As the academic year draws to a close, we thought we might take the time to introduce you to some of our Alumni Association Scholarship recipients. Today, we hear from Michael Wallace Karugu ’15, information systems, who is currently working toward a master’s degree in cybersecurity here at UMBC.

Name: Michael Wallace Karugu

Major: Information Systems (current master’s student in Cybersecurity)

Grad Year: 2015, 2017

Extracurriculars: Soccer and billiards

Why did you decide to attend UMBC? UMBC is a renowned institution offering recognized STEM programs. I wanted to experience the learning environment and opportunities offered by UMBC. Furthermore, since I was a transfer student, UMBC was ready to accommodate the credits that I wanted to transfer.

What’s been the most amazing discovery you’ve made so far as a student here? The faculty, staff and students at UMBC are very friendly and always willing to assist. This friendly environment promotes a healthy learning environment.

What are you most proud of accomplishing in your time at UMBC? I am currently the student manager of the Desktop Student Support section in DoIT. Having started as a regular student employee here two years ago, I feel this is my most proud accomplishment during my time at UMBC.

What would you say to the people who provided your scholarship? I would like to thank them from the bottom of my heart for supporting me financially. This assistance enabled me to focus more on my studies as compared to stressing about how I would meet my school related costs. This assistance goes a long way in nurturing deserving students.

What do you hope to do after graduation? I graduated from my undergraduate program in fall 2015 and I am now pursuing a master’s program in cybersecurity here at UMBC. I plan on graduating in the Spring of 2017. After earning my master’s degree, I will pursue employment from the private sector as a cybersecurity specialist, and in future I plan on establishing a cybersecurity consultancy firm.

Students like Michael rely on the financial support of our donors. Please consider making a contribution today.

Editor’s note: Here at UMBC, our students are the heartbeat of campus, and we are committed to providing them the best possible education. So, for the month of March, we will be highlighting our amazing academic departments, some of their recent achievements, and ways that you can help fund their continued excellence.

Your gift is extremely important and many of our students are depending on you. Please show your support and make an impact today. With you we can make a difference.

The Chemical, Biochemical & Environmental Engineering department is proud to share a few testimonials of its undergraduate research program.

“As an undergrad at UMBC, I studied the same curriculum that all of you had: learning to size reactors, heat exchangers, separators, etc. [. . .] In contrast, my research gave me a chance to tackle problems that don’t have an answer yet, and that might not even have a satisfying answer. [. . .] That was an exciting challenge for me so I went to grad school to continue working with that kind of problem.” Sean Kshimetski ’14, chemical engineering

“My experience as an undergraduate researcher gave me the confidence and experience to pursue a Ph.D. Through my UG research experience, I was able to build not only a tool set of research techniques but an understanding of how scientific research is conducted in an academic setting. When I was starting my graduate program, I was able to more easily acclimate to a new laboratory setting because I had gained familiarity with basic laboratory protocols from working in Dr. Marten’s lab.” Colleen Courtney ’12, chemical engineering

With your help, the Chemical, Biochemical & Environmental Engineering department can continue supporting students like these in their achievements. Click here to donate.

The Computer Science and Electrical Engineering department is proud to announce that UMBC will be partnering with MITRE Corporation to found national cybersecurity research center that supports the National Cybersecurity Center of Excellence and help businesses secure their data and digital infrastructure. The department would also like to announce that Professor Chintan Patel M.S. ‘01, Ph.D. ‘04, and computer engineering student Gurashish Singh recently demonstrated a prototype system that can detect distracted driving behavior at the ATPA Expo, the largest gathering of industries involved with transportation.

With your help, the Computer Science and Electrical Engineering department can continue supplying new equipment and providing resources to build a sense of community among our students.

Click here to donate.

The Information Systems department is pleased to share that a research team led by Dr. Nirmalya Roy, assistant professor of information systems at UMBC, is exploring how to retrofit homes with sensor networks that monitor a resident’s behavior and activity levels. The team is also exploring ways to modify existing sensors and other smart-home technologies to help health care providers and caregivers remotely monitor seniors in their own homes at a lower cost. The department would also like to congratulate Victoria Lentz ’15, cybersecurity, on receiving one of the Scholarship for Women Studying Information Security program’s HP-backed scholarships. Lentz, one of ten recipients, plans to work in the cybersecurity industry and pursue a master’s degree.

With your help, the Information Systems department can continue sponsoring speakers through our Council of Majors and providing travel fellowships for International Field Research.

Click here to donate.

The Mechanical Engineering department is thrilled to announce that Dr. Carlos Romero-Talamas, assistant professor in the UMBC Department of Mechanical Engineering, has been recognized with a DARPA Young Faculty Award for his research in computational models of nuclear fusion technology. The department would also like to share that Anne Spence, ME professor of the practice, participated in a roundtable discussion hosted by Congressman Elijah Cummings. The panel was part of a congressional initiative to learn about issues women educators encounter in building and sustaining economic security and focused on strategies to increase the number of women pursuing STEM fields.

With your help, the Mechanical Engineering department can continue developing a prototyping space to brainstorm ideas and assemble preliminary models and supporting our Baja team — $500 sends a Baja team member to national competition.

Click here to donate.

Editor’s note: Here at UMBC, our students are the heartbeat of campus, and we are committed to providing them the best possible education. So, for the month of March, we will be highlighting our amazing academic departments, some of their recent achievements, and ways that you can help fund their continued excellence.

Your gift is extremely important and many of our students are depending on you. Please show your support and make an impact today. With you we can make a difference.

The Chemical, Biochemical & Environmental Engineering department is proud to share a few testimonials of its undergraduate research program.

“As an undergrad at UMBC, I studied the same curriculum that all of you had: learning to size reactors, heat exchangers, separators, etc. [. . .] In contrast, my research gave me a chance to tackle problems that don’t have an answer yet, and that might not even have a satisfying answer. [. . .] That was an exciting challenge for me so I went to grad school to continue working with that kind of problem.” Sean Kshimetski ’14, chemical engineering

“My experience as an undergraduate researcher gave me the confidence and experience to pursue a Ph.D. Through my UG research experience, I was able to build not only a tool set of research techniques but an understanding of how scientific research is conducted in an academic setting. When I was starting my graduate program, I was able to more easily acclimate to a new laboratory setting because I had gained familiarity with basic laboratory protocols from working in Dr. Marten’s lab.” Colleen Courtney ’12, chemical engineering

With your help, the Chemical, Biochemical & Environmental Engineering department can continue supporting students like these in their achievements. Click here to donate.

The Computer Science and Electrical Engineering department is proud to announce that UMBC will be partnering with MITRE Corporation to found national cybersecurity research center that supports the National Cybersecurity Center of Excellence and help businesses secure their data and digital infrastructure. The department would also like to announce that Professor Chintan Patel M.S. ‘01, Ph.D. ‘04, and computer engineering student Gurashish Singh recently demonstrated a prototype system that can detect distracted driving behavior at the ATPA Expo, the largest gathering of industries involved with transportation.

With your help, the Computer Science and Electrical Engineering department can continue supplying new equipment and providing resources to build a sense of community among our students.

Click here to donate.

The Information Systems department is pleased to share that a research team led by Dr. Nirmalya Roy, assistant professor of information systems at UMBC, is exploring how to retrofit homes with sensor networks that monitor a resident’s behavior and activity levels. The team is also exploring ways to modify existing sensors and other smart-home technologies to help health care providers and caregivers remotely monitor seniors in their own homes at a lower cost. The department would also like to congratulate Victoria Lentz ’15, cybersecurity, on receiving one of the Scholarship for Women Studying Information Security program’s HP-backed scholarships. Lentz, one of ten recipients, plans to work in the cybersecurity industry and pursue a master’s degree.

With your help, the Information Systems department can continue sponsoring speakers through our Council of Majors and providing travel fellowships for International Field Research.

Click here to donate.

The Mechanical Engineering department is thrilled to announce that Dr. Carlos Romero-Talamas, assistant professor in the UMBC Department of Mechanical Engineering, has been recognized with a DARPA Young Faculty Award for his research in computational models of nuclear fusion technology. The department would also like to share that Anne Spence, ME professor of the practice, participated in a roundtable discussion hosted by Congressman Elijah Cummings. The panel was part of a congressional initiative to learn about issues women educators encounter in building and sustaining economic security and focused on strategies to increase the number of women pursuing STEM fields.

With your help, the Mechanical Engineering department can continue developing a prototyping space to brainstorm ideas and assemble preliminary models and supporting our Baja team — $500 sends a Baja team member to national competition.

Click here to donate.

Taken from the WiCyS Flickr album

During the past school year, several UMBC students traveled to Nashville, Tennessee to partake in the first-ever Women in Cybersecurity Conference.

Thanks to our wonderful donors, Emily Scheerer ’14, computer science; Christina Malliakos ’14, computer science; Emily McMurray ’14, computer science; and Ruth Coradin ’16, computer science and applied linguistics, were able to receive supplementary funding for their trip out west. The money was raised through a crowd-funded project undertaken by the Center for Women in Technology (CWIT). When the need for additional funding arose, CWIT reached out to its alumni and friends and rallied community support to ensure that the students would be able to attend the conference.

At workshops on subjects such as cryptography and technical industry, the Retrievers were able to network both themselves and their skills to others in the computer science industry. “I think it is great to be in a place where everyone has the same types of goals as you. The focus of the conference was so specific, it was great to know that other students are going through the same experiences as me, and the professionals have made it through the journey that I am on my professional career,” said Malliakos about her experience at the Women in Cybersecurity Conference. Guests included Emily Shen of the MIT Lincoln Lab and the director of NSA’s training division.

Although the conference was only two days, the experience has had a lasting impact on Scheerer, Malliakos, and Coradin. “I am truly thankful for the opportunity to be a part of such a rewarding experience. I have stayed in touch with both mentors and peers that I met at the conference,” says Coradin.

Thanks again to all of our donors involved in this endeavor!

Learn more about our other student projects here!

Taken from the WiCyS Flickr album

During the past school year, several UMBC students traveled to Nashville, Tennessee to partake in the first-ever Women in Cybersecurity Conference.

Thanks to our wonderful donors, Emily Scheerer ’14, computer science; Christina Malliakos ’14, computer science; Emily McMurray ’14, computer science; and Ruth Coradin ’16, computer science and applied linguistics, were able to receive supplementary funding for their trip out west. The money was raised through a crowd-funded project undertaken by the Center for Women in Technology (CWIT). When the need for additional funding arose, CWIT reached out to its alumni and friends and rallied community support to ensure that the students would be able to attend the conference.

At workshops on subjects such as cryptography and technical industry, the Retrievers were able to network both themselves and their skills to others in the computer science industry. “I think it is great to be in a place where everyone has the same types of goals as you. The focus of the conference was so specific, it was great to know that other students are going through the same experiences as me, and the professionals have made it through the journey that I am on my professional career,” said Malliakos about her experience at the Women in Cybersecurity Conference. Guests included Emily Shen of the MIT Lincoln Lab and the director of NSA’s training division.

Although the conference was only two days, the experience has had a lasting impact on Scheerer, Malliakos, and Coradin. “I am truly thankful for the opportunity to be a part of such a rewarding experience. I have stayed in touch with both mentors and peers that I met at the conference,” says Coradin.

Thanks again to all of our donors involved in this endeavor!

Learn more about our other student projects here!