After 20 years as a faculty member and eight years as director of the School of Theatre and Dance, Eric van Baars will retire from Kent State University this summer. Whether as School of Theatre and Dance director, Porthouse Theatre executive producer, faculty member, actor, director, choreographer, or commencement announcer, Eric's leadership, mentorship, and friendship has helped define the excellence and collegiality of the School of Theatre and Dance. We will miss him and congratulate him on this new chapter. An alumnus of Kent State University's M.F.A. in Acting program, ...

Morgan Bowers, a senior Honors College student from Whitehouse, Ohio, is nearing the end of “pitching” a perfect game. As an economics major with a minor in data analytics, Morgan will graduate a year early in the spring of 2022, having only attended Kent State University for three years to earn her undergraduate business degree. While the race to graduate early is becoming more commonplace in the higher education community, what makes Morgan stand out is that she has navigated this educational path while also fielding the position of pitcher on the Kent State’s Division I women’s softball ...

In the late 1980s, the Ohio state legislature recognized the value in fostering arts and culture and supporting artists and craftspeople. They acted on this belief by passing the Percent for Art law which went into effect July 1, 1990. This law provides funding for acquiring, commissioning and installing works of art in any new or renovated public building whose appropriation exceeds more than $4 million. Decades later, this law would come into play when the 2019-2020 Ohio state budget provided funding to create an innovation and research hub focused on advanced manufacturing. And so was born...

On May 1, 2022, the School of Fashion premiered the 2022 Fashion Show Film on YouTube. The film features designs by 30 School of Fashion students, all of whom also displayed their designs in the in-person Annual Fashion Show that took place April 28-30 in Rockwell Hall. Watch the 2022 Fashion Show Film The 2022 Fashion Show Film is presented in two different styles – one with commentary by designers and one without. Watch with Commentary Watch without Commentary    ...