UTPAL SANDESARA

Over the past 30 years, selective abortion of female fetuses has become a disturbingly routine form of family planning in India, with expert estimates of the total exceeding half a million. Countless legal and policy measures aim to curb what has widely come to be seen as a public “crisis,” but we know almost nothing about the experiences of families seeking the service or clinicians providing it. Drawing on 18 months of clinic-based fieldwork, anthropologist and physician-in-training Utpal Sandesara shines new light on the lived drama of sex selection. Taking listeners through a secretive black market, the sitting rooms of common households,

and the dusty halls of government, Sandesara provocatively challenges longstanding approaches in public health. In the process, he illustrates the potential value of clinical research as a tool for understanding and addressing troubling social problems. 

Reception to follow.

Sponsored by: Department of Sociology, Anthropology and Health Administration and Policy

UMBC is committed to creating an accessible and inclusive environment for all faculty, staff, students, and visitors. If you would like to request accommodations (e.g., ASL interpreters, captioning, wheelchair access, etc.) for this event due to a disability, please notify us at least two weeks prior to the event. Requests received after that time cannot be guaranteed, but we will do our best to make arrangements for program access. Please contact us at socialscience@umbc.edu with your specific request and be sure to include the event title, date, and time.

Dr. Erin Lavik of chemical, biochemical and environmental engineering has been appointed as the College’s first associate dean forresearch and faculty development. Dr. Lavik received a ScD in materials science and engineering in the field of polymers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2001 and joined UMBC’s department of chemical, biochemical and environmental engineering as professor and graduate program director in 2016. Before UMBC, Dr. Lavik was a professor of biomedical engineering at Case Western Reserve University, associate professor of biomedical engineering at Yale University, and completed research fellowships at Harvard School of Dental Medicine and Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Dr. Lavik has produced a highly active research portfolio with over 10 publications, and been awarded nearly $1.3 million in external funding since arriving at UMBC. She is an innovative, pedagogical instructor with a passion for student success.

Please join me in congratulating Dr. Erin Lavik on her appointment as associate dean for research and faculty development.

Baltimore Asian Pasifika Arts Collective (BAPAC) is holding its first ever general auditions - and we want to meet you!

General auditions are for our upcoming shows: Tornkid (working title) and #ModelMinority: A Musical Parody Revue.

WHEN:
Saturday, February 9 from 10 AM-3 PM
Monday, February 11 from 6-9 PM

WHERE:

Cohesion Theatre Company

923 S. East Avenue, Baltimore, MD 21224