For its 50th anniversary, the TESOL International Association has recognized 50 professionals who have made significant contributions to TESOL (Teaching English to Students of Other Languages) within the past 50 years (“50 at 50”), and 30 up and coming professionals (“30 Up and Coming”) who are emerging as leaders in the field.

“TESOL International Association congratulates these outstanding TESOL professionals! Their leadership has helped build the association and develop English language teaching and learning into a profession that touches the lives of students and educators worldwide,” TESOL announced in a press release on its website.Jodi Crandall, founding director of the language, literacy, and culture program and professor emerita of education, was selected for the “50 at 50” list.

Crandall’s lengthy list of career accomplishments include: professor emerita at UMBC and former chair, Department of Education; former co-director of UMBC’s MA TESOL program; past president of TESOL, Washington, D.C. Area Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages Association (WATESOL), and American Association for Applied Linguistics (AAAL); and member of the board of trustees and former vice president of the Center for Applied Linguistics.

Last year, UMBC announced the four inaugural recipients of the Jodi Crandall Fellowship for Research in Language, Literacy & Culture. The awards are designed to promote collaborative interdisciplinary research by LLC doctoral students.

Joan Shin ’08, Ph.D., language, literacy and culture, and professor of practice in the education department, was named a “30 Up and Coming” TESOL professional.

Shin is an international leader in teaching English to young learners. Her work has taken her to Brazil, Turkey, Vietnam, Saudi Arabia and ten other countries to train English as a foreign language (EFL) teachers to meet the needs of elementary-aged students. She has received praise and recognition for a National Geographic Learning book series that she co-edited with Crandall designed to give learners the skills and knowledge they need to learn English and understand the world around them. Read more about Shin’s accomplishments in UMBC Magazine.

“It is so exciting to be named one of the ’30 Up and Coming’ leaders in TESOL,” explains Shin. “To be honest, I feel humbled by this recognition. There are many dedicated and talented English teaching professionals who are providing excellent scholarship and leadership to our field locally and globally. With this honor, I feel inspired to work even harder to make a positive difference in the education of English learners through my work with teachers here in Maryland and worldwide.”

Earlier this month, a report was released by the West Baltimore Community Commission on Police Misconduct and The No Boundaries Coalition based off of a quantitative study of 1,500 Sandtown-Winchester residents about their interactions with police. The report, titled Over-Policed, Yet Underserved: The People’s Findings Regarding Police Misconduct in West Baltimore is released at a time when the U.S. Justice Department is conducting investigations into police misconduct within many urban police forces.

Charles Cange, a visiting lecturer in health, administration, and policy, is a research consultant for the commission and classified the data that was collected during the study. The report received widespread media coverage in both national and local news outlets. A complete list can be found below.

Cange told The New York Times that the interviewers in the study “identified ‘common themes,’ including perceptions of racism in law enforcement and feelings of resentment toward the police.” He explained to The Guardian that the study is “purposive sampling, based on the purpose of the research which is very different than random sampling. We’re going out to find people who have these stories, because that’s the research question.”

The findings from the report will be released to the U.S. Department of Justice as it completes an investigation into the city’s police department and is one of the first community-led reports that will be included. As part of the study, Cange worked closely with Nick Jacobsen, a master’s student in sociology, who provided analytic support during the research process.

Media coverage:
Officer charged in Freddie Gray case ordered to testify against colleagues (The New York Times) 
Survey finds rampant police abuse in area where Freddie Gray was arrested (The Guardian) 
West Baltimore group highlights stories of police misconduct (Baltimore Sun) 
Freddie Gray: Baltimore residents call for police reforms to confront ‘institutionalized racism’ (Independent) 
West Baltimore community association releases police brutality report (Huffington Post/ABC 2 Baltimore)

Donny Bliss, a medical illustrator from NIH, is coming to speak during free hour on Wednesday April 20, in Commons 331 as part of the Commons Art Program.

He creates scientific visualizations at of the National Institutes of Health investigating Hollywood animation technologies to tell medical scientific stories.

Below, the flier and the link to the event are provided.

Samford University in Birmingham Alabama has named Keith Elder (Ph.D., '02) the dean of the School of Public Health. The school was established in 2013 as part of Samford’s College of Health Sciences.

Elder is currently professor and chair of the Department of Health Management and Policy in the College for Public Health and Social Justice at Saint Louis University. He previously served as faculty in the Department of Health Services Policy and Management in Arnold School of Public Health at the University of South Carolina, and the Department of Health Services Administration in the School of Health Professions at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. His research interests include health policy, health-care delivery and health-care processes. News release 

Samuel L. Brown (Ph.D., '97), has been appointed director of the Wichita State Hugo Wall School of Public Affairs. As director, Brown will oversee the Master of Public Administration degree and the department’s applied research and community service centers.

Brown is a professor at the University of Baltimore’s College of Public Affairs. Prior to his academic career, he served in positions with the private sector, as well as in state and federal government. News release