Join EESA for a night of games, laughter, and friendly competition in ILSB 116A tomorrow, Wednesday, April 8th, at 7:30 PM! See you there! 

Date: Wednesday, April 8

Location: ILSB 116 B

Time: 7:30 pm

Click here to follow our Instagram Page!
Click here to see our TikTok and Linktree Page

Welcome to week 9 of the Tabletop Gaming club!

Hope everyone enjoyed our single 80+ degree day this weekend, and are ready for tonights freeze watch!

Club as per usual will be held in ILSB116B from 7-10pm Tuesday 4/7 and Thursday 4/9. We do however have some fun announcements for everyone so lets get right into them!

First off we have a few events coming up:

1. Thursday April 16th will be our semester D&D PVP tournament! Come one, come all to participate in our bracketed PVP tournament and compete for Glory! (and some cool D&D related prizes). Newbies and veterans alike are welcome, as well as people not even involved with the club. We do however need more DMs for the tournament so please reach out to any of our Club officers if you are interested! TTRPG Ambassador Izra Samson will be posting rules for the tournament by the end of next week. Final details as to location will be sent out in the next few days.
2. Thursday April 23rd will be our Touch grass event! For this earth-day mini event the club will be providing a selection of nature and earth-day themed board games for everyone to enjoy! (And potentially the opportunity to touch this illusive grass many here seem to be unaware of)
3. This Friday beginning at 5:30pm we will be hosting our Board game prototyping Collab With the Game Dev Club!, please come and join us for a fun night learning (and actually trying) to prototype board games! Have an idea for a game you want to try out? Come on in and work on it with guidance from experienced members of both Tabletop gaming and the Game dev club. Then at our next event, get the opportunity to test out your creation in our judged competition, for the chance of your game being produced at Common vision!

For our final announcement of the day:

It is that time of year again, that's right OFFICER ELECTIONS!!!! Beginning the moment this announcement is posted, and lasting until 6:59pm Tuesday 4/14 all UMBC STUDENTS who have attended at least two club meetings this year will be eligible to signup to run for a position on our E-board and get to make their mark on the club for the upcoming schoolyear, and beyond. However this years officer elections are a bit unusual as it will be a complete changing of the guard.

All Current officers will be graduating (Or stepping back) after this semester, meaning we will need a completely new E-board for the coming year. As this club has meant so much to us via time, dedication, and effort over the past several years we really want to see it continue on for years to come with new and dedicated officers. So please, please, please, if you are at all interested in taking up an officer position, fill out the form at the end of this announcement. If you are unsure or worried about the workload, please feel free to reach out to any current or former club officer with any questions or concerns you may have. Our open positions will be as follows:

• President
• Vice president
• Treasurer
• Secretary
• Board game ambassador
• TTRPG Ambassador

All of these positions must be filled for the club to continue, it should however be noted that the roles of president, treasurer, and vice president must be held by 3 different students, but they may also run for the other additional officer positions. The voting portion of the election will be held from 10pm 4/14/26 - 4/30/26 at 10pm. Only students who have attended 2+ meetings (Marked by club attendance / Event attendance) are eligible to vote.

That is all for this week, I hope you all have a great time!

Officer election signup: https://forms.gle/adtKgaRb56PHfEwP9

Poll: Should president Josh graduate, or keep running the club?

Title: Supermassive Black Hole Growth in Local Low-Mass Mergers

Katherine Carver, Ashlyn Wright
Mentor: Adi Foord, Physics

Come see Kat's oral presentation in RAC 050 | 11 – 11:15 a.m.

Most massive galaxies host a supermassive black hole (SMBH) at their centers, whose feedback and growth impact the galaxy’s evolution. Such periods of activity, observed as active galactic nuclei (AGN), are thought to arise when gas is efficiently funneled toward the galactic center, fueling black hole accretion and growth. Extensive studies of major mergers have suggested a link between merger activity and the incidence of AGN. However, the precise role mergers play in triggering AGN activity remains unclear. This uncertainty is greater in the low-mass galaxy regime, where observational challenges make it difficult to identify merging systems and assess their AGN activity. Understanding AGN activity in low-mass mergers is especially important, as these systems are far more common and represent fundamental building blocks in the overall process of galaxy formation.
We present an X-ray study based on new XMM-Newton observations of six nearby (0.015 < z < 0.021) dwarf–dwarf galaxy merger systems. Out of the twelve galaxies analyzed, six show X-ray detections. Notably, two of the mergers exhibit X-ray emission from both galaxies, suggesting possible dual AGN candidates. These findings suggest that low-mass merging systems may significantly contribute to SMBH growth, playing a role comparable to that of major mergers.

This work was funded, in part, through an Undergraduate Research Award from the UMBC Division of Undergraduate Academic Affairs.

URCAD is Wednesday, April 22 in the RAC:

URCAD.umbc.edu

RSVP on the event page: https://my3.my.umbc.edu/groups/humanitiesretrievers/events/152103

'A Lot is Happening in the World: Let’s Discuss!

(A Student/Faculty Forum)

Location

Performing Arts & Humanities Building : 216

A Lot is Happening in the World: Let’s Discuss! – Online Event

Date & Time

April 8, 2026, 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm

Description

LUNCH PROVIDED!What role do the humanities play in understanding and processing current events? Take part in a discussion with students and faculty as they consider how history, culture, and various areas of research shed light on emerging developments. 

Keys with jeep key, pepper spray and a hexgirl laynard--please come to MP 410 by the end of today 4/7 if you'd like to retrieve them (4:30pm today). If not claimed, I will take them to the lost and found in the commons tomorrow. 

Join us in person tomorrow, 4/8, in Admin 101 from 12 - 1  PM!

Click here to RSVP and see more details on the myUMBC event.

Don’t forget to join your colleagues tomorrow, Wednesday, April 8, for an open staff conversation with President Valerie Sheares Ashby. Hosted by the Exempt and Non-Exempt Staff Senates, this session is a great chance to bring questions, share ideas, and connect directly with President Sheares Ashby. This in-person event is focused on strengthening our campus community, so bring your questions and ideas—we look forward to seeing you there!

A private room is available in a One-bedroom house at Maiden Choice Apartment over the summer months from May to August.

Rent is negotiable.

Contact:

Phone: 405-2694217

Email: mhoque4@umbc.edu

Original Post Listing

The Global Asias Initiative was well-represented at this year's Association for Asian American Studies (AAAS) Conference in Honolulu, Hawai'i! While there, we were also hosted by colleagues at University of Hawai'i Manoa for our Global Asias Site Visit to learn about the incredible work they're cultivating in Ethnic Studies, Native Hawaiian Studies, Asian Studies & Student Services. Read about our presentations to colleagues across the country below!

||

Dr. Tamara Bhalla, Associate Professor, American Studies, & Co-PI of the Global Asias Initiative organized and facilitated a roundtable discussion Power and Privilege in South Asian American Studies

Dr. Emily Yoon, Assistant Professor, English & Global Asias Advisory Board Member, was supported by a Global Asias faculty Conference Grant to present Little Plastic Intimacies: Offshore Solidarity Against Empire

Dr. Mika Thornburg, Global Asias Postdoctoral Fellow, was supported by a Global Asias faculty Conference Grant to present Oceanic Orbits: The Colonial Circuits of Transpacific Tourism

Priya Bhayana, Global Asias Project Manager, and Angelina Jenkins, Global Asias Advisory Board Member & Assistant Director of the Mosaic Center, were supported by the Dresher Center for Humanities (Priya) and the Division of Student Affairs (Angelina) to co-host a roundtable discussion Cultivating Connections: Asian American Studies & Student Affairs at AANAPISIs

We had so many rich conversations and look forward to next year's conference happening March 2027 right here in Baltimore!

Your graduate experience is more than a series of credits; it is a high-level training ground for the exact skills employers crave: critical thinking, project management, and specialized technical expertise. Now is the time to pivot from academic depth to career momentum. Here’s how.

Translate Your Academic Language

In the lab or the seminar room, you speak the language of academia. In the job market, you must speak the language of impact. Instead of listing "Dissertation Research" in a cover letter, for example, you can frame your experience as "Managing multi-year projects" or "Data-driven problem solving." By translating your academic tasks into industry-standard accomplishments, you make it easy for recruiters to see your value.

Own Your Professional Agency

For many graduate students, the transition to the workforce can feel like starting over. But you aren't starting from scratch — you are starting from really valuable experience. Whether you are aiming for a role in R&D, policy, or corporate leadership, you must view your time at UMBC as professional tenure.Yes — those grad school years do count as years of experience! When you treat your job search with the same rigor as your thesis or capstone project, you become an unstoppable candidate.

Diversify Your Career Narrative

Many graduate students feel pressured to follow a narrow, traditional path. However, the modern economy values the "versatile expert." Explore how your specialized skills can solve problems in unexpected sectors. Reframe uncertainty as a chance to explore the "hidden job market" where advanced degrees are highly sought after but rarely advertised in traditional ways. Read between the lines, and ask clarifying questions. You might be surprised by what you find.

Network Beyond the Department

While your faculty mentors are invaluable, building momentum also requires connecting with professionals who have already made the jump from the ivory tower to the industry. These connections provide the "insider intel" on company culture and hiring timelines that you won't find in a job description. Not sure where to start? Check out the Alumni tab for UMBC’s page on LinkedIn, or check out the community in Retrievers Connect. You might find that tapping into the UMBC connection is the gateway to a job opportunity.

Ready to Get Started?

Don't wait until your graduation day to start thinking about your next professional destination. Join the UMBC Career Center and the PROMISE program at Career Paths for Graduate Students on Thursday, April 9th from 5 to 8:30 PM. It’s a specialized series of sessions designed to help graduate students navigate the unique challenges of the advanced job search while acquiring helpful skills along the way.

HI FRIENDS!

TONIGHT at 7 PM in PAHB 456 the incredible & wonderful Dr. Joonho Lee will be leading a faculty/student discussion on progressive confucianism! This is a prelude to the lecture next week on Monday 4/13 in the recital hall on the same subject! Be there or me and Dr. Lee will cry

XOXO

CHLOE