Baltimore, Md. – Several of UMBC's Humanities Scholars have invited influential high school teachers to campus to present them with an award and simply say “thanks” for their dedication to and enthusiasm for teaching. The students will present the teachers with “Exemplary Teacher Awards” at a ceremony following a Humanities Forum Lecture entitled, “Chinese Footbinding, Fashion and Modernity,” by Dorothy Ko. The awards and lecture will be held in the Albin O. Kuhn Library Gallery at 5 p.m. on Thursday, November 6.

“The award gives the scholars an opportunity to recognize a teacher who had an important influence in his or her development in high school,” says Tom Field, director of the Humanities Scholars Program and the Center for the Humanities at UMBC. This is the second consecutive year in which the scholars have presented teachers with awards.

The UMBC Humanities Scholars program offers students with strong intellectual ability special opportunities to pursue study in the areas of literature, history, philosophy, language, and culture. The Scholars award ranges from $5,000 per year up to full tuition, room, and board for four years and provides funding for study abroad. Enrichment activities offered to Scholars include a two-semester interdisciplinary seminar in the freshman year, trips to cultural events, opportunities to meet with visiting lecturers, and other extracurricular activities. Similarly focused scholarship programs are offered in the arts, engineering, information technology, sciences and social sciences.

The Awardees Are:
Geri Hastings, History, Catonsville HS, nominated by sophomore Mary Potorti
Linda Mohler, French, Catonsville HS, nominated by senior Genevieve Ellis-Williams
Nancy Peth, Biology, Thomas Wooton HS, nominated by sophomore Tony Schueller
Jacqueline Fried, history, Wheaton HS, nominated by sophomore SaOnn Min
Fred Crouch, History, Crossland HS, nominated by senior LaTasha Tucker
John Wagner, History, Dulaney HS, nominated by junior Ruthanne Doetzer
Brian Adkins, History, Oxon Hill HS, nominated by sophomore Liza Young
Clifford Queen, History, Mt. St. Joseph Academy (Flourtown, PA) nominated by junior Kate Scully
Margaret Penn, History, Gaithersburg HS, nominated by junior Malcolm Furgol
Max A. Pugh, Foreign Languages, PG County Public Schools, nominated by graduate Ronda Critchlow

About UMBC
UMBC is a medium-sized, selective, public research university situated on 500 acres between Baltimore and Washington, DC. UMBC has an enrollment of more than 11,000 students in undergraduate and graduate programs in the liberal arts and sciences and engineering. A campus community rich in cultural and ethnic diversity, UMBC promotes cutting-edge research and creative activity. The campus is home to the nationally-known Meyerhoff Scholarship Program, the Shriver Center, and a number of major research centers. UMBC is a member of the University System of Maryland and is accredited by the Middle States Association of Colleges and Secondary Schools. For additional information about UMBC, please visit www.umbc.edu