eInside Briefs

Blackstone LaunchPad Program at Kent State University to Begin Operating May 29

Kent State University's Blackstone LaunchPad program, which emphasizes entrepreneurship as a viable career path, will begin offering services to students this summer with a soft launch on May 29.

An architectural rendering of the new Blackstone LaunchPad
Center, located at the Kent Student Center, is shown above.

Kent State University's Blackstone LaunchPad program, which emphasizes entrepreneurship as a viable career path, will begin offering services to students this summer with a soft launch on May 29. A formal launch and ribbon-cutting ceremony is planned for September.

The Blackstone LaunchPad program, which operates out of the Kent Student Center, gives Kent State students the skills, knowledge and guidance they need to start new companies. The program accommodates all students, regardless of major, and involves local entrepreneurs as mentors.

The Blackstone Charitable Foundation and The Burton D. Morgan Foundation have committed to a $3.2 million, three-year partnership with Kent State University and three other area colleges and universities -- Baldwin-Wallace College, Case Western Reserve University and Lorain County Community College -- to make the Blackstone LaunchPad program possible.  Both foundations hope to foster entrepreneurship and job growth in Northeast Ohio through the program.

“Our staff has undergone training necessary to run the Blackstone LaunchPad program at Kent State, and we are excited to begin offering resources to help build the next generation of successful entrepreneurs and businesses,” says Julie Messing, executive director of Kent State’s Blackstone LaunchPad program. “We encourage our students and the university community to stop by the LaunchPad center located at the Kent Student Center this summer to learn more about our offerings.”

The program’s soft launch on May 29 will include distribution of materials and information to visitors. The center is located on the first floor of the Kent Student Center, beside the University Bookstore, and is open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

For more information about the Blackstone LaunchPad program at Kent State, contact Messing at jmessing@kent.edu or 330-672-9430.

Three Brazilian Students Study at Kent State as Part of Science Without Borders Program

Kent State University was selected as a host institution for the Science Without Borders program and is currently hosting three students this semester.

The Science Without Borders Program provides scholarships to undergraduate students from Brazil for one year of study at colleges and universities in the United States.

Science Without Borders chose Kent State as a host institution because of its strong coursework relevant to STEM fields and support services for international students.

“I chose this program to experience a different culture and learn in a new environment,” says Tarsis Sousa, junior Science Without Borders student. “To do that in one of the best universities in the United States was a fantastic opportunity.”

The students are studying science-related fields, such as biotechnology and aerospace engineering. They will continue studying at Kent State until spring 2013.

“Kent State University is honored to receive Science Without Borders students on campus and expects more to attend in the summer and fall,” says Kristen Summers, assistant director of international admissions, Office of Global Education at Kent State.

Summers traveled to Brazil last month to recruit more students for the program.

The Office of Global Education plans, coordinates, sustains and monitors the university's global initiatives, exchange programs and support services for international students and scholars.

For more information regarding the Office of Global Education, visit www.kent.edu/globaleducation or call 330-672-7980. For more information regarding Kent State’s international programs, visit www.kent.edu/admissions/international.

Kent State Stark Professor Named One of Stark County’s “Twenty Under 40!”

Erin Hollenbaugh, assistant professor
of communication studies at Kent State
Stark, was named one of Stark County’s
“Twenty under 40!” winners by ystark!

Erin Hollenbaugh, assistant professor of communication studies at Kent State University at Stark, was named one of Stark County’s “Twenty under 40!” winners by ystark! – a department of the Canton Regional Chamber of Commerce.

Each year, nominees are selected based on skills, community service and trusteeship, as well as personal and professional achievements. As stated by the name of the award, all of the recipients are under the age of 40 years and were chosen by a selection committee composed of business and community leaders, representing a range of industries across the county.

“I’m very honored and humbled to be among those named as the ‘Twenty under 40!’ recipients. It came as a complete surprise! I think that having Kent State Stark represented on the list reinforces the importance of this campus’s involvement in the greater Canton and Stark County community,” says Hollenbaugh.

Hollenbaugh and her fellow nominees will be honored at the Fifth Annual “Twenty under 40!” awards ceremony on June 5 at Glenmoor Country Club.

FPDC Announces 2012-2013 Teaching Scholars Learning Community Cohort

The Faculty Professional Development Center (FPDC) announces the selection of the 2012-2013 Teaching Scholars Learning Community Cohort. The strength of this established learning community comes from the diversity of talent, disciplinary perspective and lived experience as a scholar. Next year’s cohort once again draws this diversity together. The community’s purpose remains to raise personal and professional competencies, while increasing the strength of teaching and learning through peer-reviewed scholarship at Kent State University and in their own fields.

The Faculty Professional Development Center  congratulates the following individuals and thanks them for their support of faculty members at all levels and experience:

• Wendlyn Bedrosian, Ph.D., College of Education, Health and Human Services (School of Teaching, Learning, and Curriculum Studies)
• Moon-Heum Cho, Ph.D.,  College of Education, Health and Human Services (School of Lifespan Development and Educational Sciences, Kent State Stark)
• Jennifer Marcinkiewicz, Ph.D., College of Arts and Sciences (Department of Biological Sciences)
• Rebecca Parylak, Ph.D., College of Arts and Sciences (Department of Geography)
• Jakyung Seo, College of the Arts (School of Theatre and Dance)
• Jeanne Smith, College of Arts and Sciences (Department of English)
• Lt. Col. Diana Stewart, College of Nursing (Kent State East Liverpool
  

Over the next academic year, the community will meet every two to three weeks to develop a common language around teaching and learning, while preparing and executing personal research projects in their respective fields. Members will travel as a cohort to the International Lilly Teaching and Learning Conference in Miami, Ohio, in November to participate in conversations and workshops that will help keep them forward thinking and acting. In early 2013, the community will convene a Spring Learning Institute with the support of the Faculty Professional Development Center that invites the campus community to participate in, and to share and develop the scholarship of teaching and learning for the support of the overall Kent State mission.

For more information about the Faculty Professional Development Center at Kent State, visit www.kent.edu/fpdc/index.cfm.

Kent State University at Trumbull Students Present Earth Day Services

Kent State Trumbull students Annaleise Lessick and
Stacee DiBell stand beside rain barrels they created for their
Earth Day presentation.

To celebrate Earth Day, Kent State University at Trumbull students presented their service projects, events or activities planned to a panel of judges. Nearly 14 groups presented on various topics ranging from identifying bike routes, to helping students get to campus, to showcasing how easy it can be for families to make their own rain barrel.

An anonymous donor provided monetary prizes for the winners of the competition—$200 for first place, $125 for second place and $75 for third place. Winners will be announced in May.

Student participants contributed more than 1,000 acts of green.

Last year, Kent State Trumbull received an honorable mention by the Earth Day Network for its Earth Day efforts during a national competition. The competition has now extended internationally. There are approximately 300 universities from 51 countries competing to generate the most acts of green at their campuses. Kent State Trumbull currently sits in 47th position, but hopes to make a top 10 finish with the amazing work done by its students. 

Kent State Recovers 7.6 Pounds Per Person of Recyclable Materials During RecycleMania

Kent State mascot Flash and the RecycleMania team pose
with the Braggin' Wheel won in this year's informal head-to-head
competition with the University of Akron.

The results from this year’s RecycleMania tournament are in. Kent State University saw improvement over last year and won bragging rights against the University of Akron in the process.

Kent State is ranked 233 out of 362 in the Per Capita Classic, and recycled 7.6 pounds per person, while the University of Akron recycled 6.94 pounds.

“This is Kent State’s third year participating in RecycleMania,” says Melanie Knowles, manager of sustainability at Kent State. “Each year, there is more enthusiasm and participation.”

Engleman Hall won the hall vs. hall competition, bringing in nearly 23 pounds per person. The Engleman Hall Council will receive $200 in hall council funds, and was recognized during the Arbor Day Tree Planting last week outside of Engleman Hall.

“Colleges and their students are leading the way toward a more sustainable future, and RecycleMania is a perfect demonstration of their energy and commitment,” says Matt McKenna, president and CEO of Keep America Beautiful. “Keep America Beautiful is pleased to support the RecycleMania program. We celebrate this year’s results and congratulate every school and individual that participated.”

To increase student enthusiasm, RecycleMania held its 2nd annual video contest with the theme “The Spirit of Recycling.” With the public invited to vote for their favorite from among the 28 videos posted to YouTube, the student submission from Florida State University garnered the most “likes” to win first prize followed by East Tennessee State University. Clemson University’s video received the Judges’ Award. 

As a measure of the success of this year’s competition, 92 million pounds of recyclables and organic materials were recovered. This prevented the release of nearly 150,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide equivalent. This reduction in greenhouse gases is equivalent to the annual emissions from more than 25,840 passenger cars, electricity use of more than nearly 16,406 homes, or the burning of nearly 705 railcars’ worth of coal. For the full national results of the competition, go to http://recyclemaniacs.org/scoreboard.

For more information about Kent State’s Office of Sustainability, visit www.kent.edu/sustainability/index.cfm.

Kent State Stark Student Blogs for Local Newspaper

Kent State Stark student Juliana Carvalho
blogs for The Canton Repository. Carvalho
writes about her Kent State experience,
international issues and life adventures.

A local newspaper selected a Kent State University at Stark student to blog about various topics about her life. The Canton Repository, a Stark County newspaper, chose Juliana Carvalho, 18, freshman honors marketing student, to write about her Kent State experience, international issues and life adventures.

“I am honored to be selected as the paper’s blogger,” Carvalho says.

Carvalho began working as a Canton Repository blogger during the first week of March after being recommended by Robert Sturr, Ph.D., associate professor of English at Kent State University at Stark.

Sturr says he selected Carvalho because of her exceptional work in his English course.

“She is a talented writer who, among her other achievements, wrote two very interesting papers last semester that led me to recommend her for this position,” Sturr says. “Both papers demonstrated Juliana’s strong and clear voice as a writer, as well as her growing talent in research and argument.”

According to Sturr, Carvalho, who blogs twice a week, was a great choice because of her interesting background and experiences.

“In some ways—growing up for part of her life here in Stark County—she is quite typical of other college freshmen, but in other ways she has had experiences that are totally different from those of her classmates,” he says.

Carvalho is originally from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil’s second largest city. After moving to North Canton in 2003, she lived in Windsor, England, for more than a year before returning to the Canton area in 2006.

“I was so happy to move back to that little town we all know and love,” Carvalho says.

Carvalho said she will continue blogging for as long as the paper needs her to.

“The Kent State experience and the Honors College have exceeded expectations,” she says. “It’s unexplainable. The professors, campus and people are great. It’s truly amazing; I love Kent State so far!”

To read Carvalho’s blog, visit www.cantonrep.com/community/blogs/fresh_perspective. For more information about the Honors College, visit www.kent.edu/honors or call 330-672-2312.

School of Journalism and Mass Communication Internship Database Makes Students’ Search Easier

Kent State University’s School of Journalism and Mass Communication has launched an internship database designed to streamline communication between students and intern employers.

Michele Ewing, associate professor in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication and the public relations internship coordinator, helped create the database after recognizing an opportunity to use the Web to help better connect students to potential intern employers.

“It’s designed to provide a place for journalism and mass communication students to begin a search for internships,” says Ewing. “We’re trying to help students identify career opportunities and career tracks.”

Students in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication can search for internships by major: advertising, electronic media/video, broadcast news, journalism (news/magazine/online), information design, photojournalism and public relations.

“I think the database will benefit JMC students by demonstrating the value of internships. I think the student profiles on the site will support that,” says Lindsay Ridinger, senior public relations major and president of the Public Relations Student Society of America. “School of Journalism and Mass Communication  students can use the database to begin their internship search, learn about opportunities with other organizations and companies or ultimately connect with potential intern supervisors.”

All of the internships listed on the database have already been approved by a faculty coordinator, which means that they will count for full internship credit that is required to graduate.

The internship database saves time for employers, faculty and students. In the past, employers typically emailed faculty members about internship opportunities. Faculty members then forwarded the email to students and/or approached students face-to-face with the information. The database provides a quick and easy way to invite the employer to share the opportunity with students, as the database can be accessed 24/7.

“It’s absolutely an appropriate and efficient solution for matching a student’s career aspiration with employer needs while taking advantage of the online resources and technology,” says Lori Pennica Hendrick, president of Human Resources at Marcus Thomas LLC.  “We use it and love it. It’s a win-win for everyone”

Students even have the privilege to read past experiences from students who have already completed the specific internship he or she might want to apply for. 

“The database offers valuable insight about past school intern employers,” Ewing says. “Students can easily identify contact information for intern employers and gain understanding about a range of internship experiences they can pursue.”

Students in the School of Journalism and Mass Communications can access www.jmc.kent.edu and click the internship tab to start searching the database for internships.  

Tunnel of Oppression Contest Winners Announced

Cathy Henderson's "The Light at the End of the Tunnel"
poster presentation came first place in the annual Tunnel of
Oppression contest.

Winners of Kent State University at Trumbull's fourth annual Tunnel of Oppression poster and art project were announced.

The purpose of the 2012 project, titled Human Trafficking: From Darkness to Light, was to evoke thought by removing spectators from their comfort zones and causing  them to look beneath the radar at the issue of human trafficking.

The contest had two themes—"Dark" and "Light":

• Types of countries: Source, transit, destination (Dark)
• Types of human trafficking: Sex trades, labor or domestic servitude (Dark)
• Victims (Light) and Offenders (Dark)
• Countries complicit in trafficking (Dark) or are taking steps to prevent it (Light)
• Resources, services, policy and legislation to address the issue (Light): International, national, state and local, including Ohio (Dark and Light)
• Nongovernmental and faith-based organizational efforts (Light)
  

Contestants had to have been enrolled  at Kent State Trumbull at the time of project submission. Posters had to have been no smaller than 11" x 17" and no larger than 22" x 28." No digital submissions were accepted.

Criteria for judging consisted of overall power of message, clarity and emotional tension, integrity, originality and creativity.

Prizes were awarded as follows:

• First Place: Cathy Henderson (Kent State University book bag)
• Second Place: Sonya Melendez (Kent State University sweatshirt)
• Third Place: Carolyn Hornof (Kent State University T-shirt)
  

A trio of submissions received honorable mention including Kayla Ellenberger, Lindsay Ware and Roxanne Hoerig.

Kent State Stark Alumni Association Engages in Community Service Project

Members of the Stark Chapter of the Kent State University
Alumni Association engaged in community service at the
Domestic Violence Project, Inc. during the fourth annual
Alumni Day of Service.

Kent State University alumni collaborated with the Domestic Violence Project, Inc. to give back to the community during the fourth annual Alumni Day of Service sponsored by the Stark Chapter of the Kent State University Alumni Association.

Sixteen alumni painted walls and cleaned rooms of the agency on Saturday, April 21. Willetta Shoemaker, president of the Stark Chapter of the Kent State Alumni Association, explains that alumni traveled several miles to participate in the community service event.

“We have different people come each year,” Shoemaker says. “We see alums we don’t often see at other programs available through the organization. It’s nice because this event enables us to meet the needs of people who want to lend their time.”

The Stark Chapter chose the Domestic Violence Project, Inc. because it is a local nonprofit organization that has realized great increases in the need for its services. This was the university’s first time to work with the agency.  

The Domestic Violence Project is committed to providing a strong safety net for the families in its community.  According to the organization’s website, the agency’s clients are welcomed by a caring and compassionate staff, offering supportive services necessary to establish an abuse-free lifestyle. The agency offers services such as a 24-hour confidential hot-line, 330-453-SAFE, emergency shelter in Canton and Massillon for up to 40 individuals, prevention and educational services and support, legal advocacy, counseling and special topic support.

Stacey Giammarco, the agency’s director of development and marketing, says she and other members were pleased to work with the Kent State alumni.

“We are happy to engage those in our community and educate them about the prevalence of domestic violence here in Stark County,” Giammarco says. “Our Canton shelter alone has seen a 70 percent increase in census the past two years, with over half of those sheltered being children. We're so happy that Kent State reached out to us and helped us with some of the updates we needed to our facility. We hope everyone had a great day of service."

Shoemaker explains that Alumni Day is a significant way to keep alumni connected to the university while building long-lasting relationships with the community.

“I think Alumni Day shows the university’s presence,” Shoemaker says. “It’s a good representation of the people who attend the university, and it’s a lot of fun.”

For more information about the Alumni Association, visit www.ksualumni.org/s/401/social.aspx?sid=401&gid=1&pgid=810. 

e-Inside Takes a Break

The e-Inside newsletter will take a break between semesters. The April 30 issue is the last for the Spring 2012 Semester. e-Inside will return on June 4. Copy submissions for this issue should be emailed to einside@kent.edu by 5 p.m. on Tuesday, May 29.

Thank you for reading and contributing to e-Inside.