News Archive

Christian Cunningham, senior aeronautical studies major at Kent State University, has been doubted. Some said he would never become a pilot. But Cunningham is already proving them wrong. Graduation is on the horizon, and he and his internship were recently featured on CNN.

In times of uncertainty and hardship, you can stand back and wait for it to pass or get involved. During the pandemic, people in the town of Kent and the Kent State community wanted to make a difference. Two Kent State students became the catalysts that sparked a 10-week project of doing good.

Kent State alumna Brenna Parker grew up in a household that talked about important issues of the day, so it’s no surprise that her young career has been rooted in politics and civic engagement. As the nation votes leading up to the historic 2020 election on Nov. 3, Parker has taken on the role of Web and Facebook Strategist for Biden for President, sharing the former Vice President and Democratic nominee for President’s message with millions of voters online.

Campus Pride has released its 2020 Best of the Best LGBTQ-Friendly Colleges and Universities list, and for the first time in school history, Kent State University has landed on the distinctive list as one of 40 institutions recognized over six U.S. regions.

The sixth annual Run the World 5K run/walk to sponsor Kent State University’s study abroad scholarships is going virtual this year. For the first time, fans of Run the World from all over the world can participate remotely in this event designed to support student participation in international education. Participants will complete the 5K on their own time and at their own pace. Organizers invite participants to show their Kent State pride by wearing blue and gold during their run/walk and sharing their photos from all over the world with the Run the World community.

More than 21,200 people applied to be part of Kent State’s Class of 2024, and 3,819 can now consider themselves to be Golden Flashes.

Kiana Duncan, ‘18, developed a passion for traveling during her time at Kent State University, always taking advantage of every opportunity she had to study abroad and get new experiences. Upon graduating with a bachelor’s degree in Journalism in 2018, Duncan has been able to turn that love into her career.

The Association of Public and Land-grant Universities has selected Kent State University as one of four finalists for the association’s 2020 Degree Completion Award. The annual award works to identify, recognize and reward institutions that employ innovative approaches to improve degree completion while ensuring educational quality.

Kent State University recognizes that employees may want to vote on Election Day. As such, supervisors should provide employees with a reasonable amount of time to vote on Nov. 3.

Kent State University President Todd Diacon today announced the appointment of Melody Tankersley, Ph.D., to the position of senior vice president and provost, effective Nov. 1, 2020.

From Kent State to the White House, Sarah Matthews has been in the middle of the country's political scene since earning her degree in Public Relations in 2017. What she's learned along the way can help today's students better prepare for the careers that await.

The coming election is an important one, and voters – particularly first-time voters – are navigating a challenging landscape of information, misinformation, PACs, bots, memes, toxic debates and inflamed rhetoric. “Don’t Hate – Debate (And Vote)!” is an all-day teach-in event that will touch on many aspects of the elections, politics, political/social polarization and civil discourse.

The English as a Second Language (ESL) Center at Kent State recently moved its English Conversation Partner program online. Once an in-person activity only, the program’s transitioning to a remote environment has actually opened up new opportunities, such as involvement from alumni and additional unique groups and students being able to connect with their language partners regardless of their physical location. 

Darin Olson, D.M.A., is the new director of Athletic Bands at Kent State University. He leads the Marching Golden Flashes, Flasher Brass Pep Band, Kent Symphony Band and University Band. Olson is currently an active member of College Band Directors National Association and the National Association for Music Education. Learn more about Olson and his plans for his future at Kent State as he answers these 10 questions.

It would not be surprising if you have a social media app open right now; however, you may not be getting the enjoyment out of it that you think you are. In a recent publication in Computers in Human Behavior, two Kent State professors examined the relationship between social media usage and boredom. Students may be surprised by the results and parents might be excited by them.

When Curtis Cofojohn returned to Kent State after serving in the Army, he faced an issue many college students do: where was he going to live? Cofojohn’s own experiences with off-campus housing led him to create a website solution that serves the needs of both students and landlords, during the pandemic.

Kent State University has won a Best in Class award for supplier diversity from the Greater Cleveland Partnership. This marks the third time that the university has received this award. As a multiyear winner of the Best in Class awards, Kent State is also named to the Greater Cleveland Partnership’s Equity and Inclusion Hall of Fame.

Two Kent State sociology researchers are moving toward gaining insight into how people’s brains react in a variety of threatening situations using innovative virtual reality (VR) technology funded by the U.S. Department of Defense and the U.S. Army. Josh Pollock and William Kalkhoff, both in the Department of Sociology & Criminology, are leading the research projects, which will benefit the Army, Kent State students and others.

The Ohio Veterans Hall of Fame Class of 2020 includes alumnus David C. Lange, BA ‘75, who, following his freshman year at Kent State, entered the U.S. Navy and returned to Kent State after his military discharge to major in journalism. His graduation led to a 40-year newspaper career and numerous years as an advocate for veterans in Ohio.

Black lives and Black cultures have been underrepresented and discriminated against for many years. TEXTURES: The History and Art of Black Hair is an exhibition coming to the Kent State University Museum in 2021 with the help of significant sponsorship from corporate and federal funding that focuses on celebrating and empowering these lives and cultures.