Our books have officially closed for the 2015-16 fiscal year, and the numbers are in. We are excited to share the incredible impact that you and our other donors have made this year.

Individual gifts may be small, but together they add up to something very important: the opportunity to live, learn and grow as a member of the UMBC community.

For all that you have done to make our first 50 years possible, thank you. We are all looking forward to the next 50!

You can give year-round to the causes closest to you at our GiveCorps site!

Your gift is worth much more than you think.

UMBC is a great place to get an education, make friends, and build your future — but many alumni don’t realize how many donors made their experience possible. Although most of our donations support student scholarships, we also raise funds for programs to build on-campus community, help students connect with employers, and extend learning beyond the classroom to include real-world research and exploration.

When you give back, you fund all the things that have made UMBC known for exceptional undergraduate education and research after just 50 years.

Another thing most alumni don’t realize is that our reputation depends on you. The percentage of alumni who give back each year contributes to our national ranking, meaning that when you make a donation of any size, you’re helping to strengthen the value of your degree.

Most importantly, as a donor, you can feel confident that 100% of your gift goes straight to the program, department, or group you choose. You can support whatever means the most to you, while also supporting the university that means so much to all of us.

Make your gift of any size today. It’s an easy way to make a big difference.

The countdown has begun. You only have 3 days left to make a difference! June 30th marks the end of our fiscal year; it’s the day we close the books and start planning and allocating funds for the next year. UMBC’s talented students and world-class faculty and staff need your support. Your gift can provide funding for scholarships, technology upgrades, research initiatives, library resources, athletics, student activities, and so much more. Your gift will change lives.

Be the difference in the lives of so many future innovators.

If you’ve already made your gift, thank you!

Suzanne Schlenger poses with a few volumes from her collection.

If a university and its people are dedicated to the pursuit of knowledge, there is perhaps nowhere on campus that more embodies that mission than the library. That is surely true here on UMBC’s campus. Much more than books on shelves, the Albin O. Kuhn Library and Gallery is an engine for discovery, providing our students and faculty with the resources and support they need on their academic journey.

This year, those resources grew thanks to Suzanne Schlenger. A member of the Friends of the Library since 2001, she recently established the Suzanne Schlenger Endowment for a Collection of American Women in Literature and donated a substantial set of books that will form the basis for this new collection.

The volumes, which now reside in UMBC’s Special Collections, include many works by Willa Cather and Edith Wharton, as well as a limited edition of Margaret Mitchell’s Gone With the Wind. The collection was built over many years, as Mrs. Schlenger and her late husband, Jack Schlenger, a lawyer and friend of Dr. Freeman Hrabowski, travelled the world looking for works by their favorite authors.

“My husband was a book collector and a reader,” she says. “I read everything he collected, and I wanted to collect books, too.” Mrs. Schlenger and her husband thoroughly enjoyed their search, which took them as far away as Europe. “I have a collector’s mind,” says Mrs. Schlenger. “This satisfies my love of books, my love of reading, and my love of collecting.”

Although Mrs. Schlenger could have opted to sell her books, she says that donating them to the library and establishing the endowment just felt right to her.  She sees this as an opportunity to ensure that the books are well used, and she is eager to see what research and scholarship comes out of her collection. “I wanted to pass [the collection] on to scholars,” she says. “I hope people come and read it.”

Left to right: Tom Beck, chief curator of AOK Library; Suzanne Schlenger; and Larry Wilt, former director of the AOK Library.

Her love for books and reading is clear. When asked about her favorite book in the collection, Mrs. Schlenger answers without pause: it’s Willa Cather’s My Antonia. She cites Antonia’s resilience as a key factor in her appreciation for the book. “[Cather] is an outstanding stylist,” says Mrs. Schlenger. “She writes sparely with such style, and she digs at your heart.”

And while Mrs. Schlenger’s books provide a critical base for the new collection of American women writers, the library staff will also be able to use the endowment she’s created to enrich and expand that collection in consultation with faculty from the English and Theatre Departments. This, Mrs. Schlenger hopes, will fill a void in the library and ensure a rich collection in years to come.

“I’ve seen UMBC grow, and through my husband’s enthusiasm for UMBC, I joined him in that,” says Mrs. Schlenger of her choice to invest her time, treasure, and talent in the university.

It’s that time of year again…the fiscal year, that is! And we’d like your help in meeting our giving goals for the end of it. For just $10 each month, you can help us maintain UMBC’s status as a hub for research, innovation, and undergraduate teaching:

• For the cost of a movie ticket, you could help send a student to an out-of-state research conference.
• For the cost of two soy lattes, you could contribute to one of our many need- and merit-based scholarship funds for undergraduates.
• For the cost of half a tank of gas, you could help update our classrooms with state-of-the-art equipment.
• For the cost of a dozen donuts, you could help fund undergraduate research grants and student initiatives.

Please consider donating by June 30, because even the smallest gift can be so powerful. Here’s how you can give today:

• ONLINE: You can either visit our crowd funding site to give to individual departments and initiatives, or our traditional giving site. Setting up a recurring gift is convenient, customizable, and environmentally friendly.

• BY CHECK: Please make checks payable to the UMBC Foundation and mail to UMBC Foundation, 1000 Hilltop Circle, Baltimore, MD 21250

Thank you in advance for your contribution!

Editor’s note: Here at UMBC, our students are the heartbeat of campus, and we are committed to providing them the best possible education. We’re 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 Department of Biological Sciences is proud to announce that they were able to continue to impact students last year by providing an exceptional education. This year the department hopes to continue with their impact on students.

Your financial support will help award scholarships, sponsor internships, and provide state-of-the-art equipment for our students.

Support the Department of Biological Sciences!

Editor’s note: Here at UMBC, our students are the heartbeat of campus, and we are committed to providing them the best possible education. We’re 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 Interdisciplinary Studies Program (INDS) is proud to have celebrated its 45th Anniversary this past year with over 1,200 students to have graduated with INDS degrees. The department hopes to continue their success and impact on future students by providing more and more opportunities.

Your gift to the Interdisciplinary Studies Program will help us continue to support student research and travel, sending students to present their research at national conferences, and develop new courses and curricula for our students.

Together, alumni of INDS can make a big difference in the future of UMBC. Please show your Retriever pride today by making a gift.

Support INDS today!

Every day, kids in Maryland are at risk. These are kids who slip through the cracks, kids who, if given appropriate and individualized support, can be successful. That problem is one that a team at UMBC is trying to address through the Choice Program. The program’s mission is two-fold: it strives to invoke change and inspiration into lives of Maryland’s at-risk youth, and it also helps recent UMBC graduates become agents of change in our community.

“Every child of any race needs that village, that community to support him or her,” says UMBC president Dr. Freeman Hrabowski. That village is what Choice tries to provide through initiatives like the Intensive Advocacy Program (IAP), which provides a cost-efficient and effective alternative to the incarceration of youth. Through this program Choice partners with the Department of Juvenile Services to provide services like around-the-clock crisis intervention, legal advocacy, curfew checks, and structural and educational activities. Additionally, the Choice Program strives to keep children out of foster care by preserving the family unit through intensive mediation and informal counseling.

Through a partnership with the Baltimore City Department of Social Services, the program provides parental support; links to individual, group, and family counseling; and educational support services such as school visits, attendance monitoring, and school visits.

Another initiative is the Choice Jobs Program, which gives teens and young adults real-world work experience at the Choice Program’s Flying Fruit Fantasy stand in Camden Yards, kiosk in the Inner Harbor, and cafe at the University of Baltimore Law School. In addition to on-the-job learning, Choice staff also provide participants with individual and group readiness training by teaching time management, job search and interviewing skills, and much more.

At the same time that these programs are providing much-needed support for Maryland’s at-risk youth, they’re also offering unique opportunities for UMBC graduates through the Choice Service Learning Fellowship.  The Fellowship provides young professionals a launching pad for their careers by way of a stipend, extensive training, and professional experience. Instead of a job, Fellows are given a chance to learn about the environment and lifestyles of Maryland youth and how to bridge the gap between community, education, and the corporate world.

“The Choice Program takes experiential learning to the next level,” says Choice Program director LaMar Davis. “Our Community Service Learning Fellows are effecting real and meaningful change to our communities, while learning and becoming the next change agents who will lead our state in the 21st Century.”

The Choice Program at UMBC is effecting real change in our community, and they need your help to continue their critical work.  Whether you give of your time and talent as a volunteer, or make a monetary donation to the program, your support will make a real and lasting impact on Maryland’s youth.

-Samantha Hanssen ’15

Learn about how you can support the Choice Program.

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 Economics Department is proud to announce that professor Scott Farrow was named economics coordinator for the Department of Homeland Security’s National Center on the Risk and Economic Analysis of Terrorism Events (CREATE). The department would also like to announce that professor Dennis Coates was chosen as editor of the Journal of Sports Economics, effective summer of 2015.

With your help, the Economics department can provide scholarships for economics and financial economics majors and supply new computers with the latest version of Stata, an econometric software.

Click here to donate.

The Media and Communication Studies Department is excited to share that last year the department awarded student scholarships and provided state-of-the-art equipment for classrooms.

With your help, the Media and Communication Studies Department can continue supporting these worthwhile initiatives and continue providing students a top-rate education.

To donate, click here.

The Political Science Department is thrilled to share that in the past year, the department funded student trips to national conferences and supported undergraduate and graduate research.

With your help, the Political Science department can continue supporting these worthwhile initiatives and providing students a top-rate education.

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 Education Department is proud to announce that Joan Shin ’99 M.A., instructional development systems, and ’08 Ph.D., language, literacy & culture, received the 2013 Ben Warren International House Trust Prize for her book Teaching Young Learners English. The department would also like to announce that Zane Berge, professor of education, won the Distance Education Book Award from the Association for Educational Communications and Technology.

With your help, the Education department can sustain an education student during the internship phase of their program and provide an education student with supplies and presentation material.

Click here to donate.

The English Department is thrilled to announce that it welcomed new faculty members with expertise in contemporary African-American literature, the Harlem Renaissance, digital humanities, sound studies, and poetry. The department would also like to announce that the new graduate program is doing amazing research, ranging from the sociolinguistic study of code switching in the African-American community to the exploration of the aesthetics and politics of fan fiction in online communities.

With your help, the English department can organize a trips for students to the Folger Shakespeare Library, the Walters Art Museum, and the Creative Alliance as well as host a speakers series for UMBC students and the public, bringing in talented creative writers and journalists from around the country.

To donate, click here.

The Department of Modern Languages, Linguistics & Intercultural Communication is proud to announce that Dr. Ana María Schwartz Caballero received the NFL Hispanic Heritage Leadership Award. The department would also like to announce that MLLI faculty and students were featured in Russia Beyond the Headlines and Voice of America; both articles covered the Russian Club’s star-studded evening of Russian song, cuisine, and fashion.

With your help, the Modern Languages, Linguistics & Intercultural Communication department can support activities of the Intercultural Living Exchange, fund study abroad scholarships, and award students for academic excellence.

Click here to donate.

The Philosophy Department is excited to share that in the past year the it has supported undergraduate and graduate research, awarded  scholarships, and funded student trips to national conferences.

With your help, the Philosophy department can continue supporting these worthwhile initiatives and continue providing students a top-rate education.

To donate, click here.