May 4th Memorial Student Design Competition - PROJECT WINNERS
May 4th Memorial Studio Design Competition
In commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the events that took place at Kent State University on May 4th, students took on the challenge to revisit the design competition for the memorial
Overview
This past fall, in commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the events that took place at Kent State University on May 4th, 1970, all Undergraduate Architecture students and first-year Interior Design and Architectural Studies students took on the challenge to revisit the design competition brief calling for a memorial of the events that took place inside the campus fifty years ago. Students, guided by their studio instructors, worked during the last two weeks of the semester to research, reflect, and propose a new memorial in light of the current events and social issues taking place around our country and the world.
Students first examined the May 4 Memorial's current site and were asked how it could be enhanced to have an even greater impact. The words "inquire, learn, reflect" are carved into the current memorial. Part of the project brief asked students to identify three additional words to guide their design in response to today's civil unrest and how the anniversary of the 1970 events connects to our current community and climate. The design challenge's goal was to highlight the events of May 4th, 1970, and to acknowledged and remind us to imagine and pursue a better future.
FIRST PLACE OVERALL (TIE)Student: Breanna Parker
Professor: Majeda Alhinai
Student: Jeremy Ellis
Professor: Luis Santos
FIRST PLACE BY YEAR LEVELFirst Year Student: Stefan Kuljnanin
Professor: David Thal
Second Year Student: Nguyên Lê
Professor: Kyle Zook
Third Year Student: Aiden Sisil
Professor: Keyla Hernandez
Fourth Year Student: Austin Pero
Professor: Daniele Beaulieu
HONORABLE MENTIONS: First Year
Jamie Spangler
Katie Armstrong
Austin Wright
Lilliana Aliberti
Georgia Coulter
Mya Mammana
Second Year
Sahvanna Morris
Dominic Holiday
Austin Bayer
Caden Klinger
Third Year
Jessica Huzzard
Alex Kelley
Fourth Year
Caleb O’Bryon
Bethany Wallace
Ryan Bertrand
First Place Winners Overall| Jeremy Ellis & Breanna Parker
Jeremy Ellis
Three tall stone monuments with circular cutouts are in a grassy field with graffiti on their surfaces. A man is pointing towards one monument, and on the right, four people are sitting on the grass having a conversation, with trees and a cloudy sky in the background.
A detailed schematic and illustration of a memorial for Memorial Day, featuring three tall monument structures with graffiti art, surrounded by a pathway with people walking, and arranged with four large tokens representing four killed and nine wounded individuals. The scene includes a diagram explaining the design concept with labels for granite and concrete, and a textual description of the memorial's purpose and design elements.
Site plan showing layout of buildings, pathways, and trees on a landscape with contour lines, north arrow, and scale bar.
Breanna Parker
A collage combining sketches, photos, and newspaper clipping related to May 4th memorial at Kent State, highlighting themes of strength, clarity, and reflection.
A modern park sculpture with geometric black structures, a man sitting on the stairs, and visitors walking nearby, set in a green park with trees.
A park featuring modern black sculptures and multiple green trees, with a walking path and grassy areas.
First Place Winners Year Level
Stefan Kuljanin - 1st Year
Nguyên Lê - 2nd Year
Aiden Sisil - 3rd Year
Austin Pero - 4th Year