Global Education

Global Education creates transformational opportunities for Kent State students.

With a longstanding tradition of excellence in global education, Kent State encourages students to push beyond their comfort zones and explore the world around them. 

Kent State offers 200 programs in 60 countries including Italy, France, South Korea, China, Japan, the United Arab Emirates, Costa Rica, Brazil, the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Ghana, Egypt and many others. Whether for a two-week faculty-led program or a full academic semester abroad, students immerse themselves in new cultural and learning experiences and return to campus transformed, with greater confidence and broadened perspectives.

Securing the Future Through the Global Education Endowment

While 25 percent of students currently participate in a Kent State education-abroad program during their time at Kent State, many students are unable to access this transformative experience due to cost. Of the approximately 1,500 Kent State students who study abroad annually, 98 percent of students require financial assistance to make the experience possible. 

To ensure all students can access these life-changing opportunities, we created the Kent State Global Education Endowment. This fund was established in 2022 in recognition of the 50th anniversary of Kent State’s education-abroad presence in Florence, Italy. The endowment’s goal is to raise $20 million in philanthropic support to provide every incoming undergraduate student with some level of scholarship support for an education-abroad experience.

Why Your Support Matters

Once fully funded, the Global Education Endowment will serve as a differentiating factor for Kent State among public higher education institutions while also supporting enrollment and retention rates and enriching students’ experiences.

This endowment will open doors for more students than ever before, enriching their perspectives and empowering the next generation of leaders. Through private support, Kent State reinforces its role as a global education leader, offering unparalleled opportunities that shape students’ futures.

To date, nearly $6 million has been raised for this endowment and donations have included two gifts of $1 million.

Support Global Education at Kent State

Your generosity will ensure that all Kent State students have the opportunity to study abroad. 

Join the Renaissance Scholars Society

If you are interested in supporting the Global Education Endowment, consider joining the Renaissance Scholars Society. The Renaissance Scholars Society is group of passionate supporters who share the university’s enthusiasm for a boundless education and an expanded worldview and make an outright gift or five-year pledge to the Kent State Global Education Endowment at one of several levels, ranging from $50,000 to $12.5 million. 

Society members enjoy exclusive travel opportunities with Kent State faculty and international partners, experiencing cultural insights and learning from renowned scholars and experts only available through Kent State. Renaissance Scholars Society members traveled to Florence, Italy, in 2023 in conjunction with the Florence program’s anniversary and Paris, France, in April 2026.

To join the Renaissance Scholars Society or to discuss a potential gift that benefits global education at Kent State, contact [NAME] at [email] or [phone].

To make a gift now or to explore funds that benefits the Arts at Kent State, visit our giving portal.

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