“Martin O’Malley is on the short list of Democratic presidential contenders. Can he win?” So reads a headline in this month’s Baltimore Magazine, which delves into O’Malley’s political background and aspirations, personality and reputation. Donald Norris, professor and chair of public policy at UMBC, comments in the article on O’Malley’s experience.

“He has a lot going for him as a potential candidate,” says Norris. “He’s run a city government, a state government, and managed to balance the budget every year. He came into office [as governor] at the start of the recession, balanced the budget, and at the same time, has come close to closing the state’s structural deficit.”

As for O’Malley’s prospects, Norris responds to recent poll numbers indicating 58% of Marylanders don’t think O’Malley should run for president by saying that ultimately he believes the majority of Marylanders would support an O’Malley bid.

Ellen Handler Spitz, honors college professor of visual arts, recently spent several days in southern Appalachia as part of a program at the University of the South sponsored by the Yale University School of Medicine and Scholastic Books.

During her visit, Spitz spoke on “Reflections on Children’s Cultural Lives.” Spitz’s lecture was the third event in the annual Easter semester lecture series presented by Community Engaged Learning, the University of the South’s academic community engagement program. This annual series features a range of speakers from all over the world. Speakers address a variety of topics of concern for people living on the Cumberland Plateau and in surrounding communities.

Spiz was also a guest lecturer in “Child, Family, and Community Development in Rural Appalachia,” a psychology course developed out of a partnership between Sewanee’s Psychology Department and Yale School of Medicine’s Child Study Center. The purpose of the program is to help children and families in poverty-stricken Appalachia and to build community and foster a rich cultural life.

In addition to lectures, meetings, classes, Spitz also read aloud to four groups of small children in Grundy County. She read “Trumpet,” “A Birthday for Frances,” and “Miss Agatha’s Lark.”

On Saturday, March 16, Ellen Handler Spitz, honors college professor of visual arts, will participate in a panel discussion in New York City about what we can learn from the perennial controversies about children’s books that are “too dark.”

Spitz will be joined on the panel by author Lois Lowry and former New York Times children’s books editor Julie Just.  The event will take place at 2:00 p.m. at the New School’s Arnold Hall, 55 West 13th St., New York, NY.

At 3:30 p.m. on Friday, April 5, Robert Provine, professor of psychology, will discuss “Curious Behavior” and his concept of “small science” at the Goddard Space Flight Center. This talk, part of the Goddard Scientific Colloquium series, will be Provine’s 4th colloquium at Goddard.

The talk will be held in the Building 3 (Goett) auditorium. Access to the Goddard Space Flight Center is limited to those holding Goddard badges or official visitors; if you would like to attend, contact Scientific Colloquium at (301) 286-0660 or by e-mail more than 48 hours beforehand.

Robert Provine, professor of psychology, will lead a discussion at the DC Science Café on May 21.  The DC Science Café, which is sponsored by the DC Science Writers Association, aims to give the general public an opportunity to participate in lively and important discussions about the consequential scientific discoveries and issues of our times.

The discussion will be held from 6:30-8:30 p.m. at Busboys and Poets’ 5th and K St., NW location. Provine’s discussion will focus on “Curious Behavior,” the subject of his book “Curious Behavior: Yawning, Laughing, Hiccupping, and Beyond.”

A flyer for the event is below.

Robert Provine, professor of psychology, was a keynote speaker and judge at the U.S. finals of the Fifth Annual International Brain Bee on March 2 and 3.  This is the second time that Provine has spoken at and judged this event. The topic of his talk was “Curious Behavior,” and was based on his book “Curious Behavior: Yawning, Laughing, Hiccupping, and Beyond.”

The International Brain Bee is an annual competition about knowledge of neuroscience for high school students sponsored by the Society for Neuroscience. Thousands of students from around the world participate. Forty-seven US regional finalists, from as far as California and Alaska competed; one regional finalist will be attending UMBC.

The U.S. finalist won a $3,000 and the opportunity to compete at the international championship in Vienna, Austria.

The Gazette reports that following Congressional reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) Frederick’s Heartly House will be able to continue providing counseling services for victims of domestic abuse without worrying about major program cuts. Heartly House receives about $30,000 in federal funding under the law each year. House Republicans had resisted reauthorizing the legislation because it expands coverage to new groups.

UMBC assistant professor of political science Laura Hussey told the Gazette that blocking VAWA put House Republicans in a tough position. Although some stated that they opposed VAWA because they want to curb federal spending and involvement in state issues, Hussey notes that their position played into the Democratic message that Republicans are waging a “war Against women.” Read the full article online.

A new Washington Post poll, published this weekend, explores Marylanders’ views on Governor Martin O’Malley in the context of a potential future run for president. O’Malley received mediocre marks in some areas of the poll, which the authors note could be due to his work on polarizing issues, including same-sex marriage.

“He’s taken some very gutsy positions on some controversial issues,” said UMBC political science professor Thomas F. Schaller. “My suspicion is that’s poisoned the well and brought him down some.” read the full article at the Washington Post.

Charlotte Keniston, an imaging and digital arts (IMDA) graduate student, has been selected as a featured artist in Maryland Art Place’s upcoming project, THIRTY: 30 Creative Minds Under 30.

Find out more at Maryland Art Place’s website.

“THIRTY is a series of monthly talks featuring thirty emerging Baltimore artists under the age of thirty. All of the participants use a diverse range of creative practices, from visual art to performance, curatorial, community art, design, film, photography and technology to create visual experiences.”