Alumni Awards

Alumni Awards 2022. Pictured left to right: Kevin Yang ’07, Katelyn Niu ’05, Christina McWilliams, Sean McWilliams M.S. '16, and Brian Frazee ’11, M.P.P. ’12

Meet a Retriever—Sean McWilliams, M.S. ’16, Alumni Association Alumni Awards Committee Co-Chair

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Meet Sean McWilliams, M.S. ‘16, applied mathematics. Sean is a portfolio manager at T. Rowe Price and an active member of the UMBC Alumni Association Board of Directors, serving as one of the co-chairs of the Alumni Awards committee. Sean was a non-traditional student who found his way to UMBC as a part-time graduate student while working full-time at T. Rowe Price. Take it away, Sean! Q: What is your WHY? What brought you to UMBC? A: After working for a few years I deeply missed the academic rigor of studying mathematics. I wanted to study more math at the graduate… Continue Reading Meet a Retriever—Sean McWilliams, M.S. ’16, Alumni Association Alumni Awards Committee Co-Chair

a group of alumni award winners stand together on a stage

Alumni Awards 2023—Making impact through relationships

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On the stage of the 35th annual Alumni Awards, awardees and their nominators repeated a shared theme: the freedom and flexibility to grow at UMBC—not alone—but in community. Presented by the Alumni Association Board of Directors, the event recognizes inspiring alumni in a range of fields, as well as a rising star and an outstanding faculty and staff member. Rehana Shafi, recipient of the inaugural staff award, emphasized that she was only able to do so much “with so many.” Shafi, director emerita of the Sherman Teacher Scholars Program, said: “This work, this way, isn’t an individual endeavor….Impact happens inside… Continue Reading Alumni Awards 2023—Making impact through relationships

a teacher in a button up polo shirt instructs from the front of a music classroom

Music education helps others find the right note

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When James Dorsey arrived at UMBC in 2002 to major in music performance and composition, becoming an educator was not the original plan. But when opportunity knocked, Dorsey answered the call to teach.  In the intervening years, Dorsey’s interactive, empowering methods of teaching music to kids have made him popular, and this fall he marks his 19th year of teaching music and performance to the elementary school students in the Prince George’s County Public School system. And if that wasn’t enough, Dorsey ’05, music, is back at UMBC, sharing his pedagogical experience with a new generation of musicians and educators.… Continue Reading Music education helps others find the right note

black and gold flags span across academic row

Standing Ovation for Outstanding Retrievers

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At UMBC, we celebrate the accomplishments of our alumni community year round, but our annual Athletics Hall of Fame induction and Alumni Awards ceremony and reception give us a chance to cheer extra loud for the outstanding Retrievers among us.  Stanyell Odom, director of alumni engagement, says it best about the incoming class of awardees: “These award winners embody so many of the characteristics that make UMBC such a special place. They are leaders in their professions and fields—innovative teachers, educators, and scientists—and are engaged and proud members of this UMBC community.” The 23rd Hall of Fame induction  Coming up… Continue Reading Standing Ovation for Outstanding Retrievers

Homecoming 2019 — A Wild Ride

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Dogs…carnival rides…dogs…ribbon cutting ceremonies…dogs…Alumni Awards…did we mention dogs? All that means Homecoming season at UMBC! So grab your pumpkin spiced latte and a nice warm blanket as we dive into the events that make October such a fun month for current, past, and future Retrievers. Since we promised you dogs, we’ll start off with the evergreen puppy parade!  Homecoming is the obvious place for different graduating classes to meet up, but it’s so much more special when that fellow Retriever is your relative! We also love the dedication future Retrievers have years before they even apply. At UMBC, Homecoming isn’t… Continue Reading Homecoming 2019 — A Wild Ride

Alumni Awards 2018: Dr. Mariajosé Castellanos

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As senior lecturer and undergraduate program director in the Department of Chemical, Biochemical, & Environmental Engineering, Dr. Mariajosé Castellanos’ reach extends far beyond the classroom. From core undergraduate to advanced graduate coursework, Castellanos serves as “a doorway into our department,” and “doorway from our department into the world,” according to UMBC professor and department chair Dr. Mark Marten. Castellanos will receive the Outstanding Faculty Award at the UMBC Alumni Awards ceremony on October 4. Notably, Castellanos transformed Thermodynamics, a challenging departmental core class, from a traditional lecture style course to a flipped-learning and team-based class in an effort to improve… Continue Reading Alumni Awards 2018: Dr. Mariajosé Castellanos

Alumni Awards 2018: Mark Doms ’86, math and economics

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From undergraduate student at UMBC to Chief Economist and Under Secretary of Economic Affairs for the Department of Commerce under the Obama administration, Mark Doms ’86, mathematics and economics, has spent his career as an economist focused on economic public policy. Specializing in monetary policy, forecasting, labor force developments, innovation, big data, and applied microeconomics, Doms has made hundreds of presentations about the U.S. economy and appeared regularly as a subject-matter expert on CNBC’s Squawk Box and Bloomberg. His highly-cited research is published regularly in top journals, earning Doms recognition in the top 3% of economists as measured by citations.… Continue Reading Alumni Awards 2018: Mark Doms ’86, math and economics

Alumni Awards 2018: Mina Cheon MFA ’02, Imaging & Digital Arts

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Mina Cheon MFA ’02, Imaging & Digital Arts, is a Korean American global new media artist, scholar, and educator. Dividing her time between Baltimore, New York, and Seoul, Korea, Cheon produces artwork – “Polipop” – that draws inspiration from global media and popular culture, intersecting politics and pop art in evocative ways, while maintaining her connections to UMBC and the MFA program. “All of Dr. Cheon’s accomplishments indicate a level of insight, innovation, persistence, and quality of production that serves as a model for what our IMDA grads and alumni might attain at not only a local and national, but… Continue Reading Alumni Awards 2018: Mina Cheon MFA ’02, Imaging & Digital Arts

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