eInside Events

Support National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day at Kent State, Feb. 7

Hydeia Broadbent, international HIV/AIDS
activist, will present “The Changing Face
of AIDS” on Wednesday, Feb. 8 at the Kent
Student Center Kiva.

National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day is Tuesday, Feb. 7, and Kent State University is hosting several opportunities for the community.

Attendees can pick up a free tri-color pin and sign up to win a free T-shirt at the outreach table located on the 2nd floor of the Kent Student Center on Feb. 7. Staff also will pass out educational materials, risk reduction kits, refreshments and promotional items while supplies last.

Hydeia Broadbent, international HIV/AIDS activist, will present “The Changing Face of AIDS” on Wednesday, Feb. 8. The event begins at 7 p.m. and continues until 8 p.m. in the Kent Student Center Kiva, and is free and open to the public.

“HIV/AIDS still affects thousands of people each year,” says event committee member Leanna Lampkin of University Health Services’ Office of Health Promotion at Kent State. “It is very important to be more informed about HIV/AIDS and begin to take steps to stop the spread of this disease.”

Broadbent will speak about the struggles of HIV/AIDS. At birth, Broadbent was abandoned at the University Medical Center of Southern Nevada in Las Vegas where Patricia and Loren Broadbent adopted her as an infant. Although her HIV condition was congenital, she was not diagnosed as HIV-positive with advancement to AIDS until age three. The prognosis was that she would not live past the age of five. Now at the age of 25, Broadbent spends her time spreading the message of HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention by promoting abstinence, safe sex practices for people who chose to have sex. Broadbent’s primary goal is to raise awareness about the disease and provide an understanding of avoiding risky situations.

“This same disease I am living with is the same disease you can get if you don’t practice abstinence or safe sex,” Broadbent says. “I ask people to use my testimony as a warning of what you don’t want to go through.”

Undergraduate Student Government is funding the event. The speaker is being sponsored by FACE AIDS-Kent State and co-sponsored by University Health Services’ Office of Health Promotion.

The Kent State Health Center is offering the university community free confidential HIV tests on Thursday, Feb. 9, from 10 a.m. to 3:45 p.m. To schedule an appointment, call the University Health Services’ Office of Health Promotion at 330-672-2320.

National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day initiatives are being co-sponsored by University Health Services’ Office of Health Promotion, FACE AIDS-Kent State, KSU-NAACP and Public Health Student Alliance.

For more information about University Health Services and its Office of Health Promotion, go to www.kent.edu/uhs/ohp.

Middle East Expert and Author to Discuss the Arab- and Muslim-American Experience at Two Northeast Ohio Events

Princeton University professor and author Amaney Jamal has directed a number of major studies focused on understanding the Arab- and Muslim-American experience. The public will have the opportunity to hear and engage with Jamal at two Northeast Ohio appearances in early February, sponsored by Kent State University and the Northeast Ohio Consortium for Middle East Studies (NOCMES).

Jamal will be a part of a community conversation, “Charting the Arab and Muslim Experience,” on Thursday, Feb. 9, at 6:30 p.m. at the Islamic Center of Cleveland, located at 6055 West 130th St. in Parma, Ohio.

On Friday, Feb. 10, at noon, Jamal will be the guest speaker at the City Club Forum. The City Club of Cleveland is located at 850 Euclid Ave.

Jamal is an associate professor of politics at Princeton University where she directs the Workshop on Arab Political Development. She is the author of several books on the democratization and the politics of civic engagement in the Arab World, including Barrier to Democracy: The Other Side of Social Capital in Palestine and the Arab World, which won the Best Book Award in Comparative Democratization at the American Political Science Association (2008).

Jamal also has written extensively on Arab-American patterns of civic engagement and led several major research projects exploring the Arab- and Muslim-American experience. Her forthcoming book is Of Empires and Citizens: Pro-American Democracy or No Democracy at All?

The Feb. 9 community conversation event is free and open to the public, but registration is required. Register at http://newperspectivesinclevelandjamal.eventbrite.com.

Tickets for the City Club Forum on Feb. 10 are $18 for members and $30 for non-members. Reservations must be made 24 hours in advance of the event by calling 1-888-223-6786 or 216-621-0082.

NOCMES was founded in 2010 when higher education institutions in Northeast in Northeast Ohio — including Kent State, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland State University and Oberlin College — recognized a need for educational forums to understand the complicated issues affecting the Middle East, as well as the cultural, economic, political and social influences that contribute to the dynamics of the region’s problems.

The consortium leaders include Joshua Stacher, Department of Political Science, Kent State University; Pete W. Moore, Department of Political Science, Case Western Reserve University; and Neda A. Zawahri, Department of Political Science, Cleveland State University.

“The consortium is fortunate to again be bringing public intellectuals, academics and award-winning journalists to Northeast Ohio this spring,” Stacher says. “By taking academia into the public sphere, we are learning a tremendous amount about the Arab and Muslim world at this critical juncture. But the project's hidden success has been what our communities are learning about themselves through their participation in these community events.”

The series “New Perspectives on Muslim and Middle Eastern Societies” is presented by NOCMES, with support from the Social Science Research Council and in partnership with Civic Commons, Ideastream and the City Club of Cleveland.

Kent State’s College of Arts and Sciences and the university’s Department of Political Science are event partners for Jamal’s appearances.

For more information, visit http://theciviccommons.com/issues/new-perspectives/?from=newperspectives.

Kent State Planetarium Presents The Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence

The Kent State University Planetarium will present
The Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence on Feb. 17, 18
and 24.

The Kent State University Planetarium in the Department of Physics presents The Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence on Feb. 17, 18 and 24, at 8 p.m. The hour-long shows will be presented in Room 108 at Smith Hall. This is the planetarium’s first in a series of free public shows for 2012.

The presentation will showcase humanity’s search for intelligent life on other worlds.

“After a tour of the lovely Ohio night sky, we will explore celestial objects that may harbor life millions to trillion miles away,” says Brett Ellman, associate professor and planetarium director. “We will then describe ongoing attempts to communicate with whomever may be listening and the huge, difficult, worldwide effort to find the needle of an intelligent message within the haystack of cosmic radio noise.

Call 330-672-2246 to make reservations for the presentation. Any individuals needing special accommodations are encouraged to contact the Department of Physics prior to the desired show date to make arrangements.

For more information, visit http://planetarium.kent.edu.

Spring Learning Institute Will Discuss How to Improve Teaching and Learning Through Scholarship

Dr. Kathleen McKinney, cross endowed chair at Illinois State University, will help Kent State faculty members and administrators find mutual benefit for student learning outcomes and demonstrated contributions to the academy. McKinney, who raises expectations of Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SOTL), will visit Kent State on Friday, Feb. 17, from 11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m., in Room 306 of the Kent Student Center. An RSVP is required to attend the event.

The title of the session, “Improving the Culture of Teaching and Learning Through Scholarship,” calls on each member of the Kent State community to look at the learning environments, teaching styles and technology used to enhance the learning of students.

“Together, we set expectations, provide resources and nurture student success through scholarly questions and answers,” says Jeffrey Pellegrino, Ph.D., assistant director of Kent State’s Faculty Professional Development Center.

McKinney also will help connect this work to the university’s strategic initiatives to help demonstrate the value of teaching in the life of the student and for the university. Please consider inviting colleagues and academic administrators to this event from 11:00 a.m. to 12:15 p.m., in 306 of the Kent Student Center.

Click here to register for the event.

In her presentation, three general areas will be discussed and illustrated:

1. How research and scholarship on teaching and learning on campus can positively influence institutional culture and initiatives;
2. Common understandings of research/scholarship on teaching and learning in the higher education community today (i.e., scholarship of teaching and learning as research and the current state of the field); and
3. How institutional culture can encourage and support research and scholarship on teaching and learning on campus.
   

This event is sponsored by the Faculty Professional Development Center and the Teaching Scholar program. The call for Teaching Scholar applications is now available, and faculty of all ranks are encouraged to apply.

The Kent State School of Theatre and Dance Continues Season With Ragtime

A story that personifies societal change during early 20th-century America through character relationships

Ragtime personifies societal change
during early 20th-century America
through character relationships.

Kent State University's School of Theatre and Dance, in collaboration with the Hugh A. Glauser School of Music, presents the emotionally-charged musical, Ragtime, based on the novel written by E. L. Doctorow in 1975. Directed by Eric van Baars, the show will run from Feb. 17-26, at the E. Turner Stump Theatre in the Music and Speech Center at 1325 Theatre Dr. This concert version follows the original story with the addition of a scaled-down orchestra, which is under the musical direction of Jonathan Swoboda, musical director for the School of Theatre and Dance, and Kerry Glann, director of Opera for the School of Music.

“Ragtime is an epic tale of three families struggling to protect the ones they love. The music packs an emotional punch,” says van Baars. “Bring tissues — it will be the best cry you’ll ever have!”

Ragtime is a story about life during Progressive-era America at the beginning of the 20th century. The show illustrates the issues of the time — from immigration, racism and politics to industrialization and social chaos — through the intermingling of characters and familiar historical figures. Harry Houdini, Booker T. Washington and Henry Ford connect with the story’s characters in unpredictable settings to add an unusual literary component.

“Just as in Doctorow’s compelling novel, the historical figures ground the characters in the reality of the times,” says van Baars. “More importantly, the historical figures provide inspiration and spiritual guidance for the characters.”

An associate professor in the School of Theatre and Dance, van Baars teaches Movement and Acting. He has directed productions of Oklahoma, The Diviners, Lysistrata, On The Verge, Honk!, The Wild Party, and A New Brain. He also serves as assistant artistic director of Porthouse Theatre where he has directed Pump Boys and Dinettes and Dames at Sea and choreography for Once On This Island, Big River, A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum and The Fantasticks. He is a member of the Actors Equity Association and the Society of Directors and Choreographers.

Shows run Wednesday through Saturday at 8 p.m., and Sunday at 2 p.m. The box office is open weekdays from noon to 5 p.m. and one hour prior to each performance. For tickets or more information, call 330-672-2497 or visit www.theatre.kent.edu. The box office accepts Visa, MasterCard, Discover, checks and cash. Tickets are $8 students, $12 seniors (60+), $14 for faculty, staff and Alumni Association members, and $16 for adults. Groups of 10 or more are $7 per person.

Kent State students get 500-point FLASHperks day at 8 p.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 22.

Workshop Series Teaches Stress Reduction, Happiness

Out of the Matrix, a series of five workshops that teach the benefits of being happy, will take place every Wednesday, beginning March 7 through April 11, except for the week of spring break, from 3 - 5 p.m., in Room 319 at the Kent Student Center.

The self-empowerment workshop, a $395 value, is free and open to faculty, staff and graduate students. Out of the Matrix is focused on teaching individuals about happiness. The knowledge learned can be applied in both the workplace and at home, and can result in more peace of mind, better productivity, more self-confidence and a greater sense of purpose. Workshop attendees will discover how to reduce stress, connect more with their students and find more joy in teaching.

Faculty and staff members who attend the five workshops at the Kent Campus can take the full 20-hour weekend intensive workshop for free.

Click here to register for the workshop.

For more information, contact Kent State Professor Emeritus Walter Davis, Ph.D., at 330-931-1116 or wdavis@kent.edu or visit www.outofthematrix.org.

Kent State Picked For 11 a.m. ESPNU Broadcast on Feb. 11

Join the Golden Flashes for a ‘GOLDOUT’ against Ball State

The Golden Flashes' Feb. 11 game against Ball State will
be broadcast on ESPNU beginning at 11 a.m. Fans are
encouraged to wear gold to the game.

Kent State’s Feb. 11 men’s basketball game against Ball State has been selected for an 11 a.m. broadcast on ESPNU. Kent State fans are encouraged to wear gold to the game as the Golden Flashes host a ‘GOLDOUT’ for the nationally-televised contest.

In addition to the ‘GOLDOUT,’ Kent State will be giving away a “Crazy Hair” wig to the first 1,000 fans through the door.

Halftime entertainment includes a performance by the Marquette School of Dance and a series shootout for a chance to win $10,000.

For tickets, call the Kent State Athletics Ticket Office at 330-672-2244.

Kent State University at Stark Theatre presents Evil Dead: The Musical

College friends, portrayed by Elizabeth Casper and Connor
Reese on left and Steve Grisez on right, encounter a demonic
force in Kent State University at Stark Theatre’s campy production
of Evil Dead: The Musical, opening Friday, Feb. 17.

Kent State University at Stark Theatre will present Evil Dead: The Musical on Feb. 17, 18, 23, 24 and 25 at 8 p.m. and on Feb. 19 and 26 at 2:30 p.m. in the Kent State Stark Theatre, 6000 Frank Ave. NW in Jackson Township. The musical production is based on George Reinblatt’s book and lyrics and the music is by Frank Cipolla, Christopher Bond, Melissa Morris and George Reinblatt. American Sign Language interpretation will be provided for the performance on Feb. 19 at 2:30 p.m. Opening night is Scholarship Night, with proceeds benefitting Kent State Stark music and theatre students.

Evil Dead: The Musical combines elements of the Evil Dead and Army of Darkness cult classic films for a blood-splattering theatrical experience. The story follows five college students who get abandoned at a cabin and accidentally unleash an evil force that turns them into demons. Hailed as “The next Rocky Horror Picture Show” by The New York Times, the hero in this campy musical of horror and hilarity must weld his trusty chainsaw to save the day. Limbs are dismembered, and demons tell bad jokes while performing uproarious numbers, such as All the Men in my Life Keep Getting Killed by Candarian Demons and What the F#%k Was That? Viewer discretion is strongly advised due to gratuitous profanity, gore and adult subject matter.

Ticket prices are $14 for adults and $10 for non-Kent State students, children under 17 and senior citizens. All Kent State students are admitted free with a current FLASHcard. Tickets are on sale now. Reserve tickets online at www.stark.kent.edu/theatre or call the Kent State Stark Theatre Box Office at 330-244-3348, Mondays through Fridays from 1 to 5 p.m.

Directing Evil Dead is Kent State Stark Assistant Professor of Theatre and Theatre Director Brian Newberg. Melissa Fucci is the musical director, Angelo Lemo is the choreographer, and Louis Williams is the scenic and lighting designer. Susan Blurton is the costume designer, and Ron Jarvis is the sound designer.