Dr. Betsy V. Boze, Dean
Dr. Boze began her appointment as dean of Kent State University Stark in July of 2005. Dr. Boze oversees the largest regional campus of Kent State University, serving 10,000 students (5,000 students in academic programs and 5,000 in professional and graduate education). One of the largest employers in Stark County, the campus employs more than 550 full- and part-time faculty and staff.

Dr. Boze oversaw the campus’ first comprehensive strategic planning effort, which led to a new mission, vision and values statements, identified institutional strengths and opportunities for development and linked campus budgeting to the strategic plan. 

Dr. Boze is focused on improving the campus' academic profile, increasing the number of baccalaureate and master's degree programs and enhancing student life and student success. During her tenure at Kent State Stark she has increased community outreach and service, and the campus was named to the President's Higher Education Honor Roll for Community and Service Learning in 2006 and 2007.  Dr. Boze has secured twenty endowed scholarships and tripled the campus' endowment. 

Faculty and Administrative Appointments

Dr. Boze has held full time faculty and administrative appointments at St. Bonaventure University (Olean, NY), The University of Maryland University College (Japan, Germany and Italy), Centenary College of Louisiana and The University of Alaska Anchorage, where she was appointed Business Administration Department Chair, and elected President of the Faculty Senate. Boze was selected as the inaugural dean of the School of Business at The University of Texas at Brownsville and Texas Southmost College, a position she held for 11 years.  She was distinguished as an American Council on Education Fellow at Tulane University where she served as Assistant to the President.

Other Teaching and Administrative Appointments

Dr. Boze served as the Chief Academic Officer of The University of Texas System "UT TeleCampus" MBAO and held a Research Faculty appointment at Texas A&M University as Co-Director of Texas Ports & Waterways Commission of Texas Transportation Institute. She was a Visiting Faculty for Portland State University in Khabarovsk [Хаба́ровск] in the former Soviet Union and Graduate Assistant for The University of Texas at Dallas and The University of Arkansas.

Education

A native of Shreveport, LA, Dr. Boze earned a bachelor of psychology and a master in business administration from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas. Her doctoral degree in business administration (major in marketing with minors in economics and sociology) was conferred by the University of Arkansas. She studied international management at Thunderbird - the Garvin School of Global Management in Glendale, AZ, Spanish language at ITESM in Monterrey, Mexico and Japanese Language at International Christian University (ICU) in Mitaka, Japan.

Personal

Dr. Boze is an avid adventure-seeker, enjoying activities such as sky diving, SCUBA diving and rock climbing. She has three children, Christopher, a fishing guide in Alaska; Lee-Gray, a geology major at the University of Montana specializing in caves; and Broox a doctoral student in zoology at Colorado State University.

More biographical information and photographs.

Dr. Ruth Capasso, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs
Dr. Capasso received received her Ph.D. in French from Harvard University, her M.A. in French from Kent State University and her B.A. in Education from the University of Akron.

She has taught French language and culture courses at both the Stark and Kent campuses before entering the campus administration in 2004. As Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, she works with all aspects of the academic life of the campus, including faculty, course schedules and the development of programs.

Dr. Capasso is married with a grown daughter and son, and two cats. In her spare time, she enjoys traveling, photography, reading and writing.

For more information, contact the Office of the Dean at 330-244-3209.