Link to the Kaplan Scholarship application on Scholarship Retriever.

This scholarship is awarded to deserving undergraduate students at UMBC who have achieved a minimum 3.0 grade point average, have junior or senior status, have made contributions to the community, and who demonstrate financial need.

The Louis L. Kaplan Scholarship was established November 24, 1981, by the Student Government Association at UMBC in recognition of Dr. Kaplan’s contributions to UMBC during his tenure as Interim Chancellor. It was Dr. Kaplan’s wish, when the fund was first established, that students who displayed academic promise be assisted financially in order to continue their education at UMBC.

Tess McRae has been appointed co-chair of the University System of Maryland (USM) Student Civic Leaders Committee (SCLC) for the spring 2022 semester. The SCLC was established in 2020 in response to the Board of Regents’ acknowledgement of the continuing importance of civic education and civic engagement to the mission of the University System of Maryland. Student leaders from USM institutions and USM System Office staff members comprise the SCLC’s membership. The SCLC supports civic engagement and education efforts within and between USM universities.

In her role as co-chair, McRae will help to plan and facilitate convenings of the committee and identify civic engagement and education priorities for USM. She has served on the committee as a representative for UMBC since it was established. The other co-chair is Delanie Blubaugh, a student at Frostburg State University. Dr. Nancy Shapiro, USM’s Assistant Vice Chancellor for Education and Outreach, and Dr. Joann Boughman, USM’s Senior Vice Chancellor for Academic and Student Affairs, convene the committee and support its work.

McRae serves as senior intern for civic design and engagement in the Center for Democracy and Civic Life.

To learn more about civic engagement and education work at the system level, click here.

The American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU) Academic Innovation and Transformation Monthly Newsletter for January 2022 identified the Center for Democracy and Civic Life's work as an example of how higher education can support civil dialogue in a time of deep divisions:

"Our campuses must model for a society in turmoil what respectful disagreement, civil debate, and peaceful protest can look like. There are many AASCU members who are modeling the way. […] The University of Maryland Baltimore County through its Center for Democracy and Civic Life fosters healthy civic relationships in the campus and community."