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INNOVATION & COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT & SERVICE TO THE STATE
Merle Collins, professor of English, partnered with the Cultural Academy for Excellence for her course “Caribbean Stop: Poetry and Short Stories from the Region,” which introduced UMD and elementary school students to selected works of Caribbean literature and produced a steelpan musical.
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The Gildenhorn Institute for Israel Studies hosted Ron Dermer, Israel’s ambassador to the United States, for its seventh annual Richard and Elizabeth Dubin lecture to discuss his book, “The Case for Democracy: The Power of Freedom to Overcome Tyranny and Terror.”
Stanley Plumly, distinguished university professor of English, serves as poet laureate for the state of Maryland.
The Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center commissioned the spoken word piece, “The Battle of and for the Black Face Boy,” written by National Book Award winner Nikky Finney, to open community discussions about race and the impact of the Civil War on the United States.
INNOVATION IN THE ARTS & HUMANITIES
Trevor Munoz, associate director of MITH and assistant dean for digital humanities research for the UMD Libraries, received the 2014 National Digital Stewardship Alliance Individual Innovation Award from the Library of Congress.
Kari Kraus, associate professor in the Department of English and the College of Information Studies, is part of an NSF-funded interdisciplinary team responsible for designing and developing the alternative reality game “Dust,” which seeks to help teens ages 13-17 develop STEM skills.
James Ross, professor of conducting and director of orchestral activities, partnered with choreographer Liz Lerman ’70 to explore music and movement in “Music, Movement, Mind, and Score: A Course in Improvisation, Collaboration, and Art Making” to generate new possibilities for music performance.
— FROM FINNEY’S INTRODUCTION TO “THE
BATTLE OF AND FOR THE BLACK FACE BOY”
