Cuteness overload! A “paw-ty” worth attending
After a weekend filled with snow, Cleveland State University celebrated the first birthdays of Rune and Thor, the school’s companion dogs, in the Student Center Atrium on Jan. 23.
The pups are handled by the campus police department (CSUPD) which brought Rune and Thor to Cleveland State in spring 2022 when it established a therapy dog program.
Monday's party gave students a chance to start the spring semester on a warm and furry note! Selfies with the pups, smiling faces all around, belly rubs for the dogs and cupcakes for the humans was the order of the day!
The event highlighted the goodwill the dogs bring to campus and encouraged the community to give back by setting up collection bins and accepting donations for Lift Up Vikes!, CSU's Food Pantry and Resource Center.
CSUPD Chief Beverly J. Pettrey and Officers Toni Jones and Thomas Lear teamed up with alumni and corporate relations to bring the event to campus.
“The dogs are truly our community members, they are community ambassadors,” said Ann-Marie Connors, alumni relations and corporate engagement executive director.
Thor and Rune can be found every day, somewhere on campus bringing happiness into every room they enter. Officer Jones is the handler for Rune, and Officer Lear is the handler for Thor.
“Everyone that experiences these dogs has a smile,” Jones said.
The party was proof of that. Everyone there had a smile on their face while interacting with the dogs, even if it was just for a minute.
Trying to keep all the students happy is a big task for Thor and Rune. But it doesn't stop there. Alumni relations often teams up with the police department to have them at its events.
With the support of CSU's senior leadership team, events like pup pop-ups before exams and having the dogs at other campus activities at CSU are likely all spring.
“I love events like this, ever since the dogs have been brought on campus, it makes people's day to see the therapy dogs,” said Brenna Hall, a junior majoring in post production at Cleveland State's School of Film & Media Arts
If you missed the dogs on Monday, you missed a cuteness overload!
See all the photos on The Stater's Instagram.
Recent News
The origins of 4/20 and why Ohioans are toking today
Summer is fast approaching, and this year Ohioans should be able to legally smoke recreational marijuana while enjoying the sunshine. That it's not possible yet to legally buy weed won't stop people from rolling a joint to celebrate 4/20.
Black women inspire with their stories
Five Black women inspired their audience, March 1, at a panel organized by Cleveland State's Mareyjoyce Green Women’s Center to initiate women’s history month with a discussion of the meaning of Black womanhood.
How we saw the 2024 solar eclipse
Many Clevelanders had their cameras at the ready this past Monday when the solar eclipse made its way through their backyards, doing their best to capture the beauty of an experience that may only happen once in your lifetime. The Cleveland Stater also captured some worthwhile shots earlier this week from different spots around Cleveland.
High school students battle for top robot
55 high school teams competed for top robot at the 25th annual FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) Robotics Buckeye Regional competition at the Wolstein Center from March 20-23.
Over 100 vendors attend CSU career fair
The Career fair has become one of the biggest events each year at CSU. Career Development and Exploration hosts the fair, which this year brought together potential employers with students on March 7, 2024. One hundred and twenty-five employers, 275 recruiters from industries across the region, and 16 school districts were represented. A third of the employers said they were open to hiring international students.
