Flashes Announce Naming Rights to Several Athletic Facilities
4/13/2022 2:57:00 PM | General, Play As One
KENT, OHIO - The Golden Flashes Club (TGFC), the philanthropic arm of Kent State Athletics, is pleased to announce the naming rights to several athletic facilities around the Kent Campus.
The naming rights are another big step forward for the Athletic Department's "Play As One-#Flashes Forever" strategic plan.
"This is an exciting time for our athletic department," Director of Athletics Randale L. Richmond said. "Having supporters who see the value of Athletics and the importance of making our department student-athlete centered, coach led and administrator supported is beyond measure. The ability to enhance our facilities is pivotal to our success."
"The support we have received has been amazing, "Associate Athletic Director for Athletic Advancement Maggie McKendry added. "Exciting announcements like this go a long way as we continue to develop a first-class athletic department and experience for our student-athletes."
THE DEVINE DIAMOND
The soon-to-be-renovated Kent State softball complex will undergo a name change, as the Diamond at Dix will now be known as the Devine Diamond.
The name honors and recognizes the impact long-time administrator Judy Devine has had on women's athletics not only at Kent State, but across the collegiate landscape. A dedication ceremony for the Devine Diamond is set for April 30, when the Golden Flashes welcome in Western Michigan in Mid-American Conference play.
When the men's and women's athletic departments merged in 1975, Devine was selected as an assistant athletics director and was elevated to associate athletics director in 1978. She retired in 2000 as a senior associate athletics director, after 31 years of service to Kent State Athletics. She is also the founder of the Kent State Athletics Academics Honors Dinner (serving as emcee from 1982-2000) and was honored as the Kent State Commencement speaker in August 2010.
THE SCOLIN MacLEAN LOUNGE
The newly named Scolin MacLean Lounge hosts pregame festivities for select TGFC members before each home basketball game as well as on selected dates throughout the year. Members enjoy snacks, coffee and a cash bar as well as pregame "chalk talk" sessions with Kent State coaches. MacLean was a student manager for the Kent State Football team, as well as a player on the Men's Lacrosse Club team from 1986 until he earned a Bachelor of Science in 1990. He enjoyed a successful career in graphic design for the Turner Broadcasting/Warner Media family of television networks before retiring in 2019. He was honored as the Varsity "K" Club's Person of the Year in 2015 for his ongoing support of Kent State Athletics. He volunteers as the director of creative solutions with the Office of Athletic Advancement, located inside the MacLean Lounge, which has been affectionally dubbed "The Scolly-Bear Lair" by TGFC staff.
LAING AND SAUNDRA KENNEDY BLUE AND GOLD TROPHY ROOM
Across the MACC lobby is the newly named Laing and Saundra Kennedy Blue and Gold Trophy Room. The room showcases numerous Golden Flashes' trophies and serves as a meeting space for the Golden Flashes' athletic administrative staff and as a lobby outside the office of Director of Athletics Randale L. Richmond.
That is extremely fitting as Laing Kennedy served as the Kent State director of athletics from 1994-2010. Kennedy earned the Northeast Region Division I-A Athletic Director of the Year award from the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics twice, in 2002 and 2006. He served as a member of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament Selection Committee between 2006 and 2010.
Since his "retirement," Kennedy remains involved in Kent State Athletics, owning the title of Emeritus Athletic Director and serving on multiple committees. He was inducted into the Varsity "K" Hall of Fame in 2011 and was named to the Mid-American Conference's Hall of Fame Class of 2022.
Laing and Saundra have two daughters, Karyn and Kelly. Laing and Saundra are seen at Kent State Basketball games frequently and they helped establish the Legacy Endowed Scholarship Program.
THE DAVE AND SHERRY JOY LOBBY
The lobby at the Kent State Field House has been named for Dave and Sherry Joy. The lobby serves as a check-in area for events held in the Field House and houses vending machines for the Golden Flashes' student-athletes as well as men's and women's locker rooms.
Joy graduated from Theodore Roosevelt High School in Kent and later attended Kent State. He married Sharon, who also goes by Sherry, on Aug. 28, 1971.
They are active members in the Kent community. The couple are members of the Porthouse Theatre Action Committee and College of the Arts Advisory Board. The Joys are some of Kent State Athletics' most loyal donors and established an endowment, the Dave and Sherry Joy Endowed Scholarship for Athletics, in 2014. They are also 2014 Honorary Varsity "K" inductees.
THE GARY AND MINDY ALEMAN FIELD HOUSE OFFICES
The Dave and Sherry Joy lobby at the Field House leads directly into the Gary and Mindy Aleman Field House offices. Under the direction of fearless leader Jimmy Fetzer, the office serves as mission control for the Field House. The newly named Aleman offices handle all of the scheduling and logistics for the Field House. The Aleman offices balance equal practice time for Golden Flash student-athletes while also accommodating university and local events.
Gary and Mindy Aleman consider Kent State their "adoptive" alma mater. Mindy served for over 22 years in the Center for Gift and Estate Planning, while. Gary played a big role in connecting iHeart Media to athletic functions and promotions. Their love for Kent State Athletics ranges across all Golden Flashes' programs and they can be found cheering on the Flashes at almost every home event.
THE DR. JAMES KARGE OLSEN LOBBY
The lobby at the George Jenkins Athletic Academic Resource Center has been named for Dr. James Karge Olsen, former head of the Kent State Honors program and Jenkins' mentor. Jenkins came to Kent State as a football student-athlete, served as co-captain and graduated magna cum laude with a degree in political science. Dr. Olsen taught constitutional law and jurisprudence courses and was the encouraging and driving force that led Jenkins to take the LSAT and eventually enroll in the University of Michigan Law School.
Graduating from law school in 1966, Jenkins served as a partner with Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease in Columbus from 1966 to 1971 and again from 1975 to 2006. He focused on corporate and business law. He served as first assistant attorney general of Ohio from 1971 to 1975. Jenkins founded DEC Investment Group in 2007 and currently serves as its managing member.
Over the years, Jenkins has been very active on the Kent Campus and has supported Kent State football, Kent State libraries, the KSU Foundation and the Athletic Academic Resource Center, which bears his name.
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