Graduate, 2007, Political Science and Environmental Studies
Currently on Fulbright Scholarship researching sustainable development policies in Santiago, Chile

Joe is on his way to a successful career in environmental policy. During his internship with Baltimore County's Department of Environmental Protection and Resource Management, Joe researched best practices in ecological land acquisition and conservation. Joe's research interests include agricultural runoff pollution and sustainable practices in fish-farming aquaculture.

UMBC Valedictorian, Graduate 2006, Social Work and Economics
Currently working as a school social worker through Catholic Charities in Camden, NJ.

Read Amber's Valeditorian speech on using our gifts to help those in need.
Amber came to UMBC with a plan to become a social worker after graduation. Through her study in the second semester Public Affairs Seminar, she realized the impact of economics on communities and decided on a double major as the best way to help make change. She also met her husband, Colin McGuigan (2005, History) in the Sondheim Program! Read more...

Graduate, 2005, Political Science, 2007, Master's of Public Policy
Currently attending law school at the University of Maryland

Dominic is working for a health care consulting firm in Baltimore as a policy analyst, helping non-profit health care organizations implement pay-for-performance mechanisms in hospitals around the nation.

Graduate, 2005, Economics
Graduate, London School of Economics, Environment and Development

Currently working in London at UBS Investment Bank, in in International Prime Brokerage where he analyzes trades for hedge fund clients. Future plans include working in areas of environmental finance, such as carbon trading or alternative energy mergers.

Graduate, 2007, Political Science and Africana Studies minor
Currently studying public policy at Duke University's graduate school

"My academic interests lie in social policy, specifically education and poverty policy.  I am most interested in the persisting achievement gap between minority and non-minority students, as well as the affects of high concentrations of poverty on children. Through volunteer work at the Breakthrough Collaborative in Raleigh, NC and at the Choice Program at UMBC I learned that I would like to open a non-profit organization of my own. Read more...

Graduate, 2005, Political Science
Currently attending University of Maryland Law School

"In the Public Affairs Scholars Seminar I was introduced to public policy and service on local, national and global levels. The class emphasized policy analysis and proposal skills. In addition, the students focused on writing skills that are necessary for work in a public policy field." Aaron put those important writing skills to work on a legal brief he wrote during his internship with the Baltimore City Public Defender's Office, a brief that received compliment from the State's highest court. Read more...

Graduate, 2007 Social Work and Africana Studies minor
Currently at University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign's Doctoral Program in Educational Policy

A McNair Scholar at UMBC, Durell is interested in urban education, urban youth and minorities. As a senior, Durell had his research on “Predictors of Success among African American Adolescents in an Urban Charter School ” published in the UMBC Review: Journal of Undergraduate Research and Creative Works. In graduate school, Durell is focusing on reforming policy that would be the most beneficial to urban populations and specifically regarding education, whether it be through a non-profit agency like Upward Bound, or through a local school board. Read more...