Community & Society

Earth Fest 2024

IN A FLASH: Earth Month Wrap Up

Kent State celebrated Earth Month with an exceptionally full schedule of events, not the least of which were the activities on campus surrounding the total solar eclipse!

Tags: Earth Day , Total Solar Eclipse , Environmental Science and Design Research Institute , Community Impact , Community & Society , Organizational Sustainability , Research & Science

Kent State Today

2026 Post-Paddy's Cleanup Volunteers

Community Spirit Inspires Kent State Student Volunteers in Post-Paddy's Cleanup

In the spirit of community, Kent State student volunteers picked up litter and trash around Kent neighborhoods following the annual Fake Paddy's Day celebration.

Tags: Undergraduate Student Government , Center for Student Involvement , Town-Gown , Community Impact , Community & Society

Kent State Today

Euclid Police Car

Ohio Senate Votes Unanimously to Name Highway for Trumbull Graduate Jacob Derbin

The Ohio Senate voted unanimously on March 25 to designate a stretch of Interstate 480 in Cuyahoga County as the Officer Jacob J. Derbin Memorial Highway, honoring the Euclid police officer who was killed in the line of duty in May 2024.

Tags: Community Impact , Community & Society

Kent State Today

Before becoming a student at Kent State University, Richard Hlavaty served in the U.S. Marine Corps. One of his two combat tours was in Afghanistan (pictured). (Photo provided by Richard Hlavaty)

‘What Makes Kent State Friendly to Veterans Is That the Support Is Real and Personal’

Kent State University has earned the Military Friendly® School designation for 2026-2027, its 17th consecutive year. Marine Corps veteran and Kent State senior Richard Hlavaty shares how Kent State’s veteran support services have shaped his academic and professional journey.

Tags: Community & Society , University News , Community Impact , Center for Adult and Veteran Services , Division of Student Life

Kent State Today

A Kent State computer science student writes equations on a board

Teaching the Teachers

Thanks to nearly $2.3 million in grant funding from the Ohio Department of Education, Kent State is training and endorsing K-12 teachers in computer science instruction across every grade level and subject area. The teachers arriving in these courses are not who you might picture. And what they leave with has started to surprise even their instructors.

Tags: emerging media and technology , Community & Society

Kent State Today

Lauren Cohen, senior journalism major

Journalism Major Scores Numerous Front-Page Stories in Knight-Funded Internship

Lauren Cohen, a senior journalism major from Twinsburg, Ohio, has already made an impact during her internship, producing many front-page stories for the Akron Beacon Journal and Signal Akron. 

Tags: Community Impact , Community & Society , Student Life , Profiles

School of Media and Journalism

Spring 2026 Nursing Job & Career Fair

IN A FLASH: Career Opportunities in Nursing

Around 200 students from Kent State's College of Nursing explored opportunities with visiting hospitals and healthcare facilities at the Spring 2025 Nursing Job and Career Fair.

Tags: Kent State University College of Nursing , Community Impact , Community & Society , Health

Kent State Today

Press helmet and gas mask with two presumed journalists

New ‘Informed Reporting’ Podcast Confronts Journalism’s Emotional Toll

Journalism is not often perceived as an emotionally challenging career, but journalists can experience any number of traumatic stress symptoms from stories that they cover, especially those involving death or human suffering. These are the topics Gretchen Hoak, Ph.D., associate professor of journalism at Kent State University, explores in her new podcast “Informed Reporting,” which launched March 16.  

Tags: Community Impact , Community & Society , Research & Science , Health

Kent State Today

CUDC Networking Event.

IN A FLASH: A Celebration and Welcome at the CUDC

Networking, a gallery exhibit and a new director were all part of a celebratory event at Kent State's Cleveland Urban Design Collaborative on Feb. 24.

Tags: Cleveland Urban Design Collaborative , College of Architecture and Environmental Design , Nationally Distinctive , Community & Society

Kent State Today

A.I.D. train the trainer sessions teach participants how to offer help to those who are having mental health issues.

Kent State Program Trains Mental Health Advocates Nationwide

The A.I.D. training — which stands for Awareness,  Interaction, and Direction — was created in 2019 by the Center for Public Policy and Health in the College of Public Health, teaches participants how to recognize signs of mental distress, engage in compassionate and effective conversations with someone who may be struggling and connect that person with the resources they need.

Tags: University News , College of Public Health , Community & Society , Health , Nationally Distinctive

Kent State Today