Join PH COM for conversation and refreshments this Wednesday!
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December 3 is the UN International Day of Persons with Disabilities, honoring the United Nation's commitment for promoting the rights and well-being of persons with disabilities - more than 1 billion people worldwide are in this demographic, the world's largest minority. The day raises awareness of the political, economic, social and cultural aspects of disability that affects people around the world.
The theme for 2024 is: Amplifying the leadership of persons with disabilities for an inclusive and sustainable future. The theme the important role that persons with disabilities play in creating a more inclusive and sustainable world for all. It also emphasizes the importance of the participation of persons with disabilities in decision-making processes that affect their lives. More information about the UN In-Person New York Commemoration event is from 10-11a. The event will be streamed online from 11:30 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. You can watch it live at the following link: https://webtv.un.org/en/asset/k1w/k1wej4fsjh.
By: Gwen Pacis
Photo Credit: Kendall Blunt
Let’s give Kendall Blunt a warm hello!
Kendall Blunt is a senior in the Media and Communication Studies (MCS) major also working on her certificate for the French language. Outside of all their work and academics, they crochet, produce art, relax with games like Stardew Valley, and binge TV.
However, pursuing MCS was not previously part of their path. Upon entering University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC), Kendall originally pursued a Global Studies major with a French minor. However, she felt that she could not connect with the major for a long time and swiftly realized that it was not for her. Amidst her need for change, Kendall was drawn to MCS because she was an avid media consumer. From her constant interaction with movies, shows, music, and social media, the major gave her a chance to broaden her view on many of these things. After much deliberation, she decided to change her major to MCS where it finally clicked with her love for media and allowed her to combine her creativity and logical thinking into one mode of communication.
Kendall’s pursuit within MCS so far has been fruitful. Currently for her MCS 499: Capstone Senior Seminar course, her capstone research paper focuses on YouTube facilitating digital grooming by its influencers while diving deep into the case study of Colleen Ballinger (Miranda Sings). When further reflecting on her time, Kendall noted that various parts of the major have aided her in her current endeavors as well.
For coursework, MCS 355: Social Media: Networking and Mobility and MCS 370: Internet Video Production were two classes fueled with enjoyment in their eyes. Both courses enabled Kendall to apply their skills to projects that directly relate to what they want to do in the future. Additionally, Kendall elaborates that MCS 355 has aided them in their current management in the UMBC Gameroom as a desk attendant and social media manager. More specifically, the class supplied them with skills and a deep understanding of how to appeal to certain demographics, do a social media audit, and make a successful social media campaign. This led to them effectively creating, curating, and organizing content and data for the UMBC Gameroom’s Instagram and webpage.
However, by far, Kendall’s favorite part of MCS is the professors. Two professors she notes that she holds in high regard are Dr. Loviglio and Professor Anchor. For Dr. Loviglio, she appreciates how he brings immense joy to the subjects he teaches and how much he deeply cares for his students. For Professor Anchor, Kendall voices how she is a huge reason why her current product and content creation skills have grown throughout her time at UMBC. Similarly, each professor had extended helping hands in substantial ways. A moment Kendall recalls from Dr. Loviglio was when he reached out to ask how she was doing while she was bearing through tough personal problems. Likewise with Professor Anchor – Kendall notes how quick she is to give a helping hand with encouragement or tips when struggling with a certain concept or tool.
For those who pursue MCS in the future, Kendall advises future students to choose electives that cater to what they want to do with their careers!
“The time I have spent in Public Relations class, Social Media class, and Internet Video Production are invaluable compared to the time I spent in other classes.”
After a long journey, Kendall plans to graduate in Spring 2025. Right now, their definite path after obtaining their MCS degree and French language certificate is uncertain. However, their sights are focused on the general field of marketing – whether it be social media management, brand management, or public relations (PR). As the time draws closer to departing from UMBC, Kendall conveys that what they will miss the most about the university is the sense of community and enthusiasm around all things media with the MCS department. This goes further to their peers – Kendall will miss the diversity and intelligence those within the major shared, especially their aid and friendship within shared courses.
Kicking off the NSF HDR Machine Learning Challenge to Identify Anomalies in Challenges of Societal Importance, iHARP hosted a Hackathon at UMBC on November 22, 2024. Participants of the kickoff Hackathon had the opportunity to engage with three different data sets curated by three different NSF HDR Institutes. Challenge winners will get to showcase their work at a co-located workshop at the AAAI Conference in March 2025.
Thank you to everyone who attended and participated in the Hackathon Kickoff Event and a special thanks to all those who provided support and guidance to participants throughout the event!
]]>We are looking for a small cohort of students to participate in UMBC’s Intercultural Engagement Prep program in Spring 2025. This program is designed to grow your intercultural competency and skills.
This program is open to:
International students
Future or returned study abroad students
Students interested in applying to the Peace Corps after graduation
Students who have an interest in preparing for other international or intercultural experiences
Students who want to prepare themselves as global citizens in a multicultural world
As a participant in the Intercultural Engagement Prep pilot program, you will:
Meet other globally-minded students at UMBC;
Develop your critical analytical skills;
Increase your cultural self-awareness and critically reflect on your own unconscious bias;
Develop strategies to improve your intercultural communication and how you’ll apply it in your future career;
Recognize cultural differences, commonalities, perceptions, power and privilege dynamics, and how they can lead to conflict; and
Understand the importance of intercultural dialogue and intercultural citizenship competencies for fostering social justice.
This non-credit/no-fee course, PRAC 103 (course # 6928), will meet twice in the Spring 2025 semester at a mutually agreeable time, but the majority of the course is accessed through asynchronous learning. Students will be required to attend two globally themed events or activities and will also have independent assignments to complete in Blackboard. Upon successful completion of the program, participants will earn two digital badgestitled Increasing Cultural Self-Awareness and Reinforcing Intercultural Dialogue.
You can register for the course under PRAC 103 and course number 6928.
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UMBC AIChE chapter members and faculty mentors at the AIChE conference in San Diego. (Photo courtesy of Neha Raikar)
UMBC chemical engineering students excelled again at the annual meeting of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE), held in San Diego this fall. The UMBC ChemE Jeopardy team, led by senior chemical engineering student Colin Jones, claimed third place at the national competition held during the conference; the K – 12 STEM outreach team, led by senior chemical engineering student Jemma Pryzbocki, won the top judges’ award in the high school category for designing a module to teach concepts of heat exchange; and the UMBC AIChE club won a best student chapter award.
The UMBC ChemE car team, which designed a car that starts and stops by chemical reactions, also performed respectably in a competitive field. The team was led by senior chemical engineering student Ben Welling. Several students also received individual recognitions—senior chemical engineering and biochemistry student Pavan Umashankar won a Donald F. & Mildred Topp Othmer Scholarship Award and senior Meredith Morse, chemical engineering, took third place in the student poster session in the food, pharmaceutical, and biotechnology division.
K – 12 STEM outreach team members (from left to right) Daniel Miranda, Meredith Morse, and Jemma Przybocki demonstrate their teaching module, “The Chilly Chameleon Heat Exchanger.” (Photo courtesy of Neha Raikar)
ChemE car team members (from left to right) Ben Welling (team captain), David Ni, Afrah Ahmed, Jacob Craft, and Michael Dinan prepare their car for competition. (Photo courtesy of Neha Raikar)
“The students deserve a big round of applause for all their dedication and hard work,” says Neha Raikar, a senior lecturer in the Department of Chemical, Biochemical, and Environmental Engineering (CBEE) and one of the advisors to the student AIChE chapter.
“The chemical engineering major demands exceptional attention to detail and hard work,” says Mariajosé Castellanos, another CBEE faculty who advises the AIChE chapter. “It is truly inspiring to see our students consistently apply their skills and make a lasting mark on the national stage!”
UMBC students have achieved impressive AIChE conference success for many years running. The ChemE Jeopardy team has reached the final every year since 2020, and the K – 12 STEM outreach team, which only began competing last year, has won awards at each event. Earlier this year, the UMBC student chapter showed off their growth and talents by hosting a regional meeting of AIChE for the first time.
ChemE Jeopardy team members (from left to right) Jonathan Wu, Pavan Umashankar, Colin Jones, and Joshua Lewis take their places behind the buzzers. (Photo courtesy of Neha Raikar)
]]>Hey, CyberDawgs!
Tonight's the night. This meeting we will hold the election for the upcoming Vice President vacancy. We'll be meeting at the usual time from 7:15PM - 8:15PM in our usual place ILSB 118. You can also join us virtually on Webex: https://umbc.webex.com/meet/CyberDawgs. Everyone is invited to attend!
Those of you running for Vice President should have already filled out the interest form, but if not, please fill out the following form (undergrads only): https://forms.gle/xe5bWSqf5xV1rhYB6
As a reminder, as outlined in the constitution, only club members will be allowed to vote\run for position.
Below are the membership requirements:UMBC undergraduates can become members of this organization by:
1. Following the CyberDawgs Student Org Page on myUMBC (https://my3.my.umbc.edu/groups/umbccd)
2. Attending no fewer than five (5) of the scheduled club meetings per semester (Virtually or In-Person)
We will be double-checking eligibility at the meeting, so please follow the myUMBC page, and don't be late.
Respectfully,
Izzy
Current CyberDawgs Vice President
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