Building upon the inaugural idea of Dr. Shanna Smith (Visiting Professor of English at Jackson State University, former GA for the PROMISE AGEP and PROMISE Peer Mentor at College Park), and the book “Sisters in the Dissertation House” by Dr. Jennifer Bacon, we are happy to present our 2016 event: “Sisters in the Dissertation House – Dessert Discussion 2016.” This event will be held at the Hotel at Arundel Preserve, from 8:30 PM – 10 PM on Friday, August 19, 2016.  This event is part of the larger 2016 PROMISE Summer Success Institute (SSI).  (Details and registration for the SSI:  http://bit.ly/PROMISESSI2016)

This year’s discussants are both featured in the book, and they have been friends since they were graduate students together in the PROMISE Dissertation House: Dr. Alexis Williams (Teaching and Learning Transformation Center – TLTC, University of Maryland College Park, Alumna: College Park), and Dr. Patricia Ordóñez (Faculty, Computer Science, University of Puerto Rico Río Piedras).

The discussion will be held in a hotel suite at the Hotel at Arundel Preserve, and will not be shared publicly. If you are interested in attending, please send email to PROMISEstaff@gmail.com with the subject line: “Sisters in the Dissertation House 2016.” You will receive an email with the room number closer to the date.

You may purchase the book from Amazon here:  https://www.amazon.com/Sisters-Dissertation-House-Narrative/dp/1581072686.

The “Jessica Effect” was named for the late Jessica Soto Pérez, former graduate student at the University of Maryland Baltimore County, member of the first cohort of PROMISE Peer Mentors. We wanted to invite, involve, and engage family members of graduate students in an effort to promote a more inclusive environment that caters to the whole person, and that values the importance of family and friends.

First PROMISE Peer Mentors at UMBC, circa 2004

About Jessica:

• Daughter of Antonio Israel Soto and Luz N. Pérez
• Undergraduate degree: Univ. of Puerto Rico Mayagüez
• P. B. Certificate in Biochemical Regulatory Engineering
• Graduate School: Chemical & Biochemical Engineering (Research: Novel methods for chromatofocusing), University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC)
• Peer mentor: National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded Alliance for Graduate Education and the Professoriate (AGEP) PROMISE: Maryland’s AGEP.
• Instructor: UMBC Upward Bound Math Science
• Member, American Institute for Chemical Engineers (AIChE)
• Member, American Chemical Society (ACS)
• Jessica’s research: The effect of pH transients formed by salt gradients on protein ion-exchange chromatography

The article on the Jessica Effect can be found here:  https://www.aacu.org/peerreview/2014/spring/tull

More background can be found here: https://renettatull.wordpress.com/2014/08/12/the-jessica-effect-and-women-in-stem-mujeres-en-stem-en-memoria-de-jessica/

Dr. Claudia Pearce, UMBC Alumna and Senior Science Authority at NSA

On October 11, 2016, there will be a networking opportunity for CWIT, Meyerhoff undergraduate scholars, and PROMISE members from 11:00 AM – 11:45 AM to meet the 2016 ADVANCE Distinguished Lecture, featuring, Dr. Claudia Pearce,  M.S., ’89 and Ph.D., ’94 and 2014 UMBC Alumna of the Year in COEIT. Dr. Pearce is currently Senior Computer Science Authority at NSA, a member of UMBC’s COEIT advisory board, and involved in collaborative research our CSEE faculty. 

EVENT DETAILS

Event: Networking Opportunity with Dr. Claudia Pearce

Date: October 11, 2016

Time: 11:00 AM – 11:45 AM

Location: UMBC Campus, Commons 331

REGISTRATION

Members of the UMBC Community:

Please RSVP at http://my.umbc.edu/groups/advance/events/41572.

Members who are not part of the UMBC Community:

Please RSVP with your interest in attending in the comments section below.

This networking opportunty is part of her visit for the 2016 ADVANCE Distiguished Lecture later that day at 4:30 PM, a campus-wide talk on her career trajectory at 4:30pm in the Library Gallery followed by a reception. All are welcome to the afternoon event as she will share a personal story of perseverance in her educational, research, and career journey as a computer scientist.  We are proud to incorporate this event into UMBC’s 50th Anniversary celebrations where she will deliver. 

Dr. Claudia Pearce, UMBC Alumna and Senior Computer Science Authority at NSA

On October 11, 2016, there will be an ADVANCE Distinguished Lecture, featuring, Dr. Claudia Pearce,  M.S., ’89 and Ph.D., ’94 and 2014 UMBC Alumna of the Year in COEIT. Dr. Pearce is currently Senior Computer Science Authority at NSA, a member of UMBC’s COEIT advisory board, and involved in collaborative research our CSEE faculty. All are welcome to come as she will share a personal story of perseverance in her educational, research, and career journey as a computer scientist.  We are proud to incorporate this event into UMBC’s 50th Anniversary celebrations where she will deliver a campus-wide talk on her career trajectory at 4:30pm in the Library Gallery followed by a reception.

 EVENT DETAILS

REGISTRATION

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Mark Cather / UMBC Chief Information Security Officer

“Students will be the most avid users of Lynda.com because it will function much like a comprehensive textbook…”

Faculty are already excited with the prospects of online tutorials being widely available to everyone. Cathy Cooke, professor of Cinematic Arts, said “I also use Lynda.com to teach myself the ever-evolving technology changes that are happening rapidly, by the minute!”

Dan Bailey, professor of Animation, said “Lynda.com is good for tutorials, but it is also great for just "help"...a student can go there with a specific problem, use the search function, and usually get very good insights.” 

Gary Rozanc, professor of Graphic Design, worked with Jacob on the initiative to bring the site to VART. Rozanc emphasizes how great the site will be for faculty to incorporate it into their research. “Print designers looking to learn more about interactive design can take courses on HTML/CSS or web developers can augment their toolbox with tutorials on programming for iOS and Android.” said Rozanc. 

Welcome video to the course on Photoshop on lynda.com 

Jacob estimates that her department will be able to leverage Lynda.com to teach students approximately 60 different art and media related software programs. These include but are not limited to tutorials on Adobe After Effects, Final Cut Pro, and Photoshop. Apart from its ease of use, what distinguishes Lynda.com different from other sites is the consistent quality of its instructions and training design.