CAHSS

News and Updates about UMBC’s College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences

Ellen Handler Spitz, Honors College, on ‘The Madeleine Brand Show”

Ellen Handler Spitz, honors college professor of visual arts, appeared on Southern California Public Radio’s “The Madeleine Brand Show” on May 8 to discuss the death of Where the Wild Things Are author Maurice Sendak. Spitz is a renowned expert on children’s literature. “It’s hard to think of any other American who did more for children’s literature,” Spitz said. “Maurice Sendak had an uncanny way of seeing into a child’s private world, a child’s world of fantasy. But I think what is most important about his legacy is that he was able to create books and characters that captured the… Continue Reading Ellen Handler Spitz, Honors College, on ‘The Madeleine Brand Show”

Ellen Handler Spitz, Honors College, in The New Republic

Maurice Sendak, a children’s author best known for his book Where the Wild Things Are, passed away on Tuesday, May 8. Ellen Handler Spitz, honors college professor of visual arts, wrote about Sendak for The New Republic in a piece entitled “Remembering Maurice Sendak, Who Brought Loneliness to Children’s Literature,” which appeared on the website on May 9. “Sendak knew from within the profound sense in which every child, from time to time, perceives himself or herself to be alone—an outsider—and feels the need to retreat into some private space, some nook or secret hiding place. Sendak’s books are themselves… Continue Reading Ellen Handler Spitz, Honors College, in The New Republic

Donald Norris, Public Policy, in The Daily Record

When the Maryland General Assembly’s special legislative session is held on Monday to hash out remaining budget issues, will it be in violation of the Open Meetings Act? The Daily Record asked this question yesterday, responding to Gov. O’Malley’s previous statement that he would not recall lawmakers unless a compromise was reached beforehand, which has raised red flags for some observers. Donald F. Norris, professor and chairman of UMBC’s Department of Public Policy, suggests the argument could be made, but ultimate some degree of pre-agreement is helpful to ensure that the special session is fruitful. If nothing substantive comes out of… Continue Reading Donald Norris, Public Policy, in The Daily Record

Christopher Corbett, English, in Style

Christopher Corbett, professor of the practice of English, writes about Baltimore’s 32nd Street Farmers Market in Style. Rain or shine, every Saturday morning, if I am in Baltimore, I swing by the 32nd Street Farmers Market, a habit of city life for me since I moved to Baltimore 32 years ago. Thousands of people whom I sort of know in that strange two degrees of separation that exists on the north side of the city share this ritual with me. I like ritual. And I love the farmers market. Read the entire article here.

Local Police Officer Rescued by UMBC Students, Catonsville Times Reports

The Catonsville Times reports that a Baltimore County police officer who had a heart attack and collapsed while jogging at UMBC last week has been released from the hospital, thanks in part to the efforts of two UMBC students who responded to the incident. Chris Tingley, a volunteer EMT and junior studying emergency health services, stopped at the scene and began performing CPR while student Antigone Cox called 911 and stayed on the line with a dispatcher. Both Tigley and Cox visited the police officer in the hospital during his recovery, which police Capt. John Spiroff has called “remarkable.”

UMBC Student Veterans in Patch

Patch.com today focuses on the employment challenges facing military veterans. Highlighted in the article is UMBC financial economics major and former staff sergeant Stephanie Gilbert, who has had difficulty finding a summer internship despite a high GPA, military leadership experience and fluency in Arabic. This is not a unique experience among veterans. The article notes that Maryland’s unemployment rate for Iraq and Afghanistan veterans was nearly 2% higher than the rate for non-veterans in 2011. UMBC’s Fritzie Charné-Merriwether, who works on veterans’ issues in Student Affairs, says a notable challenge in matching student veterans with employers is translating their military… Continue Reading UMBC Student Veterans in Patch

Laura Hussey, Political Science, in the Gazette

As Maryland legislators work to resolve budget woes and gaming disagreement through possible special sessions, Laura Hussey, assistant professor of political science, argues in the Gazette that separating the budget and gaming discussions into two special sessions will make it more difficult for the gaming expansion to pass. Why? Initial slots legislation was considered alongside possible tax increases in 2007 and was passed as an effort to resolve that year’s challenging budget situation. Hussey suggests that if the current budget issue is solved separately, it will be harder for proponents to suggest gaming is a fiscal necessity. “I don’t think… Continue Reading Laura Hussey, Political Science, in the Gazette

Baltimore Sun Features UMBC Student Research

“Annual conference showcases UMBC’s focus on undergraduate research,” the Baltimore Sun announced this morning. The article highlights the hard work of over 200 UMBC students who participated in this year’s Undergraduate Research and Creative Achievement Day (URCAD), from fields as diverse as political science, chemical engineering and visual arts. URCAD is “like a middle-school science fair, only for college-age people of intimidating drive and intellect,” writes reporter Childs Walker. In addition to providing undergraduates with this opportunity to share their scholarship, UMBC also offers competitive Undergraduate Research Awards of up to $1,500 and publishes a selection of projects in an… Continue Reading Baltimore Sun Features UMBC Student Research

Fred L. Pincus, Sociology, to Retire after 44 Years at UMBC

Fred L. Pincus, Professor in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology, will retire at the end of the semester after spending 44 years at UMBC. He came to Baltimore from UCLA as a 26-year-old instructor in 1968, the third year of UMBC’s existence. In addition to all the committee work needed to build the department and the university, Pincus taught courses in race relations, social psychology and introductory sociology. He also became very involved in the movement against the war in Vietnam and promoted campus policies to increase the number of African American students on campus. He was an early… Continue Reading Fred L. Pincus, Sociology, to Retire after 44 Years at UMBC

Department of Theatre’s “Incorruptible” Reviewed by the Baltimore Sun

Arts critic Mike Giuliano, writing for the Patuxent Papers and The Baltimore Sun, gave high marks to the Department of Theatre’s current production, Incorruptible, in a review published today. “Director Colette Searls ensures that the plot’s zany complications keep coming our way,” he remarked, while also mentioning set and costume design by Elena Zlotescu, associate professor of Theatre; and students Brad Widener, Daniel Friedman, Anderson Wells, Christopher Dews, Samantha Van Sant, Sydney Kleinberg, David Brasington and Jessica Ruth Baker. Read the full review here.

Craig Saper, LLC, Publishes New Book

Craig Saper, associate professor of Language, Literacy and Culture, has published a new book under his alter-ego of dj readies. Intimate Bureaucracies is a history from the future looking backward at our present moment as a turning point. Our systems of organization and control appear unsustainable and brutal, and we are feeling around in the dark for alternatives. Using experiments in social organization in downtown New York City, and other models of potential alternative social organizations, this manifesto makes a call to action to study and build sociopoetic systems. It is published by Punctum Books. The book is also a part… Continue Reading Craig Saper, LLC, Publishes New Book

Gloria Chuku, Africana Studies, Awarded Fellowship

Gloria Chuku, associate professor of Africana studies, has been awarded the Summer 2012 West African Research Association (WARA) post-doctoral fellowship. WARA’s mission is to promote research and scholarly exchange between West African and US scholars and institutions, and the award will enable Chuku to conduct research in Nigeria on the Biafra-Nigeria War during the summer.

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