Photo courtesy www.midatlanticccdc.org

This weekend, UMBC’s Cyber Defense club, the Cyberdawgs, will be one of eight schools vying for the win at the CyberWatch Mid-Atlantic Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition (CCDC) Regional Finals. The competition, the first of its kind to focus on the operational aspects of protecting and managing an existing “commercial” network infrastructure, will take place at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab from March 14–18, according to the CCDC website.

“I always get excited for these types of competitions,” says Marc Warfield, president of the Cyberdawgs. A Junior Information Systems major, Warfield hopes to eventually pursue a career in software development with a focus in network and computer security. “I enjoy the field because it’s so dynamic and keeps everyone on their toes.”

In late February, Warfield and his teammates competed against twenty-five schools during a three-hour virtual qualifying round. “We had to secure five different virtual machines and complete tasks that they assigned us during the three hours of scoring,” he explains.

Now only eight schools from the region are left; among them Towson University, Capitol College, and Howard County Community College. Warfield and seven of his teammates will represent UMBC. “We sadly didn’t make it to regionals last year, so it feels good to make it there this year,” he says. “I’m excited to meet people that are already working in the field and considered to be “rockstars” in the computer security discipline.”

Conceived in 2006, the CCDC is funded by CyberWatch, an Advanced Technological Education (ATE) Center. Since then, the center’s mission has been to “improve the quantity and quality of the nation’s information assurance (IA) workforce,” says the website.This year, the competition’s theme is “Healthcare IT.” During the competition, the teams must “ensure the systems supply the specified services while under attack from a volunteer Red Team" and  “satisfy periodic “injects” that simulate business activities IT staff must deal with in the real world.”

Warfield explains that his preparation strategy includes “Redbull and long weekend nights.” “We practice securing machines and setting up web applications along with learning to configure them,” he says.  

This year’s CCDC is the first to include a Speaker Symposium that’s free and open to the public. Kicking off Wednesday morning, the symposium features founder and CEO of Oculis Labs, Bill Anderson with a speech entitled “Causes of Data Breaches in Healthcare? Just Look Around,” and Larry Pesce and Darren Wigley, members of the PaulDotCom Security Weekly podcast, whose presentation is called “MEDIC! Building and Rules of the 2012 Badges.”

If Warfield and his teammates place in the competition this weekend, they will make it to the National competition which will take place in San Antonio, Texas in mid-April. Schools currently slated to compete in the Nationals include the University of Alaska Fairbanks, the Air Force Academy, UNC Charlotte, Rochester Institute of Technology, and Texas A&M University.

Courtesy of The American

On Monday, one million women received mail from Obama.

Why? As women’s rights has been under the attack of certain political pundits, Obama’s new health care law coming under review by the Supreme Court…

And a Re-election right around the corner, the President thought, why not knock out three birds with one stone?

Obama’s ratings have improved over the last few weeks due to the recent controversy over women’s health care:

Women 30 to 55 are always the most important target in health care,’ said Bill McInturff, a Republican pollster who helps conduct the Journal/NBC poll. ‘They’re caregivers, taking care of children and parents, and are more engaged and active in the health care system, more than any other age and gender. It’s not surprising they’d be a target of the Obama administration and campaign on this issue.

The Supreme Court decision is expected to be a heated and historical one with a lot riding on Chief Justice Roberts’ opinion. In the past, a politically divided court such as our current one has provided close and controversial decisions.

Roberts will preside over the arduous three-day debate that decides the fate of the mandate beginning on March 26th.

Next fall, a new scholarship program geared toward transfer students majoring in technology fields will offer ten students the support—both financial and otherwise—that they need. It’s called T-SITE (Transfer-Scholarships in Information Technology and Engineering), and similar to the previous SITE (Scholars in Information Technology and Engineering) program, is supported by an NSF S-STEM grant.

The program is the brainchild of a team of seven women sprinkled throughout IT and Engineering departments in the College of Engineering and Information Technology at UMBC. Dr. Penny Rheingans, Director of the Center for Women in Technology (CWIT) and a professor of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering, is the Principal Investigator for the project. Five professors will serve as faculty mentors for the future scholars: Dr. Marie desJardins (Computer Science), Dr. Gymama Slaughter (Computer Engineering), Dr. Anne Spence (Mechanical Engineering), Dr. Taryn Bayles (Chemical, Biochemical, and Environmental Engineering), and Dr. Carolyn Seaman (Information Systems). Dr. Susan Martin, the Associate Director of CWIT, has been reaching out to Maryland community colleges and will teach a transfer student seminar for the selected scholars. “I don’t think any of us could do it without the others,” says Dr. Rheingans of her team of dedicated collaborators.

“It’s particularly hard for transfer students to really become an integrated part of the community,” says Dr. Penny Rheingans. Transfer students often are at a disadvantage because they miss out on all the orientating activities showered on freshman, she explains. As a result, they’re less aware of campus resources and tend to feel disconnected from the campus community. T-SITE aims to change all that.

Starting in the fall of 2012, the grant will award ten financially needy transfer students with partial scholarships: $6,700 each, capped by an individual student's financial need. Eligible students must intend to major in one of the five IT or Engineering majors: Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, and Information Systems. In addition to financial support, future T-SITE scholars will be warmly integrated into the CWIT Scholars community, where they can take advantage of its outpouring of resources and community events.  

“We are leveraging CWIT to make this work and we’re taking advantage of CWIT infrastructure. It’s an extension of CWIT in that we’re looking at it as a vehicle for increasing diversity in these fields,” says Dr. Rheingans. “Not just gender,” she adds, “but gender’s what we’re particularly good at.”

Like the CWIT program, T-SITE won’t limit the scholarship pool by gender. “We would want men that we bring in as part of the T-SITE program to be supportive of increasing gender diversity,” says Dr. Rheingans. “Having allies that believe in the mission is part of what makes it work.”

Dr. Rheingans’ experience with the successes of the CWIT and SITE programs makes her confident that the T-SITE programs will give its scholars a leg up. “The support network makes a huge difference,” says Dr. Rheingans, who explains that the CWIT and SITE programs had nearly 90% retention in the major compared to the nationwide statistic of around 50%.

In addition to community support, the team has conceived a transfer student transition seminar to ensure that T-SITE scholars have the means to make a smooth transition. Taught by Dr. Martin, the seminar will have students connect with campus resources, identify and apply for internships, develop a career portfolio, learn about their own leadership styles, practice collaboration, and get insights from industry speakers. “The real purpose is to help them with the transition to UMBC and to address the professional development issues that are on the minds of transfer students,” says Dr. Martin.

Dr. Martin has been collaborating with UMBC’s Transfer Student Alliance to reach out to Montgomery College, the Community College of Baltimore County (CCBC), and Prince George’s Community College for help identifying qualified students. Application materials are available on the CWIT website and transfer students entering UMBC for the Fall 2012 semester must apply by April 20, 2012. The scholarship committee—made up of the band of five faculty mentors, Dr. Rheingans, and Dr. Martin—will then interview candidates to select the first cohort of ten T-SITE scholars.

Though the current NSF grant will support the T-SITE program for three years (30 students in all), Dr. Rheingans hopes the program will extend well beyond that. “This is something for which the need will not go away,” she says about supporting transfer students. Though the renewal of the program into future years isn’t a certainty, chances are that when the time comes, the team will re-submit a proposal to seek further funding. “It’s hard to imagine not wanting to do that.”

Luke 5:1-11 (NIV)

¹ One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret, the people were crowding around him and listening to the word of God. ² He saw at the water’s edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets. ³ He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat.

⁴ When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.”

⁵ Simon answered, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.”

⁶ When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. ⁷ So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.

⁸ When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!” ⁹ For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, ¹⁰ and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon’s partners.

Then Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will fish for people.” ¹¹ So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him.

Reflection:

The sea in this story is the place where the disciples’ faith in Jesus ‘began.’ It’s evident from Simon’s response that he wasn’t 100% certain what would result from simply trusting and obeying Jesus’ command to let down his net.But the result was a catch of fish so huge that their nets began to break and boats began to sink.More so, towards the end of the passage we see that Simon and his companions pulled their boats to shore, left everything and followed Jesus.The disciples knew Jesus had something more to life than what they could have imagined.Jesus did and does.

Response:

Like many of our stories, God stepped into Simon’s life and did something unique and amazing.Let’s spend some time remembering and thanking God for all of those times.Let’s pray for our missional groups and campuses that we, like the disciples, would respond to the amazing love of our Lord by continuing to trust Him with everything and follow His leading and voice alone.

We’ve just posted 15 tips that you can use as you prepare for your faculty interviews on the main page for PROMISE: Maryland’s AGEP, however, it can be difficult to prepare for interviews while you’re trying to finish your dissertation.  In the Dissertation House, Dr. Carter-Veale tells participants to get help with tasks that aren’t related to content.  In the same spirit, here are some ways that friends or family members can help you to prepare for your faculty interviews and job talks.

1. You will need to research the school, the faculty, and the leadership.  Ask a friend or family member to print out pages of faculty members’ websites, and select pages from the organization that you need to review.
2. Ask someone to help you with preparing a packet of information about the school or organization that you can review on the plane, in your hotel room, or a day or two in advance of your interview. Consider a folder with pockets that you can get from your campus bookstore.
3. Send someone copies of your CV, teaching philosophy, and copies of two recent papers or abstract and ask them to prepare 2-3 folders that you can have available for interviewers (and one “master copy” for yourself)  in case you have updates to share, or want to refer to something from your packet.
4. Ask friends or family members to help you with things doing like laundry, picking up dry cleaning, getting your comfortable business shoes re-heeled,  or going shopping for the “interview” suit or outfit.
5. Ask colleagues to be an audience and listen to your job talk in advance.  Allow them to ask you critical questions and make constructive comments.  Give someone the job of timekeeper.  Ask them to observe your body language, volume, and enthusiasm for the topic in addition to examining the content.
6. Although the interviewing organization will probably make your basic arrangements, ask someone to help you with other parts of your travel if necessary.   For example, you may need to drive from the airport to your hotel in a new city.  Someone else can print out your mapquest directions, or pre-program your GPS.  Plan for departure location ground transportation to and from the airport or train station (e.g., BWI, Dulles, DCA).

Friends and family often want to find a way to help you as you move toward the finish line. Give them something to do. Let them know that their help is invaluable. Good luck with your interviews.

_____________________________________________

This post may be copied, but please reference “The Dissertation House — http://www.thedissertationhouse.com, a program of PROMISE: Maryland’s AGEP.”

_____________________________________________

The text content of this post was compiled and written by the staff of PROMISE: Maryland’s AGEP and may not be copied without referencing the PROMISE organization, as “PROMISE: Maryland’s AGEP”.

PROMISE AGEP Online Information by PROMISE: Maryland’s AGEP is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

We’ve just posted 15 tips that you can use as you prepare for your faculty interviews on the main page for PROMISE: Maryland’s AGEP, however, it can be difficult to prepare for interviews while you’re trying to finish your dissertation.  In the Dissertation House, Dr. Carter-Veale tells participants to get help with tasks that aren’t related to content.  In the same spirit, here are some ways that friends or family members can help you to prepare for your faculty interviews and job talks.

1. You will need to research the school, the faculty, and the leadership.  Ask a friend or family member to print out pages of faculty members’ websites, and select pages from the organization that you need to review.
2. Ask someone to help you with preparing a packet of information about the school or organization that you can review on the plane, in your hotel room, or a day or two in advance of your interview. Consider a folder with pockets that you can get from your campus bookstore.
3. Send someone copies of your CV, teaching philosophy, and copies of two recent papers or abstract and ask them to prepare 2-3 folders that you can have available for interviewers (and one “master copy” for yourself)  in case you have updates to share, or want to refer to something from your packet.
4. Ask friends or family members to help you with things doing like laundry, picking up dry cleaning, getting your comfortable business shoes re-heeled,  or going shopping for the “interview” suit or outfit.
5. Ask colleagues to be an audience and listen to your job talk in advance.  Allow them to ask you critical questions and make constructive comments.  Give someone the job of timekeeper.  Ask them to observe your body language, volume, and enthusiasm for the topic in addition to examining the content.
6. Although the interviewing organization will probably make your basic arrangements, ask someone to help you with other parts of your travel if necessary.   For example, you may need to drive from the airport to your hotel in a new city.  Someone else can print out your mapquest directions, or pre-program your GPS.  Plan for departure location ground transportation to and from the airport or train station (e.g., BWI, Dulles, DCA).

Friends and family often want to find a way to help you as you move toward the finish line. Give them something to do. Let them know that their help is invaluable. Good luck with your interviews.

_____________________________________________

This post may be copied, but please reference “The Dissertation House — http://www.thedissertationhouse.com, a program of PROMISE: Maryland’s AGEP.”

_____________________________________________

The text content of this post was compiled and written by the staff of PROMISE: Maryland’s AGEP and may not be copied without referencing the PROMISE organization, as “PROMISE: Maryland’s AGEP”.

PROMISE AGEP Online Information by PROMISE: Maryland’s AGEP is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

During the August 2010 PROMISE Summer Success Institute (SSI), Dr. Philip Rous, then Dean of UMBC’s College of Natural and Mathematical Sciences (current Interim Provost and PI for the PROMISE AGEP), shared “secrets” behind applying for faculty positions.  Dr. Rous  provided information regarding how to prepare for the interview, what to expect during the interview, and expectations of the faculty interviewers.  Several of our PROMISE students are preparing for faculty interviews this semester.  To address some of the questions and concerns, we are posting some tips for you to consider.  This is not a comprehensive list, but rather a set of guidelines that you can use so that you have a level of preparation for your one or two days of  interviews.

1. RESEARCH THE SCHOOL
   1. Location
   2. Mission
   3. The kind of school (Carnegie classification, liberal arts, teaching, etc.)
   4. Sources of pride
2. RESEARCH THE DEPARTMENT
   1. Go through each faculty member’s webpage
   2. Know the department’s sources of pride, e.g., highlights such as new discoveries, grant funding, patents, national and international contributions to the field.
3. RESEARCH THE CLASSES THAT ARE TAUGHT WITHIN THE DEPARTMENT
   1. Consider 2-3 courses that already exist that you’d like to teach.  Look at both graduate and undergraduate offerings.
   2. How can you contribute to the curriculum? Think of something new that you’d like to introduce, e.g., a special topics course, a department-wide workgroup that will meet regularly to discuss multidisciplinary facets of your research area.
4. RESEARCH THE LABS
   1. Consider faculty members with whom you might collaborate.
   2. Look for potential opportunities to share equipment, lab space, and facilities.
   3. Look at centers and their facilities to see if there is a place for you to fit.
5. RESEARCH CAMPUS RESOURCES
   1. Sponsored programs and grants management
   2. University press as an outlet for your book
   3. Find connections on that campus that match the support systems that you have on your own campus, and let them know that you are going to be there for an interview (e.g. McNair advisor, SHPE advisor, AGEP director, LSAMP director, your advisor’s colleagues, WISE chapter, SWE chapter.)
6. EXAMINE YOUR RESEARCH AND TEACHING NEEDS
   1. How much space would you want for a lab?
   2. How many graduate assistants would you need to be successful? (Note:  Some schools don’t have a budget for assistantships, but the question may be raised.)
   3. How many TAs would you request?
   4. How much money would you need for start-up costs such as your office, your computer, or your lab? (NOTE:  This question usually comes up in a second interview or after an offer is made. However, you should have a general feel for the kinds of research that the department funds, and the research funding that the department’s faculty raise. You should also know what kinds of facilities your research requires.)
   5. Examine salary.  At public institutions, you may be able to find salary information online or in a “Budget” book in the library.  Know what is reasonable for your rank e.g., assistant professor in your discipline.  (NOTE:  Salary questions usually aren’t raised until a second interview or an offer.)
   6. Think about teaching load and summer salary, example: two courses, two years of summer salary.
7. ARRIVING:  The interview begins as soon as the department representative meets you at the train station, airport, hotel, or starting point.  Travel attire: Business casual.
8. MEALS:  You’ll likely have all of your meals with a faculty member, a group of faculty members, or a combination of faculty and administrators.
   1. Typical meals include dinner the night before your main interview day, breakfast the next morning (this may be on your own in your hotel), lunch with a group, and there may be an additional dinner with another group on the evening of your first full day.
   2. Know your body and how it reacts to certain foods. Be careful of messy foods like pasta with sauce, and foods that produce strong odors.  Don’t choose a very heavy meal.  Play it safe.  Consider refraining from ordering alcohol.  When others are drinking, choosing sparkling mineral waters like Perrier or San Pellegrino are usually safe choices.
9. SLEEP:  Get plenty of rest the night before your interview.  You will have a long day ahead and you will need to maintain your energy throughout the next day.
10. MEETINGS:  You will have several meetings throughout the day (attire: business.)  Be prepared to meet with the following, one-on-one or in groups:
    1. Professors (all ranks)
    2. Graduate students
    3. Administrators
    4. Affinity groups or other campus interests (e.g. ADVANCE, Director of an Engineering Research Center, PI of a collaborative multi-disciplinary project.)
11. THE TALK (and perhaps THE CLASS)
    1. Your talk will probably be an seminar that is open to the public.  The talk should highlight your research and your contributions to the field.  Faculty, students, and the campus community may be invited. Practice your talk in advance with people who will give you constructive criticism.
    2. You may be asked to teach a class.  Be familiar with your topic. Practice the lecture in advance.  Be sure to engage your students.
    3. It’s important to practice out loud and with others in an audience in advance of the big day.  You need to become used to the confident sound of your own voice as you discuss your research and teach your topic.
12. CONSIDER ESSENTIALS
    1. Remember to ask for restroom breaks when needed. Sometimes the schedule is so packed, that there aren’t any breaks.
    2. Have a water bottle available so that you can be refreshed throughout the day.
    3. Bring a few extra copies of your CV
    4. Bring a few copies of your recent papers. (NOTE: A file with your CV, recommendations, your teaching philosophy, and other materials are usually available to the search committee, but because of busy schedules, some of your interviewers may only have a chance to skim your file.  You can provide them with updates when you meet with them. )
13. AFTER THE INTERVIEW
    1. Write to your hosts to thank them for their time and hospitality.
    2. Remember the people who spent time with you and recall the highlights of your conversation.
    3. Follow up with your contacts on campus to give them feedback and let them know about your visit (e.g., AGEP, ADVANCE, LSAMP.)
14. BE PREPARED TO ANSWER ANY FOLLOW-UP QUESTIONS QUICKLY
    1. Examples:  Where else are you applying? How interested are you in our school compared to the other place to which you’re applying?
    2. You may be asked to send a proposal for your start-up costs (e.g., lab, computer, office, supplies.)
15. ENJOY YOUR VISIT
    1. Be friendly and engaging
    2. Conduct yourself as colleague.  Be confident, but respectful of boundaries.  Address the faculty as Dr. _____ or Professor __________ unless you’re told to do otherwise.  Refer to the faculty as Dr. _______ to the students.
    3. Have fun and be yourself.

These are some tips to consider.  Consult your advisor, faculty members, and friends who are on the faculty at other schools for any additions or modifications.  If you have friends who work at the institution, work in the area, or work at a similar institution, don’t forget to consult them. They are a valuable resource.  Good luck with your interviews!

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Resources for starting a lab and negotiating an offer: 

• Starting a lab  (Source: College of Life Sciences Postdoc Association)
• Resources for the Development of Early-Career Scientists, e.g., starting a lab, managing a group. (Source: HHMI)
• Start-up costs in American Research Universities (Source: Cornell University)
• Starting an academic lab (Source: AAAS – Science Careers)
• Negotiating the first offer (Source: Chronicle of Higher Education)
• Negotiating academic jobs in the social sciences (Source: Yale University)
• Academic job offers and negotiation (Source: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign)
• More links for negotiating salary and position (Source: PhDs. org)

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This post may be copied, but please reference PROMISE: Maryland’s AGEP.”

_____________________________________________

The text content of this post was compiled and written by the staff of PROMISE: Maryland’s AGEP and may not be copied without referencing the PROMISE organization, as “PROMISE: Maryland’s AGEP”.

PROMISE AGEP Online Information by PROMISE: Maryland’s AGEP is licensed under aCreative Commons Attribution-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.