Voices of Change
Storywork In Activism, Education and Public Service
September 22-27, 2015

Friday Night, August 14, 2015

8:30 PM – 10 PM

The Hotel at Arundel Preserve,  7795 Arundel Mills Blvd, Hanover, MD 21076

Book Discussion & Dessert Session: Sisters in the Dissertation House

Book author Dr. Jennifer Bacon will be discussing the “Sisters in The Dissertation House” book, based on the experiences of Maryland students who persisted through their dissertation process via the intervention and support system of the PROMISE Dissertation House. Dr. Bacon, a former professor at Iona College, is currently working on writing projects as a resident of Costa Rica. This session is open to women and men.

Moderator: Dr. Shanna L. Smith, former PROMISE College Park Assistant and current Frederick Douglass Teaching Fellow, English Department, Bloomsburg State University of Pennsylvania. Dr. Smith’s writing and poetry has been published, and she was a featured professor for Bloomsburg State University’s “Big Dog” Reading Series. Shanna L. Smith is author of “Being Neighborly: Performance in Seen It All and Done the Rest”, Pearl Cleage and Free Womanhood (McFarland & Company, 2012)

Discussants for the “Sisters in the Dissertation House” session at the 2015 SSI include women who were featured in the book:

• Dr. Alexis Williams (Human Development), Lecturer in the College of Education, and Postdoctoral Fellow at the Teaching and Learning Transformation Center at College Park
• Dr. Sophoria “Nikki” Westmoreland (Mechanical Engineering) – former Visiting professor at the United States Naval Academy, and current Specialist at Accelerated Development & Support (ADS) Corporation, providing support for the Office of Naval Research.

To reserve a space, please register by sending email to

promisestaff@gmail.com

using the subject:

“SSI 2015 Sisters in the DH”

with the following information in the body of the message:

1) NAME, 2) School/Organization, 3) Phone #, 4) Reason for interest in the session.

This session will be held in a hotel suite. Details will only be released to those who have registered using the method above. 

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“Sisters in The Dissertation House” is published by New Forums Press, available at: http://newforums.com/our-titles/successful-faculty-development/scholarly-writing-publishing/sisters-dissertation-house-dissertation-narrative/.

Also available on Amazon:

The California Alliance offers postdoctoral research fellowship opportunities at four top-tier California institutions; UC Berkeley, UCLA, Stanford, and Caltech in the Mathematical, Physical Sciences and Engineering fields.  The program also includes faculty mentoring, professional development, and academic networking opportunities.

The website is now hosting the application process for the next cycle of the postdoc program. Kindly visit the following link for more information:

https://www.california-alliance.org/postdocfellowships

Here is the direct link to the application page:

https://www.california-alliance.org/fellowship-application

Important Dates:

Applications can be submitted by going to: https://www.california-alliance.org/fellowship-application

Two letters of reference are required; one recommendation from the applicant’s Ph.D. advisor, and one letter of support from the applicant’s proposed postdoc advisor. The deadline for both letters is December 1st, 2015. Letters should be sent in PDF format to Dr. Annette Angus at: info@california-alliance.org.

PRIORITY CONSIDERATION IS GIVEN TO APPLICATIONS SUBMITTED BY NOVEMBER 1st, 2015.

Need a place to achieve career-life balance? A place to de-stress, relax, and rejuvenate? Come to the Mind Spa.

The Mind Spa offers several resources, including, but not limited to: a massage chair, and oil diffuser, a biofeedback device, books, and a meditation area. Photo Credit: Shawnisha Hester

The Mind Spa is a room that offers a stress-free environment to anyone who visits.  The ceiling is covered with fabric, giving the perception of clouds. Upon entering the room, there is a welcoming small table with a teapot, paper cups, and assorted tea bags. At each corner of the room, there are three different relaxation resources. In one corner, there is a meditation area where the floor is covered with fabric and cushions. At another corner is a full body massage chair. In the third corner, there is a computer connected to an EmWave device, biosensors that clip onto your fingers to measure your heart rate. On the computer, you can play games and guided simulations, such as breathing techniques, where the EmWave device would provide biofeedback as a measure of the participant’ stress level and inside harmony. Inside this room, there are also other resources to provide a calm, stress-free environment: sandboxes, stress-free balls, small plants, vertical paper lanterns, and an oil diffuser.

Services from the Counseling Center are open to all registered UMBC students.  Everyone (including faculty, staff and administration) can feel free to stop by and check out the amazing Mind Spa! The Counseling Center is open Monday through Friday 8:30 am – 5:00 pm. There are no fees and no limits as to how many times you access these resources! Feel free to walk in and use the resources at The Mind Spa, or, reserve a resource in The Mind Spa in advance by calling 410-455-2472.

We learned about The Mind Spa through Dr. Susan Han and Dr. Emilie Stuber-Lawson, who served as guest speakers for the PROMISE AGEP’s  Dissertation House at UMBC earlier this week. Learn more about the beneficial resources that the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) Counseling Center has to offer. Located between the Susquehanna Hall and the Chesapeake Hall dormitories on campus, the Counseling Center provides free counseling services to the entire UMBC community, including: individual counseling, couples counseling, and group counseling. If you are unsure about setting up a counseling appointment, fear not! There is an “Interactive Screening Program” on the Counseling Center’s website (http://counseling.umbc.edu/resources/) where you can anonymously contact a campus counselor.

For students who are writing a dissertation at other universities, we encourage you to check your campus Counseling Center. Similar resources may be offered at your university.

Submitted by Amanda Lo (Graduate Assistant for the Career-Life Balance Initiative and the PROMISE AGEP team)

• Understanding Graduate School – Panel of Graduate Students
  • Nopondo Esemoto (Chemistry)
  • Joshua Brown (Biochemistry – MD/PhD)
  • DeLauren McCauley (Chemistry)
  • Antione Taylor (Psychology)
  • Janae Baptiste (Chemistry)
  • Alex Vega (Chemistry, incoming 1^st Year)

11:30 a.m.

• Introduction: Dr. Janet C. Rutledge, Vice Provost of Graduate Education & Dean of the Graduate School
• Motivational Talk by Dr. Freeman Hrabowski, President, UMBC

Related articles

• President Obama Appoints UMBC President as Chair of National Education Commission (baltimore.cbslocal.com)

You are invited to join the Dissertation House online: https://dissertationhouse.wordpress.com/blog-online-challenge/summerdh2015/. We have been hosing challenges for several years, and are always pleased to see people finish their degrees! The participants who will come to the Dissertation House in person will be here from Tuesday, July 7 – Friday, July 10, but that doesn’t need to stop you! You can write something now. Let us know that you’re here. It’s ok to be the first one at the “party.” We’ll look forward to meeting you and encouraging you along the way.

Each summer we host a Dissertation House online that connects to participants in our in-person Dissertation Houses in Maryland. You don’t need to be a doctoral student in Maryland to join. You can be  student at any school in the world. The key is that we are in favor of forming a community to catapult you to the next level. Here is the link for the current installment:

https://dissertationhouse.wordpress.com/blog-online-challenge/summerdh2015/

You’re invited! Join us!