Recognizing Trailblazers in the Kent State Community

During this year's Black History Month, Kent State University is highlighting Black trailblazers who were advocates for underrepresented and underserved students, faculty and staff as well as the first to make beneficial changes to Kent State.

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Oscar Ritchie 

Oscar Ritchie came to Kent State in 1942 to receive a Bachelor of Science degree in sociology. Five years later, Ritchie became the first African American to serve as faculty at a predominantly white university in Ohio. Kent State’s Oscar Ritchie Hall was named in his honor Nov. 10, 1977.

Members of the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity joined with the Department of Pan-African Studies to create a freshman textbook loan program to commemorate Ritchie. This scholarship is known as the Oscar Ritchie Scholarship and has secured funding for more than 300 incoming African American, Latino American and Native American students.

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E. Timothy Moore 

E. Timothy (Tim) Moore, associate dean emeritus in Kent State’s College of Arts and Sciences and associate professor emeritus in the Department of Pan-African Studies, was considered the “go-to” person for underrepresented and underserved students across the entire Kent State campus.

Moore was the first African American at Kent State to receive the Alumni Association’s Distinguished Teaching Award. Additionally, Moore was awarded Kent State’s annual Diversity Trailblazer Award in 2015 in honor of more than 40 years of contributing and advocating for diversity at the university. He received numerous awards throughout his career, including Who’s Who Among American Teaching for 1996 and 1998, the 2006 Distinguished Honors Faculty Award and the 2009 Service to Commission Award for the Liberal Arts Advisors Commission of the National Academic Advising Association.

Due to Moore’s outstanding efforts to Kent State and personal accomplishments, Kent State created two awards to celebrate his life and carry on his legacy: the E. Timothy Moore Outstanding Faculty-Staff Award and the E. Timothy Moore Scholarship. Moore passed away Feb. 1 at the age of 68.

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Alfreda Brown 

Alfreda Brown, Ed.D., Kent State’s former vice president for diversity, equity and inclusion, was awarded the university’s 2020 Diversity Trailblazer Award due to her years of promoting diversity, equity and inclusion across all of Kent State’s campuses and among students. For nearly 11 years, Brown dedicated her time to ensure that no one in the university was discriminated against and that everyone feels welcome, appreciated and understood.

The Diversity Trailblazer Award is now named in her honor.

Eboni Pringle

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Eboni Pringle, Ph.D., dean of University College, dedicates her time at Kent State to provide greater resources and opportunities for students. Some of her most recent contributions include a system-wide undergraduate research symposium to provide a high-impact experience for students, a President’s Symposium on retention for student success, the Dynamic Checklist in the enrollment process and Kent State’s placement processes for all eight campuses to ensure appropriate placement and academic success in beginning courses.

She also put in place UCommute, Off-Campus and Commuter Services, as a resource for students who do not live on campus, the Life Beyond KSU online courses to serve as a replacement for the First-Year Experience course requirement for graduating seniors, and the Literacy and Independence for Family Education (LIFE) Learning Community to support students’ parents in achieving the goal to secure a bachelor’s degree.

Pringle has also been involved in many university-wide services, including the MLK Celebration Taskforce, Strategic Visioning Advisory Committee and the Pan-African Faculty and Staff Association.

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Robert G. McGruder 

The definition of a trailblazer is to be a pioneer or an innovator. Robert G. McGruder is just that. He was the first Black editor of the Daily Kent Stater, the first Black reporter at The Plain Dealer in Cleveland, the first Black president of the Associated Press Managing Editors group and the first Black executive editor at the Detroit Free Press.

Kent State established a program to honor the legacy of McGruder. The annual Robert G. McGruder Distinguished Lecture and Awards program and the student diversity awards recognize those in the media who encourage diversity. This award is one of Kent State’s most successful efforts to date in celebrating diversity.

Tameka N. Ellington

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Tameka N. Ellington, Ph.D., interim assistant dean of the College of the Arts, recently launched a project called “TEXTURES: The History and Art of Black Hair,” which is the most ambitious exhibit in scope that the Kent State University Museum has ever curated. This exhibit will launch in fall 2021 and is dedicated to giving a voice to the Black community in three categories: Black Joy, Hair Politics, and Community and Memory. It is the largest exhibition on Black hair with more than 250 curated objects and more than 50 artists. Ellington is in the process of writing an anthology titled “Navigating the Black Hair Phenomenon in a White World” alongside this exhibit, which is set to release this fall.

Ellington is also the CEO and founder of First Generation Revolutionaries, a campaign that assists with the advancement of first-generation college students and young professionals. Ellington has been awarded numerous awards, including the 2019 First Generation Advocate Award Award, 2017 Alumni Legacy Award, the Alumni Legacy Award, 2017 International Textile and Apparel Association Rising Star Award, and more.

For more information and events in honor of Black History Month, visit www.kent.edu/smc/black-history-month.

Two other Black trailblazers making their mark on Kent State roles were previously featured in Kent State Today: Lamar R. Hylton, Ph.D., and Taléa R. Drummer-Ferrell, Ph.D., Blazing Historical Trails at Kent State.