eInside Briefs

Kent State Announces New Vice President for Student Affairs and Dean of Students

Kent State University has appointed Shay Little, Ph.D., as the new associate vice president for Student Affairs and dean of Students. Little will replace Sheryl Smith, Ph.D., dean of Students and Student Ombuds, who will be retiring in August. Jennifer Kulics, Ph.D., was recently appointed student ombuds and has assumed all related ombuds’ responsibilities.

As dean of students, Little will serve as Kent State's primary student advocate and will collaborate with students, faculty, staff and the local community on various student-focused initiatives. The Center for Student Involvement and the Office of Student Conduct will report directly to Little, and she will chair the university’s Care Team, a broadly-representative group of campus administrators handling sensitive, often complex, student-related concerns, topics and behaviors.

Little’s 20-year higher education career reflects a variety of professional experiences, including administrative services, student ombuds, residence life, judicial affairs, staff supervision, and both undergraduate and graduate teaching. The majority of her career has been at the University of Georgia where she earned a Doctor of Philosophy degree in counseling and student personnel services in 2002. 

Little’s appointment will begin on Monday, July 16. A welcome reception has been scheduled for Tuesday, July 17, from 9-10 a.m. at Room 250 in the Kent Student Center.

Marcello Fantoni Appointed Kent State’s New Associate Provost for Global Education

Marcello Fantoni, Ph.D., of Kent State University has been appointed the university’s new associate provost for global education. Fantoni currently serves as director of Kent State University in Florence, Italy, and the university’s Europe manager. He also teaches historical studies in architecture and urban design.

“Recognizing the growing importance of international student enrollment at Kent State, the increasingly crucial role study abroad now plays in our students’ educational experience, and the need to maintain and improve both for the short and long terms, I have promoted Marcello Fantoni to the position of associate provost for global education,” says Todd Diacon, senior vice president of academic affairs and provost of Kent State. “He has done a wonderful job leading our Europe operations, and I look forward to working with him more closely on ways to prepare our students for today’s global society.”

Since 2005, Fantoni has served as director of Kent State in Florence, where student enrollment has increased by 50 percent. He also has held the position of the university’s Europe manager since January 2011, overseeing Kent State’s campuses in Florence and Geneva, Switzerland. Fantoni has created new curricula in communication, business, arts and sciences, education, arts and architecture in collaboration with Kent State deans and has developed six new summer programs. He currently oversees 30 faculty members at the Florence campus. Fantoni has established and cultivated new partnerships with George Washington University, Rutgers University and Miami University, as well as developed and implemented new agreements with universities in Brazil, South Korea, Japan and Taiwan. Fantoni has helped with fundraising activity for study abroad experiences for Kent State students.

Before joining Kent State in 2005, Marcello served for nine years as director of Georgetown University in Florence. He is an accomplished historian of Europe and of the history of architecture. A renowned scholar, Fantoni has participated in numerous conferences and symposia, authored three books, edited 13 books and published several essays in books and journals. A native Italian speaker, Fantoni also speaks English, French, Spanish, German and basic Russian.

Fantoni received his master’s degree from the University of Florence, a doctoral degree from European University Institute and a post-doctoral degree from the University of Florence.

Fantoni will begin his new appointment on Aug. 6. He replaces Mary Anne Saunders, executive director of Kent State’s Office of Global Education, who has accepted a similar position at the University of New Mexico.

For more information about Kent State’s Office for Global Education, visit www.kent.edu/global.

Kent State Baseball APR Among Tops In The Nation For Third Straight Year

Kent State Baseball Head Coach Scott Stricklin, Provost
Todd Diacon, Director of Athletics Joel Nielsen, and Golden
Flashes baseball team member Jason Bagoly pose for a photo
after being honored by the NCAA for earning a Public Recognition
Award, based on the baseball team's most recent multiyear
Academic Progress Rate (APR).

Golden Flashes one of only 16 teams to earn the distinction the past three years

As if a run to the College World Series was not enough, the Kent State baseball team has had just as much success in the classroom.  The Golden Flashes were honored on June 14 by the NCAA for earning a Public Recognition Award, based on their most recent multiyear Academic Progress Rate (APR). The award is given each year to teams with APRs in the top 10 percent in each sport.

With perfect 1000 multiyear APR, the 2012 honor marks the third consecutive year that Kent State baseball has been recognized, putting the team in elite company as one of only 16 schools in the country to reach the accomplishment.  Of the 16 teams to earn the public recognition the past three years, the Golden Flashes’ program is the only public institution on the list that includes  Brown, Bucknell, Holy Cross, Columbia, Dartmouth, Duke, Georgetown, Harvard, Lafayette, Mount St. Mary's, St. Joseph's, Stanford, Penn, Vanderbilt and Yale. 

The Golden Flashes’ academic prowess is backed by a cumulative 3.093 team Grade Point Average (GPA).  The team GPA brought extra special meaning to the team when they were recognized for having the highest team GPA amongst the eight teams in the 2012 College World Series.

The list of full APRs for all teams was released by the NCAA on June 20.

Each year, the NCAA tracks the classroom performance of student-athletes on every Division I team through the annual scorecard of academic achievement, known as APR. The score measures eligibility and retention each semester or quarter and provides a clear picture of the academic culture in each sport. The most recent APRs are multiyear rates based on scores from the 2007-08, 2008-09, 2009-10 and 2010-11 academic years.

Kent State Professor Named President-Elect of National Association for Sport and Physical Education

Kent State Sport Pedagogy Professor
Steve Mitchell, Ph.D., has been named
president-elect of the National Association
for Sport and Physical Education.

Stephen Mitchell, Ph.D., a sport pedagogy professor in the School of Teaching, Learning and Curriculum Studies at Kent State University, is the new president-elect of the National Association for Sport and Physical Education (NASPE). He was elected to the position this past spring at the American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance’s (AAHPERD) annual national convention in Boston, Mass. A nonprofit professional education association, NASPE aims to enhance knowledge, improve professional practice and increase support for high-quality physical education, sport and physical activity programs.

NASPE, which has been setting the standard for the profession for more than 35 years, believes that daily physical activity is critical to improve school and work performance and the overall health of individuals. As a national spokesperson for the organization, Mitchell will promote high-quality physical education, physical activity and sport programs and lend expertise to tackle the growing epidemic of physical inactivity in children and the importance of physical activity for everyone. 

“My advocacy work at the state level has been very rewarding, and I hope to bring similar efforts in my new position at the national level,” says Mitchell. “I plan to help project  NASPE’s voice even stronger to help forge strong partnerships and identify policy items that are critical to our progress in pushing physical education to the top of the priority list in schools, communities and with governmental leaders.” 
   
At the state level, Mitchell is the president and advocacy committee chair for the Ohio Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (OAHPERD). He served on the writing teams for both the Ohio Department of Education’s Physical Education Assessment project and Physical Education Benchmarks and Performance Indicators.

In addition to his new role, Mitchell will continue teaching as a Kent State faculty member, a position he has held for the last 20 years. Before that, he taught at Syracuse University and in Loughborough, England. He is a published author of two books and more than 30 book chapters and journal articles. He has served as a reviewer for 12 scholarly journals, including NASPE’s own Strategies.
   
Mitchell holds an undergraduate degree in physical education, sport science and history, a post graduate certificate in education, and a master’s degree in education studies from Loughborough University. He also received a doctorate in teaching curriculum, with a specialization in pedagogy and sport psychology from Syracuse University.

For more information about the National Association for Sport and Physical Education, visit www.naspeinfo.org. 

TeleProductions' Graphic Designer Earns Silver Telly Award

A screen capture of the Silver Telly award-winning video,
produced by TeleProductions' Graphic Designer Jim Hurguy,
is shown above.

TeleProductions' Graphic Designer Jim Hurguy won a Silver Telly Award for his work on the 2011 Kent State women's volleyball introduction video. 

The Telly Awards honor creative and innovative video production work from all over the country. Companies like FOX Sports Net, Nickelodeon and Walt Disney Parks and Resorts submit their work for review. Less than 10 percent of entries are awarded with a Silver Telly, the Telly Awards’ highest honor.

“It feels really good to get a Telly Award because it makes the work we put into the video worthwhile,” says Hurguy. “This is the first Silver Telly I’ve been a part of.”

The video resembles a comic book and depicts the team getting ready for a game. This is the first introduction video TeleProductions has produced for the volleyball team. It was played at the beginning of all home volleyball games this past season.

With the help of graphic assistant Brian Recktenwald, Hurguy combined green screen footage, graphics and a comic book theme to create the video. Recktenwald, a senior managerial marketing major, put the images together while Hurguy acted as art director.

"With Brian on board, the quality of all of the sports teams’ intro videos this past year has been outstanding,” Hurguy says.

The green screen portion of the video was done well in advance of the volleyball season.

“With the green screen footage, you have to come up with a shot list that fits the theme,” Hurguy adds. “It’s important to think about what you want the final product to look like so you can make sure there are enough shots and angles to really add to the video.”

TeleProductions is Kent State University's full-service video production center.

To see the award-winning video, visit KSUtube. You can view more of the graphic team's work on the TeleProductions’ website.  

Ohio College of Podiatric Medicine Graduates 106 Podiatrists

Graduating podiatrists from the Ohio College of Podiatric
Medicine take the Podiatric Physician's Oath administered by
Dr. Richard A. Ransom, former member of OCPM's Board of
Trustees. 

The Ohio College of Podiatric Medicine graduated 106 podiatrists during its 95th annual Commencement ceremony on May 18 at the State Theatre in downtown Cleveland. 

Kent State President Lester A. Lefton was the recipient of the Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters Degree and also gave the Commencement address. The Podiatric Physician's Oath was administered by Dr. Richard A. Ransom, former OCPM Board of Trustee. The class of 2012 is the last class to graduate under the name Ohio College of Podiatric Medicine. As the college transitions to Kent State this summer, future classes will graduate under the new name Kent State University College of Podiatric Medicine.

For more information about the college's transition to Kent State, visit www.kent.edu/ocpm.