Beginning this month, Insights presents regular profiles of new faculty, department chairs and program administrators for the 2002-2003 academic year.

John Rennie Short

Geography & Environmental Systems

M.A., University of Aberdeen, 1973

Ph.D., University of Bristol, 1976

As the both the new chair and the newest faculty member of the Geography and Environmental Systems department, John Rennie Short brings an impressive research record coupled with the energy and vision to lead UMBC further into the cutting-edge of his field.

Short comes to UMBC after spending the last decade at Syracuse University. "I decided to come to UMBC primarily because I thought it would be an interesting challenge to build the reputation of a department at a young and innovative university," says Short. "I also liked the commitment to research here."

Short's extensive list of publications on subjects as varied as urban studies, globalization, and the history of cartography clearly illustrates his position as a distinguished researcher. Over the last four years, he has individually or collaboratively written or edited no less than seven books. He also recently completed a Leverhulme Visiting Professorship at Loughborough University in the United Kingdom.

Short's recent research examines the impact of the Olympic Games on their host cities. His research focuses on ways in which cities use the development necessary to host the Olympics to create a lasting positive contribution to city life for all of its citizens. This work will bring him to present before the International Olympic Committee in Lausanne, Switzerland in November.

Cindy Schaeffer

Assistant Professor, Psychology

B.S., University of Maryland, College Park, 1992;

M.A., University of Missouri, Columbia, 1996;

Ph.D., University of Missouri, Columbia, 2000

Cindy Schaeffer brings to UMBC innovative research in the prevention and treatment of juvenile delinquency among society's most troubled children. Prior to her arrival at UMBC, Schaeffer was a National Institutes of Health Post-doctoral Fellow at the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health. Schaeffer is an expert in the use of Multisystemic Therapy, a type of therapy that addresses the broad range of social problems experienced by juvenile offenders through intervention in their natural environments among families, schools, and peer groups.