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Diacon expressed his desire to increase enrollment, keep ����Թ� State affordable, continue a strong relationship with the city of ����Թ�, honor the legacy of May 4 and advance the university’s Gateway Master Plan for redeveloping the front of campus.

����Թ� Associate Professor Molly Merryman, Ph.D., says a Netflix cartoon featuring a transgender character is breaking a new boundary in a positive way.

����Թ� State’s makerspaces, which number more than 25 across the eight-campus system, was named the top program in Ohio and entered the top 10 by surpassing programs at schools such as the University of Southern California, Arizona State University, the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor and Harvard University.

The ����Թ� Creativity Festival, sponsored by the city of ����Թ� and the ����Թ� College of the Arts, will present the annual outdoor hands-on arts festival on Saturday, Sept. 28, from 11 a.m.-5 p.m. on the Lefton Esplanade between ����Թ� State’s Rockwell Hall on Lincoln Street and downtown ����Թ�, near Haymaker Parkway.

Toni Morrison, the bestselling author who died Aug. 5, at one time was offered a job in ����Թ�’s Department of English, recalled English Professor Yoshinobu Hakutani, Ph.D.

Targeted at widening students’ educational opportunities in preparing them for a career in occupational therapy, the ����Թ� at Ashtabula Occupational Therapy Assistant (OTA) Technology program recently announced the creation of a hybrid model, combining online learning with more convenient on-campus laboratory sessions.

The ����Թ� alumni network will again grow its ranks this summer as more than a thousand Golden Flashes get their degrees. ����Թ� State will hold its Summer 2019 Commencement ceremonies for the ����Թ� Campus on Saturday, Aug. 17, at the Memorial Athletic and Convocation (MAC) Center.

The recent death of one of the remaining members of the Women Airforce Service Pilots of World War II has a ����Թ� associate professor recalling the vital role the female pilots played during the war.

Note: Gretchen Hoak is a former television reporter/anchor and current assistant professor of journalism in ����Թ�’s School of Journalism and Mass Communication. Her research survey, ,  focused on how universities prepare young journalists for the trauma they may endure in covering violence. ����Թ� State Today asked Hoak to share her thoughts on the impact the mass shootings in El Paso and Dayton will have on the reporters assigned to cover these events.  

A North Royalton woman whom who will become a ����Թ� student in the fall, won first place at the Medina County Fair talent show for performing a song in American Sign Language.

����Թ� State alumna Shannon Gardiner, BSN ’09, RN, CCRN, always knew she wanted to help people, but also longed for a career that would provide flexibility along the way. After a few years working in Akron Children’s Hospital’s pediatric Intensive Care Unit, followed by some time as a traveling nurse, a Google search for volunteer opportunities led her to Mercy Ships, who own and operate the largest non-governmental hospital ship in the world.

����Թ� hosted several dozen high school students from the LeBron James Family Foundation's I PROMISE program for a month of intensive college entrance exam preparation.
 

Trustees Research Professor Oleg Lavrentovich, Ph.D., a chemical physicist in ����Թ�’s Advanced Materials and Liquid Crystal Institute (AMLCI), just received nearly $1 million between two grants from the National Science Foundation (NSF) for separate studies with potential applications in biomedical science, commercial electronics and beyond.

Charla Martin-Bloodsaw, director of ����Թ�'s Insurance Studies Program at the Salem Campus, explains the risks of condo dwellers not having enough coverage. 

Bridget Mulvey, Ph.D., associate professor of science education in the College of Education, Health and Human Services; and David Singer, Ph.D., associate professor in the Department of Geology in the College of Arts and Sciences, recently merged real geology research with community service in an effort to show some Akron Public Schools students that science is not just a benefit to their community but a viable career option, too.

A primary goal of ����Թ� State is to engage the communities in which its eight campuses are located to fuel research, foster partnerships and economic development. “As the county’s public university, our role is to transform the community and to transform lives. We are impacting the future and helping to better Stark County,” Seachrist said. “We are the incubator for tomorrow’s ideas today.” 

The ����Թ� Museum’s newest exhibition, “Ohio Quilts,” which is now open, features an eclectic group of historical quilts that in many ways reflects the history of Ohio dating back to the early 19th century. 

Working in cooperation with the  (LAU), 20 interior design students – 10 from ����Թ�'s College of Architecture and Environmental Design and 10 from LAU in Beirut – spent nine days in New York City, the design capital of North America, for a workshop.

Student activism and giving voice to students will be the topics of two keynote speakers who are headlining the upcoming 2019 Educators Summit at ����Թ� titled “May 4, 1970 Then & Now: Voices for Change."

����Թ� State Stark students discuss their trip to Rwanda with the community at Global Gateway Day.