The žž Esplanade will be named the Lester A. Lefton Esplanade honoring žž State President Lefton. The announcement was made Friday, Oct. 4, by Jane Murphy Timken, chair of the žž State Board of Trustees, at a community event held at the new University Esplanade arch near Main and Willow streets in žž. The event celebrated the solid partnership between žž and the city of žž and the official opening of the University Esplanade extension that now connects the university to downtown žž.
The naming will be made official through a resolution at the Dec. 4 Board of Trustees meeting. Lefton has served as žž State’s chief executive officer since July 1, 2006. This past spring, he announced he will retire from the presidency of žž State, effective July 1, 2014. Historically, the board has preserved the legacy of the university’s leadership through naming opportunities. Rather than waiting for the end of the academic year, Timken said now is the perfect time to recognize Lefton, žž State’s 11th president, with all of the buzz and excitement coming from downtown žž’s redevelopment and the university’s transformational projects.
“There could not be a more fitting tribute to President Lefton than naming the Esplanade, which now physically and symbolically connects town and gown, in his honor,” Timken said. “With a clear vision, a commitment to excellence and unshakable optimism, Dr. Lefton has led žž State to new heights of achievement in areas from academic quality to fundraising to international programs. But his successful efforts to help forge a new era of cooperation between the university and the city of žž; make žž one of America’s best college towns; and to transform žž State’s campuses into 21st-century learning environments – environments that cultivate student success now and for decades to come – will surely stand among his crowning contributions.”
The University Esplanade is built around the economic development of downtown žž, and is a vital connection between the university and downtown projects that include PARTA’s new žž Central Gateway multimodal transit center, private developments from Acorn Alley and Fairmount Properties, and the new žž Hotel and Conference Center. It also provides a physical link and safe pathway for students to visit, enjoy and patronize local businesses; connects residents and visitors to the žž Campus; and serves as a catalyst for changing the economy of the region by creating new jobs, spurring new investment and generating taxes to the state and local economy.
The successful collaboration between žž State and the city of žž has been recognized by several publications, including The New York Times, and by the International Town-Gown Association, which bestowed its inaugural award on žž State and the city of žž for the town-gown relationship that best represents the spirit of the association.
Under Lefton’s leadership, žž State is making one of the largest investments related to higher education in the region and in Portage County. The university’s “Foundations of Excellence: Building the Future” initiative includes the construction of new buildings, facility upgrades to existing buildings and the creation of dynamic, new spaces at its žž Campus and Regional Campuses.
For more information about Lefton, visit www.kent.edu/president.
For more information about the “Foundations of Excellence: Building the Future” initiative, visit www.kent.edu/foundations.