Community & Society

Rivals Unite for Social Change
Two archrival men's basketball teams worked together to produce a powerful video supporting the Black Lives Matter movement and encouraging everyone to register to vote in the 2020 election.
Changing Families and Futures: Kent State Receives Five-Year Grant Renewal for TRIO Student Support Services Program
The U.S. Department of Education has awarded Kent State University a $2.6 million, five-year TRIO Student Support Services program grant. The program serves students from first-generation and low-income backgrounds and students with diverse learning and physical abilities.

Kent State Holds Flashes Fight Hunger Contactless Food Drive on Aug. 26
Among the festivities marking the beginning of this unconventional semester, one Kent State University office is partnering with Portage County social service agencies to host a contactless food drive to collect items that will support members of campus and local communities. The Flashes Fighting Hunger Contactless Food Drive, organized by Kent State’s Community Engaged Learning, will take place on Wednesday, Aug. 26, from 4-8 p.m.

Kent State’s College of Public Health Hosts Virtual Public Health Academy for High School Students
We all know the world has changed, perhaps forever. The overall lesson of the COVID- 19 pandemic is that we need a public health workforce, prepared at all levels, to monitor the world for emerging infectious diseases, to prevent the spread of highly contagious diseases, to develop new treatments and vaccines, and to invent novel approaches never seen before. Kent State University’s College of Public Health is addressing this workforce challenge, in part, by hosting the 2020 Virtual Public Health Academy.

10 Questions With Melanie Knowles, Manager of Sustainability
Melanie Knowles is the manager of sustainability at Kent State University. In this role, she works with people all over campus to make cost-effective, better practices for the environment. Learn more about Knowles as she answers these 10 questions.

Public Health Students Have Boots on the Ground in COVID-19 Fight
When the Ohio Department of Health sought help this summer for work on the COVID-19 pandemic response, more than 110 students from Kent State University’s College of Public Health raised their hands to volunteer.

Public Hearing for Kent State Police Department’s Reaccreditation to Be Held July 27
The Kent State University Police Department is scheduled for a virtual assessment as part of a program to achieve international reaccreditation. Administered by the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies Inc. (CALEA), the program requires agencies to meet state-of-the-art standards in four basic areas: policy and procedures, administration, operations and support services.

History Professor’s Essay on Racial Equality Is Featured in Washington Post
Kent State University Associate Professor Elizabeth M. Smith-Pryor has authored a perspective piece on racial equality that is featured in the July 15 Washington Post column, “Made by History.”

Campus Kitchen Pivots Operations From Hot Meals to Food Pantry to Help Increasing Numbers of Food Insecure Due to COVID-19 Pandemic
The Campus Kitchen at Kent State University, a student-run organization that reclaims food to feed the needy in the Kent area, has had to swiftly switch gears from operating a hot food kitchen to an expanded food pantry.

Kent State’s Design Innovation Initiative Cultivates Creative Partnerships to Battle COVID-19
Members of Kent State University’s Design Innovation Initiative are forging creative collaborations with local and regional organizations and funders as they work toward the production of personal protective equipment (PPE) for first responders battling the COVID-19 pandemic.