New storytelling platforms are emerging as audiences continue to consume news digitally and students in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication are exploring new ways to use their journalism skills. Valerie Royzman, ‘21, traveled with Assistant Professor Susan Zake to a hack-a-thon at West Virginia University. In the competition, she had to combine journalism and technology to create a solution to accessibility issues in elementary school classrooms. “We saw a great need for our product because teachers across the board don’t have enough resources in the classroom,” Royzman ...

Kent State University researchers create cutting-edge geospatial technology to map drug points, find solutions Driving through the streets of Ravenna on a weekday afternoon, you probably wouldn’t notice anything out of the ordinary. Gray clouds hover overhead. There is a steady hum of traffic lurking in the air. A mom pushes a stroller down West Main Street. But as a Ravenna police officer looks at the parking lot of a popular fast food restaurant, it sparks haunting memories of a quiet killer lurking around every-day people in broad daylight. “The bathroom is very common for heroin overdose...

Supporters give more than $1 million Kent State University’s Giving Tuesday 2017 doubled the 2016 campaign – hitting more than $1 million just before midnight on Tuesday, Nov. 28. The single largest gift of the day was a $100,000 donation to the Fashion School Study Away Fund. From multiple student study abroad scholarships to research opportunities and poetry programs, there were more than 40 featured giving options across the Kent State system from which to choose. Watch thank you video from Kent State President Beverly Warren.     “We are beyond thrilled that Gi...

It’s not every day that you try your hand at developing a sophisticated software that can adapt to unique situations presented by each user--not unlike Apple’s Artificial Intelligence (AI) service, Siri or Amazon’s Echo App. But for some, it’s simply another day on the job. What is it? For the past month, a select team from Systems Development and Innovation (SDI) has been “kicking the idea around” of experimenting with some new services that Amazon has made available to the public--namely, access to the same programming interface used by the Echo App. For a fee, Amazon allows access to ...

Sister’s Christmas Catechism: The Mystery of the Magi’s Gold to appear at the Performing Arts Center at Kent State University at Tuscarawas on Dec. 20 at 7:30 p.m.   It's "CSI: Bethlehem" in this holiday mystery extravaganza, from the author of Late Nite Catechism, as Sister takes on the mystery that has intrigued historians throughout the ages - whatever happened to the Magi's gold? Retelling the story of the nativity, as only Sister can, this hilarious holiday production is bound to become a yearly classic. Employing her own scientific tools, assisted by a local choir as well as a...

The College of Communication and Information celebrated Giving Tuesday 2017 with a “give thanks” event held in the CCI Commons in Olson Hall. Students, staff and alumni gathered to say thank you to the donors who supported the First Passport Fund and Student Media Fund. Guests made handmade thank-you cards for donors and holiday crafts for Akron Children's Hospital. All had fun at the themed selfie station. Stephanie Smith, an assistant professor in the Schools of Communication Studies and Journalism and Mass Communication, shaved her head after supporters gave more than $...