The APPQMR is the prerequisite for the Peer Reviewer Course, which is required to become a QM-Certified Peer Reviewer. Since 2019, 41 UMBC faculty and staff have completed the APPQMR workshop. Several have gone on to become QM-Certified Peer Reviewers or Master Reviewers.

Details and Workshop Schedule

• Format & Schedule: Asynchronous online delivery via Canvas. NOTE: The APPQMR workshop is not a self-paced learning experience. Certified facilitators review and grade activities following QM’s Course Schedule & Checklist. It is recommended that potential participants review the schedule in advance of being enrolled. The schedule outlines expectations for reviewing content and includes deadlines for submitting required activities. 
• Time commitment: A minimum of 7-9 hours per week is recommended for achieving the learning objectives. The schedule includes daily time estimates to help participants manage their time and stay on track.
• Course Length: Three weeks, excluding holidays (October 7-28)

To be enrolled into this workshop or for additional questions, please contact Dr. Susan Biro, one of UMBC's QM coordinators, no later than 12 PM, Friday, October 3. 

(Image: Decorative, Quality Matters logo)

Hey Retrievers! Physics isn’t just in the classroom — it’s experiments, events, and epic discoveries waiting for you.

Follow @umbcphysics, tag your own physics moments with #UMBCPhysicsFam, and see what makes our community one-of-a-kind.

Connect, explore, and show off your physics pride. Don’t miss out!

#UMBC #umbcphysics #UMBCLife #UMBCPhysicsFam #UMBCPhysicsInAction #DiscoverUMBCPhysics

commonvision (UMBC Student Design and Print Center) students and Student Affairs Communications and Marketing (SACM) staff received four awards from the University & College Designers Association for several projects:

• The Pizza Zine (spring 2025) - Excellence Award in the category of "Integrated Marketing Campaign" 

• Aidan Sobutka ‘25, brand designer and Mary Budnitz ‘27 / brand designer and animator 

• The Major Event (fall 2023 campaign) - Silver Award in the category of "Integrated Marketing Campaign" 

• Aidan Sobutka ‘25, graphic designer and Toni Olafunmiloye ‘24, animator and motion designer

• Welcome, Retrievers branding (fall 2024) - Excellence Award in the category of "Integrated Marketing Campaign" 

• Aidan Sobutka ‘25, designer and Catherine Frizzell ‘25, animator and motion designer

• the Baja Livery Design - Excellence Award in the category of "Other-Print" 

• Jordan Fisher ‘25, student graphic designer and Emma Hagen ‘14, assistant director

The UCDA Design Awards are judged by a hand-picked panel of jurors composed of designers, design educators, photographers, and videographers working in or doing a significant portion of their work for educational institutions. Winning entries will be part of the UCDA Design Show on display during the 55th annual UCDA Design Conference this fall. 

For more than 50 years, the UCDA Design Awards has recognized the best of exceptional design and creative work as part of our mission to promote design excellence, support educational institutions, and drive the exchange of ideas and information relating to the unique role creatives play in education and the world.

Full list of project credits:

Pizza Zine branding (spring 2025): Excellence Award in the category of "Integrated Marketing Campaign" 

• SACM 

• Laura Schraven, Director, SACM

• Katie Chrzanowski ‘07, Senior Web Experience/Digital Designer, SACM

• Emma Hagen ‘14, Assistant Director, SACM

• Rebecca Huppman, Project Manager, SACM

• Tori Richner ‘22, General Associate: Print Production, SACM

• commonvision students

• Aidan Sobutka ‘25, brand designer

• Mary Budnitz ‘27, brand designer and animator

• commonvision contributors:

• Bebe Obinwa ‘26

• Bella Berry ‘26

• Catherine Frizzell ‘25

• Ghazal Mojtahedi ‘25

• Gwen Knott ‘25

• Jeremiah Dammons ‘25

• Jordan Fisher ‘25

• Joshua Bowman ‘26

• Kate Thorp ‘25

• Makenna Fairbrother ‘27

• Noah Udoff ‘26

• Rachel Wesley ‘22

• Sara Bondroff ‘25

• Sarah Myers ‘25

• Shomapti Hussain ‘25

• Siskind Oshry ‘25

• Thomas Hammond ‘25

• Zaara Ismailjee ‘27

The Major Event (fall 2023, Baltimore theme): Silver Award in the category of "Integrated Marketing Campaign" 

• Commonvision students

• Aidan Sobutka ‘25, graphic designer

• Toni Olafunmiloye ‘24, animator and motion designer

• SACM

• Emma Hagen ‘14, Assistant Director, SACM

• Katie Chrzanowski ‘07, Senior Web Experience/Digital Designer, SACM

• Laura Schraven, Director, SACM

Welcome, Retrievers! branding (fall 2024): Excellence Award in the category of "Integrated Marketing Campaign" 

• commonvision students

• Aidan Sobutka ‘25, designer

• Catherine Frizzell ‘25, animator and motion designer

• SACM

• Emma Hagen ‘14, Assistant Director

• Katie Chrzanowski ‘07, Senior Web Experience/Digital Designer

• Laura Schraven, Director

Baja Livery Design: Excellence Award in the category of "Other-Print" 

• commonvision student

• Jordan Fisher ‘25, graphic designer

• SACM

• Emma Hagen ‘14, Assistant Director

• Laura Schraven, Director

• Rebecca Huppman, Project Manager

  
  

When Ivy Nguyen moved to the United States from Vietnam in 2014, her high school peers struggled to understand the British English she had grown up speaking. As she found herself “lost in British translation,” Nguyen decided to expand her skills across multiple English accents—Mid-Atlantic English, British English, and the accent with a mix of Vietnamese and English. From high school through college, these linguistic bridges provided Nguyen with opportunities for community building and leadership. Now, equipped with these strengths, she is headed to Taiwan to add Chinese to her language repertoire.

“Being able to listen without judgment is a critical skill,” says Nguyen, who double majored in Asian studies and global studies—adding Chinese, Korean, and a bit of Japanese—as well as some mileage in between with an education abroad experience at the Ewha Womans University in Seoul, Korea, during her junior year.

Since graduating in 2023, Nguyen has worked as a tutor at several public schools in Anne Arundel County, supporting students in first to ninth grade during the academic year, and served as a Generation Teach AmeriCorps Summer Teaching Fellow, a five-week K-8 STEAM academy, during the summer. “Two core values of Generation Teach are to foster belonging and to make sure everyone is included,” said Nguyen of her intensive training in identity, community building, content, and teaching. “We have students and teachers from all kinds of different backgrounds. I learned more about expressing myself without causing misunderstandings and how to convey my message while understanding the role that privilege plays in communication.” 

Nguyen’s language chops and ability to teach, lead, and uplift multiple communities earned her two prestigious international opportunities: First, as an alternate for the Fulbright U.S. Student Program award to Taiwan to pursue a master’s in Chinese as a second language; and the second is admission to the National Normal University, a leading institution in education and education research in Taipei, Taiwan, with funding from Taiwan’s Ministry of Education.

After completing over 350 hours of AmeriCorps service, Nguyen decided to forgo the alternate Fulbright spot and apply her hard-earned wisdom to pursue a master’s degree in teaching Chinese as a foreign language in Taiwan.

“When I was a kid coming to the United States, I was excited to get on a plane and move to a different country, but once I got here, I realized how different it was from what I thought it would be or sound like,” said Nguyen, who is already applying for a part-time job in Taiwan’s Ministry of Education English Language Teaching Assistant Program. “You have to know how to be flexible and pick what is right for you. If there is a change in plans, that’s still okay. Everything will be okay in the end.”

Learn more about UMBC’s Asian studies and global studies programs.

Hi PBHL friends,

Ever feel a little jealous when your classmates say, “Oh, I’m working with Professor X on this amazing project”—and you’re not sure where to even start? Want to learn the research process for yourself (and maybe make your friends jealous this time)? Even better, would you like the chance to dress up and present your own research at UMBC’s Undergraduate Research Day?

If so, come join the HEAL Lab Journal Club on Mondays at 11:30 AM! We’ll spend our lunch hour learning how to:

• Find and carefully read journal articles

• Critique them thoughtfully

• Brainstorm how to take that research a step further with our own projects

Spots are limited (the room fits just 10 people!), so be sure to sign up quickly using the link below:

-Dr. Chu