UMBC's Faculty Development Center will hold the second online discussion session on Teaching with AI on Wednesday, October 30 from 12-1  based on the book Teaching with AI: A Practical Guide to a New Era of Human Learning by José Antonio Bowen and C. Edward Watson.

This session will cover pages 81-158 of the book and explore how AI can support educators, examine how AI complicates cheating and detection, and share insights about AI policies. Arguing that C-level work is no longer acceptable, since AI can do that for all of us, the last chapter in this section looks at how AI impacts grading and our shared understanding of quality.

Participants can access the ebook online at any time through the AOK library using the following steps.

1. Log into myUMBC
2. Go to the AOK Library Website
3. In the AOK OneSearch box, type the book title and press Search
4. Locate the ebook, and click on the green "Available online" link
5. Click on “EBSCOhost Ebooks” under the “View Online” header

Get more information and register here to get the link to the session.

On October 22, 2024, this year’s GESTAR II undergraduate and graduate fellows gave virtual presentations on topics they researched with their mentor(s); they were joined by an international visiting student who is working with a GESTAR II scientist. The event was organized and moderated by Dominique Footes, Special Programs Administrator (SURA). 

Three different GESTAR II fellowships were represented: 2023-2024 Graduate Fellows, 2023-2024 Morgan State University Undergraduate Fellows, and 2024 Short-Term/Visiting Fellows, who are students at partner universities ASU, CSU, and PSU. This year’s visiting fellows worked with their mentors over ten weeks in Summer 2024; however, their research collaborations continued into Fall 2024. For more information on upcoming fellowship opportunities, visit the GESTAR II Student Opportunities.

GESTAR II 2023-2024 Graduate Fellows:

Chhaya Kulkarni (University of Maryland, Baltimore County) presented “Assessing Radiance Variance in OSSE Simulations for Improved Satellite Observations.” She worked with GESTAR II mentor Nikki Privé (610.1/MSU) and Dr. Vandana Janeja (UMBC). Ms. Kulkarni created a web tool that shows some of the Machine Learning results from her research; she submitted a “demonstration track” paper titled “Interactive Assessment Variances of High-Resolution Model Features in OSSE Simulations” that was accepted by ACM SIGSPATIAL 2024.

Yu-An Chen (Colorado State Univ.) presented “Application of Nonlinear Data Assimilation to Hurricane Dynamics and Predictability: Boundary Layer Turbulent Structure.” Mr. Chen worked with GESTAR II mentor Stephen Guimond (UMBC, now with Hampton Univ.) and Dr. Peter Jan van Leeuwen (CSU).

GESTAR II 2023-2024 Morgan State University Undergraduate Fellow:  

Ajan Coleman (Morgan State Univ.) gave a lightning talk titled “Plant Hyperspectral Spectroscopy Data Research”; his mentor was Dhruva Kathuria (618/MSU).

GESTAR II 2024 Short-Term/Visiting Fellows:  

Praveena Kulandhaivel (Arizona State Univ.) gave a lightning talk titled “Exploring High-Resolution PM2.5 Hindcast Modeling in Phoenix”; her mentor was Carl Malings (610.1/MSU).

Alexis Cole (Pennsylvania State Univ.) gave a lightning talk titled “Exploring the Relationship Between GNSS RO Penetration and Lower Tropospheric Moisture in the Arctic Using Multi-Observational Datasets”; her mentor was Manisha Ganeshan (613/MSU).

Madison Shogrin (Colorado State Univ.) gave a lightning talk titled “O3-sensitivity from space: diurnal variability in the HCHO:NO2 ratio and NO2 over the Colorado front range from TEMPO and TROPOMI”; her mentor was Lok Lamsal (614/UMBC) and her advisors were Dr. Emily Fischer (CSU) and Dr. Vivienne Payne (NASA JPL).

In addition to the GESTAR II fellows, international student Janhavi Singh (Banaras Hindu University, India) gave a short presentation titled “Estimation of Surface Concentration of Particulate Matter (PM2.5) Using Machine Learning Algorithms over Kolkata (INDIA)”; her mentors were Lok Lamsal (614/UMBC) and Dr. Sunita Verma (B.H.U.).

Congratulations to all of our fellows on their collaborative and informative presentations, and we thank all the mentors and advisors!

Sarah-Fatime Yoda ’24, chemical engineering, received research award to France 

Excerpt from UMBC NEWS “Retrievers are upping their research game in the 2024-25 Fulbright U.S. Student Program cohort”

By: Catalina Sofia Dansberger Duque | Published: Sep 23, 2024

Advancing global research

Attram is among eight recent graduates and alumni in UMBC’s 2024 – 2025 Fulbright U.S. Student Program class who are sharing their knowledge and building community around the world by earning a master’s degree, conducting research, or teaching English. This year is especially significant, as six of eight awards are research-focused, marking the highest number of research awards in UMBC’s Fulbright history. Students seeking research awards must develop a proposal in coordination with potential advisers in the universities and laboratories where they want to study as part of their application. Graduate degree awards require submitting both Fulbright and graduate school applications.

1. Arpita Tuladhar ’23 public health, Research Award to Germany
2. Jennifer Sorrells ’22, political science, Research Award to North Macedonia
3. Jolie Greer ’24, psychology, Research Award to Bulgaria 
4. Lauren Mister ’24, teaching English to speakers of other languages, English Teaching Award to Bahrain
5. Sarah-Fatime Yoda ’24, chemical engineering, Research Award to France
6. Stuart Holton ’24, political science, English Teaching Award to Slovakia
7. Timothy Mallard, M.A. ’21, teaching English to speakers of other languages, Research Award to Uganda

“This year’s cohort of Fulbright recipients and alternates shows the country and the globe what we at UMBC already know,” says Brian Souders, Ph.D. ’09, language, literacy, and culture, M.A.’19, TESOL, the associate director of global learning at UMBC’s Center for Global Engagement. In this role, Souders, who received a 2023 Fulbright International Education Administrator Award to Germany, has led hundreds of Retrievers through the Fulbright application process as UMBC’s Fulbright Program advisor. “We produce world-class graduates who will lead the future with their work in laboratories, in the field, and in the classrooms throughout the world.” (Image by Marlayna Demond ’11/UMBC)

Learn more about UMBC’s Fulbright Program.

Read original post via UMBC NEWS:2024 – 2025 Fulbright Retrievers Are Upping Their Research Game In The 2024-25 Fulbright U.S. Student Program Cohort