2011 4th Quarter News Releases

• ADVISORY: Kent State University Board of Trustees Meeting, Dec. 13 The Kent State University Board of Trustees will hold its next regular business meeting Tuesday, Dec. 13.
  
• Cleveland’s Plain Dealer Editor Named 2012 McGruder Award for Media Diversity Winner Debra Adams Simmons, editor of The Plain Dealer in Cleveland, has been named the 2012 winner of the Robert G. McGruder Award for Diversity from the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Kent State University. The award recognizes the accomplishments of media professionals who encourage diversity in the field of journalism.
  
• Director of New York’s Tobacco Control Program to Speak at Kent State, Nov. 14 Kent State University’s College of Public Health presents the second speaker in its Public Health Speaker Series this fall semester. Dr. Jeffrey Willett is a research scientist with the New York State Department of Health and also the director of New York’s Tobacco Control Program.
  
• Director of Ohio Department of Mental Health Visits College of Public Health The Ohio Department of Mental Health Director Tracy Plouck visited Kent State University’s College of Public Health on Nov. 14 to tour its facilities and to speak with faculty, administrators and community members about the upcoming goals of the state department. In total, more than 200,000 adults and 100,000 youth are served through the mental health system annually.
  
  
• Disabled Young Adults Gain Independence through Kent State's Transition Program This past August, a new program was implemented at Kent State University for young adults with disabilities. Twenty-one students participate in the Career and Community Studies Transition Program, which allows youth with intellectual disabilities, who would otherwise not be eligible to live on a campus, to use the university setting along with their peers without disabilities to become independent while developing and refining their career goals.
  
• ESPN Interviews Kent State Students for Monday Night Football Story Kent State University students will be featured in a story about the Braylon Edwards Foundation during ESPN’s Monday Night Football broadcast on Monday, Dec. 19. The students, all recipients of scholarships from the foundation of former Cleveland Browns wide receiver Braylon Edwards, who now plays with the San Francisco 49ers, were interviewed by ESPN staff for the feature story.
  
• Fashion Designer to Speak on Sustainability and Business Practices, Nov. 15 Fashion designer Sarah Van Aken will give a lecture and presentation at Kent State University on Tuesday, Nov. 15, at 6:30 p.m. in Rockwell Auditorium. This lecture, which is free and open to the public, covers a variety of themes including sustainability, business, entrepreneur activities, community advancement and corporate responsibility.
  
• Guide to Local Media for Kent Campus Weather-Related Closings Kent State University reports weather or other emergency closing information for the Kent Campus to the below list of local media.
  
• Halloween Comes Early to Kent State University, Oct. 27 The Student Recreation and Wellness Center and Ice Arena at Kent State University will be celebrating Halloween with their annual event, Haunted wRECk, on Thursday, Oct. 27, from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
  
• Holocaust Survivor Eva Schloss Comes to Kent Stage on Oct. 18 Eva Schloss, Holocaust survivor and stepsister to wartime diarist Anne Frank, will participate in a multimedia performance, “And Then They Came for Me: Remembering the World of Anne Frank,†on Tuesday, Oct. 18, from noon to 1:30 p.m., at the Kent Stage on 175 E. Main St. in downtown Kent.
  
  
• Joint Statement from Kent State University and the Ohio College of Podiatric Medicine Kent State University and the Ohio College of Podiatric Medicine (OCPM) issued a statement today acknowledging that their two organizations are making significant progress in talks designed to merge OCPM into Kent State.
  
• Kent State and Carnegie Mellon Receive $250,000 NSF Grant to Advance Computational Research The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded a collaborative research grant to Kent State University and Carnegie Mellon University for a project to advance computational research. The $250,000 grant is part of the NSF’s Cyberinfrastructure Training, Education, Advancement, and Mentoring for Our 21st Century Workforce program (CI-TEAM).
  
• Kent State Campus Kitchen Wins National Award in First Year of Operation The Campus Kitchen Project at Kent State University, a student-powered program that provides meals to local families in need, received the Excellence in Operations award at the National Campus Kitchens Project Conference in St. Louis, which took place Oct. 28-30.
  
• Kent State Expert Offers Budget Advice for the Holiday Season The holiday shopping season is the easiest time to overspend and lose track of a budget. Special sales, once-yearly deals and the season’s spirit of giving are temptations that lead many Americans to spend more than they budget for the holidays.
  According to the National Retail Federation, shoppers spent a record $52 billion over the 2011 Black Friday weekend. The average holiday shopper spent nearly $400 during the Thanksgiving weekend, more than two-thirds of the average American’s planned holiday spending budget.
  
• Kent State Expert Offers Tips on Staying Healthy This Holiday Season With the holidays approaching, it’s easy to lose track of good eating habits and sound lifestyle choices. Kent State University Associate Professor and Dietician Natalie Caine-Bish offers some sound advice on how to keep the holidays healthy and fun.
  
• Kent State Fashion Professor Receives Prestigious International Award The International Textile and Apparel Association Awards Vincent Quevedo for Exceptional Service
  
• Kent State Gospel Choir Concert Takes Place Dec. 9 The Kent State University Gospel Choir will hold its fall concert on Friday, Dec. 9, at 7:30 p.m. in Cartwright Hall. Doors open at 7 p.m.
  
• Kent State Graduate Shaun Patrick Miller Receives NRPA National Network Award for Parks and Recreation Shaun Patrick Miller, a former resident of Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, and an August 2011 graduate of Kent State University’s Recreation, Park and Tourism Management program, was recently selected by the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA) to receive the 2011 Young Professional Network Outstanding Undergraduate Student Award.
  
• Kent State Implements Forever Buckeyes Program for Ohio High School Graduates Kent State University President Lester A. Lefton has announced that the university will adopt the Forever Buckeyes program, established by the Ohio Board of Regents and the State of Ohio, beginning this Fall 2011 semester.
  
  
• Kent State Launches New School of Digital Sciences Kent State University’s School of Digital Sciences welcomed its first class of students this fall after Ohio Board of Regents Chancellor Jim Petro approved the school’s proposed degrees.
  
• Kent State Named Military Friendly School for Third Straight Year G.I. Jobs has named Kent State a 2012 Military Friendly School for the third year in a row. G.I. Jobs, a premier magazine for military personnel transitioning to civilian life, distinguishes the top 20 percent of colleges, universities and trade schools doing the most to embrace military service members and veterans as students.
  
• Kent State Presents Lecture by Former Israeli Diplomat on Oct. 25
  Kent State University will present a talk by former Israeli diplomat Ishmael Khaldi on Tuesday, Oct. 25, at 7 p.m. in Room 137 of Bowman Hall on the Kent campus. The event, which is free and open to the public, is presented by the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America (CAMERA).
  
  
• Kent State Rated One of the World’s Top Universities for Second Straight Year by Times Higher Education of London For the second consecutive year, Times Higher Education, a London-based higher education magazine, has ranked Kent State University as one of world’s top universities in its annual World University Rankings.
  
• Kent State Receives $1 Million Grant from Department of Energy Three Kent State University professors recently received funding from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) for a molecular analysis of carbon consumption. The three-year grant, awarded by the DOE’s Office of Biological and Environmental Research, will provide funding of $1,075,638 for the project.
  
• Kent State Receives $225,000 Federal Grant to Assist Rural Communities Kent State University will receive a $225,000 economic development grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to assist businesses in rural Ohio communities. U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack recently announced the selection of Kent State and 35 other organizations in 26 states and the District of Columbia for grants to help rural cooperatives and small businesses expand, create jobs and strengthen their capacity to serve rural citizens and communities.
  
  
• Kent State Social Media Converges in “Smash Up†Success Kent State University has launched a social media portal, called a smash up, at http://social.kent.edu. The new social media portal houses the university’s social media channels.
  
  
• Kent State Students Study Ancient Papyrus as Part of International Effort Four ambitious Kent State students have the rare opportunity to study an ancient Greek papyrus as part of an innovative program designed to mentor undergraduate students in the research and publication of ancient texts.
  
  
• Kent State to Hold Spirit of Women in Business Conference Kent State University’s College of Business is hosting its second Spirit of Women in Business Conference on March 7, from 8:45 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the Kent Student Center.
  
• Kent State to Honor Our Vets, Nov. 10 Kent State University will hold its annual Veterans Day observance on Thursday, Nov. 10, at 11 a.m. at Risman Plaza.
  
• Kent State University Libraries Receives IMMY Award from Kent Area Chamber of Commerce On Nov. 16, the Kent Area Chamber of Commerce hosted the 2011 Tree City Awards and recognized Kent State University Libraries with an IMMY award for its contributions to local businesses. IMMYs are given to recognize quality businesses and individuals in the Kent area in support of economic retention, reinvestment and new facilities development.
  
• Kent State University Summary of Board Actions from Dec. 13 At its Dec. 13 meeting, the Kent State University Board of Trustees took action on the following items.
  
• Kent State University’s College of Business Programs Achieve Top Rankings Kent State University’s College of Business Administration undergraduate and graduate programs recently garnered top rankings in two major news publications.
  
• Kent State Welcomes Four Edmund S. Muskie Graduate Fellows This fall semester, Kent State University welcomed four new international students as part of the U.S. Department of State’s Edmund S. Muskie Graduate Fellowship Program.
  
• Kent State Wins Gold Award at 2011 PRSA Cleveland Rocks Awards Kent State University took home a gold award at the ninth annual Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) Cleveland Rocks Awards. The university won its award for its work on Kent State Magazine, the university’s alumni publication, with the winning entry titled “Engaging and Informing the Alumni†in the magazines category.
  
• Kent State's Geraldine Hayes-Nelson Wins 2011 TRIO Achiever Award Kent State Diversity Program and Community Outreach Executive Director Geraldine Hayes-Nelson, Ph.D., has been selected as the 2011 TRIO Achiever by the Mid-America Association of Educational Opportunity Program Personnel (MAEOPP). Nelson will be presented with the award during the 37th Annual MAEOPP Conference at the Abbey Resort in Fontana, Wis., on Tuesday, Nov. 15.
  
  
• Kent State, University of Akron and YSU Collaborate to Offer Technical Education Center Kent State University, the University of Akron and Youngstown State University were awarded $432,558 by the Ohio Department of Education and the Ohio Board of Regents to establish the East Central Region College Tech Prep/Program of Study Center (ECRC). The ECRC will serve more than 100 school districts and their students in an effort to boost student enrollment in College Tech Prep/Program of Study programs in high schools as well as in Ohio colleges and universities.
  
• Kent State’s African Community Theatre Presents Comedy Folktale Play, “Stagolee†The African Community Theatre of Kent State University presents its first production of the 2011-2012 season with the performance of the comedy folktale, “Stagolee,†by Ed Smith.
  
• Kent State’s Fall Commencement Ceremonies Take Place Dec. 17 Fall 2011 Commencement Ceremonies at Kent State University are scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 17, at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.
  
• Kent State’s Pilliod Lecture Series to Feature Westfield Insurance CEO on Nov. 2 As part of its successful Pilliod Lecture Series, Kent State University will feature Westfield Insurance Group’s Chief Executive Officer James R. Clay to speak on significant issues that affect both academic and business communities on Wednesday, Nov. 2, at 4:30 p.m. in Room 215 of the Business Administration Building.
  
• Kent State’s Precision Flight Team Recognized at Ohio Statehouse The Kent State University Precision Flight Team was recognized on Nov. 16 by the Ohio House of Representatives during a session at the Statehouse in Columbus, Ohio. Representatives Kristina Roegner and Kathleen Clyde passed a resolution to acknowledge the team for being awarded the prestigious Loening Trophy in 2010.
  
  
• MEDIA ADVISORY: New Liquid Crystal-Based Technology that Rapidly Detects Multiple Pathogens in Food to be Introduced On Oct. 26, Crystal Diagnostics will introduce a new technology using liquid crystals to detect multiple harmful pathogens in food in a single test. Crystal Diagnostics is the exclusive licensee of fundamental liquid crystal biosensor technologies developed jointly by a research partnership between Kent State University and Northeast Ohio Medical University (NEOMED).
  
• MEDIA ADVISORY: The Blackstone Charitable Foundation and The Burton D. Morgan Foundation to Announce a Major Investment Stephen A. Schwarzman, Chairman, CEO and Co-Founder of Blackstone will be joined by Burton D. Morgan President and CEO Deborah Hoover, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown, Assistant to the President for Science and Technology and Director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, Dr. John P. Holdren, and Ohio Board of Regents Chancellor Jim Petro on Friday, Nov. 18, to announce a major investment to train Ohio’s next generation of entrepreneurs.
  
• National Test of the Emergency Alert System is Wednesday at 2 P.M. The first-ever national test of the Emergency Alert System (EAS) will take place Wednesday, Nov. 9, at 2 p.m. During the national EAS test, anyone who is watching television (broadcast, cable and satellite) or listening to the radio will hear the same EAS tones and message.
  
• New Liquid Crystal-Based Technology Rapidly Detects Multiple Pathogens in Food The need for faster detection of harmful pathogens in food is evident. A rapid, reliable method that can test for multiple pathogens simultaneously gives food-safety assurance to farmers, food processors, distributors, retailers and ultimately to the public. The Crystal Diagnostics MultiPath SystemTM addresses this need. The novel technology, in development since 2006, uses liquid crystals to detect multiple harmful pathogens in food in a single test, offering significant time savings over the most common testing methods.
  
• NSF Awards Kent State $1.08 Million Grant to Address Shortage of STEM Educators The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded Kent State University a $1.08 million grant to support the university’s Noyce Scholars Program, designed to increase the number of highly qualified middle and high school teachers in biology, chemistry, earth and space science, mathematics and physics.
  
• President Lefton's Response to Recent Guest Lecturer This past Tuesday, a guest lecturer at our campus was treated in a way which I find reprehensible, and an embarrassment to our university
  
• Project C.O.P.E. Seeks Primary-Caregiving Grandmothers for Kent State Study Project C.O.P.E. (Caring for Others as a Positive Experience) is looking for grandmothers in Northeast Ohio to participate in a research study. The study will compare different ways to support grandmothers raising grandchildren between the ages of four to 12 in the total absence of the child’s birth parents.
  
• Social Justice Expressed Through Art in Dec. 16 Art Show Kent State students work with local artist-mentors, children, families and community members to understand and communicate social justice and equality-oriented issues through meaningful pieces of art. The students’ work, along with those by local artist-mentors, will be on display at the Kent State School of Art Gallery on Friday, Dec. 16, from 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.
  
• Submit Your Photos from the 1960s for Kent State’s May 4 Visitors Center Exhibit Members of the Kent State University community and the general public are asked to contribute to the development of the new May 4 Visitors Center at Kent State University by uploading pictures that show what people looked like, what they experienced and what they cared about in the 1960s.
  
• Two Foundations Commit $3.2 Million to Train Ohio’s Next Generation of Entrepreneurs The Blackstone Charitable Foundation and The Burton D. Morgan Foundation announced today a $3.2 million, three-year partnership to train the next generation of entrepreneurs in Northeast Ohio. The grants -- to Baldwin-Wallace College, Case Western Reserve University, Kent State University and Lorain County Community College -- will expand Blackstone LaunchPad, a groundbreaking initiative that gives university students and alumni the skills, knowledge, and guidance to start new companies.
  
• UNC Researcher Presents at Kent State’s Public Health Speaker Series, Oct. 26 ent State University’s College of Public Health presents the first speaker in its Public Health Speaker Series this fall semester. Dr. Edward Baker, research professor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Gillings School of Global Public Health, will present “Managing the Public Health Enterprise: Preparing the Workforce for Change†at the Moulton Hall Ballroom on Wednesday, Oct. 26, at noon.
  
• University Expresses Condolences As you may know by now, a student was found dead in his room yesterday in Leebrick Hall during a wellness check.
  
• What to Do If You Witness Questionable Activity on Campus Kent State University is committed to providing a safe campus community for all. In line with this, the university recently launched a new safety initiative – Sexual Assault Response Team (SART).
  
• World Vision Leader, Youth Activist to Speak at Kent State, Oct. 20 Rev. Adam Taylor, in his book "Mobilizing Hope," draws upon the heritage of faith-based activism to encourage young people to be politically engaged and to fight for justice and human rights. Taylor will talk about his vision at Kent State University at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 20, at the fall symposium hosted by the Center for the Study of Information and Religion in the School of Library and Information Science (SLIS). The talk will take place in room 317 of the Kent Student Center.
  
• Yale Professor to Speak at Kent State about Global Health, Oct. 27 Dr. David Katz, director and founder of Yale University’s Prevention Research Center, will present “Feet, Forks and the Fate of Our Species†at Kent State University on Oct. 27 at 7 p.m. in the Kent Student Center Kiva.