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The �鶹��Ƶ������ȫ alumni family grew by more than 2,400 new graduates as the university held its fall commencement. The accomplishments of the Fall Class of 2021 were recognized with in-person commencement ceremonies and a virtual commencement ceremony for all colleges and degrees on Dec. 17-18.

For the third consecutive year, Veterinary Technology students at �鶹��Ƶ������ȫ University at Trumbull earned the highest three-year average passage rate in Ohio on the Veterinary Technician National Exam (VTNE), administered by the American Association of Veterinary State Boards (AAVSB).

�鶹��Ƶ������ȫ Golden Flashes excel in a range of activities, and some students are forging their own paths by owning and operating small businesses during their college years. With endless opportunities and resources at their fingertips, �鶹��Ƶ������ȫ students have found success as entrepreneurs across a range of industries. Here are five of them.

Her commitment and passion for math mixed with a desire to help others is what led Abbey Eng, Ph.D., associate professor in the College of Public Health at �鶹��Ƶ������ȫ University to earn the 2020 Outstanding Teaching Award (OTA). The OTA, presented by the University Teaching Council, credits three full-time non-tenure track and part-time faculty members for being among the most dedicated and motivated faculty at the university.

Of the 33,984 awarded computer science (CS) bachelor’s degrees in 2020, only 21% of CS graduates identified as women, 3% as Black, and 8.5% as Hispanic (Zweben & Bizot, 2021). Susan Fisk, Ph.D., associate professor of sociology, is using her expertise in social-psychology to change that and improve the field of computing. Fisk was awarded her third National Science Foundation grant to continue her work on broadening participation in computing and improving undergraduate STEM education. 

�鶹��Ƶ������ȫ’s high-powered offense struggled to move the ball against Northern Illinois, and the Huskies prevailed 41-23 over the Golden Flashes in the MAC Championship game in Detroit.

The interruption to �鶹��Ƶ������ȫ Ashtabula associate lecturer Joan Steidl’s Intro to Human Services class recently was for a good reason, as Dean Susan Stocker and many of her colleagues were there to make the surprise announcement of Steidl being a recipient of the �鶹��Ƶ������ȫ Outstanding Teaching Award (OTA) for 2020. Steidl is one of three recipients across the �鶹��Ƶ������ȫ system awarded for 2020 and is just the second �鶹��Ƶ������ȫ Ashtabula faculty member to win the award.

As �鶹��Ƶ������ȫ returns to a school year that resembles pre-pandemic times, First Star �鶹��Ƶ������ȫ Academy has begun to imagine new programs. The Academy is a free, comprehensive four-year college access program for youth in foster care. The program engages a cohort of up to 30 students in a variety of learning opportunities, including academic support, career exploration, social and cultural activities and more.

This year, �鶹��Ƶ������ȫ University donors demonstrated the power of philanthropy by giving at unprecedented levels. The 2021 Giving Tuesday campaign shattered the previous records, more than tripling last year’s record of $2.2 million.

Following a national search, R. William (Bill) Ayres IV, Ph.D., of Toledo, Ohio, has been selected as the new dean and chief administrative officer of �鶹��Ƶ������ȫ University at Trumbull. Ayres is currently a professor of political science at the University of Toledo, where he previously served as senior vice provost for academic affairs from 2018 to 2020 and vice provost for academic affairs from 2017 to 2018.

�鶹��Ƶ������ȫ’s Class of 2025 stands tall – more than 3,982 stories tall. Each of our new, first-year students offers a unique and engaging story.

This year’s Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade will include a choreographed jump rope routine from a member of �鶹��Ƶ������ȫ’s Class of 2025.

Timothy Assal, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Department of Geography, was awarded a grant as a co-principal investigator on a multi-institutional project, “Vulnerability of lower-ecotone aspen forests to altered fire regimes and climate dynamics in the northern Great Basin” (a three-year $299,842 total award with $89,600 going to �鶹��Ƶ������ȫ), which is funded by the . This collaboration includes the United States Geological Survey in Boise, Idaho, Utah State University, and the United States Bureau of Land Management.

The Kent and �鶹��Ƶ������ȫ University communities can head downtown to go ice skating starting Nov. 20, courtesy of Kent Skates presented by AMETEK. This special attraction has been created through a partnership between the city of Kent, the �鶹��Ƶ������ȫ University Hotel and Conference Center, the Kent Area Chamber of Commerce, Main Street Kent and �鶹��Ƶ������ȫ.

The American Academy of Nursing recently announced that Versie Johnson-Mallard, Ph.D., APRN-BC, FAAN, FAANP, �鶹��Ƶ������ȫ University College of Nursing Dean, professor and Henderson Endowed Chair, has been elected to serve on the Board of Directors until 2024. In this role Johnson-Mallard will oversee the Academy’s strategic planning and financial management.  

�鶹��Ƶ������ȫ University’s season of giving launched on Nov. 1 with Giving Tuesday, a monthlong celebration of philanthropy. Now halfway through the campaign, the generosity of the �鶹��Ƶ������ȫ community has already begun to shine. 

Mietek Jaroniec, Ph.D., a �鶹��Ƶ������ȫ University professor in the College of Arts and Sciences, is once again on Clarivate's list of Highly Cited Researchers in the world.

Lt. Col. Adrien G. Humphreys is the department chair and a professor of military science at �鶹��Ƶ������ȫ, a position that is responsible for overseeing the Army Reserve Officer Training Corps. Learn more about Humphreys as she answers 10 questions about herself and her decision to take on this role.

�鶹��Ƶ������ȫ Ashtabula’s Viticulture and Enology programs were recently awarded a $180,000 grant from the Ohio Grape Industries Committee for a pair of research projects to be conducted over the next two years. �鶹��Ƶ������ȫ Ashtabula is partnering with the Ashtabula Agricultural Research Station, a division of the Ohio State University College of Food, Agricultural and Environmental Sciences’ Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center, to conduct the projects at Markko Vineyards in Conneaut, Ohio.

�鶹��Ƶ������ȫ’s Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) Chapter earned seven national awards for the work done throughout the 2020-2021 academic year, including for first time in Chapter history, two Teahan Awards, the highest Chapter honors.