College now feels attainable to students at Federal Hill Preparatory School in Baltimore, thanks to a UMBC afterschool program focusing on social studies. Assistant Professor of Political Science Tyson King-Meadows and students from his class, “Our Civic Voices,” visited Federal Hill Prep biweekly in spring 2009, engaging students in activities surrounding civic issues and self-governance.
The students at Federal Hill Prep, a school that does not have any social studies teachers, had mixed academic levels. That mix was not expected in the initial planning stages of the project.
“It was a task for us,” said King-Meadows, “because we hadn’t originally intended on Federal Hill Prep being the site for this project.”
For months, King-Meadows, his student assistant and The Shriver Center had designed a curriculum based on another school’s needs. That school had a dedicated social studies teacher. When that school canceled at the last minute, Lori Hardesty, program coordinator of Service-Learning/K-16 Partnerships at The Shriver Center, connected UMBC with Federal Hill Prep. That connection proved to be the perfect match.
“One of the goals of The Shriver Center is to be a resource to UMBC faculty, to help connect their students with more applied learning experiences into their courses/curriculum which could come in the form of service-learning, internships, performance,” said Hardesty.
The project was divided between readings and discussions and special events. Students were asked to read specific books throughout the semester and the Civic Voices team then engaged the students in class discussion. Each activity was geared toward a particular lesson or situation.
“The experience empowered students, and real bonds were formed. They felt comfortable talking about their concerns, and asking UMBC students what they cared about,” said Katie Dix ’10, political science major and student leader.
Several special events included “I AM speeches,” in which students gave presentations in a UMBC auditorium. The Federal Hill Prep students also took two field trips, one to UMBC for a college visit day and another trip to Washington, D.C., where they received a tour of the capitol.
“Everyone was glowing after giving their speeches,” said Sherry Barr, Federal Hill Prep teacher. “They really enjoyed talking about who they were, where they were from and something that concerned them. The list ranged from trash, gangs and drugs to homework.”
When asked why such a program is important, King-Meadows spoke emphatically about the quality of political participation among America’s youth.
“We do young people and the political community a disservice by not enhancing their preparedness for civic activity. To me, America must prepare its citizens for self-governance at a very early age,” said King-Meadows. “If a child can learn to tie a shoe, he or she can learn that government officials determine the quality of the roads and sidewalks those shoes will walk on.”
For more information on the Our Civic Voices project, contact Tyson King-Meadows at 410-455-2194.
(7/2/09)
© 2007-08 University of Maryland, Baltimore County � 1000 Hilltop Circle, Baltimore, MD 21250 � 410-455-1000 �
]]>It’s no surprise to UMBC Professor of American Studies Warren Belasco that food is entering mainstream curricula at American colleges and universities.
A number of academic institutions are using Belasco’s latest book, Food: The Key Concepts (Berg Publishers), as a required text in undergraduate courses examining how food can be viewed in the contexts of history, culture and the environment.
“This book is really an introductory overview of how one would teach food,” Belasco said. “The book is dedicated to students at UMBC because they really shaped it. Students don’t hesitate to tell me what they think.”
Samantha McGarity ’09 recently completed Belasco’s foundation American Studies course on American food.
“We looked at every part of food and consumption: Why do we eat what we eat? How do we eat what we eat? How was the food produced?” McGarity said. “I realized just how much I don’t know about the food industry. It forever changed the way I look at what’s on my plate.”
In an early chapter, Belasco cites the ordinary act of toasting a slice of white bread to illustrate the comprehensive, multidisciplinary approach to food. He suggests that toasted white bread can trigger study of why some cultures value processed white grains more than whole grains, where toast fits in one’s morning ritual and who invented the sandwich.
Belasco spoke recently with the Washington Post about the implementation of food courses at Yale, several University of California campuses and the University of New Hampshire. The report called him “a pioneer” in the discipline.
With more than 25 years of experience as a food scholar, Belasco has served for the past five years as editor of Food, Culture & Society, an international multidisciplinary research journal.
He returns to the UMBC classroom after a 2008-09 sabbatical. He will continue to engage students in food topics that most never envisioned, such as his vision of a “sustainable hamburger” that governments, the food industry and agricultural scientists could develop as a departure from grain-fed, high-fat burgers.
“The basic pattern of a semester is to start with an appreciation of how food creates community and identity. I call this the ‘Oh, wow’ stage,” Belasco said. “From there, we move quickly to the ‘Oh, no’ stage: the problems with meat production, animal rights, environment and the obesity epidemic.”
As students become aware of these challenges, lively conversations emerge.
“The course is never the same two years in a row,” Belasco said.
(2/16/09)
© 2007-08 University of Maryland, Baltimore County � 1000 Hilltop Circle, Baltimore, MD 21250 � 410-455-1000 �
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A Prototype for Collaboration
Engineering and art come together in finding innovative ways of using 3D rapid prototyping at UMBC. Dr. Anne Spence and artist Chad Eby discuss how they apply this new tool in the classroom and in the studio.
Watch the video, produced by UMBC’s New Media Studio. View Program in QuickTime:
For optimal viewing experience, viewers should
download Quicktime 6
Visit the streaming media@UMBC Web site.
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