An exciting aspect of college is the opportunity to take on a leadership role in activities/programs/initiatives that you love. By doing so, you will make a difference in the UMBC community, forge everlasting relationships, and add new, advantageous skills to your resume.
Read on to learn about a few of the countless leadership opportunities UMBC offers.
Note: Expect that some organizations, leadership positions, and jobs will be structured differently due to the virtual nature of our campus community at this time.
Join a Student Organization
Whether a club sport or a sorority/fraternity, you are bound to implement and gain leadership skills, while also becoming part of a supportive family! Serving on an organization's executive board will allow you to enact skills that you will need in the workforce and help you initiate positive changes on campus or in the community. Check out this link for a full list of our incredibly diverse organizations.
Get a Campus Job
Put some extra money in your pocket, and extra skills on your resume. Most student positions promote leadership, teamwork, and responsibility. Log in to your UMBCworks to find open positions.
Still don’t know where to start? Let me give you a hand
Join forces with the SGA! As an undergrad student you’re already a part of the SGA, you might as well assume a role and work hand-in-hand with faculty to implement the change you want to see! The 2021-2022 candidate application is open now.
Campus residents stand up and get involved with the Resident Student Associate (RSA)! UMBC is not just your school, it is your home. Engage with residential life staff to make the most out of your on-campus living experience. Email umbcrsaexec@umbc.edu to find out ways to get involved.
Orientation Peer Advisor (OPA) – Be a part of a close-knit team of students who welcome new students and their families to campus during the summer and winter terms during New Student Orientation.
Welcome Week Leaders (Woolies) – As part of the Woolie team you will serve as a resource to all incoming students during Welcome Week, supporting students in their transition to campus and helping them connect to events and upcoming opportunities.
IHU Peer Facilitator & Academic Peer Advocates – IHU Peer Facilitators are an integral part of all Introduction to an Honor’s University (IHU) courses, assisting instructors in course preparation, lesson implementation and serving as a resource to students throughout their time in the course. The Academic Peer Advocate (APA) Program pairs incoming first-time, full-time, degree-seeking undergraduate students with trained and compassionate peers dedicated to providing individualized support during their transition to college. Apply to these positions here. Application opens next week through March 16th at noon!
Become a part of the Grit Guides team through the Office of Undergraduate Admissions. Whether as a student assistant or a tour guide, this position allows you to work with prospective students and share your passion for UMBC! Email Gina Ralston (gralston@umbc.edu) for more information.
Are you an international student? The Global Ambassador Program is a peer-mentoring program at UMBC that seeks to create a welcoming and considerate community for UMBC’s international students.
Join the Office of Academic and Pre-Professional Advising (OAPA) as a Peer Advisor! This may sound like a shameless plug...but I can assure you it’s not. This is in fact a very prideful plug! From a former peer advisor- “Despite being very shy, working as a Peer Advisor has made me self-assured due to the tasks entrusted to me. Not to mention, my interpersonal skills have increased immensely due to the diverse students I interact with and help daily.” Jenika Brown, Class of 2021. We will be hiring new peers at the end of the semester. If you’re interested, you can apply here.
Dear UMBC Community,
As we start the new semester, we are reminded that the work of inclusion and equity is never complete, either at UMBC or elsewhere across the nation. I am grateful for all of the support that the University community has given the Office of Equity and Inclusion over the past two years as we created a new model of support for community members while at the same time responding to the pandemic, political divisiveness, and more. Given the vital role this office plays in our campus community, I wanted to share some changes.
Morgan C. Thomas '13 will serve as our Acting Director and Title IX Coordinator. During her time at UMBC, Morgan has demonstrated her passion and commitment to both this community and the work of inclusive excellence. Morgan also served on the Retriever Courage Implementation Team. In addition to these responsibilities, Morgan continues to serve the campus community in contract review and handling of Maryland Public Information Act requests on behalf of the University.
Ever Hanna will serve as our Acting Deputy Title IX Coordinator and continue to lead our training efforts and case management. The work Ever has accomplished since joining our community has strengthened the University's culture of care while addressing inequities on our campus.
Jordan Brooks will continue to serve as a Civil Rights Investigator and to help manage cases in the office. Jordan joined the team in 2021 and is looking forward to in-person connections with our campus community over the next couple of months. Jordan previously worked in student affairs at several colleges and is focused on making our campus a safe and welcoming community for everyone.
We also have begun the search for an additional Civil Rights Investigator to support the work of the office.
In the coming weeks, we look forward to sharing key next steps for the work of both the Office of Equity and Inclusion and the Inclusion Council. We appreciate your support and partnership, and our attention to the work that the community has entrusted us with remains unwavering.
In partnership,
Candace Dodson-Reed ’96, Chief of Staff to the President and Executive Director, Office of Equity and Inclusion
]]>Accessibility and Disability Service and Student Disability Services highlight Black History Month.
Rediscover how some members of the Black Civil Rights Movement also played essential roles as activists in the US Disability Rights Movement, and paved the way for disability rights activists to influence social change and legislation. Many people with disabilities were part of both movements and continue to be today. Crip Camp shows how intersectional being black and disabled can be - beyond the Black Panthers. Further back in history, learn new things about the famous Black figures who also had disabilities. For instance, Harriet Tubman lived with epilepsy and narcolepsy.
In the links described below, we hope you may find information you will be happy to rediscover or learn for the first time. Black history is being made this moment, and there is an endless amount to learn from the past. A little time spent exploring Black history this month may lead you in enlightening directions. Research forays have been known to start at (link)Brad Lomax, and end up at the (link) Wild Zappers, a DC-based all black all deaf dance company - what new-to-you ancestral influencers and history-makers will become front-of-mind to you?
Test your knowledge by taking this quiz with the National Black Disability Coalition (NBDC): (link)http://www.blackdisability.org/content/black-disabled-trivia
Important figures in Black History:
· Enter “Black History” plus any disability (i.e. "autism," "dyslexia," etc.) into a search engine and explore more about the intersectionality of disability.
Explore Black History and Disability Rights:
The National Center for Learning Disabilities (NCLD) has a great article about the integral role Black disability rights activists played in securing rights for all US citizens with disabilities. (link)https://www.ncld.org/news/honoring-black-history-month-unsung-heroes-of-the-disability-rights-movement/ For more on Brad Lomax, a leader in the 1977 protests that led to the implementation of section 504 of the rehabilitation act, see this NYT obituary (link) https:/www.nytimes.com/2020/07/08/obituaries/brad-lomax-overlooked.html
Black Disabled and Proud: College Students with Disabilities is a website by the HBCU Disability Consortium. Their page titled “Black Lives Matter and Disability” speaks to the recent and daily making of Black history as it intersects with disability. (link)https://www.blackdisabledandproud.org/black-lives-matter.html The page includes links to thoughtful articles as well as self-care info.
The Disability Visibility Project’s Black Lives Matter page has podcasts (with transcripts) that explore the individual experiences of people who are actively contributing individually and/or organizing to raise awareness about being Black and having a disability. (link)https://disabilityvisibilityproject.com/tag/black-lives-matter/ Click through on the posts and find things like Jen White Johnson’s Black Disability Lives Matter mural (link)https://jenwhitejohnson.com/Black-Disabled-Lives-Matter-Mural-Project
More UMBC posts and events are going up over the course of the month. If you are looking for disability resources - use these links: