What is a Woolie?

Woolies are ambassadors for UMBC who help facilitate the Welcome, Retrievers! program for new students , acting as guides, mentors, and a resource during one of the most important transitions of a student's life. If you love UMBC and want to make a real difference for the incoming class, this is your opportunity.

What You'll Do

As a Woolie, you'll develop relationships with and encourage a group of 45–80 new students to engage with Welcome, Retrievers! events, serve as a resource throughout the first six weeks of the fall semester, and participate in training around topics relevant to welcoming new students to campus.

Day-to-day, that looks like:

• Playing icebreakers and creating community through small group time
• Giving campus and classroom tours and eating meals with new students
• Encouraging attendance at events like Commons Takeover, Involvement Fest, Big Breakfast and Bingo, and more
• Being a guide to the culture and nuance of UMBC

Who We're Looking For

We're looking for a diverse group of students who have a desire and the ability to work with people from various backgrounds, excellent communication skills, leadership potential, and a genuine desire to serve the UMBC community.

You're eligible if you: Are a current undergraduate student who has completed at least one semester at UMBC and are in good judicial, behavioral, and academic standing (minimum 2.5 cumulative GPA).

The Commitment

• Three (3) one hour virtual sessions: various times over summer
• Virtual outreach to new students : early August
• In-person training: August 19–22, 2026
• In Person Program: August 23 through September 1
• Weekly virtual outreach during the first 6 weeks of the fall semester
• Two hours of event support in September or October.

What You Get

Woolies receive a $750 stipend, all work-related meals during in-person training and program core dates, early move-in to fall housing with all early move-in fees waived (for on-campus residents), and free Welcome, Retrievers! apparel.

How to Apply

Applications open March 2 and close March 27 at 11:59 PM.

Questions? Reach out to welcomeretrievers@umbc.edu

The Fall 2026 schedule was released on Monday, 3/23 and INDS advising appointments started on 3/24. Make sure to schedule your advising appointment if you haven't already done so! It is recommended that you receive advising clearance prior to your registration appointment, which you can find in your myUMBC profile, to ensure you are able to enroll in your courses at your registration time. 

Here are the links to schedule your appointment:

Schedule with Holly Cudzilo

Schedule with Carrie Sauter              

Schedule first available appointment 

Apply to present your research or creative work at URCAD by Monday!

Come celebrate URCAD's 30th anniversary on April 22, 2026! 

The event will be moving to a bigger space in the RAC… how do you see your work being presented there? 

Posters, oral talks, films, exhibits, and performances are welcome. URCAD is open to all majors and group projects are accepted. You can present your capstone, Honors thesis, REU research, or you can be unaffiliated with a scholars program. 

Applications to present mentored research or creative work are due by February 23rd and require a 200-word abstract and mentor approval. See you at the RAC as we showcase UMBC student research and art and throwback to where it all began in the 90s!

Questions? Email: aprilh@umbc.edu

Laila is a Biological Sciences major. Most recently, she completed a summer research fellowship at Duke University School of Medicine through the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) Summer Undergraduate Research Program (SURP).

Mentors: Dr. Chantell Evans in the Department of Cell Biology at Duke SOM.

Title of your research project: Mitochondrial Stress Remodels TFAM Organization in Primary H

What research experiences have you had? (focus on most recent)

I began my research journey as a freshman in 2022 at the University of Maryland

Baltimore, School of Medicine in the Kelly Lab, where I was introduced to neurobiology

and neurodegenerative research. Since then, I have continued working in translational

neuroscience across multiple labs, including the Parker Lab at UMSOM and currently the

Wolff Lab at UMSOM.

Most recently, I completed a summer research fellowship at Duke University School of

Medicine through the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) Summer Undergraduate

Research Program (SURP). In the Evans Lab (Department of Cell Biology), I studied

mitochondrial DNA integrity in primary neurons, specifically investigating how cellular

stress remodels endogenous TFAM puncta using confocal microscopy and 3D image

analysis.

Across these labs, I have gained experience in rodent colony management, transcardial

perfusions, embryonic microinjections, vibratome and cryosectioning, primary

hippocampal neuron culture, immunocytochemistry, and confocal microscopy. I have

applied machine-learning–based behavioral analysis (SLEAP), curated large behavioral

datasets, and implemented Python/Conda workflows for scalable analysis. These

cumulative experiences have strengthened my interest in translational neuroscience and

mechanistic disease research.

How did you find the research opportunity?

I discovered the HHMI SURP opportunity through UMBC’s pre-med/pre-dental online

community in April. I applied shortly after and was thrilled to be accepted in May.

Who is your mentor for your research, scholarship, or artistic project? (give full

name and department) How did you arrange to work with this person?

My principal investigator was Dr. Chantell Evans in the Department of Cell Biology at

Duke SOM. I also worked closely with graduate student mentor Olivia Conway.

After being accepted into the HHMI SURP program, I was matched with Dr. Evans’s lab

based on my research interests. From the beginning, Dr. Evans and her lab created an

incredibly supportive and intellectually stimulating environment.

Do you get course credit for this work? Paid? How much time do you put into it?

This summer fellowship was fully funded by HHMI, and I was fortunate enough to have

received $12k over the course of three months. I worked full-time in the lab throughout

the summer, dedicating approximately 40 hours per week to experiments, lab meetings,

and weekly virtual HHMI programming.

What academic background did you have before you started?

At the time, I was a junior/rising senior majoring in Biology.

How did you learn what you needed to know to be successful in this project?

HHMI SURP provided weekly seminars covering both scientific topics and professional

development, including how to present research effectively. Within the lab, I learned

hands-on through mentorship, troubleshooting experiments, reading primary literature,

and asking questions constantly. The lab culture emphasized curiosity and persistence.

My mentors modeled what it looks like to approach research not with fear of failure, but

with excitement about discovery.

What was the hardest part about your research?

The hardest part was not mastering technical skills.. it was developing grit.

Experiments don’t always work the first time. Cells don’t always stain correctly. Imaging

parameters sometimes need to be completely re-optimized. Early on, that unpredictability

felt frustrating.

One of the staff scientists, Dr. Lola Kalejaiye, often reminded me that it’s called

“research” for a reason — you must keep re-searching. She genuinely found joy in

troubleshooting and refining experiments. Over time, I began to understand that

persistence and patience are the true foundations of scientific growth. Learning to

embrace that process was the most challenging, and most valuable lesson.

What was the most unexpected thing?

How much I loved it.

This experience solidified my desire to pursue an MD-PhD rather than solely an MD. I

found deep fulfillment not only in conducting experiments, but in asking mechanistic

questions about disease and working toward translational impact.

How does this research experience relate to your work in other classes?

As a Biology major, my research directly connects to concepts I’ve learned in cell

biology, genetics, and molecular biology courses. Seeing mitochondrial dynamics,

transcriptional regulation, and cellular stress pathways play out in real experiments

reinforced and deepened my classroom learning.

What is your advice to other students about getting involved in research?

Believe in yourself before anything else.

You must believe you belong in scientific spaces.. even before you feel “ready.”

Opportunities often come from putting yourself forward and being willing to learn. Every

researcher starts somewhere. Confidence, curiosity, and resilience matter just as much as

prior experience. Send the email. Apply to the program. Ask the question. Growth

follows initiative.

What are your career goals?

I plan to pursue an MD-PhD with hopes to specialize in transplant medicine, particularly

end stage kidney disease in diabetic patients. As someone deeply invested in both clinical

medicine and biomedical research, I hope to bridge mechanistic discovery with patient-

centered innovation.

What else are you involved in on campus?

I am involved in the Muslim Student Association (MSA) and the Egyptian Student

Association at UMBC. I have also previously volunteered with Hearts for the Homeless.

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