Dear Graduate Students, Postdoctoral Fellows, and Members of the PROMISE Community,

We are in the process of developing a new program with collaborators, Tecnológico de Monterrey, in Monterrey, Mexico. We sent out an initial email to gauge interest in a new visiting professor program, and the response was overwhelming! We’re so glad to hear that you are interested in this opportunity as a pathway to your career.

We are working with Tec because of their interest in PROMISE, and our mutual values, which include dedication to teaching students, integrity, leadership, and community service.

The PROMISE AGEP is collaborating with Tec based on projects with the Latin and Caribbean Consortium of Engineering Institutions, the American Society for Engineering Education, and the World Engineering Education Forum. Since Monterrey Tec has a variety of disciplines available, they are interested in considering candidates from all disciplines.

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General details, along with answers to questions that have been posed over the last two weeks.

• This is a residential program. While hybrid programs may be considered, participants are expected to spend time teaching in Mexico.
• The duration of the position can range from 1 semester to 2 years.
• The position would include a monthly stipend, housing and round-trip transportation from Maryland to Mexico.
• There are language and cultural opportunities available for you and members of your immediate family who would be joining you.

• English — http://www.itesm.mx/wps/wcm/connect/ITESM/Tecnologico+de+Monterrey/English
• Spanish — http://www.itesm.mx/wps/portal?WCM_GLOBAL_CONTEXT=

• Candidates must be an enrolled graduate student, postdoctoral fellow, alumnus, staff or faculty member at/from an institution within the University System of Maryland (USM): http://www.usmd.edu/institutions/
  • Candidates from UMBC  (based on our agreement with UMBC and the Council of Graduate Schools to broaden pathways to careers): Candidates from UMBC may be from any discipline, and all racial/ethnic backgrounds will be considered. U.S. citizenship is not required, but you must be able to teach in English.
  • Candidates from all other institutions within the USM: (based on the agreement with the National Science Foundation (NSF) to broaden participation and increase diversity in STEM within the USM):
    • Candidates from other institutions within the USM must be in a Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics field, as listed in the NSF’s List of Supported Fields. This list can also be found below, in the comment section.
    • Candidates from other institutions within the USM must be U.S. citizens and members of groups that are underrepresented in STEM, per the NSF AGEP Program: African-Americans, Hispanics, American Indians, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians or other Pacific Islanders

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• The primary candidates will have a Ph.D. This program is being designed to provide  an on-ramp to the professoriate. There are positions that primarily involve teaching, and some that involve both teaching and research. You may apply if you will have a Ph.D. by the time of the placement.
  • Candidates from UMBC who have master’s degrees will be considered, but won’t have the title of “PROMISE Visiting Professor for Social Change.” These candidates will be referred to a Tec “teacher program” to teach high school students.
  • Candidates from all other USM institutions must have a Ph.D. in a STEM field.

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• All candidates must have some teaching experience, e.g., lecturing in the classroom at the college level, which include experiences through the PROMISE PROF-it program, as a Teaching Assistant, or as an instructor in a post-secondary institution.

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• All candidates must be willing to teach with technology, and should have some experience with technology, e.g., classroom management software (Blackboard), social media.

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To apply for the program*

(Disclaimer: The project is still in a proposed state, and applications will be screened by PROMISE prior to being sent to Monterrey Tec. Tec is not under any obligation to choose any candidates. The deans of the colleges at Tec along with other relevant offices will make all final decisions. A cohort model that will allow candidates to travel and participate as a group is still under consideration.)

• 1) One page overview, with the following guidelines:
  • 1 inch margins
  • Title:
    • Line 1: 16 pt, bold, Times New Roman: Applicant: PROMISE Visiting Professor for Social Change
    • Line 2: 14 pt, italics, Times New Roman: Your full name, your degree, area of expertise
  • Skip two lines
  • Content (Skip one line between each section): 12 pt, Times New Roman; use the headings in bold below in your document.
    • Line 1: Courses that I have already taught (include level, e.g., high school, community college, undergraduate studies, graduate students, and approximations of class sizes)
    • Line 2: Courses that I can teach (be sure that you are choosing courses based on their offerings: http://www.itesm.mx/wps/wcm/connect/ITESM/Tecnologico+de+Monterrey/English/Academic+offerings/?cache=none
    • Line 3: Experiences with technology in the classroom:
    • Line 4: Research Interests:
    • Line 5: Statement about commitment to community service:

• 2) One page cover letter addressed to Dr. Renetta Tull, Director of the PROMISE AGEP, discussing why you want to be a professor, what you want to learn, and future plans for teaching in the U.S. [Note: The PROMISE AGEP is designed to increase the numbers of professors who will serve students in the U.S. Participation in this program is meant to provide a short-term, international, collaborative experience from which you can build a successful and satisfying faculty career in the U.S.]

• 3) Full, unabridged CV

All documents should be merged (based on the order above: 1) overview, 2) letter, 3) CV) and submitted as one PDF document, with the title: PROMISE-MONTERREY TEC-your name

Send the document to promisestaff@gmail.com, and cc’d to rtull@umbc.edu, with the subject: PROMISE Professors for Social Change. (Please do not add or subtract anything from this subject title. Emails submitted with other subject lines may not be considered.)

*All interested candidates are strongly encouraged to attend the (free) Professional Development Workshop on preparing for the professoriate at the PROMISE Research Symposium and Professional Development Conference on Friday, Feb. 13, 2015, 1:30 – 3:30 PM, at the University of Maryland College, Park. Details and registration information can be found here: https://promiseagep.wordpress.com/2014/12/16/spring-2015-university-system-of-maryland-promise-agep-research-symposium-professional-development-conference-fri-feb-13-2015-um-college-park/. Candidates who have not previously met with Dr. Tull to discuss career interests, must do so before the application can be considered for the program. Application Deadline: The initial group of candidates will be sent to Tec on February 27, 2015.

To learn more about using TechSmith Relay:

• visit our TechSmith Relay FAQ page

• open anRT ticket for any technical issues

• view the schedule of training workshops on theDoIT group page

• contact the Instructional Technology Team with any questions or concerns

Did you know that the AOK Library now provides access to over 4,000 academic streaming video titles?  Learn how to find videos, create playlists and video clips.  We will also cover how to provide access to these resources through Blackboard. This session will be geared toward faculty and staff but students are welcome.
Register online at http://umbc.libcal.com/event.php?id=912049

Zotero is a free, easy-to-use tool to help you collect, organize, cite, and share your research sources. Open to all faculty, staff and students.
Register online at http://umbc.libcal.com/event.php?id=913877

A step-by-step strategy on how to complete a preliminary U.S. patent search using freely available tools.
Register online at http://umbc.libcal.com/event.php?id=913878

Learn how to design your own large format poster using PowerPoint.
Register online at http://umbc.libcal.com/event.php?id=913882

Learn how to utilize the full range of features included in the web-accessible citation manager. This hands-on workshop will focus on setting up an account, importing and transferring references, sharing references, and accessing your references in Microsoft Word.
Register online at http://umbc.libcal.com/event.php?id=913845

Did you know that the AOK Library now provides access to over 4,000 academic streaming video titles?  Learn how to find videos, create playlists and video clips. We will also discuss tips for using videos in presentations and research. This session will be geared towards students but all are welcome to attend.
Register online at http://umbc.libcal.com/event.php?id=912051

Learn how to utilize the full range of features included in the web-accessible citation manager. This hands-on workshop will focus on setting up an account, importing and transferring references, sharing references, and accessing your references in Microsoft Word. This workshop is designed for students new to citation management tools.
Register online at http://umbc.libcal.com/event.php?id=913844

The Meyerhoff Graduate Fellows Program at UMBC, and PROMISE: Maryland’s AGEP (the National Science Foundation’s PROMISE AGEP – Maryland Transformation, AGEP-T) for the State of Maryland, proudly present Dr. Hélène Hodak, Scientific Editor, Journal of Molecular Biology, Elsevier Inc. on Friday, Feb. 6, 2015.

Dr. Hodak will be talking about writing for high impact journals. We’ve often heard the term “publish or perish.” Many people are afraid of that term, and many are nervous about the idea of needing to publish in order to have their work deemed worthy. The Elsevier journals are known for being high-impact, and they have a global reputation for showcasing the best work in science. They have offices in NY, Amsterdam, and London. People from all disciplines are invited to come to the workshop and use the content of this talk to learn more about how to think about publishing, and how to dismiss fear of the process. Dr. Hodak’s background and training hail from the following institutions: Yale University, Institut Pasteur de Lille, Regional Hospital Center of Lille, France, Université Lille 2 – Droit et Santé; France. You can read more about Dr. Hodak’s scientific contributions on ResearchGate: http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Helene_Hodak2/citations

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Details for the talk:

• Friday, February 6, 2015
• 4:30 – 6:00 PM
• UMBC Campus, Public Policy Building, Room 206
• Afternoon refreshments will be served.

To RSVP/Register:  

• UMBC students/postdocs/faculty/staff: Login to your MyUMBC account. Click the green “I can attend” button at the bottom of the MyUMBC website for this event: http://my.umbc.edu/groups/promise/events/29770. If you have logged into MyUMBC, and you don’t see the green “I can attend button,” then please be sure that “join” the PROMISE group.
• Visitors (Visitors from any school within the University System of Maryland and the region are welcome to attend.): Use the comment section below to let us know that you are coming. Please add your name, school/organization, and discipline, as applicable.

Photo Credit: http://www.chimit09.org/images/PUP01.jpg

Public Policy Building, UMBC, atrium hallway. Photo credit: http://www.appam.org/assets/1/7/publicPolicy.jpg

Directions, parking, and other information will be posted in the comments below.

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Why is Elsevier so important? Here are some of the latest stats from 2014:

Journal Impact Factor Highlights

Amsterdam, 14 August, 2014

Elsevier, a world-leading provider of scientific, technical and medical information products and services, today announced the highlights of its journal Impact Factor performance in 2013. According to the 2013 Journal Citation Reports® (JCR) published by Thomson Reuters, Elsevier saw 61% of its journal Impact Factors increase from 2012 to 2013, well ahead of the aggregate across all other journals at 55%. Furthermore, 21% of Elsevier journals are in the top 10% of their subject category.

In 2013 Elsevier journals occupied the top position by Impact Factor in 61 subject categories, up from 58 in 2012. In addition, 14 Elsevier journals have risen to the top of their subject category and 40 journals have received an impact factor for the first time. Among these is Nano Energy, which published its first issue in 2012 and received an impressive first impact factor of 10.211.

- See more at: http://www.elsevier.com/about/press-releases/research-and-journals/elsevier-announces-2013-journal-impact-factor-highlights#sthash.NtkiXGPK.dpuf

More about Elsevier: Elsevier Inc., 600 Technology Square, Cambridge, MA 02139, U.S.A.  ElsevierConnect,  http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/00222836.  Contact Dr. Hodak: http://www.journals.elsevier.com/journal-of-molecular-biology/editorial-board/helene-hodak/

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Acknowledgements:

This workshop comes to UMBC through Dr. Michael Summers, and Ms. Justine Johnson of the Meyerhoff Graduate Fellows Program. http://my.umbc.edu/groups/meyerhoffgrad/events/28224. Additional sponsors include: PROMISE AGEP, The Graduate School at UMBC, and the UMBC Office of Postdoctoral Affairs.

About the Meyerhoff Graduate Fellows Program

Funded by an NIH-MBRS Initiative to Maximize Student Development (IMSD) grant, the Meyerhoff Fellows Program focuses on promoting cultural diversity in the biomedical sciences at the graduate level. Now in its 18th year, the program attracts students from such institutions as Duke, Emory, Stanford and the University of Delaware.
Read more>

This morning, Scott Morgan from DC’s The Morgan Group is the key speaker for our Saturday Brunch Seminar on public speaking and preparing presentations.

Morgan suggests that each person should have a “money slide” or a main idea that is featured in your slide deck. This is the slide that you use even if you only have two minutes to present. It is the slide that explains your main point to your committee, investors, employers during a job talk, etc.

The spring semester has just started at UMBC, but we are knee-deep in cold/flu season. With our busy schedules, multiple commitments and conflicting priorities, it can be difficult to find time to take care of ourselves and our health - especially when we get sick. University Health Services encourages students, faculty and staff to remember the importance of self-care while feeling sick - it will speed up your recovery so you can get back to class/work sooner, and you can also help prevent the spread of illness to others around you. 
For persons fighting the flu, the "CDC recommends that you stay home for at least 24 hours after your fever is gone except to get medical care or other necessities. Your fever should be gone without the use of a fever-reducing medicine, such as Tylenol®. You should stay home from work, school, travel, shopping, social events, and public gatherings." 

Here are 5 Steps to take if you do happen to get the flu, as recommended by the CDC:

- Stay at home and rest.
- Avoid close contact with well people in your house so you won’t make them sick.
- Drink plenty of water and other clear liquids to prevent fluid loss (dehydration).
- Treat fever and cough with medicines you can buy at the store.
- If you get very sick, are pregnant, or are 65 years or older, or are otherwise at high risk of flu-related complications, call your doctor. You might need antiviral drugs to treat flu.
- You can see the CDC's full list of recommendations for flu treatment here. 

If you have not gotten sick yet, keep it up!

- Wash your hands regularly with soap and warm water, or use an alcohol-based rub if soap and water are not available.
- Avoid close contact with those that are sick. If you are taking care of someone who is sick, check out the CDC’s guidelines for caring for someone who is sick here. 
- Sleep well. Persons who forego sleep on a regular basis can compromise their immune system and make them more susceptible to getting sick. 
- Eat well. Eating a diet rich in vitamins, nutrients and minerals can help support your immune system.

Getting Seen at University Health Services:

If you would like to be seen by one of our medical providers at UHS we are open Monday - Friday, 8:30am-5pm, and are located on the ground floor of Erickson Hall. Our services are available to all UMBC students, faculty and staff. You can just walk-in to be seen, or you can call ahead and make an appointment which may help decrease your wait time, by calling 410-455-2542 (press "1" at the voice prompt).