For 25 years President Freeman Hrabowski has led UMBC’s growth as a teaching and research powerhouse with a reputation for inclusive excellence, in partnership with colleagues across the university, the state, and the nation. Recently, several media outlets have asked him to share what he’s learned along the journey, and how UMBC can serve as a model for other institutions at various stages of their evolution.

Above all, Pres. Hrabowski emphasizes how creating a campus culture that effectively supports all students requires close collaboration with all university stakeholders. “It’s only when there is a cultural difference, focusing on everybody from faculty, staff to administration, saying the success of students from different backgrounds is a top priority on campus—only then can you make a difference,” Hrabowski said in The Hechinger Report.

Michael Summers, Distinguished Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry and Robert E. Meyerhoff Chair for Excellence in Research and Mentoring, shared with Hechinger how the Meyerhoff Scholars program, founded at UMBC in 1988, catalyzed a transformation in campus culture, eventually creating an environment where students from all backgrounds are expected to excel. When faculty members are consistently exposed to large numbers of high-achieving minority students, he said, “it changes what that faculty member expects from all students of color.”

Harvey Mudd College is among numerous institutions nationwide to find inspiration in UMBC’s philosophy of inclusive excellence—achieving excellence through (rather than in spite of) welcoming a diverse range of voices to build community together. “Freeman is extraordinary,” Harvey Mudd President Maria Klawe told Inc., in describing how Pres. Hrabowski helped the college rethink their approach to supporting women and minority students in STEM. “After a 20-minute talk, the language just changed,” she recalled. “Unsurpassed excellence and diversity at all levels became part of the strategic plan.”

In EducationDIVE, Hrabowski stressed how important the representation of diverse perspectives is on university leadership teams for those teams to be most effective and to provide role models for diverse students. To accomplish this, he says it’s important to create more pathways for non-traditional candidates to enter university leadership roles, and also necessary to prioritize diversity among staff and faculty at all levels.

These factors come into play not just in broad ways across university administration, but also at the highest levels of campus leadership, Hrabowski told Inside Higher Ed, in their coverage of an Aspen Institute report on the future of the college presidency. He noted, “We have to ask ourselves and our boards, are we developing and identifying talent, faculty and staff who can move into high-level positions, and are we getting them the experience to prepare them for the presidency?”

Additionally, Hrabowski told Inside Higher Ed, as some critics question the value of higher education today, “We have to be able to show our institutions have a particular mission and role to play in our communities and nation and beyond.”

Part of that role is “to prepare our students to understand the importance of the word ‘citizen,’” he further explained in an interview for The New York Times. “The challenge is to make sure that educated people have a good understanding of all the different disciplines and how they connect,” he told “Corner Office” columnist Adam Bryant. “It’s about critical thinking.”

Pres. Hrabowski also emphasizes in his New York Times interview the importance of a sense of critical self-awareness, for both individuals and institutions. “Even when I was a grad student, I would always speak up and say what I thought was not working well,” Hrabowski shared. “So people would tell me, ‘Then you do it.’ I was always working with other people and saying, ‘Let’s figure out how to make this better.’” After all, he has reflected in interviews throughout the spring, critique becomes effective when it is paired with a community’s willingness to continually work toward growth, with a shared vision of excellence in mind.

Image: Pres. Freeman Hrabowski and students on the Administration Building green roof. Photo by Marlayna Demond ’11 for UMBC.

Join other music appreciators for drop-in music making by participating in TWO orchestras - Javanese gamelan and Balinese gamelan

Drop in gamelan sessions will be held during July and early August to learn and play diverse instruments.  Practices are open to both experienced and first-time players.  

Sessions will be on the following Tuesdays from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. in the Music Box, Performing Arts & Humanities Building (PAHB) Room 151:

July 11

July 18

July 25

August 1

August 8

If you have time, we would love to have you participate in these enjoyable and relaxing sessions.   For further information please feel free to contact Gina Beck at gbeck1@umbc.edu.

Photo credit:  Dr. Constantine Vaporis

bwtech@UMBC is looking to help international cyber companies enter the US

The research park is opening a new center that provides an intro. They're starting by working with UK companies.

By Stephen Babcock / REPORTER

Inside the bwtech@UMBC CyberHive.

(Courtesy photo)

More and more, bwtech@UMBC has been a stop for international visitors looking to learn about cybersecurity, said executive director Ellen Hemmerly.

While paying a visit to the research park’s incubator or attending a conference offers a glimpse, there are signs of a desire to dig deeper. Earlier this year, the incubator was a “soft landing” for a group of companies from the Netherlands as part of an exchange program run by the Maryland Department of Commerce.

The companies don’t just want to see what’s happening in the U.S. They want to find potential business opportunities.

“We started recognizing that if there’s so much interest in what we’re doing —and understanding that the U.S market is a very important market for international companies growing in the cyber area — there doesn’t seem to be anyone in the state that is specifically targeting those kinds of companies, helping them understand the U.S. market more, and really delving into programming specifically geared toward helping companies be successful, bring jobs to Maryland and continue the effort the state is making to incentivize foreign direct investment in this state,” Hemmerly said.

So bwtech@UMBC is starting that program. The iCyberCenter@bwtech is set to start operating in the fall and is initially looking to work with companies from the United Kingdom.

The center, which will have dedicated space at the research park, will be directed by bwtech@UMBC Director of Venture Creation Jennifer Reynoldsand Andy Williams, who was the UK’s first Cyber Trade Envoy to the U.S.

The programming will start with executive training, offering an intensive weeklong look at the Maryland and U.S. market, as well as connections to potential customers, investors and other resources. Then, the companies will enter the yearlong incubation program, which will have added resources to help overseas entrepreneurs. Hemmerly believes it will create jobs in Maryland, as companies hire to expand their presence here.

“This is really an expansion opportunity for them,” Hemmerly said. “We want to facilitate that.”

Reynolds said they are looking to hold the executive training three times a year, with 6-8 companies in each cohort. The first session will be held Sept. 11-15.

The program is a further partnership with the state Department of Commerce. Hemmerly said they would welcome partnerships with businesses, as well.

The announcement of the new program was made as Gov. Larry Hogan was on a trade mission to Europe last week. One of the stops was in London, where he visited cybersecurity leaders.

For 25 years President Freeman Hrabowski has led UMBC’s growth as a teaching and research powerhouse with a reputation for inclusive excellence, in partnership with colleagues across the university, the state, and the nation. Recently, several media outlets have asked him to share what he’s learned along the journey, and how UMBC can serve as a model for other institutions at various stages of their evolution.

Above all, Pres. Hrabowski emphasizes how creating a campus culture that effectively supports all students requires close collaboration with all university stakeholders. “It’s only when there is a cultural difference, focusing on everybody from faculty, staff to administration, saying the success of students from different backgrounds is a top priority on campus—only then can you make a difference,” Hrabowski said in The Hechinger Report.

Michael Summers, Distinguished Professor of Chemistry and Biochemistry and Robert E. Meyerhoff Chair for Excellence in Research and Mentoring, shared with Hechinger how the Meyerhoff Scholars program, founded at UMBC in 1988, catalyzed a transformation in campus culture, eventually creating an environment where students from all backgrounds are expected to excel. When faculty members are consistently exposed to large numbers of high-achieving minority students, he said, “it changes what that faculty member expects from all students of color.”

Harvey Mudd College is among numerous institutions nationwide to find inspiration in UMBC’s philosophy of inclusive excellence—achieving excellence through (rather than in spite of) welcoming a diverse range of voices to build community together. “Freeman is extraordinary,” Harvey Mudd President Maria Klawe told Inc., in describing how Pres. Hrabowski helped the college rethink their approach to supporting women and minority students in STEM. “After a 20-minute talk, the language just changed,” she recalled. “Unsurpassed excellence and diversity at all levels became part of the strategic plan.”

In EducationDIVE, Hrabowski stressed how important the representation of diverse perspectives is on university leadership teams for those teams to be most effective and to provide role models for diverse students. To accomplish this, he says it’s important to create more pathways for non-traditional candidates to enter university leadership roles, and also necessary to prioritize diversity among staff and faculty at all levels.

These factors come into play not just in broad ways across university administration, but also at the highest levels of campus leadership, Hrabowski told Inside Higher Ed, in their coverage of an Aspen Institute report on the future of the college presidency. He noted, “We have to ask ourselves and our boards, are we developing and identifying talent, faculty and staff who can move into high-level positions, and are we getting them the experience to prepare them for the presidency?”

Additionally, Hrabowski told Inside Higher Ed, as some critics question the value of higher education today, “We have to be able to show our institutions have a particular mission and role to play in our communities and nation and beyond.”

Part of that role is “to prepare our students to understand the importance of the word ‘citizen,’” he further explained in an interview for The New York Times. “The challenge is to make sure that educated people have a good understanding of all the different disciplines and how they connect,” he told “Corner Office” columnist Adam Bryant. “It’s about critical thinking.”

Pres. Hrabowski also emphasizes in his New York Times interview the importance of a sense of critical self-awareness, for both individuals and institutions. “Even when I was a grad student, I would always speak up and say what I thought was not working well,” Hrabowski shared. “So people would tell me, ‘Then you do it.’ I was always working with other people and saying, ‘Let’s figure out how to make this better.’” After all, he has reflected in interviews throughout the spring, critique becomes effective when it is paired with a community’s willingness to continually work toward growth, with a shared vision of excellence in mind.

The National Love of Learning Award Session A recipients have been announced. Click on the link below to see the complete list of award recipients.

Session B will open for applications on July 1, 2017. Deadline for applications is October 1, 2017.

Love of Learning Awards help fund post-baccalaureate professional development for active Phi Kappa Phi members to include (but not be limited to): Graduate or professional studies, doctoral dissertations, continuing education, career development, travel related to teaching/research/learning, etc. Recipients of the Fellowship award are not eligible to apply.

Two hundred awards, at $500 each, are distributed each year.  We offer two application cycles each year, awarding one hundred winners per cycle. 

The competition is open to all active (dues current) Phi Kappa Phi members who:

• Have completed their baccalaureate studies by application submission deadline.
• Have not yet received a Fellowship or Award of Excellence grant.

For more information, and to see the complete list of Award Recipients, click the link below:

http://www.phikappaphi.org/grants-awards/love-of-learning#.WVEXrY2GO70