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A ���ϲ����� tradition for 35 years, the annual Black Squirrel Festival will take place Friday, Sept. 9, from 12-5 p.m. on the Student Green and Risman Plaza. The Black Squirrel Festival, which is hosted by Kent Student Center Programming, attracts more than 3,000 students, faculty and staff, as well as members of the Kent community.

Scholar of the Month Brian Castellani Professor of Sociology ���ϲ����� at Ashtabula 2002-present The Kent Campus is big, but still not big enough to fit all the great scholars who are part of the ���ϲ����� family. So much of ���ϲ�����’s great research is happening at its Regional Campuses, and Sociology Professor Brian Castellani, Ph.D., of ���ϲ����� at Ashtabula is just one of the shining examples.

The Aeronautics Department in ���ϲ�����’s College of Applied Engineering, Sustainability and Technology will host its 20th Aeronautics Fair on Saturday, Sept. 10. The ���ϲ����� Aeronautics Fair takes place 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. at Andrew W. Paton Field at the ���ϲ����� Airport, located at 4020 Kent Road in Stow.

The Mid-American Conference (MAC) announced the presentation of the Cartwright Award to ���ϲ����� for its program excellence in academics, athletics and citizenship during the 2015-16 school year. It is the program’s third Cartwright Award honor in the last seven years, the most of any program in the MAC.

Saying goodbye was more difficult than Riley Jernejcic could have ever imagined. Crouched down on the cobblestone street with her arms stretched out from one end to the other, Jernejcic cried out, “Adios. Abrazo,” which means goodbye and hug in Spanish. ���ϲ����� 50 feet away, a little boy, known as Wilder, came running up the hill. “He jumped into my arms, and we both started to cry,” Jernejcic said. “I’ll never forget him. He made such an impact on my life.”

���ϲ����� President Beverly Warren recently presented 14 ���ϲ����� faculty members with the President’s Faculty Excellence Award, which recognizes exceptional performance that leads to the achievement of national or international recognition. This year, each recipient receives a special salary adjustment of $10,000.

The Center for Student Involvement and the Department of Intercollegiate Athletics are welcoming back the ���ϲ����� community in a big way. To kick off the academic year, students, faculty and staff are invited to enjoy a week packed full of food, giveaways and some ���ϲ����� pride! From Aug. 29 through Sept. 2, ���ϲ����� students are encouraged to stop by Risman Plaza between classes to meet new people and to take part in the excitement of the first week of classes.

���ϲ����� students will celebrate the start of a new school year at the university’s annual back-to-school celebration that occurs the day before fall classes begin. Blastoff will take place on Sunday, Aug. 28, from 6-9:30 p.m. on the Student Green and Manchester Field on the Kent Campus. Blastoff serves as the culminating event of Welcome Weekend, a four-day orientation program that helps new students transition into the university environment.

Welcome Weekend, ���ϲ�����’s four-day new student orientation, took place on Aug. 25-28. Students were able to select from approximately 50 different events held from Thursday to Sunday. The weekend event helped students transition into the university community and learn about academic and social opportunities at ���ϲ�����.

���ϲ����� faculty, staff and students volunteered to help incoming freshmen move into the university’s residence halls at the beginning of each school year.This year, freshman move-in day was Thursday, Aug. 25, from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.Last year, the Movers and Groovers program garnered 921 volunteers. Jill Church, director of University Housing (formerly Residence Services) at ���ϲ�����, anticipated more than 900 volunteers again this year.