On today’s episode we hear a rebroadcast of the 2024 UMBC Constitution Day Lecture, sponsored by UMBC’s Center for Social Science Scholarship and the UMBC Department of Political Science. This year’s lecture was delivered by Jared DeMarinis, the Maryland State Administrator of Elections. Mr. DeMarinis describes how elections work in Maryland, some of the state’s early contributions to the way elections are conducted across the United States, and discusses the challenges of administering elections in a time of deep political polarization.

Check out the following links for more information on UMBC, CS3, and our host:

• The UMBC Center for the Social Sciences Scholarship
• The University of Maryland, Baltimore County
• Ian G. Anson, Ph.D.

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Retrieving the Social Sciences is a production of the UMBC Center for Social Science Scholarship.  Our podcast host is Dr. Ian Anson, and our acting director is Dr. Eric Stokan. Our production intern is Jean Kim. Our theme music was composed and recorded by D’Juan Moreland (UMBC '24).  Special thanks to Amy Barnes and Myriam Ralston for production assistance.  Make sure to follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube, where you can find full video recordings of recent UMBC events.

Asian Studies Students,

I'm happy to inform you that applications for the Japan-America Student Conference are now open. The conference will take place next summer in Japan! Scholarships are available. UMBC has not sent a student in a number of years, so the time is ripe. See Dr. Vaporis, Founding and Interim Director of Asian Studies, (vaporis@umbc.edu) for more details. Here below is the official announcement from the organization.

Greetings from the Executive Committee of the 77th Japan-America Student Conference!

We are contacting you about a unique conference opportunity in the summer of 2025: The 77th Japan-America Student Conference!  We are excited to announce that JASC 77 applications are now open!  We would greatly appreciate it if you could share the enclosed information with your students at University of Maryland Baltimore Country!

What is JASC?:  The Japan-America Student Conference (JASC) is a student-led exchange program, initiated in 1934 by university students concerned by the breakdown of bilateral relations prior to the Second World War. Today, an equal number of students from the U.S. and Japan are competitively selected each year to spend three weeks together, studying and analyzing Japan-U.S. relations while visiting three to four diverse regions in the host country. JASC alternates its host country every year, emphasizing the personal connections between two distinct cultures gathered together in one place.

Where Will JASC77 Take Place?: This year is JASC’s Japan year. We will be visiting the following sites: Osaka, Kyoto, Kumamoto, and Tokyo.

When: July 31 to August 21, 2025

Who can Apply?: 36 American and 36 Japanese undergraduate and graduate university students enrolled at any accredited university who are 18 years old or older at the start of the conference. All majors of study are accepted. Japanese language is not required.

JASC 77 Application:https://iscdc.org/jasc/77th-jasc-applications/

As the leaves begin to change here on campus and the weather finally gets a bit cooler, we're highlighting some of the upcoming deadlines, important dates, and other things happening in Asian Studies!

Spring 2025 Advising: Soon!

Spring 2025 advising and registration is coming soon! Dr. Vaporis and Dr. Kim are looking forward to meeting with Asian Studies majors and have set up Calendly schedules for advising appointments later this month. 

The Spring 2025 schedule will be available online on Oct 21 (two weeks from now), and students can register for classes as early as Oct 29. Get ready for your registration window now with three easy steps:

1. Look at your Degree Plan on myUMBC to determine what classes you still need to complete for your degree program. 
2. Do you have an account hold? Holds can be placed for many reasons, and will often prevent you from registering for classes. You can check your student account status on myUMBC; if you do have a hold, contact Student Business Services for assistance with resolving it so that you can register! 
3. Sign up for an advising appointment! Our website has all the details you'll need. 

Winter 2025 Registration Begins Oct 14!

January will be here before you know it. Consider signing up to take a Winter Session course! Many are offered online or in a hybrid format, and this year, three of them are of particular interest for Asian Studies students: 

• ASIA 300: Modern East Asia - Prof. Kim - online/asynchronous
• HIST 381: From Samurai to Salariman: Japanese History Through Film and Literature - Prof. Vaporis - online/asynchronous
• MUSC 230: Musics of the World - Prof. Purdy - hybrid (main campus)

Study Abroad Scholarships Available!

Are you planning to study abroad in Asia in 2025? Asian Studies has a limited number of $1000 scholarships to help offset some of those costs! 

This opportunity is available to Asian Studies majors and minors. 

Apply by Nov 1 for Spring 2025, or February 10 for Summer/Fall 2025. More information, including the application form, is available on our website. 

Upcoming Dates and Deadlines