This men’s basketball season ended with the team’s furthest ever post-season run, reaching the semi-finals of the CollegeInsider Tournament. The Retrievers hosted Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi Islanders in the RAC in a heated game that brought out 1,388 fans. UMBC ultimately fell 61-79 after a messy second half. However, the UMBC faithful were still reeling with pride during the post-game, showing an increased sense of school spirit.

As an avid fan of UMBC basketball during my time as a student here, I can definitively say that each game I have gone to this season has seen increasing support. This rise in school support for the basketball team led up to an amazing fan atmosphere in the CIT semi-final game, which was played over national television on the Columbia Broadcasting System.

I talked with various students before the game. Spirits were consistently high, with many UMBC students coming out to watch the basketball team for their first time at UMBC. Sophomore Edward Cornish had to say, “I didn’t think of this as much of a basketball school, but I’m warming up to it.”

Similarly, ex-cheerleader Marina Congedo noted, “It’s nice to see more fans coming out, especially more students.” While I spoke with Congedo, she added that it is invigorating to see not only more people coming out, but a louder atmosphere where students were not only attending, but also getting involved with the game and making noise.

Not everybody I talked to was fully sold on where the UMBC atmosphere is at right now. “It could be better,” stated sophomore Justin Reed. “It has the right idea in mind, it’s just not as organized as it could be. They could be a lot more creative about getting the crowd into it, we don’t really have that.”

There is plenty of merit in what Reed expressed. While the atmosphere at basketball games this season was way more involved than it has been in years past, there is no central fan section or noise generation happening. The bulk of the established fan culture comes from the UMBC pep band, who show up inspired for all of the games the team goes to, but is only a small section whose chants are self-contained.

Reed’s own chapter, Pi Kappa Phi, regularly brings out great attendance for the games and plenty of noise, but there is no consolidation among the student body in getting a consistent Division 1 NCAA atmosphere going.

Still, for a school that, only last year, had next to no support, the current student involvement is phenomenal. In head coach Ryan Odom’s first season, he not only turned around the team’s record, but also the general interest among the student body. With the new stadium opening in the next few years that support is sure to grow.

Junior Daniel Eiskant, a member of the pep bad who has made every game this season, put it very passionately. “Hard work and determination have characterized this team through the year. It’s great to see so much support in the stands and I’d like to see that going into next year, especially with the new stadium opening up, we’re going to be a sports school soon.”

The game itself was a thriller in terms of energy, both on the court and in the stands. The scoring opened up, for the last time, with a three point shot by senior forward Willy Darley. The Retrievers put their foot on the gas pedal through the first half and managed to end the half with a solid five-point lead. Still an erroneous second half for the Retrievers and a consistent opening to the second half for the Islanders quickly turned the lead around to a ten-point lead. The Retrievers could definitely feel the loss of junior guard Jairus Lyles, who was inactive this game due to injury.

As the Islanders continued hitting their shots to maintain their lead, the men’s basketball team continued fighting and, almost as importantly, the Retriever faithful stayed loud and excited to continue motivating their team to fight. Junior guard K.J. Maura and freshman guard Arkel Lamar, in particular, showed plenty of hustle and fight down the stretch to keep the Retrievers in the game. They both attacked the paint and played hard on defense to make turnovers happen.

Ultimately, though, the Retrievers would fall on national TV. The final seconds saw a heart touching moment where Darley would be subbed out for his final time with the Retrievers. The fans gave him a sensational sending off with a standing ovation and plenty of noise. The Retrievers three post-season wins in the CIT tournament are not only the first three in school history, but also the longest run by any America East Conference team in a post season tournament.

Half a century ago, my father, back in the small village he came from in Lebanon, officiated the inter-village basketball matches due to his impartiality. In a country with few cultural ties in a time marked with uncertainty around the globe, these games were important in bringing together the various villages and, more importantly, creating a sense of pride in one’s own hometown.

Nowadays, I am blessed I get to cover sports such as the Retriever basketball team, as a reporter in a similar, impartial role. In the same way that my father could see a budding sense of pride in his community, I also can see that sense of Retriever fever blossoming on UMBC’s small campus.

For a lot of students at UMBC, it can be hard to go out and be a part of something. The simplicity of sports allows them to bring people together and have an easy commonality. If coach Odom’s team can continue to find success, students will continue being shown incentive to come out and be a part of the fastest growing show in the AEC, where black and gold are suddenly in fashion.

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Ever wonder where all the “ugly” produce from the supermarkets goes? All those bruised apples, slightly browned lettuce or lumpy oranges? Sadly, most of this perfectly usable produce goes straight to the garbage. This is extremely discouraging, considering how many people don’t have food to eat. However, a group of students at UMBC have decided to take a stand against this and use lemons to make lemonade – quite literally.

UMBC’s Garden club has teamed up with Environmental Task Force and created monthly “food-waste” dinners. Sophomore Samina Musa gathers a group of students on Tuesdays and drives all the way to Mom’s Organic Market in Columbia and collects perfectly edible produce that “looks ugly.” Mom’s Organic has been nice enough to partner with the students of the Garden and have decided to let students take the produce that they would otherwise chuck. This can range from products such as fruits and veggies, to sometimes packaged goods.

The cooking is arguably more fulfilling than eating the food itself because there is lots of conversation, laughter and good vibes all around. This food is then brought back and stored in Harbor Hall until it can be used the next day. On Wednesday, students get together and help cook a healthy and hearty meal as a community and then serve it. Some of the deliciousness on the menu are zucchini noodles, stuffed peppers, seasoned potatoes and stir fry. But who can forget dessert? There’s also cinnamon apple sauce, cobbler and Samina’s famous black bean brownies!

What could be better than a night of friends, good food and education about the environment? When interviewing Valerie Lee, a freshman studying biology here at UMBC, she stated, “The dinners are a great way to meet new friends, with the same interests as you, with good food that otherwise would have been thrown away. The people are always really cool and we’re all passionate about the environment and trying to eliminate America’s humongous food waste problem.”

When talking to UMBC’s very own sustainability coordinator, Tanvi Gadhia, she explained, “In the United States, 40 percent of the food grown is thrown away. About 10 percent of this food is thrown away by grocery stores. A majority of this food is tossed because it is deemed too ‘ugly’ to sell. This is a huge environmental problem as the organic waste in landfills releases methane into the atmosphere, a greenhouse gas 21 times more powerful than CO2. At the same time 1 in 6 Americans go hungry and even when given access to food, do not receive healthy, nutritious meals.” This information can also be found on the event page for the organization.

Environmental Task Force also takes this time to address the various environmental issues and how to fix them on campus while everyone eats; jumpstarting many discussions based on protecting the environment. They have also pushed many environmentally-friendly changes on campus, such as getting compostable utensils on campus, as well as providing comparable bins. It is clear to see the hard work from student organizations can be put into such a great cause.

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Last Tuesday, on March 28, over 60 students met in Lecture Hall 1 to discuss the fact that men, do indeed, cry. Zeta Sigma Chi, supported by UMBC’s National Alliance on Mental Illness club and brothers in Pi Kappa Pi and Phi Beta Sigma, hosted a “MENtal Health” talk. ZSC held the event to “have a conversation on the stigmas against men and their mental health.”

The meeting began with a focused but light-hearted game of jeopardy. The attendees, most of which who were affiliated with the hosting organizations, laughed as individuals showed off their knowledge of athletes, pop culture and media as well as campus resources. Despite this, the hosts made it clear that the next two portions of the event, the presentation and the open discussion, would be much more serious and sensitive for some.

“Of the 151,781,326 men in America, 6 million men are affected by depression every year,” said one of the ZSC hosts. The NAMI host went on to speak about the five most common types of male mental illness: depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, psychosis/schizophrenia and eating disorders. Many individuals seemed stunned when the hosts rattled off statistic and facts, for example, that about 3,020,000 American men have a panic disorder, or that men under the age of 30 make up about 90 percent of psychosis and schizophrenia cases in America.

The event hosts explained that mental illness in men is worsened by how media portrays the ideal man. One male audience member even said, “When my mind doesn’t match what I see in the media, I feel alone and like less of a person.” The media’s portrayal of men truly sets men up for failure in their mental health. Its effects make men more likely to conform to social norms, to downplay their symptoms and to be less likely to talk, express emotion and seek treatment.

Despite the very personal nature of the topic, many individuals, both male and female, spoke up about their experiences with mental health when the event transitioned into the open discussion portion. Crowd members expressed the importance of doing this, saying that “guys don’t like to open up.” One individual said that “some of us don’t know how to talk about it. We’re worried about what people will think. Us guys definitely have a hard time telling our friends exactly what’s going on in our minds.”

Many students spoke about how they like to cope with stress and improve their mental health. One male student said that he likes to “go home and spend time with my little guys:” his two cats. Another male student said that he liked collecting important photos of his life and that he would go back and look at them whenever he felt anxious. Another liked to watch comedies, another liked to listen to trap music and another liked to sit and mediate.

The event leaders were sure to encourage the crowd members to visit our on campus resources: NAMI, the Counseling Center, the Women’s Center and the Mosaic Center. They also encouraged participants to visit mentalhealthamerica.net, which provides free and reliable online mental illness screenings and to keep in mind the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255. One individual in the crowd expressed his gratitude for the event. “I’m glad that this event is happening. I feel like there’s no where to talk about our mental health to this extent with other students. This really needs to happen more,” he said.

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What do UMBC students do for fun on campus? Especially during the weekend? UMBC’s Student Events Board, (seb), hosts free weekly movies for students to enjoy without ever leaving campus. The best part is that usually these movies are still playing in theaters, or have just been released within the month.

Some of the films shown in the past year were Maleficent, Fantastic Beasts and Girl on the Train. The movies are shown from Thursday to Saturday night starting at 9 p.m. This is partly due to the fact that most people have busy school lives, and after 9 p.m. is the most convenient time for the majority of the population.

This is a great opportunity for students on campus to have fun with friends without spending a dime. Usually there is free popcorn and other snacks provided to munch on during the movie as well. Last week’s movie was Sing, a quirky cartoon produced by Illumination Entertainment.

Sing tells the story of a koala bear who tries to keep his failing theater open by producing an impromptu singing competition with five contestants. Among these contestants are a pig, a mouse, a porcupine, an elephant and a gorilla. Hijinks ensue.

Though this movie is mainly targeted towards kids ranging from ages 5-12, it was fairly popular with the UMBC population. Lecture Hall 1 was crowded for a Friday night, with an estimated 40 people who turned out to watch the movie. That was a particularly good crowd for these movie showings.

Everyone was snacking on popcorn and cotton candy during the screening, and they seemed to be immersed in the film. The movie did not seem to have many dull moments, and there was certainly lots of laughter among the crowd for the whole two hours.

One student, Kidusan Negash, a junior studying biology, commented, “the movie was well-done! The animation style was probably my favorite, and the songs were good as well. Obviously I didn’t expect any major plot twists or anything since this is mostly a children’s film, but I didn’t mind. It’s one of those movies where you don’t have to over-think, and can just sit back and relax.”

Many of the movies shown by (seb) are either action or drama related, so many students felt relieved that this week’s movie was one that people could just relax with after a long school week.

Another student, Preeti Rao, a sophomore studying biology stated, “Sing was decent, but it could have also been better. For the most part, the movie kept my attention, but there were some scenes where I wished it would have moved at a faster pace. I have always loved animated kid’s movies, so I did have high expectations for Sing, so that could also be why I feel this way.”

Whether it’s an animated kids’ movie or an action thriller, these weekly movies help students relax after a long week, and the student response is generally possible.

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Join us at HackUMBC’s Innovate Good, a 24-hour student Hackathon on Saturday and Sunday April 29th- 30th, 2017.  Innovate Good is themed for creating software or hardware projects to benefit social causes. Participants can learn new skills, make new friends, and share ideas with others. We encourage all students from different backgrounds and disciplines to come join in the hacking! 

There are four main tracks, each with its own prize category:

• Health/Environmental
• Legal/Justice
• Housing
• Education

If you don't have a team or an idea, it's not a problem. You can find a team once you arrive. Most hackers arrive without a team. You will often find inspiration for ideas at the hackathon. We will also help guide students to others who want to hack for the same track.

If you don't code, it's a wonderful opportunity to learn something new. There will be workshops geared towards beginners and mentors to help you throughout the event. Don't let this stop you from applying! We want those in the non-tech majors as much as we want students in the tech majors.

For more information and to register visit: http://innovate.hackumbc.org/ . Email team@hackumbc.org with any questions.

The Cure Scholars program is offering a paid internship ($4,000), for a one-year commitment to teaching and facilitating after-school and Saturday science lessons to middle school students on the campus of University of Maryland, Baltimore. Applications are available online and we will accept them until July 31st, 2017, but positions fill quickly so we encourage students to apply as soon as possible. We look forward to receiving applications from members of your group!

For more information on the program and to apply, here is the link:

https://www.umaryland.edu/cure-scholars/become-a-mentor-coach-or-campus-champion/mentoring-levels/lead-mentor-application/

The UMBC CyberDawgs team took first place at the finals of the National Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition (NCCDC).  The CyberDawgs had won the Mid-Atlantic Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition earlier in the spring, earning the team an invitation to compete in the final ten national championship match held April 13-15 at the University of Texas, San Antonio.  This is UMBC’s second trip to the NCCDC finals – two years ago in their first visit the CyberDawgs came in fourth.

The National Collegiate Cyber Defense Competition has been held annually since 2005 and focuses on the operational aspect of managing and protecting an existing network infrastructure. Teams are scored on their ability to detect and respond to outside threats, maintain availability of existing services such as mail servers and web servers, respond to business requests such as the addition or removal of additional services, and balance security needs against business needs.

This year more than 230 schools participated at the state and regional level with winners of the ten regional competitions faceing off in San Antonio. In addition to UMBC, this year’s finalists included teams from the University of Tulsa (2nd Place), Brigham Young University (3rd place), DePaul University, the University of Washington, California State University Northridge, Rochester Institute of Technology, Montana Tech, University of South Alabama, and University of Alaska, Fairbanks.

The CyberDawgs is a group of UMBC students who share a common interest in computer and network security.  The group is advised by UMBC faculty Charles Nicholas and Richard Forno. See the CyberDawgs Web site for information on their activities and how to get involved.

Congratulations to the UMBC CyberDawgs!!!

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Since the start of the Elect Her workshop four years ago, the percentage of women running for office in UMBC’s Student Government Association has increased from under 30 percent to over 40 percent, according to an article posted on UMBC News.

The workshop that was organized by gender and women’s studies professor Kate Drabinski, which has recently expanded to include local high school students, has clearly made an impact on the campus. UMBC’s statistics are much greater than those nationally, where female representation in government ranges between 19 and 24 percent.

Workshops and representation like this are especially important because of the growing dialogue about women in the workplace and the wage gap. It is often discouraging to young women to grow up in a country where the majority of our leaders are white men, though, with this workshop, UMBC is alleviating that discouragement.

Hopefully, these numbers will only increase in the coming years until women have equal representation in the SGA.

The workshop does not aim to just create equality on campus. The idea is to inspire young women to join SGA in the hopes that they will go on to run for elected offices after college has ended.

It is important that the goals of Elect Her reach far beyond the campus because it is so rare that school programs are created with the mindset that the skills will carry on to life after graduation.

In addition to this event, the Women’s Center holds the Women in Leadership class, which is a series of events and workshops designed to prepare women to be leaders. It offers everything from sexual assault support to a workshop on how to negotiate salaries.

Elect Her has actually caused a change in the UMBC community and, thankfully, it is a change for the better. Continuing programs like these that both inspire and inform the community can only make for a better campus climate.

Though we still have a ways to go in terms of having a truly equal campus, there are definitely steps being made in that direction. In a time when women are regularly underappreciated, it is refreshing to see UMBC’s community actively trying to combat that, and furthermore to see that that is working.

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