April 12, 2019
A newsletter for students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends
U.S. Army illustration
Military drone competition to feature UMES engineering students University of Maryland Eastern Shore engineering students have earned a spot to compete against 10 other schools in the inaugural HBCU/MI Design Competition sponsored by the U.S. Army Combat Capabilities Development Command (CCDC) later this month. The team includes four seniors, three of whom currently are employed ahead of graduation: Kyle Baumann (Hardwire - Pocomoke City), Robert Perez (Naval Air Systems Command - southern Maryland) and Ethan Hitch (Northrup Grumman -Wallops Island, Va.). Aerospace engineering seniors Crista Campbell, certified pilot Scott Hogan and
pilot coach Edward Brink round out the team. Dr. Payam Matin, an engineering professor, said the students answered a call this past fall for proposals to design drones capable of addressing the following challenges: eliminating wire bundles in an innovative way in small drones and seeking a way to replace unmanned aerial vehicle parts with biologically-based materials. The UMES team received an $8,000 grant to underwrite the cost to build the “quad-copter” (four propellers) and travel to the competition that will be held at the University of Texas at El Paso. The national competition is a component of the CCDC’s commitment to Historically Black Colleges and Universities and Minority-serving Institutions. DRONES / continued on page 2
Shore trio among 2019 Award of Excellence winners
66th annual convocation honors 759 undergraduates Three undergraduates from the lower Eastern Shore were among four UMES students singled out for stellar work inside and outside the classroom during the university’s 2019 honors convocation. Peers applauded approvingly as Allyson McCullough of Crisfield (Pharmacy and Health Professions), Katherine Lipsius of Cambridge (Agriculture and Natural Sciences), Martha Opiyo of Nairobi, Kenya (Education, Social Sciences, and The Arts), and Cailey Mitchell of Ocean City (Business and Technology) stepped on to the Fitzgerald center stage to receive their Award of Excellence.
INSIDE
EXCELLENCE / continued on page 2
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Honors convocation; drone competition cont.
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Dr. King to speak at spring graduation
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Somerset gets natural gas pipeline OK
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Student thespians; 1890 researchers
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Baseball’s big comeback, and more
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Mosely debuts juried art show
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Arts & Entertainment Calendar
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The Key / April 12, 2019
Circling the Oval
EXCELLENCE / continued from cover
As is the tradition at UMES, none of the women knew the deans of their respective academic divisions had chosen them to receive the coveted award. All four are dean’s list students in the Richard A. Henson Honors Program, and each is on track to graduate with high honors. Mitchell, a (4.0 GPA) hospitality tourism management major; Lipsius, a (4.0) biology major; and Opiyo, a (3.96) applied design (sequential arts) major, graduate in May. McCullough, a (3.9) exercise science major, is a member of the class of 2020. They were among 759 undergraduates publicly recognized for strong academic performances during the spring and fall of 2018. Opiyo came to America to study at Union College in Kentucky. After her freshman year, she was coaxed to transfer to Princess Anne by Dr. Grace Namwamba, her aunt and chairperson of UMES’ human ecology department. “I’m so happy I did,” Opiyo said. “It has been a wonderful experience here at UMES. This was the right place for me.” It was difficult to tell who was happier after the 1-hour 45-minute ceremony. “I’m so proud of her,” a beaming Namwamba said. Lipsius, a first-generation college student enrolled in UMES after studying first at Chesapeake College, a two-year institution in Wye Mills, Md. She’s hopeful of securing a National Institutes of Health fellowship and then pursuing a post-graduate degree in the health field. McCullough, known for her wanderlust for work-study opportunities, described herself as humbled by winning the award in a school with a lot of “great students. I try to work hard.” Post-
graduation plans include pursuit of a Fulbright scholarship that would enable her to teach English in a Spanish-speaking country for a year before tackling a graduate program in physical therapy.
Mitchell, a soft-spoken, hard-working student admired for her organizational skills, is hopeful of landing a job “in the food and beverage industry. My preference would be to focus on the catering business.” Two factors influenced Mitchell’s decision to enroll at UMES; a scholarship offer from the Henson honors program and deep respect for Caitlyn Evans, a UMES alumna who teaches at Worcester Technical High School and recommended the university to her. “Every late night, every hospitality event and all the preparation work that went into them – I guess you could say it paid off … in a big way,” Mitchell said. “It shows that all I put in was recognized.” Alexandra Alford, a 2015 UMES alumna who has added two master’s degrees to her credentials and works for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, was surprised to be invited to serve as the convocation speaker. “I want to help you … understand just how important it is to come out of your comfort zone and challenge yourself to something new,” she said, adding “those moments so often lead to success and opportunities.” “All of the things I didn’t feel comfortable with have led to me where I am now,” Alford said. “This never even crossed my mind before, but here I am recognizing all of the challenges I accepted and all of the times I stepped out of my comfort zone were noticed.” Alford called on students in the audience “to step out of your comfort zone, continue to challenge yourself to do something you never thought was possible. You never know who may be paying attention, and to what success it may be leading you to.”
team would be participating in the inaugural competition. “It’s great to be a part of this cool project and seeing the practices in class applied to testing the operation of the prototype,” she said. The team’s solutions to the proposed challenges will be evaluated and their drone will fly in the Sun Bowl Stadium in El Paso. A panel of judges will evaluate each entry based
on “the ability to describe their solution, how the prototype addresses the challenges, success of demonstration, and how the prototype could be commercialized for Army use,” according to CCDC officials. “I am very excited to see them compete against their peers,” Dr. Matin said. “This is a great opportunity (that) will help them grow.” The competition takes place April 23 and 24.
DRONES / continued from cover
“We are proud to host the inaugural HBCU/ MI Design Competition and garner insight from our nation’s future innovators,” said Maj. Gen. Cedric T. Wins, CCDC commander. “This would be impossible without my UMES education,” Perez said. “Participating as a member of this team allows our work to be recognized outside of the classroom.” Campbell expressed surprise when told the
UMES People
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1894 alumna’s grandson to speak at spring commencement Dr. John B. King Jr., the youngest grandchild of one of the University of Maryland Eastern Shore’s earliest graduates, will deliver the 2019 spring commencement address to graduates Friday, May 24. King was scheduled to speak at UMES’ 2018 Founders’ Day Convocation and summer commencement, but the threat of Hurricane Florence prompted Maryland’s governor to declare a state of emergency as a precaution. University leaders subsequently postponed the Sept. 13 ceremony, which created a schedule conflict for King. King is president and chief executive of The Education Trust, a national nonprofit organization that seeks to identify and close opportunity and achievement gaps for students from preschool through college. He previously served in President Barack Obama’s cabinet as the 10th U.S. Secretary of Education. The ceremony will be held in the William P. Hytche Athletic Center starting at 10 a.m. His paternal grandmother Estelle Stansberry graduated in 1894 from Princess Anne Academy when it was a secondary school affiliated with Baltimore’s Morgan College. The college’s 1893-94 catalogue identified her as the winner of Princess Anne Academy’s “declamation” prize, an oratorical competition for which she received $5. Stansberry went on to become a nurse at a Philadelphia hospital that one of her sons eventually led as an administrator. King’s father, John Sr., was the first black principal in Brooklyn, N.Y. who eventually became New York City’s executive deputy superintendent of schools. Adalinda, his mother, was a guidance counselor. Both of his parents died by the time he was 12.
He credits his parents’ peers — particularly educators at Public School 276 in Brooklyn’s Canarsie neighborhood and at Mark Twain Junior High School in Coney Island — for saving his life by providing “rich and engaging educational experiences” that gave him hope for the future. King earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in government from Harvard University, a law degree from Yale Law School, a Master of Arts in teaching (social studies) and a doctorate in education from Teachers College at Columbia University. He taught high school in Puerto Rico and then in Boston, where 20 years ago he helped found a charter school in one of the city’s poorer neighborhoods. He replicated that model five years later in New York, where as an administrator he helped launch a network of charter schools by drawing on his experiences at Boston’s Roxbury Prep. From 2011 until 2014, King was state Commissioner of Education in New York, the first person of African American and Puerto Rican descent to hold that post. Before succeeding Arne S. Duncan as the Obama administration’s education secretary in March 2016, he was the federal agency’s senior deputy administrator responsible for policies and programs affecting pre-school through grade 12 education, English learners, special education and innovation. King is a visiting professor at the University of Maryland’s College of Education and a member of several boards, including The Century Foundation, The Robin Hood Foundation and Teach Plus.
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The Key / April 12, 2019
School News
Maryland OK’s natural gas supplier to serve Somerset County
The days of burning fuel oil and propane to power heating and cooling systems on the University of Maryland Eastern Shore campus appear to be numbered. Two state environmental agencies announced in late March that Chesapeake Utilities has been chosen to install a pipeline in central Somerset County that will provide UMES and a medium-security state prison for men near Westover access to natural gas service. “The university is pleased to welcome this new opportunity for our campus to be more environmentally friendly,” President Heidi M. Anderson said. “UMES thanks Governor (Larry) Hogan and the Maryland Environmental Service for their work to make Maryland cleaner and greener.” Still to be worked out are details for converting UMES’ four dozen buildings to natural gas – and how that conversion will be financed. The latter will be in collaboration with the University System of Maryland, which has the lead role crafting member institutions’ capital expenditure and operating budgets that require state lawmakers’ approval. The state has been working to expand alternative energy options such as natural gas to residents and businesses across Maryland, according to Maryland Environmental Service, which will oversee the Somerset project. “This project serves as an important transition to a much more environmentally sustainable and efficient method of operation, and an investment to spur further regional economic development,” said Roy McGrath, the agency’s CEO and chairman.
UMES poised to further reduce its carbon footprint
Chesapeake Utilities was selected following a lengthy, competitive procurement process coordinated by Maryland Environment Service in partnership with the Maryland Energy Administration, the state Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services, UMES and the University System of Maryland. “This project will create jobs while bringing lower energy prices to the residents and businesses on the Eastern Shore,” said Dr. Mary Beth Tung, the Maryland Energy Administration’s director. “It will also significantly reduce the carbon footprint for both facilities and provide a pathway
forward for clean natural gas,” “Cleaner energy is the key to an improved environment and for expanded economic development for the residents of the Eastern Shore,” Tung said. UMES opened a 17-acre solar-panel grid in the spring of 2011 on the east side of campus that generates 12-to-14 percent of the university’s electrical energy needs. The Engineering and Aviation Science Complex, the university’s newest classroom building, relies on a network of 250 geothermal wells for heating and cooling. “This project demonstrates the state of Maryland’s commitment to finding the most environmentally responsible and efficient methods of supplying power to our facilities,” added Michael Ziegler, acting secretary of the state corrections agency that runs Eastern Correctional Institution.
School News
A Month for One-Acts
Peers recognize Parveen for her research track record
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UMES students performed three one-act plays the final weekend in March inspired by Women’s History Month. Audiences nestled into the intimate setting of Wilson Hall’s Black Box Theatre for performances that were “linked together through a progression from disenfranchisement to emancipation,” said Dr. Dean Cooledge, English department chair. Students brought to life “I Dream Before I Take the Stand” by Arlene Hutton, “Anger Management” by Lindsay Prince, and “Poof!” by Lynn Nottage. “In ‘I Dream Before I Take the Stand,’ the woman’s words are used against her, as the lawyer constantly rewrites her narrative,” Cooledge said. “In ‘Poof!,’ Loureen is finally emancipated from her abusive husband. The linchpin connecting the two is a line in ‘Anger Management,’ spoken by Ophelia: ‘I never had one single, solitary thought to myself when I was alive.’ The plays show women’s struggles to find their own voice,” said Cooledge. Cast Members included: Marie Hassan, Miles Nordt, Chiamaka Copeland, Shakuria Davis, Savannah Hackley and Crystal Richards.
Fourteen students and 30 faculty and staff attended the Association of 1890 Research Directors’ 19th Research Symposium (March 30-April 3), where acting Provost Rondall E. Allen reported that presentations by members of UMES’ delegation were well-received. Dr. Salina Parveen received the organization’s coveted Morrison-Evans award, the oldest and highest honor given to a scientist from a historically black land-grant institution. On April 11, Parveen gathered in a second honor when she received the 2019 Faculty Award for Excellence in Research/Scholarship/Creative Activities from the University System of Maryland’s governing board. “This is truly a testament to the high quality and productivity of UMES faculty,” President Heidi M. Anderson said. Graduate students Jocelyn Simmons won first-place honors in the Plant Health and Production and Plant Products category while Wendy Attuquayefio placed second in the Animal Health and Production and Animal Products category. “These students epitomize the high quality of talent being nurtured at UMES to fulfill the workforce needs of the nation,” Anderson said. Other featured presenters at the biennial symposium from UMES were graduate students Chantelle White and Joseph Haymaker. The event is the premier conference for 1890 land-grant universities that this year attracted nearly 1,000 participants from the fields of agricultural, food, human and natural resource sciences research.
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The Key / April 12, 2019
MEAC tournament star Chloe Skurzynski is one of 24 collegiate bowlers who has qualified to compete April 16-17 in the United States Bowling Congress’ Intercollegiate Singles Championship in Dayton, Ohio. The Carlisle, Pa. freshman will remain in Dayton April 18-20 to participate in the USBC Intercollegiate Team Championship after the seventhranked Hawks won the New Jersey qualifying tournament the second weekend in March.
Athletics
Tournament Bound!
Former UMES basketball player Bakari Copeland (#10) had a prominent, but non-speaking role in a GEICO commercial featuring broadcaster Ernie Johnson Jr. The insurance company rolled out the ad during the 2019 NCAA men’s championship tournament. Copeland was named to the 2017 All-Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference first team his senior year.
The Shore stuns The Mount with big comeback, doubleheader sweep For the first time in the 21st century, the University of Maryland Eastern Shore baseball team came back from a 10-run deficit to secure a 15-12 victory over Mount St. Mary’s University. In the second game of a doubleheader (April 3) against the Mountaineers in Emmitsburg, Md., the Hawks authored a second comeback - this time from just 3-2 down - to win 4-3 and nail down a sweep. “I’m not proud of the fact we were down by 10 runs, but our guys were awesome staying focused on the game.” head coach Brian Hollamon said. “It was a great team win and lots of different guys contributed to get the win.” The Hawks went deep into their roster to secure both wins. Down 11-1 after five, the Hawks rallied for seven in the sixth. Junior Blake Coleman and sophomore Peter Jamieson, Jr. plated two, each on RBI singles. Needing three to force a tie, freshman Michael Warley smacked a two-run home run - his first collegiate round tripper - to pull within one. Freshman Brantley Cutler followed with his first college triple, and junior Dwayne Marshall brought him home with a single to square the contest, 11-11. In the ninth, a single by sophomore Nick Roets scored Cutler to complete the comeback. Sophomores Brian Cordell and Dillon Oxyer added RBI knocks for insurance. The pitching of junior Johnny Franco and freshman Cory Poulsen helped the Hawks make the comeback. Franco went 2 1/2 innings with no earned runs and Poulsen earned his first win as an Eastern Shore pitcher with two innings of relief.
In game two, Oxyer doubled home a run in the first and Cutler hit a sacrifice fly in the fourth for a 2-0 lead. But the Mountaineers scored three times in the fifth to take the lead. Needing another comeback, the Hawks quickly loaded the bases, spearheaded by junior Devynn Hancock’s single. With one out, Roets took a 3-1 pitch in the back for a painful but rewarding gametying RBI. Oxyer singled to lead off the seventh and reached third on a senior Carson Davis fly ball. With Cutler batting, a pitch got by The Mount’s catcher to allow the Hawks to go ahead. Freshman Chris Sanders held the Mountaineers from scoring in the final two innings despite inheriting a leadoff triple in the sixth and giving up a leadoff double in the seventh. He got the win - also his first as a Hawk - which was set up by freshman starter Cameron Bratton, who held the Mountaineer hitless for the first four innings. Cordell, Cutler and Oxyer led the offense with four hits each, with Oxyer adding three RBI’s and Cordell and Cutler scoring three times. Hancock was also efficient, going 3-for-6 on the afternoon. The sweep improved UMES’ record to 8-24 at the start of April.
School News
The Key / April 12, 2019
Juried Art Show Raises the Bar The University of Maryland Eastern Shore’s Mosely Gallery was the scene for an April 4 opening reception of a juried art show featuring nine undergraduate artists. The competition was open to all students and images of their artwork were submitted to Salisbury University Gallery Manager Tara Gladden, who selected the final pieces. The grand prize winner was senior Mariah Terry (Black Girl Magic); second place went The artwork will be on display to senior Freda Hill (Greed); and in the gallery located in the the third place winner was freshman Thomas and Briggs Arts and Dominique Carrington (Fashion Technology building through Queen). The winners won gift cards Thursday, May 2. The gallery for art supplies (1st prize - $200, 2nd is open Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. prize - $100 and 3rd prize - $50). Freshman Nate Nibblett (Unremitting Spirit) and sophomore Elijah Harmon (Inner Me) received honorable mentions for their artwork. Many gallery visitors noted the variety and quality of student artwork on display. “The event was well attended by individuals across campus and in the community. People enjoyed reading the student artists’ statements to gain more appreciation,” said UMES Department of Fine Arts faculty member Susan Holt. “I think this event raises the bar.”
Photo credit: Janay McIntosh
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APRIL
MAY
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Springfest
11 a.m. - 4 p.m., Student Services Center Courtyard UMES Open House and Carnival. Prices for food determined by visiting vendors. 410-651-6411 (Admissions) 410-651-6434 (Carnival)
Community Players of Salisbury*
2 p.m., Ella Fitzgerald Center for Performing Arts The community theater company presents “Love, Loss and What I Wore,” a one-act play of monologues and ensemble pieces about women, clothes and memory covering all the important subjects. All tickets are $10. Call 410-546-0099
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Art Exhibit Opening Reception 4-6 p.m., Mosely Gallery “Senior Show” UMES spring graduates in the Department of Fine Arts display their work. Show on display through May 23. 410-651-7770 or visit www.moselygallery.com
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UMES Jazz and Pop Concert
Written by Nora Ephron and Delia Ephron Based on the book by Ilene Beckerman
UMES Concert Choir Performance
4 p.m., Ella Fitzgerald Center for Performing Arts UMES Concert Choir presents “Motown to Madrigals,” a program spanning the ages with a special tribute to Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul. 410-651-6572
7 p.m. Ella Fitzgerald Center for the Performing Arts The UMES Jazz and Popular Music Program presents The 2nd Annual Ella Fitzgerald Jazz Celebration, a jazz and pop concert paying tribute to the “First Lady of Song. 410-621-1514
The Key / April 12, 2019
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