From UMBC to Costa Rica
Just a few months after graduating from UMBC, Justine Wagner, Spanish and economics ’04, traveled to Costa Rica on a Fulbright Research Award.
Wagner conducted research for a study on the effects of government social spending on poverty at the Institute of Economic Science Research of the University of Costa Rica with Professor Juan Diego Trejos, who has worked with UMBC Professor of Economics and Wagner’s mentor, Tim Gindling.
As part of her award, Wagner also had the opportunity to attend a Fulbright Enhancement Seminar in Honduras, where Fulbright Scholars studying in Central America presented their research. “The seminar was really the capstone of the whole experience; it was great to meet with other young scholars and discuss our work,” said Wagner.
At UMBC, Wagner took advantage of the many opportunities available to support research by undergraduates. As a sophomore, she spent a semester at the University of Granada. In her junior year, she began working with Gindling on his research on minimum wages in Costa Rica and received a Provost’s Undergraduate Research Award, which she used to travel to Costa Rica in order to collect data, talk with government policy makers and meet Costa Rica researchers. It was on this visit that she first met Trejos. Wagner then presented her work at Undergraduate Research and Creative Achievement Day in her senior year, and published in an article in the 2005 UMBC Review.
Wagner said that her experiences at UMBC were invaluable and that she received a great deal of support. “The community of faculty and staff at UMBC want to see the best for every student,” she added.
“Justine was an excellent research partner,” said Gindling, who has received two Fulbright Fellowships to conduct research and teach in Costa Rica. “She has the ability to both work well with others and also the initiative to take a research problem and solve it on her own. The combination of fluent Spanish and knowledge of economics was especially valuable for our research project and for her ability to obtain the Fulbright Fellowship.”
Wagner is now using her skills and experience in economics at the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division, where she is a research analyst, but she is also interested in applying her interest in language and international affairs in a graduate program.
(11/14/05)
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Light for All
The science of light – photonics – is as ubiquitous as oxygen in today’s technology driven world. Go to the grocery store, make a phone call, listen to a CD or watch a movie on DVD and odds are photonics made it possible.
Anthony Johnson , director of UMBC’s Center for Advanced Studies in Photonics Research (CASPR) is not only focused on pushing the boundaries of research in his field, but is also determined to increase the number of underrepresented minorities in the sciences.
CASPR, which began with a 2002 NASA grant, is an interdisciplinary center, partnering with UMBC’s Departments of Physics; Computer Science and Electrical Engineering; Mathematics and Statistics; and Chemical and Biochemical Engineering. A current CASPR goal is to partner with photonics faculty in Mechanical Engineering, Chemistry and Biological Sciences.
Johnson, one of the most respected researchers in his field and a past president of the Optical Society of America, has longtime connections to UMBC that helped bring him to campus. Johnson got his start at the famous Bell Laboratories, where he was in the same Cooperative Research Fellowship Program as UMBC Graduate School Associate Dean Janet Rutledge.
Soon after CASPR’s funding was announced, Rutledge, along with Curtis Menyuk and Gary Carter—UMBC photonics experts and longtime colleagues of Johnson—encouraged him to consider leading the new center.
“I really liked what I saw at UMBC,” said Johnson. “There was a strong photonics effort, plus the opportunity to do things I enjoy most—working with students and mentoring while doing industrial collaboration in an academic setting.”
He also liked UMBC’s track record of increasing the number of minorities and women in the sciences. “I wanted to translate the model of the Meyerhoff Program’s success in biomedical sciences to the physical sciences and engineering,” said Johnson. “In addition to world-class research, I really would like to foster that kind of environment in the physical sciences and engineering and spearhead it through CASPR.”
Johnson knows firsthand the uphill battle minorities in the sciences face. “In 1981 when I received my Ph.D. in physics, there were roughly 1,000 physics doctorates granted in the country,” he said. “Of those, only four went to African-Americans and I was one of the four.”
According to Johnson, those paltry numbers have not changed much in the decades since. Out of about 1,000 physics Ph.D.’s awarded annually in the U.S., an average of just 10 to 15 go to African Americans, and only about 20 to Hispanic Americans.
The numbers don’t improve at the faculty level. “Out of the nearly 5000 full-time physics faculty at 186 U.S. Ph.D. producing institutions, there are only about 38 African American physics faculty in the nation right now. I just couldn’t believe it was that low.” [Source: 2000 Physics Academic Workforce – American Institute of Physics]
Under Johnson’s leadership, CASPR is already becoming a magnet for talented women and minority researchers. Elaine Lalanne, Ph.D., an assistant research scientist at CASPR, received her doctorate in 2003 from NJIT and was very likely the only African American female to receive a physics PhD in the country that year.
Johnson is a firm believer in taking his dedication on the road and into the community. Each year he logs thousands of miles traveling cross country and across the globe to locations like Italy and Ghana to connect with fellow researchers, educators and most importantly, to demonstrate science to young people.
He is the principal investigator of “Hands-On Optics: Making an Impact with Light,” a K-12 educational outreach partnership that includes the Optical Society of America and the National Science Foundation. This past summer, he hosted an optics and laser demonstration for middle school girls from ESTEEM, a UMBC Center for Women and Information Technology-affiliated program.
Johnson is on the road a lot in his personal life as well, as he still lives in New Jersey and drives home for the weekends to be with his wife, Adrienne Johnson, Ph.D. The Johnsons have three children, one of whom, Brandon, is a sophomore mechanical engineering major and Meyerhoff Scholar at UMBC.
A portion of the NASA funds were used to build a CASPR Ultrafast Optics & Optoelectronics Research & Teaching Facility for Johnson’s research group. His group is doing research on a variety of future-looking technologies, including the interesting optical properties of carbon nanotubes, high-speed optical switching for telecommunications, improving quality control for fiber optic manufacturers and research in optical limiting for proposed experimental eyewear for the U.S. Department of Defense.
But the project that Johnson and CASPR are most eagerly awaiting news about is UMBC’s participation in Mid-Infrared Technology for Health and the Environment (MIRTHE). The $17 million NSF Engineering Research Center proposal teams CASPR and UMBC with co-investigators at Princeton University (lead institution), The Johns Hopkins University, Rice University, Texas A&M University and the City University of New York.
“Of 110 pre-proposals submitted to NSF, our team has made it to the final nine proposals and is a strong competitor to make the final cut to four funded proposals,” Johnson said. “This would be a major engineering center at UMBC if we are selected. We are incredibly excited about the future of CASPR.”
(11/1/05)
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Helping Women Achieve Their Potential
UMBC’s array of programs that empower women to be both successful students and successful professionals has been recognized for the second year in a row by CosmoGIRL! magazine’s guide to the 50 best colleges for girls. Featured in the magazine’s October 2005 issue, the guide also includes such institutions as Amherst College; Brown University; Duke University; MIT; Stanford University; the University of California, Berkeley; and the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill.
“We’re confident that the girls who go [to UMBC] are given the opportunity to see other women being innovative thinkers and successful leaders, and that these students will, in turn, follow in their footsteps and become the powerhouses of tomorrow,” said CosmoGIRL!’s Editor-in-Chief, Susan Schulz.
In compiling the list for its readership of young women ages 12 through 17, editors at CosmoGIRL! consulted admissions officers and guidance counselors across the country to determine the kind of environment that gives girls the best chance of success in school and after graduation. These key factors include prominent female role models on campus, strong women’s sports programs, outstanding technology and entrepreneurship programs, excellence in internship and job placements and effective alumni networks.
UMBC impressed the magazine’s editors with a variety of programs that empower women. UMBC’s Women’s Studies Program, which emphasizes the importance of historical, cross-cultural and international perspectives, recently added certificate programs for undergraduate and graduate students. The Women’s Studies Coordinating Committee worked with the Office of Student Affairs to develop Women Involved in Learning and Leadership (WILL) , which engages the campus in a learning community that promotes academic excellence, leadership development, career exploration and civic engagement on women’s issues. The University’s Women’s Center provides programs that support women’s academic and intellectual growth, professional development and personal empowerment.
Other innovative programs that help women achieve their potential include the Center for Women and Information Technology (CWIT), dedicated to achieving women’s full participation in all aspects of information technology (IT), while the Imaging Research Center (IRC), specializing in high-end computer animation and visualization, offers both undergraduate and graduate students the opportunity to work on professional projects with clients such as the Baltimore Museum of Art, PBS and the Discovery Channel. Through UMBC’s Alex. Brown Center for Entrepreneurship, students can gain targeted expertise through internships, test their skills through competitions, accelerate a business concept through the Idea Lab, and attend courses and lectures tailored to spark their entrepreneurial spirit.
In addition, UMBC is one of only 16 schools in the country chosen by the National Science Foundation to sponsor an ADVANCE program designed to support the recruitment and advancement of women faculty in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM).
Programs that help women prepare for success after graduation include the UMBC Alumni Association’s popular “Backpack to Briefcase” program, which offers students the opportunity to network with the University’s alumni. UMBC’s Career Services Center and Shriver Center offer internship and coop placement, as well as other programs that help students make a successful transition from UMBC to the workforce.
(10/24/05)
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Celebrating an Innovative Environment for Learning & Research
The Robert and Jane Meyerhoff Chemistry Building dedication will take place at 2 p.m. on Friday, October 21. The entire campus community is invited to the event, which will begin in the University Center Plaza and includes a ribbon-cutting, plaque dedication and reception.
When UMBC renames its newly renovated chemistry and biochemistry building as the Robert and Jane Meyerhoff Chemistry Building on October 21, the campus will celebrate both a transforming philanthropy and an innovative training center for the next generation of chemists and biochemists.
The chemistry building renovations benefit all UMBC chemistry and biochemistry students and faculty. “The renovations bring world class, state-of-the-art instructional and research laboratories to undergraduate and graduate students,” said Ralph Pollack, chair and professor of UMBC’s chemistry and biochemistry department. “We’re especially pleased that the new laboratories’ layouts allow for improved safety and increased interaction between students and faculty.”
The building design encourages communication, mentoring and shared research through flexible, interconnected laboratory spaces for research, clustered faculty offices, a tutorial center, space for small discussion and problem solving groups and a bridge connecting students and faculty with life sciences colleagues in the Department of Biological Sciences. The facility houses state-of-the-art teaching laboratories and outstanding research and teaching instrumentation, such as a new mass spectrometry facility, a laser laboratory and a suite of nuclear magnetic resonance spectrometers.
With the renaming of the chemistry building, the University honors the Meyerhoffs for founding the Meyerhoff Scholarship Program at UMBC in 1988 to address the under-representation of African American men in the sciences and engineering.
Since then the program has produced nearly 600 graduates who are minorities or are dedicated to advancing representation of minorities in the sciences, literally changing the face of science in America. Program graduates go on in large numbers to the country’s most prestigious graduate and professional schools, placing UMBC among the top predominantly white institutions nationally in producing minority bachelor’s degree recipients who go on to earn a Ph.D.
Similar achievements have been made among chemistry and biochemistry students and alumni broadly. The department has been ranked among the top 25 producers of chemistry undergraduates of all backgrounds. Paula Grabowski ’76, now a biology professor at University of Pittsburgh, is a Howard Hughes Medical Investigator, and her husband, Joe Grabowski ‘78, heads Pitt’s National Science Foundation Research Program for Undergraduates. More than 50 of UMBC’s chemistry and biochemistry graduates and postdocs have gone onto faculty positions at institutions including Harvard, Yale, Penn, UC-Davis, Virginia Tech and the Universities of Connecticut, Delaware, Massachusetts and Tennessee.
These achievements would not be possible without the University’s outstanding chemistry and biochemistry faculty, who are devoted to both teaching and research. Their scientific and scholarly achievements attract almost $5 million in funding per year, resulting in many opportunities for students to participate in undergraduate research in their labs and to gain exposure to cutting-edge science in their classrooms.
The Robert and Jane Meyerhoff Chemistry Building dedication will take place at 2 p.m. on Friday, October 21. The entire campus community is invited to the event, which will begin in the University Center Plaza and includes a ribbon-cutting, plaque dedication and reception.
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Creating Clockwork Crab
Mechanical engineering major Arthur Gould is proudly checking out his Clockwork Crab, part of Baltimore’s Crabtown Project, when a group of Red Hat Society ladies stop to look at the unusual black and white creature hanging out by Key Highway just behind the outdoor trapeze school. When they find out Gould is the artist, they ask to have their picture taken with Clockwork Crab.
Baltimoreans and tourists have enjoyed looking at the 200 fiberglass crab sculptures since they began appearing in May. But while the Crabtown Project is a benefit for Baltimore City’s Believe in Our Schools fund, Clockwork Crab also represents UMBC’s goal to explore interdisciplinary opportunities for its students. It’s a University where a mechanical engineering major can win an art contest open to students regardless of major and show off his talent to the people of Baltimore and beyond.
“What’s great about UMBC is that there are opportunities to create art even if you aren’t an art major,” said Symmes Gardner, director of UMBC’s Center for Art and Visual Culture. “We opened the contest to design UMBC’s crab to all students, and asked participants to create a design using education at UMBC as a theme. Arthur’s idea was fun and really stood out.”
“I liked the idea of combining my major and the artistic aspects of the project,” said Gould, who admits he is not a fan of the spicy crabs many Baltimoreans look forward to eating each summer. “Engineering has artistic elements too. You have to design and solve problems, and think outside of the box. I enjoy the interdisciplinary opportunities at UMBC and the fact that the arts are open to everyone — I can join the visual arts listserv and art clubs and meet art majors.”
In November, the Crabtown Project crabs will be auctioned off, with proceeds going to the Believe Our Schools Foundation, so be sure to check out Gould’s Clockwork Crab (#23) at the Inner Harbor, just east of the Maryland Science Center. A map is available at www.crabtown.org.
(10/3/04)
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Writing UMBC’s Next Chapter
Providing a distinctive undergraduate experience and supporting faculty development and research are an important part of UMBC’s strategic planning process. Two significant steps to enhancing these goals are the recent reorganization of the College of Arts and Sciences into two new colleges:the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences and the College of Natural and Mathematical Sciences, and the creation of the Office of Undergraduate Education. These changes also will expand scholarship, research and creative achievement experiences for both students and faculty.
Overseeing these new entities are Diane Lee, dean and vice provost of undergraduate education; John W. Jeffries, dean of the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences; and Geoffrey P. Summers, dean of the College of Natural and Mathematical Sciences. Here, the three new deans discuss their priorities for the coming year.
Diane Lee, Dean and Vice Provost of Undergraduate Education, Office of Undergraduate Education
With the creation of the Office of Undergraduate Education, Lee hopes to find new opportunities for collaboration across campus. “We want to bring people together in order to strengthen the undergraduate experience and provide an honors experience to every undergraduate.” said Lee. The Office of Undergraduate Education connects with offices and departments on issues and initiatives such as First-Year Seminars, the Introduction to an Honors University seminar, New Student Book Experience, Campus Connect and undergraduate research, including Undergraduate Research and Creative Achievement Day, Undergraduate Research Awards and UMBC Review The office is also involved with other programs that promote student academic achievement and take a proactive approach to student engagement.
The Office of Undergraduate Education is now responsible for evaluating student academic affairs issues across all of the colleges that cannot be satisfactorily resolved at the department level, a role formerly handled in the college offices. “This change will assure consistency in how policies and rules are enforced, monitored and communicated across campus,” said Lee. In addition, the Learning Resource Center, which provides critical tutoring and other academic support to students, became a part of the office.
A major priority for the office is to work with undergraduate program directors and the General Education Committee in preparation for a fall 2006 launch of the new GFRs. The office is also focused on the development of an academic integrity tutorial and online tracking systems.
John W. Jeffries, Dean, College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences (CAHSS)
A major priority for Jeffries for the academic year is examining whether his college should be further subdivided, and he has appointed a committee to study what would be in the best interests of the University. “This is not just an issue for the college but ultimately for the entire campus,” said Jeffries. “We plan to invite college faculty and staff and then the UMBC community to discuss this issue in a variety of venues. The process will be accessible and transparent, and we will continue to keep everyone informed as it progresses.”
Other important priorities for the college include raising the visibility and financial support for CAHSS departments and programs, addressing the need for additional full-time faculty, and enhancing recognition and support of the important research conducted by UMBC faculty in the arts, the humanities and the social sciences.
Geoffrey P. Summers, Dean, College of Natural and Mathematical Sciences (CNMS)
Summers hopes to raise visibility of both the CNMS departments’ graduate and undergraduate programs. One priority is to create two advisory boards, one consisting exclusively of CNMS alumni and the other for leaders in industry and government. The purpose of these boards is to increase opportunities for these groups to connect with the college, to find new internship and employment opportunities for students, and new research opportunities and resources for faculty. Additional faculty and research foci are also goals for the college, in addition to finding ways to attract more outstanding undergraduate and graduate students to UMBC.
Summers added that CNMS is considering new interdisciplinary programs that connect the life sciences to the quantitative sciences, such as biophysics. “With a smaller college, the commonality among disciplines will be more apparent than in the past,” said Summers, who said that he would also like the college to address K-12 teacher training in the sciences by participating actively in the ongoing initiatives on campus.
Read more about the reorganization in Insights online. Watch Insights and the UMBC homepage for future updates.
(9/26/05)
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Homeland Security for H20
It’s a post-9-11 scenario that most homeland security experts agree is not a matter of if but when: a “dirty bomb” attack in the United States.
Technically known as radiation dispersal devices or RDDs, dirty bombs combine conventional explosives with radioactive material, most likely cesium or cobalt stolen or scavenged from medical or industrial use. Often confused by the public with nuclear weapons, a dirty bomb’s primary impact is psychological, since while they could render an entire city block uninhabitable for quite some time, overall damage would be limited beyond that area.
Like many scientists since 9/11, Brian E. Reed, William and Lillian Hackerman Chair of Engineering and Chair of UMBC’s Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE), has studied how his field can contribute to homeland security. Reed has recently studied a serious side effect of dirty bombs: the toxic trickledown effect on the environment and water supply in the aftermath of an attack.
“If an RDD attack happened in our region, first responders would use water to extinguish fires and control dust at a detonation site, and the contaminants could ultimately end up in the Chesapeake Bay watershed,” said Reed. “The public health and environmental impact would vary depending on the type and potency of the attack, but the mass psychological impact would be significant, requiring a focused and immediate response.”
Reed realized that many available advanced technologies for cleaning up and limiting damage by dirty bombs were too complex and expensive to be practical in an emergency. He found that adsorbents – materials that cause the molecules of liquids, gases, and dissolved substances to adhere to the surfaces of solids – offered a more robust response and easier disposal of contaminants.
Under a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency grant, Reed and his graduate students are testing adsorbent materials in CEE laboratories located at UMBC’s Technology Research Center (TRC).
CEE is part of a growing cluster of collaborative environmental research entities headquartered at UMBC, including the Center for Urban Environmental Research and Education (CUERE) (led by CEE colleague Claire Welty) and the Baltimore Ecosystem Study (BES).
A native of Buffalo, NY, Reed came to UMBC in 2002 from the University of Missouri-Columbia to help build on the success of department founder the late Dr. Severino “Bino” Koh and Reed’s CEE colleague Jack Gwo, a challenge that has him energized.
“It’s a great chance to build a new department that is not constrained by how civil and environmental engineering departments have operated in the past,” Reed said. “Our goal is to produce a different type of environmental engineer – one who is able to work closely with scientists and policy professionals in solving the complex environmental problems facing the nation. Working closely with CUERE, BES and departments such as geography and environmental systems gives our students a much broader outlook on how environmental problems are addressed.”
(9/12/05)
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A New Look for UMBC’s Homepage
Update: Stepping Back and Looking Forward
(9/8/05)Okay, we heard you, and here are ways you said the new UMBC homepage and website could be improved:
- Launch both together;
- Improve design to reflect UMBC’s energy and quality;
- Use more campus photos, similar to the new About UMBC;
- Make myUMBC a more prominent homepage link;
- Consider vertical scrolling layout;
- Study peers and competitors;
- Tighten programming to adhere to contemporary web standards.
So, we’re stepping back and will launch a new UMBC web presence in Summer 2006—homepage and all. We’ve turned off comments to the original story below, but if you’d like to learn what we plan to do (and offer new comments) click here. Future updates will appear on the Webteam blog and be linked to About This Site on the current homepage.
In late September, UMBC’s homepage will have a brand new design. While the existing navigation and features will not change, the new homepage will have a fresher look and more information about University events and news, as well as photos of the campus. This week, we’re providing a sneak preview of the new homepage at http://www.umbc.edu/index_new.html and an opportunity for the campus community to submit comments at www.umbc.edu/oit/webdev/news.
Designed by Jim Lord ‘99, associate director of creative services, the homepage is the result of conversations between eMedia, the University’s interdepartmental Web team, and the campus community. These conversations were the first phase of discussions with the UMBC community about a redesign of the entire UMBC Web site—including site structure, navigation, consistency and content—that will take place over the next 2005-06 academic year.
The new homepage includes expanded Campus Life and What’s New sections, and photos that promote upcoming events and highlight the campus, in response to comments from the UMBC community that the site should be more welcoming and include more campus images and information that supports the University’s many events and accomplishments. There’s also a new About UMBC site—designed by Michelle Jordan ’93, interactive designer and Jim Lord—with resources for both internal and external audiences, including facts, recent achievements and information on campus governance and administration.
“With the new homepage design and the upcoming site-wide redesign, we hope to improve the quality of content for our users, from facts to features that tell the UMBC story,”said Eleanor Lewis, assistant director of online information, who oversees content development and management for UMBC’s site. “I see my job as a partnership with members of the UMBC community, working closely with them so that I can provide up-to-date information and promote their events and achievements throughout our Web site.”
A similar redesign is occurring with myUMBC, the campus Web portal, to better serve current students, faculty and staff. Launched in 1999, myUMBC was one of the first generation campus portals in higher education. But the site needs a new technical infrastructure to support current and future needs, so the Office of Information Technology will be releasing a working beta version on or around September 19, and plans to launch a new myUMBC by the spring ’06 semester.
“College and university Web sites are challenging because they have to serve internal members of the community who know their institution better than many prospective, external users who don’t,”said John Fritz, director of New Media Learning & Development, and a member of the original Web teams that launched UMBC’s main site and portal. “We’re trying to redesign how all users experience UMBC’s Web presence.”
To help, Fritz and OIT have hired Jackie Ward as UMBC’s first-ever campus Web architect (and full-time Web employee). Ward will have lead responsibility for managing the top-level organization, navigation, usability and content management policies of the University’s main Web site and portal, informed by Web steering and advisory committees consisting of selected campus departments or stakeholders. She will also serve as the primary support staff member for departmental web developers to provide guidance, training and support to help improve their sites.
If you did not participate in our previous discussions about UMBC’s Web site or portal, there are still opportunities to provide input, and we’d love to hear from you. OIT and OIA are launching a UMBC Webteam blog where you can comment about the redesign of each site throughout the year. Alternately, you can send e-mail to webteam@umbc.edu.
(8/30/05)
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Homeland Security for H20
It’s a post-9-11 scenario that most homeland security experts agree is not a matter of if but when: a “dirty bomb” attack in the United States.
Technically known as radiation dispersal devices or RDDs, dirty bombs combine conventional explosives with radioactive material, most likely cesium or cobalt stolen or scavenged from medical or industrial use. Often confused by the public with nuclear weapons, a dirty bomb’s primary impact is psychological, since while they could render an entire city block uninhabitable for quite some time, overall damage would be limited beyond that area.
Like many scientists since 9/11, Brian E. Reed, William and Lillian Hackerman Chair of Engineering and Chair of UMBC’s Civil and Environmental Engineering (CEE) Department, has studied how his field can contribute to homeland security. Reed has recently studied a serious side effect of dirty bombs: the toxic trickledown effect on the environment and water supply in the aftermath of an attack.
“If an RDD attack happened in our region, first responders would use water to extinguish fires and control dust at a detonation site, and the contaminants could ultimately end up in the Chesapeake Bay watershed,” said Reed. “The public health and environmental impact would vary depending on the type and potency of the attack, but the mass psychological impact would be significant, requiring a focused and immediate response.”
Reed realized that many available advanced technologies for cleaning up and limiting damage by dirty bombs were too complex and expensive to be practical in an emergency. He found that adsorbents materials that cause the molecules of liquids, gases, and dissolved substances to adhere to the surfaces of solids offered a more robust response and easier disposal of contaminants.
Under a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency grant, Reed and his graduate students are testing adsorbent materials in CEE laboratories located at UMBC’s Technology Research Center (TRC).
The civil and environmental engineering department (CEE) is part of a growing cluster of collaborative environmental research entities headquartered at UMBC, including the Center for Urban Environmental Research and Education (CUERE) (led by CEE colleague Claire Welty) and the Baltimore Ecosystem Study (BES).
A native of Buffalo, NY, Reed came to UMBC in 2002 from the University of Missouri-Columbia to help build on the success of department founder the late Dr. Severino “Bino” Koh and Reed’s CEE colleague Dr. Jack Gwo, a challenge that has him energized.
“It’s a great chance to build a new department that is not constrained by how civil and environmental engineering departments have operated in the past,” Reed said. “Our goal is to produce a different type of environmental engineer – one who is able to work closely with scientists and policy professionals in solving the complex environmental problems facing the nation. Working closely with CUERE, BES and departments such as geography and environmental systems gives our students a much broader outlook on how environmental problems are addressed.”
(9/12/05)
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A New Look for UMBC’s Homepage
Update: Stepping Back and Looking Forward
(9/8/05)Okay, we heard you, and here are ways you said the new UMBC homepage and website could be improved:
- Launch both together;
- Improve design to reflect UMBC’s energy and quality;
- Use more campus photos, similar to the new About UMBC;
- Make myUMBC a more prominent homepage link;
- Consider vertical scrolling layout;
- Study peers and competitors;
- Tighten programming to adhere to contemporary web standards.
So, we’re stepping back and will launch a new UMBC web presence in Summer 2006—homepage and all. We’ve turned off comments to the original story below, but if you’d like to learn what we plan to do (and offer new comments) click here. Future updates will appear on the Webteam blog and be linked to About This Site on the current homepage.
In late September, UMBC’s homepage will have a brand new design. While the existing navigation and features will not change, the new homepage will have a fresher look and more information about University events and news, as well as photos of the campus. This week, we’re providing a sneak preview of the new homepage at http://www.umbc.edu/index_new.html and an opportunity for the campus community to submit comments at www.umbc.edu/oit/webdev/news.
Designed by Jim Lord ‘99, associate director of creative services, the homepage is the result of conversations between eMedia, the University’s interdepartmental Web team, and the campus community. These conversations were the first phase of discussions with the UMBC community about a redesign of the entire UMBC Web site—including site structure, navigation, consistency and content—that will take place over the next 2005-06 academic year.
The new homepage includes expanded Campus Life and What’s New sections, and photos that promote upcoming events and highlight the campus, in response to comments from the UMBC community that the site should be more welcoming and include more campus images and information that supports the University’s many events and accomplishments. There’s also a new About UMBC site—designed by Michelle Jordan ’93, interactive designer and Jim Lord—with resources for both internal and external audiences, including facts, recent achievements and information on campus governance and administration.
“With the new homepage design and the upcoming site-wide redesign, we hope to improve the quality of content for our users, from facts to features that tell the UMBC story,”said Eleanor Lewis, assistant director of online information, who oversees content development and management for UMBC’s site. “I see my job as a partnership with members of the UMBC community, working closely with them so that I can provide up-to-date information and promote their events and achievements throughout our Web site.”
A similar redesign is occurring with myUMBC, the campus Web portal, to better serve current students, faculty and staff. Launched in 1999, myUMBC was one of the first generation campus portals in higher education. But the site needs a new technical infrastructure to support current and future needs, so the Office of Information Technology will be releasing a working beta version on or around September 19, and plans to launch a new myUMBC by the spring ’06 semester.
“College and university Web sites are challenging because they have to serve internal members of the community who know their institution better than many prospective, external users who don’t,”said John Fritz, director of New Media Learning & Development, and a member of the original Web teams that launched UMBC’s main site and portal. “We’re trying to redesign how all users experience UMBC’s Web presence.”
To help, Fritz and OIT have hired Jackie Ward as UMBC’s first-ever campus Web architect (and full-time Web employee). Ward will have lead responsibility for managing the top-level organization, navigation, usability and content management policies of the University’s main Web site and portal, informed by Web steering and advisory committees consisting of selected campus departments or stakeholders. She will also serve as the primary support staff member for departmental web developers to provide guidance, training and support to help improve their sites.
If you did not participate in our previous discussions about UMBC’s Web site or portal, there are still opportunities to provide input, and we’d love to hear from you. OIT and OIA are launching a UMBC Webteam blog where you can comment about the redesign of each site throughout the year. Alternately, you can send e-mail to webteam@umbc.edu.
(8/30/05)
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