Google announced awards for the 2013 Computer Science for High School (CS4HS) program and UMBC was again among the sites selected. The program is an initiative sponsored by Google to promote Computer Science and Computational Thinking in high school and middle school curricula. UMBC Professor Marie desJardins put together successful CS4HS workshops in 2011 and 2012 that were attended by 35 Maryland high school and middle school computer science teachers and administrators in each year.

The 2013 CS4HS Workshop will be held from 4-7 August 2013 on the UMBC campus. Dormatory accommodations and all meals will be provided, as well as a $50 stipend for each teacher who attends the entire workshop. The workshop will feature a mix of panels and presentations on a wide range of scheduled topics.  It will give both highly experienced and less experienced teachers an unparalleled opportunity to meet other Maryland CS teachers and to share ideas and innovations. Space is limited to 25 participants and registration is required by 4 July 2013.

The first workshop in 2011 led to the formation of the Maryland chapter of the Computer Science Teachers Association and was the seed for the NSF-funded "CE21-Maryland" initiative that will culminate in a statewide Maryland Summit for Computing Education for educators and others interested in CS education on 17 May 2013.

Have you registered  for  CWIT's 3rd annual Spring into Leadership Event which will take place on Thursday, April 11th, 6:30-8:00 PM.?

This year's speaker is Tina Kuhn, the vice president of the Security and Information Operations (S&IO) business unit under the Cyber Solutions division at Northrop Grumman. The S&IO business unit provides intelligence-related systems and services to U.S. Government and international security customers. The organization’s focus is on full-spectrum cyber solutions that protect critical national systems and support the nation’s information dominance. 

Dr. Portia Taylor, an alum of the PROMISE Dissertation House at Carnegie Mellon (hosted by the Quality of Life Technology Center – University of Pittsburgh/Carnegie Mellon University), will be a guest speaker for UMBC’s Information Systems Department on Wednesday, April 10, 2013, 12-1:00 PM, in Room 459 of the Information Technology/Engineering (ITE) Building. The UMBC announcement can be found here: http://www.csee.umbc.edu/2013/04/talk-sensor-based-assessment-of-human-motion-during-therapeutic-exercise/

All are invited to attend Dr. Taylor’s lecture. Dr. Taylor is an IT Fellow at the Social Security Administration, and is a new Adjunct Assistant Professor in Information Systems at UMBC.

Related Articles:

• Are you in Pittsburgh? Come to our Dissertation House Seminars @CarnegieMellon 3/27 & 3/28
• Next full-scale Dissertation House at Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, March 26-28, 2012

Dr. Portia Taylor, an alum of the PROMISE Dissertation House at Carnegie Mellon (hosted by the Quality of Life Technology Center – University of Pittsburgh/Carnegie Mellon University), will be a guest speaker for UMBC’s Information Systems Department on Wednesday, April 10, 2013, 12-1:00 PM, in Room 459 of the Information Technology/Engineering (ITE) Building. The UMBC announcement can be found here: http://www.csee.umbc.edu/2013/04/talk-sensor-based-assessment-of-human-motion-during-therapeutic-exercise/

All are invited to attend Dr. Taylor’s lecture. Dr. Taylor is an IT Fellow at the Social Security Administration, and is a new Adjunct Assistant Professor in Information Systems at UMBC.

Related Articles:

• Are you in Pittsburgh? Come to our Dissertation House Seminars @CarnegieMellon 3/27 & 3/28
• Next full-scale Dissertation House at Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, March 26-28, 2012

7 Tips for Selecting College Classes

Andrew Roberts, an assistant professor of political science at Northwestern University, wrote this great book that can help students squeeze far more value out of their college years than any other book that I've read.

[Read 15 good things to do the summer before college.]

Here are the broad categories that Roberts covers in his book: choosing a school (If you don't know the differences between a college and a university, you really should read this book!); selecting a major; choosing college classes; being successful in college; interacting with professors; learning outside the classroom; attending graduate school; and rules professors live by.

Because so many college students don't know how to take advantage of their academic choices, I'm sharing a few of the 25 tips for selecting classes that Roberts provides in his easy-to-digest book:

1. Visit 5 to 10 classes during the first week of a semester: Try a different class during every time slot. Sampling classes can provide an early impression about which ones are worthwhile and which would be busts. If a promising class is filled, try again the next semester.

[Get more tips on getting into the class you need.]

2. Aim for variety: High school students are not familiar with most subjects that colleges offer. That's a great reason why underclassmen, in particular, should sample as many different disciplines as possible. By dabbling, they are more likely to discover a discipline that they like.

3. Don't rush to complete general-ed requirements: Freshmen and sophomores tend to focus on fulfilling their general-ed requirements early, but Roberts says that's a bad idea. If you postpone some of the general-ed requirements, you can better determine which subjects that you'd really like to focus on in college.

[Think about 10 questions to ask before picking a college major.]

4. At least once a year, take a class that challenges your beliefs: Leave your comfort zone and become acquainted with world views that don't sync with yours. If you're a conservative, consider taking a class on Marxism or perhaps women's studies. If you're an atheist, try a theology course. A liberal could choose a class on conservative political thought. Even if you ultimately hate the course, Roberts suggests that you should learn more than if you had simply chosen a class that confirms your beliefs.

5. Take writing-intensive classes: Choosing classes that requires copious writing sounds grueling, but Roberts offers pragmatic reasons for volunteering for this torture. Employers want graduates who can write, and you're not going to get a pass even if you're majoring in a technical or scientific field. You will also receive more attention from a professor in a writing-intensive class since he/she must review what you write.

[What are the 10 ways to ruin a college paper?]

6. Read faculty evaluations: Most universities have students complete faculty evaluations at the end of each semester. If the results are made public—and they often are—pour through them. Students tend to agree with each other on what classes are best, and these also seem to be correlated to performance. Students perform better in classes that they rate highly.

7. Consider auditing classes: The typical college student takes around 30 classes during their college career. In contrast, a university may offer 1,000 or more. If you want to soak up as much learning as possible, audit some classes.

Name: Collin Wojciechowski

Internship, Co-op or Research Site: The Baltimore Partnership for College Access and Success

Location of the Organization (City, State): Baltimore, Maryland

Title of Your Position: Project Manager

Major(s)/Minor(s): Political Science [Major] Media and Communication Studies [Major] Public Administration [Minor] History [Minor]

Expected Graduation Date (Month & Year): May 2013

1. Briefly describe your internship, co-op, research or service-learning position/assignment, including your day-to-day tasks and responsibilities.

The Baltimore Partnership for College Access and Success (BPCAS) is a brand new non-profit sponsored by the Greater Baltimore Urban League. The BPCAS works to place college students as paid mentors in Baltimore City Middle Schools, to help students achieve academically and guide them along the path to higher education. In my role as Project Manager, I am responsible for drafting this new organization’s Strategic Plan. The Strategic Plan will outline how the organization functions now and where it would like to be in terms of funding and outreach over the next ten years.

2. What have you enjoyed the most about your position or organization/company and what have you found most challenging?

One of the best parts of my internship is the ability to work with students. The BPCAS is based in an East Baltimore Middle School and every day I get to work with students on their various summer projects. It is so rewarding to be able to help a student on a math problem or an English assignment and then see his or her excitement when they get the answer correct. By far the most challenging part of my job is to help secure funding. Even though this organization is doing so much good, this harsh economic climate has made securing grant funding extremely difficult.

3. What have you gained from your experience that you could not have gained from another summer activity?

The most unique experience I have gained from my time with the BPCAS is the privilege of writing the Strategic Plan. Being given the opportunity to do long term planning for an organization that has the potential to have a positive statewide impact has been exhilarating.

4. How do you see your summer work as meaningful? Has it given you a chance to work on issues or with communities that matter to you?

The work that the BPCAS is doing is extremely meaningful, both to me personally and the Greater Baltimore community. By getting paid mentors into these middle schools we are not only making a positive, proven, and lasting impact in the lives of these young people but also providing fantastic opportunities for college students to be a part of Baltimore. For me, getting the chance to make a positive impact for youth in the city I love is the best way imaginable to spend a summer.

5. How has your summer experience shaped the way you think about your power to impact the world? This might involve skills you’ve gained, information you’ve learned, mentors you’ve connected with, or projects you’ve completed.

My work with the BPCAS, especially drafting the Strategic Plan, has shown me how much impact one person can have on a community, even if their just an intern. Because this plan is now in place, the BPCAS will now have a stronger, more concrete, structure that will allow them to bring in more funding and expand to several parts of Maryland. When that happens, more students will be mentored, meaning college attendance will go up, crime will go down, and Maryland will be that much stronger.