It was the middle of the night in November 2013, just after Typhoon Haiyan struck, when Sako Narita ’04, interdisciplinary studies (international emergency health services), received an urgent phone call from Japan with a request: a disaster response team organized by Humanitarian Medical Assistance (HuMA) to help provide aid to the Philippines needed her expertise.

The call did not come as a surprise to Narita, who is currently a master’s student in UMBC’s emergency health services (EHS) department. She had prior experience providing disaster response for the 2011 earthquake and tsunami in her native Japan and a previous typhoon in the Philippines in 2012.

Narita spent ten days in the Philippines after Haiyan struck. She provided needs assessment, assisted patients, negotiated with local and international health and government organizations, set up mobile medical clinics, and did whatever she could to ensure typhoon victims received necessary care.

“Believe it or not, the people were more positive than we expected,” says Narita. “Sometimes people were already moving on – they started a new life and started building new houses. But deep inside, they still are struggling.”

One key part of Narita’s job was negotiation – a skill she has developed both in field experience and as part of her UMBC education.

The on-the-ground situation during Narita’s first mission in the Philippines in 2012 required her to negotiate with local officials to gain access to the disaster site for HuMA. During her more recent trip, she brokered a partnership with an Israeli disaster response team.

The international reputation of UMBC’s EHS department as a leader in the field helped attract Narita – a student from Japan who was interested in studying the intersection between medicine and emergency health services.

“All of my knowledge about disaster response I got at UMBC,” Narita observes.

“What makes our program different from every other program is that our focus is on that area of overlap between public health and emergency management,” explains Rick Bissell, a professor of emergency health services and the director of the EHS graduate program.

UMBC’s graduate program offers advanced training in emergency clinical response, management and public health that prepares students like Narita to meet disaster-related emergency health needs (as well as less urgent needs) in both domestic and international situations.

“We educate the whole person,” says Bruce Walz, a professor of emergency health services and the chair of the department. “What we’ve heard back from employers is that our students know how to think. They’re not just doing a protocol. They know why they’re doing that protocol, they know why they’re giving that drug and they can make those decisions in the field.”

This priority on educating students as “whole people” is evident in the work of EHS alumni and students like Narita, who is also a national registered paramedic and Maryland emergency medical technician-paramedic. The level of dedication and quality of work for which the program’s graduates are known makes them much sought after in the aftermath of disasters such as Haiyan.

“HuMA could contact me again,” Narita says, “and I hope they do.”

— Max Cole

Read the full issue of the Summer 2014 UMBC Magazine.

1. Tell us a little about your company, and what makes your business 

unique?

"EduPal is a FREE ‘by students for students' app designed around your needs as a college student. We have created an adaptive and responsive tool that organizes your life, promotes collaborative learning, and enhances social engagement. Because we are students ourselves, we understand the importance of time management and maintaining a healthy social life so we made an app to do just that. Students can now feel confident that their devices will support them as they journey through college and focus on what is really important: their learning. At this stage of EduPal: students can get all homework, quizzes, exams, and pretty much everything else from the syllabus organized into a color coded calendar.

What makes us beautifully unique is that our tool does NOT require teachers to do anything. Students can grab the steering wheel and make EduPal the most valuable resource on campus all on their own. This nontraditional crowd sourcing model is very disruptive in the EdTech market."

"ENTR201: Helped me to polish my public speaking skills and understand the type of thinker I am.

INDS330: I was required to write a lot of papers and plugged in EduPal as much as possible. Not only did it help me understand my product better, I also adopted a mentor (the instructor) who helped me solidify my idea for the CBIC."

Elance: Freelancer contracting website that I use to outsource complex coding work

CoFoundersLab: Website to find other entrepreneurial minded people in your area

Lean StartUp: Must read for all entrepreneurs (Markus isn't the first to recommend this one!) 

LinkedIn: Search professionals and students by skill

Craigslist: Might find your next business partner here as well

I also follow Forbes & Inc Magazine on Twitter

"The toughest decision I made recently was the decision to change my major. It doesn't sound like much but when you are a Junior, there are some ramifications. The good news is that I am satisfied with choosing INDS to tailor my own education. My new major allows me to readily apply what I learn in the classroom directly into EduPal."

"Student entrepreneurs need to realize that they are the worst critic of their own ideas.

My advice is for students to get out of their comfort zone and pitch their concept to as many people as possible...especially their target audience. Why? because validation is critical before you start spending time and money building the best product no one wants."

Reach out to Markus & Visit the EduPal Website to learn more. 

1. Tell us a little about your company, and what makes your business 

unique?

"EduPal is a FREE ‘by students for students' app designed around your needs as a college student. We have created an adaptive and responsive tool that organizes your life, promotes collaborative learning, and enhances social engagement. Because we are students ourselves, we understand the importance of time management and maintaining a healthy social life so we made an app to do just that. Students can now feel confident that their devices will support them as they journey through college and focus on what is really important: their learning. At this stage of EduPal: students can get all homework, quizzes, exams, and pretty much everything else from the syllabus organized into a color coded calendar.

What makes us beautifully unique is that our tool does NOT require teachers to do anything. Students can grab the steering wheel and make EduPal the most valuable resource on campus all on their own. This nontraditional crowd sourcing model is very disruptive in the EdTech market."

"ENTR201: Helped me to polish my public speaking skills and understand the type of thinker I am.

INDS330: I was required to write a lot of papers and plugged in EduPal as much as possible. Not only did it help me understand my product better, I also adopted a mentor (the instructor) who helped me solidify my idea for the CBIC."

Elance: Freelancer contracting website that I use to outsource complex coding work

CoFoundersLab: Website to find other entrepreneurial minded people in your area

Lean StartUp: Must read for all entrepreneurs (Markus isn't the first to recommend this one!) 

LinkedIn: Search professionals and students by skill

Craigslist: Might find your next business partner here as well

I also follow Forbes & Inc Magazine on Twitter

"The toughest decision I made recently was the decision to change my major. It doesn't sound like much but when you are a Junior, there are some ramifications. The good news is that I am satisfied with choosing INDS to tailor my own education. My new major allows me to readily apply what I learn in the classroom directly into EduPal."

"Student entrepreneurs need to realize that they are the worst critic of their own ideas.

My advice is for students to get out of their comfort zone and pitch their concept to as many people as possible...especially their target audience. Why? because validation is critical before you start spending time and money building the best product no one wants."

Reach out to Markus & Visit the EduPal Website to learn more. 

This Symposium seeks to display the diverse array of student-committed endeavors and foster the communication of their relevant novel results and concepts. The event exclusively features undergraduate research in all areas of chemistry, biology and biochemistry with the understanding that progress at the chemical and biological interface requires cross-fertilization from the broadest possible spectrum of these disciplines.

The Symposium invites mentor-approved contributions from undergraduates investigating any aspect of chemistry, biology, and biochemistry. These advances will be disseminated in a daylong event that typically offers nearly 200 student contributions and gathers more than 400 beginning scientists, mentors, and other guests. The event will feature two poster sessions with posters judged by panels of participating mentors and other qualified attendees. Judges will rank first and second place posters in each category with non-financial awards presented at the event’s end.

The event is free, but registration is required. Light-fare refreshments and lunch will be provided. Faculty mentors and qualified attendees are encouraged to support this exceptional undergraduate experience by volunteering to serve as poster session judges.