The UMBC Parent Connection

The UMBC Parent Connection
A free service of the Division of Student Affairs’

Parent Programs & Services Office

To subscribe or unsubscribe to this list, go to <http://my.umbc.edu/cgi-bin/alum/prospective.cgi>

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T H E S T A R T O F A N O T H E R G R E A T Y E A R

Welcome Week – Move-In Day Is Upon Us

Excitement is in the air as you, your students and scores of UMBC staff and faculty members prepare to begin the new academic year on Saturday, August 28. We are so excited to have you join us.

By now, a major portion of new resident students know who their roommates are, what type of items should be brought to campus and left at home, and what time they should arrive. Parents have begun to line up siblings, cousins, and friends as move-in helpers. Remember to bring a few small tools just in case of “assembly required.” Since most of you will probably return for Homecoming – Family Weekend in October, you probably don’t have to worry about packing all of the winter clothes, just yet. Save as much time as possible for your “farewells.”

For the parents of new, morning-arriving, resident students, a special program (10:30 a.m.-Noon) will enable you to fill in the time that students will need to set up their rooms, meet their roomies, suitemates, resident assistants and community directors.

This program will repeat for parents of later-arriving residents and parents of students commuting to campus (1:30-3 p.m.).

Dr. Felicia McGinty, Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs, will lead you through a process to deal with the myriad emotions that accompany this important life passage for all involved. In addition, various department representatives will be available to answer any last minute questions you might have concerning life on campus. Finally, you will have an opportunity to discuss a range of possible opportunities for continuing your involvement in your students’ lives in ways that might differ from past participation.

Check out Retriever Fest from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. – an array of campus resources and local vendors – and have some lunch. For those who have yet to take a tour of campus, tours will depart Erickson Field at 1 and 3:30 p.m. Everyone should return to Erickson Field at 4:30 p.m. for “official” welcoming by James Dorsey, Welcome Week chair, Dominic Cirincione, SGA president, and Dr. Charles Fey, Vice President for Student Affairs.

Dinner, being served a 5:30 p.m. in the student restaurants, is open to all attendees. Then, it’s time for good-byes as students move into the next phase of their orientation program, meeting with resident or community assistants and “woolies” (Welcome Week leaders.)

For a look at the entire Welcome Week program in which new students will participate, click on http://www.umbc.edu/orientation/welcome_freshman.html.

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H I G H L I G H T O F T H E W E E K

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F E A T U R E D S I T E


		Campus Map
		Printable Map (PDF file)
		Directions and Parking
		Visitor's Guide

Information for New Students, Faculty and Staff

Where Can I...?

Frequently Asked Questions

Student Link

Schedule of Classes

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I M P O R T A N T D A T E

Homecoming – Family Weekend Celebrations

October 22-24, 2004 -- Don’t Miss It!

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W H A T’ S N E W

Farewell to Kyle Brooks
After more than 30 years of service in the University System of Maryland, Kyle Brooks has announced her retirement. She began her career in 1974 at the University of Maryland, College Park and over the course of 15 years worked in the Offices of the Registrar, Academic Services and Admissions.

In 1989, she accepted the Associate Director of Admissions position at UMBC where she oversaw and managed the undergraduate application and admission review and evaluation processes. In addition, Kyle has been instrumental in developing a recruitment plan to identify, attract and enroll increasing numbers of international students at UMBC and most recently assisted with the campus-wide implementation of the SEVIS tracking and reporting system. During her tenure at UMBC, Kyle has served on numerous committees and coordinating bodies including her tenure as Vice President and President of the Professional Staff Senate. Kyle has also served as conversational partner for ESL students and advisor, friend and mentor for numerous other students, both domestic and international.

On-Campus Job Fair (8/31)
Departments looking to hire students for part-time positions during the school year will be recruiting at the On-Campus Job Fair on August 31 in The Commons, Main Street. All interested students are welcome. Sponsored by the Career Development Center and Welcome Week.

English Language Center Conversation Partners Program
The UMBC English Language Center invites members of the campus community to join the Conversation Partners Program, which helps international students at the center enhance their communication skills in a natural setting. Volunteers are invited to be conversation partners to our students. If you are interested in learning about other cultures and making friends with an international student, please contact Yi-Fan Kang at kang2@umbc.edu or call 410.455.2831.

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A N N O U N C E M E N T S

You Can Save a Life: In Vitro Technologies Blood Drive (8/26)
In Vitro Technologies, a techcenter@UMBC company, is hosting a blood drive on Tuesday, August 24 from 9 a.m. until 2:30 p.m. at 1450 South Rolling Road, in the Seminar Room.

The American Red Cross is in desperate need of blood. Every donation helps to save the lives of three people. You truly can make a difference. This is especially critical now as we head into the Labor Day weekend.

Please contact Allison Kimery today to select your time slot. Allison can be reached at ext. 5-4612 or kimerya@invitrotech.com. For general guidelines about donating blood, please visit http://www.umbc.edu/techcenter/blood.htm. For more information about In Vitro Technologies visit http://www.invitrotech.com.

Smartaccelerator Workshop (9/13, 9/20)
UMBC's Alex. Brown Center for Entrepreneurship is pleased to announce its next Smartaccelerator workshop, featuring Dr. Charles O. Heller, managing director of Beacon Global Private Equity and co-founder and former CEO of CADCOM, Inc. and Intercad Corporation as workshop leader. Smartaccelerator, a program designed to accelerate the growth and development of high tech start-up companies, is for CEOs and senior management teams of start-up technology companies and provides training, networking, introductions to funding sources, and technical assistance.
The workshop will take place from 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. on September 13 in the Chesapeake College Higher Education Center Amphitheater and on September 20 at Salisbury University, Power Professional Room 220. Applications are now being accepted. To learn more, contact Vivian Armor, armor@umbc.edu.

First Year Seminar Funding from the Herbert Bearman Foundation for 2005-06
Through the generosity of the Herbert Bearman Foundation, UMBC received a three-year grant of $30,000 ($10,000 per year) to develop and refine First Year Seminars (FYS) that focus on:

. extending a student's grasp of the issues related to justice, equity, tolerance and progressive scholarship and/or
. the exploration of frameworks for living and working with individuals from different races and ethnicities, religious backgrounds and political contexts.

The Provost's Office is seeking proposals for two to three FYS courses that meet this criteria. These will be named the Herbert Bearman Foundation First Year Seminars and will be offered in academic year 2005-06. Faculty teaching these courses will be named Herbert Bearman Professors. The relevant departments will receive $3,000 and faculty will receive $250 to be used for professional development activities and materials.

Departmental Grants to Support Writing in the Disciplines
The Writing Board, established by the Provost with the support of the Undergraduate Council, will award three grants to departments who are interested in developing a plan for integrating more writing into their courses. Interested departments should complete the Proposal Form at http://www.umbc.edu/provost/WID/Index.html

The Writing Board will review all proposals and three departments will be selected to receive a $5,000 grant. Past grant recipients include the Departments of Africana Studies, Biological Sciences, Chemistry, Social Work and Sociology and Anthropology.

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I N T H E N E W S A T U M B C

http://www.umbc.edu/newsevents/insights/article.html?issue_id=39&news_id=1084
Cleopatra Borel ’02 Places 11th, Brings Home Diamond from Athens

techcenter@UMBC Tenant in the Daily Record

UMBC Calendar of Events
http://www.umbc.edu/calendar

Art Events at UMBC
http://www.umbc.edu/arts

Athletic Events at UMBC
http://www.umbcretrievers.com/info/schedule/

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H E L P F U L W E B S I T E S F O R P A R E N T S

Admissions
http://www.umbc.edu/undergrad/

Financial Aid
http://www.umbc.edu/undergrad/finaid.html

Scholarships
http://www.umbc.edu/undergrad/scholarships.html

Center for Women and Information Technology (CWIT) Scholars Program
http://www.umbc.edu/undergrad/s_cwit.html

Humanities Scholars Program
http://www.umbc.edu/undergrad/s_hum.html

Linehan Artist Scholars Program
http://www.umbc.edu/undergrad/s_lin.html

Meyerhoff Scholars Program (Science and Engineering)
http://www.umbc.edu/undergrad/s_mey.html

Public Affairs Scholars Program
http://www.umbc.edu/undergrad/s_pubaff.html

The Honors College
http://www.umbc.edu/honors

Parents Association
http://www.umbc.edu/parents

Student Affairs
http://www.umbc.edu/saf

The Student Link
http://www.umbc.edu/StudentLink/

The Retriever Weekly (student newspaper)
http://trw.umbc.edu/

Official UMBC Publications
http://www.umbc.edu/newsevents/pub.html

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