Lara Shigo

Term: 2023-2025
Residence: Ashland, Ohio  

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine has appointed Lara Boman of Ashland, Ohio, to a two-year term as a Graduate Student Trustee of the Kent State University Board of Trustees. Boman’s term began July 28, 2023, and ends May 16, 2025.

Trustee Boman is currently pursuing her doctorate in exercise physiology at Kent State. She earned a bachelor’s degree in physics and a master’s degree in kinesiology and sport management, both from the University of South Dakota.

“I’m honored to be named to the Kent State University Board of Trustees as Graduate Student Trustee,” Boman said. “Graduate students play a unique role in the university ecosystem, with a wide variety of experiences and responsibilities. I look forward to listening to the stories of my classmates and engaging with Board members and leadership to further Kent State’s goals. I’m appreciative of the opportunity to attend Kent State and to serve as Graduate Student Trustee.”

At Kent State, Trustee Boman serves as a graduate research assistant in the School of Health Sciences within the College of Education, Health and Human Services and as a Graduate Teaching Fellow through the Graduate College. She also serves on the university’s Graduate Student Senate as an alternate senator. Last year, she was a member of the senate’s International Travel Award Review Committee.

Trustee Boman's experience includes serving as an exercise interventionist in a research project studying Parkinson’s disease and exercise and as an adjunct instructor in the School of Education at the University of South Dakota. She also was a life calling career coach at Ashland University. She has presented her research in a poster session at the American College of Sports Medicine’s 2018 Annual Meeting. In 2018, Trustee Boman co-authored an article that appeared in the Journal of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology.

A certified strength and conditioning specialist, she is actively involved with professional organizations, including the American College of Sports Medicine and the National Strength and Conditioning Association. She is also involved in Kent State’s Brain Health Research Institute and the Design Innovation Hub.

A former student-athlete, Trustee Boman began her college career as a soccer player, later joining the University of South Dakota’s track and field team. In 2019, she was named an NCAA Division I First-Team Academic All-American for track and field. She competed professionally in track and field, specializing in hammer and weight throw. She was a finalist in the 2021 U.S. Olympic Track and Field Trials and a bronze medalist in the 2022 USA Track & Field Indoor Championships.