On behalf of the Office of Undergraduate Research and the Division of Undergraduate Academic Affairs, I would like to extend my sincere thanks to all the student researchers and artists, their mentors, and the guests who participated in URCAD 25 Online this year. Over the course of the week, 11,272 people visited and 3,511comments were posted to students' VT presentations. Visitors logged on from all over the world, including Spain, Indonesia, Nigeria, Brazil, Bhutan, Germany, and the U.K.
A special thanks goes out to Michael Mower, UAA’s IT Web, and Graphic Design Specialist, and to our partners in the Division of Information Technology, especially Peter Ariev and Josh Abrams, for helping to host URCAD online using the VoiceThread platform. Thank you also to our Alumni Keynote Speaker, Klaudine Wakasa, for her inspiring words of wisdom in these challenging times. Thanks also goes to Dr. Jodi Kelber-Kaye for moderating the live Q&A with Klaudine. To celebrate the 25th anniversary of URCAD, Diane Lee, Kathy Sutphin, Janet McGlynn, and Elizabeth Pennington recorded a fireside chat about the history of the event- thank you! I would also like to acknowledge the URCAD Selection Committee and its chair, Dr. Stephen Miller, for all their work in making selections and giving students feedback on their abstracts, and Dr. Raimi Quiton and Dr. Timothy Phin for helping prepare the students to present. And thank you to Provost Philip Rous and Dean Katharine Cole for their continued support of the event.
You will still be able to view the presentations throughout the summer, although some students may choose to turn off their comment function. To view student projects, see the URCAD presenter listing and click on any VT icon. Projects are also viewable by department. Be sure to check out the UMBC news story about URCAD which will be out next week.
Don’t forget to mark your calendars for URCAD 2022, which will be held next year on Wednesday, April 20, 2022! Stay safe, and we hope to see you next year on campus for URCAD XXIV!
April Householder, Director of Undergraduate Research and Prestigious Scholarships, Division of Undergraduate Academic Affairs