Kent State Celebrates Crawford Hall Grand Opening

“Kent’s mission includes being a top-tier business school that employs an entrepreneurial mindset, and its core values include excellence, accountability, collaboration, inclusivity and respect,” Claire Crawford said. “These are words that represent Kent and also exemplify the essence of my grandfather, a true entrepreneur. And with this entrepreneurial mindset, the vision for Crawford Hall came to fruition.” 

“[Crawford Hall] combines the transformative power of higher education with the transformative power of entrepreneurship, and this transformative power is not just available to the fortunate few, but to the meritorious many,” said Todd Diacon, Kent State president. “So in this spirit … welcome to Crawford Hall, home of the American Dream.”

Crawford Hall is a four-story, nearly 150,000-square-foot building designed by architecture firms Perkins + Will, a firm ranked No. 2 in the United States by Architectural Record, and The Collaborative. The building features a range of dynamic learning environments and collaboration spaces, including:  

• The 360-degree James R. Unger Global Forum, a theatre-in-the-round classroom that seats 400.
• Tiered business theatre.
• The Robert M. and Janet L. Archer Business Analytics Lab. 
• The John S. and Marlene J. Brinzo Center for Entrepreneurship.
• The Walter G. and Judy A. Van Benthuysen Collaboration Staircase. 
• The Donald S. and Johnna F. Grant Atrium.
• The Angelo and Joyce Kinicki Classroom.
• The Arthur and Susan Karas Behavioral Research Hub. 

This best-in-class facility exemplifies the power of philanthropy through the lead gift from Ambassador Edward F. Crawford and his family, the largest single gift in Kent State history, and the private support of many other proud alumni and friends. In addition to being the largest academic building on any Kent State campus, Crawford Hall features 48 philanthropically named spaces, the most of any Kent State facility. The donors who contributed to this project previewed the building during a private dinner held in August.  

The Marching Golden Flashes celebrated the event by welcoming students, faculty and guests to the building with musical selections. The event concluded with a selection from “Lord of the Dance” performed by the Kent State University Orchestra. In addition, a special proclamation from the Ohio Governor’s Office recognizing the positive impact of Crawford Hall on the community was announced. Guests then had the opportunity to explore Crawford Hall and enjoy refreshments.  

Kent State Today recently toured some of the innovative spaces inside Crawford Hall.