Dear UMBC Community, 

As the fall semester draws to a close and we look forward to celebrating graduates at Commencement ceremonies tomorrow and Thursday, I write to share updates on some key areas of focus. This is a long message, and so I hope you will bear with me, because I wanted to be as thorough as possible in sharing information about some of the work we have been doing this semester. 

First, though, I want to acknowledge that this has been a very demanding semester for many individuals personally and for our community broadly. The pressures on higher education are unrelenting, and many contexts and events bring anxiety, fear, and pain for members of our community. We all live in this world, not apart from it, and I know that its dissonance, divisions, and dangers can weigh heavily upon us. 

Whether you are affected directly or indirectly, your well-being matters to me. I see how hard you are working, and I see your dedication, your resilience, and your love for UMBC. I urge you all to continue to care for yourselves and one another and take full advantage of our resources for care and support as needed (for students and for faculty and staff). 

Federal actions and orders

One area of ongoing challenge and focus is our response to impacts related to executive orders and actions by the federal government. Our core team has continued to meet regularly throughout the fall semester, monitoring and responding to multiple ongoing and developing issues, including many affecting international students and scholars, our LGBTQ+ communities and communities of color, and UMBC's research enterprise. 

I encourage you to regularly visit our website for the latest information on UMBC's response to federal actions and orders. Of particular interest: the Office of International Students and Scholars posts relevant immigration policy updates; please check back often for the most up-to-date information in this frequently changing environment (for instance, last week, the office posted travel considerations for winter break). 

Given the immigration enforcement actions we are seeing nationwide, I also want to remind you of the guidance, information, and resources we have shared related to the possibility of such enforcement action at UMBC, including this guidance concerning requests from any external law enforcement agencies for information, records, or access to non-public areas of the campus. We remain concerned about and attentive to the impact of these and other federal actions and policy changes on our international students, staff, and faculty, who are a vital part of the UMBC community and the global education we provide. At the heart of that education is our core commitment to inclusive excellence, which remains unyielding.

Strategic planning

Setting the course for the future of inclusive excellence at UMBC is key to the work we are doing now to develop the university's next strategic plan. I hope you all saw the recent communication from Professor Charissa Cheah, who is leading the strategic planning steering committee. As she noted, the committee has met three times this fall to advance work on five strategic pillars, which were shaped by input from the community in the Bold Conversations and Core Values survey. 

My sincere thanks to Charissa, the members of the steering committee, and all who have and who will yet participate in setting the course for our future. I look forward to continuing progress toward a new strategic plan in fall 2026. 

Budget

As we articulate broad goals for the future and specific initiatives to achieve them, we will ensure that our resources align with our priorities. Doing so requires that we hold ourselves to a high level of accountability and to strategic long-term budgeting. This is especially important as we continue to respond to fiscal pressures, including reductions in state funding. 

As I shared during our Fall Opening Meeting, we reduced expenses by $14.5 million to balance the current (Fiscal Year 2026) budget in response to significant state cuts. While the state continues to be a strong, dedicated supporter of UMBC and higher education (its investment in UMBC has grown significantly over the past several years), given the financial outlook for the state of Maryland, we are planning for additional cuts for the coming fiscal year. 

These are not one-time or one-off cuts; a review of our primary revenue sources can illuminate a clear picture of what we face. UMBC's main sources of revenue and their outlooks are:

• State allocation (outlook: declining, especially due to the tax revenue implications of so many Marylanders having lost federal jobs this year)

• Federal research funding (outlook: declining, due to changes in federal policy and priorities)

• Student revenue (outlook: increasing modestly; revenues grew $1.8 million in FY25, reflecting an increase in undergraduate revenue and a decrease in graduate revenue)

• Philanthropy (an area of focus for strategic growth in FY26 – 27)

In light of the outlook for the coming year and our aim to budget strategically to advance our highest priorities, we are working with our colleagues in both academic and administrative areas of the university to determine how best to absorb and minimize the impact of anticipated state funding cuts in FY27. 

Additional updates

I hope you saw the happy news we announced late last week of the appointment of D. Paul Monteiro, Jr., as our new vice president for government relations and community affairs. He succeeds former Vice President Yaakov "Jake" Weissmann '06, who was named secretary of the Maryland Department of Budget and Management in October. 

Paul joins us this week at a particularly important moment for our work with the state on issues related to the budget and much more, as well as at a time that calls for even stronger coalitions and more effective advocacy with local, state, and federal officials and partners. Welcome to UMBC, Paul! 

The search for our next vice president of administration and finance is ongoing, and we are moving as quickly as we can to fill that leadership role.

Finally, I want to highlight one other important update shared recently by Tanyka Barber, our vice president for institutional equity and chief diversity officer. Tanyka provided a status report on the university's ongoing response to UMBC's 2024 agreement with the Department of Justice (DOJ) to improve and expand upon our work to prevent and respond to reports of sexual misconduct and sex discrimination under Title IX. That agreement followed a lengthy investigation by the DOJ that found systemic failures in the university's Title IX compliance between 2015 and 2020.  

As Tanyka noted in her message to the community, this work is progressing effectively and efficiently, and it is coordinated collaboratively by Tanyka and a small team of other leaders, including Kacey Hammel, chief of staff to the president; Tiffany Tucker, director of athletics, physical education, and recreation; and me. I am grateful to Tanyka and her entire team, as well as to Kacey and Tiffany for their dedication to this comprehensive, important effort.

 Our commitment is not only to the DOJ, but, more importantly, it is to all of you, and to all who will join this community in the years to come. Nothing is more important than your well-being, and we will continue to hold ourselves to the highest standards of care, safety, integrity, and accountability. 

My best to you and your families as we look to a well-deserved winter break. In the days ahead, I hope that you find time to rest and recharge and that you encounter joy, love, and grace this holiday season. 

Sincerely, 

President Valerie Sheares Ashby