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Kent State University at Stark student Cassandra Prater won first place for capturing the beauty of water in this photo.
Kent State University at Stark student Cassandra Prater won first place for capturing the beauty of water in this photo.
William Gould, a student at Kent State University at Stark, entered this photo of Blue Hens Falls in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park into the photo contest.
William Gould, a student at Kent State University at Stark, entered this photo of Blue Hens Falls in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park into the photo contest.
Alison Hartley, a Kent State University at Stark student, entered this photo of water droplets on a plant at Portage Lakes in the contest under the category of beauty.
Alison Hartley, a Kent State University at Stark student, entered this photo of water droplets on a plant at Portage Lakes in the contest under the category of beauty.
This photo of Beach City Falls was entered in the contest by Kent State University at Stark student Courtney Banta.
This photo of Beach City Falls was entered in the contest by Kent State University at Stark student Courtney Banta.
Kent State University at Stark student Ray Buffington won first place in the category of black and white with this photo of Brandywine Falls.
Kent State University at Stark student Ray Buffington won first place in the category of black and white with this photo of Brandywine Falls.
  • Kent State University at Stark student Cassandra Prater won first place for capturing the beauty of water in this photo.
  • William Gould, a student at Kent State University at Stark, entered this photo of Blue Hens Falls in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park into the photo contest.
  • Alison Hartley, a Kent State University at Stark student, entered this photo of water droplets on a plant at Portage Lakes in the contest under the category of beauty.
  • This photo of Beach City Falls was entered in the contest by Kent State University at Stark student Courtney Banta.
  • Kent State University at Stark student Ray Buffington won first place in the category of black and white with this photo of Brandywine Falls.

Picture Perfect

University Communications & Marketing
Students at Kent State University at Stark were given an opportunity to illustrate the beauty of water and the challenges it faces as one of our planet’s natural resources through photography. The contest was coordinated by the Hoover Environmental Initiative, a collaboration between Kent State Stark and the University of Miami (Florida), designed to develop generations of scholars who understand science and are able to produce new media that is fair, highly educational and effective in triggering change on individual and social levels.

Seven entries were chosen as winners based on the categories of beauty, challenges, the Nimishillen Creek Watershed, black and white and honorable mention, granting each student a Visa gift card. The winning photographs were announced during the campus’s Earth Day Celebration.

The following Kent State Stark students won in their respective categories:

  • Beauty: First Place - Cassandra Prater; Second Place - Hilary Brentin; Third Place - Ashley Meinke
  • Challenges: First Place - Colette Salem
  • Nimishillen Creek Watershed: First Place - Katelyn Imdorf
  • Black and White: First Place - Ray Buffington
  • Honorable Mention (Coordinator’s Choice): Arielle Adkins


All of the entries for the competition were displayed in Kent State Stark’s Main Hall Art Gallery.

As an outreach project of the Hoover Environmental Initiative, Kent State Stark senior magazine journalism major Mariana Silva is writing a multi-installment series on water for the online magazine Cool Cleveland. Her first two articles can be read at Our Water Webs: Part 1 and Our Water Webs: Part 2.  

For more information on the Hoover Initiative, visit www.stark.kent.edu/about/sustainability/hoover.cfm.