in the first tier list of Best National Universities by U.S. News. Lefton created the Presidential Speaker Series to bring big-name speakers to Kent State. Trey Ratcliff, a photographer with a popular travel blog, Stuck In Customs, kicked off the series with a talk in March 2012. Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel is scheduled to appear as part of the series in April 2013. Besides having served as Kent State president, Lefton is active on the boards of NorTech and the Greater Akron Chamber, and is a member of Leadership Cleveland's Class of 2008. During 2007, he served on the Northeast Ohio Universities Collaboration and Innovation Study Commission, which was created by the Ohio General Assembly. The Commission submitted a wide range of recommendations to the Ohio Legislature and the Ohio Board of Regents about ways to improve quality, collaborations and efficiency among the region's public colleges and universities. Lefton also upholds the university's role as a regional cultural resource through service on the boards of public television station Channels 45/49 and the Musical Arts Association of the Cleveland Orchestra. Lefton has been active in a number of national higher education organizations. At the national level, Lefton serves on the American Council on Education's (ACE) Commission on Effective Leadership. The commission advises the ACE's Center for Effective Leadership, which provides a variety of leadership and professional-development programs for presidents and other higher education administrators. Lefton resides in Kent, Ohio with his wife, Linda. They have two grown daughters and three grandsons. Mrs. Lefton is an attorney who served as a state prosecutor in South Carolina and was an academic advisor for pre-law majors at George Washington and Tulane universities. She serves on the board of the Pediatric Palliative Care Center at Akron Children's Hospital and is a member of the Women's Committee of the Cleveland Orchestra. Mrs. Lefton is a 2008 graduate of Leadership Portage County. Downtown Kent redevelopment Shortly after beginning his presidency, Lefton, working with city manager of Kent, Ohio, Dave Ruller, began an ongoing effort to redevelop the City Kent's, with the goal of drawing the city and the university closer and encouraging economic growth. Lefton and Ruller's $110 million mixed-use development efforts have spurred new office, retail, entertainment and residential spaces, targeted to the 28,000 students and 3,000 faculty members from the university. The downtown redevelopment also includes new facility spaces for the university, including a $16