Name: Katie Rahl

Year: Senior

Major: Integrated language arts

Campus Involvement: Senior resident assistant, Kappa Delta Pi Honor Society, Students of Scholarship, Relay for Life team leader

Favorite thing about Kent State: “There’s no reason for me to be anywhere else. This is it. Everything I need is here. It’s a family; it’s home.”

For the past four years, Katie Rahl has been making the transition from life at home to life at Kent State easier for incoming students.

“Kent is home to me,” Rahl said, “and I love that I can make my residents have that same feeling, too.”

Rahl has been a resident assistant for the past four years.

Her first three years as an RA were at Beall and McDowell halls. This year, Rahl is serving as the senior resident assistant for Leebrick and Korb halls.

Nominated by her past and present residents and her fellow staff members, Rahl became a candidate for this year’s Homecoming Court.

She had always thought the idea of participating in Homecoming Court was a great opportunity. But Rahl never thought she would be in the position she is now.

“My residents actually wrote my (nomination) letter for me,” Rahl said, “and they slid it under my door, and it just said, ‘Please run.'”

And if she were to win the crown, Rahl said it is more of a “thank you” to those who got her where she is now. Crown or no crown, just the experience and opportunity is an honor for Rahl.

“Without my family, my friends, my professors, my advisers, there would be no way I’d be here doing what I’m doing and loving everything about it.”

“My residents actually wrote my (nomination) letter for me,” Rahl said, “and they slid it under my door, and it just said, ‘Please run.'”

And if she were to win the crown, Rahl said it is more of a “thank you” to those who got her where she is now. Crown or no crown, just the experience and opportunity is an honor for Rahl.

“Without my family, my friends, my professors, my advisers, there would be no way I’d be here doing what I’m doing and loving everything about it.”

-Katy Brown

Name: Sarah Papcun

Year: Senior

Major: English

Campus Involvement: Resident assistant, Women’s Choir, president of National Residence Hall Honorary

Favorite thing about Kent State: “I adore Kent State, and I love the fact that you can be an English major in a costuming class, and no one looks down on you for it . Kent State is such a non-discriminating place.”

To settle nerves, Sarah Papcun invited all her friends over to wait on a simple phone call.

“When my phone started ringing, I got really nervous and excited at the same time,” Papcun said.

That phone call was one she has been hoping to receive: the confirmation she was on Kent State’s Centennial Homecoming Court.

As a resident assistant, Papcun shared the excitement with her friends and residents.

“My residents took a victory lap for me, banging on people’s doors to let them know I was on Homecoming Court,” Papcun said. “It was one of those intense moments.”

She said winning the crown would be the biggest honor she could imagine. In high school, she never had the opportunity to participate in homecoming.

To Papcun, being on Homecoming Court means other Kent State students feel you embody the meaning of the ultimate Kent State student. To her, the title of Homecoming Queen represents “dedication, honor and respect.”

“I have always strived to be the best that I can,” she said. “And to be queen would

To Papcun, being on Homecoming Court means other Kent State students feel you embody the meaning of the ultimate Kent State student. To her, the title of Homecoming Queen represents “dedication, honor and respect.”

“I have always strived to be the best that I can,” she said. “And to be queen would be a place of remembrance in a piece of Kent State University history.”

-Katy Brown

Name: Mary Jo Spletzer

Year: Senior

Major: Public relations

Campus Involvement: PRSSA president, Kappa Tau Alpha National Honor Society

Favorite thing about Kent State: “There’s just so much to do at this campus. Even though we are a commuter campus, there are things to do. It is just a fun atmosphere. The people here are great, making it a good place to go to school.”

After transferring from a school she loved, Mary Jo Spletzer never imagined she could feel the same about another school.

“But I did,” she said. “I truly love everything about Kent State.”

For Spletzer’s sophomore year, she transferred to Kent State from the University of Findlay.

“I (transferred) because Kent State (has) a really strong public relations program,” Spletzer said, “and I loved the campus.”

As a public relations major, Spletzer took the position of president for Kent State’s Public Relations Student Society of America. She is also a member of Kappa Tau Alpha National Honor Society.

To Spletzer, the opportunity to be part of Homecoming Court is “one of the biggest honors.”

She knew leaving behind her friends at the University of Findlay would be difficult, but Spletzer has made her mark at Kent State.

For her, this crown would be a symbol of acceptance and knowing the student body sees her as a true representation of the university.

“I am proud to be part of the Homecoming Court, and I’m looking forward to the experience,” she said.

To Spletzer, the opportunity to be part of Homecoming Court is “one of the biggest honors.”

She knew leaving behind her friends at the University of Findlay would be difficult, but Spletzer has made her mark at Kent State.

For her, this crown would be a symbol of acceptance and knowing the student body sees her as a true representation of the university.

“I am proud to be part of the Homecoming Court, and I’m looking forward to the experience,” she said.

-Katy Brown