’s Center for Student Involvement (CSI) is introducing a new initiative this fall through its Leadership Development team. The “Leadership Speaker Series” features five speakers: Jerome Love, Kym Whitley, Chaz Pitts-Kyser, Lilly Ledbetter and Nikki Giovanni. CSI is no stranger to bringing motivational speakers to the Kent campus, but this is the first time that the speakers are being offered in a series. The topics for each speaker vary, but they all have a central theme related CSI’s five leadership cornerstones: Communication, Service, Teamwork, Vision and Engagement.
Della Marie Marshall, senior associate director of CSI, is excited to spearhead this new initiative. “It is our hope that the community will come out to attend the programs and be able to learn from leaders in the industry.”
Admission to all events is free and students will have the opportunity to earn FLASHperks.
Jerome Love, who is an entrepreneur and professional speaker, leads off the series on Monday, September 15th in the KIVA at 7:00 p.m. Love is a well-respected expert in sales and business development. He enthusiastically shares how he turned his tribulations into success through interactive examples. He proves that with a “Can’t Fail” mindset anyone can find the motive behind their motivation.
Kym Whitley, who is an actress and Cleveland-native, will share her experiences as an actress on Monday, September 29th in the KIVA Auditorium at 7:00 p.m. She is the star of the hit docu-series, Raising Whitley, where her life as a new mom of an adopted son plays out.
On Wednesday, October 15th in Kent Student Center room 306 at 7:00 p.m. Chaz Pitts-Kyser, a motivational speaker and author, will engage the audience in an interactive session that discusses the root causes of people’s low self-esteem, which often leads to self-doubt and the fear of failure.
A crusader for equal pay and women’s rights, namesake of the Ledbetter Fair Pay Restoration Act, Lilly Ledbetter spent 19 grueling years working at a Goodyear plant before an anonymous note showed her that she made 40% less than her male counterparts. She will be on campus to share her story on Monday, October 20th in the KIVA Auditorium at 7:00 p.m.
Nikki Giovanni is a world-renowned poet, writer, commentator, activist, and educator. Over the past thirty years, her outspokenness, in her writing and in lectures, has brought the eyes of the world upon her. She will be visiting the Kent campus to share poetry on Thursday, November 6th in the Cartwright Auditorium at 7:00 p.m.
For more information about leadership opportunities within CSI, visit www.kent.edu/csi.