KENT, Ohio – Liz Sinclair has been helping Kent State students since she was a Kent State student.
The Assistant Dean of Undergraduate Programs and Assessment at the Ambassador Crawford College of Business and Entrepreneurship, Sinclair has worked with thousands of students during her 48-year career at the university. Now, as the end of the spring 2025 semester nears, she sets her sights on retirement.
“I’ve truly enjoyed being an advocate for students – whether that means speaking up on their behalf or helping them navigate challenges,” Sinclair said. “One of the most rewarding parts of my role has been watching 17- or 18-year-old freshmen grow into 22- or 23-year-old graduates who emerge as confident, capable leaders and contributors.”
“During my time serving as the Undergraduate Student Government Senator for the Ambassador Crawford College of Business and Entrepreneurship at Kent State, Assistant Dean Liz Sinclair has been my biggest supporter,” said junior marketing major Brodie Sikorski. “She is always willing to help me out and listen to what I have to say. She truly cares for the student body and will continue to make an impact. Kent State students truly know how much she cares for us and how she is our number one supporter. Every time I see Liz, she is always smiling and lighting up the room.”
Sinclair originally came to Kent State with dreams of becoming a movie star, majoring in theater. But by her junior year, she realized she didn’t want to move to L.A. alone to chase an acting career. At a friend’s suggestion, she met with former marketing professor Terence Shimp, Ph.D., who guided her toward marketing, aligning with her interest in consumer behavior. Her new ambition was to work for consumer protection and clean air and water aligned with Ralph Nader’s initiatives. Ultimately, though, she’s grateful she chose a path in higher education – a career that has brought her just as much joy and fulfillment as she could have imagined in any other field.
Sinclair recalls that undergraduate advising coordinator, Theresa Mangin, hired her during her senior year for a student job in the advising office. She enjoyed working with Mangin and Tom Stuhldreher, Ph.D., assistant dean at the time. When Mangin announced she was retiring, Stuhldreher hired her as coordinator of advising.
Sinclair was later promoted to Director of Advising under Acting Dean Cheryl Casper, Ph.D. and later to Assistant Dean by Dean Charles Upton, Ph.D. When current Dean Deborah F. Spake, Ph.D. joined the college, Sinclair was again promoted to Assistant Dean for Undergraduate Programs and Assessment. She has served as advisor for Business Professionals Roundtable (BPR) and previously served as advisor for the college’s American Marketing Association Chapter and the Collegiate Business Association.
Although Sinclair had multiple opportunities to leave Kent State for other positions throughout her career, she always found a reason to stay.
“It’s Kent State that I loved,” she said. “I loved the campus, the people, and the City of Kent. Plus most of my family is here.” Sinclair also credits her longevity at Kent State to her openness to change.
“One of the things that helped me as I stayed at the same place is that I was always willing to look for ways to improve our processes, while remaining flexible and open to changes suggested by leadership,” Sinclair said.
In addition to her duties working with students, Sinclair also contributed to other college initiatives including providing leadership and oversight of undergraduate enrollment initiatives, restructuring the college’s assessment program, working with faculty to develop career readiness courses to better prepare students for the workforce and establishing an advocacy initiative to support business students facing academic, financial or personal challenges. She collaborated with faculty to launch new business minors and promote them across Kent State to drive enrollment growth, created high school business competitions, launched a summer camp to raise awareness of business programs and worked with various colleges and universities on articulation agreements to facilitate student transfer and academic continuity.
Sinclair leaned into her professional connections to help when she had questions or issues at work. She looked to mentors Dr. Richard W. Skinner, former chair of the Department of Marketing; former Dean George Stevens, DBA and Larry Marks, Ph.D., former chair of the Department of Marketing, for advice.
“Job satisfaction was always more important than the money was for me,” she said.
Sinclair also found enjoyment in the many friendships and connections she formed during her career. She still has regular phone calls with two best friends who are now retired – Yvette Clayton and Juli Grimaldi, and she regularly gets together with Larry Marks. Another of her best friends, Denise Falenski Mead, is a former student she worked with during her time as an advisor.
While Sinclair will miss students, colleagues and her office at the newly opened Crawford Hall, she expects retirement to be just as fulfilling. She plans to spend time with her daughters, Brynn and Chelsea, fiancé Jim and cats Eddie and Rosie. She will also have more time for her hobbies – gardening, swimming, continuing to learn Welsh, walking four miles a day and travel – her favorite destination being San Francisco where much of her family resides. She plans to volunteer her time at some of her favorite organizations – Habitat for Humanity, the APL and League of Women Voters. And becoming a movie star still isn’t out of the picture – she plans to audition for local theater.
While much has changed in higher education during Sinclair’s career, much has also remained the same.
“What hasn’t changed is the wide-eyed curiosity students bring when they arrive, along with their journey toward graduation and career success,” she said. “They come eager to learn and are driven to achieve.”