Kimberly Moffitt, American Studies, on the Marc Steiner Show

On May 23, Kimberly Moffitt, assistant professor of American Studies, was a guest on the Marc Steiner Show for a segment entitled “Is President Obama’s Message To Black America Different From The Rest Of America?,” in which Moffitt and her fellow guests analyzed President Obama’s messages to Black America, looking at his recent commencement speeches.  Moffitt was joined by Kai Wright, editorial director of Colorlines.com and Keith Snipes, an actor and writer.

“I think as a politician, he’s fairly consistent with providing us middle-class rhetoric,” said Moffitt. “But I think the difference with what we see happening at HBCUs [historically black colleges and universities] in terms of the speeches there, is that in some ways, the Obamas feel like they’re with family and that they can have certain familial conversations that they probably would have in smaller settings, but they’re forgetting that they’re in a very public space.”

The full segment can be heard here.

Robert Provine, Psychology, in the American Journal of Human Biology

Psychology professor Robert Provine’s latest book, “Curious Behavior: Yawning, Laughing, Hiccupping and Beyond,” was recently reviewed in the American Journal of Human Biology.

“Provine brings together ethology, neurophysiology as well as psychology to describe the secrets of our daily behaviors in detail,” writes the reviewer. “Aimed at a wide readership, Provine’s book consists of 13 chapters written with humor… using only minimal resources, available to anyone, he is studying behaviors that raise serious questions.”

The full review can be read here.

Roy Meyers, Political Science, on MarylandReporter.com

This week the OpenGov Foundation and MarylandReporter.com led a focus group to examine transparency in Maryland politics and government. Conversation centered on the Maryland General Assembly website, redesigned in December 2012. The groups also asked for feedback on the website from external experts, including UMBC political science professor Roy T. Meyers.

Meyers told MarylandReporter.com that he was glad the new site moves away from the previous subscription model, which charged a fee to access the most current legislative information. However, he critiqued “delays in [posting] voting records on second and especially third reading.” The article suggests this problem is in part due to a policy that gives senators and delegates until the end of the business day to record or change their electronic votes in the case of a mistake or malfunction, delaying final tallies.

Sunil Dasgupta, Political Science, in the Gazette

“The lesson we’ve learned over these last 10, 15 years is no matter how good your [crisis management] plan is, it’s always going to fall short,” says Sunil Dasgupta in today’s Gazette.

Dasgupta, director of UMBC’s political science program at the Universities at Shady Grove (USG) and non-resident Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution, is co-teaching a crisis management class at USG. The point of the course, he explains, is not to prepare for specific disasters, but to get students thinking about how to build resilience and make decisions in catastrophic situations that they cannot fully plan for or predict. Although many students in the course have not yet selected majors, Dasgupta says he hopes some of them will explore careers in crisis management.

Reception to celebrate Doug Pear’s contributions to UMBC (5/30)

Please join us to celebrate Doug’s many contributions to the University at a reception on Thursday, May 30, from 3-5 p.m. on the 7th floor of the Albin O. Kuhn Library.

Over the past 35 years, Doug has played a pivotal role in supporting the University’s development as a nationally recognized model of inclusive excellence and academic innovation.

Contributions honoring Doug’s service to UMBC may be made to the Choice Program, a youth development program administered by UMBC’s Shriver Center. Checks should be made payable to the UMBC Foundation, with “Choice Program-Doug Pear” written in the memo section, and sent to UMBC Foundation, c/o Office of Institutional Advancement, 1000 Hilltop Circle, 8th Floor Administration Bldg., Baltimore, MD 21250.

To make a donation by credit card, please visit http://retrievernet.umbc.edu/support and in the “Other Designation” field, please note “Choice Program” and in honor of “Doug Pear.”

Amy Froide, History, wins Folger Shakespeare Library fellowship

Amy Froide, Associate Professor of History, has won a short term fellowship at the Folger Shakespeare Library for 2013-14 for a project on gender and accounting in early modern Britain.

PSS Annual Picnic (6/5)

Come join your fellow UMBC staff members that the PSS Annual Staff Picnic on Wed. June 5, 2013 at the Harbor Hall Courtyard. There will be a 50/50 raffle and lots of giveaways.

Tickets go on sale May 17, 2013 for $6 each. Visit with a senator to get your tickets. We look forward to seeing you there!