Cinderella better find her slippers because UMBC is going dancing again! With a 74-59 win over no. 2 University of Vermont on Saturday, UMBC men’s basketball will return to NCAA Tournament play for the first time since 2018. They also clinched another America East title before a packed home court at Chesapeake Employers Insurance Arena. Selection Sunday results are in and our Retrievers will be taking on Howard University for a play-in game on Tuesday in Dayton. This will be the third NCAA tournament appearance for UMBC. 

Cheer on the team at a watch party

A showdown between the Retrievers and the Catamounts is one supporters have come to eagerly anticipate each season. Vermont won nine of the last 12 overall matchups prior to Saturday’s win and this was the teams’ fifth battle for the America East Championship. And despite Vermont’s no. 1 ranking and UMBC’s no. 7 in the America East preseason poll, the Retrievers proved once again never to count out an underdog. 

Even before Saturday’s victory, UMBC already inked its place in athletics history by producing  the men’s basketball’s best conference regular season in program history. The win against UVM marks the 12th straight win for the Retrievers and sets a new all-time program record. 

“This achievement is a credit to these guys, who are a selfless group who just really cares about playing basketball,” said head men’s basketball coach Jim Ferry. “To be rewarded with that and leave a mark at UMBC is special, and I think they are all very proud of that.” 

Shooting their shot

Fans (and strangers) may recall UMBC’s historic upset in 2018 when they became the first men’s no. 16 seed to overthrow a no. 1 seed in NCAA history. Besting UVM in the America East final this year was especially reminiscent of that legendary season when UMBC also prevailed against Vermont. Since getting their first taste of March Madness success, the Retrievers have been fighting doggedly to return to the national stage. This season, the hard work paid off. 

Three Retrievers made the America East All-Conference Team. Junior guard Jah’Likai King was named First Team, while graduate student guard DJ Armstrong Jr., and junior guard Ace Valentine earned Second Team honors. This marks the first time since 2021 – 22 that the Retrievers have had three players recognized on one of the three All-Conference teams.

Leading his players by example, Ferry was also named America East’s Coach of the Year. He racked up his 400th career win at Maine earlier in the season and is the first coach in UMBC’s program history to do so. 

In good company

Far from the only team to impress the crowds, women’s basketball stunned with buzzer beaters and dramatic come-from-behind victories this season. Setting the stage in the quarterfinals against NJIT, junior Jade Tillman dropped a bucket with one second left on the clock to advance the Retrievers to the semifinals with a score of 66-65. The Retrievers have been selected to play in the 2026 Women’s National Invitational Tournament.

In the America East Semifinals, UMBC women’s basketball took on top-seeded Vermont on the road on Monday, March 9. Despite an exhausting double overtime thriller, UMBC ultimately conceded to the Catamounts with a score of 68-65 to close out the season. 

In February, the Retrievers cracked open the record books to add two more milestones to the history of UMBC Athletics. For the first time, the women’s track and field team captured the America East Indoor Championship title. In addition, the men’s swimming and diving team reclaimed their America East title for the first time since 2023. This marks their 15th win in 20 seasons. Junior Ashley Gutshall, history, competed in the NCAA swimming and diving championships, the first Retriever to qualify for NCAA’s since 2017.

Check umbcretrievers.com for all updates and be ready to cheer on #RetrieverNation! 

UMBC students and faculty recently participated in the 2026 Grand Challenge Scholars Program (GCSP) Annual Meeting at Sapienza University of Rome, Italy, an event dedicated to preparing tomorrow’s engineers to address society’s most pressing global challenges. Nearly 300 students representing 25 countries and more than 70 universities attended February 13–16, 2026, celebrating this year’s theme: “Community, Technology, and Grand Challenges: Together for Global Impact.”
Asantewaa Nyanteh, a mechanical engineering junior, earned first place in the Innovation Award competition for her poster, “Efia: A Wearable Robotic Glove for Hand Rehabilitation After Paralysis.” Her work in the lab of Ramana Vinjamuri, an associate professor in computer science and electrical engineering, advances the development of a lightweight wearable device designed to help users participate more fully in daily activities.
Grand Challenge Scholars participants also represented COEIT and UMBC in other poster presentation categories:
Saumya Brahmbhatt, a computer science junior, presented “Buget2Broker.”

Ini Olaniyan, a chemical engineering junior, presented “Investigating the Effects of Estradiol on Platelet Traction Forces.”
Jessica Thomas, a mechanical engineering junior, received third place in the Service Learning category for her poster presentation, “MagneSense: A Tactile Puzzle.”
Caroline Wehinger, a psychology sophomore presented “Toy Choice: Does Gender Matter?”

Grand Challenge Scholars Program Director Maria Sanchez, who also serves as director of the Engineering and Computing Education Program (ECEP) in COEIT, and Petra Janka, a master’s student in human-centered computing and program coordinator for the Grand Challenge Scholars Program, travelled with the student team.

Looking ahead, UMBC is excited to have been selected to host the 2027 GCSP Annual meeting in Baltimore. More details will be shared as they become available.

Dear Campus Community and Valued Riders,

UMBC Transit will be closed for Spring Break from Monday, March 16th through Friday, March 20th. We will operate on an interim schedule on the following dates:

• Saturday, March 14th
• Sunday, March 15th
• Saturday, March 21st
• Sunday, March 22nd

For your convenience, here are some alternative transit options available while UMBC Transit is closed:

1. Baltimore Link
   • Route 32: UMBC - Patapsco
   • LocalLink 76: CCBC - Downtown
   • LocalLink 37: Old Court Metro to UMBC
   • CityLink PURPLE: Paradise/Catonsville
2. RideShare Services
   • ZipCar
   • Lyft
   • Uber

Please check here for the latest Transit news and updates. If you need more help, please do not hesitate to reach us during regular operating hours at 410.455.2454 or transit@umbc.edu.

Safe travels,

Transit Team - Driving Student Success

Congratulations to the College of Engineering and Information Technology (COEIT) for being awarded a BreakingGround grant! Their project – the COEIT Undergraduate Student Voice & Experience Survey – will contribute to UMBC's continued commitment to fostering collective thriving and civic agency.

COEIT has launched a comprehensive undergraduate student climate survey, assessing student experiences around belonging, inclusion, and support across the college. The BreakingGround Award will support COEIT to deepen student capacity to make meaningful contributions to culture change within the college. Students will learn facilitation skills that support peer-led conversations around inclusion and belonging in the college through co-facilitator training that equips student leaders with foundational skills in inclusive dialogue and peer-centered facilitation. Trained student co-facilitators will assist in leading focus groups that gather richer, more nuanced student perspectives on challenges and improvements within COEIT. Student organizations will also host events for students to complete the survey and participate in reflections, offering engineering and computing students an opportunity to engage with civic agency as a practical, lived experience. Student-identified priorities will be shared with COEIT leadership and used to inform planning for the next phase of a multi-stage climate assessment extending to graduate students, faculty, and staff.

Jeanne van Briesen, Dean of the College of Engineering and Information Technology, said, "This award will enable authentic engagement of students with COEIT's efforts to understand and improve the climate of belonging for all." Similarly, Jess Myers, Associate Director of the Center for Women in Technology, has this to say about the project:

This project represents an important moment for COEIT - marking the first COEIT - specific undergraduate climate survey in nearly ten years and centering student voices through collective engagement and reflection. It reflects a shared commitment to listening, learning, and building community together, and invites students to play an active role in shaping the climate and future of their college.

Congratulations to the College of Natural and Mathematical Sciences (CNMS) and the Center for Religion, Spirituality, and Pluralism (CRSP) for being awarded a BreakingGround grant! Their project – Centering Wonder: Science, Spirituality, Religion, and Collaborative Empowerment in the UMBC Community – will contribute to UMBC's continued commitment to fostering collective thriving and civic agency.

CRSP and CNMS are launching an event series that explores the intersections of science and faith in the UMBC community. The pilot event on March 25, 2026 will feature a public lecture by Dr. Patricia Fosarelli – a pediatrician, theologian, author, and faculty member at both the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and St. Mary's Ecumenical Institute – along with pre-lecture small-group discussions and a post-lecture Q&A. The series aims to empower community members, particularly students in STEM, pre-health, philosophy, and religious studies, to integrate their whole selves into their academic and professional lives. This seed funding will support the pilot event and a follow-up event in the fall, with the goal of establishing a sustainable model for ongoing programming that fosters civic agency, interfaith understanding, and holistic professional development.

Matthew Hoffman, Director of the Center for Religion, Spirituality, and Pluralism, said:

Centering Wonder is a great example of the integrated, collaborative work we support in the Center for Religion, Spirituality, & Pluralism at UMBC. We know that many members of our campus community connect to religion and spirituality as important forms of meaning-making and community connection, as well as for career and academic exploration. Through this program, we hope to celebrate the overlap of wonder that exists when we connect our identities with academic endeavors. At its best, this project highlights UMBC's value of inclusive excellence as a distinctive and transformative approach to higher education.

William R. LaCourse, Dean of the College of Natural and Mathematical Sciences, said:

In the College of Natural and Mathematical Sciences, faculty, staff, and students seek truth and fundamental knowledge as a means to understand the world around us for the betterment of all. Individuals bring a complex constellation of identities related to science, religion, and spirituality with them to all of their work. Becoming aware of what drives ourselves and others is a critical step toward finding personal harmony and building the foundation for a stronger UMBC culture grounded in tolerance. I hope this series will help those seeking truth to find it in themselves and others.

The BreakingGround initiative provides grants of up to $2,500 to UMBC faculty, staff, and students who want to launch or strengthen educational and community-building projects. These projects should, as a part of their work, foster civic agency: the ability to initiate and make meaningful contributions to social change. For more information, visit this website: https://civiclife.umbc.edu/breakingground/