At Kent State we believe strongly that providing historical and social perspectives and establishing and fostering a collective memory and conscience are crucial elements of our society, and an important role of the university.  Kent State is uniquely positioned to be a leader in these endeavors.

Our society faces immense challenges and opportunities, such as globalization, rapidly increasing urbanization, social and environmental sustainability, and social cohesion in the midst of growing cultural diversity and economic instability.  At Kent State faculty researchers help us understand our past and help shape our collective future. 

Understanding our early past as a species is the purview of Kent State University’s Owen Lovejoy and his colleagues, who are leaders in reconstructing and interpreting our human ancestry through their studies of early hominids such as “Lucy” and, more recently, “Ardi” who lived millions of years ago. Our researchers also seek a deeper understanding or our more recent past through a study of ancient and medieval writings as well as historical analysis of pivotal events.

Shaping our collective futures is embodied in Kent State research programs in library and information science, journalism and visual communication design, which are each ranked among the nation’s best.
With the steady rise of digital information systems, faculty researchers in the College of Communication and Information are addressing some of society’s difficult challenges in the dynamic information and knowledge management fields.  Faculty members in the School of Library and Information Science study everything from new knowledge organization systems, user experience design and information policy.  The School of Visual Communication and Design has a distinguished reputation many areas of study, including graphic design, illustration, and information and interaction design.

We invite you to explore our past and our future, as informed by Kent State’s research in the social sciences and humanities.