Many people are confused about how changes occur on campus. Changes happen all the time, and it is unclear what happens behind the scenes for many decision-making processes, leaving students to hear about what is happening once messages are passed down the grapevine.

Sometimes the changes are ones that make students happier but the mystery about campus changes can result in decisions that actually further dissatisfy students or changes that fail to redress the issues that warranted the change in the first place.

A recent example is the decision to remove the coffee shop Pura Vida from the Albin O. Kuhn Library. The coffee shop is to be replaced by Einstein Bros. Bagels, which is currently under construction. The choice was announced late in the fall semester of 2017.

Apparently the change was made in response to student frustration regarding a lack of options for breakfast dining on campus. While students are interested in the prospect of the new campus eatery, there has been much confusion over how exactly the change came about.

Senior media and communications major Emma Sampson said “I’m excited, I never went to Pura Vida but I will go get bagels. I don’t really know what’s happening with it though. I didn’t hear about it until recently.” Few students seemed aware of how the changes came about, and even if they were dissatisfied with the change, they seemed to make no effort to learn how it happened.

The Student Dining Committee was allowed to offer up its input regarding the installment of the new dining locale. The committee communicated with Chartwells, UMBC’s contract food service, to reach a decision about what would best serve students on campus.

This was information easily obtained at a recent Student Government Association meeting where senior computer engineering major and the SGA president Josh Massey was more than happy to answer any questions about the efforts of the SGA. Massey said, “We’re always trying to be more available to other students.”

To that end, the SGA has been trying to attract students to come speak to them outside Commons with a big yellow tent. Unfortunately, many students often bypass the tent, declining to speak with SGA members and missing a crucial opportunity to learn about the goings-on around campus.

At the most recent SGA meeting, despite the free pizza available, the turnout was low. Students should offer up their own input to SGA and make an effort to educate themselves about decisions that may affect the student population going forward. Then the changes that are made can be what the students want and student government will know that they are truly helping students make the changes they want.

Joy Roy will graduate in May, 2019 with a B.S. in Bioinformatics and Computational Biology and a B.A. in Mathematics, with a Chemistry Minor. He is a URA Scholar for 2018-19 with his research partner, Eric Cheung, and a member of the Dean's and President's Lists.

Title of your research project: A software tool for the curation of planarian gene expression patterns

Describe your project: Planarian worms are amazing at regeneration so scientists study them all the time.We are creating a software for someone to use to curate information about the gene expression patterns of planarian worms, and we’re organizing this information into a mathematical database for anyone to access online so that they can see the expression patterns on the website rather than having to sift through a million papers.

Who is your mentor(s) for your project? Why did you choose them? I work forDr. Daniel Lobo in the Biological Science department. Dr. Leips used to be my advisor and when he found out that I liked math and biology, he told me to talk to Dr. Lobo and see if I was interested in Computational Biology. When I scheduled to meet with Dr. Lobo, he seemed like a really nice guy who was insightful and interested in teaching me. I didn’t know much about the work he did so he offered me a few of his papers and a spot in his lab to get some work done and see if I liked it. I couldn’t ask for a better mentor. You hear stories about undergrad researchers who don’t even get to see their PI’s and basically just work under the grad student, but Dr. Lobo has a much more active role in the development of our project and offers guidance when needed.

How did you become interested in this project? I recently learned how to code and I love it, it’s like solving a puzzle and making your own pieces. The planarian worm project was only beginning when I entered the lab and needed another coder, so I came to help out. Since then, I’ve become very invested into the program and love developing it and continuously making it better.

What has been the hardest part about your research/what was the most unexpected thing about being a researcher? The hardest part is definitely those moments when you’re stuck. You have to solve an issue and either don’t understand what’s causing it or don’t know how to solve it. You don’t want to run for help every time this happens however, so you have to persevere and try picking the problem to pieces. It can be frustrating and sometimes tedious, but that’s science. You have to have a lot of grit.

What has been the most rewarding part? The most satisfying feeling is when you just fixed a bug that’s been pestering you for weeks on end. The moment you scratch it off your to-do list makes you feel like a functioning member of society again. I also really enjoy working with the people in my lab, we’re all more like friends than work-mates.

How will you disseminate your research? My research partner and I, Eric Cheung, will be presenting our research at URCAD next year, as well as disseminating it through a publication in a scientific journal. The database will also be accessible online through our website.

What is your advice to other students about getting involved in research?   Get involved early!! My biggest regret is not getting into research earlier. Learning things in class and actually doing them feel like completely different things and getting hands on experience is so much more rewarding.

What are your career goals? After graduating, I want to go on to get my Ph.D. and enter into industry and eventually into academia.

Eudorah Vital
B.S., Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Summa Cum Laude
Hometown: Silver Spring, Maryland
Plans: M.D./Ph.D., Emory University School of Medicine

UMBC prepares its students to be productive members of society who strive to understand others and bring people together. I came to UMBC thinking I knew what I wanted to do, and I am leaving with a refined version of my goals, which reflect the values of inclusivity, support, and grit.

Valedictorian Eudorah Vital is remarkable not just in her tremendous academic success and dedication to high-level scholarship, but also in her drive to support fellow students and the broader Baltimore community.

A Meyerhoff Scholar and Howard Hughes Medical Institute Scholar since her freshman year, Vital dived into research as soon as she arrived at UMBC. She quickly advanced to independent research in Rachel Brewster’s developmental biology lab, learning to troubleshoot challenges on her own. Soon, she was mentoring undergraduates newer to the lab. As a result of her dedication to her work, Vital has co-authored two papers in top-tier academic journals, and a third is on its way.

Vital, who is also a MARC U*STAR Scholar, goes above and beyond to support others. She serves as a peer supplemental instructor for organic chemistry courses and works as a tutor in the Chemistry Tutorial Center, often creating her own worksheets to help struggling students. As a member of Phi Delta Epsilon, an international co-ed medical fraternity, Vital has volunteered often at Baltimore City food kitchens and health fairs.

It is her joint commitment to both research and supporting people on a more personal level that led Vital to choose an M.D./Ph.D. graduate program. Her goal to pursue clinically relevant research in a diverse and inclusive environment, like the one she has cherished at UMBC, helped her select Emory University’s neurobiology program among the numerous offers she received.

Portrait by Marlayna Demond ‘11 for UMBC.

Kara Seidel
B.A., Psychology
Minor: American Studies
Summa Cum Laude
Hometown: Baltimore, Maryland
Plans: Family trauma researcher

One of the best things about UMBC is how supportive professors and staff are. They tell you the truth, even when you don’t want to hear it. They see potential in you and encourage you to take each mistake as a learning experience. Their ongoing support helped me feel confident about pursuing a wide range of opportunities.

Second generation Retriever and valedictorian Kara Seidel sees every experience as a learning opportunity. She is particularly thankful for the broad range of academic and professional experiences she has found through UMBC, as well as the relationships she has developed. Her work at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine in an HIV/Addiction Lab and at the American Psychological Association helped her identify her core intellectual interests within the vast psychology field, and pursue her own research.

“As a student at UMBC, I accessed unbelievable opportunities to gain hands-on learning. As a result, I was able to discover behavioral therapy and a passion for research and helping families dealing with trauma,” says Seidel.

Seidel has worked as lead research assistant in the Trauma Lab of Christopher Murphy, professor, and chair of psychology. A member of the Honors College, her commitment to challenging herself academically and as a student researcher earned her a Shimoff Award and a Distinguished Achievement Award from the psychology department.

As a Sondheim Public Affairs Scholar, Seidel has also explored ways to combine academics with service. The UMBC Shriver Center awarded Seidel with the Samson, Rosetta A., and Sadie B. Feldman Family Award for her work as a student service coordinator in the Students United for Campus-Community Engagement for Post-Secondary Success (SUCCESS) program. Seidel also served as president of Psi Chi International Honor Society, is a member of the Phi Beta Kappa academic honor society, and works as a social justice intern for UMBC Hillel.

Ultimately, Seidel reflects, her success at UMBC is all about community. “The array of experiences I’ve had at UMBC are because of the people I have met here,” she says.

Seidel will work as a behavioral therapist and researcher for the next year, before beginning a Ph.D. program in psychology, with a focus on supporting families experiencing trauma.

Photos by Marlayna Demond ‘11 for UMBC.

Naomi Mburu
B.S., Chemical Engineering
Summa Cum Laude
Hometown: Ellicott City, Maryland
Plans: Ph.D., University of Oxford

As a scientist interested in cross-disciplinary research, UMBC faculty have supported me in confidently conducting research and co-authoring work in scientific journals in research projects that combine chemical engineering with electrical engineering, biology, and chemistry.

When Naomi Mburu arrived at UMBC, she hit the ground running and never turned back, as an exceptional student, researcher, peer mentor, campus leader, and passionate advocate for increasing diversity in STEM fields. She is a Meyerhoff Scholar and MARC U*STAR Scholar, and the first UMBC student to receive the Rhodes Scholarship. In 2016, she was also one of three chemical engineering undergraduate students to receive the highly prestigious Barry Goldwater Scholarship.

Mburu has conducted research at UMBC and around the world, including under the direction of Gymama Slaughter, associate professor of computer science and electrical engineering, to develop a bioreactor to extend the viability of human organs awaiting transplant. The project involved developing sensors to track glucose and lactic acid levels to ensure that the organs remain healthy as they are transported to a recipient.

Mburu’s work with mechanical engineering faculty at Vanderbilt University formed the basis of her application for the Goldwater Scholarship. She has also brought her passion for engineering and research to internships at Intel, the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory, and the European Organization for Nuclear Research in Switzerland. She recently was one of 500 students from around the world selected to attend the Lindau Nobel Laureate Meetings, which bring together researchers from around to world to promote collaboration across generations, cultures, and disciplines.

Outside of the classroom, Mburu previously served as president of the UMBC chapter of the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE), and was named the Region II Vice Chairperson this year, in addition to being the Pre-College Initiative chair for the organization. The national NSBE organization presented Mburu with the Region II Executive Board Member of the Year award. She also received the Academic Achievement Award at the 2018 Black Engineer of the Year Award Gala.

As a Rhodes Scholar, Mburu will attend Oxford University in England to pursue her Ph.D. in engineering.

Portrait by Marlayna Demond ’11 for UMBC.

Morgan Chadderton
B.A., Modern Languages, Linguistics & Intercultural Communication (French and Russian)
Minor: Political Science
Summa Cum Laude
Hometown: Edgewood, Maryland
Plans: Fulbright English Teaching Assistant, Kyrgyzstan

As the first member of my family to attend university, I was not quite sure what to expect, but I knew from my first campus tour that UMBC would be a place where I could succeed.

Morgan Chadderton’s time at UMBC has been defined by an intellectual curiosity driving her to pursue a broad range of interests in the social sciences and humanities. From day one at UMBC, she says, “I was encouraged to go beyond the usual single-degree path, as well as to conduct research, explore new subjects, study abroad in two countries, and get involved with student life.”

Chadderton, a Humanities Scholar in UMBC’s Honors College, received a highly selective U.S. Department of State Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship that provided her an opportunity to study in Kyrgyzstan in June 2016. She also completed a study abroad in Lyon, France, and continued to excel academically at UMBC. She is graduating with a perfect GPA, has been inducted into the Phi Beta Kappa honor society, and received the Overall Academic Achievement Award in the modern languages, linguistics, and intercultural communications department.

Through each new educational and leadership experience, Chadderton found opportunities to grow. She shares, “As a Humanities Scholar, I felt I belonged to a community of like-minded people. As a member of the Honors College, I was able to explore interdisciplinary topics and learn from new perspectives. As president of Russian Club, I was able to share meaningful cultural exchanges.” Chadderton also served as a conversation partner for the English Language Institute, helping English language learners practice their conversational skills, and served as a note-taker for students with disabilities in courses on American government and politics, and Soviet civilization and culture.

Ultimately, Chadderton says, “I found all of these opportunities promote the same concept: everything can be a learning experience.” She looks forward to soon returning to Kyrgyzstan as a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant, before beginning a graduate degree in Slavic languages and Russian studies.

Portrait by Marlayna Demond ’11 for UMBC.