March is Women’s History Month!

This year’s national theme is Women Inspiring Innovation Through Imagination: Celebrating Women in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics.  This theme is meant to honor generations of women who throughout American history have used their intelligence, imagination, sense of wonder, and tenacity to make extraordinary contributions to the STEM fields.

As part of our Women’s History Month celebrations, the Women's Center and CWIT are partnering to showcase six talented women in engineering and IT fields at UMBC. The future of women’s history is being created as we speak and there is importance in sharing our lived stories now. We invite you to join us throughout the month of March to learn more about these women, their experiences, and their dreams.

Abigail Williams, CWIT Affiliate

Junior Chemical Engineer major & President of Society of Women Engineers 

Describe what sparked your interest STEM and the journey to choosing your major.
I always knew that I would do something STEM related. My father majored in physics and electrical engineering in college and he taught me all my math and science since I was homeschooled kindergarten through 12^th grade. I always took to it more than arts and humanities. I originally was going to major in chemistry. My mother was my guidance counselor and said, "Are you sure you want to do that? Maybe you should try chemical engineering." I took a look at the curriculum was intrigued. The rest is history.

Tell us about an internship, research experience or project that you are proud of. 
I'm currently on the CE21-MD (Computing Education for the 21st Century) project as an undergraduate research assistant for Dr. Susan Martin, Dr. Penny Rheingans, and Dr. Marie desJardins. It has been an eye-opening experience. I've met a lot of people, learned many skills, and developed an interest in computer science. I am now taking CMSC 201 because this research project piqued my interest.

Who are your role models in the engineering or IT field?
Dr. Taryn Bayles in the CBEE department is my academic advisor and my role model. She is such an inspiration in so many ways. She is one of the reasons that I am so glad that I came to UMBC. 

Explain your experience as a woman in a STEM major, including the challenges as well as the rewards.
In the chemical engineering department, I've not experienced a gender disparity quite as severe as the computer engineering and mechanical engineering departments. It's not unusual to have around a third of the class be women. Additionally, the department is headed by Dr. Julia Ross and the director of the undergraduate program is Dr. Bayles, my advisor. I've been fortunate to have these role models. There are still challenges, though. I have to work a bit harder to have my voice heard, particularly in science and math classes outside of my department. Even though the percentage of women in chemical engineering is higher than other engineering and IT disciplines, there is still a relatively small number of people who fully understand my struggles. The rewards, however, are numerous. There is an immense satisfaction when I do well on an assignment. I learn so many things that are absolutely fascinating. The moment of clarity, prompted by understanding of a particular concept, is addicting. Since there are not a large number of women chemical engineering majors, we band together and support each other. I took on a CWIT mentee last semester - a freshman chemical engineering major. Mentoring her has been such a great experience. Connecting with other women in my department is always rewarding and forges friendships that will last beyond graduation. Yes, my major is difficult and it has its struggles. But I wouldn't trade it for anything.

The Center for Women In Technology (CWIT) is dedicated to increasing the representation of women in the creation of technology in the engineering and information technology fields. CWIT efforts begin with nurturing a strong group of Scholars, grow to building community resources for other women in these majors, extend to fostering a healthy gender climate and ITE pedagogy in College of Engineering and Information Technology (COEIT) departments, and finally expand into outreach efforts to increase interest in technical careers. A successful program for female-friendly engineering and information technology education at UMBC will help make UMBC a destination for women (and men) interested in technical careers and serve as a national model for other universities. 

Learn more about our community at http://www.cwit.umbc.edu/ 

For more information about Women’s History events and happenings, visit: http://my.umbc.edu/groups/womenscenter/news/24724 

The Showcase will be held on Friday, April 12, 2013, from 4-6 p.m. Proposals for presentations are now being accepted from CWIT and T-SITE scholars, affiliates, and other students in the College of Engineering and Information Technology (COEIT).

The Center for Women in Technology (CWIT) celebrates scholarship, engagement, and leadership excellence in information technology and engineering students within the COEIT at UMBC. Proposals are now being accepted for presentations from all students in the CWIT community and the college. Sessions will be completely student-run and presentations will be directed to a peer audience. Inspiration, innovation, and creativity in presentations are encouraged.

Please find the call for proposals and application attached. Applications are due by Monday, March 25, and those selected will be notified by Wednesday, March 27, in order to have time to prepare the presentations. Direct questions and send completed proposals to Cindy Greenwood, Assistant Director - Cyber Scholars Program, at cindyg@umbc.eduor drop applications off to Cindy's office (ITE 449) or the CWIT office (ITE 452). 

 
We look forward to reading your proposals!

The UMBC Council of Computing Majors (CCM) will hold a general meeting from 3:00pm to 4:00pm this Wednesday, April 27, in the CSEE Department conference room, ITE 325b.

Come discuss service opportunities, CSEE speakers, and upcoming CCM events.  Several professors have generously agreed to lecture on tools and topics in computer science.  Dates and details will be announced at the meeting.

The Council of Computing Majors is a student organization for CMSC and CMPE majors and other students interested in computing.  Come if you are interested in joining or just finding out more about the CCM.

For questions of more information, send email to Sorry, you need javascript to view this email address.

The CSEE Department will hold a CMPE Undergraduate Townhall Meeting on Wednesday, April 3, 2013 from 11:30am to 1:00pm in the University Center Ballroom Lounge. All CMPE majors and other interested students are welcome.

We will discuss recent important changes to the CMPE program, course scheduling, current Capstone projects, the BS/MS program, guidance about undergraduate research opportunities, and more. There will also be ample time for questions and discussion.

Please sign up in your CMPE classes by Friday, March 29. If you have any questions, please contact Professor Chintan Patel at Sorry, you need javascript to view this email address.

Name:Kyle Baker
Internship, Co-op or Research Site:Fleishman-Hillard
Location of the Organization (City, State):  Washington, D.C.
Title of Your Position:Design Intern
Major(s)/Minor(s):Graphic Design
Expected Graduation Date (Month & Year): 2014

1. Briefly describe your internship, co-op, research or service-learning position/assignment, including your day-to-day tasks and responsibilities.

My internship was with a media communications and public relations firm; Fleishman-Hillard. There I worked with the digital-creative team. I designed logos, advertisements and layouts for social network pages. I also participated in brainstorming sessions, pitching ideas that could be used for various projects the company was embarking upon.

2. What have you enjoyed the most about your position or organization/company and what have you found most challenging?

I most enjoyed the fact that I was given the opportunity to use the knowledge and skills that I’ve gained in the classroom in a workplace setting. Working with a team of professionals certainly aided my understanding of the importance of working collaboratively with other talented and skilled people in order to accomplish a task. The most challenging aspect of the internship was probably deciphering ways to get messages across more efficiently.

3. What have you gained from your experience that you could not have gained from another summer activity?

I gained so much from my experience working as an intern. Apart from gaining better knowledge of the adobe creative suite programs, as a paraprofessional, I was immersed into many aspects of the design studio. I worked as part of a collaborative digital/design team and worked with clients to create design-based projects assigned to the team and me.

4. How do you see your summer work as meaningful? Has it given you a chance to work on issues or with communities that matter to you?

Working this summer was meaningful because it enabled me to gain practical knowledge and gave me many opportunities to explore beyond the confines of design, but also many other aspects. I worked alongside members of the media communications, public relations, and analytics teams. The exposure and opportunity gave me a glance at the corporate atmosphere.

5. How has your summer experience shaped the way you think about your power to impact the world? This might involve skills you’ve gained, information you’ve learned, mentors you’ve connected with, or projects you’ve completed.

I believe that based upon everything I learned from my internship this summer, I’m better equipped to find work and be successful in the world of design once I graduate. I’ve confirmed that this is the type of work I could see myself doing; design is definitely a profession in which I’ll be happy.

Rick Forno, Assistant Director of the UMBC Center for Cybersecurity, was quoted in an article in the Louisville KY Courier-Journal about a compromised online poll the paper ran about Internet voting. The paper's March 20th poll was prompted by a Kentucky initiative to make voting easier for overseas personnel and asked "Should overseas U.S. military personnel be allowed to vote via the Internet?".

University of South Carolina computer science professor Duncan Buell and his students cast tens of thousands of votes for the "No, the possibility of fraud is just too great" response to highlight the potential risks of online voting.  Before the poll was shut down, more than 91% of the votes cast were negative and only 7% were positive ("Yes, it can be made just as secure as any balloting system").

In the Courier-Journal article, Forno pointed commented on relatively low security for most online polls.

But the difference between an online newspaper poll and state-run online election balloting is “night and day,” said Richard Forno, director of the Graduate Cybersecurity Program at the University of Maryland Baltimore County and assistant director of the university’s Center for Cybersecurity. “I’m not saying it’s impossible to hack some online voting for a state election, but it’s much more difficult to do it there” than with the newspaper’s poll, Forno said. A state election system “would have far more security features built in,” he said.  …   Forno said hacking generally is on the increase in the United States. “We’re seeing more and more cyber-related incidents” of all kinds, ranging from foreign theft of the intellectual property of U.S. companies to theft of personal information and webpage defacement, he said.

The security of voting systems is a specialty of UMBC Professor Alan Sherman, whose Center for Information Security and Assurance has worked on secure voting systems for more than ten years. In 2009, Sherman and his students helped the city of Takoma Park, Maryland use the Scantegrity voting system — the first time any end-to-end cryptographic system will be used in a binding governmental election.

The Problem with Print: publishing born digital scholarship

Professor Helen J. Burgess
Department of English, UMBC

4:00pm Monday, 25 March 2013
7th Floor, A. O. Kuhn Library

Dr. Burgess will discuss some of the difficulties for academics seeking to work and publish outside traditional "print-bound" models of humanities scholarship – including issues of professional evaluation and distribution – and show some examples of "born digital" works that would benefit from a new model of publishing. A reception, sponsored by the Libby Kuhn Endowment Fund, will follow the program.

Helen J. Burgess is an Assistant Professor of English in the Communication and Technology track. Dr Burgess received her BA(Hons) and MA(Dist.) in English Language and Literature from Victoria University of Wellington, in New Zealand, and her PhD in English from West Virginia University. She is active in the new media research community as editor of the online journal Hyperrhiz: new Media Cultures, and technical editor of Rhizomes: Cultural Studies in Emerging Knowledge. Dr Burgess is coauthor of Red Planet: Scientific and Cultural Enounters with Mars and Biofutures: Owning Body Parts and Information, both titles published in the Mariner10 interactive DVD-Rom series at the University of Pennsylvania Press. She has interests in multimedia and web development, open source and open content production, electronic literature, and science fiction.

As more corporate and personal data moves online, Assistant Director at the UMBC Center for Cybersecurity Richard Forno provides tips on protecting financial information before a cyberattack hits.

In this video, Mariko Sanchanta of the Wall Stree Journal Digital Network interviews Dr. Rick Forno on the risks of cyberattacks on banks and other financial insititutions.

Join UMBC's LSAT Test Prep and prepare for the types of questions included in the Law School Admissions Test. Designed to improve performance on the competitive LSAT, this intensive course focuses on:

1. Test-taking techniques
2. Time-saving methods
3. Improving logical reasoning
4. Practicing with sample tests
5. Enhancing reading comprehension
6. Reducing test anxiety

Taught by Dr. Anthony Poplawski of Spiegelberg and Associates, UMBC’s Test Preparation Courses are acclaimed for their comprehensiveness, revealing the true character of the test, their focus on maximizing scores, their intellectual seriousness, and reducing the test candidate’s test anxiety. Instruction is at the highest professional level by experienced college faculty.

Please visit The Law School Admission Council at www.lsac.org to view information on the LSAT exam.

TO REGISTER AND LEARN MORE ABOUT THE COURSE, PLEASE VISIT:

http://www.umbc.edu/testprep/lsat

The next class will begin on May 7th and meet on Tuesdays at UMBC's South campus from 6-9:30 pm

Register by April 16 for a 10% early bird discount!