eInside Briefs
News Briefs
- Kent State Magazine Survey Available Now
- Save the Date for Bowman Breakfast April 7
- Winter Work on WKSU-FM's Antenna Boosts Signal Quality
- Eight Added to Varsity "K" Hall of Fame
- Student Involvement Brief: Kent State Women Received Additional Education at "Confidence U"
- Professional Development Excellence Pool to Fund Professional Advancement Efforts
Kent State Magazine Survey Available Now
We know you have things to tell us! So here's your chance. We're inviting you to take a quick survey about Kent State Magazine. Visit www.surveymonkey.com/s/KSUMag1 to tell us what you'd like to see more of or where we can improve.
The first 100 of you who give us a piece of your mind will receive a copy of Professor Emeritus William Hildebrand's engaging chronicle of Kent State's first 100 years, A Most Noble Enterprise.
Who knows, the next great story you read in Kent State Magazine may be your brainchild!
Posted Feb. 14, 2011back to top
Save the Date for Bowman Breakfast April 7
This spring's Bowman Breakfast topic is "Medical Research and Education: Good for the Health of Ohioans…Good for the Health of Ohio's Economy." Jay A Gershen, D.D.S., Ph.D., president of Northeastern Ohio Universities Colleges of Medicine and Pharmacy, will speak at the event, which is scheduled for Thursday, April 7.
Breakfast will be served at 7:30 a.m., and the program will start at 8 a.m. in the Kent Student Center Ballroom.
Registration information will be made available in the coming weeks.
Posted Feb. 14, 2011back to top
Winter Work on WKSU-FM's Antenna Boosts Signal Quality
Even through the challenging winter weather, WKSU-FM made needed upgrades to its transmission antenna recently.
The equipment, hundreds of feet in the air, was coated
with ice that made the job more complicated.
The work was partially funded by a grant from the Public Telecommunications Funding Program; and despite Northeast Ohio weather, the project was completed by the Federal Communications Commission construction permit deadline of Feb. 11, 2011.
WKSU-FM's new antenna upgrades transmission using current technology and shifts the station's signal at 89.7 from the formerly required directional antenna radiation pattern to an omni-directional pattern. This change will improve signal density within the station's coverage area for improvements in analog and HD Radio signal reception.Thanks to a break in the weather and marathon work sessions on Saturday, Feb. 5 and Monday, Feb. 7, all of the parts were installed and the only work that remained was securing some wiring and making other minor adjustments.
Tower workers had to battle strong winds, dangerous cold, snow, sleet and ice in first removing the old antenna and then raising and securing the new antenna components hundreds of feet in the air. This is a precise skill that requires workers to be careful while carefully maintaining stability of the newly installed antenna. Ice and winds in particular cancelled plans on several crucial days, pushing back the schedule.
During the installation, WKSU-FM remained on-air, taking advantage of back-up antennas at Copley and in Kent. Initial reports are that the WKSU-FM 89.7 signal quality is greatly improved.
By Ron Bartlebaugh and Ann VerWiebe Posted Feb. 14, 2011
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Eight Added to Varsity "K" Hall of Fame
Members of the Varsity "K" Hall of Fame Class of 2011 were formally inducted during a two-hour ceremony in the Kent Student Center Ballroom on Feb. 5, and the list was an impressive one.
Members of the Varsity "K" Hall of FameClass of 2011 were formally inducted during a two-hour ceremony in the Kent Student Center Ballroom on Feb. 5, and the list was an impressive one.
Part of the 2011 Varsity "K" class
In addition, Jack Rittichier (Distinguished Alumnus, posthumous) and Mel Mellis (Honorary Varsity "K") received special recognition for their contributions and accomplishments.
"This special day is always one of the highlights of our year," says Kent State Director of Athletics Joel Nielsen. "The accomplishments and diversity of this class represent the honor, rich tradition and a constant striving for excellence that are associated with being a member of the Golden Flashes family. This group of former student-athletes, administrators and supporters truly are the 'best of the best' when it comes to Kent State athletics."
The Varsity "K" Athletics Hall of Fame was started in 1979 with the induction of the original 13-member charter class. The Hall of Fame honors men and women whose exceptional performance on the athletic fields and, in later years on other fields, merits special recognition from their alma mater. With the induction of its 33rd class of honorees, the Hall of Fame ranks now number 269 strong.
For more information about the Varsity "K" Hall of Fame, including biographies of this years' class, go to kentstatesports.com.
By Alan Ashby
Posted Feb. 14, 2011back to top
Student Involvement Brief: Kent State Women Received Additional Education at "Confidence U"
Teniell Trolian
The Center for Student Involvement occasionally provides additional information to the university community on issues of broad interest in student affairs through the Student Involvement Brief. This feature will appear in e-Insideseveral times a month during the regular academic year.
As of 2007, women's enrollment in colleges is up by 29 percent according to the National Center for Education Statistics. While more females are coming to college and earning degrees than their male counterparts, this increase also is reflected in the increase in mental health issues related to women. According to "The American Freshman: National Norms Fall 2010" survey, emotional health is down for both men and women. Some new college students describe this shift in well-being as being linked to the "overwhelming feeling of overcoming new obstacles in the college environment."
According to research published by the University of California at Los Angeles in 2008, college-bound women experience greater economic hardship, higher levels of stress and less academic confidence. Women also enter college with higher levels of stress and lower self-reported ratings on psychological and physical well-being than men. With this in mind, attention must be given to this issue on college campuses.
One way that Kent State is helping women find self-confidence is by providing a series of events for women on campus. Recently, Kent State was awarded the "Confidence U" grant from the National Office of Kappa Delta Sorority, which is designed to provide funds for Panhellenic offices to raise awareness of the many issues related to lack of confidence among young women. The Panhellenic community at Kent State received $5,000 to hold events on campus that will positively impact the confidence of women at Kent State and the surrounding community.
The first event will be a recognition day for women leaders on campus. The Center for Student Involvement, Greek Life and the Women's Center, in conjunction with the Panhellenic Council, are proud to present Women's Confidence Day on Feb. 28. The Confidence U grant will be used to recognize the contribution of outstanding women and to share information and resources about women's confidence issues. Women's Confidence Day will include several educational and recognition programs, including the Recognize an Outstanding Campus Woman program, and the Women's Confidence Day Resource Fair.
For questions about the programming or grant, please contact Teniell Trolian, assistant director for Greek Affairs at ttrolian@kent.edu. For more information about Women's Confidence Day, visit http://kentgreeklife.celect.org/women-s-confidence-day-2011.
By Alexandra Ulbricht
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Professional Development Excellence Pool to Fund Professional Advancement Efforts
During the 2011-2012 academic year, Kent State University will establish a Professional Development Excellence Pool to fund full-time, nontenure track faculty who have completed at least one full performance review. Funds will be awarded for those professional development activities that have a clear connection to the professional advancement of bargaining unit members and enhance learning and educational excellence.
Approved proposals will be designed to upgrade professional skills, such as those that directly impact learning, teaching, and technical and professional certification. Next, they will be fashioned to acquire new skills, such as educational technology training; or bring unique aptitude, talent, experience and knowledge that fulfill some aspect of the larger university mission; or creative processes that make connections across disciplines. Finally, they will ensure intellectual and professional development that will be of benefit to individuals and the university, such as distance learning, service learning, special projects, presentations and grant activity.
Applicants must indicate in the proposal their intention to continue employment with the university if continued employment opportunities are available, and must inform their chair and/or dean of the proposal.
The proposal deadline is March 1, 2011. Announcement of awards will be no later than eight weeks after the proposal deadline.
Applicants working on collaborative projects must indicate whether they are splitting one award or requesting full awards for each collaborator, depending on the scope of the project.
Bargaining unit members may apply for funds in any amount during academic year 2010-2011 and academic year 2011-2012. Those applicants may submit multiple proposals in either or both years. Total funds available in this pool are limited to $125,000 each year, with 10 percent of this amount reserved for the discretionary use of the provost.
Bargaining unit members who receive funds from the Professional Development Excellence Pool shall submit a brief written summary of the activity to the provost, or the provost designee, with a copy to the unit administrator before the end of the semester in which the bargaining unit member received an Excellence Award.
The application must be uploaded in three parts:
- Each applicant must clearly state the goals and express in detail how the professional development activity will enhance learning and educational excellence.
- Each applicant must include an updated curriculum vitae. Applicants must indicate items most relevant to this submission.
- Each applicant much include a cover page including the deans' and director's signatures along with a signed statement indicating the applicant's intent to continue employment with the university.
Applications must be submitted via FolioWeb at http://www.folioweb.org/.
Questions should be directed to Lisa Waite at lawaite@kent.edu or the Office of Faculty Affairs at vcourie@kent.edu.
For more information, contact David Dalton at ddalton@kent.edu.
By Jaime Ramos
Posted Feb. 14, 2011
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