Email matt.fredmonsky@patch.com Phone 330-256-3312 Hometown Streetsboro, Ohio Birthday September 27, 1982 Bio I have been interested in writing since the age of 12, and I joined Patch in November 2010 after five years as a general reporter for The Record-Courier. There I covered local government, schools and community issues in Kent, including Kent State University. I graduated from Kent State with a degree in journalism in 2005. I started as an intern with the courier before landing a full-time reporting job there upon graduation. While working at the daily and tackling all the issues that come with publishing a county-based newspaper, I realized my passion lies in covering the everyday issues that affect a single community. When not reporting I enjoy swimming, riding ATVs, camping and spending time with friends and family. Your Beliefs At Patch, we promise always to report the facts as objectively as possible and otherwise adhere to the principles of good journalism. However, we also acknowledge that true impartiality is impossible because human beings have beliefs. So in the spirit of simple honesty, our policy is to encourage our editors to reveal their beliefs to the extent they feel comfortable. This disclosure is not a license to inject  beliefs into stories or to dictate coverage according to them. In fact, the intent is the opposite: we hope that the knowledge that an editor's beliefs are on the record will cause them to be ever mindful to write, report and edit in a fair, balanced way. And if you ever see evidence that we failed in this mission, please let us know. Politics   "That government is best which governs least." -Henry David Thoreau Religion I grew up Catholic and although I no longer practice, I'm thankful for being exposed to a church and the sense of community it brings. I'm accepting of all religions, and I enjoy exploring how different people view spirituality. Local Hot-Button Issues Finances and government-led development are current hot button issues in Kent as the city, Kent State University, Kent City Schools and PARTA work together to redevelop a major portion of downtown. The projects would not have been possible without a $20 million federal grant, a $3 million-plus investment by Kent State and the schools agreeing to a TIF that allows the city to borrow money to help fund construction. An on-going issue involves permanent residents as they work to maintain quiet neighborhoods while Kent State enrollment grows and student housing continues to infiltrate what were single-family neighborhoods around campus.