Dear UMBC Faculty and Staff,

This edition of The UMBC Connection brings together important dates for these first weeks of the semester, opportunities to connect and get involved, updates supporting student success, and a look at some of the work and accomplishments already building momentum across the university.

Opportunities & Events

Opportunities to attend, participate in, or engage with across the UMBC community.

• Involvement Fest Returns September 2
  Involvement Fest returns Wednesday, September 2, from noon–2 p.m., connecting students with more than 200 student organizations spanning academic and professional interests, arts and performance, service, cultural communities, club sports, and more. Faculty and staff can help students find opportunities to build community and get involved by encouraging them to attend.

• Explore Baltimore Art and Community at CADVC’s Fall Opening Reception — September 3
  The Center for Art, Design, and Visual Culture will celebrate the opening of Somewhere Over the Rainbow of Row Homes, We Fly with a reception and artist panel from 6–8 p.m. The exhibition brings together artists based in or connected to Baltimore whose work explores themes of home, memory, and community. The reception is free and open to the public.

• Apply for the Picturing Pluralism Cohort by September 9
  The newly launched Center for Religion, Spirituality, & Pluralism invites students, faculty, and staff to participate in Picturing Pluralism, a semester-long photography, conversation, and dialogue project exploring how religious, secular, and spiritual identities shape our community. No photography experience is needed, and participants across religious and non-religious identities are encouraged to apply.

• Gathering on the Green Brings UMBC and Our Neighbors Together — September 12
  UMBC and local community leaders will host Gathering on the Green: Making Neighbors Out of Strangers from 4–7 p.m. at the green space on the corner of Linden Avenue and Shelbourne Road. The annual gathering features a free cookout, live music, games, and activities for all ages and offers an opportunity for members of the UMBC community to connect with our neighbors beyond campus.

Campus Updates

Important updates, deadlines, and resources that may affect your work and the broader UMBC community.

• Early-Semester Academic Dates to Keep in Mind
  As students settle into their classes, faculty and staff can help keep several upcoming deadlines on the radar:

  • August 28: Waitlist deadline

  • August 31: Waitlists deactivated

  • September 4: Schedule adjustment deadline

  • September 7: Labor Day; no classes

  • September 15: Fall graduation application deadline

Additional dates and deadlines are available through UMBC’s official Dates & Deadlines page.

• Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships Renamed to Office of Student Financial Wellness and Assistance
  The new name reflects an expanded, student-centered approach to financial support that goes beyond traditional financial aid administration to include financial literacy, proactive counseling, emergency support, and long-term financial well-being. The change reflects the office’s broader role in supporting student persistence, success, and overall well-being.

University Milestones

Institutional progress and accomplishments from across UMBC.

• Six Analytics Mini Grant Projects Will Turn UMBC Data Into Action
  The Division of Information Technology and Office of the Provost have selected six projects for UMBC’s 2026–27 Analytics Mini Grant program. This year’s projects expand the program’s focus beyond student success and retention to include faculty development and support and administrative efficiency and effectiveness, using institutional data to better understand challenges, inform future interventions, and identify opportunities for improvement across the university.

More from Across UMBC

Additional updates and stories connecting the Retriever community.

• Fall Soccer Brings Early Momentum and More Home Matches
  Retriever soccer is giving the UMBC community plenty to cheer about as the semester begins. Women’s soccer opened the season 3–0 for the first time since 2014 and returns to Retriever Soccer Park to host St. John’s on August 27. Men’s soccer continues its early-season home stretch with matches against Presbyterian on August 28 and George Washington on August 31.

• Reminder: Pick Up the Latest UMBC Magazine
  The latest issue of UMBC Magazine is available at select campus locations, including The Commons, the Administration Building, and the Performing Arts and Humanities Building. As UMBC moves away from mailing individual copies to faculty and staff, community members can pick up a print issue on campus or explore the expanded digital magazine, including additional stories, web-only features, and multimedia content. If you notice a magazine stand running low, please contact magazine@umbc.edu.

Help Shape The UMBC Connection

As this effort continues to take shape, your feedback will help guide how we strengthen internal communications across the university.We welcome your input and invite you to share your feedback on The UMBC Connection.

If you would prefer, you are also welcome to reach out directly to Jessica McGroarty, Director of Internal Communications, at jmcgro@umbc.edu.

University Communications and Marketing

Friendly reminder that OSP's next Coffee Chat is Tuesday September 1st! Sign up can be found HERE. See you there!

OSP training Team

Reposted from the Faculty Development Center

As a faculty member, are you concerned about the possibility that a political discussion could arise in your classroom this election season? Are you interested in directly engaging your students in a discussion around how your discipline is relevant to current issues of concern for students? In any course, facilitating a respectful and civil discussion around political topics, whether planned or arising out of a different discussion topic, can help avoid the potential for conflict or a polarized conversation. Join us to learn how to facilitate healthy classroom dialogue around politics through a workshop led by Dr. Ricky Blissett, Associate Director of the Center for Democracy and Civic Life.

Lunch will be provided to all registered participants who also confirm their attendance a week in advance, please visit the original myUMBC post to RSVP. Please email fdc@umbc.edu to note any dietary restrictions (vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, food allergies, etc.) by Wednesday, October 7.  The deadline to register for this event is the earlier of Wednesday, October 7 or when the event reaches capacity. Please email fdc@umbc.edu to be added to a wait list if the event is full. If you have registered and find that you can no longer attend, please kindly release your spot so that others may attend.

Part of the FDC Collaboratory Series: Designed and facilitated in partnership with units across the university, these sessions provide an opportunity to learn about broader teaching and learning innovations at UMBC and discuss current issues with local experts.

√ Counts toward ALIT Certificate
§ Counts towards INNOVATE Certificate

The Office for Academic & Pre-Professional Advising has openings available for Winter Orientation Advisors!

Advisors meet with incoming undergraduate students VIRTUALLY during the month of January in one-on-one sessions to plan out and register for classes. No previous experience is required, and we will provide all training necessary!

Besides compensation, this is a rare chance for graduate students to gain professional and interpersonal experience. Depending on your field, your time as a student may not open you up to many client-facing interactions, and this is a pathway to gaining that experience. If you are considering a career in academia, meanwhile, advising experience is highly sought-after in faculty openings.

Advisors are eligible to be compensated at the rate of $100 per afternoon session and $50 per evening or morning session, with the opportunity to work several sessions during the month. Although there are only a few days during which help is needed in January, advisors in good standing may be invited back to participate in our much larger Summer program afterwards.

Participants are also eligible to earn the Orientation Advisor microcredential! See more info here: https://badges.umbc.edu/

Grad students on F-1 visas ARE eligible for this work and invited to apply!

We are offering online informational sessions for anyone interested or who even just MIGHT be interested in finding out about this exciting opportunity to expand their skillsets, make meaningful connections, serve their departments, and get paid!

No RSVP necessary.

Tuesday, September 1 at 5:30pm (https://umbc.webex.com/meet/korossy1)

Monday, September 7 at 12:00pm (https://umbc.webex.com/meet/korossy1)

For additional details, see the application at Orientation Advising – Office for Academic and Pre-Professional Advising – UMBC, which is due by September 15.

This content has been posted on behalf of Office for Academic and Pre-Professional Advising.

The 2026 UMBC–Stanford Workshop on Clinical Trials and Regulatory Science will be held at UMBC on September 18–19, bringing together experts from academia, government, and industry. The 2026 theme, From Statistical Rigor to AI-enabled Decision-making, reflects the growing impact of artificial intelligence, machine learning, real-world evidence, and advanced analytics on the design, conduct, and evaluation of clinical trials. Free student registration is available through August 30.

Hi all! Welcome back to UMBC! Hopefully the semester isn't starting off too queerotically (queer and chaos, get it? yeah, a bad pun...). 

Anyways, Involvement Fest is next week and oSTEM will be there! Come meet our new leadership and make connections!

Deets:

Date: Wendsday, 9/2/2026  

Time: 12:00-2:00 PM

Location: North Law (grass area located between the north entrance of the commons building and the library)

We look forward to seeing you!

Other things:

Our first event this semester is a Crafternoon! It will be on Friday, September 25th, in Commons 331 from 2:00-4:00 PM.

Don't perish or something,

Jeba

Introducing our 2026-27 UMBC Gaming & ESports Executive Board!

We are proud to have retained 6 officers, while welcoming in a new member!

|| Advisor and Head Coach: Dustin Nguyen, Alisson Baten

|| President: Odalys Campos
|| Vice President: James Shamshoian
|| Secretary: Salman Syed Ahmed
|| Treasurer: Alex Nguyen
|| Graphic Design // Public Relations: Deven Patel (new)

Hello,

The Department of Gender, Women's, + Sexuality Studies is missing an amazon package. It said it was delivered on Thursday, August 20th and received by someone named Lock at 11:22am. The tracking number is 1Z0JD2500231220321. If you have this package, please contact me at 410-455-2001 or email me at fislam@umbc.edu.

Thank you!
Farzana Islam

Program Management Specialist

ATTENTION UMBC student organizations! 

Involvement Fest is quickly approaching. commonvision, UMBC Student Design and Print Center is here to help with your Involvement Fest prints! 

We would recommend getting your orders into commonvsion ASAP. Please send your orders to commonvision@umbc.edu. Any clubs using carryover funds will need to provide us with a completed RESGAF before printing will begin. Outside of chartstrings/club funds we only accept retriever dollars on your campus card.

Please note that die-cut stickers have a minimum two week or more turnaround and we will not be able to accommodate sticker orders leading up to Involvement Fest. We are currently at capacity for these types of orders.

Tips for decreasing turnaround time and cost: 

• Print a couple flyers that stay at your table that contain a QR code to your organization's myUMBC group. If you run out of materials, you still have something people can scan.
• It is WAY cheaper to print in black & white on colorful paper than it is to print full color. commonvision has a wide range of fun colorful papers (bright pink, greens, blues, purples, red, gold etc.) that really POP while only requiring black and white printing. A full color printed flyer is $0.40 each, while a black & white print on colorful paper is $0.09 each. These prices get cheaper when you print over 100 copies of your flyer. 
• Send us your file as a PDF for quicker printing and less trouble shooting. 
• Letter sized flyers are 8.5 x 11 inches, quartercards are 4.25 x 5.5 inches.

All questions and inquiries can be emailed to commonvision@umbc.edu. To find out more about how commonvision can support your organization this semester, visit commonvision.umbc.edu

commonvision's Fall Hours are Monday – Friday, 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Tuesday, September 15 | 4-5pm | hybrid - AOK Library Room 259 or online

“How to Prepare a Social Science/Humanities Literature Review”

Please visit the library’s myUMBC group and see the attached flyer for full series details.