Rent: $725/month — all utilities and maintenance included (no surprise bills) 

Location: 

• Circle Drive, Arbutus, MD 21227 

• 5-min drive to UMBC campus 

• 8-min walk to the Westland UMBC shuttle stop 

Your Space: 

• Private basement bedroom with private half-bath 

• Private basement entrance to townhouse 

• Full bathroom upstairs (shared) 

• Access to kitchen, dining room, and living room 

• In-unit laundry in the basement 

• Dedicated parking spot behind the house 

House Rules: 

• Male tenants only | No couples | No room sharing 

• No smoking, drugs, or parties 

Ideal for: Male UMBC undergraduates grad students

Availability: June 2026 and beyond 

To schedule a tour: WhatsApp only → 443-794-5336 

Hi everyone! I’m looking for a reliable and caring babysitter/house helper.

Part-time option:

• 3 days a week
• 10:00 AM – 3:00 PM
• Responsibilities include childcare and light household help

Full-time option:

• Flexible hours
• Accommodation and meals can be provided

Support/compensation can be arranged based on hours and responsibilities.

Anyone looking for a supportive and flexible arrangement are welcome to reach out.

Please email me at vvenkit1@umbc.edu if interested or if you have any leads.

Thank you!

Baltimore area companies Entinex and Design Rosetta are hosting another Lean Coffee: AI conversation for people working with or thinking about AI at the Glenmore Cafe in bwtech@UMBC. Lean Coffee meetings have no speakers or slides, just structured, participant-driven discussions about the topics people actually care about in work
and society right now. 7:30-9:30 am,  May 19 in the Glenmore Cafe at BWTech South.

REGISTER HERE 

CSA E-Board Elections are HERE
Whether you wanna plan iconic events, bring the vibes, or just put your ideas into action — WE WANT YOU 
Positions open, voices needed, energy required
Don’t just attend CSA… run it
Open positions are available—apply and be part of the team. (link down below & in the bio in our Instagram @umbccsa)

FORM DUE MAY 8TH!

https://forms.gle/Aogqbky7Jg9Gn2ee9

Private room available in a 2BHK townhouse for a male at Westland Gardens for a 3-month move-in.

Fully furnished 2BHK townhouse: 

What you get:

• Spacious living room with sofa + TV
• Fully equipped kitchen (Oven, Microwave, Fridge, Dishwasher)
• In-unit Washer & Dryer
• Central heating & cooling
• Just a 1-minute walk to the UMBC bus stop
• Only 10 minutes walk to campus. 
• Availability: May 25th - Aug 15th
• Rent is just 600$ only

DM for more information: +1-202-937-5716 or email me at IO95979@umbc.edu

                                                                                                                                                Good Afternoon UMBC Capstone Community, Clients, Faculty, Students, Family, Friends, Staff & More! 

                                                                                                                                                            Dr. Paris von Lockette, Dr. Chuck Laberge, and Prof. Adam Bridenolph (Shady Grove),            Senior Design instructors for the Mechanical Engineering Capstone and the Interdisciplinary Capstone, extend a warm invitation for you to join us for our . . .                                                                                     

         Spring 2026 Senior Mechanical & Multidisciplinary Engineering,
                        Capstone Design, Showcase, Friday May 8th                                        

• Presentations begin at 9AM in the Fine Arts Theater 
• Demonstrations begin at 10AM in the Engineering Atrium
• Come vote for your favorite project in our “People Choice” Award

Imagine a material where trillions of electrons are locked in an intricate, collective dance—so tightly choreographed that the tiniest nudge can send ripples across the entire system, transforming its behavior in dramatic ways. Now picture using light—especially the delicate touch of a single photon—to peek inside that dance, understand its hidden steps, and maybe even change the rhythm.

That’s the frontier Daniel Suárez-Forero is exploring at UMBC. He joined the Department of Physics as an assistant professor in August 2025 and leads the Quantum Optics of Correlated Materials group. His experimental approach sits at the intersection of two powerful fields: quantum optics, which studies how light behaves when quantum effects like entanglement come into play (the 2022 Nobel Prize recognized research in this area), and correlated materials, where electrons interact so intensely that they create physics impossible in ordinary conductors or insulators.

By shining quantum light into these strongly interacting systems, his lab aims to reveal quantum behaviors that existing tools can’t see, probe states that have so far been hidden, and help build the foundation for future technologies. His work, featured in two recent papers published in Science and Nature Materials, blends deep questions with real long-term promise, and he’s excited to build his lab here at UMBC.

Q: What will your research group at UMBC focus on, and how has your background prepared you for it?

A: At UMBC, my group will use single photons—the tiniest packets of light—to probe and even gently tweak materials where electrons interact extremely strongly. The exciting goal is to use one photon to affect about a trillion electrons at once: either to reveal hidden quantum details that ordinary tools miss, or to modify the whole material’s behavior with just one particle of light.

My path has been building toward this. In my Ph.D. in Italy, I worked on light-matter hybrids using entangled photons. Then, as a postdoc at the Joint Quantum Institute at the University of Maryland, I dived into these strongly interacting materials. Before joining UMBC, I spent a year in Geneva, Switzerland, learning new experimental techniques that I’m now bringing to campus. The fields of quantum optics and correlated materials had been developing separately, but technology is advancing so that the time is right to bridge them—and that’s what I’ll be doing at UMBC. 

What excites me most is the scale: Using one photon to influence a trillion particles could unlock mysteries in these materials and help solve real challenges, like using photons more effectively in quantum computing or creating ultra-sensitive detectors. It’s fundamental science with huge potential for real impact.

Q: How did you choose UMBC and how is your first year going?

A: UMBC made the decision easy. The startup support for my lab’s equipment was strong, and infrastructure from recently retired professors transferred to incoming experimentalists like Geoffrey Diederich, Alex Senichev, and me—creating an excellent setup to build experiments.

Also, the DMV area is a major quantum hub, and Maryland’s initiative to become the “capital of quantum” aligns with UMBC’s Quantum Science Institute, which connects departments across science and engineering to advance quantum from every angle.

My first year has been wonderful—I’ve gotten tremendous support from the administration, department, and students. I’ve taught graduate quantum mechanics, following the same cohort from their first to second semester. It’s rewarding to watch their understanding and independence grow. I now have one Ph.D. student from Colombia, another starting soon, and two enthusiastic undergrads helping set up the lab. It’s been a positive, exciting start.

Q: What were the key findings from your two recent papers, and how do they relate to your current work?

A: Both papers came from my time as a postdoc and looked at special layered materials where electrons interact very strongly with each other.

In the Science paper, we found something really surprising. Normally, when electrons get “stuck” in place because of their strong interactions (think of them crowding each other so much they can’t move easily), you’d expect other particles in the material to slow down too. But we saw the opposite: Certain particle pairs—made of an excited electron and the empty spot (or “hole”) it left behind—actually moved much faster, about 1,000 times faster than expected! The crowding actually helped these pairs zip around more freely by interfering with their usual tight pairing. It was a “wow” moment that showed how these interactions can lead to unexpected enhanced mobility.

The Nature Materials paper looked at the flip side: When we shined laser light on the material to create more of those electron-hole pairs, they started lining up neatly all in the same direction—like tiny magnets snapping into alignment. And we could control and reverse this alignment just by turning the light on and off. It’s a way to use light to change how the material behaves, almost like flipping a switch.

These discoveries help us better understand how light and super-strong electron interactions can work together. That’s exactly what sets the stage for my research at UMBC: using single photons to explore or even tweak these materials in new ways—probing hidden details or switching states with just one photon.

Q: What advice do you have for students who are interested in quantum science?

A: If you’re already curious about quantum physics, of course I think that’s a good choice—it’s an exciting field. A Ph.D. can be challenging and involve a lot of failure—like experiments that don’t work—but persistence pays off. Keep digging, stay curious, try different approaches, and don’t get stuck on one path.

If you’re ready to start doing research, choose a group carefully—look at their publications and the tools they use to make sure they match what you’re passionate about. Get hands-on experience early. Quantum is challenging but incredibly rewarding—keep going, and the breakthroughs will eventually come.

The Division of Institutional Equity joins the Jewish Faculty and Staff Association, UMBC Hillel,  Chabad UMBC  and our campus community in recognizing and honoring Jewish American Heritage Month.

Celebrated each May in the United States, Jewish American Heritage Month is a time to honor the history, culture, and contributions of Jewish Americans. This observance highlights the enduring impact of Jewish individuals and communities in shaping the nation across fields such as education, science, arts, civil rights, and public service. It also provides an opportunity to reflect on the resilience of Jewish communities, as well as the challenges they have faced and continue to navigate. This month, the Division of Institutional Equity invites you to engage through our “Read, Watch, Listen, Participate” series as we celebrate, connect, and learn together.

To request accommodation(s) or to inquire about event accessibility, please contact the respective program office. All sessions are open to full participation by all individuals, regardless of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, or any other protected category under applicable federal and state laws, and the University’s nondiscrimination policy.

Events on campus

May 4 | 12 pm  - 1 pm | In-Person: RSVP
Spring Jewish Community Social
https://my3.my.umbc.edu/groups/jfsa/events/153579

May 6 | 6 pm - 7:30 pm | The Commons: 327
Beit Midrash & Pickle Making with Alice
https://my3.my.umbc.edu/groups/umbchillel/events/153789

Read

Explore stories that illuminate Jewish history, identity, and lived experiences across generations. From personal narratives to critical examinations of antisemitism and cultural resilience, these selections invite reflection and learning.

• The Cooking Gene and Kosher Soul by Michael Twitty 

• For Times Such as These by Rabbi Ariana Katz and Rabbi Jessica Rosenberg

• Beyond the Pale by Elana Dykewoman

• The Jewish South by Shari Rabin

• The Colors of Jews: Racial Politics and Racial Diasporism Melanie Kaye/Kantrowitz

• Addressing Religious Discrimination

• Understanding Anti-Semtism: An Offering to our Movements by Jews for Racial and Economic Justice 

• Black Power, Jewish Politics by Marc Dollinger 

Watch

Engage with Jewish stories on screen through film and television that capture humor, history, tradition, and complexity. 

• Yentl

• Fiddler on the Roof

• The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel

• Alex Edelman: Just For Us 

• Long Story Short (Netflix) 

• Marty Supreme 

• Avalon

Listen

Tune into conversations, storytelling, and cultural commentary that center Jewish voices and perspectives. These podcasts provide space to explore identity, community, and history.

• Ta Shma by Hadar

• Judaism Unbound

• The Light Lab Podcast

• 2 Queers, 4 Questions

• Gatecrashers - Season 1 Ep.8 - Harvard and the end of the Jewish Ivy League

SJP Merch is finally here for 2026! All proceeds are being donated to families in Gaza. The ordering period will be open until May 3rd. 

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeTUCB_UiRo-xTnAl2hbVEZmsalv5IfijRnCXevfrSL8e3V_Q/viewform?pli=1

You can meet in-person with a TIAA rep to discuss your retirement outlook and any questions you may have!

Whether you are just getting started or planning to retire soon - a session with Ms. Jahleel Gordon (TIAA rep) can help you create a plan for your goals. It’s at no additional cost and included as a part of your retirement plan. 

You can discuss these questions and more:

• Am I invested in the right mix of investments to help meet my goals?

• Am I saving enough to create the retirement income I need?

• How do I take income from my retirement account after I stop working?

Please use this link to schedule an in-person meeting with Ms. Jahleel Gordon. If you have issues scheduling via their website, try calling 1-800-732-8353. 

TIAA on campus dates: 

• Thursday, May 7th
• Thursday, June 11th

The one-on-one meetings are held in the HRSTM Conference Room, Administration Building, Room 529. 
Don't miss out! Schedule your appointment now: https://www.tiaa.org/public/login/schedule-meeting
Virtual meetings are also available with many more dates and appointment times.