Kent State University students, including members of its
athletics teams, fraternities and sororities, joined
community members to restore the Mitchell/McClelland
Ballpark in the McElrath neighborhood of Ravenna Township,
Ohio.

Kent State University has been named to the 2014 President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll, which is the highest federal recognition an institution can receive for its commitment to community, service-learning and civic engagement.

The Corporation for National and Community Service began awarding this honor in 2006 in partnership with the U.S. Department of Education and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, as well as the American Council on Education, Campus Compact and the Interfaith Youth Core. Kent State has been named to the honor roll eight times since 2006.

“This recognition is an honor for Kent State, but more importantly, it reflects who our students are,” says Ann Gosky, interim director of Kent State’s Office of Experiential Education and Civic Engagement. “It reminds us that individually and collectively, we can make a difference in the lives of the people we serve.”

Kent State was recognized for its ongoing service opportunities, such as its Campus Kitchen project, Super Service Saturday, immersion trips, alternative spring breaks and service days connected to national events like Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service and National Make a Difference Day.

“These programs are not just services, but they provide an active way to learn and expand our view of the world,” Gosky says.

The university was specifically honored in the economic opportunity category, which recognizes programs that focus on improving the financial well-being and security of economically disadvantaged people. Kent State’s Hunger to Healthy initiative was honored for collaborating with the local community to combat hunger in the city of Kent. This was accomplished through programs like Campus Kitchen at Kent State, which, in 2014, engaged more than 2,000 people in meal preparation and distribution, recovered more than 35,000 pounds of food that would have otherwise been thrown out and facilitated an estimated 4,500 hours of service. The Campus Kitchen at Kent State also works in collaboration with the university’s Center of Nutrition Outreach to provide nutrition education, programing and materials to groups and individuals at either minimal or no cost.

“We are dedicated to our community outreach efforts, and it is the core of the nutrition program,” says Natalie Caine-Bish, coordinator of Kent State’s Center of Nutrition Outreach. “Students are given hands-on experience in the field, and the community is given numerous opportunities for free nutrition education and all age levels.”

Kent State University students sort and bag thousands of
pounds of cereal at the Second Harvest Food Bank of the
Mahoning Valley.

Kent State’s Center of Nutrition Outreach specifically serves adults and children in Portage County. Its Mighty Pack program, a partnership with the Haymaker Farmer’s Market in Kent, offers nutrition education sessions that teach members of the community about healthy eating and helps to reduce food insecurity.

Kent State also was honored for its Bridge to Kindergarten program in the education category for improving educational outcomes for children. Bridge to Kindergarten offers a two-week camp for preschool children living below the poverty line to help them become acclimated to a school in a low-pressure, play-based environment.

“This program, as well as others, really confirms the mission of the university to have a local impact,” says Janice Kroeger, associate professor in Kent State’s School of Teaching, Learning and Curriculum Studies and founder of the Bridge to Kindergarten program. “There are things that we can do through a partnership with Kent State that I couldn’t do alone.”

Kroeger works with her partner Laurie Curfman, who serves as a social worker with Project GRAD, one of Bridge to Kindergarten’s community partners. Together, they work with undergraduate and graduate students at Kent State to lead different activities that foster educational and playful experiences for children in the Buchtel cluster of the Akron Public Schools.

For more information about the President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll, visit www.nationalservice.gov/special-initiatives/honor-roll.

For more information about Kent State’s Office of Experiential Education and Civic Engagement, visit www.kent.edu/oeece.

For more information about Kent State’s Center of Nutrition Outreach, visit www.kent.edu/ehhs/hs/nutr/center-nutrition-outreach.