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Are you looking to study terrorism? Are you hoping to work in the intelligence community? Are you considering graduate school?

Designed for both future practitioners and scholars, START’s flexible and fully online program provides students with advanced education on the causes, dynamics and impacts of international and domestic terrorism. The unique online format enables students to work full or part-time while advancing their education. No pre-requisite knowledge is required, yet our coursework is appropriate for both new and experienced learners.

Program Description
START's Graduate Certificate in Terrorism Analysis aims to train the next generation of scholars and analysts to examine questions related to the behavior of terrorists and terrorist groups, and how societies can best prepare and respond to terrorist threats and attacks. Students also develop the methodological skills necessary to pursue advanced research on and analysis of terrorism. This four-course, twelve-credit, fully online program can be completed in as little as nine-months –  or a more expanded two years. To learn more about the program and courses, visit http://www.start.umd.edu/education/graduate-certificate-online. 

Eligibility
Eligible applicants must have earned a four-year baccalaureate degree from a regionally-accredited U.S. institution, or an equivalent degree at a foreign university. A 3.0 GPA is preferred, but experience may substitute. GRE scores are not required.

Application Information 

The program accepts applications at two points during the calendar year. This allows upcoming fall, spring, and summer graduates to begin the program soon after they have earned their four-year degree. Applications for spring admission are due December 1 for domestic applicants. More information regarding the application deadlines and term timelines can be found on our website.

Interested? 

An online information session will be held on September 27 at 6:00pm EST. To join the discussion, rsvp to START Education ateducation@start.umd.edu with “Grad Cert Info Session” in the subject line of the email. 

More Information?

Request a virtual information packet by emailing education@start.umd.edu and be sure to check out other opportunities at START, like our internship program and summer/winter courses on our website.

The Political Science Department is accepting applications to the the 68th Annual Student Conference on U.S. Affairs (SCUSA) at the U.S. Military Academy, West Point, New York. This is an excellent opportunity to get involved in international and security debates with a large number of students and experts from around the country.

Every year, the Department sends two students to represent UMBC at this conference. Past participants have found the conference to be extremely rewarding. The Department covers registration fees and transportation to West Point, while the conference organizers provide room and board while there. If you are interested, please send a brief (one paragraph) letter of interest, including why you would like to go, what makes you qualified to represent the Department and your GPA to: Dr. Brian Grodsky,bgrodsky@umbc.edu. All applications must be received by September 19. 

For more information, see below. 

On behalf of Colonel Suzanne Nielsen, the head of the Department of Social Sciences, I would like to extend an invitation to the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, to send two student delegates to participate in the 68th Annual Student Conference on U.S. Affairs (SCUSA), hosted by the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York. The conference meets from November 9th through November 12th, 2016.  West Point hosts SCUSA every fall, and it is the oldest and largest undergraduate conference of its type in the world. Approximately 200 undergraduate students from over 100 colleges and universities around the world attend SCUSA. Throughout the conference, the student delegates and cadets debate and formulate policy recommendations that realistically model American strategic responses to significant national and global challenges. The highlights of the four-day conference include the opening senior panel discussion on the evening of November 9th, an evening keynote banquet address, four roundtable sessions, and a closing-report session on November 12th. Recent keynote speakers have included Secretary Madeleine Albright, Ambassador Thomas Pickering, Lieutenant General (Ret.) Brent Scowcroft, and Admiral James Stavridis.   Our organizing theme this year is "Democracy & Democratization: Challenges & Opportunities." Beginning the day after the U.S. presidential election, the conference invites participants to consider the challenges and opportunities facing the United States as it responds to key questions concerning the health and future of democracy. Among the questions to be explored are: what are the political, normative, and material limits to promoting democracy in the world? Does democracy confront greater challenges in some countries and regions? How does political radicalism in its many forms challenge democracy? What does the survival of authoritarian and hybrid regimes indicate about the long-term prospects for democracy internationally? Can democracy successfully navigate ethno-religious conflict?   

Live in New York City. Defend workers’ rights. Get paid and earn college credits.

New York Union Semester is a full-time intensive academic and internship program that provides students with an opportunity to put their passion for social justice to work, both inside and outside the classroom. The Spring 2017 semester runs from January 30 to May 26, 2017.

When should students apply for New York Union Semester?
Applications are accepted on a rolling basis and early applicants are given priority. Apply now! Final deadline for Spring 2017 is November 1, 2016.

Do Union Semester interns get paid?
New York Union Semester students receive a stipend of $7,000 over the course of semester to cover tuition and living expenses. 

Where are New York Union Semester interns placed?
New York Union Semester has partnerships with a variety of unions, worker organizations across the five boroughs. Students intern four days a week for fifteen weeks. We try to pair students’ interests and experience with the needs of our partners.

What is the academic program?
During the evenings and all-day on Fridays, students take classes with the renowned Labor Studies faculty at the Murphy Institute. Students who successfully complete NY Union Semester earn a total of 16 undergraduate credits or 12 graduate credits. Students are responsible for tuition and fees, but pay tuition at the in-state resident rate.

How do students apply for New York Union Semester?
Go to www.unionsemester.org and start an application today!

To speak with the NY Union Semester Coordinator, Sarah Hughes, call (212) 642-2075 or email unionsemester@sps.cuny.edu

www.unionsemester.org

The Women’s Center at UMBC turns 25 this year! We’re excited to share our important milestone with UMBC’s 50th Anniversary and will be celebrating throughout the year with the rest of campus! We were inspired by Special Collections archival project Archives Gold: 50 Objects for UMBC’s 50th and decided to do our own digging into the Women’s Center archives. Over the course of the year, we’ll be sharing 25 “Then vs Now” archives to celebrate the origin and evolution of the Women’s Center at UMBC.

This week we’re featuring the Women’s Center staffs from over the years!

Meet the Women’s Center staff from 1994-95!

When the Women’s Center first opened in 1991, there was only enough funding for a part-time director to work twelve hours a week. The Women’s Union, a feminist student organization, helped to enlist student volunteers who collectively contributed a total of 50 hours per week in order to keep the space open for those seeking resources and services. Paula Morton was named the first director and held part-time hours starting in December 1991 until October 1992. For another part of the early part of the Women’s Center history, students would have to find Simmona Simmons, a founding committee member, in the library to get the key to the Center (and you can still find Simmona in the library today! When you see her thank her for all of her hard work in making the Women’s Center a reality!!) .  

Ten years later – meet the Women’s Center 2014-15 staff.

In 2016, the Women’s Center operates with 2 full-time staff members and 6 student staff and interns and volunteers. Together they provide space, services, and programs (over 150 a year!) and make contact with almost 10,000 visits a year.

Happy birthday Women’s Center and UMBC from the 2016-17 staff!

This week we celebrate our 25th anniversary with a birthday party! Meet some of former Women’s Center staff members and directors, celebrate our 25 years, and wish us a 25 years (plus some!) more! For details on the party which will be hosted on September 13th from 4-6pm, click here. 

What are the memories you have of the Women’s Center over the years that are meaningful to you? What does the Women’s Center mean to you today? Share your memories and pictures with us in the comment section below!

Stay up-to-date with our 25th anniversary on social media using #UMBCWC25. Share your Women’s Center experiences and memories with the UMBC community using #UMBCWC25 AND #UMBC50!

The Women’s Center at UMBC turns 25 this year! We’re excited to share our important milestone with UMBC’s 50th Anniversary and will be celebrating throughout the year with the rest of campus! We were inspired by Special Collections archival project Archives Gold: 50 Objects for UMBC’s 50th and decided to do our own digging into the Women’s Center archives. Over the course of the year, we’ll be sharing 25 “Then vs Now” archives to celebrate the origin and evolution of the Women’s Center at UMBC.

This week we’re featuring the evolution of the Women’s Center logo. 

Brochure circa 1996

While it isn’t certain if the image on one of our earliest brochures served as the actual  logo for the Women’s Center, the image can be found from time to time on flyers and other promotional materials throughout the 1990s.

This image was later replaced by what we refer to today as the “hands logo.” The hands logo was inspired a 1999-2000 Undergraduate Research Project by  UMBC seniors Joy McLure and Nidhi Adya and advised by Dr. Tim Nohe called “Different Thread Interwoven Together.” We’ll be sharing more about the creation of this mural in another blog post to come soon.

While we loved the logo’s connection to the mural that is a signature piece in the Women’s Center lounge, we also heard feedback for change from many community members. Some thought the hands resembled finger painting and could limit people’s perception of the Women’s Center as a childcare center. Other’s expressed concern that the hands were a bit “grabby.” And, as discussed in the previous then vs. now post, the growth of the Women’s Center positioned us to be ready for a new logo that better captured the spirit of the work we do. Over the fall 2013 semester, the Women’s Center Advisory Board members and student staff worked with Creative Services to design our new logo. We looked at many other women’s center logos and were determined to not create another dancing lady logo. Through brainstorming, we happened upon the image of a tree which through draft after draft became a version of the Wye Oak tree (Maryland’s state tree), one of which found home on our own campus.

We introduced our new logo to the UMBC community in January of 2014. It reflects our ongoing growth and evolution as a women’s center which is grounded in our steady core values and reliable strengths so many UMBC community members have come to know and love. And, much like the great Wye Oak beckons, all are welcome in our space as long as they respect each other – their stories, their experiences, their potential.

You can read the full (short) story of our logo here.

What are the memories you have of the Women’s Center over the years that are meaningful to you? What does the Women’s Center mean to you today? Share your memories and pictures with us in the comment section below!

Stay up-to-date with our 25th anniversary on social media using #UMBCWC25. Share your Women’s Center experiences and memories with the UMBC community using #UMBCWC25 AND #UMBC50!

Don’t forget to join us for our 25th Birthday Party on Tuesday, September 13th from 4-6pm. Click here for details.

The Women’s Center at UMBC turns 25 this year! We’re excited to share our important milestone with UMBC’s 50th Anniversary and will be celebrating throughout the year with the rest of campus! We were inspired by Special Collections archival project Archives Gold: 50 Objects for UMBC’s 50th and decided to do our own digging into the Women’s Center archives. Over the course of the year, we’ll be sharing 25 “Then vs Now” archives to celebrate the origin and evolution of the Women’s Center at UMBC.

This week we’re featuring our founding documents and our current mission statement.

“…the Women’s Center will enhance the lives of people…It will be an advocate for women fighting persistent marks of social inequality and prejudice that limit their potential—whether they are students, staff, or faculty…There is no doubt that the Center will play an important role in attracting students to come to UMBC and in improving the quality of their university and subsequent careers,” Angela Moorjani, Women’s Center Committee member, 1991

UMBC is a diverse community with diverse needs. Since UMBC’s founding in 1966, faculty, staff and students have felt the need to have a safe space on campus where resources, information, and materials could be accessed on issues relating to gender, equity, and justice. In creating the space, the Founding Committee for the Women’s Center had to ask themselves important questions about establishing a Center in the first place. For instance: What services will be provided? Where will it be located? Who will run it? Where will funding be obtained? There was a strong consensus that a space was needed that was safe, provided advising, with special attention for returning women students, offered information on women’s health and area clinics, and was a meeting space for women’s groups on campus. Its mission would be to assist women in achieving their full potential in education, work, and personal lives through personal empowerment, academic and intellectual growth, and professional development. 

A memorandum to the President’s Commission for Women on the status of the Women’s Center’s founding.

The Founding Committee went about answering these questions by gathering information about pre-existing Women’s Centers and their functions by contacting and  visiting other campus-based women’s centers. With this information, the Founding Committee were able to write a proposal and hold formal meetings with administrators to request space and funding support for a center.

The Women’s Center Committee made the Women’s Center a reality in September 1991 with the help of Provost Dr. Jo Ann Argersinger and the Founding Committee for the Women’s Center. Through Argersinger, money from the Provost’s Office was initiated to fund furniture and the salary of a part-time director. The Management Committee offered a space and contributed funds that established operating funds for the Center. Because of this funding, the support of campus departments, and the hard work of so many committed individuals, the Women’s Center was first established on the second floor of GYM I, Room 207. It consisted of four offices (a meditation/lactation room, the director’s office, the Women’s Union office and a storage room for files) and one large common room that was used as a multi-purpose space.

Mission statement brainstorming during the fall 2014 Women’s Center Advisory Board Retreat.

Twenty-five years later and UMBC growth and evolution to addition of more resources and services continues to shape who the Women’s Center is and what it should be and mean for the campus community. Over the past few years, the Women’s Center staff and Advisory Board spent countless hours in researching, assessment, and engaging in critical conversations about what an update to the Women’s Center mission statement could and should look like. With new initiatives like Critical Social Justice and  discussion groups such as Women of Color Coalition and Spectrum, it was important for us to center the work the Women’s Center does related to social justice, feminism, and anti-racism. It was also important for us to maintain our deliberate focus on women and advocacy.  In 2015, we introduced our new mission statement and guiding principles to the UMBC community.

The Women’s Center at UMBC advances gender equity from an intersectional feminist perspective through co-curricular programming, support services, and advocacy for marginalized individuals and communities. We prioritize critical social justice as our community value, with a deliberate focus on women, gender, anti-racism, and feminism.

All are welcome as long as they respect women. Their experiences. Their stories. Their potential.

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Guiding Principles

• We will encourage authentic dialogues among students, faculty, and staff to facilitate consciousness-raising, transformative learning, and self-determination.
• We will embody our commitment to diversity, inclusivity, and social justice in our operation, staffing, and programming.
• We will operate from a holistic and non-hierarchical anti-violence framework.
• We will challenge the barriers that reinforce inequity and oppression impacting our university and broader communities.
• We will cultivate women’s empowerment, involvement, and leadership in all aspects of university life.

What are the memories you have of the Women’s Center over the years that are meaningful to you? What does the Women’s Center mean to you today? Share your memories and pictures with us in the comment section below!

Stay up-to-date with our 25th anniversary on social media using #UMBCWC25. Share your Women’s Center experiences and memories with the UMBC community using #UMBCWC25 AND #UMBC50!