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Kent State University Honors College
Parents & Friends Newsletter
November 21, 2023
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Photo Above: Honors students joined our Peer-to-Peer Mentors as they visited Kingsway Pumpkin Farm earlier this fall as part of this semester's planned social events. Students were able to pick pumpkins in the patch, grab their favorite fall treats at the concessions and sight-see throughout the property. | |
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A Message from the Dean
Fall 2023
Dear Parents and Friends,
It’s hard to believe, but Thanksgiving is right around the corner. With the (mostly) warm weather this fall (except that Halloween snowstorm!), the fact that it is now mid-November is hard to realize. The Honors College has had a wonderful fall semester, as you will see from the many stories that await you here. But now, we are going to take a few days and rest up for the end of semester sprint which is sure to come. And that brings me to the topic of students coming home for Thanksgiving…
As your student arrives home for Thanksgiving break, you have a great opportunity to provide some support and encouragement. As you listen to their triumphs and their challenges, you might take a moment to share with them some challenges you faced at their age, and how you solved things. Is your student coming in from their first fall semester at college? They will be especially tired because really being on their own day by day is a tiring experience that first semester. It will be good to assure them that the rest of the year will move more smoothly because of all they have learned about the way college “works”.
World news is scary and upsetting these days, and of course our students feel deeply about these topics. You might want to have a conversation about managing their health, including their mental well-being, and how the university offers lots of support for them. They receive this information from us, but sometimes it makes more of an impact when parents discuss this topic with them. You can help us with this “bookend” approach.
Some important links are here:
Where can I find Health and Wellness Resources?
Don’t forget about that flu shot! Students call 330-672-2322 to schedule an on-campus flu shot or visit the website for more information at DeWeese Health Center.
How about Residence Hall Questions or Issues?
University Housing - Current Resident Resources
What about Commuter Students?
Kent State has a Commuter Student Organization entitled “COSO”, which stands for Commuter & Off-Campus Student Organization; view more information at www.kent.edu/coso.
Where do I go for Financial Aid Questions?
Student Financial Aid
One Stop For Student Services
Where can I find Student Services?
Student Services
And let’s not forget that soon it will be time for students interested in internships to start applying! Internships are a great way to gain hands-on experience in a major or concentration, and many honors students do internships on campus, off campus, in the U.S. and outside the U.S., mostly but not always in the summer. The application season usually gets underway in mid December or early January.
Here are some ideas to get started with, but there is much more out there!
Kent State’s SURE Program
https://www.kent.edu/research/student-research/summer-undergraduate-research-experience
The KSU SURE Program (Summer Undergraduate Research Experience): Paid summer research internship with a faculty member on campus - sciences, humanities, arts - lots to choose from. The application window opens Dec. 1, 2023 - and stays open through Feb. 17, 2024.
Federal Reserve-Cleveland
https://www.clevelandfed.org/careers/internships
For the economics or finance major, or possibly a student interested in these areas and studying computer science or related topics: The Federal Reserve in Cleveland offers paid summer internships; their deadline is sometime in December 2023 - take a look!
NASA
https://intern.nasa.gov/
NASA has paid summer internships around the country - Deadline to apply is Feb. 2, 2024, but don’t wait! These internships fill fast!
NOAA
https://vlab.noaa.gov/web/lapenta-internship-program
Weather and all things meteorological – a paid summer internship with NOAA (National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration) known as the LaPenta Internship - Applications due by Jan. 3, 2024!
I am wishing you all a very happy Thanksgiving - enjoy your time together!
With Best regards,
Alison J. Smith, Ph.D.
Honors College, Dean
Kent State University
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We're Here to Help!
Honors College CAPS Clinical Psychologist
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Theresa Tschannen Isabella, Ph.D. is a staff member in Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) and is dedicated to serving the Honors College community.
For appointments, Honors College students may call the CAPS Office at 330-672-2487 and schedule with Theresa or any of the other available therapists. Sessions are available Monday - Friday from 8:00 a.m to 5:00 p.m. Theresa has in-person availability within the Honors College office on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.
Visit the CAPS website for a complete overview of services available, including links for workshops, skills series and self-help resources.
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Honors Dominates SURE Competition
Fall 2023 Three-Minute Presentations
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Students in computer science, fashion, biology, environmental conservation and psychology were among the first-place winners who gave three-minute presentations of their research during the Oct. 23 award ceremony for the Summer Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE).
The students represented a record 172 participants who participated in the summer program, an increase of 50 students from the previous year, according to Ann Gosky, director of the Office of Student Research at Kent State.
SURE is sponsored by the Division of Research and Economic Development and the Office of the President, as well as several individuals, departments, colleges institutes and others.
Kent State President Todd Diacon, Ph.D., and Douglas L. Delahanty, Ph.D., vice president for the Division of Research and Economic Development, congratulated the students on their research endeavors.
There were 23 first-place winners in seven large research categories, which in some cases, included more than one discipline. Seven of the first-place winners were selected to present their research at the awards ceremony.
Olivia Eader, a member of the Honors College and double major in English and Environmental Studies (Italian minor), received a first-place award. The junior honors student was selected to present her research at the awards ceremony of the SURE competition.
Fellow honors student, Ruth Morara, placed first in Group 1 of the Environment/Biology/Geology/Geography section of the 3-minute thesis presentation competition on her topic, 'How will Climate Change Affect Decomposition in an Ombrotrophic Bog?'.
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Ruth stated, "I have always been curious about how climate change could affect humans and ecosystems. It is my hope that if people are shown the impacts of climate change, they will make a conscious effort to try and reduce their contribution to it."
Ruth explained that her mentor David Costello, Ph.D., assisted her with finding a topic that was suited to subjects that she had interest in. Ruth (right) is show in the photo with her award medallion, standing next to fellow Honors College member Claire Ebner, a senior who won second place in Group 2 of the the same category and also worked in the Costello lab.
Altogether, 53 Honors students participated in the competition.
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Giving Tuesday
Honors College Emergency Tuition Fund
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The Honors College is dedicated to providing not only the best academic experience the university has to offer, but also an environment that allows students to grow, mature and become confident and independent of mind.
The way demonstrated financial need is calculated for federal financial aid is changing this year, and this will impact many of our students. The changes will significantly affect students whose families own a farm or small business or have more than one student enrolled in college. The Honors College Emergency Tuition Fund aims to help students facing this challenge stay enrolled and continue on their path toward graduation.
This month, Don and Anne Palmer have generously pledged to match all gifts to the Honors College Emergency Tuition Fund up to $10,000.
Your gift will show that Flashes take care of Flashes by providing Honors College students with much-needed support. Your support will make their futures Forever Brighter and help continue Kent State's legacy of excellence.
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Phi Beta Kappa Society
Chapter Induction
The Nation's Oldest Academic Honor Society
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Congratulations to the 19 students who were inducted into the Kent State University chapter of Phi Beta Kappa Society on Tuesday, November 14, 2023.
Membership in the Phi Beta Kappa Society is indeed a rare honor. Only about 1% of graduating undergraduate students in the United States each year are invited to join PBK, having demonstrated remarkable scholarship in the liberal arts and sciences.
Lifelong members of Phi Beta Kappa include 17 U.S. Presidents, 42 Supreme Court Justices and over 150 Nobel laureates.
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Visit to NEOMED
Ohio Medical Education Day
The Honors College sponsored several pre-medical students to attend Ohio Medical Education Day (OMED) on the campus of Northeast Ohio Medical University (NEOMED). During the one-day conference, students were able to attend sessions on how they can build a strong medical school application, understanding the application cycle and hearing insight from current medical students (which included several Honors College alum). Students met with representatives from medical schools in Ohio and surrounding states. The day concluded with an tour of the NEOMED facility.
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Honors Alumna in the Spotlight
Student Media Experience Leads to Dream Job for Kent State Journalism Graduate
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While completing a two-month journalism fellowship in Arizona the summer after her college graduation, Anna Huntsman, ’19, found herself nostalgic for Ohio.
“I was around a lot of people from all across the country,” she remembers. “They would ask me, ‘What’s so special about Ohio?’ and I would have this answer about the camaraderie, the sports, the work ethic. I just found myself having these answers of really missing my home.”
Huntsman, who majored in journalism and was a member of Kent State’s Honors College, landed a job at Ideastream Public Media in Cleveland a few short months later. Four years later, she hasn’t looked back.
“I never expected that I would get a job in Cleveland when I graduated, but it has only made me want to stay here now.”
Read the full story.
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Honors
Leadership Academy Fall 2023
The Honors Leadership Academy has had a busy fall semester as they visit the Kent Historical Society, Haven of Portage County and Ben Curtis Family Foundation, along with weekly class meetings, group projects and informational speakers.
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Dr. Elizabeth Howard Scholarship
2023 RECIPIENT: Gabrielle Volz
Gabrielle (Gabby) Volz is a second year Kent State University Honors College student from Mansfield, Ohio, and a graduate of Lexington High School.
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She is the second recipient of the Dr. Elizabeth Howard scholarship, the recently established fund for Honors College students in memory of Elizabeth Howard, Ph.D., who was a prominent member of the Honors College community, as well as the Department of English.
The recipient of the $1,000 scholarship is chosen to reflect the academic and creative interests of Professor Howard. Gabrielle is the perfect candidate this year to reflect Howard’s interests, as she works towards a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Studio Art with a concentration in textiles, as well as minors in both art history and marketing. She also serves as the president of the Textiles Club on the Kent State campus, and enjoys crocheting, knitting, weaving, and spending time outdoors. She loves to read and takes every opportunity she can to travel.
Read the full story and see photos of Gabrielle's work in textiles.
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Flashes 101:
Service In A Flash
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Honors students in some sections of Flashes 101 participated in 'Service in a Flash' Day, where they made tote bags out of old t-shirts to give to Flashes Fighting Hunger, Kent State's student-run, volunteer-powered food security initiative, so that guests have a bag to transport food from the regularly offered food distributions. | |
Reaching for the Stars:
Physics Major Participates in "Dream" Internship
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The NASA-affiliated Space Telescope Science Institute (STScI) in Baltimore, Maryland, was founded in 1981 as the home base for Space Telescope operations. Now, it similarly functions as the center for science operations of the Hubble and James Webb Space Telescopes (JWST).
The institute offers internships with its Space Astronomy Summer Program and receives hundreds of applicants every year. With just a small percent chance of acceptance, only 15 applicants were offered internships with the summer program, including Honors College student Turaba Rahman (featured in front row, right side in above photo).
The junior physics major, who has a concentration in research and is pursuing a minor in applied mathematics, described her experience as a “dream come true,” and happily claimed the title of research intern.
“I was flabbergasted,” she eagerly said. “I was so astonished.”
Turaba traveled to Maryland and moved into a residence hall at Johns Hopkins University during her time with STScI to begin her experience working 40-hour weeks from June until August.
Read the full story.
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National Coming Out Day
Sharing Advice and Encouragement
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The Honors College recently celebrated National Coming Out Day on October 11, 2023. Words of advice and encouragement, submitted by students in the Honors College community were featured on a rotating display visible on the lobby's tv screen, as well as rainbow cookies and a multitude of resources, available to Kent State University students, staff and faculty. | |
Addicted to Love of Research
Meet Hannah Fender, Senior Honors College Psychology Major Who Can't Get Enough of Research
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As a psychology major in Kent State University’s Honors College, someone had suggested to Hannah Fender that she should get involved in research as an undergraduate student.
At Kent State, undergraduate students have numerous opportunities to take on research of all varieties, and students are encouraged not to wait until they are seniors or graduate-level students to get involved.
So, Fender signed up in the research lab of Clare Stacey, Ph.D., associate professor of sociology, looking into the question of how empathy changes over time in medical students.
That's when Fender was first bitten by the research bug.
“I guess you could say I’m sort of addicted to research now,” Fender admits.
Read the full story.
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Introducing Shannon Brown:
Student Leader of the Month - Kent State Leadership Center
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Honors College student and Honors senator for Undergraduate Student Government (USG) Shannon Brown, was recently announced as the Student Leader of the Month through the Kent State Leadership Center.
Community Engagement coordinator in the Honors College, Erin Ahrens, was one of Shannon's nominators for the award and said, "Shannon has been very involved on campus since her freshman year. I'm very impressed with her initiatives and follow through. She joined KIC last year and was one of the lead organizers of kids and sibs weekend. She was a part of Honors Leadership Academy and has created several new initiatives already as the USG Honors College Senator. She is great at time management and has creative ideas and loves to include others.”
Shannon will receive a gift card to the Kent State Bookstore, as well as attend a luncheon in December to celebrate award winners.
The double major was also recently featured in a news article detailing her summer internship in human resources at Elliot Group.
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Volunteering
With Portage County Dog Warden
This semester, the Honors College has collaborated with the Portage County Dog Warden to foster the love of dogs and passion for volunteering that many of our honors students have expressed a desired interest in.
Orientation sessions are being held throughout the semester to train students and prepare them for weekly volunteer visits through the Honors College, which will take place in the coming months.
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Peer-to-Peer Support Activities this Fall:
Support mentors have led many social events this fall, including recess games, a visit to Kingsway Pumpkin Farm and a "Tailgate" to watch the Kent/Akron football rivalry together with snacks!
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Follow us on our social media accounts for information on
events, programming and reminders!
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