Erickson School

an older man stands in front of a flag that says Paralyzed Veterans of America

Meet a Retriever—Army veteran Tim Besse, M.A. ’17, management of aging services

/ 5 minutes of reading

Meet Tim Besse, M.A. ’17, management of aging services, a veteran of the United States Army who now works as an advocate for veterans with neurological injuries or diseases. As a student in the Erickson School, Tim made connections with a fellow student that sticks with him to this day. Thanks for sharing your story, Tim! Q: What’s one essential thing you’d want another Retriever to know about you? A: As far back as I can remember, I aspired to go to college and pursue a career that was dependent upon my college education. I enlisted in the U.S. Army… Continue Reading Meet a Retriever—Army veteran Tim Besse, M.A. ’17, management of aging services

Four alumni hold books in front of a large quilt.

Meet a Retriever —Diane Tichnell ’70, political science, Founding Four alum

/ 6 minutes of reading

Meet Diane Tichnell ’70, a political science graduate of UMBC’s very first class of Retrievers! As a member of UMBC’s “Founding Four” group of alums from the university’s first four graduating years, Diane has stayed involved with her alma mater, participating as an editor of This Belongs To Us, a collection of Founding Four stories, and establishing the Tichnell Aging Gracefully Graduate Scholarship to support students in the Erickson School of Aging Studies. Take it away, Diane! Q: What’s one essential thing you’d want another Retriever to know about you? A: I have been a loyal Retriever since that first day on campus,… Continue Reading Meet a Retriever —Diane Tichnell ’70, political science, Founding Four alum

A family gathers around a matriarch in a wheelchair

Caregiving Goes Both Ways

/ 4 minutes of reading

For more than a decade, Rita Choula was the primary caregiver for her late mother who lived with frontotemporal degeneration (FTD), a lesser known form of early onset dementia that typically affects people under the age of 60. “My mother started saying things like ‘I don’t feel like myself. I feel like I’m losing my mind.’ She used to be someone that was really engaged and outgoing and she started to pull back a bit. She used to be very empathetic, very people-loving, and showed a lot of concern, and it reached a point where that empathy went straight out… Continue Reading Caregiving Goes Both Ways

Four people stand in front of a quilt with a gold heart on it. The people are holding copies of a book titled This Belongs to Us.

UMBC Belongs to All of Us

/ 3 minutes of reading

UMBC is a young institution—and not only do we have active alumni from the first four graduating classes still working to make an impact on campus and beyond, we are still discovering new stories about the establishment of the university and the ways the campus community was invited to co- create UMBC at its inception. In fact, Diane Tichnell ’70, political science, describes the impetus for the Founding Four’s book, This Belongs to Us (2023), as its own sort of inception. Several years ago, she had a dream—literal dream while she was asleep. In it, she was attending a lecture… Continue Reading UMBC Belongs to All of Us

Round Up: UMBC in the News

/ 1 minute of reading

One of the things that makes UMBC great is how wonderful our alumni, students, faculty, and staff are. Because of these amazing people, UMBC often finds itself “in the news,” so each week, we’ll be sharing with you a round-up of the most newsworthy achievements from our community. Dr. Hrabowski discusses his experiences in the Civil Rights movement on the Kojo Nnamdi Show Amy Hurst, information systems, studied assistive technologies in the maker community and created tools to help the public make useful objects. Maryland Unites: UMBC Community Service Leave Justin Vélez-Hagan, School of Public Policy, Weighs in on Puerto… Continue Reading Round Up: UMBC in the News

Round-Up: UMBC in the News

/ 1 minute of reading

One of the things that makes UMBC great is how wonderful our alumni, students, faculty and staff are. Because of these amazing people, UMBC often finds itself “in the news,” so each week, we’ll be sharing with you a round-up of the most newsworthy achievements from our community. UMBC featured in The Baltimore Sun’s February Education Supplement Manil Suri, Mathematics, in The Wall Street Journal Stephen Freeland, INDS, in WIRED Michele Osherow, English, in Folger Theatre Production Diary Judah Ronch, Erickson School, on WYPR’s Maryland Morning Jason Schiffman, Psychology, in The Daily Beast Check out all the other great campus news on Insights Weekly.

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