Lefton to join Flashnotes board

President Lester Lefton, after an announcement that the Esplanade would be dedicated to him.

Jenna Watson

President Lester Lefton, after an announcement that the Esplanade would be dedicated to him.

Jimmy Miller

Kent State President Lester Lefton will join an organization dedicated to helping students sell course-specific study materials upon his retirement June 30.

Lefton plans to join Flashnotes, a rising company out of Boston, as a member of the company’s Board of Directors.

“The success that he experienced as Kent State president and all that he accomplished there makes him one of the country’s top college administrators of our time,” Mike Matousek, founder and CEO of Flashnotes and Kent State graduate, wrote in an email.

The website is a host for students to sell and buy study materials from each other. Lefton will start his term as a member of the company’s board in late June. His role on the board will be to advise the members of the Flashnotes team on academic and business aspects.

“Our goal is to supplement and compliment a student’s academic experience, and I think Dr. Lefton can help us to continue to do that,” Matousek said. “We look forward to hearing Dr. Lefton’s feedback in all aspects of the business, as we do with all of our members of the board.”

Caitlin Gribbons, account manager for Flashnotes, said Lefton was unavailable for comment.

Last December, the Daily Kent Stater reported Lefton also has plans to start the LeftonGroup, a higher administration consulting firm, that he will head after he retires from Kent State. According to the group’s website, it will advise private and public universities on legal matters as well as proper executive team building.

The LeftonGroup is composed of 14 other administrators that have worked with Lefton in some capacity during his tenures at George Washington University, Tulane University or Kent State. Athletic director Joel Nielsen, Eugene Finn, vice president of institutional advancement, and chief of staff Charlene Reed are also involved with the group.

“We are very happy to have Dr. Lefton as a member of our board,” Matousek said. “As a Kent State alumni, I have the utmost respect for Dr. Lefton and all he’s accomplished thus far in his career in higher education.”

Contact Jimmy Miller at [email protected].