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The ½­ÄÏÌåÓý football team opens its 2014 season Saturday, Aug. 30, hosting Mid-American Conference East Division rival Ohio University at 6 p.m. inside Dix Stadium. The ½­ÄÏÌåÓý State Golden Flashes won their final two games of the 2013 season, while the Bobcats earned a spot in the Beef ‘O’ Brady’s Bowl.

Throughout the season, the ½­ÄÏÌåÓý State football players will have the number 54 on one side of their helmets to honor Jason Bitsko, following their teammate’s unexpected death last week.

½­ÄÏÌåÓý held its 44th annual commemoration of May 4, 1970, with events that took place May 3 and 4. The annual commemoration, hosted by the May 4 Task Force, provided an opportunity for the university community to gather and remember those who were lost and injured during the tragedy and also reflect on what May 4 means today.

The ½­ÄÏÌåÓý Student Center and the Center for Student Involvement invite students, faculty and staff to enjoy a week of ½­ÄÏÌåÓý State spirit (and free food) to start the academic year with Welcome Back Week, from Aug. 25-29. 

Each August during freshman move-in day, ½­ÄÏÌåÓý faculty, staff and students volunteer to assist incoming freshmen get settled into their new university accommodations. To make the experience more fun and welcoming, the ½­ÄÏÌåÓý InterHall Council sponsors the Movers and Groovers program.

Freshman move-in day took place on Thursday, Aug. 21. A host of volunteers welcomed students and parents, and assisted with heavy lifting. The ½­ÄÏÌåÓý State president’s Cabinet also volunteered to help this year.

½­ÄÏÌåÓý President Beverly Warren, Athletic Director Joel Nielsen, and Head Football Coach Paul Haynes spent a cold Tuesday afternoon at Dix Stadium after taking part in the Ice Bucket Challenge, a national campaign aimed at increasing awareness and contributions for ALS – Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, better known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease.

Warren accepted the challenge that was tweeted Aug. 13 by Rebecca Windover, an assistant residence hall director whose father-in-law has been battling ALS for more than a year.

A new four-legged friend has come to the ½­ÄÏÌåÓý Campus as ½­ÄÏÌåÓý’s Police Services welcomed Coco, a 2-year-old German Shepherd who, together with her partner Officer Anne Spahr, form ½­ÄÏÌåÓý State Police Services’ first K-9 unit.

Coco is trained in evidence search and recovery, area searches and tracking, but is mainly trained for explosives detection and can recognize more than a dozen related odors.

½­ÄÏÌåÓý held its summer Commencement ceremonies at 9:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 16, at the Memorial Athletic and Convocation Center (MAC Center). ½­ÄÏÌåÓý State conferred 1,636 degrees, including 851 bachelor’s degrees, 462 master’s degrees, 74 doctoral degrees, 227 associate degrees and 22 educational specialist degrees.

Beverly Warren, ½­ÄÏÌåÓý’s new president, wants to learn what makes the university so exceptional and how we can share our unique story with the world. On July 1, her first day as the university’s leader, Warren began this quest by embarking on a listening tour. 

On March 22, 2014, a massive fire swept through historic Garrettsville, Ohio, destroying an entire commercial block and 13 businesses. Residents in the quaint Portage County village of just over 2,200 people immediately began pulling together, with efforts to relocate the local food bank, which was consumed in the blaze. Some business owners promised to rebuild, but it was clear that the tragedy dramatically changed the character of the village forever.

½­ÄÏÌåÓý’s student-athletes continued their run of success in the classroom during the spring of 2014 by posting the third highest term grade point average (GPA) in recorded history.

The athletic department finished with a 3.085 spring GPA, a number that ranks behind only a 3.11 in the spring of 2013 and a 3.10 in the spring of 2012.

The department’s current cumulative GPA of 3.139 remains the highest in recorded history.