Following the recent spate of gun-related incidents nationwide, it has become more important than ever for institutions like UMBC to prepare students and staff in the event of an active shooter or violent emergency. As it stands, such efforts appear to be lacking.

Currently, UMBC does not hold any sort of mandatory active shooter training for students or staff; this includes physical drills and other types of simulations. It also appears that there has not been any voluntary training or drill within the past few years, at least for non-emergency personnel.

Information about shooter preparedness in general also seems to be lacking. Online information (mainly on the UMBC Police site) is limited, complicated and hard to find at first glance. There is little to no mention of gun safety in classrooms and the majority of students are left in the dark as to what kind of protocol should be followed if an incident arises.

UMBC does have an official Emergency Response Plan, which details general emergency procedures as well as those for “hostile intruders” (though the term “active shooter” is only mentioned once). In an emergency event, alerts will be given through phone calls, radios, pagers, web messages, emails and phone messages.

Additionally, the document lists valuable advice for situations such as kidnappings and intruders in buildings. However, the details are not well-publicized which can make many people entirely unaware of its content.

Further steps should be taken to increase campus preparation. One possible option is to run an online course on it prior to the start of freshman year. At present, there are short, mandatory online courses for both alcohol abuse prevention (AlcoholEdu) and understanding sexual assault (Haven). Having a similar program on the topic of shooter preparedness would be an effective first step in increasing awareness of proper protocols.

It is also important to make information more accessible to students and staff. The presence of online material should be made more readily available. For comparison, Loyola University Maryland and the University of Maryland, College Park both have web pages dedicated to information about active shooter incidents which UMBC would do well to take note of.

Existing information could be publicized in other ways as well. For instance, course syllabi could include short sections on safety and preparedness. Information could also be pushed through email and myUMBC or promoted through physical flyers and brochures.

Lastly, physical drills are another option. While it may not be feasible to run full-scale shooter drills in a university as large as UMBC, they could perhaps be implemented for students who live on campus in a manner similar to fire drills. At the very least, the campus could run a number of well-publicized, voluntary drills every few months for willing participants.

Shooter preparedness alone will not prevent tragic gun-related incidents from happening, and it is certainly important that this issue is addressed through policies and other venues. However, being aware of the appropriate procedures in such an event can help reduce the severity of such tragedies and raise more awareness of the issue at hand.

Update: Residential Life is partnering with the UMBC Police Department to inform students about active shooter preparation. Pizza with Police was scheduled for April 10 in the Apartment Community Center. There will be a second presentation held on April 17.

“How can Baltimore neighborhoods renew themselves without forcing out local residents or homogenizing diverse populations?” Community-engaged researchers from UMBC, Morgan State University, and the University of Baltimore will examine this question through a Dresher Center Humanities Forum panel discussion on “Redevelopment and Justice in Baltimore,” held in the Albin O. Kuhn Library Gallery, April 18, 2018, 4 – 5:30 p.m.

Panelist Nicole King, associate professor of American studies, has worked with her students to document and understand the diverse stories of Baltimore’s people and places, producing the radio series Bromo Speaks and Downtown Voices, and the project A Journey Through Hollins. King’s classes examine the complex web of social, economic, and political issues involved in gentrification, based in the idea that better understanding the perspectives and experiences of current Baltimore residents can lead to more collaborative and just planning and policies.

“There is a lot of discussion about how we need more millennials to move to the city. Freddie Gray was a millennial,” explains King. “Young people need to be able to see through the boosterism, coded language, and the so-called Baltimore ‘renaissance.’ We need to rethink the public’s right to the city.”

Joining King on the panel will be Felipe Filomeno, assistant professor of political science at UMBC; Lawrence Brown, associate professor of community health and policy at Morgan State University; and Seema D. Iyer, associate director and research assistant professor at the University of Baltimore’s Jacob France Institute.

Brown agrees with King on the importance of challenging the many misconceptions about what gentrification is, why it happens, and how it impacts residents physically, socially, economically, educationally, and emotionally. “Baltimore is the largest city in the state and there are many narratives that tell the story of who lives in Baltimore. Without understanding what has happened to Black communities in Baltimore, these narratives become victim-blaming,” notes Brown. “They miss how systems by our government have played a pivotal role in disrupting and uprooting entire communities until they were fundamentally unstable.”

The panel describes gentrification behaviors as the influx of private and/or public capital in a targeted area that then triggers an increase of education levels, income levels, housing prices, and a higher proportion of white residents. “When you see these markers of gentrification it is not a solution for existing communities who are waiting for safe and affordable housing,” says Iyer. “Baltimore has a housing crisis. There are 25,0000 households waiting for housing assistance. The house you have, which you may not be able to afford, is all you have because there is little economic relief or safe, affordable housing alternatives.”

The immigrant population in Baltimore has been impacted in a similar way, says Felipe Filomeno. He partnered with the Mayor’s Office of Immigrant and Multicultural Affairs from 2016 to 2018 evaluate Baltimore’s policy to attract and retain immigrants, examining education, health, public safety, and housing. Filomeno explains that nationally, immigrant homeownership rates are lower than the native-born population, making them more vulnerable to the effects of urban renewal. These communities are pushed out by increasing housing costs or by urban redevelopment that creates expensive amenities inaccessible to existing neighborhood residents.

“Immigrants forced out of Southeast Baltimore lose access to schools trained in teaching Spanish-speaking students and to community organizations that help connect them to jobs, health care, and housing resources,” says Filomeno. “Gentrification is a way to perpetuate inequality by cutting residents from the social and economic networks they need to experience some upward social mobility.”

The panelists will also look toward the future, discussing possible strategies to lessen the negative impacts of redevelopment and the gentrification that can result. Brown is hopeful about a proposal for the Perkins Homes near the Inner Harbor, where the housing authority will place residents in temporary housing before demolishing and rebuilding the development, and will then allow them to move back, to avoid displacement at any stage. Filomeno sees an answer in expanding homeownership programs for immigrants in neighborhoods across the city and county that need to increase their census. Iyer suggests a focus on maintaining diverse neighborhoods with a balance of different income and educational levels, as well as demographic factors, like race and age.

King wants Baltimore to take a different approach. Instead of focusing on enticing wealthier people from outside Baltimore to move to the city, she hopes the city can shift its strategic focus to the needs and great potential of current residents. She is setting her mind on educating and motivating thought leaders to rethink what community and success mean in Baltimore.

“We need to rethink the city for the 21st century,” explains King. She argues, “Baltimore should serve its current residents first and foremost. We need our politicians to show the same spunk of the city’s residents and to be up to try new things.” To do this, King suggests city leaders “listen to residents that have been here for generations, new residents ready to fight for a right to the city, and the young ones who will really shape the cities of the future.”

Banner image: Lexington Market, by Kimberly Zerfas.

UMBC is again celebrating major national recognition for talented student researchers with the announcement that Linda Wiratan ’19, biochemistry and molecular biology, has been named a 2018 – 2019 Goldwater Scholar, and Yasmin Graham ’19, mechanical engineering, received an honorable mention. The Barry Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Program seeks to identify and support undergraduates in the natural sciences, engineering, and mathematics “who show exceptional promise of becoming this nation’s next generation of research leaders.”

Wiratan began her UMBC research career as a high school senior, working with mentors Marcin Ptaszek, associate professor of chemistry and biochemistry, and Nopondo Esemoto ’12, biochemistry and molecular biology, and a current Ph.D. student in chemistry. “She learned both theoretical concepts and experimental techniques quickly,” Ptaszek recalls.

After only a few months, she was working independently in the Ptaszek lab. During her two years in the lab, she contributed significantly to two academic papers, one of which was featured on the cover of Inorganic Chemistry. Based on her rapid progress, Ptaszek says, “I am sure in just a few years she will be a world-leading researcher.”

With gratitude for his mentorship throughout that initial lab experience, Wiratan shares, “Dr. Ptaszek’s patience and real-world advice have shaped my early successes in college and maturation as a researcher.”

Once enrolled at UMBC, Wiratan began work with Hua Lu, associate professor of biological sciences, and Chong Zhang, a postdoc in the lab. “Dr. Lu constantly encourages me to be a creative and driven scientist and cares deeply about my well-being in and out of the lab,” Wiratan shares.

Wiratan’s research today focuses on the relationship between the circadian clock and innate immunity in Arabidopsis thaliana, a model plant species. Specifically, she is examining how the plant’s defense system, when activated by pathogens, can alter the plant’s circadian clock. Her results demonstrate that the relationship clearly exists, but is complex. The research has important disease-control applications for agriculture and even human medicine.

“Linda has been a key member in my laboratory to study this topic,” says Lu. Wiratan independently developed an undergraduate research award proposal and is a co-author on a research paper under revision in Nature Communications, a premier international journal.

Beyond her impressive scientific journal articles, Wiratan has also written for broader audiences. She co-authored a piece in The Conversation, an online news outlet that connects researchers with the general public. Her article introduced readers to the idea that studying plants can inform precision medicine, and it was republished in Smithsonian Magazine online. Wiratan has even founded her own social entrepreneurship organization, City of Cells, LLC, which focuses on improving the public perception of science through creative work, such as an online journal, science-inspired home furnishings, and educational animations. She does all this while maintaining a 4.0 GPA.

“Disseminating science concepts to the general public is one of Linda’s ways to show her passion for research,” says Lu. “She is clearly a rising star who will make a difference in science education.”

For Wiratan, being named a Goldwater Scholar is particularly gratifying because her success has not come easily. “This scholarship symbolizes the culmination of years of hard work and endurance,” she says. “I have always loved science and research, but growing up I have been faced with so many challenges.” She thanks her mentors—Ptaszek, Lu, and Simon Stacey, director of the UMBC Honors College—for their support in helping her confront those challenges and grow a sense of inner strength, resilience, and confidence that has propelled her forward.

“Now I see the proof that I am strong enough to create my own future and inspire others,” she says. “The Goldwater Scholarship is that final push that will help me fly.”

In 2016, Daniel Ocasio ‘17, Naomi Mburu ‘18, and Andreas Seas ‘17, all chemical engineering majors, received Goldwater Scholarships.

Banner image: Linda Wiratan stands in front of flats of her research plants. Photo by Marlayna Demond ’11 for UMBC.

Please share the details of my upcoming information session for the School of Medicine and the School of Veterinary Medicine with your students.

Thursday, April 26, 2018

6:30 - 9:30 p.m.

St. George's University

School of Medicine and School of Veterinary Medicine

The Mayflower Hotel

1127 Connecticut Avenue NW

Washington, DC 20036

Thank you,

Josh

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Joshua Fein

Director of Student Enrollment

St. George's University

c/o University Support Services

3500 Sunrise Highway, Bldg. 300

Great River, NY  11739

First International Conference on Literacy, Culture, and Language Education