Arc Staff
I am honored to serve as the Director of the Arc Institute at Kent State University. Established in 2021, the Institute is dedicated to advancing research, education, and community collaborations that address important societal challenges. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr’s powerful reminder that “the moral arc of the universe is long, but it bends toward justice” inspires our work and reinforces our belief that meaningful progress requires sustained effort and dedication.
An interdisciplinary hub that connects scholars and practitioners from diverse units, colleges, and communities, the Arc Institute supports the exchange of ideas and innovation by promoting open inquiry, academic excellence, and respect for diverse perspectives with the goal of producing accessible solutions to real-world issues.
Welcome to the Arc Institute. I encourage you to visit our social media channels regularly to learn more about our members’ scholarship and community engagement. Please join us as we work to foster a culture of fairness and opportunity for all.
Carla Goar, Ph.D.
Professor of Sociology
Director, the Arc Institute
Special Assistant
Michael Rosengarten joins us as the Special Assistant for the Arc Institute as well as the Healthy Communities Research Institute. He is a previous Kent State graduate with a BIS in Business Administration and English, with intentions to pursue his Masters in Higher Education Administration and Student Affairs and hopes to follow up into the Ph.D. program in Higher Education Administration. He joins us from JOANN Fabrics where he was a print & digital planner for their marketing team.
Outside the office, he is also a part of the QUEST Mentorship program for the LGBTQ+ Center on campus. The Quest Mentorship provides a 1:1 mentor/mentee relationship for students that focuses on career guidance and general support during their time here at Kent State or for however long they want to participate in the program.
Graduate Assistant
Miles Davis-Matthews (they/he), a fourth-year doctoral candidate in the Department of Sociology and Criminology at Kent State University, serves as a graduate assistant with the Arc Institute. Throughout their time with the Institute, Miles has collaborated across campus, contributing to faculty research in Peace and Conflict Studies and co-creating the 2024 Status of Gender Equity at Kent State report with the Women's Center.
Miles is currently working alongside Arc Impact award recipients Dr. Elaine Hsiao and Dr. He Yin on a project that expands the paper Two-Eyed Seeing in Earth Observations. This research explores the use of Earth observation data to support Indigenous land return in California, emphasizing the role of legal mechanisms and environmental policy—such as the state’s 30x30 conservation initiative—in advancing #LandBack efforts. The project highlights the importance of Indigenous-led stewardship, data sovereignty, and capacity-building tools for tribal communities.