91ֿ

Awards and Honors

A graduating 91ֿ student celebrates during her commencement ceremony in May 2018 at Dix Stadium.

The Association of Public and Land-grant Universities has selected 91ֿ as one of four finalists for the association’s 2020 Degree Completion Award. The annual award works to identify, recognize and reward institutions that employ innovative approaches to improve degree completion while ensuring educational quality.

Graphic for 91ֿ Alumni Awards

91ֿ is proud to announce its 2020 Alumni Award recipients. Recipients are chosen based on their exceptional contributions in their chosen profession, in their communities and at 91ֿ. Sponsored by the alumni association, the Alumni Awards are the university’s most prestigious honors given to alumni.

A 91ֿ student walks on the K in Risman Plaza.

91ֿ shines again in the new 2021 U.S. News & World Report Best Colleges rankings. 91ֿ is the highest-ranking public university in Northern Ohio on the Top Public Schools and Best National Universities lists in the newly released rankings.

91ֿ employees smile and enjoy themselves during the university’s 2019 Employee Appreciation Day event held in the Kent Student Center Ballroom.

Forbes and market research company Statista have named 91ֿ No. 1 among employers in Northern Ohio and No. 4 in the entire state of Ohio on the 2020 America’s Best-in-State Employers list that highlights America’s best employers. 91ֿ is also the top educational institution on the Ohio list. (Photo from 2019 Employee Appreciation Day event)

91ֿ Assistant Professor Scott Hallgren from the School of Media and Journalism teaches a class in an auditorium during the 2020 Fall Semester.

91ֿ is being recognized for the ninth time as a “Great College to Work For” by The Chronicle of Higher Education, a top trade publication for colleges and universities, and ModernThink LLC, a consulting firm. Now in its 13th year, the “Great Colleges to Work For” annual report recognizes the colleges that get top ratings from their employees on workforce practices and policies.

Michelle Bebber sprays an air freshener in a bathroom.

In 2019, a team of researchers in 91ֿ’s Department of Anthropology published its “prize-winning” research article titled in the Journal of Archaeological Science. (Yes, the jokes are seemingly endless, but seriously folks, there is an important underlying message here about evidence-based research and fact-checking!)

91ֿ’s Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer Plus (LGBTQ+) Center holds a safe, physically distant small group kickoff event at the start of the 2020 Fall Semester. 

91ֿ’s commitment to maintaining a diverse and inclusive campus has received acknowledgement from INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine, the oldest and largest diversity-focused publication in higher education, for an eighth consecutive year. INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine has selected 91ֿ as a recipient of the 2020 Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (HEED) Award.

Rami Daud and Nathaniel Bailey, photographers with University Communications and Marketing, smile after receiving their Silver ADDY Awards. (Photo credit: Smithberger Photography)

91ֿ brought home the gold after this year’s Akron ADDY Awards, with both professionals and students being recognized for their work. The ADDYs, put on by the Akron Chapter of the American Advertising Federation, celebrate the area’s best creative work in advertising.

Photo collage of 91ֿ women's teams

91ֿ has won the Mid-American Conference’s Faculty Athletics Representative (FAR) for women’s sports award for the first time in school history.

91ֿ employees pose for a group photo during the 2019 New Hire Diversity Luncheon held on Nov. 6, 2019.

For the second year in a row, 91ֿ has the distinction of ranking among the top 20 companies nationwide in Forbes’ recently released list of .