Dear UMBC Community,

I happily accepted the invitation of a faculty member to sit in on his class recently. I expected to enjoy it—I love the classroom, because I love teaching, and I love being in the presence of students learning.

I did not expect to be struck so powerfully by what I witnessed there, which was the very embodiment of what UMBC espouses: that we believe every student can succeed, and that it is on us to create the conditions and opportunities for them to do so.

In his interactions with students and in the way he responded to their questions (and their answers), it was clear that this professor had created a culture in his classroom in which students felt supported and comfortable engaging actively in the learning process. They showed no signs of fear in asking questions or not knowing the right answer, and they possessed a confidence in their role as scholars. There was an openness to this environment, in which everyone seemed to know that the learning was more important than getting it right.

Thinking about how many times a day across our campus that beautiful learning environment is replicated, I am uplifted, inspired, and deeply grateful to our faculty.

Sincerely,

President Valerie Sheares Ashby