eInside Briefs

Kent State Announces Jeff McLain as University’s New Vice President for Institutional Advancement

Jeffery L. McLain has been named Kent
State University's new vice president for
institutional advancement. He will join the
university on May 15.

Kent State University has named Jeffery L. McLain, CFRE, as its new vice president for institutional advancement following an extensive national search. McLain comes to Kent State from Louisiana State University where he served as senior vice president of the LSU Foundation. He joins Kent State on May 15.

The Division of Institutional Advancement includes the offices of advancement and alumni relations, as well as the Kent State University Foundation. The division plays a critical role in building relationships with alumni and friends to support the vision and mission of the university.

“I believe that Jeff McLain is an outstanding choice for Kent State at this time,” says Kent State President Beverly Warren. “Jeff brings deep experience from three prior institutions, and I believe he will leverage that experience to advance our goals of increasing fundraising and alumni engagement. He has also had experience with capital campaigns, which will be critical as we frame the parameters of campaign readiness and our launch of the next comprehensive campaign for Kent State.” 

McLain expressed his enthusiasm for joining the Kent State community.

“I look forward to partnering with President Warren, the institutional advancement team and the Kent State family as we engage our alumni and friends to advance the mission of the university and its many campuses,” McLain says. “The Kent State alumni I know speak fondly of their time at Kent. I can’t wait to join the team.”

Warren thanked Steve Sokany, who has held the position of interim vice president for institutional advancement since Aug. 1, 2014.

“With gratitude and deep appreciation, I want to acknowledge and thank Steve Sokany for his leadership and dedication to Kent State,” Warren says. “He has provided needed continuity and expertise as interim vice president through this time of transition, and he will provide instrumental leadership for the future as executive associate vice president and director of board relations. In this capacity, Steve will coordinate the Kent State Foundation Board volunteer activities and will play a key leadership role in principal gift engagement.”

McLain also served as the LSU Foundation’s vice president for development from 2005 until his promotion to senior vice president in 2013. During his tenure, LSU’s fundraising highlights included the successful completion of a $750-million campaign, new records in annual giving and implementation of a principal gift program.

Prior to joining LSU, McLain was associate vice chancellor for institutional advancement for the Texas Tech University System. He also spent 15 years at the University of Texas at Austin directing various alumni relations and corporate, major gift and annual giving programs. He is active in professional and community organizations including service as a member of the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) International Board of Trustees, District IV Representative from 2011-2014. He holds the Certified Fundraising Executive (CFRE) designation. CFRE certifies experienced fundraising professionals aspiring to the highest standards of ethics, competence and service to the philanthropic sector.

McLain earned his Master of Mass Communication degree from LSU and a Bachelor of Arts in English from Baylor University.

McLain, his wife, Leah, and family will be moving to the Kent, Ohio, area from their current home in southern Louisiana.

For more information about Kent State’s Division of Institutional Advancement visit www.kent.edu/advancement.

Candidates for Kent State's Vice President for Research and Sponsored Programs

Dear Colleagues:

As the search committee chair, I am pleased to announce that three finalists for vice president for research and sponsored programs will interview during the next two weeks. As part of this process, each candidate will hold a public presentation to discuss the following:

• Brief academic/professional background and prior research successes.
• Philosophy for how best to encourage and grow research and creative activities.
• Challenges and opportunities in the world of research today.
  

Members of the university community are invited and encouraged to attend the public forums and provide input through the surveys below.

Gautam Pillay, Ph.D.
Associate Vice President for Research and Sponsored Programs, West Chester University of Pennsylvania

Public Presentation
Monday, April 27
3:15-4:00 p.m.
Kent Student Center, Room 310

Candidate Feedback Survey


Anshuman Razdan, Ph.D.
Director, Advanced Technology Innovation Center
Arizona State University

Public Presentation
Tuesday, May 5
12:30-1:15 p.m.
Kent Student Center, Room 310

Candidate Feedback Survey
 
 
Paul E. DiCorleto, Ph.D.
Sherwin-Page Chair, Lerner Research Institute
Cleveland Clinic
Chair, Department of Molecular Medicine, Case School of Medicine, Case Western Reserve University
 
Public Presentation
Wednesday, May 6
1:15-2:00 pm
Kent Student Center, Room 310
 
Candidate Feedback Survey

Additional information on the search for the vice president for research and sponsored programs, including curriculum vitae for each of the candidates, is available on the search website.
 
Sincerely,
 
Todd A. Diacon, Ph.D.
Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost

Kent State Staff Member Named Senior Research Fellow With Quality Matters

Bethany Simunich, director of online
pedagogy and research at Kent State
University, has been named senior
research fellow with Quality Matters.
Quality Matters is an international leader
in online education that provides a
faculty-centered continuous improvement
model for online course design.

Bethany Simunich, director of online pedagogy and research at Kent State University, has been named senior research fellow with Quality Matters (QM).

Quality Matters is an international leader in online education that provides a faculty-centered continuous improvement model for online course design. The program maintains a research-based rubric that provides design standards for online and hybrid courses. Quality Matters is designed to provide continuous improvement to distance-learning courses for the benefit of students and instructors.

Simunich, who has worked with Quality Matters for eight years now, started as a peer reviewer for other online courses from other universities and institutions. In 2013, Simunich became a research colleague and was recently named senior research fellow.

“It’s a brand new position that will be defined further under the guidance of QM’s director of research, Kay Shattuck,” Simunich says. “Some duties for the position will be more outreach and mentoring with faculty who are interested in the research behind the rubric or in conducting their own research related to Quality Matters."

Jason Piatt, director of online compliance and communication, is a Quality Matters coordinator for Kent State and has worked with Simunich. Piatt says Simunich has played an integral role in the success of Quality Matters at Kent State.

“Bethany is highly active within the Quality Matters research community and strives to stay abreast of trends and current research, as well as contributing significantly to the field,” Piatt says. “She is an ardent champion of quality online course design and works diligently to inform, educate, mentor and support online faculty course developers.”

Simunich says she is very excited and happy to have this opportunity to guide and mentor other researchers across the nation in the program.

“I really love working with Quality Matters,” Simunich says. “I am thrilled that I was able to continue working on online learning research with this program, and I am happy to have made the next step in this journey.”

Piatt says Simunich is an excellent choice for the position.

“Her work in this role would greatly benefit our institution, our faculty and ultimately our students,” he says.

For more information about Quality Matters, visit www.qualitymatters.org. 

Kent State Professor Earns Award for Studying Attachment in Children

Kathy Kerns, Ph.D., a psychology
professor at Kent State, was selected
to receive the Bowlby-Ainsworth Award
for her work in the field of middle
childhood development and attachment.

Kathy Kerns, Ph.D., a psychology professor at Kent State University, was selected to receive the Bowlby-Ainsworth Award by the New York Attachment Consortium. Kerns is being honored for her work in the field of middle childhood development and attachment.

While most other researchers study attachment in children who are under the age of six, Kerns focuses on children between the ages of 8-14.

“I had been studying how attachment is related to friendship in preschoolers,” Kerns says. “I thought it would be interesting to study the question at a later age when children are beginning to form closer friendships. I also realized there was a gap in research on attachment in middle childhood, so there were lots of opportunities to contribute.”

In regards to her award, Kerns says, “It’s always gratifying to have your work recognized by your colleagues.”

Kerns received her Ph.D. from the State University of New York at Stony Brook in 1987 and came to Kent State as an assistant professor in 1989.

Click here for more information about the Bowlby-Ainsworth Award.

Kent State Students Launch Indiegogo Campaign to Raise Money for Film Project

School of Journalism and Mass Communication student members of Kent State University Independent Films have launched an Indiegogo campaign to help raise $10,000 to fund its newest feature-length film titled Unlucky. Kent State University Independent Films is a production company and student organization that creates and develops media productions.

Unlucky is a comedy that follows a boy named Sam who falls head over heels in love with a girl at first sight without ever learning her name and faces unlucky situations in order to reunite with her before time runs out.

The film, which will premiere in May 2016, will be directed and produced entirely by students. The dozens of participating undergraduate students, graduate students and volunteers will gain hands-on experience and learn what the film industry is really like.

Unlucky co-director Buddy Candela says that support for the film will help provide unique, firsthand opportunities for students to learn while they create a full-length movie.

“Donating to this film is important because we have a chance to achieve our dream while we are still in college,” Candela says. “My whole life, I have wanted to direct movies, and the fact that I am given that opportunity while I am in school is truly a blessing. Your donation will be funding the filmmakers of tomorrow.”

Kent State University Independent Films’ $10,000 fundraising goal will cover daily expenses, including props, costumes, set, dressing, location rentals, batteries, food, makeup and promotion. A portion of donated money will be put toward the film’s distribution and help offset the cost of producing DVDs when the film is complete. Campaign supporters can receive perks including posters, signed scripts, VIP tickets and a DVD copy of the film.

“The more money we raise, the better the film can be,” Candela says. “Every donation counts, no matter how small.”

The Indiegogo campaign will run until May 31.

Kent State University Independent Films provides skilled members to do everything required to design and produce audiovisual concepts. Their diversity ranges from feature-length narrative films to corporate video, commercials and everything in between.

Over the past eight years, the organization has completed three feature-length films in the styles of action, musical comedy and most recently horror. Within the last year, the organization has advanced its goals. Kent State Independent Films accepts students who have a passion for film and gives them real experience. The organization has more than 150 student members and can support large and small submitted projects. 

Last e-Inside Issue for the Spring 2015 Semester

The last e-Inside issue for the Spring 2015 Semester will be published May 4. Copy submissions for this issue should be emailed to einside@kent.edu by 5 p.m. on Tuesday, April 28. e-Inside will resume June 8.