President Beverly J. Warren

A dynamic leader and thoughtful academic, Beverly J. Warren, Ed.D., Ph.D., became Kent State University’s 12th president on July 1, 2014, and has used her time to lead the university in charting a course for the university’s continued rise in distinction.

Under President Warren’s leadership, the university produced the ambitious A Strategic Roadmap to a Distinctive Kent State. The plan focuses on putting students first and raising the profile of Kent State as one of the top public research universities in the nation, focusing on a distinctive blend of teaching, research and creative excellence.

President Warren’s passion for the power of education to change lives and communities can be seen in initiatives that have led to enhanced pathways for student success, created greater access to higher education for students, advanced innovation throughout the university’s eight-campus system and supported students in high-impact experiences that lead to productive lives and careers.

In her role as chief executive officer, President Warren oversees one of the nation’s largest university systems that is dedicated to research and advancement in critical areas such as brain health, advanced materials and liquid crystals, environmental science and design, healthy communities and global understanding. The university includes more than 38,000 students on eight campuses across Northeast Ohio, a College of Podiatric Medicine, a Regional Academic Center, and academic sites in major world cities such as Florence, Geneva and New York.

A North Carolina native, President Warren earned a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro and a Master of Science degree from Southern Illinois University. She holds two doctorates, an Ed.D. in higher education administration from the University of Alabama and a Ph.D. in exercise physiology from Auburn University.