By: Jennifer Treger, Community Health and Safety Specialist 

Healthy Choices, Healthy Campus

At UMBC we know that most students make healthy choices about alcohol and drugs, knowledge that eventually led us to create the Be Your Best Self campaign.  Be Your Best Self, a slogan developed by student focus groups, has the two-fold purpose of correcting existing misperceptions about alcohol and drug use at UMBC and promoting the theme of health, wellness, and caring for one another. According to data collected from the National College Health Assessment, we know misperceptions exist on our campus related to alcohol use. One example of a misperception is that students who were surveyed perceive that 91% of UMBC students have used alcohol in the last 30 days, whereas the actual statistic is 54%.  The Be Your Best Self campaign educates students on accurate statistics for our campus population to support students in their healthy decision making. 

In addition, all incoming students take the Alcohol Edu course, an evidenced-based prevention program that helps students reflect on their current behavior as well as their choices and decisions about alcohol. According to UMBC’s data obtained from Alcohol Edu, 82% of our incoming students identify as non-drinkers compared to the national average of 69% (Alcohol Edu, 2013, non-drinker is defined as 0 drinks in the past two weeks).  When the same incoming students were surveyed six weeks into the semester, 79% still identified as non-drinkers, 20% above the national average.  The takeaway here is that if your student drinks responsibly or abstains from drinking, they are in good company at UMBC.

To help foster a healthy environment and to keep our students safe, the Division of Student Affairs provides several programs that promote peer caring. Violence can happen in all types of relationships and in many different forms from physical violence, sexual violence, and psychological violence. Alcohol use has the potential to increase the likelihood of these acts. It is important for our students to have the knowledge, awareness, and skills to serve as an active bystander and react to a situation that has the potential for violence. The Green Dot Bystander Intervention program teaches these skills to help students learn how to keep our campus as safe as possible.  In addition, the program explains how to be proactive in creating a culture that does not tolerate violence.  Students participate in a six-hour training that provides them with the knowledge and skills to be an active bystander and gives them choices of how to respond in a way that is comfortable for them.  We can work together to create a culture on our campus where we do not accept violence and we look out for our each other. For more information, or if your student is interested in participating in a Green Dot Bystander Intervention training, please contact Jennifer Treger at jtreger@umbc.edu or 410-455-3797.

Another program offered through the Division of Student Affairs is called Mental Health First Aid. Mental Health First Aid is an eight-hour course that teaches participants how to respond to a person developing a mental health problem or in a mental health crisis. The first aid is given until the appropriate professional treatment is received or until the crisis is resolved.  The program teaches how to recognize the symptoms of mental health problems and provides information on how to get help.  The Mental Health First Aid training is offered 5-6 times a year and is open to the campus community, including parents. If you are interested in being trained in Mental Health First Aid, please contact Jennifer Treger at jtreger@umbc.edu or 410-455-3797 for the next scheduled training.

Lastly, there are many additional opportunities for your students to get involved in campus activities that promote connection, caring, and healthy fun.These opportunities include:

• Student Organizations: Student organizations are created and run by current students and offer a wide array of opportunities to get involved in the campus community through interests and causes students are passionate about.  To learn more about involvement in student organizations contact Sara Leidner at sleidner@umbc.edu

• Student Activities: Alcohol-free activities are planned for students during the week  and  on weekends. The Student Events Board plans activities including student trips.  For more information, go to http://seb.umbc.edu/

• Residential Community Involvement:  Students can get involved in their residential communities by taking leadership positions on the Resident Student Association or getting involved in their Community Action Board.  To learn more about these opportunities, students may contact their Resident Assistant for more information. 

• Off-Campus Students Services:  Students who are living off campus can get involved in the many activities offered through Off Campus Student Services. To learn more about these opportunities, please visit http://www.umbc.edu/ocss/

• UMBC Athletics and Recreation:  Through UMBC’s campus recreation program, students may take part in fitness and wellness programs along with various types of recreational sports. UMBC also has a very active intramural sports program and a 26-club sports program. In addition, UMBC competes at the NCAA Division I level of varsity athletics (America East Conference) and students can attend at our great venues to cheer on their fellow Retrievers. To learn more about these opportunities, please visit: www.umbcretrievers.com.

Through collaborative programming on campus, students are provided with the skills to keep themselves and others safe.  In addition, they are offered numerous opportunities and activities to get involved in campus life in a fun and healthy way.    

The Baltimore Camera Club: 130 Years of Photographic Education and Excellence 

Baltimore Camera Club trophy

Want to learn more about past activities of The Baltimore Camera Club? Have a look at the issues of the Baltimore Camera Club’s publication, Focal Point, dating from the late 1970s into the 1990s.  Or maybe you want to see the types of works that members produced -- well we have that too! The collection contains a number of member-created photographs, including prints by some of the their most famous members, like Edward Bafford and A. Aubrey Bodine, who was also a photographer at the Baltimore Sun for fifty years.

A. Aubrey Bodine self portrait

Feel free to grab a seat by the display of antique cameras in our reading room and spend some time exploring the long and interesting history of The Baltimore Camera Club.  Whether you want to bone up on your history before attending a meeting or just want to learn about the oldest photographic society in the nation, UMBC’s Special Collections department has something for you. 

RPM, Laverne L. Bodaire

More information about the Baltimore Camera Club’s meetings and current activities can be found on their website, www.baltimorecameraclub.org.

Written by former Special Collections Student Assistant Kathleen Foster