When Leslie Walker-Wilson ’74 and ’76 M.A., psychology, recalls her days as a student at UMBC, she thinks of the gorgeous plot of land the University sits on and taking 8 a.m. classes to ensure that she could get a good parking space—memories that even the newest UMBC students will share. “I didn’t really appreciate what I had then, studying under a tree in spring or in the library on the winter evenings,” she says. “Things are so hectic now.” When Walker-Wilson says hectic, she means it. She’s the Assistant Superintendent of the Division of Accountability and Assessment in the… Continue Reading Making Her Mark: Leslie Walker-Wilson ’74, ’76
Few days in a person’s life that are truly unforgettable; others we carry with us for our entire lives. In a way, Edie Windsor and Fizza Gulamali-Majid share just such a moment – the days they found out their children had been accepted into the Meyerhoff Scholars Program at UMBC. “I will always remember when [my son] Andy called to tell me he’d been accepted,” says Windsor. “I knew that this was the place for him.” Founded in 1988, the program has graduated more than 800 students, most going on to earn graduate degrees from institutions like Harvard, Stanford, MIT,… Continue Reading Shaping Our Sons and Daughters: Meyerhoff Scholars Program
Teachers — for all they do — so often fly under the radar, inspiring students to succeed while taking little credit for themselves. The late UMBC biology faculty member, Carl Weber, was one of those teachers. His legacy, however, will ensure that excellence in teaching at UMBC will be recognized and nurtured—in part through a yearly award in his name that is given to outstanding faculty at UMBC. This year’s winner of the 2010 Carl Weber Excellence in Science and Mathematics Teaching Award was Dr. Jeff Leips, Associate Professor and Graduate Program Director in the Department of Biological Sciences. “It… Continue Reading A Passion for Teaching: Honoring Dr. Carl Weber
If Jo Anne Sabas ’77 could give you a piece of advice, she’d pass along something her father, Captain Samuel Joseph Sabas, once said to her: “You can lose your job, you can lose your home, you can even lose your health, but when you earn a college degree it can never be taken away from you.” Jo Anne knows just how true those words are. From an early age, her father encouraged her pursuit of knowledge, and later on inspired her to make a lasting mark with a planned gift to UMBC. Sam Sabas grew up in grinding poverty… Continue Reading Leaving a Legacy: A Father’s Wisdom
Once upon a time, Omolola Eniola-Adefeso ’99, chemical engineering, was on track to attend medical school. But she became a chemical engineer instead – so she could better attack problems such as her number one target: heart disease. Eniola-Adefeso, an assistant professor of chemical engineering at the University of Michigan, investigates radical ways of delivering medicine that could prove efficient and effective than current practice. And she may succeed because she is thinks like an engineer – and not a doctor. Eniola-Adefeso came to Maryland from her native Nigeria the age of 16. She began her studies at Catonsville Community… Continue Reading Highways to Healing: Omolola Eniola-Adefeso '99, chem eng
Some students studying abroad fall in love with a place. Maggie Lebherz ’08, modern languages and linguistics, fell in love with some new tastes during her semester at the University of Salamanca. “Tasting fresh olive oil added an entirely new dimension to it, and I also learned about the health benefits of olive oil,” she says. “I had never had true balsamic vinegar, and even the best ones on the market here could not compare to what I had in Spain.” The love affair that Lebherz developed with balsamic vinegar and fresh olive oil while studying in Spain has translated… Continue Reading Targeting Tastes: Maggie Lebherz '08, MLL
As an analytical chemist and senior scientist for consumer goods giant Proctor & Gamble, Ronita Marple ’05 Ph.D., chemistry, observes that it’s not unusual for her to walk past a lab and catch a glimpse of a robot testing a product by performing a household chore over and over again, for hours on end, to identify a product’s weaknesses without stressing out human testers in the process. Such grueling tests are part of how all of the nearly 125 products marketed by Proctor & Gamble end up in a consumer’s shopping cart. So is Marple’s own job mundane and robotic?… Continue Reading Formula for Success: Ronita Marple '05 Ph.D., chemistry
With Vivian Armor ’73, director, Alex. Brown Center for Entrepreneurship You wake up one morning with a big, bright light bulb bobbing above your head. You start your day, feed the dog, the light getting brighter by the minute. Pretty soon, it’s keeping you up at night. Well, congratulations. Your “big idea” has arrived – and with it, a world of possibility. So, now what? Do you cash in your life savings for seed money? Get a fancy business degree? Buy the book by that guy in the suit covered in question marks? Maybe you take some (absolutely) free advice… Continue Reading How To Grow Your Big Idea: Vivian Armor '73
When Jason Woody ’04, sociology, received his acceptance letter to be part of the first class of the Shriver Living Learning Center (SLLC) ten years ago, he wanted to be a film major. And though he was interested in the social justice focus of the new center, he was also enticed by Erickson Hall, the sleek new dorm on campus that SLLC students would call home. Woody found the SLLC’s service mentality contagious and it quickly came to define his worldview. In his sophomore year, he came across a poster asking students to dedicate service hours to honor those killed… Continue Reading A Decade of Service: Shriver Living Learning Center
In 2008, former UMBC Retriever pitcher Zach Clark ’06, psychology, was with the Frederick Keys – a Class A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles – when he got the news that he was needed at Class AAA Norfolk Tides for a spot starting assignment. The good news traveled fast, but Clark didn’t. It was only after a long bus trip with the Keys from Kinston, NC, to Myrtle Beach, SC, and an early morning flight to Syracuse, NY, that Clark finally joined his new club. He pitched for the Tides that same night. “I slept at the hotel during the… Continue Reading Climbing the Ladder: Zach Clark '06, psychology
Open the door to Annapolis’ Rams Head Tavern and the sounds of upbeat banjo and guitar fly out into the warm night air, followed by closely by the gruff voice of Adam Trice ’04, English – who’s in the middle of a 45-minute set with his band, Red Sammy. “It ain’t you, it ain’t her,” Trice growls tunefully in a song called “It Ain’t You (Carolina Road Anthem).” “I’m heading south, but I’m not sure. You got me high, it’s kind of funny. I’m playing bars for gas money.” Trice dubs Red Sammy’s music as “graveyard country” because he likes… Continue Reading Words and Music: Adam Trice '04, English
