All posts by: UMBC News Staff

Star on the Rise

When Luke Roberts plays piano and sings, he is at ease and does so with a purely natural ability.  He is confident and plays his original songs with the grace and passion of a seasoned pro.

It is no surprise that a junior mechanical engineering student and Meyerhoff Scholar has many talents, but it was Roberts’ positive attitude and dedication to his craft that made it clear why he won the second season of the international YOBISing online music competition.

Roberts, who is from Laurel, Md., began his musical journey by learning drums when he was young.  He soon realized it was a hobby that was going to stick.  He eventually learned piano and began singing and writing songs.  His father was in a local band, and his brother Daniel, also a UMBC student, plays guitar, piano and sings.  His younger brother Michael plays bass, piano and sings.

“Music connected to a part of me and allowed me to let things out that I couldn’t any other way,” said Roberts, who was one of 30 semifinalists out of nearly 3,000 international musicians. 

Roberts entered the YOBISing contest in January of 2009, and only those with enough votes advanced in the competition until the contest closed this past May and a winner was selected. He made it clear that he wouldn’t have gotten far without support. 

Roberts utilized Facebook and the support of the UMBC community through 40 weeks of the competition to push his song “Turn Me Around” all the way to first place after seven weeks of semi-finals.  Flyers, banners, emails to listserves and t-shirts were created by Roberts and friends to promote his participation in the contest. 

“It was cool for everyone else, almost like a UMBC victory too,” he said. “People I don’t even know still come up to me and say ‘congrats man!’”

As the winner of theYOBISing contest, Roberts received $18,000, a trip to Los Angeles, VIP tickets to the 2011 Grammy Awards and VIP tickets to a celebrity awards after-party. 

Roberts admits he spent most of the money paying for school. 

While Roberts has a passion for music and songwriting, he is also very interested in studying mechanical engineering and getting a Ph.D.  He is interning at Johns Hopkins where he is doing research on prosthetic hands, and working to develop a glove that can detect if an object is slipping through its grasp. 

“Always have back-up options,” said Roberts. “A huge part of me is engineering.”

Roberts does find the time to balance his two worlds.  He plays drums and piano simultaneously (one instrument with each hand) in his band, Band of Brothers, with his siblings. They just released a CD and play locally at community events, and will perform at “A Taste of UMBC” during Homecoming on Saturday, October 16.

He also emphasizes that music is sometimes a profound experience, and that he strives to connect to people with his art.  This is something that he shares with his brothers.

“I think that the real success of the band will lie in whether or not our music is able to reach people where they are, in a way that helps them to come to a better place,” said Roberts.  “If we achieve that, then we will have succeeded.  That is something that all of us as brothers deeply want to achieve.”

If you plan to enter the YOBISing competition this year, Luke Roberts will greet you on the website as the host of the third season. 

(9/17/10)

Excellence & Affordability

UMBC is one of 50 public institutions in the United States recognized by The Princeton Review as a “Best Value College” offering a combination of educational excellence and affordability.  The ranking was announced February 22 on the Today Show and in USA Today.

The honor is the third major national distinction UMBC has received from leading higher-education rankings publications this academic year. For the second year in a row, UMBC was named America’s #1 “Up-and-Coming” national university by U.S. News & World Report’s Best Colleges Guide.  The University was also included on Kiplinger’s Best Value Public Colleges list.

The Princeton Review recognizes UMBC, a research university with nearly 13,000 students, for  attracting serious students and supporting them with undergraduate research opportunities throughout the Baltimore-Washington region and beyond. The campus location near BWI-Marshall Airport gives students access to internships with government agencies, nonprofits and leading private-sector companies.

 “UMBC provides a distinctive undergraduate education to outstanding students, many of whom go on to prestigious graduate schools and professional opportunities. We’re delighted to be recognized by The Princeton Review’s list of ‘Best Value Colleges,’ ” said UMBC President Freeman A. Hrabowski, III.

The Princeton Review selected schools by using institutional data and student opinion surveys. Broadly speaking, it examined factors covering undergraduate academics, costs and financial aid. A school’s academic rating was derived from admissions and other institutional data and student opinion surveys.

A school’s financial aid rating was based on data about tuition, fees, room and board and need-based financial aid packages and student opinion surveys regarding award packages and the service provided by a school’s financial aid office.  Approximately seventy-seven percent of students at UMBC receive some financial aid in the form of scholarships, loans and grants.

Dale Bittinger, director of undergraduate admissions and orientation, said, “Being named to the ‘Best Value Colleges’ list once again is something that we are proud of as it reaffirms, among many values, our commitment to attracting a highly diverse community of high-achieving students.”

UMBC was also named a “Best Value College” in 2009 and in 2008 was ranked the second “Most Diverse Student Body”  in The Princeton Review’s “The Best 368 Colleges: 2009 Edition.”

(2/22/11)

NCAA Bound

For the second time in school history, the UMBC men’s soccer program will compete in the NCAA Division I Championships as the Retrievers advanced, 5-4, in penalty kicks in the America East Conference title game after playing visiting New Hampshire (UNH) to a 0-0 scoreless draw.

“I am extremely proud of our Men’s Soccer program,” said UMBC Athletics Director Charles Brown. “Coach Pete Caringi, his staff and our student-athletes have had an amazing season.  It is great to see that a team with such hard work and dedication has won the America East Conference Championship.  The atmosphere at our championship game was amazing and everyone in attendance was treated to a very special day.  I am sure our team will make UMBC proud in the NCAA Championships.”

The game pitted the league’s top offense of UMBC against the best defense in UNH.  The second-seeded Retrievers (11-4-3) and fifth-seeded Wildcats (9-5-6) played 110 minutes of scoreless soccer, necessitating the penalty kicks. After both teams converted their opening kicks, UMBC junior goalkeeper Dan Louisignau made a diving save to his right on an attempt by UNH’s Joe Corsello.

The next three shooters for each squad converted, leaving it up to UMBC senior midfielder John Paul Waraksa with the shootout knotted at 4-4. The Retriever captain placed his shot inside the left post, setting off a wild celebration from the Retriever players and partisan crowd at UMBC Soccer Stadium.

Senior forward Levi Houapeu was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player. He scored two goals in the semifinals vs. Stony Brook and was the game’s most dangerous player in the finals. Warkasa, senior captain Chris Williams and junior midfielder Andrew Bulls were also selected to the All-Championship Team.

“This is a very confident team,“ Caringi said. “We played a lot of good teams on the road and won games at Bucknell and Penn State. It shows that we can play with anybody if we play our game. Our team had tremendous support this season from UMBC students, alumni and fans. We’re very excited to represent UMBC in the NCAA tournament.”  

The Retrievers are now 7-1-3 in their last 11 outings heading into the NCAA tournament.

The team will face host Princeton in the first round of the NCAA Men’s Soccer Championships on Thursday, Nov. 18. Kick-off time is set for 7 p.m. at Roberts Stadium in Princeton, N.J.

UMBC previously went to the NCAA’s in 1999, after winning the Northeast Conference Tournament and advancing in penalty kicks over Lafayette in an NCAA play-in game. The Retrievers, who owned the country’s best record at 19-1-1 in that season, lost, 4-3, in overtime at top-seeded Duke.

(11/15/10)

Victory!

      Watch game highlights >

UMBC junior midfielder Andrew Bulls scored with 11:58 remaining, as the Retrievers rallied from a 1-0 deficit to defeat tenth-ranked Princeton, 2-1, and advance to the second round of the NCAA Men’s Soccer Championships.

“We are ecstatic to come away with a victory against a really, really good team,” said head coach Pete Caringi. “Princeton is one of the best teams in the country and this is a very tough place to come up and get a win. I am really proud of our players.”

The Retrievers improve to 12-4-3 and extending their unbeaten streak to seven straight games, while snapping the Tigers’ (13-4-1)12-game winning streak. 

UMBC advances to take on host 12th-seeded William & Mary on Sunday, November 21, at 5 p.m. The fan bus departs from UMBC’s Stadium Lot at 12 p.m. The cost is $20 per person round trip but does not include a ticket to the game. Contact Kristen Alexander at kristen2@umbc.edu by 6 p.m. Saturday to reserve a seat on the bus. Tickets to the game, which can be purchased at William & Mary’s Martin Family Stadium at Albert-Daly Field, are $5 for adults and $3 for youth 14-and-under and for students with valid ID.

The game was tied at 1-1 at intermission when the potent tandem of Bulls and Levi Houapeu struck for the second time in the game. Junior back Andy Streilein served a ball deep into Princeton territory, where the duo both tried to run it down. Houapeu got to it first and after breaking into the box, slid a pass to the right for Bulls, who just tucked the ball into the far left corner.

The Tigers dominated the early action, but did not break through until the 32nd minute in unorthodox fashion. Antoine Hoppenot’s corner kick from the left corner eluded UMBC goalkeeper Dan Louisignau and bent into the goal, just inside the far corner.

But a Tiger handball seven yards outside the box provided UMBC an opportunity that they would convert. Bulls took the kick and bent it around the wall and off the right post. The rebound came out diagonally and Houapeu converted the rebound to knot the score at 1-1 in the 42nd minute.

Houapeu’s goal was his 15th of the season, matching his total of the 2009 campaign. The assist for Bulls was the 28th of his career, tying UMBC’s all-time leader James Hamilton (’01).

Louisignau made a season-high 10 saves in the UMBC cage.

UMBC improved to 4-4-0 when allowing the game’s first goal this season and held Princeton below two goals for only the second time since Sept. 19.

“Our game against Princeton was monumental for the Men’s Soccer program,” said Charles Brown, director of athletics. “We beat a nationally ranked opponent on their own turf and our team played with grit and determination. We are very proud of the entire team and coaching staff. We look forward to traveling to Williamsburg, Virginia to take on the 12th ranked William & Mary as we advance in the NCAA Division I Soccer Championship. GO RETRIEVERS!”

(11/19/10)

Spectrum

The Center for Art, Design and Visual Culture (CADVC) presents “Spectrum: 2010 Visual Arts Faculty Exhibition.” The first exhibition in a new series, “Spectrum” is designed to give a look into the current research and studio practice of faculty members Dan Bailey, Steve Bradley, Cathy Cook, Vin Grabill, Calla Thompson and Fred Worden.

The moment visitors step into the exhibition space, they are immersed in the artists’ work. Soundtracks from the films of Cook, Grabill and Worden, screened in the darkened theatre, create an ethereal accompaniment to the contemporary visual work on display.

Sounds drift across the room from the loudspeakers connected to the interactive installation created by Steve Bradley. “’TAP’ utilizes architectural infrastructure to perform a live sonic composition determined by the sound frequencies of a building,” Bradley writes in the exhibition’s accompanying catalogue.
                 
Across from the installation hang prints of 360-degree spherical panoramas shot and digitally manipulated by Dan Bailey. His piece, “Retriever Planet,” gives observers a unique perspective on a familiar campus location. “For me, the process of creating an image was one of making or building. With the advent of digital photography, it was a seamless transition to build and make images on a computer,” he writes.

Calla Thompson created pigmented prints and collage-based work raises questions about power. “I am interested in the collapse of a good/evil dichotomy, and instead create a place where characters have the potential to be both the goodie and the baddie, at times simultaneously,” she writes.

Inside the screening room, Vin Grabill, collaborated with two sound artists for his film “Frontier.” He explains that he edits short audio clips and visual footage “to generate visually musical compositions.”

In her documentary, “Immortal Cupboard: In Search of Lorine Niedecker,” Cathy Cook, explores the life of a working artist. She writes, “’Immortal Cupboard’ encompasses many of the subjects that have been central to my work for a long time: nature, women’s roles, rural living, the intersection of personal memory and history and the mechanics of everyday life.”

Fred Worden, creates experimental films that challenge viewers “to make sense of stimuli coming, not from the natural world out in front of the eyes, but rather from a source behind the eyes, the conscious mind.”
                 
“Discernable in all the work is an investigative quality that continually tests the boundaries of technical processes and formats found within each artistic discipline,” writes Symmes Gardner, executive director of CADVC.

“Spectrum” is on view through December 13. Accompanying artist lectures take place at noon on the following dates:

October 27 – Steve Bradley
November 3 – Vin Grabill
November 8 – James Smalls
November 17 – Cathy Cook
December 1 – Calla Thompson

CADVC is located on the first floor of the Fine Arts building and is open Tuesday-Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Admission is free. For more information, visit the CADVC website or call ext. 5-3188.

(10/21/10)

Champions in the Water

From the very beginning, emphasis was on the team. In the first month of practice, Chad Cradock ‘97, head coach of the swimming and diving teams, called out the names of student athletes and had them  describe what the team meant to them. Students cited their determination, their sacrifice, their love of the sport and their support for each other. The men were hungry for another championship and the women were not about to let the men hog the spotlight. “It created such a positive environment,” Cradock said.

It looks as if that positive environment paid off. Both men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams clinched 2011 America East Championships, the eighth consecutive such victory for the Retriever men and the third crown won by the women since they joined the conference.

“The coaches and staff are really proud of our athletes for buying into the hard work,” said Cradock. “They’re not your average student athletes. They get up and swim at six in the morning, then come back in the afternoon to train again.”

There were several stand-out athletes at the championship, and some new records were set. Brad Reitz ’11 earned the “Male Coaches’ Award” with 223 points earned during his four years as a Retriever. At the championship, he broke both the school and pool record for the 200-yard butterfly with a time of 1:47.26.

Abbey McKenney ’12 earned the award for “Most Outstanding Female Swimmer.” Her 100-yard freestyle time of 49.66 seconds is a new record for both UMBC and the America East Championship.

Johan Rohtla ’14 was named “Most Outstanding Male Rookie,” after he won gold and set a school record in the men’s 200-yard backstroke with a time of 1:46.80, breaking a record he had set earlier that day by 1.5 seconds.

Several other Retrievers earned medals and contributed to their teams’ victories. Pierre De Waal ’11 earned gold in the men’s 1,650-yard freestyle, Eric Jones ’11 won silver in the men’s 100-yard freestyle and John Mendenhall ’12 brought home the silver medal in the men’s 200-yard breaststroke.

In the women’s 200-yard butterfly, Tara Morrissette ’13 earned silver and Jennifer Kotonias ’13 brought home bronze. Amy Fay ’13 won bronze in the women’s 1,650-yard freestyle and set the second-fastest time in school history.

UMBC also brought home the award for “Men’s Co-Coaching Staff of the Year.” Cradock said they earned the award “solely on the performance of our men.”

Elsewhere in what was a busy weekend for UMBC athletics, the men’s track and field team took fourth place and the Retriever women took sixth at the America East Indoor Championships, earning three gold medals in the process. Read more about track and field here.

(2/22/11)

Celebrating Resilience

Huguens Jean, ’03, ’11, Ph.D., electrical engineering, and Clifford Muse, ’11, information systems, returned to Haiti in March 2010, after the devastating January earthquake, to fulfill their grandfather’s last request of them. As he was dying of cancer, he asked that at his funeral they celebrate his life and “find the joy.” “I had no idea what that meant until we encountered these people in Haiti,” said Jean, “These images of life continuing on.”

The brothers missed their grandfather’s funeral when the earthquake made travel to Port-au-Prince impossible, but they resolved to find a way to honor his memory. The new documentary film “Lift Up,” co-directed by Jean and UMBC alumnus Phillip Knowlton, records their journey back home.

“Lift Up” tells a story of people who have faced profound obstacles with resilience and courage. It also contests overly simplistic representations of Haiti that the filmmakers argue have too often dominated the media. Now reporters have a different story to tell.

In their grandfather’s honor, Jean and Muse built a kite like those they had flown together as children in Port-au-Prince, which they then flew in the 2010 Smithsonian Kite Festival in Washington, D.C. In some ways, however, it is this film that is the memorial, rather than the kite alone. As their grandfather wished, through this film Jean and Muse find the joy of life even at a moment of profound national suffering.

“Lift Up” has captured the public’s interest, appearing in the Baltimore Sun and Washington Post, as well as on WYPR’s Maryland Morning with Sheilah Kast. “The brothers hope the film will introduce American viewers to another side of Haiti,” notes Sun reporter Childs Walker. “Growing up in Port-au-Prince, they saw the dark side of humanity but also reveled in warm households packed with extended family…and a rich tradition of passing stories from one generation to the next.”

Following a December preview screening at the Embassy of Haiti in Washington, D.C. and a benefit screening in Los Angeles on January 12, the film will be shown during Welcome Week at UMBC on January 27, 8:00 p.m., in the Skylight room on the top floor of the Commons. The campus is invited to attend the free event, which will also include a talk with the filmmakers.

(1/20/2011)

© 2007-08 University of Maryland, Baltimore County • 1000 Hilltop Circle, Baltimore, MD 21250 • 410-455-1000 •

Exploring New Territory

UMBC organizes international contemporary music festival.

Contemporary musicians from around the globe come to UMBC October 27-30 for Livewire, a festival of 21st century music. Through dozens of concerts, lecture-recitals and presentations, performers and attendees will explore new musical territory and bold new compositions. Musicians will premiere, perform and discuss new works from around the world.

“This is a celebration of the vast creative force that has emerged in the last decade,” said Linda Dusman, professor of music and Livewire organizer.

The festival program is a representation of the depth and variety of that creative force. Featured performers include the Ruckus ensemble, the Damocles Trio, the Hoffmann/Goldstein Duo, the Synchronous Trio and UMBC faculty Matthew Belzer, Lisa Cella, Tom Goldstein, Gita Ladd, Maria Lambros, E. Michael Richards and Airi Yoshioka.

Livewire begins with a student concert, Wedneday, October 27, at noon in the Fine Arts Recital Hall. “UMBC students are very involved in contemporary music-making,” said Dusman.

The International Alliance for Women in Music (IAWM) Annual Concert, Thursday, October 28, 6 p.m. in Fine Arts 508, is a showcase of women composers from Australia, Poland, Ireland, France, Norway, Italy and the U.S., many of the pieces making their U.S. debut at Livewire.

Following the IAWM Annual Concert, Ruckus, the faculty contemporary ensemble at UMBC, will perform a variety of contemporary pieces at 8:30 p.m. in the Fine Arts Recital Hall.

Friday will be a full day of contemporary music, starting at 9 a.m. with a series of lectures. Evening music includes a variety of solo performances, a concert by the Hoffman/Goldstein Duo and Livewire Latenight, an improv session at 10:30 p.m. with Jesse Stewart on waterphone with UMBC students.

The festival wraps up with another full day of events on Saturday. The Synchronous Trio will perform in the Fine Arts Recital Hall at 5 p.m., followed by the Damocles Trio at 8 p.m. and a question-and-answer session with composers and performers.

“I think people who enjoy going to contemporary music concerts go for the surprises. You will always be surprised by something, and to be surprised by a concert can be a really rejuvenating experience,” Dusman said.

Livewire is presented by the UMBC Department of Music. For the complete schedule of events, visit www.umbc.edu/blogs/music/livewire/.

General admission to the concerts is $10, $5 for seniors or free with a student ID or UMBC ID. For more information, call 410-455-2942 or visit www.umbc.edu/arts.

Listen to Linda Dusman talk about the Livewire festival here.

(10/25/10)

© 2007-08 University of Maryland, Baltimore County • 1000 Hilltop Circle, Baltimore, MD 21250 • 410-455-1000 •

Renaissance Man

James Grubb, professor of history, has been named the Lipitz Professor of the Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences for the 2010-2011 academic year. Grubb is an expert on Renaissance Italy.

“Jim Grubb is not only one of the foremost scholars internationally of the Renaissance, but is a talented, dedicated and selfless teacher and member of the UMBC community. He richly deserves being honored as this year’s Lipitz Professor,” said John Jeffries, dean of the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences.

Grubb’s work has earned him several grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities, and his books include Firstborn of Venice: Vicenza in the Early Renaissance State and Provincial Families in the Renaissance: Private and Public Life in the Veneto. The latter book won the 1997 American Historical Association’s Marraro prize for the best book in Italian history.

The Lipitz professorship was established by Roger C. Lipitz and his family to “provide funds to recognize and support innovative and distinguished teaching and/or research.”  The professorship comes with about $15,000 in funds.

Grubb plans to divide his stipend into two parts. About two-thirds of the funding will be used to provide scholarships for graduate students in the M.A. in Historical Studies program. “There’s lots of scholarship money for undergrads and almost none for M.A. students,” he said. “We have a lot of students who are mature, they’re out working, they’ve got families, and if we can provide the tuition, it will allow them to go through much faster.”

The rest of the funding will be put towards a research trip that he plans to take early next summer. Grubb will travel to several European cities to view original sources as part of research for a book about the social history of Venice. “I’m totally dependent upon archival sources, and there are manuscripts are scattered all over the world,” he said.

Grubb’s book focuses on how such a small city became so influential. “Venice is about the size of the UMBC campus, and yet was the most powerful economic engine of its time,” he said.

Grubb was chosen for the professorship by a six-person committee of tenured faculty in the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences. To apply for the fellowship, he submitted a proposal for how he would use the funds.

At the end of the academic year, he will deliver the annual Lipitz lecture, for which he will draw from the research he completes during his professorship.

Grubb has been a professor at UMBC since 1983, and was named the Presidential Research Professor for 2004-2007. He said that he has seen the history department develop, and believes that the award is as much a recognition as the work done in the department than by him alone.

Past Lipitz professors include Thomas Field, professor of modern languages, linguistics, and intercultural communication; John Sturgeon, professor of visual arts; and Carlo DiClemente, professor of psychology.

9/10/10