Public Policy PhD student Cheryl Camillo (Health Policy) was quoted in an Associated Press story about who qualifies for Medicaid.

What’s largely unknown to many Americans is who is left out of the safety net, said Cheryl Camillo, a senior researcher at Mathematica Policy Research. “A huge chunk of the populace is not covered, even by Medicaid,” she said.

Cheryl is a senior researcher at Mathematica Policy Research.

Welcome to our new home. Page, that is.

If you�re new to UMBC, we hope our new homepage will show you what our university is all about. If, on the other hand, www.umbc.edu is one of your old favorites � the new homepage preserves the features our research showed you loved, like easy access to myUMBC and the directory.

The new homepage also adds enhanced features to better help you find campus resources, stay informed about news and events and, generally, make the most of your time at UMBC.

You can take a brief, guided tour of the new homepage below. Here are a few of the principles you�ll see at work:

1. Homepages are no longer gatekeepers, but storytellers. People increasingly navigate the web by search. So, while it�s still important that information be clearly laid out, something that�s more than a click or two away isn�t necessarily hidden. And a homepage, rather than just serving as a map to information, should tell the story of a place. We hope ours does.

2. You matter. The new homepage provides content tailored for certain audiences, recognizing that not everybody is looking for the same thing. Personalized is the way of the web. So, we�ve introduced content tabs that let you see what�s most relevant to you, whether you�re a prospective student, current student, parent or family member, faculty or staff member, alum or supporter, business or employer.

3. We needed a friendlier site. Mobile-friendly that is. The new homepage is designed to play nice with just about any device � from a desktop or laptop to a tablet or smart phone. This recognizes what we have heard repeatedly from experts on and off campus: mobile is the new normal.

We hope you�ll love the new homepage, but you might still be wondering, �Why now?�

First, you should know that the new homepage is one step in a broad, multi-year process to overhaul UMBC�s web presence, thinking critically and strategically about how and what we do. Faculty, staff, students and alumni have been involved in a number of discussions about how to improve our web experience, and those conversations will continue.

However, members of the UMBC community and, especially, campus experts advised us of a number of improvements important to make now. Our marketing and recruitment efforts demand a cutting edge homepage, and the innovation and expertise of our faculty in the computer science, information technology and visual design fields further raise the bar. In the constantly evolving environment of the web, we simply can�t stand still.

Of course, this is a work in progress. So, if there�s something different you�d like to see, let us know at homepage@umbc.edu. Likewise, if you love something, let us know too. We hope that the guided tour below will answer most of the questions you have about how to navigate the new homepage, but we�ll keep an eye out for frequently asked questions and provide updates as needed. And we will be paying attention to your broader feedback, although we may not be able to respond personally to every note.

Again, this is just the first step in what will be a multi-year process, and your feedback is not only valued, but crucial.

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There are three primary ways to navigate from the new homepage into the rest of the UMBC website (see red arrows):
The search function and directory bar
The top level navigation, with dropdown menus
The new audience-specific sections, with content for prospective students, current students, parents & family, faculty & staff, alumni & supporters, and businesses & employers

Looking for myUMBC? You�ll find it in a number of places (see red circles):
Above the search function, in the directory bar
In the Current Student and Faculty & Staff audience sections, under �Top Tools�

Looking for news & events? You�ll find them just below the new �audience section.�

Events can also be found above the search bar, in the directory bar (see red circle).

(8/20/12)

Computer science alumnus Joshua Barczak ’03, M.S. ’06, spoke about his work in the video game industry at this spring’s Undergraduate Research and Creative Achievement Day (URCAD). Barczak, who is a senior graphics engineer at Firaxis Games, helped develop Sid Meier’s Civilization V game.
Watch the full video by clicking the image below.

 

Computer science alumnus Joshua Barczak ’03, M.S. ’06, spoke about his work in the video game industry at this spring’s Undergraduate Research and Creative Achievement Day (URCAD). Barczak, who is a senior graphics engineer at Firaxis Games, helped develop Sid Meier’s Civilization V game.

Watch the full video by clicking the image below.

This November Maryland voters will decide on four major ballot questions addressing same-sex marriage, expanded gambling, undocumented immigrants’ access to higher education and the new congressional map, and ad spending is expected to reach into the millions.

“We haven’t seen anything like it in modern history,” Donald F. Norris, professor and chairman of UMBC’s Department of Public Policy, told the Baltimore Sun. “It is going to be a political junkie’s absolute dream.”

Norris commented more directly on the gambling referendum in the Maryland Daily Record and Baltimore Business Journal. He told the Record that the referendum ad campaign will “probably be more vigorous than the presidential campaign” in Maryland and that he anticipates the votes will be clearly in favor of gambling expansion.

Update: Norris also commented in the Gazette that ad campaigns for the referenda will likely be more intense than for the presidential race in Maryland.

Amy Froide, Associate Professor of History and Director of UMBC’s Entrepreneurship & Innovation Minor, was invited to give two talks on her current book project, “The Silent Partners of Britain’s Financial Revolution: Women as Investors in Public Stocks, c. 1690-1750,” over the summer.

She presented her research to the History Department at Princeton University in May and the European Women’s History Seminar at the University of London in June.

UMBC head women’s basketball coach Phil Stern announced the hiring of former Retriever standout Carlee Cassidy ’10, media and communications studies and sociology, as the Director of Women’s Basketball Operations.
“I am thrilled that Carlee will start her coaching career at UMBC,” Stern said of his former player. “Carlee was a part of the greatest moment in UMBC women’s basketball history and was one of our most prolific offensive players.”
At the time of her graduation, Cassidy ranked second all-time at UMBC with 1,627 points and 347 free throws made — ranking first in both categories during the Retrievers’ Division I era — and still holds the school’s record for three-pointers (248). She became the first Retriever to earn America East All-Conference honors three times, receiving a spot on the second team as a junior and a senior and garnering first team recognition as a sophomore.
Not only did Cassidy excel in UMBC’s record book, but she also made her mark on the America East record book. The Syracuse, N.Y., native was the first player in nearly a decade to lead the America East in scoring in back-to-back seasons. She ranks 21st in the conference all-time in points and second in three-point field goals made.
Cassidy was a part of the 2006-07 Retrievers who also stamped themselves into America East history, defeating the top three teams in the league standings en route to winning a league championship. The 5-9 guard earned America East All-Tournament Team honors during the 2007 conference championships after scoring a team-best 14 points to help UMBC stun top-seeded and defending champion Hartford in the championship game, giving the program its first-ever league title that season and advancing to the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Tournament for the first time.
Following her collegiate career, Cassidy played one season with Forssan Alku Basketball Club in Finland.
“I am very excited about the opportunity to be back at my alma mater and to be a part of the UMBC women’s basketball family,” Cassidy said. “I am eager to continue to learn under Coach Stern and the rest of the staff. I am looking forward to the upcoming season and the continued success of our program in the future.”
This story originally appeared on UMBC Retrievers News.

UMBC head women’s basketball coach Phil Stern announced the hiring of former Retriever standout Carlee Cassidy ’10, media and communications studies and sociology, as the Director of Women’s Basketball Operations.

“I am thrilled that Carlee will start her coaching career at UMBC,” Stern said of his former player. “Carlee was a part of the greatest moment in UMBC women’s basketball history and was one of our most prolific offensive players.”

At the time of her graduation, Cassidy ranked second all-time at UMBC with 1,627 points and 347 free throws made — ranking first in both categories during the Retrievers’ Division I era — and still holds the school’s record for three-pointers (248). She became the first Retriever to earn America East All-Conference honors three times, receiving a spot on the second team as a junior and a senior and garnering first team recognition as a sophomore.

Not only did Cassidy excel in UMBC’s record book, but she also made her mark on the America East record book. The Syracuse, N.Y., native was the first player in nearly a decade to lead the America East in scoring in back-to-back seasons. She ranks 21st in the conference all-time in points and second in three-point field goals made.

Cassidy was a part of the 2006-07 Retrievers who also stamped themselves into America East history, defeating the top three teams in the league standings en route to winning a league championship. The 5-9 guard earned America East All-Tournament Team honors during the 2007 conference championships after scoring a team-best 14 points to help UMBC stun top-seeded and defending champion Hartford in the championship game, giving the program its first-ever league title that season and advancing to the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Tournament for the first time.

Following her collegiate career, Cassidy played one season with Forssan Alku Basketball Club in Finland.

“I am very excited about the opportunity to be back at my alma mater and to be a part of the UMBC women’s basketball family,” Cassidy said. “I am eager to continue to learn under Coach Stern and the rest of the staff. I am looking forward to the upcoming season and the continued success of our program in the future.”

This story originally appeared on UMBC Retrievers News.

Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney’s pick of controversial Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan as his running mate is the subject of Tom Schaller’s latest Salon column, “Ryan pick in 5 easy steps.”

The political science professor explores what Romney’s VP selection means for the election and the GOP’s feature, starting with the arguments that Romney is playing it safe with the nomination and “the Romney camp clearly believes that a base-mobilizing strategy, rather than a swing voter-conversion strategy, is its best chance to win the White House.”

Schaller also argues that Ryan’s selection is further evidence the national GOP has become a “House-dominated party” as opposed to a presidential-oriented one. This “congressionalization of the Republican Party” is the topic of his forthcoming book from Yale University Press.