Today is Undergraduate Research and Creative Achievement Day (URCAD!) Come out and check out the cool things your peers have been working on lately all day today.  Be sure to check out the poster presentations in the UC Ballroom between 10AM-3PM, where students will be on-hand to talk about their research on a one-to-one level.

It’s a great experience for anybody who is interested in research in their own field or others, or even people who have no interest in research at all.  The things UMBC undergraduates are capable will blow you away!  Check out the full schedule for a full listing of events, including oral presentations, several exhibits, and readings from Bartleby.

There has been growing concern that a professor at UMBC is doing more harm than good to academic integrity because of their fervent methods of enforcement. This professor requires all of their students to use the website Turnitin.com while schools such as Harvard, Yale, and Princeton have all denounced the practice. There have also been court cases which have ruled that the website violates intellectual property laws, but the professor will fail any student that decides not to turn their material in through the website.

Furthermore, current rumors suggest that students have been falsely accused of cheating and were failed without hesitation. From my personal experience and from the conversations I’ve had with students who have this professor, I do not doubt the possibility. How does everyone else feel about this?

The time is upon us for the second decennial U.S. Census of the 21st century, and I for one am excited. It is the first time in many of our lives that we will have a chance to participate in the single largest population enumeration event conducted by our nation. The Census is important in defining population boundaries and determining residency densities, as well as in allocating proper resources to localities. Further, social scientists, statisticians, geographers, and other academics analyze census data regularly in their research endeavors. I know it’s nerdy, but the ability to analyze data conducted on such a large scale makes my heart race.

To ensure valid data is gathered, any illegal activities or residency recorded by Census enumerators can not in turn be reported to legal authorities, under penalty of law. Also, while the tendency may be to goof off while completing questionnaires and surveys (my sophomore roommate agreement indicated that disputes would be resolved through gladiator battles), it is important to be honest and accurate while filling out the census forms. For example, a critical issue is to ensure you are not double counted; if you will be completing the Census form, give your parents/guardians a call and tell them not to count you as a resident.

Enjoy your spring break, don’t drink and drive, and please help ensure that the 2010 Census is as accurate as possible!

Septimius sends in an update on the discussion to change the official drop date…

The SGA Senate is debating whether they will support UMBC changing the drop date from 20 days into the semester to 10.  They are saying that they will only support the change if the following conditions are met (taken from a meeting on Monday, 10/26):

1. That the Administration and the Faculty Senate of the University of Maryland Baltimore County support and encourage the implementation of measures to assist students in the gauging of their course workload within the course prior to the drop date, including that instructors make public and readily available the syllabi for their respective courses on or before the first day of instruction, whether by means of online publication, email, providing students an opportunity to pick up syllabi before the first class from the respective departmental office, or in hard copy during the first meeting of the course, and
2. That students be allowed the later of either two academic weeks or two class meetings to drop a course, and
3. That the Student Government Association, in conjunction with the administration, creates a campaign to educate students about the drop date, and
4. That after this change, there will be a comprehensive review of the effect of this change on enrollment and grade point averages.

So what do you think about changing the drop date?

Wishful Thinker brings us an official SGA update; the senate has voted to support the proposed change.

Most of you probably weren’t awake for it, but Freeman Hrabowski was on the Today Show today to talk about trends in adult education. It’s a very short segment, but if you want to check it out, it’s on MSNBC’s website.

Just a quick reminder for students planning to participate in the Spring 2009 Undergraduate or Graduate Commencement ceremonies.  Monday, May 4 through Wednesday, May 6 are the dates for picking up your regalia in the Bookstore Graduation Center. Looking forward to seeing you at Commencement!

- UMBC Commencement Team

Here is an amazing opportunity available to you to represent UMBC on a state-wide student council:

The USMSC is an advisory council that reports directly to the Chancellor of the University System of Maryland. It represents the needs and desire of students all throughout the University System. Serving as a representative is an amazing opportunity to learn about the workings of Higher Education in the state of Maryland and to represent students to the University System of Maryland.

Each public Institution of Higher Education has two representatives that meet throughout the academic year. The USMSC gives feedback to the Chancellor and the Board of Regents on issues that will directly impact students. The USMSC is responsible for the initial steps in selecting the Student Regent, as well as weighing in on issues such as the tuition freeze, textbook legislation, and academic advising.

Additionally, there is an opportunity for even new leaders to successfully take on significant roles in the council. Chairperson, Vice- Chairperson, Secretary and Executive Officer Positions are all open at the beginning of the year. I urge anyone interested in making a difference in the University System of Maryland to pursue these wonderful leadership opportunities.

Any UMBC student is eligible for this position, and limited spots are available for the upcoming year.

Complete the attached application by Friday, April 3rd to be considered for a representative position.

Please contact me with any questions or concerns you may have about the process. Good luck!

–
Tabassum Majid
tmajid1@umbc.edu
UMBC 2009, USMSC Representative
University of Maryland, Baltimore County

University System of Maryland Student Council Representative Application

Thank you for expressing interest in serving as a Student Representative on the University System of Maryland Student Council (USMSC). The USMSC is an advisory council that reports directly to the Chancellor of the University System of Maryland. It represents the needs and desire of students all throughout the University System. Serving as a representative on this council is an amazing opportunity to learn about the workings of Higher Education in the state of Maryland and to represent students to the University System of Maryland.

Position Description

University System of Maryland Student Council (USMSC) Representative

The University System of Maryland Student Council is one of four councils established during the restructuring of higher education in Maryland in 1988 to provide advice to the Chancellor and the Board of Regents. The USMSC provides a vehicle to ensure that the System leadership is aware of student perspectives and responsive to student concerns and issues. Each degree-granting institution in the USM has two representatives to the Council. The Council meets monthly throughout the school year, usually on Sundays; its meetings rotate among System campuses. Among the specific responsibilities of the USMSC is the recommendation to the Chancellor each year for transmittal to the Governor of a group of nominees for the position of USM Student Regent. The Council has provided input to tuition policy, SAT score reporting, and academic advising among other issues.

The USMSC Representative for UMBC will be obligated to attend monthly meetings and communicate issues and concerns with the SGA. The selected representative will serve as a “shadow representative”, or ex-officio member of the committee, for the remainder of the 2008-2009 school year. Upon the transition meeting in May, the selected representative will become one of UMBC’s two representatives on the council.

Once your application has been received, you will be asked to interview with a selection committee and then notified of your status by April 17th.

If selected as a representative, you will be expected to attend a council meeting on Sunday, April 19th.

Please complete the attached application and essay questions on a separate page.

You may email your complete application, along with any additional documents you wish to include, to tmajid1@umbc.edu by 5 pm on Friday, April 3rd, 2009.

Name:                                          Cumulative GPA:

Major:                                          Cell phone number:

Current Address:                         Semesters at UMBC:

Email Address:

Campus ID: (For eligibility check purposes only)

Please answer the following questions in no more than 250 words. Be sure to type your responses and attach them to this form.

1) What do you hope to learn and accomplish in this position?

2) What experiences make you qualified for this position?

3) Describe one or more issues that concerns you as a student that you would like to see be addressed by the USMSC. Describe how these issues affect the experience of you and/or your fellow students in their academic and overall experiences at UMBC.

4) Highlight how you as a representative on the USMSC would work to address these issues.

Additionally, please briefly describe your ability to meet the time commitment of the position, highlighting your academic course load and other commitments:

For UMBC students, a new system for student registration has been implemented for SU ‘09 and FA ‘09.

With this change comes new rules, regulations, and directives, but this system serves course registration’s main purpose.

Here are my observations and impressions from my use with the system:

- For lab courses, registration is required for both lab and lecture courses, but now they must be registered separately, meaning that it is no longer as easy as adding the desired lab section.

- The search feature seems more cumbersome than the previous listings of courses and even upon entering a course by its exact registration number, the engine still has trouble locating it.

- The new system extends the whole registration process by requiring students to add courses to a cart before finally registering.

- The wait-listing system seems to be improved, but since the hold list is eliminated, students cannot be wait-listed for more than 10 credits.

- At this time, student schedules, once added, for the summer term do not appear directly on myUMBC’s “Classes and Schedule” section, but instead can be found through the scheduling system.

Of course, I am not yet entirely familiar with this new process, but with time, I’m convinced that UMBC students will adapt in a way similar to the new food service on campus. By the way, was anyone informed of the switch before they went to register?

For those who have already registered, comment with reactions towards this new change.

Want to learn more about the new system?

New Registration FAQ: https://my.umbc.edu/shared/peoplesoft/guides/student/registration-faq.pdf

Now for any other registration-related questions:

http://www.umbc.edu/registrar/schedule/index.html

Submitted by pgnatalie

Greetings fellow students:

Myth: UMBC students go to the library to study.  That’s what libraries are for.

Fact: The majority of people in the library, as I type this, are talking on their phones, listening to music way too loud, crunching on pretzels, and all around making a whole bunch of noise.

Unfortunately for me, I AM here to study and this is driving me mad.  Not only that, it’s also detracting from my academic experience.  There is no way to justify being inconsiderate.

I don’t care about what you had for lunch or who you’re hanging out with later on in the evening.  I don’t care if you feel the need to socialize because, I hate to break it to you, the sign says, “QUIET FLOOR”.  If you want to talk to people, go downstairs.  I really didn’t wait for the elevator just to end up here, with you all.  Normally, I’m not huge on following every little rule that comes about, but I’m really appalled at the lack of courtesy that most UMBC students have in regards to the library.

So, I’ll just keep this short and say this:  Please do everyone a favor and shut your mouth. Or go somewhere where your conversations, no matter how trite or how important, will not distract people.  Schoolwork is more important and, no matter how much you think that strangers should have to hear the entire story of your weekend while you’re on the phone… they shouldn’t.

So please, kindly, refrain from being a douchebag… and to all those people who have to put up with it too, I feel your pain.