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City in Ohio, United States
Photo: JonRidinger, CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Kent is a college town in Northeast Ohio. Kent, the home of Kent State University, is a quaint town with a very diverse community where northeast Ohio locals mix with students from across the state nation and globe. Kent is also home to many annual events, such as its annual Folk Music Festival.
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Kent State, a public research university founded 1912 as a teachers' college, offers 300 degree programs on eight campuses. The main campus in Kent houses 28,800 of the system's 42,500 students. Programs include nursing, liquid crystals, business, history, library science, aeronautics, journalism and fashion design.
May 4 Memorial
The May 4th Visitors Center surrounds the area where the May 4th Shootings occurred. The Visitors Center has an exhibit that helps provide context to the shootings including larger scale conflicts such as the Vietnam War. Informational packets are available near the site when the Visitors Center is closed. Often offers special programming around May 4th.
Kent State Fashion Museum
The Kent State University Fashion Museum is in Rockwell Hall, and features historical and cutting-edge articles of fashion.
Local history of the city and residents, the railroad that passes through the town, and Kent State University.
Hearing Aid Museum
Created by accident in the 1960s due to a misprint in a news article, this museum of hearing aid technology that houses over 3000 hearing aids, making it among the largest collections in the world. The collection includes devices and patents dating back from 1830's to the digital age.
A museum about museums. Has rotating exhibits that are usually interactive.
PABO
This building is the core of the Kent State Performing Arts programs. The basement houses the Performing Arts Library which features some special collections. The first floor houses the Ludwig Recital Hall for musical performances, as well as several dance rooms and theaters.
CVA Gallery
Features many galleries of Student Artwork, as well as workshops. Partially built out of an old power plant.
See a production at the primer theater of Downtown Kent. The Rocky Horror Picture Show is often shown here.
Housed in the historic May Prentice House, the Wick Poetry Center houses poetry readings and more. It's surrounded by a poetry park, which is small, but packed with art and an amphitheater.
Occasionally offers showings.
AMLCI
Birthplace of the Twisted Numeric LCD (when it was in Smith Hall). Has an art installation outside, and occasionally offers conferences. The building interior is normally off limits, but is sometimes opened up for seminars.
The center offers a variety of "adventures".
A Kent State University program open to the public that offers canoeing on the Cuyahoga River.
Bowling Alley and Video Game Arcade in the Eastway Center. Operated by Kent State University but rarely used by students so you can usually get it for yourself.
Kent State Folk Festival
A fall music festival that started in 1966 as the Kent State Folk Festival.
Annual festival featuring university organisations, local companies, and student organizations.
A midsummer festival held in the beginning of July celebrating the heritage of Kent. The heritage festival has food, activities, entertainment, and fireworks.
Held every spring, FlashFest brings activities and big name musicians to campus.
Annual Fashion Show
Kent State's spring fashion show. This event showcases student work and alumni success in the field of fashion. Tickets for the event are available at the Performing Arts Box Office (PABO) in the center for the Performing arts, which is in a different building then Rockwell Hall.
A summer music festival that also acts as a collaboration between Kent State, the Cleveland Orchestra, and the Blossom Music Center to train musicians.
Annual collegiate hackathon at Kent State University. Visitors are encouraged, especially for the opening and closing ceremonies. Non-computer science majors and Non-Kent students are very welcomed to compete.
A collegiate hackathon centered on fashion and technology as an interdisciplinary field.
A hackerspace at Kent State University. Facilities include 3D printers, laser cutters, vinyl cutters, fabric printers and a CNC router.
SMS
Despite the name, the SMS offers services to non-students too. They have video-conferencing rooms, 3D printers, and help with computer software.
An interdisciplinary Lab/Hackerspace in Rockwell Hall at Kent State University. Has resources for Fashion Students and Computer Science Students. Features one of the largest laser cutters in Northwest Ohio. Name is meant to sound like "Textile Lab".
See Kent State's football team at Dix Stadium.
Dual rink ice arena. Features hockey games and public skating.
Diamond at Dix (Alternate Stadium)
The official baseball field of Kent State University.
University-operated sports complex.
Standing Rock is a unique rock positioned above the Portage River. Rumored to have been a meeting place for Native Americans before Kent was established.
A woodshed that was created to fall apart after being partially buried in 1970.
An easy walking path along the Cuyahoga River. Near the site of "Brady's Leap" where Samuel Brady is said to have jumped across the Cuyahoga River in 1780 while fleeing Native Americans.
Contains a number of tamarack trees and a small boardwalk.
Ballpark along the river
A reserve of natural prairie land on campus. The university conducts a controlled burn once a year, so don't be surprised if you notice it on fire.
Has books and coffee. Lets you scribble on paper topped tables with crayons.
A coffee shop that also offers classes and blends for sale.
A modern coffee shop near Acorn Alley.
Rosie's Diner
Kent State's Late Night Diner and convenience store. Sells breakfast, lunch, dinner and dessert 22 hours a day. The food is very greasy and often hastily cooked, but on the flip side it's relatively cheap and it's quick. In the morning and around lunch Rosie's is pretty quiet, but at night, especially on Thursdays and Fridays, it gets loud and rowdy with a bar like atmosphere. You have to operate the register yourself - paying with a card here is far easier than paying with cash. Hold onto your receipt until your number is called and don't be afraid to ask if it gets loud. Requires a Kent State student ID to enter after midnight. Offers late night delivery. The grocery part is open 24/7 during the school year and offers a good balance between junk food and healthy food, but it's a little pricey for a traveler.
The second floor of Eastway houses the Eastway Fresh Food Company, a dining hall frequented by freshmen and vegans. Downstairs there is a deli and market. Eastway Deli is popular with upperclassemen and can prepare custom sandwiches. Eastway Market carries a small selection of international brands outside the usual fare.
The first and second floors of the Kent State Student Center serve as the primary dining hall of the area. The Hub is on the first floor and serves branded fast food alongside branches of local restaurants. The Hub has bagel, sub, pretzel, Asian, and Mexican specialty resaurants. Because the Hub is a favorite with students, between 11AM and 2PM they don't accept meal plan to accommodate commuter students and visitors - conversely the times immediately before 11AM and immediately after 2PM are extremely busy. Also on the first floor is the Kent Market, which is a small convince store in a nook that also sells soup and bent tree coffee. On the Second floor is the Kent Market 2, which handles the influx of students between 11AM and 2PM. Besides American food, the Kent Market 2 also has Italian and Indian options, as well as a deli.
Pizza, wings, gyros, and sandwiches. They also have bar and drink specials. A large 1-topping pizza is $5 on Wednesday. Open late.
Really good place for breakfast or lunch. They have great coffee, and food that is fresh. Try the corned beef hash.
Fresh ingredients from local vendors. In addition to the regular and specialty pizza pies, nine different fresh salads are on the menu, as are subs, calzones, and traditional and boneless wings.
In addition to its wide array of sandwich selections, they offer a full breakfast menu, soups and dessert items. The restaurant provides quick, courteous service and maintains a large local customer base.
Mike's place has a huge menu, and all items have an unusual name (Ms. McNaster's Disaster, the Nunsiatta Devita, etc.). The atmosphere is similar to Dick's Last Resort's.
Bar and restaurant, popular with college students and locals. Burgers, sandwiches, food and drink specials, great variety of beers. Serves a relaxed public.
Made from scratch delicious Mexican style foods. Huge tacos, burritos, tostados, taco salads, pizzaritos , chips and salsa. Can call ahead for pick up or place order in the tiny store. One can place an outdoor by phone and can pick up their order from the outside carryout window at the nextdoor Zephyr Bar. If you want a beer with your food then you have to go to Zephyrs. The website is a little outdated and food is a little more expensive but totally worth it.
Bistro is dark and quiet, with an extensive wine list and innovative menu selections.
Laziza is a Mediterranean-style restaurant in the downtown Kent area that offers lunch and dinner dining. The menu here offers steaks, seafood and Mediterranean specialties. The space here features two levels available for dining, a bar and an area for private parties. The restaurant also provides catering services for private events and functions.
Popped offers a variety of hot popcorns, from butter or caramel to more unusual flavors such as Baja or Cayenne. Also offers gift tins of cold popcorn.
The Zeph
Zephyr has a reputation as a friendly drinking establishment that's not really frequented by any one social group. Plenty of groups get together here, whether they're current KSU students or grads from long-ago gathering for a casual night. Customers use the large outdoor patio as long as the weather permits and service on the patio is every bit as good as inside.
Sells pulled pork sandwiches, mac and cheese, and has a build your own burger bar. Has many TVs. Despite the name, it's underground and lacks a patio.
Serves sake, wine, whiskey, beer, rum, gin, scotch, tequila, vodka and bourbon alongside sushi and tempura desserts.
Entertainment venue offering DJs, stand up comedians and live bands
KSU Hotel
A high end hotel and conference center owned and operated by Kent State University. The hotel features the nineteen 10 slow food-style restaurant and bar specilizing in angus beef steaks and pizza. The hotel includes complimentary Wi-Fi, and a salt water pool.
Includes complementary Wi-Fi, coffee, breakfast, fitness center, business center, newspaper, and a heated indoor pool. This hotel is on the edge of Kent proper and walking to anywhere meaningful from here is difficult, but it's one of the few hotels in the area.
The Bookstore
Travelers might find the bookstore's selection of charging cables, umbrellas, water bottles, bookbags, clothing, cosmetics, and memory cards useful, if somewhat overpriced. Besides books the bookstore sells Kent State brand apparel, stationary, and computers.
Toy store, with many gag items geared at older people.
An open-air pedestrian mall downtown.
Sells and repairs bicycles.
By bike
Kent is a very bike friendly town! Covered bike parking is often available, and the PARTA Kent Central Gateway has bike lockers for completely enclosed storage.
By foot
Kent is a very walkable city due to its compact size and dedicated walkways like the Lester Lefton Esplanade.
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