Job Announcement: Lead Teachers (Arts Education or Arts Integration) and Instructional Coaches

Experienced lead teachers and instructional coaches are needed to provide high-quality professional development for MCCC participants. Please read the job descriptions carefully to determine which studio you are most qualified to lead. (Please do not apply for more than one position unless you meet all of the criteria described below.) Employment is dependent upon MCCC enrollment.

Overview:

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Earlier this month, the Women’s Center hosted an event in their returning women program to help adult learners navigate the complicated expectations of professional attire. Marie Lilly from the Office of Institutional Advancement Staff led the discussion. It was a small event, with ten women occupying the couches and bean bags in the Center’s lounge.

Lilly attempted to keep the discussion informative, but also body-positive, a difficult balance when discussing any dress code. She emphasized the importance that the clothes be affordable and comfortable. Lilly also gave practical advice for women new to professional dress, such as to wear cardigans and layers to help give a put-together image.

Like some of their other events, the workshop was created based on feedback from returning women students. Other workshops are created by the Women’s Center staff. Jess Myers, the director of the Women’s Center, tries to make sure their programming emphasizes skill building as well as a sense of belonging.

“We’re trying to bring people together so they can form a community with each other,” Myers said. “Maybe they’ll feel more motivated to advocate for themselves or ask for help in different ways.”

Other programming created for returning women includes a resume building workshop, a course to help navigate the guilt that comes with having multiple responsibilities, and other events to help women practice networking.

Since the Women’s Center’s inception 25 years ago, it has held programming for returning women, an aspect that Myers said fits in with the center’s goals.

“Our mission statement includes that we do intersectional and social justice work,” she said. “[The returning women’s program is] looking at lots of different intersectional approaches of not just a woman but a woman who is older and who could also be a parent, who has lots of different little challenges.”

They also acknowledge the universal struggle that adult learners have, which is time.

“We try to accommodate different work schedules or family commitments. All of our events are held on different days and different times,” Myers said.

By having events at varying times, the Women’s Center enables a broader audience to attend their events, such as the professional dress workshop which was held on a Thursday at 3:00 p.m. Additionally, they are utilizing technology such as Facebook live videos and Google Hangouts to stay connected with students who want to be involved but don’t always have the time.

The Women’s Center also supports adult learners through scholarships. There are four different scholarships for women who are adult learners that are available to apply for in January. It is a requirement for recipients to attend at least one Returning Women workshop. The varying times of workshops also makes it easier on the scholarship recipients.

“We don’t want to be another source of stress we want to be a source of strength and community building for their experience here, and also give some money their way too,” Myers said.

The post Building communities for returning women appeared first on The Retriever.

The Student Investing Club is working with PNC Bank to teach you how to save money and take control of your bank account. Join them tomorrow at 5:30pm to learn easy, fundamental ways to make the most of each dollar.  

Click the button below for more information and to RSVP

Due to the recent coinciding occurrences of a lower than projected enrollment total and a mid-year budget cut to the University System of Maryland by Governor Larry Hogan and the Board of Public Works, UMBC must now manage a $3.3-million shortfall for the current fiscal year.

According to a recent email issued to UMBC Faculty and Staff by President Freeman A. Hrabowski and Provost/Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs Philip Rous, the current total student enrollment at UMBC is 1.4% less than projected when building the 2017 fiscal year budget. Additionally, institution enrollment for in-state students is said to be down by 0.4% while out-of-state enrollment is down further by 9.8%. In the message, due to the per student tuition revenue from out-of-state students being significantly higher than those enrolled as in-state students, the impact of the enrollment decline on budgeted revenues is more severe.

However, to respond and combat the current monetary predicament that surrounds UMBC’s budget, President Hrabowski and Provost Rous have stated that they will lead and plan to continue the guiding principles that had once founded and established UMBC’s campus community — that is, to protect UMBC’s academic programs and their people. With that said, the two wrote that there will be no layoffs as a result of the budget shortfall according to the email.

“The amount of the reduction is less than one percent of our total budget, thus we are not overly concerned.  We will continue to protect our students, faculty, staff, and academic programs. There will not be any pay cuts or layoffs related to this cut,” said Vice President of Communications Candace Dodson-Reed on behalf of the budget update.

At the moment, the Council of Vice Presidents and Deans has developed a series of actions which aim to close the institution’s current budget gap. With the last fiscal year’s utility savings, half of UMBC’s tuition shortfall will be covered by a $1-million enrollment reserve fund. As for the remaining $2.3 million, the reduction will be distributed across UMBC’s colleges and divisions. Each will be managing a 1.5% reduction using numerous one-time funding sources such as prior-year carry forward balances, reserves, revolving funds, and salary savings from vacant positions.

The last item of business mentioned in President Hrabowski and Provost Rous’ message referred to the hiring freeze/exception process [which was in place from 2006 to 2015] will be reinstated on November 28, 2016 and the process exclusively addresses UMBC staff positions. In addition, a committee comprised of the Provost, the Vice President for Finance and Administration and the Associate Vice President for Human Resources is set to review exception requests for critical positions at the institution. Relevant details about the previously mentioned process are scheduled to be shared soon.

The mindset to overcome the predicament aims to be with steady focus on the quality of the school’s academic experience and the overall well-being of its native community. President Hrabowski and Provost Rous are appear to be confident that UMBC will be able to move through this challenge swiftly and soon as the school has weathered previous trials in the past.

The post UMBC faced with $3.3 million budget shortfall appeared first on The Retriever.

Meet Maniraj,

He is an Interdisciplinary Studies major and an URA Scholar. He also received the La Noue Scholarship to attend the 2016 Association of Interdisciplinary Studies (AIS) conference in University of Ottawa, where he presented his interdisciplinary research; a board game that teaches cardiovascular health. His future interests includes medical anthropology and social entrepreneurship, his final goal is to become a physician.

Maniraj's research will explore the leading cause of death worldwide, cardiovascular disease. Understanding the sociocultural construction of this non-communicable disease would advance our knowledge of how to improve care to vulnerable populations. Focused on a specific district in India, the purpose this study is to identify cultural beliefs and attitudes towards cardiovascular health among adolescents. His project was an organic transformation of his extracurricular project in educational health games.

Read more about his research here…