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Judge Glenda A. Hatchett Headlines Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Events 
Judge Glenda Hatchett
This year’s event centers on the theme “A Message That Transcends Time.” Dr. Alfreda Brown, vice president for diversity, equity and inclusion, invites everyone to partake of as many of the afternoon activities as their schedules permit. “Dr. King’s impact echoes through our institution in numerous ways. Our commitment to engaging and learning about each other’s heritage and contributions is a key part of our celebration this year,” she explains. The afternoon’s multifaceted schedule opens at 1 p.m. with a cultural celebration of music, poetry and dance as the Kiva stage showcases dance performances by a local Salsa group, the Nepalese Student Association and the Rhythm Riders Dance Steppers; a Spoken Word Poetry presentation by Robin Wright, Kent State-NAACP president; a theatrical performance by Professor Traci Easley-Williams; a musical performance by world-renowned University Professor Emeritus Halim El-Dabh; and a vocal performance by the Voices of Testimony. Dr. Geraldine Hayes Nelson, chair of the Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Committee, says, “An institution the sheer size of Kent State touches many lives, either directly or through our individual and professional relationships. Much like the legacy of the life and work of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., our lives afford us opportunities to share and celebrate our impact on our world. This annual celebration is an opportunity for the Kent State University community to join together to celebrate where we have been and recognize where we need to go.” The celebration moves to the Ballroom from 2:15 to 4 p.m. Following a brief musical selection, President Lester A. Lefton will present his welcoming address and introduce a video montage. “Kent State hosts a noteworthy public figure in the spirit of spreading the message of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. This year, Judge Glenda A. Hatchett, star of the popular Judge Hatchett TV show, will be with us to underscore the continued relevance and inspiration in Dr. King’s life and words,” says Brown. Judge Hatchett’s keynote address will be “A Message That Transcends Time.” At the conclusion of her address, she will hold a Question-and-Answer session with the audience. A book signing and reception follow in the ballroom. The Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration is free and open to the public. It is wheelchair accessible and will be interpreted in American Sign Language (ASL). For more information, call 330-672-8540 or visit http://www1.kent.edu/diversity/MLK/index.cfm. Nominations Close This Week for 2010 Distinguished Scholar Award
The University Research Council is now accepting nominations for the 2010 Distinguished Scholar Award (DSA). To be eligible, a faculty member must be nominated. Self-nominations are acceptable. Submit the nomination no later than Jan. 22, 2010. After all the nominations are received, the University Research Council will contact each nominee individually for detailed information and additional material to support their nomination. The awards will be presented at the DSA ceremony, during the Celebration of Scholarship event, March 24, 2010. Only tenured/tenure-track and emeriti faculty at Kent State may nominate someone for a DSA. Individuals may nominate only one candidate per year. Except in unusual circumstances, only full professors who have been at Kent State for a full five years are eligible to receive a DSA. In order to receive the award, nominees who have been at Kent State for less than 10 years must demonstrate a record of sustained scholarship and/or creative activity since coming to Kent State. An individual may only receive one DSA in a lifetime. Finalists from the previous year will be asked if they wish to be considered again for the DSA. Therefore, it is not necessary to nominate an individual who received a nomination in the previous year. The 2009 Distinguished Scholar Award recipients were Dr. Carol Maier, Department of Modern and Classical Languages; Dr. C. Owen Lovejoy, Department of Anthropology; and Dr. Lewis Fried, Department of English. Online Speaker Request Form to Request President, Provost for Events
Kent State President Lester A. Lefton
When planning your event, please fill out and submit the form as soon as possible prior to the event. The link is provided here and can also be accessed from the President’s and Provost’s Web pages:
http://www.kent.edu/about/administration/speakerrequests.cfm For additional information, contact the Provost’s Office at 330-672-2220.
Legal Brief: International Travel with University Computers In fact, the U.S. Customs Service has the right to confiscate inbound electronic equipment such as computers, memory sticks or any storage device, looking for items that might compromise national security. Travelers should be aware of the potential risk of losing their computer at Customs. Certain countries are also noted for accessing files and operating systems at their customs checkpoints. If you have proprietary information, patentable information or any sensitive/personal information stored, you may want to delete or encrypt it before traveling abroad.
In addition, any data that is stored on the computer and is sensitive in nature, or requires an export license if shared outside the United States, will present a risk if the laptop on which it is stored is taken outside the United States. University employees should not use university computers for personal financial information or any other personal information they would not want viewed without their permission.
If you have an international visit planned, please refer to the following recommendations to help prevent the loss of information and/or your laptop or other electronic device:
For more information on this topic, contact Constance Hawke, associate university counsel, at 330-672-2982 or chawke@kent.edu. Student Recreation and Wellness Center Offering Special Deals, Demo Week
 As an incentive to Kent State employees to start off the new year right, the facility is offering a special incentive to members and potential members: purchase or renew an annual membership during the month of January and get one additional month free!
This incentive applies only to the purchase of an annual membership, with the redemption
In addition, this week is the popular Demo Week. Start off the semester on a healthy note!
Kent State Program Provides Training to Unemployed People; Local Nonprofits Benefit Four area nonprofit agencies are receiving free consulting work to help their organizations run more efficiently and effectively, thanks to Kent State University and its most recent group of Lean Six Sigma participants. The group is comprised of eight dislocated workers who had lost their jobs due to layoffs and other circumstances. Through federal funding, the unemployed people were able to receive $7,000 worth of training from the university, paid for by the government, which will make them more marketable and help them get a job. 
A Lean Six Sigma class in progress
Lean techniques eliminate wasteful activities, while Six Sigma is a disciplined method for meeting customers’ expectations and eliminating defects in any process. “Kent State’s Corporate and Community Services and The Corporate University at Kent State University at Stark collaborated to schedule a unique Lean Six Sigma training and certification targeted for dislocated employees, which began in early September,” says Amy Lane, executive director of Corporate and Community Services. “The training involved 160 hours of intense, in-class learning that concluded in mid-November. In order to get their certification, they need to complete a final project.” Usually, people who go through the program do a project for their employers, Lane explained, but since these are displaced workers, Kent State reached out to the United Way of Summit County and other social service agencies to see if the Lean Six Sigma program participants could do their capstone project for the nonprofit organizations. “It’s truly a win-win situation,” says Kelli Baxter, director of The Corporate University at Kent State Stark. “The Lean Six Sigma participants get to complete their final project in order to receive their certification, and these nonprofit agencies benefit from the participants’ training and get work done for them for free.” The Lean Six Sigma program is being offered around the state as a four-campus collaboration consisting of Ashtabula, Kent, Stark and Tuscarawas. It is also being marketed to organizations in nine states. To learn more about Kent State’s Lean Six Sigma training, contact any one of the four campus representatives:
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Managed Print Services Partnership Announces Print Management Vendor Award The Procurement Department is proud to announce the awarding a contract to a vendor as a result of its recent Request for Proposals for the Print Management Program. A twelve-member cross-sectional review committee consisting of staff members from Information Services, Financial Aid, Academic Affairs, Design Solutions, University Communications and Marketing, the Department of Chemistry and Procurement spent several months evaluating eight vendor responses.
After extensive review, presentations, and site visits we are excited to engage in a preferred partnership with Blue Technologies Inc. Blue Technologies’ Managed Print Services Program will bring a structured process to the university for providing support, service, supplies and information management for network print devices. The state of Ohio has identified the need and importance throughout state organizations of reducing office support costs. Using Blue Technologies’ expertise in this area, the University expects significant costs savings to be realized for its 281 departments and regional campuses.
Promote Your Events with the Online Kent State Event Calendar Provost Frank Delivers Keynote at Shanghai International Studies University’s 60th Anniversary
Dr. Shuguang Zhang (left) vice president of SISU with Provost Frank in China
Named one of China’s “100 Key Universities for the 21st Century,” SISU is among the first cluster of Chinese colleges and universities accorded joint supervision by the National Ministry of Education and the Shanghai Municipality. During his visit, the provost also reviewed the academic exchange programs Kent State engages in with SISU, met with Kent State University China Center administrators and with university officials from Japan, Germany, Spain and Russia.
New Interim Dean for the College of Technology On Jan. 10, Dr. Donald Bubenzer, emeritus professor of adult, counseling, health and vocational education, assumed the role of interim dean for the College of Technology. He succeeds Dr. Verna Fitzsimmons, who is returning to a College of Technology faculty position. Bubenzer previously served as interim dean for the College of Education, Health and Human Services from July 2007 to July 2008. He joined the Kent State faculty in 1984 as an associate professor of counseling and human development services. In 1995, Bubenzer was named chairperson of the Department of Adult, Counseling, Health and Vocational Education, a position he maintained until the reorganization of the college in July 2009.
He most recently served as the interim director for the School of Communication Studies in the College of Communication and Information.
Weight Watchers at Work Starts New Session in January Student Legal Services Moves to Acorn Alley, Changes Fees Two important changes regarding Student Legal Services were recently announced: 1) The office of Student Legal Services is moving to a new location. Beginning Jan. 1, 2010, the new office will be located in Acorn Alley in downtown Kent. Specifically, the offices will be located in the rear of the building on the second floor above the barbershop. The address of the new location is 164 E. Main St., Suite 203.
2) The Student Legal Services Fee will increase to $9 per semester beginning Spring 2010. Please see the explanation for the fee increase below.
What is Student Legal Services?
The fee increase was required for two reasons. Over the years, the number of students using the service has increased dramatically. In order to handle the increased demand and still render the high-quality legal services that the program provides, it is necessary to add an additional attorney to the staff. Second, with the addition of a new staff member, there is need for more office space. Since there was no sufficient available space on campus, Student Legal Services moved from McDowell Hall to Acorn Alley in downtown Kent, just a few blocks from the west end of the Kent Campus. A careful review of the Student Legal Services’ budget was conducted in relation to this modest increase, and it is not anticipated that there will be a need for any further increases for at least five years.
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Student Legal Services at 330-672-9550 or studentls@kent.edu.
Human Resources Question of the Week: When will my W-2 be available?
Note: In order for the entire form to print, the Page Set-Up margins must be set correctly. Details regarding required margins can be found by selecting Help on the top right of the W-2 Wage and Tax Statement page. Also included is a brief description of the codes that may be listed in Box 12 of the W-2. You will need to print a form for your records and for each tax jurisdiction that requires a printed form (federal, state, local, etc.).
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