As Black History Month begins, the loss of a true legacy at Kent State and the Black community will not be forgotten.  

Kent state alumni and highly recognized professor E. Timothy Moore died earlier this week.

Moore was more than just a teacher; he had multiple roles at Kent State, one starting as a student in 1963 to 1977 finishing with his master’s in fine arts. 

During that time, Moore experienced a few major historical events, one being the May 4 shooting and another one being a member and president of the Black United Students’ group in 1969 when they created Black History Month for not only Kent State, but for the world.

“I think his biggest impact was to empower Black students to say, ‘you can do this, you are just as good,’” journalism professor Eugene Shelton said.

The legacy then went on to be a vital piece in Kent State’s community after college as he became the university’s assistant dean emeritus in the College of Arts and Sciences and associate professor emeritus in the Department of Pan-African Studies.

During his years with Pan-African Studies, Moore had a big role in his collaboration between Kent’s JMC department and Pan-African Studies. 

“Because of Tim, we were able, if not for creating African American Media, there would not be a Managing Media Diversity class and certainly there would not be a Race in Media class,” Shelton said.

Moore helped underrepresented students every day, taught traditional African and African American history, was a co-facilitator of Brother to Brother and kept the Black community alive in the journalism department. 

“If not for him, we wouldn’t have the curriculum, we would not have the opportunities that we have had to share our stories with everybody else,” Shelton explained.

He has received numerous awards for his standout work on campus, some including Kent State’s Diversity Trailblazer Award, Distinguished Honors Faculty Award, the first African American to receive the KSU Alumni Association Distinguished Teaching Award and the first recipient of the E. Timothy Moore Outstanding Faculty-Staff Award, which was made in his honor. 

“His legacy at Kent State University will live forever; if not for E. Timothy Moore, where would we be?” Shelton asked.

Moore was a major impact and a huge influence on our Black community. Without him, Kent State would not be the same.

Gianna DaPra is a TV2 reporter. Contact her at [email protected].