Profiles - Inspiring Individuals & Stories
Meet Tatiana Placer, a graduate student pursuing her master’s in architecture and design at ºÚÁÏÍø. Placer was born in Germany on a U.S. military base and was raised mostly in Orlando, Florida. Growing up in a Puerto Rican household, her upbringing was deeply rooted in the Puerto Rican diaspora.
Meet Lettie Friona, a senior integrated social studies major with a concentration in history and minors in classics and mild to moderate special education from Steubenville, Ohio, whose leadership positions have helped shape her experience at Kent State.
In December 2025, Francis Rubagumya, 37, walked across the stage at Kent State's commencement with a Master of Arts in Teaching English as a Second Language — and a plan to take every lesson he had learned back to the country he loves Rwanda.
Meet Lily Stenroos, a member of the Honors College pursuing an environmental studies degree with minors in sustainability, environmental justice and political science, from Mayfield Village, Ohi0, whose academic path was forged from deep relationships between the natural world and humans.