is becoming a destination venue for championships. The Great Lakes Districts A, B, and C Men’s and Women’s Basketball tournaments have been hosted in the Ballenger Field House since 2021, and hosted the same tournaments however just A and B since 2019. The Field House hosted the Michigan Association of Christian Schools basketball state championships for boys and girls in 2023 and will for the foreseeable future. In addition, the facility plays host to elite level high school play, whether it be a specific match up, the Flint Metro League championships, or the MHSAA quarterfinals.
The Ballenger Field House honors William S. Ballenger Sr. who has been critical to the development of the Mott Community College and it’s significant that the Field House has been the center of many of the most important events on the campus.