myUMBC team are working hard developing an open to inputs and feedback forum

myUMBC has been going through changes aimed at making it the main portal for students, minimizing reliance on social networks like Facebook and the shortfalls of using the ever-so-clunky Peoplesoft interface, by strengthening communication throughout campus.

A well-built college website can mean the difference between a great college experience and an awful one. myUMBC has been evolving steadily over the past year, and the team behind the improvements met with students at a focus group event last Wednesday to discuss the current state of the website and receive student input.

Collier Jones, UMBC campus portal architect, opened the session by setting an open door policy regarding comments and suggestions. Jones wanted to make sure everyone attending the event knew that their opinion matters, setting the tone for the meeting.

Student feedback has led to new features like profile sharing, which allows students to share their profile information, including their course schedule and grade history, across multiple platforms, from other UMBC accounts, to Facebook and Google+.

The future of myUMBC generated much interest amongst the attendees. Anisha Khandelwal, SGA director of student organization support, mentioned new features such as sharing posts between multiple groups, scheduling publishing of posts in advance, embedding posts with various types of media, activity feeds and more.

The way students are receiving information and emails is also changing. Options will be available to choose what users want to see. “We want content to be targeted as specifically as possible, so you’re not seeing things you don’t have to.” said Jones.

One upcoming project is the myUMBC app, with an interest in finding whether students will see this app as a better college communication tool than Facebook.

Billy Heavner, a junior majoring in financial economics and director of athletic relations for the Student Organization Support Team (SOS), stated that he would use a fluid and bug-free college app if it makes things easier for him.

In addition, Vice President of Student Organizations Michael Burgos pointed out that one problem student organizations are facing right now is “not enough visibility”. Burgos explained that it should be easier for anyone who wants to get involved on campus to find useful information about various events that match their interests.

The app will include all of the information on the original myUMBC, in addition to a possible navigation system that would allow students to find events nearby. This feature would also help visitors and new students find directions to their destination on campus.

Craig Berger, Coordinator of Student Life for Campus and Civic Engagement, said, “I think that is going to be a huge improvement. People will find it easier to get connected to things on campus.”

One of the helpful future plans is the addition of academic information to the student profile. Jones and his team plan to simplify academic features, such as the degree audit, to make it easier to use. Students would view their degree standing, have an idea of what courses to take and when, and access their tuition information in a seamless manner.

Overall, the main goal of myUMBC project is to strengthen the student–university connection.

Heavner said “It’s an exciting time for myUMBC right now, with a lot of changes happening to the website and to the development of the mobile app. These new changes will make the use of the website and app much more enjoyable and will help students accomplish things quicker.”

Club emphasizes their diversity and welcoming atmosphere to all majors

Retriever Robotics want everyone to know that you don’t have to be a engineer to join.

Sitting in on the general body meeting of the UMBC Retriever Robotics meeting during Friday free hour, right away one can tell this group of students are passionate about what they do.

Shelby Coppolino, the president of Retriever Robotics, began the meeting with a PowerPoint presentation. Rather than passing around a sign in sheet, members could easily sign in by scanning a QR code.

Freshman Retriever Robotics member Sean Owen, a math and linguistics double major, said that he joined the club because of his interest in building robots throughout high school.

When he came to UMBC and saw Retriever Robotics, he saw his chance. “I just like to build robots, really. I still have a lot to learn.” Owen said “I remain a bit of a novice roboticist, but that’s part of the fun.”

On February 6th when Retriever Robotics went to compete at the College of Southern Maryland Vex U Regional Qualifier held in La Plata, MD, they placed 4th in Driving Skills.

Owen, who attended the competition at CSM, explains why the win was important for the team, “What does coming in 4th place mean … Bragging rights, mostly, and a confidence boost” Owen said.

What is even more amazing is that the team did not have a chance to formally practice on the field where the competition was held, making their victory all the more sweet.

Owen explains that this maintains a positive outlook for the future of the team: “It was pretty cool to do that well with so little preparation. Imagine what we’ll be able to do when we actually train!”

Another impressive aspect of Retriever Robotics was the sense of welcoming that the group had. The meeting started with an icebreaker and continued with almost everyone actively participating in the discussions.

The diversity of the areas of study of members in the organization is also something to note. Rather than just engineering and computer science majors as one may expect, finance and accounting majors were also present.

“We have space for anyone who likes robots, even if you don’t have any experience, or if you aren’t an engineer. The only prerequisite is wanting to build metal machines that do your nefarious bidding, or even your non-nefarious bidding. Past that, we can work with anything.” The evidence: Owen’s a math major that knew little of robotics when he joined the team. For those interested, meetings are held in ITE 102, on Fridays at free hour.