BALTIMORE, MD (7/9/98) --- Freeman A. Hrabowski, III, President of the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC), has been named the recipient of the GBC Technology Council's Third Annual BETA Award. The prestigious BETA Award -- which recognizes "Baltimore's Extraordinary Technology Advocate" -- will be presented to Dr. Hrabowski at TechNite '98, the premier celebration of technology growth in Greater Baltimore and throughout Maryland. Past recipients of the BETA have included United States Senator Barbara A. Mikulski (D-MD) and Baltimore-based venture capitalist Charles W. Newhall, III. "Under Dr. Hrabowski's extraordinary vision and leadership, UMBC has emerged as a national model of excellence in higher education, and a vital center for research and development in Maryland," says Jane Shaab, Executive Director of the GBC Technology Council. According to Ms. Shaab, UMBC now produces nearly 40 percent of Maryland's graduates in computer science and information systems, and has become a major "feeder" school for such large regional employers as AT&T, Becton Dickinson, Lockheed Martin, and the National Security Agency. Under Dr. Hrabowski's leadership, UMBC received the first U.S. Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Mentoring for its nationally acclaimed Meyerhoff Scholarship Program, created to address the shortage of African-American males in the sciences and engineering. Today, the program provides full support for high-achieving students who combine interest in pursuing Ph.D.s in the sciences, mathematics, computer science, and engineering with interest in the advancement of minorities in these fields. UMBC's state-of-the-art Technology Center and new Research Park, meanwhile, "provide the region with an outstanding system of facilities to support high technology business development," Ms. Shaab explains. The Technology Center is now home to 21 emerging technology companies, employing more than 200 workers, while the 41-acre Research Park will house up to 350,000 square feet of free-standing and multi-tenant facilities for research and development. "Dr. Hrabowski also has played an instrumental role in introducing technology to areas outside of science and engineering," Ms. Shaab continues. She notes that UMBC's Imaging Research Center has gained national recognition for its award-winning animation productions, while Department of Geography and Environmental System's cartography and spatial analysis laboratories provide students with advance training in remote sensing and geographic information systems. Dr. Hrabowski joined UMBC as Vice Provost in 1987, and has served as its President since 1992. He has served on numerous professional, corporate, and community boards, and is currently a consultant to the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health, and the National Academy of Sciences. He recently co-authored the book Beating the Odds , which focuses on the strategies used by parents who have raised high-achieving African-American males in science. TechNite '98 will be held on Monday, September 28, 4:30 - 10:00 p.m., at the Baltimore Convention Center, 1 W. Pratt Street in Downtown Baltimore. More than 1,500 corporate, university, government, and scientific leaders are expected to attend the Ninth Annual TechNite program. TechNite marks the official kick-off for Tech Month '98. Running from September 28 through October 31, Tech Month includes dozens of programs, seminars and expos designed to raise public awareness of the technological advances being made in Greater Baltimore and throughout the State of Maryland.