eInside Briefs

Kent State Ranks as One of the Best National Universities by U.S. News & World Report

Kent State University is the only public university in
Northeast Ohio to make the first-tier list in the Best National
Universities category with its inclusion in the 2014 edition of
Best Colleges by U.S. News & World Report.

Kent State University has earned a coveted spot in the first-tier list in the Best National Universities category with its inclusion in the 2014 edition of Best Colleges by U.S. News & World Report. Kent State is the only public university in Northeast Ohio to make the first tier. This is the third time in four years that Kent State has appeared on the first tier of the Best National Universities rankings.

“Today we released our fall enrollment numbers, and at our Kent Campus we enrolled our largest and academically best-qualified freshman class ever, drawn from a record 21,700 applicants,” said Todd Diacon, Kent State’s senior vice president for academic affairs and provost, on Sept. 10 when the rankings were announced. “And now Kent State is in the first tier of U.S. News’ list of the Best National Universities, and is the only public university in Northeast Ohio to achieve this distinction. We are truly having a great start to this fall semester."

The 2014 rankings are posted online at www.usnews.com/colleges. They also will appear in the print edition of the “Best Colleges 2014” guidebook that can be purchased online or on newsstands Sept. 24. Kent State’s ranking is 201, tied with five other schools out of nearly 1,800 schools.

In addition to its inclusion on the Best National Universities list, U.S. News & World Report also placed Kent State on the following rankings:

• Best Undergraduate Business Programs – #159
• Top Public Schools, National Universities – #117
  

For more information on U.S. News & World Report’s Best College 2014 edition, visit www.usnews.com/colleges.

Distinguished Researcher Owen Lovejoy Joins Kent State’s Presidential Search Committee

Kent State University Professor of
Anthropology C. Owen Lovejoy, Ph.D.,
has joined the university’s Presidential
Search Committee.

Kent State University Professor of Anthropology C. Owen Lovejoy, Ph.D., has joined the university’s Presidential Search Committee.

“In our planning for the presidential search, trustees recognized the unique perspective and value that Professor Lovejoy would bring to our process,” says Richard Marsh, Kent State trustee and chair of the Presidential Search Committee. “Though he was unable to accept our invitation in July due to prior commitments, we are pleased that he can join now as our search has moved into high gear in recruitment.” 

Lovejoy brings world-renowned research credentials and a wealth of university knowledge to the committee. A resident of Kent, Ohio, Lovejoy has taught at Kent State for more than 40 years. He is an internationally recognized biological anthropologist who specializes in the study of human origins and recently was elected chair of anthropology for the National Academy of Sciences (NAS). He was elected to the NAS, one of the highest honors given to a scientist in the United States, in 2007 and serves as an editorial board member for its prestigious Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

Lovejoy is a widely published author, with nearly 150 articles about human evolution, forensics, demography, biomechanics and evolutionary theory. He holds the honor of being one of the Institute for Scientific Information’s (ISI) “Most Highly Cited” authors in the general social sciences.

The 17-member Presidential Search Committee is advisory to the Board of Trustees and consists of faculty, trustees, students, staff and others the board deems necessary, who will conduct the search not on behalf of any single constituency, but rather in the best overall interest of Kent State. To see a list of previously announced members of the Presidential Search Committee, visit www.kent.edu/president/presidentialsearch/searchcommittee.

For more information about Kent State’s search for its 12th president, visit www.kent.edu/president/presidentialsearch.

Kent State Receives Grant from the National Science Foundation to Fund Geography Research

Kent State University has received a grant totaling $134,535 from the National Science Foundation (NSF).The grant will be used for the project titled “Geographies of Health and Medical Programs in a Conflict-Society,” which is part of the NSF’s Geography and Spatial Sciences Program.

The grant will fund two Kent State graduate students and one undergraduate student’s research between Aug. 1, 2013, and April 30, 2015.

“I feel very strongly about the work that I will be able to accomplish, but I’m also excited because I will be able to support a student from Cambodia to obtain a master’s degree from Kent State,” says James Tyner, geography professor at Kent State. “I will be able to fund two different graduate students for field work in Cambodia, and I’ll be able to fund an undergraduate student for work. The ability to help motivate and mentor four students via the grant is very rewarding.”

Tyner says the grant will be used for his main research inquiry, which is to reconstruct the “practice” of medicine during the Cambodian genocide.

“To conduct research of the scope I’ve proposed, it requires graduate student assistance, as well as translators,” Tyner says.

Tyner says Kent State has received a number of NSF grants, but this one is unique because it is primarily for historically based, archival research.

For more information about Kent State’s Department of Geography, visit www.kent.edu/cas/geography.
 

Kent State University Board of Trustees Meeting, Sept. 18

The Kent State University Board of Trustees will hold its next regular business meeting Wednesday, Sept. 18. The meeting will be held in the new Kent State University Hotel and Conference Center in downtown Kent. The Board will convene at 2 p.m. in the McGilvrey Conference Room on the lobby level.

Trustees will retire into executive session at 8 a.m. in the Presidents Boardroom on the second floor of the hotel to consider specific topics as provided for under Ohio’s “Sunshine Law.”

Board committees will meet as follows:

• Academic Excellence and Student Success Committee – 10-11 a.m. in the McGilvrey Conference Room on the lobby level.
• Audit and Compliance Committee – 10-11 a.m. in the Kent Conference Room on the lobby level.
• Finance and Administration Committee — 11:15 a.m.-12:15 p.m. in the McGilvrey Conference Room on the lobby level.
• External Relations and Development Committee – 11:15 a.m.-12:15 p.m. in the Kent Conference Room on the lobby level.
  

The Board meeting agenda will be made available at www.kent.edu/bot/meetings.

MAC Presents Cartwright Award to Kent State University

Kent State University was presented with the Cartwright
Award by the Mid-American Conference for its program
excellence in academics, athletics and citizenship during
the 2012-2013 school year.

The Mid-American Conference (MAC) presented the Cartwright Award to Kent State University for its program excellence in academics, athletics and citizenship during the 2012-2013 school year. The Cartwright Award was presented to Kent State on Sept. 7 during the Golden Flashes home football game against Bowling Green at Dix Stadium.

"The Cartwright Award is a unique award in that it recognizes excellence not only on the field of play, but also in the classroom and in community," says Dr. Jon Steinbrecher, Mid-American Conference commissioner. "To be selected by its peers for this award is a tremendous honor for Kent State University. I applaud the student-athletes, coaches and entire staff for this special honor."

The Cartwright Award is an institutional award presented annually to one university in the MAC. A committee with representation from all 12 institutions selected the Cartwright Award winner from nominations submitted based upon the criteria of excellence in academics, athletics and citizenship.

"This award is about excellence in academics, athletics and citizenship, and I'm so proud of our student-athletes who demonstrate Kent State's excellence in action in the classroom, in sport and in our community," says Kent State President Lester A. Lefton. "I commend our student-athletes and Kent State's Department of Intercollegiate Athletics for a remarkable year, including an all-time high GPA, a fifth consecutive Reese Trophy, and now adding the Cartwright Award to our impressive list of achievements."

The Cartwright Award is named in honor of Carol A. Cartwright, Ph.D., one of the most highly respected voices in higher education. Cartwright served as the president of Kent State from 1991-2006 and president of Bowling Green State University from 2008-2011. Cartwright previously was the vice chancellor for Academic Affairs at the University of California at Davis and dean for undergraduate programs and vice provost at the Pennsylvania State University. She has served on the NCAA Board of Directors and is a member of the Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics.

To see a brief summary of the accomplishments by Kent State in each of the three areas of academic, athletic and citizenship excel, visit www.kentstatesports.com/news/2013/9/4/CartwrightAward2013.aspx.

Music and Speech Center Now Known as Kent State University’s Center for the Performing Arts

The Music and Speech Center on the Kent Campus is now
known as the Center for the Performing Arts.

As of fall 2013, the Music and Speech Center has a name change. The building is now known as the Kent State University Center for the Performing Arts. The Office of the University Architect is responsible for coordinating and documenting any changes to building names or room numbers.

Michael Bruder, executive director for facility, planning and design with the Office of the University Architect, says the new name is more reflective of the activities and events that occur in the building.

“We are confident the change will make it easier for students as well as music and theatre patrons to find the event venues within the building,” Bruder says.

Kent State’s Center for the Performing Arts is home to the College of the Art’s Performing Arts Box Office, where students, faculty, staff and the community can purchase tickets for all theatre, dance and musical events. All Kent State full-time, undergraduate students receive free tickets with their FLASHcards because of the “Fee for Free” program.

"Each academic year, more than 100 music, theatre and dance performances take place in the building, and we are excited to see a name change that reflects all of these events," says John Crawford, professor and dean of Kent State’s College of the Arts.

For more information about Kent State’s College of the Arts, visit www.kent.edu/artscollege.
 

Diversity Training Survey: Chance to Win a $25 Starbucks Gift Card

Dear Kent State Faculty and Staff at all Campuses:

I invite you to take our five-minute survey about diversity training at Kent State by Oct. 4. Your participation in this short survey will help us better understand your needs and experiences related to diversity training at Kent State and will help us make improvements in the future.                                         

Once you have completed the survey, you will be entered into a random drawing to win your choice of a $25 Starbucks or Amazon gift card. Four gift cards will be awarded. Respondent confidentiality is guaranteed.

If you have not already completed the survey, please click on the link below to access it.

www.surveymonkey.com/s/DiversityTrainingKSU

If you have any technical difficulties accessing the survey, please contact Liz Lewis at elewis9@kent.edu.

Thank you in advance for your time and consideration in completing the survey. We value your feedback.

Alfreda Brown, Ed.D.                                                                                                                                 
Vice President for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

Give Your Feedback on Kent State's Website and Enter to Win a Starbucks Gift Card

University Communications and Marketing invites all faculty, staff, students, parents and alumni to give their feedback on the Kent State University website by taking a five-minute online survey. Feedback from the survey will be used to make future website enhancements. All participants will be entered into a drawing for one of five $15 Starbucks gift cards!  Winners must be able to sign for and pick up their gift card on the Kent Campus.  Follow this link to the survey.  

Join the University Band – "Communiversity Band"

The University Band, also known as the "Communiversity Band," is open to all Kent State University students, faculty, staff and community members who wish to continue performing traditional band literature. The ensemble is dedicated to broadening the artistic level and interest of its members through a low-pressure, once-a-week rehearsal and performs one concert in late spring. 

The University Band also serves as a practicum for music education majors to conduct and play secondary instruments. Membership is open to all university students, regardless of major, and to all community members. For more information, please contact John Franklin at 330-672-2515 or jfrank24@kent.edu.

Show your Spirit! Register your Office for the Homecoming Decorating Contest

The College of Communication and Information Dean’s
Office focused on a tailgating theme for the 2012
decorating contest, tying for first place with the Student
Recreation and Wellness Center. 

Celebrate this year’s Homecoming by adorning your office with Kent State pride. The Kent State University Alumni Association is inviting campus offices to show their spirit by decorating. This year’s Homecoming theme, “New and Old, Forever Blue and Gold,” honors Kent State’s past while looking forward to the university’s future.  

In order to participate, competing offices must complete the online application by Friday, Sept. 20, at 5 p.m.  Participating offices will be judged on creativity, use of theme, use of physical space, visual appearance and appeal, and incorporation of staff. The registration form and more information about the office decorating contest can be found at www.ksualumni.org/officecontest. 

For a complete list of this year’s Homecoming activities, visit www.ksualumni.org/homecoming.