Baltimore’s Walters Art Museum will host ArtBytes 3, its third annual hackathon, this weekend from 6pm Friday to 3pm Sunday. Technology and creative communities will work together at the museum to build programs and applications that enhance the museum experience for visitors. $5,000 in cash prizes will be awarded.

It’s a great opportunity for students to try their hand at helping to conceive, debug and prototype an ideas for the common good. For more information and to register, see the ArtBytes 3 EventBright page.

• Candidate should be a full-time, degree-seeking student at UMBC, enrolled in her/his sophomore year with a 3.0 cumulative GPA.
• Candidate will be required to submit a resume and an unofficial transcript.
• Candidate should submit a 500-word essay explaining actions that she/he has participated in that have contributed to improving the lives of Baltimore City youth.

Application Materials can be submitted to:

NEW Application Deadline:

Questions?

Dear Graduate Students, Postdoctoral Fellows, and Members of the PROMISE Community,

We are in the process of developing a new program with collaborators, Tecnológico de Monterrey, in Monterrey, Mexico. We sent out an initial email to gauge interest in a new visiting professor program, and the response was overwhelming! We’re so glad to hear that you are interested in this opportunity as a pathway to your career.

We are working with Tec because of their interest in PROMISE, and our mutual values, which include dedication to teaching students, integrity, leadership, and community service.

The PROMISE AGEP is collaborating with Tec based on projects with the Latin and Caribbean Consortium of Engineering Institutions, the American Society for Engineering Education, and the World Engineering Education Forum. Since Monterrey Tec has a variety of disciplines available, they are interested in considering candidates from all disciplines.

______________________________

General details, along with answers to questions that have been posed over the last two weeks.

• This is a residential program. While hybrid programs may be considered, participants are expected to spend time teaching in Mexico.
• The duration of the position can range from 1 semester to 2 years.
• The position would include a monthly stipend, housing and round-trip transportation from Maryland to Mexico.
• There are language and cultural opportunities available for you and members of your immediate family who would be joining you.

• English — http://www.itesm.mx/wps/wcm/connect/ITESM/Tecnologico+de+Monterrey/English
• Spanish — http://www.itesm.mx/wps/portal?WCM_GLOBAL_CONTEXT=

• Candidates must be an enrolled graduate student, postdoctoral fellow, alumnus, staff or faculty member at/from an institution within the University System of Maryland (USM): http://www.usmd.edu/institutions/
  • Candidates from UMBC  (based on our agreement with UMBC and the Council of Graduate Schools to broaden pathways to careers): Candidates from UMBC may be from any discipline, and all racial/ethnic backgrounds will be considered. U.S. citizenship is not required, but you must be able to teach in English.
  • Candidates from all other institutions within the USM: (based on the agreement with the National Science Foundation (NSF) to broaden participation and increase diversity in STEM within the USM):
    • Candidates from other institutions within the USM must be in a Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics field, as listed in the NSF’s List of Supported Fields. This list can also be found below, in the comment section.
    • Candidates from other institutions within the USM must be U.S. citizens and members of groups that are underrepresented in STEM, per the NSF AGEP Program: African-Americans, Hispanics, American Indians, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians or other Pacific Islanders

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• The primary candidates will have a Ph.D. This program is being designed to provide  an on-ramp to the professoriate. There are positions that primarily involve teaching, and some that involve both teaching and research. You may apply if you will have a Ph.D. by the time of the placement.
  • Candidates from UMBC who have master’s degrees will be considered, but won’t have the title of “PROMISE Visiting Professor for Social Change.” These candidates will be referred to a Tec “teacher program” to teach high school students.
  • Candidates from all other USM institutions must have a Ph.D. in a STEM field.

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• All candidates must have some teaching experience, e.g., lecturing in the classroom at the college level, which include experiences through the PROMISE PROF-it program, as a Teaching Assistant, or as an instructor in a post-secondary institution.

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• All candidates must be willing to teach with technology, and should have some experience with technology, e.g., classroom management software (Blackboard), social media.

______________________________

To apply for the program*

(Disclaimer: The project is still in a proposed state, and applications will be screened by PROMISE prior to being sent to Monterrey Tec. Tec is not under any obligation to choose any candidates. The deans of the colleges at Tec along with other relevant offices will make all final decisions. A cohort model that will allow candidates to travel and participate as a group is still under consideration.)

• 1) One page overview, with the following guidelines:
  • 1 inch margins
  • Title:
    • Line 1: 16 pt, bold, Times New Roman: Applicant: PROMISE Visiting Professor for Social Change
    • Line 2: 14 pt, italics, Times New Roman: Your full name, your degree, area of expertise
  • Skip two lines
  • Content (Skip one line between each section): 12 pt, Times New Roman; use the headings in bold below in your document.
    • Line 1: Courses that I have already taught (include level, e.g., high school, community college, undergraduate studies, graduate students, and approximations of class sizes)
    • Line 2: Courses that I can teach (be sure that you are choosing courses based on their offerings: http://www.itesm.mx/wps/wcm/connect/ITESM/Tecnologico+de+Monterrey/English/Academic+offerings/?cache=none
    • Line 3: Experiences with technology in the classroom:
    • Line 4: Research Interests:
    • Line 5: Statement about commitment to community service:

• 2) One page cover letter addressed to Dr. Renetta Tull, Director of the PROMISE AGEP, discussing why you want to be a professor, what you want to learn, and future plans for teaching in the U.S. [Note: The PROMISE AGEP is designed to increase the numbers of professors who will serve students in the U.S. Participation in this program is meant to provide a short-term, international, collaborative experience from which you can build a successful and satisfying faculty career in the U.S.]

• 3) Full, unabridged CV

All documents should be merged (based on the order above: 1) overview, 2) letter, 3) CV) and submitted as one PDF document, with the title: PROMISE-MONTERREY TEC-your name

Send the document to promisestaff@gmail.com, and cc’d to rtull@umbc.edu, with the subject: PROMISE Professors for Social Change. (Please do not add or subtract anything from this subject title. Emails submitted with other subject lines may not be considered.)

*All interested candidates are strongly encouraged to attend the (free) Professional Development Workshop on preparing for the professoriate at the PROMISE Research Symposium and Professional Development Conference on Friday, Feb. 13, 2015, 1:30 – 3:30 PM, at the University of Maryland College, Park. Details and registration information can be found here: https://promiseagep.wordpress.com/2014/12/16/spring-2015-university-system-of-maryland-promise-agep-research-symposium-professional-development-conference-fri-feb-13-2015-um-college-park/. Candidates who have not previously met with Dr. Tull to discuss career interests, must do so before the application can be considered for the program. Application Deadline: The initial group of candidates will be sent to Tec on February 27, 2015.

We are proud to announce Staying in the Loop, a new post series from the Chapter of Black and Latino Alumni (CBLA) that seeks to create connections between alumni, faculty, staff, and other supporters of UMBC and CBLA. Click here for more information about CBLA.
Name: A. Jay Nwachu
Major: Psychology
Grad year: 2003
Q: What do/did you enjoy most about being a part of the UMBC community?
The academically empowering environment as well as the diversity of the student body provided an opportunity for personal, academic and professional growth.
Q: UMBC is approaching its 50th anniversary (2016) and certainly the campus has come a long way – from a small commuter school to the nation’s #1 “up-and-coming” university – in such a relatively short period of time. What, in your opinion, makes UMBC so unique/special? What’s your most memorable experience/moment at UMBC?
UMBC is rather unique given its rapid growth, not necessarily in numbers, but in its ability to compete with the nation’s best institutions in such a short period of time. My most memorable experience, out of many great experiences, was having the opportunity to partner with 2 of my best friends today to address the potential gaps in services that would result when the university administration decided to shut down the Office of Multicultural Affairs which served as an informal home for many on and off campus students. We were able to work with the administration to keep the office open but change its focus to serve the growing diversity at the university with more structured programming. The office remained open and was renamed the Office of Social Justice and Diversity Initiatives and has since been renamed to The Mosaic Center.
Q: If you could meet one person in the world who would it be and why?
Not anyone in particular. I believe that those that I cross paths with at any given space and time can contribute to my life in some capacity. I would rather live life with the anticipation of who next I can share my life with versus wishing to meet a particular person.
Q: What is the best advice you’ve received?
You can’t make everyone happy, just focus on making God happy.
Q: What is one book you think everyone should read?
This is a tough question……
Q: What is one thing you can’t live without?
Airplanes….the ability to travel.

We are proud to announce Staying in the Loop, a new post series from the Chapter of Black and Latino Alumni (CBLA) that seeks to create connections between alumni, faculty, staff, and other supporters of UMBC and CBLA. Click here for more information about CBLA.

Name: A. Jay Nwachu
Major: Psychology
Grad year: 2003

Q: What do/did you enjoy most about being a part of the UMBC community?

The academically empowering environment as well as the diversity of the student body provided an opportunity for personal, academic and professional growth.

Q: UMBC is approaching its 50th anniversary (2016) and certainly the campus has come a long way – from a small commuter school to the nation’s #1 “up-and-coming” university – in such a relatively short period of time. What, in your opinion, makes UMBC so unique/special? What’s your most memorable experience/moment at UMBC?

UMBC is rather unique given its rapid growth, not necessarily in numbers, but in its ability to compete with the nation’s best institutions in such a short period of time. My most memorable experience, out of many great experiences, was having the opportunity to partner with 2 of my best friends today to address the potential gaps in services that would result when the university administration decided to shut down the Office of Multicultural Affairs which served as an informal home for many on and off campus students. We were able to work with the administration to keep the office open but change its focus to serve the growing diversity at the university with more structured programming. The office remained open and was renamed the Office of Social Justice and Diversity Initiatives and has since been renamed to The Mosaic Center.

Q: If you could meet one person in the world who would it be and why?

Not anyone in particular. I believe that those that I cross paths with at any given space and time can contribute to my life in some capacity. I would rather live life with the anticipation of who next I can share my life with versus wishing to meet a particular person.

Q: What is the best advice you’ve received?

You can’t make everyone happy, just focus on making God happy.

Q: What is one book you think everyone should read?

This is a tough question……

Q: What is one thing you can’t live without?

Airplanes….the ability to travel.

It has been exactly a year since USDemocrazy published this article on the uptick of infectious diseases in the United States.

It looks like things remain unhappy… even The Happiest Place on Earth has been afffected.

That’s right- those pesky diseases have made their way to Disneyland. A recent measles outbreak in Disneyland has already affected more than 70 people in seven states and Mexico. All of these cases can be traced to Patient Zero.

The even more confounding issue is that the United States eliminated measles 15 years ago. What happened?

Well, add together a vulnerable population, an unvaccinated world-traveler, and one infectious disease and you have got a recipe for an outbreak. An outbreak in 2014 was brought from the Philippines.  And if you really want to know what the big deal is- you can read the list of symptoms from the highly contagious disease here.

Central to the issue is vaccines. While the measles vaccine has proven to be safe, many families are opting out due to a plethora of reasons.

People are now asking- should the government step in? Should they allow religious or philosophical exemptions? How easy should it be to forgo vaccination? In some states, it is as simple as checking a box. 

As a possible model to the nation, Mississippi is enjoying their measles-free state with a kindergarten vaccination rate of 99.7%. As Mary Currier, a state health officer in Mississippi so nicely put it, 

“It’s nice not having measles in Mississippi”.

And Mississippi has a reason to brag. They have a successful public health campaign and strict vaccination laws. Regardless, it seems like this issue will not be resolved soon. We here at USDemocrazy hope that we will not have to revisit this again in a year’s time.  Stay tuned.