eInside Events

Mothers, Mentors and Muses to be Honored at Fundraising Event

The Women's Center will honor Kent State University women serving as mothers, mentors and muses. The center recently sought nominations from the campus community of women who made a significant difference in another's life – whether academic or personal. Individuals could be nominated as a "mother" – one who has helped birth ideas, thoughts and academic endeavors in others, or who serves as a nurturing individual to others; a "mentor" – one who serves as a trusted counselor, colleague and role model; and/or a "muse" – one who inspires creativity and artistic/academic passion in others.

More than 30 Kent State women were nominated and all nominees will be honored at the annual scholarship fundraiser event.

The fundraising event is in the Kent State Ballroom Balcony on Tuesday, March 8, from 5-7:30 p.m. Guest speakers and 2010 honorees Judy Devine and Eboni Pringle will kick off the program. The Do Re Mi female jazz combo will provide entertainment. Attendees will be able to participate in a raffle and auction. Complimentary hors d'oeuvres and a cash bar will be available.

"The annual scholarship fundraiser is a chance for the university community to come together to honor and support women as well as help raise scholarship funds for outstanding students," says Anne Reid, a Women's Center Advisory Board member.

"It's an opportunity to celebrate the women who have helped us in our careers and our lives as mothers, mentors and muses."

Tickets to the event that are purchased before Feb. 23 will cost $20 and tickets at the door wll be $25. The event is $5 for Kent State University students. Registration forms are available at the Women's Center.

The Women's Center endowed scholarship fund, established in 2003, provides two Kent State University female students with $500 scholarships. To date, 14 women have received scholarships.

"I think people that attend the reception leave with a sense of appreciation for being surrounded by extraordinary women," says Randi Schneider, a Women's Center Advisory Board member.

For more information, visit www.kent.edu/womenscenter .

By Sarah James

Inaugural Spirit of Women in Business Conference Set to Inspire Women Leaders March 10

Kent State University’s College of Business Administration is hosting its first Spirit of Women in Business Conference on March 10, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the Kent Student Center. Students, professionals and seasoned business veterans are encouraged to attend and participate in this inaugural event.

Lisa Clarke

The day will be divided into three 60-minute breakout sessions. Participants can choose one of three different presentation options for each session. The sessions will include a wide range of topics, including social media, entrepreneurship and work-life balance. In addition, there will be a continental breakfast, a keynote lunch and a networking reception.

Sponsors of the conference include the Alumni Association; Center for Student Involvement; Division of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion; Donor Relations; Institutional Advancement University Relations; and the Women’s Center.

“Our conference planning committee designed a day that will provide career-building and life-skill topics to women at various junctures of their careers, along with the opportunity to network in an informal setting,” says Patty Bujorian, chairperson of the conference planning committee and staff member at the College of Business Administration. “We are thrilled to be bringing back to campus successful and dynamic alumna Lisa Clarke, who will share her story with our conference attendees during lunch.”

Clarke, MBA ’94, will deliver the keynote speech. Clarke is the president and CEO of Rally Marketing Group, an integrated marketing and promotions agency in Seattle, Wash. Her background includes executive leadership roles in data storage, microelectronics and marketing services. In 2005, she was voted one of the top 40 business leaders under 40 in the Puget Sound region.

Pre-registration must be done by March 4 or on-site registration may be done the day of the conference. General pre-registration is $30 and student pre-registration is $12. On-site registration will be $40 for general and $15 for students. Registrants also have the option of earning continuing education units, and simply need to indicate that preference on the registration form. For more information on pricing, or to register, visit the registration website.

In conjunction with the Spirit of Women in Business Conference, the College of Business Administration will host a resource fair, providing a venue for local businesses and organizations to showcase their services and products to conference attendees. The fair will be located in the second floor rotunda of the Kent Student Center from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tables will be available on a first-come, first-served basis, and the registration deadline for tables is March 4. For more information, or to reserve a table, visit www.kent.edu/business/wib.

Discuss Collaborations with Rockwell Automation on Feb. 15

On Tuesday, Feb. 15, the Division of Research and Sponsored Programs will host a Research Partnerships Forum with Rockwell Automation titled "Collaboration with the Rockwell Automation Advanced Technology Lab," from 9:30 a.m. until noon in Room 306 of the Kent Student Center.

The event is a cross-disciplinary discussion for faculty to meet with Rockwell Automation leaders to identify potential collaborative research areas. Potential areas of mutual interest include: sensors, manufacturing and automation, forecasting, sustainability, intelligent systems, autonomous systems and more. Industries served range from automotive to life sciences to semiconductor/electronics.

Rockwell Automation evolved from the integration of Rockwell International, Allen-Bradley and Reliance Electric businesses and is one of the leading automation suppliers in the world. Rockwell products and solutions help manufacturers succeed and grow with automation control and information solutions that span a wide range of industries. With $4.8 billion in annual sales and 19,000 employees, customers are served in more than 80 countries. Rockwell Automation's Advanced Technologies Labs, including its lab in Mayfield Heights, initiate and lead collaborative programs with universities around the world to help advance core technologies and address challenging design and customer application issues.

Agenda:
9:30 a.m. - Refreshments
10 a.m. - Presentation by Rockwell Automation
11 a.m. - Open discussion
11:30 - noon - Wrap-up

To RSVP, contact Sheila Pratt at 330-672-0701 or spratt@kent.edu .

Kent State University at Trumbull Announces Black History Month Speakers

Mwatabu Okantah

Join Kent State University at Trumbull in February as it celebrates Black History Month with a variety of activities including series of featured speakers, which will include:

Professor Mwatabu Okantah: Poetry Reading and Lecture
Tuesday, Feb. 15, 12:30 p.m. / Room 202 (Classroom/Administration Building)

Okantah is an assistant professor and Poet-in-Residence in the Department of Pan-African Studies at Kent State University. He is a widely recognized poet and motivational speaker. Okantah will be delivering a spoken word poetry presentation from his original works and will be providing commentary pertinent to Black History Month to complement the readings. A question and answer session will follow.

Dr. George Garrison: Africa and Africans in the Early Christian Bible and Early Christianity
Wednesday, Feb. 23, 6:30 p.m. / Room 202 (Classroom/Administration Building)

Dr. Garrison is a tenured professor at Kent State University. His scholarly works are published nationally and internationally. Before his time at Kent State, Garrison served in the Vietnam War and also taught at a boarding school in the Navajo nation. Garrison will discuss some of the major and minor figures in the Old and New Testaments of the Christian Bible, and examine the evidence of their African heritage, including such well-known individuals as Adam and Eve, Noah, Moses, Ramses (Pharaoh of the Exodus) and Simon of Cyrene, among others. Geographical areas of Africa that are in the Bible will also be discussed. This lecture will also identify Africans who were popes in the early Catholic church and important African theologians such as Origen, Tertullian and St. Augustine who helped to expand and develop Christianity in its early days.

Lifeshare will be conducting two blood drives on Monday, Feb. 21, and Tuesday, Feb. 22, near the Classroom/Administration Building from 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. each day.

For additional information regarding these events, please contact Jacob Roope at 330-675-8858 or via e-mail at jroope@kent.edu.

Make Plans to Spend Part of Your Thursdays With Kent Reads, Kent Writes

Kent Reads, Kent Writes is a read-aloud series presented by University Libraries. The Kent Reads, Kent Writes series features engaging and thoughtful Kent State University faculty, administrators, alumni and current students reading aloud from meaningful works of literature, poetry, original creative writings and nonfiction.

The Kent Reads, Kent Writes series is free and open to the public. Join us every Thursday from 3-4 p.m. in the lobby of the Library on the Kent Campus. Light refreshments will be provided.

The current list of speakers is:

Feb. 17: Dr. David Odell Scott and Professor Lauren Odell-Scott (tentative)
Feb. 24: Don Bubenzer
March 3: Adam Steele
March 10: Dr. Denise Seachrist, author of Snow Hill: In the Shadows of the Ephrata Cloister
March 11: Avery Caswell, author of Luck, A Collection of Facts, Fiction, Incantation and Verse at Kent
March 17: TBD
March 31: Mark Dawidziak and Paul Bauer, coauthors of Jim Tully: American Writer, Irish Rover, Hollywood Brawler (forthcoming in May 2011)
April 7: Jason Prufer
April 14: Dr. John R. Crawford
April 21: TBD
April 28: Tom Batiuk, author of Lisa's Story: The Other Shoe

For more information about the series, contact Diane Sperko at dsperko@kent.edu .

Faculty to Showcase Experiential Education Projects

The Office of Experiential Education and Civic Engagement would like to invite you to participate in a Showcase of Excellence in Action on Thursday, Feb. 17, from 5-7 p.m. in the Moulton Hall first floor atrium. The Showcase of Excellence Action will precede the highly anticipated Decoding the Disciplines presentation to be held at 7 p.m. in the Moulton Hall Ballroom.

Dr. Tina Kandakai, Coordinator of the Office of Experiential Education and Civic Engagement, describes experiential education as a teaching method that serves as an extension of class-based learning by engaging students in community efforts that allow them to develop and apply their skills in a manner that promotes public good.

Attendees of the Showcase of Excellence in Action can expect to see a collection of model experiential learning programs, courses and opportunities as well as a clear view of how faculty efforts in experiential education are fulfilling the strategic goals of Kent State University. Attendees will walk away with a Showcase of Excellence in Action booklet of exemplary experiential education at Kent State.

Kandakai says she is “just hoping individuals will be able to take away a better perspective about the kind of work that is happening on our campus and with some ideas about ways that they can enhance the student experience through experiential education.”

For additional information, contact Kandakai at tkandaka@kent.edu or 330-672-7876, or visit the website at www.kent.edu/experiential .

Kent State University at Stark Theatre Presents Songs For a New World

Kent State University at Stark Theatre presents the 2010-11 season's musical theatrical production, Songs For A New World by Jason Robert Brown. This powerful pop/rock revue musical by one of America's hottest young composers will be performed Feb. 18, 19, 25 and 26 at 8 p.m. and Feb. 20 and 27 at 2:30 p.m. in the theatre of the Fine Arts Building. Brown's multi-genre music and poignant lyrics define the characters that must choose to survive or fail in a new world where family, distance, money, technology and the very nature of human contact is changing every day.

The opening evening is Scholarship Night. All of the proceeds from the Feb. 18 performance will benefit music and theatre scholarships. American Sign Language interpretation will be provided at the performance on Feb. 20 at 2:30 p.m.

Ticket prices are $12 for adults and $5 for non-Kent State students, children under 17 and senior citizens. All Kent State students are admitted free of charge with a current student ID. For reservations and group rates, contact the Kent State Stark Theatre box office, Mondays through Fridays from 1 to 5 p.m. at 330-244-3348.

Directing Songs For a New World is Kent State Stark Assistant Professor of Theatre and Theatre Director Brian Newberg. Laurel Seeds is the music director; Louis Williams is the scenic and lighting designer; Susan Blurton is the costume designer; and Ron Jarvis is the sound designer.

Finding Efficiency in Good Learning: The Large Class Experience

Fill the seats, fill the minds. Learning why your course is the most important thing to their future is essential for students, even when it is challenging to their world. This series will challenge you to learn about taking your expertise and pairing it with appropriate and supportive tools to keep the emphasis on the learning, not on the managing of a class.

• Decoding the Disciplines, Spring Learning Institute, Feb. 17-18
• Moving Across the Continuum: Experiential Education in Large Sections, Tina Kandakai, Office of Experiential Education and Civic Engagement, March 4, 2011.
• Team-Based Learning, Paul Koles, M.D., March 16-17, 2011 Moulton Hall Ballroom (Co-sponsored by the College of Nursing)
• Managing the Many, What Technology Has to Offer (Clickers, Blackboard9, Prezi and other tools) March 28, 2011.

For more information, visit the Faculty Professional Development Center website.

Delisle to Speak About Parenting Gifted Children at Kent State University at Tuscarawas

Kent State University at Tuscarawas and the East Central Ohio Educational Service Center are co-sponsoring a presentation by renowned speaker, author and educator James R. Delisle, Ph.D. on Wed., March 2 at Kent State Tuscarawas. The presentation begins at 6 p.m. in Founders Hall auditorium, with doors opening at 5:30 p.m. Although the event is free to the public, reservations are required and can be made by calling the East Central Ohio ESC at 330-308 9939, ext. 8203.

James Delisle

Delisle's presentation, Parenting Gifted Kids: Tips for Raising Happy and Successful Children, is designed for parents, educators, families and students. He will focus on the unique characteristics of gifted individuals and share his personal perspective of the social and emotional needs of gifted students.

Delisle has taught gifted children and those who work on their behalf for more than 30 years. He retired from Kent State in 2008 after 25 years as a professor of special education. In 2004, he received the Distinguished Teaching Award.

Throughout his career, Delisle has volunteered extensively as an elementary school teacher in South Carolina, and for 10 years taught gifted middle school students one day a week in the Twinsburg public schools. Delisle believes the practical nature of his presentations is a direct result of his frequent intervention into the world of schools.

The author of more than 250 articles and 15 books, Delisle's work has been translated into multiple languages and has been featured in both professional journals and in popular media such as The New York Times and on Oprah! A few of his published books include: The Gifted Kids' Survival Guide: A Teen Handbook, (co-author: Judy Galbraith); When Gifted Kids Don't Have All the Answers, (co-author: Judy Galbraith); Parenting Gifted Kids andBarefoot Irreverence: A Collection of Writing in Gifted Child Education. A frequent presenter throughout the U.S., he has also addressed audiences in England, Greece, China, Turkey and Saudi Arabia. For almost 20 years he has been a columnist for Gifted Child Today magazine. His twice-annual column is titled "Au Contraire."

Delisle earned a Bachelor of Science in elementary and special education from the University of Maine, a Master's of Education in special education from Millersville University and a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology - Gifted Education from the University of Connecticut.