“On campus, the good side of politics” is new Baltimore Sun op-ed written by David Hoffman, UMBC Assistant Director of Student Life for Civic Agency, and SGA President Kaylesh Ramu ’13, political science.

Hoffman and Ramu offer hope to readers who are “understandably skeptical about politics and public life” in this time of government gridlock and discord. They write that at UMBC, “students are helping lead the way to a new kind of politics that bridges difference and strengthens communities.”

The piece goes on to explore the civic engagement work underway at UMBC—carried forward by the BreakingGround initiative—as well as its roots in our campus culture and its implications for our broader democracy. Comments? Offer your thoughts, post your questions and share your experiences on the BreakingGround blog.

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Donald F. Norris, professor and chairman of UMBC’s Department of Public Policy, appeared twice in this weekend’s Baltimore Sun, quoted on the Baltimore Grand Prix’s potential to impact Mayor Rawlings-Blake’s political career and on expectations for Governor O’Malley’s upcoming speech at the 2012 Democratic National Convention.

Norris told the Sun that he does not expect the the Grand Prix, as a success or failure, to have a lasting effect on the mayor’s career. “Mayors are not made or unmade based upon sporting events,” he said. “If it’s a success, she claims the success and it’s a good thing. If it’s a failure, she can blame someone else.”

He was also optimistic about O’Malley’s DNC speech, which the Sun called “the most important speech of his political career.” Norris remarked, “This is a huge opportunity for O’Malley, and clearly it has come in recognition of his rising star within the party.”

“Obama’s speech Thursday night will not be the most important of his career, nor even his most important electoral speech…But Charlotte ain’t Denver, and this moment calls for neither hope nor change,” writes Thomas F. Schaller, professor of political science at UMBC, in his latest Salon column.

Schaller suggests, ‘What it calls for instead is an unapologetic defense of four years worthy of this president’s historical measure.” He expects Obama to tout the successes of his first term, but “to do so in humble, even sober tones,” given the country’s ongoing economic challenges and a less optimistic outlook than dominated the 2008 election.

For more on the Obama campaign’s 2012 approach and expectations for both President Obama and Vice President Biden’s DNC speeches, see Schaller’s column in the Baltimore Sun.

Humanities Without Apology

Office of Institutional Advancement

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

7:00pm

Proscenium Theater

Performing Arts & Humanities Building

All Guests = FREE