ohgeography:

gym class heroes are coming my school and i am never not (<—double your fun, double your pleasure) wearing this shirt. it’s like having a blimp except i’m on foot. it’s like one of those nike shirts but better, so thanks jason for making it. i’m gonna go for a run (lets see how far i can go today and how many times i stop for breaks) and if you see me while you’re driving, please hit me, and put me out of my misery. 

GIRL, YES.

George Stover ’73, interdisciplinary studies, answers the door at his production studio, Adventure Productions, looking like he’s on location in the wild. A tall man with a full head of silver hair and a boyish frame, Stover is clad in blue jeans, rugged boots, and a black canvas shirt emblazoned with his company’s emblem, a hammerhead shark.

Stover’s North Baltimore basement studio is far from the exotic underwater locations where he shoots his kid-friendly weekly television show, Aqua Kids. But the décor of his cavernous subterranean studio illustrates just how seamlessly Stover blends his dual passions for film and aquatics: fish tanks accessorize every room, a string of coral hangs from Stover’s office door, and replicas of manatees and starfish dangle from the ceiling.

Stover grew up in Perry Hall, but always was drawn to the water. His family spent summers on their 30-foot sailboat docked in Middle River. “I was always fishing or crabbing, always had an earache from swimming,” he chuckles.

So how did a middle-class kid end up swimming in the company of sharks and other aquatic animals in exotic locales such as the Bahamas and the Caribbean with a camera hoisted over his shoulder?

Stover developed his love of film at UMBC, where the would-be veterinarian found himself in a film animation class. “I got an A. I loved it,” he says. Even the fact that UMBC didn’t offer a film major didn’t deter Stover, who became one of the first students at the university to take what was then known as “Option II” and design his own film major.

Read the full story in the Winter 2012 issue of UMBC Magazine.

The infamous commonvision cacti enjoying this sunshine!

The Graduate School at the University of Maryland College Park will sponsor a Ph.D. Completion Project Workshop: Dissertation Time Management, which will be held Friday, March 30, 2012 from 2-4 p.m. in 1400 Marie Mount Hall (please note new location.)

Using a three-step model of focus, planning, and progress, Dr. Rachna Jain—a nationally recognized psychologist and professional speaker—will teach you how to set goals, measure your progress, and get back on track when things do not go as planned. You will also learn how to know, with certainty, what it will take to finish your dissertation and by when you can accomplish this.

This event is open to masters, Ph.D., and postdoctoral students.

Registration is required. Space is limited, so register early at http://ter.ps/k1 by Thursday March 29, 2012.  Questions? Please contact (301) 405-3644 or grad-retention@umd.edu.

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The Graduate School at the University of Maryland College Park will sponsor a Ph.D. Completion Project Workshop: Dissertation Time Management, which will be held Friday, March 30, 2012 from 2-4 p.m. in 1400 Marie Mount Hall (please note new location.)

Using a three-step model of focus, planning, and progress, Dr. Rachna Jain—a nationally recognized psychologist and professional speaker—will teach you how to set goals, measure your progress, and get back on track when things do not go as planned. You will also learn how to know, with certainty, what it will take to finish your dissertation and by when you can accomplish this.

This event is open to masters, Ph.D., and postdoctoral students.

Registration is required. Space is limited, so register early at http://ter.ps/k1 by Thursday March 29, 2012.  Questions? Please contact (301) 405-3644 or grad-retention@umd.edu.

—————————-

George Stover ’73, interdisciplinary studies, answers the door at his production studio, Adventure Productions, looking like he’s on location in the wild. A tall man with a full head of silver hair and a boyish frame, Stover is clad in blue jeans, rugged boots, and a black canvas shirt emblazoned with his company’s emblem, a hammerhead shark.

Stover’s North Baltimore basement studio is far from the exotic underwater locations where he shoots his kid-friendly weekly television show, Aqua Kids. But the décor of his cavernous subterranean studio illustrates just how seamlessly Stover blends his dual passions for film and aquatics: fish tanks accessorize every room, a string of coral hangs from Stover’s office door, and replicas of manatees and starfish dangle from the ceiling.

Stover grew up in Perry Hall, but always was drawn to the water. His family spent summers on their 30-foot sailboat docked in Middle River. “I was always fishing or crabbing, always had an earache from swimming,” he chuckles.

So how did a middle-class kid end up swimming in the company of sharks and other aquatic animals in exotic locales such as the Bahamas and the Caribbean with a camera hoisted over his shoulder?

Stover developed his love of film at UMBC, where the would-be veterinarian found himself in a film animation class. “I got an A. I loved it,” he says. Even the fact that UMBC didn’t offer a film major didn’t deter Stover, who became one of the first students at the university to take what was then known as “Option II” and design his own film major.

Read the full story in the Winter 2012 issue of UMBC Magazine.

College debt now surpasses 1 trillion, reports the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

Stop for just a moment. Think about that number.

You actually can’t. Our brains are unable to comprehend the enormity of a trillion dollars.

The debt accumulated by American students has ballooned to this incomprehensible number due to tuition hikes and an increase in the number of individuals attending college.

In Maryland public tuition is slated to increase by up to 3% in the coming fiscal year.  In other states students could be socked with increases between 20% and 40%.

But if college grads are burdened with high student loans, could it dampen their future prospects? Will they be able to pay decent rent? A down payment for a first home?

There are some promoting the idea of forgiving the loans debts of American students in order to stimulate the economy. They even have an online petition you can sign if you support the cause.

Others think this is a terrible idea.

Your thoughts?