August 2020
A Newsletter for Legislative and Business Communities
President Pines Addresses the Community On Decision-Making
President Pines shares how the university has made decisions about the fall semester and the considerations that will shape future decisions. He reiterates the university's promise to be transparent in its decision-making, and to strive to keep everyone informed as we move forward together.
Undergraduate In-person Instruction Delayed Until Sept. 14 at Maryland
President Pines announced UMD's semester to begin as scheduled on Aug. 31, with delayed undergraduate in-person instruction until Sept. 14. Undergraduate instruction will be delivered online for the first two weeks. All graduate-level instruction and approved research activities will proceed as planned.
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UMDemocracy 2020
The UMDemocracy virtual event series aims to provide resources and information on things to know before the election this November. Featuring university faculty, alumni and students, UMDemocracy 2020 highlights experts on topics such as election polling, dis-information and identity politics. Attend these events and make sure you vote this November - your voice matters!
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Highlights
University of Maryland Joins Common Application for 2020-2021: Students applying to UMD will now have the ability to do so through the Common Application, also known as the Common App. The online college application platform currently serves more than three million applicants, teachers, counselors and advisors across all 50 states and around the world each year. The Common App helps reduce common barriers to the college application process, including making the fee waiver process more efficient for students in need.
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COVID-19 Campus Testing Dashboard Launches: The dashboard will provide critical metrics based on UMD-administered testing, including UMD tests administered by week and cumulatively; new positive cases by week; positivity rate for UMD-administered tests; campus density measures; and quarantine and isolation bed availability. The metrics will be updated weekly and are an important part of our ongoing efforts to monitor and counteract the spread of the virus.
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COVID-19 Testing Required for All Returning to Campus; Free On-Campus Testing Available: All students, faculty and staff must take a COVID-19 test within 14 days before they come to campus, in addition to the testing required of all UMD students after arriving for the fall semester, following the University System of Maryland guidance. Free campus testing will be offered to students, faculty and staff.
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Md. gets nearly $1M for housing for human trafficking victims: The grant, awarded to the Salvation Army and the University of Maryland SAFE Center for Human Trafficking Survivors, will provide six to 24 months of transitional or short-term housing assistance for trafficking victims, including rental, utilities or related expenses, such as security deposits and relocation costs.
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University of Maryland Ranks 6th Among Largest Public University in Median Earnings of Graduates: Institutions were included if they were main-campus public schools that had more than 1,000 undergraduate students enrolled and predominately awarded bachelor's degrees. Schools were ranked based on the median income of students six years after graduation, and ties were broken based on the median salary of the highest-paying degree from each school.
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Residential Facilities Housekeeping Staff Honored: The recertification honors from the International Sanitary Supply Association (ISSA) demonstrates the hard work and technical acumen of UMD's professional housekeeping staff. Residential Facilities—with 275 total employees and 108 housekeeping staff—has held this certification since 2008, earning recertification every two years.
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Locksley Forms National Coalition of Minority Football Coaches: Coach Michael Locksley announced the formation of the National Coalition of Minority Football Coaches (NCMFC), which he founded to remove roadblocks, increase awareness and spur action toward fair and equitable hiring at all levels of football. The non-profit will seek to prepare, promote and produce qualified minority coaches, both male and female, and create a candidates list that will be vetted by a board of directors.
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Student Crisis Fund Surpasses $1M in Distributions: The fund exceeded $1 million in grants given to 1,985 students struggling with daily necessities, rent payments, utilities and other bills that have been hard for many to cover since March 11, when the novel coronavirus pandemic began. The Division of Student Affairs typically receives 5 to 10 applications daily for help from the fund, down from a high of 231 on March 20.
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UMD Unveils New Interim Title IX Policy to Comply With Federal Mandate: The result is an interim policy that meets the new federal requirements while continuing to fulfill the university's values of fairness, equity, safety and well-being. Full version of the key provisions under the new interim policy can be viewed on the University Policies website
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Research Impact
Research Activities to Transition to Phase 2: During Phase 2, laboratories and other research spaces will be allowed to function at 50% occupancy, provided it is possible to maintain the space requirements of at least 150 square feet per person. All faculty, staff and students must provide a negative result from a PCR-based COVID-19 viral test administered within 14 days prior to coming to campus.
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Maryland-led, Multi-institutional Research Team Receives $10M to Transform Shellfish Farming with Smart Technology: The team, led by Professor Miao Yu, will develop novel technologies and a sustainable management framework to help farmers tap the economic potential and environmental benefits of shellfish aquaculture, which until now has been bottlenecked by outdated tools and methods.
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UMD Leads $10M USDA Project to SustainCorn Belt Agricultural Production: The researchers plan to develop a Dashboard for Agricultural Water use and Nutrient management (DAWN) that will help maximize corn, soybean and bioenergy crop production in the Midwestern United States. The project’s lead investigator is Xin-Zhong Liang, a professor of atmospheric and oceanic science.
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Alumni Spotlight
Alum's Debut Mystery Novel Examines Racial Equity in Legal System: Kim Johnson M.Ed. '03, author of the new novel "This Is My America," hopes her book might be a call to action amid the movement for racial equity and against police brutality. Released by Random House, the novel follows 17-year-old Tracy Beaumont as she tries to get an Innocence Project-like organization to take on her father’s case.
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