Alumni

We’re Number One…Again!

UMBC is proud to be recognized again as a national leader in innovation and undergraduate teaching in U.S. News & World Report’s Best Colleges guide. For the fourth year in a row, UMBC tops the U.S. News ranking of “Up-and-Coming” national universities — a designation recognizing universities that consistently find innovative ways to improve students’ educational experiences. We share the top spot with George Mason University. U.S. News also ranks UMBC eighth on a list of the top national universities “where the faculty has an unusual commitment to undergraduate teaching.” UMBC is tied with Duke University, the University of California-Berkeley,… Continue Reading We’re Number One…Again!

Emokpae ’03, Psychology, on NBC’s “The Voice” This Week

UMBC alumnus Nelson Emokpae ’03, psychology, will make his television debut tonight on NBC’s singing competition “The Voice.” Emokpae immigrated to the U.S. as a political refugee from Nigeria and received his B.A. from UMBC before picking up a guitar for the first time while in graduate school. He decided to pursue a full-time music career as Nelly’s Echo just last year, and has been touring at college campuses around the country. In a recent interview, the Baltimore-based Emokpae remarked, “I love touring. I love meeting different people. I love seeing different locations, trying out different cultures. Because even in America,… Continue Reading Emokpae ’03, Psychology, on NBC’s “The Voice” This Week

The Beats Go On

At his San Francisco museum, UMBC alumnus Jerry Cimino ’76 makes sure the world is still hep to one of America’s greatest literary movements. By Jenny O’Grady Photos by Mirissa Neff and Brittany Powell The Beat Generation was a uniquely American movement – producing pockets of poetry and art across the land. You could find them in 1950s New York City in their early days clustered around Columbia University – or down in the cafes and jazz clubs of Greenwich Village. Some of them found refuge at Black Mountain College in North Carolina. And they drank and declaimed in juke… Continue Reading The Beats Go On

A SIRI-ous Mind

British writer and scientist Arthur C. Clarke once wrote that “any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” And for many of us, that’s exactly how the beeps and pings and connecting dings that keep our schedules, steer our cars to the right destination, and even maintain our bonds with family and friends over great distances seem to work. Like magic. But to the humans behind the technologies – including Silicon Valley-based UMBC alumni at Apple and Google – it’s anything but abracadabra. It’s a combination of hard work, entrepreneurial drive and visionary imagination at its geekish best. Let’s meet… Continue Reading A SIRI-ous Mind

“Uncle Devin” Walker ’89, PoliSci, Shares Music with Kids in D.C.

Musician Devin Walker ’89, political science, took his “Uncle Devin” show to the U.S. Capitol this summer, sharing educational music with children and parents alike. Walker, who plays the drums, calls the show “a live, interactive musical experience for children five and over by renowned drummer Devin Walker. The show cultivates the minds of children through percussion instruments and is a dynamic cross between Fat Albert and Schoolhouse Rock.” View photos from the show here.  Read more about the show here. Walker and his jazz band, A Sense of Urgency, will be one of three alumni-driven bands playing at this… Continue Reading “Uncle Devin” Walker ’89, PoliSci, Shares Music with Kids in D.C.

“Uncle Devin” Walker '89, PoliSci, Shares Music with Kids in D.C.

Musician Devin Walker ’89, political science, took his “Uncle Devin” show to the U.S. Capitol this summer, sharing educational music with children and parents alike. Walker, who plays the drums, calls the show “a live, interactive musical experience for children five and over by renowned drummer Devin Walker. The show cultivates the minds of children through percussion instruments and is a dynamic cross between Fat Albert and Schoolhouse Rock.” View photos from the show here.  Read more about the show here. Walker and his jazz band, A Sense of Urgency, will be one of three alumni-driven bands playing at this… Continue Reading “Uncle Devin” Walker '89, PoliSci, Shares Music with Kids in D.C.

Messner '01 and Moore '07 in Everyman Theatre's Time Stands Still

When war strikes in a distant nation, the only way that many Americans experience it is through the lens of the journalists and photographers who risk life and limb to get the shots that capture war’s horrors and tragedies. But what is the personal cost for those who show such courage? Assessing that human cost to the chroniclers of war is the essence of Donald Maguiles’ play Time Stands Still, which opened last week at Baltimore’s Everyman Theatre with UMBC alumni Eric Messner ’01, acting,  and Mandy Moore ’07, acting, among its ensemble. “When I was at UMBC I used… Continue Reading Messner '01 and Moore '07 in Everyman Theatre's Time Stands Still

Messner ’01 and Moore ’07 in Everyman Theatre’s Time Stands Still

When war strikes in a distant nation, the only way that many Americans experience it is through the lens of the journalists and photographers who risk life and limb to get the shots that capture war’s horrors and tragedies. But what is the personal cost for those who show such courage? Assessing that human cost to the chroniclers of war is the essence of Donald Maguiles’ play Time Stands Still, which opened last week at Baltimore’s Everyman Theatre with UMBC alumni Eric Messner ’01, acting,  and Mandy Moore ’07, acting, among its ensemble. “When I was at UMBC I used… Continue Reading Messner ’01 and Moore ’07 in Everyman Theatre’s Time Stands Still

Case '11 and Student Blog from Democratic National Convention

Mitch Case ’11, media & communication studies, and current UMBC junior Caitlyn Leiter-Mason, a Sondheim Public Affairs Scholar majoring in Gender & Women’s Studies and Political Science, are blogging about their experiences as delegates to the Democratic National Convention this week in Charlotte, NC. Their shared blog, A Tale of Two Delegates, follows their adventures as delegates for President Obama representing Maryland’s 6th and 7th districts (Leiter-Mason and Case, respectively). Leiter-Mason is the current president of UMBC College Democrats, and Case served as president when he attended UMBC. Read more at UMBC’s BreakingGround site. BreakingGround is at the forefront of… Continue Reading Case '11 and Student Blog from Democratic National Convention

Case ’11 and Student Blog from Democratic National Convention

Mitch Case ’11, media & communication studies, and current UMBC junior Caitlyn Leiter-Mason, a Sondheim Public Affairs Scholar majoring in Gender & Women’s Studies and Political Science, are blogging about their experiences as delegates to the Democratic National Convention this week in Charlotte, NC. Their shared blog, A Tale of Two Delegates, follows their adventures as delegates for President Obama representing Maryland’s 6th and 7th districts (Leiter-Mason and Case, respectively). Leiter-Mason is the current president of UMBC College Democrats, and Case served as president when he attended UMBC. Read more at UMBC’s BreakingGround site. BreakingGround is at the forefront of… Continue Reading Case ’11 and Student Blog from Democratic National Convention

Four Lax Alumni Compete in MLL Championship at Harvard

Four UMBC alums competed in Major League Lacrosse’s Championship Weekend, held at Harvard University Stadium in Boston, Mass. Attackman Drew Westervelt ’09, economics, is a member of the 2012 champion Chesapeake Bayhawks, while Brendan Mundorf ’06, sociology, Peet Poillon ’10, INDS, and Terry Kimener ’09, American studies, competed for the runner-up Denver Outlaws. All four former Retrievers finished the 2012 season ranked in the top-20 in the MLL scoring race. Westervelt played for the Denver squad in his first five years in the league. A Third Team All-American for UMBC in 2007, the Bel Air, Md. native tied for 20th… Continue Reading Four Lax Alumni Compete in MLL Championship at Harvard

Alumni Welcome Brand-New Retrievers

Thank you to the alumni volunteers who helped welcome a new class of Retrievers (and move their stuff!) at UMBC’s Move-In Day, August 25. Pictured below (L-R): Corris Davis ’98 of the Meyerhoff Alumni Chapter; Melissa Evans ’07, president of the Chapter of Young Alumni; Bennett Moe ’88, president of the Alumni Association Board of Directors; Donnie Downey ’85 of the Alumni Association Board of Directors; and Yvette Mozie-Ross ’88 of the Chapter of Black and Latino Alumni. See more photos from Move-In Day on UMBC’s Alumni Flickr site.

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