Ohio Gov. John Kasich has appointed a new trustee to the Kent State University Board of Trustees. Kasich named Robin Kilbride of Wadsworth, Ohio, to a nine-year term as a trustee. Kilbride’s appointment began April 18, 2016, and ends May 16, 2024.
“We welcome Robin to our board,” says Dennis E. Eckart, chair of the Kent State Board of Trustees. “Her financial and business experience will be a real plus, and we look forward to her longtime engagement with Kent State.”
Kilbride serves as president, CEO and chairman of the board of Smithers-Oasis Company, a privately held company headquartered in Kent, Ohio. Smithers-Oasis is the global leader in manufacturing and marketing of floral foam products, postharvest products, growing media and flower arranging supplies to the floriculture industry. Kilbride leads this global company that operates on six continents with manufacturing and distribution facilities in 20 countries and sales to more than 125 countries.
Kilbride joined Smithers-Oasis in 1983 as a senior financial analyst and was promoted to controller in 1987, chief financial officer in 2001, executive vice president in 2005, president in 2006, and president and CEO in 2011. She was elected chairman of the board in 2014. Kilbride holds a Bachelor of Science in Business with degrees in finance and accountancy from Miami University. She also serves on the board of directors and compensation committee of Ball Horticultural Company, a world leader in plant development and distribution, headquartered in West Chicago, Illinois. She has served as a member of the board and trustee for nonprofit charitable organizations in the Northeast Ohio region.
Kilbride replaces Emilio Ferrara, D.D.S., whose term as a Kent State trustee expired in May 2015.
The Board of Trustees is the governing body of Kent State. By Ohio law, the board is responsible for selecting and appointing the president; setting the operating budget; approving personnel appointments; granting all degrees awarded by the university, including honorary degrees; establishing tuition and fee rates; approving contracts; and approving university policies, new programs and degrees.
Kent State’s Board of Trustees consists of 12 members, nine of whom are voting members appointed by the governor of the state of Ohio, with the advice and consent of the state senate, to nine-year terms of office. Two student trustees, one undergraduate and one graduate, are appointed by the governor to two-year terms of office. Since 2011, the board has appointed a national trustee, who serves a three-year term, as an additional nonvoting member.
For more information about Kent State’s Board of Trustees, visit www.kent.edu/bot.
