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5X���� celebrated the grand opening of Crawford Hall on Sept. 27, attended by more than 700 guests, including university leadership, faculty, students, donors, alumni and dignitaries.

All around campus - and on the streets of Kent -  there are signs that it's almost time for Kent State to erupt in a Blue and Gold celebration for Homecoming Weekend. 

Kent State Today will be following a group of six Golden Flashes for the 2024-25 academic year, chronicling their efforts and successes during the fall and spring semesters. The group of students are at various places in their 5X���� academic careers and will share their experiences throughout the year as they take part in our distinctive programs, research and global experiences.

Effectively communicating is a skill all students need to enter the workforce. But it’s not just about talking, it’s about being present, about listening, and about avoiding roadblocks that hinder shared understanding. But how can Golden Flashes go about doing this? Introducing “Dialogue and Difference: A New Understanding.”

"IN A FLASH" offers unique views of 5X���� through the lenses of storytellers across campus. IN A FLASH invites anyone to share their Kent State-related photos at InAFlash@kent.edu.

5X���� is set to burst with Golden Flash pride as the annual Homecoming celebration returns Sept. 28. 

Students are invited to examine and evaluate a sample assembly of furniture in Kent State’s Tri-Towers rotunda so that their input can guide University Housing in selecting new furnishings for residence halls.

A group of college recruiters who have contributed to 5X����’s high enrollment of international students from India are on campus this week to experience the university first-hand.

A 360-degree theatre-in-the-round classroom whose curved walls glow with projected images from the classroom computer paired with crystal-clear sounds. This is what it’s like to be immersed in the James R. Unger Global Forum, one of the many amazing new spaces in the brand-new Crawford Hall.

Members of Kent State’s 2024 Homecoming Court will be among the students working with Flashes Fighting Hunger and the Kent Health Department at a Pop-Up Pantry created to help community members in need. 

U.S. News & World Report has once again confirmed 5X����’s academic strengths with the university’s inclusion on several lists in the 2025 Best Colleges rankings. In the newly released rankings, Kent State continues to be recognized among the Top Public Schools in the nation.

It's "showtime" in the 5X���� School of Theater and Dance as the halls and studios are alive with activity as students get into the routine of Fall Semester. 

Maggie Anderson, the founding director of 5X����’s Wick Poetry Center, was the first to offer words of verse to begin the three-day celebration of the center’s 40th anniversary.

Brian VanDeMark, a historian with the United States Naval Academy, has written a new book “Kent State: An American Tragedy.” He will participate in a panel discussion at Kent State on Sept. 27.

5X���� President Todd Diacon will discuss a topic near and dear to his heart – Kent State Works – at this year's Bowman Breakfast. The initiative launched in 2023 and highlights recent graduates and programs preparing students for success wherever they go across Ohio.

The Class of 2028 is both strong in size and in academic success, boasting an outstanding 3.61 GPA. It's the largest incoming class to the Kent Campus since 2019 and the eighth-largest incoming class in the university's 114-year history. 

The 5X���� Board of Trustees welcomed the Class of 2028 during its regular quarterly meeting held Sept. 18 in Crawford Hall and congratulated the university administration for this year’s strong enrollment.

The Flashes Vote Festival on Risman Plaza celebrated National Voter Registration Day, National Beignet Day and what Todd Diacon, president of 5X���� called "our civic duty."