I’m asking some of the people you might encounter on the UMBC campus, including students, faculty, staff and alumni, to answer a few questions about themselves and their experiences. These are their responses.
Name: Joseph Schwartz, Jr.
Hometown: Aviano, Italy
Q: How long have you been at UMBC?
A: Since the spring semester of 2008.
Q: What is your current title (job or student organization position)?
A: I'm a Communications Technician for my job outside of UMBC, and a Sustainability Intern for UMBC.
Q: In 12 words or less, what role(s) do you play on campus?
A: Retriever Sustainability Events Team (ReSET) member and brother of Pi Kappa Phi.
Q: What aspect of your UMBC role(s) do you enjoy most?
A: My roles aren't at all rigid. I love the freedom--it evokes my creativity.
Q: What is the most important or memorable thing you learned in college/have learned at UMBC?
A: Thus far, the ethical discourse from my courses here at UMBC have been most important to me.
Q: Complete this sentence: "I am a big fan of __________"
A: Sustainability (Who could have guessed it?).
Q: Do you have any UMBC stories, little-known facts about UMBC, favorite spots on campus, or anything else you’d like to share?
A: I feel that while most students may have heard of UMBC's Interdisciplinary Studies Program, not many know exactly what it is. The INDS program allows students to create and design their own degree. I'm part of the program and, after a lot of hard work, my proposal for a B.A. in Social Sustainability was passed by the Interdisciplinary Studies Committee this past December. The degrees that are created are astonishing: I have a friend majoring in Astrobiology; another one of my peers created a major for Historic Preservation; a third designed a degree for Music Entrepreneurship.