Hi! I'm a female UMBC student looking for a room or a few female roommates to find an apartment together.

About me:

• Budget: $500–$800/month
• Clean, organized, and respectful of shared spaces
• Quiet and mostly a homebody
• LGBTQIA+ friendly
• Responsible and easy to live with

I'm open to Joining an existing lease with other female students or professionals or Finding an apartment together with a few other female students or young professionals

What I'm looking for:

• Preferably not too far from UMBC
• Must be near a UMBC shuttle stop, as I rely on the shuttle for transportation
• Respectful, clean, and communicative roommates who are considerate of shared living spaces

I'm looking to secure housing by August 20th.

If you're interested or know of any available rooms, please contact me at oluwako2@umbc.edu. or 667-305-8644

Our very own Dr. Constantine Vaporis (Founder & Former Director of Asian Studies) spoke on Samurai: Anime, Manga, and Historical Realities during this year's Otakon 2026! Check out his photos and highlights below!

What an experience! 50,000 young people (and some not so young...) lining up for three city blocks to get in; many of them in full anime/manga attire. It was such a positive, supportive environment--people enjoying each others' costumes, taking photos of each other in various poses (including one whole floor for staged photos for social media), workshops on armor making, costume making, language acquisition. A huge floor where vendors and artists displayed their wares (photo included).

There was standing room only for my talk (sponsored by the Embassy of Japan), with over 300 in attendance. There actually was a line to get in after I started (as reported to me). Rousing applause BEFORE I even spoke. Great questions. Too many for the allotted time. A number of former students were there representing UMBC and I've included a photo of two of them Peri Johnson and Randy Duran (both Asian Studies, both gave their permission to use the photo on social media). They allowed me to sell my samurai encyclopedia afterwards and I sold all the copies I brought (too bad the new book isn't out yet but I had a display with the discount code).

All in all, a great experience.

Best,

Constantine

Next week, 8/11 through 8/13, the Women's, Gender, & Equity Center will be closed for student staff training. On Wednesday the 12th and Thursday the 13th, the free shelf and wellness room will remain open for use as needed, but the lounge will be closed. On Tuesday the 11th, the Center will be closed completely. 

We will resume our normal 10-3 summer hours on Tuesday, August 18th. Our semester 9:30-5 hours will begin on August 24th with the first day of school!

Please reach out to us if you have any questions or concerns at womenscenter@umbc.edu

Women's, Gender, & Equity Center 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.

The Women's, Gender, & Equity Center is committed to creating an accessible and inclusive environment for all students, staff, faculty, and visitors. If you have difficulties accessing any of the materials on our site or any of our events or discussions, please contact us so that we can provide an alternative format and/or remedy any accessibility challenges.

This recognition celebrates Victor’s exceptional problem-solving, attention to detail, and unwavering dedication to delivering flawless audiovisual installations.

Going Above and Beyond

As a vital anchor of the Classroom Technology team, Victor is a key component in the majority of the Division of Information Technology's (DoIT) installations. His specialized focus allows DoIT to maintain a highly capable in-house installation team, a luxury that saves the University both significant time and money.

Victor's "gritty" determination was recently on full display during a high-profile installation in the President’s conference room. The project required mounting a large TV angled in a corner section of the office, integrated with a Cisco Room Bar. However, the team hit a series of technical roadblocks:

• Complex Hardware: The newly ordered, ADA-approved TV was ultra-thin at the top, resulting in an unusual mounting pattern.

• Missing Equipment: The articulating mount required to angle the TV did not come with the proper hardware to accommodate this unique design.

• Integration Hurdles: The Cisco Room Bar still needed to be securely attached to the setup, compounding the hardware mismatch.

Faced with a standstill, Victor took charge. He strategically split the install team to search different areas of campus for solutions while he personally rummaged through an endless box of spare installation materials. Thanks to his persistence, Victor located the exact, precisely measured screws and extra washers needed to securely marry the TV to the mount.

He then engineered a custom combination of hardware to perfectly integrate the Room Bar.

"Even when the install was finished, Victor made sure that the forward tilt and position of the TV were at the perfect angle for the customer. He stayed until he was completely confident that the job was done right—a small detail that many would overlook after dealing with such a frustrating hardware issue." - Khalil Alston

A Proven Track Record of Excellence

This isn’t the first high-profile success Victor has driven this year. A few months prior, Victor worked diligently alongside Sydney Kumordzie to overhaul the AV equipment in Commons 328 and 332 just in time for the critical Middle States re-accreditation meetings. Because of the immense importance of these impending meetings, the installations had to be completed with haste, yet also to perfection. Thanks to Victor's thoroughness, the equipment functioned flawlessly.

It is because of Victor’s incredible attention to detail and dedicated focus that he and the Student Install team are able to continuously produce excellent work that leaves clients thrilled.

Congratulations to Victor for a well-deserved Gritty Award!

About the DoIT Gritty Award

The Gritty Award recognizes outstanding work within the Division and beyond. Full-time employees, student employees, and teams are all eligible.

Do you know someone going above and beyond like Victor? Don't let their hard work go unnoticed; complete the Gritty Nomination Form today!

The first draft of this article was generated by GenAI and edited by the Communications Team.

Are you interested in starting your own business and want to brainstorm ideas?  Or do you already have a business and want to learn how to use AI effectively?  

Sign-up for one of the FREE AI for Entrepreneurs Workshops being held this coming week on Wednesday, August 12th and Saturday, August 15th!

Locations: 

Workshop will be held on campus at UMBC and Online!

Workshop Options:

1: Wednesday, August 12: 5-7 pm

2: Saturday, August 15: 11 am - 1 pm

Sign-up at:

AI for Entrepreneurs Workshop at UMBC 

BONUS:  You will receive $40 for participating, because this workshop is part of a research study!

Join current student leaders from a variety of COEIT student organizations as they share what their organizations do, how to get involved, and what it's like to balance academics with campus involvement. You'll have the opportunity to ask questions about student life, finding your community, managing your time, and making the most of your experience at UMBC. Whether you're ready to join an organization or just want to learn what's available, this is a great opportunity to connect with current students and start building your COEIT community.

Joining info below!!

Connecting with COEIT Student Orgs Panel
Friday, August 7 · 12:00 – 1:00pm
Google Meet joining info
Video call link: https://meet.google.com/tbm-pvmt-fjp
Or dial: (US) +1 762-675-0301 PIN: 787 031 404#
More phone numbers: https://tel.meet/tbm-pvmt-fjp?pin=9339391525474

Getting rid of my bookshelf AND looking for an L Shape Desk  for my office

Class will be held on Wednesdays from 4:30-7 pm.

Instructor: Jonathan Sachs, Director of Workforce Development, Baltimore County

Contact Kevin Fulmer, kevinf@umbc.edu if you you have any questions or are interested in signing up for the class!  

Hello everyone! 

We hope to see you there!

You've probably uploaded a PDF to your course or website dozens of times without a second thought: a syllabus, an article, a set of lecture notes. 

PDFs are everywhere in higher ed. For years they have functioned as the safe, universal choice to prevent editing a file once it’s shared; however, PDFs are often the format most likely to create barriers for students, particularly those using assistive technology. What happens when a student using a screen reader opens that file and the reading order is scrambled, or the text isn’t recognized?  

The good news: in many cases, you can share the same content in its original format - while preserving accessibility, simplifying updates, and still maintaining control over who can view or edit it. 

When sharing content, here are five considerations that don't depend on a PDF.

1. PDFs Preserve Content Exactly the Way It’s Designed

One of the biggest reasons people choose PDFs is that they preserve formatting. Fonts, spacing, images, and page layout appear exactly as intended, regardless of the device or software a student might use. For documents where visual presentation is essential - such as official forms, archival records, or publisher materials - that consistency can be valuable.

But preserving appearance isn't the same as preserving accessibility. A PDF can look perfect on screen, yet may still be difficult or impossible for a screen reader to interpret if headings, reading order, image descriptions, or searchable text are missing. 

2. Share Word Documents & PowerPoint Presentations
A well-structured accessible document, with headings, lists, alt text, and descriptive hyperlinks, is easier for every student to navigate than a scanned or exported PDF. It’s also far easier for you to update next semester. Structure is what makes a document work with a screen reader in the first place: without accurate headings, there's no way to jump between sections or understand how content is organized.

The same structural principles apply to slides: use built-in layouts instead of freeform text boxes, add alt text to images, and maintain a logical reading order so screen readers announce content in the right sequence.

Before exporting a document or presentation as a PDF, ask if students really need that fixed-layout file - or whether sharing the original document, presentation, or Blackboard content would provide the same information in a format that's easier to access, navigate, and update.

Related readings:

• 5 Tips for Accessible Word Documents

• 10 Ways to Make Your Slide Decks More Accessible 

• 5 Ways to Create "Born Accessible" Course Materials 

3. Share View-Only Files Instead of PDFs
Worried about users editing your original file? You don't need to convert to PDF to protect it.

• In Microsoft Office (Word, PowerPoint, Excel), use Share → Can view to send a live, view-only link instead of a flattened export. Recipients still get a fully accessible, screen-reader-friendly document — just without edit access.

• In Google Drive, set sharing permissions to Viewer so students can read but not edit or comment. Because the file stays in its native Google Docs or Slides format, it keeps its accessibility structure — no PDF export needed.

4. Let Blackboard Permissions Do the Work
Blackboard already has built-in tools for controlling access without ever touching a PDF.

• Post content as an Ultra Document or in a Content Area, and use role-based permissions to control who can view, edit, or download.

• This keeps materials in accessible, native web format while still restricting student access to editing.

5. Reconsider the Legacy of PDFs
This mindset isn't just for new content. Before you fix a PDF that's already in your course, ask the same question you'd ask about a new one: do you still need it? If the content has been replaced elsewhere, is redundant, or is simply out of date, removing it is the fastest way to improve accessibility - no reformatting required.

Sometimes a PDF really is the only option - a signed form, a publisher file, an archival document. When that happens, our 4 Strategies for Creating Accessible PDFs walks through how to remake or remediate it properly.

Visit UMBC's Digital Accessibility resource to learn more about managing PDF files.