Kent State's Economic Impact

Cultural & Recreational Activities

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Cultural and Recreational Activities

Activities that bring the university and the community together and add to the local economy and quality of life . . .

Wick Poetry Center

The Wick Poetry Center celebrated its 25th anniversary with a range of events, including the launch of the Writing Lives Story Project, an interactive component of the center’s Web site that allows authors and readers to share how poetry and the center have touched their lives. In addition, P–16 workgroups sponsored by the center involve university faculty traveling to Northeast Ohio high schools and middle schools to teach poetry to students; conducting high school poetry competition with tuition scholarships available to Ohio students; and offering Wick Outreach Workshops for high school students to develop literacy and writing skills.

The Kent State Folk Festival

The Kent State Folk Festival, one of the oldest in the nation, brings in top musicians for a weeklong series of concerts, workshops and other events. It also brings folk and other music fans to the university and to the more than 30 performance venues throughout the community. Kent has become an international center for folk music appreciation through the annual festival, in its 43rd year, and through WKSU’s Folk Alley, which seeks out new folk artists and plays classic folk music for fans around the world. The festival is estimated to have more than $350,000 in economic impact to the city of Kent.

Black Squirrel Festival

For 28 years, the academic year has begun at the Kent Campus with the Black Squirrel Festival on Risman Plaza. Sponsored by Kent Student Center Programming, the event features music, food, games and other activities commemorating the return of students to the community. Ten percent of the sales of T-shirts and other items is donated to a different charity each year.

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