Career Center Director Christine Routzahn, Off-Campus Student Services Assistant Director Amery Thompson, and Retriever Essentials Program Coordinator Ariel Barbosa are the recipients of the inaugural Vice President for Student Affairs Staff Awards. The three new, internal awards—supported by the Vice President for Student Affairs, Dr. Renique Kersh—are a way to celebrate the leadership and dedication of student affairs staff. Student affairs staff nominated colleagues for the awards, and winners were announced at the division’s annual end-of-year cookout in June.

“Student affairs staff are committed to students’ well-being, success, and growth,” says Dr. Renique Kersh, vice president for student affairs. “They create events, programs, and supportive resources to help students thrive. The inaugural VPSA awards highlight the exceptional work that happens in the division, along with the important role our staff play in the UMBC community every day.”

Routzahn is the recipient of the 2024 Outstanding Leadership Award. Nominators described her as someone who exemplifies what it means to lead with inclusivity. Routzahn ensures services and events meet the needs of all student populations, and prioritizes the use of data to validate the importance of inclusion and equity. She has created a positive team by being open and transparent, helping staff to utilize their strengths, and creating authentic relationships. Routzahn is an advocate for all staff, including student staff. Routzahn brings compassion to every interaction, and staff say she is a servant leader who is always thinking about what is best for students and for UMBC.

Thompson is the recipient of the 2024 Outstanding Collaborator or Campus Partner Award. Nominators shared that he creates an inclusive environment to help students express themselves, get engaged, and find a sense of belonging at UMBC. Thompson is known for his passion and commitment, and his enthusiasm and energy. Through collaboration and individual effort, he has created programs and initiatives that have moved the needle forward in a division focused on student well-being and success. Thompson works with offices outside of student affairs, from academic programs to athletics, to partners at Shady Grove. He is well known by students who trust they can count on him for support. 

Barbosa is the recipient of the 2024 Change Maker Award. Nominators explained that she has a passion for meeting challenges with innovative solutions that improve the lives of our diverse student population. That passion is evident in the tremendous growth of the programs and resources under her thoughtful care. Barbosa is an inclusive leader, volunteer coordinator, and bridge builder. She works with internal and external constituencies and communicates positively about their collective impact. She mentors student staff in playing leadership and advocacy roles in their work. Barbosa’s dedication and advocacy has helped to increase visibility for Retriever Essentials both on and off campus, while helping to change the lives of students and supporting their well-being and ability to succeed.

In addition, the Division of Student Affairs (DoSA) is proud of its staff who received UMBC awards this academic year: Acting Associate Vice President for Student Engagement and Diversity Fritzie Charne-Merriweather, Presidential Staff Award; Director of Campus Life Engagement Jen Dress, Employee of the Quarter; and Executive Administrative Assistant Ebony Brown, Employee of the Quarter.

Center for Democracy and Civic Life staff, Dr. David Hoffman, Ph.D. ‘13, and Tess McRae ‘22 led UMBC’s delegation at the June 2024 Civic Learning and Democratic Engagement (CLDE) Meeting hosted by AASCU’s American Democracy Project and NASPA in Detroit. Dr. Hoffman, director, and McRae, coordinator for civic design, were involved in leading three sessions:

In May, Campus Life presented an opportunity for the UMBC community to learn how to develop inclusive practices to best support neurodivergent students and employees.

The virtual workshop was facilitated by Rowan University’s Chiara Latimer, co-director of the Center for Neurodiversity and program coordinator of the Autism Path Program, and John Woodruff, senior director of accessibility services and co-director of the Center for Neurodiversity.

The talk included information on the definition of neurodiversity and an overview of successful collaborations at Rowan University with offices such as Accessibility Services, Housing, Wellness Centers, Pet Therapy, the Center for Neurodiversity, and Autism Path.

Watch a recording of the workshop.

Dr. Bruce Herman, director of health and counseling for Retriever Integrated Health (RIH), is retiring from UMBC effective August 1, after four decades of service to higher education, including 26 years in the University System of Maryland and 12 years at UMBC. A campus wide reception will be held on Wednesday, July 10, from 2 to 4 p.m. in The Commons Skylight Room. 

"I am grateful to Dr. Herman for his commitment to UMBC and especially to our undergraduate and graduate students. He has been an engaged and collaborative campus partner focused on the changing needs of our diverse student population," says Dr. John Fox, acting associate vice president for student affairs and dean of students. "His leadership legacy is holistic student care created through health and counseling services operating together as Retriever Integrated Health. Clinicians work together in a collaborative, holistic approach to address both mind and body, which enhances the ability to better serve all students."       

Over the course of his career, Dr. Herman focused on services that reach, serve, and support students. At UMBC, he brought a public health approach to campus mental health promotion, which included creating mental health summits to introduce students to this approach and then working with them to help change campus practice and culture. 

In 2019, Dr. Herman oversaw the move of the RIH team into a new shared facility, the Center for Wellbeing. During the pandemic, he worked with the RIH team to set up systems to ensure students had access to mental health and health care.

Prior to UMBC, he worked at Towson University’s Counseling Center and as a psychologist at Loyola University Maryland. He also taught in the psychology and education departments at Towson, Loyola, and the University of Illinois. 

Dr. Herman graduated from Cornell University with a degree in Industrial and Labor Relations and obtained his Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology from the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana. 

The recent expansion of the Maryland Technology Internship Program (MTIP), administered by UMBC’s Career Center, was featured in the May 22, 2024 technical.y article, “Major state funding boost means more Maryland college students can get tech internships.” 

Created in 2018, MTIP provides funds for Maryland technology-based businesses, as well as state and local agencies,  to hire interns from colleges across the state, and recently received a $700,000 investment from the state. It also serves as a pipeline to keep tech talent in Maryland. The technical.y article includes information about MTIP, and that the investment " … will allow UMBC to double the program year’s offerings, starting with internships this summer. Before this funding, which kicks in on July 1, the number of internships averaged 160 per year. Now, 300 internships are expected. This funding, on top of a current base budget of $365,000, will make MTIP a $1 million-a-year program."

In addition to speaking with MTIP interns, the article includes an interview with Jen Spencer Heilman, the Career Center’s program director for workforce initiatives; Vamshi Krishna Ginna, M.S. '24, computer science; and Jake Weissmann, the associate vice president for government relations and community affairs, who noted that, “An infusion of cash into this program is just a real sign of faith from the governor and hopefully shows both the opportunity and longevity of the program.”

The MTIP expansion was also the subject of a May 22, 2024 UMBC News article, “UMBC-run program will support twice as many tech internships this summer,” and includes interviews with UMBC President Valerie Sheares Ashby; Spencer Heilman; Courtney Cavin '22, M.S. '23, chemical engineering; and Mustafa Al-Adhami, M.S. '15, Ph.D. '20.

Earlier this year, the Career Center's Christine Routzahn, director, and Spencer Heilman wrote a guest commentary for Maryland Matters, entitled, "Supporting Md.'s technology growth, innovation, and talent retention by increasing paid technical internships." The March 4, 2024 article focused on the success of the MTIP program.