Dear UMBC Community,

We'd like to remind our campus community to sign up for UMBC's emergency text alert system. We use this system to provide timely alerts for emergency conditions that may impact our campus.

If you are not already registered for emergency text alerts, please login to your myUMBC account and register here. You can also download the Alertus application for your Mac or PC. Alertus will deliver emergency desktop alerts to your computer. You can find more information about emergency preparedness here.

Actions you can take if an emergency occurs:

• Police Emergencies: If you are the victim of or a witness to criminal activity on campus, or if you observe suspicious activity or behavior, please contact UMBC Police immediately at 410-455-5555.

• Active Threats: In the event of an active threat to the campus community, UMBC Police will provide instructions through the emergency text alert system and Alertus. These instructions will include areas to avoid and/or shelter in place. More detailed information will follow by email.

• Emergency Conditions on Campus: UMBC receives real-time warnings about critical weather events in our area from a national monitoring service. If emergency conditions impact campus, UMBC Police will provide instructions through the emergency text alert system and Alertus. If you receive an alert, follow instructions and wait for the all-clear before resuming normal activities. 

• Facility Emergencies: If a fire alarm activates in your classroom, workspace, or living area, evacuate your building immediately and go to your primary designated assembly area. If you see or smell smoke or see fire in your facility, pull the fire alarm and evacuate immediately. Call UMBC Police at 410-455-5555 when it is safe to do so. UMBC Police will respond and will contact 911 for emergency services support. Do not re-enter the building during an alarm until you receive the all-clear with instructions to return.

Safety Escorts
If you are concerned about your safety as you walk on campus, call 410-455-5555 to request a safety escort. A uniformed police officer or student police aide will be dispatched to escort you to your destination. If you observe suspicious activity or behavior, ensure your personal safety first and then contact UMBC Police at 410-455-5555.

Available Support

Retriever Integrated Health provides free confidential services for UMBC students. If you are in need of counseling services or would like to learn more about available services, please call 410-455-2472 or visit the Retriever Integrated Health website. Faculty and staff can access support through the Employee Assistance Program.

The UMBC Police wish all members of our community a safe and productive semester.

Bruce Perry '97, UMBC Chief of Police

Dear UMBC Community,

Students, faculty, and staff are invited to participate in some old-fashioned, face-to-face talk about the future we imagine for our communities at Candidates in our Backyard, Thursday, September 29, 2022, from 6:30 p.m. -- 8:30 p.m. in the Retriever Activity Center. This community forum will bring together candidates for elected office in Legislative Districts 44 A/B and 10 and County Council District 1, campus, and community to discuss goals and hopes for the future. The event will include:

• Informal conversations with candidates for Baltimore County Council District 1 and Legislative Districts 44 A/B and 10. 

• Opportunities to connect with organizations building community on campus and in southwestern Baltimore County.

RSVP and Learn More Here

Light fare will be provided.

Dear UMBC Community,

UMBC's Office of Sustainability engages with the campus community in numerous ways to help inform our work to promote sustainability within our interconnected environment, society, and economy. One way we engage is through surveys, which help us to develop benchmarks for various initiatives and to inform ongoing and new projects.

This is a reminder about the following survey, which assesses specific knowledge, beliefs, and practices of UMBC students, faculty, and staff. The input you provide will help the Office of Sustainability to create programs, services, and procedures allowing us to better serve you and your fellow Retrievers. 

Those who participate in the survey have the option to enter into a drawing for a UMBC Sustainability Matters reusable water bottle and sticker!  We will randomly select five students, one faculty member, and one staff member at the end of the survey. Winners will be notified via email. 

If you have not already done so, you can access the survey by clicking here.

If the survey does not open automatically, please copy and paste the following link to your internet browser's address bar: https://tinyurl.com/umbcsustainability

The survey should take no more than 10-15 minutes to complete. We need all responses by 11:59 PM on Friday, September 23, 2022.

Thank you for your time! 

UMBC Office of Sustainability

Dear UMBC Community,

UMBC's Office of Sustainability engages with the campus community in numerous ways to help inform our work to promote sustainability within our interconnected environment, society, and economy. One way we engage is through surveys, which help us to develop benchmarks for various initiatives and to inform ongoing and new projects.

The following survey assesses specific knowledge, beliefs, and practices of UMBC students, faculty, and staff. The input you provide will help the Office of Sustainability to create programs, services, and procedures allowing us to better serve you and your fellow Retrievers. 

Those who participate in the survey have the option to enter into a drawing for a UMBC Sustainability Matters reusable water bottle and sticker!  We will randomly select five students, one faculty member, and one staff member at the end of the survey. Winners will be notified via email. 

You can access the survey here.

If the survey does not open automatically, please copy and paste the following link to your internet browser's address bar: https://tinyurl.com/umbcsustainability

The survey should take no more than 10-15 minutes to complete. We need all responses by 11:59 PM on Friday, September 23, 2022.

Thank you for your time! 

UMBC Office of Sustainability

Dear Students,

This is a reminder to activate your virtual parking permit for the 2022-2023 academic year if you have not done so already. All students must have a valid permit when they arrive on campus tomorrow; those who park on campus without a valid permit will be issued a citation.

• New Students: Please go to the UMBC Parking Services Portal, register your vehicle(s), and activate your virtual permit.
• Returning Students: Please go to the UMBC Parking Services Portal to review your account for any outstanding fines, verify/update your vehicle information, and activate your new virtual permit.

Registering your vehicle is not the same as getting a permit. Once vehicles are registered, please click on the "Get Permit" button. Parking permits must be renewed every August prior to the start of the new academic year. You may register up to three vehicles. However, you may only have one vehicle on campus at a time. Once you have registered your vehicle, please click on the "Get Permit" button. Failure to complete this step means no permit has been issued to you and as a result, you may be issued a citation.

Parking Permit Overview

Student parking permits are assigned as follows:

• Zone A (red): Commuter students
• Zone B (green): Walker Avenue apartment residents
• Zone C (gold): Residential students with 30 or more credits 
• Zone F (orange): First-year residential students and returning residential students with less than 30 credits are eligible for an "F" permit and are required to park in the Satellite Lot on South Rolling Road during the hours of 9 a.m. -- 4 p.m., Monday -- Friday. UMBC Transit will provide shuttle service to and from the Satellite Lot. First-year residential students must be parked in the satellite lot by 9 a.m. on Wednesday, August 31.

Please check out this UMBC parking zone map to verify the locations of spaces in your zone.

For additional questions or if you experience any issues, please contact us directly at parking@umbc.edu or at 410-455-2551.

UMBC Parking Services

Dear Students,

This is a reminder to activate your virtual parking permit for the 2022 -- 2023 academic year if you have not done so already. All students must have a valid permit when they arrive on campus; those who park on campus without a valid permit will be issued a citation.

• New Students: Please go to the UMBC Parking Services Portal, register your vehicle(s), and activate your virtual permit.
• Returning Students: Please go to the UMBC Parking Services Portal to review your account for any outstanding fines, verify/update your vehicle information, and activate your new virtual permit.

Registering your vehicle is not the same as getting a permit. Once vehicles are registered, please click on the "Get Permit" button. Parking permits must be renewed every August prior to the start of the new academic year. You may register up to three vehicles. However, you may only have one vehicle on campus at a time. Once you have registered your vehicle, please click on the "Get Permit" button. Failure to complete this step means no permit has been issued to you and as a result, you may be issued a citation.

Parking Permit Overview

Student parking permits are assigned as follows: 

• Zone A (red): Commuter students
• Zone B (green): Walker Avenue apartment residents
• Zone C (gold): Residential students with 30 or more credits 
• Zone F (orange): First-year residential students and returning residential students with less than 30 credits are eligible for an "F" permit and are required to park in the Satellite Lot on South Rolling Road during the hours of 9 a.m. -- 4 p.m., Monday -- Friday. UMBC Transit will provide shuttle service to and from the Satellite Lot.

Please check out this UMBC parking zone map to verify the locations of spaces in your zone.

For additional questions or if you experience any issues, please contact us directly at parking@umbc.edu or at 410-455-2551.

UMBC Parking Services

Dear UMBC Community,

We are pleased to announce an update to our self-service pathway to allow students to indicate their chosen middle and last names in addition to their chosen first names, pronouns, and gender identity in university administrative systems. Beginning this month, students can log into their myUMBC profile and update their chosen middle and last names. This process is optional and voluntary. More detail on how students may update their information is available here.

Students' chosen names are provided to faculty and staff through university administrative systems, such as PeopleSoft and myUMBC. Please note that the display of this information may differ from system to system. For example, not all university administrative systems currently accommodate chosen middle names.

The expanded name options build on prior work enabling students to indicate their chosen first name, pronouns, and gender identity. We invite you to view this brief video for more insight on the expanded chosen name initiative, including reminders on how to verify students' identity when working in campus systems.

Thank you to the diverse group of campus partners who worked together to implement this new process, and thank you for all you do everyday to make UMBC a safe, caring, and inclusive learning community.

The Office of Equity and Inclusion

Learn More Here

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The Office of Equity and Inclusion (OEI) is responsible for promoting and coordinating the University's core values of inclusive excellence and equity. OEI has primary responsibility for managing UMBC's efforts related to Title IX, gender identity, and LGBTQ+ identity, as well as other civil rights issues. OEI is leading our campus community through this important culture change with the support and partnership of countless allies across UMBC. If you are experiencing discrimination based on your gender identity or sexual orientation, you can report it using OEI's online reporting form.

The diversity of UMBC's community and our commitment to inclusive excellence are among our greatest strengths. We are committed to continuing to improve and simplify pathways for alerting the university of chosen names and pronouns. While we recognize that achieving inclusion is an ongoing process, we will continue to strive to make our campus a safe and welcoming environment for everyone, including transgender people and other members of the LGBTQ+ community.

We are also committed to providing information and other supportive resources for members of the UMBC community with particular concerns about civil rights related to gender identity. Resources are available at the following sites:

UMBC Non-Discrimination Policy Statement

USM Policy of Non-Discrimination on the Basis of Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity or Expression

LGBTQ+ Resources at UMBC

UMBC Gender Inclusive Housing Options

Retriever Integrated Health

Pride Center

Women's Center 

UMBC LGBTQ Faculty/Staff Association

UMBC LGBTQ Student Union