May 4

Portraits of the four students killed on May 4, 1970, sit on chairs on stage in the Kent Student Center Ballroom during the 47th Commemoration of May 4.

A portion of Kent State University’s Kent Campus has taken its place alongside the nation’s most significant historic locations, joining such sites as the Grand Canyon National Park, Pearl Harbor and the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama.

“Sandy’s Scrapbook,” a new exhibition at Kent State University’s May 4 Visitors Center, pays tribute to the life of Sandy Scheuer.

Sandy Scheuer was on her way to class on May 4, 1970, when she was shot and killed by Ohio National Guardsmen responding to protests of the Vietnam War at Kent State University. She was a junior honors student, a speech therapy major and a proud member of Alpha Xi Delta sorority. 

A Kent State University student stands vigil at the spot where Allison Krause was shot on May 4, 1970. Krause and three other students were killed during the May 4, 1970, shootings by Ohio National Guardsmen on the Kent State campus.

Kent State University holds its 47th annual commemoration of May 4, 1970, with events taking place May 3 and 4. The annual commemoration, hosted by the May 4 Task Force, provides an opportunity for the university community to gather and remember those who were lost and injured during the tragedy and also reflect on what May 4 means today. 

A Kent State University student stands vigil at the spot where Allison Krause was shot on May 4, 1970. Krause and three other students were killed during the May 4, 1970, shootings by Ohio National Guardsmen on the Kent State campus.

Kent State University holds its 47th annual commemoration of May 4, 1970, with events taking place May 3 and 4. The annual commemoration is hosted by the May 4 Task Force, a student organization on campus. All of the events will be held on the university’s Kent Campus and are free and open to the public. 

School of Peace & Conflict Studies

Students gather at the site where one of four slain students was shot on May 4, 1970, during a student protest of the Vietnam War.

U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell today announced the designation of the Kent State University May 4, 1970, Site as a National Historic Landmark. The site joins more than 2,500 historic places that bear the national distinction.