This week Richard chats with guard Rodney Elliott of the UMBC basketball team. He was the first UMBC basketball player to win the America East Conference Player of the Year Award and he has been balling out for UMBC consistently since he joined the team. Give a hearty Retriever welcome to Rodney.

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Former Lenoir-Rhyne University head coach Ryan Odom has been announced by director of athletics Tim Hall as the new head coach of the men’s basketball team, replacing former coach Aki Thomas. Odom will attempt to bring UMBC to their first double-digit wins season since 2008-09.

Odom joins UMBC after serving just one season as Lenoir-Rhyne’s head coach, where he lead the school to a fourth place finish in the NCAA Division II tournament, and a 21–10 record.

Under Odom, Lenoir-Rhyne finished the season as the best in the nation at three-pointers per game, averaging 12.4 and finished ninth in the nation in scoring at 90.1 points a game. Last season, UMBC finished fifth in the America East Conference in three-pointers made with only 6.8 (no team in the conference averaged higher than 10) and sixth in scoring with 72.1 points per game.

Odom previously served as an interim head coach for University of North Carolina at Charlotte and led the team to an 8–11 record during his time as head coach. Before the promotion he was an assistant and then an associate coach with the program that in 2013 played in the National Invitation Tournament.

During his college career, Odom was a former four-year starter and team captain for Hampden-Sydney College. Odom left the school as the leader in career three-point field goals and fourth in assists.

Odom’s father, Dave Odom, is the retired men’s basketball coach and coached for University of South Carolina and Wake Forest University. The elder Odom is a three-time Atlantic Coast Conference coach of the year and was also previously named the Southeastern Conference coach of the year. Dave Odom also led his teams to three NIT championships.

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On a typical Wednesday evening, most UMBC students are either hurrying to the library or finishing up a study session with a few friends. However, Alex Lavery knows some of the best ways to work out the kinks of an overworked students’ mind and body with her fitness program “Core and More,” held weekly at the RAC.
Lavery usually focuses on a strictly core based workout, but today, she decided to switch it up a bit. In a blue tank and with an energetic smile, Lavery adjusted her microphone, and the class set their belongings to the side of the studio. After introducing the workout to the class of 10, the students peered from Lavery, to their workout mats then back to her.
“Alright everyone,” said Lavery, “time to start the dynamic stretches.”
With Major Lazer’s “Lean On” blasting in the RAC’s fitness studio, Lavery walked around the room, and made sure that everyone was exercising properly. Each student followed Lavery’s two minute warm-up routine, which ranged from jogging in place, to jumping jacks to toe touches.
“Make sure your spine stays neutral,” said Lavery into her microphone-headset. “No curving. Keep those heels on the ground.”
Following the dynamic stretches and warm-ups, Lavery began the first half of the workout with the students. Beginning with her medicine ball circuit, Lavery gave a step-by-step spiel of the proper and improper ways to carry out the exercises.
“Step into it!” Lavery had her medicine ball in hand while showing the class how to properly do med-ball lunges and squats. The class swiftly followed every movement and beat. It wasn’t l0ng before everyone knew exactly what they needed to do without Lavery’s assistance, and although they were exhausted, they still managed to keep good posture and rhythm.
Taisha Bowman, a senior chemistry major and education minor, frequently comes to “Core and More,” and loves how Alex works with the class. “[Alex Lavery] is really good at making sure that if you need something modified, it can be,” said Bowman. “I have a lot of injuries, specifically in my knee.”
Following the med-ball circuit was the second half of the workout, so it was time to go back to Lavery’s usual focus: abs!
“Halfway there,” said Lavery in a gentle tone. “5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Beautiful. I love it.”
The ab circuit went only for six minutes but the work-outs were intense and quite unique. The class frantically raised their fingers to their toes while doing v-ups, and appeared to be in a marathon while kicking their knees to their chest, doing a workout known as “mountain climbers.”
Another frequent visitor, freshman undecided major Naomi Parker, loves when Alex incorporates more than just abs into the workout. Parker enjoys feeling the burn, mainly because she knows that her body is getting to where she wants it to be.
“It’s my favorite when she makes us do the circuit,” said Parker. “When I’m sore, I know it’s working.”
The class finished off the ab circuit with a few sideways “duck-walks” with elastic bands tied around their ankles. Although Lavery has only been working at UMBC for a semester, she’s been settling in well.
“I have five jobs, but this one’s definitely my favorite,” said Lavery with a smile. “So far I’ve loved my time at UMBC. I have only positive things to say.”

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The 2016 Summer Institute in Nursing Informatics (SINI) has selected Dari Alhuwail and Dr. Koru's abstract titled "Identifying Home Care Clinicians' Information Needs to Achieve Better Care Coordination in Fall Risk Management" for a podium presentation. This abstract has also been selected to receive the Nursing Informatics Research Award.

SINI is a highly established nursing informatics conference with an extensive history that is well known globally. The conference will be held in Baltimore, MD from July 20 to July 22nd. Further conference details can be found at https://www.nursing.umaryland.edu/sini/schedule/. Join us on Wednesday, July 20th from 3:15-4:15 PM for our presentation.

The 2016 Summer Institute in Nursing Informatics (SINI) has selected Uche Uchidiuno, Gunes Koru ,Pooja Parameshwarappa, and Dari Alhuwail's abstract titled "Leveraging Data Analytics to Investigate the Relationship Between Patient Demographic and Falls in Home Care" for a poster presentation on July 21, 2016. This abstract will receive the Outstanding Poster Award in the category of Nursing Informatics Practice.

SINI is a highly established nursing informatics conference with an extensive history that is well known globally. The conference will be held in Baltimore, MD from July 20 to July 22nd. Further conference details can be found at https://www.nursing.umaryland.edu/sini/schedule/. Join us on Thursday, July 21st from 8-8:45 AM as well as 4:15-5:00 PM for this poster presentation.

The Dance Cube in the PAHB was packed Thursday to see Breai Mason-Campbell, a Baltimore dancer, teacher and community activist, give an interdisciplinary lecture and performance on the topic of race relations. The bleachers filled quickly, requiring organizers to bring in extra chairs. Some attendants even sat on the floor.

The large windows of the dance cube overlooked the campus, with Baltimore’s hazy skyline in the distance. The small room created an intimate setting for Mason-Campbell to deliver her message. She focused on improving race relations in Baltimore, as well as the discourse surrounding race. She discussed the inconsistencies of how black people are perceived in America.

“How can we have a black president, and a need for a black lives matter movement?” Mason-Campbell passionately asked during her lecture.

Mason-Campbell tied in the importance of dance to her message, explaining the role dance has played in bridging the gap between all races. When attending dances or concerts by artists such as Little Richard, people historically ignored racial segregation and danced together.

The topic of dance segued into the performance aspect of the evening. Mason-Campbell and the six performers with her presented three short dances, about three minutes each, with a short question and answer session afterwards.

The dances served to illustrate topics Mason-Campbell spoke of in the lecture. Three white dancers dressed in all white, and all black dancers wore all black, which served to visually separate them. In one piece, three black dancers danced together, while one white man danced alone. By the end the four performers came together, merging two very different dance styles.

In another powerful piece, three dancers interacted with a prop gun, while images of victims such as Freddie Grey flashed on a screen behind them. When holding the gun, the dancers showed fear, anger and sorrow.

The evening was well received, and the room filled with applause after each performance and when all involved took a bow.

Megumi Gomyo, a media and communications studies major with a minor in French, was one of the people in attendance who felt impacted by the performance. She felt the interdisciplinary aspect of Mason-Campbell’s presentation was a unique way to deliver a message.

“I would never think of dance as being related to the subject of race, so seeing that connected is another way of helping with the problem, and shedding light on it,” Gomyo said during the reception after the performance.

Gomyo is a humanities scholar, and attended the event because it was part of the humanities forum. She believed this was the best forum so far. A big takeaway for Gomyo was Mason-Campbell’s suggestion that schools with different racial demographics come together to study the arts, in order to help young people see people from other races in a more humanizing way.

“Whenever you have to solve a problem you have to start with the basic element of it,” Gomyo said. “This was a really strong way of presenting both of them as a solution.”

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The Retrievers swept the Mountaineers on Saturday, April 2. Entering the weekend with a six game winning streak, the Retrievers continued the momentum at their home grounds, Baseball Factory Field.

The first match was a monumental 9-3 win and a statement game corralled by a six run rally in the third inning. While the Retrievers were already at two outs, sophomore Jamie Switalski got the team’s first run with an RBI single to inspire three other Retrievers to end up tallying RBI’s before the end of the inning. After the lead generated in the third inning, the Retrievers were able to keep a steady hand and see off Mount St. Mary’s without too much threat remaining.

Following the early win, the Retrievers prepared another determined performance to defeat the Mountaineers 3-1 with runs in the third, fifth and sixth inning to extend their winning ways.

Conrad Wozniak pitched two straight complete games for the Retrievers in order to help secure both victories. Despite Mount St. Mary’s teasing a closer game by scoring a run in the sixth inning to make it 2-1, Connor Hax was able to add security at the bottom of the inning for the Retrievers by way of a Kevin Lachance double RBI.

On Sunday, April 3, though UMBC men’s baseball arrived at Mount St. Mary’s with the hot hand, they fell to the Mountaineers 5-3. Despite the host’s underdog status, the home team were able to stave off the Retrievers. Even though Raven Beeman and Lachance were able to give the Retrievers an early 2-0 lead, the Retrievers’ determination wavered and a series of UMBC errors led to the home side mounting a comeback through the rest of the game. This defeat ended the Retrievers eight game winning streak.

The Retrievers will host George Washington on Tuesday, April 5, before a series against Albany on the weekend of April 9.

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Egypt & Cyprus

An Egyptian national who falsely claimed that he was armed with lethal explosives hijacked an EgyptAir plane carrying 71 people last week, forcing the aircraft to land in Cyprus. The move has raised new concerns over Egypt’s security protocols and the state’s ability to revitalize the already suffering tourism sector.

The hijacker released the majority of the other passengers and crew members before submitting himself to the control of the Cypriot authorities in the port city Larnaca. Cypriot authorities announced that none of the passengers or crew members were harmed during the seven hour ordeal.

After Cyprus’ Foreign Ministry’s official Twitter account announced that the incident was over, Foreign Ministry officials also stated that the hijacker wore a belt with telephone covers that looked like explosive devices, but he was not carrying actual explosives.

The hijacking hindered the efforts of the Egyptian government to restore confidence in both Egyptians and people seeking to visit Egypt after the Islamic State’s alleged bombing of a Russian passenger aircraft five months ago.

After the Russian passenger plane was downed, Egypt contracted the services of Control Risks Group to scrutinize and recommend improvements for airport security. EgyptAir, one of the oldest airlines in the Middle East, has suffered approximately $1 billion in losses since the Egyptian Revolution began in 2011.

Azerbaijan & Armenia

At least 30 soldiers and one young boy were killed in heavy fighting when Armenian and Azerbaijani forces clashed over the separatist region of Nagorno-Karabakh. Last Saturday’s clash marks one of the worst outbreaks of violence between the two sides since the end of the war over the region in 1994.

The mountainous region, which is officially part of Azerbaijan, has been under the de facto control of local ethnic Armenian forces and the Armenian forces since 1994. The Armenian and Azerbaijani sides of the region are separated by a demilitarized buffer zone, but this has not prevented clashes from breaking out.

Each country blamed the other for Saturday’s escalation. Azerbaijan’s defense ministry stated that 12 of its soldiers were martyred, one if its helicopters was shot down and that more than 100 Armenian soldiers had been killed or wounded, and that Azerbaijani forces destroyed six tanks and 15 artillery positions. Likewise, the Nagorno-Karabakh defense ministry claimed that more than 200 Azerbaijani soldiers were killed. Neither claim has been corroborated.

Third parties, including the Organization for Security Cooperation in Europe, have attempted to facilitate negotiations over the region, but little progress has been made over the years.

After Saturday’s escalation, envoys from the United States, Russia and France issued a statement calling on both sides “to stop shooting and take all necessary means to stabilize the situation on the ground.”

North Korea

The Workers’ Party of Korea – the founding and ruling political party of North Korea – recently issued a document from the capital city Pyongyang to other provincial bodies that openly condemns the Chinese government for taking part in United Nations sanctions against North Korea and rallies WPK members toward nuclear conflict with China.

According to Sino-North Korea relations expert Lee Young Hwa, a professor at Kansai Univeristy, after calling on North Koreans to confront China with a “nuclear storm,” the document outlines a new doctrine on policies toward China, including labeling it as an “enemy state” on par with the Untied States, Japan and South Korea.

Possibly related, the government also instructed its citizens, two days before the document lambasting China, to prepare for possible famine and severe economic hardship, and that “the road to revolution is long and arduous.”

“We may have to go on an arduous march, during which we will have to chew the roots of plants once again,” said the announcement, which came in the form of an editorial piece written in Rodong Sinmun, a print newspaper that is largely considered to be the voice of the state. The term “arduous march” refers to the famine that engulfed North Korea in the 1990s, which reportedly killed as many as three million people.

The publication called for a “70-day campaign of loyalty:” a call to North Koreans to directly and repeatedly demonstrate their allegiance to their state and their leader, Kim Jong Un, by delivering two pounds of rice to state-run warehouses each month.

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