Need a place to achieve career-life balance? A place to de-stress, relax, and rejuvenate? Come to the Mind Spa.

The Mind Spa offers several resources, including, but not limited to: a massage chair, and oil diffuser, a biofeedback device, books, and a meditation area. Photo Credit: Shawnisha Hester

The Mind Spa is a room that offers a stress-free environment to anyone who visits.  The ceiling is covered with fabric, giving the perception of clouds. Upon entering the room, there is a welcoming small table with a teapot, paper cups, and assorted tea bags. At each corner of the room, there are three different relaxation resources. In one corner, there is a meditation area where the floor is covered with fabric and cushions. At another corner is a full body massage chair. In the third corner, there is a computer connected to an EmWave device, biosensors that clip onto your fingers to measure your heart rate. On the computer, you can play games and guided simulations, such as breathing techniques, where the EmWave device would provide biofeedback as a measure of the participant’ stress level and inside harmony. Inside this room, there are also other resources to provide a calm, stress-free environment: sandboxes, stress-free balls, small plants, vertical paper lanterns, and an oil diffuser.

Services from the Counseling Center are open to all registered UMBC students.  Everyone (including faculty, staff and administration) can feel free to stop by and check out the amazing Mind Spa! The Counseling Center is open Monday through Friday 8:30 am – 5:00 pm. There are no fees and no limits as to how many times you access these resources! Feel free to walk in and use the resources at The Mind Spa, or, reserve a resource in The Mind Spa in advance by calling 410-455-2472.

We learned about The Mind Spa through Dr. Susan Han and Dr. Emilie Stuber-Lawson, who served as guest speakers for the PROMISE AGEP’s  Dissertation House at UMBC earlier this week. Learn more about the beneficial resources that the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) Counseling Center has to offer. Located between the Susquehanna Hall and the Chesapeake Hall dormitories on campus, the Counseling Center provides free counseling services to the entire UMBC community, including: individual counseling, couples counseling, and group counseling. If you are unsure about setting up a counseling appointment, fear not! There is an “Interactive Screening Program” on the Counseling Center’s website (http://counseling.umbc.edu/resources/) where you can anonymously contact a campus counselor.

For students who are writing a dissertation at other universities, we encourage you to check your campus Counseling Center. Similar resources may be offered at your university.

Submitted by Amanda Lo (Graduate Assistant for the Career-Life Balance Initiative and the PROMISE AGEP team)

• Understanding Graduate School – Panel of Graduate Students
  • Nopondo Esemoto (Chemistry)
  • Joshua Brown (Biochemistry – MD/PhD)
  • DeLauren McCauley (Chemistry)
  • Antione Taylor (Psychology)
  • Janae Baptiste (Chemistry)
  • Alex Vega (Chemistry, incoming 1^st Year)

11:30 a.m.

• Introduction: Dr. Janet C. Rutledge, Vice Provost of Graduate Education & Dean of the Graduate School
• Motivational Talk by Dr. Freeman Hrabowski, President, UMBC

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You are invited to join the Dissertation House online: https://dissertationhouse.wordpress.com/blog-online-challenge/summerdh2015/. We have been hosing challenges for several years, and are always pleased to see people finish their degrees! The participants who will come to the Dissertation House in person will be here from Tuesday, July 7 – Friday, July 10, but that doesn’t need to stop you! You can write something now. Let us know that you’re here. It’s ok to be the first one at the “party.” We’ll look forward to meeting you and encouraging you along the way.

Each summer we host a Dissertation House online that connects to participants in our in-person Dissertation Houses in Maryland. You don’t need to be a doctoral student in Maryland to join. You can be  student at any school in the world. The key is that we are in favor of forming a community to catapult you to the next level. Here is the link for the current installment:

https://dissertationhouse.wordpress.com/blog-online-challenge/summerdh2015/

You’re invited! Join us!

The University of Maryland Baltimore (UMB) is sponsoring the University System of Maryland-wide Dissertation House at the PROMISE Summer Success Institute, August 13-15, 2015. All participants will work on their dissertations on Thursday evening, and all day Friday, and will attend activities for the #ThinkBigDiversity 2015 PROMISE Summer Success Institute on Saturday, August 15, 2015.

All events will be held at The Hotel at Arundel Preserve. As part of the Dissertation House, and as a transition to the events for the Saturday PROMISE SSI, there will be a special evening dessert session and book discussion: Sisters in the Dissertation House on Friday night, hosted by book author Dr. Jennifer Bacon, and led by Dr. Shanna Smith.

For more information about the Dissertation House, and to apply for this opportunity to work on your dissertation, visit the 2015 USM-side Dissertation House page on the website for the Dissertation House:

https://dissertationhouse.wordpress.com/2015/06/25/dissertation-house-at-the-2015-promise-summer-success-institute-ssi-aug-13-15/

All participants must apply for the Dissertation House using the link above, *AND* register for the #ThinkBigDiversity PROMISE 2015 Summer Success Institute.

University System of Maryland (USM) Dissertation House at the PROMISE Summer Success Institute – August 13-15, 2015

The University of Maryland, Baltimore  and PROMISE Maryland’s AGEP are sponsoring a system-wide Dissertation House for graduate students in STEM programs.  The writing and research retreat will take place at the Hotel at Arundel Preserve.   Lodging for 2 nights and meals are provided for student participants.   Twelve students from the USM system schools will be chosen to participate in this research and writing retreat.  http://www.thehotelarundel.com/

 2015 PROMISE SSI Dissertation House Schedule:

• Thursday 8/13, 3:00 PM Hotel Check-in
• Thursday 8/13, 5:00 PM Dissertation House Opening Session, Dr. Wendy Carter-Veale (Dissertation Coach) 
• Thursday 8/13, 6 PM – 7 PM:  Dinner Meeting
• Thursday 8/13, 7 PM – 12 midnight: Work Session #1
• Friday 8/14, 8 AM – 9 AM: Breakfast
• Friday 8/14, 9 AM – 9:15 AM: Welcome – Dr. Erin Golembewski (UMB)
• Friday 8/14, 9:15 AM – 10 AM: Mini Lecture –  Dr. Wendy Carter-Veale
• Friday 8/14, 10 AM – 12 noon: Work Session #2
• Friday 8/14, 12 PM – 1PM: Working Lunch
• Friday 8/14, 1 PM – 2PM: “Writing Lab” Seminar with Clancy Clawson of the UMB Writing Center
• Friday 8/14, 2 PM – 6  PM Work Session #3
• Friday 8/14, 6 PM – 7  PM Dinner Meeting
• Friday 8/14, 7 PM -12 midnight Work Session #4
• Saturday 8/15, 8 AM – 3 PM: PROMISE Summer Success Institute Program, includes #ThinkBigDiversity breakout session for “Continuing Students.”
• Saturday 8/15, HOTEL Late checkout (time TBA)

OPTIONS

• SSI Suite – Hotel at Arundel Preserve: Friday 8/14, 8:30PM – 10 PM: Sisters in the Dissertation House Book Discussion & Dessert Session –  Optional DH activity, part of the PROMISE SSI, open to others outside of the DH event (sponsored by the PROMISE AGEP, with DH Alumni Dr. Jennifer Bacon and Dr. Shanna Smith)
• Students who want to stay until Sunday are encouraged to book an extra night on their own for a Saturday night – Sunday stay: Guests can call the hotel’s main line and reference “PROMISE AGEP SSI 2015” or group code “3065” to book remaining group discounted rates: 410-796-9830, http://hotelarundel.com/
• Anyone who stays Saturday-Sunday will have the option to have additional one-on-one, or small group mentoring sessions with Dr. Renetta Tull, PROMISE Director. 

Eligibility for the SSI Dissertation House:

1) Enrolled in a STEM graduate program (based on the NSF-supported fields per the NSFGRFP) at one of the schools within the University System of Maryland

2) Underrepresented according to the NSF Definition for AGEP, U.S. Citizen

Per NSF.gov: AGEP is committed to the national goal of increasing the numbers of underrepresented minorities (URMs), including those with disabilities, entering and completing science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) graduate education and postdoctoral training to levels representative of the available pool. URMs include African Americans, Hispanic Americans, American Indians, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians and other Pacific Islanders.

This event is part of the 2015 PROMISE Summer Success Institute. Following the Dissertation House (DH) sessions on Thursday and Friday, all DH participants will be required to continue participation in the PROMISE SSI on Saturday, August 15, 2015 at The Hotel at Arundel Preserve:

https://promiseagep.wordpress.com/2015/03/31/promise-summer-success-institute-ssi-august-15-2015/

All 12 participants will check in on Thursday, and check out on Saturday.

________________________________________________

TO APPLY: Follow the instructions outlined on the application page: https://dissertationhouse.wordpress.com/apply/

DEADLINE: Friday, July 24, 2015

________________________________________________

The host for the 2015 USM-wide Dissertation House will be the University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB).

UMB’s Sr. Associate Dean of the Graduate School, Dr. Erin Golembewski, and the team from UMB (Coordinator –  LaNette Parson, Writing Center Coordinator – Clancy Clawson) welcome applicants from around the state to UMB’s 2015 PROMISE Dissertation House. As part of the PROMISE SSI Dissertation House structure, complimentary hotel lodging will be provided for DH participants. Students from western Maryland and the Eastern Shore, e.g., Frostburg University, University of Maryland Eastern Shore, and Salisbury University, are particularly encouraged to participate. Learn more about PROMISE at UMB:

http://www.graduate.umaryland.edu/Current-Students/PROMISE-Program/

________________________________________________

Dissertation Coach: Dr. Wendy Carter-Veale

The Summer Dissertation House is coming to UMBC, July 7-10 2015. Graduate students who plan to participate should follow the application procedures on the application webpage for the Dissertation House.

Open application period: Early bird May 20, 2015 – May 31, 2015. Late registration June 1, 2015 – June 7, 2015 (Applications received during the early bird period will have priority.)

(Please note that there are only 15 to 18 slots for this event, consider applying early)

Applications received after June 7, 2015 will be considered for the DH waiting list. More information about the Dissertation House: https://dissertationhouse.wordpress.com/about/

• The Dissertation House runs from 9 AM – 5PM, for four days, Tuesday, July 7 through Friday, July 10, 2015
• Students must plan to attend the full session, for each of the 4 days.
• Daily schedule includes 2 mini-lectures, and 5 hours of writing per day.
• Breakfast, Lunch, and a snack will be served daily.

The July 7-10, 2015 Dissertation House is only available to UMBC’s graduate students who can attend in-person, however, the online version is open to anyone, from any institution, world-wide!
This version of the Dissertation House is open to all graduate students, in all disciplines.
There are 15 to 18 spaces available for the Dissertation House.
Details regarding eligibility can be found on the application page of the website for the Dissertation House. Subscribe to the website: http://www.thedissertationhouse.com
Read about The Dissertation House in UMBC’s Alumni Magazine: Byrne, R. (2011, Fall) “The Write Stuff”, UMBC Magazine. p. 12

Please login to MyUMBC, click “I can attend” here: http://my.umbc.edu/groups/promise/events/32556 , *AND* follow the
application procedures on the main website for the Dissertation House: https://dissertationhouse.wordpress.com/apply/

In August, we will hold a consolidated, marathon version Dissertation House for STEM graduate students of the USM, during the PROMISE Summer Success Institute: https://promiseagep.wordpress.com/2015/03/31/promise-summer-success-institute-ssi-august-15-2015/

The Dissertation Houses are co-sponsored by PROMISE AGEP: Maryland Transformation (an AGEP-T project), The Graduate School at UMBC, and The Graduate School at The University of Maryland College Park.

AAAS Science and Technology Policy Fellows invite you to register for the upcoming symposium “Making Changes: Learning from Social Science Research to Drive Behavior Change”.

When: June 18, 8:30 am – 5 pm with reception to follow

Where: AAAS Headquarters, 1200 New York Avenue NW, Washington, DC

RSVP here: http://aaaspolicyfellowships.org/event/making-changes

Organized by the AAAS Science and Technology Policy Fellowship’s Social Science Affinity Group in collaboration with the Affinity Groups on Energy/Climate, Health Policy, Global Health, Biodiversity, STEM Diversity and Women of Color in STEM.

Government agencies and contractors, non-governmental organizations, and private sector firms enact numerous policies and programs to achieve behavioral change in target populations, but often with mixed results. Promoting large-scale behavior change requires more than personal insights, “common sense”, and untested assumptions. Social scientists have spent decades learning what does and does not work to incite change, but there is often a gap when applying this to practice. Come join us on June 18th at the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) to learn what insights social science research can provide for better understanding human behavior and improving behavior change efforts!

The full-day symposium brings together different actors, including policymakers, public- and private-sector organizations, civil society, academics, and activists, who want to promote behavior change in individuals and organizations for the common good. The symposium will provide an opportunity to discuss both theory and examples, success stories and continued challenges, and what can be done to improve programs and policies. It will showcase academic research and practical experiences and will highlight common themes across sectors and fields, including health, environment, human rights, and countering extremism.

The symposium is free and open to the public. Breakfast and lunch will be provided.

Please RSVP here: http://aaaspolicyfellowships.org/event/making-changes