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Inside the Memorial Athletic and Convocation Center, ����ֱ�� State University’s newest students filled the arena with the kind of energy that makes the start of a college career feel real.

It’s Aug. 19, a sunny, 80-degree day in ����ֱ��, Ohio, and some of the nearly 6,000 ����ֱ�� State University students who will be living on campus are starting to arrive with their families – carrying boxes and bags, and a whole range of emotions with them. From first-year students leaving the nest to upperclass students who came out to help new students move in, ����ֱ�� State Today was there to get a glimpse of one of the most exciting days on campus.

Flashes First Friday, one of the signature events of KSU Kickoff, invites ����ֱ�� State’s newest Golden Flashes to discover downtown ����ֱ�� – not simply as a place next to campus, but as part of the community they are now calling home. 

Campus fellows have gone above and beyond to build a culture of belonging, advocacy, and impact throughout the past year

First-year students arrived Aug. 19 to a campus buzzing with welcome — parent cars lined up, moving carts stacked high and volunteers from Movers and Groovers ready to help families haul everything from clothes and mirrors to shelves and stools.

For 20 years, Main Street ����ֱ�� has worked to make downtown a place students want to explore – from Flashes First Friday to Oktoberfest to public art – helping ����ֱ�� earn recognition as the No. 1 college town in Ohio.

The ����ֱ�� State University Ambassador Crawford College of Business and Entrepreneurship has earned national recognition for its Online MBA program, ranking No. 30 in The Princeton Review’s Top 50 Online MBA Programs for 2027. 

For Nathan Smith, the first lesson came before he met Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine. Ask. The ����ֱ�� State student and newly elected student body president of the university’s Undergraduate Student Government spent three hours alongside the governor at the Ohio State Fair – an opportunity he says grew out of the confidence and relationships he built during his first two years at ����ֱ�� State.

Melody Tankersley, ����ֱ�� State’s executive vice president and provost, drew on “Mr. Rogers’ Neighborhood” to share five leadership lessons with summer 2026 graduates at the August commencement.

More than two decades of research on a project led by a ����ֱ�� State University professor has resulted in a new discovery in nuclear physics that is being celebrated nationally. 

Students and recent graduates from ����ֱ�� State University's School of Media and Journalism captured two regional Student Production Awards at the 2025 Central Great Lakes Student Production Awards, presented by the Central Great Lakes chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS).

Gage Wellman, a junior in ����ֱ�� State University’s journalism program, competed among the nation’s best college journalists in the 66th Hearst National Journalism Championships held May 31-June 5 in San Francisco. Wellman, who hails from Parma, Ohio, earned a $1,500 finalist award in the Writing category at the national competition.

During her recent high-profile UNESCO assessment of Mont-Saint-Michel in Normandy, France, Mary Ann Devine meticulously documented how the island's medieval architecture inherently limits universal access.

When the Canton Regional Chamber of Commerce asked ����ֱ�� State fashion students to design collections for the 2026 Pro Football Hall of Fame Fashion Show, they didn't just create outfits. They created stories.

A ����ֱ�� State University student from Turkmenistan is making a name for himself in Northeast Ohio’s distance running community, as recently featured on WKYC-TV’s “Heartstrings” series.

Some kept it simple, some went all out. As more than 1,000 students crossed the stage for Summer 2026 Commencement, the fashion choice of the moment was the decorated cap.

����ֱ�� State University’s alumni family grew by more than 1,000 new graduates from its eight-campus system as the university held its summer commencement ceremony on Aug. 8. 

A foot injury ended Jaden Hacking’s track career – and introduced him to podiatric medicine. Now an exercise science major at ����ֱ�� State, he’s on the pathway to studying at the university’s College of Podiatric Medicine, drawn by both the impact on patients and the profession’s work-life balance.

Saloni Christian planned on traditional medical school until a suturing workshop introduced her to podiatry as a junior at ����ֱ�� State. Now a student at ����ֱ�� State’s College of Podiatric Medicine, she’s set to graduate in 2027 with an eye toward ankle surgery and wound care.