51³Ô¹ÏÍø

The Center for Student Involvement and the Department of Intercollegiate Athletics are welcoming back the 51³Ô¹ÏÍø community in a big way. To kick off the academic year, students, faculty and staff are invited to enjoy a week packed full of food, giveaways and some 51³Ô¹ÏÍø pride! From Aug. 29 through Sept. 2, 51³Ô¹ÏÍø students are encouraged to stop by Risman Plaza between classes to meet new people and to take part in the excitement of the first week of classes.

51³Ô¹ÏÍø students will celebrate the start of a new school year at the university’s annual back-to-school celebration that occurs the day before fall classes begin. Blastoff will take place on Sunday, Aug. 28, from 6-9:30 p.m. on the Student Green and Manchester Field on the Kent Campus. Blastoff serves as the culminating event of Welcome Weekend, a four-day orientation program that helps new students transition into the university environment.

Welcome Weekend, 51³Ô¹ÏÍø’s four-day new student orientation, took place on Aug. 25-28. Students were able to select from approximately 50 different events held from Thursday to Sunday. The weekend event helped students transition into the university community and learn about academic and social opportunities at 51³Ô¹ÏÍø.

51³Ô¹ÏÍø faculty, staff and students volunteered to help incoming freshmen move into the university’s residence halls at the beginning of each school year.This year, freshman move-in day was Thursday, Aug. 25, from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.Last year, the Movers and Groovers program garnered 921 volunteers. Jill Church, director of University Housing (formerly Residence Services) at 51³Ô¹ÏÍø, anticipated more than 900 volunteers again this year.

51³Ô¹ÏÍø held its Summer 2016 Commencement ceremony for the Kent Campus on Saturday, Aug. 20, at the Memorial Athletic and Convocation Center (MAC Center). 51³Ô¹ÏÍø conferred 1,455 degrees, including 917 bachelor’s degrees, 440 master’s degrees, 75 doctoral degrees and 23 educational specialist degrees. Across the university’s eight-campus system, 1,610 students graduated from 51³Ô¹ÏÍø this summer, including those receiving associate degrees.

51³Ô¹ÏÍø global communication studies graduate student Daniel Socha’s research on a non-profit organization’s efforts to support youth education in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) recently caught the attention of National Public Radio (NPR). In May, Socha traveled to the DRC to study and report on Project Kirotshe, a non-profit that provides funding for youth in the village of Kirotshe and surrounding areas to attend school.

51³Ô¹ÏÍø track and field’s William Barnes and Danniel Thomas are going for the gold in the 2016 Rio Summer Olympics. Barnes will represent Puerto Rico in the men’s 110m hurdles, while Thomas will represent Jamaica in the shot put.

University hosts its annual Homecoming celebration on Oct. 1 Josh Cribbs, a three-time NFL Pro Bowler and 2010 graduate of 51³Ô¹ÏÍø, will return to his alma mater to serve as the Homecoming Parade Grand Marshal at the university’s annual Homecoming on Oct. 1.  

Scholar of the Month James Tyner Professor College of Arts and Sciences 1997-present Selecting a single renowned scholar from 51³Ô¹ÏÍø’s largest college is not an easy undertaking, but the work of Geography Professor James Tyner, Ph.D., over the past year made the decision a little bit easier for the College of Arts and Sciences Dean James Blank, Ph.D.

Four 51³Ô¹ÏÍø graduate students in the Department of Psychological Sciences, in the College of Arts and Sciences, won the Sloboda and Bukoski Cup at the Society for Prevention Research’s annual conference. Liz Baker, Karly Cochran, Haylee DeLuca and Logan Stigall represented 51³Ô¹ÏÍø against five other teams from Arizona State University, Clemson University, Florida International University, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and University of California, Irvine.