Alumnus Gregory Cantori ’84, geography (cartography), was named the new president for Maryland Nonprofits beginning October 1st, according to an article in Maryland Reporter published September 25th.

Cantori will head an organization that includes roughly1,400 nonprofit organizations and 300 associate members in the state, of which many are used by statewide and local government agencies to provide social, health, housing and educational services. The new president has significant experience with such efforts, having worked in various capacities at the Downtown Sailing Center, the Marion I. & Henry J. Knott Foundation, and the Light Street Housing Corporation among others over the years.

Speaking with reporter Len Lazarick, Cantori said that he’s, “always looking at innovative ways to raise money,” adding that “I feel like like I’m going to be a funder without the funding.” Nevertheless, he also feels that this is a particularly good time for nonprofits and their futures in Maryland right now.

UMBC political science professor Roy T. Meyers commented in today’s Baltimore Sun story, “Leopold attorney bills taxpayers almost $21K for two weeks.” Anne Arundel County has so far been billed $20,743 by a private lawyer to defend County Executive John Leopold in a discrimination lawsuit, raising questions about who should pay the growing tab.

Responding to the case, Meyers asked, “What level of defense is a county executive entitled to?” questioning whether the county would act similarly on behalf of other employees. He noted, “The question to ask is whether a mid-level supervisor, say in the public works department, accused of the same pattern of behavior would have received the same level of defense.”

Meyers also appeared on ABC7 this week, criticizing ads that promote and decry Maryland’s upcoming gambling referendum by misusing data on the impact of casinos. Meyers said, “They are used to show a larger effect to the public—either positive or negative—than what an objective economist or jobs expert would calculate.”

�A Lot of Heart in This Space�

UMBC celebrated the grand opening of the university’s Performing Arts and Humanities Building on September 19, 2012, with “New Space”—a thought-provoking discussion among 14 of Baltimore’s most innovative cultural luminaries.

Co-presented by the Greater Baltimore Cultural Alliance (GBCA), the event showcased the new building as a catalyst in forging vital partnerships between the university and Greater Baltimore community. Tom Hall, WYPR radio host and Baltimore Choral Arts Society director, moderated the discussion of how new spaces inspire us to think, create and engage in unexpected ways.

Professors Wendy Salkind, theatre, and Jessica Berman, English, shared their appreciation for how the new building emphasizes—in a profound, public way—the priority UMBC and Maryland place on liberal arts education.

Doreen Bolger, executive director of the Baltimore Museum of Art, and George Ciscle, founder of The Contemporary Museum, reflected on physical, digital and transitory spaces, and how each can create new opportunities for conversations about art and society. Bolger found our mantra—“Think. Create. Engage.”—to be particularly salient, provoking important questions about the public relevance of museums.
           
Fred Lazarus, president of the Maryland Institute College of Art, has responded to that same concern through founding and growing Baltimore’s annual Artscape festival and promoting the arts-based revitalization of Station North, a neighborhood where speaker Timothy Nohe, UMBC associate professor of visual arts, has also been highly engaged. Lazarus commented, “Space is the envelope that allows exciting creativity to happen,” whether organically, as in the case of Station North, or intentionally, as with the new Performing Arts and Humanities Building.

David Mitchell, assistant artistic director of Arena Players, and Vincent Lancisi, founder of Everyman Theatre, focused on the importance of diversity in the arts. Collaboration among artists with different perspectives, they argued, can be transformational.

“I really feel that the arts enable us to see the human experience better,” said Sharayna Christmas Rose, executive director of MUSE 360. She spoke of bringing young Baltimore actors to African diaspora communities across the U.S. and Caribbean to perform in public spaces and engage with new audiences. Bashi Rose, co-founder of Nommo Theatre, also helps artists reach beyond spatial limitations. Rose works within prisons where, he says, performers must find something inside themselves that can transform their environment into a “space of freedom.”
           
Kalima Young, coordinator of The Baltimore Art + Justice Project, and Nicole King, assistant professor of American Studies at UMBC, share a passion for mapping as a tool to interpret space. Young uses demographic maps to connect local artists to issues they can address and social advocates to artists interested in their causes, in order to promote “stronger, more relevant work that impacts structural issues in this community.” King’s mapmaking centers on storytelling: recording and sharing the cultural history of Baltimore’s Baybrook community.

Inhabiting a space, King reminded the audience, fills it with meaning and turns it into a place. And places have power. “The places we inhabit shape the stories we tell ourselves about ourselves,” said Kevin Griffin Moreno ’96, history, founder and host of Potluck Storytelling.

Final speaker Marvin Pinkert, executive director of The Jewish Museum of Maryland, explored how new stories reshape our thinking about old places, and old stories enable us to think about new spaces. Beyond peeling paint on the walls, what distinguishes an old space from a new one for him is experience—what the building has witnessed and who has inhabited it over time. As far as UMBC’s newest theatre goes, Pinkert shared, “There’s going to be a lot of heart in this space.”

Visit SoundCloud to hear all of the audio clips from “New Space” and the theatre’s inaugural musical performance by Governor Martin O’Malley. 

(9/20/12)

A new report from The Education Trust finds that UMBC is among the top colleges in the country for promoting Hispanic student success.

The brief, “Advancing to Completion: Increasing degree attainment by improving graduation rates and closing gaps for Hispanic students,” examined the achievement gap between Hispanic and white students at public and private colleges nationwide, and whether those institutions were successfully working to narrow that gap.

The study found that UMBC ranked 12th among public colleges for improvements in Hispanic students’ graduation rates between 2004 and 2010. Hispanic students at UMBC saw a 21.8-percentage-point increase in their six-year graduation rates, compared to a 3.5 point increase nationally. And UMBC ranked 13th nationally for its progress in narrowing the achievement gap between white and Hispanic students, with the two groups graduating at essentially the same rate.

The full report is available online from The Education Trust.

Rick Bissell, emergency health services, was as an invited panel discussant at the Union of Concerned Scientists in Washington, DC. The panel discussed public access to timely and valid science-based information in disasters and other emergencies. This topic has risen in importance in recent years following information inaccuracies or withholding in the following incidents: airborne particulates and contaminants secondary to the collapse of the Twin Towers at the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, several “mad cow” incidents in the last decade in which information has been obfuscated, the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico and various “superbug” infections at the NIH hospital, in which information was not shared with the public, emergency management, or other clinical centers.

These incidents were discussed as examples of the problem, and are not exhaustive. Bissell was one of three panelists, among 16, with an emergency public health and emergency management background. Other panelists represented journalism, food safety, environmental science, public policy, library science, political science, consumer safety, government communications, physics and nuclear proliferation, civil liberties and government accountability.

The Union of Concerned Scientists expects to have a preliminary policy paper available within the next month.

Sometimes, recent grad Roderick Howard II ’10, acting and media communications studies, just isn’t himself.

But, that’s the life of an actor — especially one, like Howard, who portrays multiple roles with the Maryland Historical Society Players. One day he’s Christian Fleetwood, a free black man who fought in the Civil War and received a Medal of Honor for bravery. The next he’s Charles Ball, a sailor in the War of 1812.

Howard loves bringing history to life. He and other MHS Players were profiled in a recent story in the Hagerstown Herald-Mail. Read it here.

For Howard, who has been with MHS since 2011 and who recently took on additional duties as a teacher for school programs, especially at the elementary and middle school level, it is exciting to teach as an actor.

“I enjoy the people I work with; the opportunity to expand my knowledge in American history, especially Maryland history; and the honor to portray a historical figure (Fleetwood) who, hopefully, will become even more of a well-known figure amongst those who consider Maryland to be their home, especially African-Americans,” said Howard.

“I also enjoy the opportunity to interact with visitors of the Maryland Historical Society and audiences of our outreach performances. It’s always a pleasure to hear how much they enjoy our performances and/or tours; how interested and knowledgeable they are with history; and stories about how historical events have directly impacted their lives or their loved ones.”

And the job has proved just as educational for Howard, he says.

“My work there has certainly opened my eyes. As an African-American, I have grown an even greater appreciation for those before me, who proudly and willing fought for the liberties and freedoms of America, despite being denied those same liberties and freedoms in their own country.”

Read more about the Maryland Historical Society Players and their schedule of appearances here.

In a fitting tribute to UMBC’s newest space — the Performing Arts and Humanities building — a stage-full of area cultural luminaries discussed the concept of “New Space” at the building’s opening ceremonies September 19. Among them was alumnus Kevin Griffin Moreno ’96, history, founder and host of Potluck Storytelling.
“The places we inhabit shape the stories we tell ourselves about ourselves,” Moreno told the audience during the standing room only panel moderated by Tom Hall, WYPR radio host and Baltimore Choral Arts Society director.
Read the full story about New Space and the PAHB opening.
Listen to a clip of Moreno at the New Space panel.
Moreno, who describes himself as “nonprofit policy geek by day; story collector by night,” runs Potluck Storytelling, which brings artists together to share stories, songs — and delicious food. Read more about Potluck Storytelling here.

In a fitting tribute to UMBC’s newest space — the Performing Arts and Humanities building — a stage-full of area cultural luminaries discussed the concept of “New Space” at the building’s opening ceremonies September 19. Among them was alumnus Kevin Griffin Moreno ’96, history, founder and host of Potluck Storytelling.

“The places we inhabit shape the stories we tell ourselves about ourselves,” Moreno told the audience during the standing room only panel moderated by Tom Hall, WYPR radio host and Baltimore Choral Arts Society director.

Read the full story about New Space and the PAHB opening.

Listen to a clip of Moreno at the New Space panel.

Moreno, who describes himself as “nonprofit policy geek by day; story collector by night,” runs Potluck Storytelling, which brings artists together to share stories, songs — and delicious food. Read more about Potluck Storytelling here.

On election day this November, some Marylanders will be voting on bond issues in addition to candidates and referenda. These ballot questions ask voters if their city or county should borrow money to fund particular projects, such as improvements to parks, schools and the Maryland Zoo in Baltimore.

At a time when government budgets are on everyone’s mind, Sheilah Kast of WYPR’s Maryland Morning asks UMBC political science professor Roy Meyers to shed light on these bond issues.