Every January, we as a community acknowledge the need for awareness and education related to stalking. While we often joke about "facebook stalking," the fact is that stalking isn't a joke and can be a very scary experience for victims and their families. Please read the proclamation below for more information.
Additionally, be sure to check out UMBC's Relationship Violence Awareness and Prevention website for more information on stalking and other forms of interpersonal violence.
If you need support from campus members related to a stalking incident, please contact a member from the SARVRT team. For more information from the Stalking Resource Center: http://www.victimsofcrime.org/
Presidential Proclamation -- National Stalking Awareness Month, 2013
NATIONAL STALKING AWARENESS MONTH, 2013
BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
Each year, millions of Americans face the fear, isolation, and danger of being victims of stalking. At some point in their lives, 1 in 6 women and 1 in 19 men will be stalked, and many of these crimes will go unreported and unprosecuted. During National Stalking Awareness Month, we rededicate ourselves to supporting victims of stalking and sharpen our resolve to bring perpetrators to justice.
Stalking is a pattern of unwanted contact that causes victims to fear for their safety or the safety of family members. It can include implied or explicit threats; harassment; or nonconsensual communication through phone calls, text messages, or emails. The perpetrator is usually someone the victim knows. Stalking behaviors may appear innocuous to outside observers, but victims often endure intense physical and emotional distress that affects every aspect of their lives. Many feel forced to move, or change jobs. Tragically, stalking tends to escalate over time, and it is sometimes followed by sexual assault or homicide.
My Administration remains committed to building a robust criminal justice response to stalking -- one that holds offenders accountable, offers protection and support to all victims of violence, and empowers them to break the cycle of abuse. In January 2012, we held the first-ever White House stalking roundtable with survivors, law enforcement officers, victim advocates, and researchers. We have built partnerships with communities across the Nation to implement anti-stalking efforts. And we continue to support nonprofit organizations and local, State, and tribal governments as they develop more effective responses to violence against women -- including direct services, crisis intervention, transitional housing, legal assistance to victims, court improvement, and training for law enforcement and courts.
We are also working to address the threat of cyberstalking. While advances in technology are making this crime more prevalent, they can also pose unique opportunities to address it. Communities are developing new tools that help connect victims to local services, and State governments are updating statutes to further protect people from cyberstalking. Through our Apps Against Abuse challenge, my Administration recognized mobile applications that are empowering people to defend themselves against dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking.
Thanks to the dedicated work of law enforcement officials, community leaders, advocates, organizations, and survivors, our country has made great strides in combating stalking. During National Stalking Awareness Month, we resolve to keep building on this momentum until no American lives in fear of this crime.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, BARACK OBAMA, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim January 2013 as National Stalking Awareness Month. I call upon all Americans to recognize the signs of stalking, acknowledge stalking as a serious crime, and urge those impacted not to be afraid to speak out or ask for help. Let us also resolve to support victims and survivors, and to create communities that are secure and supportive for all Americans.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this thirty-first day of December, in the year of our Lord two thousand twelve, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and thirty-seventh.
BARACK OBAMA
]]>Read more about her experience here...
]]>Competitive applicants will have a strong background in biology and a demonstrated interest in field ecology. An introductory knowledge of Spanish will be helpful but is not mandatory. Prior field experience is not a requisite for admission. As part of the application process, students must designate the mentors with whom they wish to work. It is recommended that they also contact those mentors to confirm that they share similar research interests. Projects in previous years have investigated the ecology and conservation of various organisms and their ecosystems, such as GIS mapping of regenerating forests, behavioral ecology of understory insectivorous birds, and pesticide and climate effects on declining amphibians.
REU award covers the cost of room and board and international travel to and from Costa Rica. Participants will also receive a generous stipend of $3600 for their 8 weeks of research.
]]>June 2-7: CSULB
June 8-29: Hawai’i
This experience is designed to provide a truly unique research and educational opportunity for undergraduate students through active participation in data collection and analysis in support of ongoing research by scientists at CSULB and the University of Hawaii.
GRAM research is conducted at two scales: local site and broader landscape. The summer research experience emphasizes the use of geospatial techniques to aid hypothesis-driven geospatially based natural resource and archaeological research and mapping that will result in improvements in the monitoring and analysis of environmental processes on Kaua`i. The natural resource-focused research contributes to improved understanding of long-term changes in vegetation cover dynamics, natural hazards, non-point source pollution, and surface/groundwater quality. The archaeological research improves our understanding of settlement chronology and resource utilization prior to European contact. An important practical goal is to assist NTBG with baseline studies and monitoring protocols to assess the effectiveness of ecological restoration and cultural preservation activities.
]]>Monday, Feb. 4 at 12:00 noon to 1:00 p.m. in Acad IV-A 114
Tuesday, Feb. 12 at 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. in Acad IV-A 114
]]>The Mickey Leland Energy Fellowship (MLEF), sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy's Office of Fossil Energy, is a 10-week summer internship program that provides opportunities to students who are pursuing degrees in science, technology (IT), engineering, or mathematics (STEM majors). The goal of the program is to improve opportunities for minority and female students in these fields, but all eligible candidates are encouraged to apply. Candidates who are selected will have the opportunity to work on focused research projects consistent with the mission of the Office of Fossil Energy.
During the 10 weeks, students will work at one of several locations. At the conclusion of the internship, students will attend a "Technical Forum" where they will present their research project and tour several technical sites located nearby (the location of the technical forum changes every year).
Candidates will receive a paid stipend during the program, in addition to approved transportation expenses to and from the internship site and technical forum location. The MLEF program allows students to gain valuable experience in DOE/FE mission-related research programs, and offers an "inside view" of federal employment which encourages students to consider future opportunities within the Department of Energy.
Eligibility Requirements
To qualify for the program, students must:
MLEF: A Paid Internship Opportunity
Students will be paid:
Each student will be a part of a collegial research team, including a faculty project supervisor and a graduate student mentor, and will work on a challenging research project. The projects will be designed to match each student’s interest and to maximize the potential for making a contribution during the session.
The projects hosted by the Laboratory for Computational Sensing
and Robotics (LCSR) and the Computer Integrated Surgical Systems and
Technology Engineering Research Center (CISST ERC) are funded by the
National Science Foundation. Participating students will receive
instruction on technical communication, oral presentation skills, and
research ethics to aid in the completion of the required final research
report and presentation. The participants may also have an opportunity
to be part of a poster session at the end of the program. The students
will have the opportunity to tour a local government laboratory and a
private company. The students will also have the opportunity to take
part in social events.