Four students in UMBC's Department of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering have been selected for major scholarships to study cybersecurity in the National Science Foundation's (NSF) Scholarship for Service (SFS) CyberCorps program.   Each student will receive full tuition, fees, and a nine-month stipend ($20,000 for undergraduates, $25,000 for MS/MPS students, and $30,000 for PhD students) for up to  two years (three years for PhD).  For this first year of the program at UMBC, recipients are Oliver Kubik (BS student in computer science), Brendan Masiar and Brandyn Schult (MPS students in cybersecurity), and Mary Mathews (PhD student in computer science).  

While in the program at UMBC, each student will participate in paid summer internships and have opportunities to engage in mentored research opportunities at the UMBC Center for Information Security and Assurance (CISA) and its partners from industry and government.  Following graduation, each student must work for the government (for pay) for one year for each year of scholarship received.  Drs. Alan T. Sherman and Richard Forno direct the program using support they received from their recently awarded $2.5 million NSF grant.  The CyberCorps program will produce highly-qualified professionals to meet the increasing need to protect American's cyber infrastructure.

Each year students may apply for SFS CyberCorps scholarships at UMBC, with application deadline in mid January.  For details, see www.cisa.umbc.edu.  In each of the next three years, UMBC expects to make six new awards.   Applicants must be accepted to a full-time degree program in a cybersecurity-related field (CS, CE, cyber, EE, IS, math, physics, education, public policy).

Musician Devin Walker ’89, political science, took his “Uncle Devin” show to the U.S. Capitol this summer, sharing educational music with children and parents alike.

Walker, who plays the drums, calls the show “a live, interactive musical experience for children five and over by renowned drummer Devin Walker. The show cultivates the minds of children through percussion instruments and is a dynamic cross between Fat Albert and Schoolhouse Rock.”

View photos from the show here.  Read more about the show here.

Walker and his jazz band, A Sense of Urgency, will be one of three alumni-driven bands playing at this year’s Homecoming Crab Feast on Saturday, October 13. (The others are: Fiddlin’ Around, an Irish folk band featuring UMBC’s own staff and faculty members Terry Aylsworth, Eric Ebersole, and William Farrell, and alums David Aylsworth ’74, Tara Ebersole ’08 and Sara Moreland ’97; and Black Falls, a blues and classic rock band featuring alumnus Philip Medenbach, Jr. ’87.)

For more information about the event, visit the Homecoming website here.

Musician Devin Walker ’89, political science, took his “Uncle Devin” show to the U.S. Capitol this summer, sharing educational music with children and parents alike.

Walker, who plays the drums, calls the show “a live, interactive musical experience for children five and over by renowned drummer Devin Walker. The show cultivates the minds of children through percussion instruments and is a dynamic cross between Fat Albert and Schoolhouse Rock.”

View photos from the show here.  Read more about the show here.

Walker and his jazz band, A Sense of Urgency, will be one of three alumni-driven bands playing at this year’s Homecoming Crab Feast on Saturday, October 13. (The others are: Fiddlin’ Around, an Irish folk band featuring UMBC’s own staff and faculty members Terry Aylsworth, Eric Ebersole, and William Farrell, and alums David Aylsworth ’74, Tara Ebersole ’08 and Sara Moreland ’97; and Black Falls, a blues and classic rock band featuring alumnus Philip Medenbach, Jr. ’87.)

For more information about the event, visit the Homecoming website here.

Ocean City Bus Trip

(seb)

Saturday, September 15, 2012

Bus departs The Commons Circle @ 8:30am

All Guests = $15

Ticket #: SOLD OUT!

Humanities Without Apology

Office of Institutional Advancement

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

7:00pmm

Performing Arts & Humanities Building, Proscenium Theater

All Guests = FREE

(No ticket numbers available)

New York City Bus Trip

(seb)

Saturday, September 22, 2012

Bus departs The Commons Circle @ 8:00am

All Guests = $30

Ticket #: 50 of 106

King's Dominion Bus Trip

(seb)

Saturday, September 29, 2012

Bus departs The Commons Circle @ 11:00am

All Guests = $35

Ticket #: 4 of 49

Renaissance Festival Bus Trip

(seb)

Saturday, October 6, 2012

Bus departs The Commons Circle @ 10:30am 

All Guests = $20

Ticket #: 1 of 49

Homecoming Comedy Show: BJ Novak

(seb)

Saturday, October 13, 2012

8:00pm

RAC

All Guests = $10

Ticket #: 97 of 2000

Midnight Premiere: Paranormal Activity

(seb)

Thursday, October 18, 2012

Bus departs The Commons Circle @ 11:00pm

All Guests = $5

Ticket #: 1 of 260

Hershey Park Bus Trip

(seb)

Saturday, October 20, 2012

Bus departs The Commons Circle @ 12:00pm

All Guests = $35

Ticket #: 2 of 48

Isaiah 42:10-17 (NIV)

10 Sing to the LORD a new song,
his praise from the ends of the earth,
you who go down to the sea, and all that is in it,
you islands, and all who live in them.
11 Let the wilderness and its towns raise their voices;
let the settlements where Kedar lives rejoice.
Let the people of Sela sing for joy;
let them shout from the mountaintops.
12 Let them give glory to the LORD
and proclaim his praise in the islands.
13 The LORD will march out like a champion,
like a warrior he will stir up his zeal;
with a shout he will raise the battle cry
and will triumph over his enemies.
14 “For a long time I have kept silent,
I have been quiet and held myself back.
But now, like a woman in childbirth,
I cry out, I gasp and pant.
15 I will lay waste the mountains and hills
and dry up all their vegetation;
I will turn rivers into islands
and dry up the pools.
16 I will lead the blind by ways they have not known,
along unfamiliar paths I will guide them;
I will turn the darkness into light before them
and make the rough places smooth.
These are the things I will do;
I will not forsake them.
17 But those who trust in idols,
who say to images, ‘You are our gods,’
will be turned back in utter shame.

Reflection:

We love our music, sing our songs, and even have our great worship songs. We may have extensive collections of songs by artists such as Matt Redman or Hillsong. God has certainly used this music to touch hearts and help bring us into worship. But the sound and style pretty much match the styles we hear on the radio and in bars or basements. In many ways, our cultural preferences match the world’s.

What God does in our lives is so radically different that there is no worldly sound to match it… nothing. His “new song” goes beyond the musical styles of this culture or any other and transforms a broken world, turning the darkness into light and making the rough places smooth. He will not be stopped in His plan of salvation. He will no longer keep silent and hold back.

Response:

Let’s pray that we would catch the “new song” and “new rhythm” that God is singing to us. We want to be those who sing for joy, shouting from the mountaintops and giving glory to the Lord. Let’s also ask the Lord to open the hearts of those we are ministering to, so they may also catch this new song. May God’s light shine in the darkness, turning rivers into islands and drying up the pools.