The quest begins April 18th, and the rewards are worth fighting for!

Participate in the HackUMBC Mini Hackathon for a chance to win some amazing prizes:

🚁 Holy Stone Drone

🎮 Nintendo Switch 2

📺 Amazon Firestick 4K

This is your chance to show off your skills, build something awesome, and walk away with some incredible loot. Don't miss out! The quest begins April 18th! 

Stay tuned for more details and we hope to see you there!

Undergraduate Research and Creative Achievement Day (URCAD)

Come out and support our researchers at URCAD 2026!

Visit the RAC on Wednesday, April 22, to see our students and your peers in action. Be sure to stop by their poster sessions and presentations to engage with their work and show your support.

School of Social Work Student Presenters

• Stephanie Williams & Willow Brandy
  Beyond the Lecture: Evaluating Game-based Training to Foster Empathy & Perspective-taking in Future Helping Professionals | abstract
  Mentor: Kerri Evans
  RAC 230 | 11 – 11:15 a.m
• Amy Taylor & Margot Anthony
  Power and Control: The Impact of Religious Cults on the Lives of Women | abstract
  Mentor: Lauren Allen
  RAC Arena | 2 – 3 p.m | Poster #67
• Ashwathi Menon, Claudia Gerry, Abigail Asare, Bekkah West
  Dance and Equine Therapy: Alternative Approaches to Applied Behavior Analysis | abstract
  Mentor: Lauren Allen
  RAC Arena | 10 – 11 a.m | Poster #60

For the full schedule see: urcad.umbc.edu

Join us in conversation with author of A Room in Bombay: A Memoir, Manil Suri, and English/MCS Alumnus, Aditya Desai. The event will be held on Thursday, April 16th, starting at 4:30PM in the Library Gallery!

Food will be provided.

About the Author: Manil Suri is the author of the forthcoming memoir, A Room in Bombay, three internationally acclaimed novels, The Death of Vishnu, The Age of Shiva and The City of Devi, and a book on popular mathematics, The Big Bang of Numbers.

He has served as a contributing opinion writer for the New York Times and is a distinguished university professor of mathematics at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. He is a passionate promoter of both mathematics and the humanities, and has motivated audiences worldwide to embrace both, rather than just one or the other.

Aditya Desai, who will be in discussion with Manil Suri during the event, is a writer, editor, teacher, and activist living in Baltimore, Maryland. He also works with several arts & racial justice organizations in Baltimore including the CityLit Project, Baltimore Youth Arts, and the Asian Pasifika Arts Collective.

More about the book: Indian American author Manil Suri grew up in a large crumbling apartment in Bombay (now Mumbai) which his parents, who were Hindu, shared with three Muslim families. Their single room, at times a refuge from the religious and territorial tensions pervading the apartment, was also a prison that held them captive―his parents stuck in an unhappy marriage, the author unable to explore the dawning realization he might be gay. At age 20, Suri managed to break free and come to the US, where he finally found the freedom to embrace his sexuality and find a life partner. But the room, which still held his parents hostage, kept wrenching him back to Bombay.

By now real estate prices had risen so much that neighbors had begun conspiring to take over the room, causing Suri’s parents to dig in even more. Eventually it was only his mother, Prem, left, who had staked all her happiness on her son but was unable to escape the room’s hold on her. When a rash of mysterious incidents seemed to beset the room, Suri realized how little time he had left to convince Prem that a happier life might await beyond the four walls that both enthralled and imprisoned her.

This remarkable, gripping memoir explores how an abode can shape destiny, while delving into the difficult question of how much to prioritize our parents’ happiness over our own. Inspired by over 2,700 letters the author wrote home over three decades, it is ultimately a testament to the abiding, unbreakable bond tying a son to his mother.

This event has been organized by Asian Studies with support from the Global Asias Initiative.

This event is open for full participation by all individuals regardless of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, or any other protected category under applicable federal law, state law, and the University's nondiscrimination policy.

See the original post here.

Hi Everyone!

Our Free Farmers Market for today and next week will be held in the Center for Wellbeing. We hope to see you there!

Join the Center for Social Science Scholarship for an important conversation on Food Justice!

 Monday, April 20, 2026 · 4 - 5:30 PM In-Person · Library and Gallery, Albin O. Kuhn : Gallery

Sign up here

Hanna Garth, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Anthropology
Princeton University

Food justice activists have worked to increase access to healthy food in low-income communities of color across the United States. Yet despite their best intentions, they often perpetuate food access inequalities and racial stereotypes. Hanna Garth shows how the movement has been affected by misconceptions and assumptions about residents, as well as by unclear definitions of justice and what it means to be healthy. Focusing on broad structures and microlevel processes, Garth reveals how power dynamics shape social justice movements in particular ways.

Drawing on twelve years of ethnographic research, Garth examines what motivates people from more affluent, majority-white areas of the city to intervene in South Central Los Angeles. She argues that the concepts of “food justice” and “healthy food” operate as racially coded language, reinforcing the idea that health problems in low-income Black and Brown communities can be solved through individual behavior rather than structural change. Food Justice Undone explores the stakes of social justice and the possibility of multiracial coalitions working toward a better future.

Special Offer and Giveaway:

Dr. Garth’s book is available from UC Press at a 40% discount using code: EVENT40.
In-person attendees of the lecutre will have the opportunity to enter a raffle to win one of five free copies of the book!

Hosted by the Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Public Health.  Co-sponsored by the Center for Social Science Scholarship, the Department of American Studies, the Department of Africana Studies, and the Department of Biological Sciences.

CS3 sponsored events are open for full participation by all individuals regardless of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, or any other protected category under applicable federal law, state law, and the University's nondiscrimination policy.

Sign up here

We will be meeting in ITE 231 from 12:00 to 12:45. We will be discussing our next upcoming range trip and other firearm-related topics. 

Ready to travel the world without leaving campus? 🌍✨

Join us as we continue our Grad Student Appreciation Week and celebrate the incredible tapestry of traditions and backgrounds that make UMBC so unique. It’s Grad Cultural Day, a time to come together, share our stories, and honor the diverse cultures that enrich our community every day!

Today in UC Ballroom from 12-4pm!

What’s Happening?

Global Vibes: Enjoy an afternoon of music and interactive games.

Test Your Knowledge: Challenge your friends to cultural trivia.

Community Spirit: Meet new people and celebrate what makes us "us".

Join the BGSO for the 6th Annual Honors & Awards Ebony Sneaker Ball—an unforgettable night celebrating Black excellence, culture, and 90s/2000s vibes. Enjoy a keynote from Dr. Christa Porter, great music, dinner, and a full experience with community and style. Secure your spot now! Ebony Ball Tickets

SPS Elections are coming up soon! To be able to vote and/or apply for board position you must be an official member of SPS.

Below is a google form to apply to become an official member of SPS! Should you meet the requirements to become a member, you will be sent a formal invitation via myUMBC.

Please try to have the form filled out by next Friday (April 10th) so we can send out invitations all at once. If you miss the deadline please contact one of the officers to review your application.

This form is only for SPS membership! An application for Elected Board positions will be sent out later next week.

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScrVMhWG7P0enYRSu68C96hv_12JLh47SFtri1eUG099UnU4w/viewform?usp=publish-editor

Position Overview:

Position Type: Internship, Stipend, Undergraduate Student, Graduate Student

Handshake ID: Job #10935546

Hiring Manager: Wendy Low

Term: Academic Year 2026-2027 

Year Stipend: $1500 ($750/semester) 

Estimated Start Date: August 2026 

Application Deadline: For priority, apply by April 26. Applications welcome until position filled. 

Internship Description:

Do you always find yourself talking about social justice? Are you the friend in your group who's always adding “nuance” to the conversation? Then we’re looking for you! Social Justice Dialogue Facilitation Fellows work for the Center for Social Justice Dialogue and are supervised by professional staff within the Center. 

The main role of this internship is to support the work of the Center for Social Justice Dialogue (CSJD) in cultivating a campus community where everyone feels empowered and equipped to engage in difficult dialogue across differences of identity, background, and lived experience. Built on a foundation of Intergroup Theory and other social justice education frameworks, interns will co-create and deliver workshops on topics of identity, social justice, and dialogue to student populations. Further, students will support projects including MediaBytes, Your Story Belongs Here, InterACT, FYS: Race, Social Justice, and Dialogue, and other departmental programs. They may also support collaborative dialogue programs in partnership with other departments on campus (e.g. The Women’s Center, Center for Democracy and Civic Life, Initiatives for Identity, Inclusion & Belonging, etc). Facilitators are expected to work a maximum of ten hours a week which includes weekly staff meetings to engage in deep learning, prepare for workshops, and continue developing student-focused programming. Interns engage in ongoing training, reviewing key activities, facilitation skills, and foundational introductions to various social justice concepts. Interns must be available for these training sessions as well as program retreats.

Upon the completion of more advanced training (including Restorative Practices) and a full year of participation, students will have the opportunity to apply to a “senior internship” position to facilitate higher stakes dialogues.

General Responsibilities:

• Develop, facilitate, and promote peer-led workshops on topics related to identity, social justice, and dialogue to student populations 

• Engage in ongoing learning and development connected to dialogue and facilitation

• Co-create the continued foundation for IDEAL and InterACT programs, as well as contribute ideas and content for workshop curriculum 

• Support CSJD programming through attendance, marketing/promotion, co-facilitating activities within larger dialogues and workshops, etc.

• Meet with the primary supervisor and attend regular student staff meetings (dependent on student availability)

• Serve as departmental “student liaison,” gathering information about current student “hot topics” and  needs and wants connected to dialogue 

• Serve as an ambassador for IDEAL and InterACT programs, as well as CSJD more broadly 

• Follow all area regulations within the Code of Conduct (this is provided during the staff onboarding process)

• Fulfill all other duties and responsibilities as appropriate and assigned (including, but not limited to occasional  oral / written reflections, time tracking, etc.)

Minimum Qualifications:

• Must be a full-time, matriculating undergraduate or graduate student at UMBC;

• Must have and maintain a minimum cumulative GPA of 2.5 (semesterly checks will be conducted);

• Must be able to commit to a minimum of Spring Semester for at least 10 hours per week; oppurtunity to renew

  • Interns are strongly encouraged to enroll and fulfill all the requirements PRAC098 offered through the Career Center each semester, but especially for their first full semester of the internship program. Learn more about PRAC here.

• Must be committed to being a positive role model and demonstrate leadership skills;

• Must demonstrate ability to interact and communicate mindfully in person and online with diverse students, staff, faculty, and other campus community members;

• Must be flexible with schedules depending on relevant programs, events and/or student professional development opportunities; 

• Must have flexibility to work evening and weekend hours on occasion;  

• Must attend all training sessions

• • Please hold the following dates for upcoming programs:
    • Training is likely to occur for 2-3 days August 10-14, 2026. 

Preferred Qualifications:

• Demonstrated experience with designing/implementing and facilitating programs

• Demonstrated experience with myUMBC, Gmail, Google Drive, Canva, Instagram, Adobe InDesign, Photoshop, and/or Illustrator 

• Demonstrated basic knowledge in any of the following areas: the relationship between identity, power, privilege and oppression, intersectionality, social justice-related theories, intergroup dialogue (e.g. Critical Race Theory, Feminist/Womanist Theory, Queer Theory, Social Identity Theory)

• Demonstrated leadership skills and experience through student organization leadership, civic engagement and/or activism

• Have summer and winter availability; and

• Have verbal, spoken, and/or written multilingual skills

This internship is open for full participation by all individuals regardless of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, or any other protected category under applicable federal law, state law, and the University's nondiscrimination policy.

To apply, find the position on Handshake with the ID: 10935546