In honor of Kent State University’s virtual 51st Commemoration of May 4, 1970, new digital content for the May 4 augmented virtual reality experience is set to premiere.
The May 4 augmented reality experience is designed to engage and immerse users as they journey through and reflect upon the events of May 4, 1970, the day the Ohio National Guard fired on Kent State students during an anti-war protest, killing four and wounding nine students. The experience invites users to view multiple perspectives of the Kent State shootings through the lens of augmented reality using historical imagery, audio and related experiences that highlight past and current humanitarian struggles.
The new content will virtually expand on new markers that represent the position of the students wounded by gunfire and their distance from the guardsmen. Another marker represents the position of the guardsmen. This additional content rounds out a complete experience of visiting the May 4 site on campus.
Spearheaded by Richard Ferdig, Ph.D., Summit Professor of Learning Technologies and professor of educational technology in Kent State’s College of Education, Health and Human Services, the project team behind the cultivation of this immersive experience, which was funded by a 2020 grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), is excited and honored to provide a virtual experience for those who cannot attend in person due to the global pandemic.
“We have been so blessed to have funding by the National Endowment for the Humanities to be able to create our May 4 extended reality project,” Ferdig said. “The project allows users who are unable to come to campus to view the same material through virtual reality on their mobile devices or computers – something that is so important given our current COVID-19 travel restrictions. The addition of new content helps broaden and deepen understandings of the events of May 4, 1970.”
To learn more about the May 4 augmented reality experience tour and to learn more about the technology and project team that power this experience, visit https://may4thxr.kent.edu/index.html.
For more information about the virtual May 4 Commemoration, visit the May 4 Commemoration site.
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Media Contacts:
Richard Ferdig, rferdig@kent.edu, 330-672-3317
Eric Mansfield, emansfie@kent.edu, 330-672-2797