AKRON, Ohio – The June 16 Akron Roundtable will feature Kent State University President Todd Diacon.
Diacon will discuss access and affordability in public higher education at the event, which is scheduled for noon at Quaker Station, 135 South Broadway St., in Akron.
He will talk about the first two waves of access to public higher education and the approaching third wave, along with changes in who pays for the cost of receiving a college education, with Kent State serving as an example of these trends.
Diacon became Kent State University’s 13th president in July of 2019. He has more than 30 years of experience in higher education leadership. His commitment to college affordability and access have been recognized nationally and led to increased student retention, graduation rates and academic achievement.
A native of Wellington, Kansas, Diacon joined the university as provost in 2012. Since then, he has worked to expand Kent State’s international presence while working to recruit and promote more diverse faculty, including leaders in the fields of aviation, engineering, brain health, liquid crystals and peace and conflict studies.
He earned a bachelor’s degree from Southwestern College in Kansas and master’s and doctoral degrees from the University of Wisconsin. Diacon’s areas of expertise include agrarian history and the history of central state power in Brazil.
Diacon has written publications about student success and the administration of higher education. He has also written journal articles and two books, including “Stringing Together a Nation,” which won the Warren Dean Memorial Prize in 2005 for the most significant book on Brazilian history.
Tickets to the event are $25 and include lunch. To register for the event, visit the Akron Roundtable website.
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