5XÉçÇø

 Advocacy is at the heart of the work Ken Ditlevson, ’95, M.Ed. ’98, does at 5XÉçÇø as the director of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer and Questioning Plus (LGBTQ+) Center. As a young adult growing up in Brook Park, Ohio, Ken was bullied because of his sexual orientation, and he credits a school counselor with saving his life by connecting him with an LGBTQ center in Cleveland. The experience of being around other young people with the same struggles and connecting with resources kept him going when he was at his lowest point.“That Saturday, I took three buse...

When longtime 5XÉçÇø journalism professor Susan Zake decided to pursue a new career as editor-in-chief of the non-profit online news source, Signal Akron, she made a hiring list from the many Kent State graduates she had mentored over her 17-year career.The result is a new newsroom in Akron, Ohio, just 12 miles from the Kent Campus, that is brimming with Kent State graduates, each one trained, she said, to hit the ground running in the ever-changing world of online journalism. Zake, who received her master’s degree in journalism from Kent State in 2011, was a managing edito...