Kent Wired

Kent local Katy Thomas has hosted the “Kent in Good Company” podcast since the beginning of 2024. Every Wednesday, a new episode is released featuring Thomas sitting down with a local business owner and learning their story. After starting her own business in 2019, teaching English as a second language, she realized just how hard being an entrepreneur is, giving her the idea for the podcast. “From that experience, I realized, man, business owners who actually go out and do the things.

Academic affairs faculty and staff reviewed the first five models of college reorganization for T28 presented in October. “Feedback from all of our staff and faculty is essential in guiding this process,” Provost Melody Tankersley said in an email sent to academic affairs faculty and staff Monday. The first review resulted in 701 unique survey responses with over 60 consultation documents presented by the Faculty Advisory Committees and College Advisory Committees.

With the 2024 election in the rearview mirror, it is time to review student voting turnout and the best initiatives that brought them to the polls. Kent State Votes, an Undergraduate Student Government-affiliated and university-wide nonpartisan coalition, led the charge to register student voters and encourage them to voice their opinions. The coalition also worked to provide election and voting information to keep students educated.

The front campus rock has been a canvas board for student expression since 1922. Both positive and negative messages and illustrations have been displayed on the boulder. Hate speech on The Rock can occur when student groups and individuals paint racist, homophobic, offensive and targeted messages. Sohaela Rojas, president of Kent State’s chapter of the national organization Unite for Reproductive and Gender Equity, said painting The Rock has become a tradition for her group.

Fuerst Automotive recently opened a second location in Kent. A family-run business, the shop’s goal is to provide honest and transparent service to its customers, especially Kent State students. The new location opened at 1005 W. Main St. on Nov. 4, run by siblings Kayla Burris and Mitch Stout. The original location, which has remained open for over 40 years in Broadview Heights, is run by a third sibling, Amber Stout-Nebozuk. The parents of the family help run both locations.

This is what college football is all about. Rivalry week — when a team walks itself into a stadium composed of hallowed grounds to do battle with the most hated enemy of all, and this week was no different. In the Midwest, no rivalry comes before “The Game.” The second-ranked Ohio State Buckeyes welcomed the unranked Michigan Wolverines into Columbus in a game where OSU was heavily favored to beat “TTUN” to almost everyone outside of Ann Arbor.

An Akron staple re-opened for the holiday season. After Thanksgiving, Lock 3 Park hosted its grand re-opening, including its outdoor ice arena. The park has two ice rinks, activities and decorations for people to enjoy. The park opened after renovations in June 2023, and the rink kicks off the finished renovations. Jillian Flack is a KSTV Reporter. You can contact her at [email protected].

Senior distance athlete Baidy Ba concluded his Kent State cross country career at the NCAA Cross Country Championships Nov. 23 in Madison, WI., where he placed 138th in the men’s 10k with a time of 30:09.7. The upcoming 2025 track season will be the official end cap to Ba’s collegiate distance career. And what a career it was. This was Ba’s third time competing in the national championship race. He is only the fourth runner in Kent State history to qualify for three NCAA Cross Country Championships.

Big performances from sophomore guard Mya Babbitt and senior guard Jenna Batsch carried the Kent State women’s basketball team to an 89-73 win over Niagara Thursday. Babbitt finished with a team-high 23 points on 9-13 (69%) shooting and 3-5 (60%) from three-point distance. She also added four rebounds, four assists and four steals. Even with the high production, it is not Babbitt’s season-high in points scored this season. She also has scored 20 or more points three times this season.

Two years after the launch in 2022, students are still riding SPIN electric bikes and scooters around Kent. With over 200,000 SPIN rides in two years, the system has been a continuous success. Chris Lukas, assistant director of outdoor adventure, said Kent’s partnership with SPIN started with the goal of benefiting students’ physical and mental health. “The idea was to provide a healthy alternative form of transportation for the community,” Lukas said.