Dear UMBC Community,

We are pleased to share that we will be able to offer limited in-person Winter 2021 commencement ceremonies in December. We appreciate the assistance of our public health experts, our colleagues in event planning, and our student government leaders who helped us plan an event that meets safety requirements and prioritizes the in-person experience of our graduates. 

Winter 2021 Commencement will include three ceremonies:

• Tuesday, December 21, 10 a.m.: Graduate Commencement;
• Wednesday, December 22, 10 a.m.: College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences; School of Social Work; and Erickson School of Aging Studies Commencement; and
• Wednesday, December 22, 3 p.m.: College of Natural and Mathematical Sciences, College of Engineering and Information Technology, and Division of Undergraduate Academic Affairs Commencement.

Graduates will be able to attend in-person and will walk across the stage to receive acknowledgement of their achievement. All ceremonies will include masking and physical distancing. At this time, we intend to accommodate two guests per graduate. This is subject to change based upon the conditions and circumstances necessitated by the COVID-19 pandemic. We will also offer a virtual option for graduates and family members who cannot attend. We continue to work on making the virtual experience exciting and engaging and appreciate the support of our community in this effort. 

All graduates will be required to register for commencement no later than 5 p.m. on Sunday, November 28, 2021. We will be unable to accommodate late registrations. We will make a final determination on capacity and release family member tickets on Wednesday, December 1, 2021.

We will continue to evaluate our plans as we monitor the public health situation. Thank you for your support as we balance our desire to celebrate our graduates while ensuring the safety of our community. 

The Commencement Executive Committee

Dear Faculty and Staff,

I am writing to inform you of the launch of a national search for the dean of the College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences. The search will welcome applications from both internal and external candidates and will be supported by Storbeck Search, a nationally recognized search consultant. Professor Alan Yeakley has graciously agreed to chair the search and the members of the search committee are listed below. I would like to take this opportunity to express my sincere gratitude to Professor Yeakley and all members of the search committee for their willingness to serve by taking on this critical institutional responsibility.

The committee will reach out to all members of the UMBC community to receive input and feedback on the criteria that will guide the search and selection process and candidates that are invited to interview. The committee will also update our community on the progress of the search over the coming months. I know that all of us will do everything we can to support the committee in their execution of this important task.

Provost Philip Rous

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Search Chair: Alan Yeakley, Chair and Professor, Geography and Environmental Sciences

Search Committee Members:

• Rob Bennett, Adjunct, English, and Chair, UMBC Adjunct Advisory Committee
• Pam Bennett, Associate Professor, Public Policy
• Lee Boot, Director, Imaging Research Center
• Lisa Cella, Chair and Professor, Music
• Jean Fernandez, Chair and Professor, English
• Felipe Filomeno, Associate Professor, Political Science
• Erika Fountain, Assistant Professor, Psychology
• Carol Hess, Chair and Professor, Dance
• María Manni, Senior Lecturer, Modern Languages, Linguistics, and Intercultural Communication; and Executive Committee, Latinx Faculty Association
• Jennifer Mata-McMahon, Associate Professor, Education, and Director, Sherman Center for Early Childhood Education in Urban Communities
• Chris Murphy, Professor, Psychology
• Derek Musgrove, Associate Professor, History; Executive Committee, Black Faculty Committee; and Member, Committee on the Recruitment, Retention, and Advancement of Underrepresented Minority Faculty
• Tim Phin, Lecturer, Ancient Studies, and President, LGBTQ Faculty/Staff Association
• Janet Rutledge, Dean, Graduate School
• Colette Searls, Associate Professor, Theatre
• Greg Simmons, Vice President, Institutional Advancement
• James Smalls, Chair and Professor, Visual Arts
• Brandy Wallace, Associate Professor and Associate Chair, Sociology, Anthropology, and Public Health; and Member, Committee on the Recruitment, Retention, and Advancement of Underrepresented Minority Faculty
• Fan Yang, Associate Professor, Media and Communication Studies, and Executive Leadership, Asian and Asian American Faculty Staff Committee

Dear Faculty and Staff,

I am happy to report that after an external search that included a search committee from various areas across campus and multiple, very experienced candidates, Michael Walsh’s skills and capabilities in research administration shined!  Mike was offered and has accepted the Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP) Director position. His start date as Director will be November 1, 2021. 

Mike is a “home-grown” talent. He received both his M.A. in Historical Studies and Ph.D. in Public Policy from UMBC. He began working at UMBC as a graduate student, serving as a Teaching Assistant/Graduate Assistant for both the History and Political Science Departments. He started his career in OSP as a grants and contracts specialist, and worked his way up to manager and training coordinator, and then assistant director. He is also an adjunct faculty member at the Community College of Baltimore County, where he teaches history. Mike has served in various roles with the Council of University System Staff (CUSS) and UMBC’s Professional Staff Senate (PSS). He has presented at the National Council of University Research Administrators (NCURA), and has received NCURA’s Travel Award.    

Please join me in congratulating Mike on this spectacular accomplishment.

We will be moving next to fill the OSP Assistant Director position, which is now open as a result of Mike’s promotion.  

Dean Drake, Associate Vice President, Research

Please see the latest updates on UMBC’s Retriever Ready website. Questions? Email covid19@umbc.edu.

COVID-19 Health and Safety

• It’s not too early to plan for the upcoming holiday season.Keep your loved ones safe from COVID-19, especially those who are older and/or immunocompromised. Check out the CDC’s guidance for holidays.

Mental Health Help and Information 

• Self-help resources on the Retriever Integrated Health/Counseling website are free! The website features WellTrack online self-help therapy, as well as videos and other resources.

Mental Health First Aid Certification

• Retriever Integrated Health is offering Mental Health First Aid, an eight-hour certification course that is designed to teach the layperson the skills to recognize signs of a mental health or substance use disorder crisis, identify community resources, and link individuals in need of treatment and support to the proper resources. The course will be offered in October, November, and December. More information is available on Retriever Integrated Health’s myUMBC group.

UMBC Together

• Visit the UMBC Together website for recent social media posts and the UMBC Together myUMBC group for information on upcoming events.

President Freeman Hrabowski, and Provost Philip Rous invite all departments to submit nominations for the 2021-2022 Presidential Teaching Professor and Presidential Research Professor Awards. 

Presidential Professors receive an award of $2,500 for each of the three years of the award period. The awardee’s department receives $2,500 per semester for the same period.

Email nominations to Vice Provost, Patrice McDermott in the Office of the Provost at mcdermot@umbc.edu by Friday, November 5, 2021. Detailed information concerning eligibility, criteria, and documentation for these awards can be found here.

Dear Colleagues,

We still need your help to recognize and honor the exemplary work of our talented and dedicated Exempt and Non-Exempt staff working to support our mission. Our staff have worked tirelessly to ensure that our students, faculty, and staff had the tools they needed to be successful in a mostly remote environment, to be safe if they were working or learning on campus, and to lay the groundwork for the broader return to our physical campus.

We encourage administrators, faculty, and staff who are familiar with the outstanding contributions of our staff to nominate them for one of these prestigious awards:

• UMBC Presidential Distinguished Staff Awards
• University System of Maryland Board of Regents Staff Awards
• Jakubik Family Endowment Staff Award
• Karen L. Wensch Endowment Award for Outstanding Non-Exempt Staff
• Teresa Lupinek Endowment Award for Outstanding Exempt or Non-Exempt Staff

Descriptions of the individual awards, the eligibility requirements for each, and the nomination form can be found at 2021-22 Staff Awards. Each nomination should include the nomination form, a letter of recommendation, and the nominee’s resume or job history form. Please send nominations to Colleen Rebeiro in the Office of the Provost at colleenr@umbc.edu by October 30, 2021. 

We hope the entire UMBC community will engage in this process. If you have questions about the staff awards, please contact Sarah Shin, Associate Provost for Academic Affairs, at shin@umbc.edu.

Freeman Hrabowski, President

Philip Rous, Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs