The Center for Social Science Scholarship hosts “Tea & Theory,” a monthly seminar-style workshop where we discuss social science theory. All faculty and advanced graduate students are welcome!

The purpose of the workshop is to promote intellectual exchange among the social science community at UMBC. This interdisciplinary workshop is designed to encourage reading across disciplines as well as provide an opportunity to practice debate & critique skills.

Fall workshops are dedicated to reading and discussing the “Classics” of social science theory, while Spring workshops focus on “New Takes on Classics” (works generally published in the last 5 years).

Workshops will be held on the first Wednesday of the month in PUP 451 from 2-3:30pm, unless otherwise noted. No need to sign up, just show up! Tea will be provided but please BYOM (Bring Your Own Mug).

Fall 2019

*Participants are responsible for acquiring their own copies of the readings. Please read the following works by the time we meet:

September 11th: Durkheim, Suicide: A Study in Sociology

October 2nd: Weber, Economy & Society 

November 6th: Foucault, Discipline & Punish 

December 4th: Becker, The Economic Approach to Human Behavior 

To submit a reading suggestion or any other question/concern, please email welborn@umbc.edu.

Now in its 31st year of celebration, UMBC’s annual Alumni Awards honor graduates who have accomplished significant milestones throughout a long career as well as those who inspire us with admirable achievements early on in their fields. 

“This outstanding group of award winners are leading the way for others and making an impact on all facets of our society and on the local, national, and global stages,” says Stanyell Odom, director of Alumni Engagement. “They exemplify the best qualities of a UMBC education—they are intellectually curious, creative, entrepreneurial, innovative, committed to making a difference, and passionate and proud of their UMBC.”

On Wednesday, October 2, the UMBC Alumni Association will present awards to honor these alumni for their professional and personal achievements and service to the university. The Association board will also honor a faculty member for extraordinary teaching and overall impact on students and alumni. 

“Each year, the selection seems to be a more competitive process,” says Sara Lerma Jones, associate director of Alumni Engagement, “especially as we have more alumni and they grow into their careers. The nominators have done a wonderful job highlighting alumni from various backgrounds.”

Leading up the award ceremony, UMBC Magazine will continue publishing stories about the 2019 cohort. 

Outstanding Alumni of the Year Award: 

Visual & Performing Arts: 

Kimberly Patrick ’08 Music Technology —Sound Editor, Skywalker Sound, Lucasfilm, Ltd.

Natural & Mathematical Sciences: 

Jerome Adams ’97, M4, Biochemistry & Molecular Biology and Psychology —Surgeon General, US Department of Health & Human Services

Social Sciences: 

Kim Shelsby ’85 Geography —Director, Supply Chain Solutions, Chemonics International

Engineering & Information Technology:

Paul Mangus ’86 Information Systems Management —Co-Founder and Chairman of the Board, Bart and Associates, Inc. 

Humanities:

La Jerne Cornish ’05 Ph.D. Language, Literacy & Culture —Provost and Senior Vice President, Ithaca College

The Young Alumni Rising Star Award:

Kelsey Krach ’14 Anthropology —Product Manager & Designer, Fearless 

The Outstanding Faculty Award: 

Beverly Bickel ’94 M.A. Instructional Development Systems, ’05 Ph.D. Language, Literacy, & Culture —Clinical Associate Professor, UMBC, Language, Literacy, & Culture; Affiliate Associate Professor, Gender and Women’s Studies

Register here alumni.umbc.edu/alumniawards2019 to join the Alumni Association Board of Directors for our alumni awards ceremony to recognize and celebrate the professional personal achievements of this year’s recipients. 

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For more information about the Alumni Awards, please contact Sara Lerma Jones, Associate Director of Alumni Relations, at 410-455-2276 or via email at slj@umbc.edu.

Read more about past Alumni Award winners here.

The first fall '19 bill is due on 8/20.

If your department has not submitted tuition remission forms for grad assistants (GAs) for fall '19, we ask that you do so as soon as possible (and no later than 8/14) to ensure that GAs are not assessed late fees. Please keep in mind that once departments submit the forms there is additional processing that happens at the Graduate School.

Please go to the links below for more information and to submit your forms:

 GA Tuition Remission form

https://gradschool.umbc.edu/funding/assistantships/forms/