All posts by: UMBC News Staff

Carlo DiClemente, Psychology, Recipient of Lifetime Achievement Award

Carlo DiClemente, presidential research professor and professor of psychology, was selected as a recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award by the Addictive Behaviors SpecCarlo DiClementeial Interest Group (AB-SIG) of the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies (ABCT).

The award is presented every other year to a member who has made outstanding contributions over the course of his or her career to the field of addictive behaviors, consistent with the goal of advancing cognitive and behavior therapies. 

The selection committee this year felt DiClemente best embodied the spirit of this award. He will be formally honored at the upcoming ABCT meeting in Nashville, TN on November 23rd.

Joan Shin, Education, Launches Book Series with National Geographic Learning

Joan Shin, Education Professor of Practice, has launched a book series with National Geographic Learning designed to give learners the skills and knowledge they need to learn English and understand the world around them.

Teaching Young Learners English Joan ShinThe series, called “Our World,” uses images and video and provides National Geographic content to young learners of English. Shin is co-editor of the series along with JoAnn Crandall, Professor Emerita and former Director of the Language, Literacy and Culture Ph.D. program. You can find out more about the series here.

As part of the series, Shin also developed a professional development video program for teachers. It was filmed and produced at UMBC in collaboration with New Media Studio. The program examines topics such as using video and technology in the classroom, using songs and chants, and providing young learners with real-world content. You can read more about the program here.

Shin also has a new textbook out called, Teaching Young Learners English (National Geographic Learning/Cengage Learning, 2013). The book, written by Shin and Crandall, teaches English as a foreign language to young children and presents practical suggestions and best practices to engage young learners.

George Derek Musgrove, History, in The Baltimore Sun

Catonsville resident Gus Russo, a documentary filmmaker and author, has written a book and filmed a documentary chronicling the stories of American citizens and where they were when President John F. Kennedy was assassinated. The 50th anniversary of the assassination is November 22nd.

Derek Musgrove

History Assistant Professor George Derek Musgrove was interviewed for an article in The Baltimore Sun about Russo’s documentary and the impact of Kennedy’s assassination on the American people. He said television played a significant role.

“Large numbers of Americans saw the motorcade and the fatal shot, his wife scrambling out of the car and much of his funeral was on TV live. That in and of itself was a remarkable departure from past political events,” he said. “There was both a national trauma, and a national attempt to come to terms with what had just happened.”

Musgrove said nothing in modern day history except the terrorist attacks of 9/11 has had a comparable impact on the American people.

“Everyone has come to understand that the event was so jarring and so important that anyone that was alive when it happened can say exactly where they were when it happened,” he said.

You can read the full article in The Baltimore Sun here.

Vin Grabill, Visual Arts, in The Faculty Voice

TalkingHeadsIThe artwork of Vin Grabill, associate professor and chair of visual arts, was included in the October 2013 issue of The Faculty Voice. Read about his video pieces and digital prints in the article “The Art of Vin Grabill” or view one of the works discussed, Frontier, at Vimeo.

The article also mentions the work of Steve Silberg, visual arts, and Neal McDonald, visual arts, which will be exhibited with Grabill’s at the Howard County Arts Center in Ellicott City from January 10 to February 21, 2014.

Eric Zeemering, Public Policy, on WYPR

Baltimore is updating its comprehensive zoning plan for the first time since 1971. The goal is to make the city more pedestrian friendly and to increase use of public transportation.

Public Policy Assistant Professor Eric Zeemering was interviewed by WYPR for a story about the new plan, which is called “Transform Baltimore.” He says increased neighborhood accessibility that integrates work, life, and entertainment should be a key part of the planning process.

Eric Zeemering (UMBC)

“Baltimore will benefit from thinking about how to keep residents satisfied and happy within the individual neighborhoods rather than requiring them to get into their cars and drive throughout the city to meet their different daily needs,” Zeemering said.

The planning process began in 2008 and Zeemering says it will greatly benefit from creating walk-able, transit-oriented communities.

“The mayor’s goal of attracting 10,000 new families to this city can really be helped along by smart policy decisions that make the city’s downtown and various neighborhoods more attractive to potential residents.”

You can read and listen to the full story here.

 

Ellen Handler Spitz, Honors College, to Participate in New York Review of Books Panel

Honors College Professor Ellen Handler Spitz has been invited to speak on a panel at McNally Jackson Bookstore in New York City.

The New York Review of Books has been republishing time-honored classic books for children for the past decade, and this panel has been convened to celebrate this venture on its tenth anniversary.

Edwin Frank, editor of the NYRB’s Children’s Collection, and Betsy Bird, New York Public Library Children’s Librarian, will discuss the changing character of children’s books with Ellen Handler Spitz and other children’s literature experts.

The event is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Sunday, November 10th at McNally Jackson Bookstore. You can find more information here.

SUCCESS Program Featured in Southern Maryland Online, Capital News Service

Now in its second year, The Shriver Center’s SUCCESS Program was featured in a recent Southern Maryland Online article and Capital News Service video.

SUCCESS (Students United for Campus-Community Engagement for Post-Secondary Success) is the first four-year college experience for young adults with intellectual disabilities in Maryland. The article highlights the early progress of the program, which has seen its applications nearly triple.

Shriver Center Director Michele Wolff talks about how the SUCCESS Program has been building on feedback and response from students and families.

“We are building the program as we go, which is…a benefit and a challenge,” Wolff said. “The benefit … is that we can really listen to the students and their families … and build the program based on their interests.”

The article describes the positive experiences students and families are going through early on in the program, which is a non-degree program that focuses on independent living and preparing students for employment.

You can read the full article and the Capital News Service video which accompanies it here.

UMBC’s a Winner!

CrossCountry_blog110413Congratulations to the UMBC men’s cross country team on winning their first America East championship since 2005!

From the news release:

Following a third place finish at last year’s America East Championships, the UMBC men’s cross country team wanted more. A year later, the Retrievers got it, winning the league title Saturday morning at Binghamton University.

UMBC's a Winner!

CrossCountry_blog110413Congratulations to the UMBC men’s cross country team on winning their first America East championship since 2005!
From the news release:

Following a third place finish at last year’s America East Championships, the UMBC men’s cross country team wanted more. A year later, the Retrievers got it, winning the league title Saturday morning at Binghamton University.

Piotr Gwiazda, English, Publishes a Book

Associate Professor of English Piotr Gwiazda has just published his translation of Polish writer Grzegorz Wroblewski’s book of prose poems KOPENHAGA. This project was awarded a grant from the PEN American Center and UMBC’s Dresher Center for the Humanities.

Gabriel Gudding calls KOPENHAGA “one of the most important books of our time.” Joshua Clover describes it as “grim, glancingly beautiful, always necessary.” Marjorie Perloff comments: “Wroblewski is the true poetic chronicler of our 21st century diaspora in all its absurdities and anxieties.”

Amanda Knapp, Office of Undergraduate Education, Recognized by the Sloan Consortium

Dr. Amanda M. Knapp’s research entitled, “The Relationship Between Best Online Instructional Practices and Undergraduate Student Perceptions of Instructor Credibility at a Large, Four-Year, Public, Open University” was selected for a 2013 Effective Practice Award through a Sloan-C peer review process.

An award luncheon will be held at the 19th Annual Sloan Consortium International Conference on Online Learning on November 21, 2013 in Orlando, FL.

Tom Beck, Library, Selected as Maryland Historical Records Advisory Board Chair

Tom Beck, Chief Curator in the Library, has been selected as the chair of the Maryland State Historical Records Advisory Board.

Having served as co-chair with Ed Papenfuse, now retired as Maryland State Archivist and Commissioner of Land Patents, he will lead the panel responsible for review of all Maryland grants submitted to the National Historical Publications and Records Commission, as well as advise organizations across the state on subjects related to historical records and archives.

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